Showing papers on "Performance management published in 2006"

Pay without Performance Overview of the issues

Abstract: Executive Overview In a recent book, Pay without Performance: The Unfulfilled Promise of Executive Compensation, Bebchuk and Fried critique existing executive pay arrangements and the corporate governance processes that produce them. They also put forward proposals for improving both executive pay and corporate governance. This paper provides an overview of the main elements of their critique and proposals. The authors show that, under current legal arrangements, boards cannot be expected to contract at arm's length with the executives whose pay they set. They discuss how managers' influence can explain many features of the executive compensation landscape, including ones that researchers subscribing to the arm's-length contracting view have long considered as puzzling. The authors also explain how managerial influence can lead to inefficient arrangements that generate weak or even perverse incentives, as well as to arrangements that make the amount and performance-insensitivity of pay less transparent. F...

Performance management in the public sector

Abstract: Education supply in universities of most European countries has for the last ten years become a strategic matter. At present, French universities consider education supply as an investment. But they do not utilize all incentive mechanisms in order to drive their strategies. At the beginning of the year 2006, the public sector reform will tend to impose performance measurements of research and educational activities, in order to improve organizational efficiency. The aim of this reform in the French context is to provide driving elements to increase internal efficiency, social and economic impact of higher education system and to reinforce international attractiveness of public education institutions. The substitution of resources management by result management involves an agent's performance responsibility measurement. Evaluation becomes a central factor and is articulated with incentives system. The weakening of the property right system drives project bearers to maximize their utility instead of their incomes. In such a context, the understanding of individual strategies permits to understand constraints of management within universities, and to take into account the impact of stakeholders who take part in the value generation process. The major risk is to constraint the utility function of projects bearers by increasing their burden and their motivation. The result could be the limitation of the number of projects, and as well, the decreasing of university investments.

Performance Appraisal, Performance Management and Improving Individual Performance: A Motivational Framework

Abstract: Performance appraisal has been the focus of considerable research for almost a century. Yet, this research has resulted in very few specific recommendations about designing and implementing appraisal and performance management systems whose goal is performance improvement. We believe that a reason for this is that appraisal research became too interested in measurement issues and not interested enough in ways to improve performance, although some recent trends in the area have begun moving the field in the right direction. We review these trends and their genesis, and propose a motivational framework as a means of integrating what we have learned and generating proposals for future research that focus on employee’s performance improvement.

Performance Management in Practice: A Comparative Study of Executive Agencies

Abstract: This article reports a study of performance management practices in four functions across four European Union member states (Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom). The focus is on how and to what extent performance indicators influenced the top management of the agencies concerned and the degree to which performance data were used by ministries as steering instruments. The research uses a historical institutionalist perspective combined with a model that identifies primary task characteristics as a source of significant variation. Thus the design explores both the influence of task characteristics (through contrasts among the four different functions) and embedded national system characteristics (through contrasts among the four countries). I show that both primary task characteristics and national system characteristics had some of the theoretically predicted effects on the management regimes. Equally, however, certain general tendencies embraced all countries and most functions. These include, first, the incremental growth of more sophisticated performance indicator systems and, second, the feebleness of ministries in developing performance-based strategic steering.

Program Evaluation and Performance Measurement: An Introduction to Practice

Abstract: CHAPTER 1: KEY CONCEPTS AND ISSUES IN PROGRAM EVALUATION AND PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT Introduction A Typical Program Evaluation: Assessing the Neighbourhood Integrated Service Team Program in Vancouver What is a Program? Key Concepts In program evaluation Key Evaluation Questions Formative and Summative Program Evaluations Ex Ante and Ex Post Program Evaluations Analyzing Cause and Effect Linkages in Program Evaluations The Process of Conducting a Program Evaluation Summary Discussion Questions for Chapter 1 References for Chapter 1 CHAPTER 2: UNDERSTANDING AND APPLYING PROGRAM LOGIC MODELS Introduction A Basic Logic Modelling Approach Logic Models That Categorize and Specify Intended Causal Linkages Applying the Framework for Constructing Logic Models Flow Charts Constructing Program Logics in Program Evaluations Program Technologies Program Objectives, Program Environments, and Organizational Objectives Strengths and Limitations of Program Logics Summary Discussion Questions Appendix 1: Applying What You Have Learned in Chapter Two: Developing a Logic Model for the Compass Program Answer Key References for Chapter 2 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH DESIGNS FOR PROGRAM EVALUATIONS Introduction What is Research Design? Why Pay Attention to Experimental Designs? Using Experimental Designs to Evaluate Programs: The ELmira Nurse Home Visitation Program Establishing Validity in Research Designs Defining and Working with the Four Kinds of Validity Testing the Causal Linkages in Program Logic Models Research Designs and Performance Measurement Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 3 CHAPTER 4: MEASUREMENT IN PROGRAM EVALUATION Introduction Measurement Procedures Illustrating Measurement Terminology Measurement Validity Levels of Measurement Units of Analysis Sources of Data in Program Evaluations and Performance Measurement Systems Using Surveys to Estimate the Incremental Effects of Programs Survey Designs and Research Designs Validity of Measures and the Validity of Causes and Effects Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 4 CHAPTER 5: APPLYING QUALITATIVE EVALUATION METHODS Introduction Comparing and Contrasting Different Approaches to Qualitative Evaluation Qualitative Evaluation Methods: Some Basics Structuring Qualitative Program Evaluations The Credibility and Generalizability of Qualitative Findings Connecting Qualitative Evaluation Methods to Performance Measurement The Power of Case Studies Summary Discussion Questions CHAPTER 6: ASSESSING THE NEED FOR PROGRAMS Introduction What Are Needs? Benchmarking Needs: Criteria for Establishing the Existence and Magnitude of Needs Steps in Conducting Needs Assessments The St. Columba Collaboration Project: Needs Assessment in a Newark Neighborhood Summary Discussion Questions Appendix: Designing a Needs Assessment for a Small Non-Profit Organization References for Chapter 6 CHAPTER 7: CONCEPTS AND ISSUES IN ECONOMIC EVALUATION Introduction Three Types of Economic Evaluation Economic Evaluation in the Performance Management Cycle Historical Developments in Economic Evaluation Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Cost-Utility Analysis Cost-Benefit Analysis Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Example: A Study of Falls Prevention Among the Elderly Strengths and Limitations of Economic Evaluation Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 7 CHAPTER 8: PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT AS AN APPROACH TO EVALUATION Introduction Growth of Performance Measurement Metaphors That Support and Sustain Performance Measurement Comparing Program Evaluation and Performance Measurement Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 8 CHAPTER 9 DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS Introduction Key Steps in Designing and Implementing a Performance Measurement System Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 9 CHAPTER 10: USING AND SUSTAINING PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS Introduction Comparing Ideal and Real Organizations: The Role of Organizational Politics in Designing and Implementing Performance Measurement Systems Intended Uses of Performance Measurement Systems Actual Uses of Performance Measurement Problems and Issues in Implementing and Sustaining Performance Measurement Systems Summary Discussion questions References for Chapter 10 CHAPTER 11: PROGRAM EVALUATION AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT: JOINING THEORY AND PRACTICE Introduction Can Management and Evaluation Be Joined? Prospects for Building Cultures That Support Evaluation Learning Organizations as Self-Evaluating Organizations Can Program Managers Evaluate Their Own Programs? How Should Evaluators Relate to Managers: Striving for Objectivity in Program Evaluations Can Program Evaluators Be Objective? Criteria for Best Practices in Program Evaluation: Assuring Stakeholders that Evaluations Are High Quality Ethics and evaluation practice Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 11 CHAPTER 12: THE NATURE AND PRACTICE OF PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT IN PROGRAM EVALUATION Introduction The Nature of the Evaluation Enterprise Professionalism and Evaluation Practice Understanding Professional Judgment Improving Professional Judgment in Evaluation Practice Evaluation as a Craft: Implications for Professionalizing Evaluation Teamwork and Professional Judgment Summary Discussion Questions References for Chapter 12

Service orientation and performance: an organizational perspective

Abstract: Purpose – With the growing interest in service orientation research, the concept has been demonstrated to be a defining factor in the creation of superior customer service and value. The purpose of the paper is to evaluate service orientation as a socially constructed variable, empirically examine its relationship with measures of organization performance, and offer implications for management.Design/methodology/approach – This study was conducted to conceptualize and measure service orientation as an element of organizational culture, understand the linkage between service orientation as a strategic choice and organizational performance, and measure service orientation utilizing a multi‐informant approach.Findings – The data indicated that organizational service orientation in banking is positively correlated with employee commitment, longevity, and esprit de corps, consumer products performance, service quality image, and banking profitability.Research limitations/implications – The study had five princ...

Dynamics of performance measurement and organizational culture

Abstract: Purpose – This research paper aims to model the dynamic relationship between performance measurement, management styles and organisational culture, in order to develop a better understanding of the causal linkages between these three areas.Design/methodology/approach – The related literature on performance measurement, management control systems and management information systems, in the context of organisational culture, is examined and a framework for mapping the interplay of the three areas is developed. The research is based around five case studies where performance measurement systems were implemented in action research programmes, using identical implementation methods, by the same research team. The use of the performance measurement systems was then observed over a period of time in relation to the implementation lifecycle, changes to management style and organisational structure over time. The dynamic relationships were then mapped using the framework developed. Patterns were observed, which led...

Collaborative performance management: present gaps and future research

Abstract: Purpose – To identify gaps in current research concerning the critical issues, threats and opportunities in the design of a system for managing performance in collaborative enterprises; and to define a performance management research agenda.Design/methodology/approach – An interdisciplinary study examines performance management from different disciplinary perspectives with the purpose of giving insights into the area, which is currently not sufficiently explained. Three sources of knowledge are investigated: scientific literature; practitioners' magazines; and research project reports.Findings – There is a lack of understanding of what collaboration means and what it implies on the development of appropriate performance measurement systems. Future research should study the nature of collaboration and the characteristics of performance indicators to support it.Research limitations/implications – The selection of the disciplines to be investigated and knowledge sources to be searched is based on the authors...

The match between motivation and performance management of health sector workers in Mali

Abstract: Human resources for health (HRH) play a central role in improving accessibility to services and quality of care. Their motivation influences this. In Mali, operational research was conducted to identify the match between motivation and the range and use of performance management activities. To describe the factors motivating and demotivating health workers in Mali and match the motivators with the implementation of performance management. First an exploratory qualitative study was conducted: 28 interviews and eight group discussions were held. This was followed by a cross-sectional survey, during which 370 health workers were interviewed. The study population consisted of health workers of eight professional groups. The following issues were investigated: • motivating and demotivating factors; • experiences with performance management, including: job descriptions, continuous education, supervision, performance appraisal and career development. The study showed that the main motivators of health workers were related to responsibility, training and recognition, next to salary. These can be influenced by performance management (job descriptions, supervisions, continuous education and performance appraisal). Performance management is not optimally implemented in Mali, as job descriptions were not present or were inappropriate; only 13% of interviewees received 4× per year supervision, and training needs were not analysed. Some 48% of the interviewees knew their performance had been appraised in the last two years; the appraisals were perceived as subjective. No other methods were in place to show recognition. The results enabled the research team to propose adaptations or improvements upon existing performance management. The results showed the importance of adapting or improving upon performance management strategies to influence staff motivation. This can be done by matching performance management activities to motivators identified by operational research.

Application of lean visual process management tools

Abstract: Visual process management tools have been developed by lean practitioners as communication aids and are used to help drive operations and processes in real time. Three case studies from aerospace companies describe the physical visual tools that have been implemented to facilitate performance measurement and communication in different engineering processes. Rolls Royce presents an example of how ERP outputs are communicated and controlled in a lean manufacturing process. At Airbus UK (Filton) visual process boards are used to manage a complex knowledge and people based process bringing together multiple supplier inputs in the production of aircraft maintenance manuals. Senior management at Weston Aerospace are using visual process control to run and report on work packages, resources and processes throughout their organisation. These systems act as an extension to metrics, and in themselves may be considered as a dynamic measurement system as they provide instant feedback and can be used to predict a prob...

System and method for defining attributes, decision rules, or both, for remote execution, claim set ii

Abstract: A system of the invention comprises a design module, execution engine, and performance management module. A first computer hosts the design module which enables a user to define attributes, queries, and decision rules transmitted to the execution engine hosted on a second computer remote to the first computer. The second computer can be located at a credit bureau, credit reporting agency, or other data provider. The second computer runs the execution engine to query a data repository with the user-defined attributes and queries, and applies the user-defined decision rules to produce result data transmitted to a third computer hosting the performance management module for monitoring performance of a benefit or offering made with the result data and the corresponding attributes, queries, and decision rules that generated the result data.

Measuring the Performance of the Hollow State

Abstract: IllustrationsAcknowledmentsAbbreviations and Acronyms 1. Introduction: Federal Performance Measurement 2. Setting the Stage: Third Parties, Fiscal Federalsim, and Accountability 3. Performance Measurement as Political and Administrative Reform 4. Performance as Grants to Third-Party Service Providers: The Health Resources and Services Administration 5.Performance as the Provision of Health Financial Security: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 6. Performance as Grants to Third Party Research Providers: The National Institutes of Health 7. Measuring the Health Performance of Sovereign Tribes as Third Parties: The Indian Health Service 8. Performance as Regulation: The Food and Drug Administration 9. Measuring Performance and Results in Theory and Practice 10. After the Government Performance and Results Act: Performance Measurement, Performance Budgeting, and Performance Management APPENDIXES A: Discussion Guide B: Science Advance from the National Institute of Mental Health FY2000 C: Science Capsule from the National Instistute of Mental Health FY2000 D: Stories of Discovery from the National Institute of Mental Health FY2001 E: The Conduct of Research References Index

The application of balanced scorecard in the performance evaluation of higher education

Abstract: Purpose – The Taiwanese higher education sector is presently facing a significant challenge with regard to supply and demand. The purpose of this paper is to examine how, in this scenario, the balanced scorecard (BSC) can be used for performance evaluation as a strategic management tool.Design/methodology/approach – This study is based on a case study that should carry appropriate mission and vision. With the existing resources and targets, five major strategic themes are constructed, including an adequate financial structure, an accord with customer expectations, an excellent learning environment, organisational learning and management, and high quality staff.Findings – To achieve strategic themes it is necessary to propose specific and effective strategic targets. To evaluate progress and performance towards these strategic themes and targets, quantified performance measure indicators (PMIs) must be established in a specific and simple manner that allows all staff members to understand the orientation o...

Strategic Management of the Health Care Supply Chain

Abstract: Foreword (Lawton Robert Burns). Preface. Acknowledgments. The Authors. Introduction: A Burning Platform for Change. 1. Framing and Repositioning Management of the Health Care Supply Chain. 2. Managing Supply Risk and Cost Reduction. 3. Internal Customer Relationship and Performance Management. 4. Group Purchasing Organizations: Shaping the Health Materials Marketplace. 5. Inventory and Distribution Process: The Search for Strategy. 6. Organizational Design for Hospital and Health Care System Supply Chains. 7. Levels of Development for the Health Care Supply Chain. 8. Building Supply Chain Leadership and Resources for the Future. Study 1: The Value of Group Purchasing in the Health Care Supply Chain. Study 2: Clinician, Supplier, and Buyer Working as One to Improve Patient Outcomes. Study 3: Metropolitan Hospital System-A Study of a Hybrid Organizational Design. Study 4: Office of Inspector General Advisory Opinion No. 05-06, February 2005. Notes. Index.

Performance Management In Practice – the Norwegian Way

Abstract: In this paper we will examine how the Norwegian system of performance management, Management-By-Objectives-And-Results (MBOR), has been adopted in civil service organizations. We will look at MBOR as a type of regulation within the state. There is a growing focus on self-regulation inside government used by a variety of public agencies that set standards and use different forms of performance management and compliance measures to audit government organizations’ work (Hood et al., 1999). We will examine how it is practiced by analyzing data from a comprehensive survey of state agencies. The main research questions are first, how the agencies perceive the performancemanagement system in practice, and second, how we can explain variations in performance-management practices between different agencies. MBOR is a performance-management tool encompassing three main components (Laegreid, 2001a). First, the leadership must formulate clear goals and targets and give subordinate bodies leeway and discretion in their daily work. This technique is based on the requirement that the objectives are precise, concrete, specific and hierarchically structured with primary and secondary objectives followed by performance indicators. They must be operational, consistent and stable in order to function as concrete and binding criteria for evaluation. Second, subordinate agencies must report on results using a well-developed system of performance indicators. Emphasis is given to the measurement of performance and in reporting information relating to the functions of the agencies. Improved methods for monitoring results and for measuring efficiency and goal achievement are needed. This includes

Performance measurement in tourism: a value chain model

Abstract: Purpose – The tourism industry consists of various players and tourism demand is met by the joint efforts of these players. However, it seems that there is no attempt in the tourism management literature proposing frameworks or models, which can assist the tourism companies, evaluate and control the overall tourism value chain. This paper attempts to show the usability of value chain concept in the tourism industry to manage and measure the value chain processes.Design/methodology/approach – A tourism value chain model with four stages; win order, pre‐delivery support, delivery, and post‐delivery support, is developed. A value chain performance measurement model for the tourism industry is suggested according to the value chain model developed.Findings – There is an opportunity to study the tourism industry as a value chain and to develop a value chain oriented performance management and measurement framework that would allow various players to communicate and coordinate their processes and activities in ...

Performance failure in the public sector: Misfortune or mismanagement?

Abstract: Central government in the UK has introduced procedures for assessing and categorizing the performance of public organizations. These procedures assume that performance is attributable to organizational decisions rather than external circumstances. This implies that mismanagement, rather than misfortune, is the primary cause of public service failure. We test this argument by developing a statistical model of the impact of internal characteristics and external constraints on service standards, using data from a range of secondary sources and a multiple informant survey in 120 English local authorities. We then apply this model to the results of the comprehensive performance assessment in English local government. The evidence shows that organizational failure is to some extent attributable to difficult circumstances (such as diverse service needs and poverty) and management characteristics (such as weak leadership and poor performance management). Thus performance failure is associated with both misfortune and mismanagement.

What gets measured gets done

Abstract: English secondary schools operate within a performance management system, which includes league tables reporting school performance across a number of indicators. This article reports the results of an interview-based study, showing that head teachers care about their school's place in the league tables, and that they believe this system affects behaviour. The effects they identify include some unintended consequences, not necessarily related to improved overall school performance, including focusing on borderline students who can boost a pivotal indicator: the number of students gaining five A*-Cs at GCSE. This behaviour reflects, in part, the dual role played by headteachers: they are both educationalists (serving the interests of all pupils); and school marketers, concerned with promoting the school to existing and prospective parents. The behaviour is also consistent with economic theory, which predicts a focus on that which is measured, potentially at the expense of that which is important, in sector...

Can high performance work systems really lead to better performance

Abstract: Purpose – This study presents a conceptual scheme concerning the core constituents of high‐performance work system (HPWS) and examines their effects on firm performance.Design/methodology/approach – This study proposes a conceptual scheme incorporating the universalistic and the configurational perspectives of strategic human resource management. The effect of HPWS on firm performance is empirically tested using data collected from publicly listed companies in Taiwan, as well as multinational companies' branch offices in Taiwan.Findings – Initial factor analysis on HPWS practices supports this conceptual scheme. Using the structural equation modeling technique (AMOS 4.0) better‐performing firms were found to invest in more sophisticated HRM practices, which further enhanced organizational performance.Research limitations/implications – Surveys conducted in other countries can expand the external validity of this study's findings.Originality/value – While most previous research on HPWS involves regression‐...

Performance management: Theory in practice?

Abstract: This paper reports the findings of a recent Australian study of performance management systems conducted by the School of Management at Curtin University of Technology, Perth, in association with t...

Organizational Learning and Performance: Understanding Indian Scenario in Present Global Context.

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show that the role of organizational learning is increasingly becoming crucial for organizational performance. Based on the study of three Indian global firms operating in National Capital Region of Delhi, India, this study explores the correlation of organizational learning with organizational performance in the Indian scenario.Design/methodology/approach – The sample of the study comprised of three Indian global organizations chosen through purposive sampling technique. A total of 100 senior managers were interviewed from these firms, out of which 72 were HR and 28 were line managers. The data collected from these managers were analyzed using SPSS 12 version.Findings – The paper finds that the organizational learning, which largely gets reflected through HRM activities, has a positive correlation with organizational performance.Research limitations/implications – The paper shows more samples from private, public and governmental Indian organizations could have m...

Taking initiative: Proactive management and organizational performance in networked environments

Abstract: While current research in network management focuses on establishing, empirically, that network management contributes positively to organizational performance, theoretical work remains to answer how network management induces positive organizational outcomes. Similarly, although the classical intraorganizational management perspective may seem unsuitable for today's multiorganizational environment, researchers should not abandon what classic organizational theory can offer as the perspective continues to shift. This article represents a first step toward bringing a proactive management perspective to bear on the empirical analysis of managerial activity and program performance, when operating within a networked environment. The goal is to enable researchers to see a clearer picture of how network management, particularly proactive management, influences organizational performance on a set of programmatic indicators. Public education provides the context for the investigation.

Paving the Way to the Vision of Digital Construction: A Strategic Roadmap

Abstract: The paper provides a synthesis of the construction industry needs and requirements in relation to the adoption and use of information and communication technologies (ICT). This is based, on the one hand, on existing research and technology development initiatives commissioned at a national and European level, and, on the other, on a wide consultation with construction industry key players across Europe. A framework, used as a basis for capturing industry requirements, and formulating an ICT vision, has been defined. Five priority areas have been identified with the potential to solve the ICT related problems of the construction industry, namely: knowledge management, legal and contractual aspects management, quality and performance management, total lifecycle management, and human aspects management. The ICT vision, enabled by addressing these priority areas, has been formulated on a consensus basis, and a detailed roadmap has been developed providing a pragmatic implementation of the proposed vision.

Implementing a new performance management system within a project‐based organization: A case study

Abstract: Purpose – The paper seeks to show that implementing change initiatives in organizations is extremely problematic, particularly in relation to human resource management (HRM) initiatives. The challenges inherent in implementing new HRM systems and procedures is arguably more acute in project‐based organizations where temporary teams and geographically dispersed employees render the coherent implementation of new systems and procedures problematic. This paper presents the findings of case study research in which the implementation of a new performance management system for improving individual project manager performance is evaluated. A framework is developed for guiding the implementation of similar change initiatives in other project‐based organizations.Design/methodology/approach – A longitudinal case study methodology was adopted for the study. This enabled the ways in which resistance to change was manifested, and to be explored, and the actions necessary to circumvent barriers to its use discerned. Th...

Professional development and the beginning teacher: issues of teacher autonomy and institutional conformity in the performance review process

Abstract: This paper presents an analysis of some interview data from a small qualitative study of beginning teachers in their second year of teaching and selected mentors. It explores the extent of the opportunities for their further professional development and considers how the key ‘actors’ in these schools perceive, and experience, their school systems for performance management, appraisal and the associated mentoring, in relation to beginning teachers' professional needs and development. Rippon and Martin [(2003) ‘Supporting induction: relationships count’, Mentoring and Tutoring, 11(2), 211–226] highlight a need for the mentor to help in the development of a professional identity for teaching in the first year of teaching. For our sample of second year teachers, our analysis indicates that the support systems in school do not encourage the new teachers to become self‐monitoring or critically reflective practitioners. Their professional development seems to be largely rooted in performance‐led school manageria...