Framework for a performance management system for municipalities

Abstract

It is imperative that all municipalities conform to their Integrated Development Plan (IDP) framework and develop a performance management system with specific and realistic measures. It is critical that the plan gets the support it requires from the top management. With a high-quality performance management process in place and the ability to develop a clear understanding of the environment, both internal and external, the municipality should be in a better position to respond efficiently and effectively to address the needs of their constituency. If there is a lack of strategic approach to the plan, then implementation will be difficult and problems and pressure will mount both inside the organisation and from outside. Performance management is multidimensional in nature. Any comprehensive performance management system should reflect this nature. This paper investigated the establishment of a framework for the development and implementation of a performance management system for a public institution more specifically a municipality. It seems, however, that the lack of an overarching performance management framework to manage, inputs, outputs and outcomes still hampers the broader South African Public Service. In its 'State of the Public Service Report' (2002), the Public Service Commission recommended that a performance management evaluation framework for the public service should be developed. Such a framework should comprise a number of components and provide best practice guidelines for performance budgeting and management and the promotion of monitoring and evaluation as a standard management practice. This paper is an attempt to highlight some of the critical considerations for such a framework. Guidelines are included to facilitate the development of a performance management system for a municipality.