PP500: Public Administration and Management Unit 3 Professor Jamie Scripps

Housekeeping Grading schedule Feedback Questions?

Possible Interviewees me two names of possible interviewees for the final project. You do NOT need to do a face-to-face interview, and may conduct one over the phone if necessary.

Project Proposal – Unit 5 Before you conduct the interview, you will submit a short proposal to your instructor. Research the issues, policy concerns, or other current situations that are important to your chosen Public Administrator.

Project Proposal – Unit 5 More details available by clicking on the Unit 5 Orange Tab…

Questions?

Reading Assignment Chapter 10

Performance Management Emphasis on results measurement in government stems from concern about both the efficiency and effectiveness of programs.

Performance Management With resources becoming increasingly scarce, managers are required to demonstrate the measureable impact of their programs and the cost to achieve different levels of productivity.

Discussion Question Why are resources (a.k.a. taxpayer dollars) becoming more scarce?

Performance Management The Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993 was a major step to re-focus government officials from program “inputs” to program execution and measurement of results. Federal agencies are now being held accountable for measurable results, while at the same time being given more discretionary authority to implement programs.

Customer Service Standards A major conflict in the struggle for better performance management is pressure to improve service to diverse constituencies (some with minimal voices in the system) and accommodate pressure from politically influential individuals and well organized interest groups.

Customer Service Standards This conflict may cause long-term professional administrative values to be eclipsed by more politically attractive short term values. However, recent federal elections revealed that most citizens strongly support efforts to improve existing government agencies.

Discussion Question What difficulties might a public manager face when trying to implement new management techniques borrowed from the private sector?

Discussion Question If public administrators withdraw from direct contact with citizens by outsourcing or privatization, who is accountable to whom for what results?

Comparing Performance Management Strategies The performance management (PM) strategies of the Clinton-Gore administration (NPR) and the Bush administration (PMA) were similar in many respects in spite of the fact that they were implemented in different political environments.

NPR and PMA National Performance Review (NPR) President’s Management Agenda (PMA)

Comparing Performance Management Strategies Despite efforts to promote PM strategies, public agencies still face the dilemma of which strategy to employ, to what degree strategies should they be employed, and whether or not they should employ a hybrid of alternative strategies.

President Bush President Bush’s PMA stressed a top- down, market-based approach with the goals of:  Strategic management of human capital,  Competitive outsourcing and privatization,  Financial performance,  E-government and  The integration of performance evaluation with budgeting.

President Clinton President Clinton’s NPR focused on bottom-up, participatory approach with the goals of:  Employee empowerment,  Restructuring to do more with less,  Performance budgeting,  Enhanced use of information technology, and  Setting performance goals and customer service standards.

PMA vs. NPR Although PMA and NPR are similar in many respects, they differ in how the results data are used.

PMA vs. NPR The PMA focused on the identification of potential efficiencies through privatization, whereas NPR focused on how agency employees can sustain or improve results with limited resources. The Office of Management and Budget used PMA results to prepare agency scorecards, known as the Performance Assessment Rating Tool (PART). This approach has elicited mixed responses and its final impact remains undetermined.

Discussion Question Have reform efforts such as the NPR or PMA made any difference in public opinion about the productivity and effectiveness of government programs?

Importance of Performance Mgt. Public managers must pay greater attention to performance management strategies. For public administrators, failure to meet predetermined goals may result in significant changes to, or even elimination of, their programs.

Discussion Question In your opinion, which units of government have developed the capac-ity to measure performance? By what means do they achieve this goal? What new systems, tools, or techniques are required to manage performance?

Discussion Question What incentives can public administrators use to sustain these reforms after refocusing their mission and implementing performance management systems and techniques?

Discussion Question How will the customer service approach to government impact bureaucratic processes and relations with elected officials?

Questions?