Performance Management: A Propeller towards Effective Service Delivery and Good Governance

Posted: 23 March 2018

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The local government inaugural annual performance management seminar was held on Thursday, 22 March 2018 at Birchwood hotel and OR Tambo conference centre under the theme " Performance Management: A Propeller towards Effective Service Delivery and Good Governance”. The seminar was attended by approximately 600 delegates across South African Municipalities. The seminar also brought together industry thought leaders in the performance management sector as well as esteemed speakers from municipalities, government, and academic institutions.

The speakers included Mr Rio Nolutshungu - Executive Director for Municipal Institutional Development at SALGA; Mr Thembelani Vanqa - Senior Manager at Auditor General SA; Ms Lelane Janssen Van Rensburg - Executive Manager at Productivity SA. Five speakers from Stellenbosch University: School of Public Leadership (SPL) comprised of Dr Zwelinzima Ndevu - Academic head; Dr Marthinus Van der Merwe - Lecture; Dr Nimrod Liewellyn Mortimer – supervisor for masters and PhD students; Mrs June Wirth – Specialist in HR management advisory and Mr Attie Butler – Pioneer of PMS and shared services in Local Government.

All speakers concurred with the fact that organisational culture has an impact on performance management and productivity of its employees. In his opening and   explaining the value proposition of the local government performance management seminar Mr Nolutshungu said “municipalities are responsible in delivering services to citizens however they need to professionalize their systems, structures and process through performance management”

Therefore each municipality is legally required to develop a performance system that will enhance organisational efficiency and effectiveness, account for the use of municipal resources and indicate the achievement of outcomes, “Performance Management is the interplay of finding the balance between the organisation's strategic direction, the organisation culture and key responsibilities,” explained Mr Thembelani Vanqa. Furthermore, it is important to move away from the culture of measuring Performance Management on a yearly basis.

According to Dr Marthinus Van der Merwe "organisational and individual performance must be linked" and if possible, "information should be automated by means of the ICT systems of the municipality. “When setting the right targets for your KPI's ensure that targets are absolute and in proportional/percentages. Targets further need to be defined relative to the internal and external benchmarks, as well as relative to global best practice It is vital to note that performance is not always about the result, but it is also on how you get to the result and how effective are we doing things to get the result.