Program performance management: a self-assessment/review checklist for managers.

• Author: Lilleyman, Peter

The Western Australian Treasury Department's program performance guidebook for managers includes a checklist that covers planning for program performance, resource management, performance monitoring and evaluation, and the performance management system.

The fundamental role of managers, whether individually or collectively, is to manage performance. In the Western Australian State public sector, accountability for this role is formalised by the Financial Administration and Audit Act 1985 and the Minister/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) performance agreements introduced by the Public Sector Management Act 1994. This accountability is reinforced by the practical requirements of workplace and enterprise bargaining agreements and financial management reforms such as one-line appropriations, "user charge" revenue retention by departments, competitive tendering and contracting, and benchmarking.

Agency performance management systems, whether for departments or independently legislated statutory authorities, must provide the information required by managers to continuously measure, monitor, evaluate, and improve program (or other organisational) performance. Notwithstanding requirements of some years standing for agencies to publicly report program objectives and key efficiency and effectiveness indicators in their annual reports and program achievements and planned achievements in the annual program statements budget paper, an independent commission reported in 1993 "... there exists very little in the way of operational reporting which relates required outputs to inputs. As a consequence, the process of continuous management review of performance is deficient, and an effective performance accountability process is lacking."(1)

In this context and an environment of approximately 100 budget sector agencies controlling more than 200 programs and 400 subprograms, members of the Financial Resource Management Improvement (FRMI) Division, Western Australian Treasury Department, prepared a 14-page booklet titled Program Performance Management - A Guide for Managers (June 1994), which includes a self-assessment/review checklist for program performance management. Since the initial distribution to government ministers and public-sector CEOs, further requests for copies have been received from a broad cross section of public- and private-sector organisations, with informal feedback from recipients being extremely positive to date.

The guide's primary aim is to encourage and assist agencies in the self-assessment/review of the effectiveness and efficiency of their program performance management systems. The easy-to-read, follow, and understand guide is suitable for everyday use by program and line managers and their staff. It comprises three parts:

* a summary of key issues relevant to program performance management presented in a key-point format useful for agencies' in-house training presentations;

* a self-assessment/review checklist; and

* an explanatory background information section outlining the four basic elements of program performance management: planning for program performance, resource management, performance monitoring and evaluation, and performance management systems.

The Guidebook: Key Issues

The following excerpts from the guidebook address key issues in performance management.

Performance management based on reliable...