Public Sector Performance Evaluation (Textbooks for Master of Public Administration (MPA) Series)

Author: Zhuoyue
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-11-01
Features: In recent years, Fujian Province has proposed a loud slogan called the "project-driven strategy" in the process of promoting in-depth economic development. In a certain sense, the author's research on public sector performance evaluation is also a result of the project-driven strategy. Although, having been engaged in teaching and research in public administration for over a decade, the author's research on such a brand-new topic as public sector performance evaluation can naturally be seen as a new strategic choice. And the specific implementation of this strategy is directly driven by projects. In 2001, the Siming District Government of Xiamen City and the research team led by the author worked together in good faith to develop a public sector performance evaluation project. The final goal of the project was to construct a set of indicators for public sector performance evaluation and to develop a set of application software for public sector performance evaluation. After three years of research efforts, the evaluation subjects expanded from the initial 5 pilot departments to 20 government departments, and the application software underwent three versions of upgrades. Currently, the project outcomes are being operated and used in Siming District and have been applied and promoted in some other relevant departments. In this process, learning by doing, exploring, and studying gradually formed a relatively systematic understanding of public sector performance evaluation. The first half of this book can be seen as the author's reflections and insights from three years of practical learning, while the second half is a review of three years of exploratory learning. If we trace back the origins, what was the driving mechanism three years ago when this project research was initiated? The author believes it is a need for theoretical learning and practical response, or in other words, it is called "keeping pace with the times."
From a theoretical perspective, it is generally believed that since the 1990s, performance evaluation has become the new theme of administrative development in various countries. The "Productivity Measurement Program for the Federal Government" issued by the United States in 1973 can be seen as an early experiment in public sector performance evaluation. In the early 1990s, "renewing government" became a new milestone in the development of public performance management in the United States, aligning with the deepening stage of reform. In 1993, the government established the National Performance Review (NPR) led by Vice President Gore. The same year, the GPRA was passed, requiring all federal agencies to use and develop performance evaluation techniques and report performance status to the public. In February 1997, the NPR held its first intergovernmental benchmarking seminar and established a cross-national performance evaluation research group, including 14 U.S. federal agencies, two local governments, six Canadian government agencies, and relevant British government agencies. The meeting issued the "Benchmarking Report on Customer Needs and Strategic Planning Best Practices," hoping to spark a new wave of performance evaluation.
Entering the 21st century, contemporary China should include performance evaluation in the focus of key research. From a practical perspective, the efficiency-building of government agencies in Fujian Province can be seen as an innovation in strengthening government self-management. The efficiency-building of government agencies is essentially public performance management, or in other words, it is the new public management movement with Chinese characteristics. And public sector performance evaluation is the indicator of the depth of efficiency-building. In 1997, Zhangzhou City in Fujian Province pioneered the pilot project of efficiency-building, which caused a strong response in society. In 2000, Fujian Province began to implement efficiency-building on a comprehensive scale. Efficiency-building started with the construction of administrative complaint centers, passing through stages such as government information disclosure, reform of government approval systems, comprehensive review of regulations and documents, and the "government service supermarket." Efficiency-building seeks administrative development by aligning the government with society and citizens, with the core of improving service quality, the standard of citizen satisfaction, and the basic orientation of building a service-oriented government. In recent years, the author has devoted a lot of effort to this reform movement while also carefully considering its development direction. Efficiency-building is a systematic project, and the reform itself must move toward deeper development. After several years of reform practice, how effective has it been? There is a need for an objective reflection mechanism and a driving mechanism that connects the upper and lower levels. Therefore, we believe that it is very necessary to carry out research on public sector performance evaluation at this time.
In recent years, the topic of public sector performance evaluation has attracted widespread attention from scholars and government officials in China. In June 2004, the Chinese Society of Public Administration, the editorial office of the journal China Public Administration, and the Siming District Government of Xiamen City jointly held an academic seminar on public sector performance management. The conference received 83 papers and had 120 formal representatives in attendance, including special guests, attending representatives, and representatives from news media and other relevant units, with over 200 people participating in the opening ceremony. Attendees included responsible officials from the National People's Congress Internal and Judicial Committee and eight ministries and commissions of the State Council, representatives from the Chinese Society of Public Administration and provincial administrative associations, experts and scholars from dozens of universities such as Peking University, Fudan University, Beijing Normal University, Xi'an Jiaotong University, and Xiamen University, representatives from 11 administrative academies (including party school systems) such as the National School of Administration, Fujian School of Administration, and Chongqing School of Administration, as well as practical workers from local governments and departments in Beijing, Fujian, Guangdong, Sichuan, and Shanxi provinces. It can be said that this is one of the largest and most influential academic conferences in the field of public management in recent years, reflecting from one side the direction of the development trend of public sector performance evaluation.
Public sector performance evaluation is an important topic in the field of public management today, as well as a global challenge. Implementing a project research and launching a book is merely the beginning of the research. The journey is long and arduous, requiring us to strengthen cooperation, promote exchanges, and continuously explore and learn in practice. This book consists of 11 chapters, with the main content including an introduction, the construction of models for public sector performance evaluation, informatization construction for public sector performance evaluation, the organization and implementation of public sector performance evaluation, the application of methods in public sector performance evaluation, psychological regulation in public sector performance evaluation, the systematic functions of public sector performance evaluation, performance evaluation in the U.S. public sector, performance evaluation in the U.K. public sector, performance evaluation in several developed countries, and the practice of public sector performance evaluation in several domestic regions. This book can serve as a textbook for required and elective courses in MPA programs, as well as for graduate and undergraduate students in public management disciplines and as a reference for professional courses in administrative colleges at all levels.