Pub­lic Ma­na­ge­ment

Results-based management is no longer a foreign concept in public administration. For a number of years, various public sector institutions have been pursuing New Public Management as a core reform initiative. The goal is to replace the current, input-oriented management model. Our successful public sector projects show that when introducing management and controlling approaches, enough time must be provided for the desired changes to take root. Many individual aspects have to be taken into account, e.g.:

• formulating a strategic direction,
• defining a concrete management model,
• constructing systems of target and performance indicators,
  designing structures and processes,
• developing the content and processes of the management toolkit,
• in particular: designing planning and reporting,
• training managers and staff to provide additional business skills,
• developing incentive, target agreement and performance appraisal systems.

The main challenge lies in specifying coordinated management approaches for public institutions. There are no silver bullets, there’s no “one size fits all”. However, it is possible to identify some success factors that help support the introduction of results-based management:

• Develop clear objectives: what is the future vision for the public institution? How are policies operationalised? Are there realistic expectations of the likelihood of success?
• Ensure executive support: how can the political stakeholders be persuaded of the need to introduce results-based management? At which point does the organisation commit to the initiative?
• Design the management model: how is the management logic designed to ensure it aligns with the public institution’s task and process type? Has a common understanding of management been achieved? Which management elements are at the centre of attention at which point in time, and how are they linked?
• Create transparency: which information is needed to give an accurate representation of the administration’s performance for management purposes? How should reporting be structured and which tools and technical processes are employed to boost transparency?
• Manage change: how are changes implemented in the organisation? Which approach is used to redefine priorities and tasks, clarify unclear responsibilities and introduce performance-related incentives? 

CTcon’s consultants will help you find answers to these questions and assist you in reaching your objectives. They help develop strategic and operational goals, provide support in anchoring the management model, drive required process and structural changes, and design effective and efficient processes, tools and procedures. CTcon's offering includes incentive and evaluation systems as well as management and staff training.