Effectiveness of performance management system at the Development Engineering Department of eThekwini Municipality.

Abstract

Service delivery protests in the eThekwini Municipality has placed the organisation under much pressure to find solutions to improving service delivery. The Development Engineering Department of the eThekwini Municipality was developed as a strategic department of the eThekwini Municipality mandated to drive the processes of designing and implementing capital infrastructure projects that deliver services to communities and thus speed up service delivery. As the South African economy is highly labour intensive, it is employees that are the principal agents for delivering services. This makes it very important that employers create a work environment conducive to them reaching their full performance potential. It is thus vital that performance management systems are relevant and meet the task of aligning employee performance to organisational goals. This study, therefore, assessed the effectiveness of the performance management system at the Department of Development Engineering as perceived by its employees. Specifically, the study investigated aspects of the performance management system that pertained to (i) employee understanding, perceptions and attitudes towards the system, (ii) the strengths and weakness of the implemented system, (iii) the impact of the system on employee productivity, and (iv) the challenges opposing the successful implementation of the performance appraisal system at the Department of Development Engineering. The quantitative research methodology was employed. A total of 57 members of a staff compliment of 65 participated in the study (88% participation rate). The study findings revealed that overall, participants had a good understanding of the purpose of performance management. They also had a positive attitude towards the underlying principles of the performance management system at the Development Engineering Department. Furthermore, they believed that the performance management system contributed towards their productivity. However, they had very negative perceptions about the implementation of the performance management system at the Department of Development Engineering considering it weak and containing many pitfalls that prevented its successful implementation. An important implication of the study was that although employees understood and appreciated the principles of the performance management system at the Department, they considered the application of these principles as falling short of the mark. This suggests that the performance management system as it currently stands is inadequate to perform the task for which it was intended. This study recommends that Top and Senior management should make it a priority to develop strategies that will improve the PMS. As part of the strategy development process, they should be transparent. This will ensure employee buy-in, especially with the implementation of the restructured PMS. In addition, it is also recommended that managers invest more time engaging with their subordinates when constructing performance agreements to instill understanding of the content of the agreement(s). This will establish a shared understanding of what employees need to do, how to do it and how it is to be measured.