Impact of performance management on service delivery in the South African public service

From the advent of the democratic dispensation in South Africa in 1994 the transformation of the public sector has become one of the central priorities of government. The transformation of the public sector was popularised and institutionalised specifically to ensure that there is greater access to public services. To realise this government promulgated a number of pieces of legislation and adopted policies that have since served as a strong foundation for performance management in the South African Public Service. To this end the Public Service Act 103 of 1994 the Public Service Regulations and other legislation emphatically pronounced on the importance of performance management in the South African Public Service. Management of employees' performance falls clearly under the legislative framework whereby government departments are mandated to manage and streamline the performance of their employees. It is for this reason that performance management has been introduced essentially to ensure that there is a continuous improvement of employees' performance in the South African public service. The management of employees' performance in the public service is undoubtedly crucial if effective and efficient service delivery is to take place. It is often argued that the success of the public service in delivering its operational and developmental goals depends primarily on the efficiency and effectiveness with which employees carry out their objectives. Following from this perspective it can be argued that the effective management of employees' performance in the South African public service is reciprocally linked directly to the effectiveness of public service delivery. Thus there is a growing realisation that if employees are to deliver effective and efficient services their performance should be subjected to effective and continuous management. The purpose of this article is to argue that while performance management intends good results there exists the negative impact that renders its purpose in the public service delivery insignificant.