Performance
standards are designed to provide us with a useful tool to
measure and evaluate organizational actions
If the standards are
unrealistically high, the organization will not obtain the
desired results they had hoped. This can be extremely
frustrating to all concerned within the organization. If the
performance standards are set too low, an organization may
easily exceed the desired standards and be considered a success
when a much more productive use of its resources was actually
possible.
This is equally
frustrating since employees will know this and not feel the
pride of accomplishment. The task confronting all of us is to
focus on creating fair and equitable standards. Challenging our
employees to be the best that they can be in realistic
parameters. This can be done by examining past performance and
involving employees at all levels to become part of the process.
Remember!
-
Past performance data will give some
indication of what is possible, and, therefore, a help us with
a realistic expectation. Such data should not limit us,
however: they are an indication of what was previously
accomplished, not a limitation of what can be accomplished.
-
Likewise current
levels of performance or behavior must also be taken into
account. This also represents important data, however we may
desire higher levels of performance in the future.
-
In some circumstances
technology, citizen expectations, competing service providers
may create a situation in which it will not be realistic or
desirable to expect performance to past performance levels.
In either event, the
past as well as the present will provide us with a framework
within which performance standards can be created
Performance Summary
Performance standards are powerful tools to
allow us to control the direction of our mission and the vision
we have for our service delivery. They serve as levels of
desired performance against which actual performance can be
measured and evaluated. We must decide what performance to
measure, when to measure, and how to measure. The measurement
criteria must be relevant and practical.
We must provide a balance between the
number of measurements and our overall cost effectiveness.
The guiding principle in deciding the frequency of measurement
is what is required by the nature of your department’s or
division’s activities.
Performance standards that can be achieved
by workers are fair and reasonable. Performance levels that
are not realistic will not serve to motivate worker achievement.
The best data in the setting of realistic performance standards
are past worker performance and the performance levels achieved
by your employees and those in other cities. We will be
influenced by past worker performance but we should not be
constrained by that performance.
