Understanding performance management in the Maltese public service (with special reference to the benefits division in the Social Security Department)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to attempt to explore the perspectives of employees towards the introduction of the Performance Management Programme at their workplace. It may be valuable in assisting management through a bottom-up approach. Although such programme yields several benefits to both the organization and the employees, research showed that some employees were still sceptical and unwilling to accept the programme for various reasons. Some employees regard this programme as another way of control. A thorough literature review enabled me to get a better insight of the subject researched. Employees are deemed to be the most valuable asset an organization can own. To strengthen my research, feedback was sought from employees at the Benefits Division by means of a questionnaire which was sent via e-mail. It has to be stated that this questionnaire is not representative of the views of all employees at the Department of Social Security. Doing so would have been a very difficult task to complete due to time constraints and lack of resources. Therefore, to make up for this, I conducted two separate semi-structured interviews: one with the Director-General and another with the Director Financial Management at the same department. Interesting results were revealed. Although the majority of employees think that their supervisors are well-trained and that they were given a fair grade in their Performance Management Programme, the same employees said that such a programme did not make them feel valued. This shows that the running of the process is not given the importance which it merits. In this thesis, ways and means are discussed as to how one might get the best out of the employee and how the latter feels motivated to perform better. What is sure is that more work has still to be done so that performance management could be conducted successfully. In that way, employees would not regard the Performance Management Programme (P.M.P.) as a another document-filling exercise but as a process where they are actively involved in the daily decision-taking at their workplace: a place where the development of the employees which make up the organization should be enhanced for the better both of the organization and the employees' themselves.