Crucio, G. A. (2019). o greatness or to grief: The strategic performance management system (SPMS) experience of two local government units (a management case) (Unpublished master's thesis). Public Management Development Program, Development Academy of the Philippines.

Public Management and Development Program Senior Executive Class Batch 7 Thesis (SEC)--Development Academy of the Philippines.

Managing public officers' performance is imperative to continually improve their relevant competencies and productivity towards attaining their respective agencies' mandates, and ensure their accountability for finite government resources expended for their remuneration and operation. Towards this end, the Civil Service Commission, as the central human resource agency of the Philippine bureaucracy, cascaded in 2012 the implementation of the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS) in all public offices. The four stage SPMS required goal alignment in the planning stage; information-based performance monitoring and regular coaching in the second stage; evidence-based performance evaluation and scientifically calibrated performance ratings in the third stage; and performance-based rewarding and need-based people development planning in the last stage. This management case walks us through the SPMS experience from 2014 to 2018 of the local government units of Bayawan City and Dumaguete City, the biggest urban centers of Negros Oriental province. Local government units were selected because of the challenge posed by their volatility and statutory autonomy that grants them greater discretion in implementing SPMS. At present, Bayawan City has been nationally awarded for its successful SPMS implementation, while Dumaguete City still has to make its SPMS take off. What are the reasons behind their dissimilar current states? Using the Kotter framework of analysis, this paper found that Bayawan City created a climate for change, and engaged and enabled the organization to implement and sustain the new system. On the other hand, Dumaguete City created a climate for change but was unable to engage and capacitate the organization, which caused it to miss SPMS' portended benefits. Next using the Weisbord framework, this paper found that Bayawan City was able to effectively align and communicate the organizational and SPMS purposes, establish structures, a rewards system and helpful mechanisms that supported the SPMS operation, and effectively managed relationships. Also, its leader uncondtionally provided resources to run the SPMS-related initiative; and it integrated the SPMS with the other human resource management systems. In Dumaguete City, the present administration's thrusts excluded the SPMS, and there were mp goal alignment, support structure, helpful mechanisms or reward system to reinforce desired outcomes. As a recommendation to make SPMS survive the regular change of leader, this paper looks upon regulatory agencies to include the Certificate of SPMS Functionality, that is good for one year and renewable every year, as a condition for promotional appointment action, fiscal releases, awards and performance-based incentives. It also suggests that local government units do effective planning, perpetuate SPMS policies in HR mechanisms (violating which is a ground for action), and create an HRM department. The insights gained from this study will help the CSC enhance existing performance management policies and SPMS technical assistance methods, and provide government agencies a structured guide in making SPMS work.