Human Resources Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations

Performance Management 223

reduce his inputs or efforts or, under conditions of positive outcomes, may

increase those inputs.

Goal - Setting Theory Goals that are specifi c, challenging, reachable, and

acceptable to employees lead to higher performance than goals that are

unclear, unchallenging, and unattainable (Locke, 1968). High performance

results from clear expectations. Employees who are told to do their best do

not do as well as those who have specifi c

task goals to reach. Goal - setting theory

does not view goals as static. Instead, they

are based on the past and some predic-

tions about the future. As circumstances

change, goals may need to change.

An important element is the ability to

change goals after they have been set

because circumstances surrounding the

goals may have changed.

Testing the Theories

An analysis of motivational theories has led researchers to conclude that

many of these theories are diffi cult to test. In a public or nonprofi t context,

goals are not always clear, there are not necessarily reward - performance

contingencies, rewards may be scarce, and motivational situations or contexts

are often dictated by institutions and embedded in laws, rules, and external

expectations (Perry, 2000).

Developing an Evaluation Program

There is little consistency in performance evaluation systems across

federal, state, and local governments and nonprofi t organizations. At the

federal level, the system used to evaluate federal employees was developed

to tie performance with pay. Yearly evaluations determine pay increases

or bonuses, or both. The approach is different from what it is at the state

and local levels, where formal performance evaluation systems often do

not exist. In many state and local governments, collective bargaining

agreements or civil service systems determine promotions and pay

increases. In this environment, if evaluations exist, they are used strictly as

communication vehicles.

Goals that are specifi c,

challenging, reachable, and

acceptable to employees

lead to higher performance

than goals that are unclear,

unchallenging, and

unattainable