Purpose

Modern public service systems tackle many complex issues by operating across institutional boundaries. Performance management must operate in this context without clear lines of accountability or central authority. This paper introduces and develops the theoretical mechanism of “performance attraction” to describe how outcomes and associated performance indicators can operate as organising instruments in inter-institutional contexts by attracting, rather than directing, institutional behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach

We explore the “performance attractor” role played by outcomes through a multiple case study analysis of three prominent outcomes frameworks operating at the regional, national and international levels: the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework, the Western Australian Alliance to End Homelessness Outcomes Measurement and Evaluation Framework and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

Findings

We find support for two theorised mechanisms facilitated by the performance attractor concept: (1) that performance attractors enable coordination by creating a shared sense of responsibility for interdependent goals while also permitting autonomous navigation of individual contexts and (2) that performance attractors support performance improvement by motivating collective learning and adaptation informed by institutional interdependencies. Cases relied primarily on voluntary adoption of outcomes frameworks, rather than utilising more coercive forms of accountability. Further studies should explore the institutional response to performance attractors to better understand the potential of this mechanism.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to a growing body of critical literature that has explored alternatives to traditional control-oriented performance management in complex and inter-institutional settings. We describe design principles that policymakers and practitioners can adopt to construct more effective performance frameworks in these conditions.

中文翻译：

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使绩效管理在复杂的机构间环境中具有相关性：使用结果作为绩效吸引者

目的

现代公共服务系统通过跨机构边界运作来解决许多复杂的问题。绩效管理必须在这种情况下运作，而没有明确的责任分工或中央权力机构。本文介绍并发展了“绩效吸引”的理论机制，以描述结果和相关的绩效指标如何在机构间环境中通过吸引而非指导机构行为作为组织工具发挥作用。

设计/方法/方法

我们通过对在区域，国家和国际各级运作的三个主要成果框架的多案例研究分析，探讨了成果在绩效中扮演的“绩效吸引者”角色：苏格兰政府的国家绩效框架，西澳大利亚州终结无家可归成果评估和评估联盟框架与联合国的可持续发展目标。

发现

我们发现对绩效吸引者概念所促进的两种理论化机制的支持：（1）绩效吸引者通过为相互依赖的目标建立共同的责任感来实现协调，同时还允许个体上下文的自主导航；（2）绩效吸引者支持绩效改善通过激励相互依存的集体学习和适应。案件主要依靠自愿采用成果框架，而不是采用更具强制性的问责制。进一步的研究应该探索机构对绩效吸引者的反应，以更好地了解这种机制的潜力。

创意/价值

本文为越来越多的重要文献做出了贡献，这些文献探索了在复杂的机构间环境中传统的面向控制的绩效管理的替代方法。我们描述了决策者和从业人员可以采用的设计原则，以在这些条件下构建更有效的绩效框架。