Public sector leaders in the Australian Public Service (APS) can learn from the demise of programme evaluation introduced as part of managing for results reforms, as they implement the evaluation of agency performance outcomes under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act (2013) (PGPA). This paper demonstrates that public sector management reforms require more than top-down initiation by agency heads and that implementation needs to occur over an extended time frame. Although there has been increased communication of APS agencies’ purpose in annual reports, as required by the PGPA Act (2013), ambiguity continues in relation to how planned performance aligns with performance outcomes. The potential for inertia and resistance to management reforms from middle managers and employees may also re-emerge where there is insufficient training to develop their skills to conduct performance evaluations; skills shortages and inertia from middle managers and employees may also be more evident in geographically dispersed APS offices. To increase the potential for performance reporting and evaluation reforms to be embedded, central agency and agency public sector leaders need to work together to reinforce the value of these reforms, particularly where government ministers or governments change.

中文翻译：

---

嵌入澳大利亚公共服务管理改革：部长不能这样做

澳大利亚公共服务 (APS) 的公共部门领导者可以从作为结果改革管理的一部分引入的计划评估的消亡中学习，因为他们在公共治理、绩效和问责制下实施机构绩效结果的评估法案 (2013) (PGPA)。本文表明，公共部门管理改革不仅仅需要机构负责人自上而下的发起，而且实施需要在较长的时间范围内进行。尽管按照 PGPA 法案（2013 年）的要求，在年度报告中对 APS 机构目的的沟通有所增加，但在计划绩效如何与绩效结果保持一致方面仍然存在歧义。如果没有足够的培训来培养他们进行绩效评估的技能，中层管理人员和员工对管理改革的惰性和抵制的潜力也可能重新出现；中层管理人员和员工的技能短缺和惰性在地理位置分散的 APS 办公室中也可能更为明显。