Managing Performance

Abstract

In recent years there has been an increased emphasis on the performance of local government. The Audit Commission for England and Wales overstated the position when in one publication it claimed that ‘performance review has always been an essential element in the management of a local authority’ (1989b, p. 1). Actually, an examination of practice in many local authorities would suggest that an effective focus on performance is only now becoming part of normal management practice, and to some extent only because of legislation.