Management System

Performance Measurement - Harrogate Borough Council case study.

Organizations wishing to implement TQM are faced with the necessity of significant changes in

Performance measurement (Sinclair and Zairi, 1995). And whichever performance measurement system is adopted needs to be continuously reviewed and updated (Jonsson and Lesshammar, 1999).

However, in the business world today, only a few organizations are actively exploring the issue of how the evolution of measurement systems can be managed over the long term (Neely 1999).

Continuous Improvement in quality management literature is often referred to as "Kaizen", a Japanese word, which means 'change for the better'. According to Jonson (2008, p. 268) continuous improvement takes proactive stance to development, one that makes improvement throughout the process. The concept is premised on not accepting that things are as good as they can be, but instead seeks process improvement. Hence, the concept permeates all processes in an organization, which includes but not limited to engineering, IT, financial, commercial and customer service processes, as well as manufacturing.

Continuous Improvement (CI) entails improving continually on small scale rather than making quantum leaps at irregular intervals. This involves close monitoring and control of all the process involved and it requires all hands to be on deck. The initiative is usually from the top and it trickles down to through the organization as every member of staff has a role to play in making improvement. Hence all employees must work together toward improvement of the working practices. According to Caffyn (1999), CI capability can be defined as "the ability of an organization to gain strategic advantage by extending involvement in innovation to a significant proportion of its members"

Harrogate Borough Council initiated a comprehensive quality management system with emphasis on people management related initiatives. The council introduced a Business Unit Manager's Handbook, which outlines the council's policy on reporting and monitoring of performance at the service level within a corporate framework. Further to this, the council's strategic intents are published on a yearly basis to keep workers abreast of the overall council's vision so as to ensure that efforts are dissipated in the same direction.

For extra measure, the council introduced a Corporate Action Plan (CAP), which links into the U.K Government Best Value Performance Plan (BVPP) initiative. The CAP is designed to facilitate forward thinking within the council, thereby enabling a futuristic approach to planning. Provisions of the CAP are arrived at following consultations with local communities and other stakeholders within the district.

A BVPP report is generated annually to inform the