PERFORMANCE EVALUATION ANALYSIS OF EMPLOYEES IN NUEVA ECIJA, PHILIPPINES IN THE DELIVERY OF BASIC SERVICES USING THE STRATEGIC PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (SPMS) FRAMEWORK By : NIMFA S. VILLAROMAN Department Head for HR City Government of Cabanatuan, Philippines Part-time Faculty Graduate School Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology Philippines   2017 EROPA General Assembly and Conference 11-15 September 2017, Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas, Seoul, Korea

Introduction In the Philippines, the passage of RA 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991 confers to local government units the power and authority to perform specific functions and authorities (Chapter II, Section 17,4). This mandate gives LGUs the autonomy and responsibility to deliver efficient basic services in the grass roots level. The basic services that were devolved to the LGUs include agriculture, health, public works, social welfare, environment and others.

Introduction The backbone of any local government unit is its personnel. They are the direct providers of the services being implemented based on the programs and project of the LGU.

Introduction Recent developments in the study of Public Administration as a discipline brought about the changing landscape in public administration system and the way government performance is measured (Hague, 1998).

Introduction The employees’ performance management in the public sector have been facing issues and challenges. Some of these are : 1. the credibility and participation of the stake holders (Davies, 1999) 2. the inability of the instrument to measure non-tangible goals such as service delivery (ADB 2006) 3. the problem of cooperation and trust on the part of public managers and employees in regard to performance evaluation practices treating it as a necessary evil in public institutions (Pulakos, 2004). Nonetheless, performance management of personnel remains important to local government operations and this is the reason why theories and frameworks are continuously developed to evaluate government personnel performance.

Introduction The central personnel agency of the Philippine government, the Civil Service Commission has introduced a number of systems in the performance evaluation of government employees to improve the system and its procedures. Recent efforts to establish an accurate and reliable performance management tool that will link individual performance to the performance of the organization was done through the issuance of MC no 6, s 2012 for the implementation of the new system called the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS).

Introduction Local government units are also mandated to implement the system and have to come up with an approved agency Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS). In the province of Nueva Ecija, LGUs were all required to implement the system since 2012. Within the framework of this performance evaluation system, this study looked into the performance of the employees in LGUs and the results of which may serve as bases in making policy recommendations that may further improve their performance.

Objectives of the Study The study analyzed the performance of employees in the city local government units in the delivery of basic services using the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS) framework.

Objectives of the Study Specifically, the study aimed at : 1. Describing the delivery of basic services on : Health Social welfare Infrastructure Agriculture and Environmental

Objectives of the Study 2. To identify the level of performance of employees in their : 2.1 strategic functions 2.2 core functions 2.3 support functions

Objectives of the Study 3. To identify problems encountered by the employees in the performance of their assigned functions with the use the SPMS framework. 4. To propose policy recommendations and personnel development programs to improve employees’ performance.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research Design The study used the descriptive research design to analyze the performance evaluation of employees. Using documentary analysis, data were gathered from the results of their Office Performance Commitment and Review (OPCR) Form and Individual Performance Commitment and Review (IPCR) Form.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research Locale The study was conducted in three (3) component cities of Nueva Ecija namely, Cabanatuan City, San Jose City, and Palayan City

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Respondents The respondents of the study were the HR Officer, department heads, personnel in offices providing the basic services of the three (3) component cities in Nueva Ecija

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Instruments The researcher used two sets of data gathering instruments namely: documentary analysis form, and interview guide. The documentary analysis form were used to record the strategic, core, and support functions of the LGU personnel, as well as their performance rating during the period 2014- 2015. The interview guide was used to identify the problems encountered by the LGU personnel in the performance of their functions.

FINDINGS Summary of Performance Levels of the Employees of the Three LGUs in their Strategic, Core and Support Functions on Health, Agriculture, Infrastructure and Environmental services.   Services No. of Specific Services Delivered Performance Rating 2014 2015 A Health 28 4.78 – O 4.59 – VS Social Welfare 37 4.30 – VS 4.51 – VS Infrastructure 19 4.31 – VS 4.18 – VS Agriculture 25 4.43 – VS 4.63 – VS Environmental 4 4.50 – VS 4.92 – VS C 12 No Data 4.52 – VS 16 4.94 – O 4.99 – O 21 4.00 – VS 4.07 – VS 14 D 29 4.40 – VS 8 4.36 – VS 4.38 – VS 4.20 – VS 4.23 – VS 4.27 – VS 4.33 – VS 23 4.46 – VS

Summary of Performance Levels of the Employees of the Three LGUs in their Strategic, Core and Support Functions on Health, Agriculture, Infrastructure and Environmental services. LGU SERVICES RATING Strategic Core Support 2014 2015 A Health 4.17 VS 4.30 VS 4.85 O 4.92 O 4.58 VS 4.50 VS   Social Welfare 4.33 VS 4.49 VS 4.36 VS 5.00 O 4.53 VS Infrastructure 4.83 O 4.00 VS 3.83 VS 4.15 VS Agriculture 3.96 VS 4.44 VS 4.66 VS 3.88 VS Environment 4.46VS 4.25 VS 4.88 O 3.67 S C None 4.56 VS 4.93 O 4.97 O 4.04 VS D 4.37 VS 4.41 VS 3.77 VS 4.10 VS 4.40 VS 4.46 VS

Problems and Issues Lack of transport support to be used during field work in delivering health services in a distant barangays and infrastructure projects field inspection Application of the SPMS tool in measuring timeliness and efficiency and target setting are not yet clear to the employees The procurement process that delayed the implementation of infrastructure projects on emergency cases Inadequate number of personnel to implement programs and projects in social welfare and infrastructure services Factors beyond control to implement programs and projects like calamities and people’s cooperation and support

Policy Recommendations Prioritization of budget allocation for the health and infrastructure services administrative support HR officers of the LGUs in partnership with the CSC Field Office should formulate a uniform standard for all the LGUs in the province as to the SPMS efficiency and timeliness dimensions in all the LGUs services Creation of Procurement Office as a separate office Assessment of the current organization structure of the social welfare and infrastructure services Empowerment of volunteer groups from the barangays and provision for mechanisms for incentive and rewards to encourage more engagement and active citizens’ participation

Proposed Development Programs for Employees Continuing orientation on SPMS guidelines and procedures Conduct of performance evaluation survey to gather feedback and reactions from the employees regarding their performance ratings Regular conduct of coaching and mentoring session to assist employees address their problems to improve their performance Training on the Policies and Procedures of the Procurement Law for all the employees as end-users Skills Training on Community Organizing and Engagement for needed competencies to encourage citizens’ participation for the LGUs community-based undertakings

Conclusion A very satisfactory performance ratings of the employees in the delivery of the basic services mandated to LGUs is indicative of their commitment and dedication to their sworn functions. As the LGU employees have not yet attained the highest level of their performance (outstanding), there are indications that they can strive more in the performance of their functions to provide highest level of satisfaction to their constituents. The inability of majority of the employees to categorize their functions into the domains prescribed by the CSC are indicative of a limited understanding on the SPMS evaluation framework.

Conclusion Some LGU employees did not specify their strategic and support functions in their IPCR and OPCR, and focused only on their core functions. As a result of the non-categorization of the functions of the LGU employees, their specific performance in the different categories could hardly be identified, and their strengths and weaknesses in the different functions are difficult to determine. The problems encountered by the LGU employees are results of lack of understanding on the framework of the SPMS, inadequacy of physical and financial resources, the application of the procurement law and factors beyond their control.

Recommendations The LGU employees are encouraged to undergo retooling seminar or training on the SPMS for a better understanding of the system’s procedure and mechanism The performance ratings of the LGU employees are recommended to be revalidated to guarantee the consistency and credibility of the ratings obtain.

Recommendations The department heads are also encouraged to conduct survey of their employees satisfaction on the manner by which they are evaluated as well as the outcomes of evaluation made to them. To improve performance of the employees on efficiency and timeliness, target setting has to be made clear to them on these indicators, and to identify early on the hindrances to an earlier completion of performance targets. Future studies involving personnel evaluation of other public servants are encouraged to be conducted using SPMS to identify flaws in the SPMS, if there are any, in order to ensure the success of employees evaluation.