Performance Measurement Myths in the Public Sector: A Research Note

Public sector organizations have recently come under increasing criticism for placing too much emphasis on financial control as well as suffering from excessive proliferation of performance indicators. A solution to both these problems has been presented in the form of various strategic, goal-directed and multidimensional models for performance measurement (PM), such as the Balanced Scorecard. Whilst originally developed in the private sector, there are growing signs of such models diffusing to the public sector. In the present paper, we interpret changes such as those outlined above in terms of emerging and declining organizational myths and draw on institutional theory and the organizational learning literature to discuss how such myths may impinge on organizational action. It is concluded that PM myths based on goal-directed, multidimensional models may gradually replace the myth that public service provision may be improved by heavy reliance on financial control and come to affect operating-level action. However, such models may be 'corrupted' or prevail alongside seemingly incompatible PM myths depending on differences in implementation processes and the rhetoric invoked to legitimise a goaldirected, multidimensional PM approach.