Browsing by Author "Jessa, Fakier"

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    An assessment of organisational performance management at the Drakenstein and Stellenbosch municipalities
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012-03) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederik M.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. School of Public Leadership.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study set out to assess the degree to which organisational performance management (OPM) has been implemented at the Drakenstein and Stellenbosch municipalities. A purposive sampling protocol was used, as being representative of developing “B” municipalities. A mixed methodology was employed in lieu of satisfying a thorough triangulation. The thesis objectives were to assess four components or themes of OPM, namely, (i) the objectives specified for OPM, (ii) capacity to implement OPM, (iii) resources available to implement OPM and (iv) the instrument(s) employed to measure organisational performance outcomes. The fifth objective was to construct a “normative” for OPM, for the chosen population, based on the findings from the assessment of the first four objectives stated. The findings revealed that OPM was not institutionalised, or formalised in a manner that manifested a dedicated OPM department and operation. Findings revealed too, that there were many factors which led to “indistinctness” in the way OPM is regarded at the municipalities, as OPM is merged with the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and Service Delivery and Budget Implementation Plan (SDBIP). One critical factor is that the IDP and SDBIP are not instruments designed to measure performance; hence ‘overall’ performance reports issued in the annual reports remain lacking in being comprehensive. The researcher stressed the importance of strategic planning beyond the IDP and the SDBIP and has motivated for a dedicated OPM function with strategic human resources planning. These measures would ensure the alignment of strategic objectives to the municipalities programme and departmental objectives. Furthermore, no clear separations of functions were found between OPM and the individual appraisal (IA) of senior and general employees as stated in the ‘performance management policies of both municipalities. Chapter five of the study evaluates each of the four themes in terms of the survey results, literature and legislation reviews. For each of the four themes, critical success factors (CSF’s) for the implementation of OPM at the municipalities were constructed. In addition, the evaluation of information in chapter five provided a basis for the formulation of the normative framework presented in chapter six, which offers a “normative” picture of what would constitute effective and efficient OPM at both municipalities. Taken together, the empirical findings, CSF’s and normative framework offers solution to the research problem, which was to conclude an assessment of OPM at the Drakenstein and Stellenbosch municipalities. It is envisaged that the results from this thesis would be of strategic value to the municipalities assessed.
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    Development of a normative framework for the management of an integrated public service system and public value generation with regard to municipalities in the Western Cape province
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2020-03) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederik, 1957-; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. School of Public Leadership.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY : An Integrated Public Service System (IPSS) generating public value (PV) was designed to demonstrate the feasibility and implementability of a complementary system of governance, to counter the hierarchical systemic characteristics in municipalities at present. Despite the awareness of constraining factors such as political volatility, intransigence, fragmentation, silo structuring, power enclaves and organisational weaknesses in municipal government, communities have experienced long-term instability, service delivery failures and disruption of their social and economic wellbeing, owing to the housing delivery and community services departments’ lack of responsiveness and lack of reciprocity in general. The study utilises information regarding patterns and trends in housing delivery and community services in Namibia, South Africa and the United Kingdom to substantiate the need for an IPSS and PV generation, with community engagement as the fulcrum determining the success or failure of the IPSS and PV generation. A comprehensive mixed study, with a focus on the analysis of nine IPSS and PV themes, was concluded to support the study objectives outlined in Chapter 1. In addition, a critical analysis of South African local government legislation revealed support for the provision of an IPSS and the legitimacy of generating PV. An IPSS generating PV applies the principles and elements of nonlinearity synergistically in network theory, open systems theory, complexity science, complex adaptive systems (CAS), actor-network theory (ANT), PV theory and collaborative governance. A model for integration thus emerges as a result of these applications; hence ‘open government’ systems apply the ‘systemic’ elements of openness, flexibility, dynamism, holistic development, accountability, transparency, intractability, autopoiesis (self-regulatory and self-organising operations) and relationships of trust. An integrative stakeholder management team assumes responsibility for collaboration, the co-creation of tangible and nontangible PV, equity, efficiency, effectiveness, efficacy, bottom-up participation and innovation; the stakeholder team drives community programmes and projects through effective public engagement, maximising resources, information and capacity to achieve common objectives aligned to broad social and economic goals. Discursive and deliberative dialogue are therefore crucial tools in IPSS operativity. An IPSS generating PV is driven strategically by common stakeholder objectives and broad social and economic demands, i.e. envisaged PV outputs and outcomes necessary for achieving stability, adaptability, sustainability and productivity; hence the demand for integrated housing delivery and community services encompasses citizens’ needs, demands and expectations. Municipalities would benefit significantly from the adoption of an IPSS (or IPSS clusters), in the execution of community-based programmes, regeneration programmes and projects. The recommendations made to municipalities in this dissertation should have a positive impact on (i) the effective application of municipal legislation, (ii) the participatory role of communities in the obligations of a municipality to community development, (iii) open dialogue with communities, (iv) working with communities as an equal partner (stakeholder), and (v) the adoption of community stability (balance and equilibrium) as an end goal. In response to the initiation and implementation of an IPSS cluster generating PV, a crucial recommendation remains the formulation of a modus operandi for IPSS clusters to effect the holistic (interdisciplinary and inter-departmental) integration of the housing delivery and community services departments, as the objectives of these departments cannot be disparate or at variance with those of the communities.
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    An integrated public service system (IPSS) utilising complexity and network theory in the enhancement of public value (PV)
    (Association of Southern African Schools and Departments of Public Administration and Management, 2016-03) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederick M.; School of Public Leadership
    An integrated public service system (IPSS) is highly feasible as a system geared to the production and measurement of public value (PV), utilising stakeholder engagement, relationship building and citizens’ participation. This article draws on the established foundations of complexity, network and PV theory and sets out a case for intended research regarding the adoption and implementation of an IPSS in order to establish results, recommendations and limitations. An IPSS diverges from the current status quo in public management, which is characterised by bureaucracy, authoritarianism, fragmentation and excessive political-administrative control in shaping service delivery outcomes. In demonstrating the operability of an IPSS, a framework based on the principles of nonlinearity and interconnectivity and composed of four distinct ‘productivity states’, is outlined for the production and measurement of PV, i.e. the products of an IPSS. Network actors and stakeholders, as structural elements of an IPSS, appoint integrative leadership teams to assume responsibility for integration processes, network stability, feedback, innovation, resource utilisation and the growth of the IPSS through network strengthening and the formation of strategic alliances. IPSS management is described in relation to IPSS elements and the broad range of promoting and constraining factors emanating from stakeholder objectives and the complex environment.
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    Network theory : the bricks and mortar of integrated public service systems (IPSSs)
    (Association of Southern African Schools and Departments of Public Administration and Management, 2017-06) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederick M.; School of Public Leadership
    This article explores the feasibility of employing network theory, complexity science and integration elements in building a case for the topology, operability and sustainability of an integrated public service system (IPSS). The emphasis of the article will be on presenting network elements as bases, i.e. bricks and mortar, for the formation of an IPSS. As all systems produce outputs and outcomes, the argument for the existence of an IPSS will be that the IPSS will produce outputs, outcomes, adaptation and sustainability values, referred to as public values (PV), i.e. benefits and values for social well-being, social progress and raised quality of life for all citizens. The article sets out to present insights into the nature and characteristics of networks with the view of recognising the knowledge bases for the formation of an IPSS. To this end, the value of networks, network integration and expansion, the incorporation of actor network theory (ANT) and complex adaptive systems (CASs) will be utilised as theoretical constructs for IPSS formation. Matters related to network typology, in an IPSS context, will be addressed. In argument for an IPSS, which is systemically juxtaposed to the employ of bureaucratic methods of management and governance, the article puts forward suggestions for the management and governance of an IPSS, in the context of maintaining the valuable and essential network environment. The place and importance of efficiency and effectiveness in networked governance will receive considerable attention.
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    A normative approach to organisational performance management (OPM) in municipalities
    (ASSADPAM, 2013-03) Uys, Frederick M.; Jessa, Fakier
    The research on organisation performance management (OPM) in municipalities in South Africa was undertaken for the purpose of developing a perspective on the importance of its function and to argue for its inclusion in the management system of a municipality. The article emphasises the interrelationships between four themes, namely the objectives, capacity, resources and the types(s) of performance measuring instrument(s) a municipality should employ. Several aspects of municipal performance necessary for the efficient, effective and economic functioning of a municipal entity, its growth and development are explored. Among these are public participation, strategy, leadership, productivity, monitoring and evaluation of successes and failures, and importantly too, the culture of performance management and measurement. The focus of the article is on a theoretical understanding of OPM, its place and purpose, the compelling relevant local government legislation and the commitment of top managers to driving OPM institutionalisation and implementation. The evaluation of the research findings presented enough material from which to develop a normative approach to OPM for each of the four themes. Finally, the article lists suggested norms for the setting out of a normative frameworkd and accompanying strategies for the implementation and institutionalisation of OPM at municipalities in South Africa.
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    A public value approach to collaborative governance implementation in South African municipalities
    (International Institute of Administrative Sciences, 2019-06) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederick M; School of Public Leadership
    The form of governance which prevails in the bureaucratic-hierarchical apparatus of South African municipalities, is characterised by fragmented departmentalism (silos), an inflexible administration, fractured relationships with communities and stakeholders, a skew politicaladministrative interface and resistance to systemic transformation. Such governance attributes discourages (i) open dialogue with communities and stakeholders, (ii) bottom-up innovation and (iii) responsiveness to citizens’ needs, demands and expectations. ‘Corporate’, ‘cooperative’ and ‘good’ governance forms struggle to flourish in municipal environments, exuding unique, inwardly focused institutional constraints relative to most needed effective, accountable and inclusive governance practice and policy. This paper proposes an integrated public service system (IPSS) and the generation of public value (PV), as means to achieve effective, accountable and inclusive governance, focussing on (i) community common objectives, i.e. public interest and public purpose, (ii) stakeholder teams and integrative leaders, operating in a defined, distributive (integrated) network and (iii) collaborative governance, which embrace collaboration between stakeholders as a vehicle for integration, systemic transformation and effectiveness in service delivery. Collaborative governance encompasses the structural and functional aspects of effective, accountable and integrated practices, only when contained a nonlinear system (an IPSS), in synchrony with the propagation of inclusiveness, feedback, efficiency, efficacy, equilibrium, equity, viability, legitimacy, adaptation and sustainability. Collaborative governance is appropriate for municipal engagement with stakeholders, given (i) communities and their support stakeholder teams are engaged in locally based programmes and projects, (ii) civic education for community enablement is prioritised as a primary, inclusive and engagement mechanism, (iii) a viable means to assure continuous focus on the satisfaction of community needs, demands and expectations, social progress, quality of livelihood, quality of life standards, liveability (environmental sustainability) is devised and (iv) the delivery of tangible and nontangible goods and services, i.e. PV, by municipalities to communities is generated. The generation of PV, which involves whole communities, compels the utilisation of collaborative governance in assuring the achievement of accountability, oversight, feedback, inclusivity and transparency in measuring performance outputs, outcomes, adaptation to transformative change and sustainability in generating stable communities. This paper will deal with the critical importance of collaborative governance at the municipal level, the theoretical genesis of PV and similarly, the IPSS. In addition, results from a study conducted by the authors, will show a willingness among senior managers (in 15 municipalities in South Africa) to implement collaborative governance as a daily practice.
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    Public value generation : the outcome of an integrated public service system
    (Association of Southern African Schools and Departments of Public Administration and Management, 2018-03) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederick M.; School of Public Leadership
    Public value (PV) refers to the tangible and non-tangible outputs and outcomes produced by an integrated public service system (IPSS), its purpose being the improvement of the quality of life of citizens. Generating PV entails harnessing resources, capacity and information in an efficient, effective and economic manner. PV postulates and criteria emerge from epistemological and axiological values which are necessary for effective social development, i.e. the recognition of local demands, needs and expectations made by the public or publics to government bodies. PV generation utilises human and material resources which span the micro, meso and macro spheres of socio-economic interactivity, examples being, i.e. public assets, improvement in the quality of life of citizens and an enabling environment for public choice. Generating PV relies on an IPSS, envisioned as a governmental system which is stakeholder driven, constituting stakeholder networks and subscribing to the principles of nonlinearity, self-organisation and deliberative democracy. The operability of an IPSS and the generation of PV are dependent upon the elements of collaborative and networked governance, cooperation, coordination, a common set of objectives and vision, a people-centred focus, participatory (multiagency) stakeholder engagement and effective communication. This article defines PV generation, provides the theoretical bases for further understanding and explores means for its application and evaluation. It is argued that PV cannot be generated in a rigid bureaucratic and hierarchical system, as PV generation is determined by deliberation, participation, commonality of purpose and collaborative relations between stakeholders. Effectiveness, efficiency, equity and efficacy are the key drivers of PV generation.
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    A systemic and public value approach to integrated public sector reforms: a case for South African municipalities
    (International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA), 2019-06) Jessa, Fakier; Uys, Frederick M; School of Public Leadership
    The bureaucratic-hierarchical apparatus in municipalities constrain systemic integration (systemic transformation), open dialogue with communities and stakeholders, bottom-up innovation and responsiveness to citizens’ needs, demands and expectations. This paper asserts that the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (17 UN-SDGs) can be realised upon the institution of an integrated public service system (IPSS) generating public value (PV) in municipalities. The emergence of an IPSS is forged upon open systems theory, nonlinear democratic stakeholder networks, collaborative governance and PV theory, vital to citizens’ needs, demands, expectations and broad socio-economic goals. The key outcomes from research undertaken in 15 municipalities the Western Cape region in South Africa, points to a 75% - 100% acceptance range for IPSS and PV generation performance functions and indicators. The actualisation of public sector reform therefore necessitates systemic transformation in the micro sphere of government primarily, where transformative change is essential for social progress and well-being.