The performance measurement system: the experience of Sicilian municipalities

The reform of public administration, and specifically that of Local Authorities, has meant that the most economically advanced countries have been affected by a modernization processes aimed at the introduction of New Public Management approaches and principles (Hood,1991; Pollitt, 1990; Borgonovi, 1988; etc.). Since the 1990s, a particularly interesting element in this process of change has been the introduction of an internal control system in the Italian Public Administration. Indeed, it has moved the attention of decision makers away from compliance with formal procedures toward efficient resource allocation and, therefore, toward achieving objectives in from a multi-dimensional viewpoint. The underlying assumption is that measures of a quantitative nature, focused on cost, provide little information on longterm performance. For these reasons, this paper focuses on the planning and strategic control system in Sicilian local authorities. In detail the aim of the paper is to check whether the Balanced Scorecard is implemented in local authorities, or if there are at least the beginnings of implementation of the same. In order to verify the propensity of these organizations toward multidimensional performance measurement, a quantitative research methodology was used, based on analysis of data obtained from a multiple choice and open answer questionnaire.The reference sample is comprised of the largest Sicilian local authorities (unit of analysis: Sicilian towns with more than 15,000 inhabitants) with an sufficiently developed organizational model that increases the probability of implementation of a strategic control system.