The Public Administration Performance Appraisal Integrated System (SIADAP) and the Portuguese Civil Servants Perceptions

ABSTRACT

As part of managerial reform process, in 2004 the Public Administration Performance Appraisal Integrated System (SIADAP) was set up in Portugal. This study aimed to analyze the perceptions of Portuguese civil servants on this appraisal system. A second drive was to understand how those perceptions change depending on what extent the model is perceived as fair or not. A survey was carried out and data were collected from 2066 civil servants, including managers. The results show very negative perceptions, in particular regarding SIADAP’s objectivity, transparency and fairness. Also, Kruskal-Wallis tests and post-hoc paired comparisons reveal that civil servants who see the system as “unfair” tend to have more negative perceptions on it than those who see it as “fair” or those who are not sure about the fairness of the system.

KEYWORDS:

• Public Administration
• performance appraisal
• perceptions
• new public management

Notes

1. The SIADAP is created by Law no. 10/2004, dated March 22. Law no. 66-B/2007, of December 28, carries out some minor revisions.

2. This article will focus on SIADAP 3. From here, whenever the expression SIADAP appears, we will be referring to SIADAP 3.

3. On this matter, consult Law No. 12-A/2008, of February 27 and the General Labor Law in Public Functions (LGTFP) Law nº35/2014 of June 20.