The Inner Workings of Performance Management in Danish Job Centers: Rational Decisions or Cowboy Solutions?

ABSTRACT

This article discusses how a central performance management system in Danish job centers affects employees’ perceptions of accountability, autonomy, common goals, and dialogue. Dysfunctional behavioral effects are explored in qualitative analyses based on four case studies. Results indicate that the expected positive effects of performance management do not materialize at the Danish job centers because the focus of the implementation process gradually shifts from results to process goals. This is related to a series of dysfunctional behavioral effects which, instead of creating commitment, frustrate and stress the employees.

KEYWORDS:

• behavioral effects
• job centers
• performance management
• street-level bureaucrats

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Signe Pihl-Thingvad

Signe Pihl-Thingvad is an Associate Professor and head of the Section for Public Administration in the Department of Political Science and Public Management at the University of Southern Denmark. Her research interests are in organizational psychology and behavior, self-leadership, performance management, and innovation in the public sector. Besides this, she teaches methods and philosophies of social sciences.