The Quest for Results: Opportunities for Using Performance Measurement in Chinese Public Administration

Abstract

This paper examines the current situation of public management in China and the potential that management reforms might bring improvement. The primary goal of the paper is to examine the opportunities that incentivized performance measures have to enhance that agency management. The paper analyzes the conditions for how performance information can be fashioned into a metric, which is contractible. It then looks at the types of incentives that can be tied to the metric. It also considers the flexibility of the government agency, the central budget office, and the oversight entities, and the roles that each plays in ensuring successful implementation of a performance management system.