Influence of Results Based Management on Performance of Public Servants in Kenya

Abstract

Attainment of Kenya’s Vision 2030 anchors significantly on the performance of the country’s public servants. This understanding prompted the researcher to examine the influence of results-based management (RBM) on the performance of these public servants. The study undertook to establish the influence of target setting, work planning, monitoring and reporting, and performance appraisal on the public servants’ performance. It also delved into the moderating effect of leadership on the relationship between RBM and this performance. The study followed a mixed methods research strategy that focused on an explanatory sequential design. Stratified random sampling was used to select 292, 156 and 136 respondents from the Ministry of Devolution and Planning, Ministry of Public Service and Ministry of Youth and Gender Affairs respectively. Purposive sampling was employed to select 15 key informants who were interviewed. The findings revealed that all the attributes of RBM had a significant and positive influence on performance thus: target setting showing (β = 0.315, p = 0.00); work planning (β= 0.276, p=0.00); monitoring and reporting (β = 0.212, p=0.00) and perfroamnce appraisal (β = 0.216, p=0.00). Leadership was also found to have a positive and significant relationship with performance. However, the effect of leadership as a moderator was nominal. Overall, RBM was found to have a positive influence on the performance of the public servants. Thus, for improved performance, enhanced use of all the components of RBM is recommended.