Performance management change: discourses at play in an Italian university

Francesca Manes-Rossi, Rosanna Spanò, Ann Martin-Sardesai and James Guthrie

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, 2022, vol. 34, issue 4, 534-556

Abstract: Purpose - This study explores the reactions of different categories of actors within a university setting (academics, administrative staff, governance members, and students) to implementing performance management system (PMS) changes. The paper aims to understand how these actors dealt with PMS change by discursively reconstructing their roles and positions at institutional and individual levels. Design/methodology/approach - The authors use Foucault's (1972/1989) conceptualisation of regimes of truths to analyse the case of an Italian university. Interviews with individual actors took place in the period 2012–2020. The data were contextualised with other data from publicly available reports, internal documents, and archival material. Findings - The paper identifies the challenges actors face dealing with contrasting discourses and draws attention to the paradoxical changes triggering resistance. However, the findings show that when circumstances allow a generative resistance, dissent can be progressively replaced with a commitment on the part of actors, achieving alignment with organisational strategy. Originality/value - The study challenges the commonly held view of resistance as a dysfunctional force that impedes change. It emphasises the importance of focusing on actors to make resistance a generative force shaping change towards more negotiated and agreed positions. This has implications for academics and practitioners seeking to implement PMSs.

Keywords: New public management; Higher education performance management systems; Regimes of truth; Generative resistance; Italian university case study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.110 ... d&utm_campaign=repec (text/html)
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.110 ... d&utm_campaign=repec (application/pdf)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:jpbafm:jpbafm-11-2021-0156

DOI: 10.1108/JPBAFM-11-2021-0156

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management is currently edited by Dr Giuseppe Grossi

More articles in Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management from Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Emerald Support ().