Md. Nahidul Islam

Today's public administration academics and professionals give strategic management high importance.

Public agencies should follow how strategy varies between public organizations, aims to match internal capabilities to organizational environments, and affects the impact of both internal and external performance restrictions.

On one hand, strategy is the term derived from ‘Strategeia’ which means tactics or game plans to fight against the enemy on the battlefield.

Normally, it can be defined as the plan of action or action designed that is formed based on defined and specific objectives from the combination of vision and mission according to capacity, skills, knowledge, resources, technical, and behavioral competencies to accomplish expected goals.

Conversely, performance can be viewed from different perspectives because of the complex situation.

It is composed of a set of components or elements that effects performance for the sake of generating output.

Performance is a process of producing the optimal output per defined plans, policies, programs, objectives, or projects based on a given input.

Besides, it includes the 4M’s such as men, machines, money, and materials with capability and ability according to a strategic agreement to accomplish the results of action.

The essence of strategy is not an old concept in the era of new public management.

The traditional public administration was not run as per planning and policies. So for making it effective, economy and efficiency evolved the strategic aims, targets, and plans which will be SMART, which means specific, measurable, achievable, and relevant, time-bound as well.

Traditional public administration also had rigid functions, complex structure, hierarchical order, bureaucratic and centralistic decisions, red-tapism, and a lack of accountability and transparency.

That’s why the policy was not realistic and citizens oriented. On the contrary, when the term strategy was installed to accelerate the services and performance. Besides, it helps to monitor the progress and evaluation of output, then it will be followed up for taking as the program in developing administration.

Before going to discuss the different stages of strategy in the public sector, it urges to say why performance is essential in administration. After preparing the strategic plan, the output and outcome must be looked at according to the input of knowledge, skills, competencies, and resources for attaining the desired goals.

Performance has been got importance for effective communication, evaluation, monitoring, and SWOT as well as a PEST analysis of the programs in public administration.

Once upon a time, public sectors were treated as a waste of money, labor, and resources; then, a delayed and lengthy process was assumed.

Bureaucrats are unable to provide optimal results and utilize the given resources.

Indeed, the necessity of strategic planning and performance agreement is focused on adaptability owing to coping with dynamic and rapidly changeable environments and advanced technology.

At this time, public the sector concentrates on technical and behavioral competencies, rule of law, market-based services, public-private partnerships, and private-style management systems for improving their performance.

In the public sector, strategy is more appropriately conceptualized as means by which organizations can improve their performance and deliver standard services.

It has been widely argued that strategic direction is more limited in the public sector than the private sector. For instance, public organizations cannot easily switch to a developed dimension.

Although strategy and performance management in public administration may take into account comparable issues and opportunities, they also have slightly different temporal perspectives.

In the delivery of public services, managerial orientation has stressed the duties of the client while downplaying criticism of the relationship between politicians and bureaucrats and aspects of governance that require adhering to rules.

Public policy acts must balance tactics and performances to take institutional action and defend it.

Performance and strategy have complex interrelationships. By providing a framework and method for goal-attainment logic and performative demonstrations, the strategy may take precedence over performance. Performance may come before strategy by provoking an understanding and interpretation of history as well as by asking what goals are realistic.

In reality, they are both parts of the same legitimization system. In this system, government actors attempt to survive by assessing what has already happened, what is still possible, and how government actions should be justified in the eyes of voters and other important political audiences and stakeholders.

In addition, links between the government and the more varied general public, fresh challenges in inter-agency interactions, and the expansion of non-bureaucratic networks in the regulatory state must be considered at the interface between strategy and performance.

Public organizations have to deal with both the demands of regional political and administrative structures as well as the effects of global developments. Numerous reforms in public administration have highlighted public organizations' goal-oriented behavior.

A strategic plan represents the goals and objectives of a business, and interest in creating and implementing one has grown to encompass handling finances, staff, and performance. Performance management can be viewed as a part of strategic management on a more detailed level.

Strategic governance is being driven by the growing interdependence of the world at the international, national, and local levels, as well as its internal strengths and environmental potential.

Performance is an endeavor to remove uncertainty in institutional decision-making, hence performance indicators are unpredictably powerful in politically heated settings and public administration.

Politics and policies, along with the required human and financial resources, must be put into action because this allocation decision is a critical political one for society.

The writer is an Asst. Professor Dept of Public Administration, CoU.