The Effects of Benchmarking of Public Works Performance Measures on the Cost-Effectiveness of Service Delivery: Evidence From the North Carolina Benchmarking Project

This research is an empirical analysis of the effects of the benchmarking of Efficiency Performance Measures on total costs for six Public Works service delivery areas based on data over the period 1998 to 2011 from municipalities participating in the North Carolina Performance Measurement Project, a well-established and nationally recognized performance measurement and benchmarking system. The results of this research are significant in providing empirical evidence that the benchmarking of Efficiency Performance Measures for the six Public Works service delivery areas had modestly positive impacts on total cost-effectiveness in a significant percentage of these Public Works service delivery areas. The results reflect that management decision-making utilizing performance measures in a benchmarking context, especially in Public Works service delivery areas, can be effective and that performance measurement and benchmarking can achieve identifiable efficiencies and modest improvements in cost-effective outcomes in Public Works service delivery areas over time.