The Commission on Audit (COA) held a briefing and workshop on the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS), a new performance review system that seeks to link individual performance with organizational goals.

Around 190 COA officials and personnel participated in the workshop held in the SAADO Auditorium from September 9 to 11, 2015.

The COA SPMS is developed to comply with the civil service requirement directing all agencies to establish a new Performance Evaluation and Appraisal System that reflects how employee performance has contributed or hindered organizational effectiveness.

Aside from increasing awareness on the SPMS, the workshop also aimed to foster discussions on the steps and procedures to be undertaken during the various stages of SPMS cycle and prepare focal persons in cascading the SPMS in their respective regions/offices.

Chairman Michael G. Aguinaldo pushed for a system that will encourage each individual employee to meet his or her own targets instead of promoting unhealthy competition against fellow office workers.

“Meeting your targets gives you a rating of good and be entitled with the basic performance bonus. Meeting your next level targets entitles you to what better gets. And if you reach the top target, then you are entitled with what the best gets. So it’s up to you. Lahat pwedeng maging best if you reach the top target,” Chairman Aguinaldo explained.

Commissioner Heidi L. Mendoza, for her part, encouraged everyone to actively participate with the discussions to avoid the headaches brought by late submissions of the Performance-Based Bonus (PBB) requirements. She said that everyone should study the SPMS in-depth so that there will be clear and proper cascading of the SPMS process to their respective regions or units.

Meanwhile, Commissioner Jose A. Fabia mentioned that everybody wants to have performance bonuses and that should be motivation enough to work out a fair and just grading system for all. He also suggested that accountability should be a key component of the performance management system to measure the integrity of an individual in the performance of his/her duties.

Civil Service Commission Memorandum Circular No. 6, s. 2012, provides the guidelines for the establishment and implementation of the Strategic Performance Management System in all government offices. Towards this end, COA passed Resolution No. 2015-026 dated June 22, 2015, establishing the COA SPMS.