DILEMMAS OF MEASURING PERFORMANCE IN A GOVERNMENT TRADING ENTERPRISE: THE STATE BANK OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Abstract: In 1990, the State Bank of New South Wales was incorporated as a company, with a view to its eventual Privatisation (which occurred formally on 31 December 1994). Key to the Privatisation process was the attainment of improved organisational performance so that the bank would be seen as an attractive proposition by potential purchasers. Its annual reports in the period 1990-93 suggested this improvement had indeed occurred. However, a recent case in the Industrial Relations Commission of NSW, involving the bank and the Australian Bank Employees Union, has highlighted the apparent difficulty of measuring organisational and employee performance in the bank. This paper examines performance measurement in the State Bank of NSW in light of the accountability framework established by the NSW government, and highlights the dilemmas facing it and other government trading enterprises (GTEs) in the wider use of their performance data.