Constructing an Effective Performance Management System for the Highestgraded Construction Companies in Sri Lanka: A Concept Paper

Abstract

This explanatory research is an attempt to address the declining individual work performance (IWP) among the highest-graded construction companies in Sri Lanka due to poor performance management systems (PMS). Based on pragmatic research philosophy, the author intends to empirically test the relationship and the impact of PMS effectiveness on the IWP using work engagement and high-performance culture (HPC) as mediators while conducting a qualitative inquiry on the four-stage process and design aspects of PMS to develop an effective model PMS for the target population as the primary objective of the study. The conception of insufficiency of mere changes in PMS without changing the culture into HPC would be explored while developing a new scale to measure HPC as another scholarly contribution. The study would validate and provide a fresh interpretation of the constructs understudy in the postpandemic context. A questionnaire comprising 4 standard scales along with the proposed would be administered among a sample of 357 officer-graded employees selected from 9 companies using stratified random sampling. Correlation, regression, SEM, and ANOVA would be performed for testing 8 hypotheses, analyzing the impact and demographic information respectively. Around 25 interviews and focus group discussions along with content analysis would be employed in the qualitative phase of the study. The absence of statistical validation of the proposed model of effective PMS could be identified as the main limitation while replicating the same research as a longitudinal study or in a different time and industry contexts could be potential future research avenues.