Title: Describe ‘efficiency’ and ‘effectiveness’ and explain why

they are essential for quality public service delivery.

Public Sector and Corporate Management (SSR 3024)

Course Instructors: Assoc. Prof. Stanley Bye Kadam Kiai

Name: S.Langeswaran A/L S.Shankar

Matric Number: 64526
 Efficiency and effectiveness are different in terms of definition as said by Drucker

(1967) that efficiency is doing things right and effectiveness is doing the right thing. As what

he meant on efficiency and effectiveness is that efficiency is getting a job done with limited

resources such as we need to know how much money would cost, the benefits of doing it

besides achieving goals. For an example, where if a final year student in university have

extended his degree programme instead of finishing 3 years where he or she must spend more

money on his/her tuition fees, expenses of staying in hostel and food as time is also wasted.

Then, effectiveness is getting the job done and reach the target or objectives of the job. For an

example, the level of results such as finishing a degree in 3 years without a good CGPA is not

worth of graduating because it will be hard to get jobs in the future as this shows it is not

effective.

Efficiency and effectiveness are often important to public sector but as stated by

Sterling (2006) that effectiveness is very important compare to efficiency in public service but

that doesn’t mean efficiency is unimportant. Effectiveness importance in the public sector. The

public sector should provide their service perfect all the time such as continuous water supply,

the continuous helpline (911 emergency service) so on and so forth. Therefore, many people

will expect efficiency towards the public service. Indeed, in case, the lack of consideration

towards effectiveness can bring severe outcomes to public service. Public services that are to

have lower levels of effectiveness will encounter pressure to increase their workloads.

However, this does not mean that efficiency in public agencies is unimportant as said

by Stoian M & Ene N.C. (2003) that public sector output could only be contrasted with that

achieved in the private sector when the priorities are the same and even in this case it is not

entirely comparable because the public sector implements complex projects that take into

account not only economic benefits but also social problems. Therefore, it can be more efficient

for public agencies to be able to further extend their resources. For an example, the street

1
maintenance process means that the same amount of support can be given with faster response

or additional services. Improvements in efficiency are significant as they lead to cost savings

which contribute directly to production. Efficiency will calculate the usage of the public

sector’s resources to achieve its objectives or targets. It should be noted that some

circumstances trigger efficiency to be a major public sector concern when the allocation money

is low or competing from the private sector for service delivery.

Next, efficiency and effectiveness are important to public service delivery as it plays a

vital role towards the country and the society. Efficiency in public service where it helps in

attracting foreign direct investment and helps in increasing the country’s revenue. For an

example, if infrastructure such as public transportation where the service is good and it attracts

people to use public transportation as it helps in creating revenue for the country and foreign

investors will be interested to expand their investment into infrastructure as it does benefits for

the people in our country. Thus, with this foreign direct investment it creates more job

opportunities and it helps reduce the unemployment rate in the country. Add in addition,

efficiency where parents sending their child to government school so that the child can gain

some knowledge which will benefits in the future as the output results from the teacher’s

teaching in school will affect the future of the child after finishing school. Then, efficiency

helps in creating a cost-effective where it helps in saving cost in government’s money. For an

example, if there is a tender to build a stadium where the public servant in charge will receive

multiple choices of tenders from the contractors where the public servant should not be bias as

there shouldn’t be any relationship with the contractors as need to find the most cheap price of

quotation among the tenders as this helps to reduce cost and government can use the balance

amount of money for other expenses. Therefore, cost-saving is one of the is essential in being

efficiency in public service delivery.

2
 Then, effectiveness it is also important to the public service delivery where the service

must be kept going without any destruction. For an example, an effectiveness of scenario where

there is water disruption in that area and that’s where the service from the public sector will

contact SYABAS to bring their lorries to supply water in that area so that people will still

receive water without no cause as this gives a good confidence towards the society about the

better service from the public sector. Next, it helps in increasing the quality of the public service

where it creates a better employment of government servant to be more effective in handling

people. For an example, when people from West Malaysia lost their slip of immigration when

entering Sarawak whereby the immigration officer won’t stop them but will check in the system

whether they are barred from leaving the state , if everything is fine the West Malaysia people

are allowed to leave Sarawak.

In conclusion, efficiency and effectiveness in essential to public service as it give

benefits and improve the service of public sector. Thus, it gives confidence to the public that

public sector is equally same to the private sector as there is no difference in terms of their

quality and services.

Reference
1) Stoian M., Ene N. C (2003). General and particular in evaluating the public sector
efficiency. Retrieved from
https://www.academia.edu/32659827/EFFICIENCY_EFFECTIVENESS_AND_PER
FORMANCE_OF_THE_PUBLIC_SECTOR
2) William A.Sterling (2006). Efficiency vs. Effectiveness. Retrieved from
http://www3.apwa.net/Resources/Reporter/Articles/2006/12/Efficiency-vs-
Effectiveness