The assessment and evaluation of efficiency in the public service is important because it can be used as the ground work and the fundamental data in distributing the limited resources, to secure the responsibility and to be utilized for the management data for the public service delivery institution. Especially, with regard to the social welfare service, as the demand for it is increasing, but the resources such as the budget are limited. Unless the resources are not distributed with efficiency, the good response to the various demand is impossible. Consequently, the research on the efficiency is important. In particular, when reviewing the researches on the welfare service, it can be found that the effectiveness and the service quality have been explored a lot, while the research on the efficiency is not common. It is because the welfare service is one of the difficult services to express its output, its result and its outcome in the financial terms. Nevertheless, as the social welfare service institutions among the various public service is providing the welfare service from the support of the government and the civil society, in order to secure the responsibility to the beneficiaries of the welfare service and the government and the local society, it is important to evaluate its efficiency and to disclose the outcome of it. Along with it, to identify the determinants on the efficiency is meaningful in a sense that it provides the useful information to improve the efficiency of the service delivery or to remove the sources of the inefficiency of the comprehensive social welfare centers hereinafter“welfare centers”. Also, in doing so, the abundant information for the enhancement of the efficiency can be identified. It is very important to perform this research work because it can make a difference in terms of the level of the public service delivered to the local residents.
From this perspectives, in this study, it is reviewed that what kind of the measured values should be utilized, in terms of the outcome of the efficiency measurement of the welfare centers, based on this, to explore the determinants of efficiency on the welfare centers, as a public service delivery institution, the efficiency index is measured by DEA, using it as the dependant variable, the determinants of efficiency are deduced by tobit regression analysis. Initially, the comparative efficiency index of the welfare center deduced by the efficiency measurement is used as the dependant variable to begin with.
As determinants variables, largely, the service delivery style, (the government direct management/ the private contracting/ the corporate direct management), the location and scale of the welfare center that show the local characters of welfare center, the leadership types of the head of the welfare center, the character of the head of the welfare center showing his or her working style, the payment of the performance related salaries, diversity in the committee members and the activity level of operation committee, the operation system and the organization culture that shows trust and cooperation among staffs are selected and analyzed. The result of the analysis is as follows. It is found that the operation types of the welfare centers, the operation system and the organization culture , the selection of the best staffs, payment of the performance related salaries, trust and cooperation among staffs, diversity in the committee members and the activity level of committee appeared to be the important determinants. Among the character factors of the head of the welfare centers, specifically the transformational leadership type among the leadership types of the head of the welfare center worked as a determinant.
As a result, it is found that the operation types of the welfare center, in case of the direct management, the operation system and the organization culture, the selection of the best staffs, payment of the performance related salaries, trust and cooperation among staffs, diversity in the committee members and the activity level of committee appeared to be the positive determinants. As the character factors of the heads of the welfare center the ‘transformational’ leadership style among the various styles of leadership appears to be the positive determinant. Also, among the welfare centers operated by the corporate direct management, the efficiency of welfare centers in the farming and fishing villages turns out to be high. In terms of the scale, the mid-size welfare centers show the higher efficiency than the large welfare centers.
In case of the private contracting management analysis, among the operation system and the organization culture factors, the selection of the best staffs, the payment of the performance related salaries, trust and cooperation among staffs, diversity in the committee members and the activity level of committee appear to be the positive determinants on the efficiency.
As the character factors of the leadership style of the head of the welfare center appear to be the positive determinant on the efficiency. The findings of the analysis indicates that, the bigger the welfare center''s scale, the higher the efficiency, and the private contracting welfare centers show the higher efficiency in case of the welfare centers located in the larger city.
Regarding the efficiency determinants in case of the welfare center operated by the direct government management, among the operation system and organization culture of the welfare center, the trust and cooperation of the staffs appear to be the positive determinant in the efficiency, among the characters of the head of the welfare center, the transactional leadership appears to be the positive determinant on the efficiency. Also, the selection of the best staff through performance evaluations turns out to be the positive determinant.
Based on the above the findings, this study suggests the policy implications as follows, for the enhancement of the efficiency of the welfare center.
Firstly, even though the welfare service should be provided for the residents of the beneficiaries of the welfare service regardless of the location, in the farming and fishing area, the welfare service is poorer comparatively than in a larger city. As a result of the analysis, in case of the welfare centers managed by a private contracting, it shows the higher efficiency comparatively than that of the large city or the small or medium sized city.
Therefore, when establishing the welfare centers, it would be necessary to place a priority in establishing the welfare centers in the farming and fishing area afterwards.
Secondly, as a result of the analysis on the efficiency determinants in case of the welfare center, the selection of the best staffs, payment of the performance related salaries, trust and cooperation among staffs, diversity in the committee members and the activity level of committee appear to be the important influence factors.
In terms of the actual operation of the welfare center, motivating the staffs and their work satisfaction are important. When the staffs are more active at work, naturally, the performance and the efficiency gets higher. Especially, the economic compensation for the work performance, namely, the performance pay may be important, when it comes to the staffs of the welfare center, the honorary compensation may be more important, from the nature of the work. In case of the selection of best staffs, it could bring the self-respect to the staffs, or honorary feelings, and it may work as an important factor to motivate the work satisfaction and the organizational commitment. Therefore, the economic compensation is one thing, additionally, if the active utilization of the honorary compensation system such as the best staff selection, and incentive delivery , namely, the economic incentive are paired to it, they can commit themselves more actively in their duty. It would be helpful to add up this compliance to the welfare center evaluation items etc., so that the system could be more activated,
Thirdly, as a result of the analysis on the efficiency determinants in case of the welfare center, the leadership style of the head of the welfare center appears to be the primary determinant, expecially, the more the head of the welfare center shows a ‘transformational’ leadership, the higher the efficiency of the welfare center gets,
In case of the direct management by government, the‘transactional’ leadership style among the various styles of leadership as the character factors of the head of the welfare center appears to be the positive determinant, different from the welfare centers operated in other operating system.
In other words, depending on what type of leadership the heads of the welfare center demonstrates, the efficiency of the welfare center may be affected, so it is important how they recognize their leadership. Therefore, the regular leadership education or training for the heads of the welfare centers can be required. Regarding the leadership education or training for the heads of the welfare centers, it would be the good plan to design the leadership related program requiring their attendance, where the related institutions such as ''Social Welfare Association'', ''Korean Social Welfare Association'' and the Ministry of Public health and Welfare can discuss together.
Fourthly, regarding the operation committee of the welfare center, the members of the operating committee are diverse, and their activity level is high, the efficiency appears to be high. This shows the importance of the role of the operating committee in charge of review and assessment of overall the welfare center operation and the work environment improvement for the welfare center staffs, in addition to the role of the staffs operating the welfare centers directly. Therefore, the systemic supplement for the diversity and activity of the operating committee members will be required. Currently, the operation system is working in the way that the decisions of the operating committee are not legally binding to the heads of the welfare centers. Through the reinforcement of the operating committee''s power, it is necessary to have the operating committee''s opinion reflected more actively.
All in all, to improve the efficiency of the welfare center, the demand survey on what kind of welfare service local residents need, reflecting the local character of the area where the welfare center is located and the various program development are needed, along with it, the leadership demonstration of the heads of welfare centers to improve the organization culture where the trust and cooperation among the staffs working in the welfare center is required. Also, the enrichment of the operating committee monitoring and supporting this could heighten the efficiency of the welfare center. Ultimately, this is to achieve the basic goal and the achievement of the welfare center to contribute to the quality of the local residents'' life.