Performance Audit in the Public Sector. What is the contribution to the Performance Management?

This paper examines possible future improvements of performance audit/performance management relationship in the public sector. Performance measurement, management and audit are strictly linked and influence each other. Scientific literature highlighted the coexistence of two contrasting sides. On one hand the positive side regards, for example, accountability and performance improving. On the other hand, a wrong use of performance audit process might lead to several problems such as: unintended consequences, performance paradox etc. Based on these premises, the research investigates on whether the performance audit really makes the difference, that is, how much performance audit contributes to performance management. This paper does not give an answer to this question but rather highlights the drawbacks and weak points as they come out from the analysis of various studies.