Balanced Scorecard: Step-by-Step for Government and Nonprofit Agencies, 2nd Edition

7

Strategy Maps

Roadmap for Chapter 7 This is a good point in the book to pause and reflect both on where we’ve been and where we’re going. The early chapters provided background on the Balanced Scorecard, and how you can adapt the model to fit your government or nonprofit agency. We then explored the elements necessary to construct a solid foundation for your Scorecard effort: determining your “burning platform,” building your team, gaining executive support, and training, to mention just a few. Then we turned to the building blocks of any Balanced Scorecard: mission, values, vision, and strategy. Now, it’s on to Strategy Maps!

Describing his North African adventures, Mark Jenkins had this to say about maps in his book To Timbuktu: “Maps encourage boldness. They make anything seem possible.”¹ And you thought a map was just something to get you from point A to point B! For many organizations, executing strategy can feel like an impossible task, one in which boldness, while often in short supply, is in great demand.

In this chapter, we’ll discuss the development of Strategy Maps. We’ll explore how these devices provide a powerful method of graphically describing your strategy, bringing your performance objectives to life, and boldly proclaiming your intent to implement your strategy. We’ll outline what a Strategy Map is, why you need one, and determine which perspectives are right for you. We’ll then conduct a deep dive into how you’ll construct your own Strategy Map. Step by step, ...