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

11

Reporting Results

Roadmap for Chapter 11 Reflecting on the future of management reporting, former General Electric Chief Executive Jack Welch once commented that “Most of the information a manager will need to run a business will reside on a computer screen in a digital cockpit. It will contain every piece of real-time data, with automatic alerts spotlighting the trends requiring immediate attention.”¹ Well, the future is here. Today’s Balanced Scorecard reporting tools can perform all of Mr. Welch’s prognostications plus 101 other tasks. In this chapter, we’ll explore the role of technology in reporting your Balanced Scorecard results and look at the steps you should follow when choosing a software solution.

Technology is not for everyone, however, and we’ll learn that many Scorecard pioneers used simple paper-based results to drive breakthrough results for their organizations. Key considerations when developing an in-house system will also be provided.

Results can only generate improvement and learning if analyzed and shared. The Balanced Scorecard provides governments and nonprofits with the mechanism to redefine and invigorate an often-tired and ineffective management meeting process. We’ll look at the specifics of this new and exciting process, culminating in the discussion of a new, strategy-centered management meeting.

FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE

A public sector client recently introduced me to an acronym I had never heard before: SPOTS. Any guesses? It stands for “strategic ...