Beyond Performance Management

4

BALANCED SCORECARD

What is this practice and how effective is it?

The balanced scorecard is a framework for linking strategic goals to measures and action plans. Strategy maps link critical processes enabling managers to focus on key areas of measurement and improvement. But despite a multiplicity of best-practice cases and hundreds of consulting firms selling solutions, the failure rate remains high. One reason is that too many scorecards become nothing more than annual contracts—similar to budgets with additional bells and whistles—that are glued too tightly together and that stifle ambition and flexibility. We look at how some organizations are using scorecards to empower and engage their people in setting ambitious goals and aligning measures ...