The Balanced Scorecard process (BSC) was developed by Robert Kaplan and David Norton. We have been implementing elements of the Balanced Scorecard since 1994, when Kaplan and Norton first wrote articles about the subject. Implementation success has not been 100%. Why? The BSC is NOT for every company. It is an organizational communication device, not an individual assessment tool.

We use BSC assessments to validate and educate organizations, not to measure individual performance. For example, how do you measure individual improvement in your culture statistically? How about an individual's innovation or learning experience when a project failed? Can a BSC be applied to individuals in all areas of the organization? We think not to all of the questions. Aligning individual performance, not team performance to a BSC, is at best dangerous. If your company is thinking about using the Balanced Scorecard, we strongly suggest you take a very hard look at what you want from the results. Do you remember "the big wave" in Activity Based Costing efforts? Why did it not succeed everywhere?

We have learned that success with the BSC has come from working with teams who want to identify those capabilities and strategic competencies that customers need and, then, systematically improve upon them. Our focus is developing reasonable measurements in the areas of innovation, economic performance, customer satisfaction, and organizational culture and effectiveness. Our methodologies or assessments, including team training, action planning processes, combined with a life cycle assessment and customer surveys will get the teams to move forward effectively. After a time, we suggest to our clients that they use our "capability snapshot" process which will provide 360 degree perspectives of direction and effectiveness. It also provides customer satisfaction and internal capability measurements important to the new ISO9000 standards.