How to get buy in for Balanced Scorecards and Performance Management

How to get buy in for Balanced Scorecards and Performance Management

The question is very current as I had the most amazing compliment from a Balanced Scorecard client last month. When we first met, this Director was as sceptical and cynical of poor measurement approaches as any person I have met. We have just exptended the pilot balanced scorecard programme to a full roll-out. After a recent presentation to the board, he said:

“I have never come across an approach where there is so much acceptance. If fact I cannot think of a single person who is against the approach. You have overcome all resistance.”

I must admit it took me by surprise. I knew it had gone well, but this, as I am sure you will agree, is an exceptional comment. This isn’t a one-off. Going back another balanced scorecard client’s Director said,

“I have never come across an approach that has produced so much change inside six months”.

This was the Director of a City Council that had a reputation for being difficult to change.

This most recent quote came from work with a lovely and fascinating organisation. They are a third sector organisation that supports people with learning difficulties so is an interesting combination of a commercial, social service, that cares passionately about helping the people they support, and keeps a sharp eye on the money as well. It’s a very interesting organisation.

They had also chosen some managers for their pilot regions that were very different in style of management and approach.

I was thinking what I had done (quite deliberately) to achieve such buy in to the balanced scorecards with these varied regional directors. It came down to:

Draw the sting of bad measurement systems, poorly designed balanced scorecards, measures mania and the tyranny of targets. The poor experience of bad implementations and poorly executed “scorecards” needs to be over-ridden with a more modern, strategic and positive approach, as I use.
Explain how there are different types of performance management for different needs (see types of performance management) and make sure we are using the right approach for this client’s needs
Ensure I address the simple logic of the business and the cause and effect model
Don’t start with measures, but start with what they want to achieve and their objectives. Use this to describe their strategy in their words.
Position the approach and performance management as something to learn from that will evolve.
Ensure it is useful to those on the ground who are using it. (In this case we were primarily addressing Regional managers and it had to make sense to them and their staff. This was so successful that other regions demanded to join the pilot and some regions started to cascade to their staff and individual services with no prompting.
Mix judgement and facts (measures). Acknowledge the experience of managers and tap into it. Go further and demonstrate trust by acknowledging their judgement and helping them build it.
Use the approach to encourage dialogue and conversation. Even before we reached the measures they were having dialogues and discussions between the regional managers and within the regions that were rich, valuable to the managers and helped them to share ideas. They also helped them to assess and compare their own judgements and to learn from each other.
Tap into the multiple thinking styles and patterns that people use. If you fail to do this with the approach and with the way it is introduced you will lose many of the team.
Develop champions and influential advocates. Find people in the organisation who will champion the cause. The more sceptical to start with the better. Not just the high and mighty, but those who are respected managers in the organisation who are listened to by others. You can’t pick them, they will choose themselves, but you can develop them.
Use models of change and improvement, explicitly. There are many built into the balanced scorecard approach. Leaving them implicit means that they are often missed or not managed. Explicitly managing them, and being aware of the stages of thinking and ownership that people are going through, helps immensely. In other words, know the process and trust the process.
Recognise that needs will evolve. For instance boards demand more info and then once they have built trust and confidence step back, so their demands on the strategy map and balanced scorecard will change, naturally. It is expected.
Some final tests:

“Does it make sense?”
“Can I explain it to my staff?”
“Do I want it on my wall to remind me and others what we do?”
“Is it useful?”,
“Does it help me?”, and
“Can I be a better manager, with a wider view, concentrating on what matters, better?

These are not one off comments. Being systematic about change and helping people understand how and why it will improve things, make the approach a success. So our clients tell us.

To embed your balanced scorecards so they make a difference, just contact the Balanced Scorecard specialist consultants.

Phil Jones,

Excitant Ltd