Our blog articles about strategy, people, performance, decision making, balanced scorecards and culture change
Here is a way into my blog articles, over 300 of them: It is structured into major topics areas linking to the most articles in each topic area. These cover:

- The Strategy Zone
- Communicating & socialising Strategy: An Executive’s guide
- The Decision Improvement Zone:
- The Culture & Behavioural Change Zone
- The Performance Management Zone: A guide to understanding the management of performance
- Modern Balanced Scorecard Zone
- The 4G Strategic Management Zone
- How we look at our organisations and how we manage: The Paradigm Shift Zone
- Thought provoking articles about how we manage our organisations
Simply scroll down through the various topic areas and articles…
1) Strategy choice, approach and implementation articles: Most recent first
Implementing strategy, getting engagement, using the Balanced Scorecard Approach
Ever wanted to ensure you engaged people and managed to change attitudes and performance, as you rolled out your strategic balanced scorecard? In this video, Steve Lunn talks to Phil Jones about their work together at Anglian Water (AW) as AW rolled out a strategy to...
The difference between Mission, Vision and Purpose
So often the words, Mission and Vision, are confused and used without clarity. The jargon gets in the way. How can we clearly distinguish between them?
Emergent strategy is not lazy strategy
An interesting discussion about emergent strategy came out of a presentation I did last night, for a group of Directors, about thinking strategically in the current economic climate. Early on I made a clear distinction between deliberate strategy and emergent...
Balanced scorecard and risk management
How do you manage risks with the balanced scorecard? How is risk management integrated with the balanced scorecard? I've been thinking about this. A little thought brought me to three conclusions about the balanced scorecard and risks. To get to these conclusions I...
Polishing strategy, not implementing strategy: “The problem is our People have big brains”
Are your people polishing strategy, instead of implementing it? In our organisation people have big brains - and that can be a problem! Listening to a Chief Executive talk to her the team about the strategy, I was struck by a phrase she used multiple times in only 40...
What is a good strategy? A behavioural view
There was a question on a LinkedIn forum recently - "What is a good strategy?" Many have taken that to mean, "What is a good business strategy?" - but I want to widen this, to be a behavioural view of strategy... A view of strategy as behavioural If you take a much...
2) Communicating & Socialising Strategy articles: Most recent first
Your strategy communication plan: Six questions to help you
How do you prepare your strategy communication plan? Here are six detailed questions to help you plan and prepare to communicate & socialise your strategy. First, the challenge Years ago, I the organisation I worked for did some research about the understanding of...
Strategy does not exist in plans: it exists in people’s heads.
Strategy does not exist in plans: it exists in people's heads. If the strategy is not in their heads when they make decisions, then what is being implemented? Certainly not your strategy. Scary isn't it? The source of the problem is we think telling people the...
Strategy maps and themes help to communicate your strategy
Prof Bob Kaplan says, Strategy maps and themes aid communication of your strategy Last night I attended Bob Kaplan's presentation in London on his latest thinking around scorecard development. His talk was entitled "Communicating strategy and managing the strategy...
3) Decision making and decision taking articles: Most recent first
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
4) Performance management, various types and perspectives. Most recent articles first
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
5) How to achieve Cultural and Behavioural change. Most recent articles first
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
5) Modern Balanced Scorecards. Most recent articles first
Lean Thinking and Balanced Scorecards: 1) The Policy Deployment Matrix
A client in the public sector are undertaking a large lean initiative to reduce costs and improve services. When I started talking to them about fourth generation balanced scorecards, they asked how it related to their "Strategy deployment matrix". I must admit I...
Beware of poor balanced scorecard training that does not even cover the basics!
This is an example or really poor balanced scorecard training. I was talking with a client recently about fourth generation balanced scorecards they told me they had strategy maps and had been on a CIMA course that explained third generation balanced scorecards. I...
Your Balanced Scorecard’s Architecture
The importance of thinking through the balanced scorecard cascade to ensure you develop line of sight, and planning the overall architecture of your set of balanced scorecards…
How to do weightings across your balanced scorecard 3 of 3
For the previous two articles in this series I have made it clear that you should NEVER do weighting of measures across your balanced scorecard. Never ever. It is a waste of time, trust me (and Trust Kaplan and Norton - see later). I have seen people...
Never do weightings across your balanced scorecard 2 of 3
Following on from the previous post, where I said never do weighting across the measures of a balanced scorecard. Someone suggested that in the public sector there is a weighting process where measures are rated poor, average, good, and an overall score is given for...
Never do weightings across your balanced scorecard 1 of 3
There was a question on Linkedin where someone was asking how to do weightings across the measures of a balanced scorecard. My reaction: Never ever try - it is a waste of time. It is a pointless exercise that turns a meaningful report into an meaningless mathematical...
6) Fourth Generation Strategic Balanced Scorecards and modern methods of management. Most recent articles first
4G Balanced Scorecard principles: Its about organisational learning as a strategy
The 10th principle of Effective Balanced Scorecard is about Learning. The ability to learn faster than your competitors may be the only sustainable competitive advantage." Arie de Geus Does your organisation really learn? Whilst chatting with a manager of a largish...
Strategy, Balanced Scorecards and Learning – the origins
Strategy, Balanced Scorecards and Learning organisations To understand how learning fits in the balanced scorecard you have to have some history. Back when Norton formed Renaissance Worldwide with Kaplan as non-exec he had two other key directors (1994 I think). Harry...
Strategy maps for different purposes
You can design a strategy map for different purposes. You can draw a 'strategy map' in a variety of ways. However, only some help you develop the strategy and the subsequent scorecard underneath. The others act more as communication tools. This article explores...
Balanced Scorecard perspectives: Adding the External Context
Balanced scorecard perspectives require careful thought for an effective solution. Context is often missing: you need to add that external perspective. Working with a client recently reminded me of the importance of context around a balanced scorecard. This...
Strategy maps and themes help to communicate your strategy
Prof Bob Kaplan says, Strategy maps and themes aid communication of your strategy Last night I attended Bob Kaplan's presentation in London on his latest thinking around scorecard development. His talk was entitled "Communicating strategy and managing the strategy...
Environmental scorecards – Can’t I simply add an environmental perspective?
Environmental balanced scorecards - "Can't I simply add an environmental perspective?" A better solution to this simplistic approach, that captures your environmental strategy. Note this is an old article - if you have landed here, it will be useful, but I recommend...
7) Paradigm shifts that affect our organisations and how we manage.
Most recent articles first
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
7) Thought provokers, designed to make you consider thinking differently about how we manage and our organisations:
Most recent articles first
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
Of course the best way to find out what we think is to Contact us
