Balanced Scorecard Process Writing Outcome Objectives and Measures

WHY CREATE A SCORECARD? § “You can’t manage what you can’t measure; and you can’t measure what you can’t describe” (Peter Drucker) § “What you measure is what you get” (Kaplan and Norton) § “Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted”. (Einstein)

WHY METRICS? l l Measurement becomes the language that brings clarity to vague concepts Measurement promotes organizational learning about what activities, processes and behaviors “make a difference” in the achievement of strategic objectives Measurement communicates organizational values Measurement is a basis for feedback and adjustment of organizational behaviors.

BENEFITS OF A SCORECARD l l l Drives change: – Ensures that resources follow decisions Accountability: – Demonstrates value added Aligns a unit’s programs with the overall goals and challenges by illustrating: – Contributions of the unit to the organization’s success – Where the unit needs to focus

Benefits of a Scorecard l l Assesses organization performance from four perspectives: – Financial – Customer – Internal operations – Learning and growth Uses quantitative and qualitative data to benchmark Provides feedback to evaluate and improve programs and strategies Displays information and makes it transparent for full effect

Guiding Principles of Writing Objectives o o o The process of writing outcome objectives and measures assumes that “doing good” cannot be taken for granted. It must be assessed by “reality testing. ” Is internally driven Is focused upon continuous program improvement.

Goal is not to prove “are we good or not” but rather: l l l What did we do? How much did we do” What worked? What didn’t? Under what circumstances? What could be altered or improved? What do we need to do what we said we could do?

Why Write Objectives and Outcome Measures? l l Provides the department with information for decision making and planning Provides the department with useful “lessons learned” If your activities are not being implemented as you had planned, your department can make mid -course corrections and get back on track Aids in planning, training, and resource allocation

Why Write Objectives and Outcome Measures? l l “Ritualism” and inertia can be overcome Allows for organizational empowerment: – Increased understanding of problems/concerns – Increased ownership of programs – Increased satisfaction---”what we do matters” – Increased organizational commitment

Why Write Objectives and Outcome Measures? Unfortunately, we will not be able to get firm answers about whether or not our department is reaching its goals and objectives from: – Poignant vignettes told by employees, managers, customers – Testimonials about how much people like our department – Employee/manager reports about how well they have done or how hard they worked

What is an objective? l Definition: A target we hope to achieve l Good objectives are SMART: – S= Specific – M=Measurable – A=Action Oriented – R=Realistic – T=Time Oriented

“Specific” means… l Has a single aim or purpose l Don’t lump multiple objectives together l Use strong verbs (e. g. , “will publish”, “will retain”)

“Measurable” means… l Can be measured quantitatively l Provides a numeric indicator of what you are trying to accomplish l Evidence can be collected to document achievement of your objective

“Action Oriented” means… l Shows how each objective is linked to the overarching goal of the organization l Specifies what activities will need to occur to attain the objective

“Realistic” means… l They can be accomplished with your department’s current capacities and resources l Ask yourself, “Do I have everything that I need to do this? ” l Is this a reasonable expectation for the department?

“Time Oriented” means… l Objectives are time specific l States when the activities to reach objective will begin l States the time by which each objective will be accomplished

Examples Objective Measure Target Action