W8 Balanced Score cards - Essay Example

2). For the current discourse, the aim is to select a company from the Balanced Scorecard Institute official website which applied the balanced scorecard approach and which led to facilitating the achievement of defined goals in a more efficient and effective manner. The selected company is Kenya Red Cross and the experience of applying the balanced scorecard was told from the point of view of its Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Strategy Champion for the Kenya Red Cross Society, Arthur Omolo (Omolo, 2010).

Evaluation of the Scorecard The organization’s balanced scorecard was shown in this link: http://balancedscorecard.org/Portals/0/PDF/KenyaRed%20CrossScorecardPoster.pdf. From the framework, the structure was classified into subsections which include the following: Mission, vision, core values, beneficiary value proposition; Strategic themes; Strategy map; Presentation of objectives, performance measures, target, and initiatives according to: Beneficiary, stakeholder; Financial stewardship; Business processes; and Organizational capacity.

In terms of possessing the crucial ingredients of the balanced scorecard, the application strictly complied and adhered to the needed requirements; which contributed to its effectiveness. First and foremost, the explicit identification of the mission and vision statement was present and even included the value proposition which stated “Always There” to the beneficiaries of their services. The strategy map also vividly presented a visual summary of the objectives that would necessitate the design of strategies to effectively achieve them.

Likewise, it was commendable that Kenya Red Cross presented an in-depth and comprehensive enumeration of the objectives, performance measures, targets, and initiatives that assisted in designing appropriate strategies which could be instrumental in facilitating the attainment of the identified goals. Overall, the structure and presentation was clear, straightforward, and highly commendable for following the essential elements required by the balanced scorecard approach (Kenya Red Cross, n.d.).

As emphasized, there were enumerable benefits that were realized by the Kenya Red Cross due to the application of the balanced scorecard. According to Omolo (2010): “there are so many firsts with the balanced scorecard. Kenya Red Cross for the first time has a strategy that has performance measures and targets. For the first time we can present our strategy on a single sheet of paper. The balanced scorecard has changed the conversation on strategy and increased the focus on consistent monitoring of the strategy” (p. 2). Personal Reaction What did you like?

Honestly, the experience relayed by Kenya Red Cross regarding the manner by which the balanced scorecard approach assisted in their ability to gauge the effectiveness of their strategies in achieving organizational objectives were inspiring and enlightening. I liked the way that the Chief Financial Officer was able to communicate through the approach that in one comprehensive view, the organization is able to monitor their performance against mission, vision, and goals statements and inevitably assisted in adhering to the value proposition as required of the humanitarian organization.

The most relevant realization that was relayed by Omolo (2010) focused on the ability of the balanced