Catalog
method#Governance#Product strategy#Analytics & metrics#Delivery & execution

Balanced Scorecard

A strategic management method that translates vision and strategy into measurable objectives and metrics across multiple perspectives.

The Balanced Scorecard is a strategic performance management method that translates vision and strategy into measurable objectives across financial, customer, internal process, and learning perspectives.
Established
Medium

Classification

  • Medium
  • Organizational
  • Organizational
  • Intermediate

Technical context

Business intelligence tools (e.g., Power BI)ERP and financial systemsHR and CRM systems

Principles & goals

Multi-dimensional measurement instead of pure financialsLink strategy cascade with clear target horizonsEnsure regular reviews and governance
Discovery
Enterprise, Domain

Use cases & scenarios

Compromises

  • Strategy reduced to KPIs ( KPI-focus )
  • Lack of acceptance in business units
  • Faulty or manipulated metrics lead to wrong decisions
  • Start with clear strategic themes and expand iteratively
  • Define few relevant KPIs per objective
  • Regular, short review cycles with clear decisions

I/O & resources

  • Strategic objectives and vision
  • Operational metrics and data sources
  • Resources for reporting and analysis
  • Cascaded objectives and KPI definitions
  • Dashboards and management reports
  • Governance and review cycles

Description

The Balanced Scorecard is a strategic performance management method that translates vision and strategy into measurable objectives across financial, customer, internal process, and learning perspectives. It aligns organizational goals, tracks key performance indicators, and supports strategic feedback loops. Implementation requires clear targets, governance and regular review cycles.

✔

  • Improved strategic clarity and prioritization
  • Measurable link between strategy and operational action
  • Better communication basis for stakeholders

✖

  • Resource-intensive setup and KPI alignment
  • Risk of too many or irrelevant KPIs
  • Requires disciplined governance and data quality

  • Objective attainment rate

    Share of strategic objectives achieved within the defined period.

  • KPI deviation rate

    Proportion of KPIs exceeding a predefined deviation threshold.

  • Implementation progress of initiatives

    Progress percentage of strategic initiatives against plan.

Enterprise reporting portal

A dashboard consolidates KPIs from four perspectives and provides monthly strategy reports to executives.

Product-line BSC

Product teams derive concrete product goals from the corporate BSC and measure market success, customer satisfaction and efficiency.

Quarterly strategy workshops

Workshops to review KPIs and adjust initiatives with cross-functional stakeholders.

1

Identify stakeholders and clarify vision

2

Define perspectives and strategic themes

3

Define objectives, KPIs and target values

4

Connect data sources and build reporting

5

Establish governance process and train teams

⚠️ Technical debt & bottlenecks

  • Opaque data pipelines and manual KPI calculations
  • Outdated reporting infrastructure without automation
  • Missing documentation of KPI definitions and sources
Poor data qualityUnclear ownershipToo many metrics
  • Using BSC purely as a reporting tool without strategy linkage
  • Focusing on easily measurable items rather than strategic relevance
  • Ignoring data quality and origin in KPI calculation
  • Too short review cycles for strategic goals
  • Unclear KPI definitions (interpretation gaps)
  • Lack of alignment between goals across levels
Strategic management and objective settingData analysis and KPI designStakeholder facilitation and governance
Strategic clarityData and measurabilityLeadership and governance structures
  • • Limited resources for data collection and reporting
  • • Organizational politics restricting target setting
  • • Technical integration capability of source systems