The balanced scorecard and leadership : the system’s (ir)relevance in an uncertain world

Abstract

Leadership is about handling change, and the balanced scorecard (BSC) is frequently seen as an important tool for this type of work. This paper studies the way in which the executives of the EDB 4tel corporation worked to handle a multitude of major changes taking place within and outwith their company, and how the BSC formed part of this work. The study demonstrates that the management’s change-oriented work centred round their interaction with surrounding players in their effort to form the company’s strategy, and that the BSC played no direct part in this process. Nevertheless, the BSC was important on an indirect level in that it established premises for their change-oriented work. This paper argues that while information which is of relevance to the strategy formation effort is embedded in the process of change, it is also a function of this process, and that consequently, the BSC is best utilized to provide information about the results of work on change, i.e. the current patterns of organizational action.