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When viewing management information it can often be the case that managers can end up concentrating only on one aspect of a company performance but it is important to take a holistic view. One of the most popular methods of doing this is to adopt the Balanced Scorecard approach as it brings together this holistic view into a single understandable report allowing a quick evaluation of performanc

The Strategic Planning event, if done constructively is always confronting, argumentative and need we say, political. Various processes take different approaches, but no matter which process you have used to tackle your direction setting you now have a list of Initiatives that need to be rolled out. It is not unusual that the Initiatives list is extensive. As a general rule it would be quite e

Within the context of the Balanced Scorecard, objectives are the end game that supports the strategic intent of the organisation. Based on the traditional "Perspectives": Financial, Customer, Internal Processes, and Learning and Growth; objectives are derived from the strategic direction within these four perspectives. The objectives are a call to action with a defined resultant outc

Strategy Maps are a one page representation of the strategic intent of the organisation and the subsequent targeted objectives to effect strategic realisation. They are largely a visual assessment of what an organisation will focus on within a predetermined time frame. A great communication tool to those both internal and external to an organisation. And also very useful at visualising relationshi

Balanced Scorecard An integrated control system developed by Kaplan and Norton to map and control the implementation of business strategy through it's component strategic and operational metrics. This ensures organisational focus, in what is largely real-time, and hence the successful implementation of the strategy. The Scorecard provides an easy to understand and easy to communicate system o

Both strategic and operational planning are a must for any business looking to find its place in the world. There are many variations in the approach that needs to be undertaken to produce a unifying direction for a business to undertake. Once done, the trick now is to ensure that implementation of the plan actually occurs. In evaluating your future profile you will have created a priority lis

The list of reasons why SME's fail range from inadequate funds, ability to manage growth, being technical rather than managerial, to a lack of formal planning. Generally, top of this list is good old fashioned record keeping and the need to act on the resultant data. The ability of businesses to track their income, expenses and underlying key numbers coupled with the understanding or lack ther

Accountants and Consultants alike are conditioned to submit performance numbers using historical accounting format. Granted the average professional can decipher these numbers with ease but the presentation of these numbers to the untrained is akin to most of us looking at the fine print in legal documentation. Yet these professionals continue to present information in a form most of us fail to un

Visually, your Metrics need to be simple. Avoid the "fluff" and the temptation of creating flowery good looking graphics that don't convey meaning. The use of metrics are a management tool that (hopefully) are used by management in their day to day operations. They should be designed to convey information visually and quickly so management can quickly evaluate the impact on their

Planning is an essential part of all businesses. Too often we think the opposite, that it's a burdensome year end ritual. The businesses that think like that fail to understand that it should be entrenched in the day to day paradigm of a business rather than the year end ritual that some grudgingly undertake and most don't bother. As a minimum it should be a twelve month planning cy