Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Implementation at Britam Asset Managers Kenya Ltd
Abstract
Strategy implementation is made up of four elements including: identification of the
general strategic objectives, formulation of specific plans, resource allocation, budgeting
and monitoring and control procedures. It is through strategy implementation that an
organization is able to translate formulated strategies into guidelines of its daily
operations. Strategy implementation is not easy. The use of the balanced scorecard
enhances the strategy implementation process. The balanced scorecard in strategy
implementation provides feedback around both the internal business processes and
external outcomes in order to continuously improve strategic performance and results.
The operating environment for Britam Holdings Ltd group has changed as the group
evolved from the previous structure. In order to improve the strategy implementation
process, Britam Holdings Ltd group adopted the balanced scorecard in its operations. The
study objective is to establish the application of balanced scorecard and strategy
implementation at Britam Asset Managers Kenya Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary of
Britam Holdings Limited. The study adopted a case study research design because the
unit of analysis is one institution. The study used primary data and was collected using an
interview guide formulated in line with the objective of the study. Data obtained from the
interview guide was analyzed using content analysis. The study found out that strategy at
Britam Asset Managers Kenya Ltd was formulated every 3 years and follows the Britam
Holdings Limited group strategy formulation plan. Every employee at Britam Asset
Managers Kenya Ltd is involved in strategy implementation. The balanced scorecard at
Britam Asset Managers Kenya Ltd is developed by the management at a high level
headed by the Chief Executive Officer and then cascaded down to the departments. The
heads of departments prepare the departmental balanced scorecards which are cascaded
down to the supervisors and to the respective employees. The study concludes that the
balanced scorecard has assisted the organization in clarifying the vision and mission and
translating them into tangible actions for each employee. The company encountered
challenges in the use of the balanced scorecard as a tool for strategy implementation,
which included limited understanding on the link between the strategy and balanced
scorecard, mixing up of operational issues and strategic issues when using balanced
scorecard. The study recommends that for successful strategy implementation using the
balanced score card everyone must fully understand the overall organizational objectives
and there is need for further training to deepen the understanding of the balanced
scorecard and the role that each employee plays in overall achievement of the
organization goals. The limitations of the study include the time factor, and the risk of
subjectivity and bias in drawing inferences. These limitations however did not invalidate
the research. For further research the study suggests conducting a similar study on other
Business Units within the Britam Holdings Ltd group to establish if the results of the
study can be generalized. Further the study recommends carrying out studies on the use
of balanced scorecard by other asset management companies in Kenya for strategy
implementation as well as the customization of the balanced scorecard in different
organizations to suit the strategy implementation needs.
Publisher
University of Nairobi
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United StatesUsage Rights
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/Collections
The following license files are associated with this item: