The balanced scorecard as a strategic implementation tool in National Social Security Fund

Abstract

A strategy is a plan of action that shows how any organization will develop a sustainable competitive advantage with an intention of taking the organization to the next level of success. The organizational strategy is by all means affected by the environment in which the organization operates in since the environment is usually turbulent with different levels and types of turbulence requiring different strategic plan of action. According to Ansoff (1990) organizations must adapt new strategies to address new environmental conditions. Crafting a strategy is only the beginning with the most critical part being the implementation. A well formulated strategy poorly implemented will most certainly not bear fruits for the organization. For a successful strategy implementation, there is need to build the right capabilities and organizational culture. This study sought to gather information on how balanced scorecard has been used as a strategic implementation tool in NSSF. Different organizations across the globe have used different strategic implementation tools such as key performance indicators, gap analysis, core competence analysis and BSC. This research work concentrated on the balanced scorecard, a strategic planning, implementation and management tool that not only helps in aligning the organizations to their strategy but also helps in performance evaluation. The research used NSSF as a case to help dig information that revealed that there is a three year strategic plan that is reviewed as need arises. Data was collected mainly through an interview guide and later analyzed by use of content analysis which helped extract the key themes, concepts and arguments from the respondents. By using content analysis, inferences were made by systematically and objectively identifying specified characteristics. This research revealed that the organization in question have not greatly benefited form the implementation of balanced scorecard due to a number of hurdles. One of such bottlenecks that hindered the organization from reaping the expected benefits of using the BSC was the influence from the external environment and more so the government. It was noted that if the political environment did not negatively affect decision making in NSSF, benefits such as a holistic view of the organization, improved customer service and a better tool for controlling strategic planning and implementation would have been accrued by using BSC. After data collection and analysis, a summary, conclusion and recommendations were made. The research was therefore a success.