Implementation of the Balanced Scorecard in Council XXXXX This report examines how the Balanced Scorecard could be implemented in Council XXXXX and what the benefits and challenges of its implementation would be. The report also outlines what complementary processes could be implemented to support the Balanced Scorecard. Explicit use is made of lessons learned from the implementation of the Balanced Scorecard at Halifax PLC. Recommendations The Balanced Scorecard has the potential to provide numerous benefits to the Municipality of XXXXX, although implementation of the Balanced Scorecard would be complex and face several challenges. The Council should pilot the BSC in one service area and then evaluate its suitability for rolling it out to the rest of the Council. If the BSC is implemented, it should be reviewed regularly to ensure it remains fit for purpose.2.0 The Balanced Scorecard The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) was developed by Kaplan and Norton as a performance management tool and was intended to help organizations look beyond the financial aspects thoughtful performance management systems. Their underlying premise was “what you measure is what you get.” (Fenton–O'Creevy, 2003, pp 14-7). The intention of the BSC was to include other indicators that contribute to strategic success in the organization's performance management system. Kaplan and Norton considered over-reliance on financial indicators to be too simplistic a view of organizational performance. By including financial and non-financial indicators, organizations can manage the interrelationships between activities more effectively. Kaplan et al explained that the performance indicators included in the BSC needed to be linked to strategic objectives (Fenton–O'Creevy, 2003, pp 14-6). This ensures that activities are aligned with strategic goals and helps employees see how they “fit into the bigger picture.” Norton and Kaplan suggested including four different perspectives in the BSC. These perspectives are innovation and learning, internal processes, customer and financial perspective. Norton and Kaplan suggested that these perspectives should be modified based on the needs of the organization. Halifax articulated the relationship between the different segments of the scorecard well in their implementation of the Balanced Scorecard, i.e. the Z “right people (innovation and learning) approach , doing the right things (processes) making the customer happy (customer perspective) generating income (financial perspective) Figure 1.0 illustrates how the relationship between the perspectives and how they should align with the strategic objectives The balanced score card is proved popular in the private sector because it helps an organization focus on some of the critical success factors that lead to financial performance.