Balanced Scorecards for Colleges and Universities: Development and Deployment

Balanced Scorecards
Jan W. Lyddon, Ph.D.
Executive Vice President San Jacinto College

What is a Balanced Scorecard ?

A measurement system Strategic management system, and Communication tool

Why A Balanced Scorecard?

Increased Keep

accountability

requirements for

our eye on whats most important Focus especially on major outcomes

Primary Uses
Monitoring

key items Communication of priority areas for action Myth busting real results

What Is It?
Visual display
of

the most important information needed to achieve one or more objectives

which

fits entirely on a single screen or sheet

so it can be

monitored at a glance.
Stephen Few, 2006

What is on it?
Performance

Indicators:

From strategic or other plan Of key decisions or objectives Usually highly aggregated data Maximum 15 20 Called Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Kinds of Indicators
Indicators
Student

should be:

A balance of perspectives
perspectives, process perspectives, learning perspectives are examples Also called categories

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Kinds of Indicators, contd

Indicators
Inputs

should be:

A balance of leading and lagging indicators

as well as outputs or outcomes measures

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Who uses it?

Key Key

decision makers policy makers

Monitor regularly
To make informed decisions To communicate with external stakeholders
Internal

stakeholders

To help align their actions with overall purposes

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Components of the Indicators

The

actual performance, expressed in numerical terms The target, benchmark, or objective The difference between actual performance and the objective
Signal values indicate how far from the objective or target (best, middle, worst)

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Categories for Indicators

Four

or five categories:

Strategic plan goals, or Perspectives, such as:

Stakeholder Processes Learning Financial

and innovation

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Examples of Indicators
Stakeholder:

Student satisfaction Student retention and graduation rates Community support

Processes:

Continuous improvement initiatives Time required to complete DE Efficiency measures (e.g., percentage of seats filled)

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Examples of Indicators, Contd

Learning

and innovation:

Professional development impacts New programs

Resources:

Enrollment Donations Budget balance

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Sample Community College - Balanced Scorecard

Date:

5/1/2006

ve Ta At Ta rge t r Be get lo w Fa Ta r B rge t el ow Ta rg Sc et or e or Le ve l

Goal I I I I I I I I I II II II II II II II III III III III III IV IV V V V V V V

Measure/Index Title Retention rate (fall to winter return rate) Persistence rate (fall to fall return rate) Graduation rate (% of 1st time full time graduating 3 years later) Transfer rate (% of new students who have transferred 3 years later) New students % share from Level I & II high schools Dual enrolled high school students Headcount Student Credit Hours Student satisfaction - academics (satisfaction on a 4.0 scale) Student satisfaction - services (satisfaction on a 4.0 scale) Employer satisfaction Financial aid participation rate (% of first time full timers receiving any form of financial aid) Tuition discounted with financial aid Alumni satisfaction Employee turnover Enrollment of Students of Color Employees of Color CIP enrollment rate Student learning - multiculturalism Student learning - international Community support Action projects to improve community support Budget balance (% of tuition & fees revenue compared to target) Private gifts (dollar value of donations during the quarter) Grant funds received (dollar value of the funds received in the quarter) Revenue from employer training (revenue received during the quarter) Facilities Condition Index (ratio of deferred maintenance to building value) IT systems response (Ratio of tickets open to completed)

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

71.7% 45.1% 13.0% 32.0% 1,626 21.1% 340 5,915 45,670 3.05 2.98 90.3% 71% 79.1% 88% 0.25% 8.9% 9.4% 19.1% 89.8% 82.3%

68.0% 40.0% 18.0% 30.0% 1,550 32% 325 5,817 45,977 3.25 3.25 93% 72% 80% 80% 0.08% 8% 8% 20% 83.57% 87.03%

Fall 2005 Fall 2005 Fall 2005 Fall 2005 Fall 2005 Fall 2005 3/15/2006 4/27/2006 4/27/2006 2005-06 2005-06 2004-05 2005-06 2004-05 2005-06 3rd qtr 05-06 1/2/2006 Fall 2005 2004-05 2004-05 2004-05

X X X X X X $ $

-0.5% 138,086 $ 80,000 $ 24% 4.3 0.93

5.0% 80,000 75,000 25% 5.0 1.0

3rd qtr 05-06 3rd qtr 05-06 3rd qtr 05-06 3rd qtr 05-06 2005-06 May-06

La st up d

Ta rg et

Ab o

at e

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Development Process
Steps in Building Your Balanced Scorecard

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Development Process
Identify

project partners:

Project champion Content provider Technology support

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Development Process
Identify

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

15 20 maximum

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Development Process
Work

with process stakeholders

Refine definitions of data Develop methods of display and update Ensure their understanding

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Development Process
Set

benchmarks, targets or signal values

Comparisons with other institutions Comparisons with past performance Comparisons with goals

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Development Process
Signal

Values

Three levels
Best Middle Worst

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Signal Values Example 1

Fall Headcount
6,500 6,400 6,300 6,200 6,100 6,000 5,900 5,800 5,700 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Actual Best Middle Worst

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Signal Values Example 2

Average Semesters to Complete DE
8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Actual Best Middle Worst

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Establishing Signal Values

Base

them on:

Institutional past performance Institutional goals Comparisons with other organizations

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Development Process
Design

the display and delivery mechanism

One screen or one page Avoid clutter Provide detail by using hyperlinks Decide who will have access

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Development Process
Hyperlinks
Detail

example:

KPI = overall student satisfaction

= student satisfaction with
academics services

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Student Satisfaction Trends

Hyperlinks in Excel
Student Satisfaction
Date:
5/1/2006

3.30

Sample Community College - Balanced Scorecard

3.20 3.10 3.00 2.90 2.80 2.70 98-99 99-00 00-01 01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06
Goal Measure/Index Title I Overall Student Satisfaction

ve Ta At Ta rge t r Be get lo w Fa Ta r B rge t el ow Ta rg Sc et or e or Le ve l

Instruction
Ta rg et La st u pd

Services Best

Ab o

3.01

Middle Fall 2006 3.25 Worst

Instruction Services Best Middle Worst

98-99 3.07 2.95 3.25 3.15 3.10

99-00 3.14 3.01 3.25 3.15 3.10

00-01 3.15 2.95 3.25 3.15 3.10

01-02 3.11 3.03 3.25 3.15 3.10

02-03 3.16 2.90 3.25 3.15 3.10

03-04 3.17 2.96 3.25 3.15 3.10

04-05 3.03 3.03 3.25 3.15 3.10

at e

05-06 3.05 2.98 3.25 3.15 3.10

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Development Process
Usage

and updates

Project champion should monitor frequently

Other

key decision makers should monitor also Inform others of how often the data change

Who should access

Wide-spread

few users Help with fear factor

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Benefits of a Scorecard
Useful

in guiding strategic plan development:

One college used its scorecard data to identify areas where it was consistently below targets. The Board identified five strategic goals for the new strategic plan.
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Benefits of a Scorecard, contd

Increased

internal alignment:

Visible targets and performance informs operational unit and individual plans

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Increased Alignment

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Benefits of a Scorecard, contd

Establishes

the college

a culture of evidence at

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Next Steps
Evaluate
Are

and improve some of the measures, such as those that:

not a valid measure of what is being done Not possible to measure often enough or difficult to measure Benchmarks with better measures are available
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Next Steps
Evaluate

and improve some of the measures Develop leading indicators: Measures that indicate progress against a process or behavior. These measures are helpful in predicting the future outcome of an objective.
Balanced Scorecard Collaborative

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Next Steps
Review

the signal values:

Develop more robust targets

Achieving

the Dream database National CC Benchmark Project IPEDS Peer Analysis System State data Other professional sources

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Next Steps
Increase

alignment of departmental or unit data with overall performance indicators Develop cascading scorecards

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Lessons Learned
Monitor Be

regularly

Presidential commitment is crucial

sure measures are balanced Align the measures with the plan Keep the scorecard display straightforward (Keep It Simple & Straightforward KISS)

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Lessons Learned
What

is measured gets noticed What is noticed gets acted on What is acted on gets improved
Dee W. Hook presentation Phenomenon of Measurement

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Want to know more?

Contact

me:

Jan W. Lyddon, Ph.D.

Jan.lyddon@sjcd.edu

Read:
Few, Stephen. 2006. Information Dashboard Design: The Effective Visual Communication of Data. Sabastopol, CA: OReilly Media, Inc. Kaplan, Robert S. & David P. Norton. 1996. The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy Into Action. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Niven, Paul R. 2003. Balanced Scorecard Step-by-Step for Government and Nonprofit Agencies. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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