Implementing the balanced scorecard in a local government sport organization

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the issue of performance management in the public sector and specifically the implementation of the balanced scorecard (BSC) methodology on a public (municipal) non-profit sport organization in Greece. The research provides a discussion on the BSC development process, the goals set on each pillar and the outcome that the organization achieved, in order to be used as a roadmap for other managers in the public sector. Design/methodology/approach The study used information extracted from the municipal board of Papagos-Holargos city in Greece, including board reports, documents and decision transcripts and open-ended interviews related to the implementation of BSC method, as well as to the impact of this decision on the quality of services, citizens’ satisfaction and the improvement of internal processes. Findings The results indicated that the citizens of Papagos-Holargos perceived sport services to be of enhanced quality related to/when compared to the previous years (based on a questionnaire submitted by the citizens of Papagos-Holargos at the end of the each sample per year). In addition, the staff improved its skills and abilities by participating in training seminars and, in general, the implementation of the BSC method on the municipal sport organization of Papagos-Holargos city sets the basis for an effective performance management which can enhance its future sustainability. Practical implications Managers of municipal and public sport organizations could use the findings of the study as a roadmap for discussing, evaluating and possibly implementing the BSC approach in their organizations’ daily operations. Originality/value This study fills a significant gap in the existing literature on the implementation of a traditional business performance management tool on a non-profit public sport organization.

Post-Implementation Benefits and Challenges of the Balanced Scorecard: Evidence from the Finance and Accounting Outsourcing Sector

“…This result indicates that managers of these organizations are more concerned about allocation of appropriate resources to successfully implement the BSC. This finding is consistent with the findings of Dimitropoulos et al (2017) where they say that 'the human resources are the most significant determinant in the application of a performance-based management methodology'. Table 3 illustrates the results of one sample t-test conducted for perceived strategies.…”

“…The study also revealed certain barriers to the implementation of a successful balanced scorecard, in particular using a substitute performance measurement tool, the size of the organization, the unavailability of the resources to generate information required to support the BSC method, the lack of time and commitment towards the implementation process and finally the lack of top management support in the design and implementation of the tool. Dimitropoulos, et al (2017) confirms the above and states that a public-sector organization operates under tight budget constraints, as well as scarce economic resources. There are many stakeholders for such an organization and thus required to ensure all varying stakeholder needs are met while the required level of service quality is also maintained.…”

“…This response had a unanimous agreement between the two genders. This was stressed by Dimitropoulos et al (2017) in his research urging employees to seek additional education and training in any form. All employees agreed on all other challenges tested, however the responses varied between the differing control variables.…”

Balanced Scorecard-Based Evaluation of Sustainable Energy Investment Projects with IT2 Fuzzy Hybrid Decision Making Approach

“…This method has been considered by many researchers for different sectors. For example, Dimitropoulos et al [60], Yao and Liu [61] and Ndevu and Muller [62] used this method to assess the effectiveness of governments. Similarly, Ge [63] and Wang et al [64] focused on how to improve the performance of local governments by taking BSC method into consideration.Ćwiklicki [65] conducted this study for non-profit organizations.…”

Presenting an Executive Model for Improving the Performance of Sports Federations

“…A few of the studies conducted in the field of sports organizations are given in the following. Rodríguez Bolívar, López Hernández and Ortiz Rodríguez (2010); Walmsley (2012) and Dimitropoulos, Kosmas and Douvis (2017) were among the researchers who introduced new applied research into the implementation of a balanced scorecard assessment methodology in sports organizations (4)(5)(6). However, their method pertained to internal assessment.…”