Is the balanced scorecard relevant to government agencies?
Taxpayers, the ultimate customers of government, are demanding more accountability for the use of their funds. They want to see tangible results from all government agencies, at all levels. In the U.S., this demand is reflected in the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993, one of the most influential laws affecting how the Federal Government works. More recently, the President’s Management Agenda, promulgated by the Office of Management and Budget, includes language requiring performance-based scoring and budgeting of all activities of agencies in accordance with top-level strategies. The balanced scorecard is the only framework readily available that can align strategy, performance and budgeting to meet these requirements. Therefore, government agencies are increasingly looking to the balanced scorecard approach.
