Fulton Country School System: Implementing the Balanced Scorecard Case Solution

One of the major differences between the balanced scorecard applied in the case of for-profit firms and that applied in the case of Fulton school was the mission perspective. In case of traditional organizations, the company is already operating on the basis of set vision, mission, and objectives and the strategy are designed in line with those in mind. The mission perspective defines the social impact that the not for profit institute is aiming to make on the society through the strategy that is being designed and implemented using the balanced scorecard technique. The Institute needs to have a proper mission set in place to meet all the needs and demands associated with a public sector organization while also keeping all the stakeholders satisfied.  The second perspective that is unique to the balanced scorecard for not-for-profit institutes is the support perspectives. Not for profit organizations are supported through external funding from sponsors, donations, trusts, etc. To obtaining consistent funding for their projects, the not for profit institutes have to align activities and events that are specifically designed to attract funds. So the support perspective addresses the issues of attracting resources for the institute that, in this case, is the Fulton School. Events in government schools such as the community events, sports events, extracurricular are also funded through external resources in government schools so the support perspective is a key element of the strategic decision-making process and hence the balanced scorecard.

2. Give two possible improvements to the existing balanced scorecard and explain why these changes would improve the balanced scorecard at Fulton County School System.

One of the most drastic changes were witnessed in Fulton School when the Model of Excellence was applied and the schools started performing well in all key areas across the board while the student satisfaction also increases and the teacher turnover rate decreased significantly as has been described in the case study. In the existing balanced scorecard technique, two major changes can be implemented to ensure a similar level of effectiveness on its implementation and achieving good results based on the vision set for this strategy. Firstly a stakeholder perspective needs to be added into the model and the stakeholders involved in the public school system would include the students of the school, the staff members, faculty, government bodies associated with the schools and the parties funding the school system. This change would cause an improvement in the balanced score as the stakeholders would involve the students, the community, the faculty and staff and even the government bodies and associations. When all of these interests are working together and aligned to achieve the mission and vision identified, the change process would be much faster and much more efficient.

A second major improvement can be made in terms of a leadership perspective as the presenting and implementation phase of the balanced scorecard technique was prolonged and the act was delayed was delayed through the tenure of three more superintendents which included Michael Rayne, John Haro and Michael Vanairsdale and finally caught up in the tenure of James Wilson. This high rate of turnover at the leader level shows that the leadership skills are severely lacking, and the problem also needs to be addressed at the higher levels of the educational institutions hierarchy. The leadership perspective should address all the major issues related to the changes in leadership and leadership styles along with the training and building of effective leaders as part of the strategic program in the balanced scorecard technique.

3. The lectures on the balanced scorecard identified some problems with the balanced scorecard in general. Explain the most important shortcoming for the Fulton County School System.

One of the major problems that have been identified in the balanced scorecard technique is in its implementation where the managers in the traditional organization use the program as a recipe and the sole focus in on the implementation of the technique rather than in the integration of the balanced scorecard into the organization's strategy and operations. The four dimensions of the balanced scorecard should not just be implemented in their standard form, but rather they should be modified and tailored to fit the needs and wants of that particular institute. This applies in the case of both types of organizations, the profit and not-for-profit organizations.