Strategy maps: the middle management perspective

Abstract

PurposeThe second major step in the development of the balanced scorecard was the introduction of strategy maps. Although much has been written about the benefits of strategy maps, there have been relatively few empirical studies that explore their use in a real-world setting. Additionally, the studies that have been done do not focus on the perspective of middle managers and employees who execute the strategy on a daily basis. This study addresses these gaps through observing the construction of strategy maps in two main business lines of a commercial bank. The participating managers are then asked if they agree that the resulting strategic performance measurement system assist organizations in the three ways most discussed in the literature: translating and operationalizing strategy, communicating the strategy and measuring the strategy. This study also provides some additional insights regarding the construction and use of strategy maps in organizations. The findings provide evidence to management that strategy maps are beneficial and guidance on how these could be implemented. The purpose of this study is to examine the implementation of strategy maps in a real-world setting. Strategy maps are an extension of the well-known and adopted balanced scorecard, but have received little attention in empirical studies.Design/methodology/approachThe researcher introduced middle managers and operational staff to strategy maps and assisted them in the construction of a map for their business unit. The participants were then interviewed as to whether they agree with the benefits outlined in literature.FindingsParticipants agreed with the three main benefits outlined in literature and also provided additional feedback on the use of strategy maps from the perspective of their role as middle managers and those who had not used strategy maps in the past.Research limitations/implicationsThis study should be replicated in a larger setting. It would be particularly helpful to involve multiple departments across one organization or replicate the research in different organizations in the industry.Practical implicationsIt would be helpful to guide business units through the construction of strategy maps and then survey employees at different levels throughout the business units to obtain their feedback concerning the resulting product.Social implicationsBecause this study involves middle managers and operational level employees, it provides insight on the use of strategy maps, which could be extrapolated to other strategic performance management tools. This is a level of management that has not been involved to a large extent in previous research.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to observe middle managers in their development of a strategy map, which puts it in the unique position to note the opinions of this group on the benefits of the tool.