Slippier than the proverbial fish: A preliminary exploration of performance measurement in non-profit human service organisations

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a preliminary exploration of performance measurement as an element of strategic management in Nonprofit Organisations (NPOs) involved in the provision of human services. While there is considerable evidence of the adoption by NPOs of strategic management methodologies, the question of how effective this has been in achieving organisational objectives remains to be answered. The paper focuses in particular on NPOs providing services to persons with intellectual disabilities in Ireland.  These organisations are typically publicly funded organisations of a charitable and or religious nature. Through a preliminary case study of one such organisation, the paper builds the case for a comprehensive examination of the role and challenges for performance measurement in the sector. It argues (i) that the particular attributes of NPOs in the sector may militate against the adoption of mainstream strategic management initiatives such as the Balanced Scorecard[1], and (ii), that a more comprehensive understanding of these organisations is necessary if real insight is to be gained into the development of effective strategic management and performance measurement methodologies. In particular, the complex, multiple and asymmetric stakeholder profile of these organisations is identified as a key attribute to which such systems must be adapted and aligned. This paper sets the stage for future research and maps some of the more significant challenges for the development of performance measurement in the sector.[1] The Balanced Scorecard was developed by Robert S, Kaplan and David P. Norton in the early 1990s as a model of performance measurement in for-profit organisations.  They later developed the Balanced Scorecard as a comprehensive model for strategic management.