The document summarizes the balanced scorecard journey of Innovair Group, a company that implemented a balanced scorecard approach. It describes some of the initial challenges they faced, such as inadequate communication and underestimating the time and capacity needed. It outlines changes they made, such as creating communication teams and adjusting timelines. It also highlights successes, like forming objective teams and aligning performance management. The takeaways are that false starts are okay, learning is valuable, and qualitative outcomes like growth and alignment are now part of their definition of success.

1. INNOVAIR GROUP
A balanced scorecard company

2. What we’d like to share with you today.
• Who are we?
• Before the BSC.
• What we did wrong and how we adapted.
• What we did right.
• Unintended outcomes.
• A new definition of success.

3. Its not all in the book.

4. Key take-away.
• False starts are OK.
• You can’t do it alone.
• Prepare for change.
• Be great at communication.
• Bind BSC to performance.
• This isn’t a race.
• Learn and move on.
• Get trained, get coached.
• Change is scary for some.
• Gives your message an ally.
• Cascades alignment & gives
teeth to your BSC.
• Its about fitness.

5. We’re distributors.

6. Before the balanced scorecard.
• Operational fire fighting
• Rear view management
• Filling vacant positions, not managing talent for
the future.
• Performance appraisals based on job
descriptions, rather than alignment of the
individual and the company.
• Low employee engagement

7. We communicated a sense of urgency.

8. “and none will be so difficult or expensive
to accomplish…”

10. What we did wrong & how we adapted.
• Failed to start with a communications process
team and a plan to communicate effectively.
 Created a communications process team just
for this purpose.
• Inadequate objective commentary with
insufficient tactical ‘hooks’.
Do-over of an objective.
Customized our commentary and data
definition forms.
Improved discipline by SST. Solutions-rich
commentary.

11. • SST over-compensated a ‘hands-off’ approach.
Appointed an SLT executive sponsor to each
team.
More frequent check-ins.
Increased feedback.
• Lack of mid level managers on objective teams.
Made sure to appoint managers to next
teams.

12. • Failed to anticipate our limited organizational
capacity.
Changed our expectations: celebrate wins,
however small.
Started with an easy, feel good objective.
The learning is in the doing.
• Overrated our staff’s capacity to think abstractly.
Invested in SMEs.
Changed coaching method.

13. • Failed to prepare for change using guidance from a
readiness assessment.
 Raised awareness of change imperative.
 Changed our hiring practices.
 Success Factor of PMS.
 Teach disruption, Improve Innovation.
• Premature use of BSC software.
 A useless and expensive distraction. Too bad.
• Underestimated the amount of time for teams to
deliver initiatives.
 Adjusted our expectations.
 Objective Team Playbook.

14. What we did that worked.
• Senior Strategy Team (SST = OSM).
• 9 step method from BSI.
• Strategic Coach (BSI graduate).
• CPT.
• Some people quit. Some had to leave.
• Communicated to reduce fear & accept unknowns.

15. • Strategy vs operations.
• Objective Team Playbook.
• Invested in Team Function – Lencioni.
• Aligned performance management system.
• Learned to be patient, find reward, celebrate.
• Branded our strategy and our objectives.

18. Communication: the most important team.
• Develop a skill set in communications.
• Standardize accuracy, consistency
and timeliness.
• Identify the most effective media, and
tailor messages to suit.
• Focus groups.
• A process team, not an objective team.

19. Alignment / PMS

20. These are the Company’s THEMES:
These are OBJECTIVES that are currently active in my area, example(s) of an
INITIATIVE that supports it,
and how I am contributing to that INITIATIVE.
A Great Place to Work: “We are a leading employer in our
community.”
This theme makes our Company a great place to work, so we are seen
as a leading employer in our community. We’ve done this by increasing
our sense of responsibility as a corporate citizen through honesty,
integrity, and generosity. We’ve strengthened our leadership skills and
capacity, and our ability to make the best use of a great idea through a
stronger understanding of our Company’s strategic objectives and the
role that each of us plays. We’re skilled at ensuring we meet our goals
through improved performance management. We recruit and retain the
most-talented and high-performing team members, whose daily activities
are in alignment with the company’s strategic plan and contribute to
reduced operating costs.
Objective in my area that relates to this theme:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Strengthen Corporate & Social Responsibility (SCSR)
Initiative that supports the objective:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
1. Volunteering During Work Hours
2. Payroll Deductions
How I contributed to the initiative:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Customer Intimacy: “We are an essential part of our customer’s
success.”
This theme develops skilled staff to help meet our customers’ needs
through increased knowledge and technology use. By offering new ideas
every day, our staff continuously improves our internal processes,
increases the ease of doing business with us, and builds strong customer
relationships where we can anticipate our customers’ needs. This
improves customer satisfaction, increases our overall profitability, and
helps our customers see us as an essential part of their success.
Objective in my area that relates to this theme:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Improve Innovation (II)
Initiative that supports the objective:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
1. Product Awareness
2. Customer Scanning
3. Leading the II Team to success
How I contributed to the initiative:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Operational Excellence: “We are recognized for our excellence in
teamwork, continuous improvement, and asset utilization.”
This theme requires that staff members have an understanding of
continuous improvement and the relationship between their job and other
staff members’ jobs. By having the proper tools and skills, teams can be
productive and support a culture of continuous improvement in our
services and products. Our major processes have documented workflows
that support improved efficiencies, customer satisfaction and increased
sales revenue. Through waste reduction, we’ve reduced costs and
improved asset management.
Objective in my area that relates to this theme:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Improve Operational Excellence (IOE)
Initiative that supports the objective:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
1. Consult, colloborate and implement a process for customer order
communications
How I contributed to the initiative:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Grow the Business: “We have brand recognition in new markets.”
This theme improves the effectiveness of our sales through superior
product knowledge, sales skills, and spotting new opportunities. By
working closely with suppliers, we’ve improved our pipeline of new
products and services, increasing our ability to offer customers innovative
solutions to their challenges, and, in turn, increase our sales, gross
margin dollars, and overall brand recognition in new markets.
Objective in my area that relates to this theme:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Grow the Business
Initiative that supports the objective:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
1. Penetration of existing product into new geography’s
2. Introducing new potentional products to Innovair Medical
3. Gaining customer awareness, product trial, rentals and sales of
Vitalgo Products into Canadian Market
4. Maintain current cutomer and product base where it makes
business sense and GM%
How I contributed to the initiative:
Rating
(E,S,G,D)
Example of
alignment of
themes to
employee
initiatives.

22. Unintended outcomes.
• Starting with IP objectives had positive impact on OC
objectives.
• Objective team members acquired skills in leadership,
collaboration, communication, process execution and conflict
resolution – which improved OC objectives!
• We created desire to be on a team and raised engagement.
• We created new vertical opportunities unrelated to
organizational structure.
• We uncovered unknown potential in staff, and revealed
hidden skill and performance gaps.
• We created working synergies across business units.

23. A new definition of success.
• Quantitative outcomes vs qualitative outcomes
• Learning and Growth of people is the foundation
• Internal processes are the means to an end
• Customer and Financial perspectives are
outcomes

24. Thank you for this opportunity to share
our BSC journey, so far.
kend@innovairgroup.com
grantc@innovairgroup.com