Abstract:
The Kaplan and Norton’s (1992) Balanced Scorecard model was designed for Western countries that operate within a capitalist system. African countries differ from Western developed countries in respect of aspects such as their infrastructure, markets and customers, sources of capital, government interventions, literacy levels, and socio-cultural frameworks. Thus, the original Balanced Scorecard model cannot be reconciled fully with an African environment that is more humanist, community-based and socialist in nature. Hence, the study set out to establish whether or not a different understanding or new perspectives on the Balanced Scorecard model were needed and could be conceptualised and developed specifically for organisations in Africa. A structured questionnaire was used for the primary data collection. Exploratory factor analysis and correlation analysis, using SPSS Version 16.0, were employed to identify the four significantly intercorrelated perspectives of the African Balanced Scorecard model which is proposed in this study: (1) the relationships and culture perspective, which looks at an organisation’s continued stakeholder dialogue and relationships; (2) the stakeholder perspective, which looks at the recognition of contributions by individual stakeholders; (3) the value creation perspective, which considers maximum economy, efficiency and effectiveness when creating organisational wealth, and (4) the corporate conscience (resource allocation) perspective, which looks at the equitable allocation of organisational wealth to all stakeholders, especially those that are usually disregarded, such as local communities and the natural environment. The results of the study will facilitate the review and design of better corporate planning and performance measurement systems, the review and design of government and industrial policies and regulations, management consultancies, and will promote and facilitate change in accounting and auditing principles and practices. The study is subject to some limitations, particularly a lack of larger geographic coverage (as only Southern Africa was covered), the limited availability of information from some participants, and the need for further validation of the cause-and-effect relationships between the four perspectives of the proposed African Balanced Scorecard model.
