Developing an Integrated Measurement System and Balance Scorecard
DHL stands for the initials of its founders, namely, , and . It is a Deutsche Post company providing international document shipping and freight (‘’ 2007), and the leading global express delivery and logistics service provider (‘’ 2007). It extends its services to 120,000 destinations in more than 220 countries worldwide (‘’ 2007), including countries in Europe, the Americas, and Asia. It maintains and sustains its position in the market as the leading international air express network through continuous expansion, improving hubs and gateways, and offering superior service through a well-trained and dedicated work force (‘’ 2007). This provides a superior customer experience by focusing on the needs of the customers and by having an extensive background in management and technology related to the customer experience, thus, offering the most flexible, personable, and enjoyable customer experience in the shipping industry (‘’ 2007). The company also focuses on generating projects that focuses on electronics and telecommunications enhancement and development, and the implementation of their customer-specific project organization system that would provide customers with permanent professional and central contact (‘’ 2007).
The objectives or goals of the company is to provide and offer expertise in express, air and ocean freight, overland transport, and logistics solutions, along with worldwide coverage and in-depth understanding of local markets. This is being achieved by DHL through the development and improvement of its employees, from managers, couriers, and call center representatives, who help deliver the superior customer experience (‘’ 2007). In addition, the company uses and employs its highly specialized logistic solutions, including its electronics and telecommunications expertise, to shorten warehouse and lead times, in ensuring constant control and transparency of processes, and on-time delivery (‘’ 2007), thus, providing an efficient and effective service that sustains and maintains its consumers and operations. With this, the company is able to track their projects effectively, sustain their operations and maintain high organizational performance. It manages its projects through a six-step process, namely, initiation, design, planning, execution, closing, and handover (‘’ 2007), thus, emphasizing the key project deliverables of the company, which are the tangible or verifiable products, such as a specific object, or parts of a service, like machinery parts (‘’ 2007). The delivery of such project deliverables enhances and improves the company’s supply chain management strategies, from efficient project management to integration and distribution of products and services, thus, improving and developing the quality of services that the company offers its customers. In analyzing and stating the quality of services of DHL, a Gap Analysis must be done, which indicates the break or crack from the current position of DHL to its goal. The current position of DHL in its industry emphasizes its being a global organization that services 228 countries worldwide, a company grown by aggressive acquisition, and a company having an advanced, vast, and large IT applications. Being at this position, the company aims for automation, change in deployment footprint, focus on rapid integration and assimilation, to increase its business, number of stakeholders, and competitive advantage in the market, and maintain an accurate performance model ( 2006). To be able to do so, DHL adopts and implements the use of the balanced scorecard, which addresses a serious deficiency in traditional management systems ( and 1996), and the Performance Prism framework to measure its overall organizational performance. The scorecard introduces four main processes, namely, translating the vision that helps the managers build a consensus around the organization’s vision and strategy; communicating and linking that lets managers communicate their strategy up and down the organization; business planning, which enables companies to integrate their business and financial plans; and feedback and learning, which gives companies the capacity for strategic learning ( and 1996). The other measure, called the Performance Prism is a measurement framework that is designed to assist performance measurement selection, and addresses the key business issues to which a wide a variety of organizations will be able to relate. It has five components, namely, stakeholder satisfaction that focuses on the needs and wants of the stakeholders; strategies required to ensure the needs and wants of the stakeholders; processes that develop new products and services, generate and fulfill demand, and plan and manage the enterprise; capabilities or the combination of people, practices, technology and infrastructure that enable execution of business processes; and stakeholder contribution, which recognizes a symbiotic relationship between the organization and the stakeholders (, and 2001). With this, the quality of the service of DHL further improves and develops, for the management of the project deliverables becomes effective and efficient, thus, providing better service and satisfaction to customers.
Balanced Scorecard
In this point, the Gap analysis will be useful in addressing the problems with improving the quality of services of DHL, which is part of the internal business processes of the company. Improving the quality of the service of DHL includes addressing the issues of checkpoint compliance and capacity utilization. Checkpoint compliance provides the company with an accurate checkpoint system that allows the customers to monitor their shipment status timely and allows them to track and inquire regarding their shipment or package. This system would not only help the customers obtain their shipments on time but would also help the company reduce complaints regarding slow service or lost shipments. Another issue to address regarding quality improvement of service of DHL is the issue of capacity utilization, which helps utilize the space of an aircraft that would carry or transfer the shipments from one place to another. This issue of vital importance for to be able to improve the quality of service of DHL, the company must be able to organize their vehicles to ensure the effective and efficient loading, transfer and distribution of shipments and packages to consumers.
The use of the balanced scorecard guides and influences the behavior of individuals and organizations depending on its applications. However, more importantly, the influence of using the balanced scorecard produces potential benefits, including the following:
Increased understanding and awareness within the management team, which will come from the discussion during the design process
A single concise management report describes operational performance across perspectives
The impact of initiatives is monitored across the wider process
Causal links between measures add relevance to measures, thus, facilitating target setting
The articulation of the set of key strategic objectives that are aligned to the vision of the company
The shared understanding of planned activities in delivering the objectives
A common language that articulates and communicates the objectives, plans, and targets of the organization to its members
Encouraging dialogue among the members of the organization, thus, reinforcing the goals and expectations of each member
Encompassing the short and long-term goals
Reinstating a clear corporate direction
Better understanding of issues that would provide effective and efficient solutions
Improving communication and listening skills
Encouraging and developing teamwork
Increases interaction among members of the organization
(From ‘’ 2004)
In order to further improve the overall performance of the company, additional recommendations can be made and provided. One of the projects that can be implemented that could further improve the quality of the service of DHL is the implementation of Total Quality Management techniques and strategies that center on quality through member participation, and aim at long-term success through achieving customer satisfaction (‘’ 2006). Another project that the company can focus on is its continuous expansion that would provide each country worldwide with a DHL network and distribution center for more efficient and effective distribution and delivery. However, the continuous expansion of the company entails the continuous hiring and addition of employees, thus, involves continuous employee training and development. Although this requires higher and additional costs, the company would be able to sustain and attract more customers that would strengthen their operations and their position in the industry.
This paper was able to discuss the benefits and the importance of the use of a balanced scorecard in the specific company, which in this case is the DHL Company. This paper was successful in emphasizing the use of a performance measurement system that is essential for the development and improvement of the operations of companies. The goals and objectives of DHL were obtained through different approaches and strategies in relation to performance measurement systems, thus, contributing to the success of the company as a whole. Because the focus of the improvement of the company is in the quality of its service, the recommendation is to implement the Total Quality Management techniques in the company to ensure the improvement of its services.
References
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