Adoption of the concept of a balanced scorecard within NSW Health and Hunter New England Health: an exploration of staff attitudes

This paper reports on staff attitudes towards the 2003 adoption of a Balanced Scorecard (BSC) concept in the New South Wales Department of Health and the Hunter New England Area Health Service to assist in the identification of strategies, initiatives and measures to assess and increase performance. This project explores variables that may facilitate the diffusion of the BSC concept within the NSW Health sector through two research questions: (1) how perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the BSC influence general attitudes, and ultimately intention to use the BSC; and (2) how job level, functional speciality and degree of participation influence the perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the BSC. Results of the questionnaire, using a partial-least squares approach, confirm that perceived usefulness (at the individual level) and perceived ease of use have a significant influence on general attitudes, and intention to use the BSC. In addition, participation had a significantly positive effect on perceived ease of use, and directors, managers and non-health staff have a more positive perception of usefulness of the BSC than non-managerial and health professional staff. The implications of these findings for system adoption within the health sector and areas for further research are also discussed.