Changing times for charities: Performance management in a third sector housing association

This paper illustrates the progress from the application of a performance measurement system to that of a performance management system within a registered charity operating in the United Kingdom Third Sector. The organization is a housing association and its service users are socially excluded members of society. The balanced scorecard (BSC) was chosen as a catalyst for improving the performance management system between 2004 and 2006. A case study analysis using semi-structured interviews and secondary data sources over a four-year period provides empirical insight into an evolving performance management culture. This research reveals that culture as well as trust and capability building are inextricably linked and govern organizational performance. These elements are also bounded by the ‘steering media’ of the Big Society philosophy currently being rolled out across UK public services which is affecting the general lifeworld of this sector.