Balanced Scorecard

Podcast Version
(With NotebookLM)

How to Use the Balanced Scorecard to Level-Up Your Triathlon Performance

As a triathlete, your success isn’t just about race day; it’s the product of hundreds of small, strategic decisions over many weeks and months: your training execution, technical development, feedback absorption, and physiological readiness.
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But how do you ensure you're progressing on all fronts, not just checking off workouts? Enter the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), a powerful framework borrowed from business strategy that translates exceptionally well to high-performance sport.

Originally designed by Kaplan and Norton, the Balanced Scorecard aligns long-term results with key operational drivers through four perspectives:

1. Financial (results),
2. Customer (perception and value delivery),
3. Internal Business Processes (execution quality), and
4. Learning & Growth (capacity-building).

The genius of BSC lies in correlation and causality—each layer feeds the one above. Investments in learning build better processes, which in turn improve outcomes and final performance. This allows you to build over time and start implementing improvements on the lowest level, which will reap benefits over months, or even race seasons.
Let’s apply this to triathlon.

1. The Balanced Scorecard: A Triathlete’s Roadmap to Success
Here’s how each BSC perspective translates into endurance sport - each layer, from bottom to top, feeding the next: consistent learning boosts execution, leading to better physiological readiness—and ultimately, stronger race-day performance.

2. Applying the Balanced Scorecard to Triathlon Training

2.1 Performance Output (Financial Perspective)
This is the top-line metric: what you're delivering on race day. These are your ultimate KPIs that every other layer contributes toward.


Key KPIs:

• Speed (km/h or mph) – Typically tracked via GPS watch or bike computer, this is the ultimate output, but is impacted by environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, wind, race course,…)
• Pace (min/km or min/mi) – Your average split per distance unit, linked to speed, but focusing on the time. This depends on the personal choice of the athlete.
• Power (watts) – On the bike or the run, use a power meter to measure your effort output objectively. Contrary to speed, pace and heart rate, this is the direct effort generate by the body In the most straight and responsive way.
• Total Time per Segment and Overall Race Time – The benchmark for Personal Bests, Podium targets or Championship goal setting.

 
2.2 Indirect Performance Indicators (Customer Perspective)
You can't race weekly, so use predictive indicators that are closely correlated with your race outcomes.


Key KPIs:

• VO₂max – Lab-tested or estimated via smart watches. Reflects aerobic engine size and indirectly affects the maximum power, speed and pacing relative to your body composition.
• FTP (Functional Threshold Power) – Power you can sustain for 60 min. Often assessed every 4-6 weeks in shorter test protocols. Ideally tested on a per sport basis to overcome generalization error. It is diagnostic and predictive to your performance output.
• PBs at Key Distances – Time trials at 5K, 10K, or sprint triathlons to assess race-readiness.
• Max Strength Outputs – in certain trainings phases strength might be a great indicator of strength evolution as to how it will translate into endurance speed, relative to previous months and sessions. It also is a great indicator for body durability to absorb the future training.
• RPE Trends (Relative Perceived Exertion) – Subjective score (1-10) per session to monitor training load vs. perceived fatigue. Comparing RPE over fixed speeds and paces, provides a subjective indication to the coach and athlete on how well the body is responding holistically.

2.3 Execution Excellence (Internal Process Perspective)
This is how well you're executing your training plan qualitatively and consistently. Doing the right training right is important to gaining the maximum return of your training input. Secondly, the fastest gains are made by consistently working on marginal incremental gains, allowing the body to continuously adapt, with sufficient recovery to avoid injuries

Key KPIs:

• Total Weekly Training Hours – For beginners a minimum volume is needed to start the process. Once you get to a minimum treshhold volume is less indicative and training quality becomes more relevant. Volume across swim, bike, run, and strength.
• Time in Zones – Heart rate or power zones per discipline. Shows quality of execution. The quality can be monitored by comparing the actual time spend in the training zones versus the prescribed training. We are assuming optimally designed trainings (for instance by TriDot)
• Sessions Completed as Planned – % of scheduled sessions actually completed. The number of sessions per sport is also an important metric. For a triathlon it would not matter if you did all the bike trainings, but skipped all the swims. The nr of trainings per sport executed on a weekly basis is an important metric.
• XP and TrainX Scores (TriDot-specific) – The best process metric in the market is the TrainX scores on Tridot. The trainings are prescribed based on personal capabilities, location and training phase for every individual sport. How well you execute these training consistently can increase you performance with 30% over any other training regiment.

2.4 Skill Development & Capacity (Learning & Growth Perspective)
This is your engine for future performance, both mental and technical. It is the longest term metric is what you spend in learning and development from nutrition to sports technique. This will obviously not affect your results tomorrow, but will impact your performance ove 2-4 seasons to a longevity career as an age grouper.
You can either go at this alone, DIY style, or maximize the impact and catch up – if you started later in life – by working with a coach and learning from their experience.

Key KPIs:

• Coach Feedback: Do you have a coach and are you actually implementing their input or just winging it?
• Swim TPS/Bike/Run Technical Assessments: You can do your own research by watching youtube videos, join swim, bike and run clubs or have virtual video analysis  done. The key is to have a focus on it. In most cases a 1% gain in technique will have a multiple return in speed or ease. There is no better way to get faster, than to get better. A great example is the Tridot Pool School, which average a 13% improvement in a 2 day swim class regiment.
• Reading: There are multiple books on triathlon and training and it is important to find the right one for you. As an executive check out “The Executive Triathlete” where you find more info on triathlon and how to implement the lessons and strategies in the boardroom. They actually also have a GPT to get you direct answers to your questions.
• Certifications: If you really want to know  more, you can always study and try to get certified as an ironman U coach.
• Skill Sharing:  The best way to learn is to teach, or to share your knowledge with others.  (social accountability loop).

3. Implementing the Balanced Scorecard for Triathletes
Here’s how to move from theory to action:

1. Step 1: Define SMART KPIs:  Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals per BSC quadrant. Example: “Increase FTP by 10 watts in 8 weeks.”
2. Step 2: Automate Tracking: Use tools that capture KPIs for you. Sync Garmin, TriDot, Strava, and HRV apps so your data flows effortlessly.
3. Step 3: Monthly BSC Review: Create a 4-quadrant visual (like your image!) and spend 15 minutes reviewing progress, bottlenecks, and trends.
4. Step 4: Link the Layers:  Ask: “What did I learn this month that improved my execution?” “What execution gains shifted my VO₂max?” Map cause-effect.
5. Step 5: Create a Quarterly Action Plan: Each quarter, focus on a different layer: Q1: Build skills - Q2: Nail execution - Q3: Monitor physiology - Q4: Crush performance
   
6. Step 6: Adjust as You Evolve
   

4. Conclusion: The Key to Unlocking Your Triathlon Success
Applying the Balanced Scorecard to your triathlon training gives you clarity, structure, and actionable feedback loops on the short and long term. You're no longer just hoping to improve, you’re engineering it. You’ll be able to see the chain reaction from learning a better swim technique, to executing sessions better, to watching your FTP climb, to smashing your next PR.

Don’t forget! It is the small daily steps that turn into positive habits, patterns, and beliefs ingrained in body and mind. Enjoy the journey!
 
BONUS TIPS COACH GLENN

1. Be Consistent: It’s the unsexy consistency across all four BSC layers that builds championship-level athletes.
2. Track Your Progress: What gets measured gets improved. Keep your KPI dashboard visible.

Share this blog with your friends, family, and colleagues who are also pursuing a sportier and healthier lifestyle!