Article: To what extent are balanced scorecards used to manage sustainability? Survey evidence from Norway Journal: International Journal of Management Concepts and Philosophy (IJMCP) 2021 Vol.14 No.1 pp.43 - 63 Abstract: It has been suggested that a balanced scorecard (BSC) can be a useful tool for measuring and managing sustainability performance. Therefore, researchers have advanced the related concept of a sustainability balanced scorecard (SBSC). However, little is known about the extent to which SBSCs are used in practice. This research paper aims to use a survey-based approach to map the extent to which BSCs are used to manage sustainability in Norway. The survey shows that awareness and adoption of SBSCs are low among Norwegian organisations. This finding is surprising given that Norwegian organisations have considerable experience using the standard BSC, and the socio-political context has favoured ideas such as sustainability and corporate responsibility. The findings are also relevant to debates concerning the diffusion of management accounting innovations since the study provides insight into patterns of how a global management accounting innovation is adapted and received in a local institutional context. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: To what extent are balanced scorecards used to manage sustainability? Survey evidence from Norway

Authors: Terje Berg; Dag Øivind Madsen; Lars Hvoslef; Jørgen Sund

Addresses: NTNU Business School, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Klæbuveien 72, 7491 Trondheim, Norway ' School of Business, University of South-Eastern Norway, Bredalsveien 11, 3511 Hønefoss, Norway ' NTNU Business School, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Klæbuveien 72, 7491 Trondheim, Norway ' NTNU Business School, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Klæbuveien 72, 7491 Trondheim, Norway

Abstract: It has been suggested that a balanced scorecard (BSC) can be a useful tool for measuring and managing sustainability performance. Therefore, researchers have advanced the related concept of a sustainability balanced scorecard (SBSC). However, little is known about the extent to which SBSCs are used in practice. This research paper aims to use a survey-based approach to map the extent to which BSCs are used to manage sustainability in Norway. The survey shows that awareness and adoption of SBSCs are low among Norwegian organisations. This finding is surprising given that Norwegian organisations have considerable experience using the standard BSC, and the socio-political context has favoured ideas such as sustainability and corporate responsibility. The findings are also relevant to debates concerning the diffusion of management accounting innovations since the study provides insight into patterns of how a global management accounting innovation is adapted and received in a local institutional context.

Keywords: balanced scorecard; BSC; sustainability; sustainable development; management accounting innovation; management fashion.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMCP.2021.115613

International Journal of Management Concepts and Philosophy, 2021 Vol.14 No.1, pp.43 - 63

Received: 09 Oct 2020
Accepted: 06 Jan 2021
Published online: 11 Jun 2021 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article

Title: To what extent are balanced scorecards used to manage sustainability? Survey evidence from Norway

Keep up-to-date