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The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is widely applied as a performance measurement and strategy implementation tool by organizations. Research has revealed that the term “balanced scorecard” may be understood differently by managers both within as well as across organizations implying that the performance measurement systems implemented in organizations may not be similar to the construct envisioned by Kaplan and Norton. Using Kaplan and Norton's Balanced Scorecard construct as a basis, the paper aims to develop and test a five‐level taxonomy to classify firms' performance measurement systems.

A Balanced Scorecard taxonomy is validated using a large sample of professional accountants working in Canadian organizations.

The five‐level taxonomy is used to categorize the performance measurement systems of 149 organizations. It is found that 111 organizations' (74.5 percent) performance measurement systems met the criteria to be classified as a Basic Level 1 BSC, while 61 (40.9 percent) organizations have structurally complete Level 3 BSCs, and 36 (24.2 percent) organizations have fully developed Level 5 BSCs. The paper also discusses differences between Level 1 and Level 5 BSC organizations.

While many researchers assume that organizations' performance measurement systems are similar in implementation level and use, the paper demonstrates that organizations are at different levels of BSC implementation and use, a factor that should be taken into consideration when designing empirical studies to test the efficacy of Kaplan and Norton's BSC.

The five‐level BSC taxonomy scheme provides managers working with Kaplan and Norton's BSC with a tool to plan their implementation steps and then benchmark their progress towards implementing a fully developed Level 5 BSC.

In developing and empirically validating a BSC taxonomy, the paper builds on and extends previous research on BSC implementation and its potential implications.

The balanced scorecard (BSC), first created by Kaplan and Norton in 1992, has been developed over the last 20 years, resulting in numerous iterations. There is currently no agreed taxonomy for these iterations, making comparison of research findings difficult. The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for describing the different iterations.

In order to assist in understanding the numerous changes, the concept of revision control was introduced. A full review of the literature describing new iterations of the BSC was undertaken and these iterations were classified as minor developments or major generational evolution.

Eight subsets of the Balanced Score card are proposed, grouped into three generations; the first being the initial generation of score card, the second generation including strategy maps, and the final generation which includes destination statements.

It is planned that this simple classification will prove useful to practitioners, for describing which generation of the scorecard they propose to implement, and for academics to describe more precisely the scorecard that they are analysing.

This paper is the first to provide a taxonomy for the different versions of the BSC, through a process of identifying and labelling the major and minor changes that have occurred. This allows a more nuanced analysis of the BSC as a tool for managing performance and adding precision to any critique, in that it is clear which version has been used.

This research aims to develop a blockchain smart contract–enabled framework to resolve power imbalance problems in construction payment.

This research adopts a design science research method to develop the blockchain smart contract–enabled framework. The authors then develop a prototype system. Finally, the authors evaluate its performance in solving power imbalance-induced payment problems.

The results show that the prototype system can resolve power imbalance problems in construction payment by allowing project participants to make transparent and decentralized decisions that are self-enforceable by blockchain smart contracts.

This study provides theoretical explanations for how blockchain smart contracts can resolve power imbalances in construction payment; based on that, it proposes a novel blockchain smart contract–enabled method to rebalance the power of stakeholders in construction payment. Thus, it contributes to the body of knowledge on blockchain technology and construction payment.

This study moves beyond a conceptual framework and develops a practical blockchain smart contract system for resolving power imbalances in construction payment, strengthening construction project members' confidence in using blockchain technology.

The proposed blockchain smart contract–enabled solution helps mitigate negative social impacts associated with late payment and non-payment. Furthermore, the research maximizes trust among participants in payment processes to inspire collaborative culture in the construction industry.

This paper introduces a novel blockchain smart contract integrated method, allowing project stakeholders to resolve power imbalance problems in construction payment through decentralized decision-making.

This paper aims to focus on the role of graphics in the propagation of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) through the persuasive capacity of graphism to “scientize” management ideas. Scientization, through professionalization of knowledge, rationalization of management and the empowerment of human actorhood, is widely seen as an important element in embedding new management concepts and techniques; a determination based on some version of the positivist belief that science offers a privileged access to reality.

Based on an analysis of popular literature of the BSC in core business media during 1992 and 2010, the paper focuses on the publications authored by Kaplan and Norton, the creators and authority on this topic.

The paper argues that the use of graphics has played an important role in promoting the claims made by proponents of the BSC by portraying the technique as both scientific and as descended from a venerable tradition of knowledge. Specifically, it argues that graphics are mobilized to: enable the technique to be portrayed as developing cumulatively towards the present vantage, from flawed measurement to management break‐through; promoters of the BSC to defensibly extend claims about the BSC (i.e. rationalize management through the visual representation of causality and strategic focus); and open up multiple interpretations and iterations of concepts which enable the empowerment of human actorhood (i.e. management).

This paper contributes to the accounting literature relating to diffusion of management innovations, and research examining the generative mechanisms and the processes through which management innovations come about.

This study aims to investigate the drivers and impact of balanced scorecard (BSC) usage on organizational effectiveness in manufacturing companies. The objectives of the paper were to assess the organizational factors affecting the usage intensity of the BSC; the relative benefits of BSC determining its adoption speed; and the extent to which BSC usage enhances organizational effectiveness.

The study adopted a survey research design. Data collection was through a structured questionnaire administered on senior accounting/ finance personnel of 300 manufacturing companies that are members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria. Binary logistic regression analysis, discriminant analysis and structural equation modeling (maximum likelihood estimation method) were used to analyze survey data obtained from 104 BSC adopters.

Result shows that the three organizational factors affecting BSC usage intensity are affiliation to a foreign entity, availability of specialist skills and business strategy (strategic pattern). The strongest predictor is, however, the availability of specialist skills. The strongest determinants of the BSC adoption speed are the need for financial stability and the importance of customer feedbacks. The impact of BSC usage on organizational effectiveness is positive, statistically significant but weak. The inability of BSC usage to contribute appreciably to organizational effectiveness is attributable to the lack of integration among the performance measures in the BSC framework and the shallow usage rate of BSC.

Although it is commendable that financial stability and customer satisfaction strongly drive BSC adoption speed, the low rating recorded by other factors related to product development, employee development and process improvement suggests that the performance measures in the BSC framework are not used in an integrative manner. This also confirms that the BSC, like other innovative management accounting techniques, is applied at a rudimentary level by organizations in Nigeria.

The current study contributes to knowledge by exposing the organizational factors and relative benefits driving BSC adoption. It provides empirical evidence on why the BSC may not deliver the optimal benefit of improving organizational effectiveness despite its popularity and potential as an integrated performance measurement (IPM) apparatus that can add value to organizations. The paper adds to the scarce literature on IPM in developing countries. Drawing from the result that availability of specialist skills is the strongest predictor of BSC usage intensity, the practice of enmeshing the management accounting function with general accounting/finance should be discouraged.

The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence regarding the relationship between the level of comprehensiveness of a performance measurement system (PMS) and its respective organizational effectiveness. The extant literature has highlighted that a PMS may successfully contribute to the implementation of the organizational strategy, with the balanced scorecard (BSC) serving as an exemplar of a strategy performance management tool and playing a primary role to this end. However, the reasons for the overall high rate of failure in the implementation of the BSC remain unexplained and, to date, little empirical research exists regarding the design of PMSs such as the BSC and its constituent elements.

Using a survey of 103 Italian managers, the paper advances a model describing a comprehensive BSC design, after identifying the key attributes from the performance management literature. Data were analyzed using cluster analysis and multiple regression analysis.

Results suggest that organizations are implementing the BSC following two different approaches, which vary from a less comprehensive to a more comprehensive design. More importantly, the BSC design explains variation across three organizational effectiveness measures: improvements in translating the organizational strategy into operational goals, understanding cause–effect relationships and enhancing internal communication among employees.

The paper builds on and extends the previous literature on performance management in two ways. First, via a literature review, it introduces a model describing a comprehensive BSC design, which includes 12 attributes. Second, it demonstrates that organizational effectiveness varies positively with the level of comprehensiveness of the BSC design.

The key performance indicators (KPIs) are frequently used in organizations, and they help to transmit the strategy at all levels of the organization. However, the implementation of these indicators in small- and medium-sized companies remains a challenge. Many studies reveal two challenges faced by these firms, the lack of knowledge about the KPIs and the lack of alignment of these with the business strategy. For this reason, this chapter investigated the current level of knowledge about KPIs in managers of small and medium enterprises in the wood and timber sector in Peru.

The level of knowledge was measured using the framework of Bloom's Taxonomy in 21 firms. The use and importance that managers assign to performance indicators were evaluated, in order to identify gaps that exist between the strategy and its use.

The results of a survey study show a high degree of variability in the knowledge of KPI-related concepts as well as an average low level of usage. The importance attributed to KPIs was seen as a necessary but not sufficient condition for attaining higher levels of KPI usage.

Knowledge is a main resource of any organization. Knowledge management (KM) is identified by four processes: creating, capturing, distributing and sharing of knowledge. Technology can enable successful KM. The purpose of this paper is to propose a technology knowledge management (TKM) taxonomy, which lists popular electronic tools that can enhance KM processes and shows which tool can contribute to which processes.

The taxonomy was developed by an extensive literature review of electronic KM tools and a three-year extensive analysis of different knowledge sources at the Jeddah Municipality (JM) in Saudi Arabia.

The taxonomy can be used by practitioners developing an organizational KM system to guide them to choose a sufficient subset of tools that covers all four processes in order to ensure that no process is overlooked.

The result of using the TKM taxonomy and its effect on KM success is an interesting area for further research. However, the current value underlies in it offering practitioners a rough roadmap to an electronic KM system and aids in giving at least a starting point.

The TKM taxonomy can be used by large scale organizations to guide in developing a KM system effectively and more efficiently. Furthermore, the JM KC is a good model for similar organizations to use, with all the tools explained in the paper.

The paper addresses some of the social elements related to successful KM in organizations. However, it is more technically targeted.

Researchers have investigated either the holistic effect of IT on KM or described certain tools. The types of IT tools and their effect on KM have not been investigated. Furthermore, limited research addresses the design of effective KM systems and no tools exist to guide designers. The TKM taxonomy is a tool that can help KM practitioners and strategists to design effective KM systems efficiently, by guiding them in choosing tools that are suitable for certain KM processes. The paper also describes the JM Knowledge Center as a KMS model for organizations which addresses all four KM processes.

The purpose of this paper is to review the existing literature on positioning strategies, categorise them as typologies and taxonomies and propose generic positioning strategies for organisations from a theoretical viewpoint.

Typologies and taxonomies are defined and characterised, and then all product or brand positioning strategies are examined. Articles published in reputable marketing and strategic marketing journals from 1969 to 2022 are analysed for this purpose. The analysis was done using qualitative text mining: classification, coding and text analysis.

The review enables the identification of three generic positioning strategies widely accepted in the literature, as well as the distinction between conceptually derived positioning strategies (typology) and empirically derived positioning strategies( taxonomy).

This study provides a comprehensive overview for researchers who wish to get broad-picture research on generic classifications in positioning strategy. Moreover, most notably for academics, to the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to classify positioning strategies into typologies and taxonomies based on their evolution.

Knowledge of positioning typologies and taxonomies can assist managers in developing and implementing a strategy that allows their company to maximise the potential of its product/brand and achieve better results. The literature review contributes to theory development and helps companies understand their positioning strategies.

Despite considerable interest in positioning research, little effort has been made to examine positioning strategies’ current or future development. Some authors use the term taxonomy to describe their conceptually derived classification of positioning strategies, and it was discovered that authors frequently interchangeably use the terms typologies or taxonomies. When attempting to understand and compare the various classifications, this liberal use of the term’s typology and taxonomy creates misunderstanding and confusion. This paper fills that void.