The use of multiple performance measures and the balanced scorecard (BSC) in Bangladeshi firms : An empirical investigation

Aims – This paper aims to examine: the status and the use of financial and non‐financial measures, and the balanced scorecard (BSC) in Bangladeshi companies; the reasons for BSC adoption; and associated problems. Design/methodology/approach – Data via a questionnaire were obtained from the chief accounting and finance officers of a cross section of 60 Bangladeshi companies listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange. A combination of descriptive statistics, bi‐variate, and multi‐variate techniques of statistics were used to test three research questions. Findings – The results indicate that financial measures are more widely used, but that 78.4 per cent of companies use some non‐financial indicators. Further, the exercise of a full BSC is limited to only 10 per cent of the sample. The results also show that companies adopt these frameworks to aid decision making, and the problems associated with the adoption of BSC include a cost‐benefit perspective and a lack of management support. Practical implications – The findings suggest many companies are using a dashboard of financial and non‐financial performance measures that could possibly be a precursor to adopting more holistic performance measurement frameworks like the BSC. Originality/value – There have been recent calls for more in‐depth analysis of the management accounting systems of emerging countries and these findings contribute further knowledge to an under researched area. In particular, the paper demonstrates how a performance measurement framework may evolve in an emerging country context.