Balanced Scorecard Implementation in Jordan: An Initial Analysis

This paper analyses the state of implementation of the balanced scorecard (BSC) among Jordanian industrial companies. From an economic perspective, Jordan is an exemplar of an advanced developing nation in the Middle Eastern region. The paper is part of a wider investigation into the usage of Western developed performance measurement diversity techniques in the Jordanian context. A quantitative survey of 168 companies provided insight into the level of implementation, diffusion and purposes for the use of the BSC approach among medium and large industrial companies. The results showed that 35.1% of the surveyed companies used the BSC approach. The finding also indicated that approximately a further 30% of the responding companies were either considering or currently implementing the BSC approach. The results revealed some inconsistency in terms of the types and number of BSC perspectives used. Companies that had implemented the BSC used different perspectives in their BSC with a greater focus on the original four perspectives as suggested by the original authors Kaplan and Norton.