Author(s)

Janne Sinisammal, Pekka Belt, Janne Harkonen, Matti Mottonen, Seppo Vayrynen

University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland..

Balanced scorecard has proven to be a functional tool for large companies, however, small- and medium-sized enter-prises (SME) have experienced it too complicated for their purposes. The aim of this research is to analyse the potential of simplifying balanced scorecard in order to acknowledge the practical realities of SMEs. The results of this study in-dicate that the viewpoints covered by balanced scorecard can be simplified into three categories of productivity, work fluency, and safety. A simplified balanced scorecard can act as a tool for internal communication in SMEs, by converting company strategy into common terms understandable by the employees. The managers of SMEs can use the results of this study as an example when considering the implementation of their business strategy. It is vital to involve employees when developing performance indicators.

Performance Indicator; Balanced Scorecard; Employee Participation; Internal Communication; Critical Success Factor; Working Life; SME

J. Sinisammal, P. Belt, J. Harkonen, M. Mottonen and S. Vayrynen, "Successful Performance Measurement in SMEs through Personnel Participation," American Journal of Industrial and Business Management, Vol. 2 No. 2, 2012, pp. 30-38. doi: 10.4236/ajibm.2012.22005.