دانلود رایگان مقاله انگلیسی سیستم های اندازه گیری عملکرد در شرکت های کوچک و متوسط و شرکت های خانوادگی - اشپرینگر 2018

Abstract

In view of the increasing sophistication of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their importance for global economies, the purpose of this paper is to provide comprehensive insight into the research on performance measurement systems (PMSs) in SMEs. Thus, a systematic literature review was conducted covering 98 top-tier journals in the areas of management accounting, SMEs, and general management, to structure the existing knowledge. The review of these journals comprises 34 studies that deal with PMSs in SMEs. The paper provides a comprehensive summary of empirical research of use, development and design, influencing factors, and consequences of PMSs in SMEs. In addition, it delineates the particular aspects of family firms. It considers research locations, theories, and methods applied, as well as research settings, and illustrates their changes over time. PMS research in SMEs is still scarce. The review shows that most research has been conducted in Europe and Australia, followed by North America. The majority of papers use the case/field study method. Multiple studies that describe their theoretical roots are informed by contingency theory, organization theory, or psychological/cultural theory. An assessment of the investigated topics illustrates the particularities of PMSs in SMEs, especially in family-controlled firms. Multiple studies highlight the importance of family influence, or continuous revision and knowledge exchange for sophisticated control systems, like PMSs. A lot of papers indicate that SMEs, including family firms, may benefit from the use of sophisticated control systems.

5 Discussion and conclusion

This review was motivated by the outstanding importance of SMEs for global economies and their increasing professionalization in recent years. Garengo et al. (2005) recognized a gap between the importance of PMSs in SMEs and the sparse research in this field. More than 10 years later, it must be acknowledged that there is still limited research focusing on PMSs in SMEs. The systematic literature review extends previous reviews by focusing on empirical research of PMSs in SMEs. Thereby, it takes into account the particularities of SMEs and demonstrates the importance of family firms. Moreover, it reports on the theoretical approaches and methods used, research location, and settings of the studies. An assessment of the investigated topics reveals that the development and design of PMSs in SMEs attracted more attention, while the usage or the influencing factors of PMSs are less-researched fields. A closer look into the thematic analysis provides an overview of what we already know about the specifics of SMEs influencing PMS adoption and usage. Keeping specifics of SMEs, like high innovative potential or the emphasis of continuous improvement in mind, the systematic literature review suggests that the implementation of PMSs may contribute to improvements in terms of quality or performance (e.g. Andrews et al. 2001; Davis and Albright 2004; Aidemark and Funck 2009). The latter may be affected by firm size or other internal factors, like the product lifecycle stage (Liu et al. 2014). Moreover, managers of SMEs should be aware of the influence the type of usage of PMSs may have on innovativeness (e.g. Henri 2006b). SMEs are often faced with a high uncertainty (e.g. Garengo et al. 2005).