Insights from action research: implementing the balanced scorecard at a wind‐farm company

Purpose – After a diagnosis of the existing management control systems (MCS) at a wind‐farm company, the paper seeks to develop a balanced scorecard (BSC) in order to enable the organization to compress and streamline management decision making and to show what is to be taken into account for a successful implementation of this framework. Design/methodology/approach – An action research study, using Otley's performance management framework – to get a comprehensive view of MCS, identify strengths and weaknesses of the systems in place, and then develop a BSC – was conducted to the attainment of useful empirical knowledge, and to help achieve effective change within the organization. Findings – The paper identifies the main issues related to performance measurement and presents a BSC designed for a wind‐farm company. Practical implications – A comprehensive guide of the balanced scorecard methodology is described, including how the concept can be customized to the wind‐farm industry. The paper is especially of interest for practitioners. Originality/value – The contribution of this paper is threefold. First, the paper describes how the BSC concept can be improved through customizing the normal four perspectives, by including additional perspectives that provide awareness about stakeholders, such as suppliers, community and government. Second, the research provides practical guidelines to design a performance measurement model, considering the organization's stakeholders and the strategies to ensure that value is created for them. Finally, and for the first time, the paper provides a systematization of the key performance indicators for a wind‐farm organization.