Sustainability Value Creation, Survival, and Growth of the Company: A Critical Perspective in the Sustainability Balanced Scorecard (SBSC)

Abstract

The issue of sustainability in company strategy has assumed crucial relevance in recent years. Many companies have implemented specific environmental and sustainability management systems such as the Sustainability Balanced Scorecard (SBSC), which integrates sustainability and the traditional Balanced Scorecard (BSC). However, environmental and sustainability aspects are often not linked to economic success, and qualitative analysis is not considered adequately by managers. Therefore, these dimensions remain unclear, because it is necessary to analyze the conditions under which the SBSC represents a suitable tool for sustainability value creation in more depth. In this context, the purpose of the study is to propose a new strategic framework to provide a way to manage critical issues connected to the SBSC. Thanks to the information obtained from a survey and interviews conducted with managers of Italian companies, we created an adjusted SBSC (ASBSC) that allows us to consider the critical aspects from a new perspective, named the critical perspective. The conceptual model is developed in five dimensions (conceptual, structural, environmental, social, and economic). Research findings suggest that considering the critical perspective makes it possible to build the ASBSC in order to achieve sustainability and economic success of the company. The proposed framework contributes to the existing literature on improving the performance of the SBSC.

Impact of a Balanced Scorecard as a Strategic Management System Tool to Improve Sustainable Development: Measuring the Mediation of Organizational Performance through PLS-Smart

“…The extended form of the balanced scorecard, widely known as a sustainable balanced scorecard, integrates BSC's four perspectives into sustainability [70]. Moreover, the natural evaluation of strategic thinking that meets the expectations of the environment and society is a known sustainable strategic management system provided that its political and regulatory factors are stable to support the business environment [71,72].…”

Factors Affecting the Use of Balanced Scorecard in Measuring Company Performance

“…There is also a problem with this procedure which has revealed that it is difficult to choose, correct and then communicate the aims that need to be accomplished. In fact, the absence of a connection between managers and objectives was identified when developing the Balanced Scorecard concept [37,38].…”

Optimizing the Raw Material Supply Chain of the Wood Biomass Power Generation Industry for Different Stakeholders’ Benefits: An Analysis of Inner Mongolia, China

“…Via field investigations, it can be found that one of the most important reasons for the competitive inferiority of wood biomass power generation companies in China is the unstable supply of biomass materials. Moreover, from the point of view of the enterprise itself, environmental and sustainability aspects are often not linked to economic success [23]. Based on these factors, optimizing the cost of the raw material supply chain is a top priority for forest biomass power generation enterprises.…”