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American Economic Review Vol. 105 No. 5 2015

Formal Measures in Informal Management: Can a Balanced Scorecard Change a Culture?

Robert Gibbons1; Robert S. Kaplan2

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 100 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142 (e-mail: ) · 2 HBS, Soldiers Field, Boston, MA 02163 (e-mail: )

open access

Abstract

We extend traditional agency theory by exploring the roles for formal measures when managerial behavior is not governed by rules, formulas, or contracts. Part I describes relational incentive contracts with informal weights on formal performance measures. More importantly, it also explores how formal measures could be used in models of informal management, such as adaptation and coordination, politics and influence, leadership, and informal authority. Part II considers the benefits from allowing key stakeholders to develop their own, potentially inferior, performance measures. The collaboration to create a “balanced scorecard” of performance measures can help change an organization's culture.

DOI
10.1257/aer.p20151073
Volume
105
Issue
5
Pages
447-451
Language
en
Sources
bibtex:phds-export.bib openalex crossref

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