The design of an action science case study research methodology for testing processes in manufacturing companies

Summary form only given. Performance measurement systems are on the management agenda, but the question has now become “how do you get a good one”? Probably the most popular tool for doing this is the Balanced Business Scorecard. This is a framework which identifies the types of measures a company may adopt, but it is important to understand the process by which the framework is populated. The manufacturing engineering group at Cambridge University, England, has developed a workshop process which assists companies with the development of their performance measurement system. It is a facilitated, nonexpert, process. As such it takes the senior management team through a series of workshop exercises in which they analyse their business. It is facilitated by a “process consultant” who helps with the process, but the business knowledge and expertise comes from the individuals running the business and not the facilitator. In the latest stage of testing, the authors were interested in the wider applicability of the process and the possibility of tailoring the process to meet different business situations. To do this, the senior management teams of eight manufacturing companies have worked through the process helped by facilitators from 4 different universities. This testing has involved the group in developing a novel action research methodology for case study research and using a framework for strategic change. The work builds on previous testing done by Cambridge into the feasibility, usability and utility of the process, but structured in a rigorous case study protocol designed for multiple researchers