Studies in Managerial and Financial Accounting

Purpose – The purpose of this chapter is to present a state of the art of performance measurement and management control systems based on the papers presented in the 6th Conference on Performance Measurement and Management Control in Nice, France, 2011. The chapter is structured around two main topics: performance measurement and control systems.

Methodology/approach – The chapter is based on a thorough review of all the papers presented at the conference. Each paper was classified according to the topic it dealt with and the methodology used in the paper.

Findings – We structure the papers around the following topics: cost measurement and management, mapping the landscape, financial measures, nonfinancial performance frameworks, performance measurement design, sector-specific measures, and marketing measures within performance measurement. The topics identified in management control systems are compensation, management control systems' design, motivational aspects, strategy, risk management and enterprise software, governance, nonprofit organizations, and innovation.

Research limitations/implications – The chapter provides a comprehensive review of these topics. The review is limited to the selection bias implicit in the papers submitted to the conference. However, with almost 200 papers, the conference includes a large set of papers and topics. The analysis indicates that the field is dynamic with close connections to practice and promising research lines.

Practical implications (if applicable) – This state-of-the-art review reveals relevant research findings for companies and organizations. It also indicates that the research community is tackling important issues to society and the evolution of research promises to offer interesting alternatives to tackle these problems.

Social implications – Performance measurement and management control systems are important topics for management. Recent work is extending the implications of these fields beyond companies to include nonprofit organizations and public sector departments. Advances will definitely shape the way societies are designed.

Originality/value of chapter – The chapter provides a review of the field based on the contributions at the conference. As such it portrays the state of the field and gives researchers as well as practitioners a quick way to update their knowledge of the topics that are dominating the field.