Business Economics and Managerial Decision Making or Performance Drivers

Business Economics and Managerial Decision Making

Author: Trefor Jones

Written primarily for students taking courses in managerial economics in Britain and Europe, The Business Economics and Managerial Decision Making analyses the growth and development of privately owned firms and also the decisions made by firms operating in both private and public sector enterprises. Coverage is clear and concise, and avoids specialist techniques such as linear programming, which in a European context tend to belong in courses dealing with operations research. The book also avoids straying into areas of industrial economics, instead retaining a sharp focus on relevant issues such as the theory of the firm and the varying objectives that may be adopted in practice. Key sections are supported by case studies of real firms and actual decisions made.

New interesting book: Trigger Men or Worried Sick

Performance Drivers: A Practical Guide to Using the Balanced Scorecard

Author: Jan Roy

A Practical Guide to Using the Balanced Scorecard performance drivers Nils-Goran Olve, Jan Roy and Magnus Wetter Since the groundbreaking work of Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, the concept of the Balanced Scorecard has achieved increasing popularity in the business world. Previously, many organizations had built their business objectives around financial targets and goals that bore little relation to a long-term strategic vision. Typically, this leaves a gap between the development of a company's strategy and its implementation. The business scorecard, however, provides a more 'balanced view' by looking at not just-financial concerns, but also customers, internal business processes, and learning and growth. But it is not just a system of performance measurement - by focusing on future potential success it can be used as a dynamic management system that reinforces, implements and drives corporate strategy forward. In this book, the authors draw on their extensive experience with scorecard projects to provide a step-by-step method for introducing the Balanced Scorecard into an organization. This is done through the use of some of the most important practical examples in existence, with case studies from ABB, Coca Cola, Electrolux, British Telecom, Nat West, Skandia and Volvo. The desired strategic control system using scorecards that is presented focuses on creating and communicating a total comprehensive picture to all members of the organization from the top down, a long-term view of what the company's strategic objectives really are, how to make use of knowledge gained through experience and the required flexibility of such a system to cope with the fast-changing businessenvironment. This book will provide senior and operational managers, consultants and business academics with a comprehensive view of emerging Balanced Scorecard practice supported by both business advice and a theoretical foundation. Reflections on the relations between the Balanced Scorecard and other areas, such as TQM, information systems and intellectual capital and knowledge management are also made. Business Strategy

Table of Contents:

	Preface
	Overview of the Book
Pt. I	Introduction and Background	1
1	Why a Balanced Scorecard?	3
2	The Balanced Scorecard - Strategic Control	12
Pt. II	Building a Balanced Scorecard	35
3	The Process of Building a Balanced Scorecard	37
4	Cases From Different Industries	84
5	Important Issues in the Building Process	115
6	Scorecards as Management Control	146
7	Measures and their Causal Relations	189
Pt. III	Implementing a Balanced Scorecard	227
8	Systems and IT Solutions for Scorecards	229
9	Towards a Learning Organization	253
Pt. IV	Additional Uses	279
10	Using Scorecards to Inform Outside Parties	281
11	Scorecards in the Public Sector	296
Pt. V	Conclusion	309
12	Making the Scorecard Process a Success	311
App	Examples of Measures in the Different Perspectives	327
	Interviews	334
	References	336
	Index	340