Measuring Sustained Superior Performance at the Firm Level
- Autores: Pilar Marqués Gou, Emili Grifell i Tatjé
- Localización: Documents de Treball ( Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament d'Economia de l'Empresa ), ISSN-e 1988-7736, Nº. 8, 2002
- Idioma: inglés
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Resumen
This paper proposes a two-dimensional Strategic Performance Measure (SPM) to evaluate the achievement of sustained superior performance. This proposal builds primarily on the fact that, under the strategic management perspective, a firm's prevalent objective is the pursuit of sustained superior performance. Three basic conceptual dimensions stem from this objective: relativity, sign dependence, and dynamism. These are the foundations of the SPM, which carries out a separate evaluation of the attained superior performance and of its sustainability over time. In contrast to existing measures of performance, the SPM provides: (i) a dynamic approach by considering the progress or regress in performance over time, and (ii) a cardinal measurement of performance differences and its changes over time. The paper also proposes an axiomatic framework that a measure of strategic performance should comply with to be theoretically and managerially sound. Finally, an empirical illustration of the Spanish banking sector during 1987-1999 is herein provided by discussing some relevant cases.
