Using the balanced scorecard in assessing the performance of e-SCM diffusion: A multi-stage perspective

Electronic supply chain management (e-SCM), a specific form of inter-organizational systems, has generally regarded as one of the major strategies to create competitive advantage. The diffusion of e-SCM among trading partners is critical for its final successful use and accordingly, performance impact. However, the diffusion process is complex and dynamic in nature and involves an evolutionary property across time. Innovation diffusion theory (IDT) is defined for effectively exploring diffusion process with multiple stages. Moreover, prior studies have found inconclusive results of IT-enabled performance due to inadequate measures. The balanced scorecard (BSC) with the extension to SCM, incorporating four performance perspectives, is appropriate for overcoming this problem. Grounding on the IDT and BSC, this study proposes a novel framework for exploring the relationships between a stage-based structure and the BSC. Data are collected from a questionnaire survey. The results indicate that there are significant differences between external diffusion and the two earlier stages, adoption and internal diffusion, on the four BSC perspectives. Furthermore, all of the four perspectives are well realized at external diffusion stage. Implications for managers and scholars are discussed.