Development of a balanced scorecard for flight line maintenance activities

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of a balanced scorecard (BSC) for flight line maintenance (MX) activities in the US Air Force. Design/methodology/approach – The BSC development process consists of three stages: groundwork, design beginning with structuring of organizational strategic elements through performance measure identification and construction of the BSC framework, and finalization for continuous improvement. Findings – Based on logistics expert responses the authors validated a case BSC for flight line MX activities within an aircraft maintenance unit. Validation was done with respect to perspective measures including mission, influencing factors, management, and information enhancement. Originality/value – BSC development through identification of mission critical performance measures should improve performance of aircraft scheduling and achievement of mission objectives. Guidelines were used to develop a case validated by Air Force logistics personnel.