8 th conference on performance measurement and management control title : performance management information systems : do they convey ( sustainable ) competitive advantage ?

Performance management information systems (PMIS) have been a ‘hot topic’ for Chief Information Officers (CIOs) and Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) for close to a decade. PMIS range from low-functionality spreadsheet-based solutions through to high-functionality business intelligence solutions. As yet, this area has not yet received sufficient academic enquiry. Our research questions concern: what are PMIS functionalities, and whether and how do they contribute to competitive advantage? We conceptualize functionality as reflected by system usability and data multi-dimensionality. We examine functionalities of the two types of PMIS: performance planning systems (for budgeting and forecasting) and performance reporting systems (for reporting results information to management). We apply resource-based theory. We hypothesize mediation chains, in which the two PMIS functionality constructs link to competitive advantage, mediated by performance management capabilities and mediated by a resource-base of organizational culture. We use partial least squares path modelling using survey data collected from senior managers of 264 Australian firms. We find support for the hypotheses. We also unexpectedly find that the two types of PMIS functionality operate in sequential, rather than parallel, mediation. The findings have implications for CIOs, CFOs and other managers responsible for development of PMIS.