Abstract
The sustainability balanced scorecard (SBSC) has become an influential framework for integrating sustainability into strategic management. Despite its growing adoption, research remains fragmented, and insufficiently aligned with the sustainability regulatory frameworks. Drawing on institutional and goal-setting theory, this study examines whether SBSC indicators enable strategic integration or reveal compliance lags with respect to sustainability requirements. A Systematic Literature Review is conducted combining bibliometric analysis of 205 peer-reviewed papers and content analysis of the 66 most influential contributions. Findings reveal persistent reliance on early conceptual foundations of the SBSC and limited integration of regulatory requirements. Relevant gaps emerge at the indicator-level alignment between SBSC and ESRS, particularly regarding pollution, water use, biodiversity, value-chain social aspects, and governance-related metrics. This study contributes to the SBSC literature by providing an overview of its evolution, evaluating its alignment with ESRS, indicating potential avenues for future research, and highlighting some managerial implications.
