Purpose

The special importance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the context of emerging economies is well acknowledged. The success of MFIs is country, culture and context-specific. This study aims to capture the organizational sustainability viewpoint of MFIs through the experiences and insights of the managers engaged in running MFIs in an emerging market.

Design/methodology/approach

The study follows a qualitative approach and collects primary data through insightful interactions with the senior managers of various Indian MFIs, followed by thematic analysis to identify the factors impacting the sustainability of MFIs. It is supplemented by an extensive systematic literature review to enrich the findings. The identified factors are then analyzed through the lens of a balanced scorecard (BSC) approach to developing a framework in assessing the performance of MFIs operating in similar to this study’s context.

Findings

The authors observe that the majority of the studies on MFI sustainability are financial outcome centric. This study adds value by exploring a holistic and organization-centric approach drawing support from stakeholder theory, which emphasizes that the shareholders, employees and customers are equally important for the sustainability of the MFIs.

Research limitations/implications

While the identified sustainability factors would help the practitioners focus upon the factors of improvement, the BSC framework would facilitate the conduct of performance review and taking related decisions thereon for the sustainability of MFIs.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind to attempt to assess the MFI organizations striving for sustainability through the lens of BSC framework.

中文翻译：

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小额信贷机构 (MFI) 的组织可持续性和绩效改进：关于内容、原因和方式的管理见解

目的

小额信贷机构 (MFI) 在新兴经济体中的特殊重要性已广为人知。小额信贷机构的成功取决于国家、文化和具体情况。本研究旨在通过在新兴市场经营小额信贷机构的经理们的经验和见解来捕捉小额信贷机构的组织可持续性观点。

设计/方法/方法

该研究采用定性方法，通过与各种印度小额信贷机构高级管理人员的深入互动收集原始数据，然后进行主题分析，以确定影响小额信贷机构可持续性的因素。它以广泛的系统文献回顾为补充，以丰富研究结果。然后通过平衡记分卡 (BSC) 方法对确定的因素进行分析，以开发一个框架来评估在类似于本研究背景下运作的小额信贷机构的绩效。

发现

作者观察到，大多数关于 MFI 可持续性的研究都以财务结果为中心。本研究通过探索一种从利益相关者理论中获得支持的整体和以组织为中心的方法来增加价值，该理论强调股东、员工和客户对于小额信贷机构的可持续性同样重要。

研究限制/影响

虽然已确定的可持续性因素将帮助从业者关注改进因素，但 BSC 框架将有助于进行绩效评估并就此做出相关决策，以确保小额信贷机构的可持续性。

原创性/价值

据作者所知，本研究首次尝试通过 BSC 框架的视角来评估 MFI 组织为实现可持续发展而努力。