STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT AND MANAGEMENT CONTROL IN REGIONAL RAILWAY: BALANCED SCORECARD PROPOSAL FOR THE TUA LINE

Abstract

The strategic guidelines adopted in the last three decades for the railway sector in Portugal contributed for the progressive closure of several sections and lines of the national rail network. This closure process and racionalisation of the railway network affected especially the regional railway transportation and penalized several regions and cities. In some cases the railway service practically does not exist anymore. Only in Trás-os-Montes was closed 95% of the narrow gauge railway network that served the region, being only in service 5%, which corresponds to section of the Tua line, between Carvalhais, Mirandela e Cachão (16 km). This article intends to present proposals from Strategic Management perspective towards an eventual reopening of the Tua line all its extension, based on the presentation of a management control tool – the Balanced Scoreboard, a strategical map and an infography where investment scenaries are displayed. The methodology is qualitative and is a case study. The data collection method consisted in document analysis and literature review. The final considerations show that the Balanced Scorecard proposal for Tua Line contributes to evaluate the strategy performance in an eventual reopening scenario enables managers, administrators and institutional representatives, make decisions based on strategic information.