Abstract
This paper reports the results of an empirical study that explores how industry characteristics are associated with the design of productivity measurement systems. The responses of 114 chief executives, drawn from a wide range of New Zealand-based manufacturing companies, to a mailed survey have been analysed using Friedman two-way ANOVA tests. The results suggest significant variations in industry characteristics, measured by environmental uncertainty among industries. These industrial variations are associated with management's preference for the type of productivity measurement systems.