11. Environmental Management Systems and Performance Measurement

Management systems help organizations to manage the various interrelated areas of their business to achieve their goals (ISO, 2015). They emerged as a way to assist in the continuous improvement of organizations, collaborating with the formation of a structure that contributes to the management of a specific area. In order for management systems to fulfill their role of promoting continuous improvement, it is necessary that indicators are adopted to assess the evolution of these systems. However, the need to measure performance is very old. In the past, the focus was on measures for financial performance and productivity. Over time, new needs have emerged in line with changes in the economy. In 1972, the pressure exerted by organizations on the environment, which had already gained particular notoriety in the last two decades, was discussed at the first United Nations Conference—UN in Stockholm, Sweden, making the need for environmental adequacy emerge.