In many organizations, it is common to find performance measurement systems (PMS) whose practical utility turns out to be very limited due to several factors/barriers. The purpose of this paper is to identify and categorize the main barriers to the effectiveness of PMS, and to explore how they can be eliminated or, at least, how their impact can be mitigated. A systematic literature review, using PRISMA methodology, is carried out to identify which factors are most frequently referred to as barriers to the effectiveness of PMS, due to their negative influence in terms of implementation, continued use or maintenance of these systems. Those barriers are grouped and classified into categories according to their similarities. The initial findings point out to 19 types of barriers (e.g. inappropriate indicators, lack of employee involvement and lack of connection to the strategy) divided into six categories. Then, cause-effect relationships between barriers should be explored and investigated, in order to identify interdependencies that can further influence the effectiveness of the PMS. From a perspective of continuous improvement, after identifying the most common barriers, as well as the existing cause-effect relationships, solutions and methodologies should be suggested that could help to mitigate or eliminate the impact on the effectiveness of the organizations’ PMS.