Purpose. To improve organizational and methodological and practical approaches to the formation of a controlling system at machine-building enterprises, which will ensure its adaptation following large-scale goals and will determine the degree of the approach of the enterprise to the set goal. Methodology. To achieve this goal, a set of general scientific and special methods was used: abstract-logical, monographic methods, induction and deduction – to define and generalize theoretical and methodological foundations of adaptive management, formation and functioning of the controlling system in adaptive management; abstraction – to determine the large-scale goals of the enterprise which characterize the stages of its development; formation of a set of indicators that will provide a clear formulation of strategic goals of the enterprise and their achievement at different stages of its development. Findings. The proposed organizational and methodological approach to the formation of a controlling system at machine-building enterprises ensures the adaptation of the controlling system following the large-scale goals of the enterprise, allows one to determine the degree of the approach of the enterprise to the goal, as well as locally (decentralized), quickly and adequately respond to the irritant, without the participation of all departments of the enterprise. For this, the goals of the enterprise are determined according to the corresponding perspectives at the stages of “survival”, “growth”, “stability”, and “socially responsible business”. For a complete and comprehensive description of the company’s goals achievement, the balanced scorecard along with the classic perspectives – “Finance”, “Clients”, “Business processes”, “Personnel”, is supplemented by additional perspectives – “Ecology”, “Energy efficiency” and “Society”. Each degree of goals has its indicators, which differ from each other in number – for the “survival” stage, fewer indicators are used, and for the “socially responsible business” stage, more; in addition, the target values of the indicators may change. Originality. The organizational and methodological approach to the formation of a controlling system at the machine-building enterprises has been improved, which, unlike the existing ones, provides for the possibility of adapting the controlling system following the large-scale goals of the enterprise and using a balanced scorecard. Practical value. Using the proposed approach will provide an opportunity for enterprises to adopt the controlling system to changing goals, control the degree of achievement of the set goals in various areas of activity, decentralize, and promptly eliminate the deviations that have arisen to achieve the set operational and strategic goals.