Some proposals for impactful management control research

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 228-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Will Seal
Keyword(s):  
Management Control ◽  
Research Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Consultants ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism ◽  
School Research ◽  
Control Research ◽  
Critical Approaches ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to show how management control researchers can improve their practical impact through research designs that recognise the many dimensions of organizational reality.Design/methodology/approachManagerial knowledge in the academy and managerial practice may become detached from one another as practitioners and academic discourses are influenced by different sources of texts and modes of legitimisation. Although this can be a problem in accounting research, management accounting researchers have developed the necessary elements for critical engagement with practice. Identifying a common ontological basis for researchers and practitioners, it is argued that pragmatic constructivism explains how managers construct their reality through integrating logic, facts, values and communication. It is also argued that management consultants have implicitly understood this view of reality in the way that they package their solutions. Academic researchers can replicate the pragmatic constructivist ontology whilst adopting more explicitly theoretical and critical approaches.FindingsThe paper proposes the academy can productively imitate some of the knowledge creation of the consultant yet still retain both theoretical rigour and academic values.Originality/valueThe paper presents a research design that can improve the impact of business school research whilst maintaining academic integrity.

Financial and non-financial benefits of carbon controls

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Binh Bui ◽  
Thu Phuong Truong ◽  
Ellie J. Chapple
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Financial Benefits ◽  
Objective Performance ◽  
Objective Performance Measures ◽  
Trading Scheme ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to understand the organisational benefits of carbon-focussed management control systems (carbon MCS) under a regulatory context. Design/methodology/approach The authors conduct a survey of 85 New Zealand (NZ) organisations covering different industries, sizes and compliance obligations. Findings The results suggest a significant direct positive impact of carbon MCS on organisations’ non-financial benefits and an indirect impact on financial benefits via non-financial benefits. The impact on non-financial benefits is strongest when a whole carbon MCS package is used rather than individual carbon controls. However, the highest impact on financial benefits are attained when only diagnostic controls are used rather than other controls or the whole MCS package. Firms in primary, manufacturing and energy sectors and those with export activities are less likely to achieve organisational benefits, while those with a compliance obligation under the emissions trading scheme are more likely to perceive such benefits. Research limitations/implications The study has a limited sample size (85 firms), a unique context (NZ) and coves only large firms. Further, there are no objective performance measures to validate survey responses regarding organisational benefits. Practical implications The findings provide a business case for managers and practitioners in formulating their strategic and MCS responses to climate change issues. Originality/value The authors focus on carbon MCS and adopt a wider range of carbon MCS levers than previous research. The authors discern not only non-financial benefits but also financial benefits from MCS use.

scholarly journals Perceptions of Indian managers on the impact of convergent technologies on work and resultant organisational performance in service industry

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanjeev Kumar ◽  
Prikshat Verma ◽  
Parth Patel ◽  
J. Irudhaya Rajesh
Keyword(s):  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Organisational Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Perceived Impact ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis research examines Indian service managers' perceptions on impact of convergent technologies on their work and resultant organisational performance. The research uses four dimensions – task productivity, task innovation, customer satisfaction and management control – taken together, to investigate the perceived impact of convergent technologies adoption in service organisations context and further examines the resultant organisational performance, based on these dimensions.Design/methodology/approachThe study used partial least squares (PLS) approach to evaluate the measurement model and the structural model. The study was conducted in service industry firms that have made a significant progression towards adopting convergent technologies.FindingsThe results of the study demonstrated higher levels of perceived impact of adoption of convergent technologies on all the four dimensions (i.e. task productivity, task innovation, customer satisfaction and management control). The results of the study also indicate that all the impact dimensions positively influence organisational performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of the study suggest that all the impact dimensions positively influence organisation, therefore the service sector managers should be aware about the role of adopting latest convergent technologies so as to enhance the task productivity, innovation, customer satisfaction and management control in their job roles.Practical implicationsThe practical implications of this research are derived on the basis of Future of Work, Labour Market Information Systems, Productivity, Enterprise Development, Enhancing skills of service employees and Employability themes.Originality/valueTo researchers best knowledge is to first study of its kind to evaluate the perceived impact of convergent technologies on organisational performance in Indian context.

Economic freedom and Hofstede’s cultural dimensions

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason D. DeBode ◽  
Dana L. Haggard ◽  
K. Stephen Haggard
Keyword(s):  
Economic Freedom ◽  
Practical Implication ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Legal Origin ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Legal Origins ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Business Freedom

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of broad cultural dimensions, as well as those of religion and legal origin, on countries’ economic freedom, i.e., trade freedom, investment freedom, business freedom, labor freedom, monetary freedom, as well as a composite measure of economic freedom. Design/methodology/approach Linear regression of publicly available data regarding economic freedom (Miller et al., 2018) on cultural dimensions (Hofstede, 2009), legal origin and religion (LaPorta et al., 1999) for 52 countries was performed to determine the impact of these factors on economic freedom. Findings Results indicated femininity was the cultural dimension associated with the most measures of economic freedom. Short-term-oriented cultures were predictive of greater business freedom, while more restrained cultures were associated with greater business and monetary freedoms. Higher individualism was predictive of greater monetary freedom. Catholicism positively predicted investment freedom and negatively predicted business freedom. French civil law negatively predicted labor freedom, while socialist legal origins positively predicted trade freedom, but negatively predicted business freedom. Originality/value This is the first study to examine the impacts of culture, law and religion on economic freedom. One practical implication of this research is that countries would be wise to emphasize more feminine aspects in their cultures, as these are associated with greater economic freedom. Even minor adjustments that move in the direction of cooperation and fair processes might help increase economic freedoms and the many benefits that stem from such freedoms.

Classifying elements of a typology of gated communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 520-540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrienne La Grange
Keyword(s):  
Housing Stock ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Major Elements ◽  
Gated Communities ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Hierarchical Relationship ◽  
Built Form ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to classify major elements in a typology of gated communities and develop a framework that can be used to promote international comparison of this built form. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on a survey of 77 gated housing estates in Hong Kong and interviews with major stakeholders to develop and order a classification of elements of a typology of gated communities. Principle component analysis and regression analysis are used in conjunction with insights from 20 in-depth and about 70 open-ended face-to-face interviews. Findings This paper explores Hong Kong’s gated communities to evaluate the relationships between the four main elements of a typology of gated communities: supply, demand, features of gated estates and characteristics of built form. It is suggested that there is a hierarchical relationship between the elements, i.e. supply and demand are higher-order elements and features of gated housing and characteristics of the housing stock are lower-order elements. The paper additionally highlights the impact of definitional and conceptual drift in key concepts, such as security, privacy, prestige and lifestyle, on developing robust typologies. Originality/value The paper reviews the many and varied typologies of gated communities in the international literature, classifies the elements into four main groups and posits a hierarchical relationship between these elements. This paper proposes a robust methodology for further comparative research into gated communities.

Better with age: financial reporting quality in family firms

2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Tommasetti ◽  
Marcelo Á. da Silva Macedo ◽  
Frederico A. Azevedo de Carvalho ◽  
Sergio Barile
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Reporting Quality ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Financial Reporting Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Family Control ◽  
A Value ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature on financial reporting quality (FRQ) within family firms (FFs), assessing whether longevity can determine a different propensity to earning management (EM) behaviors. Design/methodology/approach The sample, composed by Italian and Brazilian listed family (and non-family) firms, is segregated into old and young. For each subsample, unsigned discretionary accruals are calculated, using two different EM models. A linear regression model is then proposed, together with some robustness tests, to confirm the research hypothesis. Findings The outcome is that, within FFs, the entrenchment effect seems to be diminishing with the company’s age, up to become lower than the alignment effect. With some caveat, research also demonstrates that old FFs are more propense to supply higher FRQ than any other subsample group. Research limitations/implications The authors demonstrated that, in terms of EM decision process, FFs become virtuous just with time. More research is needed to evaluate the impact of the share and management control separately and to analyze different generation segmentation. Practical implications This paper could help non-family stakeholders, as it shows that different company types (family vs non-family), at a different stage of the life-cycle (young vs old) have a different attitude toward FRQ. On the other hand, family owners could exploit the longevity as a value driver. Originality/value This paper suggests that agency theory and socio-emotional theory are complementary in explaining the family control role in earnings management decisions. The study also contributes to the debate of FF homogeneity and on risk behavior in FFs, often portrayed as having a patient capital.

UK initiatives to reduce antimicrobial resistant infections, 2013-2018

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 131-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Hopkins
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Antibiotic Use ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the local, national and global actions from the UK to reduce the impact of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on human health. Design/methodology/approach – Synthesis of UK government policy, surveillance and research on AMR. Findings – Activities that are taking place by the UK government, public health and professional organisations are highlighted. Originality/value – This paper describes the development and areas for action of the UK AMR strategy. It highlights the many interventions that are being delivered to reduce antibiotic use and antimicrobial resistant infections.

Reinventing organizational control

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 795-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marion Brivot ◽  
Yves Gendron ◽  
Henri Guénin
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Organizational Control ◽  
Accounting Firms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Reputational Risk ◽  
New Directions ◽  
Control Research ◽  
Big Four ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into how a constellation of actors seek to define, shape, and reinvent the notion of organizational control at the confluence of social media (SM) and corporate reputational risk. Design/methodology/approach Following the approach suggested by Janesick (1998) and Denzin and Lincoln (1998), the authors undertook an in-depth qualitative analysis of a large number of data sources including interviews, best-selling books by renowned SM specialists, relevant press articles drawn from a Factiva search, and documents published by the Big Four firms and professional accounting institutes in Canada on how organizations should use SM to protect their reputational capital. Findings Four competing SM reputational risk control perspectives inductively emerged from the analysis: the Beyond Control frame, the Subveillance frame, the De-territorialization frame, and the Re-territorialization frame, with large accounting firms and professional accounting institutes especially promoting the latter. Originality/value The control literature has been criticized by many scholars as being in urgent need of updating. By inductively theorizing four original control frames in the SM arena, the research aims to move management control research in new directions.

Corporate board for innovative managerial control: implications of corporate governance deviance perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Irfan Saleem ◽  
Mujtaba Nasir Ali Khan ◽  
Rashedul Hasan ◽  
Muhammad Ashfaq
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Corporate Board ◽  
Managerial Control ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Governance Practices ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Drawing from the firm’s entrepreneurial identity and ecology perspectives, this study aims to explain why the firms deviate from standard corporate governance practices and apply innovative management control. Design/methodology/approach The authors used a panel of 2,538 public companies listed with the New York Stock Exchange to explain the impact of corporate governance deviance on firm’s performance. The authors relied on unique governance variables extracted from the Bloomberg database to develop the governance deviance index. Findings Study unveils that deviance from governance practices influences firm’s performance. Consequently, it can be said that the firms which use innovative governance mechanisms, usually stay ahead of the market by leading the governance trends. The findings also generalise the firm’s entrepreneurial identity and organisational ecology perspectives. Research limitations/implications Research implies that the firm’s entrepreneurial identity demands innovative managerial control. This study is focused on the US financial market, but in future, researchers could revalidate the deviance index. Scholars can also use mixed methods to test the need for innovative governance mechanisms in emerging markets. Practical implications The firms should focus on innovative governance practices not only to safeguard the firm’s entrepreneurial identity but also to pursue the growth objectives. Such innovative mechanisms and managerial controls are helpful to deal with industrial transformations to satisfy key stakeholders. Originality/value The study contributed to governance and management control research by sharing insights and catering the potential endogeneity problem faced to measure corporate governance measures. The study also proposes an alternative testing tool to measure governance deviance to add methodological uniqueness and reduce knowledge gap.

A systemic response to supporting frontline inpatient mental health staff in coping with the COVID-19 outbreak

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Padraig Cotter ◽  
Nicola Jhumat ◽  
Eshia Garcha ◽  
Eirini Papasileka ◽  
Jennifer Parker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Support Staff ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Frontline Staff ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Health Care Workforce ◽  
Inpatient Mental Health ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to outline the process of supporting frontline inpatient mental health staff in developing ways of coping with COVID-19. Design/methodology/approach A whole system approach was used in formulating and developing support structures with particular focus on relationship-focused coping. Findings Interventions were developed to support staff in coping with problem-focused (e.g. systemic changes) and emotion-focused challenges (e.g. deaths of colleagues). These included psychoeducation, mindfulness-based meditation and rituals to mark the deaths of colleagues. Staff SPACE (Stopping to Process and Consider Events) sessions were used to support staff in managing the many emotions they were experiencing. Positive psychology-based interventions were used to keep morale up and help people to stay motivated. The process of seeking feedback and making changes was introduced to support staff in feeling heard and having a voice. The maternal or master intervention within each of the above was the relational component. Practical implications This work aimed to boost the emotional and psychological literacy of the system. This will be important in the aftermath of the pandemic and could have many benefits thereafter. Social implications The post-COVID-19 health-care workforce will experience significant challenges in terms of readjustment and recovery. It is important that appropriate measures are put in place to ameliorate this. Originality/value An innovative systemic formulation of the impact of COVID-19 on frontline staff, and a coordinated way of dealing with this, is outlined.

Risk-based management control resistance in a context of institutional complexity: evidence from an emerging economy

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdelmoneim Bahyeldin Mohamed Metwally ◽  
Ahmed Diab
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Markets ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Cultural Symbols ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Enterprise Risk ◽  
Traditional Work ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of competing logics on the implementation of risk-based management controls (RBMC) by providing evidence of resistance due to competing logics. Moreover, the study proposes solutions to logic contestation. These solutions may help the company override logic complexity. Design/methodology/approach This study draws upon the theory of institutional logics. It adopts an interpretative qualitative research approach and uses the case study method. Data were collected from one of the biggest private sector insurance companies in Egypt through a triangulation of interviews, observations and documents. Findings We found that internalised and institutionalised roles and structures – represented by the incumbent corporate and community-related sets of logics – compete and disrupt the emerging enterprise risk management and RBMCs. The newly imposed RBMCs produced heterogenic practices that changed the means of controls at the case company. However, this change was faced by resistance from local employees, as it represented a challenge to the prevailing cultural symbols and norms in their traditional work environment. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by offering new evidence on resistance to Western risk-based management control projects applied in emerging markets. Moreover, it extends the cultural political economy of management accounting and control by illustrating that management accounting in emerging markets is also an operational manifestation of culture, community and location.

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