Interfaces of control. Technocratic and socio-ideological control in a global management consultancy firm
(2004) In Accounting, Organizations and Society 29(3-4). p.423-444- Abstract
- This paper investigates a variety of forms of management control in a large management consultancy company. The very high level of compliance with corporate objectives among employees is highlighted and singled out as a phenomenon worth exploring. The company exhibits a rich variety of various formal control devices focusing on financial issues as well as human resources. The paper shows that these do not fully work according to intention and that their control effects do not comply that well with the bureaucratic- technocratic logic they rest upon. Technocratic control systems are instead identified as non-obvious sources of socio-ideological control. The paper emphasizes the interface between different forms of control and argues for a... (More)
- This paper investigates a variety of forms of management control in a large management consultancy company. The very high level of compliance with corporate objectives among employees is highlighted and singled out as a phenomenon worth exploring. The company exhibits a rich variety of various formal control devices focusing on financial issues as well as human resources. The paper shows that these do not fully work according to intention and that their control effects do not comply that well with the bureaucratic- technocratic logic they rest upon. Technocratic control systems are instead identified as non-obvious sources of socio-ideological control. The paper emphasizes the interface between different forms of control and argues for a more symbolic, meaning-focusing view on bureaucratic and output measurement control. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier Ltd. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/899200
- author
- Alvesson, Mats LU and Kärreman, Dan LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2004
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Accounting, Organizations and Society
- volume
- 29
- issue
- 3-4
- pages
- 423 - 444
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000220265100010
- scopus:1342265015
- ISSN
- 0361-3682
- DOI
- 10.1016/S0361-3682(03)00034-5
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 66e2d6d6-b844-4591-9227-0090caae1572 (old id 899200)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 15:32:58
- date last changed
- 2022-04-22 08:14:40
@article{66e2d6d6-b844-4591-9227-0090caae1572,
abstract = {{This paper investigates a variety of forms of management control in a large management consultancy company. The very high level of compliance with corporate objectives among employees is highlighted and singled out as a phenomenon worth exploring. The company exhibits a rich variety of various formal control devices focusing on financial issues as well as human resources. The paper shows that these do not fully work according to intention and that their control effects do not comply that well with the bureaucratic- technocratic logic they rest upon. Technocratic control systems are instead identified as non-obvious sources of socio-ideological control. The paper emphasizes the interface between different forms of control and argues for a more symbolic, meaning-focusing view on bureaucratic and output measurement control. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier Ltd.}},
author = {{Alvesson, Mats and Kärreman, Dan}},
issn = {{0361-3682}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3-4}},
pages = {{423--444}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{Accounting, Organizations and Society}},
title = {{Interfaces of control. Technocratic and socio-ideological control in a global management consultancy firm}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0361-3682(03)00034-5}},
doi = {{10.1016/S0361-3682(03)00034-5}},
volume = {{29}},
year = {{2004}},
}