Control in socio-economic organizations: a rationale for the design of management control systems, (section i)

TLDR: In this article, the authors continue an intellectual theme initiated earlier by the authors (Lowe and McInnes, 1971) and trace the reciprocal interactions of the environment on a business enterprise through the complex, and in many aspects conflicting, organisational processes of strategic leadership, budgetary control, performance evaluation, accountability and their effects on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of members of the organisation.

Abstract: The paper continues an intellectual theme initiated earlier by the authors (Lowe and McInnes, 1971). It traces the reciprocal interactions of the environment on a business enterprise through the complex, and in many aspects conflicting, organisational processes of strategic leadership, budgetary control, performance evaluation, accountability and their effects on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of members of the organisation. Central to the theme is the essential process of organisational learning, enabling an organisation continually to adapt to its dynamic and uncertain substantial environment. Organisational learning, in turn, is founded on individual learning, fostered through processes of mentorship and accountability. Tensions between learning's requirement of a free flow of information, and the potential diminishment of communication that may arise when judgment of personal performance is entailed, are addressed. The paper is impersonal; it does not address the idiosyncratic and inspirational characteristics of leadership within and throughout organisations.