Management control systems and governance from its institutional context

This study aims to evaluate the institutional role of intangible mechanisms such as organisational values, beliefs, norms and common practices and their interaction with management control systems (MCSs) in improving corporate governance. We use the belief systems lever from Simon's levers of controls framework and more informal mechanisms to evaluate the impact of organisational initiatives on governance in response to the increasing concerns from key stakeholders. Our longitudinal study draws on data reported between 2007 and 2021 and collected from a sample of multinational listed firms across 55 countries using the triangulated approach. Based on the stakeholder approach inspired by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), our study recommends an innovative social management control systems (SMCS) model that supports the positive impact of promoting internal intangible control mechanisms to strengthen governance performance. Therefore, it supports the argument that other institutional elements of MCSs, beyond the traditional monitoring mechanisms, are also crucial to achieving organisational goals. Our study provides evidence of how organisations seek to achieve their objectives by creating a trusted relationship with different stakeholder groups that promote behaviour aligned with those objectives.

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