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1. Introduction
Over two decades ago, Robert Simons developed a framework for understanding how management control systems (MCS) manage business strategy. The framework emerged from a number of empirical studies carried out by Simons in North America in the late 1980s/early 1990s and thus is considered to be a “practice-informed” framework. In addition to Simons’ papers published in academic journals, Simons also published a book (Simons, 1995) which was targeted at a senior management audience. Google Scholar provides some indication of the attention this 1995 book has attracted, with citation data from 2014 showing over 2,000 citations of the book.
It has been used as a conceptual framework by academic researchers in both quantitative and qualitative studies over the past 25 years. At the centre of the framework is business strategy, and while Vaara and Whittington (2012) point to differences between strategy in the twenty-first century compared to the twentieth century, rather than losing its relevance over time, its popularity as a research framework has actually increased in the past decade. Our paper sets out to first examine how the framework has been applied in empirical research. Second, the paper considers whether the framework can provide a useful lens to examine MCS in the context of broader organisational changes such as flatter organisational structures, inter-firm relationships and social and environmental responsibilities. Lastly, it identifies areas for future research.
The Levers of Control (LOC) framework represents a strategic management tool and a theoretical framework for understanding relationships between strategy and control. Nixon and Burns (2012) provide a concise overview of strategic management tools categorised by decade from the 1960s and point to the absence of longevity for many of these tools. Given the longevity of the LOC framework and increased popularity in a rapidly changing business context, this is an opportune time to examine the range and contribution of empirical literature that has used the framework, and to reflect on areas where further research is needed. Searches of top academic journals in accounting, general management and strategic management identified 45 empirical studies of which 31 are qualitative and 14 are quantitative. This divide has been chosen because the qualitative and quantitative studies contribute to the literature in substantially different ways. Given their depth, the qualitative field...