Levers of Control (Simons)

Knowledge Center

• About
• Home
• Dictionary
• Encyclopedia
• Question?
• Views

• Register
• Log in
• Help

• Change & Organization
• Communication & Skills
• Decision-making & Valuation
• Ethics & Responsibility
• Finance & Investing
• HRM
• Knowledge & Intangibles
• Leadership
• Marketing
• Program & Project
• Strategy
• Supply Chain & Quality

Managing the tension between (value) creation and control. Explanation of Levers of Control of Robert Simons. ('95)

In his book "Levers of Control: How Managers Use Innovative Control Systems to Drive Strategic Renewal" (1995), Robert Simons introduced the Levers of Control framework, giving managers in large companies a framework to manage the tension between (value) creation and control (managing and measuring value).

What are the Levers of Control? Definition

Levers of Control are defined as any:

• Formal information-based routine or procedure
• that is used by management
• to maintain or alter patterns in organizational behavior.

Simons Levers of Control

1. Belief Systems that an organization must put in place so that it can control commitment to the organization's vision, core values, mission statements, vision statements, credos and statements of purpose.
2. Boundary Systems which an organization must have so that it can stake out the territory for each participant: codes of conduct, predefined strategic planning methods, asset acquisition regulations, operational guidelines.
3. Diagnostic Control Systems. These must be put in place by a company so that it can optimize outcomes, and get the work done: output measurement, valuation standards, incentive systems and compensation systems.
4. Interactive Control Systems. Smart organizations use these for tracking new ideas, for triggering new learning, and for properly positioning the organization for the future: incorporating process data into management interaction, face-to-face meetings with employees, challenging data, assumptions and action plans of subordinates.

Questions related to the levers of Simons

To get a better handle on understanding an organization, Simon recommends the following questions.

• Have senior managers communicated the core values of the business in a way that people understand and embrace?
• Have managers in your organization clearly identified the specific actions and behaviors that are not allowed?
• Are diagnostic control systems adequate at monitoring critical performance variables?
• Are the control systems interactive? And have they been designed to stimulate learning?
• Are you paying enough for traditional internal controls?

Book: Robert Simons - Levers of Control -

Levers of Control Forum   Management Control and Organizational Learning Can someone help me on the interactions between management control and organizational learning? Do you know of any empirical studies....           Corporate Phishing Emails by your Own CEO or CFO EMAIL PHISHING Phishing emails constitute a serious threat to the financial stability of a firm. Traditionally, a phishing email involves an unknown sender that requests a recipient to access a web link, which then aks the user to enter certain ...           Risks That Internal Controls Help to Avoid Internal controls are important in every organization, as they support organizations in achieving the objectives that have been set. Internal controls are also an important component of Enterprise Risk Management. Without proper internal control...           Interactive Control Systems Regarding the interactive control systems, controling an organization's employees, we can also add: - Increasing salary - Promotion to higher levels - Providing facilities causing intrinsic and extrinsic motivation...         Begin a new topic

Levers of Control Special Interest Group Special Interest Group

Levers of Control Education & Events Find Trainings, Seminars and Events

Best Practices - Levers of Control Premium

Expert Tips - Levers of Control Premium   Internal Corporate Governance A more recent term for internal control or management control is internal corporate governance.... Usage (application): Management Control, Internal Control       Levers of Control Categorization Of the 4 Levers of Simons, 1. The Boundary Systems and Diagnostic Control Systems are more operational and process-oriented. 2. The Belief S... Usage (application): Understanding Simon's Contribution to Management Science       Additional Questions to Manage the Tension Between (Value) Creation and Control Some more additional questions to use the levers of control to assure success from Simons’ point of view are: - Have you been devoted to making p... Usage (application): Management Control

Resources - Levers of Control Premium Managing Risks Through Internal Controls Interesting presentation about internal controls in organizations. The presentation includes he following sections: 1. Quick refresh 2. The ... Usage (application): Internal Controls, Risk Management   Controlling as a Management Function Presentation about controlling as a management activity includes the following sections: 1. Why Management Controlling? 2. A Cybernetic Cont... Usage (application): Controlling, Management Control     News Levers Control         News Strategic Innovation         Videos Levers Control         Videos Strategic Innovation         Presentations Levers Control         Presentations Strategic Innovation         More Levers Control         More Strategic Innovation

Compare with The Levers of Control: Parenting Styles  |  Parenting Advantage  |  Core Competence  |  Levers of Control  |  Growth Phases  |  Distinctive Capabilities  |  Organizational Configurations  |  3C's  |  Acquisition Integration Approaches  |  Organization Chart

Return to Management Hub: Change & Organization  |  Communication & Skills  |  Ethics & Responsibility  |  Leadership

More Management Methods, Models and Theory