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 Special Interest Group Special Interest Group (25 members)

Levers of Control Forum   Recent topics   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....           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 con...           Interactive Control Systems Regarding the interactive control systems, controling an organization's employees, we can also add: - Increasing salary - Promotion to highe...           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 unkn...           Systems that can Support Levers of Control We can use managerial accounting tools like activity based costing and target costing to support Simon's Levers of Control. Specifically they can...

Best Practices - Levers of Control

Expert Tips - Levers of Control   Internal Corporate Governance       Levers of Control Categorization       Additional Questions to Manage the Tension Between (Value) Creation and Control

Resources - Levers of Control Managing Risks Through Internal Controls   Controlling as a Management Function     News about Levers Control         News about Strategic Innovation         Videos about Levers Control         Videos about Strategic Innovation         Presentations about Levers Control         Presentations about Strategic Innovation         Books about Levers Control         Books about Strategic Innovation         More about Levers Control         More about 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  |  Strategic Management

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

More Management Methods, Models and Theory