Management control system design – the effect of tools in use on the information provided

Abstract

Today’s organizations have a wide variety of tools at hand to provide relevant information to management that can be used later on for various purposes, including performance evaluation and decision making. This paper investigates the range of management control (MC) tools in use and its relationship to the scope and frequency of information made available to management. As the work of controllers in the 21st century is intensively supported by diverse IT solutions, the tools under analysis are not limited to MC instruments. IT systems as enablers of well-designed MCSs are also considered. Multivariate analysis of the 2013 questionnaire from the “Competing the world” Research Program revealed a significant positive correlation between the use of MC tools and diverse informational features of MC systems. However, only a limited effect for IT intensity on information provision was proved for the 181 Hungarian, mainly mid-size companies in the sample. The results of discussions with senior controllers about some unexpected findings are also reported.