The influence of telework and management controls on the congruence of civil servant objectives

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to analyze the influence of telework and management control systems (MCSs) on the congruence of civil servant objectives in the Brazilian justice system. Design/methodology/approach - To this end, the authors have carried out a survey with 468 employees of the Ministério Público Federal (Federal Public Ministry), whose data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings - Among the main results are the perceived efficiency of telework, and the finding that action and personnel controls are positively related to the congruence of objectives. However, the moderating relationship of the MCSs presented individual characteristics. Action controls showed no evidence of moderating the relationship between the perceived efficiency of telework and congruence of objectives. However, personnel controls showed a significant and negative relationship, that is, more intense personnel controls in telework weakened the congruence of individual objectives with those of the organization. Practical implications - This study contributes to practice by identifying barriers and facilitators in organizational telework programs and also spotting how controls can be planned for their activities. Originality/value - The authors’ research evaluates the effect of MCSs on the relationship between the perceived efficiency of telework and the congruence of employee objectives, considering that the telework regime is in its initial phase of implementation in public entities, but this has been intensified by the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.