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Managing different types of innovation: mutually reinforcing management control systems and the generation of dynamic tension

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  • Emer Curtis
  • Breda Sweeney

Abstract

Using a single case study of a highly innovative medical device company engaged in two types of innovation (technological and customer-oriented), this paper examines the nature of the relationship between mutually reinforcing management control systems (MCSs) and the generation of dynamic tension between the different types of innovation. Findings show how mutually reinforcing MCSs create a push for consistency but fail to generate a dynamic tension between different types of innovation, thus crowding out one type of innovation. While the literature to date has been unclear on how mutual reinforcement and the generation of dynamic tension are related, this study makes a distinction between mutually reinforcing control systems that support each other in driving momentum around a particular strategic objective (consistent reinforcement), and control systems which are reinforcing in creating dynamic tension, thus reducing momentum in one particular direction (countervailing reinforcement). It also contributes to the literature by highlighting the protective role that MCSs can play in the management of innovation. Feedback and measurement systems reduce the vulnerability of resources to diversion to other areas by stimulating action on projects, driving accountability around the use of the resources, and commanding management attention.

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  • Emer Curtis & Breda Sweeney, 2017. "Managing different types of innovation: mutually reinforcing management control systems and the generation of dynamic tension," Accounting and Business Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(3), pages 313-343, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:acctbr:v:47:y:2017:i:3:p:313-343
    DOI: 10.1080/00014788.2016.1255585
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    3. Rúben Silva Barros & Ana Maria Dias Simões da Costa Ferreira, 2023. "Management control systems and innovation: a case study grounded in institutional theory," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 34(1), pages 109-133, March.
    4. Lill, Philipp A. & Wald, Andreas, 2021. "The agility-control-nexus: A levers of control approach on the consequences of agility in innovation projects," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    5. Ewelina Zarzycka & Justyna Dobroszek & Lauri Lepistö & Sinikka Moilanen, 2019. "Coexistence of innovation and standardization: evidence from the lean environment of business process outsourcing," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 251-286, October.
    6. Bedford, David & Bisbe, Josep & Sweeney, Breda, 2022. "Enhancing external knowledge search: The influence of performance measurement system design on the absorptive capacity of top management teams," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    7. Kevin Baird & Sophia Su & Rahat Munir, 2023. "The mediating role of levers of controls on the association between sustainable leadership and organisational resilience," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 34(2), pages 167-200, June.
    8. Rogério João Lunkes & Fabricia Silva da Rosa & Januário José Monteiro & Daiane Antonini Bortoluzzi, 2020. "Interactions among Environmental Training, Environmental Strategic Planning and Personnel Controls in Radical Environmental Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-13, October.

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