Search results

This study aims to investigate the dual effects of commitment-based governance on the relationship between formal control and public–private partnership (PPP) project performance. Formal control and relationship governance are two primary forms of inter-organizational governance that affect project performance. However, little is known about the interplay between formal control and commitment and its effect on PPP projects. More specifically, previous studies have failed to distinguish the function routes of relationship governance resulting from different types of formal control (process and outcome control).

This study adopts a questionnaire survey to empirically investigate the mechanism that commitment-based governance influences the relationship between formal control and PPP performance. After collecting data from public and private sector professionals involved in 101 Chinese PPP projects, the theoretical framework proposed in this paper is verified by the empirical results of the hierarchical multiple regression analysis.

The results show that process control has an inverted U-shaped effect and outcome control has a significant positive influence on PPP project performance. Furthermore, commitment moderates the effect of formal control on PPP project performance by increasing the relevance of outcome control and mediates the inverted U-shaped relationship between process control and PPP project performance.

Managers should recognize that process control is a double-edged sword and prevent the overuse of process control. Managers should direct their attention toward efforts to improve the commitment, which allows for the effectiveness of outcome control strategies. Additionally, this study new measurement method for relationship governance suggests that managers should be aware of the difference in parties' perceptions of the relationship.

This study allows for a comprehensive understanding of the relationship governance-control nexus from a commitment perspective. The authors bring into light the dual role of commitment-based governance in the relationship between the two types of formal control and PPP project performance. Moreover, the new approach to measure relationship governance offers valuable insight into the measurement of variables about individual's perception.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to debates about the relationship between trust and control in the governance of inter-organisational relationships. In particular, the authors focus on the question of how the relationship between trust and control shifts over time.

An in-depth case study was conducted in a company operating in the aerospace industry. The authors aim to understand this company’s practices and, at the same time, to use the case study to deepen the knowledge of the complex trust/control nexus. The authors follow the changes in the relationship between trust and control as the company restructured its supply chain, and discuss issues which it had to address in the later phases of the supply chain restructuring.

The paper illustrates the duality of the trust/control nexus. The authors show how the studied company coped with the complex relationships with its suppliers as collaboration increased. The authors identify particular control mechanisms that the company developed to manage such complexity, such as a supplier strategy and a relationship profile tool.

The paper studies supply chain restructuring and the changing relationship of trust and control over time only from the perspective of the assembler/manufacturer which “owns”/manages the supply chain.

The authors observe a move from inter-personal trust to inter-organisational trust. Furthermore, the authors illustrate how managers can intervene to maintain and stabilise trust and ensure that trust and control do not degrade or escalate beyond desirable levels.

Firms in the early stage of their organisational lifecycle (ESFs) are subject to concerns founded on a requirement for strategic flexibility, prompting engagement in inter-organisational relationships such as outsourcing. However, studies of the management control dynamics of these relationships are rare. This paper aims to respond by empirically examining the influence of ESF managers on the ongoing management control of such relationships.

A single outsourcing case study is utilised to provide evidence in examining a multi-theoretical framework that adopts a complex adaptive system (CAS) perspective as a qualitative analytical framework, along with the existing accounting theory on control adoption.

Focused on management concerns with tensions between inter-organisational control and strategic flexibility, this paper identifies reasons for the adoption of management controls by an ESF. The inter-organisational system explored in this paper emphasises the importance of adopting a holistic epistemology in understanding changes in control adoption.

This paper extends current theoretical perspectives on control adoption to consider the inter-organisational control concerns of ESF managers.

The insights identified in this paper provide a systemic framework to identify potential organisational and environmental influences on control problems, emphasising environmental co-evolution rather than achievement of ideal equilibrium states.

The intended contribution is to extend the management control literature to consider the effect of organisational lifecycle on the adoption of new inter-organisational management controls in the wake of ongoing trade-off between competing inter-organisational requirements.

This paper aims to explore controls within an inter-organisational relationship involving outsourced management accounting services from the contractor’s perspective.

Qualitative data from within the relationship are analysed in a legitimacy-theory framework, illustrating how controls within the relationship are intended to build the contractor’s legitimacy and what kinds of implications the controls have in relation to conflicts between interests inherent in the relationship.

The legitimacy perspective clarifies that while controls are aimed at ensuring efficiency for the client, they may also provide symbolic displays of the appropriateness of the contractor’s actions both at an inter-organisational level for the client and at an individual level for the contractor’s employees. While the contractor intends to build legitimacy with the client by demonstrating utility in the form of efficiency, the process also gives the client influence and allows the disposition in terms of shared values to be demonstrated. However, this process has some negative consequences for the contractor’s employees as it is insufficient for serving the boundary-spanning employees’ interests connected with the nature of their work. Hence, the same controls need to yield benefits and fair outcomes for employees. The controls simultaneously foster interconnections that contribute to permanence and formalise the outsourcing of complex services, thereby rendering such processes comprehensible and transferable to other settings, which can be seen to serve the contractor’s continuity interests.

The paper contributes to academic research by illustrating how controls within inter-organisational relationships not only steer boundary-spanners’ work to conform to a client’s needs but may also help to build legitimacy via symbolic properties in the presence of conflicting interests at both an inter-organisational and individual level. It specifically highlights the important role of boundary-spanners lower in the organisational structure, who both affect and are influenced by the intentions to build legitimacy with the client.

The paper investigates the operation of the trust‐formal control dynamic in collaborative supply relationships.

A case study of an Australian metal manufacturer (IronBiz) and its collaborative supply relationships is conducted.

Relationships between formal controls (comprising accounting controls and contracts) and trust are developed based on the empirical observations from the case study conducted and prior literature.

The main limitations of the paper include: an empirical examination of the buyer organisation only in dyadic supply relationships; the limited generalisability associated with the methodology and field site chosen.

In contrast to the continued popularity of collaborative arrangements as a form of organisation, gaps in the literature still exist as to the dynamics of trust creation and the relationship between trust and formal controls. This paper focuses on the trust‐formal control dynamic, with an emphasis on how trust is generated and sustained in supply relationships and the role of formal controls in this process.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of initial trust on control in the construction projects from the perspective of the client. The results are a good resource in managing the relationship between trust and control in the construction industry in China, and formulating a good working relationship with contractors.

Using a set of questionnaire, data were collected from project managers of the clients, who are responsible for the overall project management and have face-to-face interaction with the contractors. The data were analyzed by structural equation modeling to identify the effects of initial trust on control for the contractors.

Trust is examined in the construction industry in China through calculative and relational trust. Their effects are examined on three modes of inter-organizational control: outcome control, behavior control and social control. The results show that the calculative trust has strong effects on outcome-based and behavior control, while the relational trust, on social control.

First, the conclusion of this research is based on the construction industry in China. It may not be suitable for other industries or other countries. Second, there may be other factors that influence the relationship between trust and control, such as the characteristics of the client and organizational culture, which are not taken into consideration in this research.

The effects of initial trust on control have been testified in the study. For the client, it is wise to take suitable control measures to face with the contractors with the consideration of initial trust. The contractors would apply the rule in the relationship between initial trust and control, and set up good relationship with the client.

This research has certain originality and value in theory and practice. First, this research analyzes the relationship between trust and control in a dynamical way, which has innovative significance to some extent. Second, research on inter-organization supplies a new perspective about project control. Finally, this research would offer a perspective to improve the present situation of the construction industry in China. If the clients use the trust and control measures appropriately, the harmonious relation can be achieved and projects performance can be improved.

The purpose of this paper is to extend previous research on trust and sales control to develop and test an argument that links informational uncertainty to the development of managerial trust in the salesperson.

Hypotheses are developed suggesting that shared goals and length of attachment reduces uncertainty, which has the effect of promoting managerial trust in the salesperson. In addition, it is hypothesized that sales control will have a (negative) moderating effect on these uncertainty‐trust relationships. Data were collected from 100 sales managers to measure their: sales control strategies, degree of trust, goal congruence, and the relationship tenure with three of their salespeople. An ordinary least squares regression analysis was used to test a model of hypothesized relationships.

The results supported a direct and positive relationship between lower uncertainty (via goal congruence and relationship tenure) and managerial trust in the salesperson. Furthermore, the results confirmed that sales control had a negative moderating effect on these relationships.

These study findings are important to researchers because the literature strongly suggests that trust is critical in the relationship between sales manager and salesperson and so furthering the understanding of trust‐building strategies is an important advancement to academic sales research.

Managers can use this study to understand and recognize factors that impact trust development while avoiding the potential risks of salesperson opportunism. Examples are provided as to how practitioners can operationalize these findings to build more productive relationships with their salespeople.

Purpose – This study focuses on the relationship between local governments and public sector joint ventures (JVs). Public sector JVs are separate administrative entities that undertake public service activities on behalf of local governments. The aim of this study is to examine the vertical management control packages that are used by local governments to control the relationship with their public sector JVs.

Design/methodology/approach – Two case studies have been conducted in two public sector JVs, owned jointly by more than 20 local governments. The analysis of the two cases is informed by an integrated conceptual framework describing how transactional and relational factors influence control, trust, and risk in the context of public sector JVs.

Findings – The case studies provide a nuanced understanding of the interplay between the vertical management control packages, trust between the parents and the public sector JVs, and risks as perceived by the local governments. The case findings not only reveal how local governments struggle with adequate outcome control but also highlight how and why they rely on behavioral control. A related finding is that while the probability of poor business performance does not have a significant impact on the design of the vertical control packages, the social impact of failure has the potential to create a sense of urgency with regard to changes in the design of vertical management control packages.

Originality/value – This study adds to the literature on interorganizational relationships by providing insight into the use of vertical management control packages in the specific, but relevant, setting of public sector JVs.

Purpose – Resource-based literature argues that firms’ export performances are influenced by a proper combination of their own resources and capabilities, allowing for sustainable competitive advantages. Because export activities are usually based on relationships between firms and foreign intermediaries, the adequate management of inter-organisational activities should also be analysed as a key determinant of export performance.

Originality – Our research adds to the existing literature by examining the role that management control systems (MCS) play in exploiting firms’ exporting capabilities and resources to optimise export performance.

Methodology – Utilising empirical data from Spanish exporters, an initial analysis of export efficiency was performed based on DEA and segmentation techniques. From efficiency scores, we tested causal relationships between MCS design and use and the optimisation of resources and capabilities when performing export activities.

Findings and practical implications – The main conclusions are that any type of control system was found to have a positive influence in export performance, but only social control establishes a difference in terms of efficiency. The results show that strong social controls increase firms’ efficiencies when managing export channels, allowing firms to achieve outputs superior to competitors with similar resources and capabilities. In addition, an efficiency ‘lifecycle’ was identified for relationships between exporters and intermediaries. A pro-cyclical effect was found among MCS design, use, and export efficiency; intense MCS were established in the first stages of a relationship but were relaxed after a certain level of efficiency was achieved, leading to a reduction of efficiency in the long term that compromised the continuity of relationships.

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of the prior relationship length and employments of supplier specific investments on buyers' control, and compare this effect across international and domestic business-to-business relationships.

The sampling frame consisted of members of a National Association Purchasing and Logistics, and the respondents were asked to select one major supplier that would serve as a referent in answering the questions. In total, 156 purchasing firms responded to the questionnaire, and multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses.

Under condition with substantial supplier specific investments, buyers' control relaxes significantly as the length of the relationship increases in international supplier-buyer relationships, while such change in governance pattern is completely absent in domestic relationships.

This study is based on a cross-sectional design and does not fully capture the dynamics of business-to-business relationships. Future research should use different methodologies such as longitudinal studies to examine dynamic relationships among the constructs in the study.

When strong inter-firm dependency is present, the level of buyer control in relationships with foreign suppliers is typically high in the early stage of the relationships in order to handle the problems of information asymmetry and prospective opportunistic behavior, and decline as the buyer's experiential knowledge with the foreign supplier increases with successive lower performance ambiguity. This governance pattern is less evident in domestic business-to-business relationships due to the potential effect of stronger reputation effects and stronger familiarity with current standards of trade.

The paper contributes to the understanding that the changes in governance form over time will be highly contingent on the level of information asymmetry and inter-firm dependency in the early stage of the exchange relationship.