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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the direct and indirect effects of managerial coaching on critical reflection mediated through learning goal orientation.

The authors conducted a questionnaire survey of 169 employees in 53 teams at an IT firm in Japan. The data were examined using multi-level analyses.

Managerial coaching has a direct positive effect on critical reflection, and the relationship is mediated by learning goal orientation.

The characteristics of the sample may limit the generalization of the findings. Future research should verify the model in other industries and countries.

The organizations should note that managerial coaching is useful not only for facilitating employees’ problem-solving but also for enhancing their critical reflection. It should also be noted that employees can reflect critically on their beliefs and work routines when they have learning goals.

Although few quantitative studies have investigated the determinants of critical reflection, the present research reveals the overlooked functions of managerial coaching in promoting employees’ learning.

Although middle managers play important roles in forming strategies and generating innovation, few studies have explored the influence of management control systems (MCS) on employees’ behaviors or performance at the middle-management level. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect an interactive use of MCS has on individual performance at the unit level.

A longitudinal, multisource and multilevel survey was conducted among 373 nurses in 20 units at a Japanese public hospital.

The multi-level analyzes indicate that middle managers’ interactive use of MCS has a direct and indirect positive influence on individual performance, through proactive behavior, as well as through psychological empowerment and, subsequently, through proactive behavior.

As the present study collected data from nurses at a Japanese hospital, it is necessary to conduct research in other countries using different occupations to verify the findings.

Organizations need to be aware that the interactive use of MCS can be an effective tool for empowering and motivating employees.

The present study contributes to the literature by clarifying the mechanisms of how the interactive use of MCS influences employees’ psychological and behavioral outcomes at the middle-management level.

This study aims to investigate the relative weight of financial and non-financial performance measures used to evaluate production managers (such as shop floor managers or foremen) in a modern manufacturing setting.

Using survey data from Japanese factories, the paper examines the association between the choice of profit, cost, and non-financial performance measures with two characteristics of manufacturing systems: interdependence and multi-tasking.

The results indicate that interdependence has a significant and positive association with the importance of profit information, while multi-tasking is associated negatively with the importance of profit information, and positively with non-financial information for performance evaluation.

In recent years, a significant shift has been observed in Japanese production management with many companies now focusing on profit information instead of cost information. For example, the past studies show that large Japanese manufacturing companies are now using micro-profit centres and include profit information when evaluating factories. However, little empirical evidence is available on performance measurement at the shop floor foreman level, and even less is known about the importance of profit information in the evaluation of these lower level managers.