276 ACCOUNTING FOR MANAGERS
thing! Further, Machin argues that research in MCSs, led, as it was, by qualified
accountants, made the research questions
‘virtually immune from philosophical analysis’,a critique also reflected in Hofstede’s (1978) criticism of the
‘poverty of management control philosophy’,- the narrow, accounting focus which had become so prevalent.
Such diverse opinions leave a number of issues to be clarified. First, is the
meaning of the term ‘control’. In this review we will include within the definition
of control both the ideas of informational feedback and the implementation of
corrective actions. Equally, we explicitly exclude the exercise of power for its own
sake, restricting ourselves to those activities undertaken by managers which have
the intention of furthering organizational objectives (at least, insofar as perceived
by managers). We are, thus, primarily concerned with the exercise of legitimate
authority rather than power. This is no doubt a controversial position, but gives
the review a clear managerial focus.
There is also a distinction to be drawn between management control and
financial control, which is of some importance given the accounting domination
of the subject in recent years. Financial control is clearly concerned with the
management of the finance function within organizations. As such it is one
business function amongst many, and comprises but one facet of the wider
practice of management control. On the other hand, management control can be
defined as a general management function concerned with the achievement of
overall organizational aims and objectives. Financial information is thus used in
practice to serve two interrelated functions. First, it is clearly used in a financial
control role, where its function is to monitor financial flows; that is, it is concerned
with looking after the money. Second, it is also often used as a surrogate measure
for other aspects of organizational performance. That is, management control is
concerned with looking after the overall business with money being used as a
convenient measure of a variety of other more complex dimensions, not as an end
in itself.
Having set some boundaries, the next section of the paper will provide a
brief account of the main themes that have formed the starting point for the
development of the field. Whilst well known, these roots cannot be ignored as
their influence is reflected in work which continues today. There follows a review
of the literature that has evolved over the last 20 years both as a continuation of
and as a reaction against those roots, using a heuristic map provided by Scott
(1981). Finally, we will suggest possible themes for future development.
The starting points
The roots of management control issues lie in early managerial thought. The
significance of the work of Weber, Durkheim and Pareto upon the development