Effective control
If you want to exercise good control you need to:
- planwhat you aim to achieve;
- measureregularly what has been achieved;
- compareactual achievements with the plan;
- take actionto exploit opportunities revealed by this informa-
tion or to correct deviations from the plan.
Note that control is not only a matter of putting things right. It
also has a positive side – getting more or better things done on
the basis of information received.
Problems of control
A good control system is not easy to set up. There are two
essentials:
■ To set appropriate and fair targets, standards and budgets.
(This may be difficult where the scope for quantification is
limited or if circumstances make forecasts unreliable.) Note
that targets are good, within reason, but too many can cause
resentments, confusion and focusing on producing the right
numbers rather than doing the right things.
■ To decide what information is crucial for control purposes
and design reports which clearly convey that information to
the people who need it and can use it to point the way to
action. This also produces problems. Too many control
systems generate a surfeit of indigestible data which go to
the wrong people and are not acted upon. You can have too
little information, but there is also such a thing as informa-
tion overkill. There is, moreover, a tendency for some people
to report good results and cover up poor results. In any case,
the figures may not tell the whole story.
Overcoming the problem
There are five steps to take if you want to achieve good control:
- Decide what you want to control.
How to Control 41