Management Control System Backbone in a CPA Firm: Middle Managers and the Power of Cultural Control
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33005/jasf.v7i1.425Keywords:
Middle Manager, Management Control System, Role DissonanceAbstract
This research aims to broaden the understanding of the middle manager's role in the management control system, particularly in mediating the relationship between superiors and subordinates. The methods employed in this research are an interpretive paradigm with interview, observation, and document analysis data collection methods. Findings indicate that middle managers at the CPA X play a crucial role in addressing ignorance, inability, and unwillingness in the company. Although there are no formal controls, role dissonance among middle managers is minimal due to the presence of strong cultural controls. Cultural control can compensate for other forms of control, thus minimizing the occurrence of role dissonance experienced by the manager of CPA Firm X. This research provides insight into the importance of middle managers' role in fulfilling their function as an intermediary in the management control system aimed at aligning the goals of top management with operational employees.
Downloads
References
Aboramadan, M., Albashiti, B., Alharazin, H. & Zaidoune, S. (2020). Organizational culture, innovation and performance: a study from a non-western context. Journal of Management Development. Vol. 39, No. 4, pp. 437-451. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-06-2019-0253
Alkhodary, D.A. (2023). Exploring the Relationship between Organizational Culture and Well-Being of Educational Institutions in Jordan. Administrative Sciences, Vol. 13, No. 3, 92. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci13030092
Al-Omoush, K.S. (2021). The role of top management support and organizational capabilities in achieving e-business entrepreneurship. Kybernetes, Vol. 50, No. 5, pp. 1163-1179. https://doi.org/10.1108/K-12-2019-0851
Antonsson, L. (2024). The autonomy of middle managers in local education administrations: a Swedish viewpoint. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy, pp. 10. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/20020317.2024.2397828
Arens, A.A., Beasley, M.S., Elder, R.J., & Hogan, C.E. (2020). Auditing and Assurance Services: An Integrated Approach 17th ed. (17th Global). Harlow: Pearson.
Bugdol, M. (2020). The problem of fear in TQM causes, consequences and reduction methods a literature review. The TQM Journal, Vol. 32, No. 6, pp. 1217-1239. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/TQM-02-2019-0047/full/html
Denham, N., Ackers, P., & Travers, C. (1997). Doing yourself out of a job? How middle managers cope with empowerment. Employee Relations, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp 147-159. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/01425459710171030/full/html
Efferin, S. & Hartono, M. S. (2015). Management control and leadership styles in family business: an Indonesian case study. Journal of Accounting and Organizational Change, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 130-159. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JAOC-08-2012-0074/full/html
Efferin, S. (2021). Sistem Pengendalian Manajemen Berbasis Spiritualitas untuk Pembangunan Berkelanjutan. Yogyakarta: Expert.
Ghumiem, S. H., Alawi, N. A. M., Al-Refaei, A. A.-A., & Masaud, K. A. R. (2023). Corporate Culture and Its Effects on Organizational Performance: Multi-Group Analysis Evidence from Developing Countries. European Journal of Business and Management Research, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 142–148. https://doi.org/10.24018/ejbmr.2023.8.2.1890
Gjerde, S. & Alvesson, M. (2020). Sandwiched: exploring role and identity of middle managers in the genuine middle. Human Relations, Vol. 73, No. 1, pp. 124-151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726718823243.
Gutterman, A. (2023). Organizational Structure. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4545832
Holden, L. (1996). HRM and employee involvement in Britain and Sweden: a comparative study. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 59-81. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09585199600000118
Jaser, Z. (2021). The real value of middle managers. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2021/06/the-real-value-of-middle-managers
Kabiri, S. & Hughes, W. (2018). The interplay between formal and informal elements in analyzing situations of role conflict among construction participants. Construction Management and Economics, Vol. 36, pp. 651-665. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-42775-7_8
Kodden, B., & Roelofs, J. (2019). Psychological Contract as a Mediator of the Leadership- Turnover Intentions Relationship. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 19(2). Retrieved from https://articlearchives.co/index.php/JOP/article/view/4422
Louis, R.R., Sulaiman, N.A. & Zakaria, Z. (2022), "Accounting firms’ talent management practices: perceived importance and its impact on auditors’ performance", Pacific Accounting Review, Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 274-292. https://doi.org/10.1108/PAR-12-2020-0206
Mamburu, M. E., Metz, N., & Davis, A. (2024). Exploring middle manager’s identity as strategists within a public sector organization: a multi-level perspective. Journal of Strategy and Management. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JSMA-08-2023-0205/full/html
Merchant, K. A. & Van der Stede, W. A. (2023). Management Control Systems: Performance Measurement, Evaluation and Incentives. United Kingdom: Pearson
Neuman, W. L. (2014). Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. United Kingdom: Pearson.
Ntopi, S., Chirwa, E., & Maluwa, A. (2020). Relationship between role stressors, job tasks, and job satisfaction among health surveillance assistants in Malawi: a cross-sectional study. BMJ Open, Vol. 10, No. 11, e037000. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-037000
Padmanabhanunni, A. & Pretorius, T. B. (2023). teacher burnout in the time of COVID-19: antecedents and psychological consequences. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Vol. 20, No. 5, 4204. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20054204
Rahim, S., Ahmad, H., Nurwakia, N., Nurfadila, N., & Muslim, M. (2020). The Influence of Audit Staff Quality and Client Type on Audit Evidence Collection with Communication Type as Moderation. JASF: Journal of Accounting and Strategic Finance, 3(1), 103–117. https://doi.org/10.33005/jasf.v3i1.79
Rensburg, M. J. V., Davis, A., & Venter, P. (2014). Making strategy work: The role of the middle manager. Journal of Management & Organization, Vol. 20, pp. 165-186. https://ideas.repec.org/a/cup/jomorg/v20y2014i02p165-186_00.html
Schuler, B.A., Orr, K. & Hughes, J. (2023). My colleagues (do not) think the same: middle managers’shared and separate realities in strategy implementation. Journal of Business Research, Vol. 160, 113782. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.113782.
Sekaran, U. & Bougie, R. (2016). Research Methods for Business. United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons.
Surju, J., De Metz, N. & Davis, A. (2020). The strategizing roles of public sector middle managers. Acta Commercii Vol. 20, No. 1, a804. https://doi.org/10.4102/ac.v20i1.804
Tsuda, K. & Sato, H. (2020). Getting Things Done by Middle Manager. Annals of Business Administrative Science, Vol. 19, pp. 241–251. https://doi.org/10.7880/abas.0200901a
Tyskbo, D. & Styhre, A. (2023). Karma chameleon: exploring the leadership complexities of middle managers in the public sector. International Public Management Journal, Vol. 26 No. 4, pp. 548-569. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967494.2022.2106330.
Zhang, H-l., Wu, C., Yan, J-r., Liu, J-h., Wang, P., Hu, M-y., Liu, F., Qu, H-m., & Lang, H-j (2023). the relationship between role ambiguity, emotional exhaustion, and work alienation among Chinese nurses two years after COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychiatry, Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-04923-5.
