The relationship between management control systems and strategy: how management control systems are designed and used in the public policy context of Dutch ministries

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the relationship between management control (MC) systems (MCS) and strategy processes within the context of the Dutch central government. By examining types of organisational learning, it seeks to explain the role of MC practices in the implementation and/or development of policy strategies by the Dutch ministries. 

Design/methodology/approach – A multiple case study was conducted to gain in-depth understanding of the design and use of MCS within ministries of the Dutch central government. Using the analytical framework of Pfister et al. (2023) and Simons’ (1995) levers of control MC framework, three research questions were defined, corresponding to three analytical levels, including the descriptive, analytical and explanatory levels. 

Findings – The results show that MCS were mainly used to control the implementation of organisational strategy. This mainly involved the use of feedback mechanisms to facilitate single-loop learning, which offered limited space for the development of strategies. 

Originality/value – This paper contributes to the MC literature by increasing the conceptual understanding of the relationship between MCS and strategy in the public sector in general and in the public policy context in particular. Ministries are responsible for policy and legislation that affect citizens and organisations, making research into strategy implementation and development both practically and academically important.