Control systems in dissonance: The computer as an ink blot

Abstract This study focuses on the choice that organizations have to make between two basic control strategies when they are facing increasing complexity and uncertainty. Firstly, organizations may choose to invest in vertical information systems and secondly, they may try to reduce organizational complexity and foster self-contained tasks. However, it is expected that dissonance will occur when vertical information systems are introduced in so-called “self-renewing organizations”. The study is based on a comparative case analysis of five engineering workshops of a large Dutch multinational. The study indicates that the impact of computerized production control systems on the organization is heavily dependent on the actual use of those systems. Organizations tend to maintain consonance of their control style by making a selective use of the system.

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