Levers of control in the age of COVID-19

Abstract This paper proposes a comprehensive exploration of the use of different elements of a management control system to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. We adopted Simons’ (1995) levers of control (LOC) framework, focusing on identifying and examining the levers of control used by a company to manage control and innovation objectives during the pandemic period. Our investigation is based on a field study of a small-to-midsized Italian manufacturing enterprise, which we examined using a variety of methods, including interviews, reviews of archival sources, and informal discussions among the authors. Our findings revealed that COVID-19 stimulated the development of levers of control because of the opportunities presented during the initial phases of the pandemic. We provide empirical evidence of consistent and countervailing reinforcement between levers of control and how unveiling blind spots in innovation strategy during the pandemic’s early phase changed the balance and intensity of the levers’ use. Furthermore, we emphasise the importance of the sequence in which levers of control are adopted and the delays in using interactive systems. We propose that the use and balance of levers of control change in response to strategic discussions, enhancing the system’s effectiveness during strategic change opportunities. This study directly answers calls for more field research on how the use and balance of levers of control can simultaneously facilitate control and innovation, offering practical insights for organisations navigating severe crises.