Enhancing and hindering relationships between informal and formal management controls in the voluntary sector

Purpose This study aims to explore how the relationships between informal and formal controls enhance or hinder management control in the care sector. Design/methodology/approach An interpretivist approach has been used to explore the relationships between informal and formal controls in small independent UK hospices. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews and documents from five case hospices and analysed by applying Knowles’ (2023) framework. Findings This paper finds that where a formal control has a corresponding informal control, the relationship between them is enhanced. However, where there are relationships between formal and informal controls that do not correspond to each other, they have the potential to hinder each other. Such tensions can be ameliorated through stakeholder discussions. Research limitations/implications While the conclusions can be applied across sectors, the research was undertaken within the voluntary care sector. Interviews were limited to key stakeholders within the board of trustees and senior management teams. Practical implications This research concludes that stakeholders should explicitly discuss how an organisation balances formal and informal controls, recognising the importance of both in holistic management control. Social implications Informal control is pertinent in voluntary organisations, where social values underpin their mission and where corporate social responsibility is important. Originality/value The relationships between informal and formal controls can be both enhancing and hindering. This research applies Knowles’ (2023) framework to examine how these interrelate and how tensions between them can be resolved. This can be used by stakeholders to discuss the balance to be struck between informal and formal controls explicitly.