A Commentary on Perrigino and Raveendhran’s “A Theory of Strategic Boundary Control for Remote Work”: Boundary not Borderless

Perrigino and Raveendhran's (2025) theory of strategic boundary control for remote work offers a strong framework for aligning human resource management (HRM) systems with the design of work-nonwork boundaries. We argue that this theory is fundamentally an ostensive account: it specifies the intended architecture of boundary control configurations but is silent on how these designs are performatively enacted once employees interact with the technologies that implement them. Drawing on routine dynamics and technology-in-practice research, we contend that the effects of any boundary control configuration on organizational performance are mediated by how employees appropriate, adapt, and circumvent the underlying technology. We extend the theory by proposing three boundary conditions, each tied to a distinct performative response. First, behavior-oriented control's benefits are contingent on technology re-adaptability: strict monitoring and connectivity mandates can trigger psychological reactance and technostress that inadvertently enable cyberslacking. Second, output-oriented control's benefits depend on task-technology fit: when monitoring platforms poorly suit employees' actual tasks, autonomy encourages job crafting through unsanctioned tools, eroding the visibility such control requires. Third, technical controls' benefits depend on Shadow IT's accessibility: overly rigid restrictions push employees toward unauthorized applications to sustain collaboration and social connection, undermining the controls meant to focus attention. Together, these boundary conditions show that employee enactment is a critical determinant of whether formal boundary control systems succeed. We conclude that effective HRM design cannot rely solely on top-down specification; it must anticipate the adaptive, performative ways employees enact workplace technology.