Management attention in performance measurement and management
Abstract
Performance measurement and management (PMM) refers to performance measurement
systems and performance management practices. Management attention (MA) is a limited
cognitive resource that fuels managers’ minds. It can also be understood as the cognitive
process that chooses what information is passed on to higher-level processes such as
judgment and learning. This research postulates the thesis that certain characteristics of
PMM attract greater MA than others. Our knowledge about this phenomenon is still
embryonic. Therefore, this thesis aims to explain how PMM affects MA.
This thesis explores six micro-level case studies about the impact of PMM concepts and
characteristics on management attention. Control theory, levers of control (LoC), effort
theory, and dual process theory jointly informed the conceptual structure for data
collection. Evidence suggests that PMM concepts and characteristics affect management
attention through MA characteristics of five novel MA concepts: Ideological compass,
social intelligence, reflexivity, routinised behaviours, and engagement. This thesis
develops 86 theoretical propositions that explain the significant impact of PMM
characteristics on MA characteristics which further affects the cognitive judgment
mechanism that governs managers’ attentional allocation policy (i.e., intuitive analytical
judgment). Findings contribute to control theory and LoC in particular.