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.