Organizational Control Theory

Theories of organizational control examine the process by which one party attempts to influence the behavior of another within a given system. Organizational control is an inherently communicative activity that consists of verbal and physical actions designed to overcome resistance and exercise authority over others. Supervisors might rely upon verbal commands (e.g., telling someone exactly what to do), written directives (e.g., giving workers a set of rules to follow), or even peer pressure (e.g., coworkers reinforce the importance of following organizational norms) to control the actions of their subordinates. Collective effort (e.g., organizing) cannot be accomplished without individuals relinquishing some degree of autonomy in order to work toward a common objective. Communication scholars study organizational control processes to understand the strategies and resources organizational leaders draw upon to convince their members to work together.

Complicating the organizational control process is the fact that managers and workers often have competing interests. Managers typically want to maximize the productivity of their subordinates in exchange for the lowest organizational cost. In contrast, workers may seek out ways to maximize their individual compensation while exerting the least amount of personal effort. [Page 706]As superior and subordinate members negotiate for their particular interests, they create, reproduce, and transform the organizational context in which they interact.

To understand the strengths and weaknesses of various organizational control strategies, it is important to first establish a framework for examining this topic from a communication perspective. Second, three approaches to the study of organizational control will be examined to illustrate how different scholars make sense of this process. Finally, five different management strategies will be compared against each other to illustrate the evolution of organizational control practices over time.