The Workplace Blog

In the midst of rapid development in technological solutions within the enterprise, it is easy to forget strategic misalignment within managerial control systems. Technology does not solve these problems, nor does it create them. However, it does bring them to the surface often.

Collaborative technology is gaining momentum, and yet, the appropriateness of fit must still be central to its adoption within the enterprise. Here are two issues to consider: First, we must never confuse “collaboration” with “collaborative technology”. Just like the old joke about an 8 year-old in the doctor’s office after breaking his arm. The doctor comforted the boy by saying, “Don’t worry it’ll be just like new after your surgery”. The 8 year-old asked, “Will I be able to play the piano after the surgery?” The doctor replied, “Of course”. Delighted, the child responded, “Great! I never could before, but I’ve always wanted to play the piano!” Collaboration is a learned process that is nurtured over time within an environment that is conducive to it. We can’t assume collaboration will just happen by adopting the latest technology.

Second, we must consider the existing strategic dissonances within managerial control systems. In a recent article (fee based; abstract and preview are free) entitled “How Right Should the Customer be?” the authors uncovered distinctive cultures within sales force control systems of 50 companies from 38 countries. The study revealed that sales force management systems can be oriented along a spectrum towards behavioral control (BC) systems and outcome control (OC) systems. BC systems are oriented towards processes by which results are attained, whereas OC systems are oriented towards the delivery of results. Dissonances come when components of these systems, 8 of them altogether, are sending mixed signals within the organization. One common pattern of inconsistency is dubbed “The Black Hole”. This happens when a salesforce is mostly driven by results, or OC based for 7 out of 8 components; however, its evaluation criteria are not transparent, making it process driven, or BC oriented for this single component. As a result, even though in theory, employee performance was results driven, actual evaluation criteria were not consistent.

The solutions offered in this article pertaining to information systems are of particular relevance here. The differences between OC and BC systems affect how emerging technology should be adopted within the organization. An organization that is dependent upon BC systems must equip large numbers of power managers to design specific strategies particular to salespeople, territories and competition. Furthermore, salespeople within this system have a joint role in marketing and strategy. Therefore, an intranet wiki would fit in this collaborative context. However, in an OC system, salespeople must be given more autonomy, since there are multiple ways to close deals. A wiki used for the aforementioned purpose would create inconsistency. Rather, a wiki can be used in OC systems to empower salespeople by providing a great deal of information for their customers. To use the same technology in mismatched contexts is to create inconsistencies that will create more problems than solve.