There is a temptation to idealize what I’ve called cultural values as a mode of control because it is so “nice,” even utopian, because everybody presumably cares about the common good and subjugates self-interest to that common good. But this is not the most efficient mode of control under all conditions. It is no guide to buying tires, nor could the tax system work this way. Accordingly, given a certain set of conditions, there is always a most appropriate mode of control, which we as managers should find and use. How do we do that? There are two variables here: first, the nature of a
...more
