The psychology of computer programming
The psychology of computer programming
Managing the software process
The problem of statistical power in MIS research
MIS Quarterly
Japan's software factories: a challenge to U.S. management
Japan's software factories: a challenge to U.S. management
Structure and perceived effectiveness of software development subunits: a task contingency analysis
Journal of Management Information Systems - Special issue: Collaboration technology, modeling, and end-user computing for the 1990s
Managing I/S design teams: a control theories perspective
Management Science
Explaining the role of user participation in information system use
Management Science
Principles on the benefits of manufacturing process flexibility
Management Science
Software quality and the Capability Maturity Model
Communications of the ACM
Quality management in systems development: an organizational system perspective
MIS Quarterly - Special issue on Intensive research in information systems: using qualitative, interpretive, and case methods to study information technology—third installment
The effect of programming team structures on programming tasks
Communications of the ACM
A Discipline for Software Engineering
A Discipline for Software Engineering
The New Software Engineering
Microsoft Secrets: How the World's Most Powerful Software Company Creates Technology, Shapes Markets, and Manages People
Survival of the Fastest: Improving Service Velocity
IEEE Software
Jazz Improvisation and Organizing: Once More from the Top
Organization Science
A Contingency Approach to Software Project Coordination
Journal of Management Information Systems
Expertise Integration and Creativity in Information Systems Development
Journal of Management Information Systems
Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Structural equation model for EDI controls: Controls design perspective
Expert Systems with Applications: An International Journal
Journal of Management Information Systems
Software Process Tailoring: An Empirical Investigation
Journal of Management Information Systems
Using case-based reasoning for the design of controls for internet-based information systems
Expert Systems with Applications: An International Journal
Impact of Knowledge Support on the Performance of Software Process Tailoring
Journal of Management Information Systems
Governance-Knowledge Fit in Systems Development Projects
Information Systems Research
A Control Theory Perspective on Agile Methodology Use and Changing User Requirements
Information Systems Research
Control of Flexible Software Development Under Uncertainty
Information Systems Research
Control in Internal and Outsourced Software Projects
Journal of Management Information Systems
Journal of Management Information Systems
The institutionalization of information system project management practices
Information and Organization
Coordination in co-located agile software development projects
Journal of Systems and Software
A Study of Open Source Software Development from Control Perspective
Journal of Database Management
The Impact of National Culture on Information Systems Planning Autonomy
Journal of Global Information Management
Contract Performance in Offshore Systems Development: Role of Control Mechanisms
Journal of Management Information Systems
Organizing knowledge workforce for specified iterative software development tasks
Decision Support Systems
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The performance of firms in the software industry depends considerably on the quality of their software development processes. Managing software development is a challenging task, as management controls need to impose discipline and coordinate action to ensure goals are met while simultaneously incorporating autonomy to motivate software developers to be innovative and produce quality work. How should such firms manage software development projects so that their development processes are flexible and predictable--resulting in products that meet quality goals and that are delivered within budget and on time? The management literature suggests two approaches to control: the process approach and the structure approach. The process approach recommends control of activities through specifying methods (behavior control) and through specifying performance criteria (outcome control). In contrast, the structure approach recommends control through centrally devised standards for activities (standardization) and by the delegation of authority for decision-making (decentralization). This study synthesizes these two approaches to suggest that formal managerial control is exerted through a matrix of control comprising four modes: standardization of methods, standardization of performance criteria, decentralization of methods, and decentralization of performance criteria. We test the association of the modes of control with performance in a sample of 56 firms in the software industry in the United States. The results suggest that performance is enhanced by establishing uniform performance criteria across projects (standardization of performance criteria) while giving each project team the authority to make decisions with respect to methods (decentralization of methods). However, standardization of methods across all projects and decentralization of performance criteria by delegating the authority to make decisions about performance criteria to project teams were both not significantly related to performance. The matrix of control and its relationship to performance has theoretical and practical implications for managing software development. This model of control is also likely to be useful in other knowledge-work-intensive settings.