Title: Identifying innovative practices of management control among start-ups

Authors: Wendy Beatriz Witt Haddad Carraro; Sandro Battisti; Carlos Brito

Addresses: Faculty of Economics, Post-Graduation Program in Controllership and Accounting, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av João Pessoa, 52, 90040-000, Porto Alegre, Brazil ' Bruno Kessler Foundation, Center for Information and Communication Technology, Via Sommarive 18, 38123, Trento, Italy ' Porto Business School, University of Porto, Praça de Gomes Teixeira, 4099-002, Porto, Portugal

Abstract: Management control in start-ups is regarded by practitioners as a critical issue with significant potential of development. On the other hand, researchers in this field recognise a lack of a systematic approach for applying management control models to help start-ups to succeed. This article aims to identify how start-ups use management control practices under an innovative approach. For the data collection, six workshops were held involving 91 entrepreneurs. The research suggests that start-ups use a great number of controls in relation to customer management, performance, employees, information systems, and risks. Furthermore, evidence was also found that the use of management control tools has become a priority for companies wishing to overcome challenges raised by the huge number of uncertainties faced by start-ups. The theoretical contributions of the model presented in this paper have mainly to do with the fact that management controls are implemented and used in different scopes of start-ups analysis. The practical implications put in evidence that control mechanisms can be formal or informal, adapting to a company's needs.

Keywords: management control; science and technology parks; performance measurement; business strategy; technology adoption; start-ups; innovative practices; business models.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMP.2020.108294

International Journal of Management Practice, 2020 Vol.13 No.4, pp.401 - 418

Accepted: 10 May 2019
Published online: 08 Jul 2020 *

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