ABSTRACT
Although control is a central concept in the study of human factors, and an important variable in the investigation of individual differences, it has been largely ignored in the field of organisational behavior. One reason for this apparent disregard may be that few usable models are readily available that indicate how control structures may be measured and implemented. The goal of this chapter is to show (a) how data from employee opinion surveys (EOSs) can be used to develop a model of the operation of an organisation that (b) indicates which control procedures or managerial interventions are likely to be effective in changing the level and/or quality of the output of that organization. Accordingly, we work through three concrete examples that illustrate the ‘nuts and bolts’ issues involved in constructing specific models of organisations that indicate what interventions are likely to be effective in managing their ‘bottom line’ variables.
