The Effects of Managerial Discretion in Multi-Task Environments: Experimental Evidence

Arnold, Markus Christopher; Bauch, Kai Alexander (September 2021). The Effects of Managerial Discretion in Multi-Task Environments: Experimental Evidence (Unpublished). In: Conference on Performance Measurement and Management Control. 15.-17.9.2021.

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This study investigates effects of managerial discretion when employees have to efficiently allocate their effort towards multiple task outputs. Prior evidence suggests that managerial discretion affects performance less positively or even negatively in these cases. We identify and analyze three potential drivers of these effects. First, for fairness reasons, employees may not prefer bonus allocations based on efficient effort only. Second, managers could deliberately deviate from rewarding efficient effort because of their biased assessment of employees’ preferences. Third, employees may be concerned about how bonuses will be allocated which consumes cognitive resources and distorts effort provision. We find evidence in favor of the second and third driver but not the first. Our results contribute by enhancing our understanding of the effects of managerial discretion when employees have to efficiently allocate their effort towards multiple tasks outputs and by building knowledge about the best possible use of algorithm-based management control systems.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Division/Institute:	03 Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences > Department of Business Management > Institute for Accounting and Controlling > Managerial Accounting
UniBE Contributor:	Arnold, Markus Christopher, Bauch, Kai Alexander
Subjects:	300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 330 Economics
Language:	English
Submitter:	Xenia Melas
Date Deposited:	25 Jul 2022 14:03
Last Modified:	05 Dec 2022 16:21
URI:	https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/171387