Research-Thesis: How are sustainability management control systems developed and used within a large industrial company to integrate sustainability issues into strategic and operational decision-making?

Abstract

This thesis analyses how Sustainability Management Control Systems (SMCS) are developed and used within a large industrial company to integrate sustainability issues into strategic and operational decision-making. It draws on the literature on management control and sustainability to understand how management tools, indicators, and control practices support sustainable performance. The research adopts a qualitative approach based on a single case study of the Spadel Group. It relies on a document analysis covering the period 2014–2024 (annual reports and sustainability reports), as well as on semi-structured interviews conducted with employees holding key positions at both group and production site levels. The analysis focuses in particular on the structuring of SMCS, the use of indicators, data management, and their influence on decision-making. The results show that sustainability plays a central strategic role at Spadel, particularly due to the company’s dependence on a critical natural resource: water. SMCS have progressively strengthened over time, with an increase in the number of indicators and internal policies. However, a distinction emerges between indicators used for internal management and those mainly intended for external reporting. The thesis also highlights differences in the actionability of sustainability indicators and the role of SMCS in managing trade-offs between economic performance and sustainability objectives. This thesis contributes to the existing literature by providing an in-depth empirical analysis of SMCS in a specific industrial context and by highlighting the role of the operational context and data management in the integration of sustainability into management control systems.