Paths to legitimacy in control management: process of acceptance or rejection of a management tool inside a SME
Using a case study method, the main purpose of this paper is to understand the acceptation or rejection of management tools in SMEs through the theoretical lens of legitimacy. Through the analysis of the implementation of two management tools by the management controller (one is accepted, the other rejected) and the social process of judgment of these tools, the paper highlights the confusion and the interdependence of both the tool’s and the controller’s legitimacies. The controller is an agent of legitimization for the tool. The paper also presents an emergent model to understand the path of legitimacy for management tools. It underlines the importance of validity signs to justify the assessment. As management control remains an imported practice, in the absence of external validity clues, it seems necessary to rely on internal validity signs, which could be for instance the support of the CEO, especially in the case of a SME.