Perceived managerial autonomy in municipally owned corporations: disentangling the impact of output control, process control, and policy-profession conflict

Abstract

Many European municipalities rely on municipally owned corporations (MOCs) to serve the public interest. Some MOCs, e.g. utilities or hospitals, are also aimed at generating financial revenue, others provide funded services like public transportation. Our article explores local governments’ approaches to the managerial control of influential MOCs. To conceptualize control, we distinguish control mechanisms (e.g. output control), correlates (e.g. policy-profession conflict), and perceived managerial autonomy. Drawing on a sample of 243 MOC top managers in Germany, structural equation modelling reveals four complex relationships between output control, process control, supervisor trust, and policy-profession conflict as antecedents of perceived managerial autonomy.