Management Control Systems and the Integration of the Sustainable Development Goals into Business Models

Abstract

Since the introduction of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), companies play a central role in promoting sustainable development. Management control became essential to support the SGDs’ integration into business models. This qualitative and interpretative study relies on a Brazilian company proactive in sustainability—Natura—and analyzes its management controls for sustainability using the Malmi and Brown framework. Natura’s external reports were used, along with public interviews with its sustainability key actors. The findings suggest the existence of broad management control, comprising planning, cybernetic, reward and compensation, administrative and cultural controls. Additionally, strong formal and informal management controls for sustainability are juxtaposed. The company’s culture and values are the main motivation for integrating the SDGs. It was found that Natura has been introducing increasingly innovative cybernetic controls, with emphasis on environmental profit and loss, social profit and loss, and integrated profit and loss tools. The research contributes to a greater awareness of the company role in achieving the SDGs, and the importance of their integration into business models. This study also adds to the management control literature, responding to the research calls concerning the role of management control tools to achieve SDGs.