Performance evaluation under uncertainty: The impact of information system integration on procedural justice perceptions

The design and functioning of organizational control systems that allow for the monitoring of employee performance is at the core of management accounting research. With the emergence of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and the recent developments towards information system integration, the traditional structures of organizational control mechanisms have significantly changed. Only sparse evidence exists, however, regarding the role that the integration of information technology plays in performance measurement and evaluation. As a response, this paper investigates the impact that information system integration has on managers' attitudes towards their performance evaluation processes. Based on organizational justice theory we hypothesize that integrated information systems positively impact managers' perceptions of procedural justice, as these systems can improve the comprehensiveness and objectivity of performance data as well as the traceability of managers' decisions. We further hypothesize that this effect is amplified with an increasing environmental uncertainty the managers perceive. Survey evidence from 132 managers of companies in Germany confirms the hypotheses and highlights the importance of integrated information systems in the performance evaluation process.