界面管理视角下企业内部控制研究:冲突、协调与相机优化

A Study on Enterprise Internal Control from the Perspective of Interface Management: Conflict,Negotiation and Contingent Optimization

内部控制是企业实现战略目标的保障体系,贯穿于企业经营管理的全方位和全过程。企业内部不同职能部门(或流程环节)间形成内部控制界面。产权主体不同、企业内部分工不同和信息共享的不完全,是内部控制界面冲突存在的根源。"价值共享"与"价值共创"的结合,"零和博弈"向"正和博弈"的转变,是内部控制界面冲突能够得以协调的动因。界面管理作为部门间、环节间冲突的协调工具,可以在企业战略目标的导向下服务于内部控制的持续相机优化。本文将界面管理理论引入内部控制研究领域,提出内部控制界面的概念,对内部控制界面的冲突根源、协调动因以及内部控制体系在运行中的相机优化问题进行探讨,试图为内部控制研究开拓新的领域和思路。

Over a long period of time, studies on internal control mainly concentrated on two horizons： One is theoretic study on internal control＇ s nature, object, elements, structure, and the relation between internal control and corporate governance and risk management, the other is practice study on framework, typical methods and mechanism of internal control. All the two horizons mainly focus on the ＂Balance ＆ Supervision＂ function of inter- nal control, and there are few studies focusing on the relation between internal control and enterprise＇ s value-crea- ting activities and how to continuously optimize internal control to adapt to the changes of internal and outside envi- ronment of enterprises. The paper considers that internal control has value-creating function as well as ＂balance ＆ supervision＂ function. So, conflict and cooperation coexist in internal control system. From the point of system theory, the paper considers that internal control is a system having all the characteris- tics of manmade systems, and can be decomposed into different functional divisions or process phases layer by lay- er. Every functional division or process phase has its unified interest, and between any two different functional divi- sions or process phases, there are conflicts resulting from their different interest pursuit as well as cooperation resul- ting from their pursuing common interests. The link between any two different functional divisions or process phases is internal control interface. Among them, the interface between two different functional divisions is lateral inter- face, and the interface between two different process phases is vertical interface. Coexistence of conflict and coop- eration is the basic characteristic of internal control interface. Modern enterprise theory regards that enterprise is a set of contracts among different production factor owners. The difference of property rights subjects, division of labor in enterprise and incomplete sharing of information lead to incomplete contracts that guide property rights subjects to seek interest with their private information, which is the root of conflicts of internal control interface. At the same time, as a market subject and an asset combination, enterprise has its own boundary that is not only the ＂boundary of value creation, but also the boundary of＇ value dis- tribution. The factor owners want to obtain more value than putting the factor to any other use by participating in the enterprise contracts. In order to obtain more and more value, the factor owners＇ common object is to maximize the value of the enterprise. In recent years, the development of incentive and constraint theory and its application in enterprises made value- sharing as well as value co-creating the important character of modern enterprises, which extended the connotation of internal control, and internal control has transferred to an enterprise operation support- ing system with the function of value creation as well as property rights protection. Excessive conflicts will lead to waste of resources and inefficiency of internal control, and probably lead some production factor owners quit from the enterprise, even more seriously, make the enterprise end in disintegration. The object of internal control opti- mization is to take the interface conflict under a tolerable degree and put the value creation function to a good use. Interface management is a set of thoughts and methods to negotiate the conflicts of two sides of the interface de- riving from factors of interests, information, division of labor, etc. Enterprises operate in a changing environment, but internal control, as a system of regulations, is relatively stable, in order to adapt internal control to the chan- ging inside and outside environment of enterprises, we must manage internal control interfaces according to the lat- est property right structure, information and labor division, etc. Internal control is a system to appropriately guarantee the realization of enterprises＇ strategic object. Optimiza- tion of internal control should be guided by the object. And, according to the principle of optimization order of sys- tem, optimization of internal control interface should be implemented by an order of ＂from inside to outside＂, and optimize internal control layer by layer.