The control loop is a mechanism by which managers can exert control.
The idea of a control loop comes from industrial and engineering processes. We can consider an example from a domestic heating system:
- The boiler fires up
- The heat is transferred to a radiator in a room where the temperature is measured by the thermostat
- When the room temperature reached the desired temperature, the thermostat sends a message to the boiler to shut it down.
- Over time, the heat in the room will escape, the temperature will fall and the whole process will start again
The key elements of a control loop are:
The property to be controlled
In this case, heat
A measure of that property
Heat is measured as temperature
A controller
The thermostat acts as a switch for the boiler
If only life were that simple
Our simple example assumes that we are operating in a closed system. Whilst we may seek a perfectly insulated airtight house, in practice, external factors such as external air temperature and draughts may cause the temperature to fluctuate, leading to additional temperature variations, but the system will respond and adjust accordingly.
However, people are not machine components,
and do not respond in such a simple and linear way as a central heating thermostat,
so using a control loop in management requires a little more subtlety.