From Governance to Management Control in the New Space Economy: An Institutional Perspective

Over the past three decades, the exploration and exploitation of outer space have gone through a major transformation as public sector space activities have increasingly been privatized while a number of new, private sector space ventures have also emerged. This chapter examines the implications of these developments – epitomized by the notion of New Space – for governance and management control. Adopting an institutional perspective, I examine the institutional logics underpinning the governance regimes emerging in the New Space economy and how such logics may be expected to influence the management control practices that evolve in the organizations that inhabit this field. Three logics, centered on concerns with entrepreneurship, sustainability and regulation, are identified. I discuss the influence of these logics on the relative salience of action, results and cultural/personnel controls and outline implications for future research.