Holistic controlling is to be understood comprehensively. First of all, a distinction must be made between strategic and operational controlling.
Strategic controlling deals with critically scrutinizing the business orientation and the business model with regard to their future viability. Typical contacts for questions of strategic controlling are the management, business unit managers, those responsible for regional markets and product management. Product development and financial management can also be involved.
Operational controlling is intended to ensure that the defined business is executed in a meaningful way. To this end, suitable management processes are created to ensure that risks are managed appropriately. The tasks of operational controlling include scrutinizing investment projects and controlling complex customer projects. In this respect, operational controlling provides support for line management such as operations management, key account management and project managers. Financial management should be integrated as a support.
Both dimensions can be pursued in parallel by applying the Hoshin Kanri principle.
However, holistic controlling also has another dimension: namely, it should ensure that decisions are scrutinized and guided from a holistic perspective. To do this, you need controllers who can adopt this cross-functional perspective and also look beyond the boundaries of the company. Only holistically coordinated decisions have the potential to be enforceable, economically sensible and sustainable. A Balanced Scorecard can support this aspect.
A controller with a holistic approach poses critical questions to specialists and executives to guide them in their thinking and actions. He challenges them by getting them out of their “well-worn” paths through his constructive impulses. The mission of holistic controllers is to perceive opportunities in a comprehensively responsible manner and to manage risks professionally.
A holistic Controlling is supporting the product management, a holistic product development, an end-to-end aligned contract management and well-aligned strategic and operative decisions.
Holistic controlling also includes an implemented ongoing risk management.