Sustainability Management Control Systems in academia: Are public universities walking the talk?

This chapter examines how Italian public universities integrate environmental sustainability into their management control systems (MCS), assessing whether these commitments move beyond rhetorical statements toward substantive implementation. Drawing on Institutional Theory and Malmi and Brown’s (2008) framework, the study analyses the five dimensions of control through a qualitative content analysis of 162 institutional documents. The findings reveal that cultural and planning controls are widely implemented, embedding sustainability into mission statements, curricula, and strategic plans. Cybernetic controls, particularly environmental performance monitoring and voluntary reporting, are moderately developed, while administrative mechanisms show uneven adoption, and incentive systems remain largely absent. These results point to a gap between symbolic commitment and fully integrated, performance-driven sustainability governance. The study underlines the importance of moving from isolated, compliance-based efforts toward to integrated, performance-oriented environmental MCS, offering practical implications for both policymakers and university managers.