Levers of Control: How Managers Use Control Systems to Drive Strategic Renewal Book

Definitely worth the read if you manage anything. On a practical level, it covers some important concepts (another reviewer did a fine job of summarizing the key concepts so I won't go there).

From an academic standpoint, this is one of the most important books in Management Control that I know of. Most current research in the area makes some reference to this book or the research behind it. The criticism I have seen of it is that some of the terms are too vague (e.g. interactive control) and that it focuses too heavily on senior management. That said, in my opinion the concepts would still hold for any level of management, down to the self-manager.

Also, it is well-written, flows in a logical manner, and isn't as dense as other books on the topic.