The processes of accounting changes as emerging from public and fiscal reforms

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nizar Mohammad Alsharari ◽  
Hoda Abougamos
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Structuration Theory ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Fiscal Reforms ◽  
Ministry Of Finance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explain the emergence processes of accounting change in the Jordanian Ministry of Finance as well as the Jordanian public sector within its socio-economic contexts, as brought about by public and fiscal reforms. The study explains the ways in which accounting change dynamics can emerge on the basis of interaction between “external” origins and “internal” accounts; which identifies that accounting is both shaped by, and shaping, wider socio-economic and political processes. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses an interpretive case study approach. The study adopts institutional and structuration theory as a theoretical lens and uses triangulation in data collection, including interviews, observations and documents and archival records. Findings The paper concludes that the new budgeting systems together with the Results-Based Management emerged as a result of interaction between “external” origins and “internal” accounts. It also highlights the interaction between these levels from one side, and the accounting and organizational change from the other side. The study confirms that factors other than economic may also play an influential role in the emergence of accounting change. It also concludes that there is a radical change of accounting systems in the case study (Ministry of Finance), which is not only a cosmetic change in accounting but is also represented in the actual working practices. The study also confirms that accounting is not a static phenomenon, but one that changes over time to reflect new systems and practices. Research limitations/implications The paper has important implications for institutional research on accounting change and public sector reforms in responding to recent calls to bridge the gap between the extra- and intra-organizational levels of analysis. Hence, it has essential implications for the way in which successful change can be defined in accounting and organizational change literature. It also identifies that management accounting is both shaped by, and shapes, wider socio-economic and political processes, which has important implications for the methods of studying management accounting change. Originality/value The paper is one of the few case studies in the accounting literature to analyze the practical issues organizations face when changing their method of budgeting as influenced by public sector and fiscal reforms. The study contributes to both accounting literature and institutional theory by providing further understanding and “thick explanation” of the dynamics of accounting change in the public sector.

Renewal of Fijian post and telecommunications: challenging the organizational change option

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Umesh Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Change Process ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Telecommunication Services ◽  
Corporate Entity ◽  
Set Up

Subject area Organizational change. Study level/applicability Undergraduate and Masters level management programmes, particularly in management accounting, public sector accounting or organizational change. Case overview This case study reflects organizational changes when Fijian Post and Telecom Company (FPTL) made a transition from a government department to a corporate entity. The focus of this case study is to examine some of the intra-organizational or micro-level changes that took place at the company. While the impetus for change may have originated in the Fiji Government's policies of public sector reform, the objective here is to outline the often slow pace of intra-organizational change within FPTL. Expected learning outcomes FPTL is a sole provider of postal and telecommunication services in Fiji. The organizational actors faced tensions and initially resisted the change to private business routines. However, with wider education and training on the change process, the resistance was reduced. At FPTL, a management team was set up to introduce commercial norms which were subsequently stabilized by the team through the ongoing process of educating employees on the benefits of changes and routinisation of new practices.The learning outcomes are to understand the difficulty of the change process and be aware of some of the resistance that may persist owing to cultural and political circumstance of a specific country. Supplementary materials Teaching note.

Management accounting change and the implementation of GFMIS: a Jordanian case study

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 242-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nizar Mohammad Alsharari ◽  
Mayada Abd El-Aziz Youssef
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Institutional Analysis ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Institutional Pressures ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
The Government

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explain the processes of management accounting change (MAC) in the Jordanian Customs Organization (JCO) within its social context following public sector reforms. It focuses on the regulative way in which a new accounting system of government financial management information system (GFMIS) was implemented throughout three levels of an institutional framework. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses an interpretive case study in which the GFMIS was imposed by the government. It draws on a framework that comprises three institutional approaches: old institutional economics; new institutional sociology; and power mobilization. Findings In the JCO case, the GFMIS contributed effectively to the development of a comprehensive approach to the preparation of the budget while it works to facilitate the estimated process of expenditures and revenues. The study recognizes that the implementation of GFMIS may have emerged primarily as a response to external political and economic pressures. The MAC was carried out in the “from-top-to-bottom” level of institutional analysis, which confirms the “path-dependent” and evolutionary nature of the change. It concludes that the evolutionary MAC in the JCO case study was not only a decorative innovation in management accounting, but was also represented in the working practices. It has produced comprehensive and timely information about strategic planning, chart of accounts and classification of assets, liabilities, and revenues and expenses at all levels of management and programs. The study also confirms that management accounting is not a static phenomenon but one that changes over time to reflect new systems and practices. Research limitations/implications The need for having an integrated GFMIS in the authors’ case arises from two key dimensions: increasing pressures from the International Monetary Fund to improve fiscal management and reporting, and the government needs to respond to the demand of better information disclosure. GFMIS has provided an integrated solution for public financial management through the automation of the entire life cycle of budget preparation, budget execution, and financial reporting. The system operates across all budget organizations to ensure transparency and accountability in all public resources transactions, including allocation, use, and monitoring. Hence, it has important implications for policy decision makers through linking all budget organizations, for the purposes of supporting the process of decision making in an informed manner. The study has important implications for the ways in which change dynamics can emerge, diffuse, and implement at three levels of institutional analysis. It also explains the interaction between the external origins and internal accounts, which identified that GFMIS is both shaped by, and is shaping, wider socio-economic and political processes. Originality/value This study fills a gap in the literature, as it explains the processes of MAC associated with the introduction of GFMIS in the JCO within its social context. It recognizes the institutional pressures that affected the emergence and diffusion of GFMIS and how they interacted through three levels of institutional analysis.

scholarly journals Management accounting practices and efficiency in a Colombian multi-utility conglomerate

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Barrios Álvarez ◽  
Pawan Adhikari ◽  
Alina Gómez Mejía
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Structuration Theory ◽  
Corporate Value ◽  
State Control ◽  
Multilateral Development Banks ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Structure And Agency ◽  
Owned Company

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how a state-owned Colombian multi-utility conglomerate (CMC) has used management accounting practices (MAPs) to shape efficiency. The authors bring out the interplay between structures and agency in the process of shaping efficiency, which has enabled the company to operate as a private enterprise, taking advantage of NPM-led reforms and management accounting technologies.Design/methodology/approachThis is an interpretative case study of a CMC. Data for the study are derived from interviews, non-participative observations and document analysis. Giddens' structuration theory (ST) provides the theoretical approach for the study.FindingsResults show that MAPs have shaped efficiency in a CMC, promoting the profitability criteria prevailing in private enterprises. Theoretically, the paper shows how structure and agency are embedded in shaping efficiency in an emerging economy context through MAPs. It does this by analysing both the broader influence of the School of Mines and multilateral development banks and the micro-situated practices of employees at the CMC. The employees who have worked in the company for long periods of time have transformed the profitability criteria into a corporate value that influences their day-to-day practices.Originality/valueThe paper adds to the literature that draws on the ST by illustrating a paradigmatic case, in which agents have brought in knowledge and values to a state-owned company, and changed its ethos and practices whilst remaining under state control.

Accounting changes and beyond budgeting principles (BBP) in the public sector

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (2/3) ◽  
pp. 165-189
Author(s):  
Nizar Mohammad Alsharari
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Good Evidence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Cumulative Processes ◽  
Accounting Changes

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explain the process of accounting changes and beyond budgeting principles (BBP) in the public sector as influenced by the institutional framework. It also looks beyond the outcomes of implementing budgeting changes to take into account the complexities of the factors that drive and shape the cumulative processes of accounting change. Design/methodology/approach The study presents the results of an interpretive case study in the Jordan Customs (JC) as good evidence from developing countries. It uses the triangulation of data collection methods including interviews, observations, and documents and archival records. Findings The paper found that JC changes to their accounting systems were influenced by the BBP, with the new budgeting systems implemented based on reconsideration and re-enacting of theoretical accounting bases and procedures. As a result, the accounting changes were managed by modifying the laws and regulations. Among the accounting changes included in the Beyond Budgeting (BB) approach in JC was relative performance evaluation, as an alternative to fixed budget targets. Rolling forecasts were prepared the BB and were employed in JC’s revenues section and the technical aspects of preparing those relied on E-views software. Most BBP were successfully implemented as values, controls, teams, goals, rewards, resources, coordination and governance. Other BBP have faced some resistance in areas of transparency, trust and accountability. Research limitations/implications The paper uses the case study approach that yielded insightful lessons. It reveals the organizational interaction with the external environment and how BBP is influenced and shaped by isomorphic pressures. It also shows the successful and unsuccessful BBP with-(out) resistance in the public sector. This paper has important implications for change dynamics that can emerge from a BBP approach at the institutional level. It also explains the interaction between the “external” origins and “internal” accounts, which identified that accounting is both shaped by and shaping socio-economic and political processes. This broad sensitivity to the nature of accounting has important implications for how accounting change along with BBP is studied. Originality/value The paper is one of the few case studies in the accounting literature on organizations that change budgeting practice by adopting BBP. The study provides a detailed explanation of the dynamics of accounting changes through BBP in the public sector. It also provides pieces of evidence about the IPSAS and public accounting reforms in developing countries.

Management accounting and organizational change: alternative perspectives

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 1124-1147
Author(s):  
Nizar M. Alsharari
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Economic Models ◽  
Influential Factors ◽  
Institutional Perspective ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Critical Perspectives

PurposeThis paper aims to discuss the alternative perspectives for studying management accounting and organizational change. It provides a comprehensive basis for the research of accounting and organizational change conducted in terms of theories used, influential factors, systems applied, dynamics and aspects of change.Design/methodology/approachThe paper applies a “theoretical framework” for studying accounting and organizational change based on obtaining an institutional perspective. By achieving this theoretic construction in the integration of a number of different works, this can summarize the common elements, contrast the differences and work in a way that extends the methodology. It is determined exclusively on a hybrid approach through the adoption of alternative perspectives and complements recent recommendations for bridge building and methodological pluralism among the different debates and perspectives concerning accounting and organizational change research.FindingsThe findings emphasize that the nature of organizational change is not static, rather, it is dynamic and varying over time. Organizational changes are occurring in both extra- and intra-organizational factors that shaped changes in accounting systems in organizations. The study concludes that accounting and organizational change literature has divided theoretical strands into two main perspectives: rational perspectives and interpretive and critical perspectives. Rational perspectives represented by the conventional mainstream of research can be classified into two approaches, normative economic models and positive economic models, which are grounded in neoclassical economic theories. On the other hand, the interpretive and critical perspectives emerged as alternatives to rational perspectives to explain accounting and organizational change within its broader social and economic context.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper has significant implications for the ways in which change dynamics can emerge, diffuse and implement at multilevel of institutional analysis. It also explains the interaction between the accounting and organizational change, which identified that change is both shaped by, and shaping, wider socio-economic and political processes. This broad sensitivity to the nature of change has important implications for the ways of studying accounting and organizational change. Hence, it has important implications for the way in which successful change can be defined in accounting and organizational change literature.Originality/valueThe study contributes to both accounting and organizational change literature by providing a comprehensive review about the development of institutional theory as it examines how the organization is simultaneously subjected to a high level of efficiency and considerable institutional demands. Thereafter, the domain of accounting and organizational change research itself will be extended.

Actors’ dynamics toward performance-based budgeting: a mix of change and stability?

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 158-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Giovanna Mauro ◽  
Lino Cinquini ◽  
Lotta-Maria Sinervo
Keyword(s):  
Performance Management ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Performance Information ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Management Systems ◽  
Gray Area ◽  
Multiple Case ◽  
Ministry Of Finance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the under-investigated role played by different key organizational actors engaged in the practice of performance-based budgeting (PBB) (e.g. Ministry of Finance, National Audit Office, Sectoral Agencies) to explore how they influence the practice of PBB, contributing to lead the change or create resistance toward it. Design/methodology/approach The empirical evidence has been collected through a multiple case study based on semi-structured interviews and document analysis in Sweden and Finland, which have long traditions with PBB, and has been interpreted through the lens of institutional and organizational change theory. Findings The results show that, despite the lengthy experiences with PBB, the lack of sound dynamics across key actors makes the budgetary use of performance information limited and partial, placing the reform in a “gray area” between the complete implementation of the practice and the total resistance toward it. Originality/value The knowledge obtained from the exploratory analysis has relevant implications for understanding differences and similarities across key organizational actors and underlining their crucial role in making a change feasible. Indeed, PBB may represent a radical change even in presence of embedded performance management systems.

Accounting without accounting

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 426-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fábio Frezatti ◽  
David B. Carter ◽  
Marcelo F.G. Barroso
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Qualitative Case Study ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Business Management ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Effective Management ◽  
Accounting Information System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Perspective

Purpose – An effective management accounting information system (MAIS), as well as the accounting discourse related to it, can support, facilitate, enable, and constrain diverse business discourses. This paper aims to examine the discursive and organisational effects of an organisation accounting upon absent accounting artefacts, i.e. accounting without accounting. Situated within the discursive literature, this paper examines the construction of competing articulations of the organisation by focusing on what accounting does or does not do within an organisation. In particular, the paper acknowledges the fundamental importance of the accounting discourse in supporting, facilitating, enabling, and constraining competing organisational discourses, as it illustrates how the absence of accounting centralises power within the organisation. Design/methodology/approach – From a rhetorical, discursive perspective, the authors develop an in-depth qualitative case study in a manufacturing organisation where MAIS has been abandoned for approximately two years. Interpretive research approaches, from a post-structural perspective, provided the base for the structure of the research. The authors studied how other organisational discourses (such as entrepreneurship and growth), which are traditionally constructed with reference to accounting and other artefacts, continued to be produced and sustained. The non-use and non-availability of management accounting information created a vacuum that needed to be filled. The lack of discursive counterpoints and counter-evidence provided by MAIS created a vacuum of information, allowing powerful, proxy discourses to prevail in the organisation, increasing risks to business management. Findings – The absence of MAIS to support an accounting discourse requires that contingent discourses “fill in the discursive gap”. Despite appearances, they are no substitute for the accounting discourse. Thus, over time, the entrepreneurial, growth and partners' discourses lose credibility, without the corresponding use of management accounting information and its associated discourse. Originality/value – There are at least two main contributions from the case study and the findings presented in this paper: first, they provide a new perspective for studying MAIS, as a specific organisational discourse among other discourses that shape people relationship within the organisation as an examination of accounting without accounting. Second, this discussion reinforces the relevance of accounting discourse for other organisational discourses, supporting, facilitating, enabling, and constraining them, by demonstrating the effects of its absence.

Organizational change for sustainability education: a case study of one university’s efforts to create and implement institution-wide sustainability competencies

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-515
Author(s):  
Vanessa R. Levesque ◽  
Cameron P. Wake
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Sustainability Education ◽  
Similar Process ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Institutional Level ◽  
Institutional Sustainability ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
The University

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine how the process of creating and implementing sustainability competencies across a university illuminate dynamics of organizational change. The push to advance education for sustainable development in higher education will likely require transformation of existing policies and practices. A set of shared sustainability competencies could guide the integration of sustainability throughout an institution. Design/methodology/approach This paper reports on a case study of one US university, the University of New Hampshire (UNH) that developed institutional-level sustainability competencies. The process used to create and implement sustainability competencies is outlined, and key factors that influenced the associated organizational change are identified. Findings Very few US universities have institutional-level sustainability competencies. At UNH, drivers of organizational change such as overcoming disciplinary boundaries, developing a common vision and working from the bottom-up enabled the creation of institutional sustainability competencies, but the same processes were not enough to drive deeper implementation of the competencies. Originality/value This paper not only identifies the context-specific drivers of the development of institutional sustainability competencies, but also identifies universal themes that can be applied to other institutions embarking on a similar process. Additionally, this paper serves as a foundation for future research exploring how the process of creating institutional sustainability competencies may be linked to how effective they are in shaping subsequent sustainability education.

Outsourcing relationship management: accounting in the decision mix

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 41-49
Author(s):  
Mirghani Nimir Ahmed
Keyword(s):  
Management Accounting ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Relationship Management ◽  
Internal Audit ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Monitoring Cost ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The paper aims to examine the role of management accounting and accounting information in decisions to outsource and manage outsourcing relationships. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a case study method. Data are collected through semi-structured interviews and informal discussions with executives of the participating companies. Official documents and secondary materials were analysed. Findings The findings of these cases present evidence of some roles given to accounting information and varying tasks assumed by accountants and finance staff in the outsourcing projects undertaken. These roles and tasks range from financial evaluation of new outsourcing proposals and alternatives, consultation and price negotiations in the planning and feasibility stages to the management of outsourcing relationships including monitoring, cost analysis, performance measurement, internal audit, design and implementation of risk-reward payment schemes. Managing the outsourced functions in one case involved in the use of informal control mechanisms such as trust, knowledge sharing, mutual understanding and cooperation between partners. Practical implications The paper highlights the role of management accounting and information in outsourcing relationship management and evaluation. The case findings provide the opportunity for management practitioners to understand the strategic role of management accountants in the management of inter-firm relationships. Originality/value The case study presents new empirical evidence of the role of management accounting and accounting information in the management control of outsourcing relationships.

Integrating organisational- and individual-level performance management systems (PMSS): a case study in a large Indonesian public sector organisation

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rudy M. Harahap
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Performance Management ◽  
Control Systems ◽  
Developing Country ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Performance Management Systems ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Level Performance

Purpose This study aims to comprehensively examine the integration of organisational- and individual-level performance management systems (PMSs) in the context of public sector organisations (PSOs) of developing countries (DCs), by investigating the elements of PMSs in the studied organisation. Design/methodology/approach A case study in a large PSO of a developing country was conducted. The design of the study and the data analysis drew on Ferreira and Otley’s PMSs framework. Data were captured from electronic and printed document archives, online written interviews with participants and face-to-face interviews. The data then were triangulated and analysed thematically. Findings The study reveals a recursive relationship between culture and PMSs, and identifies conflicting regulatory requirements and a lack of information technology capacity led to the development of dual, loosely coupled PMSs in the studied organisation. Research limitations/implications The findings may not be generalisable beyond a large, PSO in a developing country; the study did not consider the linkages between the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs and other PMSs; the study looked at only two notions of culture; and the study asked participants to recall past events, so was retrospective in its design. Practical implications The findings illustrate the need for public sector managers and key policymakers to use both formal and informal control systems, together with technical and social integration mechanisms, as well as management accounting (MA) and human resources management (HRM) control approaches, when attempting to integrate organisational- and individual-level PMSs in the PSOs of DCs. Social implications Future studies may usefully investigate the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs in different contexts, consider culture and contextual factors when investigating the integration of organisational- and individual-level PMSs in different contexts, examine whether national culture also substantially impacts PMSs in other countries and attempt to inform the MA literature by drawing on HRM theory and research on individual-level PMSs. Such studies may help to address the gap between PMS theory and practice and better allow MA researchers to contribute to practice. Originality/value The study contributes to management control systems (MCSs) and PMSs literature by extending our understandings in the relationship between accounting and non-accounting controls, the contextual factors that affect PMSs and highlighting the importance of considering cultural context when integrating PMSs in the PSOs of DCs.

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