scholarly journals Management accounting change as a learning process: a longitudinal analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Riccardo Giannetti ◽  
Lino Cinquini ◽  
Paola Miolo Vitali ◽  
Falconer Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Learning Style ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Discrete Event ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Accounting System

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how a substantial organization gradually builds a management accounting system from scratch, changing its accounting routines by learning processes. The paper uses the experiential learning theory and the concept of learning style to investigate the learning process during management accounting change. The study aims to expand the domain of management accounting change theory to emphasize the learning-related aspects that can constitute it. Design/methodology/approach The paper provides an interpretation of management accounting change based on the model of problem management proposed by Kolb (1983) and the theory of experiential learning (Kolb, 1976, 1984). The study is based on a 14-year longitudinal case study (1994‐2007). The case examined can be considered a theory illustration case. Data were obtained from a broad variety of sources including interviews, document analysis and adopting an interventionist approach during the redesign of the costing system. Findings The paper contributes to two important aspects of management accounting change. First, it becomes apparent that the costing information change was not a discrete event but a process of experience and learning conducted through several iterations of trial-and-error loops that extended over the years. Second, the findings reveal that the learning process can alter management accounting system design in a radical or incremental way according to the learning style of the people involved in the process of change. Research limitations/implications Because of the adopted research approach, results could be extended only to other organizations presenting similar characteristics. Several further areas of research are suggested by the findings of this paper. In particular, it would be of interest to investigate the links between learning styles and communication and its effect on management accounting change. Practical implications The paper includes implications for the management of learning during management accounting change, to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of this process. Originality/value This paper is one response to the call for an interdisciplinary research approach to the management accounting change phenomena using a “method theory” taken from the discipline of management to provide an explanation of the change in management accounting. In respect of the previous literature, it provides two main contributions, namely, the proposal of a model useful both to interpret and manage learning processes; the effect of learning style on management accounting routines change.

scholarly journals The effectiveness of management accounting systems in SMEs: a multidimensional measurement approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-515
Author(s):  
Elsa Pedroso ◽  
Carlos F. Gomes
Keyword(s):  
Management Accounting ◽  
Second Order ◽  
Chief Financial Officers ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Accounting Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Accounting Systems ◽  
Order Construct ◽  
Information Characteristics ◽  
Management Accounting System

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present and validate a multidimensional approach to measure the effectiveness of management accounting systems.Design/methodology/approachBased on an extensive literature review, the most appropriate information dimensions were identified. To validate the multidimensional tool, survey data were obtained from 284 chief financial officers of Portuguese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). A structural equation model, evaluating the influence on the managerial performance, was used to verify the nomological validity of this new construct.FindingsThe results of this study suggest that the effectiveness of management accounting systems can be measured using a second-order construct. This construct includes 14 items, covering four dimensions of the management information characteristics.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough contributing to the advancement of knowledge, it is, however, limited to the Portuguese organizational environment and culture. Therefore, further studies should be carried out in other organizational contexts and cultures, to test and validate this multidimensional tool.Practical implicationsThe multidimensional tool presented and validated in this study can be used by executives of SMEs for assessing the effectiveness of their management accounting systems, which can help to improve SMEs' performance measurement and benchmarking processes.Originality/valueOn the best of our knowledge, this is the first study wherein the management accounting system is modeled as a second-order construct from the perspective of multidimensional information characteristics. This second-order approach recognizes the contribution and retains the distinctive nature of each first-order construct, representing the management accounting system. This multidimensional construct could be very important for future research by allowing to capture synergies resulting from the balanced development of its four information dimensions, and consequently, offer new contributions to management accounting knowledge.

Beyond Budgeting and change: a case study

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niels Sandalgaard ◽  
Per Nikolaj Bukh
Keyword(s):  
Management Accounting ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Data Source ◽  
Global Company ◽  
Made In ◽  
Management Accounting System

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate reasons for going Beyond Budgeting and the practical issues organizations face when they change their management accounting system based on inspiration from the Beyond Budgeting model. Design/methodology/approach – The authors apply a case study approach. The primary data source is interviews. The case company is a global company in the agri-food industry that is organized as a cooperative. Findings – The authors propose that many organizations that change their management accounting system on the basis of inspiration from Beyond Budgeting will maintain fixed budget targets. Furthermore, the authors propose that even when the use of budgets at the corporate level focuses on few line items, the diagnostic use of budgeting at lower levels in the organization may focus on a larger number of line items. Research limitations/implications – The study is subject to the usual limitations of case-based research. The propositions made in the paper should be further investigated in other organizations attempting to change their management accounting system with inspiration from Beyond Budgeting. Practical implications – This study shows that the lack of internal benchmarks and the need to deliver the expected results to the company’s owners might hinder the implementation of the Beyond Budgeting model as described in the practitioner-based Beyond Budgeting literature. Originality/value – The paper is one of the few case studies in the academic literature to analyze the practical issues organizations face when changing their way of budgeting on the basis of inspiration from Beyond Budgeting.

Implementing an integrated ABC and TOC approach to enhance decision making in a Lean context

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (8) ◽  
pp. 906-920 ◽  
Author(s):  
Majed Alsmadi ◽  
Ahmad Almani ◽  
Zulfiqar Khan
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Product Mix ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Action Research Approach

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to implement an integrated activity-based costing (ABC) and theory of constraints (TOC) approach to enhance decision making in a Lean company. Design/methodology/approach – Based on the literature, this paper proposes an integrated ABC and TOC approach and applies it to a Lean plastic manufacturing company to improve its product-mix decision. Findings – The results of the case study show that the current conventional product-mix decision used by the company and the proposed integrated approach can give significantly different results concerning the optimal product-mix and the associated bottlenecks. Moreover, the paper suggests that managers who implement Lean production without utilising a supportive management accounting system may experience disappointing financial results. Research limitations/implications – The validation of the suggested method is based on a single case study with an action research approach. For future research, the authors suggest the implementation of the approach in different industries. Practical implications – Overall, the integration of ABC and TOC provides managers with an accurate, timely and reliable tool that can help in making decisions about pricing, production line development, process improvements and product-mix. Originality/value – This paper contributes to Lean and management accounting literature by demonstrating the value of a method of integrating ABC and TOC. Also a case study is chosen for the empirical aspect of the study as there are no case studies available in the literature that illustrate a real life case of integrating ABC and TOC within Lean companies as an alternative to the current used cost accounting systems.

Management, accounting and philosophy

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroshi Takeda ◽  
Trevor Boyns
Keyword(s):  
Life Experiences ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Philosophy ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Specific Factors ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Management Accounting System

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of the “Kyocera approach” to business, i.e. the relationship between the Kyocera philosophy, the amoeba management system (AMS) and the associated management accounting system. Design/methodology/approach – Utilising a variety of secondary sources, including semi-autobiographical works written by Inamori, the architect of AMS, the authors examine in detail the links between the underlying Kyocera philosophy and the management and accounting principles derived therefrom. These sources are used to examine the historical origins of these principles, their influence on both the AMS and the management accounting system, and how these have developed over time. Findings – Both the AMS and the associated management accounting system can be shown to contain a mixture of influences, including traditional Asian/Japanese factors, but also Inamori/Kyocera-specific factors linked to Inamori's underlying philosophical approach to life and specific life experiences encountered by him. This suggests that while the Kyocera approach may be applicable more widely in Japan or Asia, outside of this context, the conflicts between Western and Asian cultures, although not necessarily insurmountable, may provide barriers leading to incomplete applications of the Kyocera approach Originality/value – This study adds to the understanding of the interrelationship between management philosophy and management accounting practices, and the ability of individuals to determine culture within organisations. It illustrates the importance of historical research in obtaining a detailed understanding of the philosophical, cultural and religious underpinnings of current management and accounting practices.

The mediating effect of management accounting system on the relationship between competition and managerial performance

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 272-295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reza Ghasemi ◽  
Noor Azmi Mohamad ◽  
Meisam Karami ◽  
Norkhairul Hafiz Bajuri ◽  
Ezzatollah Asgharizade
Keyword(s):  
Management Accounting ◽  
Market Competition ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Managerial Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Measurement Models ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Management Accounting System

Purpose This study aims to examine the effect of interaction between market competition and management accounting system (MAS) characteristics on managerial performance. Scope of the study is concentrated on Iranian financial organizations and managers of these organizations were identified as respondents for the questionnaire survey. Design/methodology/approach This study used the SmartPLS to analyze the data, and the model of the study was estimated with structural equation modeling (SEM). It follows the recommended two-stage analytical procedures of SEM: assessing confirmatory measurement models (factor analysis) and confirmatory structural models (path analysis). Findings The study uncovered the existence of direct relationships between competition and MAS, and between MAS and managerial performance. The study also confirmed that the relationship between competition and managerial performance is mediated by MAS. Research limitations/implications The findings provide valuable insights to guide managers in financial organizations to improve their performance through suitable MAS by considering internal and environmental factors. Recommendations on how to improve MAS and managerial performance are provided accordingly. Originality/value Prior researches confirm that there is no unique and universal MAS for all organizations, as this depends on internal firm characteristics and environmental features. However, there has been a lack of empirical evidence on MAS researches in the service organizations.

Smart city dynamics and multi-level management accounting: unfolding a case of sustainable enterprise resource planning

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Loai Ali Zeenalabden Ali Alsaid
Keyword(s):  
Enterprise Resource Planning ◽  
Smart City ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Resource Planning ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Institutional Dynamics ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Management Accounting System

Purpose This study aims to explore the complex, multi-level institutional dynamics of smart city reforms and projects and their potential sustainability pressures on the implementation of a management accounting system in an Egyptian state-owned enterprise (SOE), which has a politically sensitive institutional character. Design/methodology/approach This study adds to institutional management accounting research using a multi-level perspective of institutional dynamics in the smart city context. Data were collected from an interpretive case study of an Egyptian SOE that was under socio-political sustainability pressures to implement a smart electricity network project in New Minya city. Findings Smart city projects have formed social and political sustainability pressures, which introduced the enterprise resource planning (ERP) network as a new management accounting system. A new (complex and multi-level) management accounting system was invented to reinvent the sustainable city as an “accounting city” (which appeared rhetorically as a “smart city”). “Smart” being the visibility and measurability of the sustainability performance of the collective body, which calls the city and its connectivity to different institutional levels brought out in a city network project for the ERP-enabled electricity distribution. Research limitations/implications This study examines a single case study from a single smart city and identifies the accounting community’s need for multiple and comparative case studies to further analyse the potential impact of smart city reforms and projects on the sustainable implementation of management accounting systems. Practical implications City policymakers and managers may benefit from the practical findings of this interpretive field-based case study in planning, implementing and monitoring smart city projects and objectives. Social implications Individual and collective well-being may be enhanced through new management accounting forms of multi-level local governance and increased political, field and organisational sustainability. Originality/value This study provides important insights into the sustainability dynamics of management accounting in achieving smart city reforms. The achievement of sustainability management accounting systems has connected to multiple ERP roles at different institutional levels, which resulted in accommodating the socio-political objectives of smart city projects.

An Analysis of Management Accounting System Development from the Structuration Theory Viewpoint

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Anthony Moung Yin Chan ◽  
Paul Lo ◽  
Kong Ng
Keyword(s):  
Management Accounting ◽  
System Development ◽  
Structuration Theory ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Theory Of Structuration ◽  
Duality Of Structure ◽  
Development And Evolution ◽  
Management Accounting System

Our study covered the development and evolution of the management accounting system of a subsidiary company in a group. Our study was a longitudinal one starting from the incorporation of the company. We divided this period into five stages according to the major events happened, namely the formation of the company, the invoicing crisis, the conflict with parent company, the conflict with fellow subsidiaries, and the influence of the chief executive. In our analysis we applied the three dimensions of structure in the theory of structuration (i.e., signification, legitimation and domination). The structuration theory explained the emergence of certain phenomena and events that were not explained by traditional accounting theories. Many events in our study validated the core ideas of the structuration theory which composes of the concepts of structure, system and duality of structure. The phenomena suggested that structure was both the medium and outcome of the conduct it recursively organized. Other features of the theory, such as the dialectic of control and system contradiction, were also applicable

Perceived value of internship experience: a try before you leap

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 376-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonali Bhattacharya ◽  
Netra Neelam
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Performance Feedback ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Learning Orientation ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Internship Experience ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Task Variety

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how internship value is manifested in the context of a business school. The authors have examined the internship experience in terms of experiential learning and employability. Specifically, the authors investigate the factors that determine internship at four phases: design, conduct, evaluation and feedback. Design/methodology/approach The authors have applied a mixed method approach. In all, 110 students of a busines school were first surveyed on their expectation, motivation and level of preparation through a self-administered questionnaire before internship. Based on the survey result, eight of these students were interviewed in details about internship expectations from industry, the selection process for internship, communications or exchanges between intern and companies prior to internship and perceived industry expectation from interns. At the next phase, authors used a qualitative research approach by conducting semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 14 interns and their mentors after internship period. They were interviewed on design, conduct, evaluation and feedback process of the internship. Interviews tried capture what kind of leader-member exchange led to satisfactory internship experience and outcome from view of both inter and mentor. Findings The authors find that at various stages of internship program quality of mentor – intern exchanges (as defined by leadership exchange theory), and task characteristics as indicated by autonomy, task variety, task significance and performance feedback determine intern’s performance. An intern’s performance is antecedent to an intern’s and a mentor’s satisfaction and overall internship value. The authors also found that intrinsic capability of intern such as critical thinking ability and learning orientation result in enhanced value of internship experience. The proposed models, postulate that at designing stage, lower the level of communication from employers, higher the feeling of ambiguity and lower the perceived internship value in terms of experiential learning and perceived employability. Feeling of ambiguity is moderated by existence of prior work experience of interns. At conduction stage, mentor-intern exchange is directly related to flexibility in structure of the program and inversely related to dependency on peer learning. Mentor-intern exchange also related to mentor and intern’s learning value. However, the learning value is moderated by learning orientation of the intern. Originality/value The authors have tried the summer internship experience from the perspective of interns and mentors. This is the uniqueness of the research.

The roles of emerging multinational companies’ technology-driven FDIs in their learning processes for innovation

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ju Liu
Keyword(s):  
Learning Process ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Multinational Companies ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Global Knowledge ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Capability Building

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contextually theorise the different patterns of emerging multinational companies’ (EMNCs’) learning processes for innovation and the different influences of their technology-driven FDIs (TFDIs) on the processes. Design/methodology/approach A comparative case study method and process tracing technique are employed to investigate how and why firms’ learning processes for innovation took place, how and why the TFDIs emerged and influenced the firms’ learning processes in different ways. Findings The paper identifies two different patterns of learning process for innovation (Glider model vs Helicopter model) and two different roles of the case firms’ TFDIs (accelerator vs starter) in the different contexts of their learning processes. It is found that the capability building of the domestic wind energy industry has an important influence on the case of EMNCs’ learning processes and thus on the roles of their TFDIs. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the paper lies in its small number of cases in a specific industry of a specific country. The two contextually identified learning models and roles of TFDIs may not be applied to other industries or other countries. Future research should investigate more cases in broader sectoral and geographic scope to test the models and also to identify new models. Practical implications For EMNCs, who wants to use the Helicopter model to rapidly gain production and innovation capability, cross-cultural management and integration management are crucial to practitioners. For emerging countries with ambitions to explore the global knowledge and technology pool, besides of the EMNC’s capability building, the capability building in the domestic industries should not be overlooked by policy makers. Originality/value The paper develops a dynamic and contextual analytical framework which helps to answer the important questions about how and under what context a TFDI emerges and influences firm’s learning process for innovation. It theorises the EMNCs’ learning process and TFDIs in the context of the development of the domestic industry. It strengthens the explanatory power of the learning-based view and adds new knowledge to the current FSA/CSA discourse in the international business literature.

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