An analysis of the adoption, perceived benefits, and expected future emphasis of western management accounting practices in Chinese SOEs and JVs

This paper considers the adoption, perceived benefits, and expected future emphasis of western management accounting practices in the Chinese emerging market economy based on a sample of 64 joint ventures (JVs) and 115 State Owned Enterprises (SOE) gathered from a questionnaire survey. The study finds that the level of adoption of management accounting practices is most influenced by ownership type of the enterprise (JV or SOE) and to a lesser extent by the nature of the management accounting techniques to be adopted. A further significant finding is that management accounting practices such as budgeting for controlling costs, profit and sales budgeting, and target costing are perceived to be more beneficial for SOEs compared to JVs. However, responsibility accounting which is traditionally associated with SOEs and accounting for decision making is perceived to be less beneficial to SOEs compared with JVs.     

The Effect of IFRS Adoption and Investor Protection on Earnings Quality Around the World

This study examines the effects of mandatory IFRS adoption and investor protection on the quality of accounting earnings in forty-six countries around the globe. The results suggest that earnings quality increases for mandatory IFRS adoption when a country's investor protection regime provides stronger protection. This study extends the current literature that shows that accounting practices are influenced by country-level macro settings. The results highlight the importance of investor protection for financial reporting quality and the need for regulators to design mechanisms that limit managers' earnings management practices.     

The diffusion of management accounting innovations in the public sector: a research agenda

There have been numerous studies of the transformation of the public sector. This paper has a different focus: the dissemination and adoption of management accounting practices within the new public sector. The aim of the paper is explore the manner and means of diffusion, the obstacles to adoption and to establish a research agenda. The paper discusses findings of a survey on diffusion sent to public sector financial managers. The results of the survey indicate, inter alia, that adoption of accounting innovations by public sector organisations is largely affected by government influence. This study has interesting findings, but also points to the need for a new research agenda on the diffusion of management accounting practices in the public sector.     

Two Decades of Research on Comparative Management Accounting – Achievements and Future Directions

Comparative Management Accounting research has explored the applications, transferability and cross‐country adaptation of management accounting practices since the early 1990s. These efforts have been triggered by findings indicating that the adoption of foreign management accounting techniques generates comparative advantages in environments characterised by increasing global business competition. However, the literature on Comparative Management Accounting is heterogeneous in terms of its methods and theory and tends to focus on a great variety of practices and instruments. Therefore, this paper reviews the existing literature, elaborating on the dimensions of comparative research in management accounting. In addition, it provides insights into shortcomings and developments in the field and identifies directions for future research and implications for corporate practice.     

The effect of mandatory IFRS adoption on real and accrual-based earnings management activities

This study examines the effect of mandatory adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on both accrual-based and real earnings management. While prior literature has mainly examined the effects of IFRS adoption on accrual-based earnings management, no study to date has focused on the impact of IFRS adoption on real earnings management. Using a sample of 15,206 observations from 22 European countries between 2000 and 2010, this study employs a control sample of voluntary adopters and applies a differences-in-differences design to control for confounding concurrent events. The results suggest that mandatory IFRS adoption had no significant impact on either real or accrual-based earnings management practices. Additional analysis on a sub-sample of firms with relatively strong earnings management incentives supports a dominant role for firm-level reporting incentives over accounting standards in shaping financial reporting quality.     

Anticipating the Impact of IFRS on the Management of German Manufacturing Companies: Some Observations from a British Perspective

The introduction of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in 2005 marked a significant departure from Germany's traditional financial accounting practices. This paper questions whether this change may have consequential effects on the distinctive traditional management accounting practices in the field of Controlling. We examine the possible impact on manufacturing companies drawing upon perceptions and expectations of managers in three Bavarian companies and two management consultancy firms. We consider whether financial accounting will assume an increased importance within firms, and whether this may lead to abandonment of some traditional management accounting practices and the adoption of different techniques in internal reporting compatible with the new IFRS regime for external reporting. This prompts consideration of whether such changes would lead to financial accounting domination of management accounting in Germany analogous to that argued by Johnson and Kaplan in 1987 in their ‘Relevance Lost’ thesis. We conclude that, at this juncture in the development of their information systems, German managers face an important choice between integrating external and internal reporting in ways that might fundamentally change established Controlling practices, or of continuing to operate dual accounting systems in much the same way as in the past so that adoption of IFRS is restricted to external reporting.     

The role of multiple values in developing management accounting practices in hybrid organisations

The aim of this study is to investigate how multiple values in non-profit hybrid organisations influence the adoption of management accounting practices. The empirical analysis centres on hybrid organisations established as co-production and co-management initiatives in social care. Pragmatic constructivism, centred on the role of values, informs the empirical analysis. This research shows that management accounting practices can develop without conflicts when only some actors are interested in management and their values predominate, despite the coexistence of multiple and conflicting values. However, in this situation, where conflicts are eliminated, the validity of accounting is compromised, as it does not represent all values. The evidence of this lack of validity is clear when considering the poor development of management accounting practices and the inability to develop some relevant measures, such as outcome measures. When only some values predominate, the opportunity provided by the multiplicity of values to the development of management accounting practices is lost, and possible inefficiencies may emerge. The use of pragmatic constructivism shows that this lack of validity, determined by the non-integration of values, would be reduced by increasing the discussion among conflicting actors’ values. Findings suggest that the presence of conflicting values, that at first glance may be interpreted as an impediment, would, on the contrary, be useful to support accounting validity, when stimulating discussion. In this respect, conflicting values should work alongside communication, to include dimensions of reality.     

管理控制工具的整合模式:理论分析与中国企业的创新——基于中国国有企业的多案例研究

引入和应用西方管理会计(控制)工具是近年来我国企业的一个热门话题,纵观相关文献就会发现每一个管理控制工具(包括预算管理、平衡记分卡、EVA、作业管理等)都试图被定位于一个"全能"的管理控制系统,有意无意地忽略了与其他工具之间的相互补充与整合。由于种种原因,这一问题尚未得到国内学术界足够的重视,而且对西方管理会计工具的介绍性文献远远多于以我国企业为背景的应用研究文献。有鉴于此,本文首先通过对相关理论的归纳、剖析,并依据我们对中国华润集团、中化集团和五矿集团这三个大型国企管理控制工具运用的实地调查,力图对这一问题进行深入的理论分析和实践总结,以期丰富我国企业管理控制的理论,并予以引导实践。     

Capital Allowances and the Incentive to Invest

In recent years many organisations have moved towards a total quality management (TQM) path in their quest for quality. Accounting researchers have become interested in understanding how accounting systems are implicated within a TQM environment. This paper reports on a case study of TQM adoption and changes in management accounting systems (MAS) within a New Zealand construction company. It evaluates organizational approaches to implement TQM as a strategic option and the subsequent change in MAS. The paper suggests that an organisation may initiate TQM practices to promote ‘institutional’ and ‘quality’ culture rather than for purely technical reasons. It also suggests that when an organisation adopts new management practices such as TQM, it may lead to changes in the organisation's internal control mechanisms, such as management accounting and reporting processes.     

Adoption and benefits of management accounting practices: Evidence from Greece and Finland

This study investigates the extent to which large-size Greek manufacturing firms have implemented various traditional and currently developed management accounting practices (MAP), the benefits received from those practices and the intentions to focus on specific practices in the future. The findings indicate, that, implementation rates for many currently-developed practices were of a high level and similar than those presented in other countries, in total, traditionally MAP were found to be marginally higher implemented than the currently developed ones. However, there is an increasing trend for firms to place greater emphasis in the future on currently developed techniques instead the traditional ones, particularly on performance evaluation techniques. The results of this survey are compared to the findings of a similar study in Finland.     

Applicability Of The Conservatism Accounting Convention in China: Empirical Evidence

“Conservatism” is a widely accepted accounting convention in the industrialized world, but it has long been slated and prohibited in China under the orthodox ideological influences. To date, the conservatism convention has not been fully adopted or implemented in Chinese accounting although the Chinese government has made substantial efforts to reform its accounting system to bridge the gaps between the accounting practices in China and other industrialized countries in recent years. This study has, through a wide range questionnaire survey, empirically investigated the applicability of the conservatism accounting convention in China. We found that the survey respondents (consisted of business accountants, management, government officials, bank loan officers, investment analysts and auditors), in general, held no negative attitudes against the conservatism convention under the changing business environment in the country. There is clear evidence that various interested parties of business accounting would support an expanded adoption of “conservatism” in Chinese accounting. The study findings will facilitate a proper assessment of the future development of accounting standards and practices in China.     

Diffusion of Management Accounting Practices in Gulf Cooperation Council Countries*

This study examines how management accounting practices (MAPs) have been adopted and diffused by publicly listed firms in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The results of our survey show that the adoption rates for MAPs in the area of cost management and strategy are low while those in the area of performance measurement are moderate. Overall, the respondents favorably perceived their success in implementing MAPs. Power and politics, not economic (or cost–benefit) reasons, were considered to be the most influential reasons for nonadoption of MAPs. The results provide partial support to the view that there is a global convergence of management accounting system designs and ideas and also indicate that the role of cultural differences is diminishing over time.     

Have IFRS Affected Earnings Management in the European Union?

There has recently been considerable discussion of those features of IFRS that are likely to help improve financial reporting in the European Union. However, certain issues may also have a negative impact on the quality of information. This paper focuses on the effect of IFRS on earnings management. Its main purpose is to examine whether the adoption of IFRS in the European Union has increased or decreased the scope for discretionary accounting practices by comparing discretionary accruals in the periods preceding and immediately after the regulatory change. Another objective is to determine which firms' features and country factors may explain the accounting discretion observed before and after IFRS. We consider a sample of non-financial firms listed on 11 EU stock markets. The results obtained show that earnings management has intensified since the adoption of IFRS in Europe, as discretionary accruals have increased in the period following implementation. The variables explaining accounting discretion are the same before and after IFRS (business size, leverage, investor protection and legal enforcement). These results suggest that variations in earnings management might be due to some room for manipulation under international standards when compared with local standards.     

Management accounting: Are new techniques making in-roads with practitioners?

Despite numerous criticisms and the examples of specific companies changing to a particular technique, there are few empirical studies providing evidence of the status of management accounting practice. The primary purpose of this study was to examine trends in the adoption of the new managerial accounting techniques by manufacturing firms. Evidence of changes in the direction of managerial accounting would have significant future implication regarding the direction of management accounting education and of accounting theory. The results of this study indicate that new techniques are being adopted while traditional systems are being maintained, suggesting that a broadening of innovations in management accounting may require the development of a new and separate course dealing strictly with these innovative techniques in the transition to world-class manufacturing.     

Further evidence of earnings management and opportunistic behavior with principles-based accounting standards: The case of conditional asset retirement obligations

FASB Interpretation No. 47 (FIN 47) clarifies the diverse accounting practices for conditional asset retirement obligations (CAROs) that arose under SFAS No. 143, which is classified as a principles-based standard by the SEC. Prior research suggests that the subjectivity in SFAS No. 143 provides management with the opportunity to manage earnings and avoid the recognition of CAROs. This study examines firms that recorded adjustments for CAROs upon FIN 47 adoption. We demonstrate that effective monitoring is essential to promote adherence with principles-based standards, and that gatekeepers may not be effective when standards are ambiguous. Univariate tests and logistic regressions reveal that FIN 47 adopters have audit committees with a greater number of financial experts and are audited by BIG 4 firms. Particular firm-specific factors are also found to be associated with the adoption decision. The results also indicate that newly-reported obligations related to asbestos in firm-owned property and restoration costs for leased premises were subject to prior management discretion. This study extends existing literature on SFAS No. 143 and FIN 47 and studies examining earnings management with principles-based standards. The case of FIN 47 provides further evidence that significant opportunities for earnings management and discretion exist within a principles-based accounting environment, particularly when standards lack clarity. It also confirms the critical role of monitoring by the audit committee and external auditors to promote adherence with the substance of such standards.     

Development of accounting regulation in Jordan

This study examines the development of accounting regulation in Jordan with emphasis on the dominant environmental factors that influence it. In order to have a better understanding of Jordan's present accounting practices, and its future development tendencies, we examine the path of accounting in Jordan since the early days of the nineteenth century, and analyze how Jordan's accounting environment — political, economic, legal and cultural — influenced the development of accounting in Jordan. We also examine Jordan's recent move towards full adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and find that Jordan's colonial past has exerted a strong influence. In addition, we conclude that political and economic factors, through privatization and the resulting accounting reforms, contributed more to the development of accounting practices than other environmental factors. Privatization led to reforming Jordan's disclosure regulation and laying down of the corporate-governance policy framework. Our conclusions could be of interest to other countries, particularly developing countries, who want to improve the quality of their accounting disclosures and practices.     

ACTIVITY-BASED COSTING IN IRELAND: BARRIERS TO,AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR,CHANGE

This paper considers the state of managerial accounting in Ireland and argues that it is “marginalised”. As evidence, the study examines the adoption of one innovative technique, Activity-Based Costing (ABC), in Ireland and reports that the rate of adoption is lower in Ireland than in Anglo-American countries. This is a puzzling phenomenon given that management accounting practices such as ABC are more transferable across national boundaries, particularly across countries that share a common language, than country-specific Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. This paper posits that the marginalisation of managerial accounting in Ireland may be due to both supply and demand barriers. In particular, Ireland lacks a supply of innovative managerial accountants due to a lack of compulsory continuing professional education, practitioner journals devoted specifically to management accounting, and executive MBA programmes. Furthermore, neither the Irish business community nor academia in Ireland have demanded sweeping changes in the accounting curricula. Changes in the supply and demand of innovative management accountants will allow managerial accountants in Ireland to become agents of change rather than marginalised recorders of the past.     

An investigation of Customer Accounting systems as a source of sustainable competitive advantage

This study examines whether using customer accounting systems for resource allocation purposes is a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Based on a longitudinal data set comparing the performance of firms that adopt customer accounting and their industry benchmarks, we find that financial performance increases post adoption, leading to significant abnormal positive performance vis-à-vis average industry benchmarks (4–5%-points ROA difference) in the first two years following the adoption. However, we also show that this effect deteriorates over time, suggesting that the adoption of management accounting systems is a source of temporary rather than sustainable competitive advantage. The results are robust to other strategic events around the time of adoption, different matching of peers, and the influence of other factors that could be expected to influence firm performance. We discuss the implications of these findings for management accounting research and practice.     

A hybrid profession—the acquisition of management accounting expertise by medical professionals

This paper argues that medical expertise in Finland was “hybridised” in the first half of the 1990s. It examines the willing adoption of management accounting techniques by medical professionals in the context of the New Public Management reforms in Finland. It documents this process of adoption, charts some of its effects for the set of practices and legitimated competencies that make up the domain of medical expertise, and seeks to understand these by reference to the position of management accounting within the Finnish pedagogic and institutional setting. As a counterpoint, it notes the contrast with the UK, where medical professionals have been seen to resist the intrusion of accounting practices into the medical domain.     

Earnings management strategies in Brazil: Determinant costs and temporal sequence

This paper describes a study that analyses earnings management strategies involving accounting choices or real activities in Brazil. An analysis is conducted of the relationships between earnings management strategies their determinant costs and of the temporal sequence in which these management strategies are applied. The results of empirical tests indicate that adoption of management strategies is dependent on their relative costs. There is a temporal relationship between the two types of strategies for manipulation of year-end results, with real activities preceding accounting choices. It was also observed that the level of manipulation by accruals (real activities) reduced (increased) after adoption of the IFRS in Brazil.