| 1. |
- Carlström, Eric D., 1957-
(author)
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Strategies for change : Adaptation to new accounting conditions
- 2012
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In: Journal of Accounting and Organizational Change. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1832-5912 .- 1839-5473. ; 8:1, s. 41-61
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to identify middle managers' strategies during changed accounting conditions. Design/methodology/approach - Middle managers from hospitals, primary care and community care were interviewed about their strategies during change processes. Each middle manager selected changes that had played the greatest part in a ten-year period. Findings - Each change was dominated by one strategy that corresponded to the tactics of middle managers during change. They ITquestioned/IT new control models, they ITexperimented/IT with smart budget strategies and they ITimplemented/IT new IT technology. These strategies formed transitions in a continuous circular change model based on Hinings and Malholtra. The study points to two key findings. First, strategies that can be perceived as irrational are organised within a context of plausible explanations; and second, middle managers in public organisations are likely to adopt innovations supported by management policy voluntarily and to question or even reject those prohibited. Research limitations/implications - Criticism may be directed towards the fact that the theoretical model presented in the analysis has an element of determinism. In the model, the managers' control strategies are given limited influence. The theoretical model's strength is that it measures the development in slow-to-change public organisations with long histories and deeply rooted practices. Practical implications - The results can be used to understand the motives of the middle managers' strategies for change. It provides support to management that hesitates between defending a well-established but criticised organisational model, and implementing new and untested approaches. Originality/value - Theoretical change models frequently originate from a management perspective or differentiate between "top-down" and "bottom up" change. In this paper, change is regarded as a generalised process where different phenomena are connected. This forms a circular model that moves between stable phases without change and transformative phases of major change. © 2012 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved.
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| 2. |
- Haraldsson, Mattias, et al.
(author)
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Compromise and avoidance : The response to new legislation
- 2014
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In: Journal of Accounting and Organizational Change. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1832-5912. ; 10:3, s. 288-313
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The aim of this paper is to describe, analyze and explain the level of compliance of accounting practices with legislation and generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) within the Swedish water and sewerage sector. Design/methodology/approach: The empirical data are based on a document study of the annual full cost accounting reports for the financial year 2010. Weobtained complete data from 250of Sweden's 290 municipalities. The data are analyzed by statistical methods. The explanations are based on an institutional theory. Findings: Most of the organizations surveyed in this study had taken measures in line with the new regulations, but none of them had adapted fully to the new requirements. Thus, we suggest that the industry has responded to the new regulation by compromise and avoidance. The statistical analyses show that compliance with legislation and GAAP is associated with legal form, minority governance, fee, tax base, population growth and audit firm. Research limitations/implications: This paper provides insight into the factors that explain compliance with accounting regulation. Future research would benefit from researching the decision process when organizations choose to comply or not to comply with specific accounting regulations in the public sector. Originality/value: Few prior studies focus on the actual compliance of accounting practices at the municipal level in relation to accounting regulation and the factors that explain the level of compliance. Knowledge of the factors that explain compliance to accounting regulation will benefit from future policy decisions on regulation and auditing of public sector accounting.
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| 3. |
- Holmgren Caicedo, Mikael, et al.
(author)
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Managing and measuring employee health and wellbeing : a review and critique
- 2010
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In: Journal of Accouting & Organizational Change. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1832-5912 .- 1839-5473. ; 6:4, s. 436-459
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the case for taking employee health and wellbeing into account in some way and to consider a range of objections that might be raised against such exercises. Design/methodology/approach – The paper identifies the existence of a persistent sickness absence as a cause for concern for a range of stakeholders and how it might be accounted for in the light of recent developments within the intellectual capital field. Attention then turns to some of the difficulties such well meaning interventions might encounter, and briefly considers how a self-accounting approach might in some part overcome these.Findings – The paper finds that a programme of empirical research within the field of employee health and wellbeing is now required to ensure that employee health and wellbeing into account. Practical implications – While predominantly a discursive contribution to the literature, the paper incorporates some discussion of innovative accounting interventions.Originality/value – In contrast to viewing sickness absence from a cost perspective, the paper encourages stakeholders to embrace a wider spectrum of ways of seeing to better understand employee health and wellbeing issues in the work place.
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| 4. |
- Lindvall, Jan, 1957-, et al.
(author)
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Creating a global network of shared service centres for accounting
- 2011
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In: Journal of Accouting & Organizational Change. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1832-5912 .- 1839-5473. ; 7:3, s. 278-305
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the practice of IT‐enabled management control change, in particular how IT‐driven change is made possible from a practical perspective in a global context. It does so by investigating the redesign of the telecommunications company Ericsson's global finance and accounting function from an independent structure of numerous national chief financial officer units into one interdependent global network of shared service centres.Design/methodology/approachEricsson's transformation was followed by drawing mainly on interviews and documents. The data were analysed using narrative and temporal bracketing strategies for theorising from process data.FindingsThe paper illustrates how IT‐enabled management control change unfolds as a continuous interaction between a dynamic organisational structure (social dimension) and a less, but still, dynamic IT (material dimension) across time. The study also highlights how such a process is metaphorically similar to the form of a hermeneutic spiral rather than the common perspective of an arrow from the present to the future.Research limitations/implicationsThe focus of the paper is on positive organisational change and how transformation is possible from a strategic and managerial point of view. Hence, less focus is placed on the employee perspective.Practical implicationsThis paper stresses the importance of pre‐understanding, an openness to trials and learning, and a dynami stance towards the moving targets of IT and organisation.Originality/valueThe paper provides rich empirical material. The analysis includes contemporary issues, and the practice of IT‐enabled management control change.
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| 5. |
- Schiller, Stefan, 1949-
(author)
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Management accounting in a learning environment
- 2010
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In: Journal of Accouting & Organizational Change. - Yorks, UK : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1832-5912 .- 1839-5473. ; 6:1, s. 123-148
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to report on the findings of a study designed to understand how management accounting changes when an organization evolves in a more network-oriented direction, informed by an experiential or integrated approach to learning. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws on a longitudinal case study initiated by the findings from a previous action research study at a manufacturing plant, the Volvo Floby factory. Findings - By introducing and elaborating on the concept of Local Management Accounting System (LMAS), this paper contributes to the debate about how management accounting reacts to new organizational forms and technologies. Two types of management accounting information are identified: one corresponds to the accountability aspect of accounting – Type 1 information, while Type 2 information refers to problem solving and control. A LMAS is supportive of both local accountability, which draws on valuing skills, and of local problem solving, which relies on decision skills. Research limitations/implications – One of the research implications of this study is that a LMAS may function as an important mechanism for innovation by explicitly integrating the holistic and the analytic dimensions of experiential learning. Practical implications – The reported case illustrates how management accounting may facilitate process innovation in a practical setting. Originality/value - By adopting an experiential learning methodology to develop new knowledge, the production plant studied has succeeded in creating an environment characterized by continuous innovation.
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