33 research outputs found
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IFAC’s conception of the evolution of management accounting
IFAC's Management Accounting Practice Statement Number 1, revised in 1998, is concerned with management accounting practices. This research note describes an operationalization of its conception of the evolution of management accounting. The paper is informed by experience in developing and applying an IFAC-based model to survey the stage of evolution of the management accounting practices in a United Kingdom industry sector. The model is intrinsically interesting and has the potential for replication in other contexts and in comparative cross-national, inter-industry or longitudinal studies
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The effect of corporate restructuring on the shareholders’ value: the case of GEC/Marconi
GEC/Marconi’s transformation from a diversified conglomerate to a focused telecommunications and information technology company was an eventful and rambling transmission that resulted in the deterioration of shareholders’ value. It represents one of the most dramatic falls from grace in British corporate history and one of the greatest corporate governance fiascos of all time. The study investigates the wealth effects of Marconi’s sell-offs and acquisitions on its shareholders’ value by calculating the abnormal returns on the announcement days of all the disposals/acquisition during 1996-2002. The results support the view that shareholders’ value increases when a company proceeds to corporate sell-offs to pursue a focus strategy. However, the authors conjecture that GEC/Marconi has destroyed shareholders’ value through these disposals/acquisitions because of several mistakes, such as being prone to heavy debt
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ERP customization failure: Institutionalized accounting practices, power relations and market forces
Purpose: This paper examines a detailed case study of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) customization failure in an Egyptian state-owned company (AML) by drawing on new institutional sociology and its extensions. It explains how ERP customization failure is shaped by the interplay between institutionalised accounting practices, conflicting institutions, power relations and market forces.
Methodology/Approach: The research methodology is based on using an intensive case study informed by new institutional sociology, especially the interplay between conflicting institutions, power relations and market forces. Data were collected from multiple sources, including interviews, observations, discussions and documentary analysis.
Findings: The findings revealed that the inability of the ERP system to meet the core accounting requirements of the control authorities (the Central Agency for Accountability) was the explicit reason cited for the ERP failure. The externally imposed requirements of the Uniform Accounting System and planning budgets were used to resist both other institutional pressures (from the Holding Company for Engineering Industries) and market and competitive pressures.
Research limitations: There are some limitations associated with the use of the case study method, including the inability to generalize from the findings of a single case study, some selectivity in the individuals interviewed, and the subjective interpretation by the researchers of the empirical data.
Practical implications: The paper identifies that the interplay between institutional pressures, institutionalised accounting practices, intra-organizational power relations, and market forces contributed to the failure to embed ERP in a major company. Understanding such relationships can help other organisations to become more aware of the factors affecting successful implementation of new ERP systems and provide a better basis for planning the introduction of new technologies.
Originality/value of paper: This paper draws on recent research and thinking in sociology, especially the development and application of new institutional sociology. In addition, the paper is concerned with ERP implementation and use and management accounting in a transitional economy, Egypt, and hence contributes to debate about exporting Western accounting practices and other technologies to countries with different cultures and different stages of economic and political development.
Classification: Research paper/ case stud
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Risk-adjusted performance, selectivity, timing ability and performance persistence of Hong Kong mutual funds
This paper examines the performance of thirty Hong Kong mutual funds during the period from August 1995 to July 2005. The issues of risk-adjusted performance, selectivity, timing ability and performance persistence are addressed. We employ the signal-factor model, three-factor models and the measurements of Jensen’s alpha and Treynor ratio to evaluate the weekly returns on the sample funds relative to the performance of the Hong Kong market benchmark. Treynor and Mazuy (1966)’s quadratic model is used for assessing selectivity and timing ability of fund managers. Performance persistence of Hong Kong mutual funds is assessed at successive two-year intervals based on their ranking according to both Jensen measure and Treynor measure. Evidence of underperformance of Hong Kong mutual funds relative to the market is found. No significant selectivity and timing ability are shown in the results of the actively managed mutual funds. Persistence is identified for the performance of both winners and losers in the short run
Investment in Advanced Manufacturing Technology: A Study of Practice in Large UK Companies
This paper reports the results of a survey investigation into the investment decision making practices of large UK manufacturing companies, especially in relation to investments in advanced manufacturing technologies. A 24% response rate was received in a survey of the finance directors of 466 large UK manufacturing companies. Responses were classified into three groups ranging from non-users of AMT to sophisticated users and analysis revealed that more sophisticated users do emphasise certain intangible benefits in combination with measures relating to the traditional dimensions of return and risk
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Management accounting practices in the British food and drinks industry
Purpose – This paper investigates and reports on the management accounting practices in the British food and drinks industry.
Design/methodology/approach – The data is generated by a large-scale postal questionnaire which was informed by preliminary interviews. Further interviews were carried out to aid interpretation of the responses. Descriptive statistics on the importance and frequency of use of individual practices provide the basis for discussion.
Findings – Direct costing is widely practised and important, by contrast with activity-based costing and full absorption costing. Despite the limitations of conventional budgets, they remain a central management accounting 'pillar' and are frequently used in 'what if?' analyses. The balanced scorecard and other non-financial performance measures are perceived to be important but never or rarely used by 40% of companies. Product profitability analyses are frequently applied, and, surprisingly, the profitability of supplying individual customers is frequently calculated by over 50% of the population. Respondents were sceptical about sophisticated DCF investment appraisals.
Practical implications – Traditional management accounting is 'alive and well' but there are indications of likely increased use of: information concerning the cost of quality; non-financial measures relating to employees and analyses of competitors' strengths and weaknesses. There is evidence of a gap between current textbooks and actual practices.
Originality/value – The survey provides a unique detailed examination of actual management accounting practices and an indication of future trends
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Evaluating investments in advanced manufacturing technology: A fuzzy set theory approach
In this paper, a model for the evaluation of investments in advanced manufacturing technology is developed. Many authors have called for an integration of financial and non-financial factors in such evaluations and this paper demonstrates that it is conceptually possible to do this using the mathematics of the analytic hierarchy process and fuzzy set theory. The development of the model has certain distinguishing features. First, it is based on a conceptual framework that combines the three dimensions of risk, financial return and non-financial factors. The empirical basis for this has been investigated and previously reported by the authors. Second, models previously developed and reported in the literature are shown to suffer from certain flaws relating to the use of linguistic scales, the ranking of fuzzy performance indicators and partiality in the treatment of investment decision variables. These issues are addressed through the development of simpler linguistic scales based on the analytic hierarchy, a revised procedure for ranking fuzzy numbers and an attempt to build a comprehensive model through the three dimensions described above. Triangular fuzzy numbers are used throughout in order to make the mathematics tractable and relatively easy to understand and to facilitate presentation of a worked example. However, so that the reader is not misled, attention is drawn to some of the complexities in fuzzy arithmetic, especially the important distinction between subtraction/division and deconvolution of fuzzy numbers
Pooled analysis of WHO Surgical Safety Checklist use and mortality after emergency laparotomy
Background The World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist has fostered safe practice for 10 years, yet its place in emergency surgery has not been assessed on a global scale. The aim of this study was to evaluate reported checklist use in emergency settings and examine the relationship with perioperative mortality in patients who had emergency laparotomy. Methods In two multinational cohort studies, adults undergoing emergency laparotomy were compared with those having elective gastrointestinal surgery. Relationships between reported checklist use and mortality were determined using multivariable logistic regression and bootstrapped simulation. Results Of 12 296 patients included from 76 countries, 4843 underwent emergency laparotomy. After adjusting for patient and disease factors, checklist use before emergency laparotomy was more common in countries with a high Human Development Index (HDI) (2455 of 2741, 89.6 per cent) compared with that in countries with a middle (753 of 1242, 60.6 per cent; odds ratio (OR) 0.17, 95 per cent c.i. 0.14 to 0.21, P <0001) or low (363 of 860, 422 per cent; OR 008, 007 to 010, P <0.001) HDI. Checklist use was less common in elective surgery than for emergency laparotomy in high-HDI countries (risk difference -94 (95 per cent c.i. -11.9 to -6.9) per cent; P <0001), but the relationship was reversed in low-HDI countries (+121 (+7.0 to +173) per cent; P <0001). In multivariable models, checklist use was associated with a lower 30-day perioperative mortality (OR 0.60, 0.50 to 073; P <0.001). The greatest absolute benefit was seen for emergency surgery in low- and middle-HDI countries. Conclusion Checklist use in emergency laparotomy was associated with a significantly lower perioperative mortality rate. Checklist use in low-HDI countries was half that in high-HDI countries.Peer reviewe
Global variation in anastomosis and end colostomy formation following left-sided colorectal resection
Background
End colostomy rates following colorectal resection vary across institutions in high-income settings, being influenced by patient, disease, surgeon and system factors. This study aimed to assess global variation in end colostomy rates after left-sided colorectal resection.
Methods
This study comprised an analysis of GlobalSurg-1 and -2 international, prospective, observational cohort studies (2014, 2016), including consecutive adult patients undergoing elective or emergency left-sided colorectal resection within discrete 2-week windows. Countries were grouped into high-, middle- and low-income tertiles according to the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI). Factors associated with colostomy formation versus primary anastomosis were explored using a multilevel, multivariable logistic regression model.
Results
In total, 1635 patients from 242 hospitals in 57 countries undergoing left-sided colorectal resection were included: 113 (6·9 per cent) from low-HDI, 254 (15·5 per cent) from middle-HDI and 1268 (77·6 per cent) from high-HDI countries. There was a higher proportion of patients with perforated disease (57·5, 40·9 and 35·4 per cent; P < 0·001) and subsequent use of end colostomy (52·2, 24·8 and 18·9 per cent; P < 0·001) in low- compared with middle- and high-HDI settings. The association with colostomy use in low-HDI settings persisted (odds ratio (OR) 3·20, 95 per cent c.i. 1·35 to 7·57; P = 0·008) after risk adjustment for malignant disease (OR 2·34, 1·65 to 3·32; P < 0·001), emergency surgery (OR 4·08, 2·73 to 6·10; P < 0·001), time to operation at least 48 h (OR 1·99, 1·28 to 3·09; P = 0·002) and disease perforation (OR 4·00, 2·81 to 5·69; P < 0·001).
Conclusion
Global differences existed in the proportion of patients receiving end stomas after left-sided colorectal resection based on income, which went beyond case mix alone