Traditional Management Accounting in Process-oriented Manufacturing: Frictions In a World of Bearings -A case study of SKF

摘要

Backgroundandproblem:Inrecentyearsmanyfirmsareadoptingnewprocess-­‐orientedsystemsandconceptstobecomemorecompetitive.Theemergenceoftheseconcepts,suchasleanproduction,hasputthetraditionalManagementAccountingSystem(MAS)inachallengingsituationwhereitisarguedtogivebirthtopotentialconflictsandharmtheapplicationofnewoperationalconcepts.Decadesofcriticismhaveledtothedevelopmentanddiscussionofleanaccountingandcontrol,suggestingamoreappropriateuseofMAS.Researchreveals,however,thattraditionalMASremainpopularinpractice.AlthoughthegeneralcritiquetowardstraditionalMASisoverwhelming,ourliteraturereviewdisplaysveryfewarticlesdescribingtheconcreteimplications,suchashowandwhereintheorganizationtheyappear.Asaresultofthiswewillattempttocontributetoexistingresearchbyinvestigatewhereconflictsappear,howtheyarehandled,andifdifferentdesignanduseoftheMASatdifferenthierarchiclevelsmayhelptomanagethesepotentialproblems.Aimofstudy:Thepurposeofthisthesisistoincreasetheunderstandingofpotentialconflictsbetweentheuseoftraditionalmanagementaccountingandaprocess-­‐orientation.Thesecondpurposeistoinitiateadiscussiononhowtheorganizationaldimensioncancontributetothissubject.Methodology:Wehavechosentoconductaqualitativecasestudyinordertoanswerquestionssuchas“why”and“how”.Thedatawascollectedthroughsemi-­‐structuredinterviews,andthetheoreticalframeworkisbuiltonwell-­‐establishedtheoriesconnectedtoourresearchquestion.Sixinterviewsandtwoobservationswereperformedatdifferenthierarchicallevelsatthecasecompany.AnalysisandConclusion:ThedesignoftheharmfulMASwasinbroadtermsconcurringtotheory.Although,directconflictswere,toagreatextent,preventedthroughtheuseofleancontrolsandothercontrolinstruments.Moreover,wediscoveredthattheorganizationaldesignanddifferentuseofMASatdifferentlevelscouldfurtherhelptopreventdirectconflicts.Inaddition,thiscasestudyresultedinthreeinterestingfindings:(1)traditionalMASwithacoerciveapproachtocontrolservedto’individualize’accountability,(2)theprocess-­‐orientationwas,indirectcontrasttoleanliterature,ensuredbycentralizationofdecision-­‐making,and(3)communicationwasimportanttobalancebetweenthetwoperspectivesofaccountabilityandprocess-­‐orientation.