Management accounting innovations for the rationalization of resources

Research design

The framework of the innovation: cost accounting based on budgetary reporting

Evaluating the innovation: reassessing the usefulness of accrual and cash accounting for decision-making

Conclusions

References

ABSTRACT

Management accounting can be a useful tool in austerity government because it produces information about the costs of public services and can be used for informed decisionmaking. Spanish local governments are required to submit data on the cost of their services to central government, which publishes this information online. The calculation of costs is based on budgetary cash accounting instead of accrual accounting; therefore cash accounting is being used for decision-making and accrual accounting has no role in this process. This paper critically analyses the innovation from three perspectives: the use assigned to the cost information in the legal framework; the opinion of academics and experts; and the perception of professionals about the usefulness of the information produced with the new system.

Management accounting innovations for the rationalization of resources

Ansari and Euske (1987, p. 553) describe three alternative theoretical perspectives on the use of accounting data in organizations: . Technical-rational, which is driven by considerations of efficiency. . Socio-political, which aims to the pursuit of power and influence. . Institutional, which stems from the need to present an appropriate face for the world to see. The three perspectives have some overlap and can coexist because different individuals use the data differently. In the first perspective, the main use for external users will be resource allocation and accountability, while for internal users the main role will be measuring technical efficiency. The socio-political perspective puts the emphasis on the use of accounting to rationalize and justify actions to members while, according to the institutional perspective, the information is selected and presented because this is expected by the external constituencies. As pointed out by Ansari and Euske (1987), in public sector organizations, the distinction between internal and external information is difficult to maintain in practice, considering that internal information is public property (Ansari & Euske, 1987). This helps in understanding why the design of cost systems is determined by the information needs of external stakeholders relatively more than in private sector organizations (Schoute & Budding, 2017). The reforms introduced under the umbrella of New Public Management in the public sector emphasized the use of accounting data for the technical-rational perspective as a tool for modernizing and rationalizing public sector services (Lapsley, 1999). Performance measurement tools have been introduced, although they have not always had a positive impact in performance and effectiveness (Arnaboldi et al., 2015). One of the techniques used is management and cost accounting, and in particular the activity-based costing system (ABC), which has been considered a desirable option to provide the necessary information in public administrations (Goddard & Simm, 2017), although its implementation has some difficulties and challenges (Oseifuah, 2014). In the public sector, the adoption of accounting technologies is triggered mainly by legislation and in response to external demands (Lapsley & Wright, 2004). This is especially the case in countries with a legalistic administrative tradition, as in Spain, where management accounting has been designed by central government as a rationalization tool. This contrasts with the situation in private sector organizations, where management accounting systems have often been developed by internal users.