On the Interplay between Strategic Performance and Managerial Accounting

Strategic performance management (SPM) has become an important vehicle for business management in today’s turbulent business environment. SPM has in recent years attracted much research interest from the side of both scientists and policy-makers. This interest is warranted because of the fundamental transformations (e.g. increased competition, changes in the regulatory environment, the impact of technology, growing globalization, shifts in customer behaviour and expectations) in industrial systems created a challenging business environment, which prompted firms to call for insight into their business activities and operational performance at all times. The growing importance of these changes has further intensified the need for alternative strategic control and performance measures to allow businesses to stay competitive and profitable. The performance measures should provide a complete picture of a firm’s progress towards the achievement of its mission and goals. The study addresses the need for an efficient SPM and operational Performance Measurement System (PMS) for assessing business performance to cope with continous changing business circumstances, to develop systematic strategic tools/approaches that shape and measure a firm’s capability for continuous competitiveness, to innovate and renew themselves business-oriented climate, which potentially determine the success of the firms. Both the popular and scientific literature indicate that there is evidence that SPM is now implemented (in use) in approximately 70% of medium-to-large firms in the US and Europe, as well as in many governmental departments. There is however, much unjustified belief in the assumed potential offered by the implementation of SPM in Dutch firms. Most studies are anecdotal, case studies, speculative and less based upon empirical facts or solid business management theory. Much work has been carried out on the design and deployment of SPM, but relatively little attention has been paid on the impact of SPM on firms’ results. The paper aims to investigate on an empirical basis whether SPM yield the benefits and/or disbenefits, as predicted by the literature, for Dutch firms. And to provide an insight into the reasons behind the implementation of SPM, as predicted by the literature, because each of the reasons for implementing SPM should yield particular benefits or disbenefits. The overarching analysis framework of this paper is based on SPM, because particular attention is paid to the lessons from the strategic performance management literature for measuring the successes (and failures) of Dutch firms. Much empirical studies provide mixed evidence on the strategic benefits from the implementation of SPM. Various literature sources, case studies and practical experience show that firms that have implemented SPM obtain better financial and non-financial results, and improve more their overall quality than competitors or comparable firms that are less SPM-driven over a longer period of time. But, other literature sources reported that SPM has failed through incorrect identification of non-financial indicators, poorly defines metrics to address the requirements of all the stakeholders, wrong and too little or much measurements, use the metrics ineffectively, no clear existence of the link between nonfinancial and the expected financial results and no clear interactions (correlation(s)) among the benefits, disbenefits and reasons behind the implementation of SPM. The research will deploy sophisticated statistical tools (exploratory factor analysis and multiple regression analysis) to assess systematically the business activities success and (and failures) after implementing SPM in practice.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how the characteristics of strategic performance measurement systems (SPMSs) influence the effectiveness of such systems. Specifically, the study examines the association between the following three strategic performance measurement approaches with the effectiveness of SPMSs: the use of multidimensional performance measures, the use of performance measures that are linked to value drivers, and the use of performance measures that are linked to strategy.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using a mail questionnaire distributed to a random sample of 800 Australian manufacturing and service business units.FindingsThe use of multidimensional performance measures is found to positively influence the effectiveness of SPMSs.Practical implicationsOrganisations need to strive to design their SPMSs in a manner which considers the achievement of both performance- and staff-related goals, with the findings suggesting that managers need to focus on a broad set of performance measures relating to the four dimensions of the BSC (financial, internal, customer, and learning and growth measures).Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature by examining the important role that SPMSs play in the achievement of organisational process outcomes. The incorporation of a measure of organisational process effectiveness, and the subsequent identification of the performance-related outcome and staff-related outcome dimensions, provides future researchers with an alternative approach to analyse SPMS effectiveness and provides managers with an insight into how to adjust their SPMS to improve their organisational processes.

Purpose– The aim of this paper is to develop a comprehensive framework of supply chain performance that includes relationship, operational, strategic and economic performance measures.Design/methodology/approach– The literature regarding inter-organizational performance including: supply chain management, logistics and marketing performance measures is reviewed. A synthesis of the review provides the foundation for developing a comprehensive model of supply chain management performance.Findings– The review and synthesis finds that supply chain performance focuses primarily on operational and economic performance measures while paying less attention to relational and strategic performance measures. The comprehensive framework identifies four major categories of supply chain performance measures: relational; operational; strategic; and economic – hence the name ROSE.Originality/value– This comprehensive framework identifies four types of supply chain measures that can be used as a guiding framework by both academics and practitioners. The paper also offers directions for future work in the form of propositions.

This study investigates the impact of cost and management accounting (CMA) practices on operational efficiency and service quality in the hotel industry of Uttar Pradesh, India. Drawing on the Resource-Based View (RBV) and the Service-Profit Chain framework, the research conceptualises CMA practices as strategic organisational resources that enhance service outcomes through improved operational performance. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was adopted, collecting data from 476 hotels across various categories, ownership types, and locations. Using structural equation modelling (SEM), the study examines the relationships between five dimensions of CMA practices—budgeting, costing, performance measurement, decision support, and technology and analytics—operational efficiency, and service quality. The findings reveal that costing, decision support, and technology and analytics significantly enhance operational efficiency, while budgeting and performance measurement show no significant effects. Operational efficiency has a strong positive influence on service quality and mediates the effects of costing, decision support, and technology and analytics on service outcomes. The results highlight the strategic importance of adopting modern, technology-driven CMA practices to achieve operational excellence and deliver superior guest experiences. This study extends accounting and hospitality literature by providing empirical evidence from an emerging economy context and offers practical insights for hotel managers, policymakers, and professional bodies. It underscores the need for data-driven, analytics-enabled accounting systems to strengthen competitiveness and enhance service quality in dynamic hospitality environments.

The main aim of this research is to review the frameworks currently developed and practiced in the public sector, in particular, the Malaysian local governments, and to identify the requirements for a better framework that can secure management control and facilitate accountability to users, the public and interested stakeholders. Specifically, this study investigates the management accounting and control practices, and the micro-accounting systems used by the local governments. It also examines the extent of the reforms or changes in these systems and the extent of micro-accounting implementation in these organisations. Among the management accounting practices, the results reveal that local government organizations are heavily involved with budgeting and performance measurement tools and show reasonable interest in accountability issues.

Management Accounting and Operations Management: Understanding the Challenges from Integrated Manufacturing

The paper examines the link between strategic management and performance measurement in the public sector. The main hypothesis is that the stages of strategic management development are positively correlated with the number of performance dimensions measured by public organisations. In order to examine the stated hypothesis results from the empirical research conducted in Croatian public administration are being presented. A questionnaire has been sent to 253 central and local organisations and additional interviews have been conducted. The results confirm the hypothesis and determine that the enhancement of strategic planning and management is one of the main stimuli for performance measurement in Croatia.

Research on small firms decision-making processes has stimulated accounting scholars to investigate how peculiarities of these firms could affect the way how they are managed, focusing on the limited diffusion of managerial accounting practices in these contexts. Controversial results on how managerial accounting practices work in small firms, claim for further research that mostly focus on how managerial accounting systems work in the decision-making processes of small firms. In this view, adopting a sociological perspective managerial accounting practices are interpreted as tools for making sense of past decisions and to discover future alternatives through cognitive pathways. Thus, the attention is on learning processes activated through balance sheet analysis in a small firm that was implementing this tool. The main contribution of this paper concerns the crucial role that balance sheet analyses play in supporting the organizational actors to monitor the state of the company and the decision-making processes. The discussion of balance sheet analyses results enabled the owner and his staff to appraise the current situation and pinpoint weaknesses, allowing them to analyse past events with a new lens and activating new knowledge pathways. Case evidence supports theoretical contributions to the decision-making processes of small businesses helping to better understand how managerial accounting practices work to discover future alternatives through cognitive pathways. The paper provides also a practical contribution concerning the crucial role that balance sheet analyses play in small firms.

This study explores the influence of behavioral biases, specifically overconfidence and risk aversion, on managerial accounting practices, focusing on their impact on aggressive and conservative financial reporting. Using an online survey of 200 managerial-level respondents, data were analyzed through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that overconfidence significantly drives aggressive financial reporting, while risk aversion promotes conservative practices. Furthermore, the interaction between these biases moderates their effects, highlighting the complexity of managerial decision-making. The study contributes to behavioral accounting theory by integrating psychological insights and providing practical implications for improving financial reporting accuracy through bias mitigation strategies. Future research is encouraged to examine additional biases, cross-cultural contexts, and the influence of technological advancements on managerial practices.

<p>This thesis seeks to investigate how sustainability reporting standards can be used to assess strategic performance in emerging economies by multinational Canadian publicly traded companies. Interviews were conducted and took place between July 2020 and July 2021. The organizational participants comprised a total of 22 sustainability experts and executives from eleven different multinational Canadian publicly traded companies operating in emerging economies. The in-depth semi-structured interviews were the primary method utilized to tackle the principal and sub-research questions. A critical review of the literature showed that relatively little research is dedicated to the methods employed in integrating and evaluating sustainability activities and performance from a strategic viewpoint. Consequently, this thesis seeks to address a significant research gap. </p> <p>Building on the existing study, this study conducted a systematic review of sustainability or equivalent reports and semi-structured interview responses from the sustainability executives using qualitative content analysis. This thesis designed and proposed an original analytical framework that provides a systematic approach to the integration of sustainability with organizational processes and mainstream infrastructure of multinational Canadian publicly traded companies operating in emerging economies. The proposed analytical framework is reinforced by a sustainability integration strategy map and sustainability integration performance measures to help guide the implementation process. The proposed analytical framework, the supported strategy map, and performance measures are based on the “Balanced Scorecard Framework” and may help guide multinational Canadian publicly traded companies through the process of organizing and structuring sustainability into their critical business infrastructure. This study found that none of the organizational participants had utilized sustainability reporting standards to assess their strategic performance in emerging economies. The findings also illustrate how a ‘synergy’ and coherence can be created between strategic and sustainability performance measurements and sustainability reporting standards through an ‘aggregate measurement’ process.</p>

The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between management accounting practices and strategy development in SMEs. SMEs are among the main actors of economic development and growth. To determine the right strategies in a variable and competitive market, the qualitative and quantitative knowledge produced by the accounting system is needed. The management accounting system can influence managerial decisions, change strategies, and affect the performance of the firm through its extensive practices. Using the multivariate statistical analyses, the results of the applied studies for SMEs show that the management accounting system’s planning and control, cost management, and performance measurement and evaluation functions significantly affect which strategy the firms will implement. According to the research, the management accounting practices used by SMEs are related to the company strategies they have taken, and these actions have been reached as an effect on the strategies of the companies.

Since the publication of the initial American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA) Methodology for the Selection and Creation of Performance Measures,1 there has been an explosion in the development and application of performance measures. Although initially envisioned as a means for physician-led quality-improvement efforts, performance measures have been primarily used as tools for accountability and performance-based reimbursement instead. Given the centrality of and experience with performance measures for quantifying healthcare quality, the American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF)/AHA Task Force on Performance Measures sought to update its methodology so that ongoing efforts to measure performance could benefit from emerging insights. The original methodology, proposed in 2005,1 remains the foundation for developing process performance measures. The principal recommendations of the 2005 report are summarized in Table 1. The 2010 report does not address detailed issues of analysis,3 pay for performance,4 or nonfinancial rewards for better performance5 because these topics have been addressed in other statements. The focus of the 2010 report is to provide a state-of-the-art perspective on the construction, collection, and emerging directions of performance measurement as a means to improve healthcare quality. View this table: Table 1. ACCF/AHA Attributes of Performance Measures Figure 1. An overview of the steps in providing care by domain. Reprinted from Spertus et al.1 Performance measures that articulate discrete processes of care, as opposed to structural aspects of care or outcomes, are distinctly different from both clinical practice guidelines and appropriate use criteria because they represent a subset of the clinical guidelines for which the evidence is sufficiently strong: typically where the highest-quality evidence of benefit unequivocally exceeds risk (Class I recommendation, Level of Evidence: A),8 failure to provide the therapy to an eligible patient meaningfully reduces the likelihood that the patient will experience the best possible outcome. In this report, …

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts of external and internal organizational factors of the privatization process on management accounting practices and the impact of these changes on the financial performance of listed companies on Tehran Stock Exchange that more than 51% of the companies' shares have been transferred to the private sector. This research, based on institutional and structural theories, provides an exhaustive explanation of changes in management accounting practices by considering the conflict of the internal and external factors and the role of the human factor in the privatization process. In this study, according to the general policies of Article 44 of the Constitution, to increase competitive advantage, management accounting has been used as a mediating variable in the relationship between privatization and financial performance. To this research, 60 companies which their ownership transferred to the private sector during the period from 2002 to 2018 were investigated. To collect data, questionnaire survey and companies financial statements were adopted and to test the hypothesis Structural equation An investigating of the impacts of external and internal organizational 19 modeling using Smart PLS software. The findings of the study show that external and internal organizational factors in the privatization process, have a significant impact on the management accounting practices that these changes effects on the financial performance of companies. The result is that in the privatization process, the external and internal organizational factors and contradiction of the incompatibility of these factors with the human factor provide the conditions for changes in management accounting practices that effect on the financial performance of companies. The results of the current study could be useful for the effectiveness of management accounting changes and their impact on the financial performance of companies in the merger and acquisition processes in developing countries.

The purpose of this study is to examine how managerial accounting practices differ between non-profit organizations that apply formal quality assurance standards and those that operate without such a framework. Drawing on institutional theory, the study specifically examines whether quality certification serves as an institutional driver for the adoption of more sophisticated managerial accounting systems. Using data from an online survey of 359 Croatian nonprofit associations, the analysis reveals statistically significant differences in the implementation levels of managerial accounting techniques, based on compliance with quality standards. The results show that non-profit organizations that comply with quality standards systematically use more managerial accounting practices than their non-compliant counterparts. This suggests a strong association between quality assurance frameworks and the sophistication of managerial accounting systems in the nonprofit sector.

Management accounting techniques that improve customers satisfaction in banks include decision making, costing, performance evaluation, time driven activity-based costing and budgeting. The study focuses on present practices of management accounting for customer satisfaction in Nepalese commercial bank. Management accounting practices (MAPs) play important role in customer satisfaction through enhancing Nepalese commercial banks’ decision-making, financial efficiency, and service quality. This study examines how MAPs and customer satisfaction are related, with a particular emphasis on decision-support systems, cost control, performance evaluation, benchmarking, TDABC and budgeting in commercial banks. The study used a survey method to conduct a quantitative investigation and a descriptive research design to examine the management accounting practices and customer satisfaction of Nepalese commercial banks. Based on judgmental sampling 300 branch managers out of 591 branch managers and 350 customers provided questionnaire for this study. Using cluster sampling, the five banks are chosen based on their largest paid-up capital. In order to fulfill the research objectives, primary data are collected using online questionnaires as well as printed questionnaires. On the basis of responses given by 285 branch managers out of which 300 usable data and 285 responses received from customers out of which 350 are usable data, data are analyzed using various statistical tools. The analysis showed that commercial banks are practicing management accounting for customer satisfaction. The result of the study indicated that there is positive association between management accounting practices and customer satisfaction in Nepalese Commercial Banks. The study concludes that Nepalese commercial banks should adopt robust management accounting practices to enhance their customer satisfaction.