Same but Different Occupational Identities of Management

1、Same but different:Occupational identities of management accountantsABSTRACTThis paper investigates occupational identities of management accountants in France, the UK and Austria by the means of a qualitative case study. More specifically, it examines identity regulation, identity work and self-ide

2、ntities of management accountants by drawing on Alvesson & Willmott (2002) and Giddens (1991). Previous comparative literature illustrates on the one hand that the UK context is intuitionally unique in having a strong propensity towards accounting in general, and on the other hand that management ac

3、counting is enacted differently. The paper attempts to advance the understanding of occupational identities by analysing the interplay between identity regulation, identity work and self-identity in the field of management accounting. The results demonstrate that management accounting and control sy

4、stems, in this case SAP, are powerful means of identity regulation providing a strong framework for management accounting practices. Nevertheless, management accountants re-work their occupational identities in line with their own professional biography to ensure biographical continuity (Giddens, 19

5、91).Rafael HeinzelmannPhD student / Research assistantUniversity of InnsbruckSchool of ManagementDepartment of Accounting, Auditing & TaxationUniversitaetsstr. 15; 6020 Innsbruck/Austria HYPERLINK mailto:rafael.heinzelmannuibk.ac.at rafael.heinzelmannuibk.ac.at Introduction Research in accounting ha

6、s shed light on how accountants compete with other professional groups for power and prestige in organisations and society ADDIN EN.CITE Ezzamel20051032cf. (cf. Armstrong, 1987; Ezzamel & Burns, 2005)1032103217Ezzamel, M.Burns, J.Professional competition, economic value added and management control

7、strategiesOrganization Studies7552652005Sage Publications0170-8406Armstrong198745454517Armstrong, PeterThe rise of accounting controls in British capitalist enterprisesAccounting, Organizations and SocietyAccounting, Organizations and Society415-43612519870361-3682 :/ sciencedirect /science/article/

8、B6VCK-45W6MY0-HN/2/51d2a83adf78b887a22483aa707e6aa610.1016/0361-3682(87)90029-8(cf. HYPERLINK l _ENREF_10 o Armstrong, 1987 #45 Armstrong, 1987; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_23 o Ezzamel, 2005 #1032 Ezzamel & Burns, 2005). In explaining the power and status of accounting, emphasis is placed either on the orga

9、nisational level ADDIN EN.CITE Ezzamel20051032(Ezzamel & Burns, 2005)1032103217Ezzamel, M.Burns, J.Professional competition, economic value added and management control strategiesOrganization Studies7552652005Sage Publications0170-8406( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_23 o Ezzamel, 2005 #1032 Ezzamel & Burns, 20

10、05) or on the respective society and their higher or lower propensity towards accounting (Armstrong, 1985). Ahrens ADDIN EN.CITE Ahrens19968(1996; 1997; 1999)8817Ahrens, T.Styles of accountabilityAccounting Organizations and Society139-173212-319960361-3682WOS:A1996UJ99800001Ahrens199777717Ahrens, T

11、Strategic interventions of management accountants: everyday practice of British and German brewersEuropean Accounting ReviewEuropean Accounting Review557-588641997Ahrens19991013101310136Ahrens, T.Contrasting Involvements: A Study of Management Accounting Practices in Britain and Germany1999Routledge

12、( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_1 o Ahrens, 1996 #8 1996; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_2 o Ahrens, 1997 #7 1997; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_3 o Ahrens, 1999 #1013 1999) compares management accounting practices in British and German organisations, finding in particular differences in how accounting is mobilised and involved in o

13、rganisational practices (Ahrens, 1999, p. 6). In this context, the paper focuses on the occupational identities of management accountants and uses a case study methodology. In Wood Plc. (pseudonym), a strong idiosyncratic Germanic understanding of management accounting is used across its manufacturi

14、ng units in Europe. This idiosyncratic approach is supported by the use of SAP, an enterprise resource planning software package that allows Wood Plc. to provide a strong framework for management accounting practices. At Wood, the organisational roles of management accountants as conveyed via SAP, h

15、andbooks and reporting templates do not always measure up to professional role expectations. Professional role expectations are in particular inscribed via management accounting education. This might account for any tensions between the professional and organisational socialisations of management ac

16、countants. In extant research, such tensions have been problematised in studies of the socialisation of accountants in the Big Four accounting firms and the accounting professions in general ADDIN EN.CITE Cooper2006730(Cooper & Robson, 2006)73073017Cooper, David J.Robson, KeithAccounting, profession

17、s and regulation: Locating the sites of professionalizationAccounting, Organizations and SocietyAccounting, Organizations and Society415-444314-520060361-3682 :/ sciencedirect /science/article/B6VCK-4K42BK1-1/2/4fba043efd2319e439681a5f8f18636cDOI: 10.1016/j.aos.2006.03.0032006/8/( HYPERLINK l _ENREF

18、_21 o Cooper, 2006 #730 Cooper & Robson, 2006). Hanlon ADDIN EN.CITE Hanlon1994303(1994)30330313Hanlon, G.The Commercialization of Accountancy. London: St1994Martin Press( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_29 o Hanlon, 1994 #303 1994), for instance, demonstrated an increasing commercialisation of the accounting pr

19、ofessions that led to a shift from professionalism to commercialism and produced tensions that are a result of being a professional and an organisational member at the same time. Recently, the literature on the accounting profession has increasingly engaged in linking the socialisation of accountant

20、s to accountants identities. Kornberger et al. ADDIN EN.CITE Kornberger20211055(2021)1055105517Kornberger, MartinJustesen, LiseMouritsen, JanWhen you make manager, we put a big mountain in front of you: An ethnography of managers in a Big 4 Accounting FirmAccounting, Organizations and SocietyAccount

21、ing, Organizations and Society514-53336820210361-3682 :/ sciencedirect /science/article/pii/S036136821100067510.1016/j.aos.2021.07.007( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_34 o Kornberger, 2021 #1055 2021), for example, provide evidence that previous identities are destabilised when accountants are promoted to manag

22、ers. In management accounting research, the socialisation of management accountants, accountants in industry and controllers has received scant attention. It is assumed that these types of accounting professionals are socialised in specific organisations. However, changes in the roles of management

23、accountants in organisations are documented, providing evidence of an increasing business orientation of the management accounting role ADDIN EN.CITE Granlund19981044cf. (cf. Burns & Baldvinsdottir, 2005; Granlund & Lukka, 1998)1044104417Granlund, M.Lukka, K.Towards increasing business orientation:

24、Finnish management accountants in a changing cultural contextManagement Accounting ResearchManagement Accounting Research185-211921998Elsevier1044-5005Burns200510421042104217Burns, J.Baldvinsdottir, G.An institutional perspective of accountants' new rolesthe interplay of contradictions and prax

25、isEuropean Accounting ReviewEuropean Accounting Review725-7571442005Taylor & Francis0963-8180(cf. HYPERLINK l _ENREF_17 o Burns, 2005 #1042 Burns & Baldvinsdottir, 2005; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_27 o Granlund, 1998 #1044 Granlund & Lukka, 1998). Comparative management accounting studies have emphasised di

26、fferences in the institutional contexts. More specifically, the unique UK environment with its Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) is compared with less institutionalised management accounting environments such as the German-speaking countries or France ADDIN EN.CITE Becker200765cf.

27、 (cf. Becker & Ellebring, 2007; Bourguignon, Malleret, & Norreklit, 2004)656547Becker, Albrecht.Ellebring, Fredrik.Management accounting education in its contexts: A comparative study23rd EGOS colloquium2007ViennaBourguignon200489898917Bourguignon, A.Malleret, V.Norreklit, H.The American Balanced Sc

28、orecard and the French Tableau de Board. The Ideological DimensionManagement Accounting ResearchManagement Accounting Research107-134151341072004(cf. HYPERLINK l _ENREF_13 o Becker, 2007 #65 Becker & Ellebring, 2007; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_15 o Bourguignon, 2004 #89 Bourguignon, Malleret, & Norreklit, 2

29、004). Moreover, comparative accounting studies have presented differences between the UK and Germany in terms of the understanding, role and organisational enactment of accounting (Ahrens, 1996, 1997, 1999), the educational biographies of management accountants ADDIN EN.CITE Ahrens200011(Ahrens & Ch

30、apman, 2000)111117Ahrens, ThomasChapman, Christopher S.Occupational identity of management accountants in Britain and GermanyEuropean Accounting ReviewEuropean Accounting Review477-49894MANAGERIAL accountingOCCUPATIONS2000The European Accounting Association096381804757485Article :/search.ebscohost /

31、login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=4757485&site=ehost-live10.1080/09638180020024070buhEBSCOhost( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_4 o Ahrens, 2000 #11 Ahrens & Chapman, 2000), the role and impact of professional institutions ADDIN EN.CITE Becker200765(Becker & Ellebring, 2007)656547Becker, Albrecht.Ellebring, Fredr

32、ik.Management accounting education in its contexts: A comparative study23rd EGOS colloquium2007Vienna( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_13 o Becker, 2007 #65 Becker & Ellebring, 2007), and the social status and power of accounting (Armstrong, 1985). Other studies noted differences between French and UK profession

33、al accounting institutions ADDIN EN.CITE Bourguignon202190(Bourguignon, Jones, Dugdale, & Luther, 2021)909047Bourguignon, AnnickJones, ColwynDugdale, DavidLuther, RobertThe French Accounting Regime33rd European Accounting Association Annual Congress2021Istanbul( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_14 o Bourguignon,

34、2021 #90 Bourguignon, Jones, Dugdale, & Luther, 2021), differences in the ways the countries adapt management control systems ADDIN EN.CITE Bourguignon200489cf. , for the French context(cf. Bourguignon et al., 2004, for the French context; cf. Speckbacher, Bischof, & Pfeiffer, 2003, for the Germanic

35、 context)898917Bourguignon, A.Malleret, V.Norreklit, H.The American Balanced Scorecard and the French Tableau de Board. The Ideological DimensionManagement Accounting ResearchManagement Accounting Research107-134151341072004Speckbacher2003582cf. , for the Germanic context58258217Speckbacher, G.Bisch

36、of, J.Pfeiffer, T.A descriptive analysis on the implementation of balanced scorecards in German-speaking countriesManagement Accounting ResearchManagement Accounting Research361-3881442003Elsevier1044-5005( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_15 o Bourguignon, 2004 #89 cf. Bourguignon et al., 2004, for the French co

37、ntext; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_45 o Speckbacher, 2003 #582 cf. Speckbacher, Bischof, & Pfeiffer, 2003, for the Germanic context), and the different status of management accounting in those societies ADDIN EN.CITE Lebas1994405(Lebas, 1994)40540517Lebas, M.Managerial accounting in France Overview of past t

38、radition and current practiceEuropean Accounting ReviewEuropean Accounting Review471-488331994Routledge0963-8180( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_39 o Lebas, 1994 #405 Lebas, 1994). To date, comparative management accounting research has established a body of knowledge comparing the UK with Germany or France. Th

39、is paper compares and investigates the occupational identities of management accounting at Wood Plc. in France, the UK and Austria. It focuses on how these occupational identities are governed by organisational means of identity regulation, how management accountants mobilise identity work, and whic

40、h occupational self-identities are the “outcome of this process. Additionally, it discusses the educational background of the interviewees. This seems to be relevant because prior literature suggests that management accountants have different role understandings and occupational ideals and that the

41、accounting craft is therefore enacted in different ways in different countries (Ahrens, 1999). Investigating occupational identities leads to an understanding of why management accounting practices differ across countries by showing the underlying rationales of the practices. The paper draws on Alve

42、sson & Willmotts (2002) framework on identity regulation to investigate management accountants occupational identities. The authors argue that identities are mutually influenced by identity regulation, identity work and self-identity (ibid.). Identity regulation can be pursued for instance by means

43、of the management accounting and control systems, in our case SAP, and by limiting and defining what is part of management accounting and what is not. Identity work, on the other hand, is the activity of actors making sense of, changing, and revising their occupational identities. Self-identity is u

44、nderstood as the outcome of the identity process that encompasses identity regulation and identity work (ibid.). Self-identities are considered as being stable and fluctuating at the same time but exhibit some “biographical continuity ADDIN EN.CITE Giddens19911022(Giddens, 1991)102210226Giddens, A.M

45、odernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age1991Stanford University Press( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_26 o Giddens, 1991 #1022 Giddens, 1991). Moreover, the paper employs the notion of occupational identity since it is established in management accounting ADDIN EN.CITE ADDIN EN.CITE.D

46、ATA (cf. HYPERLINK l _ENREF_4 o Ahrens, 2000 #11 Ahrens & Chapman, 2000; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_32 o Jrvinen, 2021 #1075 Jrvinen, 2021). In doing so, it contributes to the accounting literature in the following ways: First, it enhances the understanding of how management accounting is regulated in an or

47、ganisational context by shedding light on the different practices of identity regulation, for instance the management accounting and control systems SAP and the use of an idiosyncratic management accounting understanding. Second, the paper focuses on the identity of management accountants, which has

48、 been given little attention so far. Previous accounting research has tended to focus on professional identities in order to explain socialisation in big accounting firms ADDIN EN.CITE Gendron2021262(Gendron & Spira, 2021)26226217Gendron, YvesSpira, Laura F.Identity narratives under threat: A study

49、of former members of Arthur AndersenAccounting, Organizations and SocietyAccounting, Organizations and Society275-30035320210361-3682 :/ sciencedirect /science/article/B6VCK-4XBF8RD-1/2/abc3ebfc9ab76cebdcd394d1f66d081fDOI: 10.1016/j.aos.2021.09.001( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_25 o Gendron, 2021 #262 Gendron

50、 & Spira, 2021). Such contexts are different from management accounting socialisation because they imply very structured training at chartered accounting bodies, whereas the socialisation of accountants in industry appears more diverse. British management accountants seem to receive training from pr

51、ofessional accounting organisations, which play only a minor role in the training of French and Germanic management accountants. Third, the paper demonstrates the identity work management accountants do “to keep a particular narrative of self (Giddens, 1991, p. 54) going in order to achieve biograph

52、ical continuity (ibid.). More recently, management research, which has been quite productive in researching identities especially within the critical management studies community, has claimed to investigate how identities are re-worked ADDIN EN.CITE Alvesson200234(Alvesson, Ashcraft, & Thomas, 2021;

53、 Alvesson & Willmott, 2002)343417Alvesson, MWillmott, HProducing the appropriate individual: identity regulation as organizational controlJournal of Management Studies619-6443952002Alvesson202132323217Alvesson, MAshcraft, KLThomas, RIdentity matters: reflections on the construction of identity schol

54、arship in organization studiesORGANIZATION5-281512021( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_6 o Alvesson, 2021 #32 Alvesson, Ashcraft, & Thomas, 2021; HYPERLINK l _ENREF_8 o Alvesson, 2002 #34 Alvesson & Willmott, 2002). By focusing on occupational identities of management accountants, the paper contributes to a more

55、 “contextualized understanding of accounting ADDIN EN.CITE Burchell1985104(Burchell, Clubb, & Hopwood, 1985)10410417Burchell, S.Clubb, C.Hopwood, A. G.Accounting in its social context: towards a history of value added in the United KingdomAccounting, Organizations and SocietyAccounting, Organization

56、s and Society381-4131041985Elsevier0361-3682( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_16 o Burchell, 1985 #104 Burchell, Clubb, & Hopwood, 1985) and sheds light on how management accounting is standardised, re-worked and expressed at Wood Plc. The paper is structured as follows: First, it describes the theoretical lens

57、used to study management accountants occupational identities (understanding identities). Second, it presents the research methodology and methods (researching identities). Third, it introduces the case organisation and its management accounting. Fourth, the empirical material subsequently demonstrat

58、es practices of identity regulation and how management accountants re-work their occupational identities in order to achieve biographical continuity. The outcome (self-identity) of the identity process is presented with particular reference to the “good management accountant. Finally, it discusses t

59、he results and draws conclusions.Understanding IdentitiesIdentity is a concept used by various branches of social sciences, such as philosophy ADDIN EN.CITE Foucault2006250The Hermeneutics of the Subject. Lecture at the collge de Francecf. (cf. Foucault, 2006)2502506Foucault, M.The Hermeneutics of t

60、he Subject. Lecture at the collge de France2006( HYPERLINK l _ENREF_24 o Foucault, 2006 #250 cf. Foucault, 2006), sociology ADDIN EN.CITE Giddens19911022Modernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Agecf. (cf. Giddens, 1991)102210226Giddens, A.Modernity and Self-Identity: Self an