Hema Wijewardena

A Comparative Analysis of Management Accounting Practices in Australia and Japan: An Empirical Investigation

Abstract This paper is based on the findings of a questionnaire survey conducted on large manufacturing firms in Australia and Japan during 1997. The results of the survey have revealed a number of important differences between the two countries. For example, while management accounting practices of the Australian companies place an emphasis on cost control tools at the manufacturing stage, those of the Japanese companies devote a much greater attention to cost planning and cost reduction tools at the product design stage. Further, the Japanese companies seem to have introduced more frequent changes to management accounting practices than their Australian counterparts.

Colonialism and accounting education in developing countries: The experiences of Singapore and Sri Lanka

Abstract This paper provides a comparative analysis of the nature of accounting education in Singapore and Sri Lanka. Both these countries were British colonies for nearly one hundred and fifty years and inherited their accounting education systems from the British. After fifty years of independence, Sri Lanka is still following the colonial system to produce its accountants. Singapore, however, moved away from the colonial system within four years of independence. This paper indicates that if a developing country continues to depend heavily on foreign education programs and accounting bodies to produce accountants locally, the consequences can be less than desireable.

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE GROWTH OF SMALL MANUFACTURING FIRMS: PERCEPTIONS OF JAPANESE OWNER/MANAGERS

This paper is based on a study of a sample of small manufacturing firms operating in the Kobe region of Japan. On the basis of the perceptions of owner/managers, the study attempts to identify a set of variables that may contribute to the growth of small firms. The results of the study indicate that good customer relations, high quality of products and skilful workers have been identified by respondents as the most important contributors to the growth of these firms. The other highly contributing factors in their order of ranking are efficiency of manager(s), owner’s knowledge and experience, good labour relations, competitive prices of products, systematic planning for the future, and owner’s active participation in management. However, some of the results of this study are attributable, at least partly, to the different nature of Japanese industrial structure and their unique management philosophy. This shows that the degree of effectiveness of the factors contributing to the growth of small manufacturing firms may vary from country to country.

Accounting Education in Australia and Japan: A Comparative Examination

This paper presents an analysis of accounting education in Australia and Japan, highlighting the major differences in the two countries. The analysis reveals that accounting education in Australia places emphasis on financial accounting with a focus on external financial reporting, while the emphasis is on management accounting in Japan. Further, accounting courses in Australian universities are often confined to a narrow specialization with scant attention being devoted to general education. It is also seen that being firm specific through extensive in-house education and training, the Japanese system is in a better position to produce accountants capable of adapting accounting systems to the different work situations which result from technological changes and automation.

THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL PLANNING AND CONTROL ON PERFORMANCE OF SMEs IN AUSTRIALIA

Although there has been some discussion in the academic literature on the relationship between planning and performance of small and medium enterprises(SMEs), no prior research has attempted to capture the control aspect of planning and its possible impact on performance. Furthermore, most of the studies on this aspect have been concentrating on long-range strategic planning with little attention being devoted to financial planning based on annual budgeting. Therefore, based on the results of a study involving a questionnaire survey of budgetting and budgetary control processes of 473 manufacturing SMEs in Australia, this paper attempts to provide an analysis of the impact of both financial planning and control of the sample firms on their performance. The results reveal that greater comprehensiveness in both financial plannig and control processes leads to higher sales performance of these firms.