Nik Nazli Nik Ahmad

Management accounting practices in selected Asian countries: A review of the literature

Traditional management accounting techniques such as standard costing and variance analysis, traditional budgeting and cost volume profit analysis are said to be less useful in the present manufacturing environment. To succeed in the present dynamic business environment, tools or strategies such as JIT, ABC, TQM, process re‐engineering, life cycle assessment and target costing would greatly enhance the ability of corporations to meet global competition. Through a literature review, this study examines the extent to which traditional and contemporary management accounting tools are being used in four Asian countries: Singapore, Malaysia, China and India. Overall, the evidence reviewed suggests that the use of contemporary management accounting tools is lacking in the four countries. The use of traditional management accounting techniques remains strong. The paper concludes with various recommendations for future research, the most important of which is the need for future studies to be grounded in theory.

Environment disclosure in Malaysia annual reports: A legitimacy theory perspective

This study attempts to apply legitimacy theory to determine if it explains the extent and nature of environmental disclosures made, and the reasons for the disclosure in the context of Malaysian industrial products and construction companies. The study adopts a dual methodology of content analyses of annual reports and a questionnaire survey. Findings show some limited support for legitimacy theory in explaining the nature of disclosure, as well as the reasons for the disclosure. Extent of environmental disclosures is, however, very low. Further research is suggested in other industry sectors to examine if the results are consistent across industry sectors.

Budgetary participation and performance: some Malaysian evidence

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the budgetary participation and performance (BPP) relationship in a public sector organization in a developing country, Malaysia. It also attempts to examine whether organizational commitment and perception of innovation mediate the BPP relationship.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 111 budget managers in the Ministry of Defence, Malaysia, participated in the survey. Response rate was 74 per cent. A path analysis was utilised to examine the direct and indirect effects of budgetary participation on managerial performance.Findings – Budgetary participation affects managerial performance via the mediating variable of organizational commitment but not perception of innovation. There is a direct relationship between budgetary participation, managerial performance, organizational commitment and perception of innovation.Research limitations/implications – This is a study conducted in the Malaysian Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), thus results may not be gener...

Are budgets useful? A survey of Malaysian companies

This study examines if budgets are still used in Malaysian companies. There are two divergent views on the usefulness of budgets. Proponents of budgets argue that they are still relevant and useful. Meanwhile, critics claim that budgets are obsolete. The study uses the instrument developed by Drury et al.. Results are compared to those of Guilding et al. The results show that budgeting practices in Malaysia are similar to those in the UK and New Zealand. There are only three major differences. First, Malaysian managers appear to feel that a participative approach to budgeting may encourage budget padding. Second, a much higher percentage of respondents compared to the Guilding et al.’s study, agree that top management should evaluate performance mainly on ability to achieve budgetary goals. Finally, companies in Malaysia appear to use flexible budgets more than those in the UK and New Zealand.

Is standard costing obsolete? Empirical evidence from Malaysia

Purpose – Many authors have predicted that the shorter product life cycles, advanced manufacturing technologies, decreasing emphasis on labour in the production process, and global competition may lead to the demise of standard costing. This exploratory study aims to provide empirical evidence on the extent to which companies in Malaysia use standard costing. It also examines the differences in the use of such techniques between local Malaysian firms and Japanese affiliates.Design/methodology/approach – From the industrial and consumer products sectors listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange and 21 Japanese affiliates in Malaysia, 66 companies were surveyed.Findings – Despite its various criticisms, the empirical findings suggest that standard costing is still being used by a large majority of firms in Malaysia. Thus, Malaysian companies (both Japanese and local) perceive that the basic principles of standard costing remain sound.Research limitations/implications – While the empirical results may be int...

An investigation on PMS attributes in service organisations in Malaysia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to make a contribution to the performance measurement system (PMS) literature by concentrating on the service context. Providing a Malaysian perspective on PMS design, the study aims to identify the desirable PMS attributes that are perceived to be important for the service sector.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected by administering a mail questionnaire survey to top‐level management of private service firms operating in Malaysia. The sampling frame was based on information provided by the Department of Statistics, Malaysia, and the Central Bank of Malaysia. An extensive search of directories/portals was undertaken to compile the mailing list of each service sector. Samples were randomly selected from the list using proportionate stratified sampling.Findings – The findings suggest that service firms placed greater emphasis on elements of performance evaluation, benchmarking, timeliness and precise PMS information. Differentiation strategy and intensity ...

Understanding environmental management accounting (EMA) adoption: a new institutional sociology perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this research paper is to report the results of a study that explains the relationship between institutional pressure and environmental management accounting (EMA) adoption. Specifically, it looks at the pressure of government and other parties in society concerning EMA adoption among manufacturing companies in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from the new institutional sociology theory, the paper seeks to identify the extent to which institutional pressure influences EMA adoption level. A total of 74 accountants from manufacturing companies in Malaysia participated in the survey. Institutional pressure (coercive isomorphism, normative pressure and mimetic processes) was tested against the level of EMA adoption via multiple regression analysis. Next, semi‐structured interviews were employed with four survey participants to gain further insights into the survey results.Findings – The findings of this study reveal some influence of institutional pressure on EMA adoptio...

Environmental disclosures of Malaysian property development companies: towards legitimacy or accountability?

Purpose - The objective of the present study is to examine the extent, quality, nature and trends of environmental disclosures of Malaysian property development companies for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006. Design/methodology/approach - A content analysis was undertaken of the annual reports of a sample of public listed property development companies in Malaysia for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006. The content analysis examined extent, nature and quality of disclosures, utilising number of sentences for extent and the Clarkson Findings - Malaysian property development companies do not appear to respond to the increased public concern due to recent landslide incidents by increasing the extent or quality of environmental disclosures in their annual reports. Both extent and quality of environmental disclosures are very low and most companies provide mostly “soft” disclosures. They also make very few “hard” disclosures, comprising objective, verifiable data. Thus, the Malaysian Government needs to seriously consider making environmental reporting mandatory and to provide more detailed and comprehensive environmental reporting guidelines. Another major finding is that companies are not consistent in the extent, nature or quality of environmental disclosures made over time. Originality/value - The paper provides empirical evidence of the extent, quality and nature of environmental disclosures in an environmentally-sensitive sector. It is the first study in a developing country to utilise the Clarkson

Teaching the case method in an advanced management accounting course in a passive learning environment

This paper describes the experiences and challenges involved in teaching a case-based course in advanced management accounting to students in Malaysia, where the learning environment is more passive. The paper provides a detailed description of the course outline and course content as well as pedagogy and assessment of the Seminar in Cost and Management Accounting course in a large Malaysian public university. The paper, while acknowledging that case studies have numerous benefits, argues that instructors using this pedagogy in a passive learning environment need to adapt the approach to enhance learning. The paper then proceeds with recommendations for instructors, universities and educational authorities to resolve the many problems faced by accounting educators teaching case-based courses in a passive learning environment. Possible avenues for future research are also discussed.

Power relationships in gender-related disclosures: exploring language in selected Fortune 500 companies' sustainability reports

This research investigates power relationships in the disclosure on women and gender related issues in corporate sustainability reports. For this purpose fifty two companies from the 2013 Fortune top 100 list were selected. Critical discourse analysis (CDA) was conducted on the basis of Faircloughs (1989) framework. Fairclough suggested analysing the language from three dimensions: text, process and social. Through CDA the notions of power and hegemony were identified and explained with the help of Bourdieus cultural capital as suggested by Everett (2004) and Aaken et al. (2012). The research concludes that discourses on women and gender carry the traditional patriarchal notions and reflect traditional ideas about women prevailing in most of the societies. Women were presented as a distressed species and companies tried to portray themselves as the saviours of women. The findings of this research contribute to the critical accounting literature by highlighting the strategic use of language in relation to gender issues by large global corporations.