Changes in management accounting rules and routines in merger and acquisition operations

Abstract

This study aims to understand the process of changes in management accounting rules and routines in merger and acquisition operations. The case provides empirical evidence on the post-acquisition context and the process of changes in management accounting in acquired companies, considering that the acquiring company tends to interfere through the coercive introduction of new management control systems. The research adds empirical evidence on the role of organizational principles established by the acquirer in the process of changes in the rules and routines in an acquired company. A change in management accounting is a complex process that involves the interaction of elements inside and outside organizations to promote organizational efficiency. The research evidence corroborates the literature by finding that changes in management accounting are motivated by the search for economic efficiency in acquired companies. However, the success of the change in rules and routines depends on various institutional elements that involve organizations, such as the coercive nature of the change driven by the new owners. The research is descriptive in nature and uses a qualitative approach, adopting a case study in a ceramic tiles company that underwent an acquisition operation. The acquisition operation brought a new philosophy of individual performance optimization that drove the institutionalization of the performance evaluation system in the acquired company. The new system was configured as a formal management accounting artifact focused on the individual. The results provide contributions for organizations, managers, and consultants that wish to implement management accounting artifacts in acquired companies by highlighting relevant elements from the institutional field and field of action for the management accounting change process.