The Accountant in Management

The Accountant in Management (1967), also in Swedish, R. Ian Tricker, Batsford, London

 

Exploring the evolving role of the accountant in management, the book rejects a conventional, functional role. Building on a dynamic view of a business as a hierarchy of decision systems, it shows the need for wider knowledge, new skills, and changing attitudes. The contributions of the behavioural sciences and quantitative technique are introduced as ‘challenges of change.’

Three major managerial responsibilities for the accountant in management are covered: the provision of apposite information from managerial decisions, the management of funds flow, and participation in the managerial process. A new perception of the accountant emerges as a member of the management team.

 

Contents

Part one: Orientation

1. Innovation, risk and the accountant

2. The accountant in industry

3. Management accountants, controllers and finance managers

4. Historical accountancy

5. The state of management accountancy

Part two: Discussion

6. Business information technology

7. Business systems

8. The business environment

9. Strategic decisions

10. Managerial decisions – the human involvement

11. Measuring, evaluating and motivating managers

12. Management planning and control systems

13. Communications. Computers and information systems

14. The quantitative techniques

15. Finance management

Part three: Implementation

16. The accountant in management

17. The accountant in the management team

18. The accountant in tomorrow’s management

 

Review: One reviewer suggested that the book was as important to the development of the subject as Wharke and Fells Factory Accounts of the late 19th century, which had developed the allocation of costs.