Several studies of inter-firm accounting have shown how accounting and controls are implicated in the management of supply chains. This consideration is relevant because the supply chain network consists of firms whose activities transcend legal boundaries, and accounting and controls may therefore help to manage the complexities of supply chain processes. Much remains to be known about the operation of accounting and controls and the consequences to supply chains. This thesis reports on a field study of the uses of accounting and controls and their relationship to management of supply chains in a multinational food manufacturer and its network of customers (retailers and dealers). It aims to understand the ways in which, for instance, open book accounting and performance measurement systems were implicated in a network of supply chains. More specifically, it examines the uses of accounting and controls in the everyday operations of managing supply chains. To this end, the study draws on ethnographic materials collected through interviews, observations and review of documents involving managerial and operational employees from both the manufacturer as well as its customers. This thesis draws on multiple theoretical perspectives to understand the dynamics and complexities of supply chain management. These include theories of enabling and coercive bureaucracies and control system and multiple cultural perspectives - integration, differentiation and fragmentation - to supply chain identities. The thesis sheds light on this area of study by providing three main findings. First, in contrast to the notion of dichotomous enabling/coercive supply chain accounting, it has been found that an enabling and coercive framework is useful in understanding the coexistence of uses of supply chain accounting and controls; in addition, the study demonstrates the implication of simultaneous presence of enabling and coercive elements, where enabling supply chain accounting and controls can become exploitative. Second, the intertwining of open book accounting practice with the role of liaison in managing customers is explained. In particular, the enabling features embedded in open book accounting allow the manufacturer to strengthen its commitment to the inter-firm relationship. Finally, the study also illustrates the manner in which accounting and control systems are implicated in supply chain identity phenomena. The uses of supply chain accounting and controls symbolize multiple identities. In contrast to previous studies of identity in inter-firm accounting, where accounting has been shown as incidental, my study demonstrates that accounting has assisted in articulating how identity phenomena are central to the theoretical point; they have been used far more centrally to the explication of the key supply chain process in the field.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:560330 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Mamat, Suaniza |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/49474/ |
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