Chief accountant and management accounting

Today it is difficult to find among managers of the people not familiar with the term "managerial accounting". However how many people, about the same and understanding options, what is it. Someone prefers to call this term intra-corporate accounting for the owner (as he believes — true, reliable). Someone is sure that management accounting is accounting of goods in different cuts; someone is convinced that management accounting is the same that accounting, is only wider. It turns out that in management accounting somehow management and marketing, sale and purchase, accounting and planning fancifully connected and all this is based on basis of strategic management. As a matter of fact, so it also is.

Management accounting is a schedule system and coordination. It is an integral part of management, including financial. This branched and multi-layer system includes strategy, the mechanism and tools. For use of management accounting does not matter organization sizes. This system adapts both to small enterprise, and to large corporation. Only tool kit different. For small — it is possible to cost the most necessary, for big — an arsenal quite volume, besides constantly is replenished with efforts of applicants of scientific degrees.

It should be noted that the direction fashionable now management accounting after all has no venerable "parents" though many and foreign and domestic scientists apply for this role. And as there is no full-fledged authority, everyone applying for this role, pushes the understanding and the treatment. From here and a branching in the different directions of a management activity.

It is necessary to tell that in modern management accounting least of all accounting. Quite good for this managerial system to think up the new name. Otherwise at all the variety management accounting lays down on shoulders of the chief accountant — accountants. The modern accountant owns a budgeting method, develops balanced scorecards, calculates key performance indicators, will organize collection of information on goods flows, carries out ABC analysis, at last, manages costs. Let's add to it management of cash flows, calculation of capital value, we will season with calculation of the feasibility study for the credit and something on a trifle and we will receive the financial manager. Whether so there is a difference between the chief accountant and the chief financial officer (manager). In modern job specialization there is practically no difference. If the chief financial officer a little scornfully treats accounting (internally understanding that it is the limiter of his violent imagination), then the chief accountant with melancholy and internal resistance is forced to be engaged in budgeting and a financial analysis.

So can or the Chief accountant cannot, being under supervision at the chief financial officer, to be responsible fully for setting of management accounting? Perhaps, we will receive the answer to this question, having addressed history, not such remote, and experience of setting of management accounting, so to say, of American. Here not to do us without coryphaeus Charlz Horngren. This great scientist in the fundamental work "Accounting: the managerial aspect" absolutely accurately is guided by the chief accountant as leading manager, assigning it the highest leading part directed by management accounting. It both head of budget committee, and chief treasurer, and manager of resources. The chief accountant in the American company — a figure more, than authoritative and occupying in hierarchy a step above the chief financial officer. At such management system there is clear an accounting purpose. All accounting system works for increase in efficiency of management. It is represented to us that having inverted hierarchical subordination, usual for the Russian economy, we will increase efficiency of financial management. Having subordinated all system of management accounting the chief accountant, we will create key motivation. The chief accountant will care for such setting of accounting which will allow it to create the system of the information flows adapted for the analysis and acceptance of management decisions of both tactical, and strategic character. At the same time he should penetrate into business processes, into questions of a financial and managerial analysis. Also the role of management accounting as the systems of collecting, systematization, information processing for the purpose of the analysis, planning and coordination of activity of all divisions of the enterprise rises. The financial manager receives from the Chief accountant of a task on processing of accounting information, develops and offers financial criteria for evaluation of business performance. Along with it and other heads of key activities will organize the information streams, necessary for effective management.

Perhaps, there will be a question why Chief accountant should head all direction of management accounting? Whether it will be more effective to create special unit and to appoint the corresponding head? As long-term practice of implementation of management accounting shows, such approach is not effective as it generates bureaucracy. The division created for increase in efficiency of all business works only for itself, creates an aura of indispensability, importance therefore it encumbers other services with the unreasonable number of the reporting, plans, budgets, disregarding differences between management accounting and intervention in an operational production business activity. Of course, and the Chief accountant can create an unreasonable bureaucratic system. However here the danger is less as the Chief accountant along with the first person bears responsibility not only for process, but also for the end result of work of all company.

Whether the Russian Chief accountant is ready to such turn? Meanwhile not. The Russian accountant is encumbered excessively with tax accounting, actually playing a role of the freelance employee of tax administration. Time for service of functions of tax control, including counter checks, promptly increases and already reaches two thirds of working time of accounting by some estimates.

Working with the system of management accounting, the accountant should use good software products. It will need knowledge in the field of the analysis, planning, control and also tools for implementation of this knowledge in life. Among software products of the western producers there are a lot of programs intended for management. However all of them sin with the main shortcoming: they include already "sewed" management decisions. But developers made use of empirical experience western, generally the American companies moreover and rather remote on time. Even the American companies strongly changed for the last ten years, and Russian are not similar to the American at all. Software products do not adapt on the Russian mentality, on acceptances and methods of housekeeping in Russia. Someone will tell that it is good, let Russians learn to live to the American measures. But, I will repeat, the American companies too already others. Standard solutions an expiration date — do not suit ten years also for them. Our opinion, it is necessary to use software solutions of domestic manufacturers. And not to be afraid to set them tasks. It is necessary to agree with opinion that, in the presence in Russia world-class programmers, in the country an acute shortage of directors of a task. Teach it at institute a little, more correct do not learn at all. Among chief accountants there could be worthy specialists, but they should unload the heads from unreasonably frequent reporting and tax lotions. Having saved them from permanent stresses, it is possible to show them interesting and fascinating work — setting of management accounting in the company. As well as automation of managerial work.

• Burmistrova Lyudmila Mikhaelovna
• PhD Econ., associate professor, professor of department of Financial management of VZFEI,
• Auditor, President of Sayns Audit company

See Also

• List of the Russian companies integrators of ERP systems
• The list of the ERP systems available in Russia
• Examples of ERP projects in Russia
• Developer companies of ERP systems

• The accounting systems in Russia