Narratives on the Accounting Worldview of Practising Managers

Abstract

This paper examines management accounting from the perspective of its most important user: practising managers. We seek to enhance the understanding of the relationship between managerial work and accounting. This interpretative and qualitative study takes a unique approach by using narrative texts for building an understanding of how managers view accounting in their work. First, a deeper understanding of accounting and managerial work is sought on the basis of learning experiences of managers. Second, a wider point of view is achieved by looking at managers’ perspectives on organizational development. Third, the study addresses managers’ objectives for building their personal competence in accounting. This study presents a four-dimensional framework for the worldview of practising managers regarding accounting, with an emphasis on the multidimensional nature of managerial work.