A Field Study on the Acceptance and Use of a New Accounting System

V.G.   Narayanan; Ranjani  Krishnan; Jamshed J. Mistry

Article | Journal of Management Accounting Research | 2012

A Field Study on the Acceptance and Use of a New Accounting System

by V.G. Narayanan, Ranjani Krishnan and Jamshed J. Mistry

Abstract

This study examines the attitudes, use, and acceptance of a new accounting system in a pharmaceutical corporation that switched from an Activity Based Costing System to the Theory of Constraints System (TOC). Using structuration theory as a framework, we posit that user responses and attitudes towards TOC are influenced not only by the technical features of the system and the potential economic benefits, but also by the fit between TOC and the existing structures of the users' environment. When users interact with TOC on an ongoing basis they form interpretations of the new system, and based on such interpretations, they exhibit actions with respect to the use of TOC ranging from championship to rejection of the system. We explore cross sectional variations in the use of the system and link such variations to the practical features of the new system as well as the social structures of the users' environments.

Keywords: theory of constraints; structuration; field study; Accounting; Innovation and Invention;

Format: Print

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Citation:

Narayanan, V.G., Ranjani Krishnan, and Jamshed J. Mistry. "A Field Study on the Acceptance and Use of a New Accounting System." Journal of Management Accounting Research 24 (2012): 103–133.

Case | HBS Case Collection | March 2019 (Revised May 2019)

Fetchr: A New Way of Last Mile Delivery

V.G. Narayanan and Eren Kuzucu

By mid-2016, five years of aggressive growth had transformed Fetchr from a small logistics startup to a 1,000-employee, full-fledged last-mile delivery company operating across four countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Already beneficiaries of the largest Series A round to the Middle East from an American firm, CEO Idriss Al Rifai and the Fetchr team had ambitions of raising another $40 million in Series B and deliberated continuing international expansion. But first, Al Rifai and his team needed to address the operational efficiency and profitability issues that led their investors to threaten the discontinuation of funding and put the company’s future at stake. The case provides background information on the logistics sphere in the Middle East and the challenges companies face in the region. The case then takes the reader through Al Rifai’s journey of founding and growing Fetchr, backed with innovations like their patented GPS-based delivery technology. Finally, the case zooms in on Fetchr’s management team as they race against time to perform evaluations of their operational efficiency, weigh cost-cutting options, and explore strategies to improve profitability.

Keywords: Startup; decision; financial strategy; UAE; KSA; MENA; Cost Accounting; Business Model; Business Startups; Transformation; Cost Management; Strategy; Disruptive Innovation; Technological Innovation; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Logistics; Service Delivery; Supply Chain Management; Performance Evaluation; Mathematical Methods; Mobile Technology; Transportation Networks; Middle East; United Arab Emirates; Dubai; Bahrain; Egypt; Saudi Arabia; North Africa;

Citation:

Narayanan, V.G., and Eren Kuzucu. "Fetchr: A New Way of Last Mile Delivery." Harvard Business School Case 119-018, March 2019. (Revised May 2019.) View Details

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A Field Study on the Acceptance and Use of a New Accounting System

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