accounting empirical thesis

Home > BUSINESS > ACCOUNTING > ACCOUNTING_ETD

Theses and Dissertations

Dissertations from 2024 2024.

Does a Restatement Damage an Audit Partner's Reputation , Alisha Blush

CAN THE BENEFITS OF AUDIT SPILLOVER BE OBTAINED THROUGH ADVISORY ENGAGEMENTS? AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE AUDIT MARKET FOR US FEDERAL AGENCIES , Nicholas A. Mitchell

Dissertations from 2023 2023

Auditor Responses to Audit Clients’ Indirect-Effect Illegal Acts , Hilary Frances Hughes

Auditor’s Consideration of Client Cybersecurity Risk – A Machine Learning-Based Analysis , Wanying Jiang

Dissertations from 2022 2022

Deriving Auditor Quality and Manager Quality from Form 10-K , Lacey Donley

Corporate Website Disclosures and Financial Reporting Quality , Nicholas Mueller

Dissertations from 2021 2021

The Effects of a Client’s Social Media Disclosure and Audience Engagement on Auditor Judgment: A Social Penetration Theory Perspective , Laura Guichard

Do Analysts’ Coverage and Supplementary Gross Margin Forecasts Influence Managers’ Decision to Recognize Inventory Loss? , Nusrat Jahan

Dissertations from 2020 2020

Earnings Management of Leaders and Laggards , Candice Roche Boucree

Does Auditor Tenure Matter? Audit Partner Rotation and Industry Specialization in the U.S. , Danielle Sarah Lazerson

Dissertations from 2019 2019

Effective Tax Rates for Multinational and Domestic Corporations: A Closer Examination , Allen Lee Ryan

The Interplay among Tax Specialists, Corporate Tax Behavior, and Tax Accrual Quality , Pradeep Sapkota

Dissertations from 2018 2018

Unintended Consequences of the Dodd-Frank $10 Billion Asset Size Threshold , Laura Camille Alford

Selling, General, and Administrative Cost Stickiness and GDP Predictions , Russell Barber

Audit Committee Industry Specialization: An Examination of Auditor Choice, Financial Reporting Quality Implications, and Market Perception , Danny Lynn Shaw

The Relationship between Audit Quality and Competition at the Intersection of the Large and Small Audit Firm Markets , Jeanne-Claire Alyse White

Dissertations from 2017 2017

The Economic Costs to Audit Firms of Ethical Violations and the Resulting PCAOB Disciplinary Orders , Stephanie Ann Merrell

The Pricing of IPO Audit Expertise and Subsequent Issuer Underpricing , Jung Eun Park

Dissertations from 2016 2016

The Certifying Triangle of Financial Reports , Dong Li

Dissertations from 2015 2015

Does the PCAOB Inspection have an Effect on Audit Fees and Audit Quality? , Elizabeth Schwartzhoff Johnson

CEO Compensation and Tax Loss Carrybacks , Pei-Yu Sun

Dissertations from 2014 2014

The Effect of Innovation on Corporate Tax Avoidance , Peng Guo

Has the FASB and IASB's Shift toward an Asset/Liability View Enhanced the Predictive Usefulness of ROE? , Regina Cavalier Rosa

Auditor Regional Industry Specialization: Effect on Audit Pricing and Audit Quality , Andrey Alexandrovich Simonov

Dissertations from 2013 2013

Consistency between earnings forecasts and stock recommendations : the effect of political connections , Elio Alfonso

The effect of audit market concentration on audit pricing and audit quality : the role of the size of the audit market , John Daniel Eshleman

The effect on earnings persistence and the market's reaction to the alignment of employee and customer relations with competitive strategy , Robert Stephen Hogan

Income Classification Shifting and Financial Analysts’ Forecasts , Shanshan Pan

Dissertations from 2012 2012

Stock liquidity, price informativeness, and accruals-based earnings management , Jing Fang

High Strain Rate Programming Of Shape Memory Polymers , Anqi Wang

Accounting comparability, audit effort and audit outcomes , Joseph Hongbo Zhang

Experimental Study of Lean Blowout with Hydrogen Addition in a Swirl-stabilized Premixed Combustor , Shengrong Zhu

Dissertations from 2011 2011

Auditor tenure and audit quality , Li Zheng Brooks

Optimization of Adult Multipotent Stromal Cell-Bioscaffold Interactions for Tissue Regeneration with Bioreactors , Lin Xie

Dissertations from 2009 2009

Accurals quality and price synchronicity , Joseph Atkins Johnston

Dissertations from 2007 2007

Rate regulation and earnings management: evidence from the U.S. electric utility industry , Joseph Ben Omonuk

Impingement Heat Transfer In The Leading Edge Cavity Of A Gas Turbine Vane , Amar Jeetendra Panchangam Nivarthi

Voluntary disclosures in mergers and acquisitions , Scott Allen Wandler

Dissertations from 2006 2006

Using the FASB's qualitative characteristics in earnings quality measures , Abhijit Barua

Do accruals exacerbate information asymmetry in the market? , Sonia Wasan

Dissertations from 2004 2004

The effect of program commitment on the degree of participative congruence and managerial performance in a budgeting setting , Kevin T. Breaux

Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998: a test of New Public Management , William Meriwether VanDenburgh

The effect of the implicit theory of integrity on an internal auditor's asessment of management fraud risk , Stephanie F. Watson

Do speculative short sellers detect earnings management? , Yan Zhang

Theses from 2003 2003

Planting rate effects on sugarcane yield trials , Albert Joseph Orgeron

Agronomic and molecular characterization of Louisiana native Spartina alterniflora accessions , Alicia Beatriz Ryan

Dissertations from 2002 2002

Markov models to estimate and describe survival time and experience in cohorts with high euthanasia frequency , Giselle Louise Hosgood

The impact of institutional stock ownership on a firm's earnings management practice: an empirical investigation , Santanu Mitra

Validation of AnnAGNPS at the field and farm-scale using an integrated AGNPS/GIS system , Glenn M. Suir

Theses/Dissertations from 1999 1999

Comprehensive Income and Its Relation to Firm Value and Transitory Earnings. , Carol Callaway Dee

Executive Compensation, Performance, Board and Ownership Structure: a Simultaneous Equations Approach. , Ayalew A. Lulseged

Executive Compensation and the Investment Opportunity Sets of Initial Public Offerings. , Tanya S. Nowlin

Theses/Dissertations from 1996 1996

The Effects of Analyst Following on Market Response to Bank Loan Announcements. , Joan Marie Brumm

An Information Integration Theory Analysis of Tax Preparers' Perceived Risk of Reporting Aggressively on Clients' Income Tax Returns. , Velmer Carlene Eddlemon

The Effects of Industry Deregulation on the Stock Market Responses to Earnings Announcements. , Wah Poon

Theses/Dissertations from 1995 1995

The Effects of Departures From Prior Return Measures on Individual Taxpayer Frame and Tax Reporting Decisions. , Phyllis V. Copeland

An Evaluation of Accounting Method Choice: A Study of the Transition Obligation Upon Adoption of SFAS 106. , Jean Elizabeth Finch

An Examination of Investor Evaluation of Corporate Social Performance. , Gisele Kay Jackson

Theses/Dissertations from 1993 1993

The Prediction of Financial Turnaround of Financially Distressed Firms. , Leslie B. Fletcher

The Impact of Budget Variance, Fiscal Stress, Political Turnover, and Employment Sector on Compliance Reporting Decisions. , Linda Achey Kidwell

Theses/Dissertations from 1992 1992

Attitudes Toward International Harmonization Efforts: A Cross-Cultural Study. , M. Aileen Smith

Theses/Dissertations from 1991 1991

An Investigation of the Determinants of the Municipal Decision to Privatize Residential Sanitation Collection. , Richard C. Brooks

An Examination of Semiotic Theories of Accounting Accruals. , Harlan Lynn Etheridge

An Examination of Auditor Changes Following Events Adversely Affecting External Auditor Credibility. , Thomas E. Wilson Jr

Theses/Dissertations from 1990 1990

An Investigation of the Effect of a Favorable External Quality Assurance Review on the Scope of the External Auditor's Examination of an Organization's Financial Statements. , Michael Charles Toerner

Theses/Dissertations from 1989 1989

The Interaction of Accountants' Involvement and Basis of Accounting on Loan Officers' Judgment When Evaluating a Loan to a Small Business. , Joe Gregory Bushong

A Training Intervention for Control of SBA Loan Defaults: A Theory Development Approach. , J. Dennis Coates

The Impact of Alternative Presentations of Cash Flows From Operations on the Relevance of Funds Flow Information. , David Walter Cornell

An Experiment to Study the Effects of Changing Format and Scaling Characteristics of Financial Statement Data. , Paul Michael Goldwater

An Empirical Investigation of the Financial Statement Characteristics of Firms Engaging in In-Substance Defeasance of Debt. , Raymond Jeffords Jr

The Impact of Options Listing on the Information Content of Annual Earnings Announcement. , Tinwah Richard Lau

Prospect Theory in Governmental Accounting: Implications for the Budgeting Process at the Local Level. , Karen Sue Mckenzie

An Examination of the Effect of Financial Risk on the Manager's Choice of Accounting Methods. , Linda Marie Nichols

An Experimental Research Study on the Effect of Accrual of Nonpension Postretirement Benefit Costs on Loan Officers' Decisions. , Joyce Ann Strawser

Theses/Dissertations from 1988 1988

An Investigation of Internal Auditor Judgment on the Importance of Indicators of Potential Financial Fraud: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Approach. , Barbara Ann Apostolou

A Comparison of the Effectiveness of the Operating Funds Flow Measures of Cash, Net Quick Assets, and Working Capital in Predicting Future Cash Flow. , Catherine Innes green Gaharan

The Effects of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 on the Real Estate Capital Markets and Its Differential Effects on Entity and Functional Forms: An Empirical Investigation. , Evelyn C. Hume

Information Acquisition and Decision-Making in Creditors' Decision Environment. , Pao-chuan Lin

A Study to Investigate the Effects of State Taxation and Plan Type on Small Employer Retirement Plan Cost. , W. Robert Smith

Theses/Dissertations from 1987 1987

The Impact of Comprehensive Allocation and Flow-Through Method of Accounting for the Income Taxes on the Investment Decision: A Field Experiment. , Zafar Ullah Khan

An Empirical Investigation of the Usefulness of Current Cost Information in Merger Prediction. , Robert Kuaterng Su

An Experimental Research Study on the Effect of Recognition and Disclosure of Corporate Pension Plan Assets and Obligations on Investment Decisions. , Mary Jeanne Welsh

Theses/Dissertations from 1986 1986

An Empirical Investigation of the Comparability of Reported Earnings Per Share Under Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 15. , Suzanne Resi Pinac-ward

Theses/Dissertations from 1985 1985

An Experimental Research Study on the Effects of the Type of Accounting Service on a Bank Lending Decision for Nonpublic Businesses (Audit, Compilation, Review). , Jeffrey Reed Miller

A Field Test of the Perceptions of the Qualitative Characteristics of Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 2 by Practicing Cpas (Multitrait-Multimethod, Mtmm, Analytic Hierarchy Process, Ahp). , Larry G. Singleton

Theses/Dissertations from 1984 1984

A Comparison of Sfas 33 Disclosures and Historical Cost Information in Predicting Stock Prices (Inflation, Changing Prices). , Heibatollah Sami

Theses/Dissertations from 1983 1983

Toward the Development of a Model to Evaluate the Effect of the Accelerated Cost Recovery System of Depreciation as Enacted by the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 on State of Florida Corporate Tax Revenues. , Chula Greenwell Ensley

An Empirical Investigation of the Extent of Disclosure in Municipal Annual Reports. , Franklin James Plewa Jr

Theses/Dissertations from 1982 1982

An Empirical Investigation of the Differential Market Response to Quarterly Earnings Announcements. , Salem Mohamed Bengharbia

An Empirical Study of Usefulness and Communicative Ability of Segment Disclosures Among Sophisticated Users of Corporate Financial Statements. , James Harold Honea

The Prediction of Small Business Instability--Loan Noncompliance: a Discriminant Analysis Approach. , Charles Thomas Moores

A Study of Moral Development of Selected Employees in Certain Public Accounting Firms. , Guy L. Tull Jr

A Comparison of the Predictive Ability of Historical Cost and Current Cost Accounting With Regard to the Prediction of Operating Cash Flow. , Ralph Edward Welton Jr

Theses/Dissertations from 1981 1981

An Empirical Study of the Characteristics of the Governmental Budgetary Process in Rich and Uncertain Environments: the Case of Saudi Arabia. , Abdulrhman I. Alhumaid

Theses/Dissertations from 1980 1980

The Reaction of the Security Market to the Quality of Segmental Disclosures: an Empirical Investigation. , Jacob Olakayode Balogun

Perceptions of the Role of Corporate Audit Committees - Now and in the Future. , Brenda Stewart Birkett

Theses/Dissertations from 1979 1979

Behavioral and Attitudinal Implications of Different Styles of Performance Evaluation: an Empirical Study. , Paul Joseph Carruth

A Test of Alternative Prior Probability Elicitation Methods in Assessing the Reliability of Internal Control Systems for Audit Decisions. , Johng Yul Lee

Municipal Bond Ratings: a Multiple Discriminant Analysis. , Kenneth Edward Peacock

Esops and Tax Policy: an Empirical Investigation of the Impact of Esops on Company Operating Performance. , Randy Gene Swad

Advanced Search

• Notify me via email or RSS
• Collections
• Disciplines

Author Corner

Sponsored by.

• LSU Libraries
• LSU Office of Research and Economic Development

Home | About | FAQ | My Account | Accessibility Statement

Privacy Copyright

Essays in empirical financial accounting

Abstract/contents, description.

Creators/Contributors

Bibliographic information

Access conditions

Each version has a distinct URL, but you can use this PURL to access the latest version. https://purl.stanford.edu/xj676rc8880

Also listed in

Loading usage metrics...

Career development in management accounting: empirical evidence

Journal of Applied Accounting Research

ISSN : 0967-5426

Article publication date: 15 March 2023

Issue publication date: 18 January 2024

Due to globalization and digitalization, the world of work is undergoing comprehensive change. These trends are challenging management accounting (MA) and pressuring individuals and organizations to change. The literature postulates a replacement of traditional organizational careers by “new” career models characterized by dynamism and flexibility. However, the state of the art on careers in MA lacks empirical evidence and has disparate research interests.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, the authors investigate the status quo of careers in MA, key influencing factors and assumed change in such careers. To do so, the authors conducted a quantitative empirical study, based primarily on the careers of 83 graduates of a department offering a MA major at a German-speaking university. Nine qualitative empirical interviews supplement the quantitative findings.

The authors’ findings indicate that while MA careers are changing, the characteristics of the profession are continuing to concur with the traditional organizational understanding of careers. Accumulated professional experience is the key factor to achieving a management position although management accountants tend to become more dynamic in terms of career paths and career understanding. Thus, employment in various functional areas opens new career paths in MA.

Research limitations/implications

The methodology of analysing quantitative and empirical cross-sectional data and the resulting final sample size is too small to guarantee robust statistical inference. Moreover, further interviews would lead to greater data saturation.

Practical implications

The study sheds light on the under-researched question of how careers in MA proceed and develop. This could be of interest for practitioners working with management accountants such as personnel consultants.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the field through its comprehensive consideration of careers in MA in this changed context, thus providing new insights for academia and business practice.

• Management accounting
• Management accountants

Thaller, J. , Duller, C. , Feldbauer-Durstmüller, B. and Gärtner, B. (2024), "Career development in management accounting: empirical evidence", Journal of Applied Accounting Research , Vol. 25 No. 1, pp. 42-59. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAAR-03-2022-0062

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2023, Johannes Thaller, Christine Duller, Birgit Feldbauer-Durstmüller and Bernhard Gärtner

Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

1. Introduction

The world of work is undergoing a comprehensive process of change. Influencing factors such as globalization, economization, digitalization and the structural shift towards a service and knowledge society are resulting in more complex and dynamic professional careers ( Barley et al. , 2017 ; Hirschi, 2018 ; Aroles et al. , 2019 ). This “new” working world is characterized by a decrease in the continuity and stability of careers as well as an increase in their unpredictability and flexibility across most professional groups ( Akkermans and Kubasch, 2017 ; Atanasoff and Venable, 2017 ). However, despite a consensus in the academic literature about the trend of previously typical traditional organizational careers (e.g. straightforward hierarchical development under organizational responsibility in only a few organizations) being replaced by a diversity of “new” career models (e.g. geographically and socially mobile, flexible and proactively self-responsible individuals; Arthur, 2014 ; Cortellazzo et al. , 2020 ), empirical evidence for professional groups in the field of management and business is lacking ( Alonderienė and Šimkevičiūtė, 2018 ; Redon, 2021 ).

Many of the functional areas in firms are affected by these changes and have thus received increased academic interest. Recently, management accounting (MA) has faced a particularly high degree of change; ongoing megatrends such as digitalization and academization have led to substantial changes and will continue to gain importance ( Lasyoud and Alsharari, 2017 ; Heinzelmann, 2018 ; Rikhardsson and Yigitbasioglu, 2018 ). In addition, several changes are emerging within MA. An extensive number of publications of this topic has investigated the impact on MA at the organizational level (e.g. the changing role from bean-counters to business partners and data scientists; Oesterreich and Teuteberg, 2019 ; Wolf et al. , 2020 ) and at the individual level (e.g. changes in the required competencies; Lawson, 2019 ; Leitner-Hanetseder et al. , 2021a ). Based on these considerations and in line with recent articles ( Rose, 2017 ; Schäffer and Weber, 2017 ; Leitner-Hanetseder et al. , 2021b ), we assume that disruptive changes in MA careers are occurring.

What findings does the literature provide on career development and career-relevant influencing factors in MA?

Which individual career-related factors influence careers in MA?

The contributions of this study are manifold. Our empirical study provides relevant insights into careers in MA for academia and business practice. The findings shed light on the under-researched question of how professional careers in MA proceed and develop. Moreover, by analysing the careers of the graduates of a department offering an MA major at a German-speaking university, spanning the past 30 years, empirical evidence of career changes in MA can be identified. Further, our results may help companies handle MA-specific issues regarding human resources (e.g. talent management, vocational training).

2. Theoretical background

2.1 management accounting and management accountants.

Large parts of the MA literature discuss different definitions that have emerged over recent decades ( Ahrens and Chapman, 2007 ; Lukka, 2007 ; Tekathen, 2019 ). A broad characterization of MA commonly used in academia and business practice is given by the Institute of Management Accountants ( IMA, 2008 ). It defines MA as a “[…] profession that involves partnering in management decision making, devising planning and performance management systems and providing expertise in financial reporting and control to assist management in the formulation and implementation of an organization's strategy” ( IMA, 2008, p. 1 ). Accordingly, the core task of management accountants, the task carriers of MA, is to provide decision support to management, which is expanded to include tasks in planning, control and reporting as well as the area of strategy. In this respect, the literature indicates that MA (and thus management accountants) is becoming increasingly more business-oriented, more involved in decision-making and an active advisor of management ( Järvenpää, 2007 ; Sorensen, 2009 ; De Loo et al. , 2011 ).

Based on this general definition of MA, differences in understanding and terms can be recognized due to, for example, country-specific developments in MA in theory and practice. Since the geographical focus of our empirical study is on German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), we further distinguish the German-language understanding of MA (labelled “controlling”) and management accountants (labelled “controllers”) ( Horváth et al. , 2015 ; Weber and Schäffer, 2016 ). However, due to many overlaps and similarities, both terms are often used interchangeably in the literature on MA in German-speaking countries ( Ahrens and Chapman, 2000 ; Becker et al. , 2011 ; De Loo et al. , 2011 ). Accordingly, for the purpose of this study, we use the terms MA and controlling (or management accountants and controllers) synonymously and will refer to MA uniformly in the following.

Although career research has a long tradition, there is, to date, no universal definition of “career” ( Gunz and Heslin, 2005 ; Chudzikowski, 2012 ). Generally, the scientific understanding is broader than that in non-academic usage. Thus, “career” encompasses the categorization of all movements through a social system ( Becker and Strauss, 1956 ). Arthur et al. (1989a, p. 8) characterize career as “(…) the unfolding sequence of a person's work experience over time (…)”, while Super (1980, p. 282) defines it as a “( … ) sequence of positions occupied by a person during the course of a lifetime ( … )”. This understanding not only characterizes a career as a static and linear progression but further encompasses breaks in the continuity of careers, thus including sideways and downwards movements in the professional context of individuals over time. It therefore allows for a comprehensive analysis of careers and is suitable for examining the expected changes in careers in MA.

2.3 Theoretical career models

2.3.1 traditional career models.

A multitude of career models on the systematization of careers has emerged ( Gunz and Heslin, 2005 ; Chudzikowski, 2012 ). Career research has for several decades been characterized by various “traditional” career models (e.g. Super, 1957 ; Schein, 1978 ), which can be categorized based on specific assumptions on career development and the context of careers. Careers are considered as a sequential series of age-related life phases. In this context, the life cycle describes the changes typically passed through over time, which are therefore assumed to be adequately predictable. Following these considerations, careers are protracted development processes that depend on age and maturity. As shown in Figure I , the loyalty and commitment of an individual to an organization is central to all traditional models, while the responsibility for the individual's career lies with the organization. Visible and thus objective career success (e.g. position, salary, status) is used as a criterion for success ( Heslin, 2005 ; Spurk et al. , 2019 ), while a stable environment and vertical hierarchical development are acknowledged in few organizations. As a result, training has a long-term character and skills are strongly related to either or both the job and/or the employer. For example, Super's (1957 , 1980) “career development model” was formative for career research from the 1950s to the 1990s. This theory distinguishes different career/development phases that can be delimited by age and presents specific requirements and development tasks for each career/life phase. For the purpose of this study, we draw on substantial considerations following traditional career models ( Super, 1957 , 1980 ) to analyse career development in MA.

2.3.2 New career models

Over recent decades, various new career models have emerged in response to the changing world of work (e.g. Hall, 1976 , 1996 ; Arthur and Rousseau, 1996 ; Mainiero and Sullivan, 2005 ). Traditional career models, it was argued, were no longer valid in research and practice ( Arthur et al. , 1989a , b ; Gubler et al. , 2014 ; Mayrhofer et al. , 2020 ). All these new models are united by the common attempt to explain careers in this new context. They differ fundamentally from traditional models in certain key characteristics ( Gunz et al. , 2000 ; Sullivan and Baruch, 2009 ; Baruch et al. , 2015 ). First, the career environment is described as unstable, less predictable and more uncertain. Second, employment relationships are no longer characterized by loyalty, but based solely on performance and flexibility. Careers are seen as multidirectional upwards, downwards, or straight ahead instead of vertically upwards. At the same time, the responsibility for this development lies with the individuals instead of the organizations. Hence, an individual no longer feels obligated to one employer, which means that a career usually involves several organizations. To measure individual career success, subjective career success (e.g. job satisfaction, self-fulfilment) has replaced objective success ( Arthur et al. , 1989a , b , 2005 ). Instead of job- and company-specific skills, more universal competencies that can be used in different professional positions, organizations and work environments are being developed ( DeFillippi and Arthur, 1994 ; Sullivan and Baruch, 2009 ; Baruch et al. , 2015 ). The central characteristics of new career models are summarized in Table 1 .

However, despite a diverse range of new career models, only the boundaryless career model ( Arthur and Rousseau, 1996 ) and protean career model ( Hall, 1976 , 1996 ) have gained substantial acceptance and are widely used in several research disciplines ( Briscoe et al. , 2006 ; Gubler et al ., 2014 ). In essence, the boundaryless career model postulates dynamic careers with individuals who overcome “boundaries” (e.g. mobility with respect to organizations, industries and nations or one's own assessment of existing constraints and willingness to change; Arthur and Rousseau, 1996 ; Arthur, 2014 ), while the protean career model ( Hall, 1976 , 1996 ) argues that individuals take responsibility for managing their own careers and can continually realign them to their own needs. Thus, the protean career model breaks away from the idea of predictable development based on age and career steps, rather postulating recurring learning cycles that ultimately represent individual development ( Hall, 1976 , 1996 ). For the purpose of this study, we draw on substantial considerations following new career models ( Arthur and Rousseau, 1996 ; Hall, 1976 , 1996 ) to analyse the career development in MA.

3. Literature review

In line with recent articles on accounting research ( Khlif and Achek, 2017 ; Fontenelle and Sagawa, 2021 ), we conducted a comprehensive literature review primarily based on a keyword search in several databases and search engines and a subsequent forwards/backwards integration. We included all articles, books and book chapters in English or German that focus on professional careers in MA without a time restriction. This brief review indicates a general dearth of research on careers in MA as well as the supposed change in careers and their influencing factors. Only a few studies deal explicitly with careers in MA ( Weber, 2008 ; Amato, 2016 ; Rose, 2017 ). The state of the art shows great heterogeneity in terms of the general orientation and purpose of publications (e.g. academia and practice), research interests (e.g. focus on selected facets of careers), delimitations of occupational groups (e.g. conflation of MA with accounting or chief financial officers (CFOs)), theoretical background (e.g. career models) and methodology (e.g. single case and large-scale quantitative empirical studies). However, substantiated knowledge on careers in MA is lacking, as are empirical studies and conceptual considerations of career paths, path dependencies and characteristics. Indeed, several publications in the practice-oriented literature are based on normative assumptions and lack empirical considerations ( Connelly and Burrage, 2009 ; Rose, 2017 ).

Schäffer and Weber (2017) postulate that traditional organizational careers in MA have ended due to digitalization, standardization and shared services. These developments are leading to a visible change in careers, with the “chimney” career common in MA (i.e. a straightforward and hierarchically ascending career in a single occupational field) in particular being replaced by new models ( Schneider, 2013 ; Weber, 2013 ; Schäffer and Weber, 2017 ). Weber (2013) highlights that the field of MA is therefore a good foundation for rising to the top hierarchical levels of firms (e.g. CFO). For this reason, several studies analyse management accountants' rise to becoming CFOs. However, careers in the future are expected to adapt to those models common in Anglo-Saxon regions (e.g. autonomous, less straightforward and alternative development models), which are broadly classified as protean career models ( Rose, 2017 ). In this process, management accountants, particularly CFOs, will make their own career decisions and prioritize their career progress ( Connelly and Burrage, 2009 ; Amato, 2016 ).

This general transformation within MA could be resulting in significantly more diversified career paths and changed career goals up to management positions ( Schneider, 2013 ). Lambert and Sponem (2012) find that younger management accountants are now striving to achieve subjective success criteria such as job satisfaction to give themselves higher professional mobility. Moreover, while women within the accounting and financial field tend to prefer a stable career, a high degree of flexibility in other occupations is evident due to the working environment (e.g. part-time hours; Zarei et al. , 2021 ).

Alonderienė and Šimkevičiūtė (2018) describe a shift towards proactive and self-developed career management in MA and finance due to the changing market conditions, which is shaping protean and boundaryless career attitudes, especially among younger employees in junior positions. As a result, these individuals tend to change firms or jobs more frequently, with no dominant career paths emerging ( Baker and Phillips, 1999 ). Using a qualitative empirical approach based on the careers of heads of MA German firms, Weber (2013) shows that career paths to this position vary greatly. Despite this great heterogeneity and diversity of career paths, Weber (2013) clusters them into four types defined solely on the content of the job description: 38% of the sample correspond to financial allrounders, 38% to MA specialists, 14% to managers with business responsibility and 10% to reporting specialists. The decision to select each cluster mostly relies on the individual preferences of employees.

However, in principle, more frequent changes of employer lead to reaching management positions more quickly ( Cappelli and Hamori, 2005 ). Schäffer et al. (2008) show that today's CFOs change employers and industries much more frequently than previous CFOs, indicating a change to new career models. Accordingly, Weber (2008) finds significantly divergent career paths for CFOs, particularly in MA, rather than uniformly stringent development. Smith and Sheridan (2006) , however, postulate that the unique characteristics of professional positions in finance and MA provide an ideal environment for maintaining a traditional organizational career. Reaching career plateaus is strongly influenced by career perceptions and associated goals and may also be the starting point for realignment. In a qualitative empirical study based on interviews in accounting, Smith-Ruig (2009) shows increased demand from employees for career path support from companies, suggesting that organizations take responsibility for career paths in line with the traditional career model.

4. Empirical study

4.1 methodology.

We conduct a quantitative empirical study to investigate careers in MA, since the extent to which careers change can only be determined empirically using a corresponding dataset and adequate models. To answer the research questions, we analyse the professional careers of the graduates of a department offering an MA major at a German-speaking university over the last approximately 30 years. Using this population enables us to examine the change in careers derived from theory and bridge the identified research gap. The chosen method of quantitative cross-sectional data collection is a common approach in careers research and is better suited to depicting careers more comprehensively and accurately than qualitative empirical research.

For the data collection, all the graduates of the selected university who had written a thesis (diploma or master's thesis between 1990 and 2018 as well as dissertations between 2003 and 2018) in the selected department with an MA major are considered as the population. Thus, 180 diploma theses, seven master's theses, and 12 dissertations are used. However, this total of 199 theses is different from the number of graduates, since more than one thesis can be written per person (e.g. in the case of second or subsequent courses of study). Hence, after eliminating seven duplicates and overlaps, the final population consists of 192 graduates.

In the first step, we collect all publicly available career-relevant information on the graduates (e.g. XING, LinkedIn), as per the underlying theoretical background of this study (e.g. traditional and new career models and different career predictors). This process follows ethical considerations for data collection and analysis ( Panter and Sterba, 2011 ) as well as considerations of empirical studies with a similar methodological approach ( McCabe, 2017 ; Makela and Hoff, 2019 ) [1] . Due to the free and open availability of the data, we cover a large proportion of the graduates. In addition, these data contain subjectively relevant career data (i.e. a signalling effect) [2] . In the second step, graduates without publicly available data are approached by e-mail and surveyed according to the same criteria. The final sample consists of 83 graduates, showing a response rate of approximately 43%. The quantitative data obtained are anonymized and analysed descriptively and quantitatively/empirically using binary logistic regression models.

Further, in line with recent studies (e.g. Martin and Hofmann, 2017 ; Zarei et al. , 2021 ), qualitative semi-structured interviews are conducted to supplement the quantitative data to gain deeper insights into careers in MA and triangulate the data ( Creswell and Creswell, 2018 ). We interview nine management accountants, personnel consultants in the field of MA and CFOs between November 2019 and January 2020 ( Table 2 ). This complementary qualitative sample aims to represent careers in MA in Austria as best as possible. The data include the interviewees' perspectives on careers in MA, career stages and professional experiences (e.g. junior positions, heads of MA) and characteristics (e.g. company size, industry). The interviews last between 40 and 85 min are recorded and fully transcribed following the consent of the respondents. The transcripts are content analytically coded according to the theoretical framework informing this study.

4.2 Findings

4.2.1 descriptive analysis.

The analysis of the sample of graduates reveals a heterogeneous picture, particularly regarding their current occupation. The graduates work across different positions and occupational fields. Overall, only around 42% work in MA or as CFOs [3] . The results by industry show that the graduates are primarily employed in industrial companies (47%), followed by information and consulting (18%) and education and non-profit (15%).

We group the dates of the graduates' theses [4] , from 1989 to 2018, into three clusters of approximately one decade each. This shows a decrease in the availability of publicly available career data with an increasing time lag from graduation; the majority of the sample (53%) comes from the youngest third of this period (2009–2018), whereas the smallest proportion, 13%, is from the oldest third (1989–1998).

As shown in Figure 1 , current positions differ by graduation year. The youngest third is mostly working as management accountants without leadership responsibility, whereas the highest proportion for the oldest third is in the category of managing director/board member/owner.

The majority of the graduates are employed in large firms [5] (72%) and 26% hold a position with management responsibility. Sex is almost equally distributed in the sample, with 49% women and 51% men; unsurprisingly, women have a lower proportion of positions with management responsibility than men (20% vs 32%). Average work experience is about 13.6 years (median 11.5 years), with values scattered between the two extreme points of one year and 34.5 years.

The analysis of firm and industry changes provides only a few findings on career change. Overall, 49% have changed firms at most once and 69% have changed industries at most once. On average, each graduate has changed firms 1.9 times (every seven years) and industries about 1.2 times. Due to their greater professional experience and longer affiliation with the labour market, older graduates have inevitably changed firms and industries more frequently. Nevertheless, as shown in Figure 2 , the data indicate that younger graduating cohorts are changing at a similar frequency to older cohorts in some parts.

There are striking differences in terms of firm size: the proportion of the graduates without a change of firm is significantly higher in large firms (37%) than in SMEs (4%) and vice versa for four or more changes (9% vs 22%). Around 40% of the sample state that they have special IT skills (e.g. ERP software), and the youngest cluster more frequently possesses these skills than the older ones. Due to the high number of missing values (23), the variable “special IT skills” is excluded from the logistic regression analysis.

The most frequently mentioned further qualifications in the sample are specific training in MA (24%), training in accounting (19%) and generic training courses (35%). The two older clusters of graduates are more likely to mention MA training. In part, this is related to their work experience. The proportion that has received MA training within the two older clusters (34%) is much higher than that within the youngest cluster (17%). As the overall number of responses on international training is low (four participants) and the oldest cluster has none at all, international training is also excluded from the logistic regression analysis.

Networks (e.g. operationalized by the means of the absolute number of mentions) are of secondary importance according to the graduates' self-reporting; on average, they are affiliated with 0.8 networks. About three-quarters state that they are part of at most one network, most of which are alumni networks. The clusters of graduation years differ only slightly, with only a minor increase in the number of mentions among the younger graduation cohort.

4.2.2 Regression model for management responsibility

A binary logistic regression analysis is used to model the influence of the variables surveyed on the dependent variable (hierarchical career progress) operationalized using the means of holding a position with management responsibility (e.g. head of MA). We also analyse potential influencing variables, including work experience, experience before starting studies, experience abroad, number of firm changes, number of industry changes, further training as an accountant, further training as a tax consultant/auditor, other further training and number of external networks.

To model the logistic regression, the backwards selection of variables is used, thereby gradually eliminating variables with little explanatory power. Significance is measured using the likelihood ratio at the 5% level. We find that professional experience is the only significant variable; further training in MA shows the next lowest p value ( p  = 0.069), but is not significant ( Table 3 ). The quality of the model is not outstandingly high at 0.229. As the sample size is rather small, more complex models could not be modelled meaningfully.

5. Discussion and conclusions

Our literature review shows a heterogeneous picture and a substantial research gap on this topic, since only a few studies deal explicitly with careers in MA ( Weber, 2008 ; Amato, 2016 ). However, the state of the art indicates the disappearance of the “chimney” career that was once typical of MA. Trends such as digitalization, globalization, standardization and individuals‘ changing understanding of careers are leading to the implementation of less straightforward or alternative career patterns (e.g. new career models). Several authors attest to the fact that MA follows the protean or boundaryless career models, as evidenced by proactive career management, subjective criteria such as job satisfaction and more frequent career changes ( Amato, 2016 ; Schäffer and Weber, 2017 ). The previously stringent and vertical career development in MA seems to be giving way to successive dynamic careers with multidirectional progression although the characteristics of financial professions support the characteristics of traditional organizational careers. The key career predictors arising from the literature review include the frequency of changes in companies and industries; firm size (operationalized by the number of employees); the type, number and temporal distribution of long-term on-the-job training and the type and number of networks and mentors.

Our quantitative empirical study addresses the research gap by analysing a dataset of graduates’ careers. We find that the importance of a proactive external presentation of one's own career (e.g. on social networks) is increasing among younger graduates compared with older graduates. This finding indicates the tendency towards the adoption of new career models (e.g. proactive career management and importance of external networks), and it is supported by the breadth of current positions and occupational groups within the sample, especially among the two youngest clusters. In detail, these groups are characterized by more frequent lateral career moves and shorter retention periods per position, although these are not universal, but correspond to the qualification of university graduates.

Our qualitative interview data confirm that careers are becoming more dynamic. In particular, these new careers in MA are dominant in large and internationally oriented companies and even strengthened by the personnel supervisors responsible for MA. Accordingly, the existence of highly fluctuating jobs is considered to be natural in MA, with the traditional view of loyalty-based employment, as described in large parts of the literature, increasingly being displaced. In addition, the possibility for short (i.e. up to one year) career breaks (e.g. sabbaticals and other employment) is considered as enriching, and such breaks are increasingly promoting careers in MA. This corresponds to sideways steps under new career models. However, they remain uncommon in practice. By comparison, older graduates show a more consistent picture with regard to current positions; however, adequate longitudinal data to confirm this are unavailable. Nevertheless, this trend across clusters suggests non-vertical and flexible careers characterized by on-the-job learning and cross-organizational reorientations, as per new career models.

In summary and in line with the literature on professions in the financial sector (e.g. Weber, 2008 ; Smith and Sheridan, 2006 ), the most – and only significant – influence on hierarchical advancement is professional experience. Accordingly, in our sample, hierarchically senior positions (e.g. CFO and managing director) are filled by older graduates and classic entry-level professions (e.g. junior management accountant and tax consulting trainee) by younger graduates. The interviews show that most management accountants have at least a rudimentary idea of their next career steps in terms of hierarchical development. Interestingly, an external labour market move is often being considered beforehand. However, internal organizational forms are also subject to change, mixing functional areas and teams and thus opening up new career paths for management accountants. From an organizational perspective, matrix and project structures that lead to intra-company mobility are displacing traditional career models, even though the employer is unchanged. In line with the findings of Lambert and Sponem (2012) , high mobility in the field (e.g. management accountants responsible for production with several years of experience directly in production) advances hierarchical development, since it demonstrates that management accountants can deal with the complexity and different cultures of other professions. The latter is considered as particularly essential for future career advancement owing to the coordination function of MA.

The interviews show that the career success criteria of MA are transforming. For younger management accountants, the central criterion for career success is no longer objective career goals, but increasingly subjective criteria (e.g. job satisfaction). In addition, the changing work profile, its professional challenges (e.g. due to digitalization), and one's own contribution to the company can be perceived as more fulfilling than holding a management position. To meet this changing understanding, management accountants therefore strive for more presence and visibility in the organization, which thus moves MA closer to management and leadership authority. This contradiction between traditional and new career models is rarely perceived by management accountants. Thus, objective career goals may remain, but justified at a substantive level.

Since the current generation of heads in MA largely pursues objective career goals, any generational tension in the understanding of careers must be consciously moderated. Our interviews revealed a rising tension between one's profession as a management accountant and one's role as an employee of an organization, with the profession becoming increasingly prominent among younger management accountants. In addition, the willingness to switch to other functional areas is increasing. The qualitative data explain that such an unstable career environment prevents loyalty to employers from forming. By contrast, older management accountants have higher attachment to their employer, associated with an increased willingness to accept labour market changes. Therefore, the changes in the career context are seen by management accountants as an opportunity rather than a risk.

The data indicate that graduates with managerial or staff responsibility have received further training in MA, which could be categorized as a prerequisite rather than a career-enhancing measure in the narrow sense. The interviewees mention a wide range of further qualifications. For instance, classical IFRS and other accountant examinations are considered as “classic” in MA, but not a requirement for today's career starters. Instead, our findings indicate a changing trend in competencies and thus further training. Further accounting-specific training is increasingly being replaced by either generalist training programs that offer a holistic understanding of business administration or more technical training for, say, data scientists. Thus, further training best demonstrates the interaction between the perceived change in MA and shift towards new career models. Therefore, our study helps explain career development in MA (e.g. Järvenpää, 2007 ).

The interviews confirm the results of the quantitative study, showing that no universal educational path in MA exists. Instead, the required skills are broadening in response to MA careers rising in dynamism and thus speaking against a “chimney” career. Indeed, further training in MA is moving more in the direction of generalists than specialists. However, still no consistent pattern towards further education has emerged. The focus of further training in MA is also shifting towards training that can be deliberately used in different firms, industries and professional fields. The need to adapt to the career environment fosters the development of key skills that can be used across organizations and professions (e.g. social skills). Thus, management accountants no longer necessarily focus on achieving a career step by using further training, but rely more on subjective criteria such as developing their role in the company. For example, after taking a junior position in MA, interdisciplinary training is becoming more important than specialist training. In particular, the interviews show that heads of MA rarely receive further training in MA and rely on less specific educational measures (e.g. training in personnel management). This is where a specialist career differs from a management career. Interestingly, international further training is not yet found among heads of MA, but to a greater extent only from the next career level (e.g. CFO).

However, the practical knowledge necessary for the tasks of a management accountant remains important, especially in large firms. Moreover, further training is increasingly being shifted from formal institutions to in-house on-the-job training. In the future, firms will be called upon to offer much more. If this trend continues, in the medium term, firms may need to align company-specific requirements with the cross-company demands of management accountants. Further, this may diverge between the management accountants in SMEs and large firms due to differences in teaching resources.

With regard to specific IT skills (e.g. Leitner-Hanetseder et al. , 2021a ), the general technical development and related adaptation of the curricula are also reflected in the results. The often-postulated assumption that IT skills are important for career entry after graduation (e.g. for junior positions in MA) is suggested by the explicit naming of specific IT skills in social profiles. However, the relevance for later career progression, particularly with increasing hierarchical progress (e.g. for management accountants with management responsibility), decreases significantly owing to the displacement of IT and ERP-supported routine tasks from everyday professional life (e.g. for CFOs). This is in line with our interview findings, which provide evidence that digitalization is leading to a shift towards greater analysis. Thus, logical and networked thinking as well as cross-functional business competencies are becoming more prominent and replacing the trend towards specialization. In other words, basic accounting knowledge (e.g. accountant’ examinations and accounting standards) is tending to decline or be substituted by digital skills (e.g. data literacy). Despite the volatility of careers, a basic understanding of management remains indispensable and cannot be replaced or partially covered by ERP systems. Going further, our interviewees expect IT-savvy management accountants to move closer to middle or higher management. The interview findings complement the quantitative data, showing that IT skills are most important for entry-level positions in MA. From this, we can deduce the expected career change. This will open up MA to people from outside the field to enter and enable career development towards general management. In line with Heinzelmann (2018) , a change in competencies in MA due to digitalization and IT systems may thus lead to a new perspective of quality work in terms of job satisfaction. Further, our results show that career paths are influenced as well as the identity of the profession being shaped. Although a change in required competencies must not be confused with a change in careers, both indicate the implementation of new career models, in line with Arthur and Rousseau (1996) and Hall (1976 , 1996) .

New career models postulate an increasing importance of networks for individual career design ( Arthur and Rousseau, 1996 ; Baruch et al ., 2015 ). However, the quantitative sample covers mostly alumni networks. Due to the self-representation of graduates in social networks, the picture is distorted and informal networks that actually promote careers may not listed. This is confirmed by the qualitative interviews, which mainly show the relevance of informal networks to career development. The actual influence of this variable on leadership positions thus remains open in the quantitative data. Nevertheless, the data indicate a higher importance of networks among younger graduates, as they typically have more networks than older graduates despite their significantly less work experience. While the interviews confirm that the high use of networks does not correspond to having vast professional experience, the explicit use of networks for career advancement is evident in our sample. Company changes often derive exclusively from network members proactively contacting management accountants. Traditionally, these changes are justified by advancement in traditional career models (e.g. monetary incentives), although subjective career goals are increasingly decisive (e.g. taking on challenging projects). From a company perspective, vacancies are often filled by those people with whom contact already exists.

The interview data indicate that efforts to increase the visibility of careers within MA are growing rapidly. This higher visibility within the company as well as in external networks is crucial to respond to the increased pressure to adapt to the environment as well as one's own desire to change. This is justified to keep careers flexible with respect to trend-related changes (e.g. fast-moving careers), on the one hand, and subjective career goals, on the other. The interviews show that management accountants with strong communication skills use their networks to manage their careers. With advancing globalization, networks are also becoming more international, leading to new and expanded opportunities for career development. The interview data thus provide evidence that Austrian management accountants use networks explicitly for their career development.

The presented results show the continuation of traditional careers in MA, as indicated by both the quantitative data and the qualitative data. However, there are indications in the sample that career changes are afoot (e.g. the number of company moves), in line with previous findings that classic career patterns in MA will be replaced in the future ( Schäffer and Weber, 2017 ). Thus, it is assumed that the continuation of the development described in theory and empirics can lead to changes in career paths in MA (e.g. diversified careers and career goals) as well as proactive and self-responsible career management. However, the evidence provided in this study is insufficient to conclusively support or refute a definite trend towards changing careers, particularly as we did not consider non-quantifiable factors. Thus, the results do not allow us to confirm the evidence of theory-based career models (i.e. boundaryless and protean career models).

A number of implications for corporate practice emerge from the findings. Within MA, career goals (e.g. work/life balance) are being reconsidered and management accountants are gradually moving towards new career models. However, this development only applies to MA itself and is different compared to other corporate by the departments in a firm. Although the use of traditional career models is declining, MA remains closer to the traditional organizational understanding of career than other departments due to traditional-organizational specific of MA (e.g. objective career goals), while weakening, remain more pronounced than in other areas. Sensitivity regarding this distinction is important for human resource departments, as they deal with all the employees of the company and are thereby intensely challenged, especially given the current labour market.

Regarding talent management, the different career contexts of SMEs and large firms might shift in response to the changing requirements of management accountants. The prospect of hierarchical advancement and international assignments abroad in subsidiary companies may be attractive to management accountants. Further, with regard to further qualifications, it appears important for companies to offer management accountants more generalist or IT-oriented courses in-house; educational institutes are already responding to this and adapting their portfolios. Companies must also respond to the increasing importance of networks, including the use of both formal and informal career networks for recruiting.

Our findings may also advise practitioners working with management accountants following new career models, as they highlight the need for companies to offer appropriate opportunities in MA. Personnel consultants are gaining importance by anticipating the changing career requirements of younger management accountants and preparing them in companies. Contrarily, for companies, this development is only just beginning. Since personnel consultants have a good overview of the MA labour market, they could be invited by companies to explain perceived career development. Having an awareness of career models is especially relevant for high potential talent in such a rapid changing and highly competitive international labour market. Companies must proactively address this development to remain an attractive employer for management accountants. The disproportionate adherence to traditional career models, beyond the discussed specifics of MA, appears to be disadvantageous to competition given the current development of the labour market. Thus, it seems important to anticipate the emerging trend in MA and not merely react. As personnel consultants for MA are already showing, external consultants, in particular, may help initiate this development at a broad scale.

6. Limitations and further research

Limitations of the study arise, on the one hand, from the research methodology chosen. The investigation of quantitative empirical cross-sectional data allows the status quo of careers to be depicted, but provides few conclusions about the temporal dimension and, in particular, the reconstruction or clustering of career patterns in MA. Furthermore, it was not possible to collect data on parameters such as environmental conditions and other non-quantifiable factors that underlie and influence individuals' careers. On the other hand, the limitations of the sample must be considered. The extraction of career data from social networks depends on individuals' data maintenance and could distort the results. In addition, despite a response rate of approximately 43%, the number of respondents (83) is too small to guarantee robust statistical inference. The qualitative study also faces limitations due to the explorative nature of the research design and characteristics of the sample (e.g. size and regional composition). Further interviews would lead to greater data saturation. Moreover, interviews were conducted before the Covid-19 pandemic and therefore the ongoing paradigm shift in the labour market is excluded from our data (e.g. home working and shortage of employees).

Further research is necessary to confirm our findings. Although we found new evidence on careers in MA as well as on the current state of career change, future research on this topic is needed. A follow-up study could extend the sample to include more universities with an MA major. In addition, a comparison between individual countries or areas could provide new insights. At the same time, a larger database would allow for a wider range of statistical analysis methods to be used and more detailed insights to emerge, such as a representative and anastigmatic reconstruction of career paths for certain industries or company sizes as well as a further cluster analysis of career patterns. Further investigation could be covered by a different theoretical framework (e.g. human capital theory), leading to a focused analysis of careers in MA.

Current position of graduates by graduation year

Number of firm changes by year of graduation

Key characteristics of traditional and new career models