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This
page will have content of interest to people who have a general
interest in management and/or finance or who use accounting information
in their work.
This section of the site will build up as the project progresses.
A questionnaire will soon be available designed specifically for
users of accounts.
See below for an example of how the Operations Director of a fast-growing
company in the service sector makes use of accounting information
systems. Is this your experience please tell us by emailing to role.of.finance@lboro.ac.uk
This is an extract of evidence given in the defence of accounting
in the mock trial held in November 1999. for defence and prosecution
evidence click conferences on left panel.
Neil Wilson (NW)- Operations Director, Interfleet Railway Consultants
- for the defence cross examined by Fiona Cross (FC).
FC asks NW to talk about his experiences as a manager using the
output of the accounting function at Interfleet. She asks him to
briefly describe Interfleet's business and identify their criteria
for strategic success.
NW - explains how Interfleet was a part of a nationalised industry
and the changes that privatisation has brought about. Interfleet
is a technical engineering consultancy whose main source of revenue
is the recharge of staff time involved on a variety of tasks for
infrastructure, rolling stock and transport management systems.
Criteria for success involves:
a) the long-term optimisation of profit based upon;
continual investment in training, research and development,
customer relationships, teamwork, and management of the company's
knowledge base.
b) on a day-to-day basis Interfleet's product is time, a perishable
commodity - time cannot be stock piled and sold in the next period
- accurate, real time data, is needed to manage what in many ways
is a virtual organisation spread wherever there are railway lines.
FC Asks NW how he sees the process of accounting
NW suggests that, as an engineer, accountancy is really a feedback
and control system. He explains this further through the analogy
of a car journey.
* IH references back to this in summing up with the 3 time horizons
of accounting.
- importance of feedback, accurate data, looking ahead, making
adjustments.
FC What value do you see in accountants?
NW Firstly, as a company director, they ensure that I comply with
all the statutory duties of my office. People forget that if the
company does not comply fully with all the regulations imposed upon
business, and this involves a lot more than simply filing accounts,
then directors can be held personally liable and even end up in
jail!
Secondly, they fulfil an important role in helping the business
to achieve its objectives by understanding the business and helping
management to anticipate and to overcome constraints.
I know that the popular image stereotypes accountants as the men,
and women, who love to say NO! But at Interfleet I think we are
fortunate in having an accounts team that has a 'can do' culture.
FC I'm intrigued by the second point but will you tell the court
exactly what they 'can do' to help.
NW Well, if I could answer the question from another direction.
KB If you must, but ensure that you do answer the question
NW Earlier this year, Interfleet completely changed its management
information system. The changeover was well planned and in the nature
of these things actually went quite smoothly. However there was
a period of some weeks when the usual supply of information could
not be relied upon to have the high level of integrity that we need
to run the business efficiently or make decisions on resource planning
and progress chasing etc.
We got through this period, but not without other senior managers
and myself spending an inordinate amount of time an effort trying
to work out where we were, and how we were doing. Instead of getting
on with the real business of management - taking the company where
we want it to be.
NW then explains how Interfleet have a need for both detailed and
summary information and the two time dimensions, past and future.
Referring to the diagram in the bundle.
Finally, he explains how Interfleet is embracing the concepts of
the learning organisation, by sharing and centrally storing knowledge.
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