| dc.description.abstract | The study was conducted with the aim of finding out the determinants of management accounting changes in three private Hospitals in Nairobi during the study period.
Management accounting changes have been documented in developed countries and have been related to changes in business environment. However, no such study had been document in private Hospitals in Kenya. This was the gap that this research intended to fill.
The objective of the study was to evaluate the management accounting changes and determinants of these changes that occurred in these three hospitals in Nairobi between the period of 2006 to 2011.To achieve the objectives, the researcher used descriptive cross sectional survey design where primary data was collected through structured questionnaires and personal interviews with financial managers/ management accountants of the respective Private hospitals.
The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, presented in narrations, graphical and pictorial designs for interpretation and summarization. The dependent variable was management accounting change while independent variables included accounting staffs, cost- benefit analysis, transparency need, financial performance, board expectations, information technology change, competition, size of the business, technological changes, management inertia, statutory requirements, autonomy from parent company and availability of resources.
The findings indicated considerable management accounting changes in these hospitals in all the areas. The firms also had adopted many modern management accounting techniques. The findings suggest the determinants of management accounting change included high competition, advancement in technology, need for financial and non financial measures, financial performance, board members expectation, statutory and regulatory bodies requirements as well as availability of resources. The study revealed that high accounting staff turnover, inadequate staffs, poor communication with line managers, strict government and regulatory bodies‟ requirements and difficulties in accessing strategic information about competitors as the main factors that hinder management accounting change. There is need for managers and government to work on these bottlenecks that slows down management accounting changes in order to realize full benefits of better management accounting techniques and innovations | en |
