| dc.description.abstract | It is more than a decade that the way of organising the bookkeeping function
through the shared services model has been widely adopted by organisations.
Large multinational companies usually offshore bookkeeping activities to shared
services centres (SSCs), established in cheaper locations. However, a
phenomenon of SSC bookkeeping is relatively a black-box in academia.
Academic literature on bookkeeping practices in recent times, as well as
bookkeepers involved, is scarce. In particular, there is a widely held view that
activities constituted by this supporting function in this age of advanced
computerisation are ‘simplified’ and ‘low-skilled’. Therefore, this thesis explores
this relatively-neglected (but important) area in accountancy, with the purpose to
enhance understanding of the extent of simplification and deskilling of SSC
bookkeeping.
By conducting an interpretivist case-study of a SSC in South East Asia, owned
by a large European airline, a new perspective on bookkeeping practices is
offered. The thesis, theoretically informed by an ‘institutional’ lens of Burns and
Scapens (2000), supplemented with a view of new institutional sociology, argues
that SSC bookkeeping is not a low-skilled and simple practice, and that there is
an incongruence between the widely held perception of simplified bookkeeping
and the actual complex nature of (in particular, SSC) bookkeeping practices.
Also, this thesis illuminates that the beancounter image does not capture
characteristics of bookkeepers in the SSC who are shaped to be mindful, active,
adaptive, and socialised. Furthermore, the case study enables us to see the way
the bookkeeping function can play an active and influential role, when being a
‘core’ function in the SSC. Indeed, knowledge created by this thesis is original
and interesting, since it challenges the widely held perception. Moreover,
grounded on the empirical evidence, contributions to Burns and Scapens (2000)
and organisational routines research are proposed. | en_GB |
