Increasingly, organizations are adopting Enterprise Systems (ES) in an effort to increase productivity and reduce costs. Unfortunately, system-wide implementations such as these often fail to produce the outcomes desired by those that champion them. One noted reason for unsuccessful ES utilization rests in “workarounds”—the deviation or circumvention of the ES by users (employees) of the system. Our research question asks, “How do the outcomes of a workaround impact the downstream user and the system overall?” We assert that the motivation or why workarounds are employed is not as important as the outcomes these workarounds create. Using qualitative data from a longitudinal field study of a large organization in the U.S. Midwest, we categorize workarounds based on the outcomes they generate and consider the resultant effects these workaround outcomes have for the downstream user. In particular, we explore how workaround outcomes impact the effectiveness of accounting functions.

Purpose While research has been conducted on the causes of workarounds, less is known about their impact on business processes and system outcomes. This study aims to investigate the impact on accounting information quality from workarounds implemented by personnel at a large global organization. Design/methodology/approach Interviews and qualitative analysis methods were used at one large multinational organization in the midst of a multi-year SAP implementation. A subset of employees in the desired categories (systems designers and advisors) was gained through snowball sampling. Findings Workarounds have significant impacts on the quality of both financial and managerial accounting information quality. System users are often unable to fully comprehend their place in the task chain, and thus are unaware of the implications of their actions on information quality. Research limitations/implications Control issues are an inherent part of workaround outcomes, as is the notion of system success. The current research suggests a need for much more work in these areas, including additional exploration of the outcomes of workarounds. Practical implications The examples demonstrated very clearly that deviations from standard procedures have very real consequences. In particular, the completeness, neutrality and accuracy were impacted, making it difficult for the organization to achieve relevance and faithful representation in their financial information. Additional insights are provided concerning the importance of knowledge sharing and the degree to which an organization may achieve a more integrated information system. Originality/value This paper complements existing research on workarounds through analysis of impacts on accounting information quality. An important contribution of the current study is to continue the move away from focusing solely on the causes of workarounds, and instead investigate the outcomes.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine workarounds from the perspective of the users of the system, focusing on the outcomes of workarounds and their effect on the quality of accounting information. Design/methodology/approach Interviews were conducted with employees in the accounting functions at two international organizations using SAP for their enterprise system. Results were coded by two experienced researchers and one undergraduate student, and included a categorization of the outcomes of workarounds. Findings The most striking result is the difference in views of workarounds between the two organizations. While workarounds are discouraged by the accounting function at both organizations, one seeks out workarounds and enforces standards while the other has not yet achieved process standardization. Not surprisingly, users view the workarounds of others as very detrimental to the quality of accounting information, but view their own workarounds as critical to maintain quality. Practical implications Organizations should obtain input from system users to document the extent that workarounds are used within the organization to determine the impact on the quality of their financial reporting. Originality/value The focus on outcomes of workarounds is an important shift in the literature, and more work is needed to further refine the categories used in this research, particularly for the effect of workarounds on internal controls and information quality. Additionally, this research surfaced a very strong difference in the actions taken to deal with workarounds, which may be due to organizational cultures.

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Purpose -There have been many studies that investigated the causes of workarounds, but there is less research on their outcomes, such as the impact on internal control. This study aims to investigate the use of workarounds by a multinational organization that implemented SAP about 10 years ago, and how those workarounds affected internal controls.Design/methodology/approach -A qualitative study is performed by analyzing interviews with company personnel for a multinational organization. Employees selected for interviews are primarily users of SAP's accounting functions.Findings -Workarounds have significant impacts on the internal controls over financial reporting.Workarounds cause compensating controls to be implemented, which are often manual in nature, and decrease the organizational efficiency and effectiveness.Research limitations/implications -Workarounds become integrated into an organization's activities to meet its business needs. This research raises questions to determine when maintaining organizational efficiency and control outweighs the need to provide customer service and other business needs.Practical implications -Companies should consider whether their business processes can be modified to ensure that they can be handled within the enterprise system. In addition, the number of compensating controls required due to workarounds may decrease the organizational efficiency expected from having an enterprise resource planning system to ensure the integrity of financial information.Originality/value -This paper moves beyond finding the causes of workarounds, and expands what is known about workarounds and their impact on an organization. An important contribution of this study is to consider the intersection of workarounds, ERP systems and internal controls.