Tecnologias digitais e mudanças no escopo de atividades e funções da controladoria

Abstract

The increase in the processing power of personal computers and the dissemination of digital tools creates expectations about the potential of digital technologies to provoke transformations in the Controllership. Despite the enthusiasm of the literature regarding the potential changes caused by technologies, it is still not clear how these technologies provide changes and what gains they can create for controllership activities. This study aims to understand how digital technologies have promoted changes in the scope of controllership activities. The phenomenon was investigated from a theoretical model derived from Weber (2011), whose adaptations aim to identify the efficiency and effectiveness gains generated by the technology and how these gains provide changes. The methodological approach consists of a multiple case study design, based on data collection through semi-structured interviews with controllership professionals. The findings of the study indicate that digital technologies have heterogeneous formats in different contexts and in activities of different natures. For transactional activities, the use of digital technologies encourages the redistribution of tasks or the reallocation of low-level professionals to other areas. For strategic activities, it was found that generation of relevant information for decision-making is being done by data scientists, who are being quoted to act in the controllership. Thus, the development of strategic tasks in the area is not necessarily linked to the accounting professional anymore, creating a mismatch between the strategic role of the controllership and the controller. Finally, this work contributes to the discussion regarding the expansion of the organizational function of the controllership.