The role of accounting in transforming public tertiary institutions in New Zealand

Abstract

Purpose -This paper evaluates the role and influence played by the discipline of accounting through its association with the multiple logics of government reforms to transform the public tertiary education sector in New Zealand.Design/methodology/approach -The study adopts a case study approach utilising multiple data collection methods. Neo-institutional theory (NIT) provides an insightful and valuable complement to neo-liberalism and enhances our understanding of institutional logics driving government reforms and the transformation of public tertiary institutions.Findings -The findings reveal that accounting has become a powerful conduit for the exercise of the neo-liberalism reforms by government and implemented by managerial control over public tertiary education institutions.Research implications -By addressing a gap in the literature the paper shows how political and economic neo-liberal policies have been implemented in tertiary education with the discipline of accounting being adopted as a prime driver of these reforms. The paper has significant implications for educational management, academics and learners in understanding how and why the inherent nature, objectives and processes of the overall educational experience has undergone a radical reformation.Originality/value -New Zealand is one of the first countries to implement these educational reforms and adopted 'accounting technologies' to reduce costs and improve performance. But the reality has often been very different. Most of the government's original objectives have not been fulfilled and the reforms have been costly for the academic profession. This paper provides a valuable source of learning for academics, managers and politicians.

Recent UK Central Government Accounting Reforms: Claimed Benefits and Experienced Outcomes

“…The second (post‐implementation) stage combined discourse analysis with semi‐structured interviews (interviews hereafter), an approach adopted in other accounting (Dai et al ., 2019) and public sector accounting‐related (Ezzamel et al ., 2007; Agasisti et al ., 2008; Goddard, 2010; Harun and Robinson, 2010; Hyndman and Connolly, 2011; Pollanen and Loiselle‐Lapointe, 2012; Becker et al ., 2014; Hyndman et al ., 2014) research. Interviews can complement and enrich the findings of discourse analysis (Gephart, 2004), allowing researchers the ‘freedom to digress and capture individual perspectives and experiences that go back in time’ (Narayan and Stittle, 2018, p. 508) and ‘go below the radar in order to establish what's happening and how decision‐makers view developments’ (Heald and Hodges, 2018, p. 19). In our research, the discourse analysis enhanced our understanding of official (macro) assessment of the reforms at their pre‐ and post‐implementation stages, with the interviews developing our appreciation of the extent to which the reforms have operated ‘on the ground’.…”

“…As our research involves accounting reforms that span over 20 years, it was important to engage with well‐informed respondents who could reflect on their experiences and perceptions of the accounting reforms. Thus, as illustrated above, the interviewees were holders of a long ‘institutional memory’ that enabled them to answer questions related to the period of the research (Narayan and Stittle, 2018, p. 509).…”

“…For example, institutional theory ( IT ) has been cited as ‘a powerful theory’ (Goddard et al ., 2016, p. 11) which helps to explain why institutions choose to conform to what is deemed as the accepted rules, practices, and norms of their internal and external environments, over what is rational or needed (Meyer and Rowan, 1977; DiMaggio and Powell, 1983; Covaleski and Dirsmith, 1988; Selznick, 1996; Greenwood et al ., 2008). It represents a way of thinking about the relationship between formal organizational structures and the social processes that contribute to the development of these structures (Dillard et al ., 2004), providing a perspective for understanding the factors that influence change, together with how it is legitimated, in the public domain (Frumkin and Galaskiewicz, 2004; Jacobs and Jones, 2009; Jacobs, 2012; Goddard et al ., 2016; Narayan and Stittle, 2018; Alvesson and Spicer, 2019). Battilana and D'Aunno (2009) distinguish between old and neo‐institutional studies, with the former being prevalent in the 1950s and 1960s and viewing actors (individuals or organizations) as the primary agents of change.…”

“…Research on NPM‐driven public sector accounting reforms has been substantial: for example, on accruals accounting (Connolly and Hyndman, 2006; Lapsley, 2008; Adhikari and Gårseth‐Nesbakk, 2016); on consolidated accounting (Chow et al ., 2007, 2008, 2019; Heald and Georgiou, 2009, 2011); on international accounting standards (Connolly and Wall, 2012; Brusca et al ., 2013; Christiaens et al ., 2015; Gomes et al ., 2015); and accounting change more broadly (Lapsley, 1999, 2009; Ezzamel et al ., 2013; Bracci et al ., 2015; Hyndman et al ., 2019). Prior research has typically concentrated on a single reform and the tensions or unintended negative consequences of its introduction, with little being known about the extent to which claimed benefits have been achieved post implementation (Hepworth, 2015; Narayan and Stittle, 2018).…”

The development and use of performance measures in New Zealand tertiary education institutions

“…In New Zealand, the role of accounting and the use of research performance measurement have been questioned. Narayan and Stittle (2018) highlighted processes of accounting polarising teaching and research. Curtis (2008: 179) revealed ‘how a rhetoric of rewarding excellence in research is subordinated to a new mangerialist thrust for efficiency’ while Narayan (2012) noted that performance based research funding drives the research culture of tertiary institutions.…”