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An exploratory study of operational reasons to budget

Author

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  • Prabhu Sivabalan
  • Peter Booth
  • Teemu Malmi
  • David A. Brown

Abstract

Budgets are used widely but criticized, mainly for performance evaluation reasons. We find that organizations regard budgets as more important for planning and control than evaluation, thus proposing a rationale for their continued use irrespective of evaluation‐based criticisms. This finding is also important, because most extant budget research focuses on evaluation, suggesting a potential disconnect between budget research and practice. We also find that rolling forecasts are used in tandem with the annual budget in most organizations, and for the same reasons. This was unexpected, as coexistence suggests their adoption for different reasons.

Suggested Citation

  • Prabhu Sivabalan & Peter Booth & Teemu Malmi & David A. Brown, 2009. "An exploratory study of operational reasons to budget," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 49(4), pages 849-871, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:acctfi:v:49:y:2009:i:4:p:849-871
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-629X.2009.00305.x
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    Cited by:

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    2. Tiina Henttu-Aho, 2018. "The role of rolling forecasting in budgetary control systems: reactive and proactive types of planning," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 29(3), pages 327-360, December.
    3. Howard M. Armitage & Dorian Lane & Alan Webb, 2020. "Budget Development and Use in Small‐ and Medium‐Sized Enterprises: A Field Investigation," Accounting Perspectives, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 19(3), pages 205-240, September.
    4. Mareike Bergmann & Christian Brück & Thorsten Knauer & Anja Schwering, 2020. "Digitization of the budgeting process: determinants of the use of business analytics and its effect on satisfaction with the budgeting process," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 25-54, April.
    5. Chadi Joseph Khalifeh & Prabhu Sivabalan, 2014. "An Experimental Study on the Effect of Budget Information on Balanced Scorecard Preparer Individual Learning," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 24(1), pages 39-52, March.
    6. Bhimani, Alnoor & Sivabalan, Prabhu & Soonawalla, Kazbi, 2018. "A study of the linkages between rolling budget forms, uncertainty and strategy," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(3), pages 306-323.
    7. Tiina Henttu-Aho & Janne J�rvinen, 2013. "A Field Study of the Emerging Practice of Beyond Budgeting in Industrial Companies: An Institutional Perspective," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(4), pages 765-785, December.
    8. Rodney Coyte & Martin Messner & Shan Zhou, 2022. "The revival of zero‐based budgeting: drivers and consequences of firm‐level adoptions," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(3), pages 3147-3188, September.
    9. Derfuss, Klaus, 2016. "Reconsidering the participative budgeting–performance relation: A meta-analysis regarding the impact of level of analysis, sample selection, measurement, and industry influences," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 17-37.

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