Accounting, accountability and governance in hybrid organizations

Hybrid organizations are ubiquitous and their accounting, accountability and governance structures can be complex. We broadly refer to hybrid organizations as those organizational forms where public, private and civil societies interact through various logics, ownerships, funding sources and forms of control. In this chapter, we aim to provide a thought-provoking synthesis of the empirical and theoretical works that address the complex relations among accounting, accountability and governance within hybrid organizations. We examine some of the accounting and accountability systems adopted by hybrid organizations and how those impact and are impacted by the hybrid’s governance structures. We address questions related to the adequacy of existing accounting and accountability theories in the context of hybrid organizations. We anticipate that hybrids will continue to morph and evolve, and so we conclude this chapter by highlighting knowledge gaps that can serve as new paths to further discoveries at the unique intersection of hybrids, accounting, accountability and governance domains of study.