Contextual Factors Influencing Management Accounting Practices Adopted by Large Manufacturing Companies in Kenya

Abstract

This study explores the contextual factors that influence management accounting practices adopted by large manufacturing companies located in Nairobi, Kenya. well. This paper reports on a descriptive survey design that was intended to establish the characteristics of the population in the context of the various factors that have potential influence on the adopted practices. The findings indicate that both traditional and advanced management accounting techniques are practiced by the surveyed organizations. Advanced management accounting techniques notably; customer satisfaction, quality and innovation and on time delivery have been adopted, while traditional management accounting techniques such as ; incremental budgeting, variable costing, standard costing and variance analysis, sales and return on investment are being maintained. The study suggests that increased global competition, organization strategy and organization structure as contextual variables that largely influence the practices adopted by the surveyed organizations.

Keywords: Management accounting practices, Adoption, Contextual variables, Kenya