CENTRALIZATION OF MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING: FORMATION OF A UNIFIED INFORMATION FIELD FOR CORPORATIONS

Abstract

The study confirmed that the complex organizational structure of corporate enterprises, business diversification, separation of powers of owners and management, as well as the impact on the market and social institutions create specific requirements for the management system as a whole, and for accounting as its information support in particular. From the standpoint of institutionalism, the corporation functions as an organizational and legal institution that interacts with the external environment and creates internal formal and informal institutions to achieve its goals. The nature of corporate relations directly determines the features of the formation of the accounting system, primarily management accounting. The effectiveness of management in integrated structures largely depends on determining the optimal level of centralization of management functions. Three main levels of centralization (low, medium, high) are distinguished, each of which is characterized by a different distribution of powers between the managing institution and its structural units. Centralization can be achieved both through the direct transfer of functions to the central body and through the unification of procedures and regulations. Centralization of the accounting function is recognized as a primary condition for the implementation of centralization of management. The main factors that encourage this are: inconsistency of analytical data, problems of integration of heterogeneous information systems and lack of consolidated information on the group's activities. It has been established that the individualization of accounting rules, although it takes into account the specifics of the enterprise, contradicts the integration processes and requirements of corporate governance. To ensure high-quality information support for management, it is necessary to combine centralized and decentralized approaches in the formation of accounting policy. This involves the development of a single Working Chart of Accounts with a detailed structure (including additional sub-accounts and analytical features) to ensure monitoring and control. Such unification will allow obtaining comparable and objective information necessary for making effective management decisions, especially regarding specific costs (for example, transactional). The corporate status of accounting policies and management accounting standards is mandatory for all enterprises of the group, approved by the management company, and allows achieving transparency and usefulness of information for management. The use of modern information technologies in this context enables automatic data consolidation and generation of various analytical reports.