Research on the Development of Management Accounting in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in China

Abstract

In the early 20 th century, management accounting was created with Taylor’s theory of scientific management. Management accounting is a continuous improvement process that provides value added value, design, measure and manage financial and non-financial information systems for enterprises. This process directs the management actions, motivates behaviour, supports and creates cultural values, which are needed to achieve organizational strategy, tactics and business objectives. The research and application of management accounting in China started late. It started in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During the period of about 30 years, management accounting has made great progress in both theory and practice. Many facts have proved that China’s management accounting has gradually shifted from quantity and quota management to management of cost and value, and from project and department management to comprehensive and strategic management. In recent years, with the implementation of fiscal policies such as department budget, investment review and performance appraisal, “comprehensive budget”, “zero-base budget”, “budget control”, “responsibility assessment” and other modern management accounting theories and methods have been applied in various enterprises in China. But the time that management accounting is formed and developed in China is not long after all. There are many defects and deficiencies in China’s management accounting. The theoretical structure, scope of research and practical application of management accounting are to be improved and enriched, and there is still considerable space for development. The problem is more serious in small and medium-sized enterprises [1] . This paper studies the current development status of management accounting in small and medium-sized enterprises and factors that affect the management accounting in the small and medium-sized enterprises, then proposes solutions to meet the development needs of management accounting in small and medium-sized enterprises.