Radical changes to public service delivery have swept across many regions of the world. Management accounting methods are vital to support operational and strategic decision making in public services internationally. This book provides a comprehensive and "leading-edge" guide to the topic.

Written by an expert scholar with practical experience of public service delivery, the book takes account of key trends such as increased demand for public services, financial austerity, technological change and enhanced performance management.

A globally relevant book, informed by cutting edge academic research and benefitting from integrated case studies, this is essential reading for both students and practitioners involved with the financial aspects of public services management.

About the Author

Malcolm J. Prowle is currently a professor at the Gloucestershire Business School who has extensive experience of public services finance, in the UK and overseas.

Reviews

"This book comes when public services, face three major challenges: the austerity legacy; the pandemic and climate change. These require new strategic thinking and make unprecedented demands on decision makers. Without sound information, through good management accounting, decisions are made in ignorance. With its emphasis on strategic issues, it should be essential reading for public sector managers and accountants alike." - Roger Latham CPFA, Former Chief Executive and County Treasurer, Nottinghamshire County Council, Past president of CIPFA

"This book offers an interesting and complete analysis of the crucial role Management Accounting should play in public services. It is written in a format for international relevance, both for students and public managers. Its contribution is very necessary in the current economic context of countries like Spain that are facing the challenge of optimizing their public spending." - Dr Carolina Pontones Rosa, Associate Professor, Public sector accounting, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain

"Professor Prowle utilises his wealth of practitioner and scholarly experience, advanced methods and applied case studies to explore and bring alive the impact of high quality management accounting on decision-making across the public sector. Traditionalist to contemporary, operations to strategic, performance to risk; this book compares and contrasts through expert-informed, well-researched and lived insight." - Dr Peter Cross CPFA, Chief Financial Officer, De Montfort University, Leicester, Former NHS finance director

"An excellent book that covers wide areas of management accounting in public sector organisations. It is one of a few books that address the context of the public sector in which management accounting operates at the international level. With its practical applications, the book will be useful for both managers and students in my country." - Dr. Ali Alyamoor, Senior lecturer in management accounting, University of Mosul, Iraq

"Malcolm Prowle puts management accounting into the context of public services, and from there goes on to elucidate how best to apply state-of-the-art approaches at a practical level. This involves considering the various strategic and operational decisions that face public services and examining the potential relevance and applicability of management accounting methods in each case." - Rob Whiteman, Chief Executive, CIPFA

"An easily accessible and informative book for anyone keen to develop knowledge and understanding of the role of management accounting in public sector decision making. A vitally useful source for all public service managers grappling with a plethora of financial and practical challenges, resulting from increased demand and supply-chain pressures, made more complex in our post-Covid 19 world." - Lynne Barrow, CPFA, Assistant Dean (International), Hull University Business School

"The title of Professor Prowle's book does scant justice to its relevance. Consistent with the premise that management accounting is a vital tool for decision making across a broad range of public sector organisations and functions, the text itself is much more than an arid accounting textbook. Using straightforward language, and drawing on numerous examples from the author's extensive practical experience, it is as much about management as it is about accounting. While undoubtedly an invaluable resource for members of the management accounting profession, this book is also essential reading for anyone who is, or aspires to become, a financially literate public sector manager.

Professor Prowle's book is also highly relevant for those who are tasked with leading public services in the developing world. Without undue reliance on specialist language, it provides a clear explanation of key concepts in public sector management, describes the vital role that information can play in guiding both operational and strategic decision making, and explores the contributions that management accounting can make in support of efforts to improve or reform public services. As such, the book occupies an important 'sweet spot' between generic management textbooks and more technical material." - Philip Davies, Former Permanent Secretary, Fiji Government Ministry of Health & Medical Services, Former Deputy Secretary, Australian Government Department of Health & Ageing, Former Vice-Chair, WHO Executive Board

"This book comes when public services face three major challenges: the austerity legacy; the pandemic and climate change. These require new strategic thinking and make unprecedented demands on decision makers. Without sound information, good management accounting, decisions are made in ignorance. With its emphasis on strategic issues, it should be essential reading for public sector managers and accountants alike." - Roger Latham, CPFA, Former Chief Executive and County Treasurer, Nottinghamshire County Council, Past president of CIPFA

"This book offers an interesting and complete analysis of the crucial role Management Accounting should play in public services. It is written in a format for international relevance, both for students and public managers. Its contribution is very necessary in the current economic context of countries like Spain that are facing the challenge of optimizing their public spending." - Dr Carolina Pontones Rosa, Associate Professor, Public Sector Accounting, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain

"Professor Prowle utilises his wealth of practitioner and scholarly experience, advanced methods and applied case studies to explore and bring alive the impact of high quality management accounting on decision-making across the public sector. Traditionalist to contemporary, operations to strategic, performance to risk; this book compares and contrasts through expert-informed, well-researched and lived insight." - Dr Peter Cross, CPFA, Chief Financial Officer, De Montfort University, Leicester, Former NHS Finance Director

"An excellent book that covers wide areas of management accounting in public sector organisations. It is one of a few books that address the context of the public sector in which management accounting operates at the international level. With its practical applications, the book will be useful for both managers and students in my country." - Dr Ali Alyamoor, Senior Lecturer in Management Accounting, University of Mosul, Iraq

"Malcolm Prowle puts management accounting into the context of public services, and from there goes on to elucidate how best to apply state-of-the-art approaches at a practical level. This involves considering the various strategic and operational decisions that face public services and examining the potential relevance and applicability of management accounting methods in each case." - Rob Whiteman, CPFA, Chief Executive, CIPFA

"An easily accessible and informative book for anyone keen to develop knowledge and understanding of the role of management accounting in public sector decision making. A vitally useful source for all public service managers grappling with a plethora of financial and practical challenges, resulting from increased demand and supply-chain pressures, made more complex in our post-Covid 19 world." - Lynne Barrow, CPFA, Assistant Dean (International), Hull University Business School

"The title of Professor Prowle's book does scant justice to its relevance. Consistent with the premise that management accounting is a vital tool for decision making across a broad range of public sector organisations and functions, the text itself is much more than an arid accounting textbook. Using straightforward language, and drawing on numerous examples from the author's extensive practical experience, it is as much about management as it is about accounting. While undoubtedly an invaluable resource for members of the management accounting profession, this book is also essential reading for anyone who is, or aspires to become, a financially literate public sector manager.

Professor Prowle's book is also highly relevant for those who are tasked with leading public services in the developing world. Without undue reliance on specialist language, it provides a clear explanation of key concepts in public sector management, describes the vital role that information can play in guiding both operational and strategic decision making, and explores the contributions that management accounting can make in support of efforts to improve or reform public services. As such, the book occupies an important 'sweet spot' between generic management textbooks and more technical material." - Philip Davies, Former Permanent Secretary, Fiji Government Ministry of Health & Medical Services, Former Deputy Secretary, Australian Government Department of Health & Ageing, Former Vice-Chair, WHO Executive Board

Book Information
ISBN 9781138366176
Author Malcolm J. Prowle
Format Paperback
Page Count 262
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 453g