Burchell et al. (1980) discuss different roles of information in decision-making depending on
the level of uncertainty. These roles are defined along two dimensions: uncertainty of
objectives and uncertainty of cause and effect. Accounting information is one type of
information that can be used as a ‘learning machine’. Accounting information can help to
evaluate how objectives might be achieved by quantifying the financial impact of each
alternative available to the decision.
We propose that accounting information is particularly useful in operations management
when uncertainty over the consequences of action is caused by uncertainty about the weights
of the diverse effects of an action. The effects of a decision are various and expressed in
different units of measurement, e.g. number of units produced, lead-time of processes,
reliability of processes, service towards customers, inventory levels, capacity utilization
levels, number of different products. One source of uncertainty is lack of knowledge
regarding which effects will occur.
Rajiv, D. and Banker, Hsihui. Chang. (2002). under the title. “Impact of Information
Technology on Public Accounting Firm Productivity", this study focuses on five offices of an
international public accounting firm that recently made large IT investments, primarily in
audit software and knowledge-sharing applications. Both qualitative and quantitative
information from the research site are analyzed to estimate the change in productivity