An Analysis of the Use of Accounting Information by Australian Small Business

AN ANALYSIS OF THE USE OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION BY AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS Small business owner/managers rarely have ready acces to all of the information and skills one might regard as ideal for conducting all aspects of their businesses. Recent studies in various Australian locations have indicated that practicing accountants are an important source of advice to small business owners (a small business is, for the purpose of this discussion, defined as a business with a maximum of twenty employees, including the owners). However, few studies have specifically addressed the relevance of accounting information for economic decision making by small business owner/managers, or the amount and/or type of advice actually sought by small business owner/managers from their accountants. These areas are investigated in this article, with particular reference to capital investment decisions and those factors which influence the acquisition or preparation of accounting information. The authors would like to thank the Australian Bureau of Statistics for advice and assistance with the survey of small businesses. (1)See K. Fargher, "Problems kof Small Manufacturing Business in Australia," unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of New South Wales, 1971; D.Back, "The Practicing Accountantin Queensland as an Advisor to Small Firms," Department of Commerce, James Cook University, 1978; W. Glen, "Information Generation and the Small Business Finance Function," The Australian Accountant (January/ February, 1985), pp.4247. Dr. Holmes is a lecturer in the Department of Commerce, Australian National University. He has published several articles in the professional literateture relating to the information requirements of small firms and has been an instructor for the New Enterprise Incentive Schemes in the Australian Capital Territory. He is an executive member of the Small Enterprises Association of Australia and New Zealand. Mr. Nicholls is a Reader in Statistics in the Faculty of Economic and Commerce at the Australian National University. The quantitative information summarized and analyzed in this article was obtained from two separate largescale surveys conducted in mid-1986. One survey sought relevant information from small business; the second was conducted among practicing accountants. Both target groups were surveyed in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. The surveys were aimed at investigating the degree to which small business owner/managers acquire and/or prepare accounting information for use in making business decisions or for statutory purposes, with particular emphasis on the evaluation of capital investment proposals. Variables which influence the preparation of accounting information were also examined. SAMPLE AND METHOD The small business survey was designed to obtain information from small business owner/managers about: . the accounting information produced within the firm or sought externally from accounting professionals; . the information used to assist in capital investment decisions and the role of practicing accountants in providing such information; . the use of written operating and capital budgets by small business; and . the variables influencing the preparation/acquisition of accounting information. In devising the sample frame of firms with which to investigate these questions, the aim was to obtain coverage in a number of different locations and across major industry groups. Accordingly, a stratified sample of 3,780 small firms was selected, consisting of 180 firms from each of the seven industry groups in three locations (Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane). Some 17 percent of the original sample were found to be "dead" listings, reducing the number of small firms surveyed to 3,140. Usable questionnaires were returned by 928 firms, a response rate of about 30 percent. …