Strategy and Digital Transformation in Accounting, Auditing, and Management

A Special Issue of Systems (ISSN 2079-8954) belonging to the section "Systems Practice in Social Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2027 | Viewed by 1486

Editors


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CEOS.PP, ISCAP, Polytechnic Institute of Porto, 4465-004 Matosinhos, Portugal
Interests: financial reporting; non-financial reporting; corporate social responsibility; accounting information system; digital accounting and decision-making

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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The rapid advancement of digital technologies is profoundly reshaping organizations, with particularly significant implications for accounting, auditing, and management practices. In the accounting domain, digital transformation goes far beyond the mere adoption of new technologies; it entails deep changes in accounting information systems, management control mechanisms, reporting processes, governance structures, and the strategic role of accounting information in decision-making, value creation, and organizational control.

This Special Issue aims to investigate how strategic planning supports, guides, and accelerates digital transformation, with a strong emphasis on accounting-related contexts while maintaining an integrative perspective across auditing and management. It seeks to advance theoretical understanding and provide empirical evidence on how organizations design, implement, and evaluate digital strategies that directly affect accounting systems, management accounting practices, auditing processes, and performance measurement frameworks.

Particular attention is devoted to the impact of emerging digital technologies—such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics, blockchain, cloud computing, and automation—on accounting functions and professional roles. This Special Issue highlights how these technologies reshape accounting practices, influence management control systems, transform auditing activities, and challenge existing models of corporate governance, transparency, and accountability.

The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following:

  • strategic planning for digital transformation in accounting;
  • the integration of digital tools into accounting and management control systems;
  • changes in financial and management reporting; the transformation of auditing processes;
  • implications of digitalization for accounting education, professional judgment, and skills development;
  • and the role of strategy in ensuring sustainable, ethical, and responsible digital transformation.

Contributions adopting quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods approaches, as well as conceptual and interdisciplinary studies with a strong accounting focus, are particularly encouraged.

Dr. Catarina Cepêda
Dr. Albertina Paula Monteiro
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • digital transformation
  • strategy
  • accounting
  • management control systems
  • management accounting
  • auditing
  • big data analytics
  • artificial intelligence
  • blockchain
  • corporate governance
  • accounting information systems

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

39 pages, 539 KB  
Article
Analytical Framework for Professional Accounting Judgment in Recognizing Revenue from Contracts with Customers in the Context of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence
by Kiril Luchkov and Nadya Velinova-Sokolova
Systems 2026, 14(9), 1105; https://doi.org/10.3390/systems14091105 - 7 Sep 2026
Abstract
This study develops an analytical framework for professional accounting judgment in recognizing revenue from contracts with customers in the context of digitalization and artificial intelligence. The research gap concerns the limited integration of specific IFRS 15 judgment areas, digitally assisted contract analysis, professional [...] Read more.
This study develops an analytical framework for professional accounting judgment in recognizing revenue from contracts with customers in the context of digitalization and artificial intelligence. The research gap concerns the limited integration of specific IFRS 15 judgment areas, digitally assisted contract analysis, professional approval, and control traceability. The framework is designed as a systems-based decision-support structure that links IFRS 15 criteria, relevant contractual terms and circumstances, technological support, professional accounting judgment, and audit traceability. It does not replace the standard’s five-step model. The methodological design comprises three components: normative analysis, structured illustrative scenario analysis, and a single-round exploratory expert-panel assessment. The illustrative scenarios are based on generalized recurring situations from Bulgarian accounting practice. The panel included 26 specialists in financial reporting, auditing, financial control, and accounting information systems. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and complementary indicators of internal consistency and ranking concordance. The results indicate favorable evaluations of terminological compatibility with IFRS 15, alignment with the five-step model, and documentation of professional accounting judgment. Documentation received the highest mean score (4.77), whereas digitally assisted analysis (4.12) and the constraint on variable consideration (4.19) received more moderate scores. These results indicate that system-generated outputs require clear professional justification, approval, and a traceable control record. The scientific contribution is a four-component framework comprising normative, contractual-analytical, technological, and control levels. It organizes digitally assisted revenue recognition while keeping professional accounting judgment central. Full article
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23 pages, 5960 KB  
Article
Digital Transformation and Audit Pricing: The Learning Curve Effect
by Andreea Georgiana Pascaru, Camelia-Daniela Hategan and Ruxandra-Ioana Pitorac
Systems 2026, 14(5), 590; https://doi.org/10.3390/systems14050590 - 21 May 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 711
Abstract
Digital transformation involves a systemic restructuring of companies’ business processes. The objective of the study is to analyze the impact of digital transformation, represented by intangible assets, on audit service fees. A sample of 1170 listed European companies was used during the period [...] Read more.
Digital transformation involves a systemic restructuring of companies’ business processes. The objective of the study is to analyze the impact of digital transformation, represented by intangible assets, on audit service fees. A sample of 1170 listed European companies was used during the period 2018–2023. To test the digital transformation, three indicators containing intangible assets were chosen: the ratio of intangible assets to total assets, their variation in the current year and their variation in the previous year. Using fixed-effect regressions and OLS, we obtain that audit fees increase when the asset structure contains a higher share of intangible assets. The results show that a complex asset structure is related to an increase in the audit effort. Also, initial investments in digital transformation are associated with an increase in fees in the first year. However, a reduction in costs is observed, starting from the second year after the investment in digitalization. This dynamic is consistent with the theoretical model of the Learning Curve, suggesting that although digitalization is initially associated with high assimilation costs, it correlates with increased efficiency in the long term. Systemic adaptation of auditors to the structure and complexity of intangible assets improves the efficiency of the entire governance mechanism. Full article
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