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Coordination in a not-for-profit organisation during the COVID-19 pandemic: organisational sensemaking during planning meetings

Ralph Kober (Department of Accounting, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia)
Paul J. Thambar (Department of Accounting, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia)

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal

ISSN: 0951-3574

Article publication date: 24 June 2022

Issue publication date: 8 May 2023

592

Abstract

Purpose

The authors examine how a not-for-profit organisation (NPO) coordinates NPO's actions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic to remain focussed on strategic and operational goals.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a live case study of an NPO as the crises caused by the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded. Drawing on a sensemaking perspective that incorporates sensegiving, the authors develop a framework of five types of organisational sensemaking. The authors analyse weekly planning meetings during which managers discussed past performance, forecast performance and the forecast duration of current cash reserves.

Findings

The authors show how three of the five types of organisational sensemaking helped to coordinate actions. The authors highlight how accounting information triggers organisational sensemaking processes; but depending on the type of organisational sensemaking, accounting information has little further role. The authors also show that the stability of decisions depends on the types of organisational sensemaking.

Practical implications

The authors show how coordination as a management control practice is enabled by organisational sensemaking within an NPO during a crisis. Organisational sensemaking enabled the agreement of actions, which enabled coordination. Accounting practices provided trigger mechanisms to facilitate organisational sensemaking.

Originality/value

Since this study is the first to examine sensemaking processes and accounting practices in coordination in an NPO in a pandemic, the authors contribute to the limited research on NPOs during crises and on the management control practice of coordination. The authors extend the accounting literature on sensemaking by showing that, whilst accounting triggers organisational sensemaking, accounting is only implicated in one type of organisational sensemaking and by revealing the different outcomes of the different types of organisational sensemaking.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the staff of The One Box and The Fruit Box for the support and time. In particular, the authors would like to thank Martin Halphen for allowing access and Vivien Yii and Brendan Shaw who were extremely generous with their time. The authors also express appreciation to Matt Hall, Kalle Kraus and colleagues in the Monash University Department of Accounting Management Accounting Cluster for their helpful and constructive feedback. The authors would also like to thank conference participants at the 13th EIASM Workshop on the Challenges of Managing the Third Sector (June 2021), the Performance Measurement Association Conference (June 2021), and MASOP (April, 2022) for the feedback. Finally, and definitely not least, the authors would also like to thank the editors of the special issue, especially Audrey Paterson, and the two anonymous reviewers for the constructive feedback and support. The review process and comments by the reviewers have improved the paper. Funding for this research was provided by an industry grant from The One Box and a research grant from the Department of Accounting, Monash Business School. The financial support of both is gratefully acknowledged.

Citation

Kober, R. and Thambar, P.J. (2023), "Coordination in a not-for-profit organisation during the COVID-19 pandemic: organisational sensemaking during planning meetings", Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Vol. 36 No. 4, pp. 1137-1166. https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-08-2021-5408

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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