Accounting and Control

The output of the department of Accounting belies its compact size; its faculty members and researchers are highly active and internationally influential. “We investigate issues that are of importance to academics and practitioners alike; in management accounting and control, financial analysis and valuation, and auditing,” says Chair Prof. Erik Peek. “Thus, we focus on generating practically relevant insights based on high-quality research to address questions that live amongst our stakeholders. This includes the business community of accountants, controllers, and financial advisors and managers.”

Our department creates and disseminates state-of-the-art knowledge about how accounting information facilitates economically and socially sound business decisions. We’re raising the awareness of business leaders to the pivotal role played by accounting in providing all kinds of information to and from organisations, and to and from markets.

Prof. Erik Peek, Department Chair

Our passion

“We have a diverse audience, from first-year bachelor students, to master and PhD students,” says Prof. Peek. “Yet we are also heavily engaged in executive programmes,” he points out. Many of RSM’s education programmes include personal development, and prepare students, academics and people in business to be a force for positive change as critical, creative, caring and collaborative thinkers and doers. “Our flagship MSc programme in Accounting and Financial Management trains the accountants and financial managers of the future to be ethical and strategic business partners, besides developing their technical accounting knowledge. Our passion is excellence in teaching, and sharing new knowledge and insights interactively with students and practitioners.”

Understanding behaviour and practice

The department’s research incorporates economic and behavioural insights that address current business issues and allow organisations and people to prosper. “Our interdisciplinary approach makes us well-equipped to tackle practically relevant questions,” Prof. Peek explains. “This enables us to comprehend people’s behaviour in response to performance measures and incentives. It also assists us in our analysis and understanding of the role of accounting information in capital markets.” Moreover, having academics with business experience among its staff helps ensure the practical relevance of the department’s teaching and research activities, and to create a positive impact in business.

A vital discipline

“Through our teaching and research and our position at the forefront of accounting knowledge creation and dissemination, we make people conscious of the vital role that accounting information plays in organisations and markets. The insights we help generate are crucial input to many business decisions such as marketing and strategic decisions, and to society in general.”

PhD vacancy in Accounting

This Ph.D. project focuses on advancing research in accounting with a possible emphasis on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors and sustainability issues. The research will explore innovative questions related to both financial and non-financial performance measurement and reporting, and/or the role of accounting in designing systems that encourage responsible behaviour, align employee actions with corporate goals, and support decision-making and governance.

Full vacancy details

About our research

Research expertise

Accounting research group

Throughout its activities ERIM has five distinct areas of research in management:

Business Processes, Logistics & Information Systems (LIS)
Organisation (ORG)
Finance & Accounting (F&A)
Marketing (MKT)
Strategy & Entrepreneurship (S&E)

Finance and Accounting at ERIM

With a remit to enhance understanding of the financial decision-making of firms, managers and market participants, as well as the functioning of financial markets and intermediaries, ERIM’s Finance and Accounting programme strives to develop high-quality scientific research that brings new insights and practical benefits to a broad audience in the finance and accounting profession as well as to policy institutions involved in the monitoring and regulation of the sector.

One of the largest and most respected finance and accounting groups in the world, the programme contributes significantly to management science and management practice through a combination of research, knowledge transfer, co-creation and education.

Publications

2024

Ahci, M. (2024). Less is More: Peer Learning from Nondisclosures. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4792479
Ahci, M., & Joos, P. (2024). Text-Based Innovation Measure and Firm Performance. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4797745
Pruijssers, J., & van Rinsum, M. (2024). The Effects of Client Importance and Career Concerns on Auditors’ Judgment Conservatism. Behavioral Research in Accounting, 36(1), 67-84. https://doi.org/10.2308/bria-2022-031
Margolin, M., Reimer, M., & Schaupp, D. (Accepted/In press). The Effects of Real-Time Feedback on Effort and Performance: Evidence from a Natural Quasi-Experiment. Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.02084
Madelaine, A. (2024). Negative Externalities of Regulation: Identity-relevant Information in Mandatory Short-selling Disclosures. Abacus, 60(4), 892-934. https://doi.org/10.1111/abac.12339
Kramer, S., & Matějka, M. (2024). Disturbing the quiet life? Competition and CEO incentives. The Accounting Review, 99(2), 279-305. https://doi.org/10.2308/tar-2022-0393
Kohlhase, S. (2024). How multinational corporations choose to organise foreign affiliates. RSM Discovery. https://www.rsm.nl/discovery/2024/organise-foreign-affiliates/
de Jong, A., Ghazizadeh, P., Schlingemann, F. P., & Shazia, F. (2024). Why do managers announce the intention to sell large assets? International Review of Finance, 24(4), 641-668. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/irfi.12461
Cardinaels, E., Kramer, S., & Maas, V. S. (Accepted/In press). Navigating Through the Noise: The Effect of Color-Coded Performance Feedback on Decision-Making. Contemporary Accounting Research, 41(2), 1031-1057. https://doi.org/10.1111/1911-3846.12932
Kramer, S. (2024). The Big Birthday Crisis: Exploring the Influence of 9-Ending Ages on CEO Behavior and Firm Outcomes.

Education

Bachelor Programme

The department of Accounting and Control contributes to the curriculum of both the Bachelor of Science in International Business Administration (IBA) programme and the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Bedrijfskunde) programme.

The department provides courses in financial and managerial accounting. In addition to introductory courses, we also offer two minors and bachelor research projects.

Master Programme

In today’s business world, performance is key. But what is performance, and when is it adequate? And can we design performance measurement systems and corporate governance systems that help managers to make adequate decisions? In the MScBA in Accounting and Financial Management, we provide you with theories and experience that help you answer these questions. We focus on preparing, auditing, analyzing and using (non-)financial information for decision purposes and evaluation purposes.

Research Master in Business and Management

Whether you aspire to an international academic career, or want to do research in the wider world of business, the Research Master in Business and Management provides the ideal preparation. In this exclusive master programme offered by the high-ranking research institute ERIM, a select group of students will be taught by top researchers in management. With no more than 30 students, the two-year programme offers individual supervision, a highly personal approach and the opportunity to pursue your own research interests.

PhD in Management

Talented young researchers get the opportunity to do pioneering and innovative PhD research at ERIM, a top research institute in Europe. In its PhD programme in Management, ERIM offers PhD candidates personal supervision by internationally acclaimed management researchers and excellent research facilities, including a state-of-the-art behavioural lab and advanced survey technology. In addition, a special support programme pays for research expenses like conference visits, international research visits, and data collection. All ERIM’s PhD students are paid a competitive salary and receive career development support.

Faculty

The faculty members and researchers are highly active and internationally influential. They investigate issues that are of importance to academics and practitioners alike; in management accounting and control, financial analysis and valuation, and auditing. Find out who they are here.

View all faculty in the department