2021 Volume 29 Issue 1 Pages 3-17
This paper aims to clarify the current status and challenges of inter-organizational management accounting research on customer relationships. First, the paper focuses on the diversity of customer relationship views and shows that three research types have been developed: provider-led approach, interactive approach, and customer-led approach. Next, a review of the studies reveals that while the roles of management accounting in collaboration with customers have been discussed for various stages from a specific stage to a series of business processes, there is still a lack of understanding of the new collaborative challenges arising from increased customer participation. Finally, three issues are proposed for future research: the tension between horizontal and hierarchical relationships and its management, the roles of customer relationship managers and teams and their coordination, and the effects and problems of promoting works and projects that emphasize active participation of customers.
