Responding to the Leadership Needs of the Accounting Profession: A Module for Developing a Leadership Mindset in Accounting Students

Surveys of practitioners point to the importance of leadership skills in the accounting profession. However, leadership is not currently emphasized much within accounting curricula. Further, a review of the accounting education literature indicates a lack of instructional resources for accounting fa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Issues in accounting education 2012-05, Vol.27 (2), p.525-554
Main Authors: Bloch, Janel, Brewer, Peter C., Stout, David E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accounting
Accounting firms
Core curriculum
Cost accounting
Curriculum development
Education
Educational Resources
Employers
Leadership
Leadership training
Learning
Management accounting
Organizational change
Professional practice
Professionals
Students
Studies
Teaching
Teaching methods
Thinking Skills
Undergraduate Students
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Summary:Surveys of practitioners point to the importance of leadership skills in the accounting profession. However, leadership is not currently emphasized much within accounting curricula. Further, a review of the accounting education literature indicates a lack of instructional resources for accounting faculty desiring to help students develop leadership skills. As a result, accounting students may graduate without the mindset required to think of themselves as potential leaders. Therefore, there are opportunities to add value to accounting curricula by intervening in the area of leadership development. This article describes one such intervention that can be used as part of a comprehensive approach to leadership development. The primary goal of this three-week module is modest but important: to help instill a leadership mindset in accounting students. The class-tested module consists of targeted cases and supplementary readings covering six primary leadership topics. These topics were selected to build upon leadership material covered in a basic management course. While the module was used in undergraduate cost accounting, it (or a suitably reduced version of it) is appropriate for use in other accounting courses, particularly upper-level courses. This article offers implementation guidance and resources for the accounting instructor, including access to electronic files that can be used to teach the module. Assessment data from the students who recently completed this module indicate that they viewed the module as a beneficial learning experience.
ISSN:0739-3172
1558-7983
DOI:10.2308/iace-50125