Negotiation competencies and their application by CFOs in Maltese listed companies

Abstract

Purpose: This dissertation studies how CFOs make use of the negotiation process in a number of accounting settings and determines the main negotiation styles used by CFOs in their day-­‐to-­‐day work. Design: The objectives of this dissertation were achieved through a series of semi-­‐ structured interviews with CFOs of local listed companies. A thorough investigation of the literature was undertaken in order to understand how the fields of accounting and negotiation interact through the role of the CFO. Findings: The findings show that CFOs acknowledge the importance of negotiation in their role as CFOs. Furthermore, the findings outline that negotiation varies depending on the accounting context. It was also determined that negotiation competencies are most important in the budget setting process and in bank loan negotiations. The findings also demonstrate that CFOs prefer to adopt a collaborative negotiation style, although they may at times exhibit competitive behaviour. Conclusions: This study concludes that, in today’s dynamic business environment CFOs must possess strong negotiation competencies along with other supporting skills in order to drive their business forward and succeed. It is evident that negotiation competencies are essential in the role of the CFO and moreover they are well integrated in accounting settings. Value: This dissertation contributes to the accounting field by highlighting the importance of negotiation competencies in the role of the CFO and considering how such competencies can be applied to various accounting settings.