The Extent of Using Lean Accounting Tools and their Impact on the
Achievement of a Competitive Advantage in the Jordanian
Commercial Banks
FADYA BURHAN ALHAJ AHMAD
Department of Accounting, Faculty of Business and Finance,
World Islamic Science University, Amman,
JORDAN
Abstract: This study aimed to explore the extent of using lean accounting tools and their impact on the
achievement of a competitive advantage in the Jordanian commercial banks. To meet the goals of this study, the
researcher designed a questionnaire. The questionnaire forms were passed to Jordanian commercial banks that
were listed on Amman stock exchange before the period 31/12/2020. Those banks are thirteen banks. A purposive
sample was chosen. It consists from 78 administrators working in Jordanian commercial banks.The researcher
found that the extent of using lean accounting tools in those banks is high. It was found that the extent of exerting
effort by those banks to achieve a competitive advantage is high. It was found that using lean accounting tools
jointly has an impact on achieving a competitive advantage in those banks. In the light of the study’s results, the
researcher offered several recommendations. They recommend providing more attention to the extent of using lean
accounting tools by the management of those banks. That should be done to benefit from the merits of
implementing them and seek achieving a competitive advantage.
Key–Words: Lean accounting tools, competitive advantage, Jordanian commercial banks
Received: September 9, 2021. Revised: June 28, 2022. Accepted: July 21, 2022. Published: September 5, 2022.
1 Introduction
1.1 Preface
Several challenges have been facing the business
environment. They emerged due to the technological
revolution and the scientific developments. Such
developments led to increasing the severity of the
competition between the business organizations on
the local and global levels. They led to the
emergence of new concepts related to business
organizations. Such concepts include: lean
accounting, rationalized thinking, and lean
production. Lean production requires having a
production philosophy that is comprehensive. This
philosophy must aim at eliminating defects and
making improvements in an ongoing manner through
using several tools and methods. Those tools and
methods aim at eliminating the wastage in resources.
They aim at utilizing resources efficiently and focus
on the quality in all stages and operations. They aim
at meeting the demands and expectations of
customers [54]. The concept (lean) is used today in
all areas, including industrial, service-related areas
and etc.. Business organizations started providing
attention to the lean-related concepts. In the light of
such attention, changes to accounting have been
made. The conventional accounting systems don’t fit
with the lean philosophy. This philosophy is
connected to the reduction of production costs. Such
reduction is made through reducing the wastage of
resources and providing accurate information to all
the parties who benefit from accounting data. It’s
made through several tools [29]. Lean accounting is
connected to rationalization. It’s a method for
calculating costs, enforcing control and measuring
things. It reflects rational thinking. It enables one to
make decisions through using various tools. Those
tools offer supportive, clear, reliable and correct
information that leads to increasing time and money
[25].
Those changes and challenges forced business
organizations in general and banking organizations
in particular to develop the provided services. They
forced those organizations to offer a variety of
services in order to improve competitiveness. In the
light of those changes and challenges, achieving a
competitive advantage became a strategic goal
sought by banks. The most important factors
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affecting the achievement of a competitive advantage
include: making ongoing improvements to the
quality of the provided services in order to provide
customers with value. They include improving the
operational activities and reducing the extent of
wasting resources in organizations. Thus, banks
today seek using tools and methods that enable them
to deliver a variety of banking services of high
quality. They seek offering a variety of banking
services of high quality in order to raise the
satisfaction of services, and raise their market share.
They seek offering such services to show creativity,
and innovation, and reduce the costs in a manner that
is distinguished from the manner adopted by the
competing local, regional and global banks. The
conventional cost accounting, and administrative
accounting systems became ineffective in meeting
the demands of banks in the light of exerting effort to
raise the quality of services and reduce costs. Banks
today seek using lean accounting methods and tools.
Those methods and tools have proven their
effectiveness in the industrial sector in terms of
providing the needed information. Such information
enables organisations to utilize resources optimally
and keep up with the latest developments in the
markets. It prepares organisations to speed up
operations, reduce the wastage in the resources in
operations and reduce the number of the committed
mistakes. It enables organisations to meet the
demands of customers and markets. It prepares
organizations to reduce costs [2]. Thus, this study
aimed to explore the extent of using lean accounting
tools and their impact on the achievement of a
competitive advantage in the Jordanian commercial
banks.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The technological developments and environmental
changes forced Jordanian commercial banks to
provide attention to the improvement of their
competitiveness. The Jordanian banking sector is
considered the sector that affects the national
economy the most. The management of those banks
must adopt strategies and use methods for utilizing
technical, human and financial resources optimally.
Such utilization enables those banks to improve
competitiveness and offer advanced and
distinguished services of high quality with incurring
the least costs. It enables those banks to achieve the
targeted profitability. Thus, the attention provided to
the management of service cost through regulating
the use of resources and utilizing them optimally. It’s
provided through eliminating the activities and
operations that don’t add value. Thus, more attention
must be provided to showing excellence in the
delivery of services. More attention must be
provided to finding modern accounting tools and
methods that allow organization to manage their
service costs efficiently. Such tools and methods
include the modern cost and administrative
accounting tools and methods. Those tools and
methods have been developing much in order to fit
with the changes and developments that occurred to
the work environment [61]. Companies -including
industrial companies – seek providing attention
today to lean production. Lean accounting emerged
to meet the demands of the business environment. It
involves using lean accounting methods. Those
methods aim at reducing the wastage in resources
and providing the best information needed for
making the right decision on the right time [35]. It’s
been proven that lean accounting tools are effective
in carrying out the control operations, making
decisions, and reducing and rationalizing costs. That
has been proven in organizations in general and
industrial organizations in particular. In the industrial
and banking sectors, more attention is provided to
the use of lean accounting tools. Banks have been
providing attention to lean accounting tools to get
more information about the way of improving the
decision making process, reducing costs, save time,
getting rid of the unnecessary operations and
focusing on customer value [33] They have been
providing attention to lean accounting tools to ensure
their survival, and achieve a competitive advantage.
The problem of this study is represented in exploring
the extent of using lean accounting tools and their
impact on the achievement of a competitive
advantage in the Jordanian commercial banks. This
study offered answers to the questions below:
1- What is the extent of using the lean accounting
tools in the Jordanian commercial banks?
2- What is the extent of availability of the
competitive advantage dimensions in the
Jordanian commercial banks?
3- Does the use of the lean accounting tools (i.e.
target cost, ongoing improving, value stream
maps, and employee satisfaction) have an impact
on the achievement of a competitive advantage
(quality, cost, and creativity) in the Jordanian
commercial banks?
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4- What is the competitive advantage dimension
that is affected the most by the extent of using
the lean accounting tools in the Jordanian
commercial banks?
1.3 The study’s Significance
This study is significant because it offers theoretical
framework. This framework includes information
about lean accounting tools (i.e. target cost, ongoing
improving, value stream maps, and employee
satisfaction). Those tools are considered modern
administrative accounting tools. This framework
includes information about the achievement of a
competitive advantage (quality, cost, and creativity).
This study is significant because it offers information
about the lean accounting tools in the banking sector.
The latter sector plays a major role in developing
economy, and showing innovation and excellence in
the delivery of service. As far as the researcher
knows, this study is the first study that targets the use
of lean accounting in the banking sector in Jordan.
It’s significant because it offers recommendations to
the banking sector. Those recommendations are
related to the way of benefiting from the lean
accounting tools in achieving a competitive
advantage in the banking sector in the light of having
a competitive environment. They enable the banking
sector to utilize resources optimally, reduce costs,
delivery banking services of high quality and achieve
a competitive advantage. This study is significant
because it explored the impact of using lean
accounting tools on achieving a competitive
advantage. This topic is a modern concept. This
study offers scientific contributions in the accounting
field. It offers data that assists researcher in doing
future studies.
2 The study’s Objectives
This study aimed to explore the extent of using lean
accounting tools and their impact on the achievement
of a competitive advantage in the Jordanian
commercial banks. It aimed to:
1. Identify the extent of using the lean accounting
tools in the Jordanian commercial banks.
2. Identify the extent of availability of the
competitive advantage dimensions in the
Jordanian commercial banks.
3. Identify whether the use of the lean accounting
tools (i.e. target cost, ongoing improving, value
stream maps, and employee satisfaction) has an
impact on the achievement of a competitive
advantage (quality, cost, and creativity) in the
Jordanian commercial banks
4. Identify the competitive advantage dimension that
is affected the most by the extent of using the lean
accounting tools in the Jordanian commercial
banks.
3 Literatures
3.1 Lean Accounting
3.1.1 The Concept of Lean Accounting
Lean accounting is a modern concept. It emerged due
to the lean manufacturing system. This system is a
production system designed by Toyota Company. It
aims to reduce the wastage in resources and
maximize the value provided to consumers [45]. The
early definitions of this concept were provided
during the year 2005 in a conference about lean
accounting. This conference aims to improve the
accounting methods and tools. Lean accounting tools
aim to offer an alternative system to conventional
administrative and cost accounting tools. There are
various definitions offered by researchers for the
concept (lean accounting) due to having various
views about it. For instance, [26] defined lean
accounting as the optimal use of all the resources in
the organization and reduce the wastage in resources
in order to reduce costs. [9] defines lean accounting
as an accounting system that supports lean
manufacturing through which one can measure
earning and costs in a manner that fits with the
accounting standards. Such measurements represent
the financial and non-financial performance of the
company. [35] defines lean accounting as the change
that must be made to the systems of accounting,
control and measurement in order to improve the
lean manufacturing system. [24] define lean
accounting as a modern administrative method that is
based on the lean principles and fundamentals. Such
accounting provides much attention to financial
information in order to support lean production. It
enables organizations to reduce the wastage in
resources .
Based on the aforementioned information, lean
accounting is a comprehensive system that involve
several tools and operations. It enables the
organization to use resources optimally and eliminate
the wastage in resources. It can meet such goals
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through eliminating the operations that do not add
value. It can meet such goals through making
ongoing improvements for production and
operations. That shall lead to having excellence in
the quality of production and reducing costs. It shall
lead to providing financial and non-financial
information. It shall enable one to have access to an
effective control system. It aims at providing clear
information in a daily, weekly and monthly manner
about operations and value stream. It aims at
maximizing the earnings and making ongoing
improvements. It aims at providing internal and
external clients with value. It focusses on financial
and non-financial performance, like: quality, time
and efficiency [38]. It aims at reducing costs through
getting rid of the activities that don’t add value and
improving the quality of services. It aims at
providing an effective control system and financial
and non-financial performance measurements [43]. It
aims at making ongoing improvements on the long
term through using financial and non-financial
performance measurements. It aims at providing
clear, accurate and comprehensible information at
the right time in order to enable employees to make
effective decisions. Such decisions are related to
price and profits. They aim at increasing value. Lean
accounting aims at increasing the financial savings
through eliminating the unnecessary activities and
reduce costs, and eliminate the wastage of resources
[35].
3.2 Lean Accounting Tools
Lean Accounting has Several Tools that are
Mentioned Below:
3.2.1 Target Cost
Target cost is a pricing tool and a system for making
profitability plans and managing costs. It was used
for the first time in Japan in 1960. Based on practical
experiments in Japan, it’s effective. Thus, industrial
companies use this tool as a distinguished method in
managing costs and profits. Then, service companies
and public agencies started using this tool [21]. It can
be used to reduce the cost of products throughout the
design stage till the distribution stage. It can be used
to meet the job demands and make ongoing
improvements to the product. It enables
organizations to meet their goals in the light of the
competition [63]. [56] adds that target cost is a
modern approach to manage the cost of products and
reduce the production costs. Target cost enables
organizations to achieve the targeted profit. It meets
such goals through providing attention to market-
related studies in order to reach information about
the customer demands and expectations, and
competitors’ prices. It enables organizations to meet
the desires of customers through producing products
and delivering services in a manner that fits with the
customers’ desires with incurring less costs and
assigning competitive prices. Such prices shall
enable the organization to acquire the targeted
market value and achieve a competitive advantage.
Thus, it aims at managing the costs of products (i.e.
reducing such costs) and increasing the quality of
products through showing attention to market-related
studies. It aims at achieving a competitive advantage
[64]. [47] adds that target cost is a strategic cost
management tool that enables organizations to meet
the requirements of the competitive environments.
Target cost aims at meeting such requirements
through developing products based on the customers’
desires, and expectations. It aims at meeting such
requirements through achieving alignment between
reducing costs and raising quality. It aims at meeting
such requirements through using a method for
encouraging employees at facilities to offer
suggestions and thoughts that aim at fostering
development and promoting creativity. It is one of
the competitive advantage dimensions. It aims at
managing prices and costs. The procedures of target
cost involve determine price based on the market-
related study. Then, the target profit is deducted from
this price to reach the targeted cost. The product is
produced based on the targeted cost [39].
3.2.2 Ongoing Improvement (Kaisan)
It is a series of operations and procedures that aim at
improving activities and operations in companies in
an ongoing manner [49]. It refers to the process of
exerting effort in an ongoing manner to improve
performance and raise quality in order to maximize
the value provided to consumers, reduce costs, meet
the demands of consumers and satisfy consumers
[53]. It involves a series of activities and procedures
in the aim of making ongoing improvements to
production operations and activities. It aims at
raising performance efficiency and effectiveness
[22]. Through ongoing improvement, organizations
can improve their ability to deliver products and
services that are more competitive and meet the
customers’ demands and expectations [32]. Ongoing
improvement involves using several strategies in the
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activities and operations that aim making ongoing
improvement to services and products (Juran
Trilogy, kaizen strategy, and Benchmarking strategy)
[34].
3.2.3 Value Stream Maps
Value stream maps refer to a visual summary that
reflects the financial situation for the flow of
resources and information. It enables organizations
to set a distinguished future visualization with
showing a better performance for the flow of
resources and information. It aims at meeting such
goals through focusing on the operations that aim at
reducing the wastage in resources throughout the
production line. It aims at meeting such goals
through getting rid of the defected stock and
unnecessary operations that don’t add value. It aims
at meeting such goals through reducing the waiting
time in order to improve operations. It aims at
identifying the flow of activities and information
through a graph that involves using various symbols.
Such symbols have meanings related to stock,
examination, delay and waiting [51]. It’s considered
one of the most effective lean accounting tools. Such
tools involve planning, improvement and
implementation [62]. It enables organizations to get a
complete visualization about the flow of operations,
understand operations, and identify the reasons
behind wastage in resources. It enables organizations
to identify the number of activities that don’t add a
value. It enables organizations to identify the number
of improvement opportunities and reduce the waiting
time. It serves as a mean for communication,
planning and managing change [18].
3.2.4 Employee Satisfaction
Lean accounting focus on raising employee
satisfaction and investing in employees. It aims at
improving their psychological wellbeing and
performance [9]. It is an indicator for measuring
performance. There is a positive correlation between
production and employee satisfaction. The higher the
employee satisfaction is, the higher the production is
[6]. Employee satisfaction is a positive attitudes that
one has towards his job. It’s affected by several
factors including social, environmental, economic,
administrative and technical factors [5]. It’s affected
by environmental, psychological and philological
factors. It reflects the employees’ relationships with
his managers and colleagues at work [32].
Employees are the most valuable resources in
organization. They are the factor that affects the
competitive advantage the most in organizations.
Thus, organizations show much attention to human
resources. They seek acquiring employees of
distinguished competencies, developing such
distinguished competencies and retain those
employees [25]. [3] adds that an increasing attention
has been provided to human capital. That’s because
human capital significantly affects the success of any
organization and the improvement of
competitiveness. Without utilizing human resources
efficiently, the technical and financial resources shall
be deemed worthless.
3.3 Competitive Advantage
Several researchers offered definition for the term
(competitive advantage) due to perceiving it from
various perspectives. [46] defines this term as a
strategic element that enables organizations to seize
opportunities to achieve profits in an ongoing
manner. [60] defines this term as distinguished
competencies that are possessed by an organization
and distinguish it from other organizations. The
competitive advantage can be acquired through
making effective administrative decisions. [42]
defines this term as a set of skills, technologies,
resources and capabilities that organizations can
invest in them in order to provide customers with
distinguished benefits. Al-[14] add that any
organization can achieve a competitive advantage
through using a variety of methods. However, the
most important methods amongst those method are
the ones of lower costs (production with competitive
cost and selling with competitive prices). They are
the ones that enable the organization to show
distinguished products (creativity in products) and
promote good impression (through ads, trademark,
and word of mouth). Achieving a competitive
advantage is a goal sought by organizations through
carrying out ongoing improvement and utilizing
resources optimally. It’s sought by organisations
through utilizing resources in order to promote
innovation to provide customers with greater value.
It enables organizations to survive in the light of the
global competitive environment. The global
environment became competitive due to the rapid
developments of ICTs and the increase in the results
of studies [40] [51].
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3.4 Competitive Advantage Dimensions
The competitive advantage dimension varies from
one researcher and book to another. The targeted
dimensions in this study are (cost, quality and
creativity).
3.4.1 Cost
Low cost is considered the most significant
competitive advantage dimension. It enables
organizations to get a greater market value.
Customers seek getting products with the least prices
and having the sought features. Providing customers
with such products requires having potentials by the
organization in order to control production process,
use modern technology and identify the aspects that
affect cost[15], [58] .
3.4.2 Quality
Business organizations today seek using strategies
and method that improve their products. They seek
that due to the increasing awareness of customers
and having customers’ expectations in terms of
products and services. The purchasing decisions are
connected to cost and quality [57]. [54] define
quality as meeting the customers’ expectations. [23]
define quality as the ability of the organization to
interact with the environment in order to turn the
inputs into outputs that are valuable for consumers.
Organizations can deliver products of high quality
through providing product design of high quality.
The product design must be having features that
meet the customer expectations and desires. The
organization management must follow up the
production operations and the process of delivering
services and products. It must do that to deliver the
product or service in the manner determined in the
plan with meeting the conditions set in the plan. It
must do that to deliver products of high quality. It
must provide much attention to the after-sale
services, such as: maintenance and warranty. The
after-sale services make customers feel trust and
secure when dealing with the company. The
management must provide much attention to
reliability, reputation and responsiveness [8], [50].
Quality enables organizations to show efficiency in
utilizing resources and improving the performance
efficiency when doing operations. It enables
organisations to meet the customer expectations and
desires. It enables organisations to increase the
market value and earnings. It enables the
organization to achieve a competitive advantage
[17].
3.4.3 Creativity
Creativity refers to any effort or act that aims at
improving the products, information or services of an
organization in order to benefit one, society and the
organization [17][25] .[41] adds that this term refers
to an implementation for an idea that was developed
inside the organization or an idea that was borrowed
from someone outside the organization. This idea
may be related to the product, system, mean,
operation, service or policy. It’s new for the
organization. Creativity is deemed fundamental in
the organization in order to improve its
competitiveness and excel in the competition [27].
Organizations can show admisntrative creativity
through re-designign the operations and
organizational structure and providing new control
systems that aims at improving the relationships and
interaction between people. Such systems aim at
enabling the organization to meet their goals [20].
Organizations can show technical creativity through
innovating new products and services and
developing existent products in order to meet the
customer expectations. They can show such
creativity through making changes to the
organizational tools [44]. Creativity is connected to
technological development. Such development
allows the organization to come up with information,
exchange information and ideas between the
organization, customers and stakeholders. It enables
the organization to solve problems and come up with
new ideas. It enables the organization to show
creativity, and excel in the competition [37].
The researcher believes that the relationship between
lean accounting tools and competitive advantage is a
strong, direct and clear relationship. Using lean
accounting tools enables business organizations to:
1. Manage, reduce and rationalize the service cost
starting from the stage of designing the service
and determining the service price based on the
market-related studies. The lean accounting tools
enable the organization to eliminate the wastage
in resources. That shall contribute to reducing the
cost of the delivered services.
2. Make ongoing improvement to services. Using
lean accounting tools enables business
organizations to deliver a variety of services and
utilize resources efficiently and effectively. It
enables organizations to deliver a variety of
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services that surpass the customer expectations
with incurring less costs and showing higher
quality.
3.Offers organizations the opportunities to gain
knowledge about global practices, search for new
and innovative methods in delivering services in a
creative manner.
Thus, lean accounting enables organizations to
deliver a variety of distinguished and advanced
services of high quality with incurring lower cost and
showing high quality. It enables organizations to
raise their market share.
4 Previous Studies
Ahmad (2019) [6] aimed to explore the role of lean
accounting tools in showing entrepreneurship in
higher education institutions in Saudi Arabia from
the perspective of faculty members in King Khalid
University. Those tools are: ongoing improvement
and employee satisfaction. It was found that there is
a significant relationship between lean accounting
tools and entrepreneurship through ongoing
improvement and innovation.
Al-Akour (2018) [12] explored the impact of using
lean accounting tools on achieving a competitive
advantage. Such tools include: stream map value,
performance measurement plan, target cost, ongoing
improvement, and score box. The competitive
advantage dimensions are quality, cost, flexibility,
and excellence. It was found that using lean
accounting tools has an impact on the achievement
of a competitive advantage in the Jordanian public
joint stock industrial companies. The performance
measurement plan has the strongest impact on
achieving a competitive advantage. Quality is the
one that’s affected the most by the lean accounting
tools.
Mushen (2016) [55] explored the impact of using
lean accounting tools on achieving a competitive
advantage in the light of adopting a total quality-
based approach. Such Tools include: target cost,
stream map value, employee satisfaction, and
ongoing improvement. The study targeted Palestine
Bank. Target cost and stream map value are the ones
that affect the achievement of a competitive
advantage the most. Employee satisfaction and
ongoing improvement are the ones that affect the
achievement of a competitive advantage the least.
Abed Almajeed, and Yousif (2019) [2] explored the
role of lean accounting in achieving a competitive
advantage in industrial organizations. The targeted
tools are: (value chain, target cost, value stream, and
activity cost). It was found that using lean accounting
tools enables business institutions to reduce costs,
raising earnings, and increase quality and customer
satisfaction. Such use enables business institutions to
respond to customers fast. It enables business
institutions to achieve a a competitive advantage
through the value chain. Such chain provides
organizations to acquire good resources, and carry
out manufacturing operations. It enables
organizations to reduce costs and improve their
production ability in a manner that reduces cost, and
meet the consumer desires. It enables organizations
to find channels for distribution, promotion and
delivering products on the right time with setting the
right price. Value stream enables organization to
determine the product cost and reduce it through
setting an effective pricing policy. It enables the
management to determine the target price after
determining the target profit based on specific
competition-related conditions. It enables the
management to manage cost based on the activities
and get rid of the activities that don’t add a value. It
enables the management to acquire important
information about competitors. It reduces the costs
and enables the management to meet the customer
demands. It improves the ability of the organization
to compete local and global organizations. It enables
the organization to expand the market share and
achieve a competitive advantage.
Alzbaidi and Albakri (2015) [30] explored the
impact of using lean accounting tools on supporting
governance to achieve a competitive advantage in the
light of adopting. They carried out the study in an
industrial company specialized in electrical industry.
This company is affiliated with the Ministry of
Industry and Minerals. It was found that lean
accounting is an information system that is based on
financial and non-financial information. THIs system
is used in all the administrative levels in the
economic unit. It was found that lean accounting
enables the organization to respond fast to the
changes that occur to the business environment. Such
accounting enables the organization to respond fast
to customer demands on the right time. Lean
production -through using value stream –enables the
organization to achieve a competitive advantage.
Aidan et al. (2020) [7] explored the the impact of
using lean accounting on achieving a sustainable
competitive advantage in Kufah Cement Factory.
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They explored the impact of lean accounting on
sustainable competitive advantage dimensions (i.e.
cost, quality, innovation and reputation). It was
found that the organization that has an effective
administrative system and organizational climate has
the ability to use the lean accounting system. It was
found that having an effective financial and
production system enables the organization to
acquire the required resources with incurring the
least possible cost. This system enables the
organization to achieve a sustainable competitive
advantage.
Ali (2016) [19] explored the impact of lean
production on the competitiveness in the public
pharmaceutical company in Samera’. The lean
production dimensions are: (comprehensive
productive maintenance, organizing work sites, quick
change and cellular manufacturing) on
competitiveness dimensions. The competitiveness
dimensions are: cost, quality, flexibility and delivery.
It was found that there is a positive relationship
between lean production and competitiveness in the
target company. It was found that lean production
dimensions have a significant impact on cost,
production and flexibility. However, such
dimensions have a poor impact on delivery due to the
scarcity of the training courses given to employees to
improve their skills in delivery.
Ibn Kulaib (2020) [47] explored the relationship
between using the target cost tool and achieving a
competitive advantage in an industrial company in
Hadramut. The targeted competitive advantage
dimensions are: cost, quality and creativity. It was
found that using the target cost tool contributes to
increasing the probabilities of achieving a
competitive advantage. It was found that using the
target cost tool contributes to achieving a
competitive advantage.
Alexandzani (2019) [16] explored the impact of
using modern administrative accounting methods on
achieving a competitive advantage through reducing
cost in the industrial companies in Kurdistan. Such
methods include: target cost, value engineering,
activity-based cost, ongoing improvement, and
balanced performance card. It was found that the
modern administrative accounting methods have a
major impact on achieving a competitive advantage
through providing beneficial information. Such
information enables the organization to reduce costs,
reduce wastage and eliminate unnecessary resources
and activities. It contributes to achieving a
competitive advantage, raising customer satisfaction
and meeting customer demands.
Ishaq (2019) [48] explored the relationship between
lean accounting and competitiveness in industrial
companies. It was found that lean accounting in
industrial companies has a significant impact on
solving problem and improving quality. Offering
attention to customer satisfaction contributes to
utilizing resources optimally.
Arora et al. (2017) [31] shed a light on the meaning,
goals and emergence of lean accounting. They shed a
light on the merits of lean accounting. They
identified the differences between lean and
conventional accounting. The targeted lean
accounting tools are: value series chain and value
stream maps. It was found that lean accounting is a
systematic system used for reducing the wastage in
resources in the production process and reducing the
waiting time. This system is used for reducing the
time needed for delivery and storage and achieving
ongoing improvement. It aims at raising customer
value and making them satisfied.
Al-Musawi (2020) [10] explored the role of value
chain analysis in rationalizing costs, raising market
share and improving competitiveness in industrial
companies. He targeted the companies
manufacturing frames. It was found that value chain
analysis allows the organization to identify the
damaged and wasted resources and utilizing
resources optimally. This analysis allows the
organization to eliminate the un-necessary costs and
the operations that don’t add a value. It positively
affects the pricing policy and enables organizations
to achieve a competitive advantage in cost and
reduce the prices. It enables organizations to increase
their market share through having a better production
with a lower cost. It enables organizations to offer
products of higher quality with incurring lower cost
and meeting the customer desires.
Al-Tunisi & Siam (2021) [29] explored the extent of
using lean accounting tools and their impact on
rationalizing and reducing costs in Jordanian pubic
joint stock companies. They explored the obstacles
hindering such use. The targeted tools are: activity-
based cost, activity-based management, target cost,
balanced performance card and production on the
right time). Several results were reached. For
instance, it was found that the extent of using lean
accounting tools is moderate in the targeted
companies. The targeted obstacles include: lack of
knowledge among managers about the merits of such
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tools. The use of such tools contributions to
rationalizing and reducing costs in Jordanian pubic
joint stock companies. Several recommendations
were proposed. The researchers recommend exerting
effort to overcome the obstacles hindering the use of
lean accounting tools in Jordanian pubic joint stock
companies. They recommend providing more
attention to such use by the management of those
companies.
Cabrita & Santos (2016) [36] shed a light on the lean
accounting methods used in banks. They shed a light
on challenges, benefits and factors affecting the use
of such methods. They carried out the study in a
Portuguese bank. They found that such methods aim
at reducing the wastage in resources, and promoting
team work spirit. The most important lean
accounting tools are the value chain map and
brainstorming. It was found that lean accounting
tools affect the performance effectiveness when
carrying out operations in banks. Such tools increase
the value provided to consumers.
Allawi et al. (2019) [24] explored the alignment
between lean accounting and green production
technology through increasing production, reducing
cost, and time, raising quality, fostering
sustainability, promoting creativity, providing secure
environment for employees, and reducing wastage in
resources. The lean accounting tools include: value
stream map. They targeted 500 industrial companies
in Thailand. The sample was chosen from the
managers of the accounting and production
departments. It was found that lean accounting
increase the green production and enables the
organization to achieve a competitive advantage.
Comments on the aforementioned studies:
This study aimed to explore the extent of using lean
accounting tools and their impact on the achievement
of a competitive advantage in the banking sector.
This sector is a significant sector that plays a
significant role in achieving economic development.
It has been suffering from various environmental and
technological challenges. It has been suffering from
severe competition. Most of the aforementioned
studies shed a light on the use of lean accounting
tools in the industrial sector. This study targets a
sector that has different features.
5 The Study’s Hypotheses and Study
Model
5-1 The Study’s Hypotheses
The study’s hypotheses are drafted in the part
below based on the study’s problem and goals
Main Hypothesis
HO: There was no statistical impact at (a≤0.05)
significant level of use lean accounting tools
(target cost, ongoing improving, value stream
maps, and employee satisfaction) on the
achievement of a competitive advantage
(quality, cost, and creativity) in the Jordanian
commercial banks.
The sub-hypotheses:
H0.1: There was no statistical impact at (a≤0.05)
significant level of use lean accounting tools
(target cost, ongoing improving, value stream
maps, and employee satisfaction) on quality in
the Jordanian commercial banks.
H0.2: There was no statistical impact at (a≤0.05)
significant level of use lean accounting tools
(target cost, ongoing improving, value stream
maps, and employee satisfaction) on cost in the
Jordanian commercial banks.
H0.3: There was no statistical impact at (a≤0.05)
significant level of use lean accounting tools
(target cost, ongoing improving, value stream
maps, and employee satisfaction) on creativity in
the Jordanian commercial banks.
5.2 The Study’s Model
Fig. 1: The study’s model
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6 Methodology
The researcher adopted a descriptive analytical
approach to identify the meaning of lean accounting
and their tools. She adopted this approach to explore
the impact of such tools on the achievement of a
competitive advantage in Jordanian commercial banks.
She reviewed several studies related to the topic. She
adopted an inductive approach to get the required data
from the primary sources. She used a questionnaire to
obtain data from the sample about the variables. She
used the relevant statistical methods.
6.1 Population and Sample
The population involves all the administrators working
in Jordanian commercial banks that were listed on
Amman stock exchange before the period 31/12/2020
(i.e. 13 banks). A purposive sample was chosen. It
consists from 78 administrators working in Jordanian
commercial banks. Thus, 78 questionnaire forms were
passed online. All of the forms were retrieved. The
response rate is 100%.
6.2 Statistical Methods
The statistical methods used for answering the
questions are:
- Percentages and frequencies
- Cronbach alpha coefficient
- Means and standard deviations
- Stepwise multiple regression
6.3 Data Collection Methods
The following methods are used to collect data to meet
the goals and test hypotheses:
Secondary sources: They include: books and studies
published in peer-reviewed journals and periodicals.
They include: PhD dissertation and MA theses that are
related to the topic.
Primary source: It’s represented in the questionnaire
designed by the researcher based on the hypotheses,
questions and results of previous studies. Those studies
include: the ones carried out by [7] , [10], [12], [24]
,[47], [55].
6.4 Instrument
The researcher developed a questionnaire for exploring
the impact of using lean accounting tools on achieving
a competitive advantage in the Jordanian commercial
banks. This questionnaire was designed by the
researcher based on the studies carried out by [7] , [10],
[12], [24] ,[47], [55]. This questionnaire involves two
parts, which are:
Part one: It aims to obtain demographic data about
experience, academic qualification and job title
Second part: It involves 66 items. It aims to obtain data
about the impact of using lean accounting tools on
achieving a competitive advantage in the Jordanian
commercial banks. The five point Likert scale was
used. It targets the following area:
Area one: Lean accounting tools. The dimensions of
such tools are:
Dimension one: It is represented in the target costs.
There are 8 items related to this dimension.
Dimension two: It is represented in the ongoing
improvement. There are 9 items related to this
dimension.
Dimension three: It is represented in the value stream
map. There are 11 items related to this dimension.
Dimension four: It is represented in the customer
satisfaction. There are 11 items related to this
dimension.
Second are: Competitive advantage. The dimensions of
competitive advantage are:
Dimension one: It is represented in the quality. There
are 8 items related to this dimension.
Dimension two: It is represented in the cost. There are
9 items related to this dimension.
Dimension three: It is represented in the creativity.
There are 10 items related to this dimension.
6.5 Validity of the Instrument
The initial version of the questionnaire was passed to
several faculty members in the accounting department
in Jordanian universities. This version consists from 66
items. Those faculty members were asked to assess the
questionnaire in terms of content, relevancy and clarity.
They were asked to make suggestions. The items
approved by 80% of the experts remained. In the light
of the experts’ comments, some items were redrafted to
become clearer. The experts’ views indicate that the
content validity of the instrument is high.
6.6 Reliability of the Instrument
To check the reliability of the Instrument, the
researcher calculated the correlation coefficient values
to explore the correlation between each item of the
items. That was done through calculating the Cronbach
alpha coefficient values. Those values are shown in
table (1):
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Table 1. Reliability coefficient values (Cronbach alpha coefficient values)
Area
Cronbach alpha coefficient value
Target cost
0.818
Ongoing improvement
0.628
Value stream map
0.754
Employee satisfaction
0.841
Lean accounting (overall)
0.777
Quality
0.714
Cost
0.668
Creativity
0.713
Competitive advantage (overall)
0.784
Based on table (1), the Cronbach alpha coefficient
values range between 0.628 - 0.841. The overall
Cronbach alpha coefficient value of the lean
accounting tools is 0.777. The overall Cronbach alpha
coefficient value of the competitive advantage is 0.784
The five point Likert scale was used for classifying the
means. The rating categories of this scale are shown in
table (2):
Table 2. The five point Likert scale was used for classifying the means:
Very high
High
Moderate
Low
Very low
5
4
3
2
1
Based on the aforementioned data, the following
equation was used to set criteria for classifying means:
Interval= maximum value –minimum value / the
number of the required categories: 5-1/3=1.33
Low: 1.00- 2.33
Moderate: 2.34-3.67
High: 3.68-5
7 Results
7.1 Demographic Results
Table 3. Distribution of the sample in accordance with the demographic data
Demographic variables
Frequency
Percentage
Job title
Financial manager
13
16.7
Assistant of the Financial manager
14
17.9
Manager of a department/ division
18
23.1
Branch manager
9
11.5
Financial Controller
17
21.8
Head of the accounting department
7
9.0
Academic qualification
Holder of a BA degree
14
17.9
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Holder of an MA degree
47
60.3
Holder of a PhD degree
11
14.1
Other
6
7.7
Experience
Less than 5 years
11
14.1
5 years –less than 10 years
48
61.5
10 years-less than 15 years
15
19.2
15 years and more
4
5.1
Based on the results in the table above, there are
various job titles (i.e. financial manager, assistant of
the financial manager, manager of a department/
division, branch manager, financial controller and head
of the accounting department). That means that there is
a relationship between the job title form one hand and
the extent of possessing knowledge about the cost
accounting system and using lean accounting tools
from another hand. The results indicate that 92.3% of
the respondents hold BA degree. That indicates that
those respondents hold high academic qualifications
that enable them to answer the survey. That positively
affects the reliability of the results. 24.3% of
respondents hold experience that’s not less than 5 years
in their field. Thus, the respondents have much
experience that enables to respond to the items
objectively.
7.2 Questionnaire Analysis
The first question: What is the extent of using the
lean accounting tools in the Jordanian commercial
banks? To answer this question, means and standard
deviations were calculated. They are shown in table (4)
below:
Table 4. The first question results.
No.
lean accounting tools
Mean
Std.
Rank
Level
4
employee satisfaction
4.34
0.29
1
High
1
target cost,
4.32
0.32
2
High
3
value stream maps,
4.29
0.31
3
High
2
ongoing improving
4.27
0.30
4
High
Overall
4.30
0.27
High
Based on table (4), means of the extent of using the
lean accounting tools range between 4.34-4.27. The
overall mean is 4.30 which is high. That means that the
extent of using the lean accounting tools is high. That
indicates that those banks seek using the scientific
developments to excel. The mean of employee
satisfaction is 4.34 which is high and ranked first. The
standard deviation of the latter area is 0.29. The mean
of target cost is 4.32 which is high and ranked first.
The standard deviation of the latter area is 0.32. The
mean of value stream maps is 4.29 which is high and
ranked first. The standard deviation of the latter area is
0.31. The mean of ongoing improving is 4.27 which is
high and ranked first. The standard deviation of the
latter area is 0.30. That indicates that commercial
banks consider the human resources as a wealth. Thus,
those banks seek utilizing resources human resources
optimally and providing human resources with skills
and competencies. That enables human resources to
develop and show creativity in the delivery of services.
Through using lean accounting tools, banks can
develop distinguished services based on the customer
needs and desires. . Through using lean accounting
tools, banks can eliminate the un-necessary operations
and activities that don’t add a value. That contributes to
reducing costs and raising the performance efficiency
and effectiveness in doing operations and delivering
services. It shall positively affect the bank’s ability to
compete and survive.
The Second Question: What is the extent of
availability of the competitive advantage dimensions in
the Jordanian commercial banks?To answer this
question, means and standard deviations were
calculated. They are shown in table (5) below:
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Table 5. The second question results
No.
the competitive advantage dimensions
Mean
Std.
Rank
Level
1
Quality
4.28
0.35
1
High
2
Cost
4.22
0.28
2
High
3
Creativity
4.17
0.31
3
High
Overall
4.22
0.26
High
Based on table (5), means of the extent of availability
of the competitive advantage dimensions in the
Jordanian commercial banks range between 4.28-4.17.
The overall mean is 4.22 which is high. That means
that the extent of availability of the competitive
advantage dimensions in the Jordanian commercial
bank is high. The mean of quality is 4.28 which is high
and ranked first. The standard deviation of the latter
area is 0.35. The mean of cost is 4.22 which is high
and ranked first. The standard deviation of the latter
area is 0.28. The mean of creativity is 4.17 which is
high and ranked first. The standard deviation of the
latter area is 0.26. That indicates that Jordanian
commercial banks aim at achieving a competitive
advantage in the light of the severe competition. It
indicates that those banks are keen on using modern
methods to delivery services of high quality and
provide customers with much attention. It indicates that
those banks are keen on delivering a variety of services
that meet all the needs of customers through using
innovative methods and setting competitive prices. It
indicates that those banks seek determining the cost of
the delivered services when designing and planning
series in order to reduce this cost. It seeks reducing this
cost through cooperating with global banks. Those
banks seek delivering distinguished services through
using advanced and modern technologies that enable
them to survive and compete.
7.3 Hypotheses Testing
Main Hypothesis
To test hypothesis, Multiple regression analysis was carried out , the results were as follows:
Table 6. The main hypothesis regression test results
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
T
Sig T
F
Sig F
Dimensions
B
Std. Error
β
Target cost
.213
.047
.262
4.498
.000*
97.258
0.000*
Ongoing improving
.405
.076
.467
5.308
.000*
Value stream maps,
.146
.089
.175
1.632
.107
Employee satisfaction
.139
.071
.154
1.971
.050*
= 0.842
2
R = 0.918 R
*: This sign means that the value is statistically significant–at the statistical significance level of (a≤0.05)/
Tabulated t value = (±1.96) [1]
Based on table (6) and the t values, the lean accounting
tools (i.e. target cost, ongoing improving, employee
satisfaction and value stream maps) have an impact on
the competitive advantage dimensions (quality, cost,
and creativity) in the Jordanian commercial banks. The
calculated t values of target cost, ongoing improving,
employee satisfaction and value stream maps
respectively are 4.498, 5.308, 1.632 and 1.971. Those
values are statistically significant–at the statistical
significance level of (a≤0.05).
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It was found from Table (6) that there was no effect of
(the value stream map) on achieving competitive
advantage, as the calculated (t) value reached (1.632),
which is a non-significant value at the level of
significance (α 0.05). It was found that (84.2%) of the
variance in achieving competitive advantage in
Jordanian commercial banks was explained by (target
cost, continuous improvement, and employee
satisfaction).
The results of the above table indicate that the
correlation coefficient (R = 0.918) indicates that the
effect of the independent variables (agile accounting
tools) combined on the dependent variable (achieving
competitive advantage) is a positive significant effect
with statistical significance, where the calculated F
value was (97,258) and at a level of significance (sig =
0.000), which is less than (0.05) and the coefficient of
determination (R2= 0.842) indicates that 84% of the
variance in achieving competitive advantage can be
explained by the variance in the combined lean
accounting tools.
Accordingly, we reject the main null hypothesis and
accept the alternative hypothesis that says:
There was a statistical impact at (a≤0.05) significant
level of use lean accounting tools (target cost, ongoing
improving, value stream maps, and employee
satisfaction) on the achievement of a competitive
advantage (quality, cost, and creativity) in the
Jordanian commercial banks.
Sub-hypotheses of the main hypothesis:
The first sub-hypothesis: Table 7. The first sub- hypothesis regression test results
Dimensions
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
T
Sig T
F
Sig F
B
Std. Error
β
Target cost
.094
.077
.087
1.220
.226
58.163
0.000*
Ongoing improving
.294
.124
.256
2.371
.020*
Value stream maps,
.339
.145
.307
2.336
.022*
Employee satisfaction
.383
.115
.321
3.336
.001*
R= 0.872 R2=0.761
* Statistically significant at the level (0.05≥α) tabular value (t) = (±1.96)
It is clear from Table (7), and by following up on (t-
test) values that the sub-variables related to the agile
accounting tools (continuous improvement, value
stream map, employee satisfaction) have an impact on
achieving quality in Jordanian commercial banks,
where the calculated (t) values amounted to ( 2.371,
2.336, 3.336) respectively, which are significant values
at the level of significance (a≤0.05).
It was found from Table (7) that there was no effect of
(target cost) on achieving quality, as the calculated (t)
value amounted to (1.220), which is a non-significant
value at the level of significance (α≥0.05). It was noted
that the lean accounting tools with their dimensions
(continuous improvement, value stream map, employee
satisfaction) have an impact on achieving quality in
Jordanian commercial banks by (76.1%).
The results of the above table indicate that the
correlation coefficient (R = 0.872) of the effect of the
independent variables and the agile accounting tools
(target cost, continuous improvement, value stream
map, employee satisfaction) combined on the
dependent variable (quality) is a positive significant
effect with statistical significance where the value of F
was The computed is (58.163) with a significance level
(sig = 0.000) which is less than (0.05) and the
coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.761) indicates that
76.1% of the variance in achieving quality as one of the
dimensions of competitive advantage can be explained
by the variance in the lean accounting tools ( Target
Costing, Continuous Improvement, Value Stream Map,
Employee Satisfaction (together)
Accordingly, we reject the main null hypothesis and
accept the alternative hypothesis that says:
There was a statistical impact at (a≤0.05) significant
level of use lean accounting tools (target cost, ongoing
improving, value stream maps, and employee
satisfaction) on quality in the Jordanian commercial
banks.
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The second sub-hypothesis:
Table 8. The second sub- hypothesis regression test results:
Dimensions
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
T
Sig
T
F
Sig
F
B
Std. Error
β
Target cost
.453
.087
.523
5.203
.000*
20.619
0.000*
Ongoing improving
.072
.141
.077
.509
.612
Value stream maps,
-.032-
.164
-.036-
-.195-
.846
Employee satisfaction
.258
.130
.267
1.982
.050*
R=0.728 R2 =0.530
* Statistically significant at the level (0.05≥α) tabular value (t) = (±1.96) [1]
It is clear from Table (8), and by following up on
(t-test) values that the sub-variables related to
agile accounting tools (target cost, employee
satisfaction) have an impact on cost realization in
Jordanian commercial banks, where the calculated
(t) values amounted to (5.203, 1.982).
Respectively, they are significant values at the
significance level (a≤0.05).
It was found from Table (8) that there was no
effect of (continuous improvement, and the value
stream map) on cost realization, as the calculated
(t) value was (0.509, -0.195), which are non-
significant values at the level of significance
(a≤0.05). Agile accounting tools with their
dimensions (continuous improvement, value
stream map) have an impact on cost realization in
Jordanian commercial banks by (53%).
The results of the above table indicate that the
correlation coefficient (R = 0.728) of the effect of
the independent variables and the agile accounting
tools (target cost, continuous improvement, value
stream map, employee satisfaction) combined on
the dependent variable (cost) is a positive
significant effect with statistical significance
where the value of F was The calculated is
(20,619) and with a significance level of (sig =
0.000) which is less than (0.05) and the coefficient
of determination (0.530 = R2) indicates that 53%
of the variance in achieving cost as one of the
dimensions of competitive advantage can be
explained through the variance in the lean
accounting tools ( Target costing, continuous
improvement, value stream map, employee
satisfaction (combined).
Accordingly, we reject the main null hypothesis
and accept the alternative hypothesis that says:
There was a statistical impact at (a≤0.05) significant
level of use lean accounting tools (target cost, ongoing
improving, value stream maps, and employee
satisfaction) on cost in the Jordanian commercial banks
The third sub-hypothesis:
Table 9. The third sub- hypothesis regression test results:
Dimensions
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficient
T
Sig
T
F
Sig
F
B
Std. Error
β
Target cost
.092
.072
.096
1.263
.211
50.078
0.000*
continuous
improvement
.795
.117
.777
6.789
.000
value stream map
.151
.137
.154
1.105
.273
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Staff satisfaction
-.162-
.108
-.152-
-1.498-
.138
R= 0.856 R2=0.733
* Statistically significant at the level (0.05≥α) tabular value (t) = (±1.96) [1]
It is clear from Table (9), and by following up on the
values of the (t) test that the sub-variable related to
(continuous improvement) has an impact on achieving
creativity in Jordanian commercial banks, where the
calculated value of (t) reached (6.789), which is a
significant value at the level of significance (a≤0.05).
It was found from Table (9) that there was no effect of
(target cost, value stream map, and employee
satisfaction) on achieving creativity, as the calculated
(t) values amounted to (1.263, 1.105, -1.498), which
are non-significant values at the level of significance
(a≤0.05). It was noted that the lean accounting tools
with their dimension (continuous improvement) have
an impact on achieving creativity in Jordanian
commercial banks by (73.3%).
The results of the above table indicate that the
correlation coefficient (R = 0.856) on the effect of the
independent variables and the agile accounting tools
(target cost, continuous improvement, value stream
map, employee satisfaction) combined on the
dependent variable (creativity) is a positive significant
effect with statistical significance where the value of F
was The calculated is (50.078) and with a significance
level (sig = 0.000) which is less than (0.05), and the
coefficient of determination (R2=0.733) indicates that
73.3% of the variance in achieving creativity as one of
the dimensions of competitive advantage can be
explained by the variance in the agile accounting tools
( Target Costing, Continuous Improvement, Value
Stream Map, Employee Satisfaction (together).
Accordingly, we reject the main null hypothesis and
accept the alternative hypothesis that says:
There was a statistical impact at (a≤0.05) significant
level of use lean accounting tools (target cost, ongoing
improving, value stream maps, and employee
satisfaction) on creativity in the Jordanian commercial
banks.
The fourth question can be answered by relying on
the values of the coefficient of determination R2 when
testing the sub-hypotheses, which showed that the lean
accounting tools (employee satisfaction, target cost,
value stream map, continuous improvement)
collectively explained 76% of quality as one of the
dimensions of competitive advantage and thus ranked
first , while it showed that the lean accounting tools
(employee satisfaction, target cost, value stream map,
continuous improvement) collectively explained 73.3%
of the cost as one of the dimensions of competitive
advantage, and that the lean accounting tools
(employee satisfaction, target cost, value stream map,
continuous improvement ) collectively interpreted
53.3% of the cost as one of the dimensions of
competitive advantage.
This indicates the importance of adopting and applying
lean accounting tools in achieving competitive
advantage in Jordanian banks, through which banks are
able to provide a variety of banking services that meet
the needs of customers by investing in the functional
staff and attracting human resources capable of
innovation and creativity while investing in technology
and seeking to attract the best practices and global
methods. An analysis of all activities and operations
and the exclusion of operations that do not add value,
which leads to a reduction in costs.
8 Conclusions
1. The results of the study showed that the attitudes of
the study sample members towards approval of a high
level of application of agile accounting tools in
Jordanian commercial banks, where employee
satisfaction came first, followed by the target cost, then
the value stream map, and the last rank was continuous
improvement.
2. The results of the study showed that the attitudes of
the study sample members towards approval of the
Jordanian commercial banks’ pursuit of competitive
advantage with a high relative importance, as quality as
one of the dimensions of competitive advantage ranked
first, followed by cost, and then creativity in the last
rank.
3. The results of the main hypothesis test showed that
there is a significant effect of applying the agile
accounting tools (target cost, continuous improvement,
value stream map, employee satisfaction) combined in
achieving competitive advantage in Jordanian
commercial banks.
4. The results of the main hypothesis test showed that
there is a significant effect of applying the lean
accounting tools (target cost, continuous improvement,
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DOI: 10.37394/23207.2022.19.122
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E-ISSN: 2224-2899
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value stream map, employee satisfaction) combined in
achieving quality as one of the dimensions of
competitive advantage in Jordanian commercial banks,
where each of (continuous improvement and map
Value Stream and Employee Satisfaction) a significant
effect on achieving quality and the absence of a
significant effect of the target cost in achieving quality
as one of the dimensions of competitive advantage in
Jordanian commercial banks.
5. The results of the main hypothesis test showed that
there is a significant effect of applying the lean
accounting tools (target cost, continuous improvement,
value stream map, employee satisfaction) combined in
achieving cost as one of the dimensions of competitive
advantage in Jordanian commercial banks, where both
(target cost and satisfaction) Employees) a significant
effect on achieving quality and the absence of a
significant effect of (continuous improvement and
value stream map) in achieving cost as one of the
dimensions of competitive advantage in Jordanian
commercial banks.
6. The results of the main hypothesis test showed that
there is a significant effect of applying the lean
accounting tools (target cost, continuous improvement,
value stream map, and employee satisfaction)
combined in achieving creativity as one of the
dimensions of competitive advantage in Jordanian
commercial banks, where each of (improvement had
Continuous) has a significant effect on achieving
quality and the absence of a significant effect on (target
cost, employee satisfaction and value stream map) in
achieving cost as one of the dimensions of competitive
advantage in Jordanian commercial banks.
7. The results of the study showed that quality is the
most important dimension of competitive advantage
affected by the application of lean accounting tools in
Jordanian commercial banks.
9 Recommendations
1. Increasing the interest of commercial banks on the
degree of application of lean accounting tools to
benefit from the advantages of their application.
2. Increasing the awareness of decision-makers in
Jordanian commercial banks about the advantages and
benefits of applying lean accounting tools because of
the advantages they can offer to banks that enable them
to provide distinguished banking services at the lowest
possible cost and with high quality.
3. The necessity for commercial banks to pay attention
to attracting human cadres with expertise and
competencies to apply agile accounting tools and to
benefit from their expertise to apply agile accounting in
commercial banks in Jordan in an efficient and
effective manner.
4. The necessity of increasing the focus and interest of
commercial banks in Jordan on developing costing
systems and working on establishing special units
concerned with that.
5. Rehabilitation of human cadres at banks in Jordan by
holding specialized training courses on the application
of lean accounting tools in banks and directing them
towards innovation and creativity in banking work and
providing distinguished services at the lowest possible
cost to reach a competitive advantage.
6. Expanding by conducting more studies on the
importance of applying lean accounting tools and their
impact on market value, profitability, or the financial
performance of Jordanian commercial banks. As well
as expanding by conducting more studies on the
importance of applying lean accounting tools and their
impact on the competitive advantage in the service
sector other than the banking sector.
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