Journal of Open Innovation:

Technology, Market, and Complexity

Article
Activity-Based Costing (ABC) and Its Implication for
Open Innovation
Patricia Quesado 1 and Rui Silva 2, *

1 School of Management, Polytechnic Institute of Cávado e Ave, 4750-810 Barcelos, Portugal; [email protected]
2 Department of Economy, Sociology and Management, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro,
5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
* Correspondence: [email protected]

Abstract: Activity-based costing system, commonly known as the ABC system, emerged as a costing
method capable of overcoming the limitations of traditional costing systems in face of economic
and technological developments, namely, the arbitrary and imprecise allocation of indirect costs
from distortions in the imputation criteria. In the current context, the development of an adequate
costing system is of extreme importance in organisations because they feel the need to properly
manage the resources at their disposal and control their costs to achieve efficient and effective
management. Thus, this study aims to analyse international publications on the activity-based
costing system in recent years, identifying trends in evolution and future research opportunities.
Based on bibliometric techniques, the outputs obtained in the Web of Science (n = 752) and Scopus
(n = 1107) databases were analysed in bibliometrix R package to make a systematic mapping and
review of the literature. After removing duplicates, we obtained a final output of 1419 articles.
The analysis of these publications points to a growing trend in the publication of articles on ABC,
highlighting publications in partnership and their dispersion in magazines from different areas.
The bibliometric analysis carried out results on the authors’ global research performance over time,



and we highlighted the pioneering publications every five years and analysed the general evolution.


When analysing based on publication authors over time, we highlighted the main research themes
Citation: Quesado, P.; Silva, R. and countries where studies had been carried out. On the other hand, we also highlighted the
Activity-Based Costing (ABC) and Its collaborative network between institutions, authors, and countries over time.
Implication for Open Innovation. J.
Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. Keywords: activity-based costing; bibliometric analysis; web of science; systematic literature review
2021, 7, 41. https://doi.org/
10.3390/joitmc7010041

Received: 15 December 2020

1. Introduction
Accepted: 17 January 2021
Published: 21 January 2021
In recent years, traditional models of information and management control have
been heavily criticised for failing to meet organisations’ current needs, resulting from the
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral
globalisation of the economy, the internationalisation of markets, the increase in products
with regard to jurisdictional claims in
and services offered, and technological development. In this sense, the increase in organisa-
published maps and institutional affil- tional competitiveness has led to an increase in demand for credible and timely information
iations. in organisations. Thus, in the current context, the development of an adequate costing
system is of extreme importance in organisations. They feel the need to properly manage
the resources at their disposal and control their costs to achieve management efficiently
and effectively.
Copyright: © 2021 by the authors.
The activity-based costing (ABC) system emerged in the 1980s as a costing method
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
capable of overcoming traditional costing systems’ limitations in the face of economic and
This article is an open access article
technological developments—namely, charging the arbitrary and imprecise cost of indirect
distributed under the terms and costs resulting from distortions in the imputation criteria.
conditions of the Creative Commons The ABC system considers activities that consume resources, which are causing costs,
Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// and not products, which only consume activities. As such, the products are a consequence
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ of the activities strictly necessary to produce them and/or are a way of meeting customers’
4.0/). needs and expectations.

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc7010041 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/joitmc

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 2 of 20

Over the years, this costing system has been improved, and it was quickly realized that
it allowed a strategic vision of the company by identifying its potentialities, its weaknesses,
and opportunities for improvement, activities that add or do not add value, reflecting the
organisational dynamics that determine costs with greater precision and comprehensive-
ness.
Given the importance and relevance of the theme, numerous studies have been carried
out in organisations of different natures, sizes, and sectors of activity, which are materialized
in master’s theses, PhD theses, and publication of scientific articles.
The dissemination of bibliometric studies in the area of accounting has increased in
recent years. These studies allow the researcher to identify journals and authors, investi-
gated sub-themes, main research methods and approaches used, the economic sector and
type of organisation, etc., highlighting possible research gaps, both in theoretical and in
terms of practical terms that can be investigated in the future. As Zanievicz et al. [1] stated,
the importance of these studies is related to the constitution of a consultation base on the
state of the art of a given theme, which makes it possible to verify gaps in the generation
of knowledge, researchers, and institutions dedicated to the theme and the evolution of
theoretical basis that supports such investigations. On the other hand, Zimmerman [2]
stated that the empirical literature in management accounting has failed to produce a sub-
stantial body of accumulated knowledge, unlike other accounting research areas, requiring
scientific research that produces an accumulated body of knowledge.
In the management accounting literature, the ABC system is a rapidly expanding
area that has raised interest among researchers, but it needs bibliometric studies to direct
research within this vast area of activity and considerable dispersion among authors in
the field because it is a major concern if a few results were to be compared. Conducting
bibliometric studies in the ABC area is a fundamental resource in the dissemination of
scientific production, achieving its purpose through a technique capable of measuring the
influence of researchers or journals and making it possible to trace their profile and trends,
as well as highlighting thematic areas (ABS implementation process, ABC benefits, ABC
critical aspects, etc.). The development of bibliometric studies, particularly in the area of
management accounting, is extremely important in the sense of providing indicators capa-
ble of revealing its origin in academic production, the degree of evolution of knowledge,
the scenario in which scientific investigations are inserted, as well as serving as a guide for
future studies.
In this sense, the present research has the following research question as to its study
problem: what types of scientific studies have developed about the ABC system in recent
years?
Because of the above question, this work has as main objective to analyse, through a
bibliometric study, the international publications in recent years on the ABC system and
identify trends of evolution and opportunities for future research. The research’s relevance
is to draw a general profile about the scientific production on the ABC, provide historical
and statistical data for the strengthening of the studies in this area of knowledge, and be
useful to the researchers who intend to make future investigations in the area.
The work is structured as follows: initially, we present a brief theoretical framework on
the ABC (addressing the concept, its main advantages, and critical aspects), with a review
of bibliometric studies and a literature review. Subsequently, we present the methodology
that guided the investigation and the main results obtained. Finally, we highlight the final
considerations, limitations of the study, and suggestions for future research.

2. Literature Review
Traditional costing systems were based on indirect costs to products, focusing mainly
on direct labour. These systems were developed when the main factors of production were
raw materials and direct labour, where technology was considered stable, and the products
offered to the market were limited [3,4].
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 3 of 20

With the appearance of new technologies and sophisticated production methods,

there was an increase in competition and customer demand, reducing the weight of direct
labour in the total production cost of organisations. In turn, indirect costs came to have a
significant weight in most organisations’ cost structures [5–8].
Bužanin [9] (p. 20) argued that ‘the key changes in both environment and business of
companies, which happened in the last few decades have brought to the development and
possibility of use of ABC. According to that, the basic assumptions of creating competitive
success have changed. Modern business conditions, application of new technologies, higher
demands of consumers and greater competition have made traditional cost accounting
unreliable in giving information about costs and cost prices. Competitive success of
companies, in modern business conditions, depends mostly on its ability to engage and use
efficiently its material and non-material resources, ability to adapt quickly to the constant
changes in the environment and ability to recognize and satisfy the changes needs and
requirements of consumers, before anyone else’.
Against this backdrop, organisations sought a costing system capable of supporting
the new product strategy and solving the problem of sharing indirect expenses. Faced
with this issue, Johnson and Kaplan published “Relevance Lost—The Rise and Fall of
Management Accounting” in 1987, from which the ABC system gained popularity, with
the research spreading in the academic world and its application increasing in the business
world [10,11].
The ABC system emerged in the 1980s in the United States, intending to help organi-
sations control their costs better and maintain themselves more efficiently in the market
and increasing its popularity due to its applicability to different types of industries [12,13].
Cooper [14] and Kaplan [15] stated that ABC is a system designed to provide clearer
information about the production, support activities, and product costs so that managers
can focus their attention on products and processes with higher consumption of resources.
ABC is a costing system in which the crucial objective is to provide management with more
useful and accurate information, both on the cost and profitability of the business processes
themselves [16]. Park et al. [17] added that ABC emerges as an innovation in management
accounting to address traditional systems gaps.
According to Cooper and Slagmulder [18], the basic idea of ABC is that activities
consume resources and generate costs, while products consume activities and absorb their
costs, that is, it is not the products that consume resources. It is necessary to understand
the behaviour of the costs of the activities involved in the process, finding the relationships
between the products and the activities reflected in the cost driver. The cost driver is
the basis of ABC because it represents how costs are attributed to activities, seeking
to trace the source of the cost and establishing a cause-effect relationship [19,20]. For
Cokins and Hicks [21], a cost driver is used as a factor of the logical relationship between
the resources and activities funded or between activities and cost objects, that is, it is a
causal factor that influences the level and performance of activities and the consequent
consumption of resources.
According to Kaplan and Anderson [22] and Compton [23], the standard procedure for
implementing the ABC system begins with the identification and mapping of the relevant
activities that are performed in the organisation, as well as with the identification of the
resources that will be used in carrying out each activity that is part of the company’s
operation. Major and Vieira [24] (p. 315) argued that ‘to implement an ABC/M system’
successfully ‘requires knowledge of a technical nature, but also, involves questions of
a political and cultural behavioural nature’. It is essential to evaluate the company in
economic and technical terms early because it is expected that the benefits are greater than
its cost, making it essential to assess whether it will be possible to identify the activities.
There are several advantages mentioned in the literature regarding the application of
ABC in organisations. Thus, according to Khodadadzadeh [25], ABC allows for identifying
which products or services are not profitable for the company, thus eliminating them
and adjusting the price of products or services whose prices are improperly practised.
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 4 of 20

According to Cooper and Slagmulder [18], the system’s main advantage is to reduce costs
and simultaneously improve the company’s strategic position. Besides, it highlights the
actual cost calculation and improves the decision-making process by providing reliable
information.
Kalicanin [26] pointed out that ABC’s information is essential for company managers
when evaluating alternative ways of managing the business and making comparisons
with other companies. As such, it is clear that ABC can be invaluable in formulating and
implementing business strategies.
Arora and Raju [27] and Kaplanog [28] added that, because the information is more
detailed, facilitating decision making makes it possible to reduce costs and identify activities
that do not add value to reduce or eliminate them. Thus, the ABC costing method can
improve the organisation’s performance in different ways, such as helping organisations
become more efficient and effective, providing information on where resources are being
spent and where the money is being earned or lost, and identifying the activities that add
or do not add value to the product or service. For Haroun [29], the ABC system provides
more accurate cost estimates since they are based on the activities performed, allowing
managers to estimate the effects of different production processes and service methods,
respectively, on the product or service costs.
The results of the study of Al-Dhubaibi [30] (p. 179) ‘show that the degree of ABC
implementation success positively influences the extent of its use, the magnitude of benefits
that have been obtained, and the overall user satisfaction with the system. These findings
imply that irrespective of the characteristics of the company or the features of the system,
the way the companies implement ABC might determine how much benefits can be gained
and to what extent the system could be used’.
Nevertheless, some authors also point out some critical aspects, among them,
Pietrzak et al. [31], Stratton et al. [32], Askarany and Yazdifar [33], and Bornia [34], who
state that many organisations do not adopt the ABC system due to the complexity, difficulty,
and cost involved in its implementation and maintenance. Kaplan and Anderson [22]
highlighted the difficulty and complexity related to identifying the various activity drivers.
Fito et al. [35] considered that implementing the ABC model has been interrupted due to
conceptual problems. In turn, according to Ouassini [36], the adoption of the ABC system
has a very high software cost, requiring investment in staff training. Gosselin [37] warns of
the so-called ‘ABC paradox’, stressing that, while academics and consultants emphasise
the model’s superiority, the percentage of companies’ adoption is low. For Rankin [38],
the determination of the contextual factors predicting the adoption of the ABC system
may facilitate the perception of the low adoption rates registered in different countries.
According to Vedernikoca et al. [39], the traditional costing system has received criticism
resulting from the arbitrary allocation of indirect manufacturing costs. As an important
initiative to address its weaknesses, once costs and their determination play a critical role in
all manufacturing companies, new costing methods such as the time-driven activity-based
costing (TDABC) have emerged. Stonciuviene et al. [40] suggest the integration of ABC
and lean accounting into full cost calculation.
Because of these critical aspects, companies should consider whether they need the
ABC system, with some authors referring to some characteristics of organisations that can
implement this method and justifying its implementation practically in those companies
where indirect costs represent a significant percentage of the total costs; in industries
with extensive and diversified production of products or services for serving different
consumers; and those who work with diversified clients, who require specific or additional
services [24,41–44]. Nevertheless, in the study of Aljabr [45], the results of the residual
analysis showed that none of the examined key factors of competition, indirect costs, pro-
duction complexity, and information technology quality (IT quality) affect ABC adoption
as an optimal costing system design from the viewpoint of the matching form of fit.
We can also find some bibliometric studies in the literature that are carried out on
this theme. Stefano et al. [19], for example, used the international databases ‘ISI Web of
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 5 of 20

Knowledge’ and ‘Scopus’ to conduct a study during 1990–2011 and structure a biblio-
graphic portfolio to address the application of the ABC method in the services sector; they
concluded that most applications of the ABC method are in organisations that provide
health services, the ABC method is used in its traditional or adapted form and sometimes
integrated with another type of tools such as quality function deployment (QFD) or analytic
hierarchy process (AHP), and most works use the ABC system to identify the activities
that add value and those that cause losses in order to improve their productivity and
competitiveness. According to the authors mentioned above, for the implementation of
ABC to be successful, it will be necessary to commit top management so that all objectives
are in agreement with the strategy, quality, and performance evaluation. Besides, managers
need to be aware of the time required for this implementation and experience in the use of
information technology.
Zanievicz et al. [1], in a study they carried out on the costing methods most presented
in the Brazilian Congress of Costs during 1994–2010, observed that the ABC system was the
most researched method, followed by the theory of restrictions and target costing. In 2008,
Diehl and Souza [46] carried out a study on publications about ABC in scientific events,
intending to analyse the characteristics of scientific publications about ABC in editions of
the Brazilian Congress of Costs and verifying the growing number of articles produced
annually on the researched subject.
Barsanti and Souza [47] analysed the scientific production carried out on the ABC
system from 2002 to 2015 based on empirical research published in Brazilian accounting
journals. Regarding the authors’ profile, they found that most of them are male (60.18%)
and that 28.7% of the studied sample have a PhD. They observed the preference for the
development of works in partnership. Concerning bibliographic references, they high-
lighted the more significant presence of books and journals, with a marked preference for
international sources. They also verified the predominance of exploratory and qualitative
research, especially the case study, and interviews as data collection methods. Conclusions
were similar to those obtained in the study by Souza et al. [48], which aimed to analyse
the research published on the ABC system between 2001 and 2010 in the leading Brazilian
accounting journals.
Finally, Gosselin [49] surveyed studies carried out during 1990–2005 to determine
the ABC adoption rate, noting that despite the numerous advantages associated with the
model, the implementation rate was significantly reduced in most studies.

3. Methods
In this study, we mapped the scientific literature related to activity based costing
knowledge through a bibliometric analysis of the literature using quantitative analysis
tools according to previous studies [50,51]. The bibliometric analysis applies statistical
methods that allow us to analyse scientific performance through mapping that provides
us with information such as the scientific impact evaluation (citation networks), scientific
collaboration (co-authorship networks), research specialities and topics (co-occurrence
networks), and knowledge flow patterns (citation networks) [52]. In particular, this method
is based on transparency in data collection and the definition of the criteria for selecting
documents [53].
This analysis was carried out using bibliometrix R software package (version 1.2.5042,
Boston, MA, USA) written in R ecosystem [54], which joins a set of tools for exclusive
processing of all the data about the publications’ selected analysis [55]. This process pro-
duces different matrices [56], which are preceded by the normalisation of the publications’
similarity [54].

3.1. Data Collection (and Organisation) Procedures

The database was collected on 1 May 2020, on the Web of Science Core Collection
(WoS) and Elsevier’s Scopus (SCO) databases, two of the largest and most renowned online
peer-reviewed literature collections [57,58]. We did not apply any chronological filter, and
 cess produces different matrices [56], which are preceded by the normalisation of the pub-
lications’ similarity [54].

3.1. Data Collection (and Organisation) Procedures

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7,The
41 database was collected on 1 May 2020, on the Web of Science Core Collection 6 of 20
(WoS) and Elsevier’s Scopus (SCO) databases, two of the largest and most renowned
online peer-reviewed literature collections [57,58]. We did not apply any chronological
filter, and we selected only ‘Articles’ as the document type. In the first phase, we tried a
we selected
separate onlyfor
search ‘Articles’ as the document
each of keyword. type. In the
In both databases, wefirst phase,
applied thewe tried a separate
following strategy:
search for each of keyword.
TOPIC: (activity based costing).In both databases, we applied the following strategy: TOPIC:
(activity based costing).
The collected data were downloaded in Bibtex format from Scopus. We used R Studio
The collected data were downloaded in Bibtex format from Scopus. We used R Studio
software (version 1.2.5042, Boston, MA, USA)to remove duplicates and create one only
software (version 1.2.5042, Boston, MA, USA) to remove duplicates and create one only
database file to export to bibliometrix R 3.0, and this was the package used for network
database file to export to bibliometrix R 3.0, and this was the package used for network
analysis of the data [54]. In Figure 1, we summarize the research layout and results that
analysis of the data [54]. In Figure 1, we summarize the research layout and results that led
led to the final set of articles.
to the final set of articles.

Figure 1. Search results.

Figure 1. Search results.
The actions developed to execute the bibliometric analysis were, first, the collection of
data followed
The actions by descriptive
developed to and bibliometric
execute analyses. The
the bibliometric literature
analysis were,search yielded
first, the 1859
collection
article
of dataresults, of which
followed 440 were duplicates.
by descriptive Two authors
and bibliometric analyses.reviewed and screened
The literature searchthe titles
yielded
and
1859abstracts for inclusion
article results, of whichand 440exclusion criteria.Two
were duplicates. Theauthors
following inclusion
reviewed andcriteria
screenedwerethe
established: (1) type of
titles and abstracts fordocuments:
inclusion and articles; (2) articles
exclusion thatThe
criteria. approach the ABC
following application;
inclusion criteria
and
were (3)established:
articles mapping
(1) typeand
of reviewing
documents: thearticles;
literature. To develop
(2) articles thatthe analysis,
approach thebibliometrix
ABC appli-
R-Tool (version 1.2.5042, Boston, MA, USA) was used and the metadata
cation; and (3) articles mapping and reviewing the literature. To develop the analysis, of two databases
bib-
(WoS and Scopus) was retrieved and merged [59].
liometrix R-Tool (version 1.2.5042, Boston, MA, USA) was used and the metadata of two
The 1419
databases (WoS articles that were
and Scopus) wasselected
retrievedinandWoS and Scopus
merged [59]. were published between
1990 and
The 2020. After this
1419 articles thatinitial
werescreening,
selected inwe WoS excluded
and Scopus440 (184
werewere duplicates
published and 1990
between 256
out
andof inclusion
2020. criteria)
After this initialabstracts
screening, and
weconducted
excluded 440 the(184
firstwere
wave of full-text
duplicates andreview
256 out for
of
the remaining 1419 papers. This final output was subject to a bibliometric
inclusion criteria) abstracts and conducted the first wave of full-text review for the re- analysis after
the resolution of existing errors and inconsistencies that allowed us to homogenize the
database. Each article was coded and tagged according to [60].

3.2. Procedures Applied in Content Analyses

Over time, the use of bibliometrics has gained growing popularity in all disciplines.
We used bibliometrix R package for performing bibliometric analysis and building data
matrices for co-citation, coupling, scientific collaboration analysis, and co-word analysis.
The use of bibliometrics is gradually extending to all disciplines and is suitable for science
mapping when the emphasis on empirical contributions produces voluminous, fragmented,
and controversial research streams [54].
For network matrix creation, we used the bibliometrix R package. According to Aria
and Cuccurullo [54], the existence of powerful, practical statistical algorithms, access to
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 7 of 20

high-quality numerical routines, and integrated data visualisation tools are perhaps the
most vital qualities to prefer R to other languages for scientific computation. Then, all
abstracts, literature reviews, and final considerations were read, and a document was
created to contain the most relevant information extracted from those sections of each
article. Finally, the contents were divided according to the main constructs in order to
create a text that could explain the main theoretical approaches for each cluster and the
conclusions that had been drawn.
In order to create the network of collaboration between themes, institutions, and
authors, we used the bibliometrix R package through biblioshiny (a shiny app providing a
web-interface for bibliometrix). The network analysis was made for all databases collected.
We used specific and previously tested criteria for the elaboration of the outputs, namely, the
number of nodes and Min edges. The scientific collaboration network is a network where
nodes are authors and links are co-authorships and is one of the most well-documented
forms of scientific collaboration [54,61].

4. Results
The bibliometric analysis carried out on the publications in which the ABC method
was approached led us to carry out a general mapping of the published literature in the
most relevant databases (WoS and Scopus) of scientific production. In this sense, we
obtained results on the global research performance of the authors over time, highlighted
the pioneering publications every five years, analysed the general evolution, and by
the author of the publications over time, we highlighted the main research themes and
countries where studies had been carried out. On the other hand, we also highlighted the
collaborative network between institutions, authors, and countries over time.
These results allow future researchers, by reading this article, to have a starting point
in future investigations related to the application of the ABC method.
This review’s main contribution and mapping of the literature is now a clear chart
detailing already published in this knowledge field. We identified the most essential and
relevant data produced about this theme, detailing the topics that have triggered the most
significant academic interest level and providing details about the academic context’s ABC
method application.

4.1. Activity Based Costing Global Research Performance

4.1.1. Database Description
Table 1 shows the final database sample about ABC articles published in high-impact
journals. A total of 1419 articles were produced by 2865 authors and a 2.67 co-authorship
mean per document.

Table 1. Database description.

Description Description
Results Results
Main Information about Data Main Information about Data
Timespan 1990–2020 Authors
Sources (Journals) 904 Authors 2865
Average years from publication 11.7 Author Appearances 3791
Authors of single-authored
Average citations per documents 5.376 229
documents
Authors of multi-authored
Average citations per year per doc 0.43 2636
documents
References 13,819 Authors Collaboration
Document Types Single-authored documents 276
Article 1419 Documents per Author 0.495
Document Contents Authors per Document 2.02
Keywords Plus (ID) 748 Co-Authors per Documents 2.67
Author’s Keywords (DE) 3440 Collaboration Index 2.31
 J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 8 of 20

4.1.2. Publications Every Five Years

Figure 2 represents the most cited article published about ABC every five years in ABC.
By reading the figure, we can see that the first indexed scientific work was “Time-Driven
Activity-Based Costing” being published in the journal Manufacturing Systems. Five years
later, the article “Application of Activity Based Costing ABC for a Peruvian NGO healthcare
provider” was published in the International Journal of Health Planning and Management.
Later, in 2000, the article “A framework of production planning and control with carbon
tax under industry 40” was published in the International Journal of Production Economics.
The five-year production continued to be produced the article “Activity-Based Costing for
small manufacturers a field study” in the Journal of Cleaner Production. In 2010, the first
article on this area of knowledge was the “Economic analysis of polca system design via
simulation a multicell manufacturing case study” in the journal Transfusion. In 2015, the
article “Competitiveness through cost management” was in the journal Mbio. Finally, the
first article on this area to be published in 2020 was “Assessing criticality of construction
materials for prioritizing their procurement using anptopsis” in the International Journal of
Construction Management.
This result reflects the importance of ABC’s application in organisations of different
sizes and sectors, namely, in healthcare organisations and small business enterprises. The
results also reflect the interest in TDABC. Several authors found that the ABC model
obtained very low utilisation rates and did not last in the long run. As such, Kaplan and
Anderson [22] developed the TDABC system to overcome the disadvantages pointed out
to the ABC model. Thus, TDABC provides organisations with an ‘elegant’ and practical
option to determine the cost and capacity used in processes, the profitability of products
and customers through a simple, cheap, and much more powerful model than ABC. The
main focus of TDABC is to facilitate and simplify the general implementation of the system,
gaining flexibility in modifying the model whenever necessary. This new approach directly
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FORallocates resources to cost objects, requiring only two sets of estimates for each group of9 of 24
PEER REVIEW
resources, for which it is only necessary, first, to calculate the cost of providing resources,
and second, to estimate the time required to execute a transaction unit for each activity.

Figure 2. Most
Figure cited
2. Most citedpublications every
publications every fivefive
years.years.
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 9 of 20

4.1.3. Annual Scientific Production

Considering the research domain, Table 2 reveals that the ABC topic emerged in 1990
with two publications and reached its peak in 2011. The best top five publication years
were 2011 with 86 articles, 2008 with 82 articles, 2016 with 73 articles, 2010 with 72 articles,
and 2017 with 68 articles. We found that the year with the most citations was 2010 with
856 citations, followed by 2008 with 623, 2017 with 203, 2011 with 190, and 2016 with 127
citations.
This result may be related to globalisation, internationalisation, the increase in prod-
ucts offered, the advancement of technology, competitiveness between companies, and
above all, the need for credible and timely information by managers. With technological
development and productivity improvements, a sharp reduction in direct costs is due to
the replacement of human labour by machines, although this increased indirect costs and
the need to develop management accounting tools to affect those costs.

Table 2. Publications per year of the source paper by ABC domain.

Years Total Articles Years Total Articles

1990 2 2006 45
1991 2 2007 64
1992 13 2008 82
1993 12 2009 64
1994 28 2010 72
1995 24 2011 86
1996 38 2012 58
1997 29 2013 61
1998 53 2014 61
1999 29 2015 57
2000 31 2016 73
2001 42 2017 68
2002 33 2018 58
2003 44 2019 67
2004 49 2020 22
2005 50

4.1.4. Authors Production over Time

In Figure 3, we can observe the production obtained by the principal authors of our
database over time. Each circle corresponds to a certain number of documents and the
respective average of citations. In this sense, authors who have circles in their line have
published at least one article on the subject under analysis—the larger the circle, the more
publications the authors had that year. The greater distance between circles on the straight
line means a more extended time has passed without the author publishing any article in
the area of knowledge under study. As an example, we can see Tsai W. in the first rank
with 16 publications from 1996 to 2019, in second place we see Mitchell F. with seven
publications from 1994 to 2008, and finally, in third place, we have Afonso P., Lievens Y.,
and Needy K. with six publications each.

4.1.5. Three Fields Plot

The Sankey diagram enables one to view the main items of the three fields plot and
how they are related. In the three fields plot below, we can see networking between authors,
their respective countries, and research areas. The most cited authors are Tsai, Mitchell,
Afonso, Lievens, and Needy, with connections to several countries like USA, China, Taiwan,
and the United Kingdom. Regarding the areas most approached as an investigation object,
we have ABC leading, followed by cost accounting, costs, and management (Figure 4).
 J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FOR PEER REVIEW 11 of 24
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 10 of 20

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FOR PEER REVIEW 13 of 24

Figure 3. Authors
Figure 3. Authors production
production over
over Time
Time in
in ABC
ABC domain.
domain.

4.1.5. Three Fields Plot

The Sankey diagram enables one to view the main items of the three
fields plot and how they are related. In the three fields plot below, we can see
networking between authors, their respective countries, and research areas.
The most cited authors are Tsai, Mitchell, Afonso, Lievens, and Needy, with
connections to several countries like USA, China, Taiwan, and the United
Kingdom. Regarding the areas most approached as an investigation object,
we have ABC leading, followed by cost accounting, costs, and management
(Figure 4).

4.1.6. Institutions Cooperation

Figure 5 shows the collaborative networks between the various institu-
tions to which the most relevant authors belong. We verified the top three
(previously mentioned). However, in this case, we can visualise the most di-
rect collaborative networks of the top three through the nodes and edges that
the scheme indicates to us. An edge (or link) of a network (or graph) is one of
the connections between the nodes (or vertices) of the network. In this net-
work, we can easily see that other universities are connected, collaboratively,
with the National Central University. However, we have to highlight that the
thicker the edges are, the more intense the collaboration, e.g., the National
Central University networks with several universities; however, the intensity
of
Figure 4. collaboration
Three
Figure fields
4. Three plot
fields is homogenous,
byby
plot authors, except
countries,
authors, countries, andwith the areas.
research
and research areas. Chinese Culture University.
The same happened with the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, and the
4.1.6. Institutions
Universidade Cooperation
Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Another similar collaboration can be
identified
Figure 5 shows between Katholieke networks
the collaborative Universiteit Leuven
between theand Tilburg
various University.
institutions to which
the most relevant authors belong. We verified the top three (previously mentioned).
However, in this case, we can visualise the most direct collaborative networks of the top
three through the nodes and edges that the scheme indicates to us. An edge (or link) of a
network (or graph) is one of the connections between the nodes (or vertices) of the network.
 J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 11 of 20

In this network, we can easily see that other universities are connected, collaboratively, with
the National Central University. However, we have to highlight that the thicker the edges
are, the more intense the collaboration, e.g., the National Central University networks with
several universities; however, the intensity of collaboration is homogenous, except with the
Chinese Culture University. The same happened with the Universidade Federal de Minas
Gerais, and the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Another similar collaboration can
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FOR PEER REVIEW 14 of 24
be identified between Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and Tilburg University. We cannot
see other networks between the remaining institutions of this database.

5. Collaborative
FigureFigure 5. Collaborativenetworks between
networks between institutions.
institutions.

It is very important to increase the institutions’ cooperation to develop more investi-

gation in this area in different contexts and cultures, stressing the determinant factors of
ABC implementation in public and private organisations.

4.1.7. Network Research by Authors

Figure 6 shows the authors’ network. The most prominent author is Tsai W. with a
network concentrated on four directed edges (links): the one with Hsu J. from the National
Central University, Jhongli is the most expressive connection, the second with Chen H.
from the National Taiwan University, the third with Liu J. from Inner Mongolia University
of Technology, and finally, the fourth with Chen S. from Xerox Microelectronics Center,
USA. The direct link that Tsai W. maintained with Chen S. leads to another connection
emerging with Naguib H. from Xerox Microelectronics Center, USA.

4.1.8. Network Research by Countries

Figure 7 shows the countries network. The most prominent country is the USA with a
network concentrated in seven directed edges (links), the strongest with China and then
with the United Kingdom, Canada, Switzerland, Taiwan, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
The second most prominent country is United Kingdom with a network concentrated on
six directed edges (links), the strongest with the USA and then with New Zealand, Canada,
Australia, Denmark, and Finland. The third most prominent country is the Netherlands
with a direct link with Belgium and then France. The fourth prominent country is Portugal
 J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 12 of 20

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FORwith a direct

PEER REVIEW link with Colombia and Chile. Other countries still work without networks15inof 24
this area of knowledge.

J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, x FOR PEER REVIEW Figure 6. Authors network. 16 of 24
Figure 6. Authors network.

Figure 7. Countries network.

Figure 7. Countries network.
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 13 of 20

5. Discussion: The ABC and Open Innovation

The relationship between ABC and innovation management models is a fundamental
aspect nowadays where changes are permanent, and collaboration between people and
entities is extremely important in identifying activities that add or do not add value to
the organisation. The so-called open innovation, a concept popularized in 2003 by Henry
Chesbrough in the book Open Innovation: The new imperative for creating and profiting from
technology, which was based precisely on the collaboration between people and entities
external to the organisation and used the benchmarking technique, helps us identify a
relationship between the two concepts.
Chenhall and Moers [62] revealed that the design of management control systems
has developed in response to organisations’ need to address the challenges of operating in
uncertain settings by embracing innovation. Rajagukguk [63] pointed out that management
accounting and control systems are a useful framework to link technical decisions to
economic outcomes and convert innovation potential into economic value.
For Chesbrough [64], open innovation means that valuable ideas can come from inside
or outside the company and reach the market. In reality, the idea of openness supposes
breaking with the traditional philosophy of not revealing internal knowledge issues to
the outside, recognizing the opportunity to obtain competitive advantages through rela-
tionships with professionals and external organisations, sharing resources and knowledge,
and establishing alliances and partnerships. Through a broader analysis, the objective is
to accelerate internal innovation and expand markets for the external use of innovation,
influencing organisational results, ‘open innovation needed to combine internal research
with external ideas and then deploy those ideas both within their systems and also through
other companies’ systems. The key for these firms is to figure out what necessary missing
pieces should be internally supplied and how to integrate both internal and external pieces
into systems and architectures’ [63] (p. 81).
Higher education institutions have already implemented, in many cases, departments
that are dedicated to establishing cooperation between companies and transferring tech-
nology. In fact, the need to develop innovations in terms of processes and products is
increasingly important, with ABC playing a fundamental role in defending the improve-
ment of processes and the more precise allocation of costs to activities and products as an
essential factor for the long-term companies’ survival.
Open innovation leads us to the search for external sources of ideas in addition to
the internal flows of knowledge, contrary to the traditional model of vertical integration,
in order to increase the innovation process, having the advantage of the appearance of
new ideas and technologies, conducting strategic research, and providing the possibility of
extending and/or diversifying the business [65]. For Trentini et al. [66], open innovation,
despite being a new model of innovation management, shows itself as a viable alternative
for maintaining and expanding knowledge by capturing value and sustaining business,
highlighting the acceleration in launch time and commercialisation of products, using
external knowledge, and economically exploiting projects not developed by companies.
The ABC and the concept of open innovation bear on the philosophy of continuous
improvement and optimisation of processes to improve its execution in the vectors in
which the organisation works or can work. In this sense, according to Chesbrough [64],
we have to analyse how to improve the products and processes innovatively from inside
the organisation and understand what the external environment wants us to improve.
Although ABC is an internal concept for the top management and employees because it is
a costing system, it is important to know the intentions and trends of all ecosystems that
surround the organisation, highlighting the role of suppliers and customers (current and
potential) and society in general, which defines a set of operating standards.
For James [67], the ABC system defines products and product batches, consumers,
suppliers, distribution channels, and market segments as cost objects. Therefore, it is
being noted that management accounting systems, such as ABC, can help companies make
more effective production decisions by providing more accurate cost information leading
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 14 of 20

to increased profitability. The author considers the importance of adopting these new
or advanced management accounting techniques touted as relevant to companies that
take a more strategic focus to business and thus were more effective in responding to
global competitiveness. However, Biancone et al. [68] pointed out that the ABC system
and TDABC do not explain how to manage innovation. According to Alvarez-Aros and
Herrera [69], innovation explains economic levels, the development of nations, and business
performance; in the latter, the paradigm of open innovation is not the exception.
Studies on the impact of open innovation on organisational performance have seen an
increase in recent years [68–76]. Moretti e Biancardi [71] sought to sort the impact of the
level of inbound openness derived by the amount invested in internal development versus
the external acquisition of intangible assets on the firm’s performance according to three
dimensions—economic performance, measured as the amount of firm turnover; the firm’s
financial performance, measured with shares value; and human resources performance,
measured as the level of employment. Results show that the effects of both internal devel-
opment and external acquisition are positive and significant across different dimensions.
Zhang et al. [73] studied how human capital can affect the relationship between open in-
novation and firms’ financial performance. In the study of Alvarez-Aros and Herrera [69],
the main results reveal the use of the inbound, outbound, and mixed open innovation
strategy. The study of Silva and Dacorso [77] analysed the model of open innovation in
the context of micro and small enterprises, showing evidence of how this new way to
innovate, based on the search for external knowledge as the basis for innovation, can
generate competitive advantage and denote an alternative for the development of these
companies. Askarany et al. [78] analysed the factors that influence ABC’s adoption by
assessing the contribution of innovation characteristics on adoption. The results reveal that
organisations are more likely to adopt ABC when they attach a high level of importance to
innovations’ relative advantages.
Rajagukguk [63] argued that the use of management accounting and control systems
in open innovation can articulate the value proposition, identify a market segment, define
the structure of the firm’s value chain, specify the revenue generation mechanism for the
firm, and estimate the cost structure and target margins of producing the offering, given
the value proposition and value chain structure chosen to other firms or through launching
new ventures that exploit the technology in new business arenas.
According to Bigliardi et al. [70] (p. 2), to implement an open innovation strategy, ‘it is
necessary for companies to carry out innovation activities—the selling and purchasing of
licenses and patents, and the exploitation of intellectual capacity—in order to transform the
creation of value into the optimum combination of internal and external resources. Most
of the literature has revealed the positive effect of a firm’s application of open innovation
activities on its innovation performance. Indeed, an increase in the interactions a company
has with other organisations generates greater access to new ideas, skills, technologies and
other intangible assets, as well as enhanced possibilities to innovate with success’.
Kwasnicki [79] described an evolutionary model of industrial dynamics and reported
on the simulation study of the model, considering the cost regime, the technical perfor-
mance regime, and the capital productivity regime. The author also investigated the
influence of the different types of innovation on the development of the industry, particu-
larly on industry concentration and on the products’ price distribution, and analysed the
evolution of industry structure with the possibility of firm entry.
Yun et al. [80] studied the structure and mechanism of modern capital economic
dynamics that motivate the growth limits of capitalism. They concluded that when there
is low balance among the market for open innovation by small and medium enterprises
and start-ups, closed open innovation by big business, and social open innovation, the
economic dynamics decrease, and the economic growth rate slows down to nearly zero
or even negative. When there is a medium balance among these three sub-economies, the
economic dynamics increase, and the economic growth rate will be maintained at a high
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 15 of 20

level, and when there is a high balance among the three sub-economies, the economic
dynamics become too low, and the economic growth rate stays at a low level.
The study of Yun and Liu [81] explored how sustainability can be achieved through
open innovation in the current fourth industrial revolution. The authors identified micro-
and macro-dynamics of open innovation, in addition to the dynamic roles of industry,
government, university, and society, and proposed a conceptual framework to understand
open innovation of micro- and macro-dynamics with a quadruple-helix model for social,
environmental, economic, cultural, policy, and knowledge sustainability. They argued
that ‘the industry continuously adopts open platforms to create and maintain ecosystem
innovation. The government’s role has changed from regulation control toward facilitation.
Universities have become proactively engaged in multiple areas, from technology transfer
to knowledge co-creation. Societies and customers have started to form new concepts,
R&D, and commercialisation, resulting in a shared economy’.
Yun et al. [82] discussed dynamics and differences of business models in the car-
sharing industry and focussed on open innovation as the trigger of diverse business models.
They concluded that ‘business models of the car-sharing firms Uber, DiDi-Chuxing, and
KakaoT are not fixed but rather are dynamically changing. Second, business models of car-
sharing firms are the result of interaction with government regulations, the taxi industry,
public transportation, and the automotive car industry. Third, open innovation strategies
of car-sharing firms determine the contents and dynamics of car-sharing business models,
such as the revenue business model, responsibility business model, and system business
model upon interaction with four agencies’.
In another study, Yun et al. [83] presented the case of Alibaba, especially the application
of global, creative e-commerce business models through open innovation in a short time.
The company has overcome complexity through an open innovation-friendly culture and
undergone the expansion of its open business model feedback loop platform.
Yun et al. [84] studied what kind of open innovation channels exist, and how can these
channels operate as a knowledge funnel to conquer the growth limit of capitalism in the
fourth industrial revolution. The authors defended additional field researches on each
open innovation engineering channel in addition to research on finding out more open
innovation engineering channels are required.
Zhu et al. [85] analysed the impact of the interplay between different open innovation
implementations and business models on the speed of the firms’ new product development
(NPD). They found that in Chinese firms, open innovation breadth and open innovation
depth positively affect NPD speed. The results also demonstrate that an efficient business
model strengthens the positive effect of open innovation depth, while weakening the
positive effect of open innovation breadth.
Spithoven et al. [86] (p. 131) argued that ‘the ability to absorb external knowledge
has become a major driver for competition’. Their study focussed on the role of collec-
tive research centres in building absorptive capacity at the inter-organisational level and
concluded that the openness of the innovation process forces firms lacking the absorptive
capacity to search for alternative ways to engage in inbound open innovation.
In short, globalisation and internationalisation impose innovation and adequate cost-
ing systems to obtain sustainable competitive advantages, increasingly focussed on the
use of internal and external resources, for more excellent knowledge of the environment
and strengthening of knowledge through external links [69]. The rising costs of technology
development and the decrease in the life cycle of products changed the way of doing
business and proposed a new competition format. Nevertheless, innovation costs can be
reduced by sharing knowledge, risks, and entering new distribution channels resulting
from the open innovation model [77].
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 16 of 20

6. Conclusions
In the current scenario in which companies are inserted, countless obstacles can
jeopardize their social sustainability; in other words, obtaining profit. In this sense, the
implementation of an adequate costing method which highlights the expenses incurred for
producing a product or provision of a service and guarantees timely responses enables the
formation of more reasonable and competitive prices in the market.
ABC is recognised as a management tool that allows greater control in the production
process, highlights the factors that cause costs, contributes to the reduction of costs in a
given activity, or even its elimination, and assists managers in the arduous decision process
making. Thus, in the last decades, the ABC system was used because it is a method that
aims to reduce distortions in the determination of the cost of products, being practically
useful in organisations with diversified production and those that present very high indirect
costs in the total cost structure. It appears as a tool capable of responding to the limitations
pointed out by traditional costing systems when allocating indirect costs to products, and
it is based on the fact that products consume activities and that they consume resources.
The presented study had the main objective of analysing the international publications
on the costing system based on recent years’ activities and identifying trends of evolution
and future research opportunities. In this study, we contributed to the evolution of knowl-
edge because we realised the existence of a gap in research related to the fact that the most
recent investigation in which a literature review about ABC method was carried out also
addressed, simultaneously, the TDABC [87]. The last literature review carried out only on
the ABC method was carried out in 2010 [88], so this study is particularly relevant to fill
this gap.
The methodology adopted to carry out this study was a literature review and mapping,
selecting the relevant publications in the study area from the ISI Web of Science (WoS)
and Scopus databases. This research project carried out the mapping and description of
the literature correspondingly set out in terms of publication distribution per year, most
productive authors, top manuscripts per citations, manuscripts co-citations network, total
citations per country, corresponding authors’ countries, corresponding authors’ network,
most relevant keywords, and finally, the most relevant keywords network.
Furthermore, the study concludes that this theme continues to stimulate high levels of
interest in researchers, with recent years seeing rising numbers of research projects in this
field [89–91]. Hence, mapping the literature led to providing a general vision about what
has been researched thus far within the ABC application.
Having defined the research protocol and the criteria adopted for inclusion and
exclusion, our final database searches returned a total of 1419 articles spanning a timeframe
ranging from 1990 to 2020 that were then subject to analysis and mapping. The result of
this thorough analytical process was the production of bibliometric analysis, following
their respective levels of academic importance resulting from summing up their WoS and
Scopus citations [92]. In parallel, and as the research theme so required, we also undertook
the mapping of ABC application to the specific field of management irrespective of the
number of citations.
We immediately noticed that there had been a substantial increase in publications
over the years, which was motivated by the growing interest in this area of Knowledge [87]
by authors from large higher education institutions with experience in this knowledge
area [3].
The vast majority of studies in this area have been done in the USA in the first place,
with China in the second and the United Kingdom in the third. With regard to the general
conclusions from mapping the literature, we may state that ABC is increasingly the object
of scientific study and represents an area with excellent research potential that necessarily
has to evolve because various limitations to the studies still exist, many of them lacking
both in robustness and in the capacity for extrapolation to a broader reality [93].
This study systematically reviewed papers about ABC, extracted from the Web of
Science and Scopus databases, using two bibliometric analyses—mapping analysis and
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 17 of 20

bibliographic coupling using the software VOSviewer and bibliometrix R package. This
original study gave the possibility to systematise the literature about ABC and its applica-
tion, besides helping fill the gap regarding the need to synthesise this critical knowledge
area, contributing to various studies in this field, and paving the way for further research.
This review and mapping of the literature, which was concerned with ABC effective-
ness in higher education, are very interesting to future studies in this scope because we
can see, in the main paper findings, the most important information about this area of
knowledge answered questions such as what, where, when, who, and how, for which this
research has been conducted around the academic world.
The main limitations of the study carried out include the fact that only the Web of
Science and Scopus databases were used and the filters that were used (period, specific
categories, only empirical articles, not considering books, master’s dissertations, theses
of doctorate, presentations at congresses/conferences or working papers). Besides, it is
essential to mention that we only searched for articles with the expression ‘activity based
casting’ or ‘ABC’ on the topic. There may be other articles, equally relevant, that address
the issue without being explicit in the respective topic. We should also mention the fact that
some relevant articles were not considered because they were not in the analysed database
and the fact that we focussed specifically on ABC, omitting other relevant or similar costing
and management systems, namely, activity-based management (ABM) and TDABC.
As in the study by Stefano et al. [19], we believe that this work contributes to foster
discussions in the academic and business world on this theme, insofar as the survival of
organisations depends on their ability to generate profits, which, in turn, depends on a
well-structured costing system according to the organisation’s needs to support coherent
decision making and efficient cost management.
For future investigations, other keywords may be included in the research or the
search can be expanded to other sources, such as books and book chapters, articles pub-
lished in other magazines, communications presented at congresses/conferences and
monographs, theses and dissertations, and data (for example, ScienceDirect) to expand the
verification of the elements studied here and consolidate the trends inherent in this area.
We can also analyse other variables, such as, for example, the most relevant trend topics,
the primary methods used, and most relevant theories to conduct research and analyse
results (for example, institutional theory, theory of constraints, theory of agency; theory of
contingency, etc.).
Finally, we believe that it would be useful to obtain more knowledge about the benefits
and critical aspects associated with the use of ABC, which would be of particular interest
to professionals who deal with the implementation of ABC in practice.

Author Contributions: Conceptualisation, P.Q. and R.S.; methodology, R.S.; software, R.S.; validation,
P.Q. and R.S.; formal analysis, P.Q. and R.S.; investigation, P.Q. and R.S.; writing—original draft
preparation, P.Q.; writing—review and editing, P.Q. and R.S.; visualisation, R.S.; supervision, P.Q.;
project administration, P.Q. and R.S.; funding acquisition, P.Q. and R.S. All authors have read and
agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: The work of the author Rui Silva is supported by national funds, through the FCT—
Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the project UIDB/04011/2020. The work
of the author Patrícia Quesado is financed by national funds through FCT—Foundation for Science
and Technology, I.P., within the scope of multi-annual funding UIDB/04043/2020.
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.
Acknowledgments: The authors gratefully acknowledge the Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave
(School of Management) and CICF (Research Centre on Accounting and Taxation), and University of
Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro and CETRAD (Centre for Transdisciplinary Development Studies).
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2021, 7, 41 18 of 20

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