R1, for example, states, Making daily invoices prepare the general budget of the ministry and assist in facilitating the financial operations of the government by identifying monthly revenues and expenses and sending them to the ministry. Another interviewee (R2) reiterated the importance of knowledge of accounting software, Lack of knowledge of how to use advanced software are the barriers while using such accounting software. Likewise, this result is supported by Oduro (2020), Pillay (2016), who claim that lack of practical knowledge and thus unable to experience the potential benefits of latest technology and strategies to support and boost SMEs in achieving their business operational objectives is the major barrier to ICT adoption. 97-122. 1, pp. These are important, but data analytic skills are more important than data visualization skills. Chhabra, K.S. (2008), An examination of audit information technology use and perceived importance, Accounting Horizons, Vol. 244, p. 118712. 1, pp. (2020) highlighted that prior to the emergence of personal computers, companies used only manual approaches for recording accounting transactions which result in lack of fair financial data. (2014), Factors affecting the performance of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in the post-implementation stage, Behaviour and Information Technology, Vol. Ashrafi, R. and Murtaza, M. (2013), ICT adoption in SME in an Arab GCC country: Oman, Small and Medium Enterprises: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, IGI Global, pp. 75-98. 98-111. 4, pp. (2020) and Wadesango (2015) in their studies that majority of SMEs use single-entry accounting and keep those transactions in books or MS Excel. SMEs face various issues in implementation of ICT, such as inadequate financial resources, availability of inexperienced ICT employees, insufficient knowledge and skilled/experienced employees in the job market. Most of the SMEs lack internal capabilities, are unable to bear high implementation cost of IT in business and lack information about appropriate IT solutions and implementation, which were some of the main restrictions in adopting IT. 51-67. One prominent professional auditor had strong reservations about the [] customize the new international standard of accounting require us to update the ERP and sometime that is not available which require us to change the ERP. Updating recent changes in accounting standards or IFRS in ERP software requires assistance from software vendors. 1 No. 476-488. 581-609. and Pattanayak, J.K. (2014), Financial accounting practices among small enterprises: issues and challenges, IUP Journal of Accounting Research and Audit Practices, Vol. In addition, the researchers can study various other challenges that current accounting professionals in SMEs face while using accounting software. 2, pp. Anderson, D.R., Sweeney, D.J., Williams, T.A., Camm, J.D. []. Another interviewee mentioned that they did not use any programs in their accounting because business was small. 792-815. Hernandez, A.A. (2020), Exploring the factors to green IT adoption of SMEs in the Philippines, Start-Ups and SMEs: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, IGI Global, pp. 87-103. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The process of recording accounting transactions requires both theoretical and practical knowledge of accounting principles and accounting software. (2020) and Maseko and Manyani (2011) say that because of lack in accounting knowledge, and as a consequence, there is inefficient use and entry of accounting transactions that will affect fairness of financial statements and its performance measurement. This leads SMEs not meeting their business goals (Alhatabat, 2020). The advantages include increased reliable and accurate financial reports and faster access of financial data, and it ensures fairly improved generation of accounting information through financial statements (Gkten and zdoan, 2020; Ghasemi et al., 2011). 18 No. 4 No. (2017), Emerging information technologies in accounting and related security riskswhat is the impact on the Romanian accounting profession, Journal of Accounting and Management Information Systems, Vol. This was one of the barriers of economic growth of China. 83-101. Moreover, it is suggested for future studies to apply quantitative methods such as case studies, specifically moderators, and each of the independent variables to better understand the customized accounting software in SMEs. The enhanced use of accounting software has changed the accounting process, which involves transactional entry, data storage and preparation of financial statements and related information, and has an impact on the decisions of stakeholders who use financial statements for various purpose. (2020) and Ashrafi and Murtaza (2013), which found that the knowledge of accounting principles and accounting software leads to the adoption of accounting software in SMEs. Wadesango, O.V. (2017), Adoption of online marketing for service SMEs with multi-criteria decision-making approach, Handbook of Research on Intelligent Techniques and Modeling Applications in Marketing Analytics, IGI Global, pp. As there are no specific studies that examine the knowledge and use of accounting software among SMEs in Oman, there is no clarity regarding the accounting practices that accountants follow in an ICT-enabled or accounting software environment. Ibrahim, F., Ali, D.N.H. 8 No. 1, pp. Nyathi, K.A., Nyoni, T., Nyoni, M. and Bonga, W.G. The results have further revealed that the knowledge of customized accounting software or ERP exerts a significant impact on the use or adoption of accounting software in current accounting practices of SMEs. Further, this study emphasizes the usage and benefits of accounting software by accountants in various SMEs. 4 No. 13 No. 1-7. Situmorang, P.P. (2020) and Rahman et al. (2020), The impact of ERP system's adoption on management accounting practices in the Jordanian manufacturing companies, International Journal of Business Information Systems, Vol. Another prominent interviewee opined that [] do not find a program that suits the level of a commercial project. The same has been mentioned by Birt et al. (2020), An emissions accounting framework for industrial parks in China, Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 1, pp. 146-155. (2020), The doors are opening for the new pedigree: a futuristic view for the effects of blockchain technology on accounting applications, Digital Business Strategies in Block Chain Ecosystems, Springer, Cham, pp. 1, pp. 18, pp. As per the limited knowledge of the researcher, there are no previous qualitative study that used and empirically examined the relationship between knowledge and use of accounting software among accounting professionals of SMEs in Oman. The SMEs are categorized according to the number of employees employed. 476-482. Thottoli, M.M., Thomas, K.V. 16, pp. Anderson et al. 1, pp. 1, pp. 768-776. (2020) and Ashrafi and Murtaza (2013) in their study mentioned that it has been widely accepted that SMEs generally play a crucial role in a country's economy, and their role is the key to a country's economic stability to achieve targeted gross domestic product (GDP). (2020), The effect of system quality and information quality on the satisfaction of user enterprise resource planning-system application and product in data processing (ERP-SAP) with perceived usefulness as a variable moderating in PTPN III (persero) unit of labuhan, International Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Finance, Vol. Bashorun, M.T., Omopupa, K.T. Ahmed, E.R., Alabdullah, T.T.Y., Thottoli, M.M. 44-61. 2 No. Jimoh, A.T., Shittu, A.T. and Attah, J.A. The study reveals a number of implications. Meanwhile, in employing the manual or traditional way of accounting system, the interviewees claimed that although they are able to complete their job accurately, launching a computerized accounting system is more convenient (Xu, 2020). Thus, there is a strong relationship between the knowledge of basic accounting (including knowledge of IFRS) and use or adoption of accounting software to record day-to-day accounting transactions. Only a small number of SMEs in Oman know the benefits of available accounting software and ICT adoption. (2018) found that the use of Excel in accounting areas such as audit, tax, advisory and corporate is considered as important by majority of small organizations. Ganyam, A.I. 1-8. 11 No. 3, p. 5. They also suggested that training programs must be organized to alert managers to understand the importance of maintaining proper books of accounts using computer. (2020), Application research of accounting archives informatization based on big data, Data Processing Techniques and Applications for Cyber-Physical Systems (DPTA 2019), Springer, Singapore, pp. 28 No. 7 No. (2020) and Azih (2018) noted that manual accounting systems consist of accounting ledgers prepared using paper, typewriters and calculators. 25-33, doi: 10.21272/fmir.4(2).25-33.2020. and Besar, N.S.A. Current professional accountants use a wide range of computer applications to perform their day-to-day operational work (Do et al., 2020; Blankley et al., 2019; Boulianne, 2014). Arcega, C.K., Datinguinoo, E., Guerra, J., Guno, C., Mayuga, H.J., Villamena, E. and Manongsong, J.L. 1, pp. A total of six accountants in various SMEs were selected as the target respondents as sample size. There are number of literature studies identified that highlighted the importance of the use of ICT or accounting software in SMEs. Jinga, G., Dumitru, M., Dumitrana, M. and Vulpoi, M. (2010), Accounting systems for cost management used in the Romanian economic entities, Accounting and Management Information Systems/Contabilitate si Informatica de Gestiune, Vol. 529-537. (2017) expressed their view that the usage of computerized accounting system has shown a marginal increase in profitability of banks compared with when banks were using manual system of accounting. Thus, the objectives of this study are to examine the knowledge and use of accounting software among SMEs in Oman. Besides, conducting such study in the field of SMEs gives novelty in the literature between SMEs and developing economies. 23 No. 98, p. 101982. (2020), Alabdullah et al. 12 No. 2, pp. An organization employing between 50 and 250 employees is considered as medium-sized organization or firms. Araya-Leandro et al. This method has been applied by selected accountants who work in SMEs in Oman. 2, pp. 2, pp. Visit emeraldpublishing.com/platformupdate to discover the latest news and updates, Answers to the most commonly asked questions here, College of Economics Management and Information Systems, Does corporate governance predict firm profitability? Xu, X. (2010) mentioned that AISs are helpful for recording accounting transactions, analyzing, monitoring and analyzing financial statements of any company. Ibrahim et al. (2011) opined that accounting function contributes an important role in the success or failure of any SME or modern business organization. Further, this study can be extended to categorize SMEs into partnership, LLP and sole proprietorship and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of using accounting software or ERP with traditional method of recording accounting transactions. Amoako, G.K. (2013), Accounting practices of SMEs: a case study of Kumasi Metropolis in Ghana, International Journal of Business and Management, Vol. Ramazani, M., Zanjani, M. and Vali, F. (2012), Accounting software expectation gap based on features of accounting information systems (AISs), Journal of Emerging Trends in Computing and Information Sciences, Vol. 7 No. Cadez and Guilding, 2008; Jalaludin et al., 2011) are in agreement with the results of the approach analysis; in the third phase of the discussion with interviewees, the participants were requested to comment on the results regarding the effect of knowledge of accounting software on various accountants who work in SMEs in Oman. and Ahn, H.J. 1 No. Cadez, S. and Guilding, C. (2008), An exploratory investigation of an integrated contingency model of strategic management accounting, Accounting, Organizations and Society, Vol. Amidu, M., Effah, J. and Abor, J. 64, pp. Besides, it is suggested for impending studies to use quantitative methods, for instance, case studies specifically on moderators, and each of the independent variables to better comprehend the adoption of accounting software by SME organizations for recording day-to-day accounting transactions. Bakr, S.A. (2020), The Adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standard for Small and Medium-Sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Doctoral dissertation, Royal Holloway, University of London. 2, pp. (2020), Artificial intelligence products reshape accounting: time to re-train, Development and Learning in Organizations, Advance online publication, doi: 10.1108/DLO-10-2019-0242. The aim of this paper is to determine the influence of knowledge and use of accounting software among small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs) in Oman. 84-96. 4, pp. 28, pp. (2019), Effect of accounting information system on financial performance of firms: a review of literature, Journal of Business and Management, Vol. Lack of use and knowledge of accounting software leads to continued manual accounting that may be very hard for business owners, especially SMEs, to monitor financial health of their businesses. Mishina et al. Ha, Y.M. 7 No. SME: Since there is no standard definition for SMEs, this research has taken on the following meanings of SMEs. 1, pp. Hence, improving the level of accounting policies and other related information of SEMS is essential (Yu et al., 2020; Wen, 2020; Zhou, 2010). Chao, C.A. (2006) found that some SMEs are facing issues managing their accounting tasks. 1, pp. Small business owners think that keeping accounting records are not required and gives less need or important to expose their financial position. With this training, the students should get acquainted with the use and knowledge of organizational customized accounting software which helps them to know automated process of applicable IFRS and Oman's proposed implementation of VAT of 2021. 1, pp. Ashrafi and Murtaza (2008) in their study provided that only a very a smaller number of SMEs in Oman are aware of the available accounting software and its adoption.