How did the COVID-19 pandemic impact the business partner role and accountants’ decision-making influence?

Purpose This paper aims to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted upon the management accounting business partner (MABP) role and decision-making influence. This paper bases its reasoning on two contradictory theories (threat-rigidity and adaptive change) concerning how emergency situations impact organizational change. Design/methodology/approach This paper developed a survey in Brazil during the pandemic and obtained a valid sample of 107 respondents. This paper applied the multivariate technique of structural equation modeling estimated by partial least squares (PLS-SEM) to test the hypotheses. Findings The results demonstrate the impact of a crisis event (i.e. the COVID-19 pandemic) on the development of the MABP role and management accountants’ decision-making influence. This paper finds that rather than restricting decision-making to only top executives in times of crisis (as predicted by threat-rigidity theory), management accountants’ influence on strategic decision-making increased in organizations that were most affected by the pandemic. This paper provides support for an adaptive change argument, finding that at the extreme ends of the COVID-19 impact – whether highly positive or highly negative (U-shaped relationship) – the indirect effect of the pandemic on MA decision-making influence increased, through an increase in the MABP role. Originality/value This paper contributes to the existing literature by addressing its contradictory findings and providing support for adaptive change theory within the unique context of an emerging economy – Brazil. In addition, this paper expands the accounting literature on crisis contexts by identifying and empirically demonstrating the role of business partnering as a mediator – revealing not only how crisis events impact accountants’ influence, but also why this occurs (due to an increase in the business partnering role).