(FEB NEWS) The current of global business transformation demands that education move faster than simply delivering theory in the classroom. Responding to this challenge, the Accounting Study Program, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Airlangga once again presented an international discussion forum through a Guest Lecture held on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, at the Fadjar Notonegoro Hall, FEB UNAIR.

This event featured two international academics with different but interconnected expertise in the modern business ecosystem. External Co-Supervisor Dr. Laith Alsheyab from Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) Malaysia discussed the development of Management Accounting, while Accounting and Finance Lecturer Muhammad Ishfaq Ahmad PhD, MBA, PGCLTHE, CPA from Teesside International Business School, UK, reviewed the role of Management Information Systems (MIS) in supporting organizational decision-making.

Evolution of Management Accounting

In the first session, Dr. Laith Alsheyab opened by exploring the major transformations that have fundamentally changed the face of management accounting. He emphasized that conventional management accounting has for too long been confined to reporting and control functions alone without a clear strategic direction. However, increasingly competitive market pressures, globalization, and technological advancements have forced a major shift. Management accounting must now serve as a company's compass in planning for the future, determining direction, and formulating strategy.

One of the tools he focused on in depth was Value Chain Analysis, an approach that critically analyzes every business activity using two simple questions: "How much value does this activity create for customers, and how much does it cost? If the value exceeds the cost, it's a good activity and should be maintained. If the cost exceeds the value, it's a problem that needs to be resolved immediately," he explained.

This framework of thinking, he believes, is the key to achieving the two main goals of modern management accounting, namely minimizing cost waste while maximizing the value generated for customers and the company.

Management Information System

The second session flowed with a different energy. Muhammad Ishfaq Ahmad, PhD, MBA, PGCLTHE, CPA, a lecturer in Accounting and Finance from Teesside International Business School, took students through the anatomy of a system that quietly controls almost every decision in modern organizations: the Management Information System (MIS).

Ishfaq defines MIS not simply as a technological tool, but as the convergence of humans, machines, and processes that work together to transform raw data into meaningful information for decision-makers at every level of the organization. "Information is data placed in a meaningful and useful context for its users. Without context, data is just noise. With the right context, it becomes the foundation of every strategic decision an organization makes," he explained.

He continued by introducing an analogy that immediately resonated with the participants. MIS in an organization is like the heart in the human body, with information as its blood. "The heart pumps clean blood to all organs of the body, including the brain. Management Information Systems work exactly like that, ensuring the right data is collected, processed, and distributed to all parties who need it, at the right time and in the right form," he concluded.

Management Information Systems include integrated components such as hardware, software, human resources, communication systems, and data that collectively ensure that every manager has the right information to make effective and efficient decisions.

Editor: Sintya Alfafa