The role of management accounting information systems and governance in the influence of intellectual capital strategy on SMEs’ business performance

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether management accounting information systems (MAIS) and governance moderate the influence of intellectual capital (IC) on business performance (BP). This research is a quantitative study using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) for data analysis. A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect primary data from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) located in Surabaya, Indonesia. Distributing questionnaires via Google Form. The results of this study indicate that IC has a positive influence on BP. Further analysis shows that the MAIS strengthens the influence of IC on BP, but governance weakens the influence of IC on BP. The implications of this study are that the SMEs should implement MAIS characteristics to strengthen the influence of IC on SMEs’ performance. Although governance is not able to strengthen the impact of IC on SMEs’ performance, through proper recording and disclosure of information, it will be able to increase investor confidence in the SMEs. The SMEs also play a significant role in the economic development of a country; therefore, the IC as an intangible asset can play a significant role in achieving good performance in SMEs.