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Professor Sean McCartney

Sean

Emeritus Professor of Accounting and Business History

Email: s.mccartney@qmul.ac.uk

Profile

Biography:

Sean worked at Queen Mary since 2007 and is now an Emeritus Professor of Accounting and Business History. He was previously Professor of Accounting at the University of Essex. He was a member of the Department of Accounting and Financial Management.

Research

Research Interests:

Sean's current research interests are mainly focused on:

  1. aspects of British industrial performance between the beginning of the Industrial Revolution and the First World War. He has written widely on the railway and canal sectors during the eighteenth/nineteenth centuries, and has co-authored a biography of George Hudson (‘The Railway King’) in 2004.
  2. the performance of the rail industry in Britain since privatisation in the mid-1990s.
  3. political economy and accounting in Nigeria.

Centre and Group Membership:

Member of the Accounting & Accountability Research Group (AARG)

 

Publications

Books

The Privatisation of British Rail: How Not to Run a Railway (2023) Routledge, pp. 234 (with John Stittle).

The Railway King. George Hudson: A Study in Victorian Entrepreneurship (2004) Hambledon and London, pp. 317 (with Tony Arnold).

Articles

  • Neoliberalism, ‘honour’-based regulatory frameworks of accounting and accountability in a social context: An examination of the role of accounting in the management of subsidies on petroleum products in Nigeria, Accounting as a technology of neoliberalism: The accountability role of IPSAS in Nigeria, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Vol. 99 (2024) p. 102605 (with Owolabi Bakre, Simeon Fayemi, Mohammad Nurunnabi & Saad Almosa).
  • Managerial Failure in early Victorian Britain: Network and capital expansion during the Railway Mania, Business History, Vol. 66 No. 5 (2024) pp. 1187-1213.
  • Accounting as a technology of neoliberalism: The accountability role of IPSAS in Nigeria, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Vol. 87 (2022) p. 102282 (with Owolabi Bakre and Simeon Fayemi).
  • 'A Very Costly Industry': The cost of Britain's privatised railway, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Vol. 49, (2017), pp. 1-17 (with John Stittle).
  • Western Accounting Reforms and Accountability in Wealth Redistribution in Patronage based Nigerian Society, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 30 No. 6, (2017) pp.1288-1308 (with Owolabi Bakre and Sarah Lauwo).
  • Accounting for Producer Needs: The case of Britain's rail infrastructure, Accounting Forum, Vol.39 No. 2, (2015), pp.109-20 (with John Stittle).
  • Competence is Not Enough: Meta-competence and Accounting Education, in Richard Wilson (ed.) Accounting Education Research. London: Routledge (2013) (with Reva Brown). First published in Accounting Education in 1995.
  • ‘Failing to deliver’: the privatized British rail freight industry, Public Money and Management, Vol. 33 No. 5, (2013), pp. 321-8 (with John Stittle).
  • Financial capitalism, incorporation and the emergence of financial reporting information, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 25 No. 8, (2012), pp. 1290-316 (with Tony Arnold).
  • ‘Engines of Extravagance’: The privatised British railway rolling stock industry, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Vol. 23 No. 2, (2012), pp. 153-67 (with John Stittle).
  • ‘Carry On up the East Coast’: A case study in railway franchising, Public Money and Management, Vol. 31 No. 2, (2011), pp. 123-30 (with John Stittle).
  • ‘Veritable gold mines before the arrival of railway competition’: but did dividends signal rates of return in the English canal industry?, Economic History Review, Vol. 64 No. 1 (2011), pp. 214–236 (with Tony Arnold). Republished (2014) in D. Coffman & L. Neal (eds) The History of Financial Crises, Routledge.
  • Can macro-economic sources be used to define UK business performance, 1855-1914?, Business History, Vol. 52 No. 4 (2010), pp. 564-89. (with Tony Arnold).
  • The transition to financial capitalism and its implications for financial reporting: evidence from the English canal companies, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 21 No. 8 (2008), pp. 1185 - 1209 (with Tony Arnold).
  • ‘Taken for a ride’: the privatisation of the UK railway rolling stock industry, Public Money and Management, Vol. 28 No. 2 (2008), pp. 93-100 (with John Stittle).
  • Professor Reva Berman Brown (1939–2007) – A Tribute, Accounting Education, Vol. 16 No. 3 (2007) pp. 309-10.
  • Medieval Anglo-Jewry and their Food, 1066-1290 (2006), in Richard Hosking (ed.) Authenticity in the Kitchen, pp. 108-18. Totnes, Devon: Prospect Books (with Reva Brown).
  • ‘Not our problem’: UK Government's fiscal obligations towards the privatised railway network, Accounting Forum, Vol. 30 No. 2 (2006) pp. 139-53 (with John Stittle).
  • The Exchequer of the Jews Revisited: The Operation and Effect of the Scaccarium Judeorum, Medieval History Journal, Vol. 8 No. 2 (2005) pp. 303-22 (with Reva Brown).
  • Rates of return, concentration levels and strategic change in the British railway industry, 1830-1912, Journal of Transport History, Vol. 26 No. 1 (2005) pp. 41-60 (with Tony Arnold).
  • The Use of Usefulness: An examination of the ‘user needs’ approach to the financial reporting conceptual framework, Journal of Applied Accounting Research, Vol. 7, No. 2 (2005) pp. 52-79.
  • Were they ever ‘productive to the capitalist’? Rates of return on Britain's railways, 1830-55, Journal of European Economic History, Vol. 33 No. 2 (2004) pp. 383-410 (with Tony Arnold).
  • David of Oxford and Licoricia of Winchester: Glimpses of the life of a Jewish family in 13th century England, Jewish Historical Studies, Vol. 39 (2004) pp. 1-34 (with Reva Brown).
  • The development of capability: the content of potential and the potential of content, Education + Training, Vol. 46 No. 1 (2004) pp. 7-10 (with Reva Brown).
  • The Railway Mania of 1845-7: Market irrationality or a collusive swindle based on accounting distortions?, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 16 No. 5 (2003) pp. 821-52 (with Tony Arnold). Republished (2014) in D. Coffman & L. Neal (eds) The History of Financial Crises, Routledge.
  • The Internal Exile of Medieval English Jewry, Medieval History Journal, Vol. 6 No. 1 (2003) pp. 55-74 (with Reva Brown).
  • It may be earlier than you think: evidence, myths and informed debate in accounting history, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Vol. 14 No. 3 (2003) pp. 227-53 (with Tony Arnold).
  • Let’s have some Capatence here, Education + Training, Vol. 45 No. 1 (2003) pp. 7-12 (with Reva Brown).
  • The beginnings of accounting for capital consumption: disclosure practices in the British railway industry, 1830-55, Accounting and Business Research, Vol. 32 No. 4 (2002) pp. 195-208 (with Tony Arnold).
  • Financial reporting in the context of crisis: reconsidering the impact of the mania on early railway accounting, European Accounting Review, Vol. 11 No. 2 (2002) pp. 401-17 (with Tony Arnold).
  • The Value of Management Letters to Unlisted Companies, British Accounting Review, Vol. 33 No. 4 (2001) pp. 549-68 (with Stuart Manson and Michael Sherer).
  • The Business Activities of Jewish Women Entrepreneurs in Medieval England, Management Decision, Vol. 39, No. 9 (2001) pp. 699-709 (with Reva Brown).
  • ‘Capital clamours for profitable investment, confidence has become eager and may shortly become blind’: George Hudson and the 'railway mania' extensions of the York and North Midland Railway, Journal of Industrial History, Vol. 4 No. 2 (2001) pp. 94-116 (with Tony Arnold).
  • ‘A vast aggregate of avaricious and flagitious jobbing’? George Hudson and the evolution of directorial responsibility, Accounting, Business & Financial History, Vol. 11 No. 2 (2001) pp. 117-43 (with Tony Arnold). (Awarded the Basil Yamey Prize for best paper of 2001 in Accounting, Business & Financial History.)
  • Audit Automation as Control within Audit Firms, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol. 14 No. 1 (2001) pp. 109-30 (with Stuart Manson and Michael Sherer).
  • Living in Limbo: The Experience of Jewish Converts in Medieval England, in Guyda Armstron and Ian N Wood (eds.) Christianizing Peoples and Converting Individuals, pp. 169-91. Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols Publishers (2001) (with Reva Brown).
  • George Hudson’s financial reporting practices: putting the Eastern Counties Railway in context, Accounting, Business & Financial History, Vol. 10 No. 3 (2000), pp. 293-316 (with Tony Arnold). 
  • Can Management Education be Liberated from the Discipline of Discipline?’, Journal of Graduate Education, Vol. 3 No. 1 (2000), pp. 2-11 (with Reva Brown). 
  • The Capacity Spiral: Four weddings and a funeral, Journal of Vocational Education and Training, Vol. 51 No. 4 (1999), pp. 1-20 (with Alan Bolton and Reva Brown). 
  • Managing by Numbers: Using outcome measures in the NHS, International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 12 No. 1 (1999), pp. 6-12 (with Reva Brown). 
  • Audit Automation in the UK and the US: A comparative study, International Journal of Auditing, Vol. 2 No. 3 (1998), pp. 233-246 (with Stuart Manson, Michael Sherer, and Wanda Wallace). 
  • Using Reflections in Postgraduate Accounting Education, Accounting Education, Vol. 7, No. 2 (1998), pp. 123-37 (with Reva Brown).
  • The Link between Research and Teaching: Its Purpose and Implications, Innovations in Education & Training International, Vol. 35 No. 1 (1998), pp. 117-29 (with Reva Brown).
  • Multiple Mirrors: Reflecting On Reflections (1998), in Dave O'Reilly, Lynne Cunningham and Stan Lester (eds) Developing the Capable Practitioner: Professional Capability through Higher Education, pp. 16-32. London: Kogan Page (with Reva Brown). 
  • The Best of Both Worlds: Research Learning and the MBA, in Dirk T. Tempelaar, Finn Wiedersheim-Paul and Elving Gunnarsson (eds.), Education Innovation in Economics and Business: In Search of Quality (1998), pp. 295-307. Dordrecht: Kluwer academic publishers (with Reva Brown). 
  • Audit Automation: Improving Quality or Keeping Up Appearances?, in M Sherer and S Turley (eds.) Current Issues in Auditing (3E) (1997), pp. 254-72. London: Paul Chapman Publishing (with Michael Sherer and Stuart Manson). 
  • Audit Automation: The use of information technology in the planning, controlling and recording of audit work, Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland Research Report (1997) (with Michael Sherer and Stuart Manson). 
  • A Home from Home: The Organisation as Family, Studies in Cultures, Organizations, and Societies, Vol. 2 No. 2 (1996), pp. 241-255 (with Reva Brown). 
  • Do They Mean Business?: An investigation of the purpose of the 'new university' business schools in Britain, in Rolv Petter Amdam (ed.) Management, Education and Competitiveness (1996), pp. 150-170. London: Routledge (with Reva Brown and Jeff Clowes).
  • Why do Auditors use Information Technology? Some Evidence from two Big Six Audit Firms, Annual Collection of Wards Trust Seminar Papers, Vol. 1 (1996), pp. 1/1-15. University of Glasgow (with Michael Sherer and Stuart Manson). 
  • Why the NHS Should Abandon the Search for the Universal Outcome Measure, Health Care Analysis, Vol. 3, No. 3 (1995), pp. 181-95 (with Reva Brown). 
  • Competence Is Not Enough: Meta-competence and the Accounting Student, Accounting Education, Vol. 4, No. 1 (1995), pp. 43-53 (with Reva Brown). 
  • Research Learning on the Essex MBA, in Brenda Smith and Sally Brown (eds.) Research, Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (1995), pp. 152-165. London: Kogan Page (with Reva Brown). 
  • Learning about Knowing and Knowing about Learning: Management Education on a Part-time MBA, Education Training and Technology International, Vol. 31 No. 4 (1994), pp. 254-267 (with Reva Brown). 
  • The Usefulness of Management Letters, Chartered Association of Certified Accountants (ACCA) Research Report No. 38 (1994) (with Michael Sherer and Stuart Manson). 
  • Who is the NHS for?, Journal of Management in Medicine, Vol. 8, No. 4 (1994), pp. 62-70 (with Louise Bell, Reva Brown and Sharon Scaggs). 
  • The Capability MBA, Journal of Capability, Vol. 1, No. 2 (1994), pp. 33-45 (with Reva Brown). 
  • Learning Without Knowing: Mastering learning on a part-time MBA, in Graham Gibbs (ed.) Improving Student Learning: Theory and Practice (1994), pp. 463-481. Oxford: The Oxford Centre for Staff Development (with Reva Brown). 
  • Marketing in the National Health Service, in M. Malek (ed.) Setting Priorities in Health Care (1994), pp. 115-126. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons (with Sharon Scaggs, Reva Brown and Louise Bell). 
  • Professionals in Health Care: Perceptions of Managers, Journal of Management in Medicine, Vol. 6, No. 5 (1993), pp. 48-55 (with Louise Bell and Reva Brown). 
  • Patient Defined Audit: A New Perspective, in M. Malek, P. Vascani, J. Rasquinha, and P. Davey (eds.) Managerial Issues in the Reformed NHS (1993), pp. 159-167. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons (with Reva Brown and Louise Bell).

Supervision

  • Anne Gichuru-Ogweno, 'Gender, race and ethnicity inequalities in accountancy: The experiences of women accountants in Kenya'. Awarded 2023.
  • Chandres Tejura, 'Is Accounting education/training overly focused on profit and wealth maximisation at the expense of ethics, if so, what are the ramifications for society?' Awarded 2023. Dr Tejura is Senior Lecturer in Accounting at Queen Mary.
  • Aigerim Umbetbayeva, 'Financial reporting framework in a developing world: opportunities and challenges of IFRS adoption in Kazakhstan.' Awarded 2022. Dr Umbetbayeva is now Lecturer in Finance and Accounting at the University of Westminster.
  • Beatriz Rodriguez-Satizabal, 'Financing Entrepreneurs and Firms: from stand-alone to business groups. The case of Colombia'. Awarded 2020.  Dr Rodriguez-Satizabal is now Assistant Professor of Economic and Business History and Digital Humanities at Universidad del Pacífico (Peru).
  • Marrisa Joseph, ‘Literary Businesses: Institutions of the Victorian Publishing Industry’. Awarded 2017. Dr Joseph is now Associate Professor of Organisation Studies and Business History at the Henley Business School.
  • Ramin Nassehi, Studying rentier states over time: the political economy of macroeconomic policymaking in pre-Revolutionary Iran. Awarded 2017. Dr Nassehi is now Associate Professor in Economics at UCL.
  • Nadia Benbouzid, ‘The Impact of Securitization on Financial Stability.’ Awarded 2014. Dr Benbouzid is now Associate Professor in Finance at the University of Greenwich.
  • Mohamed Nagy Osman Mohamed, 'Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Reporting of Egyptian Banks: A Critical and Postcolonial Perspective.' Awarded 2012. Dr Osman is now Lecturer in Accountancy at the University of Aberdeen.

 

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