Reviewed by Moyra J. M. Kedslie University of Hull

This beautifully produced book provides us with an explanation of why a professional body for cost accountants emerged and of the subsequent formation and early years of that body, then called the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants. The period covered is very narrow when measured in years but extremely significant in terms of the changes in the British economy and social structure which took place during and after the First World War. It is interesting to see the opportunities that the war presented for cost accountants and the manner in which they capitalized upon this in 1913 when the Institute was formed.

Chapter Two sets the scene for the birth of the new profes-sional body by examining the development of cost accounting systerns in Britain towards the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century, which led to a growth in the number of men employed as costing clerks. The second factor to be considered is the impact of the First World War on industry and the involvement of professional accountants in government work. Because the chartered accountants and incorporated accountants were members of well-established professional bodies, they were often recruited to assist in this work in preference to costing clerks with no professional affiliation. This preferential treatment undoubtedly indicated to costing clerks, many of whom must have been highly skilled and experienced, the lower status attributed to them by virtue of their lack of an organized body and provided the catalyst for such a formation.

The formation and early organization of the ICWA is dealt with in some detail in Chapters Three and Four. Understandably, the cost accountants attempted to model themselves on the existing professional accounting bodies and to form “an Institute equal in status to the Chartered Accountants” [p. 47]. This view was at variance with that held by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales whose president declared at the 39th Annual General Meeting of the Institute [Accountant, May 8, 1920, p. 548]:

In my opinion, “Costing” has lately become almost a science, and ought to form a part of the education of every Chartered Accountant in a much larger degree than it has apparently done in the past, but that does not justify a separate organisation amongst members of the Institute. It is most undesirable to encourage these outside formations, as, if they deal with subjects that appertain to our profession, then by all means let those subjects be included more liberally in our curriculum.

The president was referring to his speech to the Costing Association [p. 37] but it is reasonable to assume that the CAs held similar views on the formation of the ICWA.

Finally the book deals with the early membership of the ICWA and includes eight fascinating reports of interviews with surviving founder members. This is the most enjoyable part of the book and is an excellent example of the use of oral history.

It would be impossible to review this book without making some comparison between it and Anne Loft’s earlier book for which she received the 1990 Hourglass Award. Much of the new book is a reiteration of Chapters Six, Seven and Eight of the earlier one with the addition of archival material on the early days of the Institute and a much fuller coverage of the oral history aspect. However, this repetition can be forgiven on the grounds that the target audience is different — it would make an excellent gift for someone who had worked through the early development of professional costing. Another regrettable similarity between the two books is the lack of index and, in this case, of a bibliography. Nevertheless, this is an interesting and well-produced book which should have considerable appeal to a wide range of readers.