Governments are becoming digital; however, a shift toward digital transformation may not always occur voluntarily. For example, despite their willingness or skills, local government accountants are usually forced to adopt a digital innovation to comply with requirements from top-down public financial management reforms—a typical case of compulsory digital transformation. We observe local government accountants’ attitudes toward compulsory digital transformation and their effects on the comprehensiveness of the digital transformation linked to accounting reforms in place. We empirically analyzed the public financial management oversight function in Brazil, in which digitalization requires local government accountants to report financial information to external authorities via computerized tools. Relying on interviews and an open-ended survey with local government accountants, our findings revealed how Brazilian government accountants deal with compulsory digital transformation in the context of task overload. Most of the accountants present a resigned posture in which they opt to comply with the oversight authorities’ deadlines at the expense of reductions in the reported data's accuracy. However, other accountants assume a visionary posture by adopting a transformative attitude and turning the mandatory digital transformation to their advantage to favor a broader reformist agenda. The implications of such a scenario are discussed.

中文翻译：

---

政府监管部门强制数字化转型下会计师的姿态

政府正在变得数字化；然而，向数字化转型的转变并非总是自愿发生的。例如，尽管有意愿或技能，地方政府会计师通常被迫采用数字创新来满足自上而下的公共财务管理改革的要求——这是强制性数字化转型的典型案例。我们观察了地方政府会计师对强制数字化转型的态度及其对与现有会计改革相关的数字化转型全面性的影响。我们实证分析了巴西的公共财务管理监督职能，其中数字化要求地方政府会计师通过计算机化工具向外部当局报告财务信息。通过对当地政府会计师的采访和开放式调查，我们的调查结果揭示了巴西政府会计师如何在任务超负荷的情况下应对强制性数字化转型。大多数会计师呈现出一种辞职的态度，他们选择遵守监督当局的最后期限，但以降低报告数据的准确性为代价。然而，其他会计师采取了一种有远见的姿态，采取了变革的态度，将强制性的数字化转型转变为他们的优势，以支持更广泛的改革议程。讨论了这种情况的影响。大多数会计师呈现出一种辞职的态度，他们选择遵守监督当局的最后期限，但以降低报告数据的准确性为代价。然而，其他会计师采取了一种有远见的姿态，采取了变革的态度，将强制性的数字化转型转变为他们的优势，以支持更广泛的改革议程。讨论了这种情况的影响。大多数会计师呈现出一种辞职的态度，他们选择遵守监督当局的最后期限，但以降低报告数据的准确性为代价。然而，其他会计师采取了一种有远见的姿态，采取了变革的态度，将强制性的数字化转型转变为他们的优势，以支持更广泛的改革议程。讨论了这种情况的影响。