The purpose of this study is to examine the interplay between management accountants (MAs) and data scientists (DSs) as they work collaboratively to develop an analytics function in a manufacturing organisation. Literature contains normative assertions as to the importance of analytics to accounting, which necessitate the MA to evolve into a type of DS to retain their key role in the organisation. However, there is a dearth of empirical insight into the actual experiences of MAs using analytics. This work is based on an in-depth case study of a large multinational organisation. The data captures the experiences of a consortium of MAs and DSs who pool their skills and knowledge to form a data analytics team. An initial review of the case data identifies key themes that emerge from the interplay between the MAs and DSs. To explore how these themes develop over time, a temporal analysis is adopted in the form of strong structuration theory (SST) which provides a lens through which complex interactions between the MAs and DSs can be analysed over critical points in time. The findings contribute to management accounting literature by providing empirical insight into the relationship between the MAs and DSs. The MAs’ value lies in their willingness to share their knowledge of the business with DSs to improve performance. Yet they understand the need for the skills of the DS to develop solutions. The organisation provides a creative environment to facilitate open communication between the MAs, DSs and internal stakeholders for the development of analytics projects to achieve goals. The study contributes to SST literature by exploring a case study where MAs and DSs are situated within a web of position practices. Analytics emerges from its complex entanglement within other disciplines to be considered in its own right as a creative function of the organisation