Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Auditing and Accountability'
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Everett, Jeffery Stephen. "Accounting, auditing and accountability in Canada's national parks." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2001. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk3/ftp05/NQ64860.pdf.
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Meyer, Sarah Ruth. "Improvements and assessments of water auditing techniques." [College Station, Tex. : Texas A&M University, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1087.
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Adhikari, Mukunda Prasad. "Social auditing: Practices and challenges of non-government organisations (NGOs) in Nepal." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2016. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/102466/5/Mukunda_Prasad_Adhikari_Thesis.pdf.
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This thesis examines the nature of management-driven social audit and surrogates-driven social audit within the NGO sector in Nepal, and how they are used to create NGOs' accountability. While extant research largely looked at social audits within the corporate field, there is a limited study focusing on social audit within the NGO sector. Embracing surrogate accountability framework, thesis utilised 46 semi-structured in-depth interviews and document analysis to understand social audits and accountability. While NGOs claimed that management-driven audit facilitates stakeholders' empowerment; stakeholders-driven audit produced shadow accounts highlighted that NGOs' claim of their accountability and stakeholders' empowerment is questionable. This thesis provides in-depth understanding on underlying contradictions, tension, struggles and conflicts between NGOs and their stakeholders.
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Ersoy, Yasemin. "An evaluation of the role of external auditing in the accountability of co-operatives in Turkey." Thesis, Cardiff University, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.251527.
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Kgatjepe, Maaria Ishmael. "Legislative oversight and accountability of public finances : a case of Limpopo, Provincial Legislature for the period between 1994 and 2010." Thesis, University of Limpopo, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10386/2331.
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Thesis (MPA. (Public Administration)) -- University of Limpopo, 2018The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996 requires the Legislature in Local, Provincial and National Governments to hold the Executive accountable and continue to do oversight on the work of government. The Legislature in executing its work, sometimes make use of the Auditor General’s reports, Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) reports and all other reports submitted by constitutional institutions, the Executive and other agents of the State. The study investigates whether the Legislature understands its mandate as legislated and whether the legislation is efficient and effective in ensuring accountability and conducting oversight of the work of the Executive. The research methodology used in this study is the qualitative approach. The respondents were clear that the Legislature understand its business as legislated, and further that there is a challenge at implementation of these important functions of the Legislature. There is varying implementation due to resources, capacity constraints and lack of commitment. The study recommends that the training of Members of the Legislature and staff, allocation of adequate resources and proper planning. The commitment of the Members of the Executive to the process and implementation of consequence management for poor performance and key interventions to ensure efficient and effective oversight of public finances in the province
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Mashima, Daisuke. "Safeguarding health data with enhanced accountability and patient awareness." Diss., Georgia Institute of Technology, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/45775.
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Several factors are driving the transition from paper-based health records to electronic health record systems. In the United States, the adoption rate of electronic health record systems significantly increased after "Meaningful Use" incentive program was started in 2009. While increased use of electronic health record systems could improve the efficiency and quality of healthcare services, it can also lead to a number of security and privacy issues, such as identity theft and healthcare fraud. Such incidents could have negative impact on trustworthiness of electronic health record technology itself and thereby could limit its benefits.
In this dissertation, we tackle three challenges that we believe are important to improve the security and privacy in electronic health record systems. Our approach is based on an analysis of real-world incidents, namely theft and misuse of patient identity, unauthorized usage and update of electronic health records, and threats from insiders in healthcare organizations. Our contributions include design and development of a user-centric monitoring agent system that works on behalf of a patient (i.e., an end user) and securely monitors usage of the patient's identity credentials as well as access to her electronic health records. Such a monitoring agent can enhance patient's awareness and control and improve accountability for health records even in a distributed, multi-domain environment, which is typical in an e-healthcare setting. This will reduce the risk and loss caused by misuse of stolen data. In addition to the solution from a patient's perspective, we also propose a secure system architecture that can be used in healthcare organizations to enable robust auditing and management over client devices. This helps us further enhance patients' confidence in secure use of their health data.
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Bradbury, M. E. "Characteristics of firms and voluntary interim earnings disclosures." Thesis, University of Auckland, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/2292/1992.
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This thesis reviews the evolution of interim reporting in New Zealand. The attempts to regulate interim reporting by the stock Exchange Association of New Zealand and the lobbying behaviour of affected parties are documented. The regulation of interim reporting is interpreted as a series of self-interest actions by the affected parties. In 1973 semiannual reports were mandated for all firms listed on the New Zealand stock Exchange. However, the content of these reports, was not specified until 1976. The extent of voluntary reporting practice prior to 1973 is recorded. The major empirical analysis of the thesis examines the association between corporate characteristics and the voluntary disclosure of semiannual earnings during the period 1973 to 1976. The analysis shows that firms with high semiannual earnings disclosures have more shares issued, have paid an interim dividend, carry relatively less inventory, are in a more seasonal industry and have a greater earnings forecast error. Assets in place, political costs of disclosure and competitive costs of disclosure are not found to be associated with the level of semiannual earnings disclosure. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the significance of the explanatory variables depends on firm size and upon the threshold level of disclosure.
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Teixeira, Alan. "Disclosure Rules, Manager Discretion and the Relative Informativeness of Earnings Components." Thesis, University of Auckland, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/2292/2401.
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This is a study of earnings quality, examining whether components of earnings based on New Zealand (N.Z.) accounting classification systems have different information parameters. The N.Z. environment provides a unique opportunity to examine a period with no legislative backing of accounting standards and a flexible accounting standard. Combined, this gave mangers the ability to clearly identify earnings components they considered to be differentially informative. Informativeness is assessed by the ability of current period earnings to predict next period earnings and the contemporaneous relation between returns and earnings. The results indicate that disaggregated reported earnings are more informative than aggregated earnings in a non-trivial way. In one of the sample periods disaggregated earnings explained 29% of the variance in returns, more than twice the explanatory power of aggregated earnings. N.Z. accounting standard setters replaced SSAP7 with FRS7 in 1994 contending that the discretion available to mangers reduced the informativeness of earnings. Not only do the results not support that contention but earnings informativeness has fallen since FRS7 came into effect, suggesting that standard setters should revisit that decision. The results also have implications for the content and form of the N.Z. Stock Exchange (NZSE) preliminary announcement. "Unusual earnings" reported to the NZSE by companies are shown to be differentially informative to investors yet the NZSE does not always identify these components when the preliminary announcement is summarised and disseminated to market participants. To summarise, the effective codification of earnings brought about by FRS7 has reduced the informativeness of earnings – locking differences between components into total earnings. The N.Z. results beg the question as to whether similar economic events are locked into the COMPUSTAT summary earnings variables for U.S. data.
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Akinwande, Yisa Olabode. "The UK banking supervisory / regulatory process and bank failures (1960-1997) : the effects of the changes in banking regulation on the internal governance, accountability and auditing." Thesis, University of Essex, 1998. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.388609.
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Zhang, Yuyu. "Audit fees and asset securitization risks." Thesis, The University of New South Wales, 2013.
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The thesis investigates “where were the auditors in asset securitizations”, a criticism of the audit profession before and after the onset of the global financial crisis (GFC). Asset securitizations increase audit complexity and audit risks, which are expected to increase audit fees. Using US bank holding company data from 2003 to 2009, this study examines the association between asset securitization risks and audit fees, and its changes during the global financial crisis.
The main test is based on an ordinary least squares (OLS) model, which is adapted from the Fields et al. (2004) bank audit fee model. I employ a principal components analysis to address high correlations among asset securitization risks. Individual securitization risks are also separately tested. A suite of sensitivity tests indicate the results are robust. These include model alterations, sample variations, further controls in the tests, and correcting for the securitizer self-selection problem.
A partial least squares (PLS) path modelling methodology is introduced as a separate test, which allows for high intercorrelations, self-selection correction, and sequential order hypotheses in one simultaneous model. The PLS results are consistent with the main results.
The study finds significant and positive associations between securitization risks and audit fees. After the commencement of the global financial crisis in 2007, there was an increased focus on the role of audits on asset securitization risks resulting from bank failures; therefore I expect that auditors would become more sensitive to bank asset securitization risks after the commencement of the crisis. I find that auditors appear to focus on different aspects of asset securitization risks during the crisis and that auditors appear to charge a GFC premium for banks. Overall, the results support the view that auditors consider asset securitization risks and market changes, and adjust their audit effort and risk considerations accordingly.
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Goodwin, J. D. "Audit judgments of revalued non-current assets." Lincoln University, 1994. http://hdl.handle.net/10182/1770.
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The revaluation of non-current assets has become an accepted accounting practice in many countries including the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. This practice has implications for the external auditor who must decide whether to accept a valuation as reasonable and how much evidence to collect to support the decision. This thesis represents the first study to examine audit decision making in this area. Because of the absence of prior research, a series of structured interviews was undertaken with audit partners to identify the main audit issues. The results of these interviews, together with the relevant literature, were used to identify some of the factors that may impact on audit judgments concerning revalued assets. Hypotheses were developed and two complementary experiments were designed to test them. These were based on the premise that client management may be motivated to revalue in order to improve the appearance of the balance sheet, thereby increasing the inherent risk of misstatement. A 2 x 2 between-subjects design was used for both experiments, and the dependent variables measured were estimates of the planned audit hours to be spent on the revalued assets and likelihood judgments that the valuations would be accepted as reasonable. Experiment One considered the situation where auditors are faced with two conflicting risks which are likely to exist simultaneously in the audit environment. These were the threat of litigation arising from the client's breach of a debt covenant and the risk of losing the client. The study examined auditors' responses to high and low levels of these risks on the audit of revalued owner-occupied property and an investment property. For the planned audit hours, results indicated a strong interaction effect between the two factors, with auditors planning to spend significantly more time on the audit of revalued assets when both the risk of breaching a debt covenant was high and the risk of losing the client was low. Similar results were found for the likelihood judgment that the valuations would be accepted as reasonable, except that for the investment property the results were only marginally significant. Experiment Two examined the impact of a proposal to issue shares to the public and the competence of the independent valuer on the audit of four classes of non-current assets. Results indicated that auditors would plan to spend longer on the audit of revalued assets when the client proposed to make a share issue and also when the competence of the valuer was lower. They were also less likely to accept the valuations as reasonable in these cases. However, an interaction effect between class of asset and competence of the valuer indicated that concern with some aspects of the evidence could override subjects' sensitivity to the competence of the valuer. An additional finding was a significant experience effect for the likelihood judgments, based on the number of audits, in which subjects had been involved, that had included asset revaluations. More experienced subjects were more likely than less experienced subjects to accept the valuations as reasonable.
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De, Silva T.-A. "Voluntary environmental reporting: the why, what and how." Lincoln University, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10182/928.
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Society is increasingly calling for organisations to demonstrate corporate social responsibility (CSR). To fulfil this demand, organisations need to be accountable, democratic and transparent to their stakeholders. This can be achieved using a number of tools including communication about the environmental, social and economic impacts of an organisation’s actions and activities. Yet despite the importance of communicating environmental information, and society’s heightened environmental awareness, organisations are still demonstrating an insufficient commitment to environmental reporting, continuing their reluctance to be open and accountable about their environmental impacts. This suggests organisations currently have little understanding of why they should report, what they should report and/or how they should report. For environmental reporting progress to be achieved it is important that we have knowledge of how various factors influence voluntary environmental reporting engagement. This research, in contributing to and extending the body of environmental reporting knowledge, aims to provide an understanding of the Why, What and How of voluntary environmental reporting by specifically examining: why organisations should, and why organisations do, voluntarily report environmental information; what environmental information organisations should, and what environmental information organisations do, voluntarily report; and how organisations should, and how organisations do, voluntarily report environmental information. In using a combination of research methodologies this research extends prior CSR reporting studies – closing the gap between voluntary environmental reporting practice and theory, providing better insights into the underlying reasons and motivations for voluntary environmental reporting, and providing improved knowledge of the considerations made by companies as part of the voluntary environmental reporting process. In doing so, this research presents a more recent examination of voluntary environmental reporting in the annual reports of New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies. Aspects of voluntary environmental reporting that have not been extensively examined before, particularly in Australasia, are examined. These include a focus on content-quality (as opposed to reporting quantity), an investigation of the effect of public pressure (using a combination of three proxy measures), and, through the use of qualitative research, an expansion of the insights obtained from quantitative data. This research finds that New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies continue to have an insufficient and incorrect understanding of why they should report, what they should report and/or how they should voluntarily report environmental information. This deficient understanding results in voluntary environmental reporting in their annual reports which is inadequate – the reporting lacks meaning and purpose (i.e. has form but little or no substance), and reflects managers’ incorrect perceptions about the environmental impact of their company’s actions and activities. As a result voluntary environmental reporting in the annual reports of New Zealand and Australian publicly listed companies fails to “… give an understanding, which is not misleading, …” of the environmental consequences of an organisation’s actions and activities (adapted from Alexander & Jermakowicz, 2006, p. 132), providing little accountability to stakeholders, and serving neither external stakeholders nor those reporting well. As the demand for organisations to demonstrate accountability to stakeholders continues to increase over time it is important to develop informed environmental reporting guidance and undertake further examinations of the Why, What and How of environmental reporting.
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Zhai, Y. H. "Asset revaluation and future firm operating performance : evidence from New Zealand : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce and Management at Lincoln University /." Diss., Lincoln University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10182/219.
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The regulatory framework of many countries allows the upward revaluation of assets. Previous studies on the association of asset revaluation and future performance in Australia (Barth and Clinch, 1998), U.K. (Aboody, Barth and Kasznik, 1999) and Hong Kong (Jaggi and Tsui, 2001) have shown that upward asset revaluations are positively associated with the firm’s operating performance, suggesting that asset revaluations are value relevant. This study extends the previous research by focusing on the New Zealand environment with recent data to examine the association of upward asset revaluation and future operating performance. There is no obvious evidence indicating that upward revaluations are associated with operating performance in New Zealand. Our market assessments show that current year asset revaluations are related to share prices and returns, but are not statistically significant.
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Masehela, Langutani Meriam. "An exploration into the conditions enabling and constraining the implementation of quality assurance in higher education: the case of a small comprehensive university in South Africa." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020312.
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At an international level, demands for accountability in respect of the quality of teaching and learning in higher education are increasing. This is also the case in South Africa. The response to these demands has taken the form of the introduction of quality assurance systems to higher education. In South Africa, a formal national external quality assurance was introduced to the higher education system in 2001 as a result of the establishment of the Higher Education Quality Committee. The Higher Education Quality Committee is a standing committee of the South African Council on Higher Education. Like other quality assurance agencies across the world, the Higher Education Quality Committee has the responsibility for i) auditing institutions of higher education and ii) accrediting learning programmes. The first cycle of institutional audits ran from 2004 until 2011. As quality assurance was introduced to the higher education system and the first cycle of institutional audits began, universities in South Africa developed policies and procedures intended to assure quality in three areas of their core functioning: research, teaching and learning and community engagement. The University of Venda, which is the focus of the study on which this thesis is based, was no exception. As a practitioner in the Centre for Higher Education Teaching and Learning at The University of Venda, it was my observation that the policies and procedures intended to assure quality in teaching and learning were not always implemented by academic staff members. This was in spite of poor student performance data which raised questions about the quality of the teaching and learning processes in place. The study underpinning this thesis was designed to explore this phenomenon. More specifically, it aimed to identify the conditions enabling and constraining the implementation of policies and procedures in two Schools in the University: the School of Health Sciences and the School of Human and Social Sciences. In order to explore these conditions, I adopted Roy Bhaskar’s Critical Realism as an under-labouring philosophy for the study. Critical realism posits a view of reality comprising three strata, none of which can be reducible to the other. The first of these strata is termed the level of the Empirical and consists of the experiences and observations which become apparent to us through the senses. The second layer, the Actual, consists of events from which these experiences and observations emerge. Underpinning both of these layers is a further layer, the Real, which is not accessible by empirical means and which consists of structures and mechanisms which generate both events at the level of the Actual and experiences and observation at the level of the Empirical. The design of my study sought to reach this deepest layer of reality to identify these mechanisms. Bhaskar’s critical realism is philosophy which needs to be operationalized using substantive, or explanatory, theory. For this purpose, I drew on Margaret Archer’s social realism. The design on my study drew on case study methodology and involved in-depth interviews with members of the two Schools which each formed cases within the more overarching case of the University itself. In addition to these interviews, I analysed a range of institutional documents related to the assurance of quality in teaching and learning. The exploration of enabling and constraining conditions at the level of the Real allow me to make a series of recommendations in the final Chapter of my thesis intended to enhance the quality assurance system introduced to the University.
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LI, Chin-Mei, and 李錦玫. "A Study of Governmental Auditing and Public Accountability." Thesis, 2013. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/15982810868057895640.
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碩士國立中正大學
政治學研究所
101
The trust between government and people is the core issue of any form of government. When people does not trust its government, the contexts of the executive branch authorized by the Legislature will be more conservative. Thus, the administrative discretion will be more limited. It means the government can not exert its influence flexibly, so as to people will not trust the government. It results a vicious cycle. Therefore, the Accountability System is the key point to acquire the balance between democratic response and professional responsibility. The legitimacy basis of democratic politics is the public Accountability. According to the research investigation of the World Bank, in addition to the matched Accountability System, good public governance also relies on the respect and enforcement of the various public sections. The International Transparency Organization regards the audit institutions as an important pillar of the national integrity system because audit institutions are not only responsible for the audit affairs of the government agencies but also execute the audit authority independently and objectively. Audit institutions implement the comprehensive performance of audit work to the executive authorities, assess financial performance, and approve the financial responsibilities. Therefore, the audit institutions can help improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the government. The above description is an important portion of the Accountability System within the government system. First of all, I analyze the information which I collected for the study, and summarize the specific meanings, functions, types, objects and methods with regard to two major issues of Public Accountability and Government Auditing. Secondly, the Accountability functions and effectiveness of the audit institutions in our country are explained in the study. Furthermore, I analyze the key variables of the audit Accountability by utilizing interviews, evaluating the opinions of the interested parties. Finally, I induct the factors affecting audit Accountability and its effectiveness, and propose my opinions on the issue. Those are presented as follows. On the legal system, the government should not only establish a reasonable legal accountability mechanism to respond to various policy issues and to meet the needs of a pluralistic society, but also inspect fairly at the current unequal reward and punishment situation. The government further needs to establish a merit-based system of rewards and punishments to eliminate the above inferiority. To abolish the final examination and approval system will be proposed by amending the law. The executive authorities must be empowered to report to the legislature about the budget implementation or management performance, in order to strengthen the authority Accountability requirements. Regarding the self-Accountability, I actively promoted transparency of information and reduced information asymmetry structure. I also urged that an accountable environment should be fully supported by each department heads. The internal control system and internal audit function are my target functions based on the transparent information. In the mean time, government employees should be customer-oriented, actively and adequately responsive to the public demands and expectations. On the government audit accountability, audit institutions should exert our influence on the "Financial Accountability and Financial Management Consulting" to boost Performance Audit and Accountability. I order to enhance audit information publicly reported, we must continuously provide the appropriate and feasible audit opinion, the best practice benchmarking case, and the readability and practicality of the audit report. Furthermore, the Government Auditing Joint Accountability System must be established, so that the audit independence, objectiveness and professional can be strengthened. Therefore, by increasing the trust between people and audit institutions, we can assist the executive authorities to enhance the governance effectiveness, to improve the public financial management performance.
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"Auditing for accountability? Political economy of government auditing and budget oversight in emerging economies." THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY, 2007. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3262371.
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Lee, Hung-Yi, and 李虹儀. "Using a Bitemporal Relation-based Reliable Auditing Mechanism on the Organizational Privilege Accountability." Thesis, 2004. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/43902745677140863588.
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碩士中國文化大學
資訊管理研究所
92
The RBAC (role-based access control) separated user, role, and privilege. It provides roles with access rights, maps users to roles, and grants users with appropriate privileges. The RBAC comes with many characteristics such as, privilege management, hierarchy, minimum privilege, authorization separation, and object classification. The bitemporal database will log account activities and process time indices, while authorized system users access and query any information. It can make data integrity, access control, and tracing accomplish certain level of security. It also can make effective audit and monitor on misbehaviors of employees. Traditional certificate management systems use normal databases. In these systems, the storage and maintenance of certificates are implemented by replacing old certificates with new ones. This makes data audit a tough task. Managing authorization policies and certificate data adopting bitemporal databases, auditors can check and analyze certificate data, and then find out suspicious data. This study applied the RBAC theory, combining with bitemporal databases, to the complex enterprise environments. We also use certificate authorizing polices bitemporally managing the databases. Our system can detect the usages of enterprise systems and data. The system can also report violations to the auditors. Auditors can thereby properly react. This work focuses on enterprise auditing management of database system under PKI (public key infrastructure) and PMI (privilege management infrastructure). Hopefully, through effective certificate record management, data integrity is ensured. At the same time, legal users can be audited effectively.
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Viana, Luís Filipe Cracel. "Accounting, Reporting, Auditing and Public Accountability of Public-Private Partnerships: The Portuguese Experience." Doctoral thesis, 2022. https://hdl.handle.net/10216/139579.
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Rika, Nacanieli Jemesa. "Reputational risk and environmental performance auditing in the public sector : framing and overflows in the audit process." Phd thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/1885/149977.
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This thesis examines environmental performance auditing and reputational risk in the public sector, through a study of the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO). Previous studies in the performance auditing literature and the environmental auditing literature have not examined the process which links audits to reputational risk for auditees. In addressing that gap, this thesis also investigates the ANAO's back-stage processes for performance auditing which are not well-documented in the public domain. Using the theoretical framework of framing (Goffman, 1974) and overflows (Callon, 1998), this thesis initially examines how environmental performance auditing is framed or understood by auditors and their various audiences. It uses five frames identified from the environmental auditing and performance auditing literature, namely an assistance frame, an improvement frame, a public interest frame, a risk management frame and a political frame. The thesis then investigates how framing disputes (overflows) generate reputational risk to government, particularly through public debate involving the media and political opposition. Finally the thesis reviews how reputational risk is managed by bureaucrats and government members of Parliament. This thesis studies general performance auditing processes within the ANAO and specifically examines the ANAO's performance audits of the Home Insulation Program (HIP) and the Green Loans Program. It analyses documents prepared by: the ANAO, including audit reports, better practice guides, annual reports, annual work programs and speeches by senior managers; Parliament, including the Hansard and reports of Parliamentary committees; and the media. It also employs semi-structured interviews with representatives from the ANAO, audited agencies, the media and the Parliament, including the Joint Committee on Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA). This thesis renders several significant conclusions. First, the roles performed by performance auditors are more fluid and complex than the structuralist classifications employed in ealier studies (Pollitt, 2003). Fluidity of auditors' roles and compatability between frames allows auditors to relate to different audiences through different frames. Second, the frame(s) emphasised by the Opposition and media underscore their role in a Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. The alternative accounts of an audit produced by the Opposition and the media provide important counter-perspectives to the audit report prepared by auditors. Third, the ANAO's performance audits manage reputational risk to the government by proactively auditing progams which have been identified as carrying risks to service delivery. The iterative and transparent nature of the ANAO's relationship with audited agencies enables agencies to correct issues before the final audit report is released and this effectively diminishes reputational risk to government. Fourth, the ANAO's performance auditing framework evolves through historical decisions made by the Auditor-General. Those decisions become codified in the ANAO's documents and are subsequently used to train new auditors and shape their understanding of performance auditing. Finally, many performance audits are ignored by the general public, media and Parliament because they fail to address contentious issues. However, this may not trouble the ANAO since it is primarily concerned with improving performance in the public sector.
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Chaka, Matsiliso Merriam. "An evaluation of the effectiveness of the audit committee in the Westonaria Local Municipality / Matsiliso Merriam Chaka." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/10847.
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Audit committees are an integral part of good corporate governance and their establishment strengthens the credibility of governments. As a foundation of good governance, audit committees are positioned to provide an objective assessment of whether or not public resources are responsibly and effectively managed. They also promote accountability and integrity, as well as improvement in the operations of governments and municipalities. The establishment of audit committees in the local sphere of government came with the advent of modernisation in terms of the budget and financial management, which was intended to strengthen accountability. The requirement for effective utilisation of resources by local government is critical for the support and empowerment of local communities and delivery of effective services.
The audit committee framework for local government, which is provided by the Municipal Finance Management Act (56 of 2003), is underpinned by principles of good governance and accountability, which promote the effective functioning of audit committees. However, there are perceptions and arguments advanced in the literature regarding the effectiveness of audit committees as an accountability structure. This was brought about by the recurring reported incidences of the failure of businesses, which took place despite the existence of rules and laws regulating the function. As a result, trends of leading best practices were established, which enhanced audit committees' performance and were adopted as a proxy for the measurement of audit committees’ effectiveness.
The focus of the study is on validating the perception by management that the audit committee of the Westonaria Local Municipality (WLM) is effective in the execution of its oversight role. A literature study on the functioning of audit committees have been undertaken, official municipal documents were analysed and a questionnaire has been developed and utilised as a means for gathering data, in order to prove the hypothesis to be either true or false. The areas investigated in this study demonstrate that the audit committee of WLM is generally effective in the execution of its oversight function. The findings of the study also identified certain areas in the audit function which require the attention of both management and the audit committee of the municipality. More specifically, the observations made in the study include the following: (i) that audit committee members are not provided with the agendas and reports in sufficient time for them to adequately prepare for meetings; (ii) that a productive relationship between the audit committee and the management of the local government has to be maintained; (iii) that there is a lack of informal meetings between the audit committee and the external and internal auditors; (iv) that no appropriate training of the audit committee on existing and potential audit risks in local government is in place; (v) that there is an absence of continuous learning programmes for the members of the audit committee; and (vi) that audit committee members do not evaluate themselves in terms of their level of knowledge regarding the functioning and activities of their audit committee.
Attending to these aspects, as identified through this study, will further improve the audit committee’s activities in the WLM. These aspects are therefore not viewed in a negative light, but are rather regarded as a positive venture to be addressed by municipal management and the audit committee, in order to improve the functioning of the audit committee. These aspects should therefore be added to the many positives aspects that are identified concerning the WLM audit committee, as discussed in this study.M Public Administration (Development and Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014
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(9843425), Wan Zuriati Wan Zakaria. "The impact of computer-based accounting system on Malaysian public sector agencies." Thesis, 2014. https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/The_impact_of_computer-based_accounting_system_on_Malaysian_public_sector_agencies/13433762.
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"The positive and negative impacts of information technology (IT) have been continuously discussed and debated by researchers, practitioners and scholars for several years. In the public sector environment, IT can be a powerful tool for improving the delivery of government services with better collaboration among various governments. Therefore, the Malaysian Government, similar to many other governments, has planned and implemented a number of programmes to embrace the digital world by transforming itself to deliver information and services electronically. In public sector audit and accounting practices, the Malaysian Government has experienced local reform aimed at escalating transparency, streamlining accountability and improving overall financial management in line with international standards and practices. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of computer-based accounting systems (CBASs) on the effectiveness of performing accounting tasks by Malaysian public sector agencies (PSAs). This study focuses on the impact of performance based outcomes at three levels: individual task, accounting-related task, and organisational level performance. With regard to accounting-related task performance outcomes, this study aims to analyse the impact of CBASs on the typical processes, which are related to budgeting, financial reporting, auditing and financial controlling. This study also seeks to investigate the influence of driving factors comprising management support and organisational resources and capabilities on the effectiveness of the system. In order to achieve the objectives of this study, a conceptual model was developed based on theoretical perspectives from previous studies and in recognition of the practical realities on the ground. A questionnaire-based survey was carried out to seek responses from CBAS users of Malaysian PSAs. A total of 643 questionnaires were distributed and 399 were collected, which resulted in 374 usable responses that were used for data analysis. This study performed two phases of data analyses: preliminary analysis and structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis. The preliminary data analysis was performed using the statistical procedures of SPSS version 18.0 (also known as PASW 18), while structural equation modelling was performed by AMOS 18.0. The results showed that the CBASs have no direct impact on individual and organisational performance outcomes. In contrast, the CBASs have impacted directly and significantly on the accounting-related task performance outcomes, comprising budgeting, accounting and reporting, auditing, and controlling tasks in the organisations. Furthermore, this study found that management support and organisational resources and capabilities influenced the effectiveness of CBASs within the organisation. Thus, it can be suggested that the effectiveness of CBASs is influenced by management support and organisational resources and capabilities, which directly impact on the improvement of tasks performed and indirectly on the improvement of individual performance as well as organisational performance. Thus, the CBASs have some „indirect‟ positive effects on performance at the individual and organisational levels. Several implications emerge from the empirical findings. This study contributes to the accounting literature, in general, and government computerised accounting system literature, in particular. The empirical findings with regard to the accountingrelated task performance outcomes suggest that the system may improve the effectiveness and efficiency of financial administration processes and also improve their accounting systems and practices. The findings may also add to our understanding of the current status of CBAS implementation and its significant contributions to organisations and society. This study has also given an insight into the degree and complexities of public financial management issues that often need to be dealt with in PSAs, especially in developing countries and emerging economies. The findings may be useful as guidance for helping organisations to improve their public financial management, which requires continuous commitment from top management and the provision of organisational resources and capabilities for a sustainable system. Moreover, the PSAs should also seriously take into account the impact of the system on the management and employees attached to the system itself in order to make sure that the system is successfully implemented and efficiently operated. As the findings provide an insight into the changes of the system on accounting processes, organisations need to develop new strategies to adapt to the demand of the technology and also to get the best results for the organisations. On the other hand, the public or stakeholders may evaluate the contribution of the system in creating value to the organisations. The findings of this study should also be considered by the decision-makers or policymakers as an input for future strategy formulation and planning to benefit the organisations and their clients."--Abstract.
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Shih, Pei-yao, and 施佩瑤. "The Effectiveness of Internal Auditors Based on Role theory and Accountability Perspectives - Case Studies of Group Auditing." Thesis, 2012. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/05558934499498676445.
Full textAbstract:
碩士國立雲林科技大學
會計系碩士班
100
As the scales of business groups increase in Taiwan, the supervision and management over subsidiaries is getting more difficult for the complex processes. Internal auditors play the important roles of supervisors or consultants in monitoring business operations. Thus, how to increase the effectiveness of internal auditors and strengthen the supervising mechanisms over business groups have become the critical issues today. In this study, we integrate the views of role theory and accountability perspectives with case studies of group auditing, to explore the factors over the effectiveness of internal auditors. The case selection is based on the different accountabilities, which summarized from literature review: (1) bureaucratic accountability; (2) professional accountability, (3) personal accountability, (4) legal accountability. Then, we used the multiple case study method to conduct the data collection and in-depth interviews. The case data is helpful for us to discover the impact of different accountabilities on audit planning, audit engagement, and performance of internal auditors. The research results indicate that, (1) bureaucratic accountability: when the bureaucratic accountability from management towards internal auditors is clearer, the effectiveness of internal auditors will increase; (2) professional accountability: the previous work experience, experience of job rotation and expertise of internal auditors will affect the characteristics of their professional accountability and work performance; (3) personal accountability: through the enhancement of personal accountability, the internal auditors get the recognition of management and the auditees, and that will increase the effectiveness of audit; (4) legal accountability: when companies have well-developed systems of governance and internal control, the focus areas of bureaucratic accountability, professional accountability, and personal accountability have covered the legal accountability. Then internal auditors will be less dependent of the legal accountability. We also explore the mutual influences of different accountabilities based on the perspectives of role theory. The results show that the interaction of different accountabilities will cause the phenomenon of “role ambiguity”, “role rigidity”, “role extension” and “role consistent”.
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(9873023), A. Le. "A strategy to change the audit process of the state audit office of Vietnam to align with the Australian government audit process." Thesis, 2014. https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/A_strategy_to_change_the_audit_process_of_the_state_audit_office_of_Vietnam_to_align_with_the_Australian_government_audit_process/13437176.
Full textAbstract:
"The audit process of the State Audit Office of Vietnam (SAV) has inherent limitations and weaknesses that need to be addressed in order to keep pace with the development of the SAV. This could be realized if a strategy to change the audit process of the SAV is conducted. The research aims to improve the SAV to meet international auditing standards of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), using the Australian Government audit process as a direct comparison in order to identify issues in the change management processes required for the SAV to introduce Australian Government audit processes and to propose a methodology to resolve these issues. The change management processes are thus the key focus of the research. The evaluative framework was based on the literature, identifying three major issues of concern. They are technology, costs and people. The research design is a combination of document review and semi-structured in-depth individual interview methods. The document review includes analysis of relevant auditing processes, standards, methods, procedures and reports, and policies; and review of change management theories, models and practices. The goal of the document review is to obtain an overall picture of the research topic that informed the in-depth interviews. Semi-structured in-depth individual interviews were selected as the major research methodology because it is able to provide a considerable amount of detailed data and a deeper understanding of the research problem. The research methodology involved the analysis of the interview transcripts using Thematic Content Analysis (TCA). This mutual relationship between the interviews and the document reviews was discussed further in the data synthesis and analysis. In the study, 30 individual interviews were conducted for two groups of stakeholders (auditors and managers of the SAV) at the headquarters of the SAV in Hanoi City, the capital of Vietnam. The research findings indicated agreement over previous attempts by the literature review. These findings suggested that the change management process may face various issues arising from personal barriers to the change, the SAV culture, application of technology to auditing, costs for the change, the SAV auditor human resource quality and training, and the SAV organizational and operational model. The proposed strategic framework to resolve these issues addressed removing personal barriers to the change, improving infrastructure, human resource, training and legal framework of the SAV, and implementing changes in the SAV culture. The research outcomes might be applied to the SAV. These outcomes will assist the SAV in developing an effective audit process complying with international auditing standards and principles in order to ensure transparency and effectiveness of public sector expenditure."--Abstract.
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Evans, Heather Ann. "Bucking the bottom line: exploring social accounting and auditing as a tool to develop organizations' social responsibility and accountability." Thesis, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/10228.
Full textAbstract:
Society's strategy for achieving well being is incompatible with long term global development.
The consequences of economic growth and expansion are manifested in severe ecological and
social crisis. Structural changes are needed throughout society's institutions to shift the
dominant concept and pursuit of progress toward a concept of progress that is based on the
development of balanced social, ecological and economic well being. This involves changing
roles, responsibilities and accountability of many global institutions and organizations including
government, corporations and civil society.
Reviews of both dominant theory's (classical theory) and current corporate-led practices'
perceptions about corporate social responsibility and accountability elucidate their limitations to
motivate or support structural changes, thus prompting the need to explore alternative theories
and practices for structural change. Social institution theories and structural change theories are
examined as alternatives, as well as alternative practices that build corporate social
responsibility. The main objective of the thesis is to explore social accounting as tool for
corporations and other organizations to build social responsibility and accountability in society.
This objective is explored by studying and analyzing the current practices and theoretical
perspectives on social accounting and auditing. Social accounting and auditing principles are
applied and further examined by developing a multiple bottom line framework for VanCity
Credit Union's Alternative Lending Program.
Social accounting and auditing has limited applicability to large corporations since their profit
motive prevents their transparency and accountability. The contribution of social accounting
and auditing in society is to increase the accountability of some organizations: it allows some
corporations with unique social goals to substantiate their claims for social responsibility.
Social accounting and auditing is also key in assessing the performance of organizations in the
social economy since their social contributions to society are undermined by mainstream bottom
line assessment. The role of civil society in advancing social accounting practices is essential.
It is concluded that social accounting and auditing should be developed in conjuntion with
practices that resist negative outcomes of the growing global economy, as well as in co-ordination with local strategies that strive to develop an economy focused on meeting local
needs.
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Eghliaow, Salem Mohamed. "An empirical examination of the determinants of audit report delay in Libya." Thesis, 2013. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/26136/.
Full textAbstract:
Financial statements communicate crucial information about the financial health of a company. Financial statements must be made available to stakeholders in time so that they can use the information to make important decisions. However, the timely release of a financial report can be impeded by a range of factors. This study is concerned with audit delay or the delay caused in financial reporting due to the time taken by auditors to review and approve financial statements submitted by companies in Libya.
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Motubatse, Kgobalale Nebbel. "An evaluation of factors affecting the progression to clean audit outcomes in South African Municipalities." Thesis, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10386/1701.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (Ph. D. (Public Administration)) -- University of Limpopo, 2016.This research examines the effectiveness of the factors that have been introduced to bring about progress to clean audit outcomes in South African municipalities. This research has become increasingly important as the democratic dispensation in South Africa has witnessed a gradual weakening of public financial accountability. As a consequence of this ongoing decline, the National Government initiated the campaign “operation clean audit” as a means to achieve a new level of improved audit outcomes. The Auditor General of South Africa (AGSA) identified three key factors that would drive improved audit outcomes, namely leadership, financial management and governance. Given that “operation clean audit” had seemingly become an elusive dream by 2014, the researcher decided to examine the relative effectiveness of the causative variables identified by the AGSA as key to achieving improved audit outcomes. This research therefore was intended to make a contribution to the body of academic knowledge by pursuing the following objectives: to examine the effect of leadership on the achievement of clean audit outcomes in the South African public service; to analyse the effectiveness of financial management in the South African public service; to evaluate the effect of governance on the achievement of clean audit outcomes in the South African public service, and to propose a framework for understanding the factors that affect clean audit outcomes in the South African public service. To achieve the research objectives, the research applied a positivist paradigm and a quantitative approach. Data were collected from the AGSA’s consolidated municipal reports from the nine provinces of the Republic. Hence, the study was limited to the use of municipal audit reports, consolidated into single reports for all the municipalities in each of the provinces over a period of years. Thus, the study examines a total of nine consolidated reports for each of the five years between 2009/2010 – 2013/2014. Using the panel data approach, this produced a set of nine cross sectional units and 5 periods which thus produced 45 time series observations. Subsequently, a panel data multiple regression analysis was conducted to analyse the data. After correcting the model for heteroskedaskicity, the results from the regression analysis revealed important relationships in only two dimensions. On the one hand, the three independent variables – leadership, financial management and governance – jointly vi have a significant relationship with clean audit outcomes, with a P value P<0.000, which is substantially below the 5% alpha level anticipated for this research. The independent variables were each examined for their individual effects on clean audit results. Results show that only governance has a significant and direct effect on the achievement of a clean audit. Given that governance has a substantially stronger impact on the achievement of clean audits (far more than do the other variables), further analysis was conducted to determine the variables that influence the efficiency of governance. The results reveal that the effectiveness of the audit committee has an overriding influence on the ability of an entity to achieve clean audits. The findings thus appear to confirm the Auditor General’s broad claim that leadership, financial management and governance are the key drivers to improved audit outcomes: but further analysis reveals that this happens only when the three variables are analysed as a single unit, to examine whether they significanly enhance clean audit outcomes. As single variables, only governance proved to affect clean audit outcomes significantly. The findings from the analysis thus corroborates the literature, thus achieving the first three research objectives. Arising from this analysis, the researcher was able to propose a framework for understanding the factors that affect an entity’s progression to clean audit. This constituted the achievement of research objective 4, and makes a contribution to the current body of knowledge on the topic. Thus, this research contributes to knowledge in that it develops a framework for understanding the factors that affect the achievement of a clean audit, and proposes two key approaches to further research and improve public sector auditing: a model to research the variables that affect audit committee effectiveness; and a practical approach that includes additional variables (drawn from the framework) during the public sector audit. Key words Accountability, accounting, audit committee, audit quality, clean audit, financial management, governance, leadership, public administration, public policy, public sector, supreme audit institution.
Faculty of Economics and of Finance at the Tshwane University of Technology, and the Faculty of Management and Law at the University of Limpopo
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Botica, Redmayne Nives. "The production of audit services in the New Zealand public sector : an investigation into the effects of political risk and corporate governance on audit effort : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Accountancy, College of Business, Massey University." 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/1737.
Full textAbstract:
This study examine the effects of political risk and corporate governance on the production of audit services in the New Zealand public sector. It represents one of several studies that are classified as recent extensions of the research in the economics of auditing. While the economics of auditing literature is extensive, most studies have focussed on audit fees as a means of explaining audit markets and audit services rather than audit production Early audit production studies, however, found that audit fees are a noisy proxy for audit production as they are used by audit firms as a strategic tool for achieving a competitive position in an audit market. This study extends the existing body of knowledge on audit production in two way Firstly, this study examines the determinants of audit effect for public sector corporate entities audits in New Zealand over a period of three year (1998-2000) Therefore, it follows the recommendation of previous audit production studies for research in audit production across auditors. additional industries, different auditing settings and time periods. Secondly, this study extends the existing body of knowledge in audit production by using two previously unused determinants of audit effort It considers the effect of political risk and corporate governance on audit production/effort. Whether political risks and political costs will affect the audit production in any setting has not been examined yet In this Study, it is expected that auditors will expend more audit effort in auditing public sector entities that have high levels of political risk. The effect of corporate governance mechanisms (such as boards of directors) on audit effort has also received very little attention in professional standard or in the academic literature. The strength of corporate governance is expected to effect the audit risk of a current or potential audit client and to influence the auditors' risk assessments and audit production/effort To test the hypotheses in this study, I use a sample of 275 entity/year observations related to public sector companies in New Zealand for the years 1998-2000. After controlling for other factors affecting audit effort, this study finds strong evidence supporting the political risk hypothesis as applied to the audit environment This finding supports evidence from the empirical financial accounting research of political risk/cost and suggests that the implications of the political cost hypothesis are more widespread than previously believed. This study also provides evidence that board effectiveness when measured by board size can have an impact on audit effort. However, there is no evidence of a consistent, relationship between other measures of board effectiveness -specifically, the presence of busy directors, the presence of the CEO on the board and the existence of an audit committee - and audit production While the evidence related to board effectiveness it mixed, this study is the first to link the corporate governance literature and the audit production research. This type of research is particularly important given that some recently enacted law and regulatory requirement (e.g.. the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the US and new NZX listing requirement regarding audit committees in New Zealand are based on the assumption that a more rigorous audit function is needed in the post-Enron environment.
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(12607723), Brian C. Hopley. "Profit sharing in professional accounting firms in different countries and by archetypes." Thesis, 1996. https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/Profit_sharing_in_professional_accounting_firms_in_different_countries_and_by_archetypes/19835932.
Full textAbstract:
It is very difficult to diversify one's human capital (Gillson & Mnookin, 1985) which in turn influences one's remuneration in professional service firms. Partner compensation arrangements are central to the organisational purpose of professional accounting firms and partner remuneration plays a vital directional role in partnerships.
This study investigates whether nationally organised accounting firms use the same profit sharing methods in different countries to enable national firms to move to a fully international structure where partners in all countries share from the same profit pool. A single profit pool creates opportunities for firms to utilise the benefits relating to size and international expertise and obtaining work that uses this competitive advantage. A firm may also reduce its risk by rationalising its operations and reduce the exposure to work in which it does not have a competitive edge. The profit sharing arrangements of large professional accounting firms in South Africa were analysed focusing on similar criteria to that used in a study of profit sharing between partners in Australian "Big 6" professional accounting firms (Burrows & Black, 1996).
This research confirms that there are common themes in profit sharing methods used by national professional accounting firms in different countries. It strengthens the argument for having profit pools as wide as the ability to efficiently supply expertise across locations. (Zimmer & Holmes, 1996).
Partners' views concerning what should be rewarded in a "Big 6" firm are also investigated and relative reward levels for partner archetypes are presented. These gradations reflect the degree of diversifiable risk for partners in large accounting partnerships resulting from the individual characteristics and roles of partners.
Finally some thoughts on the principal determinants of partner share awards are discussed.
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Khanyile, Manqoba Wiseman. "Evaluation of financial accountability, financial control and financial reporting at Umtshezi Municipality : a case study." Thesis, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10321/1601.
Full textAbstract:
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Master of Accounting degree, Faculty of Accounting and Informatics, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2016.Financial accountability, financial control and financial reporting are the three main elements that determine the performance of the municipality. An analysis had to be made on each of these elements to find any limitations and gaps that negatively impact on the performance of the organisation. The aim of the study was to evaluate financial accountability, financial control and financial reporting of Umtshezi Municipality. The study was a census study and it was quantitative, descriptive and cross sectional in nature. The target population comprised of 45 employees from the finance department which was divided into five units, namely, Supply Chain Management, Expenditure, Asset/Fleet, Revenue and Budget. The IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22.0 was used to determine statistical results. The findings of the study discovered that officials lack educational qualifications and adequate understanding of the MFMA. The respondents also indicated that there was political influence affecting administration within the municipality. The study recommended that the municipality should provide funds to train employees. National Treasury should conduct consistent reviews on the implementation of the MFMA. The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) should intervene to protect the administration from political threats.
M
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Wong, Geoffrey. "An analysis of the role and performance of audit committees in the Victorian government public sector in providing assurance and governance." Thesis, 2012. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/21330/.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this thesis has been to identify and analyse: the role of audit committees, the attributes of audit committee members, and the functions and activities that they perform in government-funded public sector organisations, focusing on Victorian government organisations. This research determined how audit committees interact with their major stakeholder partners, namely management, internal audit and external audit. The research also identified the characteristics of audit committees that contribute to their successful performance and their sustainability within a governance and assurance framework.
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(6901319), Benjamin W. Angelo. "The Impact of the Verb Tense of Tone Words on Price Discovery in Conference Calls." Thesis, 2019.
Find full textAbstract:
Prior empirical research has shown that forward-looking statements can be particularly informative to investors (Li 2010; Muslu et al. 2014). However, the inherent uncertainty surrounding forward-looking statements may contribute to a delayed price reaction. This paper examines the market reaction to backward-looking statements and to forward-looking statements across a 60 trading-day horizon. I did not find evidence suggesting the inherent uncertainty of forward-looking statements contributes to a delayed price reaction. However, backward-looking statements are associated with a delayed price response. This result is consistent with Bernard and Thomas’s (1990) suggestion that post-earnings announcement drift is caused by investors not fully understanding how current earnings map into future earnings. I also provide evidence that, for the prepared remarks, investors have a stronger price reaction to net backward-looking tone than to net forward-looking tone. However, for the question-and-answer session, the opposite is true. Investors have a stronger price reaction to net forward-looking tone than to net backward-looking tone. This result suggests that managers should focus their prepared remarks on the prior performance of the firm and focus their responses during the question-and-answer session on the future performance of the firm.
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Dwiputrianti, Septiana. "Effectiveness of public sector audit reports in Indonesia (preceeding and following audit reform)." Phd thesis, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1885/8709.
Full textAbstract:
This research aims to enrich the existing literature on public administration, public accountability and public sector auditing. The research was undertaken through a comprehensive examination of the quality of information in the audit reports of the Indonesian State Audit Institution (Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan or BPK) with comparisons made between pre audit reform (1945-2000) and post audit reform (2001-2009). The study also evaluates the factors influencing the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of BPK audit information. To achieve these purposes, two main research questions were the focus of the study: How is the quality of information in BPK audit reports before and after audit reform? What are the key factors influencing the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of information in BPK audit reports?
Data were collected through triangulation of observations, documentation, questionnaires and personal interviews. Purposive sampling and snowball techniques were applied in this study. The respondents and key informants engaged in this study were:(i) BPK auditors, Board members and managers;(ii) members of both central and regional Parliaments;(iii) public sector officials (auditees) at both the central and local level; and (iv)academics, researchers, and non government organisations (NGO).
The study revealed that the Indonesia's Executive (the President, Governors, Regents and Mayors)has historically neglected the roles and functions of BPK. Since the third amendment of the 1945 Constitution in 2001, the Indonesian government has reformed laws and regulations related to public sector auditing, including setting new rules for strengthening and improving BPK's roles and functions. In situation where the Indonesian government needs immediate reform, BPK has been attempting to improve its professionalism and independence to provide better quality audit reports.
Independence, professionalism and integrity are among the most important factors that influence public sector audits. However, in the past, BPK auditors lacked independence as the Executive influenced its administration and finances. Auditors also lacked opportunities to increase their professionalism by undertaking additional education and training. Since there was little incentive for auditors not to accept audit fees from auditees, the objectivity and integrity of auditors were reduced significantly.
Fortunately, in response to the audit reform in 2001, the roles and functions of BPK have been strengthened. BPK has been able to give much more attention to education, training and the development of other skills and knowledge. BPK has also implemented improved remuneration and applied a rewards and sanctions system to strengthen auditor professionalism and integrity. This study revealed a significant improvement in the quantity and quality of BPK's audit resources, including increases in the number of qualified auditors, representative offices, modern equipment, and in the use of Information Technology (IT). However, the improvement in audit resources has not quite matched with the increasing number of auditees and the authority given to the BPK. In terms of the quality of auditors, BPK has many new auditors, but they lack experience. To execute performance audits, BPK requires more auditors with diverse educational backgrounds in addition to accounting and finance.
The research also showed that many factors have impeded the 'follow up' on information and recommendations in BPK audit reports. For example, Parliament's lack of willingness to politically oversee the Executive, insufficient serious 'buy-in' by government to implement audit recommendations, and an unintegrated approach by authorised investigators to follow up on audit findings that indicate criminality and corruption. To what degree these factors influence the ineffectiveness of public sector audits remains an open question and an area for further research.
It is clear from the research that there is further space for improvement of BPK's functions to enhance the quality of public administration and accountability. Towards this, the study suggests recommendations to the BPK relating to four different aspects, namely: legal basis, institutional and resources, effectiveness of audit reports, human resources development.
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Kusuma, Hadri. "The information content of the cash flow statement : an empirical investigation." Thesis, 1999. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15295/.
Full textAbstract:
The general objective of the present study is to investigate and assess the information content of cash flow disclosures as required by the AASB 1026 "Statement of Cash Flows". The information content is measured in terms of the degree of the relationship between cash flow variables and security returns. In examining the information content of cash flows, two objectives are then developed: to investigate the ability of the cash flow component in predicting future cash flows, and to compare the ability of cash flows and earnings in predicting future cash flows.
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Dancevic, V. Joseph. "Factoring of accounts receivable : analysis, international perspectives and the Australian market." Thesis, 1993. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15588/.
Full textAbstract:
Factoring is the purchase of a company's accounts receivable by a financier (factor). Australian factoring volume reached an estimated US$1.6 billion in 1992. Despite the volume it is not a favoured means of finance in Australia. This may be partly due to the misunderstanding of its benefits, its reputation as a finance of "last resort" and, perhaps, the perceived lack of professionalism among the Australian factors. The purpose of this thesis is to provide an in-depth analysis of factoring; a means of raising funds, and thus promoting economic activity, through the sale of a firm's accounts receivable. This is achieved by taking an international perspective in the literature review and considering the history, nature and worldwide growth of factoring. A further aim of the thesis is to examine the nature of, and practices in, the Australian factoring market. This is achieved through research by way of questionnaires and personal interview of both Australian factors and some of their clients.
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Varghese, Scaria. "The just-in-time philosophy and the accounting implications." Thesis, 1993. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15719/.
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This minor thesis looks at the accounting practices of the Just In Case philosophy and the changes JIT has brought to the traditional accounting. It further explains the JIT philosophy; human resource accounting and its
implications; financial accounting and its implications; the pitfalls of present cost accounting; management accounting and its implications; JIT cost accounting of the future; and finally sheds some lights on the Australian experiences of JIT manufacturing.
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Purcell, Aquinas John. "Audit committee effectiveness in Victorian local government." Thesis, 2012. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/21442/.
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The tenets of local government are based on strong financial probity, adherence to independence principles to avoid conflict of interest and conformance to ethical principles.
This thesis addresses the issue of possible corruption and misconduct in local government, with particular reference to the role of the audit committee. The primary research question is: ‘Do audit committees in Victorian local government function effectively?’ The secondary research question is: ‘Do the investigations into local government maladministration and malfeasance enhance governance and the audit committee’s effectiveness?’ Qualitative and quantitative data were collected to develop a model of audit committee effectiveness through a pilot survey, research questionnaire and interviews.
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Siddique, Salina. "Analysis of the quality of environmental disclosures made by Australian resources sector companies." Thesis, 2015. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/31021/.
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Despite its contribution to the economy, the resources sector faces growing pressure from stakeholders, including investors and regulators, for managing the environmental impacts of its operations. Being an environmentally sensitive sector, resource sector companies should provide disclosures of their environmental footprint in their annual and/or sustainability reports. However, it is claimed that, given that environmental disclosures in annual and sustainability reports are largely voluntary, the quality of those disclosures are questionable with respect to their relevance and faithful representation. Therefore, the overall objective of this thesis was to explore the quality of environmental disclosures by Australian resources sector companies. This was undertaken through an assessment of quality based on existing reporting frameworks and assessment of investors’ perspectives on the quality of disclosures. Thus, the aim of the project was twofold: first, to identify the extent to which corporate environmental disclosures align with the quality attributes suggested in established regulatory guidelines and frameworks; and second, to obtain investors’ perspectives regarding corporate environmental initiatives and environmental disclosures.
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Aldukhil, Yousef. "Developing and testing a model of successful adoption of activity-based costing." Thesis, 2012. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/19425/.
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This study aims to develop and test a model for successful adoption of activitybased
costing (ABC). The model has been constructed to explore the relationship
between organisational and technological factors and management evaluation of
overall ABC success and suggest a pathway. Another objective of this study is the
examination of the relationship between ABC and business unit performance. The
study also aims to investigate why some business units have not adopted ABC and
why some business units have discontinued their use of ABC.
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Wise, Victoria Jane. "Consolidation accounting issues in the Australian public sector." Thesis, 2004. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15283/.
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The aim in this study was to examine issues surrounding the cross-sector transfer of a private sector financial reporting practice, known as consolidated financial reporting, to the Australian public sector. The study was conducted using the theoretical frameworks of commandership, accountability and usefulness of financial information. Commander theory was chosen as it is ideally suited to the hierarchical system of control over resources that exists within the public sector; accountability
because it is a fundamental requirement where public resources are involved; and usefullness because it is a rational basis for the production of financial information.
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Jaswadi, Jaswadi. "Corporate governance and accounting irregularities: evidence from the two-tier board structure in Indonesia." Thesis, 2013. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/22352/.
Full textAbstract:
There have been, and continue to be, serious financial scandals involving accounting
irregularities in leading companies. While responses to these occurrences include the
introduction of tougher regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX),
further serious instances have occurred, notably the 2008 subprime mortgage and
financial institution meltdown. The existence and persistence of such cases of
financial scandals have led many investors, regulators, companies and academics to
try to reduce such incidence by improving the effectiveness of corporate governance
and increasing awareness of the red flags which could cause accounting scandals.
The relationship between individual corporate governance dimensions and corporate
governance as a system orientated toward accounting irregularities has been tested.
However, empirical measurements and tests are limited and largely based in one-tier
board system environments. The outcomes are almost impossible to apply in two-tier
board systems, where relationships between governance mechanisms and accounting
irregularities are not fully understood. Using the agency theory and fraud theories, this
research is undertaken in Indonesia to provide insights that extend the body of
knowledge about the practices of the two-tier board system. This study investigates
the extent to which the Indonesian corporate governance system acts as an effective
tool in protecting financial statement users against accounting irregularities.
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O'Donovan, Gary. "Legitimacy theory as an explanation for corporate environmental disclosures." Thesis, 2000. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15372/.
Full textAbstract:
The main aim of this thesis was to refine and develop legitimacy theory as an explanation for voluntary corporate envirormiental disclosures in the armual report. Legitimacy theory posits that for a corporation to continue to exist it must act in congruence with society's values and norms
(Dowling & Pfeffer, 1975). An aspect of legitimacy theory, investigated in this research, is that in order to continue to exist a corporation will act to remain legitimate in the eyes of whom it considers is able to affect its legitimacy. One way corporations act to remain legitimate to these
important' conferring publics', is to voluntarily disclose social and environmental information in the corporate annual report.
Much of this investigation was concerned with exploring new areas and attempting to establish relationships between variables identified as important to the development of legitimacy theory.
It was decided that a field study approach, using mainly interview-based qualitative data, was the optimal research methodology to achieve the objectives of this investigation. A number of senior management personnel from three large Australian-based companies were the primary source of data in relation to corporate environmental disclosure decision processes.
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Adi, Priyo Hari. "Rent-Seeking Behaviour in Local Government Budget in Indonesia." Thesis, 2018. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/37844/.
Full textAbstract:
Prior studies on government budget expenditure and its impact on government performance have demonstrated mixed results. Improper or inappropriate budget allocations can lead to opportunistic attempts to utilize these resources; this type of opportunism is known as rent-seeking behaviour. The objective of the study is to examine the determinants of rent-seeking, including such factors as grants from central government, local original revenue, natural resources revenue, population size, political factors and audit of government financial statement.
While the majority of existing literature in this field surveys agency problems in the central government or at a national level, the current study contributes to the literature by investigating the agency problem in local government. In a decentralized government, where the authority is delegated to a local leader and local members of parliament, rent-seeking behaviour potentially arises as both of these parties have a conflict of interest. There is often a political motive when these parties run for election.
Rent-seeking may potentially have an adverse impact on local government performance, and auditing has been shown to be an effective tool in reducing the agency problem and minimising rent-seeking. The current study addresses this issue by examining the role of auditing in minimising rent-seeking.
This study employs the approach used by Park (2008), which is a revised model of the Katz and Rosenberg (1989) method, to measure potential rent-seeking. The data used in this study are the regional budget data (Anggaran Pendapatan dan Belanja Daerah/APBD) for the years 2007 to 2012 and also the reports of local financial audits for the years 2006 to 2011.
The results of the study show there were some budget sectors that may have been regularly optimized for rent-seeking. In association with the determinants of the behaviour, there were some factors that influenced the potential rent-seeking significantly. The increase of local original revenue, natural resources and the election of legislative members are found to have a substantial impact on potential rent-seeking. However, the other result of this study shows that audit had an adverse effect on rent-seeking; this finding demonstrates the critical role of the audit to prevent the rent-seeking behaviour.
From the perspective of agency theory, the results of the study provide an indication that rent-seeking behaviour does exist in local governments, since the leader of the government and the members of parliament have particular interests in utilizing the budget. In line with this theory, one of the ways to limit agency costs is by conducting an intensive audit. It is essential for local governments to strengthen their auditing activity in order to prevent high levels of dissipation of local budgets.
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Haider, Syed. "Exploring the Relationship between Changes in Accounting Policies and Valuation of Australian Banking Firms." Thesis, 2015. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/31006/.
Full textAbstract:
The Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) state in their objectives that they are committed to producing quality accounting standards in the public interest to enhance the decision usefulness of accounting information. Cooperation between the AASB and IASB began in aid of the development of internationally accepted Australian accounting standards after the issuance of Policy Statement 6, ‘International Harmonisation Policy’, in 1996. The AASB adopted a two-pronged approach to changing Australian accounting standards: it introduced changes in accounting standards for issues not covered in international accounting standards, and also adopted international accounting standards to provide decision-useful information to the users of financial statements.
The introduction of new accounting standards and changes to the existing standards affected the financial statements of firms, including Australian banking firms. Firms that are affected by the introduction of new accounting standards or changes in accounting standards are required to provide complete disclosure of both quantitative and qualitative information to improve the economic decision making of the users. However, the concept of users in the conceptual framework is narrowly focused on the information needs of investors as the users of accounting information. Investors rely on the recommendations of financial analysts for investment decisions, and financial analysts value firms by using accounting information as input for valuation models to generate recommendations to buy, sell or hold decisions for investors. The objective of this research is to investigate the impact of changes in accounting policies on the forecasted values of Australian banking firms for the period 1997–2007. The objective is not to predict forecasted share prices accurately, but rather to use forecasted share prices generated through the use of various valuation models used by financial analysts to identify whether changes in accounting policies due to the changes in accounting standards have resulted in decreases in forecasting error.
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Schröder, Laura Babett. "The materiality and volatility of comprehensive income : a thesis presented partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Accountancy at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand." 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/1278.
Full textAbstract:
The objective of this research is to investigate the materiality and volatility of comprehensive income for non financial firms in a non US environment. As the FASB and IASB are planning to require the reporting of comprehensive income in a single performance statement, it is important to resolve the issues surrounding the materiality and the volatility of comprehensive income. This study investigates the materiality of comprehensive income and its components in relation to total comprehensive income and closing equity for 37 non financial companies listed on the NZX from 2003 to 2008. Moreover, the cumulative impact of comprehensive income on equity over time is investigated. Further the volatility of comprehensive income is compared to the volatility of net income. This study also investigates the impact of the change to NZ IFRS on comprehensive income The results show that other comprehensive income is material in relation to total comprehensive income, but not in relation to closing equity. Moreover, some components of comprehensive income have a cumulative effect over time on closing equity. Comprehensive income is more volatile than net income. However, these findings are due to asset revaluations, which is the most dominant component of other comprehensive income. Though, all components of comprehensive income are significant for some firm year observations. Further, the move to NZ IFRS affects the materiality of some components of other comprehensive income and reduces the volatility of comprehensive income compared to net income. This study provides evidence that other comprehensive income is material for non financial firms in a non US environment. This suggests that it should be displayed clearly in the financial statement in order to be taken into consideration by financial statement users. Further, this study provides evidence that the difference in volatility between comprehensive income and net income in New Zealand can be avoided by choosing the cost method when measuring assets after recognition.
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Nyamori, Robert Ochoki. "Governing the local : a case study of the use of markets and strategic performance measurement systems in a local authority in New Zealand : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Accountancy, Massey University." 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/1623.
Full textAbstract:
This study seeks to illuminate how markets and private sector managerial practices, especially strategic performance measurement systems (SPMS) have come to be a central part of the government of the local domain and with what effects, following far-reaching reforms to the New Zealand public sector commencing in the mid 1980s. The study uses Michel Foucault's concept of governmentality to interpret the way people are governed through regimes of practice that present certain ways of being as true and others as false, utilising traditional devices of sovereignty and discipline, as well as technologies of the self. Parliamentary bills to reform New Zealand local government were analysed as was the literature on local government reform. These illuminated the rationalities and technologies underpinning the reforms. Literature on strategic planning and management in the public sector were analysed to provide insights into the discursive formation of SPMS as a technology of government. The researcher also interviewed the city manager, managers of all the units, some non-managerial staff, The Mayor and one councillor of Future City Council The pseudonym has been adopted for purposes of confidentiality.(FCC), a New Zealand local authority. He also collected and analysed numerous internal documents from the case study. The analysis involved a transcription of all interviews and then identification of common themes from among the interviewees. The individual interviewee's response to a theme were analysed against that of other interviewees and the internal documents so as compare their interpretation of the introduction and effects of markets and SPMS. The results of this analysis were then interpreted employing the concept of governmentality. The aim was to establish the extent to which this concept could explain the changes to local government and their effects. The reforms to local government in New Zealand were driven by the same rationalities as those of the larger New Zealand public sector, namely, efficiency, effectiveness and accountability. The study found that these rationalities were associated with regimes of practice that sought to constitute citizen and staff as autonomous entities that could govern themselves, while at the same time gazing over each other. These practices included the separation of policy making from management, commercial operations from non-commercial ones, business from non-business departments and the introduction of competition through internal markets. These changes were associated with discourses that promoted citizens as active participants in their communities but who were at the same time autonomous individuals who could take care of themselves and who had the rights of consumers. These dividing practices sought to change the nature of the relationship between staff and citizens, supplanting trust with technologies of mistrust, enabling government without obvious intrusion hence overcoming the dialectic between control and freedom that is the hallmark of advanced liberal societies. These rationalities were also associated with SPMS programmes and technologies that sought to reconfigure local spaces into communities bounded by local authorities. Since annual planning and the long-term financial strategy required consultation with their communities, citizens were interpellated into their own government. Consultation and citizen participation enabled the needs and aspirations of these communities to be known to staff of the FCC who would be expected to work towards their fulfilment. These needs and aspirations in turn became the basis for programmes of governing the conduct of the staff and elected representatives of the FCC. SPMS incited citizens to evaluate the FCC and various facets of their lives on the basis of the logic of the economic, which became the vehicle and basis for far- reaching changes to the FCC. These practices enabled FCC individual staff's work to be delineated into objectives, to which they were assigned. This in turn enabled the individual performance of staff to be calculable, measurable and visible hence tying their daily working lives with the rationalities of government. The dreams of reformers however, do not always accord with practice, as was evident at the FCC. The changes while embraced by some were resisted by others, who though subsequently defining the organisation in terms of strategy and markets, do not appear to have been overwhelmed by it. This study hopefully contributes to accounting research in a number of ways. While the bulk of Foucaultian studies are historical, this study combines both historical and contemporary analysis of the evolution and instantiation of a discourse of markets and private sector managerialism. The study is able to show how the subject constitutes and is constituted by a discourse of community, customer and enterprise, contrary to previous studies that have relied on the study of discourse as an intermediary to the subject. The study extended previous by show how the subject is not a mere pawn of discourse, but is able to appropriate and resist discourses that contradict his or her prior identities. The study also shows the potentially rich insights, which can be gleaned from looking at accounting as part of the larger modalities for governing organisational and social life. It shows how accounting data and personnel are appropriated by staff in various units to develop and interpret strategy and measure its progress within the organisation. Importantly, accounting logic is used to link individual work with the political rationalities of strategic planning. The researcher hopes that a healthy debate would ensue regarding the reasons, means and effects of neo-liberal modes of government in the local sphere.
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Brooks, Albie. "Management accounting innovation and organizational learning." Thesis, 2002. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15444/.
Full textAbstract:
Innovation in management accounting has been significant over the last 15 years. Since the publication of Johnson and Kaplan's (1987) Relevance Lost: The Rise and Fall of
Management Accounting, innovations such as activity-based costing/management, the balanced scorecard, value-chain analysis and economic value-added systems have been
introduced by organizations to improve the quality of information and management within those organizations. At the same time there has been a growing interest in the
concept of organizational learning. While the literature in this area is dispersed across a range of disciplines, there has been a growing interest in the concept in the business and management literature, and, to a lesser extent, the accounting-related literature.
The purpose of this study is to explore the potential links between these two broad concepts, namely, management accounting innovation and organizational learning. It is
believed that the thesis will contribute to the further development of theory in the areas of management accounting innovation and organizational learning.
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Yang, Hong (helen). "Changing institutional environment, Chinese company characteristics, and climate-change reporting." Thesis, 2014. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/24839/.
Full textAbstract:
The objective of this thesis is to investigate how China’s country-specific context influences climate-change reporting by Chinese companies. Specifically, the thesis theoretically and empirically examines factors that influence climate-change reporting in China’s changing political and economic institutional environment. The thesis addresses how the political ideology of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) has driven the changing institutions in the field of climate-change reporting, and the impact on Chinese company characteristics and reporting practice. The thesis includes Chinese literature in evaluating the adaptability of theories originating in the West to the Chinese context. It identifies institutional theory as the preferred basis for developing an extended model to explain the homogeneity and heterogeneity of climate-change reporting by Chinese companies. The model developed, which incorporates multiple levels of institutional analysis, was then tested empirically. From 100 leading listed Chinese companies, 471 reports (Annual Reports and Corporate Sustainability Reports) were examined across three key reporting years between 2006 and 2010, using content analysis. Multivariate regression and logit analyses were then used for further analysis.
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Abell, David I. "A review of directors' and officers' liability insurance policy wordings in light of the Statewide Tobacco, National Safety Council, AWA & East End court decisions." Thesis, 1993. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/15554/.
Full textAbstract:
The Statewide Tobacco, National Safety Council & AWA decisions have generated a good deal of comment in business circles and in the media. References have been made in legal and business journals as to the importance of Directors' and Officers' Liability (D & O) insurance when
discussing these court decisions. Unfortunately, for the purchasers of this class of insurance there is very little written material as to how to adequately evaluate the different D & 0 insurance policies offered by underwriters.
This paper examines the background of this class of insurance and suggests a way of comparing the various policies offered by the insurance market and a number of risk minimisation strategies.
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Hayes, Nyuk S. "Outsourcing of typical accounting functions: impact on the accounting services industry." Thesis, 1999. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/18170/.
Full textAbstract:
Since the Australian recession which began in the 1990s, outsourcing has
received considerable attention. Amongst the many benefits that outsourcing is
believed to offer, a key benefit is that it allows organisations to focus on their
competitive strengths while contracting out non-core activities.
While there is currently a considerable amount of studies and evidence on the
costs and benefits of outsourcing, much of this is centred on Information
Technology. There are predictions and some anecdotal evidence indicating
that the outsourcing of typical accounting functions will increase as we
approach the second millennium. The questions left unanswered are many:
• are the trends in the outsourcing of typical accounting functions really on the
increase?
• what are the rationales and perceived benefits associated with the
outsourcing of typical accounting functions?
• does the outsourcing of typical accounting functions raise any concerns?
• what impact will outsourcing have on the service providers in the accounting
services industry?
This study has been designed to answer the above questions. The methodology
undertaken necessitated two separate surveys which were conducted over a
period of 6 months within 1997 and 1998. Both surveys were based on mailed
questionnaires which were forwarded to 300 service-user organisations and 300
service-provider organisations.
Several key findings have emerged from this study:
• the increasing trend to outsource in between 1992 and the period beyond
1997 had only applied to two out of nine accounting functions.
• the outsourcing of typical accounting functions were not undertaken by at
least 75% of responding firms in 1997.
• there were differences between service-buyers' and service-providers'
perception of outsourcing benefits.
• the outstanding number of concerns associated with the management and
control of outsourced functions as well as humans resource, technological
and financial issues was a factor which appear to have deterred firms from
outsourcing typical accounting functions.
The recommendations arising from this study are summarised, as follows:
First, in order to minimise undesired outcomes as a result of outsourcing,
service-user firms need to consider several issues before the decision to
outsource is made. These issues include the strategic importance of, and
existing problems associated with their accounting functions, as well as the risks
and benefits of outsourcing those functions.
Second, service providers' ability to deliver services at pre-determined levels are
more likely to be successful if they are prepared to specialise in the types of
client industries where risks can be measured.
Third, the identification of human resource problems warrants some research
into how organisations can achieve a win-win situation with in-house staff
whose positions are jeopardised as a result of outsourcing arrangements.
Fourth, service-provider firms need to be aware and perhaps become familiar
with the capabilities of commercially available software for the processing of
basic accounting functions.
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Almahuzi, Ahmed Salman. "Factors Impacting the Effectiveness of Internal Audit in the Saudi Arabian Public Sector." Thesis, 2020. https://vuir.vu.edu.au/42261/.
Full textAbstract:
This study investigates the effectiveness of internal audits in the Saudi Arabian public sector. The resource-based theory is used to explore external and internal factors that impact internal audit effectiveness. External factors are those outside the control of an internal audit department while internal factors are those within its control. The study examines the relationships between three external factors: top management support, organisational culture and independence of internal audits. It also examines the relationships between four internal factors: motivation of internal audit staff, size of the internal audit team, utilisation of information technology (IT) and competence of internal auditors. Lastly, the study considers the reasons for the non-implementation of internal audit units in some government organisations.
Data were gathered using a mixed methods approach consisting of semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire. A total of 36 semi-structured interviews was conducted to gain the participants’ views on the nature of internal audits in the Saudi public sector and of the issues affecting the effectiveness of the audits. Further, 300 questionnaires were distributed to the managers of internal audit units and internal audit staff in the Saudi Arabian public sector, of which 290 were returned completed.
The data were analysed thematically and statistically. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the interviews. The interview data were unanimous that top management support impacted not only internal audit effectiveness but also the other external factors. The interview findings also revealed a direct association between the three external factors. Multiple regression was used to analyse the collected data. The findings showed that the key external factors affecting internal audit effectiveness were top management support, organisational culture and independence of the internal audit. The first ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model indicated that, of these external factors, top management support was the most significant impacting internal audit effectiveness. In contrast, the interview data suggested that the competence of internal auditors was the most significant factor, affecting not only internal audit effectiveness but the other internal factors as well. The interview data also indicated a direct association between the four internal factors. The second OLS regression model suggested that, of the internal factors, the competence of internal auditors was the primary driver of internal audit effectiveness. As a standalone construct, the competence of internal auditors significantly impacted internal audit effectiveness; however, the same could be said of the links between internal audit effectiveness and the motivation of internal audit staff, the size of internal audit team and the utilisation of IT.
In line with the resource-based theory, it is suggested that the Saudi public sector should capitalise on an effective internal audit as a valuable resource to promote organisational activities. The findings also revealed that although Saudi public organisations are legally required to have established internal audit departments, this function was lacking in a substantial number of organisations.