Audit Quality Indicators: Audit Practice Meets Audit Research

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. A17-A23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger D. Martin

SUMMARY Regulators, audit firms, and academic researchers are exploring issues related to Audit Quality Indicators (AQIs), including how to optimize their use and how to anticipate the consequences of measuring, reporting, and monitoring AQIs on a routine basis. This article describes the main topics addressed by a panel discussion and participant breakout group discussions at a 2012 symposium hosted by the Center for Audit Quality. Topics include how AQIs could be useful to audit stakeholders, what we know from practice about the current state of AQIs, and how academic research might inform the development and use of AQIs by stakeholders.

2020 ◽  
Vol 177 (1) ◽  
pp. 165-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan McKee

Thirty experts in the assessment of the quality of Non-Traditional Research Outputs (NTROs) as academic research outputs were asked to rate the importance of 19 criteria that might be used in making these judgements. Analysis of responses identified four criteria where there is substantial agreement among the community of experts: (a) demonstrated familiarity in the research statement with the current state of knowledge in the relevant academic disciplines (very important); (b) demonstrated familiarity in the research statement with the current state of knowledge in the relevant industry (important); (c) evidence that the work has been engaged with by other academic researchers (relevant); (d) whether the NTRO creator is a substantive university staff member or an adjunct/honorary (unimportant). Fifteen other criteria either reached a less than ‘fair’ level of agreement, or larger numbers of respondents nominated ‘It depends’. Qualitative analysis of comments also revealed noteworthy disagreements in the expert community about how the criteria should be applied.


2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. A1-A6
Author(s):  
Christine M. Porter

SUMMARY Employee benefit plans represent vital components of our economic system and are a critical employment and retirement consideration for many individuals and the organizations that employ them. Surprisingly, the extant academic research and official authoritative standards on audits of employee benefit plans are sparse. This paper describes the current state of employee benefit plan audit quality, focusing on a recent report from the Department of Labor. Next, a proposed statement on auditing standards specific to employee benefit plans is described and summarized. Concluding, I provide insights on potential future directions for this industry of audits.


Author(s):  
Brian Tomaszewski ◽  
Michael Judex ◽  
Joerg Szarzynski ◽  
Christine Radestock ◽  
Lars Wirkus

AbstractGeographic Information Systems (GIS) continue to gain important recognition from disaster practitioners and academic researchers during what is arguably the most publicly visible disaster management phase – disaster response. The broader world of GIS academic research and industry practice for disaster response continues to change. This review article inventories the current state-of-the-art in GIS for disaster response and demonstrates progress in the data and people aspects of GIS for disaster response since previous literature reviews. The review is structured to serve as a metaphorical bridge between two reader groups – disaster management practitioners interested in understanding developing trends in GIS for disaster response and academic researchers with minimal to no understanding of GIS and/or mapping concepts within the disaster response context. With this readership in mind, we outline definitions of GIS, disaster response and the need for GIS in disaster response, review interdisciplinary literature from a variety of spatially-oriented disaster management fields and demonstrate progress in various aspects of GIS for disaster response. The review concludes with a GIS for disaster response research agenda and provides a list of resources for researchers new to GIS and spatial perspectives for disaster management research.


2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 317-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janna Lesser ◽  
Manuel Angel Oscós-Sánchez

Community-academic research partnerships have evolved as a multidisciplinary approach to involve those communities experiencing health disparities in the development, implementation, and evaluation of health interventions. Community-academic partnerships are intended to bring together academic researchers and communities to share power, establish trust, foster colearning, enhance strengths and resources, build community capacity, and address community-identified needs and health problems. The purpose of this chapter is to review the current state of community-academic research partnerships in the United States and Canada. We discuss contextual issues; present a review of the current literature; identify the major strengths, challenges, and lessons learned that have emerged during the course of these research collaborations; and explore implications for future research and policy.


2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 949-980 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veena L. Brown ◽  
Jodi L. Gissel ◽  
Daniel Gordon Neely

Purpose In an effort to develop an audit quality (AQ) framework specific to the US audit market, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) recently issued a concept release proposing 28 audit quality indicators (AQIs) along three dimensions: audit professionals, audit process and audit results. Using AQIs initially proposed by the PCAOB, as well as AQIs suggested by prior literature, the authors solicit perceptions from junior-level (senior and staff) auditors to investigate the current state of practice along many of the AQIs relating to audit professionals and audit process. Design/methodology/approach In the study, 78 junior-level auditors responded to the survey. Findings An analysis of the responses suggests auditors engage in activities and audit firms promote conditions that at times improve, and at other times, reduce audit quality. The authors find that individual auditors’ perceptions differ across experience level, gender and audit firm size for certain AQIs. Practical implications The study is useful to the PCAOB because it provides insights to help assess the value of potential AQIs in differentiating AQ. The study is also useful to other regulators because it describes audit staff and seniors’ perceptions of apparent firm and auditor compliance with accounting and auditing standards. Practitioners should find this information useful in helping to identify possible root causes of audit deficiencies, a challenge put forth to firms by the PCAOB. Originality/value This study provides academia with evidence on AQ from practicing auditors, which informs existing and future research along. The study complements existing work by showing how individual auditor characteristics (experience and gender) at the junior levels may impact AQ in practice


2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 47-52
Author(s):  
Peter Jackson

In a funding environment where commercial collaboration and “user engagement” are increasingly encouraged, this paper explores the ethical, political, and methodological challenges of various forms of partnership between academic researchers and food businesses. Drawing on two recently completed projects, the paper assesses the variable “power-geometry” of such partnerships, including the process of negotiating access, securing informed consent, and conducting and disseminating the research. The paper distinguishes between publicly funded academic research, where independence is more easily maintained, and market research and consultancy, where conflicts of interest are more likely to arise. Commercial collaboration is academically valuable in providing access to data and insights that are not publicly available, but can be treacherous if researchers are unaware of the uneven power-geometry of such partnerships.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 324-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafał Rusiecki ◽  
Jakub Witkowski ◽  
Joanna Jaszczewska-Adamczak

Background: Mouse Double Minute 2 protein (MDM2) is a cellular regulator of p53 tumor suppressor (p53). Inhibition of the interaction between MDM2 and p53 proteins is a promising anticancer therapy. Objective: This updated patent review is an attempt to compile the research and achievements of the various researchers working on small molecule MDM2 inhibitors from 2010 to date. We provide an outlook into the future for therapy based on MDM2 inhibition by presenting an overview of the most relevant patents which have recently appeared in the literature. Methods: Literature and recent patents focusing on the anticancer potential of MDM2-p53 interaction inhibitors and its applications have been analyzed. We put the main emphasis on the most perspective compounds which are or were examined in clinical trials. Results: Literature data indicated that MDM2 inhibitors are therapeutically effective in specific types of cancer or non-cancer diseases. A great number of patents and research work around new MDM2- p53 interaction inhibitors, possible combinations, new indications, clinical regimens in previous years prove that this targeted therapy is in the scope of interest for many business and academic research groups. Conclusion: Novel MDM2 inhibitors thanks to higher potency and better ADME properties have shown effectiveness in preclinical and clinical development however the final improvement of therapeutic potential for MDM2 inhibitors might depend on the useful combination therapy and exploring new cancer and non-cancer indications.


2004 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven R. Muzatko ◽  
Karla M. Johnstone ◽  
Brian W. Mayhew ◽  
Larry E. Rittenberg

This paper examines the relationship between the 1994 change in audit firm legal structure from general partnerships to limited liability partnerships (LLPs) on underpricing in the initial public offering (IPO) market. The change in legal structure of audit firms reduces an audit firm's wealth at risk from litigation damages and reduces the incentives for intrafirm monitoring by partners within an audit firm. Prior research suggests that underpricing protects underwriters from litigation damages, and that the level of underpricing varies inversely with both the amount of implicit insurance provided by the audit firm and the quality of the audit services provided. We hypothesize the change in audit firm legal structure reduced the assets available from audit firms in IPO-related litigation and indirectly reduced audit quality by lowering intrafirm monitoring. As a result, underwriters have incentives as a joint and several defendant with the audit firms to increase IPO underpricing, particularly for high-litigation-risk IPOs, following audit firms' shifts to LLP status. Our findings are consistent with this hypothesis.


2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott E. Seavey ◽  
Michael J Imhof ◽  
Tiffany J. Westfall

SUMMARY Prior audit research suggests that most, if not all, audit quality can be explained at the office level. However, the question remains of whether office-level audit quality is contingent on how individual offices relate to the firm as a whole. Motivated by theories of knowledge management, organizational learning, and networks, we posit that individual offices are connected to their audit network through partner knowledge sharing and oversight, which impact office-level audit quality. We interview Big 4 audit partners and learn that knowledge sharing between partners in different offices is common and intended to aid in the provision of audit services. Using network connectedness to proxy for knowledge sharing and oversight between offices of the same firm, we document that more connected offices are associated with fewer client restatements and lower discretionary accruals. We additionally find that network effects are magnified when accounting treatments are more complex and require greater auditor judgement.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document