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Prior research suggests that perceived levels of a subordinate auditor’s competence affects audit reviewers’ judgments. We extend this line of research by investigating the effects of perceived client competence (hereafter, ClientComp) and its interaction with subordinate auditor’s competence (hereafter, AuditorComp) on audit reviewers’ judgments. Using data from highly experienced CPA audit managers, senior managers, and partners, we find a significant main effect for AuditorComp, but not for ClientComp. We also find that when AuditorComp is high, levels of ClientComp do not affect audit reviewers’ judgments. However, we cannot support the hypothesis that when AuditorComp is low ClientComp will significantly affect audit reviewers’ judgments. These mixed results suggest that in the post-SOX (2002) era regulatory environment, audit reviewers may be exercising heightened professional skepticism about ClientComp whenever they consider clients’ assertions.

Design‐build (DB) clients play a vital role in the delivery of DB system and the clients' competences are critical to the success of DB projects. Most of the DB clients, however, remain inexperienced with the DB system. The purpose of this paper is to identify the key competences that DB clients should possess to ensure the success of DB projects in the construction market of China.

Five semi‐structured face‐to‐face interviews and two rounds Delphi questionnaire survey were conducted in the construction market of China to identify the key competences of DB clients. Rankings have been assigned to these key competences on the basis of their relative importance.

Six ranked key competences of DB clients have been identified, which are, namely: the ability to clearly define project scope and objectives; financial capacity for the projects; capacity in contract management; adequate staff or consulting team; effective coordination with DB contractors; and experience with similar DB projects. Calculation of Kendall's coefficient of concordance (W) indicates a statistically significant consensus of panel experts on these top six key competences.

Clients should clearly understand the competence requirements in DB projects and should assess their DB capability before going for the DB option.

The examination of DB client's key competences will help the client deepen the understanding of the DB system. DB clients can also make use of the research findings as guidelines to improve their DB competence.

The “resources, dynamic capabilities and competences perspective” (Sanchez, 2001) has challenged firms to apply these concepts to improve their competitive position. Management consulting firms may assist clients in these efforts. However, the roles that management consulting firms fulfill in these processes can differ considerably and are under-researched. Therefore, insight in these different roles and the impact of these roles on clients’ competitive positioning in their industries is required. The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework that highlights the importance of distinguishing both roles and the implications for management consulting firms and for their clients. We illustrate the framework by elaborating on the relationship between both roles and the strategic renewal context of client firms. We conclude by pointing out the increasing importance of the competence leverage role of management consulting firms and how this development might contribute to a more hypercompetitive context for their clients.

I synthesize the extant experimental literature examining auditor evaluation of others’ credibility published in six top accounting journals over the last three-and-a-half decades. I adapt the original definition of credibility by Hovland, Janis, and Kelley (1953): the extent of perceiving someone as competent and trustworthy. Audit guidance requires auditors to consider credibility of management, internal auditors, and staff, yet the research literature on auditor evaluation of others’ credibility is fragmented and scarce, limiting our understanding of determinants and consequences of auditor evaluations. I develop a framework for analysis of research on auditor evaluation of others’ credibility and review extant literature by types of examined effects (determinants of credibility vs. consequences of credibility) and by examined credibility components (competence, trustworthiness, or both). Throughout the literature review I suggest areas for future research.

The purpose of this paper is first to examine the effect of client-led and contractor-led supply chain initiatives on project performance in the Indian construction industry and second to assess how the client-led supply chain initiatives complement the contractor-led supply chain initiatives.

In this study, the effects of the client-led supply chain initiatives (reward power and competence trust of the construction clients) and the contractor-led supply chain initiatives (contractor integration and calculative commitment of the contractor) on project performance in construction projects are examined. The data were collected from 346 construction professionals working in Indian construction projects using purposive sampling. The proposed hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.

The contractor-led supply chain initiatives, in the form of contractor integration and the calculative relationship commitment of a contractor, were found to be strong mediators, indirectly affecting the project performance. On the other hand, the client-led supply chain initiatives, in the form of the reward power of the client and the competence trust of the client, directly influence the project performance.

This study reports the inevitable bias on the part of participants, who responded to the survey either in the capacity of client or contractor, although they might have executed projects in both capacities. Future studies could benefit from the use of objective data instead of behavioral data.

This study helps construction firms understand how to demarcate the client and contractor roles in the construction supply chain to improve the project performance.

The originality of this study lies in its investigation of the influence of client-led supply chain initiatives and contractor-led supply chain initiatives on project performance.

This paper aims to study the direct and indirect influence of three important intangible resources: export knowledge, negotiation skills and specialisation and trustworthiness on export intermediary performance via the competence to reduce clients’ transaction costs.

The study has been provided with the official database of export intermediary firms by the Department of Export Promotion, Ministry of Commerce, Thailand. The samples of 400 export intermediary firms were identified from the 1,486 population firms. The postal questionnaires were sent to sample firms. Ordinary least square regression analysis has been adopted to test the hypotheses of the study.

The results indicate that valuable resources of export knowledge, negotiation skills and specialisation and trustworthiness significantly and positively affect both export intermediary performance and the competence to reduce clients’ transaction costs. The competence to reduce clients’ transaction costs partially mediates the relationship between resources and export intermediary performance.

A “cost-based” perspective needs to be supplemented in future research with a more behavioural approach.

Export intermediaries must be able to deliver “true added value” to remain a viable organisational form, hence, the intermediaries need ceaselessly to acquire, utilise and develop resources and capabilities in reducing clients’ export-related transaction costs.

From a public policy perspective, gaining more knowledge about the role of export intermediaries can greatly facilitate the export promotion efforts in which most nations’ governments are involved.

This study is a first attempt to study the mediating effect of the competence to reduce transaction costs, which mediates the relationship between resources and performance of export intermediary.

Professional quantity surveying (QS) services are critical to successful delivery of construction projects within planned budget, quality and duration. The supply of QS professional services is largely dependent on the price level of services and the willingness of clients to pay. The pricing of professional QS consultancy services has been confronted with a myriad of pricing challenges due to rapid changes in the business environment; the pervasive influence of information technology; and the complexity of clients’ expectation. It is therefore necessary for QS consultancy firms to develop strategic competences for the pricing of their services. In addition, numerous studies have not given the pricing the pricing of professional services the requisite attention. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the strategic competences for pricing professional QS services.

The study was positioned within the positivist tradition. As a result, the quantitative approach was adopted using a survey questionnaire to collect data from QS consultants. The sample size of the study was 79 professional quantity surveyors chosen by using simple random sampling technique from a population of 372 registered professional QS of the Ghana Institution of Surveyors. Using the χ² test and factor analysis, the study established relationship between strategic competences and pricing of QS services.

The study found that strategic competences for pricing QS professional services is significantly related to the managerial and professional competence of QS consultants. The strategic competences of QS consultants identified by this study include business management, services cost management; and production capabilities.

This study provides an empirical basis for QS consultancy firms to focus on strategic direction of their contractual arrangement with clients. Practically, resource configuration and on strategic competences for professional service pricing would create price leadership.

The study advances the pricing knowledge within the QS practice by demonstrating the nexus between strategic competences and the pricing of QS professional services which hitherto this study have not been effectively investigated.

With the growth in outsourcing it is imperative to understand the vendor’s satisfaction with IT outsourcing relationships since contractual and relationship factors affect the ability of vendors and clients to work together over time. A recent study demonstrated that relational factors such as trust and information exchange dominated in their ability to explain client satisfaction when compared to contractual factors. The purpose of this paper is to further examine how the relational factors work together to lead to vendor satisfaction in an outsourcing relationship.

A survey was developed and pre-tested with vendors in India and client firms in the USA that used international IT vendors. Using data collected from 214 vendor firms in the Indian subcontinent the paper examines the main effect of two client focused variables, namely, competence-based trust and client dependence on vendor satisfaction; it also explores whether social control moderate the main effect relationships.

The findings indicate that client dependence and competence-based trust were significant direct predictors of vendor satisfaction. Social control or the ability to resolve conflicts positively moderated the effect client dependence on vendor satisfaction. But it did not impact the effect of competence-based trust on vendor satisfaction.

The authors identify three limitations: a dyadic analysis using both the client and the vendor perspective would have provided a richer understanding of the relationship; since the data were collected on a cross-sectional basis, it is hard to make predictive assessments; and a limited response rate.

These findings help us understand the factors that impact vendor satisfaction in an outsourcing relationship and this is one of the keys to maintaining a long-term relationship between transacting parties.

Previous studies have explored the relational aspects of a vendor-client interaction from the client’s point of view and, here, the authors take the vendor’s perspective, which is increasingly important due to the increasing complexity of work outsourced. Besides exploring the direct effect competence-based trust and client dependence on vendor satisfaction, the authors also analyze the role of social control as a moderator.

The aim of this paper is to advance applied theoretical knowledge on international business (IB) ideation by designing the managing of such ideation as three recursive, multi-competence-enabled systems.

The core principles of Beer’s (1985) Viable System Model are adopted for this system design task. The Viable System Model consists of five interacting sub-systems that can support a viable IB unit.

The contribution of this design of the three recursive, multi-competence-enabled systems will be three novel pieces of the applied theoretical knowledge about recursivity and competences that advance the management of an IB unit as a whole and in particular that of IB ideation.

For future research, I initially propose that the IB ideation (unit) is being managed the more successfully within its focal contexts, the more extensively the IB ideation is designed as a set of three recursive systems enabled by respective multi-competences. Moreover, the 3-system design may serve as the frame of reference for those compatible theorization initiatives vis-à-vis viable IB ideation management that interested competence-based management scholars will conduct in the future.

I put forth the three templates (coupled with Functions 2–3) to facilitate the enhancement of the IB ideation practices among leading, innovative firms and especially by the pioneering management of IB (ideation) units.

The efficiency and the effectiveness of the audit depend in part on the efficiency and the effectiveness of the client inquiry process. This paper presents a model that helps auditors to understand the stages of the client inquiry process and the factors that influence its reliability. The model serves to illuminate the client inquiry process and thereby assist auditors in evaluating the evidence thus obtained. Our model is a multistage communication channel that connects reality, the client’s perception of reality, the client’s representation of reality, the auditor’s perception of reality, and the auditor’s representation of reality. Distortions of reality occur between adjacent stages as the result of the subjectivity, technical incompetence, untrustworthiness, and poor presentation skills of either the client or the auditor. We discuss our model in the context of the analytical review task.