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The purpose of this paper is to examine the conduct of the audit committee (AC) in terms of its oversight role of audit quality in the UK.

This study uses semi-structured interviews with 11 AC members and 11 audit partners.

The findings show that the conduct of the AC in relation to audit quality involves the assessment of the contents of the reports prepared by the external auditors for the AC. Furthermore, the oversight of audit quality by the AC involves a thorough assessment of the presentation of the external auditors during the interaction and communication between the two parties. This illustrates the AC’s role as an effective monitoring mechanism when overseeing the audit quality. However, the conduct of the AC in overseeing four major areas (independence, appointment, remuneration and effectiveness of audit process) related to audit quality, as recommended by the UK Code of Corporate Governance, provides mixed results. The findings highlight the ceremonial role of the AC in those areas, which demonstrates the limited supporting role of the AC in enhancing audit quality. Furthermore, it is suggested that the effectiveness of the oversight role is influenced by the quality of the chairman of the AC and the quality of the relationship between the AC and the external auditors.

This study contributes to the existing literature by providing additional insights into the conduct of the AC in overseeing audit quality as well as additional evidence concerning the role and effect of the AC in relation to audit quality as prescribed by the UK Code of Corporate Governance.

Prior literature on talent management (TM) in the audit setting has suggested several practices that may affect auditors’ performance. However, the study is limited in terms of a measurable set of comprehensive constructs of TM in the audit setting, as well as the impact of comprehensive TM constructs on auditors’ performance. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine TM practices perceived to be important by auditors for auditors’ performance.

Data were obtained from 307 survey questionnaires received from auditors of large- as well as small- and medium-sized firms.

The study respondents perceived TM attributes related to supervision and review practices as the most vital for auditors’ performance. This category was followed by attributes related to ethics management practices along with training and development. The findings reveal that respondents generally perceived lower significance for attributes pertaining to work–life balance (WLB) and establishing a TM policy for auditors’ performance. While both top management and staff members of audit firms regarded WLB and establishing a TM policy to be of lower significance, top management placed greater importance on attributes related to ethics management, while staff perceived training and development attributes to be more critical.

This study examined a comprehensive set of TM practices (establishing a TM policy, recruitment, ethics management, training and development, supervision and review, remuneration, WLB and succession planning) and assessed the perceptions of audit practitioners on the significance of these practices on auditors’ performance.

This study provides insights into the meanings given to audit quality (AQ) by audit partners responsible for delivering audit services. It explores the influence of contextual factors in the auditing setting on constructing such meanings and its representations.

Drawing on a symbolic-interactionist framework, this study takes an interpretive approach, employing semi-structured interviews with audit partners from the United Kingdom (UK).

Three primary meanings of AQ are identified. First, in contradiction to that offered by “mainstream” AQ research, audit partners in this study predominantly regarded the meaning of AQ as an economic concept in the context of the “business” of auditing, delivering the service quality (e.g. value-added auditing and value-for-money) that is expected by their audit clients. Second, the audit partners also espouse the meaning of AQ to be “fit for purpose” audit documentation and adherence to quality control that meets the standards of compliance demanded by independent audit inspections. Third, and similar to the classic convention of AQ, audit partners consider “inputs” to AQ, attributes related to individual auditors (e.g. qualifications, experience and training) as one of the key AQ meanings. A range of stimuli underlies AQ meaning construction, including the audit firm's commercial interests, legitimacy, image management and social identity resulting from audit partners' interactions with audit clients, regulators, and their own self-reflexivity. Interestingly, this study identifies a considerable potential conflict between the meanings assigned to AQ, which suggests that auditors are struggling to strike a balance between the competing demands of those meanings.

This exploratory study addresses only the audit partners' perceptions concerning the meaning of AQ. Findings of this study are relevant to auditors and other parties, such as regulators, in addressing competing dimensions of AQ and potential choices involving conduct and content in any individual audit engagement.

The study complements existing research into AQ by exposing the rationales and potential behaviours that underlie commitments to quality by those involved in commissioning audit engagements. It also adds detailed evidence of how contextual factors in the auditing environment interact with auditors' notions of AQ.

This study aims to examine the structural power wielded by the audit committee (AC) and the various bases of its power, whilst also exploring the behavioural tactics used by the AC to leverage its power in the oversight of the external audit.

Empirical evidence was drawn from semi-structured interviews with external auditors and AC members in Malaysia.

The AC’s structural power is derived from its formal and network position in the organisation. The AC possesses three forms of organisational-based power (legitimate, coercive and informational) resultant from its formal position, and these combine with the AC’s personal power (will and expert). The AC uses its personal power base to develop trusting relationships and to promote the exchange of information with other key corporate governance actors in the network position. Furthermore, the AC applies at least four behavioural tactics (assertiveness, ingratiation, rationality and coalition formation) to exercise its bases of power.

This study attempts to describe the AC’s structural sources of power, its organisational and personal power bases, and the behavioural tactics it uses when exerting its power.

Undergraduate courses: Auditing, Leadership, Management accounting. Postgraduate courses: Leadership, Management accounting.

Auditing, Leadership, Management accounting

This case documents the journey of a professional accountancy organisation, namely, the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) and document the MIA’s journey on the establishment of digital blueprint for the accounting profession in Malaysia including some major milestone in innovating audit evidence-gathering technique by introducing e-confirm for auditing bank confirmation in Malaysia. This case highlights the significant role played by a lady chief executive officer (CEO) in embarking into the digitalisation of the accountancy profession and practice in Malaysia. While the ultimate objective of digital blueprint is to transform the accounting and auditing practices in Malaysia, the CEO has led by example by embedding digitalisation within MIA’s practices itself.

The learning outcome of this paper are as follows: to develop students’ understanding on the right attitudes, skills and characters that a successful leader should possess in contemporary business environment by focusing on dilemma and stereo-typing faced by women leaders; to develop the students’ understanding on the changes in business environment particularly the rise of digital technology that affecting the ways in which accounting functions in organisations; to encourage students to be aware that technical accounting knowledge is just one of the key success factors in the career of a professional accountant. The case offer insight into accountants’ role in digital environment and the development needed for accounting profession; to demonstrate how auditing process can benefit from the advancement in technology; and to encourage critical discussion on the development of accounting profession in Malaysia. The case aims to develop students’ critical discussion on the roles of MIA as a regulator of accounting profession and to appreciate historical development of accounting profession in Malaysia. The case also aims to encourage students to realise the existence of other professional accounting bodies, accounting practitioners and academic accountants, and together with MIA, they play significant role in shaping the accounting profession in Malaysia.

Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

The case has a strong implication on the role of effective leaders in ensuring that significant efforts involved in digitalisation journal, a vital need for the accountancy professional to continue to be a relevant profession, is a success.

CSS 1: Accounting and Finance.

Women leadership, Digitalisation, Professional accountancy organisation, Electronic bank confirmation, Malaysia

This paper aims to examine the relationship between Islamic religiosity and Islamic financial asset holdings (IFAH) among Muslim individuals in Malaysia.

Data for this study were collected through a survey questionnaire, and a sample of 751 working Muslims in Kuala Lumpur was obtained. Islamic religiosity was measured via religiosity levels and religiosity dimensions. IFAH was measured as the fraction of Islamic financial assets held in a financial portfolio. A generalized linear model (GLM) was used to estimate the relationships.

The results show that religiosity level influences the IFAH. Devout Muslims held more Islamic financial assets than casual Muslims. All religiosity dimensions influenced IFAH, with faith having the greatest influence and virtues the least. Educational level strongly influenced IFAH.

The sample consisted of working Muslims in Kuala Lumpur; hence, generalization cannot be made to all Malaysian Muslims. This study only focused on Islamic financial assets and did not consider other types of Islamic financial products, such as financing.

Efforts to encourage Muslims to opt for Islamic financial assets may be more effective if they begin from the core of religious education. Educating individuals on Islamic principles, including the values and concepts of Islamic finance, is important to encourage the Islamic banking industry to prosper among Muslims.

The paper provides an extension of current literature on spirituality and religion by incorporating a comprehensive measure of Islamic religiosity and its relationship with financial asset holdings.

Using attribution theory, this study examined the effects of situational factors [time budget pressure (TBP), organisational ethical culture (OEC) and quality control procedures (QCPs)] and dispositional factors [auditor professional commitment (APC) and internal locus of control (ILOC)] on audit quality threatening behaviour (AQTB). In addition, it observed the moderating role of religiosity in the relationship between situational and dispositional factors and AQTB.

A total of 189 external auditors responded to the survey questionnaire. This study employed structural equation modelling via SmartPLS to analyse the proposed model.

The results documented that the OEC and QCPs situational factors were negatively related to the incidence of AQTB, whilst TBP was positively linked to the incidence of AQTB. Dispositional factors APC and ILOC were negatively connected to AQTB. Furthermore, the findings recorded the moderating effect of religiosity on most of the situational and dispositional factors related to AQTB.

Regulators and accounting firms' efforts to promote high audit quality (AQ) may consider the theological/religious lens and reinforce ethical culture and quality control to reduce AQTB.

The findings provide further insights into situational and dispositional factors that may cause or impede the incidence of AQTB in auditing practices, as well as the moderating role of religiosity in curbing AQTB.

This study aims to investigate the association between Muslim individuals’ portfolio allocation choice and Islamic religiosity (levels and dimensions), controlling for risk tolerance and sociodemographic factors.

The study uses primary data collected via survey questionnaires from a sample of 751 Muslim working individuals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Owing to the ordinal nature of the dependent variable, which reflects the levels of proportions of risky assets in portfolios, the data were analyzed using an ordered probit regression model.

The findings reveal that Islamic religiosity levels in general were insignificantly related to portfolio allocation, but that two dimensions of religiosity (virtue and obligation) significantly impact the allocations of risky assets in the portfolio. The higher the level of virtue, the lower the propensity to allocate risky assets into the portfolio. On the contrary, the higher the level of obligation, the higher the propensity to allocate risky assets in the portfolio. Meanwhile, individuals with higher risk tolerance, income and education levels show greater propensity to allocate risky assets in the portfolio.

The sample is restricted to Muslims in Kuala Lumpur; hence, the findings are not easily generalized to Muslim investors in general. Findings may differ between Muslims across the world, so future research needs to expand from a country specific to an international analysis. In addition, future studies could include other determinants of portfolio allocation, such as financial literacy.

The findings of this study may assist financial planners and policymakers to better understand the drivers of portfolio allocation among their Muslim clients.

While other studies have tended to focus on the impact of religiosity on the holdings of specific financial assets, such as Islamic bank accounts or Takaful, the present study explores the effect of Islamic religiosity dimensions on the allocations of risky assets in the portfolio. The study also develops an ordinal measure of portfolio allocation and makes a methodological contribution by using an ordered probit regression analysis.

This study examines the perceptions of interested stakeholders on the factors affecting the use of data analytics (DA) in financial statement audits. Response letters submitted by stakeholders of the auditing services to the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board's (IAASB) Data Analytics Working Group (DAWG) served as sources for analysis.

The modified information technology audit model was used as a framework to perform a direct content analysis of all the 50 response letters submitted to the DAWG.

The analysis showed that a range of attributes, such as the usefulness of DA in auditing, authoritative guidance (auditing standards), data reliability and quality, auditors' skills, clients' factors and costs, were the factors perceived by stakeholders to be affecting the use of DA in external auditing.

This study is subjected to the limitations inherent to all content analysis studies. Nonetheless, the findings offer additional insights about potential factors affecting the adoption of DA in audit practices.

The data noted in the published statements highlighted the perceptions of a range of stakeholders with regards to the factors affecting the use of DA in auditing.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of technology readiness (TR) of the Muslim and non-Muslim external auditors and its effect on their data analytics competencies (DACs). Literature is insufficient in addressing the comparative analysis of these constructs among these auditing professionals.

A survey was conducted on 201 external auditors. Questionnaire was developed based on TR and DAC literature. Pilot testing was conducted on 50 respondents, who were drawn from the sample.

Non-Muslim external auditors were found to be more technology ready than Muslim external auditors. The optimum dimension of TR was significantly different between Muslim and non-Muslim external auditors. Significant mean difference was found only for personal capabilities dimension of DAC between Muslim and non-Muslim external auditors. TR had a significant effect on Muslim external auditors’ personal capabilities dimension of DAC; however, there was insignificant effect on all DAC dimensions for non-Muslim external auditors. The highest DAC score of the external auditors were only at the beginner level for technical skills and technologies and tools expertise dimensions.

Using students as proxies for external auditors could lead to concerns with generalisability. Nonetheless, these students were competent to act as proxies as they had completed a six-month internship at an accounting firm.

The findings manifested the need for Muslim external auditors to be more technology ready. External auditors need to enhance their DAC to meet digital economic needs.

This study advocated the importance for auditing professionals to acknowledge the new data analytics challenges.