Brendan O'Dwyer

Conceptions of Corporate Social Responsibility: The Nature of Managerial Capture

Furnishes a narrative reflecting an in‐depth examination of managerial conceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the Irish context. The narrative locates itself within the debate surrounding the extent to which corporate management may capture social accountants’ efforts to promote a broad society‐centred conception of CSR. Three key findings emerge from the narrative. First, there is evidence of a tendency for managers to interpret CSR in a constricted fashion consistent with corporate goals of shareholder wealth maximisation. Second, pockets of robust resistance to and defences of this narrow conception do, however, also emerge in the narrative. Third, the complexity of conceiving of a clear meaning for CSR, particularly for those exposed to the structural pressures encountered by these managers, is apparent. This is evident in the initial, somewhat contradictory, nature of many of the conceptions analysed. Reflects on these findings and considers their broad implications for social accountants’ attempts to promote greater society centred corporate accountability in Ireland.

Theorising Accountability for NGO Advocacy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a staged theoretical argument regarding whether non-governmental organisations (NGOs) can be considered responsible and accountable for the direct and indirect consequences, on a wide range of stakeholders, flowing from their advocacy activities. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is primarily theoretical and conceptual, developing a structured, conditional and staged model illustrated with empirical examples. Findings – The paper finds depending upon the theoretical arguments accepted at each stage of the model, the advocacy activities of an NGO may be considered to cause a widespread and often unintended negative impact upon the lives of many stakeholders who are either close to, or remote from, the NGO. Also, that depending upon the theoretical position taken regarding the scope of accountability, all entities – including NGOs – may be regarded as responsible and accountable for the impacts which their activities directly and indirectly cause to a broad range of stakeholders. Research limitations/implications – The model is primarily theoretical, so it can benefit from empirical studies to assess its applicability in practice. It also has the scope to be applied in assessing the responsibility and accountability of a range of other entities for their advocacy – such as businesses, religious bodies, political parties, and academics. Practical implications – The paper presents a ontribution to the growing debate on NGO accountability. Originality/value – The paper uses the synthesis of various philosophical positions to develop a conditional, staged model which may be used to establish whether NGOs (and other organisations) can be regarded as having responsibilities and accountabilities for the direct and indirect impacts of their advocacy activities on a broad range of stakeholders.

From functional to social accountability: Transforming the accountability relationship between funders and non-governmental development organisations

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyse the evolving nature of the accountability relationship between a group of Irish non-governmental development organisations (NGDOs) and their primary governmental funder. Design/methodology/approach - The examination is undertaken in the context of a unique funder-led initiative to instil a broad social accountability focus among NGDOs while re-orienting the NGDO-funder accountability dynamic towards a partnership-based approach – whereby the accountability entity would effectively be a supra-organisation comprising the funder and the NGDOs. The empirical content of the paper is derived from a series of in-depth interviews with senior individuals working within the Irish NGDO sector, along with a comprehensive analysis of documentary sources. Findings - The partnership rhetoric central to promoting the enhanced focus on social accountability across the “virtual” accountability supra-organisation has not been transformed into reality, and the NGDO-funder accountability relationship within the supra-organisation remains centred on control and justification. A lack of resources, organisational commitment, guidance, and expertise from the governmental funder has contributed to an attitude of scepticism among many NGDOs towards both the partnership rhetoric and the accompanying adoption of the central tenets of social accountability, particularly downward accountability to beneficiaries. Research limitations/implications - The research is based on a detailed analysis in a specific context which may limit its wider applicability. Nevertheless, it adds insights to the developing academic literature on NGO accountability, with particular reference to their broader social accountabilities. Practical implications - Although highly context-specific, the findings of the study will be useful to researchers and policy makers interested in understanding how NGDO-funder accountability relationships can move towards mutual accountability and genuine partnerships focused on promoting social accountability. Originality/value - Very few in-depth academic examinations of the evolving nature of NGDO-funder accountability relationships in specific NGO contexts have emerged in the accountability literature. Many of the insights in this paper are derived from individuals inside organisations in the NGDO sector who are regularly addressing issues of accountability, both social and otherwise. This provides in-depth, highly-informed insider perspectives on the evolving nature of these relationships, especially in the context of attempts to promote more partnership-based approaches to the delivery of development aid.

On James Bond and the importance of NGO accountability

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to set out key issues in the academic study of non-governmental organisation (NGO) accountability, and to introduce papers appearing in this special issue on NGO accountability. Design/methodology/approach – This is a discussion paper exploring key issues theoretically. Findings – The paper finds that there are many aspects of NGO accountability which should be explored in greater depth in future studies. Several other issues have been examined in the papers in this special issue of Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal. Research limitations/implications – There is a possibility that the issues explored in this paper, and the other papers in this special issue, will lead to a considerable growth in academic studies in this area. Practical implications – The paper is a contribution to the growing debate on NGO accountability. Originality/value – The paper sets an agenda for research into NGO accountability.

Enhancing the role of accountability in promoting the rights of beneficiaries of development NGOs

Abstract This paper identifies and assesses the extent to which downward accountability mechanisms in nongovernmental development organisations (NGDOs) have had the potential in practice to contribute to the effectiveness of rights‐based approaches to development. The paper draws on evidence gathered from a detailed documentary analysis and a series of in‐depth interviews undertaken with senior individuals working in the Irish NGDO sector. The analysis indicates variations in practice with regard to the substantive implementation of key downward accountability mechanisms. The accountability‐in‐practice revealed suggests that challenges to substantive implementation have arisen due to: insufficient Irish NGDO attention to oversight of downward accountability within locally based partner NGDOs; a reluctance and/or inability to transfer influence to locally based partner NGDOs by allowing them some influence on Irish NGDO governance and strategy; the perceived control of locally based partner NGDOs by local elites who may be distant from, and unrepresentative of, local communities; and a perception that locally based partner NGDOs may not require downward accountability. Drawing on these findings, the paper makes some suggestions aimed at helping to transform the rhetorical NGDO commitment to downward accountability into real practices that can contribute substantively to the realisation of the key elements of the rights‐based approach to development.

NGO accountability and sustainability issues in the changing global environment

Abstract This article, based on a plenary lecture given at the First International Conference on Sustainable Management of Public and Not for Profit Organizations held at the University of Bologna, Forli Campus, Italy in July 2009, provides an overview of issues in non-governmental organization (NGO) accountability that are of particular relevance in the current changing global context – in particular, a context combining economic slowdown and global warming.

A critique of the descriptive power of the private interest model of professional accounting ethics: An examination over time in the Irish context

The primary aim of this study is to examine the descriptive power of the private interest model of professional accounting ethics developed by Parker in 1994. This examination is undertaken over an extended time period in the Irish context. It develops prior research which concluded that the operation of the professional ethics machinery of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (CAI) facilitated private interest motives on the part of the ICAI. The paper draws on evidence regarding three critical events occurring outside the disciplinary process of the ICAI but impacting directly on its operation as well as on perceptions from within the process. The discourse surrounding the disciplinary process from 1994 to 2001 is examined using media coverage and ICAI pronouncements. This is augmented with in‐depth interviews held with members of the ICAI disciplinary committees. The analysis provides evidence of pockets of support for the descriptive power of Parker’s model but also illustrates how the rigid and static nature of the separate roles depicted within the model can often fail to capture the complexity of the various changes occurring over the period examined. The study presents evidence which challenges the proposed interrelationships between the various private interest roles depicted in the model and makes some suggestions for the modification of the model, particularly the interrelationships depicted therein.

The co-construction of NGO accountability: Aligning imposed and felt accountability in NGO-funder accountability relationships

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to deepen and advance the understanding of the construction of accountability within the relationship between government funders and development non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Design/methodology/approach - – The paper presents a case study examining the process through which an influential Dutch development NGO, Oxfam Novib, constructed its own accountability while simultaneously seeking to influence shifts in government funder accountability requirements. It enrols a combination of comprehensive archival data on the Dutch government’s financing scheme for NGOs from 1965 to 2012 and in-depth interviews with Oxfam Novib managers and Dutch government officials. The co-evolution in accountability within Oxfam Novib and the government funding scheme is conceptualised using the notions of imposed, felt and adaptive accountability Findings - – The case unveils the dynamics through which accountability within a major government funding scheme for NGOs was co-constructed by Oxfam Novib and the Dutch government’s development aid department. In particular, it reveals how this process was influenced by an internal evolution in Oxfam Novib’s organisational approach to accountability and an institutional context characterised by consensus-based economic and social policy making. The case also unveils the process through which Oxfam Novib’s influence declined as more demanding, narrowly focused government accountability requirements emerged in a setting that was increasingly critical of NGOs. Originality/value - – The paper presents a rare example of a context where development NGOs have proactively sought and secured influence over the accountability demands of a key donor. It is unique in combining consideration of the internal evolution of accountability within an individual NGO (conceptualised as an evolution from felt to adaptive accountability) with a progression in the form of accountability required by governmental funders. The paper unveils the conditions under which NGO-preferred conceptions of accountability may gain (and lose) influence among key funders.

Annexing New Audit Spaces: Challenges and Adaptations

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to examine attempts at jurisdictional expansion in the audit field. Specifically, the authors critically analyse the professional implications of “new audit spaces”, that is, novel auditing and assurance services that have emerged at intersections between audit and other fields such as the environment, the public sector, sport and education. The purpose is two-fold. First, to better understand the dynamics of new audit spaces, and second, to highlight the major challenges and adaptations prompted by these dynamics. Design/methodology/approach - – Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory of practice, the authors highlight and problematise four issues central to the construction of new audit spaces: independence; reporting; professional accreditation; and the nature of the audit role. Findings - – The audit profession has experienced mixed success in seeking to annex new audit spaces; in some instances, practices initially located at the margins of auditing have moved towards its centre, while elsewhere projects have been abandoned, colonised by others or remain in flux. In these ventures, the accounting profession is brought into competition with other bodies of expertise and modes of practice. In new audit spaces, core elements of auditing, as conventionally conceived, are transmogrified as they travel. Originality/value - – This analysis calls into question some of the “sacred cows” of auditing and challenges the transferability of the capitals and habitus of the accounting profession in other domains. Future research avenues are suggested.

The influence of the “organisation” on the logics of action-pervading disciplinary decision making: The case of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI)

Purpose – This paper aims to advance understanding of the disciplinary decision-making process underpinning the professional ethics machinery employed by professional accounting organisations, using elements of francophone organisational analysis to examine the influence of the key formal organisational components established by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) to administer its disciplinary decision-making process up to December 1999. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses evidence gathered from a series of in-depth interviews with members of the ICAI disciplinary and investigation committees. Findings – Illuminates the internal tensions and conflicts permeating the disciplinary decision-making process of the ICAI and the influence key organisational components have on resolving these conflicts through their encouragement of decision making driven by a preferred reasoning or logic of action. Research limitations/implications – The evidence presented questions the public interest proclamations of the ICAI with respect to its disciplinary procedures pre-December 1999. It further exposes the tensions between profession protection and society protection motives in the disciplinary decision making of accounting bodies. Originality/value – This paper represents a first attempt at getting inside the disciplinary decision-making process of a professional accounting body to examine the process using the voices of process participants.