Mark E. Haskins

Inherent risk assessment and audit firm technology: A contrast in world theories

Abstract Breaking from traditional thought, it has been increasingly argued that the observers of organizational action and the organizations that they observed are inextricably linked rather than independent of one another. Following this position, the world theories adopted and related root metaphors employed by these observers serve as an image of the structural relations that underlie human activities and are thus a mediating factor between the observer and the observed. It is positioned that world theories are not only reflective of reality, but also constitutive of it. This article considers the role of the mechanistics and organic world theories, along with their corresponding root metaphors and language, in shaping the independent audit with reference to a five-phase field study of how auditors assess inherent risk. Implications for research are considered.

The Association Between Client Factors and Audit Fees: a Comparison by Country and by Firm

Abstract This study investigates whether the factors identified by prior research as being associated with intra-country Big Eight audit fees are consistent (i) among countries (across the Big Eight) and (ii) among Big Eight auditing firms (across countries). Fees from 410 audits in five countries were analysed. Results indicate a similarity in the influence of client size and complexity variables among four of the five country audit-fee models and among seven of the Big Eight audit-fee models.

Control and inherent risk assessments in client engagements: An examination of their interdependencies

Abstract Professional pronouncements which have advanced and defined the concepts of control risk and inherent risk have tended to treat them as independent for modeling purposes, and recommended that inherent risk be set at the maximum because of an inability to quantify it. Relevant accounting literature, meanwhile, has reasoned that these two risks are interdependent and that failure to recognize them as such may lead to an underestimation of overall audit risk. The purpose of this research note is to posit that the Auditing Standards Boards control environment construct in fact, may contribute to the interdependence of the control risk and inherent risk constructs in practice. To this end, this paper describes an empirical study of an extensive array of client control environment attributes and their perceived relevance to both the control risk and inherent risk assessments. Implications for research, policy, and practice are explored.

Perspectives on Accounting Systems and Human Behaviour

The extant literature with regard to the impact of accounting systems on human behaviour is described. How accounting systems, the components of such systems and the information produced by such systems induce both intended and unintended behavioural outcomes is focused on.

Executive education programs go back to school

Executive education (EE) programs are an important part of many business schools’ mission. For many such providers, the 1990s was a robust time of growth and increased reliance on the fruits of those programs. In less time than takes to build a new EE facility, the EE environment changed. What factors influence the desirability of an EE program experience for the executives who attend them? Do executives want more EE opportunities or less? Are online program offerings an attractive alternative to traditional classroom venues? These and other related questions were answered, via a survey, by over 80 executives who frequently attend EE programs. Among other findings, the results indicate a desire for: more EE program experiences; the criticality of a host institutions and instructors reputation in attracting executives; and a willingness to tradeoff some learning potential for convenience with online alternatives.

A talent development framework: tackling the puzzle

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a concise, robust talent development framework for summarizing and guiding the organizational activities pertaining to having the right people, at the right time, getting the right type of talent development experiences.Design/methodology/approach – This paper is the result of over 40 combined years of advising and working with executive education corporate clients on the assessment of talent development needs and plans.Findings – Four challenges underpin any approach taken to develop an organizations talent. Talent building endeavors should be business driven, future focused, integrated, and deliver measurable results. In response to these challenges, and based on our work with a number of corporate clients, we have created the talent development framework (TDF). It provides a lens through which to view, organize, and monitor talent development activities.Practical implications – The experience‐based framework presented here is immediately useful to thos...

Partnering with your leadership development provider: 12 best practices

Purpose – This paper presents a dozen ways for HR leaders to partner with their executive education leadership development providers in order to promote the tailored design, and most impactful delivery, of a custom leadership development program.Design/methodology/approach – This paper is the culmination of numerous years of working with corporations in the design and delivery of executive education leadership development programs. More precisely, it is based on several recent leadership development client engagements where a number of these best practices have been embraced by the client with positive outcomes.Findings – The 12 best practices outlined in the paper.Practical implications – The contemporary, field‐inspired actions presented here are immediately and broadly applicable to those HR managers engaged in partnering with providers of custom leadership development programs aimed at enhancing organizational talent, expanding leadership skills and/or developing a cadre of high‐potential managers.Ori...

Learning collaborations’ with your executive education provider for mutual benefit

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a number of ways organizations can collaborate with their primary, university-based executive education provider (EEP) in order to co-create learning and enhance a companys strategy-development and strategy-execution capability. Design/methodology/approach – This paper synthesizes the multi-varied ways in which one leading, globally oriented business school has collaborated with a Fortune 200 company over the past eight years, involving over 1,200 of the companys managers. Findings – In total, 14 fruitful ways to leverage an existing corporate/EEP relationship in order to foster a companys strategy-development and strategy-execution capabilities at the business unit level are presented. Practical implications – The field-inspired ideas presented here are immediately, broadly, and beneficially applicable across the corporate landscape. Originality/value – Readers are provided with a number of specific, actionable ways to tap into the often-underutilized ...

Seeing the Unseen: Initiating an MBA Program Committee Change Process.

Purpose – This article describes one way for committee chairs, program administrators, and/or task force leaders to effectively galvanize an educational program change process. In particular, it introduces and describes the successful use of an assumptions audit (AA) to expose, challenge, reinforce, and/or discard a variety of educational program design and delivery assumptions under‐girding one top‐ranked, MBA programs required first year.Design/methodology/approach – From a case study perspective, this paper chronicles the actual process pursued by a faculty committee chair, to successfully and effectively initiate an educational program review and change process. The paper also roots the AA in the literature on creativity, teams, educational administration, and organizational development.Findings – As a result of the insights provided by the AA, a successful educational change process was launched with high collegiality amongst the change team and with high clarity regarding avenues of change to pursu...

A planning framework for crafting the required-curriculum phase of an MBA program

This article introduces a planning framework for designing that part of an MBA program during which students take the bulk, if not all, of their required courses. The framework highlights three student venues that can be jointly leveraged for enhanced student learning. Those venues are the required curriculum, students’ affinity groups, and the career-related searches that they pursue. For each venue, the framework links three program design foci. These design foci are balance and pace, for sustaining student interest and effort; integration, for leveraging expanded and reinforced learning opportunities; and standards, for the quality design and delivery of the program components. Numerous specific practices used to plan and deliver the required-curriculum phase of the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School MBA program are also presented.