Quality of accounting and auditing in the public sector

Kvaliteten på regnskaps- og revisjonstjenester i offentlig sektor (QAAPS) må styrkes for å fortsette kampen mot korrupsjon og forbedre transparens, demokratisk styring, offentlig ansvarlighet, økonomisk bærekraft og motstandsdyktighet mot fremtidige sjokk og menneskeskapte katastrofer og kriser. Hovedmålet med prosjektet var å styrke kapasiteten til MACE forskningsgruppe ved Nord University Business School (NUBS) til å utvikle og utføre vitenskapelige prosjekter av høy kvalitet som bidrar til positiv utvikling innen QAAPS feltet. For å gjøre dette, har prosjektet støttet seg på et bredt spekter av nettverks- og samarbeidsaktiviteter, inkludert, men ikke begrenset til: 1) bilateral utveksling av forskningspersonell mellom NUBS og hjemmeinstitusjoner for internasjonalt anerkjente forskere, 2) organisering av spesifikke QAAPS seminarer og workshops, 3) deltakelse på internasjonale konferanser. For å forbedre doktorgradsutdanningen innen feltet QAAPS, samt å gjøre kompetansen til MACE forskningsgruppe innen institusjonsteori tilgjengelig nasjonalt og internasjonalt for unge forskere, har prosjektet bidratt til årlig gjennomføring av et felles PhD-kurs om nye retninger innen institusjonsteori, med rundt 50 PhD-studenter som deltakere. MACE-medlemmer var også aktive på PhD-kollokvium innen det internasjonale vitenskapelige nettverket som omhandler Comparative International Government Accounting Research (CIGAR). Disse aktivitetene har styrket kapasiteten til å utvikle og utføre vitenskapelige prosjekter av høy kvalitet i samarbeid med medlemmer av internasjonale forskningsnettverk. Dette bevises av publiserte artikler og spesialutgaver i tidsskrifter, nye prosjekter utviklet, samt nye institusjonelle avtaler signert. Dermed har QAAPS-prosjektet også forbedret MACEs synlighet blant det internasjonalt anerkjente vitenskapelige samfunnet.

By bringing international researchers together in workshops and seminars, the QAAPS project has contributed to initiating several new research and societal development projects at Nord University Business School. This was complemented by arranging international research stays that improved the research capacities of MACE researchers, enabling them to engage in high-quality research projects. These projects aim to improve our understanding of how new global realities faced by public sector institutions are addressed by changing accounting and auditing practices. Thematically, these projects address the future of new public financial management development, accounting for governing resilient public sector institutions in times of crises and external shocks, as well as accounting for making the invisible more visible, with examples of investment in culture and sustainability. By annually running a PhD course titled “Contemporary Streams of Institutional Theory in Management and Accounting”, the MACE research group and its international academic partners have contributed to improving the knowledge, skills, and general competences of around 50 international PhD students, about 50% of whom are working with QAAPS topics. Several institutional agreements were developed with European universities within the framework of the Erasmus+ mobility and capacity development programs. The QAAPS project increased the presence of MACE researchers at international conferences and seminars, thereby improving its academic networking. Nord University Business School and the MACE research group have gained improved international visibility via posts on social media (especially LinkedIn) during and after workshops and colloquiums organized in Bodø. Overall, by improving the capacity of the present and future research generations to conduct high-quality scientific research on accounting and auditing in the public sector, the QAAPS project will have an overall impact on a better functioning public/hybrid sector of the economy, contributing to meeting UN SDG #16, #17, and #10.

The quality of accounting and auditing services in the public sector (QAAPS) should be strengthened in order to continue to fight corruption and improve transparency, democratic governance, public accountability, financial sustainability and resilience to future shocks and crises. The main objective of the project is to strengthen the capacity of the MACE research group to develop and execute high quality scientific projects that contribute to positive development in the field of QAAPS. In order to do so, the project activates the whole range of networking and collaborative activities, including but not limited to 1) bilateral exchange of research personnel between HHN and home institutions of internationally recognized scholars, 2) organization of specific QAAPS seminars and workshops, 3) participation at the international conferences with paper/project presentations. To improve doctoral education in the field of QAAPS as well as to make the competence of the MACE research group in the field of institutional theory accessible nationally and internationally to young scholars, the project will organize and annually run a joint PhD course on new streams of institutional theory as well as a PhD colloquium within the international scholarly network dealing with Comparative International Government Accounting Research (CIGAR). Those activities will together strengthen the capacity to develop and execute high quality scientific projects in collaboration with members of international research networks and in this sense, to improve MACE visibility among the internationally recognized scholarly community.