Title of PhD thesis:
Digital Transformation and the Audit Profession: tensions in the public sector
Title of trial lecture:
What are the similarities and differences in the digitalization of auditing in the public sector vs. the private sector?
Trial lecture: 10.00
Public defence: 12.00
Assessment committee:
Professor Christoph Pelger, University of Passau, Tyskland
Professor Adriana Tiron Tudor, Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Professor Kari Nyland, NTNU/Professor II, Nord University Business School (coordinator)
Supervisors:
Main supervisor: Professor Giuseppe Grossi, Nord University Business School
Co-supervisor: Professor Lukas Goretzki, Stockholm School of Economics
The trial lecture and defense are open to all interested attendees. The dissertation is available upon request by contacting Grete Knudsen, email: grete.i.knudsen@nord.no, Tel. +47 75 51 76 77.
Key Insights from the dissertation:
The use of digital technologies and digitalization challenges traditional, institutionalized methods of delivering professional services and necessitates a reassessment of established professional structures. In light of this ongoing development, public sector auditors face the challenge of balancing the preservation of traditional values and professional identity with the adoption of digital innovations and the creation of public value. This creates tensions and increases the complexity of working with digital transformation. At the same time, there is still a lack of comprehensive insight into the processes, implications, and challenges associated with digital transformation. To fill this knowledge gap, this doctoral dissertation addresses the following research question: How does the auditing profession in the public sector navigate the complex process of digital transformation?
Concepts from institutional theory—such as institutional change, logic, complexity, and identity—form the foundation for understanding the phenomena being studied, namely the public sector auditing profession and digital transformation. Furthermore, institutional theory is integrated with the theoretical concept of public value to explain the distinct characteristics of the public sector, as well as with the concept of affordances to analyze the interplay between social and technological aspects of digital transformation.
The dissertation offers several contributions. First, it expands the understanding of digital transformation and the auditing profession in the public sector. It explores the new digital logic and the resulting institutional complexity, shedding light on the tensions that arise in the encounter with other established institutional logics within the field of public sector auditing. Furthermore, it shows how these tensions give rise to different perceptions and activate auditors’ agency, offering valuable insights into the challenges and strategies involved in navigating digital transformation.
