The aim of this research was to develop a competency model for auditors by identifying those characteristics and behaviours that predict success as an auditor. The Work Profiling System (WPS), the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT) and the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) were the tools and techniques used to achieve this aim. This research was conducted in two groups: trainee accountants (year 1- 3) and chartered accountants (year 4-5+). The results of the research, which was conducted within one of the Big 5 auditing firms, indicated that the competencies required of a trainee accountant are largely consistent with those of registered chartered accountants, working in the same environment. The most noticeable difference was the change in focus from cognitive or technical skills during the earty years to a focus on managerial competencies in later years. The competencies identified in this research compare well with reported models in literature. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.A. (Industrial Psychology)

On the 1st of November 2010 more than 70% of small companies on the stock market, in Sweden, have chosen to abolish the audit system; however despite this elimination some companies advocated the importance of using the audit system. The aim of the paper is to highlight and explain the underlying reasons to that the owners of small limited company chooses to retain the audit. A qualitative method was adopted which uses semi-structured interviews, a total of 13 interviews were conducted, two of them were face to face and eleven were phone interviews. The empirical results showed that there are a number of reasons behind the small companies choice of audit, serving its own cause, seriousness of the audit system, information asymmetry, the Swedish Tax Agency, the credibility of the various stakeholders, the need of advice, lack of time, lack of knowledge in economics, educational level concerning finance and sales, to name a few.

The occurence of procurement fraud requires from the management of the enterprise, the risk manager of the enterprise as well as the internal auditor to effectively address procurement fraud risks within the enterprise risk management concept. The purpose of the study is to set a procurement fraud risk management process in place which will serve as a comprehensive framework for the enterprise risk manager as well as the internal auditor to limit the enterprise's exposure to procurement fraud risks as far as possible. The study firstly focus on the analysis of the steps within the procurement process which is the starting point for the identification of the fraud risks. Secondly the enterprise risk management model is applied in the format of a procurement risk matrix within the procurement function. The study is an indication that procurement fraud cannot be completely prevented but that the appearance thereof can be limited by means of the extensive procurement fraud risk management model. Recommendations for future studies include the application of the enterprise risk management model in other functional areas within the enterprise. / Die voorkoms van aankoopbedrog vereis van die onderneming se bestuur, ondernemingsrisikobestuurder en interne ouditeur om aankoopbedrogrisiko's effektief binne die konteks van die ondernemingsrisikobestuurskonsep aan te spreek. Die doel van die studie is om `n aankoopbedrogrisikobestuursproses daar te stel wat as `n omvattende raamwerk vir die ondernemingsrisikobestuurder en interne ouditeur kan dien om die onderneming se blootstelling aan aankoopbedrogrisiko's so ver as moontlik te beperk. Die studie fokus eerstens op die ontleding van die stappe in die aankoopproses wat as vertrekpunt vir die identifisering van bedrogrisiko's dien. Tweedens word die ondernemingsrisikobestuursmodel in die vorm van `n aankoopbedrogrisikomatriks in die aankoopfunksie toegepas. Die studie dui daarop dat alhoewel aankoopbedrog nie volkome verhoed kan word nie, die voorkoms daarvan wel beperk kan word deur die toepassing van `n omvattende aankoopbedrogrisikobestuursmodel. Aanbevelings vir verdere studies sluit die toepassing van die ondernemingsrisikobestuursmodel op ander funksionele terreine van die onderneming in. / Auditing / M. Com. (Auditing)

The increasing dependence upon Information Systems (IS) in the last few decades by businesses has resulted in many concerns regarding auditing. Traditional IS auditing has changed from auditing "around the computer" to a hands-on approach (auditing through and with the computer). Technology is changing rapidly and so is the profession of IS auditing. As IS auditing is dependent on Infonnation Technology (IT), it is essential that an IS auditor possesses IT and auditing knowledge to bridge the gap between the IT and auditing professions. The aim of the study is to: 1) define the roles and responsibilities expected from IS auditors, based on the different types of audit assignments and the steps involved in perfonning an IS audit assignment; 2) describe the basic IT and audit knowledge required from IS auditors based on the roles and responsibilities identified; 3) describe the soft skills required from IS auditors to successfully perfonn an IS audit assignment; 4) define the main types of IS audit tools and techniques used most often to assist IS auditors in executing IS audit roles and responsibilities; and 5) establish an IS auditor's profile based on the 4 characteristics defined above / Computing / M.Sc.

Information security in the form of IT governance is part of corporate governance. Corporate governance requires that structures and processes are in place with appropriate checks and balances to enable directors to discharge their responsibilities. Accordingly, information security must be treated in the same way as all the other components of corporate governance. This includes making information security a core part of executive and board responsibilities. Critically, corporate governance requires proper checks and balances to be established in an organisation; consequently, these must be in place for all information security implementations. In order to achieve this, it is important to have the involvement of three key role players, namely information security professionals, ICT security auditors and regulatory officials (from now on these will be referred to collectively as the ‘role players’). These three role players must ensure that any information security controls implemented are properly checked and evaluated against the organisation’s strategic objectives and regulatory requirements. While maintaining their individual independence, the three role players must work together to achieve their individual goals with a view to, as a collective, contributing positively to the overall information security of an organisation. Working together requires that each role player must clearly understand its individual role, as well the role of the other players at different points in an information security programme. In a nutshell, the role players must be aligned such that their involvement will deliver maximum value to the organisation. This alignment must be based on a common framework which is understood and accepted by all three role players. This study proposes a South African Information Security Alignment (SAISA) framework to ensure the alignment of the role players in the implementation and evaluation of information security controls. The structure of the SAISA framework is based on that of the COBIT 4.1 (Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology). Hence, the SAISA framework comprises four domains, namely, Plan and Organise Information Security (PO-IS), Acquire and Implement Information Security (AI-IS), Deliver and Support Information Security (DS-IS) and Monitor and Evaluate Information Security (ME-IS). The SAISA framework brings together the three role players with a view to assisting them to understand their respective roles, as well as those of the other role players, as they implement and evaluate information security controls. The framework is intended to improve cooperation among the role players by ensuring that they view each other as partners in this process. Through the life cycle structure it adopts, the SAISA framework provides an effective and efficient tool for rolling out an information security programme in an organisation / Computer Science / M. Sc. (Computer Science)

本論文共一冊，分五章。 第一章：乃就研究動機與目的、研究架構與範圍、研究問題與假設，及研究限制予以 扼要說明。 第二章：係有關文獻之探討。首先就工作士氣之重要性、定義、測量、理論基礎及影 響工作士氣因素等予以闡述，其次工作環境知覺之定義、測量及其與工作士氣之關係 加以介紹，俾作為事後本研究結果分析說明之理論依據。 第三章：釗敘述本論文之研究方法，包括研究對象，施測及資料收集程序、測量工具 及分析方法等。 第四章：為結果與討論，乃將實際調查所得資料，依據前述方法予以分析，列示結果 ，並討論之。 第五章：為結論與建議，乃簡略彙述本研究之重要發現，並根據研究結果提出一些建 議，俾作為我國會計師事務所重視員工工作環境知覺，以提高員工工作士氣之參考。

由於會計師事務所的查帳工作，有極明顯的淡、旺季之分，因此乃對查帳人員形成本 極大的工作壓力，本文即在於探討事務所工作壓力的來源，及員工對於工作壓力的因 應行為。全文一冊，共分五章，二十節，五萬餘言，茲將各章內容扼要說明如下： 第一章緒論，就研究動機及目的、研究限制、研究假設，加以說明。 第二章文獻探討，旨在闡述理論基礎及前人研究結果。 第三章研究方法，說明研究對象、測量工具及統計方法。 第四章結果與討論，就各種統計分析結果加以解釋。 第五章結論與建議。

本論文共一冊，約五萬字，分為五章十五節。 第一章緒論： 一、研究動機：重要性之準則建立，忽視了會計師之重要性決策負有風險，欲對會計 師之風險態度，規模大小及職位高低，對判斷決策之影響做一研究。 二、研究目的：研究個人間、事務所間之重要性鄰斷的一致性，且對風險態度加以衡 量及分析事務所間之一致性，驗證Deangelo之理論，以經濟觀點檢查審計判斷行為。 三、研究方法：以問卷為測試工具，以會計師務所之審計人員為對象。 四、研究限制：效用理論下最大化效用值之假設。問題限於假設性的有價證券，或有 事項。 五、定義名詞：風險追求者，風險中立者，風險迴避者，重要性。效用為個人偏好程 度之衡量。 六、假設：規模大小、職位高低，風險態度均會影響重要性及揭露判斷之行為。 第二章理論與假設： 一、理論：分為重要性之實證研究。專業性之判斷及規模大小，職位高低和風險態度 對重要性判斷方面之研究。 二、假設：同前一章第六節。 第三章研究方法： 一、受試者，將事務所分為大、中、小三層，將事務所之會計人員分為高、低兩層， 大事務抽出六家，按職位兩層各抽出六人，其化中、小事務所抽出十二家，各層次職 位均抽出十二人，總共之受試者有六十人。 二、風險態度之衡量：以效用理論之觀點來衡量，設計競局方式來衡量風險態度。 第四章研究結果： 分析重要程度與揭露間之相關，分析規模、職位、風險態度二項自變數是否顯著，分 析淨利百分比，絕對金額顯著否。 第五章結論與建議： 訂定審計政策準則、訓練人員、執行同業覆核。

Revisionskvalitet är ett återkommande ämne i såväl forskning som i media. Forskare belyser olika faktorer som påverkar revisionskvalitet och den här studien fokuserar på resurser. Majoriteten av tidigare forskning om revisionskvalitet har Big 4 byråer som utgångspunkt. För att skapa bättre förståelse för hela revisionsprofessionen studeras därför en mindre byrå i den här studien. Syftet är att utforska resurser för revisorer på icke Big 4 byråer, utifrån ett revisionskvalitetsperspektiv. Studien har både deduktiva och induktiva inslag där det deduktiva inslaget utgörs av en teoretisk referensram som ligger till grund för studien. Det induktiva inslaget har gjort det möjligt att studera resurser dels utifrån tillgången till, men även bristen på och användningen av resurser i icke Big 4 byråer. Det har även gjort det möjligt att lägga till ett ytterligare perspektiv då empirin påvisade faktorer som inte identifierats innan datainsamlingen påbörjades. Studiens empiri består till stor del av primärdata från deltagande observationer, men även från semistrukturerade intervjuer. Resultatet visar att revisorerna på Revisionsbyrå A har tillgång till, och använder, samtliga resurser som tidigare forskning visat påverka revisionskvalitet positivt. Resultatet visar även tre nyfunna resurser som tillhör det nyfunna kapitalet materiellt kapital, och även de resurserna har en positiv påverkan på revisionskvalitet. Slutsatsen är att revisorerna på Revisionsbyrå A, utifrån dess tillgång till resurser, kan leverera hög revisionskvalitet. Studiens resultat är baserat på empiri från en mindre byrå och det teoretiska bidraget kompletterar tidigare forskning om revisionskvalitet i Big 4 och icke Big 4 byråer. Resultatet av studien är även ett bidrag till revision och revisionskvalitet praktiskt och empiriskt. / Audit quality is a reoccurring field in both research and media. Researchers highlight different factors that affect audit quality and this study focuses on resources. The majority of previous research of audit quality have Big 4 firms as their starting-point. In order to gain a better understanding of the entire audit profession, a smaller firm is the focus of this study. The purpose is to explore resources for auditors in non-Big 4 firms, from an audit quality perspective. The study has both deductive and inductive characteristics; the deductive characteristics are visible through a theoretical framework that functions as a foundation for the study. The inductive characteristics have made it possible to research the resources through both the access to, yet also the lack of, as well as the use of resources in non-Big 4 firms. It has, moreover, made it possible to add another perspective since the empirical data showed factors that had not been identified before the data collection was initiated. The empirical data of this study consists to a large extent of primary data from observations, but also of data from semi-structured interviews. The results show that auditors at Audit Firm A have access to, and use, all the resources that previous research had shown to affect audit quality in a positive way. Moreover, the results show two new resources that belongs to the newly found capital called material capital, and these resources does also have a positive effect on audit quality. The conclusions drawn are that auditors at Audit Firm A can, with respect to their access to resources, deliver high quality audit. The results of the study is based on empirical data from a smaller firm and the theoretical contribution complements previous research of audit quality in Big 4 and non-Big 4 firms. Moreover, the results is also a contribution to audit and audit quality both practical and empirical.

The goal of the submitted thesis "Audit of the annual report (comparison of the selected companies)" is to introduce the process of the audit of the annual report. I have compared the annual reports of selected companies because of the considerable differences between the annual reports prepared by the individual companies. At first I have analysed the each annual report of selected company in terms content and presentation and in the final part I have assessed gained knowledge.