Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

PhD in Accountancy

Department

Department of Accountancy

First Advisor

Jay C. Thibodeau

Second Advisor

Hailan Flora Zhou

Third Advisor

Marcus M. Stewart

Abstract

Professional identity is formed by understanding the set of traits and behaviors that help define the social expectations of individuals within a profession. Acquiring these traits and acting in accordance with professional norms allows an individual to feel connected to their profession and other individuals within their field. In public accounting, professional identity is formed through the socialization process. This process teaches new hires the necessary technical knowledge to complete job tasks and behaviors that denote overall professionalism such as proper work attire or polite interactions with clients. The COVID-19 Pandemic radically changed social norms in the accounting profession by necessitating remote work and by increasing focus on equitable treatment of employees. These shifts have the potential to change the traditional definition of professionalism with accounting. This dissertation seeks to understand how these changes to the work environment in the wake of COVID-19 are impacting the formation of professional identity for employees within public accounting.

This three-paper dissertation contributes to the literature by leveraging three unique data sets to explore the changing work environment within public accounting firms. First, I use data collected during the height of the Pandemic to examine the experience of new auditors in the remote environment and how this environment impacted their learning and development. I then use interviews with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and heterosexual professionals to examine how the formation of professional identity can vary for different groups of individuals within public accounting. Finally, I collect data from multiple levels of auditing professionals to understand their perceptions of remote work as firms return to the office post COVID-19. By gathering data at various points during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic, this dissertation can highlight not only the immediate but also potential longterm impacts of COVID-19 on the profession.

The first paper (sole-authored) is a qualitative study that utilizes grounded theory methodology to examine junior auditors’ experience during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Through analyzing 25 semi-structured interviews, I find that the audit room is a key factor in the development of technical knowledge and professional identity for junior auditors. The audit room is defined as any shared space in which an audit team can physically be together and collaborate on their auditing tasks. For junior auditors, the audit room functions as a classroom, social hub, and physical barrier between personal and professional life. By fulfilling these roles, the audit room provides junior auditors with a space to develop the necessary technical and social skills to flourish within the profession. During the COVID-19 Pandemic the inability to access the audit room challenged junior auditors to learn, properly socialize within the firm, and separate work from professional life. Without the audit room, junior auditors were unable to follow the normal developmental path within the profession and thus faced increased difficulties in developing their professional identity.

The second paper (co-authored) examines the formation of professional identity across lesbian, gay, bisexual (LGB), and heterosexual staff accountants. We collect qualitative data through 35 semi-structured interviews with staff accountants to examine how they form their professional identity across various periods within their careers. We find that professional identity formation begins during the recruitment process and continues during full-time employment. During these times staff accountants forge relationships with other professionals that help establish connections to the profession and their firm. For LGB staff, building relationships with their coworkers is more challenging due to their sexual orientation. Our data reveals that LGB staff perceive public accounting as a heteronormative environment, especially within leadership. Our interviewees believed that disclosing their sexual orientation could negatively impact their career opportunities within the accounting profession. These perceptions created challenges for LGB staff to bring their authentic selves to work creating additional barriers to the formation of a professional identity.

The third paper (co-authored) investigates how the COVID-19 Pandemic has impacted the perceptions of remote work within the auditing profession. Traditionally, remote work was a form of alternative work arrangement that was perceived to have negative impacts on one’s career within the auditing profession. However, remote work became necessary for all auditing professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic and firms are still in the process of their return to the office. Through 26 semi-structured interviews, we examine the perceptions of the current hybrid work environment. We find that three pillars of trust influence our participants’ perceptions and behaviors as it pertains to remote work. We find that auditors’ trust in the firm (firm level trust), in their coworkers (interpersonal trust), and themselves (intrapersonal trust) all impact how they view remote work within the profession. As trust diminishes within each of these pillars, auditors are more likely to be driven back to the office. Our findings expand the literature on remote work and professional development within the auditing profession.

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