Propuesta primera

As aforementioned, this was primarily a historical study examining how VFM audit knowledge and practice have been transformed in an Auditor-General’s Office. As such, the researcher conducted interviews with one of the former Victorian Auditors-General and five Audit Managers who participated in this transformation process of the VFM audit practice, in order to understand the various inside actors and other institutional forces that participated in this transformation process (Miller et al. 1991). The researcher followed the interview methodology adopted by critical and interpretive studies on the development of accounting and auditing methodologies. Specifically, the studies done by Dent (1991, p.711), Gendron et al., (2001, 2007) and O’Dwyer et al.(2011) were closely followed as these studies allowed the interview participants to openly discuss the development of new accounting and audit methodologies and practices. The researcher used semi-structured interview method as highlighted by Scapens (2004, p. 267) in order to allow the ‘flexibility to explore the issues in depth’. The researcher adopted the following two procedures when conducting interviews to validate the data given in the historical documents maintained at the VAGO.

1. The researcher allowed the interview participants to express their comments freely in order that the data and information to emerge on the enactment of auditability from the interviews (Dent, 1991, p.711).

2. Interview participants were contacted prior to the interviews through emails and they were provided with a list of broad open ended questions/themes for discussion to explain their experience and knowledge in relation to the development of VFM audit methodologies and the creation of audit environment receptive to those VFM audit methodologies (O’Dwyer et al., 2011, p.39).

The researcher conducted 6 semi-structured interviews from 2008 to 2011 that lasted between one and a half to two hours. The researcher used his previous audit experience to design the interview questions/themes and uncover other information relevant to this study during the interviews. The interview schedule focused on the key information on this case study site and proceeded until no new information was being produced. The researcher requested interviews from all current audit managers in the Performance Audit (VFM audit) Division and the Audit Methodology Division and all 5 Auditors-General worked from 1982 to 2007, who would agree to be interviewed. Only 5 Audit Managers in the Performance Audit (VFM audit) Division and one of the Victorian Auditors-General, had agreed and participated in the interviews conducted by the researcher.

The researcher interviewed five Audit Managers who worked in the VFM (Performance Audit) and Audit Methodology Divisions of the VAGO. The researcher interviewed the Audit Managers and senior officers of the VAGO who worked during this research period before 2007. Those individuals had accumulated audit experience in AmP and other previous VFM audit methodology manuals adopted by the VAGO. The interview details are presented in Table 4.3.

Table 4.3: Dates of Interviews and Participants

Interview date Designation

1. 14 July 2008 Senior Director, Performance Audit Division 2. 17 November

2008

Audit Manager, Performance Audit Division 3. 18 November

2008

Audit Manager, Performance Audit Division 4. 22 February 2009 Former Victorian Auditor-General

5. 05 July 2011 Sector Manager and Audit Manager in the Performance Audit Division— two managers

6. 06 July 2011 Director—Audit Methodology

The interviews were organised through the research contact official designated by the VAGO. The researcher submitted all research publications based on this research project to the VAGO for approval and consent before they were presented at conferences. These interviews were conducted between 2008 and 2011 at the VAGO. The research period was limited to 1982 to 2007. An interview guide was prepared on pre-planned research themes

in order to cover the research problem. These research themes included the relationship between NPM and the VFM audit, the development of the VFM audit mandate, the VAGO’s auditor independence, the VFM auditors’ decision-making processes while they were in the field, and the development and usage of VFM audit methodologies. The list of research themes is presented in the Table 4.4. Specific technical questions were asked about the selection of the VFM audit cases, selection of VFM auditors to complete the fieldwork, selection of outside consultants, planning aspects of the VFM audit, actual conduct phase of the VFM audit and reporting stages of the VFM audit.

The interviews were commenced with a courteous and general discussion about the participants’ professional background, education and years of VFM audit experience with the VAGO. The participants were informed about the nature and broad purpose of the research project. They were also informed about their rights to decline participation in the interview and to decline permission to publish the interview details after the interview, as per ethical protocol guidelines. Before each interview commenced, the researcher obtained permission to record it. The interviews were recorded without the name of the participants (except the former Victorian Auditor-General) and were subsequently transcribed. Instead, the participant’s official designation was recorded on the interview, identified as Audit Manager 1, Audit Manager 2 and so forth. In addition to recording the interviews, the researcher noted any important points that arose during the interviews. These handwritten reports were word-processed and documented as a summary report along with the transcriptions of interviews.