Southern Cross University

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Theses

2011

The relevant information technology knowledge

and skills for accounting graduates in New Zealand
Thomas Chan-Wai Tam
Southern Cross University

Publication details
Tam, T 2011, 'The relevant information technology knowledge and skills for accounting graduates in New Zealand', DBA thesis,
Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW.
Copyright T Tam 2011

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 The relevant information technology
knowledge and skills
for accounting graduates in New Zealand

Subject discipline: Accounting education

Thomas Chan-Wai Tam

A thesis submitted to the Graduate College of Management,

Southern Cross University,
in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of
Doctor of Business Administration

May 2011
Declaration of originality

I certify that the substance of this thesis has not been previously submitted for any degree
and is not currently being submitted for any other degree or degrees. I certify that to the
best of my knowledge any help received in preparing this work, and all sources used, have
been acknowledged in this thesis.

____________________
Thomas Chan-Wai Tam
Table of contents
Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. vi 
Abstract................................................................................................................................ vii 
Prior publications and conference presentations .................................................................. ix 
List of abbreviations .............................................................................................................. x 
List of tables ........................................................................................................................ xii 
List of figures ...................................................................................................................... xv 

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 1 

1.1  Background and motivation .................................................................................. 1 
1.2  The research problem and research objectives ...................................................... 1 
1.3  Justification of research ......................................................................................... 2 
1.4  Structure of the thesis ............................................................................................ 4 
1.4.1  Chapter 2 – Literature review........................................................................... 4 
1.4.2  Chapter 3 – Methodology ................................................................................. 4 
1.4.3  Chapter 4 – Data analysis and findings ............................................................ 5 
1.4.4  Chapter 5 – Discussions and conclusion .......................................................... 6 

CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................. 8 

2.0  Introduction ........................................................................................................... 8 
2.1  Theoretical framework of research ...................................................................... 10 
2.1.1  Human capital theory and education .............................................................. 10 
2.1.2  Stakeholder theory and higher education ....................................................... 12 
2.1.3  Parent and immediate disciplines ................................................................... 13 
2.1.4  Graduate employability .................................................................................. 14 
2.1.5  Generic skills for graduates ............................................................................ 16 
2.2  The impact of information technology on business ............................................ 18 
2.3  The role of the accountant in business................................................................. 19 
2.4  The impact of information technology on the role of the accountant ................. 20 
2.5  Issues in accounting education regarding IT skills.............................................. 22 
2.6  Knowledge and skills for accountants ................................................................. 23 
2.6.1  Generic skills and attributes for accountants.................................................. 23 
2.6.2  IT knowledge and skills for accountants ........................................................ 25 
2.7  Accounting education in NZ ............................................................................... 30 
2.8  The Accounting Information Systems course ..................................................... 33 
2.8.1  Prior studies on AIS syllabi ............................................................................ 33 

i
 2.8.2  AIS textbook topic coverage .......................................................................... 41 
2.8.3  Analysis of the AIS course ............................................................................. 43 
2.9  Guidelines for IT in accounting curriculum ........................................................ 44 
2.9.1  The New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants ................................... 44 
2.9.2  The International Federation of Accountants ................................................. 47 
2.10  Gaps in the literature............................................................................................ 50 
2.11  Conceptual framework of this research ............................................................... 52 
2.12  The research questions ........................................................................................ 55 
2.13  Chapter summary................................................................................................. 56 

CHAPTER 3 – METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................... 57 

3.0  Introduction ......................................................................................................... 57 
3.1  Types of research ................................................................................................. 58 
3.2  Research design ................................................................................................... 59 
3.3  Questionnaire design ........................................................................................... 62 
3.4  Phase I – Pilot Study............................................................................................ 63 
3.4.1  Questionnaire design for Phase I .................................................................... 64 
3.4.2  Selection of Delphi panellists ......................................................................... 68 
3.4.3  Results from Phase I ....................................................................................... 69 
3.5  Phase II – Main Study ......................................................................................... 76 
3.5.1  Sampling......................................................................................................... 77 
3.5.2  Interview question design............................................................................... 78 
3.5.3  Data collection................................................................................................ 81 
3.5.4  Data analysis method for questionnaire ......................................................... 81 
3.5.5  Data analysis method for interviews .............................................................. 82 
3.6  Research ethics .................................................................................................... 86 
3.7  Chapter summary................................................................................................. 87 

CHAPTER 4 – DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS ....................................................... 88 

4.0  Introduction ......................................................................................................... 88 
4.1  Demographics of sample ..................................................................................... 90 
4.2  Analysis of questionnaire results ......................................................................... 93 
4.2.1  Introduction .................................................................................................... 93 
4.2.2  RQ1 – Ranking of IT knowledge and skills ................................................... 94 

ii
 4.2.3  Comparison of mean scores between participant groups ............................... 97 
4.3  Analysis of interview data ................................................................................. 101 
4.3.1  Introduction .................................................................................................. 101 
4.3.2  RQ2 – Use and application of IT knowledge and skills ............................... 101 
4.3.2.1  Spreadsheet ........................................................................................... 102 
4.3.2.2  Accounting systems .............................................................................. 105 
4.3.2.3  Accounting software ............................................................................. 107 
4.3.2.4  Word processor ..................................................................................... 109 
4.3.2.5  Values .................................................................................................... 110 
4.3.2.6  Internet tools.......................................................................................... 110 
4.3.2.7  IT controls ............................................................................................. 111 
4.3.2.8  General systems knowledge .................................................................. 112 
4.3.2.9  Presentation software ............................................................................ 112 
4.3.2.10  Database concepts/Database software................................................... 113 
4.3.2.11  Research tools ....................................................................................... 114 
4.3.2.12  E-commerce .......................................................................................... 114 
4.3.2.13  Documentation tools ............................................................................. 115 
4.3.2.14  Internet knowledge ................................................................................ 116 
4.3.2.15  IT audit software ................................................................................... 117 
4.3.2.16  Data security.......................................................................................... 118 
4.3.2.17  Operating systems ................................................................................. 119 
4.3.2.18  Summary for RQ2 ................................................................................. 119 
4.3.3  RQ3 – Accountants’ involvement in IT ....................................................... 122 
4.3.3.1  Discussions on IT matters with accounting departments ...................... 123 
4.3.3.2  Discussions on IT matters with IT service providers ............................ 124 
4.3.3.3  Communication problems with IT ........................................................ 126 
4.3.3.4  Keeping up-to-date on IT ...................................................................... 128 
4.3.3.5  Summary for RQ3 ................................................................................. 130 
4.3.4  RQ4 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge and skills ....................... 131 
4.3.4.1  Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge and skills ............................ 132 
4.3.4.2  Perceptions of adequacy of Juniors’ IT knowledge and skills .............. 134 
4.3.4.3  IT knowledge and skills to perform better ............................................ 135 
4.3.4.4  IT knowledge and skills for Juniors to perform better .......................... 136 

iii
 4.3.4.5  IT topics to study if going back to study ............................................... 138 
4.3.4.6  Summary for RQ4 ................................................................................. 140 
4.3.5  RQ5 – IT knowledge and skills required in the future ................................. 141 
4.3.5.1  IT knowledge and skills if promoted .................................................... 142 
4.3.5.2  IT knowledge and skills if Juniors are promoted .................................. 143 
4.3.5.3  IT knowledge and skills in five years’ time .......................................... 144 
4.3.5.4  IT knowledge and skills for Juniors in five years’ time ........................ 144 
4.3.5.5  Summary for RQ5 ................................................................................. 145 
4.3.6  Other findings from interviews .................................................................... 146 
4.3.6.1  Timing of IT courses ............................................................................. 146 
4.3.6.2  Topics not included in the questionnaire .............................................. 147 
4.4  Summary of findings ......................................................................................... 148 
4.5  Chapter summary............................................................................................... 150 

CHAPTER 5 – DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION .................................................... 152 

5.0  Introduction ....................................................................................................... 152 
5.1  The research problem re-stated.......................................................................... 154 
5.2  Discussions and implications ............................................................................ 155 
5.2.1  Finding 1 – Importance of spreadsheets ....................................................... 155 
5.2.2  Finding 2 – Accounting systems and accounting software .......................... 155 
5.2.3  Finding 3 – Database knowledge ................................................................. 157 
5.2.4  Finding 4 – Data analysis skills.................................................................... 157 
5.2.5  Finding 5 – Office software / documentation tools ...................................... 157 
5.2.6  Finding 6 – IT control knowledge / IT audit software ................................. 158 
5.2.7  Finding 7 – Research tools ........................................................................... 159 
5.2.8  Finding 8 – General IT knowledge and skills .............................................. 160 
5.2.9  Finding 9 – Values ....................................................................................... 161 
5.2.10  Finding 10 – Involvement in IT / Keeping up-to-date in IT ........................ 161 
5.2.11  Finding 11 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge .............................. 162 
5.2.12  Finding 12 – Project work for IT ................................................................. 162 
5.2.13  Finding 13 – IT knowledge required in the future ....................................... 163 
5.2.14  Finding 14 –Timing of IT courses................................................................ 164 
5.2.15  Finding 15 – Topics not included in the questionnaire ................................ 164 
5.2.16  Finding 16 – IFAC IEPS 2 ........................................................................... 165 

iv
 5.2.17  Finding 17 – NZICA SLO-5 ........................................................................ 166 
5.2.18  Summary ...................................................................................................... 166 
5.3  An integrated model for delivery of IT content ................................................. 168 
5.4  Contributions ..................................................................................................... 172 
5.4.1  Contribution to accounting education literature and curriculum design ...... 173 
5.4.2  Informing professional accounting bodies on IT guidelines ........................ 173 
5.4.3  Contribution to theoretical framework ......................................................... 174 
5.4.4  Contribution to research methodology ......................................................... 174 
5.4.5  First study of its kind in NZ ......................................................................... 175 
5.5  Limitations ......................................................................................................... 175 
5.6  Further research ................................................................................................. 176 
5.6.1  Replicating the study in other countries ....................................................... 176 
5.6.2  Modifying the study to collect data from academics ................................... 176 
5.6.3  Encouraging accounting students to develop a life-long interest in IT ........ 176 
5.6.4  Research on the relevant accounting knowledge required by IT graduates . 176 
5.7  Chapter summary............................................................................................... 177 
5.8  Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 177 

References ......................................................................................................................... 180 

Appendices ........................................................................................................................ 190 

Appendix 1 Questionnaire for Phase I of the research ................................................ 191 
Appendix 2 Mean scores from the first and second round of Phase I ......................... 232 
Appendix 3 Questionnaire for Phase II ....................................................................... 241 
Appendix 4 Interview main points .............................................................................. 245 
Appendix 5 Summary of interview responses ............................................................. 249 
Appendix 6 Codes for interview data analysis ............................................................ 262 
Appendix 7 Descriptors for interview data analysis.................................................... 264 
Appendix 8 Descriptive statistics ................................................................................ 265 
Appendix 9 Test of variance........................................................................................ 283 

v
Acknowledgements
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step (Lao Tzu). I would like to thank Dr
Wayne Dreyer for encouraging me to take the first step of this journey. I would also like to
thank Dr William Maguire who supervised me in the early stages of my studies. Dr
Maguire relocated to Australia in 2008. It was unfortunate that after his departure, the
tyranny of distance worked against us and Dr Maguire graciously agreed that I should look
for a local supervisor.

I was fortunate to have Dr Andy Godfrey who agreed to take up the tricky task of
supervising a doctoral student who was part way in his studies. His guidance at times when
I felt lost and his challenges to my thinking were vital to the completion of the thesis. I
owe Dr Godfrey not just for his supervision of my DBA; he was also my supervisor for a
research project in my MBA, and a mentor who inducted me into my academic career.

There were many others who helped in my journey. Mr John Horsley and Ms Linda Turner
were the Head and the Dean respectively of the Business School where I worked. They
provided much needed support without which I could not have completed my DBA. My
colleagues Dr Satya Gonuguntla and Mr Frank Weterman helped review the questionnaire
for the pilot study of this research and provided valuable comments. My thanks also go to
Ms Heather Moodie, who helped proof-read the thesis; Ms Bronwyn Barton, Mr Bob
Gilmour, Mr Jon Moses, Ms Wendy Taylor and Mr Tim Walsh who provided assistance
for the recruitment of participants.

Last, but not least, I would like to thank my wife who has supported me in her own unique
ways through all these years.

vi
Abstract
Rapid advances in information technology (IT) have produced rapid changes to the ways in
which businesses are operated. Accountants are involved in wide-ranging roles in business
and it is important for them to possess IT knowledge and skills relevant to their roles to
provide competent and professional services. However, the field of IT is wide and not all
IT knowledge and skills are relevant to an accountant. This brings up the questions: What
kind of IT knowledge and skills do accountants need? What are the entry-level IT skills
and knowledge that accounting educators should provide?

A literature review has revealed that there are issues in accounting education. A number of
studies have concluded that accounting education does not provide graduates with the
relevant IT knowledge and skills for them to be productive in the real world. There are
ample studies on IT knowledge and skills requirements for accountants. However, some
focus on generic IT skills while others centre on IT knowledge in the accounting domain.
Guidelines on IT competencies for accountants have also been published by professional
accounting bodies, but these guidelines are found to be either too ambitious or lack
specificity and are not helpful for accounting educators.

The objective of the research is to produce a holistic set of IT knowledge and skills
relevant to New Zealand accounting graduates and to develop a model for the delivery of
IT content in an accounting curriculum. The theoretical framework of this research is based
on human capital theory and stakeholder theory. The research is composed of a pilot study
and a main study. The pilot study employed six experts in the accounting field using the
Delphi method to develop the questionnaire for the main study. The questionnaire was then
sent to 23 accounting practitioners prior to interviewing each participant individually.

The study identified 18 IT topics for accounting graduates categorised into varying degrees
of importance. Of these 18 topics, spreadsheet, accounting systems/software, Internet tools
and research ability stand out as the most important and most used IT tools for accounting
practitioners. The findings from this study also led to the development of a model for
delivery of IT content named by the researcher as the INDUCTION–DIFFUSION–
ASSIMILATION Model.

vii
Key words: Accounting curriculum;
Accounting education;
Graduate employability;
IT content delivery model;
IT knowledge and skills for accountants;
Stakeholders in higher education

viii
Prior publications and conference presentations

Parts of this thesis have been presented at various conferences at different stages of the
development of the paper.

July 2008
Paper presented at the Accounting Education Special Interest Group Symposium of the
Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand in Sydney:
Research proposal:
The relevant information technology core competencies
for accounting graduates in New Zealand

Nov 2009
Paper presented at the Auckland Region Accounting Conference in Auckland:
The relevant information technology knowledge and skills
for accounting graduates in New Zealand:
Results of the pilot study

Paper available at:

http://docs.business.auckland.ac.nz/Doc/The-relevant-information-technology-knowledge-
and-skills-for-accounting-graduates-in-New-Zealand.pdf

ix
List of abbreviations
AECC Accounting Education Change Commission
AICPA American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
AIS Accounting information systems
ASCPA Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants
ASP Application Service Provider
ATEI Approved tertiary education institution
B2B Business-to-Business
B2C Business-to-Consumer
CA Chartered Accountant
CAAT Computer assisted audit techniques
CIMA Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
CPA Certified Public Accountant
CRM Customer Relationship Management
DFD Data Flow Diagrams
ERP Enterprise Resource Planning Systems
GL General ledger
HR Human resources
IDA The INDUCTION–DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model
IEG-11 International Education Guideline No. 11, Information Technology and
the Accounting Curriculum
IEPS 2 International Education Practice Statement 2
IEPS 2.1 Exposure Draft: Proposed International Education Practice Statement 2.1
IFAC International Federation of Accountants
IIA Institute of Internal Auditors
IIANZ Institute of Internal Auditors NZ
IMA Institute of Management Accountants
IQ Interview question
IRD Inland Revenue Department
IT Information Technology
JIQ Interview questions for Juniors
MIS Management Information Systems
NZ New Zealand
NZICA New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants

x
REA Resource-Event-Agent
RQ Research question
SDLC Systems Development Life Cycle
SIQ Interview questions for Seniors
SLO Statement of learning outcome
SMS Short Message Service
SQL Structured Query Language
TEI Tertiary Education Institution
UK United Kingdom
USA United States of America
XBRL Extensible Business Reporting Language
XML Extensible Markup Language

xi
List of tables
Table 2.1 Services offered by the Big 4 international accounting firms ........................... 20 
Table 2.2 Listing of competency studies (Palmer, Ziegenfuss & Pinsker 2004) .............. 23 
Table 2.3 Critical IT skills (Wessels 2005) ....................................................................... 28 
Table 2.4 Importance of IT tools (Jackson & Cherrington 2002) ..................................... 29 
Table 2.5 Entry requirements for NZICA membership..................................................... 30 
Table 2.6 Accounting and business-related studies (NZICA) ........................................... 31 
Table 2.7 Statement of learning outcomes 2006 (NZICA) ............................................... 32 
Table 2.8 Statement of learning outcomes 2009 (NZICA) ............................................... 32 
Table 2.9 Summary of findings of Wu (1983) .................................................................. 34 
Table 2.10 Essential categories (Van Meer and Adams 1996).......................................... 35 
Table 2.11 Optional categories (Van Meer and Adams 1996) .......................................... 35 
Table 2.12 Accountants vs. educators – current (Davis & Leitch 1988)........................... 36 
Table 2.13 Educators vs. accountants – current (Davis & Leitch 1988) ........................... 37 
Table 2.14 Accountants vs. educators – future (Davis & Leitch 1988) ............................ 37 
Table 2.15 Educators vs. accountants – future (Davis & Leitch 1988) ............................. 38 
Table 2.16 Ranking of theoretical topics (Theuri & Gunn 1998) ..................................... 40 
Table 2.17 Ranking of applications (Theuri & Gunn 1998).............................................. 40 
Table 2.18 Topics for AIS (Smith and Bain 1993) ........................................................... 41 
Table 2.19 Top 10 AIS topics ranked by educators (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002) ....... 42 
Table 2.20 Top 10 AIS topics ranked by practitioners (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002) .. 42 
Table 2.21 SLO-5: Accounting Information Systems (NZICA 2006) .............................. 45 
Table 2.22 SLO-CA6: Accounting Information Systems (NZICA 2009)......................... 46 
Table 2.23 IT knowledge required by different roles (IEG-11) ........................................ 47 
Table 2.24 Number of main topic coverage of IEPS 2.1................................................... 48 
Table 2.25 Comments on IEPS 2.1 ................................................................................... 49 
Table 3.1 Approaches and features of the two main paradigms ........................................ 60 
Table 3.2 Number of questions in Delphi questionnaire ................................................... 66 
Table 3.3 Brief credentials of Delphi panellists ................................................................ 69 
Table 3.4 Summary of mean scores from first round of Phase I ....................................... 69 
Table 3.5 Summary of mean scores from second round of Phase I .................................. 70 
Table 3.6 Changes in number of topics from the first round ............................................. 70 

xii
Table 3.7 Changes made to first round score categories ................................................... 71 
Table 3.8 Mean scores by source....................................................................................... 72 
Table 3.9 Topics with mean score ≥ 5 ............................................................................... 72 
Table 3.10 Topics with mean scores between 4 and 4.9 ................................................... 73 
Table 3.11 Topics with mean score ≥ 4 ............................................................................. 75 
Table 3.12 Qualitative sampling methods ......................................................................... 77 
Table 3.13 Interview questions for Juniors ....................................................................... 79 
Table 3.14 Interview questions for Seniors ....................................................................... 80 
Table 3.15 Techniques used for analysing interview data................................................. 83 
Table 4.1 Participants by Seniority.................................................................................... 91 
Table 4.2 Participants by Industry ..................................................................................... 91 
Table 4.3 Participants by Experience ................................................................................ 91 
Table 4.4 Demographic details of participants .................................................................. 92 
Table 4.5 Participants by Seniority and Industry .............................................................. 93 
Table 4.6 Participants by Seniority and Experience .......................................................... 93 
Table 4.7 Overall mean scores of IT knowledge and skills (n=23)................................... 95 
Table 4.8 Topics with a score of 1..................................................................................... 96 
Table 4.9 Participants who gave a score of 1 .................................................................... 96 
Table 4.10 Mean scores by Seniority ................................................................................ 98 
Table 4.11 Mean scores by Industry.................................................................................. 99 
Table 4.12 Mean scores by Experience ........................................................................... 100 
Table 4.13 Interview questions for RQ2 ......................................................................... 101 
Table 4.14 Summary of findings for RQ2 ....................................................................... 120 
Table 4.15 Comparison of RQ2 with RQ1 ...................................................................... 121 
Table 4.16 Interview questions for RQ3 ......................................................................... 122 
Table 4.17 Interview questions for RQ4 ......................................................................... 131 
Table 4.18 IT knowledge and skills to perform better .................................................... 136 
Table 4.19 IT knowledge and skills for Juniors to perform better .................................. 137 
Table 4.20 IT knowledge and skills to learn if going back to study................................ 139 
Table 4.21 Comparison of responses to JIQ10, JIQ11 and SIQ09 .................................. 141 
Table 4.22 Interview questions for RQ5 ......................................................................... 142 
Table 5.1 Proposed IT topic coverage in an accounting programme .............................. 170 
Table A9.1 Test of normality of distribution of variables ............................................... 284 

xiii
Table A9.2 Mann-Whitney U test for ‘Seniority’ group ................................................. 285 
Table A9.3 Descriptive statistics for Accounting software ............................................. 285 
Table A9.4 Kruskal-Wallis test for ‘Industry’ group ...................................................... 286 
Table A9.5 Kruskal-Wallis test for ‘Experience’ group.................................................. 287 
Table A9.6 Summary of results of hypothesis tests ........................................................ 288 

xiv
List of figures
Figure 1.1 Overview of the structure of the thesis .............................................................. 7 
Figure 2.1 Overview of Chapter 2 ....................................................................................... 9 
Figure 2.2 Parent and immediate disciplines ..................................................................... 15 
Figure 2.3 The AIS course................................................................................................. 33 
Figure 2.4 Conceptual framework of this research............................................................ 53 
Figure 2.5 Focus of this research ....................................................................................... 54 
Figure 3.1 Overview of Chapter 3 ..................................................................................... 58 
Figure 3.2 Continuum of paradigms .................................................................................. 60 
Figure 3.3 Research design................................................................................................ 63 
Figure 3.4 Snapshot of questionnaire for Phase I .............................................................. 67 
Figure 3.5 Selection of topics for the main study .............................................................. 68 
Figure 3.6 Snapshot of transcript showing dialogue numbers .......................................... 85 
Figure 3.7 Snapshot of spreadsheet for capturing interview data...................................... 86 
Figure 4.1 Overview of Chapter 4 ..................................................................................... 89 
Figure 5.1 Overview of Chapter 5 ................................................................................... 153 
Figure 5.2 Analysis of IEPS 2 ......................................................................................... 166 
Figure 5.3 The INDUCTION–DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model ......................... 169 

xv
 CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION
1 INTRODUCTION

I think it’s wonderful that you take the interest to ask the industry what is required.
Because, I think in all my years, it’s the first time anybody has ever asked what
should we be doing for you (A participant in this research).

1.1 Background and motivation

The objective of this research is to identify the relevant information technology (IT)
knowledge and skills required by New Zealand (NZ) accounting graduates. The motivation
for this research originates from the researcher’s desire to seek guidance on the kind of IT
knowledge and skills that should be covered in an accounting major programme. The
guidelines from a number of professional accounting bodies on IT competencies for
accountants, however, are found to be either unspecific or too ambitious, making them
difficult to follow and implement. Further reviews in the literature on IT knowledge and
skills for accountants reveal that some studies focus on general IT knowledge and skills
while others focus on IT knowledge and skills in the accounting domain only. The
researcher’s desire to seek guidance from the literature on a set of relevant IT knowledge
and skills for accounting graduates in NZ appears unlikely to be satisfied. The researcher
also has doubts on some of the IT knowledge and skills listed in the guidelines and studies
as to their relevance to an accounting major graduate. These factors have motivated the
researcher to embark on this study to ask accounting practitioners in the industry for
answers.

1.2 The research problem and research objectives

Rapid advances in IT have produced major changes to the ways in which businesses
operate. Almost all businesses today use computers of some form in their day-to-day
operations. With the use of computers, business is conducted in a way quite different from
that in which it was conducted in the past. Transactions are no longer recorded using pen
and paper but are stored in electronic media. The updating of records and files is done
through computer programs. One of the responsibilities of an accountant is to prepare

1
financial statements for a business by summarising financial events (Jackling et al. 2004).
To do this, the accountant has to know how to use the computer system and, more
importantly, understand how these transactions are recorded and updated to be able to
ascertain the accuracy and reliability of the data. Accountants also take other roles, such as
those of auditors and management accountants, which require an understanding of how
their companies’ computer systems work (Romney & Steinbart 2009). It is therefore
important for accountants to possess IT knowledge and skills relevant to their roles to
provide competent and professional services. However, the field of IT is wide and not all
IT knowledge and skills relate to an accountant’s role. For example, accountants need not
know how to code computer programs – this is the job of a computer programmer.
Accountants also need not know the technical details of data communications as long as
they have a general understanding of how data are transmitted between two computers.
This raises the questions: What kind of IT knowledge and skills do accountants need?
What are the entry-level IT skills and knowledge that educators should provide? Educators
grapple with these issues constantly (Cytron & Tie 2001, p. 74).

Accounting graduates are one of the stakeholders of accounting education. This research
seeks to explore and identify the IT knowledge and skills needed by accounting graduates
to allow them to perform competently in an accounting capacity after graduation. It also
seeks to develop a conceptual model for the delivery of IT content in an accounting
curriculum with the aim of contributing to accounting education literature, to accounting
curriculum policy and to accounting programme design.

1.3 Justification of research

Numerous studies, reports, and guidelines from academics, accounting firms, and
professional accounting bodies have been conducted and published on this subject. There
are studies on the general IT knowledge and skills requirements for accounting
practitioners. There are also studies on the topics that should be covered in an accounting
information systems (AIS) course. The guidelines issued by the International Federation of
Accountants (IFAC) are extensive and contain some highly technical topics which may not
be relevant to accounting graduates. The guidelines from the New Zealand Institute of

2
Chartered Accountants (NZICA) contain considerably fewer topic areas compared to those
from IFAC, and are unspecific.

No study has been found that looks at the IT knowledge and skills requirements of a junior
entry-level accountant from a holistic and overarching perspective. Equally lacking is
research in this area for NZ. The only study on IT knowledge and skills for accountants in
NZ is the Van Meer and Adams (1996) study. However, it is more than 10 years old and
the findings are most probably no longer relevant for today’s IT environment. It is
important that IT content coverage in accounting major programmes cover only those IT
knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates so as not to take up time and
resources for irrelevant learning in an already crowded accounting curriculum.

Almost all research found from the literature is conducted using survey questionnaires to
produce a list of IT topics that are required by accountants. No study has been found that
uses other data collection methods to collect data to analyse why such IT topics are needed
and how they are applied and used by accountants. Studies comparing the views of junior
accountants and their managers or supervisors have not been found. Nor are there studies
that compare the requirements of IT knowledge and skills between different accounting
roles.

The objective of this research is to provide an in-depth analysis of the IT knowledge and
skills needed to be gained by NZ accounting graduates during their tertiary education for
them to perform competently when employed in an accounting role. It will address the
questions as to why a particular topic is required and how a particular topic is used and
applied in the workplace. This research will explore the relevant IT knowledge and skills
required by accounting graduates in NZ from an overarching perspective without limiting
the study itself to specific IT or AIS courses. The definition of ‘relevant’ IT knowledge and
skills for accounting graduates for the purpose of this study is:

All IT concepts, knowledge, skills, tools, use of standard office software and
specialised software applications to allow accounting graduates to perform
competently in their first five years of practice after graduating from an accounting
major degree programme.

3
The significance of this research was acknowledged by a participant in this study who is a
chief financial officer with over 20 years of experience. His quotation was shown at the
beginning of this chapter.

1.4 Structure of the thesis

This thesis comprises five chapters. The following sections give an overview of the
remaining chapters.

1.4.1 Chapter 2 – Literature review

Chapter 2 reviews the extant literature on the body of knowledge relating to the
background and the immediate issues of this research. It establishes the theoretical
framework for the research using two theories as the parent disciplines, human capital
theory and stakeholder theory; these are applied in the context of higher education. The
link between the two theories leads to the issue of graduate employability which in turn
leads to questions on the knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates for them
to be employable in the workplace.

A discussion on the impact of IT on the role of the accountant in business is first presented,
followed by a discussion on the issues in accounting education brought about by such
impact. An extensive review of studies relating to IT knowledge and skills for accounting
graduates and practitioners is made. The unique AIS course offered by most accounting
major programmes in a number of countries to impart IT knowledge to accounting major
students is reviewed and analysed. Guidelines from IFAC and NZICA on IT competencies
for accountants are also reviewed and discussed. The chapter has identified gaps in the
literature and has developed a conceptual framework and five research questions to guide
the research.

1.4.2 Chapter 3 – Methodology

Chapter 3 presents the methodology of this research. It discusses the types of research and
the factors that influence the choice of research design and methods in data collection. The

4
researcher believes that in-depth qualitative data provide better insights to the research
problem than quantitative scores given in questionnaires. The paradigm of this research
therefore leans towards interpretivism. Based on this choice of research paradigm,
sampling and data analysis methods are discussed in the chapter.

While it is the desire of the researcher to include all credible sources from the literature as
a guide to identify the relevant IT topics for accountants so that no topic is left unexplored,
in doing so, the number of topics to be explored becomes unwieldy. A pilot study is
therefore necessary to narrow the number down to a practical set of questions for data
collection in the main study. The Delphi method is used in the pilot study, employing six
experts in the accounting field to rate 266 IT topics using a 6-point Likert scale. The results
from the pilot study provide input to the design of the questionnaire for the main study.

The main data collection method for the main study is the use of semi-structured in-depth
interviews guided by the questionnaire developed from the pilot study. Interview questions
are also designed based on the five research questions developed in Chapter 2 to guide the
interviews.

1.4.3 Chapter 4 – Data analysis and findings

Data collected from the interviews and the leading questionnaire are analysed and
discussed in Chapter 4. Voice recordings from the interviews were transcribed into texts by
professional transcribers before the analysis took place. This chapter describes how the
transcripts are analysed. Instead of using qualitative analysis software available from the
market, a spreadsheet is designed to record the codes and the descriptors from the analysis
with corresponding dialogue numbers referring back to the transcripts. Descriptive
statistics are used to present the ratings given to the IT topics in the questionnaire. The
results from the leading questionnaire are compared to the findings from the interviews.
Important and relevant verbatim is displayed to provide evidence for the findings to each
of the research questions. IT topics are categorised into three classifications based on the
views given by participants in the interviews. They are: Category 1 – Essential / Used daily
/ Need advanced knowledge and skills, Category 2 – Important / Used occasionally / Need
basic knowledge and skills and Category 3 – Not involved / Too technical / Awareness

5
only. The chapter summarises the data analysed into 17 findings which are discussed in
Chapter 5.

1.4.4 Chapter 5 – Discussions and conclusion

The 17 findings from Chapter 4 and their implications to accounting curriculum are
discussed in Chapter 5. Based on these findings a model for the delivery of IT content in an
accounting curriculum is developed. The model is named by the researcher as the
INDUCTION-DIFFUSION-ASSIMILATION Model. Chapter 5 also discusses the
contributions this research makes to accounting education literature and accounting
curriculum policy, design and planning. Professional accounting bodies may find the
results of this research of interest to the formulation of IT competency guidelines. Other
contributions of the research are in the use of human capital theory and stakeholder theory
as the theoretical framework for research in graduate employability/knowledge/skills and
the use of the Delphi method as a pilot study. This research could also be the first of its
kind in NZ.

Further research opportunities include replicating this study in other countries; modifying
this study to seek the views from accounting educators; research on how to stimulate
accounting students to develop a life-long interest in IT; and research on the accounting
knowledge required by IT graduates.

Figure 1.1 shows an overview of the structure of this thesis.

6
Figure 1.1 Overview of the structure of the thesis

2.0   Introduction 
Chapter 2 
2.1   Theoretical framework 
Literature review 
2.2   The impact of IT on business 
2.3   The role of the accountant in business 
2.4   The impact of IT on the role of the 
accountant 
2.5   Issues in accounting education regarding IT 
skills 
2.6   Knowledge and skills for accountants 
2.7   Accounting education in NZ 
2.8   The accounting information systems course 
2.9   Guidelines for IT in accounting curriculum 
2.10 Gaps in the literature 
2.11 Conceptual framework of research 
2.12 The research questions 
2.13 Chapter summary 

3.0   Introduction 
Chapter 3 
3.1   Types of research 
Methodology 
3.2   Research design 
3.3   Questionnaire design 
3.4   Phase I – Pilot study 
3.5   Phase II – Main study 
3.6   Research ethics 
3.7   Chapter summary 

Chapter 4  4.0   Introduction 
Data analysis and findings  4.1   Demographics of sample 
4.2   Analysis of questionnaire results 
4.3   Analysis of interview data 
4.4   Summary of findings 
4.5   Chapter summary 

5.0   Introduction 
Chapter 5  5.1   The research problem re‐stated 
Discussions and conclusion  5.2   Discussions and implications 
5.3   An integrated model for delivery of IT 
content 
5.4   Contributions 
5.5   Limitations 
5.6   Further research 
5.7   Chapter summary 
5.8   Conclusion 

Source: Developed for this research

7
 CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW
2 LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction
This chapter reviews the extant literature with the aim of establishing a foundation from
which to address the research problem: ‘What are the relevant IT knowledge and skills
required by accounting graduates in NZ?’ The word ‘relevant’ is key to this thesis. It is
defined in a dictionary as “bearing on or having reference to the matter in hand” (Allen
1990, p. 1014). It provides the scope of the IT knowledge and skills this research sets out
to explore and is used to convey the following meanings:
 Up-to-date – that IT knowledge and skills to be explored must be up-to-date
according to the latest developments of IT in business
 Requisite – that they do not include all IT knowledge and skills available and that
they are the topics required by accounting graduates only
 Holistic – that they do include all IT knowledge and skills required by accounting
graduates

The motivation of this research emanates from the researcher’s quest to explore the IT
knowledge and skills that should be covered in an accounting major degree so that
accounting graduates in NZ can perform competently in their job. The identification of
these IT knowledge and skills can then be used as the basis for the development of IT
related curriculum in accounting major degrees and would contribute to the employability
of accounting graduates in the labour market. Two theories are used to support the
research: the human capital theory and the stakeholder theory. Human capital theory states
that education is one of the factors of economic growth and that individuals will pursue
further education with the aim of improving their well-being. Stakeholder theory posits
that an organisation is deemed to be successful if it can meet the needs of its stakeholders.
Graduates are one of the many stakeholders of a tertiary education institution. The link
between human capital theory and stakeholder theory brings the issue on graduate
employability into the discourse of this thesis. Graduate employability depends to a certain
extent on the knowledge and skills graduates possess at the time they join the workforce.
These issues will be discussed in detail in this chapter. Figure 2.1 shows an overview of
Chapter 2.

8
Figure 2.1 Overview of Chapter 2

2.1 Theoretical  2.1.1 Human capital theory and 
framework  education 
2.1.2 Stakeholder theory and higher 
education 
2.2 The impact of IT on  2.1.3 Parent and immediate disciplines 
business  2.1.4 Graduate employability 
2.1.5 Generic skills for graduates 

2.3 The role of the 
accountant in 
business 

2.4 The impact of IT on 
the role of the 
accountant 

2.5 Issues in accounting 
education 
regarding IT skills 

2.6 Knowledge and  2.6.1 Generic skills for accountants 
skills for  2.6.2 IT knowledge and skills for 
accountants  accountants 

2.7 Accounting 
education in NZ 

2.8 The Accounting  2.8.1 Prior studies on AIS syllabi 
Information  2.8.2 AIS textbook topic coverage 
Systems course  2.8.3 Analysis of the AIS course 

2.9 Guidelines for IT in  2.9.1 The New Zealand Institute of 
accounting  Chartered Accountants 
curriculum  2.9.2 The International Federation of 
Accountants 

2.10 Gaps in literature 

2.11 Conceptual 
framework 

2.12 The research 
questions 

2.13 Chapter summary 

Source: Developed for this research

9
2.1 Theoretical framework of research
A theoretical framework for research is a structure that presents a theory or theories that
explain(s) why the research problem exists (Khan n.d.). The framework serves as the basis
for conducting research, helps the researcher see clearly the variables of the study, and
provides a general framework for data analysis (Ibid.). The research problem of this study
is to identify the relevant IT knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates.
Theories from curriculum development are considered appropriate to guide this research.
Curriculum theory is concerned with making decisions about what is the most worthwhile
knowledge for students to learn, why they should learn it, and how they should learn it
(McGee 1997, p. 9). A curriculum theory attempts to address such questions as:

Why should we teach this rather than that? Who should have access to what
knowledge? What rules should govern the teaching of what has been selected?
How should the various parts of the curriculum be interrelated in order to create a
coherent whole? (Kliebard 1977, cited in Marsh & Stafford 1988, p. 22).

However, a great deal of curriculum theory that emerged was a result of studies in initial
education (Jarvis 2004) and they focus on the processes and procedures of curriculum
planning and evaluation (see for example Jarvis 2004; Marsh & Stafford 1988; McGee
1997). As such, curriculum theory fails to address the needs of graduates of tertiary
education to find employment on completion of their studies. Two other social theories
appear to better provide the conceptual underpinning for the research and they are human
capital theory and stakeholder theory. Since this research is in accounting education, these
two theories are applied in the context of education. Using the two theories, the importance
of graduate employability is explained, leading to the question of what knowledge and
skills are required for graduates to be employable. The following sections discuss the
theories as applied in this research and explain the development of the theoretical
framework for this study.

2.1.1 Human capital theory and education

Human capital theory was instrumental in explaining the rapid economic growth in some
countries after the World War II (Schultz 1961, cited in Gilead 2009). Early economists

10
suggested that it was necessary for a nation to have abundant natural resources for it to
develop its economy (Walters 2004). However, the rise of Japan to an economic power
despite its limited natural resources led economists to think beyond physical resources as
the drivers of economic growth (Schultz 1971, cited in Walters 2004). Education is
recognised as an investment in human capital and offers an explanation for economic
growth in some countries with limited physical resources. The economic effects of
education are important and have been relatively neglected at least until recently (Becker
1964, cited in Gilead 2009).

Human capital theory contends that earnings are determined by workers’ productivity
which is determined in turn by their education and experience (Van House 1986). It links
economic success to the education of the workforce (Knight & Yorke 2002), and also helps
explain the fact that unemployment is higher among unskilled than skilled workers (Becker
1964). Olaniyan and Okemakinde (2008) posit that formal education is highly instrumental
and necessary to improve the production capacity of a nation.

Another fundamental postulate of human capital theory is that increases in the supply of
education are responses to increased demand for skilled labour (Walters 2004). The theory
is therefore a variant of the economic theory of supply and demand. Human capital
represents the investment people make in themselves to enhance their economic
productivity (Olaniyan & Okemakinde 2008). Education institutions will attract individuals
to become students as long as they believe that the institutions can provide the knowledge
and skills to allow them to be employed in a job to which they aspire, and to earn a
comfortable income. Individuals would continue to pursue higher levels of education until
the marginal cost of acquiring more education is greater than the marginal benefits that it
provides (Walters 2004). Employability is therefore not only one of the considerations of
prospective students in further education but also an area many education institutions
embrace in formulating their curricula to satisfy demand. The link between the human
capital theory and employability will be further discussed in Section 2.1.4. We now turn
our attention to the identification of stakeholders of education institutions.

11
2.1.2 Stakeholder theory and higher education
Stakeholder theory suggests that the success of an organisation depends on its ability to
balance the conflicting needs of its various stakeholders (Dellaportas et al. 2005). One of
the indicators of success for an organisation would therefore be how well the needs of its
stakeholders are met. A stakeholder can be defined as any group or individual who can
affect or is affected by the achievements of the firm’s objectives (Freeman 1984). The
stakeholders of an organisation would include shareholders, employees, customers,
lenders, suppliers, local charities, various interest groups, government, and so on (Deegan
& Samkin 2009).

This research is about graduate knowledge and skills in higher education. “Higher
education” is “education at university etc., especially to degree level” (Allen 1990, p. 555).
Higher education institutions would therefore include universities, polytechnics, institutes
of technology, colleges, etc. that provide tertiary education. The stakeholders of higher
education institutions would include those potentially positioned to benefit from the
institutions’ social impacts (Freeman 1984). Benneworth and Jongbloed (2010) suggest
that the stakeholder groups of universities would include governing entities (state and
federal government, governing board, etc.), administration (vice-chancellor, senior
administrators, etc.), employees, clienteles (students, employers, etc.), suppliers,
competitors, donors, communities, government regulators, non-governmental regulators,
financial intermediaries and joint-venture partners. A study made by Chapleo and Simms
(2010) identified the various stakeholder groups of a university. The top 10 stakeholder
groups in order of the number of citations by the interviewees of the study were: students,
local employers/businesses, university staff, academic and research bodies, local
government, local community, local schools, governors, parents, and national
employers/businesses.

The aim of this research is to identify the IT knowledge and skills required by accounting
graduates. Stakeholder groups other than graduates identified in Benneworth and
Jongbloed (2010) and Chapleo and Simms (2010) include employers, university governing
/ administration bodies, academic staff, government regulators, etc. Among these various
stakeholder groups, students/graduates and employers are the stakeholder groups that are
closest to the workplace and are the groups that can best articulate on the IT knowledge

12
and skills required by accounting graduates and inform this research. Focus is therefore
given to these two stakeholder groups in the study because they are at the heart of the
objective of this research. Employers require from graduates of higher education
institutions to possess abilities and skills that coincide with those required by their
organisations (Nicolescu & Paun 2009). Students/graduates need to be satisfied with regard
to social life, intellectual curiosity and career opportunities (McClung & Werner 2008).
The common aim between these two stakeholder groups lies in the area of graduate
employability which was also identified in the discussion on human capital theory.
Graduate employability will be discussed further in Section 2.1.4. The following section
discusses the development of the parent and immediate disciplines and the theoretical
framework.

2.1.3 Parent and immediate disciplines

This research centres on the IT knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates and
the immediate discipline is therefore accounting education. Parent disciplines refer to the
supporting theories of the research and for this research they are the human capital theory
and the stakeholder theory. Human capital theory suggests that individuals would pursue
further education to improve their standard of living; a way to achieve this is to be
employable in positions that provide higher income (Walters 2004). Employability is
therefore important for an individual when considering whether or not to pursue further
education.

Stakeholder theory suggests that an organisation is successful if it can satisfy the demands
of its stakeholders (Dellaportas et al. 2005). Students/graduates are identified as one of the
stakeholders of higher education institutions. One of their concerns is career opportunity
(McClung & Werner 2008) and they would want to be employable once they finish their
education. Employers are the second stakeholder group that is identified as important to
this research. There is a general need among employers for graduates to possess and
demonstrate skills that are relevant to working in their organisations (Maxwell 2010). In
order to be successful, higher education institutions must have employability of their
graduates as one of their objectives.

13
The link between human capital theory and stakeholder theory results in the much
discussed topic of graduate employability leading to questions on the knowledge and skills
required by graduates to be employable. Figure 2.2 shows the parent and immediate
disciplines of this research. Accounting education is at the centre of this research and is the
immediate discipline. The parent disciplines are based on the supporting theories of this
research – human capital theory and stakeholder theory which lead to the issue of graduate
employability. Graduate employability is determined by the knowledge and skills they are
expected to possess and will be discussed in more detail in Section 2.1.4. Graduate
knowledge and skills can be separated into generic and specific, the generic being those
that are not related to any particular area of study, and the specific being those that are
related directly to the graduates’ academic discipline. Factors that influence the generic
and specific knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates include the role of the
accountant in business and the impact of the advances in IT on business. The above
mentioned topics will be discussed in the respective sections indicated in Figure 2.2.

2.1.4 Graduate employability

Human capital theory and stakeholder theory in the context of higher level education
suggest that the objective between higher education institutions and the education of
students is to produce graduates that are readily employable in the workforce. This topic
has attracted much attention and debate in recent times. Governments in some developed
countries are turning their attention to the employability of graduates from higher
education institutions of their own countries. Human capital theory is so powerful and
intuitive that a government would be seen to be negligent of national well-being if it does
not press higher education institutions to do their best to enhance graduate employability
(Knight 2001). There is increasing pressure on Australian universities to accept
responsibility for graduate employability, and systems such as graduate destination surveys
are in place to hold Australian universities accountable for graduate success in gaining
employment (Franz 2008, p. 165). The Japanese Ministry of Education collects
information on the employment status of higher education institutions on an annual basis
(Teichler 1999). Similar surveys are undertaken regularly in the United Kingdom (UK) and
a few other countries in Europe (Ibid.).

14
Figure 2.2 Parent and immediate disciplines

2.1.1 Human capital theory  2.1.2 Stakeholder theory 

Self improvement  Graduates/students 
2.1.4 Graduate 
through higher  and employers 
employability 
education  as stakeholders in 
higher education 

  2.1.5 Graduate generic 
2.2 Advances  skills
in IT 

2.6.1 Generic skills for  2.3 Role of 
accountants accountants in 
business

2.6.2
IT knowledge 
and skills for 
accountants 

Accounting education

Higher education

Note: Numbers before captions refer to the sections in which they are discussed.

Source: Developed for this research

The term ‘employability’ can be used to refer to a person’s ability to gain employment. It
is often associated with the skills that allow the employee as well as the employer to get
the most out of employment (Franz 2008). Employability skills as defined by the
Australian Department of Education are “the skills required not only to gain employment,
but also to progress within an enterprise so as to achieve one’s potential and contribute

15
successfully to enterprise strategic directions” (Ibid. p. 164-165). Little (2007) provides
another, yet similar, definition for employability skills:

... a set of achievements – skills, understandings and personal attributes – that make
graduates more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen
occupations, which benefits themselves, the workforce, the community and the
economy.

Adopting the above definitions of employability skills, the definition of graduate

employability for an accounting graduate in NZ is developed for this research:

Graduate employability of accounting graduates in NZ is determined by the

knowledge, skills, understandings and personal attributes that they posses to make
them likely to gain employment in an accounting capacity in NZ and to progress
and contribute to the organisation and the society.

2.1.5 Generic skills for graduates

Numerous terms have been used in the discussions on graduate employability skills. These
include ‘core skills’, ‘generic skills’, ‘personal skills’ and ‘personal competencies’ which
are used to describe skills not related to a particular field of study. There is also the notion
of ‘transferrable skills’ which are those outside a student’s academic field of study
(Nicolescu & Paun 2009); but these are broadly synonymous with each other (Holmes
2001). Most of the skills and attributes identified in recent studies on employability belong
to ‘soft skills’ which are generic in nature as opposed to ‘hard skills’ which are discipline-
specific skills. Franz (2008) observed that the notion of employability is moving away
from discipline-specific hard skills to generic soft skills.

According to Little (2007), the top 10 competencies required in the workplace by graduates
in their first five years after graduation are:

1. Using time efficiently

2. Performing well under pressure
3. Working productively with others
4. Coordinating activities
5. Mastering own field

16
 6. Rapidly acquiring new knowledge
7. Coming up with new ideas and solutions
8. Making meaning clear to others
9. Writing reports and documents
10. Using computers and the Internet

With the exception of the fifth item ‘Mastering own field’, all other competencies in the
above list are generic in nature. The last item in the above list – ‘Using computers and the
Internet’ is a generic IT skill and is related to the object of this research. Graduate
competencies identified in other studies include analytical skills, social skills, management
skills, communication skills, the ability to learn, presentation skills, professional expertise,
functional flexibility, innovation and knowledge management, mobilisation of human
resources, international orientation, flexible and adaptable, able and willing to take up
specific challenges not related to the field in which they have been trained (Nicolescu &
Paun 2009). However, some of the generic competencies or graduate employability skills
as identified and articulated from such studies suffer from one common problem – they are
too loose and non-specific. For example, the item ‘Use computers and the Internet’ does
not spell out exactly how computers and the Internet are to be used. Does it mean using
computers for browsing the Internet only? Or does it mean the use of computers in various
tasks such as producing reports, analysing data, and as a tool for research?

UK employers are at the forefront of hiring graduates from ‘any’ discipline as they place
more emphasis on generic skills instead of specific discipline knowledge and skills in the
recruitment process (Harvey 2000). Large accountancy firms in the UK look for graduates
from history, classics, social sciences or physics rather than accountancy. Software firms
seek IT-literate graduates who can communicate and work in teams instead of computing
graduates (Ibid.).

The opinion that generic skills should be given prevalence over specific technical skills is
not shared by everybody (Nicolescu & Paun 2009). Teichler (1999) observed that studies
of graduate employability skills tend to over-estimate the importance of generic and
personal skills and under-estimate the cognitive skills and knowledge for specific fields.
The researcher agrees with this observation and believes there is a place for discipline-

17
specific knowledge and skills in the employability skills agenda. In the accounting
discipline, generic skills alone are not enough to allow the graduate to start working
competently in an accounting capacity. The aim of this research is to explore the relevant
IT knowledge and skills, both generic and specific to the accounting discipline. The
following sections discuss the impact of the advances in IT on business and in turn on
accountants, followed by a review of the literature on IT knowledge and skills required by
accountants.

2.2 The impact of information technology on business

Elliott (1992) painted a picture of the changes that IT brought to businesses, the economy
and society. He adapted the wave theory of Alvin Toffler (Toffler 1981) and presented a
discussion on the impact of the three waves on business and accounting. The first wave
was regarded as the agricultural era where the driver of the economy was human labour
and the transmission of knowledge was in writing. This was followed by the second wave
brought by the Industrial Revolution where the driver of the economy was machinery and
the transmission of information and knowledge was with the use of printing presses. With
the rapid developments in IT starting from the 1950s came the third wave. The driver of
both the economy and the society is the silicon chip and the transmission of information
and knowledge now occurs at the speed of light using computers linked to one another.
Powerful and ubiquitous computers deployed in businesses condense time as repetitive
tasks and activities can be done at the speed of the silicon chip. The marriage of the
computer and data communications networks gave birth to the Internet and has caused
dramatic changes in how businesses are operated. The Internet condenses space by
bringing customers and suppliers in close contact with one another irrespective of where
they are physically located.

While IT solves problems for businesses, it has also created problems. The American
Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) published the top 10 technology issues
in 2001 (see Cytron & Tie 2001). Among the issues, some are opportunities, some are
threats and some are challenges. Some of the opportunities are the increasing use of web
technology to reduce costs; the use of Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) in
financial reporting to improve speed and reduce errors; and the use of application service

18
providers (ASP) to relieve the burden of internal IT staffing. Some of the threats are
information security and control, information privacy and disaster recovery. According to
the AICPA report, the challenges are attracting qualified staff, staff training, keeping IT
systems running and the implications of electronic audit trail. The following sections will
discuss the role of the accountant in business and how advances in IT impact the role of the
accountant.

2.3 The role of the accountant in business

Since Luca Pacioli invented double-entry bookkeeping in 1492 (Stevelinck 1994),
accountants, armed with this elegant bookkeeping system, have served businesses by
keeping transaction records which allow the reporting of business performance. Without
such information, companies are unable to evaluate their costs and profits, unable to gauge
their performance and thus unable to plan for success (Brecht & Martin 1996). The
expansion in the demand for accounting services in the mid-nineteenth century, attributable
to industrialisation and management information needs and the desire for economic
rewards and occupational ascendancy, prompted accountants to organise into associations
(West 1996, p. 85). The first professional accounting body was formed in Scotland in 1853
(Lee 1995) followed by the formation of local societies of accountants in England in the
1870s. The Institute of Accounts [sic] was formed in the United States in 1882 (Lee 1995),
and the Incorporated Institute of Accountants of New Zealand was registered in 1894
(Emery, Hooks & Stewart 2002; Graham 1960). Since accountancy was first
professionalised over 150 years ago, it has developed into a major professional body with
associations and institutions in almost every country.

Today, accountants take up specialised business positions such as management

accountants, financial controllers and auditors. They have become users of information and
participate in the decision-making process and management of businesses. Accountants
working in public accounting firms provide professional services to businesses. The web
sites of the Big 4 international accounting firms give an idea of the diversity of services
offered by the accounting profession today. The web site of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
advertises audit and enterprise risk services, consulting, financial advisory, tax and growth
enterprise services (Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu 2010). Ernst & Young offer advisory,

19
assurance, tax, transaction services, strategic growth and speciality services to its clients
(Ernst & Young 2010). KPMG (KPMG 2010) advertises audit, tax, advisory and special
interests services. The professional services available from PricewaterhouseCoopers
include audit and assurance, consulting, deals, human resources, legal and tax services
(PricewaterhouseCoopers 2010). Table 2.1 summarises the different services available
from the four accounting firms.

Table 2.1 Services offered by the Big 4 international accounting firms

Accounting firm / Web site address Services
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Audit & enterprise risk, consulting, financial
http://www.deloitte.com/view/en_US/us/Services/index.htm advisory, tax and growth enterprise services

Ernst & Young Advisory, assurance , tax, transactions,

http://www.ey.com/NZ/en/Services strategic growth and speciality services

KPMG Audit, tax, advisory and special interests

http://www.kpmg.com/Global/en/WhatWeDo/Pages/default. services
aspx

PricewaterhouseCoopers Audit and assurance, consulting, deals,

http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/global-business- human resources, legal and tax services
services/index.jhtml

Source: From web sites of the accounting firms

To be able to provide the diverse services demanded from businesses, accountants require
a much wider knowledge base and skill set than simple bookkeeping. In addition to
acquiring accounting skills and knowledge, “today’s professional accountant, … has to be
an entrepreneur, financial analyst, global competitor, market analyst, excellent salesperson,
good communicator, capable negotiator and public relations specialist, as well as a good
manager” (Simyar 1993, cited in Adler & Milne 1997, p. 109). They need to have excellent
analytical skills to be able to analyse and pinpoint the problem areas of a company. In
addition, accountants need to understand and use computerised information systems as
their use in businesses becomes the norm rather than the exception.

2.4 The impact of information technology on the role of the accountant

The impact of IT on business and on the role of the accountant is widely acknowledged
(Larres, Ballantine & Whittington 2003). Bookkeeping services which early accountants

20
provided to businesses declined in value as advances in IT development gathered pace. The
impact of IT on accounting is second only to Pacioli’s invention of double entry (Kulesza
& Siegel 1997). Accounting in the 1960s was a system for communicating the economic
events of an entity (Ijiri 1967) and was described by Joplin (1966, p. 44) as “the art of
recording, classifying, summarising, evaluating, and communicating financial data”.
Providing information depends on data collection. The use of computers in business allows
cheaper and more efficient methods of data collection and record keeping, meaning that
bookkeeping, essentially a data collection activity, and one which used to be a highly
valued skill of accountants, is no longer valued highly (Elliott 2000).

Accounting academics and practitioners have been voicing the concern of the impact of IT
on the accounting profession and have written abundantly on this topic. Trites (2004)
suggested that accountants have to shift from the ‘Pacioli paradigm’ to the ‘Google
paradigm’ in order to meet the challenges of the technology-driven accounting world.
Joplin (1966) proposed that in order to maintain a major role in business, accountants must
involve themselves in management information systems (MIS) and extend their skills and
techniques to embrace the new systems and technologies. Today, ready-made MIS systems
are available under the name of enterprise resource planning systems (ERP) and are being
adopted by an increasing number of companies. ERP systems integrate all aspects of a
business and are designed to allow data-entry at source by the users of various
departments. This results in the reduction of routine data-entry jobs for accountants and the
diffusion of accounting knowledge throughout the organisation (Caglio 2003; Scapens
2003; Seethamraju 2005). Accountants no longer have a monopoly on accounting
knowledge and are not the only ones performing traditional accounting activities such as
data collection and preparation of reports. As the use of computers increases in
organisations, the distinction between accounting and other information becomes blurred.
In order to retain their position as custodian of financial information, accountants need to
be knowledgeable about information systems and their future development (Williams, G.
et al. 1984).

Companies are increasingly looking for accountants who can use their expertise in more
important activities such as strategic planning, business management and design and
management of IT systems (Caglio 2003). A new breed of managers coined as the ‘hybrid’

21
finance/IT manager has emerged and is in great demand (Anonymous 1998). Practising
and new accountants will therefore need to acquire new skills and knowledge in order to
survive in the information age. To be able to do this, accountants have to understand and
stay current with the latest information technology. “If you don’t stay current with the
technology, your career is in jeopardy” (Anastas 1997, p. 51). Accountants will become
increasingly involved in information systems and this has implications for the tertiary
education of new accountants (Williams, G. et al. 1984). Professional accountants are now
required to possess the skills and knowledge to use various information technologies and
IT has become a core competency for accountants (Larres, Ballantine & Whittington
2003). Given the strong argument that accountants need to embrace IT, the manner in
which accountants are educated and trained naturally comes under scrutiny.

2.5 Issues in accounting education regarding IT skills

Accounting professional bodies and education committees have identified a number of
issues in accounting education (Accounting Education Change Commission 1990;
Albrecht & Sack 2000; American Accounting Association 1986). Albrecht and Sack’s
report warned that accounting education may be failing and that it does not meet the needs
of the future accounting professional. The report attributes one of the changes in the
accounting profession to technology, observing that accounting education is still focused
on the preparation of financial information rather than on its use. This kind of teaching is
based on the old accounting model which assumes that producing information from data is
expensive. With technology, preparation of financial information is much cheaper. It is at
the low end of the information value chain and is worth very little. The authors suggest that
accounting education should focus more on the use of financial information which is
higher up on the information value chain. Despite these suggestions, high emphasis is still
being placed on the low value activities, such as data entry, and low emphasis on the high
value activities, such as the interpretation and use of information to make decisions
(Herring III 2003; Tatikonda 2004).

The results of a study undertaken in the UK concluded that accounting education does not
equip the students with enough IT skills for their role after graduation in their employment
and that a gap exists between IT skills learned in tertiary education institutions (TEI) and

22
what accountants practise in the real world (Ahmed 2003). Another study in the United
States (USA) found that many students graduating from IT courses in accounting programs
are not given training in IT control knowledge which is important for specialised roles such
as auditors (O'Donnell & Moore 2005).

2.6 Knowledge and skills for accountants

2.6.1 Generic skills and attributes for accountants

A list of studies made by professional accounting bodies in the USA between 1989 and
2003 on accounting competencies was compiled by Palmer, Ziegenfuss and Pinsker
(2004). Nine studies were cited, including studies conducted by the then Big 8 accounting
firms, the Accounting Education Change Commission (AECC), the Institute of
Management Accountants (IMA), IFAC, the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) and
AICPA. Table 2.2 shows the chronological list of the nine studies.

Table 2.2 Listing of competency studies (Palmer, Ziegenfuss & Pinsker 2004)
Study title Organisation Year completed
Perspectives on education: capabilities for success in
Big 8 1989
the accounting profession
Objectives of education for accountings: accounting
education change commission position statement AECC 1990
number one
What corporate America wants in entry-level
IMA 1994
accountants
The 1996 practice analysis of management
IMA 1996
accounting
Competence-based approaches to the professional
IFAC 1998
preparation of accountants
The 1999 practice analysis of management
IMA 1999
accounting
Competency framework for internal auditing IIA 1999
The AICPA core competency framework for entry
AICPA 1999
into the accounting profession
Towards competent professional accountants IFAC 2003

Source: Palmer, Ziegenfuss and Pinsker (2004)

23
Nine competencies were identified across the nine studies, they are:
1. Communications skills
2. Interpersonal skills
3. General business knowledge
4. Accounting knowledge
5. Problem-solving skills
6. Information technology
7. Attitudes, capabilities, professionalism
8. Computer skills
9. Leadership

These competencies include not just generic skills and attributes for accountants but also
specific knowledge. The fourth item (accounting knowledge) is discipline specific. The
sixth and eighth items (information technology and computer skills) are related to the
object of this research.

Other studies on accounting graduate generic skills and attributes were made by academics
in Australia in more recent times. A study surveyed accounting degree graduates from two
Australian universities and found that 1) communication, 2) problem
solving/analysis/application/adaptability and 3) practical/time management/decision
making are the three most important generic skills for accounting graduates (De Lange,
Jackling & Gut 2006). The study also found that there were gaps between what was taught
and what was desired in a number of technical skills, one of which was computing skills.
More specifically, the study reported that despite the use of computer accounting packages
in accounting courses in Australian universities, graduates still perceived that they were
not well prepared for work in the profession of accounting (De Lange, Jackling & Gut
2006, p. 382).

Another Australian study (Kavanagh & Drennan 2008) examined the perceptions and
expectations of accounting skill sets from both students and employers. Students rated 1)
continuous learning, 2) decision making and 3) problem solving as the top three skills.
Employers rated 1) analytical skills/problem solving, 2) business awareness/real life
experience and 3) basic accounting skills as the top three skill sets for accounting
graduates. With the exception of basic accounting skills, the others are generic skills. The

24
salient point for this research from the study is the finding that a large gap existed between
students’ expectations and the extent developed in accounting software skills (Kavanagh &
Drennan 2008, p. 291). This finding supports the De Lange, Jackling and Gut (2006) study
which found that despite the use of computer software in accounting courses, students still
perceived they were not well prepared for the workplace. De Lange, Jackling and Gut
(2006, p. 382) called for further investigations in the types of computing skills valued in
the workplace.

2.6.2 IT knowledge and skills for accountants

IT skills are one of the subsets of the employability skills that are increasingly important in
the higher education agenda (Stoner 2009). Studies on IT knowledge and skills required by
accountants have been conducted by various academics. A survey of Australian
accountants found that 77% of accountants surveyed used spreadsheet, 58% used word
processing, 40% used graphics, 39% used electronic mail, 29% used database and 23%
used financial modelling software (Doolin et al. 1994).

Based on prior studies which suggested that there is a mismatch between accounting
curriculum and the practical IT competency requirements for accountants, Williams J. and
Leung (1995) compared the views of accounting educators and Chartered Accountants
(CA) on the importance of a list of IT knowledge and skills. These IT knowledge and skills
were classified as:

1. PC knowledge
a. Data communication software
b. Database management software
c. Desktop publishing software
d. Graphics software
e. PC-based accounting software package
f. Programming language
g. Spreadsheet
h. Word processing software
2. System specifications
a. Computer hardware

25
 b. Programming language selection
c. Software requirement specification
3. System design and development
a. Cost/benefit analysis
b. Designing data access/security controls
c. System design and development
4. Accounting packages
a. Designing the chart of accounts
b. Select, setup and operate accounting packages
5. EDP auditing and programming
a. Identify the audit trail in EDP environment
b. Use of general audit packages
c. Write computer programs for audit purposes

The study found that there was perfect agreement between accounting educators and CAs
on the importance of using spreadsheets. It also found that accounting educators expected a
higher level of IT knowledge and skills of graduates than CAs in the area of system design
and development and EDP auditing. CAs however, expected graduates to have more
knowledge in computer hardware than educators. CAs and educators agreed that
programming was not the responsibility of accountants and that less emphasis should be
given to word processing, database software and systems design and development. The
study concluded that accounting curriculum should be sensitive to the perceptions of CAs
and that it is of paramount importance that potential areas of mismatch between accounting
educators and CAs be identified.

A large scale study on the IT knowledge requirements of accounting and finance graduates
was conducted by Green and Buckby (1995). The study surveyed members of the
Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants (ASCPA) on the specific IT skills
required by accounting graduates. Out of the 83 topics surveyed, the only one that was
rated as important and at the same time required a high level of knowledge was
‘spreadsheet’ (Green & Buckby 1995). The topic ‘Structured Query Language’ (SQL) was
found to be not understood by most respondents. Due to the unusual rating scale used in
the study, the mean scores for the topics could not be computed and thus the study was not
able to rank the IT topics in order of importance.

26
A list of critical IT skills required by accountants was compiled by Wessels (2005) based
on a literature review of major publications and studies which included the Institute of
Chartered Accountants Australia, Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Institute of
Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants, South African Institute of Chartered Accountants, Chartered Institute of
Management Accountants, Institute of Management Accountants, International Federation
of Accountants, Theuri and Gunn (1998), Hostrom and Hunton (1998), Coenenberg, Haller
and Marten (1999), Boyse (2004) and Greenstein and McKee (2004). The study produced
a list of 34 critical IT skills for professional accountants with the aim of providing a
guideline for TEIs and workplace training. It has to be noted that this study was based on a
literature review, and not on empirical data. There was no ranking of the IT topics to
describe the relative importance of the various topics in the list. Table 2.3 shows the 34 IT
skills complied by Wessels (2005) in alphabetical order.

A study conducted by Burnett (2003) sought the views of employers of accounting

graduates on the technology skills that are considered important for new hires to possess. It
reported the top four technology skills for accounting graduates as 1) spreadsheet software,
2) Windows, 3) word processing software and 4) World Wide Web. Topics that ranked
from 5 to 10 were 5) information systems planning and strategy, 6) database software, 7)
communications software (e.g. Outlook), 8) project management, 9) presentation software
and 10) technology security and control. The study concluded that a single accounting
systems class with one or two generic computer courses may not be adequate to prepare
students with the required technology skills. It suggested that a better approach is to
require more technology applications, particularly spreadsheets in all other accounting
classes (Burnett 2003, p. 132).

Another study on knowledge and skills development of accounting graduates in Ghana

(Awayiga, Onumah & Tsamenyi 2010) revealed similar trends. The study surveyed
graduates as well as the employers of the graduates on their opinions on the importance of
skills and knowledge for entry-level accountants. Technology skills identified in order of
importance included 1) spreadsheet package, 2) database package, 3) presentation
software, 4) technology management and budgeting, 5) word-processing package, 6)

27
communications software (Outlook), 7) electronic commerce, 8) World Wide Web and 9)
Windows. The results of this study are remarkably similar to those of the Burnett (2003)
study.

Table 2.3 Critical IT skills (Wessels 2005)

Critical IT skills
Accounting software
Agent technologies
Anti-virus software
Application service providers
Audit modules
Audit software
Back-up and recovery
Client/server environment
Computer-aided systems engineering tools
Data warehousing and data mining
Database search and retrieval
Database software
Digital communications
Electronic data interchange
Electronic working papers
Encryption software
Firewall software/hardware
Flowcharting/data modelling
Image processing software
Internet service providers
Internet tools
Intrusion detection and monitoring
Knowledge work systems (groupware, workflow systems, expert systems)
Network configurations
Operating systems
Presentation software
Research tools
Simulation software
Spreadsheets
Tax return preparation software
Test data
Time management and billing systems
User authentication
Word processing

Source: Wessels (2005)

28
The School of Accountancy and Information Systems at Brigham Young University in the
USA offers a capstone course to provide enhanced IT skills to students immediately before
graduation (Jackson & Cherrington 2002). The course consists of a number of hands-on IT
skills with the aim of preparing graduates for employment. A study was conducted to
obtain feedback from graduates who had taken the course and were employed in the
workplace after graduation. The respondents were asked to rate the importance of the
topics offered in the course on a scale of 1 (unnecessary) to 5 (valuable). Table 2.4 shows
the results of the study. E-mail, word processing and spreadsheet had mean scores greater
than 4 and were regarded as the most important and useful tools in fulfilling job
responsibilities by graduates. The second tier topics, with mean scores between 3 and 4,
were operating systems, group work, Internet research and presentation. The third tier
topics had mean scores between 2 and 3 and included accessories/tools, database access
and query and accounting packages. IT topics that scored below 2 included building web
pages, programming, fourth generation programming language, statistical analysis,
computer-assisted systems engineering and Paintshop/Photoshop tools. A significant
finding from this study is that graduates considered this IT skills course offered to them
immediately before graduation to be much more effective than the AIS course (Jackson &
Cherrington 2002, p. 219). The AIS course is discussed in Section 2.8.

Table 2.4 Importance of IT tools (Jackson & Cherrington 2002)

Score Topics
E-mail
4.0 to 5.0 Word processing
Spreadsheet
Operating systems
Group work
3.0 to 4.0
Internet research
Presentation
Accessories/Tools
Database access
2.0 to 3.0
Database query
Accounting/GL package
Web pages
Programming
Fourth generation programming language
< 2.0
Statistical analysis
Computer-assisted systems engineering
Paintshop/Photoshop tools

Source: Jackson and Cherrington (2002)

29
2.7 Accounting education in NZ
NZICA is the predominant accounting body in NZ. Although there are reciprocal
arrangements with overseas bodies, they have a small presence in NZ (Carr & Mathews
2004). The majority of professional accountants in NZ therefore qualify as members of
NZICA (Ibid.).

NZICA provides three types of membership: Accounting Technician, Associate Chartered

Accountant and Chartered Accountant (NZICA 2011). The academic entry requirements of
the three different memberships are summarised in Table 2.5. Since this study is about
accounting major graduates, focus is given to the discussion on the academic entry
requirements for the CA membership. The requirements up until 2010 include four years of
equivalent full-time recognised study at an approved tertiary institution including the
completion of a degree programme and a number of specified accounting and business
courses (Carr & Mathews 2004). Some liberal study is also required (Ibid.). The
accounting and business-related studies for CA membership are shown in Table 2.6.

Table 2.5 Entry requirements for NZICA membership

Accounting Technician Associate Chartered Accountant Chartered Accountant

Two years diploma or degree Completion of a bachelor’s degree Completion of a recognised

level study including
coverage of required
accounting and business
topics
with an accounting major at an
NZICA accredited tertiary
institution
OR
Completion of a bachelor’s degree
at a NZ TEI plus coverage of
required accounting and business
topics
four year bachelor degree
programme with coverage of
required courses at an
NZICA accredited tertiary
institution

Source: NZICA (2011)

As shown in Table 2.6, the accounting and business-related studies now (as per 2010
schedule) include 30 credits of liberal studies, which refer to courses drawn from
disciplines such as arts, science, social science and humanities and are outside the
accounting curriculum. These liberal study courses are made compulsory by NZICA for
admission to the CA membership.

30
Table 2.6 Accounting and business-related studies (NZICA)
Recognised courses for CA membership
Advanced Financial Accounting
Advanced Management Accounting
Advanced auditing and assurance
Advanced taxation
Advanced business finance/treasury
Accounting Information Systems
Economics
Organisational Management
Statistics
Commercial Law
30 credits of liberal studies

Source: NZICA (2011)

The requirement for liberal studies is intended to broaden the accounting graduate’s way of
thinking and to contribute to the acquisition of generic skills such as communication and
interpersonal skills (Malthus & Fowler 2005). The authors conducted a study to test
whether accounting students undertaking liberal studies would improve their acquisition of
generic skills. The study showed that there is little support for the claim that liberal studies
can contribute significantly to the acquisition of generic skills but the authors believed that
there is still value in liberal education for professional accountants (Malthus & Fowler
2005).

NZICA has issued a document entitled ‘Statements of Learning Outcomes’ (SLO), the
purpose of which is to provide a benchmark for evaluating courses for use in tertiary
reviews of approved tertiary education institutions (ATEI), and to convey the Institute’s
expectations of learning outcomes for each of the topic areas at the advanced level (NZICA
2006a). Table 2.7 shows the SLOs and they match closely with the accounting and
business related studies shown in Table 2.6. TEIs seeking accreditation from NZICA have
to observe the SLOs in their accounting curriculum. Development of IT knowledge and
skills is covered by the requirement to take an accounting information systems course as

31
shown in Table 2.6 with the corresponding SLO-5 shown in Table 2.7. The AIS course will
be discussed in the next section.

Table 2.7 Statement of learning outcomes 2006 (NZICA)

SLO Topic area

SLO-1 Advanced Financial Accounting
SLO-2 Advanced Management Accounting
SLO-3 Auditing
SLO-4 Taxation
SLO-5 Accounting Information Systems
SLO-6 Business Finance/Treasury
SLO-7 Economics
SLO-8 Organisational Management
SLO-9 Statistics
SLO-10 Commercial Law

Source: NZICA (2006a)

In August 2009, NZICA issued a revision to the SLOs. Table 2.8 shows the revised SLOs.
Accounting Information Systems has been renumbered from SLO-5 to SLO-CA6. The
differences between SLO-5 and SLO-CA6 will be discussed in Section 2.9.1.

Table 2.8 Statement of learning outcomes 2009 (NZICA)

SLO Topic area
SLO-CA1 Advanced Financial Accounting
SLO-CA2 Advanced Management Accounting
SLO-CA3 Advanced Auditing and Assurance
SLO-CA4 Advanced Taxation
SLO-CA5 Advanced Business Finance/Treasury
SLO-CA6 Accounting Information Systems
SLO-CA7 Economics
SLO-CA8 Organisational Management
SLO-CA9 Statistics
SLO-CA10 Commercial Law

Source: NZICA (2009)

32
2.8 The Accounting Information Systems course
The AIS course developed by TEIs in countries including Australia, NZ, the UK and the
USA is in specific response to the inability of many students to grasp the fundamental
principles of information systems in accounting (Van Meer & Adams 1996). It is the
primary course that accounting students take in which accounting information is
intertwined with technology (Theuri & Gunn 1998). Although the course is described as a
subset of MIS, it focuses on the accumulation, processing and communication of data
relating to accounting (Smith & Bain 1993).

In many institutions, the AIS course belongs to the faculty of accounting and is taught by
accounting faculty members and is the main avenue through which accounting students
receive IT education and training (Chang & Hwang 2002). Bagranoff, Simkin and Norman
(2008) suggest that AIS stands at the intersection of two disciplines – accounting and
information systems as illustrated in Figure 2.3. Numerous studies have been undertaken in
an attempt to develop a set of standard topics to be covered in the AIS course.

Figure 2.3 The AIS course

 
 
Information 
Accounting 
Systems 

Accounting Information Systems 

Source: Bagranoff, Simkin and Norman (2008)

2.8.1 Prior studies on AIS syllabi

The first notable study on AIS syllabus was conducted by Wu (Van Meer & Adams 1996).
Wu (1983) cited disagreement among accounting academics on which subjects to teach in

33
the AIS course, as the motive for his study. He surveyed AIS instructors and asked them to
rate from a list of 15 IT topics whether they were ‘necessary’, ‘optional’ or ‘unnecessary’.
The study identified nine topics as ‘necessary’ as shown in Table 2.9. However, the source
of the topics chosen in the study were from no definite source (Green & Buckby 1995) and
the views of accounting practitioners were not sought (Van Meer & Adams 1996).

Table 2.9 Summary of findings of Wu (1983)

Topics necessary in an AIS course

General system concepts

Data processing technology (hardware and software)

System documentation devices (system and document flowcharts)

Business data processing systems (batch, real-time, database and
distributed systems)
Systems life cycle (systems initiations, evaluation, analysis, design,
implementation, control)
Internal control (auditing computer systems, computer frauds)

General ledger and budgetary control systems

AIS resources and feedback control (Order filling, invoicing,
accounts receivable, inventory control, payroll, fixed assets,
purchasing, accounts payable, production planning, costing)
Financial planning and budgeting models

Source: Wu (1983)

Van Meer and Adams (1996) attempted to overcome the limitations of the Wu (1983)
study by comparing the views of accounting academics and practitioners on the IT topics
that should be taught in NZ TEIs in an AIS course. This is the only notable study of AIS
syllabus conducted in NZ. The study classified 82 topics into nine categories based on
important AIS topics identified in previous studies including Wu (1983), American
Accounting Association (1987) and Wan and Choo (1988). Academics and practitioners
were surveyed as to whether a particular topic is ‘essential’ or ‘optional’. The respondents
were also asked to rate the expected level of knowledge for each topic using a scale of
‘advanced, ‘intermediate’ or ‘introductory’. The study identified four essential categories
and 28 individual topics for an AIS course. Table 2.10 shows the essential categories and
the specific topics found to be essential within those categories. Table 2.11 shows the
optional categories and the specific topics that were regarded as essential in those optional

34
categories. With the exception of spreadsheet, which required an advanced level of
knowledge, all other topics required an intermediate knowledge level. This finding is
consistent with that of Green and Buckby (1995) which reported that the only IT skill that
required a high level of knowledge was spreadsheet.

Table 2.10 Essential categories (Van Meer and Adams 1996)

Essential categories Essential specific topics Knowledge level
Information concepts and requirements Intermediate
Shortcomings of AIS Intermediate
Management use of information
Management information systems Intermediate
Budgeting and budgeting control on an AIS Intermediate
Purpose of internal control Intermediate
Classification of internal control Intermediate
Accounting systems internal
Systems documentation standards Intermediate
control
Computerised system controls Intermediate
Control costs and benefits Intermediate
Financial modelling Intermediate
Spreadsheet package Advanced
General ledger systems package Intermediate
Revenue cycle Intermediate
Conceptual knowledge
Expenditure cycle Intermediate
Payroll cycle Intermediate
Product conversation cycle Intermediate
Fixed asset cycle Intermediate
Roles of internal and external auditors Intermediate
The effect of the computer on internal controls Intermediate
Security, back-up and recover review Intermediate
Auditing of AIS
Audit of general controls Intermediate
Audit of application controls Intermediate
Audit trails in computer data processing Intermediate

Source: Van Meer and Adams (1996)

Table 2.11 Optional categories (Van Meer and Adams 1996)

Optional categories Essential specific topics Knowledge level
Database control and security Intermediate
Database concepts
Extracting data from databases Intermediate
Information systems technology None
Spreadsheet package Advanced
Practical experience
Basic accounting package Intermediate
Management of AIS Management of end-user computing Intermediate
Systems analysis, design and
None
development

Source: Van Meer and Adams (1996)

35
Studies on AIS syllabi in the USA after Wu (1983) include Davis and Leitch (1988),
Heagy and McMickle (1988), Heagy and Rakow (1991), Smith and Bain (1993) and
Theuri and Gunn (1998). Davis and Leitch (1988) developed 60 AIS topics and surveyed
accountants and educators for their opinion on the importance of the topics for current
needs and five years in the future. The study found differences in opinions on some topics
and agreements in others. Table 2.12 shows the top 10 topics ranked by accountants for
current needs and compares them with the ranking by educators. A large difference in
ranking for spreadsheet was found between accountants and educators.

Table 2.12 Accountants vs. educators – current (Davis & Leitch 1988)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
accountants educators
Spreadsheet 1 33

Microcomputer software 2 14

Statements and reports 3 29

Revenue cycle 4 11

Internal control structures 5 5

Journal entries 6 28

Accounts payable 7 4

Billing and collections 8 12

Computer assisted audit 9 30

EDP auditing 10 10

Source: Adapted from Davis and Leitch (1988)

Table 2.13 shows the top 10 topics ranked by educators for current courses and compares
them with the ranking by accountants. Educators ranked introduction to information
systems, flowcharts/data flow diagrams, systems design, database concepts and systems
analysis much higher than accountants did.

36
Table 2.13 Educators vs. accountants – current (Davis & Leitch 1988)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
educators accountants
Introduction to information systems 1 29
Flowcharts/Data flow diagrams 2 24
Data storage and retention 3 11
Accounts Payable 4 7
Internal control structures 5 5
Cash control 6 13
Systems design 7 25
Database concepts 8 34
Systems analysis 9 22
EDP auditing 10 10

Source: Adapted from Davis and Leitch (1988)

Table 2.14 shows the top 10 topics ranked by accountants for future needs and compares
them with the ranking by educators. Again, accountants ranked spreadsheet significantly
higher than educators did.

Table 2.14 Accountants vs. educators – future (Davis & Leitch 1988)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
accountants educators
Data storage and retention 1 29
Spreadsheet 2 32
Microcomputer software 3 16
Internal control structures 4 1
Statement and reports 5 26
EDP auditing 6 5
Computer assisted audit 7 17
Revenue cycle 8 3
Cost/benefit 9 18
Journal entries 10 57

Source: Adapted from Davis and Leitch (1988)

37
Table 2.15 shows the top 10 topics ranked by educators for future needs and compares
them with the ranking by accountants. Educators ranked security and backup,
conversion/production cycle, flowcharts/data flow diagrams much higher than accountants
did.

Table 2.15 Educators vs. accountants – future (Davis & Leitch 1988)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
educators accountants
Internal control structures 1 4

Security and backup 2 29

Revenue cycle 3 8

Spending cycle 4 18

EDP auditing 5 6

Conversion/production cycle 6 32

Flowcharts/Data flow diagrams 7 33

Database management systems 8 19

Cash control 9 21

Systems analysis 10 14

Source: Adapted from Davis and Leitch (1988)

Spreadsheet was ranked first and second by accountants for current and future needs.
Green and Buckby (1995) and Van Meer and Adams (1996) also found spreadsheet to be
important for accountants and requiring a high level of knowledge. However, in this study,
spreadsheet was ranked in the 33rd position for current needs and 32nd for future needs by
educators. This is surprising and could be due to educators’ reluctance to teach spreadsheet
in an AIS course (Davis & Leitch 1988). This is a problem and efforts need to be made to
get academics and accounting practitioners to agree on the IT topics that should be taught
in an accounting programme (Davis & Leitch 1988).

Heagy and McMickle (1988) compared what academics covered in accounting systems
courses with the needs of accounting practitioners. The authors developed 59 topics based
on accounting systems textbooks, reports of professional organisations and published
articles concerning accounting education, and talking with accounting systems instructors

38
(Heagy & McMickle 1988). Practitioners preferred more emphasis on spreadsheet but less
on systems development life cycle, internal controls and security measures in computerised
accounting systems, document flowcharts and storage of data. An observation drawn from
the study was that most of the topics that practitioners preferred were those related to
practical use and experience in application software.

Using the same 59 topics in the Heagy and McMickle (1988) study, Heagy and Rakow
(1991) surveyed academics and compared their agreement among themselves on the IT
topics that should be taught in accounting systems courses. IT topics that had significant
agreement were internal controls in computerised accounting systems, where professors
agreed that heavy coverage was required. Systems development life cycle was agreed
among professors as the topic that should have heavy to medium coverage. Database
fundamentals was agreed to have medium to light coverage. IT topics that professors
agreed should have no coverage in an AIS course were program coding and computer
number systems. It is surprising to find that 37% of professors rated no coverage for
spreadsheet, a topic which has been identified as important and requiring advanced
knowledge in other studies.

A study comparing the views of accounting systems educators and employers of

accounting graduates on AIS syllabus was conducted by Theuri and Gunn (1998). The
authors claimed that by seeking the views of more experienced personnel responsible for
recruiting accounting graduates, more reliable responses would be obtained compared with
other studies which sought views from accounting practitioners. The sample for employers
was selected from Certified Public Accountant (CPA) firms, corporations and the
government sector. The IT topics in the research instrument were sourced from various
AIS textbooks and the Report of the AAA Commission (American Accounting Association
1987). The study compared the ranking by educators and employers and presented the
results in two separate areas: theoretical topics and applications. Table 2.16 shows the
ranking of theoretical topics. Those with significant differences were database concepts,
systems development life cycle and financial reporting systems. Educators ranked higher
than employers for database concepts and systems development life cycles while the
opposite was true for financial reporting systems.

39
Table 2.16 Ranking of theoretical topics (Theuri & Gunn 1998)
Ranked by Ranked by
Theoretical topics
educators employers
Transaction processing cycles 1 3

Internal control issues 2 1

Database management concepts and data modelling 3 6

Systems development life cycle 4 8

Financial reporting systems 5 2

Systems auditing (EDP auditing issues and procedures) 6 4

Networks (distributed systems) 7 5

Decision support systems (incl. Expert systems) 8 7

Source: Theuri and Gunn (1998)

Table 2.17 shows the ranking of applications. It is clear that spreadsheet is ranked among
the top application topics by educators and more so by employers. It is surprising to see
that accounting applications was ranked much lower by employers than educators.

Table 2.17 Ranking of applications (Theuri & Gunn 1998)

Ranked by Ranked by employers

educators CPA firms Corporations Government
Accounting
Spreadsheets Spreadsheets Spreadsheets
applications
Spreadsheets Word processing Operating systems Operating systems
Database Database
Operating systems Word processing
management management
Database Accounting
Operating systems Presentation software
management applications
Communications Database Communications
Word processing
software management software
Communications Accounting
Word processing Presentation software
software applications
Accounting Communications
Presentation software Presentation software
applications software

Source: Theuri and Gunn (1998)

40
2.8.2 AIS textbook topic coverage
A review of topic coverage of AIS textbooks was conducted by Smith and Bain (1993),
summarising the coverage of 11 AIS textbooks into 24 topics. AIS educators were asked to
rate the 24 topics on their relative importance on a scale of 1 (very unimportant) to 5 (very
important). Table 2.18 lists the 24 topics ranked in order of importance. A main weakness
of this study is that some topics were not well defined. Examples of these are ‘Overview’,
‘Implementation’, ‘Processing’, ‘Communications’, ‘Software’, ‘Micro software’ and
‘Small business’. Similar to prior studies (Davis & Leitch 1988; Heagy & McMickle 1988;
Heagy & Rakow 1991), AIS educators rated internal control, analysis and design and
revenue/expense cycles as the most important AIS topics.

Table 2.18 Topics for AIS (Smith and Bain 1993)

Rank Topic Average rating
1 Internal control 4.90
2 Control systems 4.60
3 Analysis and design 4.14
4 Revenue and Expense cycles 4.12
5 File and database approaches 4.10
6 Overview 4.06
7 Evaluation and selection 3.96
8 Implementation 3.88
9 Management functions 3.82
10 Database management systems 3.80
11 Computer fraud and crime 3.80
12 File organisation and access 3.80
13 Logical and physical view of data 3.78
14 Processing 3.74
15 Management information systems 3.71
16 Organisation and AIS 3.64
17 Introduction to Micros 3.60
18 EDP auditing 3.56
19 Communications 3.56
20 Software 3.50
21 Expert systems and decision making 3.44
22 Micro software 3.38
23 Small business 3.38
24 Hardware 3.02

Source: Smith and Bain (1993)

41
A similar study involving AIS textbooks was conducted almost 10 years later (Bain,
Blankley & Smith 2002). The study examined 12 current AIS textbooks and a number of
on-line AIS syllabi, summarised them into 30 topics and surveyed AIS educators and
accounting practitioners for the importance of the topics. Table 2.19 shows the top 10
topics ranked by educators and Table 2.20 shows those ranked by practitioners. The
authors concluded that introduction to systems, internal control and transaction cycles were
the most important topics to be covered. Systems analysis and design was seen to have
decreased in importance from previous studies (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002, p. 143).

Table 2.19 Top 10 AIS topics ranked by educators (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
educators practitioners
Internal control 1 1
Transaction cycles 2 3
Systems documentation 3 22
Computer fraud 4 10
Database management systems 5 15
Database/File architecture 6 20
e-commerce 7 18
Ethics 8 4
End user computing 9 6
EDI 9= 12

Source: Adapted from Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002)

Table 2.20 Top 10 AIS topics ranked by practitioners (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002)
Ranked by Ranked by
Topic
practitioners educators
Internal control 1 1
Internet 2 11
Transaction cycles 3 2
Ethics 4 8
Software 5 17
End user computing 6 9
Communications topics 7 12
File organisation and access 8 14
Client/server networking 9 22
Computer fraud 10 4

Source: Adapted from Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002)

42
2.8.3 Analysis of the AIS course
Despite the many studies on AIS syllabi, AIS researchers have agreed that a generally
accepted set of topics to be covered in an AIS course does not exist (Wu 1983) and the AIS
course remains one of the most diverse and least standardised courses in the accounting
curriculum (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002; Davis & Leitch 1988; Groomer & Murthy
1996; Heagy & McMickle 1988). Due to the nature of the AIS environment, the basic AIS
course content may never be as clearly established as other accounting courses (Smith &
Bain 1993). The lack of a standardised and generally accepted set of contents for the AIS
course makes it more difficult to teach than other accounting courses (Groomer & Murthy
1996); teaching AIS can be an inefficient and frustrating process (Heagy & Rakow 1991).

The researcher has noted that research on AIS topical coverage is quite dated, the most
recent monograph found being Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002). As a reference, the most
recent citation made in the literature review of a monograph comparing AIS and MIS
courses by Murthy and Ragland (2009) was also Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002). Recent
studies on AIS appear to focus on the technical details of specific AIS topics rather than on
AIS topical coverage (see Moehrle et al. 2009, pp. 439-441).

Based on prior studies on AIS course topic coverage dating from the 1980s to more recent
studies, the topics that AIS researchers have found that should be included in AIS syllabi
are summarised below. The list is in alphabetical order of the topics.

 Accounting/transaction cycles (revenue, expenditure, payroll, production, general ledger)

 Client server/networking
 Communications software (EDI, etc.)
 Computer fraud and information security
 Data security and backup
 Database concepts, design and management
 e-commerce
 EDP auditing and computer assisted audit
 End user computing
 Ethics

43
  Expert systems and decision support systems
 File organisation and access
 Internal control
 Internet knowledge
 Introduction to information systems (general system concepts, computer hardware)
 Practical use of accounting application packages, spreadsheet, word processing and
presentation software
 Systems development life cycle (systems analysis, design and implementation)
 Systems documentation (flowcharts, data flow diagrams)

The researcher has some reservations as to the scope and boundary of AIS syllabi. It has
been suggested that AIS stands at the intersection of two disciplines – accounting and
information systems (Bagranoff, Simkin & Norman 2008) (see also Figure 2.3). AIS
should therefore contain IT topics that are related only to the accounting domain. Examples
of such topics would be accounting systems and software packages, IT controls in
accounting systems, accounting systems development, etc. The inclusion of IT topics such
as spreadsheet, word processing, presentation software, general systems concepts,
computer hardware, etc. in AIS syllabi has blurred the boundary of AIS with generic IT
knowledge and skills for accountants. In connection with this, there are on-going debates
on the boundaries of AIS research. Sutton and Arnold (2002) argue that AIS should be a
subset of MIS so as not to limit the definition of AIS research. However, Murthy and
Ragland (2009) support the ‘intersection’ view of Murthy and Wiggins Jr (1999) and
Bagranoff, Simkin and Norman (2008).

2.9 Guidelines for IT in accounting curriculum

2.9.1 The New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants

As discussed in Section 2.7, NZICA has issued SLOs to provide a benchmark for
evaluating courses in tertiary reviews of ATEIs in NZ. The full list of SLOs was shown in
Table 2.7. Table 2.21 shows the details of SLO-5 – Accounting Information Systems
which provides guidelines for coverage of IT knowledge for accountants.

44
Table 2.21 SLO-5: Accounting Information Systems (NZICA 2006)
Learning outcomes
Internal control in accounting/business
systems
Development standards and practices for
accounting/business systems
Management of IT adoption,
implementation, and use
Evaluation of computer-based
accounting/business systems
The practical use of technology
Source: NZICA (2006b)
Details
Select factors that must be considered when developing
controls for information systems.
Describe the control environment and plan to meet control
objectives.
Identify and compare general controls and application
controls for information systems.
Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of control
compliance monitoring.
Evaluate and design internal control systems.
Demonstrate an understanding of the contribution that
internal controls make to achieving organisational
objectives, that is, their value-adding role.
Describe database management systems and identify the
advantages of different types of database systems.
Define the requirements of a database accounting system.
Describe the process and documentation requirements of
the systems development life cycle (SDLC).
Describe the system verification and validation process.
Explain how emerging technologies influence the design of
accounting information systems.
Discuss strategic considerations involved in planning
information systems, including an appreciation of the
importance of project management.
Demonstrate an awareness of security, back-up, and
recovery procedures.
Evaluate development acquisition alternatives.
Discuss systems maintenance and control policies.
Discuss the importance of ensuring end user support.
Explain the principles of managing change.
Describe the impact of legal, ethical, and auditing
influences on AIS.
Describe evaluation objectives, methods, and techniques.
Document a system using flow charts and a control matrix.
Discuss the effects of rapid change on evaluation of
existing systems.
Demonstrate the theoretical application of information
systems technology e.g. database design or project
management implementation of AIS.
Apply information systems/technology to solving
business/accounting problems.
45
The five learning outcomes of SLO-5 closely match the AIS topic categories identified in
prior studies. In August 2009, NZICA published SLO-CA6 to replace SLO-5. Table 2.22
shows the learning outcomes and details of SLO-CA6.

Table 2.22 SLO-CA6: Accounting Information Systems (NZICA 2009)

Learning outcomes
Accounting/business information
systems architecture
Planning and management of IT
acquisition, implementation and use
Internal control in accounting/business
systems
The practical use of technology
Details
Identify and discuss the common components of AIS and
their interrelationships, including hardware, software,
communication networks; and features of internet
commerce.
Demonstrate an awareness of data organisation, access
methods and transaction processing, including database
management systems; and their application in business, e.g.
enterprise systems.
Demonstrate an awareness of the IT strategic planning
process, including the need for alignment with entity
strategy, and the implications of emerging technologies on
the entity’s business model.
Demonstrate an awareness of how the IT function and IT
resources are managed within an entity.
Describe the process and documentation requirements of
the systems development life cycle (SDLC) and evaluate its
application in specific AIS-related issues.
Describe the link between planning processes and the
requirement to establish internal control in IT systems.
Define an internal control system, including its objectives,
and discuss the interrelationships between its components.
Demonstrate an awareness of the interrelationship between
internal control and IT risk management.
Demonstrate an awareness of contemporary control
frameworks, such as COSO and COBIT.
Design and evaluate internal control systems for specific
AIS-related cases.
Document and evaluate AIS using appropriate methods.
Demonstrate the application of conceptual approaches to
accounting information systems technology, e.g., database
design or project management implementation of AIS.
Apply information systems/technology to solving
business/accounting problems, e.g., computerised
accounting applications, databases, spreadsheets.

Source: NZICA (2009)

SLO-CA6 has four learning outcomes instead of the five in SLO-5. The learning outcome
‘Evaluation of computer-based accounting/business systems’ which includes topics on
evaluation, auditing and documentation of computer systems, has been removed. SLO-
CA6 has a footnote which refers the reader to the International Education Practice

46
Statement 2 issued by IFAC for specific examples. The function of IFAC and its education
statement is discussed in the following section.

2.9.2 The International Federation of Accountants

IFAC is a global organisation for the accounting profession. It works with 163 member
organisations in 120 countries to encourage high quality practices by the world’s
accountants (IFAC 2006a). The IFAC Education Committee issued International
Education Guideline No. 11, Information Technology and the Accounting Curriculum
(IEG-11). The guideline was first issued in December 1995 followed by two revisions, one
in June 1998 and one in December 2002 (see IFAC 2003). Its purpose is to assist member
bodies to prepare professional accountants to work in the information technology
environment (IFAC 2003). The Guideline details the recommendations for IT education for
accounting students and was developed with the aim of aiding and encouraging the
implementation of the recommendations in the USA and with the belief that it will be
applicable universally (Heales 2005).

IEG-11 covers the IT knowledge and competency requirements of accountants working in

industry and commerce, in public practice and in the public sector. It classifies IT
education requirements based on four broad roles in which accountants may be engaged.
These four roles are: as a user of IT, as a manager of information systems, as a designer of
business systems, and as an evaluator of information systems. The IT knowledge required
for each of these roles is summarised in table 2.23.

Table 2.23 IT knowledge required by different roles (IEG-11)

As a user of IT Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business/accounting problems
Demonstrate understanding of business and accounting systems
Apply controls to personal system
As a manager of IT Manage an entity’s IT strategy
Manage IT organisation
Manage IT operations effectiveness and efficiency
Maintain financial control over IT
Manage IT controls
Manage system acquisition, development and implementation
Manage system change and problem resolution

47
 Analyse and evaluate role of information in the entity’s business processes
As a designer of IT
and organisation
Apply project management methods
Apply system investigation, project initiation methods
Apply user requirements determination and initial design methods
Apply detailed system design, acquisition/development methods
Apply system implementation methods
Apply system maintenance and change management methods
As an evaluator of IT Plan system evaluation
Evaluate system
Communicate results of evaluations and follow up

Source: IFAC (2003)

In August 2006, IFAC issued an Exposure Draft for the proposed International Education
Practice Statement 2.1 (IEPS 2.1) with the intention to replace IEG-11 (IFAC 2006b). An
inspection of IEPS 2.1 revealed few differences from IEG-11 except for the addition of one
subject area and a clearer definition of the roles of a professional accountant. Table 2.24
shows the number of main topic coverage recommended by IEPS 2.1.

Table 2.24 Number of main topic coverage of IEPS 2.1

No. of topics
IT strategy (Topic 1) 8
IT architecture (Topic 2) 46
IT as a business enabler (Topic 3) 7
Systems acquisition and development process (Topic 4) 26
Management of IT (Topic 5) 26
Communication and IT (Topic 6) 4
IT control knowledge (A2) 24
IT control competencies (A3) 12
IT knowledge required as a manager of IT (A4) 7
IT knowledge required as an evaluator of IT (A5) 3
IT knowledge required as a designer of IT (A6) 7
IT knowledge required as an audit professional (A7) 4
Total 174

Source: IFAC (2007)

48
IFAC requested comments on the exposure draft from member bodies. The request
attracted a considerable amount of feedback, most of it being criticisms. Some said it
contains too many detailed and technical topics which are required only by specialist IT
practitioners. Others said it is impossible for accounting students to learn such a vast
number of topics and that there is no indication of essential or optional topics. Another
suggested that the role of ‘Manager’ and ‘Designer’ should not be included in the guideline
as these roles lie beyond the accounting profession domain. A further comment was that
there is no indication on whether the guideline is for students, newly hired, or experienced
accounting practitioners. Another was of the opinion that accountants only need a small
portion of the topics in the ‘User’ role of the guideline. Yet another one commented that
the guideline may hinder rather than assist accounting educators in improving IT
competencies for accountants. Table 2.25 summarises the significant comments made by
various accounting profession bodies and accounting firms.

Table 2.25 Comments on IEPS 2.1

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
 The list of IT knowledge required contains too many detailed technical and specialist IT
areas, many of which only very few accountants would ever need
 The guideline may give the wrong impression about how much of this needs to be covered
in an accounting education curriculum
 The ‘manager’ and ‘designer’ roles should not be included in the guideline as these roles lie
firmly in the domain of trained IT specialists from whom accountants would normally seek
support
 The guideline should classify IT knowledge required into ‘essential’, ‘useful’ or ‘specialist’
to give a measure of how much of the IT content is not mandatory or best covered in work
experience at some point in professional development
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
 The volume of knowledge required as listed in the guideline is vast, how can students learn
this much information as well as all they need to know about accounting?
 Distinction between core competency and expertise needed
 Is the guideline designed for students, new hires or working professionals?
The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
 The guideline is too comprehensive even in the ‘basic IT’ section and these are
competencies that may not apply to all professional accountants
 Most accountants need no more than a portion of the ‘basic’ competencies in the ‘user’ role.
Other competencies would be more appropriate to a post-qualification rather than as a part
of the core qualification
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales
 The exposure draft is too detailed and may deter or worry many
 Too much focus on IT designers and managers
 Guideline should only concentrate on areas expected of accountants at the pre-qualification
stage
 The guideline should not be too prescriptive but should be principles-based

49
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland
 The lack of contextual reference of IT to business in the guideline may encourage member
bodies to develop IT course content without reference to useful accounting or business
contexts
 The primary focus of the exposure draft should remain on the fundamental competencies
required of accountants at the point of qualification
Institu Der Wirtshaftsprufer
 Guideline fails to provide a business approach to IT education
 Very serious concerns about the structure and approach of the guideline and believe that it
may hinder rather than assist accounting educators in improving IT competencies for
professional accountants
Ernst & Young
 The guideline is too broad and does not have the right focus
 The roles of the information systems manager and systems designer should be outside the
scope of the guideline
 The list of competencies for the user role is too broad and has not been prioritised and ends
up having a long list of everything an individual may know about IT

Source: IFAC (2006c)

In October 2007, the Exposure Draft IEPS 2.1 became International Education Practice
Statement 2 (IEPS 2) and officially replaced IEG-11 (IFAC 2007). There is no evidence
that any of the comments made by the various professional accounting bodies have been
incorporated. As some IFAC member bodies have remarked, IEPS 2, apart from being
extensive, includes some topics that are highly technical. Some examples of these technical
topics are object-oriented languages, unified modelling language, seven layers of the OSI
model, common object request broker architecture, etc., which have not been identified as
required IT knowledge for accountants in other studies. Because of the long list of
recommendations and the presence of some highly technical topics, it is impossible for
accounting major programmes to follow the guideline. However, it cannot be disputed that
IEPS 2 is the most exhaustive guideline on IT knowledge and skills for accountants found
in the literature.

2.10 Gaps in the literature

Most studies on accounting graduate IT knowledge and skills found from the literature
employed quantitative survey questionnaires to collect data (see for example Awayiga,
Onumah & Tsamenyi 2010; Burnett 2003; Green & Buckby 1995). Likert scales were
normally used to collect participants’ perceptions of the importance of the topics. This
method of data collection meant that the results of these studies were presented in the form

50
of a list of IT knowledge and skills ranked by mean scores given by participants with no
discussion on the detailed requirement of the topics. For example, spreadsheet has been
identified as one of the most important IT skills for accountants in many studies, but no
study has discussed which functions or features within a spreadsheet are more important
than others. Another example is database knowledge. Some studies have identified this
topic as important, but no study has been found that discusses whether accounting
graduates need to know how to design and develop a database, or simply how to use it.

Another weakness observed in the literature is that participants were asked to rate only a
list of topics provided to them. No study has been found that asked participants to suggest
and rate topics not in the list. There is a risk that some IT topics that accountants need may
be omitted from these studies. Connected with this observed weakness is the question of
the source of the IT topics that were included in the survey instruments. How
comprehensive and credible were they? Where did they originate from?

Studies found from the literature review on IT knowledge and skills for accounting
graduates appear to belong to two separate branches. One branch of study focused on
general IT knowledge and skills for accountants (see for example Awayiga, Onumah &
Tsamenyi 2010; Burnett 2003; Green & Buckby 1995) and the other branch on AIS
specific topics (see for example Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002; Davis & Leitch 1988; Van
Meer & Adams 1996; Wu 1983). General IT knowledge and skills are those that are
required by most higher education graduates regardless of their academic field of study.
Examples are spreadsheet, word processing, graphics software, etc. AIS specific topics are
those specifically required by accounting graduates. Examples are accounting packages, IT
controls, EDP auditing, accounting cycles, etc. However, it is not always so clear cut.
Some studies in the general branch contained some, but not all AIS related topics (see for
example Wessels 2005; Williams, J. & Leung 1995). Some studies in the AIS branch
contained some, but not all general IT topics (see for example Davis & Leitch 1988; Heagy
& Rakow 1991; Theuri & Gunn 1998; Van Meer & Adams 1996). This is confusing and
does not provide a holistic and clear set of IT topics for accountants in the body of
knowledge.

51
The IEPS 2 guideline published by IFAC contains many topics that have been identified as
irrelevant by some professional accounting bodies. In total, IEPS 2 has 174 individual
topics. At the other end of the scale, the SLO-5 for AIS published by NZICA contains only
five broad areas labelled as ‘learning outcomes’ and SLO-CA6, which was issued in 2009
to replace SLO-5 contains one less learning outcome than its predecessor. Perhaps due to
the lack of details, SLO-CA6 has a footnote referring readers to obtain further guidance
from IEPS 2.

Finally, most studies on IT knowledge and skills were conducted in the USA, the UK and
Australia. With the exception of the Van Meer and Adams (1996) monograph, no studies
on IT knowledge and skills for accounting graduates in NZ have been found.

2.11 Conceptual framework of this research

The theoretical framework showing the supporting theories of this research was presented
in Section 2.1. The conceptual framework is now presented. A conceptual framework is the
operationalisation of the theoretical framework (Khan n.d.). It presents the researcher’s
own position of the problem and shows the different constructs that will be investigated
(Ibid.). A conceptual framework shows the main factors, constructs and variables to be
studied and explains the relationships among them (Miles & Huberman 1994). The prime
aim of this research is to identify the relevant IT knowledge and skills required by
accounting graduates in NZ. By definition, an accounting graduate is an individual who
has completed tertiary education in an accounting major degree and is ready to be
employed in the workplace in an accounting role. One of the questions for the research is
to ask participants to discuss the IT knowledge and skills they need when working in an
accounting role after graduation. However, the words “after graduation” are open-ended in
terms of timeframe and unless some guidance is provided, it is difficult for participants to
focus on their answers. The questions for the research must therefore provide some guiding
parameters to direct the respondents to give answers appropriate to the aim of the research.
The proposed parameter for the questions in this research is the IT knowledge and skills
required by an accountant to work competently within the first five years of their career.
The justification for choosing five years and not some other length of time is based on the
logic that five years will cover basic IT knowledge and skills as well as those that are

52
required in more senior or specialised roles as the accounting graduates progress in their
career. A length of time less than five years would be limiting in terms of the breadth and
depth of IT knowledge and skills required. It is also difficult for participants of the research
to predict the requirements of IT knowledge and skills required beyond five years as IT is a
fast-changing field. Other studies that used five years as the basis for discussion include
Davis and Leitch (1988) and Little (2007).

As discussed earlier, one of the objectives of this study is to add to the body of knowledge
by producing a comprehensive set of IT knowledge and skills for accounting graduates in
NZ. In order to achieve this, a credible and comprehensive research instrument is vital.

Figure 2.4 Conceptual framework of this research

Bain, Blankley 
    Wessels  and Smith 
IFAC IEPS 2  NZICA SLO‐5 (2005)  (2002) 

IT knowledge and skills for accountants from literature review

Important IT 
How are IT 
knowledge and 
knowledge and 
skills for first five 
skills used and 
years 
applied 

IT knowledge and  NZ Accounting 
skills lacking for  practitioners 
current job 

 
IT knowledge and  Involvement in IT 
skills needed for  matters
future 

The relevant IT knowledge 
and skills for accounting 
graduates in NZ

Source: Developed for this research

53
From the literature, the most exhaustive list of IT knowledge and skills for accountants is
IEPS 2 published by IFAC. Another authoritative guideline is SLO-5 published by NZICA.
A list of general IT skills as well as AIS related topics was compiled by Wessels (2005)
through a comprehensive literature review. A review of AIS topics from 12 textbooks and
a number of on-line AIS syllabi was conducted by Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002). These
guidelines and monographs provide a credible source of IT topics that can be included in
the research instrument. The conceptual framework of the research is illustrated in Figure
2.4.

It is not expected that all IT knowledge and skills contained in the sources are relevant to
NZ accounting graduates. The results will therefore probably be a subset of the IT topics in
these sources. Figure 2.5 shows the likely relationship between the findings of this research
and the sources of the research instrument.

Figure 2.5 Focus of this research

IFAC
NZICA  guidelines 
SLOs 

 
The relevant IT 
knowledge and 
skills for accounting 
  graduates in NZ   
   
   
  Generic IT 
AIS specific  knowledge 
knowledge and skills  and skills 

Source: Developed for this research

54
2.12 The research questions
The main objective of this research is to explore and provide a set of IT knowledge and
skills required by accounting graduates in NZ. A further objective is to gain understanding
of how IT knowledge and skills are applied and used by accounting practitioners so that
more insight can be obtained on the extent to which each IT topic has to be taught and
covered in an accounting curriculum. Additional questions are developed to ensure that IT
topics have not been omitted in the survey instrument. The specific objectives of the
research are:
 Developing a comprehensive list of IT knowledge and skills from all credible
sources as the survey instrument
 Collecting data to identify the important IT topics and to understand how IT
knowledge and skills are used and applied
 Understanding participants’ involvement in IT matters
 Asking participants whether IT knowledge and skills not included in the survey
instrument are indeed required
 Producing a comprehensive set of IT knowledge and skills for accounting graduates
in NZ that encompasses both general IT and AIS specific topics
 Developing a conceptual model for the delivery of IT content in an accounting
major programme

Five research questions (RQ) are developed to guide the data collection process in order to
achieve the objectives of the study:

RQ1 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants need in the first five years of their
career?
RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?
RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?
RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?
RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

55
2.13 Chapter summary
This chapter has presented the theoretical framework of the research which is based on
human capital theory and stakeholder theory. The link between these two theories as
applied in higher education leads to the graduate employability literature which in turn
leads to discussions on the knowledge and skills that graduates should possess to be
employable. Graduate knowledge and skills can be classified into generic and specific
knowledge and skills. Generic skills are those that are not related to any particular
academic field of study. Examples of generic skills are communication skills, interpersonal
skills, working under pressure, use of computers, etc. IT knowledge and skills for
accountants can also be classified into generic and specific. The objective of this research
is to add to the body of knowledge in accounting education by exploring the relevant IT
knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates in NZ. The extant literature on IT
knowledge and skills for accountants has been reviewed which includes academic research
monographs, reports from professional bodies and guidelines published by professional
accounting organisations. Gaps in the literature have been identified and discussed, and a
conceptual framework together with the research questions have been presented. The next
chapter discusses the methodology and methods for the study.

56
 CHAPTER 3 – METHODOLOGY
3 METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction
The previous chapter has identified five questions for the research. This chapter discusses
the methodology chosen for the research. Hussey and Hussey (1997) made a distinction
between the terms ‘methodology’ and ‘methods’.

Methodology refers to the overall approach to the research process, from the
theoretical underpinning to the collection and analysis of data. Methods, on the
other hand, refer only to various means by which data can be collected and/or
analysed. (Hussey & Hussey 1997, p. 54)

Methodology is concerned with why the researcher collected certain data, what data were
collected and from where, when and how the data were collected, and how the data were
analysed (Hussey & Hussey 1997).

A two-phased approach was used in this study, comprising a pilot study (Phase I) followed
by the main study (Phase II). The pilot study employed the Delphi method and sought the
opinions of six experts to develop a questionnaire for the main study. The main study used
a mixed method comprising a survey questionnaire derived from the pilot study followed
by semi-structured interviews. This chapter presents justifications for this approach and
discusses the methods used in the two phases of data collection. Figure 3.1 depicts an
overview of this chapter.

57
Figure 3.1 Overview of Chapter 3

3.1 Types of research

3.2 Research design

3.3 Questionnaire 
design 

3.4.1 Questionnaire design for Phase I 
3.4 Phase I – Pilot study  3.4.2 Selection of Delphi panellists 
3.4.3 Results from Phase I 

3.5.1 Sampling 
3.5 Phase II – Main  3.5.2 Interview question design 
study  3.5.3 Data collection 
3.5.4 Data analysis method for questionnaire 
3.5.5 Data analysis method for interviews 

3.6 Research ethics

3.7 Chapter summary

Source: Developed for this research

3.1 Types of research

Research may be classified into three types: exploratory, descriptive and causal (Zikmund
2003). Exploratory research aims at clarifying ambiguous problems, descriptive research
aims at describing the characteristics of a population while causal research is used to
identify cause-and-effect relationships or to proof a hypothesis.

Research may also be classified into deductive and inductive research depending on the
direction of theorising (Neuman 2006). Deductive research begins with abstract concepts
or theories and works towards empirical evidence to confirm or reject the theories or
concepts. Hypotheses testing are often used in this kind of research. Induction research

58
begins with observing the empirical data, reflects on what is taking place and works
towards developing theoretical concepts.

This research is exploratory, its objective being to identify the relevant IT knowledge and
skills required by accounting graduates. It is inductive, its aim being the development of a
conceptual model for IT content delivery and coverage in accounting curriculum based on
the data collected.

3.2 Research design

The two possible criteria for choice of research design are the personal preference or
paradigm of the researchers themselves, and the aims or context of the research to be
carried out (Easterby, Thorpe & Lowe 1991). A paradigm is a basic set of beliefs, a set of
assumptions we are willing to make in guiding our activities (Guba & Lincoln 1991). A
research paradigm is a philosophical framework that guides how research should be
conducted (Collis & Hussey 2009). In this, the researcher should base his decision on his
personal belief systems (paradigm) and, more importantly, on the objectives and questions
of the research (nature of the research problem).

The two main paradigms are positivism and interpretivism (Collis & Hussey 2009). Table
3.1 summarises the approaches and features of the two different paradigms. Positivist
researchers tend to take an objective view of reality, making use of larger samples to
collect quantitative data and being concerned with hypothesis testing. Interpretivists take a
more subjective view of reality, using small samples but employing data collection
methods that allow them to collect rich data to produce in-depth understanding of the
research questions. However, few researchers now adopt the pure forms of the main
paradigms (Collis & Hussey 2009) which can be viewed as the two extremes of a
continuum of paradigms, as depicted in Figure 3.2. The methodologies chosen by the
researcher can move along the continuum according to the researcher’s assumptions
(Hussey & Hussey 1997). Some argue that rather than be constrained by a single paradigm,
pragmatism should be the key factor in determining the methodology of the research
(Collis & Hussey 2009). These researchers advocate that researchers should be free to

59
combine different methods from different paradigms based on their usefulness in
answering the research questions. This researcher believes in rich qualitative data in the
acquisition of knowledge and therefore the paradigm used will lean towards the
interpretivism end of the continuum.

Table 3.1 Approaches and features of the two main paradigms

Positivism Interpretivism

Quantitative Qualitative
Objective Subjective
Scientific Humanist
Traditionalist Phenomenological
Use large samples Use small samples
Concerned with hypothesis testing Concerned with generating theories
Produce precise, objective, quantitative data Produce ‘rich’, subjective, qualitative data
Produce results with high reliability but low Produce results with low reliability but high
validity validity
Allow results to be generalised from the Allow results to be generalised from one
sample to the population setting to another similar setting

Source: Adapted from Collis and Hussey (2009)

Figure 3.2 Continuum of paradigms

Positivism Interpretivism

Source: Collis and Hussey (2009)

60
As discussed at the beginning of Section 3.1, the second criterion in determining the
methodology of a research is its objective. The methodology chosen should be the one that
best addresses the research objectives and the research questions. The research questions
developed in Chapter 2 are re-listed as follows:

RQ1 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants need in the first five years of their
career?
RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?
RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?
RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?
RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

The research objectives of this study are to explore the relevant IT knowledge and skills
required by accounting graduates in NZ, to present recommendations for accounting
curriculum policy and design, and to develop a model for the delivery of IT content in
accounting major programmes. The research is inductive in nature, and as shown in Table
3.1, interpretivism paradigm is more suited to this kind of research.

Having determined the appropriate research paradigm and strategies for the different
research questions, consideration was made regarding the appropriate data collection
methods. Collis and Hussey (2003) identified seven main data collection methods: critical
incident technique, diaries, focus groups, interviews, observation, protocol analysis and
questionnaires. A mixed method approach in data collection was necessary to satisfy the
study. A survey questionnaire for RQ1 followed by interviews for the other research
questions (RQ2, 3, 4 and 5) were selected as data collection methods.

The justification for using a mixed method instead of a questionnaire alone is that
interviews allow the interviewer to probe and obtain more in-depth views on how the IT
knowledge and skills identified in the questionnaire were used and applied in the
interviewees’ actual day-to-day work. Interviews also allow participant views and
comments to be made which are not possible through questionnaires. A questionnaire
alone could result in a list of IT knowledge and skills regarded as important by accounting
practitioners without any further discussion as to why and how these knowledge and skills

61
were used. A mixed method approach also has the advantage of allowing cross-validation
of findings (Brannen 1992). Similar studies that used a mixed method include Boritz
(2005): IS Practitioners' Views on Core Concepts of Information Integrity and Kavanagh
and Drennan (2008): What Skills and Attributes does an Accounting Graduate Need?
Evidence from Student Perceptions and Employer Expectations.

A questionnaire containing a list of IT knowledge and skills would be presented to

participants for rating using a Likert scale to provide answers to RQ1. This would then be
followed by semi-structured interviews with each participant with the aim of seeking more
in-depth views and opinions to the other research questions. The use of a semi-structured
interview has the advantage of standardising the interviews thus providing more
consistency in data collection (Silverman 2001).

3.3 Questionnaire design

Designing the questionnaire for this research was problematic – how many and which IT
knowledge and skills should be included in the questionnaire? From the literature, a
number of credible sources have been identified which can serve as a good basis for the
questionnaire. These include IEPS 2 published by IFAC; SLO-5 published by NZICA; the
list of general IT skills by Wessels (2005); and the review of AIS textbooks and syllabi by
Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002). However, IEPS 2 alone contains 174 main topics (see
Table 2.24). If all topics from the above mentioned sources were included in the
questionnaire, the research instrument would become untenable and participants would not
be interested or might not have the time to complete it. If a partial list was selected from
the sources by the researcher to include in the questionnaire, researcher bias would be
introduced and the basis or criteria for the selection would become an issue.

Given the problems mentioned above, the design for this research comprised two phases.
The first used the Delphi method in a pilot study to establish a workable questionnaire
based on the opinions of experts from the accounting profession. IT knowledge and skills
short-listed by these experts became the questionnaire for data collection in Phase II, which
was the main study of this research. Figure 3.3 depicts the two phases.

62
Figure 3.3 Research design

List of IT topics from 
Phase I  literature review 
 
Pilot 
study 
Experts from 
accounting field 

Multiple rounds

IT topics rated by 
experts 

Phase II  Questionnaire for 
  main study 
Main 
study 

Accounting  Semi‐structured 
practitioners  interviews 

Quantitative and 
qualitative data 

Source: Developed for this research

3.4 Phase I – Pilot Study

The method used in Phase I of this research was based on the Delphi method, which was
developed in 1953 by Norman Dalkey of the RAND Corporation and Olaf Helmer of the
Institute of the Future (Vázquez-Ramos, Leahy & Hernández 2007). This method provides

63
a systematic approach to gather expert opinions about a complex issue or problem. It has
been used in a number of higher education research studies and is recommended by Boberg
and Morris-Khoo (1992) as a preliminary step in the evaluation of higher education
programs. The Delphi method seeks to elicit agreement or consensus on perceptions and
judgements from experts in a specialised area (Boberg & Morris-Khoo 1992). It usually
consists of a series of mailed questionnaires addressed to individuals who are considered
experts in the field (Vázquez-Ramos, Leahy & Hernández 2007). The returned responses,
which are usually anonymous, are analysed and summarised by the researcher and then
returned to the experts for further consideration and response. The number of rounds varies
and is usually between three to five. Some of the advantages of Delphi are anonymity of
response, multiple iterations and convergence of answers (Judd 1972). The use of Delphi
need not be a singular or unchanging approach to solving problems. Norman Dalkey, one
of the originators of the Delphi method said in a conference that in a rapidly changing
field, modifications in procedures are called for (Judd 1972). Phase I of the research
involved designing a questionnaire and inviting individuals from a cross-section of the
accounting profession who could represent their profession as ‘experts’ to rate the
importance of the IT knowledge and skills in the questionnaire until a consensus or near-
consensus was formed.

3.4.1 Questionnaire design for Phase I

The literature review conducted has identified a number of recommendations on IT
knowledge and skills for accountants which can be used as the basis for the questionnaire.
The most comprehensive list was IEPS 2 published by IFAC (2007). However, the section
on IT knowledge required as a user of IT in IEPS 2 is not as elaborate as IEG-11 which has
been replaced by IEPS 2. The topics in IEG-11 for the user role were therefore included in
the questionnaire. There were also other important recommendations including SLO-5 and
SLO-CA6 published by NZICA (2006b), the list of IT topics identified by Bain, Blankley
and Smith (2002) and the list of IT skills by Wessels (2005). Since SLO-CA6 contains
fewer topics than SLO-5, the latter was selected over SLO-CA6 for inclusion in the Delphi
questionnaire. Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002) examined 12 current AIS textbooks and
summarised the topics covered in these textbooks into 30 topics. Wessels (2005) produced
a list of important IT skills required by professional accountants based on a literature

64
review which included the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia, Canadian Institute
of Chartered Accountants, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales,
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, South African Institute of Chartered
Accountants, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, Institute of Management
Accountants, International Federation of Accountants, Theuri and Gunn (1998), Hostrom
and Hunton (1998), Coenenberg, Haller and Marten (1999), Boyse (2004) and Greenstein
and McKee (2004). The inclusion of the IT knowledge and skills contained in the above
mentioned sources in the Delphi questionnaire would provide a comprehensive set of
questions for the survey.

Nine questions developed for this research were added to the questionnaire to supplement
some of those questions in the source literature which were deemed to have only vague
topic descriptions or lacking details. One example was question 15.15 – Systems
documentation techniques. The description of this question lacked details as there are
different types of system documentation techniques that were not specified. Three
questions were developed to supplement and expand this particular question: 17.3 –
Documentation tools (System flowcharts), 17.4 – Documentation tools (Document
flowcharts) and 17.5 – Documentation tools (Data flow diagrams). The original questions
from the source literature were not deleted from the questionnaire despite the addition of
the supplementary questions.

In total, there were 266 questions for Phase I. There was some duplication because similar
questions existed in different sources and supplementary questions were added; this was
not regarded as a hindrance but rather as a means of triangulating the responses. Table 3.2
shows the breakdown of the topics by source. The full questionnaire for Phase I is shown
in Appendix 1.

65
Table 3.2 Number of questions in Delphi questionnaire
No. of Question
Source Details
questions numbers
IFAC IEPS 2 IT strategy (Topic 1) 8 1.1 – 1.8
IT architecture (Topic 2) 46 2.1 – 2.46
IT as a business enabler (Topic 3) 7 3.1 – 3.7
Systems acquisition and
26 4.1 – 4.26
development process (Topic 4)
Management of IT (Topic 5) 26 5.1 – 5.26
Communication and IT (Topic 6) 4 6.1 – 6.4
IT control knowledge (A2) 24 7.1 – 7.24
IT control competencies (A3) 12 8.1 – 8.12
IT knowledge required as a user of
14 9.1 – 9.14
IT (IEG-11)
IT knowledge required as a
7 10.1 – 10.7
manager of IT (A4)
IT knowledge required as an
3 11.1 – 11.3
evaluator of IT (A5)
IT knowledge required as a
7 12.1 – 12.7
designer of IT (A6)
IT knowledge required as an audit
4 13.1 – 13.4
professional (A7)
Sub-total 188
NZICA SLO-5 5 14.1 – 14.5
Bain, Blankley &
30 15.1 – 15.30
Smith (2002)
Wessels (2005) 34 16.1 – 16.34
Developed for this
9 17.1 – 17.9
research
266

Source: Developed for this research

A Likert scale of 1 to 6 was used to capture respondents’ opinions on the importance of IT

knowledge and skills required by accountants in their first five years of practice. It is
common to use four to eight categories (Neuman 2006, p. 207). An even number, (6), for
the rating scale was chosen to prevent respondents from giving a mid-point rating when
they were unsure of the degree of importance of a particular topic. Studies have been made
on the issue of odd or even numbers for scales and no reasons have been found as to why
even-numbered scales cannot be used (Menezes & Elbert 1979). If the scale designer
wishes to avoid the usage of the ‘uncertain’ category, it would be advisable to use even-
numbered scales (Matell & Jacoby 1972). The choice of categories should be dictated by

66
the needs of the study as long as the number of categories is not too small or too large to
represent distinctions that are meaningful to the respondents (Menezes & Elbert 1979).

Two versions of the Likert scale were developed which included a simple scale (1 = not
relevant to 6 = essential) and a second scale (1 = not relevant/not required, 2 = awareness
only, 3 = minimum understanding, 4 = good understanding, 5 = full understanding and 6 =
able to use and apply). The two different scales were tested with the help of two academic
colleagues with good research experience. Both colleagues preferred the latter scale.
Because the topics would be selected based on the ratings made in this phase for
developing the questionnaire for Phase II, it was necessary to attach some meaning in the
Likert scale for this phase instead of a continuum from 1 to 6. Topics with mean scores
equal to or greater than 4 would include those regarded by the respondents as requiring
‘good understanding’, ‘full understanding’ or ‘able to apply and use’. These topics would
be used as the basis for developing the questionnaire for Phase II of the research. Topics
with mean scores less than 4 (minimum understanding, awareness only and not
relevant/not required) would be eliminated. Figure 3.4 shows a snapshot of the
questionnaire for Phase I while Figure 3.5 illustrates the selection of topics from Phase I to
be included in the main study.

Figure 3.4 Snapshot of questionnaire for Phase I

Source: Developed for this research

67
Figure 3.5 Selection of topics for the main study

Eliminated Selected

       
       
Mean scores       
  1  2  3 4 5 6 
  Not relevant/  Awareness  Some Good Full Able to apply 
  Not required  only  understanding understanding understanding  and use 

Source: Developed for this research

A weakness of this method is the possibility that IT topics required by accountants could
be eliminated in the pilot study resulting in an ineffective questionnaire for the main study.
This weakness was overcome by the design of the interview questions which asked
participants in the main study to articulate IT topics not included in the questionnaire. The
interview question design is discussed in Section 3.5.2.

3.4.2 Selection of Delphi panellists

Six individuals in the accounting profession representing different sectors of the profession
were identified and invited to be the panel for Phase I. Selection was made through
connections in the accounting profession and industry and referrals from colleagues. The
panellists selected included a partner from a small CA firm (coded as D01), an accounting
lecturer from a university (D02), an accountant from a government agency (D03), a chief
accountant from a medium sized commercial firm (D04), a treasury accountant from a
large commercial firm (D05) and a business advisory consultant from a large CA firm
(D06). All panellists were based in Auckland, NZ and had strong background and long
working experience in the accounting profession. Table 3.3 lists the brief credentials of the
panellists.

68
Table 3.3 Brief credentials of Delphi panellists
Panellist Brief credentials
D01 Joined the current CA firm in 1985 after working as assistant accountant in a large NZ
company for five years. Became a partner of the CA firm in 1990. Mainly involved in
business advisory and management services.
D02 Lecturer of a university specialising in AIS. Started teaching career in 2000 and was a PhD
candidate at the time of the survey. Between 1994 and 2000, she worked as assistant
accountant, auditor and business analyst in various companies in NZ.
D03 A chartered accountant with B. Com degree from a NZ university. Prior to joining the
government agency where he is currently working as the chief accountant, he has held various
accounting roles in industry which included five years as a financial controller of a large
international manufacturing group.
D04 Chief accountant of a medium sized freight and transportation company. He holds an MBA
degree and has worked in a government agency before his current job.
D05 Currently working as treasury accountant at one of the largest NZ companies for three years.
Qualified as chartered accountant while working with a large CA firm in NZ, after which he
worked for an investment banking group in London where he completed his MBA before
joining the current company.
D06 A total of seven years of experience working for two large CA firms in the Business Advisory
Services specialising in IT general control assessments.

Source: Developed for this research

3.4.3 Results from Phase I

Data collection occurred between August and November of 2008, the questionnaires being
sent to the Delphi panellists by mail. The panellists rated the topics in the first round
independently. The results from the first round were collated and the mean score and
standard deviation of each topic computed. Table 3.4 shows the mean scores from the first
round. Sixteen topics out of 266 had mean scores of 5 or above and 46 topics had mean
scores of between 4 and 4.9.

Table 3.4 Summary of mean scores from first round of Phase I

Mean score Number of topics % of total
≥5 16 6%
4 to 4.9 46 17%
3 to 3.9 90 34%
2 to 2.9 100 38%
<2 14 5%
266 100%

Source: Developed for this research

69
The panellists were asked to rate the topics again in a second round where they were
shown how the others had rated including the mean score, the standard deviation and the
scores of the other five panellists of each topic. It has to be noted that the identities of the
other panellists were never disclosed throughout the whole process. The instructions to the
panellists were that they were not obliged to change their ratings if they believed the rating
of a particular topic given in the first round best reflected their opinion. The results from
the second round were collated and compared with the scores from the first round.

The mean scores from the second round of Phase I are summarised in Table 3.5. The full
list of the scores from both rounds is shown in Appendix 2. The number of topics with
mean scores of 5 or above and between 4 and 4.9 in the second round were 22 and 42
respectively. The number of topics in the ‘≥ 5’ category increased by six while the number
of those in the ‘4 to 4.9’ category decreased by four. This gives a net increase of two topics
between the two score categories. Table 3.6 shows the changes from the first round.

Table 3.5 Summary of mean scores from second round of Phase I

Mean score Number of topics % of total
≥5 22 8%
4 to 4.9 42 16%
3 to 3.9 91 34%
2 to 2.9 94 35%
<2 17 7%
266 100%

Source: Developed for this research

Table 3.6 Changes in number of topics from the first round

No. of topics in No. of topics in
Mean score Change
first round second round
≥5 16 22 +6
4 to 4.9 46 42 -4
3 to 3.9 90 91 +1
2 to 2.9 100 94 -6
<2 14 17 +3
266 266

Source: Developed for this research

70
An analysis of the changes made by the panellists based on the mean score from the first
round is shown in Table 3.7. The number of changes made in the ‘≥ 5’ category relative to
the number of topics was low (4/16 = 25%) showing a high degree of agreement among the
panellists. Only one panellist (D05) made changes in this score category. The ‘4 to 4.9’
category had 29 changes (29/46 = 63%) which was higher than the ‘≥ 5’ category. The
number of changes made in the ‘3 to 3.9’ category was 94 (94/90 = 104%). In the ‘2 to 2.9’
category, it was 88 (88/100 = 88%). This shows that the panellists were indecisive in these
two categories. The ‘< 2’ category showed good agreement (5/14 = 36%). Since only IT
topics with mean scores ≥ 5 and between 4 and 4.9 from Phase I were to be used for Phase
II, and that these two categories showed good and acceptable degrees of agreement from
the Delphi panellists, a third round was not carried out. The mean scores from the second
round were used as the basis for developing the questionnaire for Phase II of the research.
It has to be noted that the Delphi panellists were busy executives and completing a
questionnaire with 266 questions for two rounds was a significant commitment.

Table 3.7 Changes made to first round score categories

Number of changes made
No. of topics in
Mean score D01 D02 D03 D04 D05 D06 Total
first round
≥5 16 0 0 0 0 4 0 4
4 to 4.9 46 2 8 4 1 2 12 29
3 to 3.9 90 14 15 32 5 1 27 94
2 to 2.9 100 5 17 42 11 4 9 88
<2 14 0 0 0 0 5 0 5
Total 266 21 40 78 17 16 48 220

Source: Developed for this research

Table 3.8 shows an analysis of the mean scores by source. Twelve topics (6.4%) from
IEPS 2 were rated 5 or above by the experts, 17 (9%) were rated between 4 to 4.9. For
SLO-5 of NZICA, all five topics were rated between 3 to 3.9. Four topics (13.3%) from
Bain, Blankley and Smith (2002) received a mean score of 5 or above, eight (26.7%)
scored between 4 and 4.9. Out of the 34 topics from Wessels (2005), five topics (14.7%)

71
were rated 5 or above, 12 (35.3%) had a mean score between 4 and 4.9. Of the nine
additional topics developed for this research, one (11.1%) had a mean score of 5 or above
and 12 (55.6%) were scored between 4 and 4.9. In terms of the absolute number of topics
from different sources that were rated 4 or above, IEPS2 provides the highest number (29)
followed by Wessels (17), Bain et al. (12) and those developed for this research (6). None
of the topics from SLO-5 scored 4 or above.

Table 3.8 Mean scores by source

Number
Source ≥5 4 to 4.9 3 to 3.9 2 to 2.9 <2
of topics
188 12 17 55 87 17
IFAC IEPS 2
(6.4%) (9%) (29.3%) (46.3%) (9%)
5 0 0 5 0 0
NZICA SLO-5
(100%)
30 4 8 16 2 0
Bain, Blankley & Smith (2002)
(13.3%) (26.7%) (53.3%) (6.7%)
34 5 12 13 4 0
Wessels (2005)
(14.7%) (35.3%) (38.2%) (11.8%)
9 1 5 2 1 0
Developed for this research
(11.1%) (55.6%) (22.2%) (11.1%)
Total 266 22 42 91 94 17

Source: Developed for this research

The top 22 topics with mean scores of 5 or above were categorised into topic areas based
on the description of the topics and are listed in Table 3.9. They fall into nine topic
categories – spreadsheet, word processor, accounting software, accounting systems,
Internet tools, data security, database software, IT controls and values.

Table 3.9 Topics with mean score ≥ 5

Question
IT knowledge/skills Mean score Topic category Source
number
5.21 Office software (spreadsheet) 6.0 Spreadsheet IEPS 2
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to
9.3 6.0 Spreadsheet IEPS 2
business/accounting problems (spreadsheet)
16.3 Spreadsheets 5.8 Spreadsheet Wessels

5.20 Office software (word processor) 5.7 Word processor IEPS 2

Accounting
16.10 Accounting software 5.7 Wessels
software

72
 Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business
9.2 5.5 Word processor IEPS 2
/accounting problems (word processor)
Demonstrate understanding of business and Accounting
9.10 5.5 IEPS 2
accounting systems systems
Accounting
17.1 Accounting software (MYOB, Great Plains) 5.5 Developed
software
Subsumed into
spreadsheet,
Appropriate IT systems/tools to
8.10 5.3 word processor, IEPS 2
business/accounting problems
and presentation
topics
Demonstrate understanding of business and Accounting
9.11 5.3 IEPS 2
accounting systems (ERP, CRM) systems
Accounting
15.6 GL reporting cycle 5.3 Bain et al.
systems
16.2 Word processing 5.3 Word processor Wessels
Office software (Internet tools: e-mail, web
5.19 5.2 Internet tools IEPS 2
browsing)
General means of communication supported by
6.1 5.2 Internet tools IEPS 2
IT
6.2 Risks in communication supported by IT 5.2 Data security IEPS 2
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business
9.5 5.2 Internet tools IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Internet tools)
Database
5.22 Office software (Database management system) 5.0 IEPS 2
software
Accounting
15.3 Revenue cycle 5.0 Bain et al.
systems
15.20 Internal control 5.0 IT controls Bain et al.

15.29 Ethics 5.0 Values Bain et al.

16.5 Internet tools 5.0 Internet tools Wessels

Database
16.9 Database search and retrieval 5.0 Wessels
software

Source: Developed for this research

The 42 topics with mean scores of between 4 and 4.9 were categorised into topic areas and
are listed in Table 3.10. These fall into 14 topic categories – accounting systems, operating
systems, general systems knowledge, Internet knowledge, presentation software,
accounting software, database software, database concepts, IT controls, IT audit software,
research tools, e-commerce, data security and documentation tools.

Table 3.10 Topics with mean scores between 4 and 4.9

Question
IT knowledge/skills Mean score Topic category Source
number
Business documents, accounting records, Accounting
2.11 4.8 IEPS 2
control/management reports systems

73
 Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business Operating
9.1 4.8 IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Operating systems) systems
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business Operating
9.8 4.8 IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Anti-virus software) systems
General systems
15.1 Introduction to systems 4.8 Bain et al.
knowledge
Internet
15.22 Communication systems and technology 4.8 Bain et al.
knowledge
Presentation
16.4 Presentation software 4.8 Wessels
software
Accounting
16.11 Tax return preparation software 4.8 Wessels
software
Accounting
17.2 ERP systems (SAP, Oracle) 4.8 Developed
software
Accounting
3.3 Effectiveness of the entity’s business processes 4.7 IEPS 2
systems
Presentation
5.18 Office software (Presentation software) 4.7 IEPS 2
software
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business Database
9.4 4.7 IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Database software) software
Accounting
15.4 Purchasing cycle 4.7 Bain et al.
systems
Accounting
15.7 HR/Payroll cycle 4.7 Bain et al.
systems
Accounting
16.12 Time management and billing systems 4.7 Wessels
software
Accounting
16.14 Electronic working papers 4.7 Wessels
software
Database
17.6 Database concepts 4.7 Developed
concepts
Internet
6.3 Benefits of IT to communication 4.5 IEPS 2
knowledge
Understanding of business and accounting Accounting
8.11 4.5 IEPS 2
systems systems
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business Presentation
9.7 4.5 IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Presentation software) software
General systems
15.2 Introduction to transaction processing systems 4.5 Bain et al.
knowledge
General systems
15.16 End user computing 4.5 Bain et al.
knowledge
15.21 Computer fraud 4.5 IT controls Bain et al.

15.28 IT audit 4.5 IT controls Bain et al.

9.14 Apply controls to personal system 4.3 IT controls IEPS 2

IT audit
16.15 Audit software 4.3 Wessels
software
Operating
16.27 Anti-virus software 4.3 Wessels
systems
General systems
2.6 Attributes of information 4.2 IEPS 2
knowledge
Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) IT audit
5.25 4.2 IEPS 2
(Analytical tools) software
7.19 Controls over information systems 4.2 IT controls IEPS 2

8.12 The application of controls to personal systems 4.2 IT controls IEPS 2

74
 Operating
16.1 Operating systems 4.2 Wessels
systems
16.6 Research tools 4.2 Research tools Wessels
Database
16.8 Database software 4.2 Wessels
software
16.22 Electronic data interchange 4.2 e-commerce Wessels
Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) IT audit
5.23 4.0 IEPS 2
(Accounting packages and CAAT) software
Apply appropriate IT systems/tools to business Operating
9.9 4.0 IEPS 2
/accounting problems (Utility software) systems
Demonstrate understanding of business and
9.13 4.0 e-commerce IEPS 2
accounting systems (e-commerce)
Internet
16.29 Firewall software/hardware 4.0 Wessels
knowledge
16.32 Back-up and recovery 4.0 Data security Wessels
Documentation
17.3 Documentation tools (System flowcharts) 4.0 Developed
tools
Documentation
17.4 Documentation tools (Document flowcharts) 4.0 Developed
tools
Documentation
17.5 Documentation tools (Data flow diagrams) 4.0 Developed
tools

Source: Developed for this research

The topic categories with mean scores of 5 and above, and those between 4 and 4.9, as
listed in Tables 3.9 and 3.10, were combined into the respective topic categories to arrive
at a list that will be used as the basis of the questionnaire for Phase II of the research. Table
3.11 shows the topic categories and the number of questions that made up the topic
category with the highest and lowest mean scores of the questions.

Table 3.11 Topics with mean score ≥ 4

Highest Lowest
Number of
Topic category Contents mean mean
questions
score score
Spreadsheet 3 Use of spreadsheet software 6 5.8

Word processor 3 Use of word processing software 5.7 5.3

Accounting software
Accounting systems
Internet tools
Use of MYOB, Great Plains, SAP,
Oracle, Tax return software, Electronic
6 5.7 4.7
working papers, Time management and
billing systems
Understanding business systems, ERP,
CRM, GL reporting cycle, Revenue
9 5.5 4.5
cycle, Purchasing cycle, HR/payroll
cycle
4 Use of E-mail, web browsing, SMS 5.2 5

75
Data security 2 Able to perform backup and recovery 5.2 4

Values 1 Ethical standards 5 5

Use of database software, database
Database software 4 5 4.2
search and retrieval
Internal control, computer fraud, IT
IT controls 6 5 4.2
audit, controls to personal computers
Presentation
3 Use of presentation software 4.8 4.5
software
General systems Understanding transaction processing
4 4.8 4.2
knowledge system, end-user computing
Understanding communications
Internet knowledge 3 4.8 4
technologies, firewall software/hardware
Use of utility software, anti-virus
Operating systems 5 4.8 4
software
Database concepts 1 Understanding database concepts 4.7 4.7

IT audit software 3 Use of IT audit software, CAAT 4.3 4

Research tools 1 Able to use research tools 4.2 4.2

Understanding electronic data
e-commerce 2 4.2 4
interchange, B2B, B2C e-commerce
Understanding System flowcharts,
Documentation tools 3 Document flowcharts, Data flow 4 4
diagrams

Source: Developed for this research

3.5 Phase II – Main Study

Phase II of the research used a mixed method approach comprising a questionnaire
followed by semi-structured interviews. The list of IT knowledge and skills with a mean
score of ≥ 4 from Phase I (see Table 3.11) was used as the basis of the questionnaire. The
IT topics were sorted in alphabetical order to prevent participants from guessing their order
of importance. Respondents were asked to rate the importance of the IT topics in the first
five years of an accountant’s career using a Likert scale of 1 to 6 (1 = not relevant, 6 =
essential). The mean scores from the questionnaire are expected to provide evidence for
RQ1. Questions for the semi-structured interview were designed and prepared before the
interview as discussed in section 3.5.2. These questions were designed to elicit more
details on the IT topics rated by the participants in the questionnaire and to collect data for
the other research questions.

76
3.5.1 Sampling
Quantitative and qualitative researchers approach sampling differently (Neuman 2006). A
quantitative study would use probability sampling since the aim of quantitative studies is to
draw representation from a sample to be able to generalise the findings. Quantitative
studies also tend to focus on accuracy and therefore require a large sample. Qualitative
studies do not focus on generalisation but more on deep understanding of cases. Qualitative
researchers therefore tend to use non-probability and smaller samples (Neuman 2006).
Qualitative researchers select cases gradually with the specific content of a case
determining whether a case is chosen.

As discussed in section 3.2, the data collection method chosen for Phase II of the study
involved semi-structured interviews. Non-probabilistic sampling was used to select
participants. Neuman (2006, p. 220) provides a list of different non-probability sampling
methods. These include haphazard, quota, purposeful, snowball, deviant case, sequential
and theoretical sampling. Table 3.12 shows the principles of the different sampling method
for qualitative data collection.

Table 3.12 Qualitative sampling methods

Type of sample Principle

Haphazard Get any cases in any manner that is convenient.

Get a preset number of cases in each of several predetermined
Quota categories that will reflect the diversity of the population, using
haphazard methods.
Get all possible cases that fit particular criteria, using various
Purposive
methods.
Get cases using referrals from one or a few cases, and then referrals
Snowball
from those cases, and so forth.
Get cases that substantially differ from the dominant patterns (a
Deviant case
special type of purposive sample).
Get cases until there is no additional information or new
Sequential
characteristics (often used with other sampling methods).
Get cases that will help reveal features that are theoretically
Theoretical
important about a particular setting/topic.

Source: Neuman (2006, p. 220)

77
A combination of purposive, snowball and sequential sampling was used to select
participants. The sample was drawn from two sources. One source was from recent
graduates of TEIs where accountants with less experience were expected to exist in this
sampling frame. The other was from professional accounting bodies where practitioners
with more working experience were expected.

A list of past and present accounting major students was obtained from a TEI in Auckland,
NZ. E-mails were sent to a selected list of students who had graduated in the last three
years or were in their final year of study, inviting them to participate in the research. The
criterion for participation in the study was that they must be currently employed at the time
in an accounting capacity. This resulted in 13 current and past students meeting the
criterion and accepting the invitation. An additional two students were recruited using the
snowball method.

The second sampling frame was members from professional accounting bodies. Contacts
were made with NZICA, the Institute of Internal Auditors NZ (IIANZ), and the Chartered
Institute of Management Accountants NZ (CIMA) and resulted in six participants agreeing
to participate in the research. Two additional participants were recruited as a result of
referrals from two of the participants. In total 23 participants were recruited from the two
sampling frames. No further participants were required as it was determined that saturation
of information was attained based on the sequential sampling principle. The principle
suggests getting cases until there is no additional information or new characteristics from
the data collected (see Table 3.12). This situation was confirmed during the analysis of
data when no new codes and descriptors were needed after about the 15th case (see Section
3.5.5). The researcher therefore determined that the sample size of 23 cases was
appropriate.

3.5.2 Interview question design

Interview questions were developed from the research questions discussed in Chapter 2
and were designed to probe participants into expounding on the IT knowledge and skills
requirements for their present and future needs. Two sets of interview questions were
prepared to guide the semi-structured interviews, one for junior accountants and another

78
for senior accountants. For the purpose of this study, junior accountants were defined as
those who had no other accountants reporting to the participant. Senior accountants were
participants who had at least one direct report. It has to be noted that this classification was
not based on the number of years of experience of the participants but on whether they
were in a supervisory or non-supervisory role. Separating the participants into these two
groups allowed the comparison of different views between supervisors and non-supervisors
– the views of participants with supervisory roles being used as a proxy for employers’
views.

Tables 3.13 and 3.14 show the research questions and the related interview questions for
‘Juniors’ (JIQ) and ‘Seniors’ (SIQ) respectively. The questions displayed in the two
tables were only leading questions to facilitate the interviews. Other unscripted questions
and responses were expected from the interviews.

Table 3.13 Interview questions for Juniors

Research questions Interview questions
JIQ01 Of the IT topics you have rated in the above list, do you use any of
RQ2 How are IT
them regularly in your day-to-day work?
knowledge and skills used
and applied in NZ
JIQ02 Of the IT topics you have rated in the above list, do you use any of
accountants’ work?
them occasionally in your day-to-day work?
JIQ03 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with your
colleagues within the accounting department? What is the nature of these IT
matters?

JIQ04 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with the IT
department or IT suppliers/contractors? What is the nature of these IT
matters?
RQ3 How are NZ
accountants involved in IT
JIQ05 In your dealings with the IT department/IT suppliers, do you
related matters?
encounter difficulties/problems in communications and understanding the IT
staff? What are these difficulties or problems?

JIQ06 What additional IT knowledge/skills can improve this situation?

JIQ07 IT is developing at a rapid pace, how do you keep yourself up-to-date

on IT?

79
 JIQ08 Do you feel you have adequate IT knowledge and skills learned from
your accounting major programme to perform proficiently in your job?

JIQ09 How well did your accounting programme prepare you for your
RQ4 Do NZ accountants
accounting practice?
feel they have adequate IT
knowledge and skills for
JIQ10 What additional IT knowledge and skills will allow you to perform
their jobs?
better in your job?

JIQ11 If you were going back to study/(or if you are still studying), what IT
topics would you want to learn to improve your IT competency in your job?
JIQ12 What other IT knowledge and skills do you think are needed if you
RQ5 What IT knowledge
are promoted to a higher position in your company?
and skills do NZ
accountants regard as
JIQ13 What other IT knowledge and skills do you think are needed in five
necessary in the future?
year’s time?

Source: Developed for this research

Table 3.14 Interview questions for Seniors

Research questions Interview questions
SIQ01 Of the IT topics you have rated in the above list, do your assistants
RQ2 How are IT
use any of them regularly in their day-to-day work?
knowledge and skills used
and applied in NZ
SIQ02 Of the IT topics you have rated in the above list, do your assistants
accountants’ work?
use any of them occasionally in their work?
SIQ03 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with your
colleagues within the accounting department? What is the nature of these IT
matters?

SIQ04 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with the IT
department or IT suppliers/contractors? What is the nature of these IT
matters?
RQ3 How are NZ
accountants involved in IT
SIQ05 In your dealings with the IT department/IT suppliers, do you
related matters?
encounter difficulties/problems in communications and understanding the IT
staff? What are these difficulties or problems?

SIQ06 What additional IT knowledge/skills can improve this situation?

SIQ07 IT is developing at a rapid pace, how do you keep yourself up-to-date

on IT?

80
 SIQ08 Do you feel your assistants have adequate IT knowledge and skills
RQ4 Do NZ accountants learned from their accounting major programme to perform proficiently in
feel they have adequate IT their jobs?
knowledge and skills for
their jobs? SIQ09 What additional IT knowledge and skills will allow your assistants to
perform better in their jobs?
SIQ10 What other IT knowledge and skills do you think are needed if your
RQ5 What IT knowledge
assistants are promoted to a higher position in your company?
and skills do NZ
accountants regard as
SIQ11 What other IT knowledge and skills do you think are needed for your
necessary in the future?
assistants in five year’s time?

Source: Developed for this research

3.5.3 Data collection

Data collection for Phase II took place between October and December of 2009. After an
appointment was made with a participant, an e-mail was sent to the participant containing a
set of questions to collect some demographic data together with the questionnaire
developed from Phase I (see Appendix 3). The participants were asked to complete the
questionnaire and to rate the topics before the interview took place. The scale used for
rating the IT topics was 1 to 6 (1 = not relevant, 6 = essential). This was the same scale
used in Phase I of the study except that it was a continuum from 1 to 6 with no meaning
given to the other ratings in between. This allowed a less restrictive response from
participants for this phase of the study. All interviews took place at the participants’ work
place and took on average one hour. The interviews were guided using the pre-designed
interview questions as shown in Tables 3.13 and 3.14. All interviews were voice-recorded
with the exception of one participant who did not give his consent.

3.5.4 Data analysis method for questionnaire

Data collected from the questionnaire were quantitative and were analysed using
quantitative analysis methods. Ratings given by the participants for each question were
entered into SPSS. Descriptive statistics were used and the findings are presented in
Chapter 4. The overall mean scores of IT topics were computed and ranked in order of
importance. In addition to the overall mean scores, the mean scores for each IT topic from

81
different participant groups were also computed for comparison. Details of the three
participant groups – Seniority, Industry and Experience – are discussed in section 4.1.

3.5.5 Data analysis method for interviews

Data collected from the interviews were qualitative and were analysed using qualitative
analysis methods. Unlike quantitative data analysis, qualitative data analysis is less
standardised (Neuman 2006). However, the central process of both types of data analysis
involves comparisons across cases to draw on similarities and differences between them
(Neuman 2006).

Since qualitative data come in the form of words rather than numbers, the issue is how to
move from words to data analysis (Silverman 2000). Miles and Huberman (1994, pp. 10-
12) suggest that qualitative data analysis consists of three flows of activity: data reduction,
data display and conclusion drawing/verification. Data reduction is the process of
selecting, focusing, simplifying, abstracting and transforming interview data and making
decisions on which chunks of data are useful in the analysis. Data display involves the
organised assembly of data into matrices, graphs and charts. Conclusion drawing is the
process of drawing meaning and identifying patterns or propositions. Finally, verification
tests the conclusions for their reliability.

Leech and Onwuegbuzie (2008) provide a range of qualitative data analysis tools for
different types of data collection – talk, observations, drawings/photographs/videos and
documents. Interviews belong to the ‘talk’ category of data collection. The different data
analysis techniques that can be used in analysing talk as proposed by Leech and
Onwuegbuzie (2008) are:

 Conversation analysis
 Discourse analysis
 Narrative analysis
 Semiotics
 Qualitative comparative analysis
 Constant comparison analysis
 Keywords-in-context

82
  Word count
 Membership categorisation analysis
 Domain analysis
 Taxonomic analysis
 Componential analysis
 Classical content analysis
 Micro-interlocutor analysis

Constant comparison analysis as proposed by Leech and Onwuegbuzie is similar to the

data reduction process proposed by Miles and Huberman. Qualitative comparative analysis
is similar to ‘data display’ and ‘conclusion drawing’ described by the same researchers.
From the above list of techniques, constant comparison analysis (data reduction) and
qualitative comparative analysis (data display/conclusion drawing) were regarded as
suitable for the analysis of the interview data for this study. The descriptions of these two
techniques are shown in Table 3.15.

Table 3.15 Techniques used for analysing interview data

Techniques
Constant comparison analysis
Qualitative comparative analysis
Short description of technique
Systematically reducing data to codes, then developing
themes from the codes
Systematically analysing similarities and differences across
cases, typically being used as a theory-building approach,
allowing the analyst to make connections among previously
built categories, as well as to test and to develop the
categories further

Source: Adapted from Leech and Onwuegbuzie (2008)

All voice recordings from the interviews were transcribed into text by professional
transcribers. Each voice recording was played and listened to by the researcher while
reading the corresponding transcript, making corrections to errors made by the transcribers
while listening and reading. At the same time, the main points from the interviews were
noted and typed in a table form for each and every participant. This is shown in Appendix
4 – Interview main points. The corrected transcripts were read a second time and analysed
with reference to the interview questions. The responses to each interview question for

83
each participant were analysed and summarised in table form. This is shown in Appendix 5
– Summary of interview responses.

The transcripts were read and analysed for a third time. Using constant comparison
analysis and data reduction, codes were developed to record the contents of the interviews
into concise pieces of data. Examples of the codes are SS = spreadsheet, AcSW =
accounting software, DBASE = database. The list of codes is shown in Appendix 6. A
second code which the researcher labelled as ‘descriptor’ was also developed. Examples of
the descriptors are DAILY = daily, IMP = important, NotREQ = not required. The list of
descriptors is shown in Appendix 7. As the interview transcripts were analysed in this
round, the combination of a code and a descriptor formed a theme. Examples of themes are
‘SS – IMP’ = spreadsheet is important, ‘AcSW – DAILY’ = accounting software is used
daily.

In order to ensure that the analysis of interview data is reliable, it is important that the
coded data can be referenced to and audited from the original transcripts. It is also
important that the coded data can be sorted or filtered to focus on a particular theme and to
search for the verbatim of different interviewees that constitute the theme. A number of
qualitative research software are available such as ATLAS.ti, HyperRESEARCH,
MAXQDA, NVivo, WEFT QDA, etc. to manage and analyse qualitative data. Instead of
using these software products, a method to achieve the intended objectives was developed
using a spreadsheet designed to capture the relevant interview data and is described in the
following paragraphs. Bui and Porter (2010) also made use of spreadsheets in analysing
data collected from interviews.

Each response from a particular interviewee as recorded in the transcripts was labelled
with a dialogue number starting from 1. Figure 3.6 shows a snapshot of a portion of the
layout of the transcript from J01 and the corresponding dialogue numbers.

84
Figure 3.6 Snapshot of transcript showing dialogue numbers

Source: Developed for this research

A spreadsheet was then created to capture the participant code, the interview questions
(IQ), the codes, the descriptors, the dialogue number and the verbatim. The dialogue
number provides the link back to the position of the original transcript if a particular
response from the participant needs to be further analysed or clarified. A snapshot of the
spreadsheet is shown in Figure 3.7. Column A of the spreadsheet contains the sequence
number starting from 1. This column is used to sort the data captured back to its original
sequence when needed. Column C records the participant code and column D is the
interview question. Where a response was not related to any of the interview questions, it
was given a code of ‘99’ as the interview question number. Columns E and F contain the
code and the descriptor, column G contains the dialogue number, and column H contains
the verbatim or notes. The spreadsheet can also be used in different ways to facilitate the
analysis of interview data. For example, to find how many participants have said
spreadsheet is important, the spreadsheet can be filtered by code ‘SS’ and descriptor ‘IMP’

85
to locate the participants. When analysing the data for a particular interview question, the
spreadsheet can be sorted by IQ so that all responses to a particular interview question are
listed together for easy reference.

Figure 3.7 Snapshot of spreadsheet for capturing interview data

Source: Developed for this research

The final step in the analysis of the interview data was data display, which is presented in
Chapter 4. The spreadsheet was used as the main source for this process but at the same
time, the Interview main points (Appendix 4) and the Summary of interview responses
(Appendix 5) were referred to constantly while writing and presenting the findings. This
process provides a means to ensure the reliability of the data analysis.

3.6 Research ethics

Although this research did not involve sensitive or personal data, research ethics were
observed to protect the rights of the participants and to ensure that the research was
conducted with high ethical standards. Guidelines proposed by Zikmund (2003) were
followed and these included informing the participants of the true purpose of the research;
protecting the confidentiality of the identity of the respondents and their companies;

86
presenting the results and findings correctly and objectively; and respecting the right of the
participants to refuse to participate or withdraw from the research. A consent form was
presented and signed by all participants. Consent was also obtained from participants for
voice-recording the interviews. Only questions relevant to the research were included in
the questionnaire and the interviews. All materials including the completed questionnaires,
the digital files of the voice recordings and the transcripts of interviews were kept in a
secured location.

3.7 Chapter summary

The choice of research methodology depends on the researcher’s research paradigm but
even more importantly on the nature of the research questions. This chapter has presented
the overall methodology of this research, which comprised a pilot study (Phase I) followed
by the main study (Phase II). This study is inductive and the main objective is to explore
the important IT knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates. Supporting
research questions were also developed to explore the depth and breadth and level of detail
required for the IT knowledge and skills, the day-to-day duties and interactions of
accountants with colleagues on IT issues, and their views on the needs of IT knowledge in
the future. This chapter has also discussed the methods used in Phase I and Phase II
respectively.

87
 CHAPTER 4 – DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
4 DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
4.0 Introduction
In Chapter 3 the methodology for this research was discussed and justified. This included
discussions on research paradigm, the sampling and data collection method and how the
data analysis would be done. As discussed, this study comprises two phases, the first of
which is the pilot study employing the Delphi method. Six experts in the accounting field
were asked to rate 266 questions using a Likert scale of 1 to 6 for two rounds. Questions
with mean scores of less than 4 at the end of the second round were eliminated. Questions
with mean scores equal to or greater than 4 were used to develop the questionnaire for the
main study. Chapter 4 now presents the analysis of the data collected in the main study.

Data collection for the main study included a questionnaire followed by interviews, the
questionnaire having been sent to participants before the interviews took place. Participants
were asked to give a score of 1 to 6 on a Likert scale (1 = not relevant, 6 = essential) for
each of the 18 IT knowledge and skills developed from the Delphi phase of the study. The
overall mean scores were used to rank the IT knowledge and skills in order of importance.
Mean scores from different participant groups were also computed and compared. All
interviews except for one were voice-recorded. Field notes were also taken in addition to
the recordings. The voice recordings were transcribed by professional transcribers into text
for analysis.

The results from the questionnaire provided evidence for RQ1 while the findings from the
interviews provided evidence for RQ2 to RQ5.

RQ1 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants need in the first five years of their
career?
RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?
RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?
RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?
RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

88
The objectives of this chapter are to:
 Present the analysis of data collected from the questionnaires
 Rank the IT knowledge and skills by the overall mean scores
 Compare and contrast the mean scores from different participant groups
 Interpret and present the data collected from the interviews
 Present evidence by referring to significant and relevant verbatim
 Apply mixed-methods to triangulate the findings from the qualitative data collected
from the interviews with quantitative data collected from the questionnaires
 Summarise the findings for discussion in the next chapter

Figure 4.1 shows the overview of Chapter 4.

Figure 4.1 Overview of Chapter 4

4.1 Demographics of 
sample 

4.2 Analysis of  4.2.1 Introduction 
questionnaire  4.2.2 RQ1 – Ranking of IT knowledge and skills 
results  4.2.3 Comparison of mean scores between 
participant groups 

4.3.1 Introduction 
4.3.2 RQ2 – Use and application of IT knowledge and 
4.3 Analysis of 
skills 
interview data 
4.3.3 RQ3 – Accountants’ involvement in IT 
4.3.4 RQ4 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge 
and skills 
4.3.5 RQ5 – IT knowledge and skills required in the 
future 
4.3.6 Other findings from interviews 
4.4 Summary of 
findings 

4.5 Chapter summary

Source: Developed for this research

89
4.1 Demographics of sample
A total of 23 participants completed the questionnaire and were successfully interviewed.
Appendix 3 shows the questionnaire for the main study, consisting of two sections. Section
I required participants to complete questions on demographic data. Section II required
them to rate 18 IT topics developed from the pilot study using a Likert scale of 1 to 6 (1 =
not relevant, 6 = essential).

Based on the demographic data collected, the participants were classified into different
groups based on the position they held:
 Seniority – whether they had other accountants reporting to them
 Industry – the type of company they worked for
 Experience – the number of years of experience they had in accounting practice

‘Seniority’ is based on whether the participants had any accounting staff reporting to them
at the time of the interview. Those who had no direct reports were classified as ‘Junior’
while those who had at least one direct report were classified as ‘Senior’. A total of 14
participants were classified as Juniors and nine as Seniors. Participants who were classified
as Juniors were coded as J01 to J14 and those classified as Seniors were coded as S01 to
S09. A different set of interview questions was designed for the two groups. The questions
for Seniors were directed at their assistants while those for Juniors were directed at
themselves.

‘Industry’ is broadly classified into commercial firm; chartered accountant/audit/business

advisory firms (CA firm); and government/education institutions (Gov/Edu). ‘Experience’
is classified into four categories based on the number of years of experience the participant
had in accounting practice. Tables 4.1 to 4.3 show the number of participants of each
participant group. The classification of participants into the three participant groups allows
the comparison of mean scores and opinions between the groups.

90
Table 4.1 Participants by Seniority
Seniority Number of participants %

Junior 14 61%
Senior 9 39%
Total 23 100%

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.2 Participants by Industry

Industry Number of participants %

Commercial firm 12 52%

CA firm 6 26%
Gov/Edu 5 22%
Total 23 100%

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.3 Participants by Experience

Experience Number of participants %

< 5 years 7 30%

5 to 10 5 22%
10 to 20 7 30%
> 20 4 18%
Total 23 100%

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.4 shows the industry, position title and the number of years of experience of each
of the participants.

91
Table 4.4 Demographic details of participants
Number of years of
Participant Industry Position
experience in accounting
J01 Commercial firm Accounting assistant <5

J02 Commercial firm Financial analyst 5 to 10

J03 Commercial firm Accounting assistant <5

J04 Gov/Edu Financial administrator 5 to 10

J05 Gov/Edu Accounting systems officer <5

J06 Commercial firm Assistant accountant 10 to 20

J07 CA firm Client service accountant <5

J08 CA firm Graduate accountant <5

Business advisory services
J09 CA firm <5
accountant
J10 Commercial firm Management accountant 10 to 20

J11 Commercial firm Chief accountant 10 to 20

J12 Commercial firm Accounting assistant 10 to 20

J13 Gov/Edu Planning and reporting analyst 5 to 10

J14 CA firm Accountant <5

S01 Commercial firm Chief financial officer > 20

S02 Gov/Edu Audit manager > 20

S03 CA firm Consultant 10 to 20

Senior manager – business
S04 CA firm 5 to 10
assurance
S05 Gov/Edu Project accountant > 20

S06 Commercial firm Financial controller 10 to 20

S07 Commercial firm Branch accountant 5 to 10

Manager – Management
S08 Commercial firm > 20
accountant
S09 Commercial firm Finance manager 10 to 20

Source: Developed for this research

Cross tabulations of the participants by Seniority/Industry and Seniority/Experience are

shown in Tables 4.5 and 4.6 respectively. It is worth mentioning the relationship between
seniority and number of years of experience of the participants. While it is expected that
accounting practitioners would be working in positions where they would be given

92
supervisory roles after a number of years, there were four with 10 to 20 years of experience
who were in Junior positions. These participants were J06, J10, J11 and J12 (see Table 4.6)
and are highlighted with an asterisk in the table. They were either working in a specialist
capacity or in a small firm where they were the only accountant in the company.

Table 4.5 Participants by Seniority and Industry

Commercial firm CA firm Gov/Edu Total

Junior 7 4 3 14
Senior 5 2 2 9
Total 12 6 5 23

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.6 Participants by Seniority and Experience

Junior Senior Total

< 5 years 7 0 7
5 to 10 3 2 5
10 to 20 4* 3 7
> 20 0 4 4
Total 14 9 23

Source: Developed for this research

The following sections present the findings of data collected from the main study. Section
4.2 discusses the data collected from the questionnaire and Section 4.3 presents the data
collected from the interviews.

4.2 Analysis of questionnaire results

4.2.1 Introduction
The data collected from the questionnaire are expected to provide evidence for RQ1 –
‘What IT knowledge and skills are regarded as important by NZ accountants for the first
five years of their career?’ Since this study is inductive in nature, it is not the objective of

93
the study to use the data collected from the questionnaire to test for hypotheses. The main
purpose of the questionnaire is to serve as triangulation for data collected from the
interviews. It also provides a reference and starting point for the interviews.

4.2.2 RQ1 – Ranking of IT knowledge and skills

The scores from the questionnaire were entered into SPSS. The 18 questions were sorted in
descending order of the overall mean score and are listed in Table 4.7 showing the mean
score, rank and the standard deviation of each topic. The topics with an overall mean score
of ≥ 5 are categorised as Band 1, those between 4 and 4.9 as Band 2 and those with mean
score < 4 as Band 3. The categorisation of the topics into three bands facilitates the
comparison of the mean scores of the three participant groups, namely, Seniority, Industry
and Experience, and is discussed in Section 4.2.3.

There are six topics in Band 1: Spreadsheet, Accounting systems, Word processor,
Accounting software, Values and Internet tools, numbered 1.1 to 1.6. Seven topics fall
under Band 2: IT controls, General systems knowledge, Presentation software, Database
concepts, Database software, Research tools and e-commerce, numbered 2.1 to 2.7. The
remaining five topics scored between 3.96 and 3.13 and are categorised as Band 3 topics:
Documentation tools, Internet knowledge, IT audit software, Data security and Operating
systems, numbered 3.1 to 3.5. Detailed descriptions of the topics are shown in Table 4.7.
The histogram and descriptive statistics of each topic and the cross tabulations by
participant group are shown in Appendix 8.

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Table 4.7 Overall mean scores of IT knowledge and skills (n=23)
Mean Std
Topic Rank Details
score dev
1.1 Spreadsheet 1 Use of spreadsheet software 5.91 0.288
Understanding business systems, ERP,
CRM, GL reporting cycle, Revenue
1.2 Accounting systems 2 5.48 0.665
cycle, Purchasing cycle, HR/payroll
cycle
1.3 Word processor 3 Use of word processing software 5.43 0.896
Band 1

Use of MYOB, Great Plains, SAP,

Oracle, Tax return software, Electronic
1.4 Accounting software 4 5.35 0.885
working papers, Time management and
billing systems
1.5 Values 4= Ethical standards 5.35 1.027

1.6 Internet tools 6 Use of e-mail, web browsing, SMS 5.09 1.083
Internal control, computer fraud, IT
2.1 IT controls 7 4.61 1.373
audit, controls to personal computers
2.2 General systems Understanding transaction processing
8 4.57 0.992
knowledge system, end-user computing
2.3 Presentation software 9 Use of presentation software 4.43 1.308
Band 2

2.4 Database concepts 10 Understanding database concepts 4.35 1.265

Use of database software, database
2.5 Database software 11 4.26 1.176
search and retrieval
2.6 Research tools 12 Able to use research tools 4.09 1.443
Understanding electronic data
2.7 e-commerce 13 4.04 1.224
interchange, B2B, B2C e-commerce
Understanding System flowcharts,
3.1 Documentation tools 14 Document flowcharts, Data flow 3.96 1.331
diagrams
Understanding communications
3.2 Internet knowledge 15 3.83 1.466
Band 3

technologies, firewall software/hardware

3.3 IT audit software 16 Use of IT audit software, CAAT 3.48 1.592

3.4 Data security 17 Able to perform backup and recovery 3.30 1.490
Use of utility software, anti-virus
3.5 Operating systems 18 3.13 1.290
software

Source: Developed for this research

A number of topics received a score of 1 from some participants and are listed in Table
4.8. A score of 1 is the lowest possible rating and is described in the questionnaire as ‘not
relevant’. The topic with the highest number of ‘1’ scores was IT audit software. Table 4.9
displays the same information by participant. J04, the financial administrator with a small
government department gave the highest number of ‘1’ scores.

95
Table 4.8 Topics with a score of 1
Topic Rank Scored by Mean score Std dev
2.1 IT controls 7 J04 4.61 1.373
2.3 Presentation software 9 J04 4.43 1.308
2.6 Research tools 12 J04 4.09 1.443
3.1 Documentation tools 14 J09 3.96 1.331
3.2 Internet knowledge 15 J01, S04 3.83 1.466
3.3 IT audit software 16 J02, J04, J06, J11 3.48 1.592
3.4 Data security 17 J06, S04 3.30 1.490
3.5 Operating systems 18 J01, J04,S04 3.13 1.290

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.9 Participants who gave a score of 1

Participant Topic(s)
J04 2.1 IT controls
Gov/Edu, 2.3 Presentation software
Financial administrator, 2.6 Research tools
5 to 10 years 3.3 IT audit software
3.5 Operating systems
S04 3.2 Internet knowledge
CA firm, 3.4 Data security
Senior manager business assurance, 3.5 Operating systems
5 to 10 years
J01 3.2 Internet knowledge
Commercial firm, 3.5 Operating systems
Accounting assistant,
< 5 years
J06 3.3 IT audit software
Commercial firm, 3.4 Data security
Assistant accountant,
10 to 20 years
J02 3.3 IT audit software
Commercial firm,
Financial analyst,
5 to 10 years
J09 3.1 Documentation tools
CA firm,
Business advisory services accountant,
< 5 years
J11 3.3 IT audit software
Commercial firm,
Chief accountant,
10 to 20 years

Source: Developed for this research

96
4.2.3 Comparison of mean scores between participant groups
Topics from different participant groups are grouped into the corresponding bands based
on the mean scores of the respective participant groups. They are presented alongside each
other to show the differences in the mean scores of each topic given by different groups.
However, it has to be emphasised that the main aim of these comparisons is for descriptive
statistics purposes only. These comparisons are not intended to show that there are
significant differences between the participant groups. Based on an analysis of variance,
the only topic that displayed statistically significant difference in scores between
participant groups was ‘Accounting software’ from the Seniority group. Appendix 9 shows
the tests of significance of the variances among the three different participant groups.

Table 4.10 shows the comparison between the Juniors and Seniors. The topics are placed in
the appropriate Band based on the mean scores from the participant group. The number
preceding the topic indicates the position of the topic from the overall rating as shown in
Table 4.7. For example, 1.4 Accounting software indicates that the topic was in the fourth
position in Band 1 based on the overall mean score (n=23). The number in brackets
following a topic indicates the mean score of that particular participant group. Using the
same example, 1.4 Accounting software (5.71) in the Juniors column indicates that this
topic had a mean score of 5.71 from the Juniors (n=14) (see Appendix 8). In the Seniors
column, this topic fell into Band 2 because the mean score from Seniors (n=9) was 4.78.
As shown in Table 4.10, Seniors had one less topic rated in Band 1 than Juniors.
Accounting software was rated lower by Seniors than by Juniors and dropped from Band 1
to Band 2. Seniors had more topics in Band 2 than Juniors. Documentation tools and
Internet knowledge moved up from Band 3 to Band 2 in the Seniors column. As a result,
Seniors had a lower number of topics in Band 3 than Juniors.

97
Table 4.10 Mean scores by Seniority
Note: Numbers in brackets are the mean scores from the participant group
Band Juniors (n=14) Seniors (n=9)
1 1.1 Spreadsheet(6.00) 1.1 Spreadsheet(5.78)
1.4 Accounting software(5.71) 1.5 Values(5.67)
Mean 1.2 Accounting systems(5.57) 1.2 Accounting systems(5.33)
score 1.3 Word processor(5.57) 1.3 Word processor(5.22)
≥5 1.5 Values(5.14) 1.6 Internet tools(5.00)
1.6 Internet tools(5.14)
2 2.2 General systems knowledge(4.57) 2.1 IT controls(4.89)
2.1 IT controls(4.43) 1.4 Accounting software(4.78)
Mean 2.5 Database software(4.36) 2.3 Presentation software(4.67)
score 2.3 Presentation software(4.29) 2.2 General systems knowledge(4.56)
between 2.4 Database concepts(4.21) 2.4 Database concepts(4.56)
4 and 2.6 Research tools(4.07) 2.7 e-commerce(4.22)
4.9 3.1 Documentation tools(4.22)
2.5 Database software(4.11)
2.6 Research tools(4.11)
3.2 Internet knowledge(4.00)
3 2.7 e-commerce(3.93) 3.3 IT audit software(3.56)
3.1 Documentation tools(3.79) 3.5 Operating systems(3.11)
Mean 3.2 Internet knowledge(3.71) 3.4 Data security(2.67)
score 3.4 Data security(3.71)
<4 3.3 IT audit software(3.43)
3.5 Operating systems(3.14)

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.11 shows the mean scores by the Industry group. Both the commercial and CA
firm groups had the same number of topics in Band 1. The Gov/Edu group had two
additional topics (General systems knowledge and Database concepts) in Band 1 compared
with commercial and CA firms. The CA firm group had the lowest number of topics in
Band 2 while the Gov/Edu group had the highest. As a result, the CA firm group had the
highest number of topics in Band 3 and the Gov/Edu group had the lowest. Notably, the
CA firm group had lower ratings for Database concepts, Database software and e-
commerce than the other groups resulting in these topics dropping into Band 3.

98
Table 4.11 Mean scores by Industry
Band Commercial firm (n=12) CA firm (n=6) Gov/Edu (n=5)
1 1.1 Spreadsheet(5.92) 1.1 Spreadsheet(6.00) 1.1 Spreadsheet(5.80)
1.5 Values(5.50) 1.3 Word processor(5.67) 1.2 Accounting
Mean 1.2 Accounting 1.2 Accounting systems(5.80)
score systems(5.42) systems(5.33) 1.4 Accounting
≥5 1.3 Word processor(5.33) 1.4 Accounting software(5.60)
1.4 Accounting software(5.33) 1.3 Word processor(5.40)
software(5.25) 1.5 Values(5.00) 1.5 Values(5.40)
1.6 Internet tools(5.08) 1.6 Internet tools(5.00) 1.6 Internet tools(5.20)
2.2 General systems
knowledge(5.20)
2.4 Database concepts(5.00)
2 2.3 Presentation 2.1 IT controls(4.50) 2.7 e-commerce(4.80)
software(4.75) 2.2 General systems 3.1 Documentation
Mean 2.1 IT controls(4.67) knowledge(4.17) tools(4.80)
score 2.4 Database concepts(4.58) 2.3 Presentation 3.2 Internet
between 2.5 Database software(4.58) software(4.00) knowledge(4.80)
4 and 2.2 General systems 2.6 Research tools(4.00) 3.4 Data security(4.80)
4.9 knowledge(4.50) 2.1 IT controls(4.60)
2.6 Research tools(4.42) 2.5 Database software(4.60)
2.7 e-commerce(4.00) 3.3 IT audit software(4.40)
2.3 Presentation
software(4.20)
3 3.1 Documentation 3.3 IT audit software(3.83) 3.5 Operating systems(3.80)
tools(3.92) 2.7 e-commerce(3.50) 2.6 Research tools(3.40)
Mean 3.2 Internet 2.4 Database concepts(3.33)
score knowledge(3.92) 2.5 Database software(3.33)
<4 3.5 Operating systems(3.08) 3.1 Documentation
3.3 IT audit software(2.92) tools(3.33)
3.4 Data security(2.83) 3.4 Data security(3.00)
3.2 Internet
knowledge(2.83)
3.5 Operating systems(2.67)

Source: Developed for this research

Table 4.12 shows the mean scores by the Experience group. The > 20 years group stands
out with only one topic in Band 3 and the highest number of topics in Band 1 compared
with the other groups. The only topic that had a mean score of less than 4 by the > 20 year
group was Data security.

Overall, the Senior and the > 20 years groups gave higher scores compared with Juniors
and the groups with less experience. The CA firm group gave lower scores compared with
commercial firms and the Gov/Edu group. The Gov/Edu group gave higher scores
compared with commercial and CA firms.

99
Table 4.12 Mean scores by Experience
Band < 5 yrs (n=7) 5 to 10yrs (n=5) 10 to 20 yrs (n=7) > 20 yrs (n=4)
1 1.1 Spreadsheet(6.00) 1.1 Spreadsheet(6.00) 1.1 Spreadsheet(5.86) 1.1 Spreadsheet(5.75)
1.3 Word 1.3 Word 1.2 Accounting 1.5 Values(5.75)
Mean processor(5.71) processor(5.60) systems(5.57) 1.2 Accounting
score 1.4 Accounting 1.2 Accounting 1.5 Values(5.57) systems(5.50)
≥5 software(5.71) systems(5.40) 1.4 Accounting 1.6 Internet
1.2 Accounting 1.5 Values(5.40) software(5.43) tools(5.50)
systems(5.43) 1.6 Internet tools(5.40) 1.3 Word 1.4 Accounting
1.6 Internet tools(5.14) processor(5.29) software(5.25)
2.4 Database 2.1 IT controls(5.25)
concepts(5.00) 2.3 Presentation
software(5.25)
1.3 Word
processor(5.00)
3.2 Internet
knowledge(5.00)
2 1.5 Values(4.86) 1.4 Accounting 2.5 Database 2.4 Database
2.1 IT controls(4.57) software(4.80) software(4.86) concepts(4.75)
Mean 2.2 General systems 2.2 General systems 2.2 General systems 2.2 General systems
score knowledge(4.57) knowledge(4.20) knowledge(4.71) knowledge(4.75)
betwee 2.3 Presentation 2.1 IT controls(4.00) 2.1 IT controls(4.71) 2.6 Research
n 4 and software(4.43) 2.5 Database 3.1 Documentation tools(4.75)
4.9 2.6 Research software(4.00) tools(4.71) 2.7 e-commerce(4.50)
tools(4.29) 1.6 Internet tools(4.57) 2.5 Database
3.3 IT audit 2.3 Presentation software(4.25)
software(4.29) software(4.57) 3.1 Documentation
2.7 e-commerce(4.29) tools(4.25)
2.6 Research 3.3 IT audit
tools(4.14) software(4.00)
3.5 Operating
systems(4.00)
3 2.4 Database 2.4 Database 3.2 Internet 3.4 Data security(3.00)
concepts(3.86) concepts(3.80) knowledge(3.86)
Mean 2.5 Database 3.1 Documentation 3.3 IT audit
score software(3.86) tools(3.80) software(3.00)
<4 2.7 e-commerce(3.86) 3.2 Internet 3.5 Operating
3.4 Data security(3.86) knowledge(3.80) systems(2.86)
3.1 Documentation 2.3 Presentation 3.4 Data security(2.71)
tools(3.14) software(3.60)
3.2 Internet 2.7 e-commerce(3.60)
knowledge(3.14) 3.4 Data security(3.60)
3.5 Operating 2.6 Research
systems(3.00) tools(3.20)
3.5 Operating
systems(3.00)
3.3 IT audit
software(2.60)

Source: Developed for this research

100
4.3 Analysis of interview data

4.3.1 Introduction
A semi-structured interview was conducted with each participant following the completion
of the questionnaire. The findings of the questionnaire have been discussed in the previous
section. The questionnaire provided the starting point for the interviews as well as
triangulation for the interview data. The interview questions, prepared in advance and
labelled ‘JIQ’ for Juniors and ‘SIQ’ for Seniors, were designed to facilitate the interviews,
the aim of which was to seek evidence for RQ2 to 5 which are re-listed below:

RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?
RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?
RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?
RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

4.3.2 RQ2 – Use and application of IT knowledge and skills

The interview questions, designed to capture responses for RQ2 from Juniors and Seniors,
are listed in Table 4.13. These are leading questions to facilitate the interviewer and were
not the only questions asked in the interviews; unscripted questions and responses were
also exchanged during the interviews. The interview questions for Juniors are different
from those for Seniors, Juniors being asked how they use IT knowledge and skills in their
jobs while Seniors were asked how their assistants use IT knowledge and skills.

Table 4.13 Interview questions for RQ2

RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?

For Juniors For Seniors

JIQ01 Of the IT topics you have rated in the
above list, do you use any of them regularly in
your day-to-day work?
JIQ02 Of the IT topics you have rated in the
above list, do you use any of them occasionally in
your day-to-day work?
SIQ01 Of the IT topics you have rated in the
above list, do your assistants use any of them
regularly in their day-to-day work?
SIQ02 Of the IT topics you have rated in the
above list, do your assistants use any of them
occasionally in their work?

Source: Developed for this research

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The ‘above list’ in the interview questions refers to the questionnaire the respondents were
asked to complete before the interview took place (see Appendix 3 Section II). All
participants mentioned Spreadsheet, Accounting systems and Accounting software as the
most used IT tools and knowledge needed in their day-to-day routines. This was perhaps
summed up by the comment made by S01:

S01  ... I guess, in finance, they probably spend 60% of time on our own 
Commercial firm,  in‐house system. And 40% on Excel. 
Chief financial officer, 
> 20 years 

When discussing Accounting software, most interviewees stressed that it is important to

have a good understanding of how accounting and business systems function rather than
just knowing how to perform data entry on the accounting software. The following sections
discuss the three most discussed IT topics in the interviews (Spreadsheet, Accounting
systems and Accounting software) followed by discussions on other topics in order of their
ranking from the questionnaire.

A clear delineation between the terms ‘Accounting systems’ and ‘Accounting software’
used in this study is warranted as the two terminologies may sometimes be used
interchangeably in normal conversations. It was made clear to participants both in the
questionnaire and in the interviews that Accounting systems refer to the understanding of
the different components or cycles of an accounting or business system which normally
include the revenue cycle (accounts receivable), the purchase cycle (accounts payable), the
general ledger cycle, etc. Accounting software refers to the actual software or accounting
package that they use to enter accounting or business transactions. Examples of accounting
software are MYOB, SAP, Oracle, in-house developed accounting software, etc.

4.3.2.1 Spreadsheet
All participants mentioned Spreadsheet as the most used and important IT topic. The
results from the questionnaire supported this view as all participants except S02 and S06
gave spreadsheet a score of ‘6’. Spreadsheet is ranked number 1 among all other IT
knowledge and skills based on the overall mean score from the questionnaire.

102
 Views from Juniors
With the exception of J04, the financial administrator of a small department in the
Gov/Edu sector, all Juniors confirmed that they used spreadsheet on a daily basis.
However, it has to be noted that J04 gave a rating of ‘6’ in the questionnaire for
spreadsheet even though she said she used it only once a month. The following are quotes
from some Junior participants:

J01  What I have found in all the accounting roles I have done so far be 
Commercial firm,  the heavy reliance on spreadsheet usage and knowledge. 
Accounting assistant, 
< 5 years 
J05  User [sic] spreadsheet is very important.  I recommend at least the 
Gov/Edu,  advanced level. 
Accounting systems officer, 
< 5 years 

J13, the Planning and Reporting Analyst of a large government department explained that
spreadsheet skill is part of her department’s competency test for recruiting new staff. This
demonstrates the importance of spreadsheet skills expected from accounting job applicants.

J13  ... I have been involved in the recruitment process for other areas 
Gov/Edu,  that use those skills and use them most definitely actually test for 
Planning and reporting analyst,  that they do competency test.  Some of them include whether they 
5 to 10 years  have any spreadsheeting [sic] skills. 

When asked how they used spreadsheets, most Junior respondents said they need more
than simple add/subtract skills. The functions mentioned included logical functions such as
IF and referencing functions such as LOOKUP. Other functions mentioned were sub-total,
conditional formatting, sorting, filtering, pivot tables, hide/unhide rows/columns, Goal-
seek and Solver. Based on the description by Juniors, spreadsheets were used for a variety
of activities such as reporting, data analysis, linking with other spreadsheets, budgeting,
etc. The following are descriptions of how some Juniors used spreadsheets:

103
J09  I had all their transactions in an Excel spreadsheet and I did a whole 
CA firm,  lot of data sorting and subtotals and stuff like that. 
Business advisory services  I’ve used some of the functions and some of that Auto Filter and 
accountant,  things like that. It was really useful learning how to use some of the 
< 5 years  functions and put formulae in Excel actually worked in my case. 
J13  … for example VLOOKUP, we’ve got basic ordinary sums.  You’ve 
Gov/Edu,  got oh, goodness me.  IF Statements.  That’s another really one.  
Planning and reporting analyst,  Solver. 
5 to 10 years  Goal seek.  You know those sorts of ones.  Goodness.  They become 
part of you.  You have to use them every day. 

Juniors from CA firms mentioned the use of an ‘electronic working paper’ which is in
essence a highly complex spreadsheet developed by the company to allow client service
accountants to enter clients’ data into the spreadsheet to calculate loan interest, reconcile
account balances and other functions.

J07  Basically all this electronic work paper is very complex. Excel, just 
CA firm,  Excel normally. I think the company been doing that a long time. I 
Client service accountant,  don’t know who designed it. 
< 5 years  What is that about actually electronic working papers? 
Electronic working papers. For example if you have a loan. ... so you 
just feed all data in and put interest rate, put all this stuff then it 
will automatically calculate for you. 
It’s actually Excel Spreadsheet? 
Yeah. 

 Views from Seniors

The views on the importance of spreadsheet from the Senior participants were similar to
those from the Juniors. However, they were not as articulate as the Juniors in describing
what spreadsheet functions their assistants should know. Only three Senior participants
(S06, S08 and S09) mentioned the functions they expected their assistants to know. These
included graphs, pivot tables, LOOKUP, sorting and filtering which coincide with those
mentioned by Juniors. The following are quotes from Seniors expressing the importance of
spreadsheet for accountants. S09 observed that some people used spreadsheets in
extremely sophisticated ways. S04 was of the opinion that spreadsheet was a weak point
for most people and that his company had to run training courses to strengthen the skill
level of spreadsheets for the staff.

104
S01  Excel is used absolutely extensively. That’s the tool that they’ll be 
Commercial firm,  using from the day that they arrive.  
Chief financial officer, 
> 20 years 
S05  ... there are different scenario’s and that sort of stuff, we put on 
Gov/Edu,  the Excel spreadsheet ... graduate coming on needs to be, not just 
Project accountant,  123 plus minus type Excel spreadsheet. 
> 20 years 

The Seniors have expressed one area which was not mentioned by Juniors – since
spreadsheet is often used to analyse data, some Seniors cautioned that to make meaningful
and correct use of spreadsheets, the accountant must have a good understanding of the
business requirements as well as good knowledge of data analysis.

S06  ... have to have your base knowledge and know what you’re doing 
Commercial firm,  before you can do analysis and understand what you are doing. 
Financial controller, 
10 to 20 years 
S09  Probably being able to break numbers down to the story in behind 
Commercial firm,  them. 
Finance manager,  Anyone can produce a report but it’s giving the report to someone 
10 to 20 years  saying here’s the two or three important piece of information in 
here. 

Despite the overwhelming concurrence that spreadsheet is important for accountants, S05
voiced his scepticism on the use of spreadsheets although he was among those who
acknowledged the importance of this IT skill:

S05  My motto is I always trust what comes out of the Accounting 
Gov/Edu,  System not the Excel spreadsheet. Cause somebody can change 
Project accountant,  that around and you don’t know what’s in there. 
> 20 years 

4.3.2.2 Accounting systems

Accounting systems is described in the questionnaire as the understanding of business
systems, ERP, customer relationship management (CRM), general ledger (GL) reporting
cycle, revenue cycle, purchasing cycle, human resources (HR)/payroll cycle. It is ranked
second place from the questionnaire ratings with an overall mean score of 5.48, just below

105
spreadsheet, and is two places higher than accounting software. Most interviewees stressed
the importance of understanding the accounting and business systems of their companies.

 Views from Juniors

Most Juniors acknowledged the importance of a thorough understanding of accounting
systems and agreed that it is a pre-requisite for being an accountant even at a junior level.
They mentioned the need to understand the relationship between journal entries and the
various sub-systems such as the accounts receivable, accounts payable, general ledger, etc.
This finding may shed some light on how accounting systems should be taught in an
accounting major programme. J14 suspected that even senior accountants might not have
enough knowledge in this area as they were not involved in the day-to-day use of
accounting software. The participant seems to be trying to say that in order to understand
accounting systems, one must also have knowledge in using an accounting software.
Again, this has implications for the way accounting systems are taught.

J01  ... you have all of your subsystems ‐ your account payable 

Commercial firm,  subsystems, your debtor subsystems.  If you do the general ledger 
Accounting assistant,  entry you won’t necessarily accept debtors, but if you do a debtors 
< 5 years  journal you accept debtors in the general ledger.  So it is 
understanding those concepts. 
J12  For any accounting graduate, just graduated or going through the 
Commercial firm,  studies ... and getting into the workforce, it doesn’t matter what 
Accounting assistant,  the software programme is, they are going to be 100% involved in 
10 to 20 years  various aspects of it.  They are going to have to know how to 
process orders or accounts payable and accounts receivable ...  If 
they don’t know that part of it, then it’s not going to be very 
effective. 
J14  But when you look at MYOB, it is more like raising an invoice, 
CA firm,  putting a credit note.  But that’s not based on journals.  It is based 
Accountant,  on the sub‐ledger accounts and stuff.  So I think sometimes 
< 5 years  accountants do not, and I would say that about a few of our senior 
managers here as well, because they do not use the software.  
They actually do not know. 

 Views from Seniors

Seniors share the views of Juniors that a good understanding of accounting and business
systems is paramount for the ability of their assistants to solve problems when things go
wrong. They were of the view that this is a weak area for accounting graduates. S03 and
S06 used the word ‘struggle’ to describe their observation on graduates’ knowledge in this

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area. They observed that accounting graduates do not have enough conceptual knowledge
of how different cycles or modules in an accounting/business system such as accounts
receivable, accounts payable and the general ledger fit together. These observations may
mean that this particular subject matter is not taught adequately at TEIs.

S03  ... people coming and doing Financial Auditing often would struggle 
CA firm,  with their business process cycles. How the accounts payable 
Consultant,  process works, how accounts receivable process works. People do 
10 to 20 years  struggle. 
S06  ... it’s all good in theory but when you come along and say your 
Commercial firm,  next job is Accounts Payable, if they don’t have a clue about how it 
Financial controller,  fits together ... it can be quite a struggle ... 
10 to 20 years 

4.3.2.3 Accounting software

Accounting software is ranked fourth place in the questionnaire but was mentioned more
times in the interviews than the topic that ranked third place (word processing). The overall
mean score of accounting software is 5.35 which positions it in Band 1 of the questionnaire
ranking table amongst spreadsheet, accounting systems, word processing and values (see
Table 4.7).

 Views from Juniors

Almost all Juniors said they use accounting software on a daily basis. There is a wide
range of different accounting software installed. Participants from the commercial and
Gov/Edu groups mentioned MYOB, EXONET (also known as MYOB EXO), Microsoft
Dynamics, BPICS, PeopleSoft, Oracle, SAP and in-house developed software. Participants
from CA firms mentioned MYOB Accountants Office, MYOB Accountants Enterprise and
Xcede Professional Accounting which are software designed for CA firms to process
accounts and tax for their clients. There are varied views on how many and which
accounting software packages should be taught in an accounting programme. Some Junior
participants would like to learn a large accounting/business software such as SAP, Oracle
or PeopleSoft in addition to an entry-level package. Others are of the view that if you learn
one you should be able to learn and use a different one quickly.

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J05  Probably, because now, MYOB and Great Plains [Microsoft 
Gov/Edu,  Dynamics], are used like probably in a smaller firm, ... but I think 
Accounting systems officer,  now, because of so many organisations with big turnover are using 
< 5 years  SAP Oracle or Peoplesoft  I think basic understand of SAP or Oracle 
would be useful. 
J09  To tell the truth though I reckon once you know how to use one 
CA firm,  kind of package, the features are similar. 
Business advisory services 
accountant, 
< 5 years 

Junior participants’ views were that even if they had good knowledge of the accounting
software they were using at their workplace, they would be at best a good data entry
operator if they did not have a good understanding of accounting and business systems of
their company. This was aptly articulated by J04:

J04  ... for bookkeeping you don’t need accounting degree or such 
Gov/Edu,  thing.  You have to do something higher level.  Even actually when 
Financial administrator,  you are using MYOB.  Even if you just do bookkeeping you can’t 
5 to 10 years  understand the Accounting Cycle, like the relationship between like 
creditors and who you pay money, or purchasers, or customer 
agency, when you make mistake, you can’t correct it.  If you have 
good understanding of the system, you can. 

 Views from Seniors

Participants from the Senior group did not elaborate much on Accounting software.
However, they all mentioned that it is used by their assistants on a daily basis. The lower
level of response from Seniors suggests that their perception of the importance of
accounting software is not as strong as that of Juniors. A similar result is observed from the
questionnaire. The mean score for Accounting software from Seniors is 4.78 compared
with 5.71 of the Junior group (see Table 4.10). The difference in scores between Junior and
Seniors has been tested to be statistically significant (see Appendix 9). On the issue of
learning accounting software, one Senior participant supported the view that accounting
students should be exposed to a large accounting software:

S09  ... say if there was an option to look at an ERP system, a bit grunty 
Commercial firm,  [sic] sort of thing, a lot of the corporate companies use.  That 
Finance manager,  would have been a big plus. 
10 to 20 years 

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An important message has emerged from the discussions on accounting software in the
interviews. When discussing Accounting systems, a comment was made by a Junior
participant that even Senior staff might not have in-depth knowledge of accounting
systems because they were not involved in the day-to-day use of accounting software.
When discussing accounting software, participants were of the view that having good skills
in accounting software alone is not enough as one has to have a good understanding of
accounting and business systems in order to fully learn accounting software packages.
These comments allow a conclusion to be drawn – that the two areas are inter-connected.
This finding has implications in how accounting systems and accounting software should
be taught in TEIs. Another issue is which and how many accounting software packages
need to be taught in an accounting major programme.

4.3.2.4 Word processor

Word processor is ranked third place based on the overall mean score of 5.43 from the
questionnaire. However, it did not generate much discussion from the interviewees. Most
participants were of the opinion that basic knowledge on how to use word processing
software would be adequate. They also confirmed that word processing is not used on a
daily basis. However, a low level of discussion does not necessarily mean that this skill set
is not important. It could be because there was nothing much to discuss on a relatively
straight forward piece of software that can easily be learned and self-taught.

The following are some comments made by participants. J05 appears to be in the minority
as most other participants required only basic skills in word processing software.

J05  Word document very important to know same like Excel, so try and 
Gov/Edu,  do word document at an advanced level.  Writing a letter, 
Accounting systems officer,  formatting, presentation skills. 
< 5 years 
S03  Word processing, not so much. It’s useful part of communication 
CA firm,  that’s probably more useful that you can structure your reports 
Consultant,  better as opposed to actually using the word processor. Again, 
10 to 20 years  most of the advance features in word processing you probably 
don’t need to know on a regular basis. 

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4.3.2.5 Values
This topic refers to ethical standards and is not strictly a technical IT topic. It was included
in the questionnaire because one of the sources of the questionnaire for the pilot phase
(Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002) includes this topic. Bain, Blankley and Smith examined 12
AIS textbooks and summarised the topics covered in these 12 textbooks into 30 topics, one
of which is ethics.

Values is ranked fourth equal to Accounting software and has an overall mean score of
5.35. All participants who responded to this topic opined that it is important for
accountants to possess high standards of ethical behaviour. J14, a client accountant in a CA
firm, said that the decisions they make on the deductibility of expenses for their clients are
ethically based and therefore ethics are highly important. Another comment was made by
J12:

J12  Absolutely.  I mean in this day and age of corporate collapses and 

Commercial firm,  so on and so forth.  No matter where you are and all that sort of 
Accounting assistant,  thing, you do have to have a certain level of ethics.  You can’t as an 
10 to 20 years  accounting graduate or anything like that you can’t not have ethic.  
There are reasons why things have to be done and you have to 
abide by those.  Enron and that sort of thing, you know, it was just 
creative accounting and all that sort of thing and you just simply 
cannot do it.  So you need to have those guidelines and you have to 
abide by them and I think ethical standards is very important. 

4.3.2.6 Internet tools

Internet tools refer to the use of e-mail, web browsing and short message service (SMS). It
is ranked sixth and has an overall mean score of 5.09 but did not attract much discussion.
One conjecture could be that these skills have become universal and are regarded as tacit
skills for any individual working in a commercial office environment. S05 said that if one
does not know how to use Internet and e-mails, they cannot get anywhere in business
nowadays. Most participants said they use e-mail daily.

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S05  Internet tools well, of course when you’ve got to do research and 
Gov/Edu,  look stuff up well, use of e‐mails is essential otherwise you’ll never 
Project accountant,  get anywhere in business nowadays. 
> 20 years 

4.3.2.7 IT controls
IT controls are described as understanding the concepts of internal control, computer fraud,
IT audit, and controls to personal computers. This topic has a mean score of 4.61 and is
ranked seventh place among the 18 topics.

 Views from Juniors

Junior participants were of the opinion that they were not at the level where they can
initiate the implementation of internal controls for their organisations. However, Juniors
from commercial firms and Gov/Edu appear to place more importance on IT controls than
their counterparts in CA firms. This can be explained by the fact that Juniors working in
CA firms are responsible only for preparing accounts for their clients rather than being
involved in their companies’ accounting systems.

J07  Because I’m junior staff. I’m actually not too worried about this. 
CA firm,  And I think our clients normally don’t ask us to do all this stuff for 
Client service accountant,  internal control system ... I think we don’t have to worry too much. 
< 5 years 
J12  Internal control.  All good companies should have good internal 
Commercial firm,  control processes and I guess some of the company things that 
Accounting assistant,  have gone down because their internal process weren’t up to 
10 to 20 years  scratch.  That’s important.  But I don’t think it’s necessarily 
something that an accounting graduate or anything like that would, 
they need to be aware of.  But it’s not something they would 
implement it while a company controls sort of thing. 
J13  Because accountants where we are.  They actually do have a lot of 
Gov/Edu,  involvement with the systems they are going to be dealing with and 
Planning and reporting analyst,  they really have to know what internal controls they have to put in 
5 to 10 years  place with the system. 

 Views from Seniors

S03, who was a consultant in a CA firm said that IT security is his main area and therefore
for him, this topic is essential. S08, the manager of the management accounting department
of a large commercial firm said that understanding internal control is required in today’s

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environment. S05 was of the opinion that the actual implementation of IT controls is with
the IT department but accountants need to understand the concepts.

S05  ... a small organisation you might have to do all of this. In a large 
Gov/Edu,  organisation like this, like IT controls and operating systems ... 
Project accountant,  would be done by the IT Department. But we need to understand 
> 20 years  how it works. But we don’t actually do it ourselves. 

4.3.2.8 General systems knowledge

General systems knowledge refers to the understanding of transaction processing systems
and end-user computing. This topic has a mean score of 4.57 and is ranked in eighth place.
Although most of the discussions were on end-user computing, it appears that participants
did not fully understand the meaning of the term. They seemed to relate end-user
computing to ordinary users of computer systems. Perhaps this should be given more
attention in an accounting systems course so that students know the true meaning of end-
user computing. The following are some comments from participants:

J05  End User computing.  This is important.  Very essential.  General 
Gov/Edu,  systems knowledge.  Transaction processing system.  That is like 
Accounting systems officer,  journal entry. 
< 5 years 
S07  End‐user computing we’ve a lot of daily problems people not 
Commercial firm,  understanding the system. What to do where to go. That’s actually 
Branch accountant,  what I do a lot of cause people coming to me asking where they go, 
5 to 10 years  what is that. 

4.3.2.9 Presentation software

Use of presentation software has a mean score of 4.43 and is ranked in the ninth position.
As with word processing, this topic did not generate much discussion. Most were of the
opinion that this is used only occasionally, for example, for monthly presentation of
results. Juniors said they had little opportunity to present and a Senior participant
confirmed this.

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J07  Yeah, sometimes. Normally we just use power point. That is very 
CA firm,  useful I think. I don’t have much chance to present normally. 
Client service accountant, 
< 5 years 
S01  Power point would be used occasionally by some staff. 
Commercial firm, 
Chief financial officer, 
> 20 years 

4.3.2.10 Database concepts/Database software

Database concepts and Database software are two separate topics in the questionnaire and
are regarded as two individual items for this study. However, during the discussions with
interviewees, these two items have become inseparable and were often associated with
each other. Database concepts has a mean score of 4.35 and is ranked in 10th place.
Database software refers to the ‘use of database software, database search and retrieval’,
has a mean score of 4.26, and is ranked in 11th place.

Most participants made connections of databases to the accounting software they used on a
daily basis. This is due to their understanding that every accounting software has a
database in the background. Almost all participants were of the view that accountants need
only to have an understanding of what a database is, know how to retrieve data from
databases, and not how to design and create databases. This finding has important
implications on how databases should be taught in an accounting major programme.

J01  I feel that you as the end users shouldn’t need to understand what 
Commercial firm,  goes into designing the data.  You should only know what a data 
Accounting assistant,  base is, and what data goes in and how it’s presented.  So you 
< 5 years  really shouldn’t need to go into the depth of building a data base 
unless you are going to become a business analyst. 
J09  What about database software? You graded it at 3. 
CA firm,  I mean here they’ve got their own database. That’s for a package. 
Business advisory services  They keep all the information about their clients in it. So, I’ve never 
accountant,  has [sic] any need to keep stuff in a database. 
< 5 years  You go in there and punch in the clients name and it brings you up 
the information and there is tabs. You just go to that tab and find 
that search box and then it just brings it up and brings up all the 
information. 
You don’t need to know all about how to set one up. Because, I 
don’t know where you’d go that you needed to set one up really. 

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S06  The database concepts I see that more as people understanding 
Commercial firm,  how in Dynamics [accounting software] it all sort of links together 
Financial controller,  and using the search functions in the database. So if you don’t 
10 to 20 years  know how to quite understand the theory behind it you’ll struggle 
to search. 
... so understanding how to limit all of that and get the information 
that you want is the key. 
... they’re just using the existing ones it’s more the understanding 
of how it works. 

4.3.2.11 Research tools

This topic refers to the ability to use tools to search for information. Because of the
availability of powerful Internet search engines and the ubiquitous web sites provided by
commercial firms and government departments, most participants associated this topic
with the ability to use the Internet to search for information. Juniors from CA firms
mentioned the frequent use of the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) web site for tax
information. This item has a mean score of 4.09 and is ranked in 12th position.

J07  Because every day you have some of the information you are not 
CA firm,  quite sure especially for IRD. So, normally we use IRD look up to 
Client service accountant,  research and all the information for tax information, what changes 
< 5 years  and all that stuff. 
J13  We all do research as part of our job and to know that is very 
Gov/Edu,  important. 
Planning and reporting analyst, 
5 to 10 years 
S01  Is their ability to do research quickly on the Internet.  As the 
Commercial firm,  knowledge now becomes electronic.  You really need to know how 
Chief financial officer,  to draw that out. 
> 20 years 

4.3.2.12 E-commerce
E-commerce includes understanding electronic data interchange and business-to-business
(B2B), and business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce. This topic received a mean score of
4.04 and is in 13th place, most participants regarding it as unimportant since they were not
involved in this area.

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J02  e‐commerce, not involved at all.
Commercial firm, 
Financial analyst, 
5 to 10 years 
J07  We normally don’t handle that. e‐commerce we don’t have it here.
CA firm, 
Client service accountant, 
< 5 years 

There was one exception – S03 explained that e-commerce knowledge is required by his
team members because that is the nature of their job function.

S03  I guess what my team does, is we help clients design and test 
CA firm,  security into their business processes, business systems. A lot of 
Consultant,  that is around Internet System, E‐commerce Systems. Even though 
10 to 20 years  they are still accountants they are doing things slightly different. 

4.3.2.13 Documentation tools

Documentation tools include understanding systems flowcharts, document flowcharts and
data flow diagrams (DFD). This item has a mean score of 3.96 and is ranked in 14th place.
Some participants said they had used document or procedure flowcharts on an occasional
basis when there was a need to draw up procedures or policies but had never used DFDs.
Most were of the view that the need is more on understanding how to read the flowcharts
rather than how to draw the flowcharts themselves.

Juniors from CA firms were the group that placed the least importance on this item and
said that they do not use this in their work at all. However, they acknowledge that this
would be important if they were working as auditors. The following are some verbatim
from Juniors of CA firms:

J08  What about these flow charts, you rated it quite low here? 

CA firm,  I’ve never used them ... No offence, to be honest there is just no 
Graduate accountant,  need for it in this environment ... [but] absolutely essential if you’re 
< 5 years  in the Audit Team. 

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J09  What about the system flow charts. You rated this very low. Is there 
CA firm,  any reason for that? 
Business advisory services  I’ve never used them. 
accountant,  Never come across a flow chart in your work here? 
< 5 years  No. Not ever. 

The following are verbatim from Juniors other than CA firms. J13 placed more importance
on Documentation tools than the other Junior participants, probably because of her special
job function as Planning and Reporting Analyst, which is not a usual accounting role.

J05  When we do policies, procurement policies and delegation policies. 
Gov/Edu,  But that would be document flowcharts, not system flowcharts.  
Accounting systems officer,  System flowcharts would be something related with the systems.  
< 5 years  But I don’t do that.  Dataflow diagrams.  No. 
J13  We have to …  Yeah.  Because, we constantly might be doing new 
Gov/Edu,  processes.  So, we actually have to document that.  It’s not left to 
Planning and reporting analyst,  the IT people in a lot of cases.  They might document it from their 
5 to 10 years  side their IT.  But in order for us to actually do our processes and 
everything, we have to do all of that. 
It would be mainly those two there.  Systems flow chart.  
Document flow chart. 

Seniors echoed the comments from Juniors and opined that flowcharts were not used often
in their areas. Even if they came across flowcharts, the requirement was often that of being
able to understand and read the charts rather than to draw them. The following are
verbatim from Seniors:

S01  Do your people make use of things like Flow Charts to express or to 
Commercial firm,  document how the system works? 
Chief financial officer,  No. Our IT Department may. 
> 20 years 
S05  Now where were we, documentation tools?
Gov/Edu,  Well, probably not regularly, but you’ve still got to understand it. 
Project accountant, 
> 20 years 

4.3.2.14 Internet knowledge

Internet knowledge refers to communications technologies and firewall hardware/software
that are used in Internet infrastructures. This topic has a mean score of 3.83 and is ranked

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15th. This topic is quite technical in nature and most participants regarded it as the
responsibility of the IT department or IT supplier. This is represented by the comment
made by J02, a financial analyst of a commercial firm who said that communication
software, firewalls and passwords are the responsibility of the IT department.

J02  ... communication software, all like a firewalls and passwords that 
Commercial firm,  is IT responsibility 
Financial analyst, 
5 to 10 years 

4.3.2.15 IT audit software

This item refers to the use of IT audit software and computer assisted audit techniques
(CAAT). The item has a mean score of 3.48 and is ranked in 16th place. Participants
working for commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector were of the opinion that they do not
need this knowledge. The only exception was J01, from a commercial firm, who said that it
would be good to have an awareness of this item. J14, who works for a CA firm, said that
it is not required by her job because she is not in the audit department. The following are
their comments:

J01  What about this one IT audit software?
Commercial firm,  ... you need to know that they exist ... it just something I feel is a 
Accounting assistant,  tertiary student should be aware of but not know in depth. 
< 5 years 
J14  We don’t use CAAT or IT audit software would probably be used by 
CA firm,  the IT Department. 
Accountant, 
< 5 years 

The audit manager of a government department (S02) had more comments on this
particular topic than other participants. He was of the opinion that this is a highly
specialised area and he did not expect accounting graduates to arrive with knowledge on IT
audit software or CAAT when they start their career. He also mentioned that many internal
audit departments outsource the audit work to CA firms because of the specialised nature
of the work and the difficulties in keeping up to date in the area. The following are his
comments:

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S02  I wouldn’t think a new graduate would often come with ACL [Audit 
Gov/Edu,  software] experience or use that type of software. It’s fairly 
Audit manager,  uncommon. It’s normally training on the job type of thing. ... the 
> 20 years  work is often out sourced. You’ll find most Internal Audit shops if 
you like, do outsource that area. Because they would say it’s quite 
difficult to keep up to date. 

4.3.2.16 Data security

Data security refers to performing data backup and recovery. It has a mean score of 3.30
and is ranked 17th. The majority of participants who responded to this topic said they were
not required to perform backup and recovery as this is an IT responsibility, although J12
did mention that it is something an accountant needs to be aware of. The following are the
comments made by the participants:

J05  The data security.  The back‐up and recovery is done from the IT 
Gov/Edu,  Department.  So we personally don’t do it, 
Accounting systems officer, 
< 5 years 
J12  ... perform backup and recovery.  Most … I wouldn’t think an 
Commercial firm,  accounting student would need to know that.  That would be 
Accounting assistant,  handled by Origin [IT supplier].  You know they handle all that.  Or a 
10 to 20 years  particular stuff like IT department.  Yes.  You do have to know what 
it is about but it’s not something you would do on a daily basis. 

The only exception was J04 who works for a small government department with no IT
support and therefore was required to perform data backup on a daily basis. This situation
was predicted by S02:

J04  Yeah.  We do backup every day.  Every time when I open MYOB and 
Gov/Edu,  turn it off I back up. 
Financial administrator, 
5 to 10 years 
S02  Able to perform backup and recovery. I would not see any new 
Gov/Edu,  graduates actually doing that type of thing in this business. May be 
Audit manager,  in a small business. But not here. 
> 20 years 

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4.3.2.17 Operating systems
This item is about the use of utility software and anti-virus software on personal
computers. It has a mean score of 3.13 and is ranked in last place at the 18th position. This
topic generated very little discussion with only one notable comment made by J02 who
said that even though she was not really involved, it is important to have some knowledge
in this topic.

J02  Utilities software, anti virus not really involved in that but I know it 
Commercial firm,  is very important 
Financial analyst, 
5 to 10 years 

4.3.2.18 Summary for RQ2

RQ2 seeks to explore how IT knowledge and skills are used and applied by NZ accounting
practitioners. Based on the response from the interviewees, Spreadsheet, Accounting
systems and Accounting software are the most important and most used IT knowledge and
skills for a junior accountant. The summary of the responses from individual participants
for the specific interview questions is listed in Appendix 5. There were situations where
some interviewees did not give a direct response to a question or that a particular interview
question was not asked during the interview. These are indicated in the summary with
‘N/A’.

Based on the analysis of the discussions and verbatim from the interviews, the IT
knowledge and skills are classified into three categories:
 Category 1 – Essential / Used daily / Need advanced knowledge and skills
 Category 2 –Important / Used occasionally / Need basic knowledge and skills
 Category 3 – Not involved / Too technical / Awareness only

Table 4.14 summarises the findings from the interviews and categorises each of the IT
knowledge and skills based on the above definitions.

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Table 4.14 Summary of findings for RQ2
Category Topic Summary of findings
Most important and used daily. Need advanced skills and
Spreadsheet graduates are expected have knowledge of this when they start
work.
Essential knowledge for accounting graduates. Must have
Accounting systems
thorough knowledge of accounting and business systems.
Important and used daily. Need good knowledge of accounting
systems to complement skills in accounting software.
Accounting software
Category 1 Preferable to learn more than one accounting software at
school.
Values Important for accountants.

Internet tools Accountants expected to know how to use these tools.

Frequent use of Internet and web sites to find information.
Research tools Easy to use with powerful Internet search engines and user-
friendly web sites.
Word processor Used occasionally. Need only basic level skills.

IT controls Important to be aware of but not for Juniors to implement.

General systems
Important to understand the concepts.
knowledge
Used occasionally. Need only basic skills. Juniors do not have
Presentation software
much opportunity to present.
Category 2 Important to know what a database is and how to retrieve data
Database concepts
from a database. But not necessary to know how to design and
Database software develop a database.
Occasional need to read and understand procedures or
Documentation tools document flowcharts. Never seen data flow diagrams. No need
to draw diagrams.
Operating systems Good to know.

e-commerce Most participants not involved. Not important.

Technical in nature. IT department’s responsibility. Not for
Internet knowledge
accountants.
Category 3 Only for auditors. Even then, graduates not expected to start
IT audit software
career with such knowledge.
IT departments’ responsibility unless working in a small
Data security
company.

Source: Developed for this research

The categorisation of topics based on RQ2 is compared with the band classification based
on RQ1 and is shown in Table 4.15. If participants had been consistent in scoring the
topics and describing them in the interviews, the RQ2 categories should match those with

120
the RQ1 bands. However, there are some exceptions and they are highlighted with
asterisks in Table 4.15. These exceptions are:
 Research tools classified as Category 1 (Band 2 in RQ1).
 Word processor classified as Category 2 (Band 1 in RQ1)
 Documentation tools classified as Category 2 (Band 3 in RQ1)
 Operating systems classified as Category 2 (Band 3 in RQ1)
 e-commerce classified as Category 3 (Band 2 in RQ1)

Table 4.15 Comparison of RQ2 with RQ1

RQ2 findings RQ1 ranking
Category 1 Band 1
Essential / Used daily / Mean score ≥ 5
Need advanced knowledge and skills

Spreadsheet Spreadsheet
Accounting systems Accounting systems
Accounting software Word processor
Values Accounting software
Internet tools Values
Research tools * Internet tools
Category 2 Band 2
Important / Used occasionally / Mean score between 4 and 4.9
Need basic knowledge and skills

Word processor * IT controls

IT controls General systems knowledge
General systems knowledge Presentation software
Presentation software Database concepts
Database concepts Database software
Database software Research tools
Documentation tools * e-commerce
Operating systems *
Category 3 Band 3
Not involved / Too technical / Mean score < 4
Awareness only

e-commerce * Documentation tools

Internet knowledge Internet knowledge
IT audit software IT audit software
Data security Data security
Operating systems

Source: Developed for this research

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The above differences could have a number of reasons. First, participants could have
changed their minds during the interviews. Second, two-way communication between the
researcher and the participants gave them the opportunity to express and discuss the
importance of each topic in the interviews. Third, RQ2 consisted of in-depth questions to
fully explore the real requirements of the topics, which is superior to a simple score given
in the questionnaire. Since the primary paradigm of this research is interpretivism, the
results from RQ2 are regarded as the authoritative findings.

4.3.3 RQ3 – Accountants’ involvement in IT

Research question 3 seeks to explore how NZ accountants are involved in IT related
matters in their workplace. With these data, it is expected that more insight is available to
look into the kind of IT knowledge and skills they would need in their job. Table 4.16
shows the interview questions for Juniors and Seniors. The set of interview questions is the
same for both participant groups.

Table 4.16 Interview questions for RQ3

RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?

Interview question numbers Interview question

JIQ03 / SIQ03 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with your
(Section 4.3.3.1) colleagues within the accounting department? What is the nature of
these IT matters?
JIQ04 / SIQ04 How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with the IT
(Section 4.3.3.2) department or IT suppliers/contractors? What is the nature of these IT
matters?
JIQ05 / SIQ05 In your dealings with the IT department/IT suppliers, do you
encounter difficulties/problems in communications and
understanding the IT staff? What are these difficulties or problems?

JIQ06 / SIQ06 What additional IT knowledge/skills can improve this situation?

(Section 4.3.3.3)
JIQ07 / SIQ07 IT is developing at a rapid pace, how do you keep yourself up-to-date
(Section 4.3.3.4) on IT?

Source: Developed for this research

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4.3.3.1 Discussions on IT matters with accounting departments

 Views from Juniors

When asked how often they are required to discuss IT related matters with accounting
colleagues, most Junior participants from commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector said
they do this on a daily or weekly basis. The discussions were mostly on accounting system
reconciliations or problems with the accounting systems. J04, the financial administrator of
a small Gov/Edu organisation was the only accountant in the office and therefore this
question was not applicable to her. J08 and J14, who work in two CA firms said they never
had a need to do this.

J08  Very rarely. We just use the software It’s not our responsibility to 
CA firm,  make any decisions about what happens and that.  
Graduate accountant, 
< 5 years 
J14  No.  We don’t have to discuss IT related matters. 
CA firm, 
Accountant, 
< 5 years 

J13, who is the Planning and Reporting Analyst with a government department was heavily
involved in IT systems within the accounting department and was in constant discussions
with her accounting colleagues on IT matters:

J13  Constantly.  Virtually daily. ... we try and look at ways of doing 
Gov/Edu,  things better, so with some of the reports that we created took a 
Planning and reporting analyst,  bit long, so we come up with the idea of re‐structuring a little bit of 
5 to 10 years  the financial system and that worked.  Yeah.  It’s how to do things 
better with what you have. 

 Views from Seniors

Senior participants were asked the same question: ‘How often do you have to discuss IT
related matters with your colleagues in the accounting department?’ All Seniors from
commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector said they discuss IT matters with their
colleagues on a daily or weekly basis and they were more articulate than Juniors in
responding to this question. IT matters discussed included systems problems, suggestions

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for system improvements and requests for new reports. S08, who is the management
accountant of a commercial firm said he held discussions with accounting colleagues on a
weekly basis on issues such as internal controls, efficiencies, getting data faster and
improving process flows. The following are the verbatim from some Seniors:

S01  ... all problems are discussed freely each day. Be it an IT problem or 
Commercial firm,  a finance problem or whatever. So, there’s a very open forum they 
Chief financial officer,  can discuss IT problems at any time really. 
> 20 years  Normally problems solving and it may be systems that are not the 
way that we would like to see them work or suggestions to how we 
can improve them. 
S07  Daily. When we have errors we print our balancing reports in the 
Commercial firm,  morning. Is it a system fault, is it something we’ve done in the 
Branch accountant,  branch, is it have we had a crash you know that sort of thing. We 
5 to 10 years  do queries working with queries running queries. What is it exactly 
they want to know. How am I going to find that. 

Senior participants from CA firms also had to discuss IT related matters but most of the
discussions were not with their colleagues but with their clients. This explains why Juniors
from CA firms said they rarely discussed IT matters with their colleagues.

S03  Daily. I wish I didn’t some days. Minute by minute. Often it is 
CA firm,  answers to technical problems. Client’s technical problems. It could 
Consultant,  be around how they manage the passwords for example. 
10 to 20 years 

4.3.3.2 Discussions on IT matters with IT service providers

 Views from Juniors

When asked if they have to discuss IT related matters with their IT department or IT
suppliers, most Junior participants from commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector said
they had to contact the IT department or IT supplier on an occasional basis, that is, weekly,
monthly or when there was a need to. The matters that they reported or discussed with the
IT department or IT supplier ranged from day-to-day IT problems to system
implementation, system improvements and system testing. The following are responses

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from participants who said they had to contact the IT department or IT suppliers for
reasons other than IT problems:

J02  ... how often do you have to discuss IT related matters with your IT 
Commercial firm,  department or your IT contractors? 
Financial analyst,  Because I’ve got the new system coming in there’s a lot of 
5 to 10 years  interaction.  So at this stage happening every day. 
J13  ... how often do you have to discuss IT related matters with IT 
Gov/Edu,  Department or your IT suppliers and what is the nature of these? 
Planning and reporting analyst,  It all depends.  Now at the moment, because I’m involved with the 
5 to 10 years  Microsoft Project daily.  But, generally if you’re not doing a project, 
it might be monthly or whatever. It may be improvements to the 
system.  Yeah.  They might be undertaking some changes on the IT 
side, improvements to servers and all that sort of stuff and you 
have to be aware of what’s happening and how many breakdowns 
and all that sort of stuff. 

Similar to the response to the previous interview question, Junior participants from CA
firms said they did not have regular contacts with the IT department or IT suppliers.

J08  ... will you discuss IT matters with your software supplier or IT 
CA firm,  Department? 
Graduate accountant,  No. None of that. Like I said we have a company that comes in that 
< 5 years  does all our IT, they deal with MYOB themselves, and we don’t 
have anything to do with it. 
J09  What about discussing IT matters with the IT Supplier or the IT 
CA firm,  Department? 
Business advisory services  Not really. The only time that I ever really talk to them of one if I’ve 
accountant,  got a problem with something on my own computer or if there’s an 
< 5 years  update for BankLink [software] sometimes. 

 Views from Seniors

Seniors were less forthcoming in responding to this question than Juniors. Most Seniors
said they would contact the IT department or their IT suppliers when there was a need to
and these were mostly related to IT issues or problems.

S05  It’s really not very often. We… once we got Tech One [accounting 
Gov/Edu,  software package] set up we basically administer it ourselves. So 
Project accountant,  we’re only contacting IT if the processes fall down we’ll contact 
> 20 years  them if we want to. We’ve got the main production and then we 
got to test it the training system. 

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S02, the audit manager of a government department, and S03, a consultant in a CA firm,
had different agendas when they met with their IT department or IT suppliers. For S02,
they were matters related to IT control, audits and management issues. For S03, his
contacts with the IT department were requests for his opinion on IT controls because of his
expertise in the area.

S02  How often do you have to discuss IT related matters with the IT 
Gov/Edu,  department or your IT suppliers? 
Audit manager,  Ok. This IT controls, periodically if we’ve done an IT audit or an IT 
> 20 years  follow up audit. There might be matters raised by the outsourcing 
consultants, internal audit would follow those matter up with the 
IT department. They could be all sorts of matters, such as business 
continuity arrangements would be one. Maybe an IT project 
management issue. 
S03  How often do you discuss IT related matters with the IT Department 
CA firm,  or IT Suppliers of your company? 
Consultant,  Probably weekly. They tend to be around IT Control of some kind. 
10 to 20 years  They want to know our opinion because we’re… experienced in IT 
controls ... 

4.3.3.3 Communication problems with IT

 Views from Juniors

Junior participants were asked if they had problems when communicating with their IT
department or IT suppliers (JIQ05) and what IT knowledge and skills could improve the
situation (JIQ06). Because they are related to each other, these two interview questions are
discussed together here. The overall response to JIQ05 is that there were occasional
problems in communications caused by the use of technical jargon and terminology by IT
practitioners but it was not a big issue.

When asked what IT knowledge and skills could improve the situation, J13 and J14 said
that it is necessary to update one’s knowledge and awareness on IT terminologies by
attending seminars and courses.

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J13  It is just keeping up with the jargon and the processes that they [IT 
Gov/Edu,  people] need to go through to be aware of what they need. 
Planning and reporting analyst, 
5 to 10 years 
J14  Probably attending seminars and courses.  I think that would be the 
CA firm,  easiest way.  We’ve never had…  I mean I was hoping to get that 
Accountant,  from the course [AIS course]. 
< 5 years 

J02 and J10 were of the opinion that if IT practitioners had some basic knowledge in
accounting, communication between accounting and IT would improve:

J02  No actually we don’t understand them and they don’t understand 
Commercial firm,  us because when we start talking about GL reporting and P&L the 
Financial analyst,  revenue cycles and everything and KPI reporting and how this links 
5 to 10 years  into that we have to sit down with them and it takes a discuss [sic] 
of up to half a day for them to understand what we do, and 
sometimes even more and I think they have the same issues with 
regards to jargon and terminology. 
They should just [take] a basic one [accounting course]. 
J10  ... our IS guy, he did do some accounting papers at University to get 
Commercial firm,  a better understanding of where we were coming from ... he for 
Management accountant,  example had done a couple of accounting papers to try and get a 
10 to 20 years  better understanding of where we came from, so when we talked 
to him, he knew... 

 Views from Seniors

Seniors were asked the same question: whether they have problems communicating with
the IT department or their IT suppliers (SIQ05). Most Seniors said there were no serious
communication problems between them and the IT practitioners. S01 said that although
there were occasional problems, they would get them sorted in the end.

When asked what IT knowledge and skills could improve communication between them
and the IT providers (SIQ06), S01 echoed the opinions of J02 and J10 and said that if IT
practitioners could gain some basic accounting knowledge, it would help communication
between them and accountants. S09 suggested maintaining close ties with the IT
department so that they understand more of the information needs of accountants.

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S01  The best programmers that I’ve ever come across are people who 
Commercial firm,  have had a degree in accounting or an understanding of an 
Chief financial officer,  accounting first. Unfortunately they are few and far between. I 
> 20 years  believe that if the IT person did an Accounting One paper, perhaps 
Two as well, they would have enough knowledge to understand 
and how a general ledger hangs together and how certain accounts 
of profit and loss, certain accounts of balance sheet, and various. 

4.3.3.4 Keeping up-to-date on IT

 Views from Juniors

Asked how they kept up to date with IT, most Junior participants said they did not actively
look for up-to-date IT knowledge. Some said they rely on journals and publications from
their professional bodies.

J01  To be honest I’ve never sat down and said well right now I’m 
Commercial firm,  researching what’s going on in our IT world. I guess in my case I’m 
Accounting assistant,  only really aware of it when it hits me in the face. 
< 5 years 
J11  I just you know, work from the news, my CIMA magazine.  Basically, 
Commercial firm,  professional magazine. But I won’t look for stuff.  Unless I’m 
Chief accountant,  looking for a way to do a new report. 
10 to 20 years 

Participant J10 was exceptional as he has a strong personal interest in IT and therefore
followed developments in IT on his own time and expense:

J10  I read.  So for example I’ve got one book on Windows 7 already and 
Commercial firm,  I’ve got about another three on request from the public library.  
Management accountant,  Computer sites on the internet.  I follow a few of them.  PC World, 
10 to 20 years  Wins Supersite.  Computer World.  Tom’s Hardware Guide. 

J13, who has a special role with a government department as the Planning and Reporting
Analyst, had to actively keep herself up-to-date on IT developments:

128
J13  Council’s [the employer] very good in training and allowing people 
Gov/Edu,  to do training, so they’re very receptive to us to actually want to go 
Planning and reporting analyst,  out and do courses. Recently, because I was involved with 
5 to 10 years  Microsoft Office Share Point server, I wanted to find out how that 
actually worked with the Business Intelligence Area who are part of 
our IT Team, so with myself and the guy I worked with went on a 
Business Intelligence Course for a day. Learned about all the 
software and how things were working and what’s on the market 
out there. It was really useful. We do an awful lot of that through 
the Internet as well. 

 Views from Seniors

When asked how they kept themselves up to date on IT, most Senior participants said it
would be through their professional accounting bodies, attending short courses and by
maintaining an active interest in IT developments. S03 and S04, both working for a CA
firm, said contacts with clients and their overseas offices also helped:

S03  Interacting with a lot of different clients helps. Because a lot of 
CA firm,  clients are having implementing solutions or they have problems 
Consultant,  that other clients have. I haven’t come across yet. So, that does 
10 to 20 years  help a lot. A lot of reading. A lot of discussions I guess with my 
colleagues particularly overseas as well, does help a lot. 
S04  It’s hard. I think different people employ different strategies so I 
CA firm,  know a few people subscribe to quite a few Journals yeah sort of 
Senior manager business  like, what would you call it regular updates received by e‐mail that 
assurance,  sort of thing. Personally, I just like to read the more authoritative 
5 to 10 years  Journals McKenzie or MIS Quarterly that sort of thing or local 
publications are quite good like Computer World so I’d flick 
through that. And then a lot of it to be honest comes through just 
client interactions. 

S01 acknowledged that it is hard and the company could only do its best to provide
training for its staff:

S01  We struggle. I guess, it’s by employing younger staff, that have 
Commercial firm,  come straight from training and they tend to keep the business up 
Chief financial officer,  to date. And we try to keep them as up to date with their studies as 
> 20 years  well. But IT is very hard to keep up to date on. 

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4.3.3.5 Summary for RQ3
The objective of RQ3 was to explore how NZ accountants engage in IT related matters in
their workplace. Junior accountants in commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector are
actively involved in IT matters. They are engaged in daily and weekly discussions with
their colleagues on system reconciliation problems and IT related issues and are
responsible for solving these problems. Seniors from commercial firms and the Gov/Edu
sector confirmed the Juniors’ response. They are engaged in daily and frequent discussions
with their accounting colleagues in solving IT systems related problems. The response
from participants of CA firms, however, is quite different. Junior CA firm participants said
they rarely have the need for such discussions. Senior CA firm participants said that while
they do have frequent discussions on IT matters, especially on IT control issues, these
discussions are with their clients and not with their colleagues.

Junior and Senior participants from the commercial and Gov/Edu sector are also actively
involved in discussions with their IT departments and IT suppliers. Interaction with IT
includes reporting IT problems, participating in system implementation and requesting
changes or new functions in the accounting software or business system. From the
interviews, Juniors appear to be more active in contacting IT than the Seniors. As for CA
firms, Juniors again said they have few contacts with IT. Senior participants from CA firms
also appear to be less active in engaging with their IT department or IT supplier.

There are some communication barriers between participants and IT practitioners.

However, they are not serious and can be overcome. The most mentioned problem areas
are the use of jargon and technical terminology by IT people and their lack of
understanding in how accounting systems work. Three participants suggested that IT
practitioners should take courses in basic accounting to improve communication with
accountants. Others said they will try to update themselves by paying more attention to IT
terminologies.

On the issue of keeping up to date with the fast developing IT field, most participants said
they do not actively do this and would do so only when it is necessary. One participant
from the Gov/Edu sector has an on-going need to update herself on the latest IT products
due to her job function. Another participant has a personal interest in IT and keeps himself

130
up to date by reading IT magazines and looking in the Internet. Two Senior CA firm
participants said they keep themselves updated through contacts with their clients and their
colleagues from their overseas offices.

4.3.4 RQ4 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge and skills

Research question 4 seeks to obtain perceptions from participants on the adequacy of their
IT knowledge and skills for their jobs. The interview questions for Juniors are different
from those for Seniors. Juniors were asked about their perceptions of the adequacy of their
own knowledge and skills while Seniors were asked about their perceptions of the
adequacy of their assistants’ knowledge and skills. Table 4.17 shows the interview
questions for Juniors and Seniors and the corresponding sections. The summary of the
responses from Juniors and Seniors is listed in Appendix 5. In the discussions with
participants, the term ‘school’ was used frequently to refer to universities or tertiary
education institutions. In order to avoid misunderstanding, participants were reminded
during the interviews that the word ‘school’ was used to refer to TEIs and not primary or
secondary schools.

Table 4.17 Interview questions for RQ4

RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?

For Juniors For Seniors

JIQ08 Do you feel you have adequate IT SIQ08 Do you feel your assistants have adequate
knowledge and skills learned from your IT knowledge and skills learned from their
accounting major programme to perform accounting major programme to perform
proficiently in your job? proficiently in their jobs?
(Section 4.3.4.2)
JIQ09 How well did your accounting
programme prepare you for your accounting
practice?
(Section 4.3.4.1)
JIQ10 What additional IT knowledge and skills SIQ09 What additional IT knowledge and skills
will allow you to perform better in your job? will allow your assistants to perform better in their
(Section 4.3.4.3) jobs?
(Section 4.3.4.4)
JIQ11 If you were going back to study/(or if you N/A
are still studying), what IT topics would you want
to learn to improve your IT competency in your
job?
(Section 4.3.4.5)

Source: Developed for this research

131
4.3.4.1 Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge and skills
Junior participants were asked if they felt they had adequate IT knowledge and skills to
perform proficiently in their job (JIQ08) and how well their accounting programme
prepared them for practice (JIQ09). These two interview questions are related and are
discussed together in this section. Most Junior participants felt they had enough IT
knowledge and skills to start work but at the same time would like to learn more.
Participant J02 from a commercial firm said that she learned only MYOB accounting
software at school but in all the companies she had worked for, not one used this
accounting software. Participants from CA firms (J07, J08 and J09) all said that they had
no previous exposure to the type of accounting software that CA firms use. Designed
specifically for CA firms, this type of software is not normally taught in TEIs. Examples
include MYOB Accountants Office, MYOB Accountants Enterprise and Xcede
Professional Accounting. These comments confirm the views of Juniors on accounting
software in RQ2 that they would like to learn a second accounting software (see Section
4.3.2.3).

J09  It might have been useful to see a Chartered Accountant type 
CA firm,  software, type package. 
Business advisory services 
accountant, 
< 5 years 

Another area that Junior participants commented on is spreadsheets. Some said it would be
good if more advanced Excel skills were taught in their accounting major programme.
Accountants working in CA firms talked about the complex spreadsheets called electronic
working papers that they had to use to enter clients’ data. Although they were not required
to design or create these electronic working papers, they all showed an interest in
understanding how they work.

J07  And also I think the Excel. I saw lots of work papers were very 
CA firm,  complicated Excel sheets. So I think our knowledge in Excel 
Client service accountant,  different detailed skills not enough. 
< 5 years 

132
J13, who works as the Planning and Reporting Analyst in a government department spoke
about her admiration of a colleague who graduated with a conjoint Business and IT degree.
According to her, the colleague was much more proficient than she was in IT skills
because of the IT component in the conjoint degree. She made special mention of the use
of macros in spreadsheets by her colleague which made things much more efficient.

J07 mentioned the database project that he had to work on when he was studying and said
that there had been no use for it in his workplace; he had since forgotten the whole thing.
However, he was of the opinion that the IT control concepts he learned from school were
quite useful.

J07  What I learned from IT knowledge I think some of them is probably 
CA firm,  not applicable for the workplace. Such as database ... but we never 
Client service accountant,  use it in the workplace. And after a couple of months we forgot 
< 5 years  how to do that. 
For example the accounting controls. How to do accounting 
controls, how to check if anything has changed in the accounting 
software. I think that’s quite useful. 

J02 commented that not all companies had the resources to teach new staff members and
would expect them to have the required knowledge and skills when they start work:

J02  I just felt there could have been more that I could have learnt. 
Commercial firm,  Cause people aren’t really willing to teach in the workforce. They 
Financial analyst,  expect you to have that knowledge. 
5 to 10 years 

An important message that came out of this discussion was that they all preferred more
practical work in their accounting programme. Some said they had sufficient practical
work from their programme and were quite happy, while others said there was not enough
and they had to struggle when they first started work.

J03  I think if I can have more knowledge and practice on the accounting 
Commercial firm,  software, not only the ERP maybe or MYOB or others. More 
Accounting assistant,  practice and more knowledge on that. 
< 5 years 

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J05  Not enough practice. Application. I think I lacked application.  Like 
Gov/Edu,  hands on approach. Like with the journal entries. ... I started to 
Accounting systems officer,  know the end to end process only during my work. I wouldn’t have 
< 5 years  gained that knowledge in my schooling times. I gained that 
knowledge when I started work. 
J08  The first three months here was so just so overwhelming, huge 
CA firm,  amounts to learn and everyone here was saying, well everyone is in 
Graduate accountant,  that position all the graduates feel that way, but it’s kind of like 
< 5 years  how can you prepare them perhaps a little bit better. But you just 
feel stupid, you just feel so underprepared really, in that regard. 
J09  I think there needs to be a mix of both, but I think that you need to 
CA firm,  have some practical. You definitely have to have some practical 
Business advisory services  skills because it’s kind of hard because you go from a very 
accountant,  theoretical ... to kind of practical. 
< 5 years 

Some Juniors expressed their preparedness for work after graduating from TEIs by giving
a rating out of 100. One gave 20, another 30, and some 40 but most gave 50. The only one
who gave 70 was ironically J08 who was the most vocal in expressing her unpreparedness
for work.

4.3.4.2 Perceptions of adequacy of Juniors’ IT knowledge and skills

Seniors from the commercial and Gov/Edu sectors were generally satisfied with the IT
knowledge and skills of their assistants. Most said accounting graduates came with good
basic IT knowledge and skills to allow them to start work but would need to learn while
working to become proficient. Some companies provided formal training, others just on-
the-job training.

The two Senior participants from CA firms had different views; they were in the area of IT
security and Business Assurance services. They acknowledged that their field is highly
specialised and therefore they did not expect accounting graduates to come with the
specialised knowledge and skills their companies required. Their companies would,
however, provide formal and on-the-job training to newly hired accountants.

S03  They’ve probably got enough. It would be nice if they had more. 
CA firm,  But, they get a fair bit of training, so they have training quite a 
Consultant,  detailed training plans. It covers all levels of the business. 
10 to 20 years 

134
S04  Auditing is. Especially the Information Security Auditing area. It’s 
CA firm,  very specialist in a way. ... in the IT Security it’s a very fast paced 
Senior manager business  evolutionary area. And it’s not really well catered for a learning 
assurance,  expected to be from an academic point of view. 
5 to 10 years  90% of what your role would actually be asked of you we will train 
you. 

S04 added that an accounting major programme would most probably provide adequate IT
training for commercial firms but would fall short for specialised functions in a CA firm.

S04  ... if they were going to join a mid‐sized corporate environment. I 
CA firm,  think for example the Bachelor of Commerce Degree, ... is quite 
Senior manager business  good. But if you’re going to join a Big Four and at that want to join 
assurance,  one of the specialist functions then you probably not as well 
5 to 10 years  catered for.  

4.3.4.3 IT knowledge and skills to perform better

Junior participants were asked to suggest additional IT knowledge and skills that could
help them perform better in their job. Most participants responded by referring to the list of
IT knowledge and skills in previous discussions. The most mentioned item was advanced
spreadsheet skills. Other items included better understanding of accounting systems,
database concepts, database use, IT control and operating systems. This in effect
highlighted the importance of these IT topics and confirms the discussions in RQ2.

J03  ... so definitely more advanced knowledge of Excel and also the 
Commercial firm,  basic understanding of how the anti‐virus works and also how do I 
Accounting assistant,  remember it in word processor, there’s a macro. 
< 5 years 
J06  Get a better understanding how to detect computer fraud, Internal 
Commercial firm,  Control that’s actually left to Audit, that’s very important. 
Assistant accountant, 
10 to 20 years 
J11  Probably you have to use Access database.
Commercial firm,  So, you can sort of extract data and put them in Excel and then 
Chief accountant,  manipulate if you want to. 
10 to 20 years 
J14  ... then I would say probably a little knowledge of all this – not 
CA firm,  detailed accounting, but just how to open the file, what’s the 
Accountant,  procedure, print the report, and how to restore, and what version 
< 5 years  it is and all that stuff. 

135
J13 mentioned that knowledge in IT project management could help her perform better in
her job. The topic is formally known as Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) in AIS
textbooks. She was the only participant who mentioned this IT topic. This could again be
explained by her unusual accounting role as Planning and Reporting Analyst in the
Gov/Edu sector. Table 4.18 shows the IT topics mentioned by Junior participants in order
of the frequency of mentions.

Table 4.18 IT knowledge and skills to perform better

IT knowledge/skills Participants

Advanced spreadsheet J03, J05, J07, J09, J11

Better understanding of accounting systems J01, J05
Use of database J05, J11
Database concepts J10, J13
Graphics in spreadsheets J04
Advanced word processing J03
IT control J06
Systems development life cycle J13
Operating systems (Use of anti-virus software) J03
Operating systems (Use of utility software) J14

Source: Developed for this research

4.3.4.4 IT knowledge and skills for Juniors to perform better

This interview question asked Senior participants to think of any additional IT knowledge
and skills that would allow their assistants to perform better in their current job.
Suggestions included the ability to search for information quickly from relevant sources
including the Internet (Topic 2.6 – Research tools in the questionnaire refer to this
capability). Some reiterated the importance of having a full understanding of accounting
systems. The audit manager of a government department and the management accountant
of a commercial firm mentioned knowledge and concepts in IT and internal controls.

136
Spreadsheet skills at an intermediate or advanced level was again brought up. A Senior
participant mentioned what-if analysis and pivot tables.

S07  I think what we are starting to do here is that we’re giving people 

Commercial firm,  training in spreadsheets and we’re not talking one plus one here 
Branch accountant,  we’re talking pivot tables and analysis you know different what‐if 
5 to 10 years  analysis what IF then that. 

Two Seniors stressed the importance of being able to interpret and produce data analysis.
This issue was discussed earlier in the findings on spreadsheets.

S06  ... have to have your base knowledge and know what you’re doing 
Commercial firm,  before you can do analysis and understand what you are doing. 
Financial controller, 
10 to 20 years 
S09  Probably being able to break numbers down to the story in behind 
Commercial firm,  them. 
Finance manager,  Anyone can produce a report but it’s giving the report to someone 
10 to 20 years  saying here’s the two or three important pieces of information in 
here. 

Table 4.19 summarises the IT knowledge and skills regarded by Seniors as helpful to
Juniors.

Table 4.19 IT knowledge and skills for Juniors to perform better

IT knowledge/skills Participants

Advanced spreadsheet skills (pivot tables, IF) S07, S08

Data analysis and interpretation S06, S09
Full understanding of accounting systems S05, S08
IT control S02, S08
Research ability S01, S08
Financial modelling, simulation S08

Source: Developed for this research

137
4.3.4.5 IT topics to study if going back to study
When asked what IT knowledge and skills they would like to learn if they were going back
to school, Junior participants again overwhelmingly voted for more advanced spreadsheet
knowledge. The second most mentioned topic was the use of database query to retrieve and
search for data from databases. J01 and J13 specifically mentioned SQL which is a
standardised database query language available in most database software.

J01  I guess I would like to learn how to write Sequel [SQL] Queries. 
Commercial firm,  Sequel Server Queries and working with Sequel Servers. 
Accounting assistant, 
< 5 years 
J13  Is it Sequel or SQL?  Really can see a need for that because we have 
Gov/Edu,  a data warehouse, because to be able to retrieve that information 
Planning and reporting analyst,  without having to ask someone to write a report to specify 
5 to 10 years  everything. 

J02 from a commercial firm wished to have more knowledge on how to generate reports
from accounting systems. This could be construed as similar to the use of database to
retrieve data from the database of the accounting software as suggested by J01 and J13.
There were other suggestions which had not been mentioned in previous discussions. Some
of these veered towards the more technical side of IT knowledge including basic computer
programming, Extensible Markup Language (XML) and Visual Basic computer
programming language. But these suggestions were from the minority. Other less technical
topics suggested from the minority included learning Open Office software, budgeting and
forecasting software and SPSS, a statistic software. J14 from a CA firm wished to have
more in-depth understanding of the accounting software she used in her company and also
to have a general understanding of other popular accounting software available in the
market so that she could advise her clients on which one to use. Table 4.20 summarises the
topics mentioned by Junior participants.

The following are verbatim of some participants. J12 was the exception as she was of the
opinion that there was no need to learn further IT knowledge if she was going back to
school.

138
J02  We’ve got a lot of excels and database. Yes, the macros in excel. 
Commercial firm,  ... we don’t normally setup databases like it’s not really in our role 
Financial analyst,  but just searching for things,  
5 to 10 years  Also, reporting from whatever accounting system you are using, we 
know how to do data entry and stuff but there isn’t much focus on 
how to do reports. 
J05  ... if I had to go back to school, I would probably learn how to write 
Gov/Edu,  applications and know basic XML language, how to create it.  
Accounting systems officer,  VLOOKUP how to convert Excel files. 
< 5 years  I would want to learn visual basics as well.  Macros, all that. 
J10  I would definitely include, I would almost include an Introduction to 
Commercial firm,  Computer Programming also database concepts and principles.  
Management accountant,  ... definitely LOOKUP, matching and indexing, pivot tables. 
10 to 20 years 
J12  As an accounting graduate, probably no.
Commercial firm, 
Accounting assistant, 
10 to 20 years 

Table 4.20 IT knowledge and skills to learn if going back to study

IT knowledge/skills if going back to school Participants

More spreadsheet (Macros, LOOKUP, pivot tables) J02, J05, J08, J09, J10, J11
Database query language (SQL) J01, J13
Microsoft Access database J03, J11
Database concepts J10
Searching data from database J02
How to generate reports from accounting software J02
Understand accounting software better (MYOB) J14
Aware of different accounting software to advise clients J14
Open office software J11
Basic computer programming J10
XML language J05
Visual Basic computer programming language J05
Budgeting and forecasting software J09
SPSS Statistics software J09

Source: Developed for this research

139
4.3.4.6 Summary for RQ4
The objective of RQ4 was to obtain perceptions from Junior and Senior participants on the
adequacy of IT knowledge and skills of Juniors for them to perform competently in their
job. Both Junior and Senior participants were generally satisfied with their IT knowledge
and skills. Some Junior participants would like to learn more than one accounting software
package when they were studying at TEIs. The many different types and brands of
accounting software used by different industries and different companies create a dilemma
for accounting educators as to which and how many accounting software can be taught.

There were no negative comments on the lack of or inadequacy of IT knowledge and skills
of Juniors by Senior participants. Two Senior participants from CA firms acknowledged
the difficulties in providing specialist training to accounting students by TEIs in the
information security function of CA firms. They were not critical and added that their
firms provided all the training required of their Junior staff members.

When asked what additional IT knowledge and skills they would like to have to allow
them to perform better in their job, a number of Junior participants mentioned advanced
features of spreadsheet, better understanding of accounting and business systems and more
knowledge on the use and concepts on database. Others mentioned advanced word
processing, better understanding of IT and internal control, anti-virus software and use of
utility software. Junior practitioners in CA firms were all of the view that schools did not
teach the accounting software designed for CA firms. A Junior participant who works as
the Planning and Reporting Analyst of a government department mentioned IT project
management as something that is useful for an accountant. However, the position is an
unusual accounting role and she is the only participant who had mentioned this IT
knowledge.

Seniors were asked the same question – what additional IT knowledge and skills would
help their assistants to perform better in their job. Advanced spreadsheet skills, data
analysis, IT control and better understanding of accounting systems were raised in
response to this question.

140
Juniors were asked an additional question – what IT knowledge and skills they would like
to study if they were going back to school. The response confirmed some of those from
JIQ10 with more topics in the wish list. These additional topics tended to be more specific
and technical in nature including basic programming language. A comparison of the
responses to JIQ10, JIQ11 and SIQ09 is shown in Table 4.21.

Table 4.21 Comparison of responses to JIQ10, JIQ11 and SIQ09

JIQ11 SIQ09
JIQ10
To study if For Juniors
IT knowledge/skills To perform
going back to to perform
better
school better
Advanced spreadsheet
(Macros, LOOKUP, pivot tables, graphs) • • •
Use and search data from database (SQL) • •
Database concepts • •
IT control • •
Understand accounting systems better • •
Systems development life cycle •
Advanced word processing •
Operating systems
(anti-virus, utility software) •
How to generate reports from accounting
software •
Understand accounting software better •
Aware of different accounting software
to advise clients •
Open office software •
Basic computer programming •
XML language •
Budgeting and forecasting software •
SPSS Statistics software •
Search information from relevant sources •
Data analysis and interpretation •
Financial modelling, simulation •
Source: Developed for this research

4.3.5 RQ5 – IT knowledge and skills required in the future

The objective of RQ5 is to explore if there are any IT knowledge and skills that
participants could foresee being required to face the challenges of their work in the future.

141
Two interview questions were designed for Juniors asking them to think of the IT
knowledge and skills they would need if they were promoted and those that would be
required in five years’ time. The same questions were asked of Seniors with reference to
their assistants. The interview questions are shown in Table 4.22.

Table 4.22 Interview questions for RQ5

RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

For Juniors For Seniors

JIQ12 What other IT knowledge and skills do
you think are needed if you are promoted to a
higher position in your company?
(Section 4.3.5.1)
JIQ13 What other IT knowledge and skills do
you think are needed in five year’s time?
(Section 4.3.5.3)
SIQ10 What other IT knowledge and skills do
you think are needed if your assistants are
promoted to a higher position in your company?
(Section 4.3.5.2)
SIQ11 What other IT knowledge and skills do
you think are needed for your assistants in five
year’s time?
(Section 4.3.5.4)

Source: Developed for this research

4.3.5.1 IT knowledge and skills if promoted

The response from Juniors to this question tended to be more general in nature and less
specific to particular IT knowledge or technical skills. Only three individuals brought up
specific IT knowledge and skills as required if they were promoted. These included macros
in spreadsheets, understanding of basic computer programming and more knowledge in
internal controls and IT auditing. These topics have been mentioned in response to RQ4.
J05 and J13, both working in the Gov/Edu sector, mentioned SDLC as an important skill if
they were promoted to a higher position. This topic has also been raised by J13 in an
earlier discussion.

J02 wished to expand her vocabulary in technical terminologies so that she could
communicate better with IT providers. Others brought up general knowledge and skills and
these included project management knowledge, the need to understand more complex
accounting processes and the ability to solve problems. J03 from a commercial firm said
she would need to have the ability to manage her IT suppliers if she was promoted. J10
said he would like to develop higher levels of skills in analysis and interpretation. This
coincides with the expectations from Seniors. J14 from a CA firm repeated her wish to be

142
able to advise clients on the selection of suitable accounting software and packages. The
following are selected verbatim from the Junior participants.

J05  The other would be Project Management.  That would be for 

Gov/Edu,  implementing a new system.  So it is very important to know 
Accounting systems officer,  Project Management skills with management.  But yea, this is very 
< 5 years  important. 
J11  that would be more broad knowledge that would go out in 
Commercial firm,  accountancy.  ...  You know, solve problems basically.  Not 
Chief accountant,  becoming an IT specialist, but think of problems and being able to 
10 to 20 years  know what’s wrong. 

4.3.5.2 IT knowledge and skills if Juniors are promoted

Similar to Juniors’ responses, the types of knowledge and skills suggested by Seniors for
their assistants if they were promoted were more of general soft skills rather than specific
hard skills. These included project management, research, communications, interpersonal
relationship and problem solving skills. S05 was of the opinion that if Juniors were
promoted, they would need to have more in-depth knowledge in areas they were
responsible for so that they could guide and advise those reporting to them. This is similar
to the view of S08 who used the words ‘eye on details’. Others said they should develop
more business and commercial exposure. The two Seniors who mentioned specific IT
knowledge and skills were S06 and S08, both from commercial firms. S06 said an
advanced level of spreadsheet, word processing, presentation software and database
retrieval skills would help the person perform in the higher position. S08 also mentioned
word processing, presentation software and database skills. The need for better skills in
word processing and presentation software as suggested by S06 and S08 could be
explained by the expectation that accountants working at a higher level would be expected
to be increasingly involved in report writing and presentations.

S01  I don’t know if there are any other IT skills that they would need 
Commercial firm,  necessarily. ... I’d go back to research again. Having a greater depth 
Chief financial officer,  of the research tools available would help, and the Juniors are 
> 20 years  certainly not using that now. Whereas I’d expect them to be using 
it in the higher role. 

143
S04  It’s less of the technical knowledge. ... they wouldn’t focus on the 
CA firm,  technical things as much. I think may just be the usual sort of client 
Senior manager business  interaction skills, people management, you’d have things like 
assurance,  engagement management, report writing all of those things. 
5 to 10 years 
S09  In terms of the technical side, I’m not sure he would need a heck of 
Commercial firm,  a lot more.  It’s more commercial exposure and business 
Finance manager,  experience. 
10 to 20 years 

4.3.5.3 IT knowledge and skills in five years’ time

This question was not easy to answer as it required participants to use their imagination to
think of any additional IT knowledge or skills they would need in the future. Some
participants were not able to give any suggestion. Those who tried mentioned basic
programming, being able to set up computers at home to remotely access their companies’
computers, paperless office and better skills in using web sites for research and finding
information. J05 brought up again the knowledge in IT systems implementation which is
under the area of IT project management.

J01  Possibly programming because alternately I have a feeling that 
Commercial firm,  systems will be changing so quickly. You know ten, fifteen years 
Accounting assistant,  down the track that you would need some sort of programming 
< 5 years  skill to be able to keep [up]. 
J02  I say being able to set up your computer from home to work.  So I 
Commercial firm,  think the trend that we’re following or going to work is working 
Financial analyst,  from home.  So you should be able to know how to fix your systems 
5 to 10 years  up and be able to use Internet and access database and everything 
from home.  So those type of knowledge would be required.  I can’t 
think of any think of any others. 
J14  I think the latest thing in trend is a paperless office.  ... So probably 
CA firm,  more use of the computer, have your own personal laptop.  VPN 
Accountant,  logging in, remote access I think these are all the things probably 
< 5 years  which will be used which will be a common thing in the next five 
years. 

4.3.5.4 IT knowledge and skills for Juniors in five years’ time

Like their Junior counterparts, Seniors found this question quite difficulty to answer. S01
and S09 posited that web based applications will become more prevalent and therefore

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accounting practitioners should have a good grasp of Internet knowledge and e-commerce
concepts in the future.

S01  It’s hard to say. They really just need to keep up with the IT 
Commercial firm,  developments. If we look back five years. I guess the Internet 
Chief financial officer,  wasn’t as powerful as it is now. And certainly our systems weren’t 
> 20 years  Internet based, but that is the way we’re going. And I can see in the 
not too distant future where all our systems are largely Internet 
based. 
S09  I think there’s likely to be a lot more web based type functionality.  
Commercial firm,  Even in the relevant analysis.  Some of the tools we’re using here 
Finance manager,  are becoming more web based.  And we’re doing more sort of EDI 
10 to 20 years  type stuff with some of our customers.  This doesn’t have a direct 
impact on the role I have, but general sort of finance requirement 
becomes more and more prevalent. 

4.3.5.5 Summary for RQ5

RQ5 probed participants to use their imagination and try to think of IT knowledge and
skills that may be needed in the future. They were asked to think of the IT knowledge and
skills required for Juniors if they were promoted to a higher position in accounting and also
those that may be required in five years’ time. The topics mentioned by participants
include hard skills, some of which reaffirm those brought up in earlier discussions. They
also include soft skills, some of which have not been mentioned before.

The hard skills are advanced spreadsheet and basic programming knowledge. Juniors
would like to be able to set up home computers to remotely access the office so that they
can work from home. Paperless office is also mentioned by two Juniors suggesting the use
of portable and wireless devices so that print-outs are kept to the minimum. Seniors mostly
point to the increasing prevalence of Internet-based applications and e-commerce
indicating that knowledge in these areas becomes more important over time.

The soft skills mentioned include project management, managing IT providers,

communication and interpersonal skills. One way to improve communication with IT
providers as suggested by one participant is to learn and understand more IT terminologies.
Better skills in research, data analysis and interpretation, report writing, presentation and
problem solving are also important for working at a higher level.

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4.3.6 Other findings from interviews
There were unscripted questions and discussions during the interviews. Some of these were
off-topic but a good number are relevant and add to the depth of this study. The relevant
unscripted discussions are presented in this section.

4.3.6.1 Timing of IT courses

Two participants raised the issue of the timing of IT courses in TEIs. J03 referred to a basic
computer course she took when she started the accounting major programme at her TEI
and said that she had forgotten most of the things she learned in that course by the time she
graduated.

J03  But that’s the first paper in IT and many students will choose that 
Commercial firm,  in the first year.  And by the time when they graduate they have 
Accounting assistant,  forgotten. 
< 5 years 

While discussing the IT knowledge and skills that would be required if she was promoted,
J09 was of the opinion that she would only need those that she would be using when she
starts work. Those that are not required at work will be forgotten.

J09  Or whether you need to know that as a graduate, because you 
CA firm,  don’t want to come out of your study with lots of skills that you 
Business advisory services  don’t really need, because by the time you need them you’ve 
accountant,  forgotten how to use them anyway. 
< 5 years 

These two comments raise not only the question of what IT knowledge and skills to teach
but also when they should be taught. The first question is what this study sets out to find;
the latter will be discussed further in Chapter 5.

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4.3.6.2 Topics not included in the questionnaire
A number of topics not included in the questionnaire were raised by the researcher during
the interviews. Resource-Event-Agent (REA) diagrams, SDLC and XBRL, are IT topics
popular in AIS textbooks, and the researcher wished to find out if they are required by
accounting practitioners. SDLC was mentioned by some participants as required in the
future or if they were promoted. This leaves REA diagrams and XBRL unexplored.

All participants were either unaware of REA diagrams or said they did not remember what
they were, implying that this particular IT topic is not required.

J05  REA? No.  I don’t remember.
Gov/Edu, 
Accounting systems officer, 
< 5 years 
J10  REA diagrams, I can’t say I do know of.  I possibly do from AIS, but I 
Commercial firm,  can’t remember. 
Management accountant, 
10 to 20 years 

Most participants were unfamiliar with XBRL, and only a few Senior participants working
in CA firms were able to identify it. The lack of awareness of this topic was probably
because the technology has not taken off in NZ.

J05  No.    We don’t use XBRL.  
Gov/Edu, 
Accounting systems officer, 
< 5 years 
S03  It’s interesting. XBRL –it’s been around a long time as a concept. 
CA firm,  I’ve never seen it take off or be used anywhere. ... The concepts are 
Consultant,  good and I understand the concepts particularly multinational 
10 to 20 years  company’s consolidations all these sort of things. It hasn’t taken 
off. 

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4.4 Summary of findings
Finding 1 – Importance of spreadsheets
Spreadsheet is one of the most important and most used IT tools for accounting graduates.
It is used in a variety of ways such as reporting, budgeting and data analysis. The skill
level required should be at an intermediate to advanced level.

Finding 2 – Accounting systems and accounting software

Accounting software is used on a daily basis and accountants should have good working
knowledge on how to use an accounting software package. Accounting systems and
accounting software are inter-related and should be taught in conjunction with each other.
Accountants should have thorough knowledge of accounting/business systems.

Finding 3 – Database knowledge

Accountants need only know what a database is and how to retrieve data from databases.
There is no need for accountants to learn how to design and create databases.

Finding 4 – Data analysis skills

From the discussions on spreadsheet and database knowledge requirements, an important
point was discovered. Accountants should have good knowledge in data analysis to be able
to make meaningful use of spreadsheets and retrieve relevant data from databases.

Finding 5 – Office software / documentation tools

Only basic skills are required for office software and documentation tools such as word
processor, presentation software and flowcharts.

Finding 6 – IT control knowledge / IT audit software

Internal control knowledge is regarded as important but not essential. Senior participants
from CA firms and the auditing discipline do not expect TEIs to teach specialised topics
such as IT audit software or in-depth IT control knowledge.

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Finding 7 – Research tools
Research tools refer to the ability to use such tools to search relevant information from
relevant sources. This skill is regarded as essential for accounting graduates.

Finding 8 – General IT knowledge and skills

A number of topics are grouped under this item for discussion. They include Internet tools,
General systems knowledge, e-commerce, Internet knowledge, Data security and
Operating systems. Internal tools are use of e-mail, web browsing and SMS and are
regarded as tacit knowledge and skills. General systems knowledge is regarded as quite
important. The remaining topics (e-commerce, Internet knowledge, Data security,
Operating systems) are regarded as unimportant or too technical for accountants.

Finding 9 – Values
‘Values’ refers to ethical standards and is regarded as an important attribute for accounting
graduates.

Finding 10 – Involvement in IT / Keeping up-to-date in IT

Accountants in commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector are involved in the operations,
maintenance and development of IT in their companies. Commercial firm accountants
would improve their communication with their IT providers if the latter possess basic
accounting knowledge. Accountants do not actively keep themselves up-to-date in IT.

Finding 11 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge

Participants are generally satisfied with their IT knowledge and skills. However, when
asked whether they would like to learn additional IT knowledge and skills, most of them
wish to have more knowledge and advanced skills in the topics listed in the questionnaire.
IT topics not included in the questionnaire are also mentioned and they include SQL,
Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC, XML, basic computer programming, data
analysis/interpretation, financial modelling/simulation, budgeting/forecasting software and
how to generate reports from accounting software.

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Finding 12 – Project work for IT
Junior participants expressed the need for more IT practical work in accounting major
programmes.

Finding 13 – IT knowledge required in the future

When asked what IT knowledge and skills are required in the future, both hard and soft
skills were mentioned. Hard skills include technical topics such as basic computer
programming, setting up home computers to remotely access company computers, how to
implement paperless office and knowledge in e-commerce. Soft skills include interpersonal
and communications skills, report writing and presentation skills.

Finding 14 – Timing of IT courses

The timing of teaching important IT knowledge and skills in an accounting major
programme should be such that the important ones are taught or re-visited closer to the
time of graduation.

Finding 15 – Topics not included in the questionnaire

Three IT topics popular among AIS textbooks were eliminated in the pilot study and
therefore not included in the questionnaire for the main study. They are REA diagrams,
SDLC and XBRL. SDLC was identified as required in the future. Conversely, REA
diagrams and XBRL were regarded as not required by practitioners.

Finding 16 – IFAC IEPS 2

A high percentage of IEPS 2 topics scored less than 4 in the pilot study.

Finding 17 – NZICA SLO-5

All five topics of the NZICA SLO-5 scored between 3 and 4 in the pilot study.

4.5 Chapter summary

This chapter has presented the findings from the main study of the research. Data collected
from the questionnaire and the interviews have been analysed and the findings presented.

150
Triangulation of findings was achieved by comparing the data collected from the
questionnaire with those from the interviews. The findings from the interviews are
generally supported by the results from the questionnaire. The 18 IT knowledge and skills
were ranked and categorised into Bands 1, 2 and 3 based on their overall mean scores (see
Table 4.7). The same items were classified into Category 1, 2 and 3 (see Table 4.14) based
on the analysis of data from the interviews. The topics under the two categorisations were
compared and have been found to closely match with each other in the corresponding
categories. The findings from this chapter have been summarised in Section 4.4. They will
be discussed in the next chapter with particular emphasis on the implications of these
findings to accounting curriculum policy and design, how they relate to the literature and
the research questions, and what recommendations can be drawn from the findings.

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 CHAPTER 5 – DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION
5 DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION
5.0 Introduction
The previous chapter presented an analysis of the data collected from the main study. The
data included the scores given by 23 participants on 18 IT topics in the questionnaire and
the qualitative data collected from the interviews. The methods used in analysing the data
were discussed in Chapter 3. Descriptive statistics was used to present the overall mean
scores of each of the 18 topics and to compare the mean scores from different participant
groups. Qualitative data collected from the interviews were analysed by listening to the
voice recordings of the interviews, repeated reading of the transcripts, coding the contents
of the dialogues and summarising them into themes. The findings with respect to each
research question based on these analyses were presented in Chapter 4 and then
summarised in Section 4.4.

In this chapter, the research problem and the research questions are re-stated as the context
for discussion of the findings and the conclusions. The findings from Section 4.4 are
discussed with consideration given to the implications of these findings and the
contributions of this research to accounting education literature, accounting curriculum
design, professional guidelines, theoretical framework and methodology. A model for IT
coverage in an accounting curriculum has been developed and is named the INDUCTION–
DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model. This final chapter also identifies the limitations of
the study and the possible future research areas. Figure 5.1 shows an overview of this
chapter.

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Figure 5.1 Overview of Chapter 5

5.1 The research 
problem re‐stated  5.2.1  Importance of spreadsheets 
5.2.2  Accounting systems / software 
5.2.3  Database knowledge 
5.2 Discussions and  5.2.4  Data analysis skills 
implications  5.2.5  Office software / documentation tools 
5.2.6  IT control / IT audit 
5.2.7  Research tools 
5.2.8  General IT knowledge and skills 
5.2.9  Values 
5.2.10 Involvement in IT / Keeping up‐to‐date on IT 
5.2.11 Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge 
5.2.12 Project work for IT 
5.2.13 IT knowledge required in the future 
5.2.14 Timing of IT courses 
5.2.15 Topics not included in questionnaire 
5.2.16 IFAC IEPS 2 
5.2.17 NZICA SLO‐5 
5.2.18 Summary 

5.3 An integrated 
model for delivery 
of IT content 
5.4.1 Contribution to accounting education 
literature and curriculum design 
5.4.2 Informing professional accounting bodies on IT 
guidelines 
5.4 Contributions  5.4.3 Contribution to theoretical framework 
5.4.4 Contribution to research methodology 
5.4.5 First study of its kind in NZ 

5.5 Limitations 

5.6.1 Replicating the study in other countries 
5.6 Further research  5.6.2 Modifying the study to collect data from 
academics 
5.6.3 Encouraging accounting students to develop 
an interest in IT 
5.7 Chapter summary  5.6.4 The relevant accounting knowledge for IT 
practitioners 

5.8 Conclusion 

Source: Developed for this research

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5.1 The research problem re-stated
The research problem of this thesis concerns the IT knowledge and skills required by
accounting graduates in NZ. The objective of the study is to identify the IT knowledge and
skills that are relevant to accounting graduates in their first five years working in an
accounting capacity. More specifically, the research seeks to identify the IT knowledge and
skills for NZ accounting graduates that fall under the following attributes:
 Up-to-date – that IT knowledge and skills to be explored must be up-to-date
according to the latest developments of IT in business
 Requisite – that they do not include all IT knowledge and skills available and that
they are the topics required by accounting graduates only
 Holistic – that they do include all IT knowledge and skills required by accounting
graduates

The theoretical framework of this research is based on two parent theories – human capital
theory and stakeholder theory. These two theories are applied in the context of higher
education in this study. Human capital theory posits that education has important economic
effects on nations and societies. Stakeholder theory suggests that the success of education
institutions depends on their ability to balance the needs of their various stakeholders.
Graduates are one of the stakeholders of higher education. The link between these two
theories leads to the issue on graduate employability which is the basis on which this
research is positioned. In order to be employable, graduates would need to possess
knowledge and skills required by the jobs to which they aspire. This research focuses on IT
knowledge and skills for accounting graduates and five research questions have been
developed to address the research problem. They are re-stated as follows:

RQ1 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants need in the first five years of their
career?
RQ2 How are IT knowledge and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?
RQ3 How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?
RQ4 Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT knowledge and skills for their jobs?
RQ5 What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as necessary in the future?

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5.2 Discussions and implications

5.2.1 Finding 1 – Importance of spreadsheets

Spreadsheet has emerged from the results of this study as the most important IT skill for
accountants. Spreadsheet is ranked first in the list of IT knowledge and skills with a mean
score of 5.91. It is used by accountants on a daily basis in a variety of ways such as
reporting, budgeting and data analysis. Advanced functions in spreadsheets are required
and some of those mentioned by participants include LOOKUP, sorting and filtering,
graphics and pivot tables. Some companies have included spreadsheet as one of the skill
set tests in the recruitment process for accountants. Others are running regular spreadsheet
classes to improve the skills of their staff members in this important IT tool. These
measures further demonstrate the importance of spreadsheets placed by companies and
employers. This finding is in agreement with other studies found from the literature review
(see Awayiga, Onumah & Tsamenyi 2010; Burnett 2003; Davis & Leitch 1988; Doolin et
al. 1994; Green & Buckby 1995; Jackson & Cherrington 2002; Theuri & Gunn 1998; Van
Meer & Adams 1996; Williams, J. & Leung 1995). Spreadsheets are often used in data
analysis to support decision making (Beaman & Richardson 2007). This finding is
consistent with the idea that accountants should focus more on the use of financial
information in decision making which is higher up on the information value chain
(Albrecht & Sack 2000; Herring III 2003; Tatikonda 2004).

Since spreadsheet has been identified as the most important IT skill for accounting
graduates, how this particular IT skill should be taught needs to be looked at carefully.
Although some may argue that accounting graduates can easily develop spreadsheet skills
on their own, educators cannot assume that all students have such interest or capability. A
study at the University of Glasgow asked students to self-assess their IT skills on entry to
the university and found them to have low levels of spreadsheet and database skills (Stoner
2009). Consideration to include some of the advanced spreadsheet functions in the
accounting curriculum is highly recommended.

5.2.2 Finding 2 – Accounting systems and accounting software

The combined knowledge and understanding of accounting systems, together with
practical knowledge and skills in the use of accounting software, are the second most

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important IT topics for accountants. Accounting software is used on a daily basis and
accountants should have good working knowledge not just in how to use an accounting
software package but with a full understanding of the accounting system behind it. This
entails a thorough knowledge of accounting/business systems. These findings agree with
the literature. Use of an accounting package is identified in a number of monographs as a
necessary skill set for accountants (Wessels 2005; Williams, J. & Leung 1995). However,
it is surprising to find that accounting software package received a mean score of less than
3 on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = unnecessary, 5 = valuable) from accounting students (Jackson &
Cherrington 2002). In the AIS literature, emphasis is placed on knowledge of accounting
systems which includes the revenue, expenditure, payroll, production and GL cycles
(Davis & Leitch 1988; Heagy & Rakow 1991; Smith & Bain 1993; Van Meer & Adams
1996).

Data collected from the interviews indicate that accounting/business systems and
accounting/business software are inextricably inter-related and should be taught in close
conjunction with each other. Participants expressed the desire to learn a large scale ERP
system in addition to small scale popular accounting software packages often taught in
TEIs. CA firm participants would like to learn a CA firm-specific accounting software
package. Focus should be given to the ‘cycles’ or components of a typical business system.
These include the revenue cycle (sales order processing, shipment of goods, invoicing and
collection), the purchasing cycle (purchase order processing, receipt of goods and
payment) and the general ledger cycle (chart of accounts, journal entries and generating
reports). It is preferable to use two accounting software packages for teaching in an
accounting major programme. The first could be a popular entry level package, with the
second in the medium to large ERP system range. Alternatively, the second accounting
software could be a CA firm-specific package. However, teaching a second accounting
package would incur additional costs and require additional time allocation in the
accounting programme. The choice of the second package is also not straight-forward as
some participants preferred an ERP while others would like a CA firm-specific accounting
software.

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5.2.3 Finding 3 – Database knowledge
Based on opinions from participants, accountants need only know what a database is and
how to retrieve data from it. There is little need for accountants to learn how to design and
create databases. This finding may provide some clarity and guidance to accounting
educators on how much and what to teach in database topics. It also confirms the finding
from a study by Williams J. and Leung (1995) which reported that accounting educators
and CAs agreed that less emphasis should be given to database software and systems
design. Based on these findings, courses should focus on retrieving data from databases
rather than creating and designing them.

5.2.4 Finding 4 – Data analysis skills

A finding that emerged from the discussions on spreadsheets is that accountants should
have sound concepts in data analysis to make meaningful use of spreadsheets. Similarly,
when discussing database concepts and database software, participants were of the view
that accountants should have good business knowledge and data analysis concepts to know
what data to extract from databases to produce meaningful management information.

A number of senior participants voiced the concern that data analysis skills of junior
accountants must be developed. This is confirmed by junior participants commenting that
data analysis skills are not adequately covered in TEIs. Without such concepts and skills,
the use of spreadsheets and databases will be just a number crunching exercise and there is
a risk that information produced will be misleading and confusing. Based on this finding,
data analysis skills are important and should be developed in an accounting curriculum.
This skill set has not been explicitly discussed in any of the studies found in the literature
review.

5.2.5 Finding 5 – Office software / documentation tools

Software and tools used in the office for general purposes are grouped into this item for
discussion as they serve similar purposes. These include word processor, presentation
software and documentation tools.

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Based on comments from the interviews, word processor is used only occasionally and
only basic skills are needed. This result is consistent with the Williams J. and Leung
(1995) study which reported that less emphasis should be given to word processing than
other office software such as spreadsheets. Presentation software shares the same category
of importance with word processing and is of secondary importance requiring only basic
skills.

Documentation tools refer to the understanding of system flowcharts, document flowcharts

and DFDs. Data collected from the interviews suggest that these tools are used
occasionally, are quite important and require some basic knowledge. The need is more on
reading and understanding flowcharts than on drawing the charts themselves. This topic is
identified as a necessary skill in a number of monographs (see Davis & Leitch 1988; Van
Meer & Adams 1996; Wessels 2005; Wu 1983). Accounting educators regard flowcharts
and DFDs more important than do practising accountants (Davis & Leitch 1988).
However, most participants are of the view that only system and document flowcharts are
required and that they have never come across DFDs.

5.2.6 Finding 6 – IT control knowledge / IT audit software

IT control concepts include the concepts of internal control, computer fraud, IT audit, and
controls to personal computers. This topic occupies an important place in the AIS
literature. Internal control is regarded as an essential topic requiring intermediate
knowledge level (Van Meer & Adams 1996), and is listed as one of the learning outcomes
in the NZICA SLOs (NZICA 2006b). It was ranked first in two studies in which
accounting educators and practitioners were asked to rank topics taken from AIS textbooks
(Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002; Smith & Bain 1993). The results of the Davis and Leitch
(1988) study showed that internal control is regarded as more important by accounting
educators than by practitioners. It was ranked in first place by educators in the study as the
most important topic for future needs.

Based on the findings from this study, internal control is regarded as important but not
essential. Junior accountants said they are not at a level of seniority where they can initiate
and promote IT and internal controls in their organisations. Senior participants from CA

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firms and the auditing discipline do not expect TEIs to teach specialised topics such as
advanced IT control knowledge or IT audit. A good understanding of the concepts of
internal and IT control appears to be adequate.

IT audit software refers to the use of computer software to assist in performing audit work.
Most participants are not involved in this area. The audit manager of a government
institution was of the opinion that this is a highly specialised area and that accounting
graduates are not expected to enter the workforce with such knowledge even if they are
hired as auditors. On-the-job training is usually provided to graduates. EDP audit was
ranked in 10th place by both accounting educators and practitioners in the Davis and Leitch
(1988) study.

The above findings coincide to a certain extent with the Davis and Leitch (1988) study
which reported that internal control is regarded as less important by accounting
practitioners than accounting educators. It is recommended that a basic level of
understanding of IT control is developed in the AIS course. For those TEIs that have the
scope to offer it, advanced concepts on internal and IT control could be covered in an
advanced AIS course. IT audit is a highly specialised area and accounting graduates are not
expected to have this knowledge and skills when they join the workforce. Companies will
normally provide training if candidates are hired in the audit department.

5.2.7 Finding 7 – Research tools

Research tools refer to the ability to search for relevant information from relevant sources.
Ubiquitous Internet search engines and the ease of use of such tools make searching for
information much easier than it was before the age of the Internet. This topic was regarded
by participants as more important when described in the interviews, than in the rating they
gave in the questionnaire. It has been identified as one of the necessary IT skills for
accountants (Jackson & Cherrington 2002; Wessels 2005).

Because of the ease of use of these tools, it appears that there is little need for a specific
course to teach such skills. However, it is easy to over-estimate the ability of students to do
searches using advanced operations to efficiently narrow down search results. An

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introduction on how to do searches from the Internet and library databases using such
advanced searches would be helpful for students. Examples of advanced functions are the
use of wildcard symbols and Boolean operators such as ‘*’, ‘?’, ‘AND’, ‘OR”, etc. This
can be included in an introductory IT course in the first semester.

5.2.8 Finding 8 – General IT knowledge and skills

A number of topics in the questionnaire are grouped into this item for discussion. These
topics include Internet tools (ranked 6 in this study), General systems knowledge (rank 8),
e-commerce (rank 13), Internet knowledge (rank 15), Data security (rank 17) and
Operating systems (rank 18).

Internet tools refer to the use of e-mail, web browsing and SMS, and are quite intuitive and
can be self-taught. These tools are becoming requisite skills by any white-collar worker in
today’s environment. Since they have been clearly identified by a number of monographs
as necessary skills (see Jackson & Cherrington 2002; Wessels 2005), they can be included
in an introductory IT course in the first semester of the accounting programme.

General systems knowledge refers to concepts in transaction processing systems and end-
user computing. These concepts are regarded as required IT knowledge and an overall
understanding is needed by accountants. This finding is consistent with a number of
monographs in the AIS literature (see Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002; Van Meer & Adams
1996; Wu 1983).

E-commerce is regarded as unimportant by the majority of participants mainly because

they are not involved in it. A general discussion of e-commerce can be included in an AIS
course. This topic was ranked 7th and 18th by accounting educators and practitioners
respectively (Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002).

Internet knowledge, which refers to communications and firewall technologies, is regarded

as too technical. According to participants, it should be in the domain of IT specialists.
Data security relates to the tasks of performing backup and recovery of data. Participants
are of the opinion that this is clearly the responsibility of the IT department. Operating

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systems refers to the use of utility and anti-virus software on personal computers. All
accounting practitioners today use a computer in their daily work, and the ability to use the
operating system utilities to copy, save and organise files are skills that any accountant
should possess.

5.2.9 Finding 9 – Values

‘Values’ refers to ethical standards for accountants in this study and participants regard this
as an essential attribute. ‘Ethics’ was regarded as more important by practitioners than
educators and was ranked 8th and 4th by accounting educators and practitioners respectively
(Bain, Blankley & Smith 2002).

5.2.10 Finding 10 – Involvement in IT / Keeping up-to-date in IT

Accountants in commercial firms and the Gov/Edu sector are involved in varying degrees
in the operations, maintenance and development of their in-house systems and are
therefore required to engage in discussions and meetings with their IT providers. Junior
accountants in CA firms, on the other hand, are only responsible for preparing the accounts
of their clients and are therefore less involved in IT matters. According to junior
accountants in commercial firms and Gov/Edu institutions, the common problems in
communications with IT practitioners are the technical jargon and terminology that IT
people use. This could be overcome if accountants are exposed to technical terminologies
in TEIs and by keeping an interest in IT developments themselves. However, the majority
of interviewees said they do not actively keep themselves up-to-date on IT knowledge. The
exceptions are those who are required to do so as a result of their job function or those who
have a personal interest in IT developments. This finding has implications for teaching IT
in TEIs. As IT is developing at a rapid pace, the need for accountants to keep up-to-date on
the subject is increasingly important (Anastas 1997). How can accounting curricula be
designed to encourage accounting students to develop an interest in IT? This could be an
area for further research.

Some participants suggested that communication between accountants and IT practitioners

would improve if the latter possess some basic accounting knowledge because
misunderstanding and confusion in discussions should be reduced. IT major programmes

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should therefore include basic accounting courses in their curricula. A question similar to
that of this research begs – what do IT graduates need to know in terms of accounting
knowledge for them to perform competently in a commercial firm? This could also be an
area for further research.

5.2.11 Finding 11 – Perceptions of adequacy of IT knowledge

Junior participants are generally satisfied with their own IT knowledge and skills. This is
confirmed by senior participants who are also satisfied with the level of IT knowledge of
their junior accountants.

When asked if there are any additional IT knowledge and skills they would like to learn or
develop, advanced spreadsheet skills were again mentioned by most participants. This
reinforces the perception by accounting practitioners of the importance of spreadsheet
skills. Other topics included in the 18 IT topics in the questionnaire were re-iterated,
including IT controls, database concepts, operating systems and a better understanding of
accounting systems. Junior accountants from CA firms would like to learn an accounting
software package specially designed for CA firms. This type of accounting software is not
normally covered in TEIs. As discussed in Section 5.2.2, teaching a second accounting
package would incur additional costs and require additional time allocation in the
accounting programme. Other IT topics not included in the questionnaire were also
mentioned and they include SQL, SDLC, XML, basic computer programming, data
analysis/interpretation, financial modelling/simulation, budgeting/ forecasting software and
how to generate reports from accounting software.

5.2.12 Finding 12 – Project work for IT

Junior participants expressed the need for more IT practical work in accounting major
programmes. They are of the opinion that there is not enough opportunity in the accounting
curriculum for them to develop IT skills. This finding agrees with the comments made by
Burnett (2003, p. 132):

With respect to technology skills, a single accounting systems class along with one
or two generic computer courses may not be adequate. A better approach might be

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 to require more technology applications, particularly spreadsheets, in all other
accounting classes, in addition to the accounting systems class.

One of the ways to achieve this is to require the use of IT software/tools in different papers
in the accounting programme. For example, a management accounting paper would require
students to create complex spreadsheets for budgets and costing systems and using what-if
analyses. A tax paper would ask students to make use of formulae to compute taxes. A
finance paper would expose students to the use of functions such as net present value,
internal rate of return, etc. Marketing papers would require students to make presentations
using presentation software and to produce graphs in reports. General management papers
would require students to write reports using intermediate to advanced functions in word
processing software.

In order to distribute the learning of IT knowledge and skills among different courses in
the accounting programme, it is necessary for accounting faculties to review their current
accounting programme policies and make changes as required. Issues regarding lecturer
competence in IT, computer facilities and course design need to be reviewed. If lecturers
teaching in these papers are not proficient in these IT software and tools, they will be
reluctant or unable to build such IT project assignments into their courses. If there are not
enough computer laboratories, students will be hindered from doing their computer
assignments. Accounting faculty management may have to assess the IT capabilities of
their teaching staff and provide training if necessary. They would also need to play an
active part in promoting, supporting and monitoring the state of IT diffusion in the
curriculum.

5.2.13 Finding 13 – IT knowledge required in the future

When asked what IT knowledge and skills are required in the future, both hard and soft
skills were mentioned. Hard skills mentioned include technical topics such as basic
computer programming, setting up home computers to remotely access company
computers and how to implement paperless office and knowledge in e-commerce. Soft
skills mentioned by participants include interpersonal and communications skills, report
writing and presentation skills. Soft skills have been identified as important attributes for
graduates of higher education (see Franz 2008; Little 2007; Nicolescu & Paun 2009). The

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response from the participants confirms these findings. These soft skills are not IT related
and should be included in other relevant courses in the accounting curriculum. The hard
skills mentioned by participants could be included in IT related courses in the accounting
programme.

5.2.14 Finding 14 –Timing of IT courses

The timing of teaching important IT knowledge and skills in an accounting major
programme should be such that the important ones are taught or re-visited closer to the
time of graduation. Some participants were of the opinion that it is easy to forget the things
they learned in early courses in the programme. This is especially true for the entry level
IT course which is usually taught in the first semester to prepare students to use computers
in their further studies. There is a long lapse in time between the entry level IT course to
the time when students graduate. Discussions on this aspect of IT content delivery have not
been found in the literature.

If a refresher course in important IT skills is available as one of the last papers before
graduation, graduates could be ‘IT productive’ immediately when they join the workforce.
An exit IT competency course is not only a good way to provide a refresher for the basic
IT skills but also to teach the advanced skills identified in this study. Students taking this
course would finish the programme with fresh memories of the IT skills they need to start
working productively. Brigham Young University in the USA has successfully
implemented a capstone IT skills course with excellent results. Graduates of the University
regarded this course to be more effective than the AIS course (Jackson & Cherrington
2002). This finding may be of interest to some TEIs. Implementation of such an exit IT
course would entail a review of existing accounting curricula.

5.2.15 Finding 15 – Topics not included in the questionnaire

Three IT topics that are popular among AIS textbooks, namely REA diagrams, SDLC and
XBRL (see for example Bagranoff, Simkin & Norman 2008; Gelinas Jr, Sutton & Hunton
2005; Hall 2011; Romney & Steinbart 2009) were eliminated from the questionnaire for
the main study as a result of the pilot study. They were brought up by the researcher in the
interviews to ensure that these are not left unexplored.

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SDLC is related to project management for IT systems development. This topic has been
identified as required in the future or if an accountant is promoted to a higher position. A
basic coverage of this topic in an AIS course is recommended.

REA diagrams are used in teaching database design and have been promoted by McCarthy
(2003) as an important topic in AIS. Most participants were not familiar with this IT
concept or had very vague memory of it. Since they have indicated that accountants need
not know how to design databases, this result is not surprising. An introduction to REA
concepts would be useful in an AIS course as a precursor to teaching database concepts.

XBRL allows the automated transfer of accounting information and greatly facilities the
process of financial reporting (Debreceny & Farewell 2010). The authors argue that XBRL
should be integrated across the accounting curriculum. However, most participants
interviewed were not familiar with XBRL and that is probably due to the slow uptake of
this technology in NZ. A brief introduction to XBRL in an AIS course would help promote
awareness of this technology.

5.2.16 Finding 16 – IFAC IEPS 2

As discussed in Section 3.3.1, a pilot study was conducted which sought the opinion of six
experts in the accounting field in rating 266 IT topics sourced from the literature, using the
Delphi method. Included in the 266 topics are 188 topics from IEPS 2. Figure 5.2 shows
the analysis of results for IEPS 2 from the pilot study. Topics with mean scores equal to or
greater than 4 would include those regarded by the experts as requiring good
understanding, full understanding or the ablility to apply and use. Topics with mean scores
less than 4 were those requiring minimum understanding, awareness only, or were not
relevant/not required. Only 15% of the topics from IEPS 2 were rated 4 or above by the
experts. This result shows that a very high percentage (85%) of the topics in IEPS 2 were
regarded as not important by the experts. This result confirms the comments made by
various IFAC member bodies regarding the over-ambitious guideline which may confuse
rather than help accounting educators (see Table 2.25).

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Figure 5.2 Analysis of IEPS 2

> = 5 4 to 4.9
6% 9%
< 2
9%

3 to 3.9 
29%

2 to 2.9
47%

Source: Developed for this research

5.2.17 Finding 17 – NZICA SLO-5

The NZICA SLO-5 guideline contains five broad IT areas deemed as required by
accounting practitioners in NZ. In the pilot study, all five topics received mean scores of
between 3 and 3.9 and were therefore eliminated from the questionnaire for the main study
(see Table 3.8). This result is surprising and could be a result of the lack of specificity in
the guidelines rather than them not being relevant.

5.2.18 Summary
The findings discussed above have addressed the five research questions of this research as
well as areas that are beyond the scope of the research questions. Findings 1 to 9 have
addressed the first two research questions: RQ1 (What IT knowledge and skills do NZ
accountants need in the first five years of their career?) and RQ2 (How are IT knowledge
and skills used and applied in NZ accountants’ work?). Of primary importance are
spreadsheet skills, knowledge on accounting systems/software, values, Internet tools (e-
mail, web browsing) and the ability to use research tools. Spreadsheet is used in a variety
of ways from data analyses to reporting, and intermediate to advanced skills are required.
Of secondary importance are office automation software (word processing, presentation
software, documentation tools), IT control concepts, use of databases and general systems

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knowledge. In conjunction with the use of spreadsheets and database software, data
analysis concepts and skills have been identified as important and must be developed in an
accounting major programme. Topics that require a minimum level of knowledge include
e-commerce, Internet security, IT audit software and data security.

RQ3 (How are NZ accountants involved in IT related matters?) has been addressed in
Finding 10. Junior accountants in commercial firms and the government/education sector
are more involved in IT matters than their counterparts in CA firms. The majority of
accountants do not actively keep themselves up-to-date on IT developments.
Communication between accountants and IT providers could be improved if IT providers
have some accounting knowledge.

Findings 11 and 12 have addressed RQ4 (Do NZ accountants feel they have adequate IT
knowledge and skills for their jobs?). Most junior accountants and their supervisors are
satisfied with the level of their IT knowledge and skills but would like to further develop
their skills in spreadsheets. They are of the opinion that there are not enough opportunities
in the practical use of IT software in accounting major programmes.

Finding 13 has addressed RQ5 (What IT knowledge and skills do NZ accountants regard as
necessary in the future?). Both generic and IT skills have been mentioned by participants.
Generic soft skills include interpersonal and communication skills, report writing and
presentation skills. IT skills include basic computer programming and knowledge in e-
commerce.

Findings 14 to 17 are findings outside the research questions. Finding 14 concerns the
timing of IT courses and, together with Finding 12, has contributed to the development of
an integrated model for the delivery of IT content in an accounting curriculum. This model
is discussed in the following section.

Finding 15 explored IT topics that are popular among AIS textbooks but were eliminated
in the pilot study. Finding 16 and Finding 17 discovered that a high percentage of topics in
IFAC IEPS 2 and NZICA SLO-5 are regarded as irrelevant for accounting graduates or
lack specificity.

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5.3 An integrated model for delivery of IT content
Based on the discussions in Section 5.2, a model for delivery of IT content in accounting
curriculum is developed and is named by the researcher as the INDUCTION–
DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model and abbreviated as the IDA Model. The inspiration
in developing this model comes from Finding 12, Finding 14, Burnett (2003) and Jackson
and Cherrington (2002).

Finding 12 discovered that IT skills are not adequately developed in an accounting

curriculum. Part of the reason is that IT content is taught in only a limited number of IT-
specific courses in the curriculum. Accounting students are usually enrolled in an
introductory computer course in the first semester to learn the basic IT skills required so
that they can progress in the programme. After this introductory computer course, other
courses in the accounting major programme then focus on subject specific knowledge. If
IT skills can be developed along with such courses, it will give accounting students more
opportunities in developing their IT skills. Using subject specific courses to develop IT
skills has the added advantage of providing a context for the application of IT skills. This
discovery triggered the idea of DIFFUSION.

Finding 14 discovered that accounting students may have forgotten some of the IT
knowledge and skills they learned in early computer courses by the time they graduate. If
an exit IT course is available so that students can learn advanced IT knowledge and skills
and to refresh and update those they have learned in other courses, they will graduate with
fresh memories of such IT knowledge and skills. Brigham Young University in the USA
has successfully implemented such an exit IT course (Jackson & Cherrington 2002). These
findings stimulated the idea of ASSIMILATION.

The IDA Model proposes that students entering an accounting major programme be
introduced to computer concepts in an introductory computer course where they will be
taught the basic concepts and skills for them to be able to use these computer concepts and
skills in subsequent courses. This is the INDUCTION phase. As they continue to take other
courses, project assignments will be given that will explicitly require the use of various IT

168
tools to complete the assignments. This is the DIFFUSION phase where the learning of
appropriate IT skills is distributed among other courses where the use of IT software is
applicable. Finally, in the ASSIMILATION phase, an exit IT competency course in the last
semester of the programme would provide a refresher for IT knowledge and skills they
have learned in the entire duration of the programme as well as some advanced functions
and data analysis skills before they graduate. Figure 5.3 depicts the IDA Model. The
courses in the diagram are only examples of those in a typical accounting major
programme.

Figure 5.3 The INDUCTION–DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model

INDUCTION 

Introductory IT 
course 

DIFFUSION

Marketing Finance

Financial  Statistics Economics

accounting 

Management Taxation

Management 
accounting  Auditing
Communications

Accounting  Human  Commercial 

software  resources law

AIS  Others...
ASSIMILATION

Exit IT course

Source: Developed for this research

169
Combining the relevant IT topics identified in this study with the IDA Model, a proposed
schedule of different IT topics to be covered in an accounting curriculum is shown in Table
5.1.

Table 5.1 Proposed IT topic coverage in an accounting programme

IDA Phase INDUCTION DIFFUSION ASSIMILATION

Year 1
Year 1 intro accounting Other Exit IT
Topic AIS course
to IT course software courses competency course
course
Use where
Spreadsheet Basic Advanced
applicable
Practice and Practice and
use of entry use of a
Accounting systems/
level second
accounting software
accounting accounting
package package
Use where
Word processor Basic Intermediate
applicable
Values Concepts Concepts

Internet tools Basic

Audit
IT controls Concepts
courses
General systems
Basic Concepts
knowledge
Use where
Presentation software Basic Intermediate
applicable
Database concepts/ Concepts and Concepts and
Basic
database software practice practice
Use where
Research tools Basic Practice Practice
applicable
e-commerce Intro
Concepts and
Documentation tools
practice
Internet knowledge Concepts
Audit
IT audit software Concepts
courses
Data security
Basic Concepts
(backup and restore)
Operating systems
Basic
(use of utilities)
Data Data analysis
analysis REA
Others Data analysis
where SDLC
applicable XBRL

Source: Developed for this research

170
An introductory IT course would be required as one of the mandatory courses for the first
semester of the programme. This course would include basic IT concepts, use of Internet
tools and searches, use of utilities in operating systems and basic functions of spreadsheet,
word processing and presentation software. This course prepares students to make use of
different IT tools necessary in their further studies.

A Year-1 accounting software paper would be provided to teach accounting systems

together with the use of an accounting software package. As discussed previously, these
two areas need to be taught in conjunction with each other. As students progress and take
other accounting papers, they should be given projects and tasks that develop their skills in
the use of various IT applications identified in this study. The use of IT tools should be
integrated into relevant papers. Of special importance is the use of spreadsheets which was
identified as the most important IT skill for accountants.

Examples of the diffusion of IT coverage into all accounting courses have been discussed
in Section 5.2.10. For example, a management accounting course would require students to
develop complex spreadsheets to prepare budgets and to compare with actual results to
arrive at variances for performance analysis of a company or a department. A tax course
would require students to use spreadsheets to do computations on tax liabilities of
companies. A finance course would require students to use spreadsheets to compute
variability of returns of assets and in capital budgeting. Management and marketing
courses would require students to make use of intermediate to advanced functions of word
processors to produce professional reports; and presentation software to produce
professional presentations. Data analysis skills should also be developed as and where
applicable. However, all these would require that lecturers in these papers possess good
knowledge and skills of the IT tools otherwise they will be neither willing nor able to
integrate such IT topics in their courses.

The AIS course would include in-depth discussions on accounting systems concepts
together with the practice of an accounting software package. Since students have already
used an entry level accounting package in the Year-1 accounting software paper, a
different accounting package is highly recommended. The findings from this study suggest

171
that a medium size ERP system or a CA firm-specific accounting package is most
appropriate. Internal and IT controls should be included in the AIS course as this topic
relates to accounting systems. Documentation tools are also topics that should fall under
AIS as they too are related to accounting systems. Database concepts and the use of a
database software are proposed for the AIS course and data analysis skills should be
developed in conjunction with the database practice. Concepts in IT audit, Internet
technologies and data security should also be included. One of the topics that was not
included in the questionnaire but was raised by some participants was SDLC which is
concerned with project management of IT systems. The AIS course is the best place for
this topic to be included. One of the findings has indicated that accountants do not actively
keep themselves up to date on IT developments, and again, the AIS course is in the best
position to develop student interest in IT. One possibility is to require students to research
on the latest developments in IT as a project assignment. If the above syllabus is
considered too demanding for one AIS course, two may be considered, to spread the load.

An exit IT course given in the final semester, covering IT knowledge and skills, is highly
recommended. This course should be made compulsory if possible and should include
intermediate to advanced functions of the various IT knowledge and skills discussed
earlier. Other topics that this exit IT course can cover are data analysis skills, database
retrieval practice, the use of research tools, intermediate level skills on word processing,
presentation software, data security and operating systems. There are examples of
successful exit IT courses, one of which is the capstone IT skills course at Brigham Young
University (Jackson & Cherrington 2002). Another example is the capstone information
technology management course at Christian Brothers University in the USA (Brandon,
Pruett & Wade 2002).

5.4 Contributions
This study has provided a holistic and comprehensive view of the relevant IT knowledge
and skills required by NZ accounting graduates with the support of empirical data. It ranks
the IT topics in order of importance; it details the contents of the important topics and
proposes a schedule of coverage of the different topics in different courses in an
accounting programme. The findings from this research have enabled the development of a

172
model for delivery of IT content in an accounting major programme. It also shows, with
evidence, that the guidelines in IT education for accountants from some professional
accounting bodies are impractical and difficult to follow. The following are the specific
contributions of this research.

5.4.1 Contribution to accounting education literature and curriculum design

The research has produced a holistic view of the IT knowledge and skills requirements for
accounting graduates in NZ from an overarching perspective without limiting them to
specific domains. The findings from this study are expected to provide in-sights to
curriculum design for accounting faculties. An effective way to impart IT knowledge and
skills is to require accounting students to use the appropriate IT tools in all courses where
applicable; not just in a few IT specific courses. Another important suggestion is the
proposed exit IT competency course to be included as a compulsory course to be offered
towards the end of an accounting programme. Based on these findings, the INDUCTION–
DIFFUSION–ASSIMILATION Model for IT delivery in an accounting curriculum has
been developed. The IDA model can be applied not only in accounting major programmes
but also in other programmes majoring in business, commerce, marketing, management,
etc.

In order to implement the diffusion phase of the IDA Model, accounting faculty policy
may need to be reviewed to ensure that there are no issues that would hamper the
implementation. Faculty management may need to assess the IT competency of lecturers to
ensure that they have the capability to include IT tasks in their courses. Training should be
provided if required. There should be adequate computer facilities for students to
accommodate the increased use of computers for IT tasks from different courses. Faculty
management may also need to promote, support and monitor the progress of the state of IT
diffusion in the programme.

5.4.2 Informing professional accounting bodies on IT guidelines

Professional accounting bodies may use the results of this study to reflect on their IT
guidelines for accounting professionals. Guidelines from professional bodies should be

173
concise, achievable and specific, their purpose being to provide guidance to accounting
educators in planning and implementing accounting curricula.

IEPS 2 from IFAC has 188 IT topics deemed necessary for accounting professionals. This
study has provided empirical data to show that a large number of topics in IEPS 2 are
considered to be not relevant for accounting graduates. IFAC may find the results of this
study of interest to them when reviewing IT competency guidelines for accounting
professionals in the future.

The IT topics in SLO-5 of NZICA were found to be unspecific and as a result were
eliminated in the pilot study. NZICA may review the SLOs and make them more specific
and helpful for accounting educators.

5.4.3 Contribution to theoretical framework

The application of human capital theory and stakeholder theory as the theoretical
framework has enabled this research to recognise the issues of graduate employability and
guided the study. Graduates and students are one of the stakeholder groups in higher
education and they have been involved in this study to provide input to the research.
Another stakeholder group is employers. Although this study did not specifically sample
employers, the existence of senior accounting supervisors in the sample provided a proxy
for employer opinion. The third group of stakeholders, TEIs and accounting educators, has
not been involved in this study and provides an opportunity for further research.

5.4.4 Contribution to research methodology

This research made use of the Delphi method in the pilot study to inform the main study.
Although the Delphi method is not new, most studies use the technique as the only method
of data collection. By using the Delphi method in the pilot study, this research was able to
include relevant credible sources from the literature and at the same time avoid having a
lengthy and untenable research instrument. The experts employed in the Delphi method in
the pilot study helped filter out the irrelevant questions, resulting in a manageable and
relevant research instrument for the main study. The method of triangulation was also used

174
in the study, comparing quantitative data collected from a questionnaire with the in-depth
qualitative data collected from interviews.

5.4.5 First study of its kind in NZ

Probably the first of its kind to be carried out in NZ, this study engaged the industry by
interviewing and collecting in-depth data from accounting practitioners on their views of
the importance of IT knowledge and skills. It was acknowledged by one of the participants
as valuable for the accounting industry, as noted at the beginning of Chapter 1:

I think it’s wonderful that you take the interest to ask the industry what is required.
Because, I think in all my years, it’s the first time anybody has ever asked what
should we be doing for you.

It is anticipated that this study will inspire other researchers to engage in further studies to
define IT skills standards for the accounting profession.

5.5 Limitations
The research sought opinions from accounting practitioners in NZ. The results and findings
are therefore relevant only to NZ. Researchers in other countries may use the results of this
study as reference but they must be aware of the differences between the business
environment of NZ with their own. The NZ economy is made up of a large number of
small companies. As of February 2006, 96.4% of NZ enterprises employ fewer than 20
staff (Statistics New Zealand 2006). The requirements of an accountant in IT knowledge
and skills in a small business may be quite different from those of a large company.

This research used a small sample size in the main study involving only 23 participants.
These were accounting practitioners, some of whom were part-time students working in an
accounting capacity. The views of accounting educators, academics, employers and
professional accounting bodies are most likely to be different from those of practitioners.

The experts in the Delphi round in Phase I and the participants in Phase II were all sampled
from Auckland. There is a possibility that there is geographical bias due to the sample

175
selection. Another possible bias concerns the selection of accounting graduates. Because it
was not possible for the researcher to obtain names of students directly from other TEIs
except from the one he was working for, the sample of graduates was therefore from one
TEI only. There is a possibility that bias exists because of this selection.

5.6 Further research

There are a number of opportunities for further research in succession to this study. The
following are some of the areas that may be considered.

5.6.1 Replicating the study in other countries

This study can be adapted by other researchers and replicated in other countries. It will be
interesting to compare the findings and results between different countries.

5.6.2 Modifying the study to collect data from academics

This study can be modified to collect data and opinions from academics. It will be
interesting to compare the extent of the differences between practitioners and academics.

5.6.3 Encouraging accounting students to develop a life-long interest in IT

A finding from this study is that accountants do not take an active role in updating
themselves in IT. As IT is developing at a rapid pace, keeping up-to-date in the field is
important for an accountant’s career. It would be interesting to see how accounting
curriculum can be designed in such a way to encourage accounting students to develop
long-term interest in IT. Research in this area would be useful in accounting curriculum
design.

5.6.4 Research on the relevant accounting knowledge required by IT graduates

Participants in this study have said that if IT providers possess some accounting
knowledge, it would greatly improve communication between them and reduce the level of

176
misunderstanding in discussing IT matters. What accounting knowledge do IT practitioners
need? This topic would be an area of research that could contribute to IT education.

5.7 Chapter summary

This chapter has discussed the findings identified in the previous chapter. They have been
discussed with reference to the literature and their implications for accounting curriculum
policy and design. From the findings, the IDA Model for delivery of IT content in an
accounting major programme is developed. In connection with this, a proposed schedule
for coverage of IT topics in a typical accounting programme has also been presented. This
research is expected to make contributions to accounting education literature; to
accounting curriculum policy, planning and design; to professional accounting bodies with
regard to guidelines on IT competency; to theoretical framework and to research
methodology. Finally, the limitations of this study have been identified and opportunities
for further research discussed.

5.8 Conclusion
The motivation of this research emanates from the researcher’s quest to find answers to the
question: What do NZ accounting major graduates need in the area of IT knowledge and
skills to allow them to perform competently in the workplace? Human capital theory
recognises that education allows individuals to be productive in society, thus improving
their well-being. One of the ways to achieve self-improvement is through employment.
Stakeholder theory posits that organisations are successful if the interests of their
stakeholders are satisfied. Students, graduates and employers are major stakeholders of
higher education. Students and graduates would like to be employable after graduation and
employers would like to have graduates who are employable. Higher education institutions
cannot ignore the interests of these stakeholders. Studies in graduate employability indicate
that IT knowledge and skills are one of the important attributes for employment. In the
accounting profession, IT knowledge and skills are not confined to generic IT knowledge
and skills but also include specialised IT knowledge and skills in the accounting domain.

The literature on IT content in accounting education is found to lack clarity. Some studies
focus on generic IT knowledge and skills, some concentrate on AIS while others are in-

177
between. Many studies simply provide a list of all IT topics needed by accountants with no
deliberation on the relative importance of the topics. Guidelines from professional
accounting bodies on IT knowledge and skills for accountants are found to be either too
ambitious or lack specificity. Recent studies in IT knowledge and skills for NZ accounting
graduates are non-existent.

It is important that a set of clearly defined IT knowledge and skills for accounting
graduates be explored to serve as a guideline for accounting education. The amount of time
and resources in an accounting major programme is finite. If irrelevant IT topics are taught
in an accounting programme, not only are students wasting their efforts, they are also
deprived of time in other areas of study.

This research is exploratory, and is inductive in nature. It comprises a pilot study followed
by a main study. The pilot study employed six experts from the accounting field to rate 266
IT topics identified from credible sources from the literature. The results from the pilot
study were analysed and categorised into 18 IT topic areas which were used for the main
study to collect rich qualitative data. Twenty-three accounting practitioners with differing
years of experience and seniority from commercial firms, CA firms and
government/education institutions participated in the main study. Selection was done using
purposeful sampling. A mixed-method approach was used, employing semi-structured
interviews with each participant, following their completion of a questionnaire prior to the
interview.

This study has explored the relevant IT knowledge and skills for accounting graduates
from an overarching perspective. The findings are based on an analysis of empirical data
collected from accounting practitioners. IT knowledge and skills found to be relevant for
accounting graduates are classified into different degrees of importance and levels of
learning. The INDUCTION-DIFFUSION-ASSIMILATION model has been developed
which can be used as a framework for the delivery of IT topics in an accounting
programme.

178
This research has contributed to the body of knowledge in accounting education and to
accounting curriculum policy and design. It is probably the first study of its kind in NZ and
is expected to motivate further research in this area.

179
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Appendices

190
 Appendix 1 Questionnaire for Phase I of the research

IT knowledge and skills required by

accounting graduates in New Zealand
For each of the following questions, please circle the number that best describes your opinion relating
to the IT knowledge and skills requirements of an accounting graduate in his / her first five years of
employment in an accounting capacity. Please circle only one number for each question.

1 = Not relevant/not required 2 = Awareness only 3 = Some understanding

4 = Good understanding 5 = Full understanding 6 = Able to apply and use

Internal and external
1.1
business issues
1.2 Factors that impact IT
Current status of entity’s
1.3 use of IT to support
business strategies
1.4 IT risks and opportunities
Topic 1
Business focus of the entity. Position of the entity within its
industry. Relationship of IT strategy and business strategy.
1 2 3 4 5 6
Operational dynamics that influence the business. Business
processes as they relate to the strategic plan.
Flexibility of changes in technology or business. Speed to
market. Legal, regulatory and assurance. Business units
(customers, markets, industries). Budgets. Service level and 1 2 3 4 5 6
operational requirements: availability, scalability, security,
integrity, extensibility, maintainability, manageability.
Infrastructure. Software. People. Procedures and controls.
1 2 3 4 5 6
Data.
Trends, issues concerns in current environment. Business and
IT alignment. Compliance with service level agreements /
1 2 3 4 5 6
targets. Capacity and performance capabilities. Stakeholder
attitudes. Political and social concerns relating to IT.

191
 Envision future status of Communicating with stakeholders. Sourcing strategy. Critical
1.5 1 2 3 4 5 6
the entity’s system success factors, appropriate measurements.
IT management’s goals and objectives. Overall feasibility and
Align future IT strategy scope. Business constraints (quality, time, cost). Action plans,
1.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
with business strategy timelines, transition elements. Sponsor and stakeholder
approval.
Control environment / culture. Risk assessment. Policies and
Framework for IT procedures. Information and communication. Monitoring of
1.7 1 2 3 4 5 6
governance controls and risks. Impact on IT of compliance with
professional standards and codes.
Cost-effectiveness of IT processes. Utilization of IT
infrastructure. Satisfaction of stakeholders. Staff productivity.
1.8 Outcome measurement 1 2 3 4 5 6
Sharing of knowledge and information. Linkages between IT
and enterprise governance.

192
 Topic 2
General systems theory. Open / closed systems.
Nature and types of
2.1 Transaction processing vs. operational vs. decision 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems
support systems.
Subsystems, networks, client server, remote systems,
distributed systems, mobile facilities, hardware (mainframe,
server, router, workstation, etc.). Networks, telecommunication
Information system
2.2 systems, electronic data transfer. Software: systems software, 1 2 3 4 5 6
architectures
application software, utilities. Data organization and access
methods. Protocols, standards, enabling technologies. IT
professionals and career paths in IT organizations.
Control and feedback in
2.3 Objectives, measures, monitoring, feedback and follow-up. 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems
Systems development life
2.4 System acquisition / development phases, project management. 1 2 3 4 5 6
cycle
Routine, exception, ad hoc, predictive. Quantitative,
Nature and types of
2.5 qualitative. Transaction documents, screens, reports, messages, 1 2 3 4 5 6
information
etc. Data vs. information vs. knowledge.
Quality, relevance, reliability, cost. Completeness, accuracy,
level of aggregation, timeliness, currency, frequency,
2.6 Attributes of information 1 2 3 4 5 6
accessibility, availability, authorization, authenticity, privacy,
confidentiality, etc. Decision value, competitive advantage.
Role of information within Users: internal, external. Decision theory. Communication of
2.7 1 2 3 4 5 6
business information. Reporting concepts and systems.
Transaction processing system (TPS). Production support
systems. Management information system (MIS). Knowledge
2.8 Types of business systems management systems (KMS). Executive information system 1 2 3 4 5 6
(EIS). Decision support system (DSS). Expert system (ES).
Neural network (NN).

193
 Data entry. Edit / validation. Transmission. File look-ups,
calculations, logical comparisons. Master file update. Storage,
Transaction processing
2.9 record retention, back-up. Reporting, accounting, control, 1 2 3 4 5 6
phases
management. Query, audit trail, ad hoc report. Error
prevention, detection, correction.
Batch processing. Transaction processing. On-line processing.
2.10 Processing modes Real-time processing. Distributed processing. Multi- 1 2 3 4 5 6
programming, multi-tasking and multi- processing.
Revenue / receivables / receipts. Purchases / payables /
Business documents, payments. Inventories / cost of sales. Fixed assets. Production
2.11 accounting records, control planning, scheduling and control. Distribution management, 1 2 3 4 5 6
/ management reports logistics. Human resources and payroll. Delivery of services.
Logistics. Treasury / Administration.
Personal / workstation / mini / mainframe / supercomputer.
Stand alone or multi-user / network. Multi-processor vs. single
2.12 Processing units processor. Server, server farm. Central processing unit (CPU), 1 2 3 4 5 6
main memory, etc. Bus lines, cables, integrated circuit cards,
micro-code, registers, instruction sets, etc.
Keyboard, mouse, scanner, text recognition, voice recognition,
2.13 Input / output devices smart card, pen, display, tape, disk, printer, etc. Control units, 1 2 3 4 5 6
buffers, channels, etc.
Data communication Modem, switch, router, concentrator, bridge, monitor, etc.
2.14 1 2 3 4 5 6
devices Wireless transmitter, receiver, etc.
Data representation by computer, data compression. Tape,
disk, compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM). Digital
2.15 Physical storage devices 1 2 3 4 5 6
Video Devices (DVD). Storage Area Network (SAN). Network
Attached Storage (NAS).
Distinction between system and application software workflow
Components of a software
2.16 managers, middleware and other utilities. Software designs for 1 2 3 4 5 6
configuration
various processors. Open vs. proprietary systems.
Graphical user interfaces. Network, client / server, etc. Single
2.17 Operating systems user vs. multi-user. Process management. Memory and file 1 2 3 4 5 6
system management.

194
 Terminal monitor, network directory, etc. Communication
2.18 Communications systems 1 2 3 4 5 6
protocols.
Authentication and access control software. Anti-virus
2.19 Security software software. Firewall. Intrusion detection. Security assessment 1 2 3 4 5 6
tools.
Text editor, directory manager, file backup / recovery, file
2.20 Utility software compression, etc. Performance monitoring software, 1 2 3 4 5 6
scheduling software, etc.
Program control structures. Open source, application
development techniques such as RAPID. Program
Programming languages / specification, verification and validation. Machine code /
2.21 1 2 3 4 5 6
compilers assembly. Procedural vs. non-procedural languages. Language
evaluation and selection approaches. Object-oriented
languages, multimedia authoring systems, etc.
Application development environment. Case tools and
Programming aids,
programming environment. UML (Unified Modeling
2.22 interactive programming 1 2 3 4 5 6
Language). Methods of program design and development.
software
Testing and documentation.
Library management
2.23 Version control, migration, etc. 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems
Tape / disk management systems. Hardcopy / microfiche /
2.24 Data management systems optical imaging. On-line archival. Report generators and data 1 2 3 4 5 6
retrieval software. Database management system.
Distinction from system software. Competitive advantage.
Piecemeal vs. organization-wide development / integration.
General application
2.25 Package vs. custom software. Distributed vs. centralized 1 2 3 4 5 6
software
processing. End-user computing. Internet / intranet / extranet
applications.

195
 Supply chain management (SCM). Customer Relationship
Management (CRM). Sales force automation (SFA). Human
Resources Management. Asset Management. Enterprise
E-business enabling
2.26 Resource Planning (ERP). Manufacturing (CAD / CAM, 1 2 3 4 5 6
software
CIM). Distribution, logistics. Enterprise Application
Integration (EAI). Knowledge management systems. Financial
Reporting XBRL.
Seven-layer OSI Reference Model. Common Object Request
Broker Architecture (CORBA). Electronic data interchange
2.27 Common standards 1 2 3 4 5 6
(EDI). Transmission control protocol / Internet protocol (TCP /
IP). Wireless application protocol (WAP).
2.28 Internet protocols Packet switching. 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.29 Internet protocols Uniform Resource Locator (URL). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.30 Internet protocols Domain Name Server (DNS). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.31 Internet protocols File Transfer Protocol (FTP). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.32 Internet protocols Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.33 Internet protocols Hypertext markup language (HTML). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.34 Internet protocols Extensible markup language (XML). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.35 Internet protocols Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL). 1 2 3 4 5 6

2.36 Internet protocols Internet Relay Chat Protocol (IRC). 1 2 3 4 5 6

196
 Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).
International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Open
Systems Interconnections (OSI). American National Standards
Standard-setting
2.37 Institute (ANSI). World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). 1 2 3 4 5 6
organizations
Project Management Institute (PMI). Software Engineering
Institute (SEI). International Federation of Accountants
(IFAC). XBRL International.
Data coding: characters, records, files, multi-media. Precision
of data. Data relationships: one-to-one, one-to many, many-to-
Data structures and file many. Conceptual data modeling. Normalization of data.
2.38 1 2 3 4 5 6
organization Logical vs. physical. Entity-relationship diagramming.
Referential integrity. Table structure vs. user interface.
Distributed structures.
Sequential access. Direct (random) access. Indexed sequential
2.39 Access methods 1 2 3 4 5 6
access.
Master / transactions / tables. Array, list, stack, queue, tree,
2.40 Types of data files index. Database: Relational, Network, Hierarchical, Object- 1 2 3 4 5 6
oriented. Benefits of using a database.
Database management
Data storage, access, and sharing. Roll back / journaling.
2.41 systems features, functions, 1 2 3 4 5 6
Performance tuning and metrics. Stored procedures.
architectures
Defining / documenting database requirements. File layout /
2.42 Database administration schema / data dictionary. Model databases. Distributed 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems.
Capture, index, store, retrieve, display / print. Optical imaging
2.43 Document management 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems.
Chief Information Officer (CIO). Chief Information Security
Officer (CISO). Business analyst. Systems analyst.
Programmer. Operations manager. Database administrator /
2.44 Job functions 1 2 3 4 5 6
data administrator. Knowledge base administrator. Security
officer. Network controller. Librarian. Webmaster, web
designer. Quality assurance.

197
 Recruiting / developing IT
2.45 Training and development. Sourcing. Career paths. 1 2 3 4 5 6
human resources

2.46 Organization Organization structure. IT governance. 1 2 3 4 5 6

198

Monitoring service level
3.1 performance against
service level agreements
3.2 Business models
Effectiveness of the
3.3
entity’s business processes
3.4 Framework of controls
3.5 Barriers and enablers
Applications of Internet-
3.6
commerce
3.7 Enterprise systems
Topic 3
Quality of service. Availability. Response time. Security and
controls. Processing integrity. Privacy. Remedies. Amending 1 2 3 4 5 6
service level agreements.
Revenue. Distribution. Supply. Market. Organization. Legal
1 2 3 4 5 6
and regulatory issues.
Revenue / receivables / receipts. Purchases / payables /
payments. Inventories / cost of sales. Fixed assets. Production
planning, scheduling and control. Distribution management, 1 2 3 4 5 6
logistics. Human resources and payroll. Delivery of services.
Logistics. Treasury. Administration.
Relation between user controls, application controls and IT
1 2 3 4 5 6
general controls.
Technology. Alignment of business processes and IT with
business strategy. Business Process Re-engineering.
1 2 3 4 5 6
Organizational structure and culture. Leadership. Human
resources. Capital. Legal and Regulatory.
Internet-commerce issues and trends. Business to business
(B2B). Business to consumer (B2C). Consumer to consumer
1 2 3 4 5 6
(C2C). Business to employee (B2E). Distance learning,
distributed learning. Electronic government.
Supply chain management. Customer relationship
management. Sales force automation. Human resources
management. Asset management. Enterprise resource
1 2 3 4 5 6
planning. Manufacturing (CAD / CAM, CIM). Distribution,
logistics. Enterprise application integration. Knowledge
management systems. Financial reporting. XBRL.
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 Topic 4
Waterfall, spiral, interactive. Effect of new development
System acquisition /
4.1 techniques and management theories on formal systems 1 2 3 4 5 6
development approaches
development life cycle.
Investigation and feasibility study. Requirements analysis and
Acquisition / development
4.2 initial design. Detailed design specification / documentation. 1 2 3 4 5 6
phases
System installation / implementation. Maintenance.
Documentation requirements. Main risks and reasons for
Standards, methods and
4.3 failure of system projects. Economic, technical, operational, 1 2 3 4 5 6
controls
behavioral.
Analysis of existing systems; business process
integration; business process re-engineering. Scope of
4.4 Investigation 1 2 3 4 5 6
proposed system and information needs, technology
options. Nature and size of business.
Cost / benefit analysis. Statement of application requirements.
4.5 Feasibility Study 1 2 3 4 5 6
Feasibility analysis.
Processing modes. User interface: screen, report, form layouts.
User requirements Databases / files / records. Integration with existing
4.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
elicitation applications and systems. Volume, scalability, extensibility
requirements.
Structured analysis and design methodologies. Questionnaires,
interviews, document analysis, observation. Data flow
System analysis / design
4.7 diagrams; entity relationship model, etc. Decision tables and 1 2 3 4 5 6
tools and techniques
decision trees. Computer aided software engineering (CASE)
tools. Unified Modeling Language (UML). Object methods.
Process design, data
Application architecture. Technical architecture. Infrastructure
4.8 organization, software 1 2 3 4 5 6
requirements: facilities, hardware, network.
requirements
4.9 Control requirements Availability, security / privacy, integrity, maintainability. 1 2 3 4 5 6

200
 Selection of hardware, facilities, networks. Selection of
Infrastructure and software software packages. Selection of vendor / supplier / service
4.10 1 2 3 4 5 6
services provider. Service level agreement. Escrow agreements.
Contracting / leasing / licensing considerations.
Application development environment (programming
4.11 Software development languages / compilers, etc.). Programming aids: Structured, 1 2 3 4 5 6
event driven, object-oriented approaches.
User interface: screen and report design. Database / file design;
system and database integration. Audit trail; transaction flows.
4.12 Systems design 1 2 3 4 5 6
Interfaces. System and network transaction load. Computerized
and user controls. Acceptance testing approach.
Statement of technical requirements. User and operations
4.13 Documentation 1 2 3 4 5 6
manuals.
Change management requirements. User training. User
Systems implementation acceptance. System roll-out. Data conversion. Risk
4.14 1 2 3 4 5 6
plan management. Operation and recovery procedures.
Documentation.
Install / deploy components: infrastructure, software. User /
4.15 Install / deploy systems 1 2 3 4 5 6
operator procedures and controls. Recruit / train personnel.
Acceptance testing approach. Tools and support. Test scripts
4.16 Acceptance testing and related data. Quality assurance / pre-implementation 1 2 3 4 5 6
review.
Data transformation requirements. Automated / manual.
Operational considerations (pilot, parallel running and going
Systems conversion /
4.17 live). Timing consideration. Tests. Risk management. 1 2 3 4 5 6
changeover
Resources required. Tests to ensure data are complete, accurate
and authorized.
Meets business requirements. Impact on users, management
Post-implementation
4.18 and staff. Project schedule and resources (financial and people) 1 2 3 4 5 6
review
consumed. Benefits realized. Opportunities for improvement.

201
 Infrastructure. Software. Personnel competencies. Information
architecture. Business processes. Version management.
4.19 Maintenance standards 1 2 3 4 5 6
Implementation controls. Authorization controls.
Documentation standards and controls. Migration planning.
Custody. Change authorization. Emergency change controls.
4.20 Change controls 1 2 3 4 5 6
Testing and quality assurance.
Project sponsorship and funding. Stakeholders. Terms of
4.21 Initiate the project 1 2 3 4 5 6
reference. Apply project management tools and techniques.
Scope, objectives and deliverables. Strategy to achieve
objectives and deliverables. Project schedule, including
sequence of tasks and milestones. Resources and budgets.
4.22 Plan the project 1 2 3 4 5 6
Quality standards that will be used to evaluate the project.
Communication needs of all project stakeholders. Goods and /
or services that will be required to complete the project.
Risk management approach
4.23 Project management risk. Business risk. 1 2 3 4 5 6
on the project
Goods and services are selected and contracted as required.
4.24 Execute the project plan Quality standards are understood. Staff are properly trained 1 2 3 4 5 6
and managed. Define communication strategy.
Control and coordinate changes across the project. Manage the
project budget. Ensure results meet quality standards and
identify methods to rectify any problems noted. Report project
4.25 Control the project performance and revised schedule as necessary. Ensure 1 2 3 4 5 6
effective risk management. Monitor risk mitigation. Identify
new risks and change plan accordingly. Issue identification,
escalation and resolution process.
Stakeholder communication and sign-off. Open items. Post-
4.26 Complete the project 1 2 3 4 5 6
implementation review.

202
 Topic 5
Process to create and amend IT organization. Process to
IT policies, procedures and maintain documentation. Alignment with entity’s strategic
5.1 1 2 3 4 5 6
methodologies plan. IT organization to address: infrastructure, software,
people, procedures, data.
Skills assessment. Performance evaluation. Job descriptions.
5.2 IT human resource policies 1 2 3 4 5 6
Training and certifications. Recruitment and retention.
Resources management
Resource procurement. Ongoing support procedures.
5.3 processes used to maintain 1 2 3 4 5 6
Maintenance of updates and upgrades.
organizational efficiencies
Relationship of Developing operational priorities. Compatibility of
infrastructure to components. Planning IT capacity. Impact of IT on procedures.
5.4 1 2 3 4 5 6
applications and user Data / information architecture. IT infrastructure (hardware,
requirements facilities, networks). Software (systems, applications, utilities).
Performance measurement (productivity, service quality).
Monitoring service Service level agreement monitoring. Collaborative computing.
5.5 1 2 3 4 5 6
provider activities Distributed systems. EDI and electronic commerce.
Outsourced services (ISPs, ASPs, etc.).
5.6 Asset life cycle Acquisition. Change. Retirement. 1 2 3 4 5 6
IT inventory. Contracts and licenses and intellectual property
issues. Data ownership, reliability and privacy issues. Cross-
Asset management and
5.7 border transportation and storage of data. Service provider 1 2 3 4 5 6
control
documentation. Privacy. User documentation. On-going
training and end-user support.
Development, test and production. Transport mechanisms.
Segregation of
5.8 Acceptance processes. Authorization processes. Monitoring 1 2 3 4 5 6
environments
and logging.
Impact analysis. Authorization. Internal control. Testing /
5.9 Change control techniques Feedback. Documentation. Human resources, including 1 2 3 4 5 6
training. Approval. Migration plans. Release management.

203
 Integration with change control management. Help / Service
desk support system. Problem resolution / escalation
5.10 Problem management 1 2 3 4 5 6
procedures. Routing and assignment of problems. Problem
analysis and trend analysis.
Management of end-user Technology diffusion. Information center, help desk. End-user
5.11 1 2 3 4 5 6
computing system security. Support for end-user applications.
Data centers, outsourced facilities. Storage, media libraries,
5.12 Facilities backup vaults. Physical security, logical security. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Uninterruptible power source (UPS). Disaster recovery sites.
Threats. Impact analysis. Contingency planning. Physical
5.13 Physical security 1 2 3 4 5 6
access. Continuity.
User identification / passwords. Authentication / authorization.
5.14 Logical security Logical access path. Security packages. Password management 1 2 3 4 5 6
/ password change procedures. Firewalls.
Performance metrics: defined, monitored, measured, compared
5.15 Performance metrics 1 2 3 4 5 6
to standards and reported.
Capital budget. Time / expense tracking. Accounting for
system costs. Costs identifiable and measurable. Costing
5.16 IT cost controls 1 2 3 4 5 6
procedures defined and implemented. Billing and charge back
procedures to user departments.
Effectiveness, efficiency, economy of operations.
Reliability of financial reporting. Effectiveness of
5.17 IT control objectives controls (design, operation). IT asset safeguarding. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Compliance with applicable laws and regulations. System
reliability. Data integrity.
5.18 Office software Presentation software. 1 2 3 4 5 6

5.19 Office software Internet tools: e-mail, web browser. 1 2 3 4 5 6

5.20 Office software Word processor. 1 2 3 4 5 6

204
5.21 Office software Spreadsheet. 1 2 3 4 5 6

5.22 Office software Database management system. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Computer-assisted audit
5.23 Accounting packages and CAAT. 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques (CAAT)
Computer-assisted audit
5.24 Professional research tools. 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques (CAAT)
Computer-assisted audit
5.25 Analytical tools. 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques (CAAT)
Computer-assisted audit
5.26 Pattern matching / recognition. 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques (CAAT)

205
 Topic 6
General means of
Web communication. E-mail. SMS / MMS. Digital signatures.
6.1 communication supported 1 2 3 4 5 6
Electronic files.
by IT
Privacy – appropriate use of information and relevant data
Risks in communication protection legislation. Secrecy. Copying data from one client
6.2 1 2 3 4 5 6
supported by IT and using it for the benefit of another. Use of USB sticks.
Forwarding data that is not checked for reliability.
Benefits of IT to Web searching. Use of certificates with digital signatures.
6.3 1 2 3 4 5 6
communication Internet tools: e-mail, web browser, FTP.
Local area networks / wide area networks. Wireless / mobile
Network components, systems. Distributed processing networks. Data transmission
6.4 1 2 3 4 5 6
configurations and designs options, public and private carrier services, etc. Data
communication and transmission devices / software.

206
 A2
Beliefs and attitudes. IT risk strategy. Policy statements, oral
and written communications and decision-making reflecting
IT risk management the approach. Error, fraud, vandalism / abuse, business
7.1 1 2 3 4 5 6
approach interruption, competitive disadvantage, excessive cost,
deficient revenues, statutory sanctions, social costs. Regulatory
environment.
Acceptability of IT risk level. Relation IT risk / entity risk /
7.2 IT risk tolerance corporate risk / social risk. Qualitative / quantitative risk 1 2 3 4 5 6
approach strategies.
IT governance. Level of IT oversight in the organization.
7.3 IT oversight Knowledge of IT in the oversight board. Pro-active IT risk 1 2 3 4 5 6
detection systems.
Corporate IT social responsibility systems and reports.
Integrity, ethical values,
Corporate IT data integrity policy statements. Organization
7.4 and competence of the IT 1 2 3 4 5 6
structure of IT functions. IT corporate governance processes
personnel
and reports.
Segregation of IT functions. Authority structure.
Responsibility IT control structure:
Authority and
• Board, top management
7.5 responsibility, organization 1 2 3 4 5 6
• IT management and IT personnel
and development
• User departments, individuals
• Auditors.
Mission / Vision / Purpose. Relation entity strategy objectives /
7.6 IT strategic objectives 1 2 3 4 5 6
IT strategy objectives. IT goals / measurements.
IT operations objectives: effectiveness and efficiency of the IT
operations. IT reporting objectives: accurate and complete
7.7 IT objectives management information for IT purpose. IT compliance 1 2 3 4 5 6
objectives: conduct IT activities in accordance with relevant
laws and regulations.

207
7.8 Overlap of IT objectives Integrated framework of entities objectives. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Relation with IT risk management approach. Relation with IT

7.9 Selection of IT objectives 1 2 3 4 5 6
risk appetite. IT risk tolerance, acceptability of different levels.
External factors: Economic, Natural environment, Political,
Social, Technological.
7.10 IT risk factors 1 2 3 4 5 6
Internal factors: Infrastructure, Personnel, Process,
Technology.
IT event inventories. IT internal analysis. Escalation or
IT event identification threshold triggers. Facilitated workshops and interviews.
7.11 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques Process flow analysis. Leading event indicators. Loss event
data methodologies.
Inherent IT risk. Residual IT risk. Likelihood and impact. Data
sources. Economic, technical, operational, behavioral. Main
reasons for failure of computer projects. Error, fraud,
7.12 IT risk categories 1 2 3 4 5 6
vandalism / abuse, business interruption, competitive
disadvantage, excessive cost, deficient revenues, statutory
sanctions, social costs.
Benchmarking. Probabilistic models. Non-probabilistic
7.13 Assessment techniques 1 2 3 4 5 6
models. Relations between events.

7.14 Response categories Avoidance. Reduction. Sharing. Acceptance. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Effect on IT risk likelihood and impact. Assessing cost versus

7.15 Possible responses 1 2 3 4 5 6
benefit. Opportunities in IT response options.
COBIT, SysTrust, WebTrust (Trust Services Principles and
7.16 IT control frameworks 1 2 3 4 5 6
Criteria), OECD, ISO27001, etc.
Effectiveness, efficiency, economy of operations. Reliability of
financial reporting. Effectiveness of controls (designing,
7.17 IT control objectives implementing and operating). IT asset safeguarding. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Systems
reliability. Data integrity.

208
 IT top-level reviews. Direct IT functional or IT activity
7.18 Types of control activities management. Information processing. Manual controls. IT 1 2 3 4 5 6
performance indicators. Segregation of IT duties and functions.
Control design. Control procedures. Control over data
Controls over information integrity, privacy and security. Availability / continuity of
7.19 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems processing, disaster recovery planning and control. IS
processing / operations. Standards.
Investigation and feasibility study. Requirements analysis and
Systems acquisition / initial design. Detailed design specification / documentation.
7.20 1 2 3 4 5 6
development process Implementation. Systems maintenance and change. Project
management / planning / control methods and standards.
IT strategic and integrated systems. Integration with IT
operations. Depth and timeliness of IT information. IT
information quality. People, procedures, data, software,
infrastructure.
7.21 Information 1 2 3 4 5 6
Key processes: Identification and recording of all valid
transactions, Proper / timely classification of transactions,
Appropriate measurement / valuation, Appropriate timing /
cut-off, Appropriate presentation.
Business practices, codes of conduct, policy manuals, memos,
7.22 Communication etc. Documentation of systems, operations, user 1 2 3 4 5 6
responsibilities. Reporting relationships. Training, supervision.
Ongoing monitoring
7.23 Management. Regulators. 1 2 3 4 5 6
activities
Systems analysis and documentation (e.g., flowcharting
packages, review of program logic, etc.). Systems / program
testing (e.g., test data, integrated test facility, parallel
simulation, etc.). Data integrity testing (e.g., generalized audit
7.24 Separate evaluation 1 2 3 4 5 6
software, utilities, custom programs, sampling routines, etc.).
Problem solving aids (e.g., spreadsheet, database, on-line
databases, etc.). Administrative aids (e.g., word processing,
audit program generations, work paper generators, etc.).

209
 A3
Identify relevant IT control framework to apply to the analysis
and evaluation of internal control. Acceptance testing. Identify
Suitable control criteria to
relevant IT control objectives to apply to the analysis and
8.1 analyze and evaluate 1 2 3 4 5 6
evaluation of internal control. Identify relevant layers of
controls
control to be included in the analysis and evaluation. Identify
areas of responsibility for identified control objectives.
Understand external regulatory controls. Analyze and evaluate
effectiveness of: Board of directors or audit committee
The IT internal control participation; Management philosophy and operating style;
8.2 1 2 3 4 5 6
environment Organizational structures; Assignment of authority and
responsibility; Management control methods; Human resource
policies and practices; Financial policies and practices.
Analyze and evaluate IT strategic objectives, IT objectives,
8.3 The selected IT objectives 1 2 3 4 5 6
overlap of IT objectives, selection of IT objectives.
Analyze and evaluate IT driving events factors and IT event
8.4 The identified IT events 1 2 3 4 5 6
identification techniques.
Analyze and evaluate process for:
• Identifying the entity's exposures to risks
• Estimating probability of loss
8.5 IT risk assessment 1 2 3 4 5 6
• Estimating monetary and non-monetary consequences
• Developing cost-effective preventive / detective / corrective
strategies to address risks.
The selected IT risk Analyze and evaluate effectiveness of response categories and
8.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
responses possible responses.

210
 Analyze and evaluate IT control frameworks. Analyze and
evaluate effectiveness of Design and operation of entity's
information processing and communication activities in
support of organizational objectives; Controls over data
integrity, privacy and security; Controls over completeness,
accuracy, timeliness and authorization of systems processing;
Controls over systems availability, continuity of business
processing and disaster recovery planning; Systems acquisition
/ development methodology, including make / buy criteria;
8.7 The IT control activities 1 2 3 4 5 6
Standards for systems development project management and
control. Analyze and evaluate compliance with Standards for
systems investigation and feasibility study; Standards for
determination of user requirements and initial systems design;
Standards for systems design, selection, acquisition /
development; Standards for systems implementation, including
systems testing, training, data conversion and quality
assurance; Standards for systems maintenance and change
management.
Information and
Analyze and evaluate information processes and
8.8 communication in relation 1 2 3 4 5 6
communication processes.
to IT
Analyze and evaluate:
• Internal monitoring processes, including their effectiveness in
leading to changes in controls or control environment
The monitoring process • Performance review process
8.9 and actions taken in • Process for addressing non-compliance or deterioration in 1 2 3 4 5 6
relation to IT compliance identified by monitoring activities of management,
users, internal auditors, external auditors.
Apply appropriate computer-assisted audit techniques to
analyze and evaluate monitoring processes and activities.

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Appropriate IT systems /
8.10 tools to business /
accounting problems
Understanding of business
8.11
and accounting systems
The application of controls
8.12
to personal systems
Apply: Operating systems; Word processing software;
Spreadsheet software; Database software; Internet tools (E-
mail, Web Browser, FTP, Other) software; Professional
1 2 3 4 5 6
research tools; Business presentation software; Anti-virus and
other security software; Utility software and other relevant
software in a relevant accounting / business context.
Demonstrate understanding of Accounting packages; E-
business systems (ERP, CRM, and other business automation
systems); Networks (LAN); Electronic commerce features 1 2 3 4 5 6
(B2C and B2B models, encryption tools, digital signatures /
certificates, key management).
Ensure:
• Processing integrity of IT resources
• Security and safeguarding of IT resources 1 2 3 4 5 6
• Availability / continuity provisions (back-up and recovery)
for IT resources
212
 IEG-11
Apply appropriate IT
9.1 systems / tools to business / Apply operating system (Windows, Other). 1 2 3 4 5 6
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply word processing software in a relevant accounting /
9.2 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply spreadsheet software in a relevant accounting / business
9.3 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply database software in a relevant accounting / business
9.4 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply Internet tools (E-mail, Web Browser, FTP, Other)
9.5 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
software in a relevant accounting / business context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply professional research tools in a relevant accounting /
9.6 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply business presentation software in a relevant accounting /
9.7 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply anti-virus and other security software in a relevant
9.8 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
accounting / business context.
accounting problems
Apply appropriate IT
Apply utility software and other relevant software in a relevant
9.9 systems / tools to business / 1 2 3 4 5 6
accounting / business context.
accounting problems
Demonstrate understanding
9.10 of business and accounting Demonstrate understanding of accounting packages. 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems

213
 Demonstrate understanding
Demonstrate understanding of e-business systems (ERP, CRM,
9.11 of business and accounting 1 2 3 4 5 6
and other business automation systems).
systems
Demonstrate understanding
9.12 of business and accounting Demonstrate understanding of networks (LAN). 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems
Demonstrate understanding Demonstrate understanding of electronic commerce features
9.13 of business and accounting (B2C and B2B models, encryption tools, digital signatures / 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems certificates, key management).
Ensure processing integrity of IT resources. Ensure security
Apply controls to personal
9.14 and safeguarding of IT resources. Ensure availability / 1 2 3 4 5 6
system
continuity provisions (back-up and recovery) for IT resources

214
 A4
Understand enterprise strategy and business issues and related
IT risks and opportunities. Develop an IT strategic plan to
support the entity’s business plan. Align / integrate IT strategic
Managing an entity’s IT
10.1 plan with entity’s business / program objectives and success 1 2 3 4 5 6
strategy
factors. Translate strategic business / program objectives into
operating principles for IT planning. Facilitate business
process enablement through the use of IT.
Define job functions and responsibilities of the IT department.
Managing an IT Define organization chart / reporting relationships of the IT
10.2 1 2 3 4 5 6
organization department. Define and implement process for recruiting,
staffing, personnel development and performance evaluation.
Measure, analyze and evaluate consistency and compatibility
of system components. Analyze, evaluate and plan IT capacity.
Analyze and evaluate impact of IT on management, jobs and
office procedures. Define / maintain data / information
architecture. Acquire / develop / maintain responsive IT
infrastructure (hardware, facilities, communication networks).
Acquire / develop / maintain software (systems, applications,
Managing IT operations’
10.3 utilities). Plan and schedule system operations priorities and 1 2 3 4 5 6
effectiveness and efficiency
allocate resources. Measure, analyze and evaluate IS
effectiveness and productivity enhancement. Measure, analyze
and evaluate IT function performance, productivity and service
quality, quality assurance processes, continuous improvement.
Monitor outsourced services (ISPs, ASPs, etc.) and inter-
organizational computing such as EDI and e-commerce
services.
Maintaining financial Develop capital budget. Account for system costs. Implement
10.4 1 2 3 4 5 6
control over IT systems for tracking costs. Monitor expenses.

215
 Implement physical and logical safeguards for hardware,
facilities, software and information. Implement system and
data security (i.e., physical, logical / electronic access
controls). Implement system availability and business
10.5 Managing IT controls 1 2 3 4 5 6
continuity controls (back-up / recovery, disaster planning).
Implement system processing integrity (i.e., completeness,
accuracy, timeliness and authorization) controls. Implement
data integrity, privacy and confidentiality controls.
Identify and evaluate appropriate development / acquisition
alternatives such as in-house / outsourcing. Implement and
monitor system acquisition / development and implementation
standards. Determine and provide system project staffing
Managing systems requirements and budgets. Implement project management
10.6 acquisition, development processes to manage and monitor system projects. Use 1 2 3 4 5 6
and implementation appropriate methodologies to identify, analyze, evaluate and
select appropriate supplier(s) and system(s). Manage
expectations by communicating system acquisition /
development plans and status to users, top management /
steering committee.
Manage technology diffusion. Implement and manage
information center, help desk; standards and controls
applicable to IS maintenance activities; version management;
Managing systems change
10.7 process for migrating systems from legacy to state of the art; 1 2 3 4 5 6
and problem management
emergency change controls; testing and quality assurance for
all system changes. Manage custody of systems, change
authorization.

216
 A5
Identify IT assurance service requirements and opportunities.
Analyze / evaluate and advise on entity's IT assurance needs
based on legal, ethical, professional standards and other
requirements and best practices. Identify nature of particular IT
assurance engagement or project and standards and other
requirements governing the engagement. Analyze and decide
whether to accept the IT assurance engagement or project.
Define the scope of the IT assurance engagement or project.
Planning systems Identify, analyze and evaluate risk factors and business issues
11.1 1 2 3 4 5 6
evaluation affecting the IT assurance engagement or project and their
implications. Define level / frequency of system errors, flaws
and failures that are deemed significant / material. Design
effective and efficient verification procedures to meet
evaluation objectives while complying with professional
standards. Assign and schedule staff with appropriate IT skills,
including: IT specialist personnel, to perform the IT assurance
engagement or project. Conclude on evaluation strategy.
Develop an evaluation plan.
Collaborate with colleagues, client and others, including IT
specialist personnel. Perform planned procedures, exercising
required controls over their execution. Evaluate general IT
controls, application controls. Evaluate relationship between
11.2 Evaluating systems user controls / application controls and IT general controls. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Adjust planned procedures for changes in circumstances.
Document procedures and their findings. Analyze and evaluate
evidence / results of procedures. Perform supervision, review
and quality assurance procedures.

217
 Prepare appropriate types of communication, including verbal
communication, "seal" or printed report. Present
Communicating results of
communication verbally, electronically or in printed format to
11.3 evaluations and following- 1 2 3 4 5 6
client or other intended recipients. Update communication as
up
frequently as required (e.g., refresh the "seal" or report posted
on a web site). Follow up as required.

218
 A6
Facilitate the development of the entity’s strategic vision for
IT. Identify stakeholders and their requirements. Assess the
business impact of entity’s strategic vision for IT on the entity,
its customers, suppliers and employees. Facilitate
communication between users, technologists and management.
Analyzing and evaluating Analyze, evaluate and design information architecture (i.e.,
the role of information in role of databases and database management systems including
12.1 1 2 3 4 5 6
the entity’s business knowledge management systems, data warehouses). Analyze,
processes and organization evaluate and design entity’s business processes. Analyze
framework of control. Analyze relations between user controls
/ application controls / general IT controls. Analyze, evaluate
and design entity’s system development life cycle (SDLC)
phases, tasks. Analyze and evaluate system risks and
opportunities. Analyze, evaluate and design controls.
Analyze and evaluate project characteristics and risks.
Organize project into phases and tasks corresponding to
relevant stages of the systems development life cycle. Identify
appropriate staff and other resources and assign to project
phases and tasks. Assign time, expense and other resource
Applying project
12.2 budgets to project phases and tasks. Apply appropriate 1 2 3 4 5 6
management methods
standards and controls to the project phases and tasks. Identify
required project documentation and assign responsibility for its
preparation. Monitor project activities for compliance with
budgets, standards, controls and documentation requirements
and take corrective action when required.
Perform systems investigation. Identify business process
Applying systems
integration / re-engineering opportunities. Research relevant
12.3 investigation and project 1 2 3 4 5 6
technology options. Prepare feasibility study and evaluate
initiation methods
project risks.

219
 Apply information requirements elicitation methods.
Document information requirements (including control
Applying user requirements
requirements). Facilitate communication of information
12.4 determination and initial 1 2 3 4 5 6
requirements between team members, users, management.
design methods
Analyze requirements and perform initial design (including
controls).
Prepare and document detailed design specifications. Evaluate
and acquire infrastructure. Evaluate and acquire / develop
Applying detailed systems required system, application and utility software. Select
12.5 design and acquisition / suppliers and service providers. Prepare hardware contracts, 1 2 3 4 5 6
development methods facilities leases, software licenses, network service level
agreements in consultation with legal advisors. Prepare
documentation and operations manuals.
Prepare implementation plan. Supervise installation /
deployment of system components. Develop user / operator
Applying systems procedures and controls and recruit, train personnel. Test
12.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
implementation methods (verify and validate) system against specifications and
requirements. Convert system, balance pre-post data, and start-
up. Perform post-implementation review.
Maintain IT infrastructure; software and control versions.
Applying systems Maintain personnel competencies through hiring and training.
12.7 maintenance and change Maintain IT standards and controls. Maintain information 1 2 3 4 5 6
management methods architecture. Maintain business processes. Test all systems
changes.

220
 A7
Identify, analyze and evaluate the effects of IT on an entity’s
business, considering relevant current issues and
(technological) developments. Understand the complexity of
the IT environments. Assign and schedule staff with
appropriate IT skills, including IT specialist personnel, to
Evaluating an entity’s
analyze IT controls at entity level. Analyze risks and controls
13.1 overall IT control 1 2 3 4 5 6
at entity level to Align IT with entity’s business strategy;
environment
Manage the IT organization; Manage IT operations; Manage
IT controls; Manage systems acquisition; Development and
implementation; Manage systems change and problem
management. Evaluating an entity’s overall IT control
environment. Conclude on preliminary audit strategy.
Identify business processes, significant flows of transactions,
significant risks and relevant user controls / application
controls. Identify the supporting IT infrastructure and general
Planning financial
IT controls. Design test procedures on user controls /
13.2 accounting and reporting 1 2 3 4 5 6
application controls / IT general controls. Planning financial
systems evaluation
accounting and reporting systems evaluation. Assign and
schedule staff with appropriate IT skills, including IT specialist
personnel, to test general IT controls and application controls.
Perform planned procedures, exercising required controls over
their execution. Evaluate general IT controls and application
controls. Evaluate relations between user controls / application
Evaluating financial controls and IT general controls. Adjust planned procedures for
13.3 accounting and reporting changes in circumstances. Document procedures and their 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems findings. Analyze and evaluate evidence / results of
procedures. Evaluating financial accounting and reporting
systems. Perform supervision, review and quality assurance
procedures.

221
 Prepare appropriate types of communication, including verbal
Communicating results of
communication and / or printed report. Conclude on final audit
13.4 evaluations and following- 1 2 3 4 5 6
strategy. Communicating results of evaluations and following-
up
up. Follow up as required.

222
 SLO-5
Select factors that must be considered when developing
controls for information systems. Describe the control
environment and plan to meet control objectives. Identify and
Internal control in compare general controls and application controls for
14.1 accounting / business information systems. Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems control compliance monitoring. Evaluate and design internal
control systems. Demonstrate an understanding of the
contribution that internal controls make to achieving
organisational objectives, that is, their value-adding role.
Describe database management systems and identify the
advantages of different types of database system. Define the
requirements of a database accounting system. Describe the
Standards and practices for
process and documentation requirements of the systems
14.2 accounting / business 1 2 3 4 5 6
development life cycle (SDLC). Describe the system
systems
verification and validation process. Explain how emerging
technologies influence the design of accounting information
systems.
Discuss strategic considerations involved in planning
information systems, including an appreciation of the
importance of project management. Demonstrate an awareness
Management of IT
of security, back-up, and recovery procedures. Evaluate
14.3 adoption, implementation 1 2 3 4 5 6
development acquisition alternatives. Discuss systems
and use
maintenance and control policies. Discuss the importance of
ensuring end user support. Explain the principles of managing
change.
Describe the impact of legal, ethical, and auditing influences
Evaluation of computer- on AIS. Describe evaluation objectives, methods, and
14.4 based accounting / business techniques. Document a system using flow charts and a control 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems matrix. Discuss the effects of rapid change on evaluation of
existing systems.

223
 Demonstrate the theoretical application of information systems
technology e.g. database design or project management
14.5 Practical use of technology 1 2 3 4 5 6
implementation of AIS. Apply information systems /
technology to solving business / accounting problems.

224
 Bain et al (2002)

15.1 Introduction to systems 1 2 3 4 5 6

Introduction to transaction
15.2 1 2 3 4 5 6
processing systems

15.3 Revenue cycle 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.4 Purchasing cycle 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.5 Production cycle 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.6 GL reporting cycle 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.7 HR / Payroll cycle 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.8 General hardware issues 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.9 General software issues 1 2 3 4 5 6

Database / file systems

15.10 1 2 3 4 5 6
architecture
File organization and
15.11 1 2 3 4 5 6
access
Database management
15.12 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems

15.13 Structured Query Language 1 2 3 4 5 6

225
15.14 Data modeling techniques 1 2 3 4 5 6

System documentation
15.15 1 2 3 4 5 6
techniques

15.16 End user computing 1 2 3 4 5 6

Traditional systems
15.17 1 2 3 4 5 6
analysis and design
Event-based systems
15.18 1 2 3 4 5 6
architecture

15.19 Business process modeling 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.20 Internal control 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.21 Computer fraud 1 2 3 4 5 6

Communication systems Internet, Intranet, EDI, EFT, e-commerce, telecommunications,

15.22 1 2 3 4 5 6
and technology etc.
Client / server and
15.23 1 2 3 4 5 6
networking

15.24 Enterprise-wide systems 1 2 3 4 5 6

Strategic information
15.25 1 2 3 4 5 6
systems
Expert Systems, Decision Support Systems, Artificial
15.26 Intelligent systems Intelligence, Executive Information Systems, Intelligent 1 2 3 4 5 6
agents.
15.27 Programming 1 2 3 4 5 6

226
15.28 IT audit 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.29 Ethics 1 2 3 4 5 6

15.30 International issues 1 2 3 4 5 6

227
 Wessels (2005)
Apply operating systems and utility software in a business /
16.1 Operating systems 1 2 3 4 5 6
accounting context.
Apply word processing software in a relevant accounting /
16.2 Word processing 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.
Apply spreadsheet software in a relevant accounting / business
16.3 Spreadsheets 1 2 3 4 5 6
context.
Apply presentation software in a relevant accounting / business
16.4 Presentation software 1 2 3 4 5 6
context.
Apply Internet tools (e-mail, web browser) in a relevant
16.5 Internet tools 1 2 3 4 5 6
accounting / business context.
Apply professional research tools in a relevant accounting /
16.6 Research tools 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.
Apply image processing software in a relevant accounting /
16.7 Image processing software 1 2 3 4 5 6
business context.

16.8 Database software Ability to design and use database systems. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Database search and

16.9 Ability to search and retrieve data from a database. 1 2 3 4 5 6
retrieval

16.10 Accounting software Ability to understand workings of an accounting package. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Tax return preparation Ability to use tax return preparation software to capture and
16.11 1 2 3 4 5 6
software record relevant information.
Ability to use time management and billing systems that assist
Time management and
16.12 the professional in capturing, managing, billing and reporting 1 2 3 4 5 6
billing systems
time spent on professional duties.

228
 Ability to work with knowledge work systems such as
groupware, workflow systems, expert systems, etc. to aid
16.13 Knowledge work systems 1 2 3 4 5 6
accountants in the creation, integration and communication of
knowledge.
Ability to use software that can generate trial balances and lead
16.14 Electronic working papers 1 2 3 4 5 6
schedules for the recording of evidence in the audit.
Ability to use audit software to access client computer files,
16.15 Audit software 1 2 3 4 5 6
extract relevant data and perform audit functions.
Ability to generate and use test data to test a computer
16.16 Test data 1 2 3 4 5 6
application.
Ability to create simulation modules in order to evaluate the
16.17 Simulation software 1 2 3 4 5 6
logic of a computer application.
Flowcharting / data Ability to use software that uses the source code version of an
16.18 1 2 3 4 5 6
modeling application to produce flowcharts of the program logic.
Ability to use embedded audit modules (including real-time
16.19 Audit module audit modules) that are incorporated into an application 1 2 3 4 5 6
program.
Computer-aided systems Ability to use computer-aided systems engineering tools in
16.20 1 2 3 4 5 6
engineering tools designing new accounting systems or spreadsheet modules.
Ability to function in a cooperative client / server environment
16.21 Client / server environment 1 2 3 4 5 6
using local area networks.
Ability to perform EDI (traditional and web-based)
16.22 Electronic data interchange 1 2 3 4 5 6
transactions.
Ability to understand digital communications (including
16.23 Digital communications 1 2 3 4 5 6
wireless communications).
Ability to understand various network configurations (internal
16.24 Network configurations 1 2 3 4 5 6
and external).
Application service Ability to understand the issues around the management of
16.25 1 2 3 4 5 6
providers application service providers.
Ability to understand the issues around the management of
16.26 Internet service providers 1 2 3 4 5 6
internet service providers.

229
 Ability to understand the use of anti-virus software to protect
16.27 Anti-virus software 1 2 3 4 5 6
computer systems from infection.
Ability to understand the use of encryption software to change
16.28 Encryption software 1 2 3 4 5 6
data, using some type of encoding / decoding algorithm.
Firewall software / Ability to understand the use of security technology to enforce
16.29 1 2 3 4 5 6
hardware an access control policy between networks.
Ability to understand the use of software and devices to
16.30 User authentication 1 2 3 4 5 6
identify systems users.
Intrusion detection and Ability to understand the use of security technology to identify
16.31 1 2 3 4 5 6
monitoring unauthorized requests for services.
Ability to understand the use of technology for back-up and
16.32 Back-up and recovery 1 2 3 4 5 6
recovery procedures to ensure continuity of IT services.
Ability to understand the use of programmed modules that are
16.33 Agent technologies given certain levels of authority and autonomy to act on behalf 1 2 3 4 5 6
of a supervisor.
Data warehousing and data Ability to understand the use of data warehousing and
16.34 1 2 3 4 5 6
mining extracting trends and patterns using data mining techniques.

230
 Others

17.1 Accounting software Use of accounting software such as MYOB or Great Plains. 1 2 3 4 5 6

17.2 ERP systems Use of ERP systems such as SAP or Oracle. 1 2 3 4 5 6

17.3 Documentation tools System flowcharts. 1 2 3 4 5 6

17.4 Documentation tools Document flowcharts. 1 2 3 4 5 6

17.5 Documentation tools Data flow diagrams. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Understand the concepts of fields, records and tables of

17.6 Database concepts 1 2 3 4 5 6
database systems.

17.7 Database design Use of REA diagrams to design database tables. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Develop a database using a popular database software such as

17.8 Database design 1 2 3 4 5 6
Microsoft Access.

17.9 Database use Using database query language. 1 2 3 4 5 6

END OF QUESTIONNAIRE – THANK YOU

231
 Appendix 2 Mean scores from the first and second round of Phase I

Sorted in descending order of Round 2 mean score Mean score

Q Brief description Round 1 Round 2
5.21 Office software (Spreadsheet) 6.0 6.0
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.3 6.0 6.0
problems (Spreadsheet)
16.3 Spreadsheets 5.7 5.8
16.10 Accounting software 5.7 5.7
5.20 Office software (Word processor) 5.5 5.7
Demonstrate understanding of business and accounting systems
9.10 5.5 5.5
(Accounting package)
17.1 Accounting software (MYOB, Great Plains) 5.5 5.5
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.2 5.3 5.5
problems (Word processing)
8.10 Appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting problems 5.3 5.3
Demonstrate understanding of business and accounting systems
9.11 5.3 5.3
(ERP, CRM)
15.6 GL reporting cycle 5.3 5.3
16.2 Word processing 5.2 5.3
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.5 5.2 5.2
problems (Internet tools)
5.19 Office software (Internet tools: e-mail, web browser) 4.8 5.2
6.1 General means of communication supported by IT 4.8 5.2
6.2 Risks in communication supported by IT 4.8 5.2
15.3 Revenue cycle 5.0 5.0
15.20 Internal control 5.0 5.0
16.5 Internet tools 5.0 5.0
5.22 Office software (Database management system) 4.8 5.0
15.29 Ethics 4.8 5.0
16.9 Database search and retrieval 4.8 5.0
Business documents, accounting records, control / management
2.11 4.8 4.8
reports
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.1 4.8 4.8
problems (Operating systems)
15.1 Introduction to systems 4.8 4.8
16.4 Presentation software 4.8 4.8

232
16.11 Tax return preparation software 4.8 4.8
17.2 ERP systems (SAP, Oracle) 4.8 4.8
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.8 4.7 4.8
problems (Anti-virus software)
15.22 Communication systems and technology 4.7 4.8
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.4 4.7 4.7
problems (Database software)
15.4 Purchasing cycle 4.7 4.7
16.12 Time management and billing systems 4.7 4.7
16.14 Electronic working papers 4.7 4.7
17.6 Database concepts 4.7 4.7
3.3 Effectiveness of the entity’s business processes 4.5 4.7
15.7 HR / Payroll cycle 4.5 4.7
5.18 Office software (Presentation software) 4.3 4.7
15.16 End user computing 4.7 4.5
8.11 Understanding of business and accounting systems 4.5 4.5
15.2 Introduction to transaction processing systems 4.5 4.5
15.21 Computer fraud 4.5 4.5
15.28 IT audit 4.5 4.5
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.7 4.3 4.5
problems (Presentation software)
6.3 Benefits of IT to communication 4.2 4.5
16.15 Audit software 4.3 4.3
9.14 Apply controls to personal system 4.2 4.3
16.27 Anti-virus software 4.2 4.3
5.25 Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) (Analytical tools) 4.2 4.2
8.12 The application of controls to personal systems 4.2 4.2
16.1 Operating systems 4.2 4.2
16.6 Research tools 4.2 4.2
7.19 Controls over information systems 4.0 4.2
16.8 Database software 4.0 4.2
16.22 Electronic data interchange 4.0 4.2
2.6 Attributes of information 3.8 4.2
Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) (Accounting
5.23 4.0 4.0
packages and CAAT)
17.3 Documentation tools (System flowcharts) 4.0 4.0

233
17.4 Documentation tools (Document flowcharts) 4.0 4.0
17.5 Documentation tools (Data flow diagrams) 4.0 4.0
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.9 3.8 4.0
problems (Utility software)
Demonstrate understanding of business and accounting systems
9.13 3.8 4.0
(e-commerce)
16.29 Firewall software / hardware 3.8 4.0
16.32 Back-up and recovery 3.8 4.0
15.12 Database management systems 4.2 3.8
2.13 Input / output devices 4.0 3.8
2.7 Role of information within business 3.8 3.8
5.14 Logical security 3.8 3.8
7.17 IT control objectives 3.8 3.8
Apply appropriate IT systems / tools to business / accounting
9.6 3.8 3.8
problems (Professional research tools)
16.7 Image processing software 3.8 3.8
15.14 Data modeling techniques 3.7 3.8
15.19 Business process modeling 3.7 3.8
17.8 Database design (Access) 3.7 3.8
2.9 Transaction processing phases 4.0 3.7
2.19 Security software 3.8 3.7
2.46 Organization 3.7 3.7
Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) (Pattern matching /
5.26 3.7 3.7
recognition)
15.5 Production cycle 3.7 3.7
16.30 User authentication 3.7 3.7
17.9 Database use (Database query language) 3.7 3.7
7.5 Authority and responsibility, organization and development 3.5 3.7
8.7 The IT control activities 3.5 3.7
Demonstrate understanding of business and accounting systems
9.12 3.5 3.7
(LAN)
14.4 Evaluation of computer-based accounting / business systems 3.5 3.7
15.15 System documentation techniques 3.5 3.7
2.44 Job functions 3.3 3.7
15.24 Enterprise-wide systems 3.8 3.5
15.9 General software issues 3.7 3.5
15.10 Database / file systems architecture 3.7 3.5

234
16.31 Intrusion detection and monitoring 3.7 3.5
3.4 Framework of controls 3.5 3.5
7.22 Communication 3.5 3.5
14.3 Management of IT adoption, implementation and use 3.5 3.5
15.13 Structured Query Language 3.5 3.5
15.30 International issues 3.5 3.5
16.16 Test data 3.5 3.5
3.6 Applications of Internet-commerce 3.3 3.5
4.4 Investigation 3.3 3.5
7.1 IT risk management approach 3.3 3.5
7.18 Types of control activities 3.3 3.5
13.4 Communicating results of evaluations and following-up 3.3 3.5
5.17 IT control objectives 3.2 3.5
7.12 IT risk categories 3.2 3.5
14.1 Internal control in accounting / business systems 3.2 3.5
14.2 Standards and practices for accounting / business systems 3.2 3.5
16.28 Encryption software 3.2 3.5
7.7 IT objectives 3.0 3.5
2.10 Processing modes 3.8 3.3
15.11 File organization and access 3.5 3.3
16.23 Digital communications 3.5 3.3
2.5 Nature and types of information 3.3 3.3
3.2 Business models 3.3 3.3
Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAAT) (Professional
5.24 3.3 3.3
research tools)
7.6 IT strategic objectives 3.3 3.3
13.2 Planning financial accounting and reporting systems evaluation 3.3 3.3
14.5 Practical use of technology 3.3 3.3
15.8 General hardware issues 3.3 3.3
15.25 Strategic information systems 3.3 3.3
16.13 Knowledge work systems 3.3 3.3
16.21 Client / server environment 3.3 3.3
16.34 Data warehousing and data mining 3.3 3.3
1.8 Outcome measurement 3.2 3.3

235
2.8 Types of business systems 3.2 3.3
2.43 Document management 3.2 3.3
3.7 Enterprise systems 3.2 3.3
6.4 Network components, configurations and designs 3.2 3.3
7.2 IT risk tolerance 3.2 3.3
8.8 Information and communication in relation to IT 3.2 3.3
15.23 Client / server and networking 3.2 3.3
5.13 Physical security 2.8 3.3
16.26 Internet service providers 3.5 3.2
1.7 Framework for IT governance 3.3 3.2
2.1 Nature and types of systems 3.3 3.2
2.20 Utility software 3.3 3.2
1.3 Current status of entity’s use of IT to support business strategies 3.2 3.2
8.1 Suitable control criteria to analyze and evaluate controls 3.2 3.2
15.17 Traditional systems analysis and design 3.2 3.2
15.26 Intelligent systems 3.2 3.2
16.19 Audit module 3.2 3.2
4.23 Risk management approach on the project 3.0 3.2
8.2 The IT internal control environment 3.0 3.2
8.5 IT risk assessment 3.0 3.2
13.3 Evaluating financial accounting and reporting systems 2.8 3.2
1.1 Internal and external business issues 3.3 3.0
5.1 IT policies, procedures and methodologies 3.0 3.0
7.10 IT risk factors 3.0 3.0
12.3 Applying systems investigation and project initiation methods 3.0 3.0
16.25 Application service providers 3.0 3.0
16.33 Agent technologies 3.0 3.0
4.18 Post-implementation review 2.8 3.0
5.7 Asset management and control 2.8 3.0
7.21 Information 2.8 3.0
4.9 Control requirements 2.7 3.0
5.6 Asset life cycle 2.7 3.0
2.3 Control and feedback in systems 3.0 2.8

236
7.15 Possible responses 3.0 2.8
2.2 Information system architectures 2.8 2.8
4.5 Feasibility Study 2.8 2.8
4.6 User requirements elicitation 2.8 2.8
5.8 Segregation of environments 2.8 2.8
7.4 Integrity, ethical values, and competence of the IT personnel 2.8 2.8
7.9 Selection of IT objectives 2.8 2.8
7.24 Separate evaluation 2.8 2.8
16.20 Computer-aided systems engineering tools 2.8 2.8
16.24 Network configurations 2.8 2.8
3.5 Barriers and enablers 2.7 2.8
5.12 Facilities 2.7 2.8
8.6 The selected IT risk responses 2.7 2.8
8.9 The monitoring process and actions taken in relation to IT 2.7 2.8
11.3 Communicating results of evaluations and following-up 2.3 2.8
2.12 Processing units 3.0 2.7
2.24 Data management systems 3.0 2.7
2.17 Operating systems 2.8 2.7
2.18 Communications systems 2.8 2.7
2.25 General application software 2.8 2.7
2.38 Data structures and file organization 2.8 2.7
Applying user requirements determination and initial design
12.4 2.8 2.7
methods
2.32 Internet protocols (HTTP) 2.7 2.7
2.42 Database administration 2.7 2.7
4.14 Systems implementation plan 2.7 2.7
5.11 Management of end-user computing 2.7 2.7
5.16 IT cost controls 2.7 2.7
7.23 Ongoing monitoring activities 2.7 2.7
10.1 Managing an entity’s IT strategy 2.7 2.7
10.5 Managing IT controls 2.7 2.7
1.2 Factors that impact IT 2.5 2.7
2.35 Internet protocols (XBRL) 2.5 2.7
4.24 Execute the project plan 2.5 2.7

237
8.3 The selected IT objectives 2.5 2.7
10.4 Maintaining financial control over IT 2.5 2.7
11.1 Planning systems evaluation 2.5 2.7
11.2 Evaluating systems 2.5 2.7
2.33 Internet protocols (HTML) 2.3 2.7
1.4 IT risks and opportunities 2.8 2.5
2.16 Components of a software configuration 2.8 2.5
2.14 Data communication devices 2.7 2.5
2.15 Physical storage devices 2.7 2.5
15.18 Event-based systems architecture 2.7 2.5
Monitoring service level performance against service level
3.1 2.5 2.5
agreements
4.7 System analysis / design tools and techniques 2.5 2.5
15.27 Programming 2.5 2.5
16.17 Simulation software 2.5 2.5
16.18 Flowcharting / data modeling 2.5 2.5
17.7 Database design (Using REA diagrams) 2.5 2.5
2.31 Internet protocols (FTP) 2.3 2.5
2.34 Internet protocols (XML) 2.3 2.5
2.41 Database management systems features, functions, architectures 2.3 2.5
4.3 Standards, methods and controls 2.3 2.5
4.16 Acceptance testing 2.3 2.5
4.25 Control the project 2.3 2.5
5.2 IT human resource policies 2.3 2.5
7.3 IT oversight 2.3 2.5
12.2 Applying project management methods 2.3 2.5
13.1 Evaluating an entity’s overall IT control environment 2.3 2.5
10.2 Managing an IT organization 2.2 2.5
Resources management processes used to maintain
5.3 2.0 2.5
organizational efficiencies
2.26 E-business enabling software 2.7 2.3
7.8 Overlap of IT objectives 2.6 2.3
1.5 Envision future status of the entity’s system 2.3 2.3
2.45 Recruiting / developing IT human resources 2.3 2.3
4.17 Systems conversion / changeover 2.3 2.3

238
4.20 Change controls 2.3 2.3
5.9 Change control techniques 2.3 2.3
7.16 IT control frameworks 2.3 2.3
7.20 Systems acquisition / development process 2.3 2.3
1.6 Align future IT strategy with business strategy 2.2 2.3
2.23 Library management systems 2.2 2.3
4.12 Systems design 2.2 2.3
4.13 Documentation 2.2 2.3
5.10 Problem management 2.2 2.3
7.14 Response categories 2.2 2.3
10.3 Managing IT operations’ effectiveness and efficiency 2.2 2.3
10.7 Managing systems change and problem management 2.2 2.3
Analyzing and evaluating the role of information in the entity’s
12.1 2.2 2.3
business processes and organization
2.4 Systems development life cycle 2.2 2.2
2.40 Types of data files 2.2 2.2
4.8 Process design, data organization, software requirements 2.2 2.2
4.26 Complete the project 2.2 2.2
Relationship of infrastructure to applications and user
5.4 2.2 2.2
requirements
7.13 Assessment techniques 2.2 2.2
12.6 Applying systems implementation methods 2.2 2.2
2.36 Internet protocols (IRC) 2.0 2.2
10.6 Managing systems acquisition, development and implementation 2.0 2.2
4.2 Acquisition / development phases 2.2 2.0
8.4 The identified IT events 2.2 2.0
5.5 Monitoring service provider activities 2.0 2.0
Applying detailed systems design and acquisition / development
12.5 2.0 2.0
methods
12.7 Applying systems maintenance and change management methods 2.0 2.0
4.19 Maintenance standards 2.0 1.8
2.22 Programming aids, interactive programming software 1.8 1.8
2.30 Internet protocols (DNS) 1.8 1.8
2.37 Standard-setting organizations 1.8 1.8
4.15 Install / deploy systems 1.8 1.8

239
2.29 Internet protocols (URL) 2.2 1.7
2.27 Common standards 2.0 1.7
4.1 System acquisition / development approaches 1.8 1.7
5.15 Performance metrics 1.8 1.7
7.11 IT event identification techniques 1.8 1.7
4.10 Infrastructure and software services 1.7 1.7
4.21 Initiate the project 1.7 1.7
4.22 Plan the project 1.7 1.7
2.28 Internet protocols (Packet switching) 1.7 1.5
2.39 Access methods 1.7 1.5
2.21 Programming languages / compilers 1.5 1.5
4.11 Software development 1.5 1.5

Source: Developed for this research

240
 Appendix 3 Questionnaire for Phase II

Thank you for participating in this research which is about the information technology
knowledge and skills required by accounting graduates in New Zealand. IT is developing
at a rapid pace. It is important that we know which IT knowledge and skills are relevant
and which ones are not for today’s accounting graduates. With this knowledge, accounting
educators can design effective and up-to-date IT content in accounting major programmes
to prepare graduates for the workplace.

Please complete Section I and II of this questionnaire before the interview. I will collect
the completed questionnaire from you when we meet for the interview.

SECTION I
1. What is your position title?
Chief Financial Officer / Finance Director / Financial Controller [1]
Chief Accountant / Manager of Accounting Department [2]
Accounting Assistant / Accounting Clerk [3]
Audit Manager / Chief Audit Officer [4]
Internal Auditor [5]
Others _______________________________[6]

2. To whom do you report?

______________________________

3. What is the position title of the person responsible for IT in your company?

______________________________

241
4. Which of the following industry is your company engaged in?
Manufacturing [1]
Retail / Trading [2]
Logistics / Distribution / Shipping / Transportation / Warehousing [3]
Public Accounting / Audit firm [4]
Public Solicitors / Law firm [5]
Financial services / Banking / Insurance [6]
Hospitality / Tourism / Entertainment [7]
Publishing / News / Media [8]
Telecommunications [9]
Information Technology [10]
Real Estate / Property Management [11]
Health care [12]
Education [13]
Government [14]
Non-profit organisation [15]
Others ______________________________[16]

5. How many staff does your company employ?

less than 20 [1] 20 to 49 [2]
50 to 99 [3] 100 to 499 [4]
500 to 999 [5] 1,000 and above [6]

6. How many staff members are employed in the accounting / audit department?
less than 5 [1] 5 to 10 [2]
10 to 20 [3] 20 and above [4]

242
7. How many staff members are employed in the IT department?
less than 5 [1] 5 to 10 [2]
10 to 20 [3] 20 and above [4]

8. How many years have you been working in the accounting profession?
less than 2 years [1] 2 to 5 years [2]
5 to 10 years [3] 10 to 20 years [4]
Over 20 years [5]

9. What is your highest education achievement?

Doctorate [1] Masters degree [2]
Bachelors degree [3] Diploma [4]
Some tertiary education [5] Currently studying [6]
High school [7]

10. Are you a member of any accounting professional body?

Yes [1] Please specify the names of the professional bodies
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
No [2]

243
SECTION II
For each of the following questions, please circle the number that best describes your
opinion relating to the IT knowledge and skills requirements of an accounting graduate in
his / her first five years of employment in an accounting capacity.

[1=not relevant, ===== 6=essential]

Topic Details
Use of MYOB, Great Plains, SAP, Oracle,
Tax return software, Electronic working
Accounting software 1 2 3 4 5 6
papers, Time management and billing
systems
Understanding business systems, ERP,
Accounting systems CRM, GL reporting cycle, Revenue cycle, 1 2 3 4 5 6
Purchasing cycle, HR/payroll cycle
Data security Able to perform backup and recovery 1 2 3 4 5 6
Database concepts Understanding database concepts 1 2 3 4 5 6
Use of database software, database search
Database software 1 2 3 4 5 6
and retrieval
Understanding System flowcharts,
Documentation tools 1 2 3 4 5 6
Document flowcharts, Data flow diagrams
Understanding electronic data interchange,
e-commerce 1 2 3 4 5 6
B2B, B2C e-commerce
General systems Understanding transaction processing
1 2 3 4 5 6
knowledge system, end-user computing
Understanding communications
Internet knowledge 1 2 3 4 5 6
technologies, firewall software/hardware
Internet tools Use of E-mail, web browsing, SMS 1 2 3 4 5 6
IT audit software Use of IT audit software, CAAT 1 2 3 4 5 6
Internal control, computer fraud, IT audit,
IT controls 1 2 3 4 5 6
controls to personal computers
Operating systems Use of utility software, anti-virus software 1 2 3 4 5 6
Presentation software Use of presentation software 1 2 3 4 5 6
Research tools Able to use research tools 1 2 3 4 5 6
Spreadsheet Use of spreadsheet software 1 2 3 4 5 6
Values Ethical standards 1 2 3 4 5 6
Word processor Use of word processing software 1 2 3 4 5 6

END OF QUESTIONNAIRE – THANK YOU

244
 Appendix 4 Interview main points

J01 Accounting relies heavily on spreadsheet usage and knowledge

Excel, LOOKUP, IF functions
Need to understand transaction flows
Some understanding of programming
Heavily involved in IT, likes it
Like to learn SQL queries
More hands-on, not just theory
J02 Excel on daily basis – VLOOKUP, advanced filtering, conditional formatting, graphs
Would like to learn macro in Excel
Know more IT jargons if promoted
Good to know how to search for things from databases, and how to generate reports
from accounting systems
J03 Excel VLOOKUP
IF functions, conditional formatting
Students may forget IT skills learned from the first IT course when they graduate
Cannot remember SOX
J04 If you understand the accounting system, you can correct the mistakes you have made
Excel only for report formatting through data file exported from MYOB
Like to learn to produce graphs to supplement figures in financial reports
Very narrow requirements, the only accountant staff at the office
Self learned a lot of things
J05 Excel VLOOKUP
End-to-end process of accounting system/software
Great Plains not useful
SDLC if promoted
Use procedure flowcharts
Internal controls important
Want to learn macros and some programming
Accounting programme not enough practical hands-on
Cannot remember REA
J06 More Excel VLOOKUP, pivot table
Internal control important
Database concepts even though not using
In five years time – programming
Macro in Excel
Cannot remember REA, SDLC but said they are important
J07 Main use is accounting software to enter and process clients’ data and files
Excel is used but only involved in entering data into a very complex worksheet called
Electronic working paper
Also used is Tax Manager software
No database, forget already after studying in AIS
Research is on IRD matters
J08 Narrow requirement
MYOB enterprise and Excel are very important
Most of the things taught in AIS is of no use
Access database no use
Cannot go wrong with teaching more Excel
Perhaps do a survey on what accounting software CA firms use?

245
J09 Excel useful functions, sub-total, sorting, filtering, hide rows, columns, freeze panes
MYOB enterprise
Need to understand and interpret numbers rather than just using formulas
Good to have some overlaps in some topics between courses
Consider more connection between courses
Once you know how to use one package, others are similar
You don’t want to come out from your studies with too many things that you don’t need
because you will forget them anyway
J10 Excel – VLOOKUP, matching and indexing, pivot tables, NPV, graphs and charts
Spreadsheet is needed for everything
Great importance placed in database
Research tools
AIS course did not help
Tertiary education did not have real life examples
J11 Not trained as an accountant
Self trained through the CIMA qualification
More on management accountant role
Financial accounts/reports/tax done by CA firm
People don’t know how important database concept is for accounting
Wish list if going back to Uni – background in accounting, Excel, Access, Open Office
software
Emphasized correct input otherwise Garbage-in-Garbage-out
Accountants need presentation skills
J12 Excel – macros not that scary, goal seek
Analytical methods important before Excel
J13 Good Excel knowledge before start work – VLOOKUP, IF, Solver, Goal Seek
Like to learn macros and SQL
Learn one accounting package, understand the flow and others will be the same
SDLC very useful
Use procedure flowcharts
Accountants are very much involved in IT
As you progress, the conceptual and strategic knowledge learned from school starts to
become useful
Keep AIS compulsory
J14 Most important is MYOB Accountant’s Office software
Excel as user of a complex working paper worksheet
Like to understand sub-ledgers and accounting cycles instead of just journal entries
Like to know more about different commercial software packages available to be able
to advise clients
The AIS course is too stretched. It could be shortened quite a lot
S01 Excel absolutely used extensively
Web-site is the front window of the company
Research is important
Someone develops an Access database but they fall apart after he’s left
Better for programmers to learn basic accounting
Degree students have the power to think. They have the X factor which gives them the
ability to research and present them, must be from doing assignments and deadlines,
etc.
Quality of accounting graduates has improved, happy with their ability

246
S02 Don’t believe graduates can be trained on using audit software
Excel is very important
If they want improvement, then learn database interrogation
Just get the general IT knowledge (including accounting systems knowledge) and learn
on the job
People and communications skills (soft skills) are important
Never met a graduate without necessary IT skills at that level
If they have too much IT skills, not helpful with their area of distinction
S03 Most frequent contact is ecommerce – about design and security of Internet based
applications for clients
90% is learned on the job
It is not absolutely necessary for a person to have studied accounting as major to be
hired by PWC in the Audit Department
Important attributes from Uni are personal and communication skills and self-
motivation
Cannot remember REA
Understanding what is a database is important but not how to design and model a
database
SDLC is quite important
IT control frameworks are important
SOX not relevant for NZ
More training on Excel because no matter what you do, you use it on a regular basis
S04 University provides only 10% of what PWC needs in specialized areas such as IT
security
Spreadsheet is bread and butter
Understanding of business systems/ accounting cycles should be in detail
COSO more important
Actual work of the team involves ensuring proper authorization of function in IT
systems of clients
Excel training is a bit lacking
pivot tables, VLOOKUP, nested IF,
Macro not needed
S05 Understand, understand, understand accounting systems, how they work
Most are essential in the sense that they need to be understood, not actually able to use
everything
Excel at medium level, but trust data/reports from main computer systems rather than
Excel reports
Awareness of many IT topics to get started in the graduates job, employers will train
them anyway
S06 Use accounting software on a daily basis.
Need to understand how to filter data.
Graphs and pivot tables in Excel
Important to understand accounting cycles
Data flow diagrams not relevant
Don’t remember REA diagrams
Need to understand SOX
Internal control is important
Should have used Access instead of Excel for some applications
S07 Pivot table, IF functions in Excel
Understand accounting systems
Internal control very relevant
Need to know how to use Research tools

247
S08 This is from a review of the hand written notes because the participant did not agree to
have voice recording.

Need good understanding of business ERP/supply chain systems

Internal control is general requirement in today’s business environment
Spreadsheet – VLOOKUP, pivot tables, extract data from databases
Able to read and understand document and system flowcharts
S09 Data analysis important
Excel – pivot tables, so powerful, use more and more, VLOOKUP
Cannot teach enough Excel
Extracting from databases and data warehouse
In the company IS won’t entertain producing reports for end users
DFD, document, system flowcharts useful
GP not useful – redundant with MYOB

248
 Appendix 5 Summary of interview responses

Summary of responses from Juniors for RQ2

Participant JIQ01 JIQ02
J01 Spreadsheet use is important and Occasional use of word processing and
frequent. Spreadsheet used for database. Not necessary to learn how
budgeting, functions used include IF to build a database but need to
functions, formulas and LOOKUP. understand what a database is.
Downloading data from ERP system Awareness of audit software helpful.
also performed. Important to Not required to perform data backup.
understand how accounting systems
interface between different modules
(AP, AR, GL). Ethics important.
J02 Spreadsheet is important. Functions PowerPoint used once a month for
used include formulas, filtering and presentation. Flowcharts, DFD
LOOKUP. Word processing less diagrams, e-commerce, data backup,
important. Accounting software, e- audit software not required.
mail and database used daily.
Knowledge of internal control
important.
J03 Accounting software, e-mail and Database used occasionally.
spreadsheet used daily. Need to
understand accounting systems.
Spreadsheet functions used include IF
functions, LOOKUP, sub-total and
formatting. Spreadsheet also used to
reconcile accounts. Word processing
also used often and includes the use of
tables.
J04 Accounting software used daily. Spreadsheet and word processing used
Required to backup data daily. monthly for budgeting and producing
Understanding accounting systems is reports.
important.
J05 Accounting software used daily. Understanding of database and
Spreadsheet functions required include flowchart is required. Data backup not
LOOKUP, macros, IF and conditional required. DFD diagrams and e-
formatting. General system knowledge commerce not required. Presentation
(end user computing) important. Ethics software.
need to know. Word processing same
importance as spreadsheet.
J06 Spreadsheet used daily, functions Occasional use of database.
include LOOKUP, pivot tables and IF Understanding of flowchart is needed.
functions. Data download from main
system to spreadsheet. Knowledge of
accounting systems and IT control
important.

249
Participant JIQ01 JIQ02
J07 Accounting software and spreadsheet Awareness of IT control concepts
used daily. Spreadsheets are pre- needed.
designed by company; use of
spreadsheet is for input only, such as
electronic working papers, tax returns
and time sheets. Frequent use of
Internet for looking up information
mostly from IRD web site. Word
processor used frequently.
J08 Accounting software and spreadsheet Flowchart is not required.
used daily. Need to use ‘sub-total’
function in spreadsheets. Company
provides training on spreadsheet as it
is important. Understanding
accounting systems and tax return
software is important.
J09 Accounting software and spreadsheet Presentation software less important
used daily. Functions used in but needed. There is no need to build a
spreadsheet include filtering, sorting, database but need to know how to get
sub-total, IF and hide rows or columns. information from it. Word processing
Internet used frequently to find basics only. Flowcharts not used in
information from IRD web site. Ethics work.
is important. Research skills are also
important.
J10 Accounting software and spreadsheet Presentation software used
used daily. Knowledge of accounting occasionally.
systems essential in carrying out daily
work. Frequent use of Internet for
finding information.
J11 Accounting software and spreadsheet Word processing and flowcharts
used daily. Need IT control concept on needed occasionally.
a daily basis.
J12 Accounting software, spreadsheet and Word processing used regularly but
e-mail used daily. Ethics is important. not daily. Data backup not required as
Goal-seek function used in it is done by IT supplier. Flowchart
spreadsheets. knowledge needed occasionally. Need
to be aware of IT controls but do not
think accountants need to implement
them.
J13 Spreadsheet and accounting software Audit software not needed. Occasional
used daily. Spreadsheet functions use of presentation software and word
include LOOKUP, IF, SOLVER, processing.
SEEK, etc. Document flowchart also
used frequently. IT control is an
important concept and well as the use
of Internet to do research.

250
Participant JIQ01
J14 Accounting software, e-mail and
electronic working paper (spreadsheet)
used daily. Knowing how to search for
information is important. Ethical
standard is important. Spreadsheet skill
is important although not required to
develop complex spreadsheets.
JIQ02
Tax return software used periodically.
Knowledge of flowcharts is useful
when learning new software.
Presentation software used
occasionally.

Summary of responses from Seniors for RQ2

Participant SIQ01 SIQ02
S01 Proprietary accounting software and Understanding of Internet and
spreadsheet. Spreadsheet is used operating systems is required.
absolutely extensively. Accounting Presentation software is used by staff
staff spend approximately 60% on occasionally.
accounting software and 40% on
spreadsheet.
S02 Accounting software (Oracle) is used Audit software used on an occasional
on a daily basis. It is important for basis. Knowledge of flowcharts and
staff to have good understanding of DFD less important.
accounting systems and database
concepts. Some understanding of EDI
and e-commerce is also required.
Spreadsheet is also important but they
need basic level skills only. Ethics is
important.
S03 Knowledge on e-commerce, Internet N/A.
and IT control are needed by the team
on a daily basis.
S04 Spreadsheet, accounting software and Word processor and presentation
audit software (ACL). Understanding software.
of accounting business systems is very
important.
S05 Accounting software used daily. Reading and understanding flowcharts
Understanding accounting system is of needed occasionally.
utmost importance. Understanding
how to generate reports from the
accounting software is also helpful in
work. Use of Internet search is also
quite often. Ethics is also very
important. Spreadsheets with different
scenarios.

251
Participant SIQ01 SIQ02
S06 Use of two different accounting Flowchart knowledge needed
software on a daily basis. occasionally when reading training
Understanding of accounting system manuals. Sometimes flowcharts are
cycles is very important. developed to document procedures but
Understanding of database concepts is may not be in proper format as long as
also important in order to extract data the procedures are properly described.
from the accounting software’s
database. Spreadsheet use involving
graphs and pivot tables.
S07 Spreadsheet, accounting software (in- Knowledge of flowcharts and database
house) and general systems knowledge concepts are required.
(end-user computing) needed on a
daily basis. Concept of IT control is
important.
S08 Accounting software and spreadsheet Flowchart is being used to understand
used on a daily basis. Accounting systems during projects. Presentation
software is SAP and spreadsheet software required for communications.
functions used include LOOKUP, Database design occasionally.
pivot tables and download from main
system for analysis. In-house
developed database also being used on
a daily basis. Knowledge in supply
chain flow is important. Knowledge
and awareness on internal and IT
control is a general requirement in
today’s environment.
S09 Daily use of accounting software Flowchart used when doing
(SAP), spreadsheet and database. presentations explaining how
Functions used in spreadsheet include processes work. DFD more important
pivot table, sorting, filtering and followed by document flowchart.
LOOKUP.

252
Summary of responses from Juniors for RQ3
Participant JIQ03 JIQ04 JIQ05 JIQ06 JIQ07
J01 Daily interaction on Weekly interaction on Different terminologies N/A. When needed.
accounting systems system testing and used by IT people.
regarding interfaces whenever there are IT
between different problems.
modules.
J02 Weekly when there are On systems Different terminologies IT people should take a N/A.
IT problems. implementation matters. used by IT and basic accounting course.
accounting people.
J03 When there are IT When there are IT Terminologies. N/A. N/A.
problems or grant access problems.
to users.
J04 Seldom. When there are IT No problems. N/A. From newspapers and
problems. suppliers.
J05 Daily when IT problems Frequently when IT IT supplier does not N/A. From Internet,
occur. problems occur. have same version of newspapers, journals and
software. IT people.
J06 N/A. When there are IT No problems. N/A. From Internet.
problems.
J07 N/A. When there are IT No problems. N/A. Company provides
problems. training.
J08 Rarely. When there are IT N/A. N/A. N/A.
problems.
J09 As a mentor for new Rarely. N/A. N/A. Training provided by
colleagues and support employer.
to clients.

253
Participant JIQ03 JIQ04 JIQ05 JIQ06 JIQ07
J10 Frequent interaction on Frequent interaction Terminologies. Communication skills. Read magazines, books
accounting systems with IT department on IT people take basic and journals.
matters. system change requests accounting courses.
or when there are IT
problems.
J11 Weekly when there are Whenever there are IT N/A. N/A. News and magazines
IT problems especially problems. from professional
with the web site of the association.
company.
J12 Rarely, only when there When needed for No problem in N/A. N/A.
are IT problems. example when new log communications with IT
on or e-mail accounts people.
are needed for new staff
or when there are IT
problems.
J13 Daily discussions with When there are IT Sometimes there are Keep up with the jargons Training provided by the
colleagues on how to problems or when there difficulties in the IT people use. employer. Research on
improve IT systems, are requests for system understanding of the Internet. Short
processes and methods. improvement. terminologies. courses provided by
education providers.
J14 Not required because When there are IT Terminologies. Attending seminars. N/A.
only senior managers are problems.
responsible for IT.

254
Summary of responses from Seniors for RQ3
Participant SIQ03 SIQ04 SIQ05 SIQ06 SIQ07
S01 Daily on IT problems. Daily on IT problems It is better for IT people General system We struggle. Perhaps by
and requests for system to increase their knowledge, database employing younger staff.
changes. knowledge in accounting knowledge, basic
than accounting people flowcharts. DFD
to increase their diagrams not needed.
knowledge in IT.
S02 Reconciliation problems All sorts of matters on a None. N/A. From professional
between different regular basis. associations.
systems.
S03 Daily on IT problems. Weekly on IT control N/A. N/A. Interaction with clients,
issues. reading, discussions with
peers in overseas
branches and going to
conferences.
S04 Daily on IT controls. Occasionally when there N/A. N/A. From journals, IT
are IT problems. magazines and
presentation by IT
vendors.
S05 Daily on IT and system IT problem when they Accountants look at N/A. Go with the IT trends.
implementation issues. occur. things from an
accounting point of view
but IT people and
coming from an IT point
of view.
S06 Daily on accounting Occasionally on None. N/A. Through accounting
system. accounting software professional body.
support.

255
Participant SIQ03 SIQ04 SIQ05 SIQ06 SIQ07
S07 Daily on accounting Weekly on IT problems. Difficulties in explaining Full understanding of the Attend short course if
system errors, problems what the problems are to accounting and business supported by the
or how to run queries. the IT people. system. company.
S08 Weekly on system Whenever there are IT None. N/A. Maintain an active
improvements. problems. interest in technologies.
S09 A few times a week. Once or twice a month None. Best way is for IT IT users have a lot of
Mainly in sharing when there are IT people to understand end-user computing
knowledge on how to problems or queries. accounting people’s work and that requires
use IT systems, information needs. constant update on IT.
spreadsheets and
database.

256
Summary of responses from Juniors for RQ4
Participant JIQ08 JIQ09 JIQ10 JIQ11
J01 N/A. Theory is good Full AIS course and
but not enough understanding of database query
practice. accounting language
systems and the
impact of
journals on the
system. More
knowledge on
spreadsheet and
flowcharts.
J02 Sufficient. More practice on Nothing. Macros in
accounting spreadsheets,
software needed. database query
language, more IT
terminologies.
J03 Not sufficient. N/A. Advanced Database practice.
spreadsheet and
Macros in WP.
J04 N/A. N/A. Graphics in IT control and tax
spreadsheets. return software.
Payroll module in
accounting
software.
J05 Sufficient. Self taught XML. Different Programming,
REA, XBRL not accounting XML, LOOKUP
needed. Not software such as and macros in
enough practice. SAP, Oracle, spreadsheet.
More advanced Peoplesoft,
accounting XERO.
software and end- Advanced
to-end spreadsheet.
understanding of
accounting
systems.
J06 Not sufficient. N/A. Knowledge on IT N/A.
More control. SDLC is
spreadsheet and also important.
database.
J07 Spreadsheet not MYOB useful. Formulas in Another
enough. Word processing spreadsheet. accounting
sufficient. software.
Database, e-
commerce and
flowcharts not
required. IT
control useful.

257
Participant JIQ08 JIQ09 JIQ10 JIQ11
J08 Had enough Database not Accounting More spreadsheet.
knowledge required. package used by Internet
learned from company. knowledge.
school but really Advanced
difficult in the spreadsheet.
first three
months on the
job.
J09 Sufficient. N/A. Advanced More spreadsheet
spreadsheet. and SPSS.
J10 Not sufficient. Don’t seem to N/A. Basic
Learned more at use as much as programming.
work than from what you learned Database concepts.
school. from school. Spreadsheet
functions
(LOOKUP and
pivot table).
J11 Degree was not N/A. Use of Access More in-depth
in accounting but database. knowledge of
in transport and Download data accounting
logistics. Studied from accounting software. More
accounting systems to advanced
through spreadsheet for spreadsheet.
Chartered manipulation and Access database.
Institute of reporting. Open office
Management software packages.
Accounting
exams. Most
knowledge and
skills learned on
the job.
J12 Yes. N/A. Cannot think of No additional IT
anything. knowledge
necessary as an
accountant.
J13 Would like to Really good. Macros in Excel. Database query
have more IT Practical and Access database. language (SQL).
knowledge and related to real Systems
skills. world. development
project
management
knowledge.

258
Participant JIQ08 JIQ09 JIQ10 JIQ11
J14 Above average. N/A. Knowing more General PC skills
accounting like backup,
software zipping,
packages. unzipping, loading
and saving files.
Knowing more
accounting
software package
and be able to
advise clients on
which accounting
package to use.

Summary of responses from Seniors for RQ4

Participant SIQ08
S01 Sufficient.
S02 They won’t have in-depth
knowledge but good overall
knowledge. They come with
good start up and basic IT
skills.
S03 New graduates meet 70% of
requirements but 90% of
knowledge learned on the job.
S04 Preparation from university is
around 10% of the needs and
90% trained on the job.
S05 Sufficient. University training
prepares them with 20% of the
needs and 80% is from on-the-
job training.
S06 University provide 20% of the
needs and 80% is from the
job. A staff member knows
the theory but had trouble
applying.
S07 Not sufficient.
SIQ09
Being able to search and find
answers to the problems.
More knowledge in IT control.
Company will train them on the
accounting software.
Experience in using SAP or Oracle.
Intermediate level in spreadsheet,
some basic WP skills. Internal
control framework such as COBIT
and ERM and SDLC.
Intermediate to advanced
spreadsheet skills such as pivot
table, LOOKUP, nested IF and
conditional formatting. Internal
control framework such as COSO.
In-depth understanding of
accounting systems. General
systems knowledge.
Data analysis concepts.
Use of pivot tables, what-if
scenarios in spreadsheets. Data
analysis skills.

259
Participant SIQ08 SIQ09
S08 Half of the staff has adequate Full understanding of accounting
skills while the other half and business systems. Knowledge
needs more IT knowledge and and awareness in internal control.
skills. Spreadsheet skills can easily be
self-taught. Research skills should
also be further developed.
S09 Yes. More data analysis skills.

Summary of responses from Juniors for RQ5

Participant JIQ12 JIQ13
J01 Some programming and in depth Some programming.
understanding of accounting
systems interfaces.
J02 Macros in spreadsheets, More knowledge on Internet
terminologies and how to set up technologies.
computer to work from home.
J03 General IT management Research skills.
knowledge, ERP.
J04 N/A. N/A.

J05 SDLC. N/A.

J06 Audit software and IT control. Programming.

J07 Learn XERO. N/A.

J08 How to handle more complex N/A.

accounting and unexpected
situations.
J09 Macros in spreadsheet. How to use IT to eliminate
paper.
J10 Higher level of analysis and Extracting and pulling
interpretation. information from databases.
J11 Broader knowledge in Open office software.
accountancy rather than
becoming a specialist. Able to
solve problems.
J12 IT terminologies. N/A.

J13 Project management knowledge N/A.

and skills in IT development and
implementation.
J14 Knowing more accounting Paperless office, remote access.
package.

260
Summary of responses from Seniors for RQ5
Participant SIQ10 SIQ11
S01 Do not think there are any more Keep up with IT developments
required, but being able to search and e-commerce.
and find answers to problems is
important.
S02 More in-depth understanding of Graduates are expected to be
accounting systems. able to manage a small project
after four or five years.
S03 Real world knowledge and be More detailed knowledge in
able to apply it in different business systems.
situations.
S04 Less technical knowledge and N/A.
more on conceptual
understanding and people and
communication skills.
S05 Total understanding of N/A.
accounting systems and be able to
answer questions from staff.
S06 Advanced knowledge and skills Less data input more problem
in spreadsheet, presentation solving skills.
software, word processing and
database / data analysis skills.
More strategic thinking.
S07 How to download and extract Full understanding of how
data from main system or accounting and business systems
database to a spreadsheet for work.
analysis and reformatting for
printing.
S08 Better communication skills More competent in database.
through better use of presentation More knowledge in Internet and
and word processing software. e-commerce. Handle technology
More knowledge in internal changes with the aim to
control. Some project improving IT systems.
management knowledge and
skills. Further development in
database design skills.
S09 More commercial exposure and More knowledge in web based
business experience. and EDI applications.

261
 Appendix 6 Codes for interview data analysis

Code
AcSW Accounting software
AcSYS Accounting / business systems
AIS Accounting information systems
AP Accounts payable
AR Accounts receivable
AuditSW Audit software
BKUP Data backup
BUD Budgeting
COBIT IT control framework
COSO IT control framework
CRYSRPT Crystal report writer
DANL Data analysis
DBASE Database
DBASE-C Database concepts
DBASE-D Database design
DBASE-S Database skills
DBQL Database query language
DFD Data flow diagrams
DLOAD Download data
DYNAMICS Microsoft Dynamics accounting package
ECOMM ecommerce
EDI Electronic data interchange
EMAIL e-mail
ERM IT control framework
ERP Enterprise resource planning system
ETHICS Ethical standards
EWP Electronic working paper
FLWCHRT Flowcharts
GenSys-K General system knowledge
GL General ledger
HTML HTML
INTERFACE Interface between different sub-systems in an accounting system
Internet-K Internet knowledge
Internet-S internet search
Internet-T internet tools
ITCtrl IT control
ITPROB IT problem
Macro Macro language in spreadsheet or word processing software
MYOB MYOB accounting package
ORACLE ORACLE ERP
OS Operating system

262
PP Presentation software/PowerPoint
PROG Programming
REA REA diagrams
Recon Reconciliation
RptGEN Report generation
RSRH Research
SAP SAP ERP
SDLC Systems development life cycle
SOX Sarbanes Oxley Act
SPSS Statistics software package
SS Spreadsheet/Excel
SysIMPL System implementation
SysREQ Systems requirements
SysTEST System testing
Tax SW Tax return software
TERM Terminology
Time Mgmt SW Time management and billing software
WP Word processor
XBRL XBRL
XERO XERO accounting package
XML XML
XPA Xcede Professional accounting (for CA firms)

Source: Developed for this research

263
 Appendix 7 Descriptors for interview data analysis

Descriptor
ADV Advanced level
AWARE Awareness
BASIC Basic
DAILY Daily
FREQ Frequent (more than once a week)
IMP Important
INTER Intermediate level
LessIMP Less important
MONTHLY Monthly
NEED Need to know
NEVER Never
NONE None
NotIMP Not important
NotREQ Not required/not needed/not used
NotSUFF Not sufficient
OCC Occasional
RARELY Rarely
SELF Self taught/self train
SUFF Sufficient
TRAIN Company train
UNDRS Understanding
USEFUL Useful
VAGUELY Vaguely
WANT Want to learn/know
WEEKLY Weekly
WHENNEEDED When needed

Source: Developed for this research

264
 Appendix 8 Descriptive statistics

Accounting software
14

12

10

0
3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Accounting software

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Accounting software 23 3 6 5.35 6.00 0.885

by Seniority
Accounting software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Junior 1 2 11 14 5.71 6.00 0.611
Seniority
Senior 1 2 4 2 9 4.78 5.00 0.972
Total 1 3 6 13 23

by Industry
Accounting software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 5 5 12 5.25 5.00 0.754
Industry CA firm 1 1 4 6 5.33 6.00 1.211
Gov/Edu 1 4 5 5.60 6.00 0.894
Total 1 3 6 13 23

by Experience
Accounting software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
<5 1 6 7 5.71 6.00 0.756
5 to 10 1 1 1 2 5 4.80 5.00 1.304
Experience
10 to 20 4 3 7 5.43 5.00 0.535
>20 1 1 2 4 5.25 5.50 0.957
Total 1 3 6 13 23

265
Accounting systems
14

12

10

0
4.00 4.50 5.00 5.50 6.00

Accounting systems

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Accounting systems 23 4 6 5.48 6.00 0.665

by Seniority
Accounting systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
4 5 6
Junior 1 4 9 14 5.57 6.00 0.646
Seniority
Senior 1 4 4 9 5.33 5.00 0.500
Total 2 8 13 23

by Industry
Accounting systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
4 5 6
Commercial 1 5 6 12 5.42 5.50 0.669
Industry CA firm 1 2 3 6 5.33 5.50 0.816
Gov/Edu 1 4 5 5.80 6.00 0.447
Total 2 8 13 23

by Experience
Accounting systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
4 5 6
<5 1 2 4 7 5.43 6.00 0.787
5 to 10 1 1 3 5 5.40 6.00 0.894
Experience
10 to 20 3 4 7 5.57 6.00 0.535
>20 2 2 4 5.50 5.50 0.577
Total 2 8 13 23

266
Data security
7

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Data security

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Data security 23 1 6 3.30 3.00 1.490

by Seniority
Data security Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 2 2 6 1 2 14 3.71 4.00 1.437
Seniority
Senior 1 4 3 1 9 2.67 2.00 1.414
Total 2 6 5 6 1 3 23

by Industry
Data security Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 3 5 3 12 2.83 3.00 0.937
Industry CA firm 1 2 2 1 6 3.00 3.00 1.549
Gov/Edu 1 1 3 5 4.80 6.00 1.789
Total 2 6 5 6 1 3 23

by Experience
Data security Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 2 3 1 1 7 3.86 4.00 1.464
5 to 10 1 1 2 1 5 3.60 4.00 1.817
Experience
10 to 20 1 1 4 1 7 2.71 3.00 0.951
>20 3 1 4 3.00 2.00 2.000
Total 2 6 5 6 1 3 23

267
Database concepts
7

0
2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Database concepts

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Database concepts 23 2 6 4.35 5.00 1.265

by Seniority
Database concepts Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Junior 2 3 3 2 4 14 4.21 4.00 1.477
Seniority
Senior 1 3 4 1 9 4.56 5.00 0.882
Total 2 4 6 6 5 23

by Industry
Database concepts Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 1 3 4 3 12 4.58 5.00 1.240
Industry CA firm 1 3 1 1 6 3.33 3.00 1.033
Gov/Edu 2 1 2 5 5.00 5.00 1.000
Total 2 4 6 6 5 23

by Experience
Database concepts Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 3 1 2 7 3.86 3.00 1.574
5 to 10 1 1 1 2 5 3.80 4.00 1.304
Experience
10 to 20 2 3 2 7 5.00 5.00 0.816
>20 2 1 1 4 4.75 4.50 0.957
Total 2 4 6 6 5 23

268
Database software
10

0
3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Database software

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Database software 23 3 6 4.26 5.00 1.176

by Seniority
Database software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Junior 3 7 4 14 4.36 4.00 1.151
Seniority
Senior 4 2 1 2 9 4.11 4.00 1.269
Total 7 9 1 6 23

by Industry
Database software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 5 1 4 12 4.58 4.00 1.165
Industry CA firm 4 2 6 3.33 3.00 0.516
Gov/Edu 1 2 2 5 4.60 4.00 1.342
Total 7 9 1 6 23

by Experience
Database software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
<5 3 3 1 7 3.86 4.00 1.069
5 to 10 1 3 1 5 4.00 4.00 0.707
Experience
10 to 20 2 1 4 7 4.86 6.00 1.464
>20 1 2 1 4 4.25 4.00
Total 7 9 1 6 23

269
Documentation tools
8

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Documentation tools

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Documentation tools 23 1 6 3.96 4.00 1.331

by Seniority
Documentation tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 3 1 3 5 1 14 3.79 4.00 1.528
Seniority
Senior 2 4 2 1 9 4.22 4.00 0.972
Total 1 3 3 7 7 2 23

by Industry
Documentation tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 1 5 4 12 3.92 4.00 1.084
Industry CA firm 1 1 1 1 2 6 3.33 3.50 1.633
Gov/Edu 1 1 1 2 5 4.80 5.00 1.304
Total 1 3 3 7 7 2 23

by Experience
Documentation tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 3 1 1 1 7 3.14 2.00 1.864
5 to 10 2 2 1 5 3.80 4.00 0.837
Experience
10 to 20 2 5 7 4.71 5.00 0.488
>20 1 2 1 4 4.25 4.00 1.258
Total 1 3 3 7 7 2 23

270
e-commerce
12

10

0
2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

e-commerce

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
e-commerce 23 2 6 4.04 4.00 1.224

by Seniority
e-commerce Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Junior 3 7 3 1 14 3.93 4.00 1.207
Seniority
Senior 1 1 4 1 2 9 4.22 4.00 1.302
Total 4 1 11 4 3 23

by Industry
e-commerce Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 1 5 3 1 12 4.00 4.00 1.206
Industry CA firm 2 3 1 6 3.50 4.00 1.225
Gov/Edu 3 2 5 4.80 4.00 1.095
Total 4 1 11 4 3 23

by Experience
e-commerce Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
<5 2 3 1 1 7 3.86 4.00 1.464
5 to 10 2 2 1 5 3.60 4.00 1.673
Experience
10 to 20 5 2 7 4.29 4.00 0.488
>20 1 1 1 1 4 4.50 4.50 1.291
Total 4 1 11 4 3 23

271
General systems knowledge
12

10

0
2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

General systems knowledge

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
General systems knowledge 23 2 6 4.57 5.00 0.992

by Seniority
General systems knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 5 7 1 14 4.57 5.00 0.756
Seniority
Senior 1 1 1 4 2 9 4.56 5.00 1.333
Total 1 2 6 11 3 23

by Industry
General systems knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 3 6 1 12 4.50 5.00 0.905
Industry CA firm 1 2 3 6 4.17 4.50 1.169
Gov/Edu 1 2 2 5 5.20 5.00 0.837
Total 1 2 6 11 3 23

by Experience
General systems knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 2 3 1 7 4.57 5.00 0.976
5 to 10 1 2 1 1 5 4.20 4.00 1.483
Experience
10 to 20 2 5 7 4.71 5.00 0.488
>20 1 2 1 4 4.75 5.00 1.258
Total 1 2 6 11 3 23

272
Internet knowledge
10

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Internet knowledge

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Internet knowledge 23 1 6 3.83 4.00 1.466

by Seniority
Internet knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 6
Junior 1 1 5 4 3 14 3.71 3.50 1.490
Seniority
Senior 1 1 5 2 9 4.00 4.00 1.500
Total 2 1 6 9 5 23

by Industry
Internet knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 6
Commercial 1 4 4 3 12 3.92 4.00 1.505
Industry CA firm 1 1 2 2 6 2.83 3.00 1.169
Gov/Edu 3 2 5 4.80 4.00 1.095
Total 2 1 6 9 5 23

by Experience
Internet knowledge Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 6
<5 1 1 3 1 1 7 3.14 3.00 1.574
5 to 10 1 3 1 5 3.80 4.00 1.789
Experience
10 to 20 3 3 1 7 3.86 4.00 1.069
>20 2 2 4 5.00 5.00 1.155
Total 2 1 6 9 5 23

273
Internet tools
14

12

10

0
3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Internet tools

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Internet tools 23 3 6 5.09 6.00 1.083

by Seniority
Internet tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Junior 1 4 1 8 14 5.14 6.00 1.099
Seniority
Senior 1 2 2 4 9 5.00 5.00 1.118
Total 2 6 3 12 23

by Industry
Internet tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 2 1 7 12 5.08 6.00 1.240
Industry CA firm 2 2 2 6 5.00 5.00 0.894
Gov/Edu 2 3 5 5.20 6.00 1.095
Total 2 6 3 12 23

by Experience
Internet tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
<5 1 1 1 4 7 5.14 6.00 1.215
5 to 10 1 1 3 5 5.40 6.00 0.894
Experience
10 to 20 1 3 1 2 7 4.57 4.00 1.134
>20 1 3 4 5.50 6.00 1.000
Total 2 6 3 12 23

274
IT audit software
10

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

IT audit software

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
IT audit software 23 1 6 3.48 4.00 1.592

by Seniority
IT audit software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 4 2 4 2 2 14 3.43 4.00 1.828
Seniority
Senior 2 2 4 1 9 3.56 4.00 1.236
Total 4 2 4 8 2 3 23

by Industry
IT audit software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 3 1 3 4 1 12 2.92 3.00 1.379
Industry CA firm 1 1 3 1 6 3.83 4.00 1.329
Gov/Edu 1 1 1 2 5 4.40 5.00 2.074
Total 4 2 4 8 2 3 23

by Experience
IT audit software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 2 3 2 7 4.29 4.00 1.254
5 to 10 2 1 1 1 5 2.60 2.00 1.817
Experience
10 to 20 2 2 2 1 7 3.00 3.00 1.528
>20 1 2 1 4 4.00 4.00 1.633
Total 4 2 4 8 2 3 23

275
IT controls
8

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

IT controls

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
IT controls 23 1 6 4.61 5.00 1.373

by Seniority
IT controls Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 1 1 3 4 4 14 4.43 5.00 1.555
Seniority
Senior 1 2 3 3 9 4.89 5.00 1.054
Total 1 1 2 5 7 7 23

by Industry
IT controls Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 5 3 3 12 4.67 4.50 0.985
Industry CA firm 1 1 2 2 6 4.50 5.00 1.643
Gov/Edu 1 2 2 5 4.60 5.00 2.074
Total 1 1 2 5 7 7 23

by Experience
IT controls Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 1 3 2 7 4.57 5.00 1.512
5 to 10 1 1 2 1 5 4.00 5.00 2.000
Experience
10 to 20 4 1 2 7 4.71 4.00 0.951
>20 1 1 2 4 5.25 5.50 0.957
Total 1 1 2 5 7 7 23

276
Operating systems
10

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Operating systems

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Operating systems 23 1 6 3.13 3.00 1.290

by Seniority
Operating systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 2 2 3 6 1 14 3.14 3.50 1.231
Seniority
Senior 1 2 3 2 1 9 3.11 3.00 1.453
Total 3 4 6 8 1 1 23

by Industry
Operating systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 2 4 5 12 3.08 3.00 0.996
Industry CA firm 1 2 1 2 6 2.67 2.50 1.211
Gov/Edu 1 1 1 1 1 5 3.80 4.00 1.924
Total 3 4 6 8 1 1 23

by Experience
Operating systems Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 1 2 3 7 3.00 3.00 1.155
5 to 10 2 2 1 5 3.00 4.00 1.871
Experience
10 to 20 3 2 2 7 2.86 3.00 0.900
>20 2 1 1 4 4.00 3.50 1.414
Total 3 4 6 8 1 1 23

277
Presentation software
8

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Presentation software

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Presentation software 23 1 6 4.43 5.00 1.308

by Seniority
Presentation software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 2 4 5 2 14 4.29 4.50 1.326
Seniority
Senior 1 3 2 3 9 4.67 5.00 1.323
Total 1 1 2 7 7 5 23

by Industry
Presentation software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 3 6 2 12 4.75 5.00 0.866
Industry CA firm 1 1 2 1 1 6 4.00 4.00 1.414
Gov/Edu 1 2 2 5 4.20 4.00 2.049
Total 1 1 2 7 7 5 23

by Experience
Presentation software Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 2 2 1 2 7 4.43 4.00 1.272
5 to 10 1 1 1 1 1 5 3.60 4.00 2.074
Experience
10 to 20 3 4 7 4.57 5.00 0.535
>20 1 1 2 4 5.25 5.50 0.957
Total 1 1 2 7 7 5 23

278
Research tools
7

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Research tools

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Research tools 23 1 6 4.09 4.00 1.443

by Seniority
Research tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Junior 1 1 2 4 4 2 14 4.07 4.00 1.439
Seniority
Senior 1 3 2 3 9 4.11 4.00 1.537
Total 1 2 5 6 4 5 23

by Industry
Research tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
Commercial 2 5 3 2 12 4.42 4.00 0.996
Industry CA firm 2 1 1 2 6 4.00 4.00 1.897
Gov/Edu 1 2 1 1 5 3.40 3.00 1.817
Total 1 2 5 6 4 5 23

by Experience
Research tools Total Mean Median Std Dev
1 2 3 4 5 6
<5 1 1 2 1 2 7 4.29 4.00 1.496
5 to 10 1 1 1 1 1 5 3.20 3.00 1.924
Experience
10 to 20 2 2 3 7 4.14 4.00 0.900
>20 1 1 2 4 4.75 5.00 1.500
Total 1 2 5 6 4 5 23

279
Spreadsheet
30

20

10

0
5.00 5.50 6.00

Spreadsheet

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Spreadsheet 23 5 6 5.91 6.00 0.288

by Seniority
Spreadsheet Total Mean Median Std Dev
5 6
Junior 14 14 6.00 6.00 0.000
Seniority
Senior 2 7 9 5.78 6.00 0.441
Total 2 21 23

by Industry
Spreadsheet Total Mean Median Std Dev
5 6
Commercial 1 11 12 5.92 6.00 0.289
Industry CA firm 6 6 6.00 6.00 0.000
Gov/Edu 1 4 5 5.80 6.00 0.447
Total 2 21 23

by Experience
Spreadsheet Total Mean Median Std Dev
5 6
<5 7 7 6.00 6.00 0.000
5 to 10 5 5 6.00 6.00 0.000
Experience
10 to 20 1 6 7 5.86 6.00 0.378
>20 1 3 4 5.75 6.00 0.500
Total 2 21 23

280
Values
16

14

12

10

0
2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Values

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Values 23 2 6 5.35 6.00 1.027

by Seniority
Values Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 4 5 6
Junior 1 3 2 8 14 5.14 6.00 1.231
Seniority
Senior 3 6 9 5.67 6.00 0.500
Total 1 3 5 14 23

by Industry
Values Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 4 5 6
Commercial 2 2 8 12 5.50 6.00 0.798
Industry CA firm 1 2 3 6 5.00 5.50 1.549
Gov/Edu 1 1 3 5 5.40 6.00 0.894
Total 1 3 5 14 23

by Experience
Values Total Mean Median Std Dev
2 4 5 6
<5 1 1 2 3 7 4.86 5.00 1.464
5 to 10 1 1 3 5 5.40 6.00 0.894
Experience
10 to 20 1 1 5 7 5.57 6.00 0.787
>20 1 3 4 5.75 6.00 0.500
Total 1 3 5 14 23

281
Word processing
16

14

12

10

0
3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0

Word processing

Descriptive statistics
N Min Max Mean Median Std Dev
Word processing 23 3 6 5.43 6.00 0.896

by Seniority
Word processing Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Junior 2 2 10 14 5.57 6.00 0.756
Seniority
Senior 1 1 2 5 9 5.22 6.00 1.093
Total 1 3 4 15 23

by Industry
Word processing Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Commercial 1 1 3 7 12 5.33 6.00 0.985
Industry CA firm 1 5 6 5.67 6.00 0.816
Gov/Edu 1 1 3 5 5.40 6.00 0.894
Total 1 3 4 15 23

by Experience
Word processing Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
<5 1 6 7 5.71 6.00 0.756
5 to 10 1 4 5 5.60 6.00 0.894
Experience
10 to 20 1 3 3 7 5.29 5.00 0.756
>20 1 1 2 4 5.00 5.50 1.414
Total 1 3 4 15 23

282
 Appendix 9 Test of variance

The sample of participants consisted of junior and senior accountants from different
industries and with different years of experience. The participants were grouped by
‘Seniority’ (Junior, Senior), ‘Industry’ (Commercial firm, CA firm, Gov/Edu) and
‘Experience’ (< 5 years, 5 to 10 years, 10 to 20 years, > 20 years). Statistical tests were
used to test if there were significant differences between the scores from different
participant groups.

The normality of distribution of the scores of the 18 topics was first inspected to determine
the appropriate tests to be used. A visual inspection of the histograms of the 18 topics
revealed that the majority of the topics displayed non-normal distributions (see Appendix
8). The Kolmogorov-Smirnov and the Shapiro-Wilk tests were used to test the normality of
the distribution of scores of the 18 topics. Table A9.1 shows the results of the tests. With
the exception of the variables ‘Data security’ and ‘Research tools’, all other variables show
significant results (p<0.05) for non-normal distribution of scores by either or both of the
tests. Parametric tests such as t-test or ANOVA therefore could not be used as these tests
assume that the scores of the variables are normally distributed. Non-parametric tests
(Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis test) were used instead to test the difference in
median scores between participant groups.

283
Table A9.1 Test of normality of distribution of variables
Kolmogorov- Shapiro-
Smirnov Wilk
Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Accounting software 0.335 23 0.000 * 0.746 23 0.000 *
Accounting systems 0.349 23 0.000 * 0.727 23 0.000 *
Data security 0.157 23 0.146 0.919 23 0.062
Database concepts 0.175 23 0.065 0.911 23 0.042 *
Database software 0.283 23 0.000 * 0.799 23 0.000 *
Documentation tools 0.209 23 0.011 * 0.921 23 0.070
e-commerce 0.268 23 0.000 * 0.872 23 0.007 *
General systems knowledge 0.278 23 0.000 * 0.873 23 0.007 *
Internet knowledge 0.235 23 0.002 * 0.885 23 0.013 *
Internet tools 0.322 23 0.000 * 0.771 23 0.000 *
IT audit software 0.194 23 0.025 * 0.913 23 0.047 *
IT controls 0.221 23 0.005 * 0.865 23 0.005 *
Operating systems 0.185 23 0.041 * 0.926 23 0.089
Presentation software 0.196 23 0.022 * 0.891 23 0.016 *
Research tools 0.133 23 0.200 0.927 23 0.094
Spreadsheet 0.532 23 0.000 * 0.324 23 0.000 *
Values 0.346 23 0.000 * 0.686 23 0.000 *
Word processing 0.388 23 0.000 * 0.681 23 0.000 *
* p<0.05

The following sections present the tests of hypotheses for the 18 IT topics by different
participant groups.

Comparison of scores by Seniority group

Hypothesis 1
There are differences in the perception of the importance of IT knowledge and skills
between junior and senior accountants.

The null hypothesis is:

H01: There is no difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Seniority’
group
The alternative hypothesis is:
H11: There is difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Seniority’ group

A Mann-Whitney U test was conducted with ‘Seniority’ as the independent variable and
each of the 18 topics as the dependent variable. Only one variable (Accounting software)

284
displayed significant difference in scores. For the variable ‘Accounting software’, the
Junior group, median = 6.00, displayed a significantly higher median score than did the
Senior group, median = 5.00, U = 26, p<0.05. Table A9.2 shows the results of the Mann-
Whitney U test and Table A9.3 shows the descriptive statistics of the variable ‘Accounting
software’.

Table A9.2 Mann-Whitney U test for ‘Seniority’ group

Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon Asymp. Sig.
U W Z (2-tailed)
Accounting software 26 71 -2.604 0.009 *
Accounting systems 50.5 95.5 -0.893 0.372
Data security 33.5 78.5 -1.904 0.057
Database concepts 55 160 -0.517 0.605
Database software 53 98 -0.666 0.506
Documentation tools 56.5 161.5 -0.422 0.673
e-commerce 57 162 -0.403 0.687
General systems knowledge 57 162 -0.405 0.686
Internet knowledge 51 156 -0.791 0.429
Internet tools 57.5 102.5 -0.378 0.705
IT audit software 63 108 0.000 1.000
IT controls 54.5 159.5 -0.554 0.580
Operating systems 57.5 102.5 -0.358 0.720
Presentation software 52 157 -0.717 0.473
Research tools 61.5 106.5 -0.097 0.923
Spreadsheet 49 94 -1.805 0.071
Values 51 156 -0.865 0.387
Word processing 52 97 -0.819 0.413
* p<0.05

Table A9.3 Descriptive statistics for Accounting software

Accounting software Total Mean Median Std Dev
3 4 5 6
Junior 1 2 11 14 5.71 6.00 0.611
Seniority
Senior 1 2 4 2 9 4.78 5.00 0.972
Total 1 3 6 13 23

H01 for ‘Accounting software’ can be rejected and therefore the alternative hypothesis is
accepted. There is significant difference for the topic ‘Accounting software’ between the
median scores of the ‘Junior’ and the ‘Senior’ participants.

H01 cannot be rejected except for ‘Accounting software’ as there were no significantly
different median scores in the ‘Seniority’ participant group for these topics. Hypothesis 1 is
therefore rejected except for the topic ‘Accounting software’.
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Comparison of scores by Industry group
Hypothesis 2
There are differences in the perception of the importance of IT knowledge and skills
between accountants from different industries.

The null hypothesis is:

H02: There is no difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Industry’
group
The alternative hypothesis is:
H12: There is difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Industry’ group

A Kruskal-Wallis test was conducted with ‘Industry’ as the independent variable and each
of the 18 topics as the dependent variable. None of the 18 dependent variables displayed
significantly different median scores between the groups ‘Commercial firm’, ‘CA firm’
and ‘Gov/Edu’ (p>0.05). Table A9.4 shows the results of the Kruskal-Wallis test.

Table A9.4 Kruskal-Wallis test for ‘Industry’ group

Chi-Square Df Asymp. Sig.
Accounting software 1.292 2 0.524
Accounting systems 1.520 2 0.468
Data security 4.616 2 0.099
Database concepts 5.609 2 0.061
Database software 5.605 2 0.061
Documentation tools 2.765 2 0.251
e-commerce 2.423 2 0.298
General systems knowledge 2.916 2 0.233
Internet knowledge 5.542 2 0.063
Internet tools 0.232 2 0.890
IT audit software 3.650 2 0.161
IT controls 0.311 2 0.856
Operating systems 1.758 2 0.415
Presentation software 1.286 2 0.526
Research tools 1.525 2 0.466
Spreadsheet 1.318 2 0.517
Values 0.420 2 0.810
Word processing 0.833 2 0.659

H02 cannot be rejected as none of the IT topics displayed significantly different median
scores in the ‘Industry’ participant group. Hypothesis 2 is therefore rejected.

286
Comparison of scores by Experience group
Hypothesis 3
There are differences in the perception of the importance of IT knowledge and skills
between accountants with different years of experience.

The null hypothesis is:

H03: There is no difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Experience’
group
The alternative hypothesis is:
H13: There is difference in the scores between participants in the ‘Experience’
group

A Kruskal-Wallis test was conducted with ‘Experience’ as the independent variable and
each of the 18 topics as the dependent variable. None of the 18 dependent variables
displayed significantly different median scores between the participant groups < 5 years, 5
to 10 years, 10 to 20 years and > 20 years, (p>0.05). Table A9.5 shows the results of the
Kruskal-Wallis test.

Table A9.5 Kruskal-Wallis test for ‘Experience’ group

Chi-Square df Asymp. Sig.
Accounting software 2.969 3 0.396
Accounting systems 0.070 3 0.995
Data security 2.774 3 0.428
Database concepts 3.962 3 0.266
Database software 2.001 3 0.572
Documentation tools 4.594 3 0.204
e-commerce 1.378 3 0.711
General systems knowledge 0.733 3 0.866
Internet knowledge 5.111 3 0.164
Internet tools 2.645 3 0.450
IT audit software 3.498 3 0.321
IT controls 1.288 3 0.732
Operating systems 1.534 3 0.674
Presentation software 2.521 3 0.472
Research tools 2.339 3 0.505
Spreadsheet 2.638 3 0.451
Values 1.917 3 0.590
Word processing 2.611 3 0.456

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H03 cannot be rejected as none of the IT topics displayed significantly different median
scores in the ‘Experience’ participant group. Hypothesis 34 is therefore rejected.

Table A9.6 summarises the results of the hypothesis tests.

Table A9.6 Summary of results of hypothesis tests

Hypothesis Results
1. There are differences in the perception of Accepted for ‘Accounting software’.
the importance of IT knowledge and skills Rejected for all other topics.
between junior and senior accountants.
2. There are differences in the perception of Rejected.
the importance of IT knowledge and skills
between accountants from different
industries
3. There are differences in the perception of Rejected.
the importance of IT knowledge and skills
between accountants with different years of
experience.

Source: Developed for this research

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