Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - Compilation of Research Articles - (Page 27)
METHODOLOGY
Carlos Ramirez based his analysis on the theoretical framework developed by Luc Boltanski and Laurent Thévenot. He focuses in particular on
the idea of economy of worth which allows us to understand how different conceptions of worth may come into conflict, and on what basis, both
material and moral, it is possible to find a solution.
Professional
P RACTICAL
A PPLICATIONS
standards are a
The events that occurred in the community of British auditors help us to
understand the moral dimension and issues relating to the notion of worth
inherent to institutional change. They show that change may create situations
poor reflection of
that are so charged with conflict that it becomes impossible to determine
the relative worth of the people involved. To succeed, a compromise must
the diverse conceptions of
be found between different systems of worth, and material changes must
be put in place for avoiding conflict and facilitating the emergence of a
good practice.
natural order.
express possible disagreement without resorting to violence,
and develop more or less long-lasting compromises that allow
different conceptions of worth to co-exist. According to their
model, a limited number of worlds of reference are governed
by a principle of worth, which is also a principle of justice, that
makes it possible to rank people in a natural order benefiting
"the great ones" as well as "the small." In practice, it is rare
to find situations that fall exactly into one or the other of these
worlds of reference. Many situations represent tests: the actors
try to determine to which world they refer as a way of applying
a principle of equivalence that will allow the emergence of a
natural order.
from the audit so that there could no longer be any confusion
between the two. How? By having practitioners inspect their
own work and by introducing new material aspects into the
inspection. Following a reform of the inspection system in
1993, audit practitioners have subsequently had to attest that
they have set up efficient measures for monitoring the quality
of their firm's work. The basis on which they are judged, therefore, is customized. This redefinition of the material aspects
of the inspection makes it easier to assign new roles to the
inspectors and practitioners under inspection. It helps to make
quality monitoring an educational process. The decoupling of
the inspection from the audit allows different conceptions of
the audit to be considered at equal value. ■
FINDING A COMPROMISE
The inspectors and inspected at the ICAEW judged the audits
according to worlds of reference with dif-ferent principles
of worth. The inspectors required traceability, whereas the
inspected considered this as serving merely to increase their
workload and create a counter-productive effect on client
relationships. Quality monitoring is the test of worth referred
to by Boltanski and Thévenot. However, as it did not make it
possible to establish an equitable order of worth regarding
work, the harmonious co-existence of different conceptions
of the audit in the same professional community became
impossible. In response, the institution took corrective measures. The solution consisted of decoupling the inspection
Based on an interview with Carlos Ramirez and his article
"We are being pilloried for something we did not even know
we had done wrong! Quality control and orders of worth in
the British audit profession" Journal of Management Studies
(forthcoming).
Knowledge HEC
24
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - Compilation of Research Articles
Cover
Partner companies
Table of Content
公司治理 (David Thesmar)
Corporate governance
欧洲的可再生能源 (Andrea Masini)
Renewable energies in Europe
决策 (Mohammed Abdellaoui)
Why do decision makers underestimate rare events?
建立信任 (Michel Lander)
Building trust for successful mergers and acquisitions
产品线质量的高低端延伸 (Timothy Heath)
Extending product lines up and down in quality
制度变革 (Carlos Ramirez)
Institutional change
奢侈品市场 (Anne Michaut-Denizeau)
The luxury market
创业 (Anisa Shyti)
Entrepreneurship
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