Recent corporate collapses and evidence that questions the ability of
accountants/auditors to discharge their duties in the public interest, has seen
increasing concern expressed by some writers about the future of the accounting
profession.
The objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between employers’
expectations of the attributes of graduates and society’s expectations that accountants
will act in the public interest. The study is based on legitimacy theory which indicates
that society confers an organisation’s legitimacy when the entity’s value system is
congruent with the value system of the larger social system. The changes in the
attributes of accountants that are valued in the workplace increase the risk of severing
the social contract between the organisation and society.
Evidence from in-depth interviews with employers of accounting graduates indicates
that they are looking for those who ‘fit the culture’ and have the ability to ‘market’ the
firm to clients. This is in preference to the accounting graduate who may be a towering
intellect but does not have the right ‘look’. Succumbing to employer calls for graduates
with highly developed generic skills at the expense of technical proficiency has the
potential to substantially change the accounting education curriculum and diminish the
integrity and importance of discipline knowledge. It is in the interests of all
stakeholders to carefully and thoughtfully discuss and debate the complex issues that
accompany change of this nature to ensure a suitable balance is achieved.