Auditor 2.0 : how Swedish auditors balance the profession with marketing

Sammanfattning: This study examines how auditors’ attitude towards marketing and their view on the importance of marketing affect how they balance their time spent on marketing and auditing activities. The purpose is to understand how the changing business environment for auditors affects the relationship between the auditing profession and marketing. The study is based on a survey of 712 auditors in Sweden. The findings suggest that auditors with positive attitude towards marketing spend significantly more time on marketing activities compared to those with less positive attitude. Furthermore, auditors who view marketing activities as important, spend significantly more time on marketing activities. The number of years as approved or authorized auditor, age of the auditor, and bureau affiliation was controlled for. The result indicates that the theoretical distance between the auditing profession and marketing does not exist in practice to the same degree as it used to.