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How accountants responded to the financial fallout owing to the COVID-19 pandemic

Vida Botes, Howard Davey, Daniel Esposo, Bruce Rust Smit

Pacific Accounting Review

ISSN: 0114-0582

Article publication date: 14 July 2022

Issue publication date: 9 January 2023

1067

Abstract

Purpose

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the last time a crisis affected businesses worldwide by putting economies into hibernation was in 1918 – the Great Influenza Pandemic. Environmental, social and governance frameworks require businesses to respond to such crises as it significantly changes the business environment. With approximately 2.84 million accountants existing across 130 countries, this study aims to determine whether the accounting profession responded to this crisis. As these responses can provide insights into the type of activities accountants performed during the lockdown, the authors analysed them for emerging themes and identified changes in the way that accountants performed tasks.

Design/methodology/approach

Using search engines, the authors examined publicly available secondary sources such as websites of professional bodies, the Big Four and mid-tier accounting firms and government organisations using the keyword “COVID-19” to identify responses on issues faced by accountants during the 2020 lockdown period in New Zealand. The authors used interpretive text analysis to examine the responses for emerging themes.

Findings

The accountants’ responses to the COVID-19 pandemic emphasised information technology and soft skills but most importantly the interaction, integration and immersion of technical skills with information technology and soft skills. The findings also highlight changes in the way accountants performed their tasks.

Originality/value

The study insights enable accounting academics to better understand the interconnection between hard and soft skills for incorporating it in syllabi, thereby preparing students for future roles. In addition, the study findings will assist both practitioners and researchers to explore the emerging changes in the way accountants perform their tasks.

Keywords

Citation

Botes, V., Davey, H., Esposo, D. and Smit, B.R. (2023), "How accountants responded to the financial fallout owing to the COVID-19 pandemic", Pacific Accounting Review, Vol. 35 No. 1, pp. 66-85. https://doi.org/10.1108/PAR-09-2020-0177

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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