Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊 - (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 - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊

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

Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊

Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院 研究专刊 - (Page 27)

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院 研究专刊

Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院 研究专刊

Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊 - (Page 27)

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊

Knowledge@HEC - Special Issue - 巴黎HEC商学院研究专刊