Revisorsassistentens socialiseringsprocess : En kvalitativ studie om socialisering och identifiering inom en revisionsbyrå i Örebro

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the socialization process that audit associates experience within an auditing firm that is included in the Big 4-sphere. Our purpose is also to describe which attributes that characterize the organizational identity, and how these attributes are reflected in the self-image of the associates. Furthermore, we seek to explain how the socialization process has influenced the organizational identification. This subject is of interest since the business of auditing is facing higher demands from regulators and politicians, due to the bankruptcy of HQ-bank among others during the financial crisis in the beginning of the 21st century. Earlier research claims that the socialization process of recruits, especially in the initial state of the employment, has a major impact on their future values and attitudes in their job performance. Thus, the socialization process should also be a vital means to achieve organizational identification, which consequently will help the organization to assure a uniform outcome among its employees. Methodology/approach: The collection of primary data was done by five interviews with audit associates, working within an auditing firm that belongs to the Big 4-sphere. Findings: The socialization process within the auditing firm is foremost characterized by an informal socialization strategy, where learning by doing and interaction with more experienced colleagues are fundamental parts within the process. Hence, the serial strategy is integrated in the informal socialization process. Moreover, the individual socialization strategy is present in terms of the individual learning that takes place in the daily work context. Considering the explicit and mandatory steps within the personal development plan, the sequential strategy is distinct. Thus, with the emphasis on the educations, influences of the fixed strategy can also be identified. However, the personal development varies among the associates with differentiated goals, which is in accordance to a variable strategy. Finally, due to the complexity of the profession of auditing concerning specific skills, the socialization process has influences from both retaining and processing strategy. The length of the employment enhances the degree of the organizational identification, and therefore also by how far the associate has made it in the socialization process. Attributes that characterize the organizational identity and that are reflected in the associates’ self-image are for example analytical skills, urge, quality, ambitious and stress-hardy. The socialization process can in various ways explain why these attributes are apparent.