Competencies of Accounting Professionals and Quality of Financial Reporting: Evidence from Enterprises in Thailand

Abstract

Quality financial reporting positively benefits business development and economic decisions. It is essential for growth-oriented enterprises to ensure the quality of financial reporting to enhance performance. This study empirically examined accounting professionals’ opinions on their competencies and quality in financial reporting. The data were collected from 381 samples. The instruments used for data collection were a self-administered survey and in-depth interviews. The results showed that the overall mean scores of competencies and quality of financial reporting were 4.31 and 4.37 respectively. Consequently, for higher levels of competency, this study suggests enhancing the following issues: professional knowledge (namely on economics, taxation and business laws and regulations), professional ethics (namely in finance and financial management), operational skills (namely financial reporting skills), organizational management skills (namely on business and organization of the environment) and adaptive skills for the digital age (namely information technology). In addition, for higher report quality, this study suggests enhancing the following areas: relevance to decision-making (such as objectives, procedures and methods), credibility (namely assurance and audit) and verifiability (namely governance, risk management and internal control). The findings of this study contribute what has been theoretically ignored and may be part of the revised conceptual framework suggested for future inquiry.