V2I11P07

Data Analytics Adoption in Audit Firms: Policy, Capacity Building, and the Future of Accountability

Ogunmola Sodiq Olaleye^1*, Olorunnisola Abiola Olubukola²

Abstract

The emergence of data analytics and automation has altered the present landscape of audit profession in the gathering, analysis, and assessment of evidence. The study will examine the issue of the enablers, challenges, and policy implications surrounding data analytics adoption in audit firms, focusing on the US and OECD economies. The discourse will encompass the factors that affect adoption rates such as size of firms, regulatory framework, technologies costs, and availability of skills. Furthermore, it will explore how data analytics can improve the quality, efficiency, and transparency of audits within those parameters of accountability in financial reporting. Evidence analysis through survey-based information, secondary sources from professional bodies, and structural equation modeling (SEM) indicates that companies with a more digital strategy, and those in a more supportive regulatory environment, yield their audits with higher quality. The study has pointed to policy and capacity-building gaps, marking the need for a national audit innovation roadmap concentrating on digital competencies, its incorporation into professional education with continued acceleration of technological change, and accountability in the private and public sector. Findings indicate that data-driven auditing is a far-reaching sustainable financial modernization initiative rather than merely a matter of technological advancement.

Keywords:

Data Analytics, Audit Firms, Digital Transformation, Audit Quality, Artificial Intelligence, Policy and Regulation, OECD Economies, Capacity Building, Accountability, Technology Adoption, Financial Modernization, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM)