Accountants’ satisfaction following unification of Canadian accounting bodies

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to assess the levels of satisfaction of legacy designation accountants, namely, Chartered Accountants (CAs), Certified General Accountants (CGAs) and Certified Management Accountants, under the new Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) banner; to measure differences in satisfaction among the three designations; and to identify the factors associated with the levels of satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach A 30-item questionnaire was designed, pilot tested for face validity and further tested for reliability using a Cronbach’s alpha. The questionnaire consisted of three parts: sociodemographic questions, bipolar questions to fit the SERVQUAL model of satisfaction and questions about professional identity and general perceptions of the new CPA organization. Findings Legacy accountants in Ontario had a lower level of satisfaction than they expected before unification. A pre- and post-unification comparison found statistically significant differences on all five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model and on overall service. Responses to questions about professional identity and general perceptions of the new organization were mixed. An analysis of variance test revealed a statistically significant difference in satisfaction between CAs and the two other designations – CAs were the least satisfied. A varimax rotated factor analysis indicated that the SERVQUAL’s five dimensions appear to be good predictors of service quality. Research limitations/implications Merging professional cultures can be as challenging as merging companies. Increased membership volume needs to translate into additional benefits and services. As indicated by the respondents, the new CPA entity has much work to do, particularly with the former CAs. Originality/value This is the first study to examine satisfaction, specifically following the merger of the three accounting designations.

Making Disciplinary Information about Professional Accountants Available to the Public in Ontario*

“…As noted in previous works (Brouard et al 2017;Tessier and Sponem 2018;Looknauth and Bélanger 2018), prior to 2014 the provincially regulated accounting designations in Canada fell under three governing bodies: the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), Certified Management Accountants of Canada (CMA Canada), and Certified General Accountants of Canada (CGA Canada). Thus, at the provincial level, professional accountants in Ontario were governed by the nationally affiliated Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario (ICAO), the Society of Management Accountants of Ontario (SMAO), or the Certified General Accountants of Ontario (CGAO).…”