Perception of auditors on the assurance service of integrated reporting in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Integrated Reporting is the latest development in corporate reporting transformation. To enhance the credibility of non-financial information and integrated reporting, there is a need for assurance. External assurances of non-financial information are typically performed in accordance with ISAE 3000. There is no statutory requirement that integrated reports should be assured but it is essentials for have same guarantees as traditional financial information for the integrated reporting from the stakeholder’s perspective. Therefore, this study aims to identify the auditor’s perception on assurance of integrated reporting in Sri Lanka. An analysis of literature reveals that there has been limited research available on IR assurance particularly in developing country context. This study will mainly focus on the importance of assuring the content of IR, form and content of an audit report on IR, challenges of assuring IR and future of the IR assurance. The population of the study consists of auditors who provide assurance services on Integrated Reporting in Sri Lanka. Two hundred questionnaires were sent to assurance experts generating 105 usable responses. Data collected through an online survey relating to integrated reporting assurance. In analyzing the data non-parametric tests would be used. Such as, Mann - Whitney U test, Chi-square test and Kruskal- Wallis test. This study makes several important contributions. Findings provide useful evidence about actual perceptions of auditors regarding the importance of assuring integrated reporting and the form and content of the audit report on integrated reporting. This information could be valuable for the International Integrated Reporting Council, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, and other regulatory agencies looking to implement mandatory integrated reporting and the associated mandatory audits. In addition, these findings may be useful to audit practice as they focus on the difficulties faced by auditors in assuring integrated reporting.