Significance of age and gender diversity in auditors and clients decisions: Case study of Serbia

Abstract

Purpose: This paper highlights that the age and gender of the client board matters when deciding about the type of auditing company to do the audit and the type of opinion they get from the auditor. Design/Methodology: We took secondary data from audit reports issued to private and public corporations containing qualified, disclaimer, and adverse opinions and derived certain conclusions about the possible age and gender board member influence on those decisions. The research methodology was based on descriptive statistics and data correlation analysis. The sample consists of 62 companies' audit reports with qualified opinions. Findings: Board members in their golden age and women as board members are better negotiators than other age and gender groups in this context. Originality: When the board is dominated or has an older female, it will rather engage in contracts with the local audit companies. On the other hand, a board dominated by younger male members engaging with local audit companies, when a qualifying opinion is given. The results do not confirm the research questions because the age and gender of the board members have mixed effects when choosing the audit company and the decision to be made.