Auditing & Assurance Services: A Systematic Approach

Innovative approach, content and technology distinguish this text from the competition: Messier responds to the growing market demand for a more conceptual text, suitable for both accounting majors and general business audiences (i.e., future auditors AND auditees). The text has a distinct overview section (Part II), which provides a conceptual understanding of the audit process by introducing the concepts of materiality, risk, and evidence. This approach facilitates student development of auditor judgement, a vital skill in today's auditing environment.

This is the only textbook that combines risk analysis with a process (new CICA Handbook term, formerly "cycles") approach, introducing the audit risk model early and using it as an outline for all of the process chapters. (Chapter 3 introduces the Strategic Systems Approach to auditing, the new audit methodology being adopted by the larger public accounting firms.) The applications chapters (Part V, Chapters 9-15) continue the process orientation using the audit risk model. Messier stands apart from current offerings by reducing the detail to focus the students on concepts followed by the application of concepts to the various transaction cycles.

In addition to including discussions of hot topics, such as assurance services and fraud, the text boasts a unique competitive advantage: the representation of computerized systems. While most texts downplay the role of technology in auditing, Messier assumes that accounting cycles are computerized. The text's design, content, and pedagogy reinforce the integration of technology.

Professor William F. Messier, Jr., is the Deloitte & Touche Professor at the School of Accountancy, Georgia State University. He holds a Professor II position at the Institute for Accounting and Auditing, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration, and he is a visiting professor at SDA Bocconi in Milan, Italy. Professor Messier has a BBA from Siena College, an MS from Clarkson University, and an MBA and DBA from Indiana University. He is a CPA in Florida and has taught at the Universities of Florida and Michigan. Professor Messier has served as the Chairperson of the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association and as co-editor of the Journal of Accounting Literature. He currently serves on the AICPA’s International Auditing Standards Subcommittee. Professor Messier has authored or co-authored over 45 articles in accounting, decision science, and computer science journals.

Craig Emby is a Professor of Accounting in the Faculty of Business Administration at Simon Fraser University. He obtained his undergraduate honours degree in commerce from the University of Manitoba, his MBA from the University of British Columbia, and his PhD from the University of Alberta. He is also a Chartered Accountant. Professor Emby joined the Faculty of Business Administration at Simon Fraser University in 1987 where he implemented the first auditing course in the BBA program. Professor Emby’s research interests focus on audit judgment and audit decision making. His has authored or co-authored articles in such journals as Contemporary Accounting Research, Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, Behavioural Research in Accounting, and the Journal of Accounting Literature. Professor Emby is a national examiner for the Canadian Certified Accountants Association of Canada.