A tradition beyond numbers: The Swedish management audit in historical perspective

In Sweden, the statutory audit extends beyond the financial statement audit. It mandates an audit of the company's administration by the board and the managing director (management audit). Despite being a national tradition since the mid-seventeenth century and resisting various harmonisation efforts, the practice remains under-researched in accounting history. This study aims to analyse the development of the Swedish management audit from its legal inception in 1895 to 1994, the year prior to Sweden's EU membership. Through the lens of historical institutionalism and using document analysis, our findings reveal how critical events have prompted institutional changes, and how path dependencies have both sustained the continuity of the Swedish management audit and shaped its trajectory. The study offers three key contributions. Firstly, it deepens understanding of the antecedents of the Swedish management audit and the institutional context that has shaped its development, offering a nuanced perspective on its status and relation to the financial statement audit, both of which form part of the statutory audit. Secondly, it underscores the need for context-sensitivity in international harmonisation endeavours, emphasising the caution needed when adapting global audit standards to local regulatory environments and national audit traditions. Thirdly, it provides insights into the opportunities and challenges posed by the broader scope of the Swedish management audit, particularly in relation to the audit expectation gap literature. Furthermore, the study advances new avenues of inquiry, encouraging a rethinking of the audit concept to enhance its relevance both in Sweden and on a broader scale.