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A resilient public sector organisation can potentially manage the impacts of future risks and crises, and leverage the lessons learned as strategic opportunities for longer-term positive change. Concepts of resilience (Parker, 2023) in nonprofits and their relevance to public sector and its performance auditing (PA) function are expanding. Particularly in the evolving landscape of global challenges, including health pandemics, natural disasters, climate change, international tensions, political uncertainties, and economic pressures, the resilience of public sector organizations has never been more critical (Caffrey et al., 2019; Ahonen & Koljonen, 2016; Boin & Lodge, 2016; Duit, 2016; Toonen, 2010). Prior literature underlines the need for public sector organisations to dynamically reinvent management models, strategies and accounting tools and emphasise the significance of organisational capability, culture, and collaborative environments as key to resilience and crisis adaptation (Rana and Parker, 2023; FitzGerald et al., 2021; Barbera et al., 2020; Palmi et al., 2018; Vickers and Kouzmin, 2001). In addressing these challenges, PA can potentially contribute to enhancing public sector organisational resilience through its assessment and identification of broad-scope organisational performance and management practices (Parker, 2023; Rana and Parker, 2023b, 2023c; Rana et al., 2022).
PA evaluation methodologies and stakeholder communication strategies are instrumental in identifying and reinforcing resilience-building activities within public sector entities. The potential of PA to inform and shape resilient practices and strategies is extensive yet underexplored in the accounting literature (Rana et al., 2022). Accordingly, greater attention to applying resilience concepts and strategies in PA for assessing and facilitating public sector resilience is needed. This requires more focused research on the relationship between PA and resilience and their dynamics and interactions within the public sector environment. While management and public administration fields have begun to address the nexus between resilience and public sector management and accounting (Barbera et al., 2017; 2020), particularly PA’s contribution remains underrepresented in the accounting domain. There is a rich potential for applying process and outcomes resilience concepts to the critical assessment and development of PA practices and their application to public sector organisations. Thus, drawing upon a rich body of literature from accounting and public administration research, this proposal underscores the necessity of integrating PA more profoundly into the framework of public sector resilience (FitzGerald et al., 2021; Palmi et al., 2018; Vickers & Kouzmin, 2001).
This special issue (SI) addresses the PA's role and relationship to resilience, focusing on how resilience can be effectively integrated into public sector organisations' practices and the PA’s engagement in those processes. We aim to advance PA research by exploring its role in fostering resilient responses and stakeholder interactions within the public sector. In doing so, this AAAJ special theme issue sets out to enhance the discourse on how PA relates to, influences, and can contribute to organisational adaptability and innovation, ensuring sustained resilience in the face of diverse and complex challenges such as natural disasters, pandemics, and geopolitical conflicts that affect communities on a national and global scale. Through a comprehensive exploration of PA's impact on public sector resilience, this special issue seeks to advance PA research, spotlighting its indispensable role in crafting a more resilient, responsive, and adaptive public sector ready to face today's and tomorrow's challenges. By investigating PA’s role in fostering resilient responses, enhancing stakeholder engagement, and promoting organisational adaptability and innovation, this issue aims to contribute significantly to the discourse on PA's critical role in ensuring public sector organisations are well-equipped to navigate and thrive amid the myriad of contemporary global challenges. Moreover, this special issue proposes to delve deeply into the agency of PA, particularly examining the roles of Auditor Generals, National Audit Offices, and political actors in interpreting and applying PA to cultivate resilience in public sector contexts.
Resilience in the public sector transcends traditional crisis or risk management by fostering an organisation's capacity to absorb, innovate and evolve by seizing opportunities that come with the challenges (APSC, 2021; Boin and Van Eten, 2013). With its focus on economy, efficiency, and effectiveness—known as the "three Es"—PA is a pivotal player in reinforcing this resilience (Rana et al., 2022). It provides an opportunity for a structured assessment of how public entities utilise resources to navigate adversity while maintaining operational integrity and service quality (Parker, 2023). Management approaches to crises play a crucial role in shaping an organisation's resilience by strategically framing crises as catalysts for improvement rather than mere threats (Rana and Parker, 2023; Wu et al., 2021; Franken et al., 2020; Shaw and Maythorne, 2013; James et al., 2011; Brockner and James, 2008).
This proactive stance is essential in the context of PA, where evaluating economic resource management, efficient processes, and effective outcomes forms the basis for resilience-building strategies. Fitzgerald et al. (2021) underscore the importance of flexibly managing human and financial resources, while Chan et al. (2021) stress the need for contextual knowledge, effective communication, and collaboration. Herrero and Kraemer (2022) highlight the role of cognitive, behavioural, and relational capabilities in crisis management, such as during the Covid-19 pandemic. Barbera et al. (2020) show how accounting can support internal-led or externally-led adaptation to shocks or crises. The multidimensional nature of resilience—integrating cognitive, behavioural, contextual, and relational resilience—requires PA to go beyond financial management, addressing the interplay between an organisation's culture, stakeholder communication, and adaptability (Chen et al., 2021; Gibson and Tarrant, 2010). PA can create a framework that foster an entity's ability to conserve a broad suite of resources and adapt and thrive in a shifting operational landscape (Bracci and Tallaki, 2021).
Thus, PA is a tool for public sector organisations to align their economic actions with efficient practices and effective service delivery. It ensures recovery and a strategic pivot towards a more robust and resourceful state post-crisis (Rogers, 2013; Shaw, 2012). This perspective shifts the role of PA from merely assessing crisis recovery to fostering an agile culture, strategies, and capabilities that drive growth and transformation during and post-crisis. This expanded focus on the "three Es"(economy, efficiency and effectiveness) concerning resilience enables public sector organisations to bounce back and leap forward by seizing the opportunity that comes with challenges, equipped for future crises and opportunities (Bracci et al., 2015). Building resilience through PA in the public sector is a multifaceted process that involves assessing and enhancing the capabilities of public organisations to effectively respond to, recover from, and adapt to changes and challenges. The existing literature, while recognising the importance of a resilient culture and relationship within and beyond organisations, often overlooks the critical role of PA in addressing and embedding these qualities (Rana et al., 2022). Thus, there is a need for a more targeted exploration of how these "three Es" of PA can be aligned with resilience strategies in the public sector.
Indicative list of research topic, issues or problems
We welcome submission of papers that address the following and related issues. The questions are highlighted as potential avenues to stimulate scholarly inquiry, contributing to advancing knowledge in resilience and PA.
• How do public sector auditors define and operationalise resilience within their PA frameworks?
• How are indicators of resilience in public sector organizations reflected in PA?
• How do recent global crises, like the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical conflicts, influence PA, particularly enhancing crisis response in public sector organizations?
• How can PA identify critical areas for improvement in resilience?
• How do strategic management practices contribute to or hinder resilience in public sector organizations, as revealed through PA?
• How do accounting practices contribute to or hinder the development of resilience-oriented PA?
• What challenges do public sector auditors face when conducting PA focused on resilience, and how can these be addressed in different social, political, and institutional contexts?
• How does stakeholder engagement, particularly citizens and media, influence the incorporation of resilience in PA?
• What lessons can be learned from cross-national comparisons of resilience-focused PA?
• How can PA contribute to public sector reform, policy development, and policy implementation to build and enhance resilience in public sector management?
• How can digital transformation contribute the development of resilience-oriented PA?
Submission instructions
Submissions for the AAAJ special issues should be made through ScholarOne at: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aaaj
Author guidelines and format for submitted manuscripts can be found on the journal's website: https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/aaaj#author-guidelines
Key dates
• ScholarOne submission for the SI will open on 1 March 2025
• Full paper submission deadline is 30 June 2025
• Accept papers when ready and online publication for early citations on 1 March 2026
Contact
If you would like to discuss the special issue and your potential contribution, please contact Associate Professor Tarek Rana for queries and information at: [email protected]
Guest Editors
Tarek Rana
RMIT University, Australia
Enrico Bracci
University of Ferrara, Italy
Lee Parker
University of Glasgow, UK
References
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