Is Corporate Reporting Useful for Stakeholder Accountability? The Case of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Not-for-Profits in Australia

Abstract

Studies ‘at the margins’ uncover the otherwise unseen or unintended consequences of accounting practice, to reveal the discipline at its most interesting. The context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit (NFP) entities provides an uncommon setting for research and finds an uncomfortable relationship with the tools and logics of accounting. These accounting devices have a colonial legacy of being (mis)used to disrupt traditional forms of organisation and dispossess First Nations peoples of their customary lands. While the atrocities of colonial rule may have ended, the intergenerational impacts of marginalisation and oppression have endured. Consequently, the realities of community control in geographically and culturally marginalised settings do not always align easily with contemporary institutions of government authority. The organisations established to represent community interests navigate a difficult balance between the governance and accountability expectations of ‘two worlds’, resisting external misperceptions and threats of failure. Yet, many thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander controlled NFPs operate today in this highly contested and politically sensitive context, addressing complex social needs and working tirelessly to protect their cultures and kin. The corresponding value of these organisations to the social, cultural, and economic fabric of their communities is increasingly being acknowledged. A role for accounting in support of the sector has been imagined which might strengthen and empower these organisations to extend the reach of their important work.

This research is perhaps the most extensive empirical examination of the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander NFPs with the practice of accounting to date. It draws on empirical materials collected from more than 100 organisations, based on 231 publicly available annual reports, 33 qualitative interviews, and a longitudinal ethnographic study of an Aboriginal community-controlled healthcare organisation. Significant ethodological and theoretical contributions to academic and practitioner audiences are generated from this empirical fieldwork. These insights from extensive engagement with First Nations participants extend existing theoretical frameworks to a First Nations context. These contributions may further assist scholars interested in engaging in respectful, reciprocal and generative ways with First Nations organisations in the future.

Three important findings emerge from this study. First, it articulates the historical context in which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander NFPs have emerged and continue to operate, and uncovers how this context frames perceptions and reactions to policy approaches in the sector. Second, the research findings extend understandings of the inadequacies of standardised financial reporting for capturing the unique priorities and contributions of the sector. Such financial reporting is found to alienate key stakeholders and often fails as a device for external oversight. Third, this study offers recommendations for improving the communication of financial information to focus on the transparent reporting of internal controls, future income security and the allocation of resources to community priorities. The design of such future forms of reporting should simultaneously address the needs of diverse stakeholders.

While many of the organisations engaged in this study are small in financial terms, their contribution to social and cultural wellbeing is significant. Many of these entities operate in remote or extremely remote places, severely impacted by climate change, chronic disease, intergenerational trauma, and economic hardship. They represent populations who may be geographically, socially and economically marginalised within one of the wealthiest countries on earth. The findings of this research highlight the power of NFP organisations to balance complex relationships, make meaningful change, and operate across cultural and linguistic divides. The insights from this study offer new framings for the examination of organisational accountability worldwide.

Date of Award	2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Charles Darwin University (CDU)
Supervisor	Shawgat Kutubi (Supervisor), Steven Greenland (Supervisor) & Ruth Wallace (Supervisor)