Globalisation/regionalisation of accounting firms and their sustainability services

Purpose - The debate about global integration (standardisation) versus responsiveness (adaptation) has recently been supplemented with perspectives that emphasise regionalisation. And while the discussion has also been extended from manufacturing to services, there are specific sectors and emergent topics that have not yet received much attention. The purpose of this paper is to explore how accounting firms (The Big Four) and particularly their sustainability services fit in the globalisation/regionalisation/localisation spectrum, and appear to standardise or adapt in key countries in various regions around the world.
Design/methodology/approach - Examined are the Big Four accounting firms in general, and their sustainability services in 15 countries in five regions and globally, as presented on their respective web sites.
Findings - While overall the Big Four are somewhere between globalisation and bi-regionalisation, the traditional independent member firm structure appears to prevail in service offerings, as sustainability services do not exhibit standardisation and there are hardly signs of regionalisation/globalisation. This seems to result from special characteristics of services, such as inseparability of production and consumption, and local requirements regarding sustainability.
Research limitations/implications - This exploratory study can be a starting point for further
in-depth analyses into sustainability and/or services sector(s), and the way in which they figure in current realities of international business.
Practical implications - The paper gives insight into the variety of sustainability services around the world, as well as the way in which the accounting firms have dealt with global issues that also have local dimensions.
Originality/value - The paper sheds light on a topic in a sector so far unexplored in the
globalisation/regionalisation debate, bringing new dimensions and perspectives to it.
Keywords Globalization, Standardization, Accounting firms, Corporate social responsibility
Paper type Research paper