MGSM student receives prestigious doctoral award for thesis

MGSM PhD student, Paul Gillis, has been awarded the prestigious 2011 Emerald/EFMD Outstanding Doctoral Research Award for his thesis on "The Big Four in China: Hegemony and Counter-hegemony in the Development of the Accounting Profession in China". Paul’s thesis studied the development of the CPA profession in the country since its conception, examining how the Big Four firms came to dominate the profession despite the resistance of the Chinese government.

Paul, who studied at MGSM’s Hong Kong campus, said: “I found that the Big Four established their dominance by bringing to China an ideology for accounting practice that gained popular acceptance.  This international ideology was supported by transnational institutions, such as the World Trade Organisation.  Local firms practiced a form of counter-hegemony that can be described as the long march through the institutions. By adopting international standards and infiltrating international organisations, local firms are now standing up to challenge the hegemony of the Big Four.

“One of my key findings was that the globalisation process in China's accounting markets had resulted in regulatory holes - gaps in regulation where accounting firms were essentially unregulated. As I completed my thesis the consequences of this finding exploded onto the scene, with many accounting scandals in China and tension between U.S. and Chinese regulators.”

Paul found this topic a natural fit for his expertise. Before taking an early retirement and pursing a second career in academia, he was a partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers for 28 years. He has also lived in China for the past 15 years and has a keen interest in how the Big Four helped to modernise the country. 

Paul was fortunate to be supervised by MGSM’s Professor Richard Petty, who has a deep understanding of the issues in this sector as a result of his past service as President and Chairman of the Board of CPA Australia.

Richard Petty said: “Paul Gillis’ outstanding doctoral work on the development of the accounting profession in China has been heralded internationally as being significant in understanding how the accounting profession has evolved and will evolve in China and beyond. It has received positive reviews from regulators, leaders of the accounting profession, and many senior members of the business communities in Asia, the United States and Europe. This award gives appropriate recognition to his efforts.” 

As Richard Petty acknowledges, the research has already received positive attention. Paul has published some of his findings in his blog www.chinaaccountingblog.com, which is read by regulators, professional service firms and investors, he has been appointed to serve on the Standing Advisory Group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board in the United States, and, of course, been awarded the prestigious Emerald/EFMD Outstanding Doctoral Research Award.

Of this achievement, Paul said: “It is satisfying to have the hard work of a doctoral thesis recognised by others.  Earning a PhD degree was as challenging as becoming a partner in a Big Four firm, and just as rewarding.”