Scholarly record

THE ROLE OF ACCOUNTING SERVICE OFFICES IN THE CREATION OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION IN POLAND

A. Sulik-Gorecka, A. Szewieczek, E.W. Maruszewska, M. Strojek-Filus

Abstract

Background: Since the political and economic transition, many changes have been observed in the organization and performance of accounting services in Poland. It can be noted that specialized accounting service offices frequently replace traditional accounting departments as a result of outsourcing of specified business activities. Since 2014, under Polish deregulation policy a new law is effective abolishing the obligation for certified approval of professionals offering accounting services. The legal changes resulted in a huge increase of business entities offering different types of accounting services. The aim of the paper is to evaluate and formulate an assessment about the possible prospects of accounting services market in Poland, inter alia, in the scope of free access to the profession. The paper contributes to the existing literature in the field of the direction of changes in accountancy in a transition country, especially in the scope of the quality of information provided to internal and external stakeholders. Results: The authors emphasize the impact of the increase in the number of accounting service offices in Poland on the perception of the quality of financial information disclosed in financial reports and provided for management purposes. The paper calls for re-certification of accounting profession in Poland, based on the results of the study conducted. The conclusions are in line with non-formal differentiation of accounting offices (dividing them into business entities hiring employees with certificates and those without certificated staff), that can be noticed on the Polish market. Conclusions: As the economy is expanding, the demand for accounting services is still increasing in Poland. On the other hand, excessive establishment of accounting service offices conducting business without any certification confirming the excellence in services rendered does not support an improvement of the accounting system in Polish business entities. As a result, managers and investors make their decisions based on questionable data created in the accounting system. Yet, fiscal and economic security of an entity working with accounting service office is threatened, creating financial long-term consequences. At the same time, the development of accounting service offices is important when professional practice, and services for small and medium entities are under consideration. Nevertheless, providing high quality financial information irrevocably requires high standards comprising an up-to-date knowledge and adequate competences supported by external verification, e.g. in terms of certification. Methods: The authors used the literature analysis together with the available statistical data referring to accounting market in Poland. Critical analysis of Polish legal regulation was used in addition to heuristic and descriptive methods for developing of the influence of legislative foundations on the quality of accounting information provided by contemporary Polish accounting service offices.

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