Profile
Full Bio
Bertrand Malsch is Associate Professor of Accounting at the Smith School of Business at Queens University since 2013.
He holds a PhD in accounting from Laval University and is a member of the Quebec Bar.
He is the author of numerous leading articles in international academic journals on the subject of auditing, accounting regulation and governance. His work has been presented in many scholarly and professional conferences around the world.
He is associate editor of the Behavioral Review of Accounting, Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, Accounting Horizons, and Accounting and Business Research. He also serves on the editorial board of Accounting, Organizations and Society, and Contemporary Accounting Research.
His current work funded by SSHRC and Smith research grants focuses on the role of accounting firms in tax avoidance mechanisms and the financial reporting processes of Indigenous communities.
He regularly contributes to public policy discussions by publishing editorials reflecting the content of his research. Bertrand serves as a member of the Cannabis Oversight Committee established by the Cannabis Regulation Act in Quebec in 2019. Bertrand is also an active member of the Extended External Reporting Advisory Group set by the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board in Canada in 2020 to discuss the future of auditing practice.
Academic Degrees
Bachelor of Law (LLB)
McGill University, Canada (2017)
Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL)
McGill University, Canada (2017)
PhD Accounting
Université Laval, Canada (2011)
MBA
Université Laval, Canada (2006)
MSc
Audencia Nantes Business School, France (2006)
Academic Experience
Smith School of Business, Queen’s University
Director, CPA Ontario Centre for Corporate Reporting and Professionalism (2017 – Present)
Associate Professor, Accounting (2015 – Present)
Assistant Professor, Accounting (2013-2015)
HEC, Montreal
Assistant Professor, Accounting (2011-2013)
Publications
FT 50 journals
Daoust, L., and Malsch, B. 2020. When the client is a former auditor: A Field Study of Auditees’ Influence on Audit Engagements Through Expert Knowledge and Social Capital (Selected for the CAR Conference 2018), Contemporary Accounting Research, forthcoming.
Daoust, L., and Malsch, B. 2019. How do ex-auditors remember their past: the transformation of audit experience into cultural memory. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 77.
Malsch, B. 2019. Discussion on “One team or two teams? Exploring relationship quality between auditors and IT specialists and its implications for a collective audit team identity and the audit process”. Auditing through politics, romance and institutional complexity. Contemporary Accounting Research, forthcoming.
Guénin-Paracini, H., Malsch, B., and Marché-Paillé, A. 2014. Fear and Risk in the Audit Process. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 39, 264-288
Malsch, B., and Gendron, Y. 2013. Re-theorizing Change: Institutional Experimentation and the Struggle for Domination in the Field of Public Accounting. Journal of Management Studies, 5, 871-899
Malsch, B. 2013. Politicizing the Expertise of the Accounting Industry in Corporate Social Responsibility. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 38, 149-168
Malsch, B., Gendron, Y. and Tremblay, M.S. 2012. Sense Making in Compensation Committees: A Cultural Theory Perspective. Organization Studies, 33, 389-421
Malsch, B. and Gendron, Y. 2011. Reining in Auditors: On the Dynamics of Power Surrounding an “Innovation” in the Regulatory Space. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 36, 456 – 476
Refereed journals
Hazgui, M., and Malsch, B. 2019. Navigating through the spatial and institutional contradictions of public audit oversight, European Accounting Review, forthcoming.
Kalyta, P., and Malsch, B. 2018. Ethnographic Accounting Research: Field Notes from the Frontier. Accounting Perspectives, 17(2), 241-252.
Malsch, B., and Morin, D. 2017. L'audit Législatif aux Frontières du Pouvoir et de la Politique. Contrôle, Comptabilité, Audit, 23, 75-96
Tremblay, M.S., Malsch, B., and Gendron, Y. 2016. Gender on Board: “Deconstructing the Legitimate Female Director”. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 29, 165-190
Malsch, B., and Salterio, S. 2015. “Doing Good Field Research”: Assessing the Quality of Audit Field Research. Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, 35, 1-22
Guénin-Paracini, H., Malsch, B. and Tremblay, M.S. 2015. The Reality of Auditors’ Operational
Independence: Lessons from the Field. Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory, 34, 201236
Malsch, B. and Tessier, S. 2015. Journal Ranking Effects on Junior Academics. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 26, 84-98
Malsch, B. and Guénin-Paracini, H. 2013. The Moral Potential of Individualism and Instrumental Reason in Accounting Research. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 24, 74-82
Tremblay, M.S. and Malsch, B. 2012. The Public-Sector Audit Explosion: An Illusion of Control? Télescope : revue d’analyse comparée en administration publique, 18, 1-7
Malsch, B., Morin, D., and Tremblay, M.S. 2012. Collusion et Corruption Dans les Administrations : Les Vérificateurs Généraux Seraient-ils Condamnés à N’être Que Des tigres de Papier ? Télescope: revue d’analyse comparée en administration publique, 18, 173180
Malsch, B., Gendron, Y. and Grazzini, F. 2011. Investigating Interdisciplinary Translations: The Influence of Pierre Bourdieu on Accounting Literature. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 24, 194-228
Malsch, B. and Gendron, Y. 2009. Mythical Representation of Trust in Auditors and the Preservation of Social Order in the Financial Community. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 20, 735-750
Case Study
Stack, R., and Malsch, B. 2020. Clarke Building and Supplies Limited: Navigating Culture and Change. Submitted to Ivey Publishing.
Keolasy, R., Gendron, Y., and Malsch, B. 2012. L’affaire WorldCom : Incompétence ou complicité des auditeurs ? Revue Internationale de Cas en Gestion, 10, 1-19
Working Papers
Couchoux, O., and Malsch, B. “Dexterous with both hand”: Audit firms” response to CPAB inspections and the shift in institutional complexity. Status: Revise and resubmit (2nd round) (Resubmitted April 2020), Contemporary Accounting Research
Couchoux, C., Daoust, L., and Malsch, B. Intercultural sensemaking in the audit process: Lessons from Indigenous engagements in the Canadian North. Status: Submitted (May 2020), Accounting, Organizations and Society
Gaudy, C., and Malsch, B. Can it be more than just a job? Sustainability assurance and the search for meaningfulness in small and medium practices. Status: Submitted (April 2020), Accounting, Organizations and Society
Gendron, Y., Malsch, B., and Tremblay, M.S. Getting backs to basics: challenging accountability and complexity in the boardroom. Status: Revise and Resubmit (2nd round) (resubmitted: April 2019), Critical Perspectives on Accounting
Malsch, B., Tremblay, M.S., and Cohen, J.C. When do accounting firms produce public outcomes? (Re)positioning the public interest in auditing. Status: Revise and Resubmit (1st round) (June
2019), Journal of Business Ethics
Opinion Editorials
Malsch, B. When ‘social license’ Costs Become Unbearable. National Post. 23 February 2016
Malsch, B. and Kalyta, P. Accounting for the Planet. The Globe and Mail. 9 December 2015
Malsch, B. and Tremblay, M.S. Le Coût de L’éthique. Huffington Post. 5 December 2015
Tremblay, M.S. and Malsch, B. Le verdict! La Presse. 25 November 2015
Malsch, B. Uber et Contre Tous ! Huffington Post. 15 May 2015
Malsch, B. Un Budget Amer. La Presse. 15 April 2015
Malsch, B. L’espoir Trudeau? Huffington Post. 15 March 2015
Malsch, B., and Tremblay, M.S. Les 12 Travaux de Carlos Leitao. Le Devoir. 3 June 2014
Malsch, B. Pour en Finir Avec les Économistes. Huffington Post. 28 May 2014
Malsch, B., and Tremblay, M.S. Les Risques de L’éthique. Huffington Post. 15 May 2014
Tremblay, M.S. and Malsch, B. La Vérification Dans le Secteur Public : le Risque D’une Illusion de Contrôle. Le Devoir (4 February 2013)
Malsch, B., Morin, D. and Tremblay, M.S. Où Sont Passés les Vérificateurs Généraux du Québec ? La Presse. 29 October 2012
Malsch, B., Provencher, A. and Tremblay, M.S. Budget Bachand - Crépuscule Budgétaire à Québec. Le Devoir. 24 March 2012
Malsch, B., Tremblay, M.S. and Gendron, Y. Rémunération et Indignation – Contre le Mythe Des Hauts Dirigeants Héroïques. Le Devoir. 9 January 2012
Malsch, B. and Tremblay, M.S. Élections fédérales – Les Femmes et le Sénat Conservateur. Le Devoir. 26 April 2011
In the Media
How auditors find their footing in the indigenous world, Smith Business Insight, May, 2018
Women On Boards: A Battle For Legitimacy, Smith Business Insight, March 2017
Lost in The Gap Between Rich and Poor, Smith Business Insight, January 2017
Radio Interview with Radio Canada. A Discussion on the OXFAM Report Entitled “An Economy for the 99 Percent.” 17 January 2017
TV Interview with Business News Network. A Discussion on the New Ontario Public Sector Executive Compensation Framework. 13 September 2016
Press Interview with Human Resources Reporter. Salary Caps Hit Ontario’s Broader Public Sector 19 September 2016
Press Interview with Human Resources Management Canada. Board members to blame for Ontario salary caps? 21 September 2016
The Greening of Profits, Smith Business Insight, December 2015
Fear and Auditing, Smith Business Insight, July 2015
Teachings
Undergraduate Teachings
HEC Montreal
- Specialized topics in financial accounting (BAA-391606)
- Introduction to financial analysis (BAA-190206)
- Introduction to financial accounting (BAA-190106)
Smith School of Business
- Introduction to managerial accounting (COMM 112/ COMM 212)
- Management Control System (COMM 415)
Graduate Teachings
Smith School of Business
- Financial Accounting Theory (MACC 811)
- Accounting III – Management Accounting Research (MGMT 912)
- Introduction to accounting research – Field Studies (MGMT 915)
- Qualitative Methods – (MGMT 802)
Queen’s Faculty of law
- Accounting and the Law (Law 684)
Graduate Supervision
External Examiner
- Thesis committee – Ph.D., Yasser Alnafisah, Manchester School of Business (Defended, October 2019)
Smith School of Business
- Supervisor – Ph.D., Till-Arne Hahn (In progress) o Placement: Assistant Professor HEC Montreal
- Supervisor – Ph.D., Oriane Couchoux (In progress)
- Supervisor – Ph.D., Ryan Stack (In progress)
- Supervisor – Ph.D., Laurence Daoust (Completed, August, 2018) o Placement: Assistant Professor HEC Montreal
- Thesis committee – Ph.D., Russell Evans (Completed, November 2017)
- Thesis committee – Ph.D., Christie Hayne (Completed, July 2015)
HEC Montreal
- Supervisor – M.Sc. (completed): 3 students
Case Competitions
- Examiner - 2016 Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.)
- Examiner - 2017 Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.)
- Examiner - 2018 Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.)
- Examiner - 2019 Inter-Collegiate Business Competition (I.C.B.C.)
Visiting Positions
Visiting Professor
Toulouse School of Management, France
2018
Visiting Research Student
University of Alberta, Canada
2011
Visiting Research Student
London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
2009-2010
Presentations
Guest Speaker Presentations
Sustainability assurance practice and the search for meaningfulness in small and medium practices. Schulich School of Business, Toronto; January 2020
Creating public value in professional service firms: the case of client-acceptance decision. Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary University, Halifax; January 2020
Professionalism vs. Commercialism: The audit firm as a business unit, Doctoral Class, John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, Montreal; March 2019
When the client is a former auditor: A Field Study of Auditees’ Influence on Audit Engagements
Through Expert Knowledge and Social Capital. Boston College, Boston, USA; March 2019
Auditors’ strategic and conflicting responses to CPAB inspections: acquiescing, compromising, avoiding. University Central Florida, Orlando, USA; February 2019
‘New Directions in Auditing Research’, Speaker in Plenary Panel, European Accounting Association, Milan, Italy; June 2018
When the client is a former auditor: A Field Study of Auditees' Influence on Audit Engagements Through Expert Knowledge and Social Capital. Toulouse School of Management, Toulouse, France; May 2018
How to Become an Ex-auditor: Past, Present and Memory of a Big Four Experience. Manchester School of Business; November 2017
Discussion on “One Team or Two Teams? Exploring Relationship Quality Between Auditor and IT Specialists and its Implications for a Collective Audit Team Identity and the Audit Process”. Status: under review”. Contemporary Accounting Research Conference, Waterloo, October 2016
(Re)Theorizing Professional Change. Institutional Change and Regulatory Rescaling. HEC Paris, Paris; June 2016
When Social License Costs Become Unbearable. Western Transportation Advisory Council, 2016 Spring Member Forum, Edmonton; May 2016
Critical Perspectives on Sustainability and Accountability, Doctoral Class, Desautels Faculty of Management, McGill University, Montreal; March 2015
Getting Back to Basics. Deconstructing Complexity in the Boardroom. John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, Montreal; November 2014
Doing Qualitative Research in Corporate Governance, Doctoral Consortium at the Auditing Section Midyear Conference, American Accounting Association, San Antonio, Texas; January 2014
(Re)empowering Compensation Committees, Queens’ School of Business; February 2013
Accounting Matters! Contemporary Accounting Research Conference, Ottawa; October 2012
The Energy of Shame: Emotional Episodes and Institutional Work, ESCP Paris, June 2012
‘Research Diversity in Accounting’, Speaker in Plenary Panel, European Accounting Association, Ljubljana, Slovenia; May 2012
(Re)empowering Compensation Committees, Schulich School of Business; June 2012
Accounting Firms as Political Agents of Depoliticization: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility, University of Alberta School of Business; February 2011
Risk, Blame and Allegiance in Compensation Committees: A Cultural Theory Perspective, Amsterdam Business School; November 2009
Risk, Blame and Allegiance in Compensation Committees: A Cultural Theory Perspective, Copenhagen Business School; October 2009
Scholarly Conferences
Cochoux, O., and Malsch, B. Auditors’ strategic and conflicting responses to CPAB inspections:
acquiescing, compromising. 8th EIASM workshop on accounting and regulation, Siena, Italy: June 2019
Daoust L., and Malsch, B. When the client is a former auditor: A Field Study of Auditees' Influence on Audit Engagements Through Expert Knowledge and Social Capital. CAR Conference, Banff, Canada: October 2018
Daoust L., and Malsch, B. When the client is a former auditor: A Field Study of Auditees' Influence on Audit Engagements Through Expert Knowledge and Social Capital. Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Accounting Conference, University of Edinburgh Business School, Edinburgh: July 2018
Malsch, B., Tremblay, M.S., and Cohen, J.C. When do accounting firms produce public outcomes? (Re)positioning the public interest in auditing. Alternative Account Conference, HEC Montreal: May 2018
Malsch, B., and Daoust, D. How to Become an Ex-auditor: Past, Present and Memory of a Big Four Experience. PIAG Workshop, Schulich School of Business, Toronto: October 2017
Malsch, B., Gendron, Y., and Tremblay, M.S. “I Know What I Don’t Know”. A Study of Ignorance and Negative Knowledge in Executives’ Compensation. Critical Perspectives on Accounting Conference, FSA, Université Laval, Québec City; May 2017
Malsch, B., and Hazgui, M. (Re)Theorizing Professional Change. Institutional Change and Regulatory Rescaling. Alternative Account Conference, Telfer School of Business, Ottawa; April 2016
Gendron, Y., Malsch, B., and Tremblay, M.S. Getting Back to Basics. Deconstructing Complexity in the Boardroom. Alternative Account Conference, Telfer School of Business, Ottawa; April 2015
Guénin-Paracini, H., Malsch, B. and Tremblay, M.S. 2014. The Reality of Auditors’ Operational
Independence: Lessons from the Field. European Accounting Association Conference, Estonia School of Business, Tallinn; May 2014
Micro Games of Power in Auditing: Getting Comfortable with the Auditee. European Accounting Association Conference, Université Dauphine, Paris; May 2013
Micro Games of Power in Auditing: Getting Comfortable with the Auditee Alternative Accounts in Accounting Research, Schulich School of Business; April 2013
Re-theorizing Change: Institutional Experimentation and the Struggle for Domination in the Field of Public Accounting. European Accounting Association Conference, Ljubljana, Slovenia; May 2012
The Moral Potential of Individualism and Instrumental Reason in Accounting Research. European Accounting Association Conference, Ljubljana, Slovenia; May 2012
Reining in Auditors: On the Dynamics of Power Surrounding an ‘Innovation’ in the Regulatory Space. International Symposium on Audit Research, Quebec; June 2011
Activism in stakeholder democracy: A Critical Ethnography of a Group of Small Shareholders. Critical Perspectives on Accounting Conference, Clearwater, Florida; July 2011
Independent Audit Regulators and the Reproduction of Conflicts of Interests in the Field of Public Accounting. Interdisciplinary Perspectives in Accounting, Innsbrück, Austria; July 2009
Social Change and Social Reproduction in the Field of Public Accounting. Fourth Alternative
Perspectives in Accounting Research Conference; Avril 2009
Conference Organizer
Alternative Accounts Conference, Smith School of Business, Queen’s University Kingston; May 2019
Awards
Fellowships
PricewaterhouseCoopers/Tom O’Neill Fellow of Accounting, $35,000 (2017-2020)
Queen’s School of Business, Distinguished Faculty Fellow in Accounting, $30,000 (2014-2017)
Research Awards
Queen's School of Business, New Researcher Achievement Award, $5,000 (2014)
Highly commended in the 2012 AAAJ/Emerald/European Foundation for Management Development Outstanding Doctoral Research Award (2012)
Scholarships
Dean’s Scholarship, $10,000 (2011)
Port de Québec Scholarship, $2,500 (2008)
University Laval Foundation Scholarship, $8000 (2008)
Other
Best Student Case Award for the Case Division of the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC) for the case entitled: “Clarke Building and Supplies Limited: Navigating Culture and Change”. (2020)
Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal (AAAJ) Mary Parker Follett Best Paper Award for the paper entitled: “Gender on board: “Deconstructing the legitimate female director.” (2016)
A Journal of Practice and Theory (AJPT) Best Paper of the year Award and $1,000 for the paper entitled: “On the Operational Reality of Auditors’ Independence: Lessons from the Field.” (2016)
Emerald Literary Award and Citations of Excellence Winner for paper entitled: “Re-theorizing change: Institutional experimentation and the struggle for domination in the field of public accounting.” (2016)
Highly commended in the 2012 Parker Follett Best Paper Award (2012)
Faculté des Sciences de l’Administration Honour Roll (2009)
Grants & Funding
Bertrand Malsch (Principal Researcher) with Laurence Daoust and Oriane Couchoux. ‘Jumping on the Start-Ups Bandwagon: A Field Study on the Role of Accountants and Financial Information in Tech Start-Ups in Canada’. (2018)
CPA Canada-CAAA Special Topics Research Grant Program | $9,960
Bertrand Malsch (Principal Researcher) with Pavlo Kalyta and Marie-Soleil Tremblay. ‘Inside tax havens and the making of offshore accounting in Canada.’
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) | $151,375
Bertrand Malsch, Pavlo Kalyta and Tina Dacin. ‘Accounting Firms, Corporate Accountability, and Aboriginal Peoples.’ (2016)
General Research Grant competition, Smith School of Business | $25,000
Henri Guénin-Paracini and Bertrand Malsch. ‘The Role of Emotions in Auditors’ Practices.’ (2016)
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) | $96,206
‘Professional Expertise of Economists in Times of Crisis: Practices, Calculations and Rationality.’ (2012)
Fonds Québécois de la Recherche sur la Société et la Culture (FQRSC) | $39,600
Service
Member
Principal's Advisory Committee (Dean selection)
2019-Present
Member
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee
2019-Present
Member
Quebec Bar
2019-Present
Member
Research Ethics Committee, Smith School of Business
2013-2017
Volunteer
Project Genesis, Legal Aid Clinic
2016
Pro Bono Student
Canada, Tax Advisory Project
2015 - 2016
Member
Academic Integrity Panel, Queen’s School of Business
2014 – 2015
Member
Professors’ Team in Improvisation League Competition Fundraiser for Centre Aide Campaign, HEC Montreal
2013
Volunteer Student
Social Program at the Quebec Provincial Penitentiary
2010
Student Rep.
Faculté des Sciences de l’Administration Doctoral Program, Université Laval
2008 - 2009