Cultural Differences and Similarities between German and Chinese Internal Audit Functions

Abstract

Cultural differences influence the behavior of companies, including management styles, relationships with employees, stake- and shareholders or social responsibility. Obviously, the concept of corporate governance encompassing the Internal Audit Function (IAF) is seen differently in different cultures. Therefore, conformance with the globally effective “International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing” (IIA, 2016) presuming a culture-free, completely homogeneous IAF with uniform working standards worldwide, seems more than difficult. Consequently, empirical results in the following study reflect more (culturally influenced) differences than similarities between the German and Chinese IAF.