The power of consulting : the Big Four in Angola, Tanzania and South Africa
Abstract
Though the Big Four have been identified in their involvement in reported and leaked data regarding lobbying, tax evasion and misconduct in the western world, the capacity and underlaying interests of the Big Four in development countries have received little focus in executed research. Thereby, while acknowledging the need for further studies on the Big Four, conducting a multiple case study has allowed for the observation of the Big Four in different contexts, and by doing so, improved the understanding of how the operations of these firms affect the development capacities of Angola, Tanzania and South Africa.
The thesis has shed light on the ongoing capacity of the Big Four as a result of their global network, size and expertise in their field, which enables the Big Four to operate on a scale much larger than any other accounting and auditing companies in the world. The global network of the Big Four further enables their national entities to gain hold of the richest clients as well as gaining structural access to government employees and politicians. This access and capacity as well as if the Big Four’s national/local offices operate in an illegal or unethical manner can have detrimental outcomes for the states’ development capacities. The findings can provide a theoretical roadmap for further studies on the Big Four, especially in terms of how their operations affect the development capacities in Angola, Tanzania and South Africa.