Mr Brian Burfitt

Brian Burfitt

PhD Candidate

School of Accounting, Auditing and Taxation

Research Title: Explorations of the margins of accounting: VIK and Indigenous accountability

Supervisor/s Name: Paul Andon, Conor Clune

About

Brian is a PhD candidate at the School of Accounting, Auditing and Taxation.

Brian's PhD research focuses on the margins of accounting, specifically contributing to broader literature that studies (i) how new calculative practices emerge and in what form and contexts, (ii) the consequences of these new practices in the setting in which they are embedded, and (iii) the diverse pathways to legitimacy for new accounting and accountability practices. 

His research thesis is motivated by Miller’s (1998) call to study the margins of accounting. Through two qualitative-based case studies, it explores how emerging, non-traditional forms of accounting and accountability emerge as calculative practices, so much so that they become accepted and legitimate in the environments in which they operate.

Key findings of his research include:

Article one explores the complexities that surround the management of Value-in-Kind (VIK) resources within the context of a professional sports organisation.

Article two, through a case study of an Indigenous organisation, specifically explores how accountability can be shaped by, or otherwise be rendered compatible with, Indigenous values and culture.