The Influence of Competence and Work Motivation on Auditor Performance via Career Development at KAP Antadya Helmiansyah and Yassirli

Abstract

The increasing demand for auditor professionalism in maintaining financial report credibility underscores the need to strengthen auditor competence, work motivation, and career development at Public Accounting Firms (KAP). This study examines the effect of competence and work motivation on auditor performance, with career development as a mediating variable, at KAP Antadya Helmiansyah and Yassirli (KAP AHY), which shows indications of fluctuating auditor performance reflected in variations in audit completion timeliness and working-paper revisions. A quantitative associative-causal approach was applied using a census method covering 31 auditors, analyzed with Partial Least Square (SmartPLS 3) through a bootstrapping procedure of 5,000 subsamples. Results show that competence (β=0.486; p=0.002), work motivation (β=0.353; p=0.003), and career development (β=0.392; p=0.009) positively and significantly affect auditor performance. Competence and work motivation also significantly affect career development (β=0.684 and β=0.506), and career development partially mediates the effects of both competence and work motivation on auditor performance (VAF=35.5% and 36.1%). The model explains 78.9% of the variance in auditor performance (R²=0.789). This study recommends strengthening continuing professional education, performance-based reward systems, and career-path transparency at KAP.