This book investigates the tension between performance-oriented auditing and traditional compliance-based oversight within national audit institutions. The authors, a team of international researchers, utilize a comparative framework to examine how audit offices in five distinct nations navigate the shift toward performance management. By analyzing the institutional practices and strategic choices of these offices, the text evaluates the effectiveness and methodological challenges inherent in modern public sector auditing.

Experts identify this work as a foundational comparative study for students and practitioners of public management. Readers frequently note the academic rigor of the cross-national analysis and its utility in understanding the evolution of audit practices.