Consulting & Auditing - The complementary competencies of conflicting professionals logics

Auditors aren’t consultants, but in the professional practice, almost every auditor does some advisory work. Nobody really is one, but just about everyone does it. After all, besides assurance (“this is good, this is not”), there is also frequently a demand for consulting activities (“what is possible and what is required”).
Consulting and Auditing nevertheless aren’t an obvious combination. They are different disciplines, each with a rich tradition, with organised and honed rules and logical actions for proper professional practice.
This paper reports - in essay form - on a survey of the equally interesting as complicated relationship between auditing and consulting. To start with, for the purpose of the survey that forms the basis for this opinion, a conceptual exploration was conducted in order to map the scientific and practical research into this field. That formed the basis for the following dialogue in various sessions with auditors who in practice work in the twilight zone between auditing and consulting. The outcome is reflected in this essay, which attempts to give expression to the (developing) professionalism of the auditor who also does consultancy work.