Although the Albertan government’s initial intention to reform public administration created a potential space for the involvement of the Office of the Auditor General, the latter had to overcome important obstacles to occupy this jurisdictional space. Constructing expertise took place in a climate of scepticism and self-doubt. Further, the Office’s actions should not be conceived as thoroughly planned – as if the Office had developed a detailed strategy to become recognized as central in performance measurement. Its involvement in the area was made possible when politicians started to push for a “new approach to government” (Government of Alberta, 1993). The involvement of the Office also necessitated the existence of an Office with sufficient resources to explore and experiment with its potential roles in that new approach. Office auditors also needed to develop an interest in being involved in performance measurement – an involvement whose specific nature was then unknown to them. Other changes, seemingly trivial at the time, took on a significance in the production of audit expertise. For example, the Office decided to adopt a more open style in its relationship with government departments and to stress what public servants would see as a helpful rather than negative attitude.