The release of the independent tribunal report into the misconduct of KPMG and five of its former employees for falsifying information in the audits of Carillion and Regenersis provides further details about how the work was doctored—but not why.

The report, published Tuesday by the U.K. Financial Reporting Council (FRC), is also meant to spell out how the regulator reaches enforcement decisions and disciplines noncompliance, but the sanctions against the firm compared to its employees seem notably disproportionate.

Neil Hodge is a freelance business journalist and photographer based in Nottingham, United Kingdom. He writes on insurance and risk management, corporate governance, internal audit, compliance, and legal...