...MEANING OF ACCOUNTING: Accounting is famously known as the "language of business". Through the financial statements, the end-product reports in accounting, it delivers information to different users. Accounting is a means through which information about a business entity is communicated. Accounting Definition: Technical definitions of accounting have been published by different accounting bodies. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) defines accounting as: "the art of recording, classifying, and summarizing in a significant manner and in terms of money, transactions and events which are, in part at least of financial character, and interpreting the results thereof." To further understand what accounting is, we must take a look at the different definitions. Accounting as a Science: Accounting is the process of identifying, measuring, and communicating economic information to permit informed judgment and decisions by users of information. Accounting as an Art: Accounting is the art of recording (journalizing), classifying (posting to the ledger), summarizing in a significant manner and in terms of money, transactions and events which are, in part, at least of a financial character, and interpreting the results thereof to interested users. Accounting as an Information System: Accounting is a service activity, which functions to provide quantitative information, primarily financial in nature, about economic entities that is intended to be useful...
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...CHAPTER 1 ACCOUNTING: INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKING OVERVIEW OF BRIEF EXERCISES, EXERCISES AND CRITICAL THINKING CASES Brief Exercises B. Ex. 1.1 B. Ex. 1.2 B. Ex. 1.3 B. Ex. 1.4 B. Ex. 1.5 B. Ex. 1.6 B. Ex. 1.7 B. Ex. 1.8 B. Ex. 1.9 B. Ex. 1.10 Learning Objectives 1, 3, 5 2,5 3,4 5,6 1, 3, 5, 6 5, 6 2, 5, 6 7, 8 5, 7 1 Topic Users of accounting information Components of internal control Inexact or approximate measures Standards for the preparation of accounting information FASB conceptual framework PCAOB COSO Professional certifications in accounting AICPA code of professional conduct Personal benefits of accounting skills Skills Analysis Analysis Analysis, judgment Analysis Analysis Analysis, research Analysis, ethics Analysis Analysis, ethics Analysis Exercises 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 Topic You as a user of accounting information Real World: Boeing Company, California Public Employees Retirement System, China Airlines Users of accounting information What is financial reporting? Generally accepted accounting principles Accounting organizations Investment return Accounting terminology Accounting organizations Financial and management accounting Management accounting information Accounting organizations Purpose of an audit Audits of financial statements Ethics and professional judgment Careers in accounting Home Depot, Inc. general information Learning Objectives Skills 1 Analysis, judgment 3, 4 Analysis, research ...
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...4.1 Audit objective relating to database access is verify that database access authority and privileges are granted to users in accordance with their legitimate needs. Audit procedures for testing data access controls are: Responsibility for authority tables and subschemas. The auditor should verify that database administration personnel retain exclusive responsibility for creating authority tables and designing user views. Evidence may come from three sources: (1) by reviewing company policy and job descriptions, which specify these technical responsibilities; (2) by examining programmer authority tables for access privileges to data definition language commands; and (3) through personal interviews with programmers and DBA personnel. Appropriate access authority. The auditor can select a sample of users and verify that their access privileges stored in the authority table are consistent with their job descriptions organizational levels. Biometric controls. The auditor should evaluate the costs and benefits of biometric controls. Generally, these would be most appropriate where highly sensitive data are accessed by a very limited number of users. Inference controls. The auditor should verify that database query controls exist to prevent unauthorized access via inference. The auditor can test controls by simulating access by a sample of users and attempting to retrieve unauthorized data via inference queries. Encryption controls. The auditor should verify that sensitive data, such...
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...9/02/2015 YOUR JOURNEY INTO ACCOUNTING CHAPTER 1 Decision making and the role of accounting • Accountants – Not just ‘bean counters’ or ‘number crunchers’ – Varied and interesting work in a variety of roles – More focus on analytical and communication skills • Non-accountants PowerPoint Presentation by Phil Johnson ©2015 John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. Outline the dynamic environment in which accountants work Discuss the nature of decisions and the decision-making process Outline the range of economic decisions made in the marketplace Explain the nature of accounting and its main functions Identify the potential users of accounting information Apply information to make basic economic decisions Describe the role of accounting information in the decision-making process Compare accounting information for management and external users Summarise how the accounting profession is organised in Australia Identify the different areas of the economy in which accountants work Identify the importance of ethics in business and accounting and how to recognise and handle ethical dilemmas as part of the decision-making process. YOUR JOURNEY INTO ACCOUNTING • Accounting – Not ‘boring’ (mostly!) – Much more than just bookkeeping – Dynamic environment – The language of business • If you don’t have some understanding, you’re not in the conversation – Benefits of basic understanding ...
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...is fundamental that the accounts are correct, well kept and provide the essential financial information in order for a business to see what sort of financial position it is in and for directors or people who run the business to make important financial decisions to ensure the survival of a business. The function of accounting allows a company to keep records of all its financial history and allows the organisation make decisions based on the information. A well known definition of accounting is ‘The process of indentifying, measuring, and communicating economics information to permit informed judgements and decisions by users of the information’ (Wood, 2008, p.332). It is all based around the provision of financial information about a business entity to the financial decision makers of the business. It is also a legal requirement for businesses especially private limited and public limited companies to provide precise figures in their books and accounts in order to prove they are not committing fraud. Therefore the role of the accountant is highly significant and businesses must ensure they employ adept accountants to keep the day-to-day running of a business’s finances, accounts and books in good upkeep regardless of how good or bad the state of affairs in the organisation are. It is also important to remember that accountants do more than just provide the correct financial information but they are also an important tool in advising directors and members of the organisation with...
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...The aim of this report is to highlight whether it is practicable to report prospective financial information in company financial statements and as well as to provide several recommendations. The sections of this report consist of six sections which are mainly why having financial reporting is not enough, going beyond historical financial reporting, qualitative characteristics of prospective financial information, uncertainties underpinning prospective financial information, other recommendation and conclusion. Why financial reporting is not enough The “Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements’ the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) stated that the purpose of financial statements is to provide users information about the entity’s financial position, performance and changes to its financial position and financial statements show the financial effects of historical events and do not provide non-financial information. [5] Hence, both internal and external users need both historical and forward-looking information in order to make better financial decisions. Internal users like the Management can use forward-looking information to analyse out an adequate valuation on whether to increase, hold or sell their investment. Likewise, external users like investors who want reasonable return on their investment can use forward-looking information to evaluate the sustainability of future entity performance and analysing the feasibility of investing...
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...is to enhance the degree of confidence of intended users in the financial statements. The general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person, organization, system, process, enterprise, project or product. The term most commonly refers to audits in accounting, but similar concepts also exist in project management, quality management, and energy conservation. Financial audits are typically performed by firms of practising accountants who are experts in financial reporting. The financial audit is one of many assurance functions provided by accounting firms. Many organizations separately employ or hire internal auditors, who do not attest to financial reports but focus mainly on the internal controls of the organization. External auditors may choose to place limited reliance on the work of internal auditors. Internationally, the International Standards on Auditing (ISA) issued by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) is considered as the benchmark for audit process. Almost all jurisdictions require auditors to follow the ISA or a local variation of the ISA. Auditing was developed by L. Ron Hubbard, and is described by the Church of Scientology as "spiritual counseling which is the central practice of Dianetics and Scientology". The auditor's report is a formal opinion, or disclaimer thereof, issued by either an internal auditor or an independent external auditor as a result of an internal or...
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...Financial Statements In accounting there are four basic financial statements that are considered standard practice by the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). These are the income statement, the retained earnings statement, the balance sheet and the statement of cash flows. While each of these reports is very important in its own regard, they are also intermingled and depend on each other to represent a complete unbiased view of an organizations financial situation. The income statement reports revenues and expenditures for the given period of time. This report is important because it will show net income or net loss for a given period of time. However, not all monies received are considered revenue and not all monies put out are considered expenditures. For example money received from selling or issuing stocks are not considered revenue. The same holds true for dividends, they are not considered expenditures. This period of time can vary from organization to organization. Most reports are shown on a quarterly and annual basis. When the income statement is properly prepared will produce the company's net income. This amount is then transferred to the retained earnings statement. The retained earnings statement shows the income that is retained by the organization. This report not only shows changes but also the reason for said changes. This allows all interested parties to see and understand if there is a significant variation from the previous report. This...
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...of Accounting Information Systems Chapter 1 The Information System: An Accountant’s Perspective 3 Introduction to Transaction Processing 31 Ethics, Fraud, and Internal Control 91 Chapter 2 I Chapter 3 1 CHAPTER The Information System: An Accountant’s Perspective nlike many other accounting subjects, such as intermediate accounting, accounting information systems (AIS) lacks a well-defined body of knowledge. Much controversy exists among college faculty as to what should and should not be covered in the AIS course. To some extent, however, the controversy is being resolved through legislation. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002 established new corporate governance regulations and standards for public companies registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This wide-sweeping legislation impacts public companies, their management, and their auditors. Of particular importance to AIS students is the impact of SOX on internal control standards and related auditing procedures. Whereas SOX does not define the entire content of the AIS course, it does identify critical areas of study that need to be included for accountants. These topics and more are covered in the chapters of this text. The purpose of this chapter is to place the subject of AIS in perspective for accountants. Toward this end, the chapter is divided into three major sections, each dealing with a different aspect of information systems. The first section explores the information environment...
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...Running Head: FINANCIAL STRUCTURE AND STATEMENTS Importance of Financial Structure and Statements [Student Name] [Course Title] [Instructor] [Date] Importance of Financial Structure and Statements Introduction This essay discusses the role of financial structures on the profitability and stability of companies and the role of financial statements prepared using historical cost convention and accruals concept in the decision making process. Both aspects of companies discussed here are of much importance as they directly affect companies, their financial condition and the representation of facts to the relevant users. The financial structure of a company reflects various sources the company has used to finance its operations. The financial statements provide vital information to users such as shareholders, managers, banks, tax authorities and research analysts to make important decisions. Financial Structure The financial structure of a firm is the way the assets and operations are financed. A company employs various modes of financing to acquire assets and support its operations. The financial structure includes components such as short term liabilities, long term debt and shareholders’ equity. Financial structure is different from capital structure as the capital structure only includes long term debt and shareholders’ equity and ignores short term liabilities. More successful companies focus more on financial structure rather than capital structure...
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...interests of the users of information may be different from that of the interests of those responsible for providing information. True False 2. A financial statement audit is a systematic process of objectively obtaining and evaluating evidence. True False True False True False True False 3. Auditors should conduct their work with an attitude of professional skepticism. 4. A bank using Milton Company's financial statements to determine the creditworthiness of a potential loan to Milton is a good example of the need for unbiased reporting. 5. An integrated audit requires the auditor to assess the effectiveness of internal controls. 6. In all states, a CPA must have completed at least 150 hours of college semester hours to receive their license. True False 7. The Center for Audit Quality was started by the International Federation of Accountants. True False 8. The Center for Audit Quality has the primary authority to set auditing standards. True False 9. In an audit, management is considered the “client”. True False 10. Auditing is the process of attesting to assertions about economic actions and events. True False 11. Auditing is the process of verifying the accuracy of the financial statements. True False 12. Internal auditing only provides...
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...Principles June 28, 2014 Business Risk and Auditing In the eyes of the average person auditing is a very black and white business as is all aspects of accounting. However, neither of these are as cut-and-dry as people would like to think. Auditors, as many people assume, are not always looking for fraud. Their main purpose in auditing is to ensure the financial statements comply with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Auditing is as much for external users as it is for internal users. It is important for internal users because they can ensure they are complying with many of the GAAP laws. For external users auditing allows them to make educated decisions on which companies to invest in and they can see both business risk and audit risk. For any given auditing firm they will evaluate a potential client before actually committing to doing an audit. Auditors are looking at business risk and are always aware of audit risk. These two terms are glaringly different and yet go hand-in-hand for auditors. Many people think that business and audit risk are all about fraud, however, audit risk is more about legally protecting the auditing firm and the CPA’s while business risk is about protecting people that may invest or lend money to a business. Fraud is not actually a large part of auditing because auditing is looking at internal controls, and if a company has strong internal controls they are less likely to have fraud. Business risk is that a company will have lower than...
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...Introduction Accounting provides companies with various pieces of information regarding business operations. It is often conducted by a company’s internal accounting department and reviewed by a public accounting firm. Small businesses often have significantly less financial information recorded during the accounting process. However, business owners often review this financial information to determine how well their business is operating. Accounting information can also provide insight on growing or expanding current business operations. A common use of accounting information is measuring the performance of various business operations. While financial statements are the classic accounting information tool used to assess business operations, business owners may conduct a more thorough analysis of this information when reviewing business operations. Financial ratios use the accounting information reported on financial statements and break it down into leading indicators. These indicators can be compared to other companies in the business environment or an industry standard. This helps business owners understand how well their companies operate compared to other established businesses. Business owners often use accounting information to create budgets for their companies. Historical financial accounting information provides business owners with a detailed analysis of how their companies have spent money on certain business functions. Business owners often take this accounting information...
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...Accounting for Software Development Costs Applying SOP 98–1 Paul Flanagan Principal Consultant 1552 Lakeport Court, Virginia Beach, VA 23464 Tel: 757-373-1454 / Fax: 810-885-5312 / pflanagan@christophertechnology.com www.christophertechnology.com Disclaimer The author of this report is neither a Certified Public Accountant nor an Attorney. This report should not be construed as providing either financial accounting advice or legal advice. This report represents the views of a senior information technology executive who has significant experience in the application of these accounting guidelines in the real world of business operations. Because applying these concepts depends upon the exact circumstances of your enterprise, this report shows only guidelines which have operated successfully elsewhere, but may not be precisely applicable to your situation. For all accounting or legal advice, please consult a licensed practitioner familiar with your unique situation. Accounting for Software Development Costs Table of Contents Table of Contents Introduction................................................................................................................................... 1 Payoff.......................................................................................................................................... 1 General Applicability..............................................................................................................
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...a company are also involved, in order to measure and discover the legality of the business's transactions operations, tax reporting, and thorough handling of finances. To be blunt, audits test the financial legitimacy claimed by a business entity. According to R. Gene Brown’s “Changing Audit Objectives and Techniques”, (The Accounting Review, Vol. 37, No. 4), reviewing the history of auditing helps to provide a basis for analyzing and interpreting the changes which have occured in audit objectives and procedures over the years. Fundamentally, this review shows a recent significant correlation between expanded reliance on internal controls and a decrease in detailed testing. The future of auditing will probably consist primarily of a procedural or systematic review, with the analysis of effectiveness of internal controls providing the major basis for the procedural evaluation. Various arguments seem to support this view as follows: ⁃ “Rising costs in public accounting and the consequent additional emphasis on economy and effectiveness.” ⁃ “Requests received by the auditor from management, owners, and other parties-at-interest for additional information.” ⁃ “The increased complexity of the business enterprise resulting in...
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