Verified Document

Accounting What Is Accounting Is A Term Essay

Accounting What is Accounting

Accounting is a term which is usually referred to when there is a formalized manner to hold an individual, firm or other organization to account. The process of accounting will usually involves the collection of data that measures or quantifies actions or transactions, to allow for an evaluation or assessment of performance. The most common type of accounting will be used to measure and quantify financial data. A comprehensive definition of accounting is provided by the American Accounting Association, where accounting is defined as "the process of identifying, measuring and communicating economic information to permit informed judgments and decisions by the users of that information" (p.1).

The definition by the American Accounting Association provides for three main activities to be undertaken when accounting takes place; the identification of the relevant information, the measurement of the data and then the communication to those may wish to use the information (Porter and Norton, 2010). It is argued that each of these tasks requires skill and judgment to be completed, which is why accounting practices will usually be undertaken by skills, qualified individuals referred to as accountants.

The first stage is the identification of information that may be needed. To assess what information is needed it is necessary to determine what the accounts will be used for. The use of the accounts may depend on the user. There are two main types of user groups; internal users and external users. To accommodate the needs of the different users, or stakeholders, there are different types of accounts which may be prepared.

The first type of accounts is the accounts which are prepared for the internal users. The internal stakeholders are usually the management of the firm, who may be at different levels,...

Managers will want to have up to data about the firm, for example, the level of production, the current and ongoing costs of different production lines, breakdown of labor costs etc. This is all financial data which is needed to run a firm and ensure that there is effective use of the resources so that the firm can create the desired profit. Managers will need current information, which will help with the decisions made on how the firm is run, giving help with both the planning and the control functions of management (Porter and Norton, 2010). Management accounting is designed to give the managers the information they need. The accountant preparing a management account will prepare the accounts based on what management state they needs, for example it may be on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, and may be for the entire firm, but may also be broken down, such as by department, production line or product/service being sold (Seal et al., 2011). Managers of one department will usually only need to see the accounts for their own department. There are few limits of management accounting; the two main limits are the ability to obtain information, and the cost of obtaining information (Porter and Norton, 2010). Management accounts are likely to hold sensitive data, and will usually remain internal to the firm (Seal et al., 2011). The main benefit of this type of accounting is the ability to provide data to the decision makers in an effective manner and support good decision making. For example, management accounts may show which departments are most profitable, or which have the highest costs, cost accounting may be used to assess the viability of new products (Seal et al., 2011).
The second group of stakeholders is those who are external to the company. The external stakeholders may include, but is not…

Sources used in this document:
References

American Accounting Association, (1965), A Statement of Basic Theory, Evanston, American Accounting Association

Collins, B; McKeith J, (2009), Financial Accounting and Reporting, McGraw-Hill Higher Education

Elliott B, Elliott J, (2012), Financial Accounting and Reporting, London, Prentice Hall.

Porter GA; Norton, CL, (2010), Financial Accounting: The Impact on Decision Makers, South Western Educational Publishing
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Breakeven Point Is a Managerial Accounting Term
Words: 732 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Breakeven point is a managerial accounting term that relates to the point at which the fixed costs are covered (no author, 2013). The breakeven point can be expressed as a dollar value of revenue, or it can be expressed as a number of units (in a simple one-unit firm). There is a breakeven point for services as well as for goods. For a health care institution, the breakeven point should

Accounting Standards and IFRS Adoption in Cambodia and Thailand
Words: 8401 Length: 25 Document Type: Multiple Chapters

Accounting standards and IFRS adoption in Cambodia and Thailand The significance of accounting standards Accounting may be considered as a business language through which the statistical results can be acquired which help in analyzing how well the firm is functioning. They give out timely statements of these statistics and help the stakeholders get all the information they need. Accounting is like a separate language which has its own grammar and these outlines

Accounting Career Choice Accounting Has Become One
Words: 1083 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Accounting Career Choice Accounting has become one of the most popular degree choices in recent years because it can lead to a great deal of careers that can be much more exciting than they may initially sound. The problem for the student who chooses to follow a desire to get into accounting may be that they realize after they have taken a few classes that they will have to choose between

Accounting This Discussion Contains Research Pertaining to
Words: 1089 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Accounting This discussion contains research pertaining to the impact of cash-basis accounting on the distortion of the financial position and operating results of a business. We began our discussion with a definition of cash base analysis. We concluded that this accounting tactic is used to examine cash and cash equivalents. This is done by separating cash flow transaction into one of three activities which include; operating, financing and investing activities. Our investigation then

Accounting Ethics: The Enron Scandal
Words: 1286 Length: 4 Document Type: Research Paper

Loyalty to the client was clearly placed above loyalty to the overall public good and the standards of the profession. "Enron paid Andersen $25 million for its audit…and $27 million for 'consulting' and other services" which meant that Anderson had a substantial financial stake in retaining Enron as a client (Kadlec 2002). The Enron case illustrates the difficulty of self-policing within the industry. Today, providing additional services besides the

Accounting Research in the Past
Words: 525 Length: 2 Document Type: Term Paper

In aaccounting research, the model used would be called analytical modeling, which consists of sstudies that use models with no specific underlying economic theory but use mathematical techniques. The mathematical formulas are applied to test and establish laws and accounting practices. Simulation, or the practice where the analysis is so complex that it requires a computer, is also an example of an inductive accounting practice research methodology. Finally, pragmatic research

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now