B EC 226 Chapter 1

Accounting

information and measurement system that identifies, records, and communicates an organization’s business activities

identifying (accounting function)

select transactions and events

recording (accounting function)

input, measure, and log

communicating (accounting function)

prepare, analyze, and interpret

credit checks, checking accounts, tax forms, and payroll focus on

recordkeeping or bookkeeping

accounting is the language of business because it

communicates data to help making better decisions

financial accounting focuses on

needs of external users

managerial accounting focuses on

needs of internal users

external users

does not directly run organization and have limited access to accounting information

external users examples

lenders, shareholders, external, nonmanagerial, regulators, voters, comntributers, customers

internal users

directly manage organization for unique needs of managerial or executive employees.

internal users examples (all managers of)

purchasing, hr, production, distribution, marketing, service, research and development

oppurtunities in accounting

financial, managerial, taxation, and accounting-related

accounting jobs are for

private, public, and government/non-profit

data analytics

process of analyzing data to identify meaningful relations and trends

descriptive analytics

summarizes and describes events from the past

diagnostic analytics

reveals causes of events from the past

predictive analytics

predicts likely events for the future

prescriptive analytics

creates action plans to achieve a desired future.

cognitive analytics

using AI and machine learning to analyze and understand data in a way that mimics human cognition.

data visualization

graphical presentation of data to help people understand significance.