FIGURE 1-2 Examples of useful information that an AIS can generate for selected
non-accounting functions of a business.
classifying them. An example might be by taking the raw scores of a class examination and
computing the class average.
Do raw data have to be processed in order to be meaningful? The answer is ‘‘not at
all.’’ Imagine, for example, that you take a test in a class. Which is more important to
you—the average score for the class as a whole (a processed value) or your score (a raw
data value)? Similarly, suppose you own shares of stock in a particular company. Which of
these values would be least important to you: (1) the average price of a stock that was
traded during a given day (a processed value), (2) the price you paid for the shares of stock
(an unprocessed value), or (3) the last price trade of the day (another unprocessed value)?
Raw data are also important because they mark the starting point of an audit trail—
i.e., the path that data follow as they flow through an AIS. In a payroll system, for example,
an employee’s time card for a given pay period indicates how many hours he worked, and
therefore (when combined with his hourly pay rate), his gross pay. An auditor can verify
the information on a paycheck by following the audit trail backwards—for example, to
make sure that the final value reflects the correct payment for the number of hours worked.
Case-in-Point 1.1 At one American university, an employee in the payroll department was
able to steal thousands of dollars by manipulating the payroll records of student workers.
When students quit their jobs, she would delay inputting their termination dates in her
computer, continue to submit time cards in their behalf, and cash the subsequent payroll
checks generated by the system. She was caught when one student complained that his W-2
tax form showed he had earned more money than he had in fact been paid. Auditors then
examined his payroll records and were able to uncover the fraud.1
Despite the potential usefulness of some unprocessed data, most end users need
financial totals, summary statistics, or exception values—i.e., processed data—for
decision-making purposes. Figure 1-3 illustrates a model for this—a three stage process
in which (1) raw and/or stored data serve as the primary inputs, (2) processing tasks
process the data, and (3) meaningful information is the primary output. Modern AISs,
FIGURE 1-2 Examples of useful information that an AIS can generate for selectednon-accounting functions of a business.classifying them. An example might be by taking the raw scores of a class examination andcomputing the class average.Do raw data have to be processed in order to be meaningful? The answer is ‘‘not atall.’’ Imagine, for example, that you take a test in a class. Which is more important toyou—the average score for the class as a whole (a processed value) or your score (a rawdata value)? Similarly, suppose you own shares of stock in a particular company. Which ofthese values would be least important to you: (1) the average price of a stock that wastraded during a given day (a processed value), (2) the price you paid for the shares of stock(an unprocessed value), or (3) the last price trade of the day (another unprocessed value)?Raw data are also important because they mark the starting point of an audit trail—i.e., the path that data follow as they flow through an AIS. In a payroll system, for example,an employee’s time card for a given pay period indicates how many hours he worked, andtherefore (when combined with his hourly pay rate), his gross pay. An auditor can verifythe information on a paycheck by following the audit trail backwards—for example, tomake sure that the final value reflects the correct payment for the number of hours worked.Case-in-Point 1.1 At one American university, an employee in the payroll department wasable to steal thousands of dollars by manipulating the payroll records of student workers.When students quit their jobs, she would delay inputting their termination dates in hercomputer, continue to submit time cards in their behalf, and cash the subsequent payrollchecks generated by the system. She was caught when one student complained that his W-2tax form showed he had earned more money than he had in fact been paid. Auditors thenexamined his payroll records and were able to uncover the fraud.1Despite the potential usefulness of some unprocessed data, most end users needfinancial totals, summary statistics, or exception values—i.e., processed data—fordecision-making purposes. Figure 1-3 illustrates a model for this—a three stage processin which (1) raw and/or stored data serve as the primary inputs, (2) processing tasksprocess the data, and (3) meaningful information is the primary output. Modern AISs,
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