Financial Accounting
The major objective of financial accounting information systems is to provide relevant
information to individuals and groups out side an organization’s boundaries—e.g., investors,
federal and state tax agencies, and creditors. Accountants achieve these informational
objectives by preparing such financial statements as income statements, balance sheets,
and cash flow statements. Of course, many managers within a company can also use
financial reports for planning, decision-making, and control activities. For example, a
manager in charge of a particular division could use such profitability information to make
decisions about future investments or to control expenses.
Figure 1-7 is an example of a financial accounting audit trail. This trail traces an
organization’s financial accounting cycle, which begins with transaction data (e.g.,
captured at the point of sale) and ends with its periodic financial statements. Accounting
clerks, store cashiers, or even the customers themselves input relevant data into the system,
which stores these data for later use. In financial AISs, the processing function also includes
posting these entries to general and subsidiary ledger accounts and preparing a trial balance
from the general ledger account balances.