Looking Back" Please respond to the following: The AICPA would like for you to deliver a speech at one of its upcoming conferences on the future of accounting information systems. From the first e-Ac

Looking Back"  Please respond to the following:

The AICPA would like for you to deliver a speech at one of its upcoming conferences on the future of accounting information systems. From the first e-Activity, select one conference and formulate the takeaway message  

and key points that you would want your audience to remember from your speech.

After delivering your speech, you have been approached by representatives from Oracle (Oracle Financials) and Microsoft (Microsoft Dynamics) regarding your key points. From the second e-Activity,  

evaluate how your message can be used to enhance their product line and vision.

Week 1 eActivity

Review Strayer University’s last annual report and use other tools to find out more about Strayer’s business model. Be prepared to discuss.

Using the Strayer databases and Internet, select and review a firm that has multiple lines of businesses. For example, review the Washington Post Corporation to see how it is a multiple-line business organization.

Week 2 eActivity

• Using the Strayer databases and Internet, select a corporation whose business processes you will be able to analyze. Be prepared to discuss

HERE IS MY WORK FROM ACTIVITY I AND ACTIVITY II

Activity I

Information plays an essential role for an individual or a firm in undertaking everyday simple or complex activities. In this sense, information acts as the driving force. In the modern world, every firm aims to utilize the scarce available resources to obtain maximum outputs and thus make profits. The success of any firm is mainly based on the decision made by its management. Information plays a crucial role in the decision-making process. The most successful firm started with uncomplicated, simple ideas anchored on the correct information.

According to The Business Dictionary (2018), information is the knowingness of specific stuff that can be transferred from one person to another. In their study, Rocchi & Resca (2018) indicated that information scientists haven’t come up with a standard definition of information. However, for the past fifty years they have proposed the following concepts of information;

A portion of the communication process

A resource

Available data in the surroundings

A representation of awareness

The following characteristics of information have been identified in improving the profitability of a firm;

Exact

For the firm to maximumly benefit from a piece of information, the information must be a true and accurate representation of all the areas affecting an issue. If the information is correct, the firm will make a sound decision, which ultimately leads to success. When information is accurate, it can be retrieved from its natural, and it is usually in written form. For example, a guideline by the state to offer grants for all firms who applies for it in a month. With this information, the firm can maximize its profits by obtaining this grant and improve its production, thus making a profit.

Well-timed

The decision-making process is usually anchored on time. Information must be available to the firm management at the right time to be useful. In the first example given on the government providing grants, the firm must apply within the given time. Late application will lead to automatic disqualification. Obtaining this information at the right time will enable the firm to make the application and benefit from the grants thus making profits

Cost-beneficial

For any firm to make a profit, the output must exceed the inputs. In this sense, the firm must carry out the cost-benefit analysis. This will assist the firm in determining the cost of obtaining information and the benefits associated with having this information. For example, firm A can hire another firm B to carry out a customer survey questionnaire. The cost of hiring company B must be less than the benefits realized from having this customer data for part firm A to make a profit.

Stakeholders and regulators

A firm can only be either private or public. Private firms are owned by its pioneers or private investors, while the general public partially or fully owns public firms. In both private and public firms, there are stakeholders and regulators. Stakeholders are individuals with an interest in the profitability and operations of workers, regulators, managers, and customers. Regulators are individuals or parties, which keeps the firm on track by ensuring that they follow the laid down laws and procedures in their operations. Firms can successfully use the following characteristics of information to meet the needs of the stakeholders and regulators.

User-targeted

The information must target the end-user, thus meeting its purpose. Additionally, the information must contain the right content and be in a format and style, and that is understandable by the end-user. For example, stakeholders need well detailed and well-formatted information while regulators can be presented with concise information

Salient

The information must be relevant to the end-users. The main question here to know if the end-user needs that information. For example, financial data of the firm can be connected and of great importance to the stakeholders but may be of no value to the regulators

Timely

All decisions that are made in the firm are entirely based on time. All information that targets any group must productive group at the right time. For example, stakeholders need to be presented with the firms’ financial statements before the annual meeting. However, the same information can be given to regulators at any time.

In conclusion, information is a central point and acts as a fuel for the success of any firm. All decisions that firms make are usually based on information. Information can be used to both improve the profitability of the firm or be utilized to meet the needs of stakeholders and regulators.

Reference list

Rocchi, P & Resca, A. (2018). The creativity of authors in defining the concept of authors in

defining the concept of information. Journal of Documentation, 74(5), 1074-1103.

The Business Dictionary. (2018). What are the emerging technologies? Definition and meaning.    

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/emerging-technologies.html.    

Activity II  

Tools for Business Analysis

You have been assigned to analyze the accounting information for a Fortune 500 corporation. From the e-Activity, evaluate which tools you would use to analyze its business processes, indicating your rationale.

The organization can be able to conduct business analysis well by the use of different tools for analysis. The commonly used tools are PEST and SWOT, but others such as MoSCow, CATWOE, Heptalysis, SCRS, and MOST.  I prefer SWOT and PEST to be used in many organizations as they are mostly for external environment evaluation and analysis.  PEST tool helps an organization understand how external influences and factors affect the company.  SWOT is an important tool as it is used to help know which internal and external factors are affecting the business and hence know the best action that can be taken (Gurel & Tat, 2017). When the two tools are used, they can focus more on the factors that are externally affecting the business and help analyze them. When allowed to decide the best tool to use, I prefer SWOT as it helps me understand the organization's weaknesses, strengths, threats, and opportunities. By knowing these factors, they can help pick a project or even reject one.

On the other hand, resources, such as accountants, business analysts, and I/T specialists who rely on documentation tools, will need proper training on these tools. You have been given the responsibility of familiarizing your team with these tools. Evaluate which techniques, in terms of their appropriateness, you would use to get your team ready for its first assignment—the evaluation of a firm’s internal control structure.

Every employee in an organization must be in the same understanding. To be able to implement any decision in the organization that is not familiar to everyone, every employee should be trained on it to understand. Failure of employees to understand the organization's expectations can be the source of the company failing; hence it is crucial to ensure everyone in the company is on the right track for the organization benefit.

The organization teams should be ready to evaluate the organization's internal control structure, hence need to know everything about the organization and the operations done there.  The team should know the roles of each employee in the company and how their positions fit in the company operations.  The auditors can be able to create process diagrams and also flow charts that can explain the business processes of the organization (Strelnik, et al., 2017).  By doing so, someone can be able to identify areas along the business process with weak controls.

References

Gürel, E., & Tat, M. (2017). SWOT analysis: a theoretical review. Journal of International Social Research, 10(51).

Strelnik, E., Khairullin, I., Khairullina, K., Usanova, D., & Shafigullina, G. (2017). Key performance indicators in internal control.