Chapter 5

Introduction to Accounting

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 Learning Objectives
1. Explain the differences between financial accounting and
management accounting.
2. Describe the organizational data related to financial
accounting.
3. Discuss and analyze the key types of master data involved
with financial accounting.
4. Explain and apply basic accounting concepts.
5. Execute key processes in financial accounting.

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 Learning Objectives (Continued)
6. Identify key integration points between financial
accounting and other processes.
7. Prepare reports in financial accounting.

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 Accounting Categories
 The accounting process is divided into two major categories:
 Financial accounting (FI)
 Management accounting (CO)

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FI Accounting vs. CO Accounting

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 Key Financial Accounting Processes
 General ledger accounting
 Accounts receivable accounting
 Accounts payable accounting
 Asset accounting
 Bank ledger accounting

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 Organizational Levels
 Client
 Company code
 Business area

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 Client
 Highest organizational level
 Only one client per enterprise
 Can have one or multiple company codes

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 Company Code
 Highest organizational level for financial reporting (external,
legal reporting)
 Four-digit alphanumeric field
 Smallest entity that supports a full set of books
 General ledger, journals, etc.
 At least one CC is required; can have more than one

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 Multiple Company Codes
One for each legal entity One for each country
 Buick  GBI USA
 Cadillac  GBI Germany
 Oldsmobile  GBI Australia
 Chevrolet  Consolidate to the “parent”
 Hummer company code level
 Saturn
 Saab
 GMC

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 Business Areas
 Internal division to generate financial statements
 GM
 Cars (Sedans)
 Cars (Sports)
 Pick-up
 SUV
 Minivan
 Across Company Codes

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 GBI Business Areas

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 Master Data
 Chart of Accounts
 General Ledger Accounts
 Balance sheet accounts
 Income statement accounts
 Reconciliation accounts
 Subsidiary ledgers (sub ledgers)
 AR(customers)
 AP (vendors)
 Assets

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 Chart of Accounts
 An orderly definition of accounts in the general ledger
 Three types of chart of accounts:
 Operative COA
 Country-specific COA
 Group COA
 Multiple charts of accounts exist
 US (CAUS) , Germany (GKR), Canada (CANA)
 Country specific to meet reporting requirements
 International Chart (INT)

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 Chart of Accounts
 A chart of account can be used by multiple company codes
 Different GM companies (Buick, Cadillac, Oldsmobile) can use
the same (US) chart of accounts
 Saab will use the German chart of accounts
 A company must use at least one chart of account
 Can use more than one chart of account to create alternate
ledgers

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GBI Chart of Accounts and Company
Codes

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 General Ledger Accounts
 G/L accounts are master data
 Recording of all accounting-relevant business transactions
occurs in a G/L account
 Data in the general ledger accounts are segmented by
organizational level
 Chart of account segment
 Company code segment
 General ledger = COA data + Company code data

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 General Ledger Account Data

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 Balance Sheet Accounts

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 Profit and Loss Accounts

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 Demo 3-1: Review Charts of Accounts
 Review the contents of the chart of accounts.

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 G/L Account Example

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 Sub-Ledger and Recon Accounts
Sub ledger Reconciliation
account account
Customer Accounts Receivable
Vendor Accounts Payable
Asset (specific) Assets

Subsidiary or sub-ledgers Reconciliation accounts

 Are not part of the general  Are general ledger accounts
ledger.  Consolidate data in sub-ledger
 Used to separate accounting  Cannot be posted to directly
for customers, vendors, and  Maintain the sum of the postings
assets in corresponding sub-ledgers
 Are specified in the definition of
the sub-ledger

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 Demo 3-2: Review General Ledger
Accounts
 Review the contents of the general ledger.

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 Key Concepts
 Key concepts to financial accounting are:
 Accounting document
 Parallel accounting
 Concepts in Management Accounting

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 Document Type
 Two-digit code that identifies the process that generated the
document
 Financial accounting document (FI)
 Customer invoice (DR)
 Customer payment(DZ)
 Goods issue (WA)
 Goods receipt (WE).
 Determines the document number range and the account
type that can be posted to

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 Account Type
 Customer(D)
 Vendor (K)
 Asset (A)
 Material (M)
 General ledger accounts (S)

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 Structure of a FI Document

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 Posting Keys
 A posting key is a two-digit code that determines how a line
item is posted
 The posting key specifies the following:
 Account type for posting the document item
 Whether the document item is posted as a debit or a credit
 Field status of the additional data

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 Posting Key Examples

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 Demo 3-3: Review an FI Document
 Review the contents of an FI document.

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 Parallel Accounting
 An enterprise can use multiple ledgers
 Multiple “books” for different purposes
 One leading ledger for all company codes
 Global principles are consolidated
 All transactions are posted to it
 Non-leading ledgers for each company (company code)
 Local accounting practices and reporting

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 Parallel Accounting

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Concepts in Management Accounting
 Most of the data used in management accounting are derived
from financial accounting
 A key function of CO is to manage and allocate costs
 Companies incur these costs as they carry out various
business processes such as fulfillment

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 Cost Center
 Master data in controlling
 Location where costs are incurred
 Department, individuals, special projects
 Cost bucket used to accumulate costs
 Accumulated costs are then “charged” to other cost centers – CO
process
 Many processes have “orders”
 Purchase orders, Production orders, Sales orders
 Expenses can be charged to these orders
 Collectively objects that can absorb costs arecalled cost objects

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 Processes
 Recording of value flows ($$) as a result of other processes
and transactions
 General Ledger Accounting
 G/L postings for rent, utilities, wages, etc.
 Accounts Payable Accounting
 Part of the procurement process
 Accounts Receivable Accounting
 Part of the fulfillment process
 Asset Accounting
 Acquisition, depreciation, retirement

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 General Ledger Accounting
 Concerned with recording the financial impact of all process
steps performed within the organization
 Double-entry accounting is used for every transaction
 Accounts are divided into balance sheet accounts and income
(profit and loss) statement accounts

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 Debits and Credits

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 Posting Example 1: Investment in a
Company

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 Posting Example 2: Purchase of
Supplies With Cash

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 Posting Example 3: Purchase of
Supplies On Credit

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 Demo 3-4: Post General Ledger Entries
 Review the posting of general ledger entries.

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 Accounts Payable Accounting
 Concerned with vendors
 Involve sub-ledgers to track money owed to individual
vendors: vendor master
 Involve reconciliation accounts: Accounts payable-
reconciliation
 Recall the non-reconciliation AP account (payables-
miscellaneous) discussed earlier
 Involve GR/IR account (discussed in procurement chapter)

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 Accounts Payable Accounting

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 Demo 3-5: Review Reconciliation and
Non-reconciliation A/P Accounts
 Review the posting of reconciliation and non-reconciliation
accounts payable accounts.

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 Accounts Receivable Accounting
 Concerned with customers
 Involves sub-ledger accounts: customer master
 Involves reconciliations accounts: Accounts receivable –
reconciliation
 Non reconciliation AR accounts also exist (Misce AR)

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 Accounts Receivable Accounting

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 Demo 3-6: Review Reconciliation and
Non-reconciliation A/R Accounts
 Review the posting of reconciliation and non-reconciliation
accounts receivable accounts.

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 Asset Accounting
 Concerned with tracking the financial consequences associated
with the entire lifecycle of an asset, from acquisition to disposal
(retirement).
 Assets can be categorized as tangible, intangible, and financial
 Tangible assets can be further categorized as:
 Fixed assets
 Leased assets
 Assets under construction

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 Asset Accounting
 Assets are assigned to
 company code
 Business area
 Asset accounts
 sub-ledgers accounts
 General ledger
 reconciliation accounts (in the general ledger)
 Involves account determination (via asset classes)

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 GBI Asset Accounts in the GL

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 Asset Accounts and Account
Determination

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 Demo 3-7: Review Asset Classes
and Asset-Related Accounts
 Review the uses of asset classes and asset-related accounts.

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 Asset Acquisition
 Asset acquisition is concerned with acquiring assets via
internal or external processes
 Internal: production process or project systems
 There are three options for purchasing assets externally:
 Purchase from an established vendor without using the
purchasing process (manual entry in GL and sub-ledger; similar
to AP accounting)
 Purchase from an established vendor using the purchasing
process (different GL accounts)
 Purchase from a one-time vendor or a vendor for whom master
data are not maintained (via clearing account).
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Asset Acquisition With a Clearing Account

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 Demo 3-8: Acquire an Asset
 Review how an asset is acquired.

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 Asset Depreciation
 Asset depreciaton is concerned with the decrease in the value
of an asset over time
 Depreciation can be planned or unplanned
 Depreciation methods are used
 Straight line
 Double declining balance
 Useful life
 Residual value
 Book value
 Depreciation areas: parallel valuation
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 Straight Line Depreciation

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Double Declining Balance Depreciation

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 Asset Retirement
 Concerned with the disposal or retirement of an asset after
its useful life
 Retirement may be:
 Revenue generating (sold)
 Non-revenue generating (scrapped)

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 Demo 3-9: Depreciate an Asset
 Review how to depreciate an asset.

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 Integration of Financial Accounting
with Other Processes
 Financial accounting is integrated with other processes in
SAP within the organization (enterprise)
 Numerous steps in different processes have a financial impact

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 Integration of Financial Accounting
with Other Processes

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 Reporting
 Financial reporting is broadly divided into two categories:
 Displaying account information
 Generating financial statements

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 Account Information
 Account information can be displayed at three levels:
 Balance
 Line item
 Original FI document

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 Account Information

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 Demo 3-10: Review Account Information
 Review account information.

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 Asset Explorer
 Asset explorer provides an overview of all activities related
to the asset
 Acquisition data
 Planned and posted depreciation
 Drill down details for:
 Master data
 Transactions
 Documents
 Depreciation posting run

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 Asset Explorer

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 Demo 3-11 Review Asset Explorer
 Review the capabilities of asset explorer.

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 Financial Statements
 Three types
 Balance Sheet
 Income Statement
 Statement of cash flows
 Required for external reporting
 Quarterly filings with the SEC?
 Accuracy is critical – SOX compliance
 Certified by CEO and CFO

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 Financial Statement Version with
Balance Sheet Accounts

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 Financial Statement Version with
Profit and Loss Accounts

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 Demo 3-12: Generate Financial
Statements
 Review the generation of financial statements.

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 Financial Statements Based on
Depreciation Areas

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