Marquette University College of Business Administration
Department of Accounting
ACCO 4050/5050 – Accounting Information Systems (Sections 101 & 102) Spring 2015
Instructor: Kevin Rich, Ph.D., CPA, CFE Office Phone: 414-‐288-‐7708
Office: 326 David Straz Hall Email: kevin.rich@marquette.edu Class Location: 554 David Straz Hall
Tuesday/Thursday 8:00 AM – 9:15 AM 9:30 AM – 10:45 AM
Office Hours:
Wednesday: 12:30 PM – 2:30 PM
Tuesday / Thursday: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM or by appointment
Description: This course focuses on identifying and understanding decisions made by persons with economic, stewardship, regulatory, or other interests in an organization, and how to process data and report accounting information to help those persons make their decisions. We will also study the analysis and design of internal control so as to provide assurance that an organization is fulfilling its data collection and information reporting needs.
Prerequisite: Intermediate Accounting (ACCO 3001)
Recommended Text: Customized eBook (ISBN 126948026X) available for purchase directly from Pearson Custom Publishing. This pulls together chapters from a few sources, and is available at:
http://pearsonbluesky.com/#purchaseebook/126948026X
Recommended Movie: Office Space, Directed by Mike Judge, 1999
Website: D2L: D2L.mu.edu/ -‐ for course documents, etc.
College of Business Administration Assessment Statement
The fundamental mission of the College of Business Administration is to provide a quality
education grounded in Catholic, Jesuit intellectual values. Students are expected to learn how to function effectively in a diverse and global economy so that they may develop into ethical and socially responsible global leaders and responsible members of their organizations and
communities. As one of many methods of assuring that the goals of our educational mission are successfully met, the college regularly and systematically engages in the assessment of these competencies.
Students in the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration program are assessed on their ability to reason ethically, communicate effectively, analyze critically, and understand local, national and global business and cultural issues. Students in our MBA programs are also assessed on their competency to communicate effectively, reason ethically and apply critical thinking, as well as their capacity to comprehend the global strategic issues of firms and perform fundamental activities of business managers. Students in our other graduate programs are assessed on specific competencies related to their disciplines.
Assessment takes place each semester in all programs and settings using quantifiable measures; that information is gathered and analyzed information to help continuously improve the
educational process. The College of Business Administration is dedicated to successfully providing a quality education for all students. Assessment is the continuous improvement process of evaluating our success. More information on assessment can be found at (http://www.marquette.edu/assessment/) or in the assurance of learning tabs under http://business.marquette.edu/academics/assurance-‐of-‐learning-‐undergrad or http://business.marquette.edu/academics/assurance-‐of-‐learning-‐graduate
The College of Business Administration’s undergraduate assessment goals are: i. Demonstrate effective communication skills to business situations ii. Analyze the global business environment
iii. Analyze the domestic business environment
iv. Demonstrate critical thinking skills to business situations
v. Demonstrate an ethical understanding and perspective to business situations
Each undergraduate major also has a unique program goal and associated learning outcomes. The Department of Accounting’s Accounting undergraduate major assessment goals are:
i. Apply critical thinking skills
ii. Perform entry level accounting operations
iii. Demonstrate oral and written communication skills iv. Analyze the international environment
v. Analyze ethical issues vi. Utilize technology skills
Department of Accounting Mission Statement
The mission of the Department of Accounting in the College of Business Administration is to prepare students to be responsible, competent and ethical leaders in accounting, business, government and not-‐for-‐profit careers. Marquette’s undergraduate degree in accounting builds upon the liberal arts requirements by emphasizing oral and written communication skills, ethical behavior, analytical reasoning, computer competency, and technical knowledge sufficient for attaining a relevant accounting profession. The Master of Science in Accounting (MSA) degree focuses on: (1) enhancing the student’s knowledge in finance, management, and specific accounting areas, (2) preparing the student for professional examinations (e.g., CPA, CMA, CIA, CPFO), and (3) qualifying students for positions in public, corporate, or government/not-‐for-‐ profit accounting.
We emphasize leadership and service through the internship program and activities of our student chapter of Beta Alpha Psi. Students can meet the 150 hour requirement for certification either through the undergraduate degree (with 150 credit hours), the MSA, or the Master of Business Administration (including courses needed to qualify for the CPA examination). This information is also available at http://business.marquette.edu/departments/accounting.
of 2.500 earned in all College of Business Administration courses taken at Marquette University. Also, a grade of C or higher must be earned in all ACCO courses and in BULA 3001 and 4001.
Daily Class Organization
Class will generally begin with a review of the topics covered from the previous class. This will be followed by the lecture material and in-‐class practice problems when applicable.
Course Objectives & Goals
While many current accounting systems are automated to varying degrees, this course is not primarily designed to teach about technology or programming. However, technology will constitute an integral component of much of what is to be learned about AIS, with the view that technology can be a tool to help meet the end-‐user’s information needs.
This course is quite different from other accounting courses. Many students who excel in other accounting courses may find this course to be extremely challenging and even a bit frustrating. Numbers, rules, and computational skills are of little benefit in learning AIS. This course will exercise skills in logic, analysis, organization, and communication. Although different than other typical accounting courses, rest assured that this course is vital to professional accounting and business success. In fact, this course may help to bridge the concepts learned in other courses, thereby providing a “big picture” view of accounting and business.
My goals for the course, and a mapping to both the College of Business Administration and Department of Accounting assessment goals are a as follows:
Goal Mapping to Assessment Goals of:
College Department
Obtain a general understanding of the role that accounting information plays in the corporate form
where there is a separation of ownership and control. iii., v. i., v. Develop knowledge of how transactions are recorded
within an accounting information system, with particular attention to the details of the revenue, expenditure, and general ledger cycles.
iii. ii.
Refine the ability to document accounting processes, with particular attention to risk identification and
evaluation. i., iv., v. i., iii., v.
Develop an understanding of the basics of internal control from both a general accounting and systems
perspective. iii., iv., v. i., v.
Become familiar with the basics of auditing computer based information systems from a structural and data integrity perspective, and develop a working
understanding of some of the key software packages used in industry.
Grading Policy
Course grades will be determined on an objective basis, using the following measurements:
Midterm Exam #1 100 points
Midterm Exam #2 100 points
Final Exam 100 points
Flowcharting / Internal Controls Project 75 points
Homework & Problem Sets 80 points
SAP Assignments 70 points
Participation and Attitude 25 points
550 points
The tentative grading scale will be based on total points, and at a minimum, will follow the following grading assignment:
93 – 100 A 78 – 82.99 BC 60 – 67.99 D 88 – 92.99 AB 73 – 77.99 C below 60 F 83 – 87.99 B 68 – 72.99 CD
At the end of the semester, I will determine whether to curve the course as a whole when assigning final grades. Although your final grade can impact very serious issues such as financial aid, scholarships, and graduation, I DO NOT change final grades unless I have made some type of mathematical error. Grades are earned, not given. If you have questions about your grade as the semester progresses, please feel free to come by so that we can talk about it. Also note that the grades of CD and D do not apply for graduate students, meaning that any score below 73 will receive a grade of F. Also note that graduate students will be held to a higher standard than undergraduate students if a curve is deemed necessary.
Although your final grade in the course can impact very serious issues such as financial aid and graduation, I DO NOT change final grades unless I have made some type of mathematical error. Grades are earned, not given. My goal is to create an objective grading scale, apply it impartially to all students, and assign grades using the scale. If you have questions about your grade as the term progresses, please feel free to come by so that we can talk about it.
Special Notice for Graduate Students
Graduate students will be required to also complete a set of internal control testing procedures using the Audit Command Language (ACL) software package in a project worth 100 points. This will cause your course grade to be assigned out of 650 points. This project will be due at the final exam (Monday, May 4th), and details are posted to D2L.
Examinations
The exam dates are as follows:
Midterm Exam #1 Tuesday, February 24th
Covers Theory of the Firm through Systems Reliability
Midterm Exam #2 Thursday, April 9th
Covers Revenue Cycle through SAP SD
Final Exam Monday, May 4th 10:30AM – 12:30PM (Section 101)
Tuesday, May 5th 1:00PM – 3:00PM (Section 102)
Covers Entire Course
Note that you must take ALL exams in the section you are registered. Also note if the Office of the Provost cancels classes for any reason during finals week, then you will receive your grade to date at that point.
Flowcharting / Internal Control Team Project
This project requires students to document and evaluate various processes as part of a systems implementation. It is designed to place you in the shoes of management executives that are looking to re-‐design their processes in a way that is efficient and well controlled. The 75-‐point project must be completed in pairs and is due on Thursday, April 23rd.
I recommend that you start this project as soon as possible. You will be exposed to many of the necessary tools well in advance, so there is no need to “start the night before”. All projects are to be handed in at the beginning of class on the due date as listed in the course schedule. Late projects will be assessed a 30% penalty for every 24-‐hour period (or fraction thereof) after the established due date. This is not negotiable.
ACL Final Project
This project requires students to perform tests of the effectiveness of identified internal controls. The Audit Command Language (ACL) software is available on all computers in the DS computer lab, and all procedures for the project must be performed using ACL. Undergraduate students may also voluntarily complete the project for up to 10 points of extra credit. Your amount of extra credit will be based on what your score would have been out of 100 divided by 10 (and dropping the decimal). For example, a project with a score of 87/100 would lead to 8 extra credit points.
SAP Assignments
You will also be required to complete a series of assignments related to SAP. These are designed to a) introduce you to the basics of an integrated enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, b) allow you to get some practice navigating through the system, c) see how internal controls are implemented in an ERP environment, and explore concepts related to data visualization using SAP Lumira. The assignments will be due as listed in the course schedule, and will be worth a total of 70 points. Details are available on D2L.
Other Technology Assignments
You will also be responsible for assignments related to specific techniques in MS Excel and MS Access. The Excel assignment is worth 35 points (due February 5th), while the Access assignment is worth 20 points (due February 12th). These assignments will need to be submitted via the dropbox in D2L, and are due prior to the start of class.
Other Writing Assignments
You will also be responsible for a written assignment based on the Fall of Enron case available in your electronic book that will be worth 15 points, and an in-‐class tests of controls exercise that we will do on the last day of class that will be worth 10 points.
Outside Contact
I encourage you to visit my office hours to address any unresolved questions. I am also very responsive to e-‐mail, which is by far the best way to contact me if I am not in my office. I work to respond to all e-‐mail questions within 24 hours during the business week. I frequently check my e-‐mail on weekends as well, but I can only commit to a response the following Monday.
Attendance, Class Participation, and “For More Information”
Although I give no formal points for coming to class (and do not take attendance unless there is a guest speaker scheduled), class time will be vital to the understanding of the material. Furthermore, your class participation grade will be based on how meaningful a role you play in the course, such as volunteering to answer questions and asking thoughtful questions regarding course material. I will assign a participation score out of 25 points for the semester, with 10 being assigned at the half-‐way point and another 10 at the end of the semester. You will receive a deduction of 2 points from your participation grade for each unexcused absence during a guest speaker. The final 5 participation points will be awarded based on your reading of at least one article highlighted under “For More Information” at the end of many lectures. You can do this at any point up until the start data of the last day of class, and will need to write me an email with a few sentences highlighting the purpose of the article and your takeaways from it.
Special Needs
Please inform me during the first week of class if you have any conditions that may limit or affect your ability to participate in this course so that we can make necessary arrangements. You may also contact the Office of Student Disability Services in the 707 Building (8-‐1645) for more information (see also: http://www.marquette.edu/disability-‐services/).
Emergency Plan
Every Marquette University campus building has emergency shelter and evacuation plans. Please familiarize yourself with the plans of each building in which you take classes or attend meetings. Make sure to note the routes to the lowest level of the buildings for shelter during inclement weather, as well as exits from the buildings in the event of fire or other emergency.
Academic Integrity
Students, faculty, and staff at Marquette University developed a Statement on Academic Integrity that recognizes the importance of integrity, both personal and academic, and includes an Honor Pledge and Honor Code applicable to all. Students are asked to commit to academic integrity through the following honor pledge.
I recognize the importance of personal integrity in all aspects of life and work. I commit myself to truthfulness, honor, and responsibility, by which I earn the respect of others. I support the development of good character, and commit myself to uphold the highest standards of academic integrity as an important aspect of personal integrity. My commitment obliges me to conduct myself according to the Marquette University Honor Code.
Student Obligations Under the Honor Code
1. To fully observe the rules governing exams and assignments regarding resource material, electronic aids, copying, collaborating with others, or engaging in any other behavior that subverts the purpose of the exam or assignment and the directions of the instructor.
2. To turn in work done specifically for the paper or assignment, and not to borrow work either from other students, or from assignments for other courses.
3. To give full and proper credit to sources and references, and to acknowledge the contributions and ideas of others relevant to academic work.
4. To report circumstances that may compromise academic honesty, such as inattentive proctoring or premature posting of answers.
5. To complete individual assignments individually, and neither to accept nor give unauthorized help.
6. To accurately represent their academic achievements, which may include their grade point average, degree, honors, etc., in transcripts, in interviews, in professional organizations, on resumes and in the workplace.
7. To report any observed breaches of this honor code and academic honesty.
Academic dishonesty, which includes cheating dishonest conduct, plagiarism, and collusion, will not be tolerated. I will follow the University’s procedures for incidents of academic dishonesty, which can have severe repercussions. Please review the University’s policies and procedures:
Undergrad: http://bulletin.marquette.edu/undergrad/academicregulations/
Graduate: http://bulletin.marquette.edu/schoolofmanagement/academicregulations/
All written assignments are subject to submission to a plagiarism detection service such as “Turnitin”. Students are required to turn in electronic versions of all assignments.
Other Classroom Policies
Please do your best to avoid entering the classroom late, as this is quite distracting to both the instructor and your fellow classmates. Furthermore, please set your cell phones to vibrate (at a minimum), and refrain from texting during class.
Tues 13-Jan Course Introduction / Theory of the Firm IC over Financial Reporting Handout (D2L) 1
Thurs 15-Jan Enron Scandal Fall of Enron Case (EB) 2
Tues 20-Jan Intro to Business Processes Overview of Transaction
Processing (EB) 3 Enron Case Assignment Due
Thurs 22-Jan Control & AIS Control and AIS (EB) 4
Tues 27-Jan Control & AIS 5
Thurs 29-Jan MS Excel Excel Handout (D2L) 6
Tues 3-Feb MS Excel 7
Thurs 5-Feb Relational Databases / MS Access Accsss Handout (D2L) 8 Excel Assignment Due
Tues 10-Feb MS Access 9
Thurs 12-Feb Systems Reliability IS Controls for Systems Reliability (EB) 10 Access Assignment Due
Tues 17-Feb Systems Reliability 11
Thurs 19-Feb Systems Reliability 12 No formal class due to instructor
travel
Tues 24-Feb M1
Thurs 26-Feb Review Midterm #1Expenditure Cycle Expenditure Cycle (EB) 13
Tues 3-Mar Expenditure Cycle 14
Thurs 5-Mar Expenditure Cycle 15
Tues 17-Mar Intro to SAP / SAP MM Intro to SAP / SAP MM (SAP) 16
Thurs 19-Mar SAP Lumira / Data Visualization 17 SAP MM Assignment Due
Tues 24-Mar Revenue Cycle Revenue Cycle (EB) 18
Thurs 26-Mar Revenue Cycle 19 SAP Lumira Assignment Due
Tues 31-Mar Revenue Cycle / SAP SD SAP SD (SAP) 20
Tues 7-Apr SAP SD* 21 SAP SD Assignment Due
Thurs 9-Apr M2
Tues 14-Apr System Documentation Review Midterm #2 Flowcharting Basics Handout (D2L) 22
Thurs 16-Apr Fraud 23
Tues 21-Apr Auditing Computer-Based Information Systems 24
Thurs 23-Apr General Ledger / XBRL / SAP FI-CO SAP FI/CO (SAP) 25 Flowcharting / IC Project Due
Tues 28-Apr SAP Security* 26 SAP FI/CO Assignment Due
Thurs 30-Apr Tests of Controls 27 Tests of Controls Assignment
Due (In-Class Exercise) Mon
Tues 4-May 5-May
Exam Notes:Midterm #1 covers Theory of the Firm through Systems Reliability
Midterm #2 covers Expenditure Cycle through SAP SD Final Exam covers entire course
* Guest speaker scheduled - class attendence is mandatory Final Exam
Spring Break - No Class
Easter Holiday - No Class
Midterm #2 Midterm #1
