Strategic Information System of AIS

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Information System of AIS. Answer: Introduction: This report discusses about the accounting information system to develop the understanding about the AIS system. This report focuses on the different elements of Accounting Information System (AIS). At the same time, it also discusses the internal control system of AIS to control the business operations. The purpose of this report is to analyse the effectiveness of different accounting tools. In this context, Disk4U and Sungate Foods companies are selected for this report. Furthermore, this report recommends suitable accounting software to Disk4U and Sungate Foods. What Disk4U and Sungate Foods does: The Disk4U is a Sydney based company which deals in sale of CDs and Vinyl Records. The company has four business outlets which are spread around the Sydney. The company sells their CDs and Vinyl Records through physical shops, phone orders, emails, and eBay. Apart from this, company records the business transactions and business reports through manual process. On the other hand, there is various business activities performed by the Disk4U such as receiving the customer order, recording of transactions, and maintain the receipts of payments which made for the day today business operations. On the other hand, Sungate Foods is a Victoria based company which deals in the production of rice and Wild rice. During the seasonal peaks the Sungate Foods milling over the 80 tons rice per hours. At the same time, company has three warehouse and 100 employees in the Western Victoria. Further, for the marketing of food products the marketing office of the company is located in Melbourne, Victoria. The company has largest place for the milling facility as 125,000 square feet and company has the 30,000 tons capacity storage warehouse. Apart from this, company also has pollution control equipment which cleans the 240,000 cubic feet air in a minute. There are various business activities which are carried out by the Sungate Foods such as company purchase rice from the 350 farms and after the buying the rice company pack them and sell internationally and globally. Apart from this, the company carried out the various activities to keep and maintain the financial transactions as they recor d all the transactions related to patchwork of ISs and data silos (Maynard, 2013). These type activities consume the employees time and create the errors in the accounting and recording of day-today business transactions. Along with this, for the maintaining the record of business activities and financial transactions employees develops the reports from the patchwork of ISs. Business process in the Disk4U and Sungate Foods: A business process is the set of different activities which helps the organisations to fulfil the business objectives. Along with this, business process is the collection of different structured tasks or activities that helps the organisation in the development of product or services. A business process includes the various processes such as management process, operational and Supportive Process (Jeston and Nelis, 2014). These different business processes takes place in the Disk4U and Sungate Foods which are as follow: Management Process: The management process helps the organization in setting the long-term and short- term goals and objectives of the business organization. At the same time, in this process management sets the vision and mission statement for the business. Along with this, under this process management develops the different business strategies to accomplish the business objectives and achieving the competitive advantages as diversification, cost leadership, and product differentiation strategies (Chang, 2016). Apart from this, management also identifies the customers needs and wants by the market investigation. Operational Process: The operational process helps the organization in development of products and services. Under this process, organization carries out the day-today business operations related to purchase of raw material and this process converts the raw material into finished goods. In this process, business organization focuses on the development of high quality products and reducing the cost of business operations (Brocke and Rosemann, 2014). Furthermore, in this process organisation focuses on the implementation of advanced technology as electronic payment system and inventory management system to get the information about inventory and to make the payment of suppliers and receives payment from the customers. Supportive Process: The supportive process involves the different business activities such as human resource and accounting activities which help the business in getting the success. Along with this, under this business process organization uses the different accounting tools or software to record and construct the financial statements. At the same time, organization focuses on the selection of employees and develops the training and development program for their training (Jeston and Nelis, 2014). Furthermore, under this process organization delegates the role and responsibilities to employees for the management of business activities. Outcomes of different business process: Management process helps the organization in achieving business goals and objectives in short and long term. Along with this, through management process organization can develop the different strategies to fulfil the organizational objectives within specific time. Furthermore, through the use of diversification strategy, company can expand their business in untapped market. At the same time, through the use of cost leadership strategy company can reduces the cost of products and services that helps in achieving the competitive advantages. In addition to this, differentiation strategy helps the company in development of advanced and unique product and services which helps to influence the customers towards the offerings (Daniel et al, 2012). Moreover, Disk4U and Sungate Foods can increase level of customers satisfaction through providing products and services according to their needs. At the same time, through the operational process Disk4U can get the high quality CDs and Vinyl Records from their suppliers and Sungate Foods also can acquire high quality rice from the farmers. This will help both the companies in offering the high quality product and services to customers. Further, through the ERP software both the companies can make the planning about product, inventory management, payment, and marketing of their products (Chang, 2016). The use of this software can help to attract the customers beside company. Along with this, through adopting the supportive process both the companies can keep the companies information confidential. Under the supportive process company maintain their financial records, transaction codes, and other records to keep records and to fulfil all the laws (Brocke and Rosemann, 2014). In addition to this, company hires the qualified and skilled employees that reduce the employee turnover rate. Under this process, company also enhances the performance and productivity of employees through using the different training and development methods. System requirement for Disk4U and Sungate Foods: The business of Disk4U and Sungate Foods has the various requirements related to accounting and business reporting. Disk4U and Sungate Foods have needs to specific software which can helps them to keep record of all the transactions. In context of this, there are various software features which are essential for both the companies to achieve the goals and objectives. Following are the different software features: Accounting and reporting features: There are various accounting and reporting features that are required for the Disk4U and Sungate Foods such as cash inflow and cash out flow statement, profit and loss statement, balance sheet, sales report, capital forecasting and capital budgeting. In this way, it is required that both the companies should purchase the accounting software package which includes these features. Further, accounting software should include the general ledger, account payable, and account receivable options in the package (Quinn, 2012). These features will help the both the companies in the management of business accounts or reports. Tax features: There are different tax features that should be included in the accounting software package of Disk4U and Sungate Foods such as income tax, service tax, VAT, import duties, sales tax, and import duties. These tax features are required for both the companies to maintain their business transactions and to perform accounting functions according to nations laws (Romney et al, 2012). It will also help the company to take effective business decisions. Billing features: The accounting software of both the companies should consider different billing features such as ecommerce, automated transaction and billing, debit/credit card processing, and generate the invoice number. This will help the Disk4U and Sungate Foods in adopting the E-commerce business (Belfo and Trigo, 2013). Along with this, the accounting software also considers the barcode and RFID tracking features that helps both companies in management of inventory. Evaluation of different accounting software: Accounting software is a computer program that comes in use to store and manage the business accounts and accounting operations. Accounting software is used by the organisations to keep the record of daily business transactions. Along with this, accounting software is a systematic classification, interpretation, and verification of financial data. Through the using the accounting software, companies can record and monitor their financial performance. There is different accounting software such as XERO, SAP, Netsuite, and MYOB (Curtis, 2014). The detail of such softwares is as below: XERO: This accounting software is used by the small size business organization and start-ups. This accounting software includes the various functions such as double entry bookkeeping system, account payables and receivables, depreciation on fixed assets, connect to bank accounts, inventory management, and manageent reporting (XERO, 2017). This software does not includes the finacnail forcasting and different financial adjustments. This accounting software allows to suppliers to provide their supply within the nation. SAP ERP: The SAP ERP is an enterprise resource planning software developed by the german company. This software is used by the large and medium size businesses because it is the high end accountg software. The functions of this software includes the financial accoung, financial supply chain management, and management accounting. Further, the functions of this software also includes the different operational and HR business process such as material management, quality management, production and supply cahin managewment, sales and distribution, and production planning (Kurbel, 2013). It also includes the payroll and e-recruiting as human capital management in its functions. On the other hand, is also supports the different languages and currencies. This software can be customized according to business requirements. Netsuite: Netsuite is an Cloud Business Software which is used by small, medium and large size Enterprises. This accounting software includes the various features related to accounting and business reporting such as Autometed reporting, Account receivables and payables, Balance-sheet, invoices, credit card processing, budgeting and forcasts, and tracking. Further, the main functions of Netsuite are Tax accounting, Project accounting, fund accounting, core accounting, billing and invoicing, reporting, and fixed assets (Netsuite, 2017). Along with this, it supports the multi currency and languages which helps to record the transactions according to organisational needs. MYOB: This software is an accounting management solution which is used by medium and large businesses. This accounting software fulfills the requirements of different nations accounting principles and provides the options of multi currencies and languages. It includes the various features such as Billing and Invoicing, Accounting and General ledger, Tax management, Manage customers and suppliers, Payroll management, GST, Account Receivables and payables (Curtis, 2015). It also prepares the accounts, Banking and Sales Tax reports and includes the Human Resource functions. Suitable accounting software for Disk4U and Sungate Foods: Based on above different software, it can be said that SAP ERP accounting software is suitable for the Disk4U and Netsuite for Sungate Foods. It is because Netsuite and SAP ERP software is basically used by medium and large size organisations (Okungbowa, 2015). At the same time, both the softwares include the all the business accounting features which is required for Disk4U and Sungate Foods. Further, Netsuite and SAP ERP software is appropriate for both the companies as it record the transactions in multiple languages and accept the multiple currencies. Comparison of SAP ERP and XERO accounting software packages: On the basis of above information about the SAP ERP and XERO accounting software both the companies can the SAP ERP with XERO. The comparison between SAP ERP and XERO software are as below: The SAP ERP accounting software is developed for the medium and larger size business organization. While, XERO accounting software is for the small size businesses and startups. Functional Scores: The functional areas of XERO are wide as it includes the tax accounting, Billing and Invoicing, reporting, and core accounting. At the same time, stacked bar of SAPs functions are is limited. In addition to this, it can be said that higher staked functional bar does not better as compare to limited staked bar software (Software insider, 2017). The higher staked bar is indicates that XERO include the various features in its accounting software. The scope of XERO accounting software is narrow while the scope of SAP accounting software is wide. The scope of XERO accounting software includes the Agriculture industry, construction, engineering and manufacturing, healthcare, retail, real estate, and automotive industry. While the scope of SAP accounting software includes the retail industry, transportation, logistics, medical, financial and banking, telecommunication, entertainment, defence, and aerospace industry. Further, XERO accounting software includes the various features such as Inventory and Invoicing, Payroll, Purchase order, Mobile apps, financial reporting, Receive bills electronically, and multi currency (Trust radius, 2016). On the other hand, SAP software includes the Core Finance, Core, Human Resources, Procure to pay, Order to cash, and Plan to product. Accounting and reporting features: XERO accounting software includes the different types of core accounting features as Drill Down, Time and Expense Management, Account payable, Account receivable, Multi-Currency, General ledger, and Audit Trail. Whereas SAP includes the Multi-Currency, Multi-Language, Account payable, Account receivable, Time and Expense management. On the other hand, XERO software package involves the different reporting features such as Depreciation, Balance-Sheet, and Cash flow statement, Profit and Loss Statement, Custom Report, Budgeting and Forecasts (Finances online, 2016). While SAP software package includes the Sales Report, Sales Tax Report, Budgeting and Forecasts, Balance-Sheet, Profit and Loss statement, Cash flow statement, Custom Report. Tax and Fixed asset features: The XERO software package includes the two different types Tax such as VAT and 1099 Support whereas SAP package includes the multiple sales tax features. At the same time, the XERO accounting software includes the various fixed asset features such as Split Assets, Depreciation tracking, Barcode tracking, and RFID tracking (Software insider, 2017). Along with this, SAP software package also includes same asset features which involved in the XERO software. XERO accounting software package includes the various billing and invoicing features as Invoices, E-Commerce, Contact Management, Automated Billing and transactions, Credit card Processing, and Check Printing (Kale, 2014). Apart from this, the SAP includes only two billing and invoicing features such as Invoices and Purchase order. The XERO accounting software package provides their services through different channels as Forums, Instructional Videos, 24/7, Blog, Email, and Webinars. On the other hand, SAP accounting package provides their services via live chat, 24/7, Phone, and Emails (Software insider, 2017). Along with this, the services of XERO are available in different countries such as United States, Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Singapore while SAP ERP is also available in the United States and Australia. Selection of Vendor: Vendor for Disk4U: On the basis of above analysis, it can be said that Disk4U can select the SAP ERP accounting software to improve their accounting and business reporting operations. It is because; SAP ERP accounting software is beneficial for Disk4U as it includes the wide range features in comparison of other accounting software packages. The main cause of selecting this vendor or software is that it covers the different sector industry as Information technology, Aerospace, Retail, banking and Financial, telecommunications, Medical, and internet industry. Furthermore, it includes the different kind of core accounting and reporting features as Budgeting and Forecasts, Cash flow statements, Balance-sheet, Profit and Loss statements, Custom reports, Sales Report, sales tax reports, Multi currency, Account receivables, and Account payables, and Audit trail (Granlund, 2011). Further, this software involves the features of Supply chain management, social media, Human resources, manufacturing and procureme nt. Another reason of selecting the SAP ERP software is that it is mainly for medium and large size organisations. At the same time, SAP ERP accounting software includes the various support system that can help in providing better customer services as live chat, phone, 24/7, and Email. Further, SAP ERP vendors provide the facility of Barcode/RFID Tracking that can helps the Disk4U in the management of inventory (SAP, 2016). This can help company in maintain the record of inventory and business transactions. Vendor for Sungate Foods: Further, it can be said that Sungate Foods should select the Netsuite vendor to maintain companys operations areas of accounting and business reporting. This accounting software vender is beneficial for the Sungate Foods as it provides the flexibility to meet all the business requirements. The vender offer the various features in its software as customer relationship management, Enterprise resources planning, E-commerce, and it is suitable for B2C and B2C e-commerce platform, human resource management (Netsuite, 2017). Along with this, the main cause of selecting this Netsuite vendor is that it covers the manufacturing and retail sector industries and Sungate deals in these industries. Furthermore, Netsuite software accounting package involves the various functionality modules as Account receivables and payables, budgeting and financial planning, fixed asset and human capital management, general ledger, inventory and supply chain management, purchasing, and expense reporting (Romney et al, 2012). These different features will help the Sungate Foods in inventory management and recording the business transactions. Conclusion: From the above report, it can be concluded that both the companies are involved in the three different business processes such as management process, operational prcess, and supportive process. Along with this, it can be concluded that there are different kind of accounting and reporting software packages such as XERO, SAP ERP, NetSuite, and MYOB which covers the different sector industries. Further, on basis features and functions of software package, SAP ERP software package is appropriate for Disk4U and NetSuite for Sungate Foods. 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