Riordan

Accounting systems

The accounting system Riordian uses is part of the ERP/MRP system and accesses this information with middle ware like the Microsoft Great Plains or Intuit QuickBooks. There are many other application software and plug-in modules to access the data contained within the ERP/MRP business system. This middle-ware software provides the accountants with a user-friendly interface, either by a web-based graphical interface (GUI) or by some form of client/server program (Mohamed, 2007).

Advantages with this accounting system are the ability to access data remotely from the manufacturing plants and offices. With this data, various financial reports are generated as needed and provide documentation for federally submitted reports (IE 10K Securities Exchange Commission). Common reports necessary for a business are the Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss Statement and Cash-Flow Statements. Cash-Flow statements have two variations, one is a projected report used for enticing investors and an actual version, which can be used to show trending. The ERP/MRP system houses information necessary to complete these and other reports. Areas like (a) Customer Orders, (b) Raw material purchases, (c) Sales, (d) Asset evaluation, (e) Shipping, (f) Taxes, and (g) other areas depending on type of business.

Other features with the use of the middle-ware are additional reporting capabilities. Many vendors supply canned and customizable reports that are tailored to the needs of the business. Reports like Customers whom decreased their orders in the last month (MVI, 2006). Alternatively, when a customer receives their order, the system sends a survey to query key areas the company wishes to improve. Additional features in many software products include a dashboard that gives executives direct access to report generation engines within these systems. The main advantage in this is the access to real-time information. Choosing a Microsoft product also ensures the integration with...