Question

Compare how a company with a manual process of matching a PO, receiving report and vendor invoice would differ from a company that uses Microsoft Dynamics GP or other integrated ERP solution where automated (electronic) matching of a PO, receiving report and vendor invoice occurs. Explain how the audit of the manual and automated systems may differ.

Answer 1

A company that uses an integrated ERP system for automated matching would create a PO electronically, and the purchasing supervisor would approve the PO electronically in the system. When newly-purchased inventory is received, the receiving report is completed online and automatically matched with the PO. When the vendor’s invoice is received, it is scanned into the system or received electronically, and the system’s document imaging system can retrieve the necessary information for matching the invoice with the receiving report and PO. By contrast, a manual matching process is likely to involve more time-consuming manually procedures for comparing paper documents. Auditors of ERP systems must audit with the computer, as the documents and files (and thus the audit trail) within those systems exist electronically.