Question

Reflect on the topics covered in the course this quarter, including inventory valuation and the acquisition, disposition, depreciation, impairments, and depletion of property, plant, equipment, and intangibles. Discuss the potential high risks with which your current employer, a previous employer, or company you would like to work for in the future are confronted related to these accounting issues. (Company names should not be disclosed.) Identify the controls, policies, and procedures established to minimize the risks. Analyze the effectiveness of the controls in place and suggest additional improvements to the controls. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles: Please share your thoughts about generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)

Answer 1

Guidance Note on Audit of Inventories

The Guidance Note deals with procedures of the auditor in respect of audit of inventories. It outlines the peculiar features of inventories, which impact the audit procedures. The following is a gist of the important aspects of audit of inventories covered by the Guidance Note: Internal Control Evaluation:segregation of incompatible functions, standard form for recording movement of inventory, cross checking of data generated by different departments. Verification: management’s responsibility for physical verification, sufficient appropriate audit evidence for existence, ownership and valuation, procedures for verification by auditor. Examination of Records: type of records, extent of auditor’s examination, auditor’s procedures in case of absence or insufficiency of records. Attendance at Stock Taking: need for auditor’s attendance at stock taking, methods and procedures for stock taking, factors to be considered and procedures to be adopted in assessing the adequacy of stock taking, movement of stocks during stock taking, cut off procedures. Confirmation from Third Parties: factors to be seen, confirmations from third parties. Examination of Valuation and Disclosures: basis for valuation of inventories and methods of applying the basis, compliance with Accounting Standard (AS) 2, “Valuation of Inventories”, use of standard costing, examination of the disclosure in financial statements. Analytical Review Procedures: illustrative analytical procedures, comprising mainly of comparison of various elements. Work in Progress: assessing appropriateness of its valuation etc. Management Representations Documentation by the auditor The Guidance Note also gives illustrated set of instructions to be issued by the client to its staff responsible for stock taking, illustrative letter of confirmation of inventories held by others, illustrative letter of confirmation of inventories held by the entity on behalf of others and an illustrative management representation letter for inventories.

An effective internal control structure for inventory includes a company’s plan of organization and all the procedures and actions it takes to:

• Protect its assets against theft and waste.
• Ensure compliance with company policies and federal law.
• Evaluate the performance of all personnel to promote efficient operations.
• Ensure accurate and reliable operating data and accounting reports.

Protect Assets

Companies protect their assets by (1) segregating employee duties, (2) assigning specific duties to each employee, (3) rotating employee job assignments, and (4) using mechanical devices.

Segregation of employee duties Segregation of duties requires that someone other than the employee responsible for safeguarding an asset must maintain the accounting records for that asset. Also, employees share responsibility for related transactions so that one employee’s work serves as a check on the work of other employees.

When a company segregates the duties of employees, it minimizes the probability of an employee being able to steal assets and cover up the theft. For example, an employee could not steal inventory from a company and have the theft go undetected unless someone else changes the inventory records to cover the shortage. To change the records, the employee stealing the inventory must also maintain the inventory records or be in collusion with the employee who maintains the inventory records.

Assignment of specific duties to each employee When the responsibility for a particular work function is assigned to one employee, that employee is accountable for specific tasks. Should a problem occur, the company can quickly identify the responsible employee.

When a company gives each employee specific duties, it can trace lost documents or determine how a particular transaction was recorded. Also, the employee responsible for a given task can provide information about that task. Being responsible for specific duties gives people a sense of pride and importance that usually makes them want to perform to the best of their ability.

Rotation of employee job assignments Some companies rotate job assignments to discourage employees from engaging in long-term schemes to steal from them. Employees realize that if they steal from the company, the next employees assigned to their positions may discover the theft.

Frequently, companies have the policy that all employees must take an annual vacation. This policy also discourages theft because many dishonest schemes collapse when the employee does not attend to the scheme on a daily basis.

Use of mechanical devices Companies use several mechanical devices to help protect their assets. Bar codes scanners make it difficult for employees to steal inventory and alter company documents and records.

Accurate and Reliable Inventory Records

Companies should maintain complete and accurate accounting records. The best method to ensure such accounting records is to hire and train competent and honest individuals. Periodically, supervisors evaluate an employee’s performance to make sure the employee is following company policies. Inaccurate or inadequate accounting records serve as an invitation to theft by dishonest employees because theft can be concealed more easily.

One or more business documents support most accounting transactions. These source documents are an integral part of the internal control structure. For optimal control, source documents should be serially numbered.

Since source documents serve as documentation of business transactions, from time to time firms check the validity of these documents. For example, to review a purchase transaction, they check the documents used to record the transaction against the proper accounting records.

Inventory Management Systems

An inventory management system is a series of procedures, often aided by computer software, that tracks assets progression through inventory. For example, assume a set amount of raw material is acquired by the company. When the company receives that material, the amount should be noted in the inventory management system. As the material is processed into the goods for resale, the amount of raw material used should be deducted from the “raw material inventory” and the amount of goods that result from the process should be added to the “finished goods inventory. ” As each finished item is sold, the “finished goods inventory” should be decreased by that amount.

The benefit of a properly used and maintained inventory management system is that it allows management to be able to know how much inventory it has at any given time.

Physical Inventory Count

Physical inventory counts are a way of ensuring that a company’s inventory management system is accurate and as a check to make sure goods are not being lost or stolen. A detailed physical count of a company’s entire inventory is generally taken prior to the issuance of a company’s balance sheet, to ensure that the company accurately report its inventory levels.

Cycle Counts

Companies usually conduct cycle counts periodically throughout an accounting period as a means to ensure that the information in its inventory management system is correct. To conduct a cycle count, an auditor will select a small subset of inventory, in a specific location, and count it on a specified day. The auditor will then compare the count to the related information in the inventory management system. If the counts match, no further action is taken. If the numbers differ, the auditor will take additional steps to determine why the counts do not match.

Cycle counts contrast with traditional physical inventory in that a full physical inventory may stop operation at a facility while all items are counted at one time. Cycle counts are less disruptive to daily operations, provide an ongoing measure of inventory accuracy and procedure execution, and can be tailored to focus on items with higher value, higher movement volume, or that are critical to business processes. Cycle counting should only be performed in facilities with a high degree of inventory accuracy.

Accounting In The Headlines

What internal controls might have prevented a former Smucker employee from stealing $4.1 million over 16 years?

In October 2014, a former Smucker employee, Mark Kershey, was charged with defrauding the J.M. Smucker Company of more than $4.1 million over a 16 year period.

Kershey was the chief airplane mechanic at the company’s hangar at the Akron-Canton Airport in Ohio from 1990 until he was discharged by Smucker in 2013. From 1997 until he left Smucker, Kershey invoiced Smucker for more than $4.1 million by using a fictitious entity he created. He billed Smucker for nonexistent parts and/or work that he himself actually performed as part of his duties as a salaried employee. Most of these invoices were for less than $10,000, which Kershey himself was authorized to approve. A supervisor to Kershey approved the few invoices that were for more than $10,000 based on his trust in Kershey.

To carry out his false billing scheme, Kershey set up a post office box in Lake Township in Ohio using the fictitious entity name of Aircraft Parts Services Co (APS). He (as APS) would then invoice Smucker using non-sequential invoice numbers, so it looked like APS was invoicing other companies too.

Kershey used the proceeds to purchase and maintain two planes, several automobiles, and to make payments on his house.

Kershey was eventually caught in late 2012 when three checks written by Smucker to APS totaling $44,000 were not cashed. When a Smucker employee questioned Kershey about the APS uncashed checks, Kershey indicated that APS had been sold to another Smucker vendor. The false billing scheme began to unravel and Kershey was fired by Smucker. The Special Assistant United States Attorney has charged Kershey with mail fraud following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Canton, Ohio. Charges were filed in October 2014 and the case is pending.

Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) refer to a common set of accounting principles, standards, and procedures issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). Public companies in the United States must follow GAAP when their accountants compile their financial statements. GAAP is a combination of authoritative standards (set by policy boards) and the commonly accepted ways of recording and reporting accounting information. GAAP aims to improve the clarity, consistency, and comparability of the communication of financial information.

GAAP may be contrasted with pro forma accounting, which is a non-GAAP financial reporting method. Internationally, the equivalent to GAAP in the United States is referred to as international financial reporting standards (IFRS). IFRS is followed in over 120 countries, including those in the European Union (EU).

GAAP helps govern the world of accounting according to general rules and guidelines. It attempts to standardize and regulate the definitions, assumptions, and methods used in accounting across all industries. GAAP covers such topics as revenue recognition, balance sheet classification, and materiality.

The ultimate goal of GAAP is ensure a company's financial statements are complete, consistent, and comparable. This makes it easier for investors to analyze and extract useful information from the company's financial statements, including trend data over a period of time. It also facilitates the comparison of financial information across different companies.

These 10 general concepts can help you remember the main mission of GAAP:

1.) Principle of Regularity

The accountant has adhered to GAAP rules and regulations as a standard.

2.) Principle of Consistency

Accountants commit to applying the same standards throughout the reporting process, from one period to the next, to ensure financial comparability between periods. Accountants are expected to fully disclose and explain the reasons behind any changed or updated standards in the footnotes to the financial statements.

3.) Principle of Sincerity

The accountant strives to provide an accurate and impartial depiction of a company’s financial situation.

4.) Principle of Permanence of Methods

The procedures used in financial reporting should be consistent, allowing comparison of the company's financial information.

5.) Principle of Non-Compensation

Both negatives and positives should be reported with full transparency and without the expectation of debt compensation.

6.) Principle of Prudence

Emphasizing fact-based financial data representation that is not clouded by speculation.

7.) Principle of Continuity

While valuing assets, it should be assumed the business will continue to operate.

8.) Principle of Periodicity

Entries should be distributed across the appropriate periods of time. For example, revenue should be reported in its relevant accounting period.

9.) Principle of Materiality / Good Faith

Accountants must strive to fully disclose all financial data and accounting information in financial reports.

10.) Principle of Utmost Good Faith

Derived from the Latin phrase “uberrimae fidei” used within the insurance industry. It presupposes that parties remain honest in all transactions.

Compliance with GAAP

If a corporation's stock is publicly traded, its financial statements must adhere to rules established by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC requires that publicly traded companies in the U.S. regularly file GAAP-compliant financial statements in order to remain publicly listed on the stock exchanges. GAAP compliance is ensured through an appropriate auditor's opinion, resulting from an external audit by a certified public accounting (CPA) firm.

Although it is not required for non-publicly traded companies, GAAP is viewed favorably by lenders and creditors. Most financial institutions will require annual GAAP compliant financial statements as a part of their debt covenants when issuing business loans. As a result, most companies in the United States do follow GAAP.

If a financial statement is not prepared using GAAP, investors should be cautious. Without GAAP, comparing financial statements of different companies would be extremely difficult, even within the same industry, making an apples-to-apples comparison hard. Some companies may report both GAAP and non-GAAP measures when reporting their financial results. GAAP regulations require that non-GAAP measures be identified in financial statements and other public disclosures, such as press releases.