Premium Essay

Recommendation for an Internal Accountant

In:

Submitted By greywolfblu21
Words 508
Pages 3
Recommendation for an Internal Accountant

University of Phoenix
ACC/544
Facilitator: Michael Meyer
June 6, 2011

Recommendation for an Internal Accountant Internal Auditing is an independent, objective assurance and consulting activity designed to add value and improve an organization’s operations (What is internal auditing?, 2010). Internal accounting control is a series of procedures designed to promote and protect sound management practices, both general and financial that will increase the likelihood that: * Financial information is reliable, so that managers and the board can depend on accurate information to make programmatic and other decisions * Assets and records of the organization are not stolen, misused, or accidentally destroyed * The organizations policies are followed * And government regulations are met (Internal Accounting, 2011).
It is important to have an internal accountant available to help instill these controls and ensure compliance with Generally Accepted Principles.
Internal Accountants Management accountants and internal auditors are both imperative to a company to help with internal controls. Management accountants study and interpret business numbers, and decide on how money should be spent and advise management on key business decisions (Career: Management Accountants and Internal Auditors, 2011). Internal auditors check the records of management accountants to make sure they are accurate and that the controls are in place to protect against fraud and waste (Career: Management Accountants and Internal Auditors, 2011).
Internal Auditor The internal auditor recommended should have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related field. This person should also have experience in information technology, environment and compliance if possible. The perfect candidate should also have prior

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant 1 Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Kelsy Fee ACC/544 April 13, 2015 Professor La Ron Roach Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant 2 In this recommendation brief the benefits of hiring an internal accountant will be discussed. Having an internal accountant would help fix an out-of-control system and the justification of taking advantage of one will be included in this brief. Along with those two items the brief will also explain how the background of a referred internal accountant benefits the client. Before discussing the benefits of hiring an internal accountant let us define what an internal accountant does. According to University of Phoenix Risk from the CEO and Board Perspective (2004), internal auditor responsibilities include risk management and control systems. They are expected to help management by handling issues that may arise and perform system audits to uphold the internal responsibilities. An internal auditor will evaluate the company’s performance and make sure they are not violating any laws or regulations. Policies and procedures will also be reviewed and made sure that they are in line with the mission and goals of the company ("The Benefits Of The Internal Audit", 2015). The benefits of hiring an internal accountant include the following: the protection of company assets, increasing the value of the company by improving performance and providing...

Words: 658 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Every business needs proper and adequate internal control to ensure success of the company. Internal control reduces the risk of financial fraud and financial misstatement. When a company has an out of control system, it is recommended to hire an internal auditor to perform internal audit. This report will briefly explain the benefit of using internal auditor and how the qualifications and background of the internal auditor will benefit the company. Benefit of Internal Auditor Internal auditing is designed to improve an organization’s operations. The opportunities of internal auditing within an organization involve effectiveness of operations, protection of assets, detecting and investigating error and fraud, consistency of financial reporting, and compliance with the laws and regulations. Internal auditors must be hired by the company to perform the internal auditing activity such as this. Internal audit highlights problems such as risk of lawsuit and company loss, in which it allows to correct any mistakes in a right time. Internal audit also make sure that the company policy are well organized and efficiently and effectively running. They review and evaluate company’s information systems and internal controls to verify if financial records are accurate and reliable. With adequate internal controls, internal auditors are confident enough that financial misstatement are prevented and detected on a timely basis. The scope...

Words: 464 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Lisa Tucker ACC 544 April 8, 2013 Fred Johnston Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant A client has an out-of-control system that is in need of change to get it back into control. Internal controls are an important part of a company. The role of internal controls is to keep mistakes from occurring as much as possible. It also aids in preventing individuals from being dishonest. The system the client is using is out-of-control and it is highly recommended that the company hire an internal accountant. The internal can provide information to managers to limit any problems and audit the system internally. Implementing internal audits will help build credibility within the company and keep violations from occurring that would violate laws and regulations. An internal auditor would work with management and owners to analyze important areas of the company’s performance. These areas that would be analyzed would include assets, accuracy of financial information, and ensuring that government and industry standards and regulations are being followed. Another point that the internal auditor would confirm is that the policies and procedures are aligned with the company’s goals. An internal auditor would add security and be an asset to the company. The first step an internal auditor would initiate would develop a plan to evaluate the current control system that is in place. Any deficiencies...

Words: 740 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Auditors are hired to look beyond the apparent and find the true underlying of an organization, either good or bad. Currently Customer XYZ has an out-of-control system and hiring an internal auditor can help to remedy the issue. Auditors are beneficial because they are subject matter experts on multiple levels. According to Louwers, Ramsay, Sinason, and Strawser (2007), auditors must not only have a substantial knowledge of accounting rules but also play the roles of business advisor, industry expert, and detective. The accounting aspect of the auditor position entails the individual being able to ensure the client records complex transitions correctly (Louwers et al. 2007). As the business advisor the auditor can help clients establish strong internal control within the organization (Louwers et al. 2007). As the industry expert the auditor can help ensure that employees and members of management understand the environment in which the organization is operating (Louwers et al. 2007). The detective piece means that the auditor is making sure that clients are not trying fool the auditors or others through fraudulent reporting (Louwers et al. 2007). When company XYZ is looking to hire an internal auditor a number of factors should be considered so that the right person for the job and organization is hired. Management within Company XYZ will want to closely examine the company’s culture and hire a person that will align with the culture...

Words: 361 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant

...Recommendations for an Internal Auditor Employees in a business must understand the organizational culture. Internal auditors, especially must understand the culture and all the attributes to the organization. The auditor must understand all employees and the organization’s operation and financial process. “Effective internal auditors must be excellent listeners, accurate translators of information, convincing presenters and credible reporters” (Chambers, 2010). While working with management the auditor will need to establish a plan of action to evaluate the design of the controls old and new and their effectiveness. Tests are run to discover whether the controls are operating as they should or in this case discover the deficiencies. An operational audit will evaluate the efficiency of the organization’s processes. With examination they can decipher the organization’s financial information process. The auditor will run compliance audits to evaluate compliance with laws and regulations and organizational policies and procedures. The auditor will help the organization meet compliance with Committee of Sponsoring Organizations internal control standards. COSO has developed wide-ranging internal controls for organizations in the Guidance on Monitoring Internal Control Systems. The guidance provides objective assistance with the development and monitoring of internal controls. “The current guidance re-emphasizes that internal controls are an operational necessity for every...

Words: 823 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Internal Controls

...Preparing LJB’s Internal Control Reporting for Public Trading LJB System of Internal Controls Case Study February 5, 2012 Prepared by Background LJB Company, a small local distributor business that realizes in order to go public in the future, the company must be in compliance of the law and may need to adopt stronger internal control principles. At the President’s request, an independent internal assessment of internal controls was conducted to evaluate areas of strength and weakness. Objective The objectives of this report are to provide an assessment of the existing controls and make recommendations that will safeguard the companies assets and help produce the most accurate financial information. 1. Inform new internal control requirements if the company decides to go public. 2. Advise what the company is doing right. 3. Advise areas for internal control principle improvements. Requirements for publicly traded U.S. corporations “Under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, all publicly traded U.S. corporations are required to maintain an adequate system of internal control, and independent outside auditors must attest to the system’s adequacy. Failure to comply can result in company fines and prison for officers. These internal controls will help reduce errors in the accounting reporting process, safeguard assets, in addition to possible efficiency gains in operations to ensure compliance with laws and regulation.”1 “Auditors are required to...

Words: 1248 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Why an Internal Auditor?

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Auditor Candace L. Beard ACC 544 May 23, 2011 Joseph Poletti Recommendation Brief for an Internal Auditor Internal auditing helps companies to look at ways of improving and achieving short-term and long-term objectives. Internal auditors are hired to perform internal audits that look at a company’s operations, investigating fraud, financial reporting, safeguarding assets, and compliance of the laws and regulations set for companies. The internal auditors are employed to improve a company’s internal controls. Effective working internal controls detect and prevent fraud that is tested by internal auditors. Benefits of Internal Auditor Understanding the benefits of an internal auditor will help in the decision of hiring an internal accountant. Internal auditors verify the effectiveness of their organization's internal controls and check for mismanagement, waste, or fraud. They examine and evaluate their firms' financial and information systems, management procedures, and internal controls to ensure that records are accurate and controls are adequate. They also review company operations, evaluating their efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance with corporate policies and government regulations (Bureau of Labor Statistics). As an internal auditor he or she will be able to look for any mistakes and address them in the reports. Finding a professional to fill the role of an internal auditor benefits the structure of a growing business...

Words: 698 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Internal

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Kandi Kolka ACC/544 January 19, 2015 Bunney Schmidt Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant When a company hires an Internal Auditor it is usually to improve the business or make sure internal accounts are effective. An auditor would be hired to come into the business and go through the accounts. The accountant would make sure that the company is complying with the government. The auditor would look for internal fraud, operations, and assets. The auditor is hired to make sure the company is profitable and if not what they should do to become profitable. There are three ways for a company to change profitability; by increasing sales, decreasing variables and or reducing average operating expenses. An internal accountant is brought into a business to improve the effectiveness of the internal day to day operations. The internal accountant will test or audit the internal controls for mismanagements and fraud. The internal auditor will make sure that the business is complying with all of the government’s regulations. If the company is not complying this could mean serious trouble from the government. This is why it is important to bring someone who has a vast amount of knowledge into view the components of the company. When an individual internal auditor is brought into a company they may not have exact knowledge of the company but they know what they are looking for. They will investigate the books of the company....

Words: 714 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Internal Auditor

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Internal auditing helps companies to look at ways of improving and achieving short-term and long-term objectives. Internal auditors are hired to perform internal audits that look at a company’s operations, investigating fraud, financial reporting, safeguarding assets, and compliance of the laws and regulations set for companies. The internal auditors are employed to improve a company’s internal controls. Effective working internal controls detect and prevent fraud that is tested by internal auditors. Benefits of Internal Auditor Understanding the benefits of an internal auditor will help in the decision of hiring an internal accountant. Internal auditors verify the effectiveness of their organization's internal controls and check for mismanagement, waste, or fraud. They examine and evaluate their firms' financial and information systems, management procedures, and internal controls to ensure that records are accurate and controls are adequate. They also review company operations, evaluating their efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance with corporate policies and government regulations (Bureau of Labor Statistics). As an internal auditor he or she will be able to look for any mistakes and address them in the reports. Finding a professional to fill the role of an internal auditor benefits the structure of a growing business, because it prevents the creation of faulty processes and limits the liability the company may be exposed...

Words: 676 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Recommendation for Internal Control Auditor

...Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant Internal accountants or auditors can be beneficial to a company when there are problems within their accounting functions that are causing harm to the financial records. Internal auditors are able to perform many different tasks for the company and if they are an employee of the company already, it can save time when there is an issue because he or she has the knowledge of the internal control systems and may be able to fix the bug or problem in less time. Internal auditors are usually employed because they can compare what the company has now and what it should be in order to stay in compliance with the SOX Act (Advameg, Inc., 2011). Internal accountants can review how reliable the financial information is, review the company’s systems to make sure they are in compliance, make recommendations to improve the system, check the assets of the company and how they are safeguarded, and advise the company if their resources are being used adequately (Advameg, Inc., 2011). Internal accountants can perform different types of audits for the company such as an operational, program, fraud, ethical business practices, compliance, financial, control self assessment audits as well as a systems development and life cycle review (Advameg, Inc., 2011). Employing an internal accountant can save the company money because the company will not have to hire auditors to perform the different...

Words: 692 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Case Study

...Running header: Internal Controls LJB Company: Internal Controls Summary President of LJB Company – AMS Consultant February 9, 2014 ACCT504 Accounting & Finance: Managerial Use Analysis Table of Contents Introduction 3 Internal Control Requirements 3 LJB Company: Current Internal Controls 4 LJB Company: Recommendations for Change to existing Internal Controls 5 Conclusion 6 References 7 Introduction AMS Consultants would like to handle re-organization of LJB Company’s internal controls prior to the organization going public. There are several existing issues within the organization that will need to be address prior to making any significant changes to the existing internal controls. LJB Company has been assigned to consultant Linda Robertson whom specialize in assisting executives to getting their organization’s internal controls up to the standards of Sarbanes-Oxley Act. SOX, requires all publicly traded U.S. corporations to maintain an adequate system of internal controls. LJB Company currently have one accountant that handles all accounting and financial responsibilities; however there are several other factors that are taking place within the organization that is not essential for maintaining adequate internal controls (Kimmel, P., Weygandt, J. & Kieso, D., 2013). As the president you have to consider all three factors of fraud triangle and analyze how these play a role within LJB Company; the three factors are opportunity, financial pressure...

Words: 1198 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Acct505

...- Internal Control for LJB Company Course: ACCT 504- Financial Accounting November 2012 Table of Contents: Cover Page……………………………………………………………………….1 Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………2 Why Use SOX……………………………………………………………………3 Recommendations & SOX Principles……………………………………………3 Enhancing the Positives………………………………………………………….5 References……………………………………………………………………….7 Tom Wheatley, President LJB Company 20 N Wacker Drive, Suite 200 Chicago, IL 60605 re: Improvement to Internal Controls December 12, 2012 Dear Tom Wheatley, Why Use SOX? There are several internal control considerations that Midwest Consulting advises you to explore going forth. When you become public, LJB Company is required to meet Sarbanes- Oxley Controls (SOX). These standards are an internal control system whose purpose is to stop fraud and meet the terms of SOX laws and regulations. It can also be used to systematically improve businesses and is an opportunity to recognize the significance of you, the President of LJB Company, getting involved in certification of accuracy in financial data. Many other top level executives are doing the same! I have identified several recommendations that align with internal control principles and would like for you to consider them as you move forth. Your accountant will need to become cognizant of his responsibility to make all matters regarding your organization’s financial matters transparent. Also, the paired responsibilities of purchasing...

Words: 939 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Acct504 Case Study

...LJB Company Internal Controls Evaluation and Assessment CONTENTS: 1. Introduction and Scope ……………………….Page 1 2. Results and Findings……………………………Page 2 3. Recommendations………………………………Page 3 4. Reference Citations………………………….…Page 4   LJB COMPANY - Internal Controls Evaluation and Assessment Introduction and Scope: This evaluation looks at the current internal control system at LBJ Company, assesses for compliance with requirements for Initial Public Offering (IPO) and provides recommendations for strengthening the primary components of an effective Internal Control System. Internal Control System Primary Components 1. A control environment: It is the responsibility of top management to make it clear that the organization values integrity and that unethical activity will not be tolerated. 2. Risk assessment: Companies must identify and analyze the various factors that create risk for the business and must determine how to manage these risks. 3. Control activities: To reduce the occurrence of fraud, management must design policies and procedures to address the specific risks faced by the company. 4. Information and communication: The internal control system must capture and communicate all pertinent information both down and up the organization, as well as communicate information to appropriate external parties. 5. Monitoring: Internal control systems must be monitored periodically for their adequacy. Significant deficiencies need to be reported...

Words: 1191 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

The Internal Control Management Strategy

...The Internal control management strategies Prepared for: LJB Company Prepared by: Chibuzor E. Edeh Devry University ACCT 540: Financial Accounting TABLE OF CONTENT Introduction ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3 Internal control regulations for public companies -----------------------------------------------------------3-4 LJB’S good internal control measures -------------------------------------------------------------------------4 Recommendations for Indelible ink --------------------------------------------------------------------------4 LJB’S poor internal control measures ------------------------------------------------------------------------5-6 Recommendations for improvement --------------------------------------------------------------------------5-6 Summary --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------7 References ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 INTRODUCTION Internal control consists of all the related methods and measures adopted within an organization to safeguard its assets, enhance the reliability of its accounting records, increase efficiency of operations, and ensure compliance with laws and regulations. Internal control is very important because it discourages employees from fraudulent activities...

Words: 1752 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Case Study 2 Internal Controls

...INTERNAL CONTROL (Case Study 2) 1. Introduction As President of LJB Company is looking to go public by bringing internal controls system which is as one of the most challenging corporate governance issues because internal control involves everything that controls risks to an organization. Our accounting department has been chosen to evaluate the internal controls of LJB Company. LJB Company is planning to be a publicly traded company in the near future. Our firm needs to evaluate the internal controls To determine where we are on the continuum of internal control compliance, where they need to be and how to close the gaps. One means of assessing readiness is to conduct a “dry run” to detect early warning signs of control deficiencies. A dry run will assess identified financial reporting risks, processes and controls, as well as control designs, against leading practices. We have gathered and provided information of internal control, also arranging the necessary the data into 3 aims of this case study: 2.Background Study LJB Company, a local distributor, has asked your accounting firm to evaluate their system of internal controls because they are planning to go public in the future. The president wants to be aware of any new regulations required of his company if they go public, so he met with a colleague of yours at a local restaurant. The president of the company explained the current system of internal controls to your colleague. Your colleague has...

Words: 2376 - Pages: 10