Encouraging Encouraging Colleagues to Colleagues to

Incorporate Incorporate Accounting Accounting

Software Software throughout throughout

the the Accounting Accounting Curriculum Curriculum

Joann Segovia, Minnesota State University Moorhead (segovia@mnstate.edu )

Susan Crosson, Santa Fe Community College (susan.crosson@sfcc.edu)

Objectives• Provide information Academic Alliances

– Microsoft – Rivet—Dragon Tag (XBRL)

• Share results of survey– Demographical Information– Curriculum

• Discuss integrating software across the curriculum– Visions– Other information of interest

Academic Alliance• Microsoft

– Academic Alliance– Microsoft Convergence Conference– Free training– Data sets for distribution, service, and non-profit– http://www.microsoft.com/education/academic_alliance.mspx

• Rivet—Dragon Tag (XBRL) – Interactive Financial Report Viewer delivered to the

SEC– Free product downloads– http://www.rivetsoftware.com/

What What we do nowwe do now

Survey:Survey:

• Present and past Convergence attendeesPresent and past Convergence attendees

• AIS Educators Conference attendeesAIS Educators Conference attendees

• N=20N=20

Where do you teach?

Doctorate university

Four-year university

Two-year collegeOther

Doctorate university

Four-year university

Two-year college

Other

What department do you teach in?

AccountingBusiness

Information SystemsManagement Accounting

Business

InformationSystems

Management

How many years have you taught?

0 2 4 6 8 10 12

0-5 years

5-10 years

10-15 years

over 15 years

over 15 years

10-15 years

5-10 years

0-5 years

What courses do you teach?Accounting Professors (n=14)

Financial/Advanced

Principles/Introductory

Managerial

Audit

Tax

Financial/Advanced

Principles/Introductory

Managerial

Audit

Tax

What software does your college and courses emphasize?

N=14 AIS; 6 IS

0 5 10 15 20

Office Applications

Access

Great Plains

Database

Computer languages

Audit

QuickBooks

Peachtree

Tax Tax

Peachtree

QuickBooks

Audit

ComputerlanguagesDatabase

Great Plains

Access

OfficeApplications

Software TaughtWide variety of

accounting software

taught by AIS profs

– Small Business: GP, Peachtree, QuickBooks,

Office Accounting– Medium-Sized Business: GP

– Large Business: SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft, Oracle

• More commonly taught by IS rather than AIS

Use of Academic Alliance Data Sets

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Not sure if courseobjectives met

No time to incorporateprojects into course

No time to developprojects

Did not know data setsexisted

Did not know data sets existed

No time to develop projects

No time to incorporate projects into course

Not sure if course objectives met

Integration of Software?

Key observations: Three out of six IS instructors integrate across courses. Only one out of fourteen AIS instructors integrate across courses and was database software; not accounting software.

Integration of Software

6%

19%

75%

Within accounting

Within IS

No integration

Examples of how software is integrated

• Accounting: one doctorate university includes Java, Unix, shell scripting in systems analysis and design, enterprise applications, S-plus for stats and data mining, Oracle and Access database course

• IS: three (one doctorate, two 4-year): Access, Visio, Project, MS Excel, SPSS, MS Dynamics-GP in Operations Management & Supply Chain

What new instructional materials are needed?

• Instructional materials for courses other than AIS• Accounting projects rather than transaction

processing– Flowcharting business process– Designing and implementing systems for the process– Internal control and security issues

• Projects for use with datasets (audit, non-profit)• Projects that integrate software (GP, Access, Excel)

» Source AIS/IS survey

What resources would you need to incorporate accounting software across the curriculum?

Why integrate software across the curriculum?

• Business/Financial Literacy• Accounting Literacy

Because it is how business and accounting are actually done….

Accounting Applications

Basic Business Processes:

…buy, sell, build, track

• Acquisition/Payment • Sale/Collection• Conversion• Human Resource• Financing

Popular Accounting software

Software 2006-7 Educational Cost Retail Cost

Peachtree by Sage

FREE to schoolswww.peachtree.com/training/educational_partnerships.cfm

$69.99 - $699.99

QuickBooks by Intuit

Educational pricing: $99.95 - $599.95

Or 30 day FREE Online Edition

www.intuitadvisor.com/education

$99.95 to $3,000.00+

Online: $19.95-39.95/mo.

Office Accounting 2007 by Microsoft

Two versions:Express or Professional

Office Accounting Express 2007:http://www.ideawins.com/home.html

Office Accounting Professional 2007:

http://us1.trymicrosoftoffice.com/product.aspx?family=officeaccounting&culture=en-US

Express FREE download or part of

Office Small Business,

Professional, or Ultimate Suites

Professional: FREE limited use or$149 new or $99 upgrade

Dynamics-GP by Microsoft

Academic Alliance FREE to schools or 120 day educational

versionwww.microsoft.com/education/

academic_alliance.mspx

$15,000.00+

Peachtree; QuickBooks; Office Accounting 2007; Dynamics-GP

Accounting Software Perspectives and Assumptions

• Doing Focus– Principles of Accounting, Tax, Audit, Government – Focus on Data entry and Bookkeeping– Practice sets to learn accounting processes

• Using Focus– Separate Computer literacy & AIS Courses teach the basics – Focus on computer-based stand-alone programs– Accounting done by accountants in accounting department– Practice analyzing sample company data or data sets from

Financial/Managerial/Tax/Auditor perspective• Business Process Focus

– Technology integrated across curricula & desktop– Focus on analyzing Information accessible from anywhere– Accounting generated by accountants and non-accountants – Practice queries and searches of databases – Explore Internal/External Controls and Risks of Systems– Driven by User Interface

http://www.microsoft.com/dynamics/product/familiartoyourpeople.mspx

Types of Finance Departments

User Roles

Basic Accounting Tasks/Processes

Publisher Designed GL, Peachtree; QuickBooks; Office Accounting 2007

Peachtree

Dynamics-GP

Financial/Principles I

Managerial/Principles II

IntermediateCost

Excel

Excel

Access

Computer Accounting

AISTax

Excel

Dynamics-GP

Tax Software

Accounting Course Sequence

Audit

ACL

Questions?

• Joann Segovia, Minnesota State University Moorhead (segovia@mnstate.edu )

• Susan Crosson, Santa Fe Community College

(susan.crosson@sfcc.edu)