Financial Accounting Techniques

Accounting is an economic information system, and can be thought of as the language of business. Accounting principles are created, developed, or decreed and are supported or justified by intuition, authority, and acceptability. Managers have alternatives in their accounting choices; the decision are political, and trade-offs will be made. Accounting information provides individuals, both inside and outside a firm, with a starting point to understand and evaluate the key drivers of a firm, its financial position, and performance. If you are managing a firm, investing in a firm, lending to a firm, or even working for a firm, you should be able to read the firm’s financial statements and ask questions based on those statements. This book examines some of the more advanced topics in accounting. As such, it assumes the reader already has some familiarity with basic accounting. (A related book covering the basics is Accounting for Fun and Profit: A Guide to Understanding Financial Statements.) The book explains how the user of financial statement should interpret advanced accounting techniques presented, and helps the user conduct in-depth analysis of annual reports. The author will show you that accounting, even the advanced topics, can be informative and fun.

The accountant is responsible for many activities, which may require years of training and experience to fully comprehend. The Accountants' Guidebook provides a practical knowledge of how to complete many accounting tasks, while also imparting an understanding of the more critical accounting standards. The book is intended to accelerate the learning curve of the professional accountant. Topics covered include accounting procedures, GAAP for common transactions, closing the books, producing financial statements and other reports, collection tactics, payroll management, budgeting, and much more.

Updated for new accounting and auditing guidance issued, this valuable tool provides hundreds of high quality disclosure examples from carefully selected U.S. companies of different sizes, across industries such as banking, credit and insurance, communication services, and healthcare from such organizations as Scotts Miracle-Gro, Coca-Cola, Caterpillar, and BB&T. Illustrations of the most important, immediate, and challenging disclosures, such as derivatives and hedging, consolidations, and fair value measurement are provided. Hot topics include statement of cash flows, going concern, and business combinations and intangibles. This edition also provides clear, direct guidance to help you understand and comply with all significant reporting requirements and detailed indexes to help you quickly find exactly what you need.

The text and images in this book are in grayscale. A hardback color version is available. Search for ISBN 9781680922929. Principles of Accounting is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of a two-semester accounting course that covers the fundamentals of financial and managerial accounting. This book is specifically designed to appeal to both accounting and non-accounting majors, exposing students to the core concepts of accounting in familiar ways to build a strong foundation that can be applied across business fields. Each chapter opens with a relatable real-life scenario for today's college student. Thoughtfully designed examples are presented throughout each chapter, allowing students to build on emerging accounting knowledge. Concepts are further reinforced through applicable connections to more detailed business processes. Students are immersed in the "why" as well as the "how" aspects of accounting in order to reinforce concepts and promote comprehension over rote memorization.