Students are placed in a real-life situation where they act as accountants for a fictitious company. During the course of a business year, they are responsible for managing an entire accounting cycle, including maintaining financial statements. They must track information from source data to accounting ledgers, highlight information that impacts credit and investment and pinpoint cash flow issues. At the end of each "quarter," students should prepare a trial balance; correct any discrepancies; and submit a financial report that denotes cash flow, earnings and losses.
Students are required to take quarterly information in a fictitious company and prepare reports for three levels of viewers. Using QuickBooks, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office or the program of their choice, they should employ charts, graphics and figures that will be made available to "company executives," fellow classmates and "shareholders." The resulting presentations should be appropriate for demonstrating the current financial condition of the company.
Students are required to troubleshoot sales order cycle problems, tracking an order from the moment the customer makes a request to sending the invoice to shipping/manufacturing to collecting the funds. One set of students can create problems on each level of the cycle, while the other set is responsible for identification and problem solving. At the end of the project, students should present solutions for each cycle level and restructure the system for better efficiency. Two revenue reports will be presented, one presolution and one postsolution.
Students will be required to complete state and federal tax returns for a fictitious business, including itemized deductions, payroll information, independent contractor information and losses and gains. Documentation should reflect quarterly estimated tax payments and which inventory is subject to sales tax. An itemized list of taxable and nontaxable sales should be included. At the end of the project, students will be subjected to a mock audit by other members of the class, and should be ready to provide answer for any discrepancies.