Chapter 5- The Expenditure Cycle
Objective: to convert cash into materials or human resources
Conceptual system
Technology neutral
Can be applied in manual system (there's a human involvement) or automated
Focus on what is to be done and not how
Documents can be physical or digital
Objectives:
o Timely and correct payment to valid vendors
o Ensure that payments are not early or not too late
o Effects of early and late payment
Too early- this may lead to opportunity cost (lost on interest income on fund
investment
Too late- loss of cash discounts and may damage credit standing
Physical system
How it is done: combination of human activities and technology
o Basic technology system
More manual less technology
Computers used are independent and not networked
Longer process
Audit trail is through hard copy document and files
Purchase Processing System
Inventory Control
Purchasing Department
Receiving Department
AP Department
GL Department
Cash Disbursement System
AP Department
CD Department
GL Department
o Advance integrated system
More technology less manual
Computers used are linked integrated systems
Shorter process, more efficient
Audit trail comes in digital files, called transaction logs, master files and
backups, hard copies
Purchase Processing System
Computer operations
Purchasing department
Receiving department
AP department
GL department
Cash Disbursement System
AP department
Computer operations
CD department
DFD Purchase System
1. Monitor inventory records
a. Activity starts when inventories are depleted
b. Purchase requisition (PR) will be generated by the inventory control department
c. PR is sent to prepare PO function (purchasing department)
Purchase Requisition form
Internal document only
Document that authorizes purchases
PRs can be combined to a single PO depending on the company
Contains the following:
o Suggested vendor
o Date of preparation and date when the goods are needed
o Inventory number
o Quantity, description, prices of goods, and total amount
o Prepared by, approved by
o Vendor’s account
Inventory subsidiary ledger- basis in preparing the PR
Valid vendor file
Contains vendor mailing information
Form of reference file which prevent fraud related purchases such as conflict of interest
2. Prepare purchase order
a. Performed by the purchasing department
b. When the PR is received, PO is prepared
c. Multiple copies of PO are prepared (4 copies) and sent to the following:
i. 1st copy- Vendor
ii. 2nd copy- AP function so that the AP knows there are purchase
iii. 3rd copy (blind copy of PO)- Receiving department
iv. 4th copy retained by purchasing department and forms part of open closed PO
file
Open/Closed PO file
file is open when the last copy is filed
PO file is closed when goods are received
Purchase Requisition and Purchase Order
PR and PO’s contents are the same
PRs and POs served as internal controls specifically segregation of duties
Difference:
o Purchase Requisition
Prepared by the inventory control department
Internal document
o Purchase Order
Formal document prepared by purchase department
External document
A document that specifies item ordered from vendor or supplier
Contains the following:
Vendor, vendor number
Date ordered and when it is needed
Quantity, description, unit price, and total amount of goods
Prepared by and approved by
Key difference: Purchasing agent info., and terms of vendor
Inter-department Segregation of Duties
Inventory control department through the PR authorizes purchase
Purchasing department through the PO makes the actual purchase from the vendor
3. Receive goods
a. In the first two processes, there's no journal entry.
b. In this one, there's a related entry when receiving inventory.
c. Receiving clerk will count the goods and match it with the blind copy of PO
d. After receiving the goods, the Receiving Report is prepared
e. The Receiving Report is prepared in multiple copies:
i. Raw materials storeroom
ii. Purchasing department to close the open PO file
iii. AP function to indicate the goods are received
iv. Inventory control dept to update inventory subsidiary ledger
v. 5th copy retained by receiving dept. to be part of the Receiving Report file
Blind copy Purchase Order
It has no indicated price or quantity
Its purpose is to force the clerk to count the goods received.
It is a form of control for missing goods, or incorrect count of goods received
Receiving report
Lists quantity and condition of inventories
Contains the following:
o Date received
o Actual quantity counted
o Condition of goods
o People involved: received by, inspected by, delivered to
AP pending file- contains documents to set up AP
RR file- file of all RR prepared
4. Update inventory records
a. When the receiving report is received, inventory subsidiary ledger is updated
i. Standard cost system- uses predetermined standard value for inventory
ii. Actual cost inventory ledger- uses actual cost rather than the standard cost of
inventory
b. Inventory clerk prepares inventory account summary and sent to the GL function
Inventory account summary- contains the details of inventories received
5. Set up Accounts Payable
a. The basis is the supplier's invoice to recognize liability
i. Supplier's invoice- bill showing costs, taxes, freight and other charges
b. There's a lag time in recording liability
i. Goods received at period end. Meanwhile, supplier’s invoice is received at next
period
ii. To solve this at period end, the company should estimate liability
iii. When the SI is received, they will record the actual liability
iv. If the difference is material, there is an adjustment that will occur
c. Three-way match
i. Control that reconciles PO, RR, and SI
ii. Compares actual quantity ordered to the actual quantity received and actual
quantity to be paid
d. If they match the accounts payable is approved for payment
e. Result of 3-way match: AP packet
i. Consists of AP supporting documents (PO, RR, AND SI)
ii. Formal authority to record liability and authorization of payment
f. AP subsidiary ledger will be updated
i. AP SL- controls the cash disbursement system
ii. For actual system, AP clerk should send copy of supplier’s invoice to the inv
control
iii. For standard costing it is not required
g. Journal voucher is sent to the GL which contains journal entries
Vouchers payable system
Alternative to normal AP system
Main difference: It uses cash disbursement voucher and voucher register
Cash disbursement vouchers
Document evidencing payment
Provide improved control over cash disbursements
Can be prenumbered to monitor missing and duplicate CD vouchers
Can consolidate various payments to a single vendor
Voucher register
Reflects the firms AP
Records all CD vouchers
Transactions recorded chronologically
Vouchers payable file
Collated files of CD vouchers
Equivalent to the open AP file
6. Post to GL
a. GL clerk receives JV and inventory account summary
b. Posts to the GL based from entries on JV
c. Reconciles the inventory control account with the inventory account summary
d. Files the JV
In DFD, you can't determine if the process is whether manual or automated. It is applicable for
manufacturing and merchandising businesses.
Manufacturing- purchase of raw materials is requested and authorized by the production planning and
control function
Retail/ merchandising- purchase of raw materials is done by inventory control function
Cash disbursement system DFD
1. Identify liabilities due
a. AP clerk reviews AP file
b. AP file arranged by payment due
c. AP clerk sends payment approval (AP packet) to the cash disbursement department
2. Prepare cash disbursement
a. CD clerk receives and reviews the AP packet
b. Prepares check
c. Details are put in check register
i. Record of cash disbursement
ii. Also known as Cash Disbursement Journal
iii. Not all accounts in the CDJ pertain to AP
iv. Includes also payment to other accounts
d. Additional approval may be needed by the department manager or treasurer
e. 3 copies of the check are prepared
i. Vendor
ii. Attached to AP packet
f. Filed in the CD department
g. Clerk marks the documents paid and returns to the AP clerk
h. Prepares JV and sends to the GL function
3. Update AP record
a. AP clerk updates the AP SL
b. AP clerk will remove the liabilities related to the Closed AP file: record of all APs paid
c. Prepares AP account summary and send to the GL function
4. Post to GL
a. GL clerk receives and reconciles the JV and AP account summary
i. JV- contains all deduction in AP and in cash based on the check register
ii. AP account summary- contains all the deduction in the AP based on each
deduction on the AP SL
b. Posts the journal entry to the GL
i. Dr. AP Cr. Cash
c. Files the JV in the approved JV file
Conceptual Payroll System
Personnel Department
o uses personnel action forms to:
Activate new employees
Change the pay rate of employees
Changes marital status and/or number of dependents
o Production employees fill out two forms:
Job tickets – account for the time spent by the worker on each production job
Timecards – used to capture the total time worked each pay period for payroll
calculation
o Both forms must be signed by the supervisor
Cost Accounting Department
o Uses the job tickets to allocate labor costs to WIP accounts
o Summarizes charges in a labor distribution summary then forwarded to G/L dept.
Payroll Department
o Receives the personnel action forms and timecards
o Uses to:
Prepare the payroll register
Enter the information into the employee payroll records
Prepare paychecks
Send paychecks to Cash Disbursements and a copy of the payroll register to
Accounts Payable
Accounts Payable Department
o Prepares a cash disbursements voucher for the total amount of the payroll
o Send copies to the Cash Disbursement and G/L Depts.
Cash Disbursement Department
o Review and signs the paychecks and forwards to paymaster for distribution to
employees
o Writes check for the payroll and deposits it into payroll imprest account
General Ledger Department
o General ledger section receives;
the labor distribution summary from cost accounting,
the disbursement voucher from accounts payable,
the journal voucher from cash disbursements.
o Debits and credits of the entries must be equal.
o Once equality been verified, the clerk files the voucher and labor distribution summary.
Internal Control
It is a system designed, introduced and maintained by the company’s management and top-level
executives, to provide a substantial degree of assurance (reasonable) in:
o Achieving business objective,
o Complying with the policies and laws,
o Safeguarding the assets,
o Maintaining efficiency and effectiveness in regular operations
o Reliability of financial statements.
Physical Controls- control the actions of people
Classes of Internal Control Activities
o Transaction Authorization
o Segregation of Duties
o Supervisions
o Accounting Records
o Access Control
o Independent verification
IT Controls
o General Control
Data security
Physical security
Operating system control
Access control
Operations
System development methodology
Database administration
Telecommunication
Physical security
Disaster recovery
Program management
o Application Control
PEOPLE- Users, Clients, Customers, Technicians, Government, Companies
INPUT- Data collected, capture
PROCESSING- Working with information, changing, calculating, manipulating
OUTPUT- Sending results, reporting, collecting data
Risk Associated with Expenditure Cycle
Threats Physical Controls IT Controls
Unauthorized inventory Perpetual Inventory Automated requisition
purchase Separate purchase based on inventory level
Purchase unneeded items department Automate routing for
Request for goods and Approval of Purchase Order approval by proper level of
services which is not authorized person(s)
required by the business
Receiving Incorrect Items Segregation of duties Use of product code
Incorrect Quantities between the goods scanners in the receiving
Damaged Goods receiving function and department and warehouse
purchase order preparation Programmed procedure to
function allow recording of receiving
Supervision over inspection transaction based on
of goods received and existing PO information
check against approved PO only
Use of Blind PO to enforce
counting
Inaccurately Recording Independent verification by Programmed procedure to
Transactions in Journals & the person who receive the match the recorded
Ledgers vendor’s billing against PO vendor’s bill against PO and
Purchases from vendors and RR. RR and report any
are incorrectly calculated difference to responsible
person.
Accounts payable go Accounting records: verify Automated recording of
unrecorded or are sequences number of RR purchases/payable upon
recorded in the wrong issued good received, based on
period Independent verification: quantity received and PO
reconciliation of AP sub- price.
ledger with control account
Vendor bills customers for Independent verification by Programmed procedure to
items they did not receive the person who receive the match the recorded
vendor’s billing against PO vendor’s bill against PO and
and RR. RR
Issue checks only for Automated recording of
complete vouchers purchases/payable upon
packages RR, supplier’s good received, based on
invoice and purchase order quantity received and PO
Vendor cash payments are Accounting records: verify Automated recording of
inaccurately posted to AP sequences number of RR purchases/payable upon
or are posted to the wrong issued good received.
vendor AP Independent verification: Input control on the
reconciliation of AP sub- vendors assigned code
ledger with control account
Summaries of purchases, Independent verification: Automated recording of
accounts payable, cash reconciliation of AP and purchases, payable and
disbursements, and Inventory sub-ledger with inventory.
inventory levels are control account and
incorrectly posted to their corresponding Journals
respective GL accounts.
Misappropriation of Cash Supervision in the receiving Automated 3-way match
and Inventory department and payment approval
Independent Verification-3 Multi-level Security
way match PO-RR and
Suppliers Invoice
Segregation of duties-
Inventory Control from
Warehouse and AP to
Disbursement
Unauthorized Access to Access control Password control
Accounting Records & Segregation of duties Multi-Level Security
Reports
Generally, IT Controls on accounting records are:
1. Input data edits where an error message appears when inputting erroneous data about vendors,
inventory and purchases.
2. Automated posting where mapping was being done by the system
3. File backup for readily recovery in cases of untoward incidents
Reengineering Using EDI
Electronic Data Interchange- enable some functionalities/process to shorten which is very cost efficient
on the part of the company
The Need to have a Supply Chain Management where the receiving functions can be eliminated
Ensure a continuous supply and avoid a service company’s delivery disruptions.
Strengthen supplier relations for systematic synergy with suppliers.
Enterprise spending management to assure procurement happens through the right suppliers
and reduces costs.
Establishing a single comprehensive supplier view and deriving insightful procurement analytics.