What are the Steps in the Accounting Process?

Steps in the Accounting Process

The accounting process involves a series of steps to record, classify, and summarize financial information in a structured and comprehensible manner. The steps are essential for ensuring that financial statements are accurate and reflect the true financial position of an organization. Here are the general steps involved in the accounting process:

1. Identify and Analyze Transactions:
   • Begin by identifying economic events that should be recorded, such as sales, purchases, and investments.
   • Analyze these transactions to determine the account changes.
2. Journalize:
   • Record the transactions in the general journal as journal entries.
   • Ensure each transaction is dated and includes a brief description.
3. Post to Ledger:
   • Transfer the journal entries to the appropriate accounts in the general ledger.
   • Update the account balances accordingly.
4. Prepare a Trial Balance:
   • Compile a list of all ledger accounts and their balances at a specific point in time.
   • Ensure that total debits equal total credits. If they don’t, there’s likely an error that needs to be located and corrected.
5. Make Adjusting Entries:
   • Adjust entries for accruals, deferrals, and any estimates to ensure they adhere to the accrual basis of accounting.
   • Examples include adjusting for prepaid expenses, unearned revenues, and accrued expenses.
6. Prepare an Adjusted Trial Balance:
   • After making all the adjusting entries, prepare another trial balance. This helps ensure that the books are still in balance before preparing the financial statements.
7. Prepare Financial Statements:
   • Using the adjusted trial balance, prepare the main financial statements:
     • Income Statement
     • Statement of Retained Earnings (or Statement of Changes in Equity)
     • Balance Sheet
     • Cash Flow Statement
8. Make Closing Entries:
   • Close temporary accounts like revenues, expenses, and dividends or withdrawals to a permanent equity account.
   • This step resets the balances of temporary accounts to zero, preparing them for the next accounting period.
9. Prepare a Post-Closing Trial Balance:
   • This ensures that all temporary accounts have been closed and that total debits still equal total credits in the permanent accounts.
10. Reconciliation and Analysis:
    • Depending on the organization’s practices, there might be additional steps such as reconciling bank statements with the cash account or analyzing financial statements for trends and indicators.
11. Prepare Financial Reports and Documentation for Archiving:
    • Store all accounting documents, journals, ledgers, and financial statements for future reference, audits, and tax purposes.
12. Begin the Next Accounting Cycle:
    • With the end of the current accounting period and the closing of temporary accounts, the next accounting cycle begins.

By following these steps systematically, organizations ensure that their financial records are accurate, complete, and in compliance with accounting standards and principles. This process also provides stakeholders, like investors and creditors, with reliable financial information on which to base decisions.

Example of the Steps in the Accounting Process

Let’s illustrate the accounting process using a simplified example involving a startup business named “Anna’s Handmade Crafts.

1. Identify and Analyze Transactions:

• Anna starts her business by depositing $10,000 from her personal savings into the business bank account.

2. Journalize:

• Anna makes the following journal entry:
  • Debit Cash $10,000
  • Credit Owner’s Equity (Anna’s Capital) $10,000
• Description: Owner investment.

3. Post to Ledger:

• Anna updates the Cash and Owner’s Equity accounts in the ledger with the respective amounts.

4. Prepare a Trial Balance:

• At the end of her first month, Anna prepares a trial balance to ensure debits and credits balance.

5. Make Adjusting Entries:

• Anna realizes she forgot to record the monthly rent of $500 that she owes but hasn’t paid.
  • Debit Rent Expense $500
  • Credit Accounts Payable $500

6. Prepare an Adjusted Trial Balance:

• After making the adjusting entry, Anna prepares a new trial balance.

7. Prepare Financial Statements:

• With the adjusted trial balance, Anna creates an Income Statement, a Statement of Owner’s Equity, and a Balance Sheet.

8. Make Closing Entries:

• Anna closes out her revenue and expense accounts to her Owner’s Equity account.
• For simplicity, assume her total revenue for the month was $2,000 and her total expenses (including the rent) were $1,200.
  • Debit Revenue $2,000
  • Credit Income Summary $2,000
  • Debit Income Summary $1,200
  • Credit Expenses $1,200
  • Debit Income Summary $800 (Net Income: $2,000 – $1,200)
  • Credit Anna’s Capital $800

9. Prepare a Post-Closing Trial Balance:

• Anna then prepares a post-closing trial balance to ensure only permanent accounts are left with balances.

10. Reconciliation and Analysis:

• Anna reconciles her bank statement to her cash ledger account to ensure they match.
• She also reviews her financial statements to determine the profitability of her first month in business.

11. Prepare Financial Reports and Documentation for Archiving:

• Anna files all her accounting documents, ledgers, and financial statements in an organized manner for future reference.

12. Begin the Next Accounting Cycle:

• Anna starts her second month in business with a clean slate for her temporary accounts and uses the post-closing trial balance as a starting point.

Remember, this example greatly simplifies the accounting process for illustrative purposes. Real-world scenarios, especially for larger businesses, would involve many more transactions, accounts, and complexities. However, the basic steps and logic demonstrated here are foundational to the accounting process regardless of the scale.