how an accounting information system ais is used
an accounting information system contains various elements that are important in the accounting cycle although the information contained in a system varies among industries and business sizes a typical ais includes data relating to revenue expenses customer information employee information and tax information specific data includes sales orders and analysis reports purchase requisitions invoices check registers inventory payroll ledger trial balance and financial statement information an accounting information system must have a database structure to store information this database structure is typically programmed with query language that allows for table and data manipulation an ais has numerous fields to input data and edit previously stored data in addition accounting information systems are often highly secured platforms with preventative measures taken against viruses hackers and other external sources attempting to collect information the various outputs of an accounting information system exemplify the versatility of its data manipulation capabilities an ais produces reports including accounts receivable aging reports based on customer information depreciation schedules for fixed assets and trial balances for financial reporting customer lists taxation calculations and inventory levels may also be reproduced however correspondences memos or presentations are not included in the ais because these items are not directly related to a company s financial reporting or bookkeeping benefits of an aisan accounting information system strives to interface across multiple departments within the system the sales department can upload the sales budget for example this information is used by the inventory management team to conduct inventory counts and purchase materials upon the purchase of inventory the system can notify the accounts payable department of the new invoice an ais can also share information about a new order so that the manufacturing shipping and customer service departments are aware of the sale an integral part of accounting information systems relates to internal controls policies and procedures can be placed within the system to ensure that sensitive customer vendor and business information is maintained within a company through the use of physical access approvals login requirements access logs authorizations and segregation of duties users can be limited to only the relevant information necessary to perform their business function 