Fraud at the Public Park Community School District

ABSTRACT This case study examines potentially fraudulent activities that took place in the Public Park Community School District. Students start their investigations by reading each section and answering case questions. Students analyze potentially fraudulent incidents, identify red flags, calculate potential losses, examine deficiencies in internal controls and suggest effective internal controls. Student feedback indicates the case increased their understanding of fraudulent activities, internal control weaknesses, and effective internal controls in the specific context of public school districts. The findings also highlight the importance of cultivating a strong internal control environment in not-for-profit organizations engaging in fundraising activities.

Editor Report and Comments

ABSTRACT The AIS Educator Journal (AISEJ) is the online, peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the AIS Educator Association. AISEJ has published 63 peer-reviewed scholarly articles dedicated to the teaching of accounting information systems content in 15 annual volumes since 2006. This editor report describes the activities of AISEJ during Volume 15's operating year of 2019–2020. The report also provides information about the journal operating statistics and directions.

Preparing for the Hybridization of the Accounting Profession: A CISA Boot Camp Case Study

ABSTRACT Fortune Magazine (2019) recently touted technology as reshaping the future, resulting in the hybridization of more than 250 occupations. Within the accounting profession, Robert Half (2018) emphasizes the need for business and accounting acumen coupled with technology expertise, communication skills, leadership abilities, customer service orientation, and preparation for specialized (hybrid) roles epitomized by the integration of dual expertise (e.g., information technology and auditing). Such a change provides accounting educators the opportunity to create new programs aimed both at developing students and at upskilling existing workers for dynamic careers by offering certification boot camps that will give participants a competitive edge in the hybridization of the accounting profession. In this paper, we propose the integration of a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) designation boot camp into accounting program offerings and report the results of a semester-long case study introducing the CISA designation to undergraduate students. We discuss boot camp best practices and the boot camp implementation process, and we offer recommendations for accounting programs that utilize boot camps as part of a strategy to address lifelong learning programs for developing hybridized skills within the accounting profession.

Topics for Your Undergraduate Accounting Information Systems (AIS) Course-An Exploratory Study of Information Technology (IT) Skills and Firm Size

ABSTRACT Given the wide range of technologies that businesses employ, and the rapid changes in technology, it is important to assess periodically the critical IT skills students need to prepare them for the work environment. This study presents results from over 100 practicing accountants regarding the IT skills they feel are most important for an undergraduate AIS course. The top ten IT skills for small firm (SF) respondents, respectively, are: spreadsheets, Microsoft Word, Internet research, Internet, QuickBooks, ensuring privacy, Cloud Computing, preventing and responding to cybercrime, software security, and managing and retaining data. The top ten IT skills for medium-large firm (MLF) respondents, respectively, are: spreadsheets, Internet, Internet research, ensuring privacy, Microsoft Word, preventing and responding to cybercrime, managing and retaining data, file systems, Cloud Computing, and Business Intelligence Tools. While SF respondents perceive QuickBooks and software security are more important, respondents from MLF think file systems and Business Intelligence Tools are more important. When determining AIS course content it is important to include the most relevant IT skills, based on what practice thinks students need, and this study indicates firm size is a factor for some IT skills. Designers of undergraduate AIS courses, therefore, need to consider the importance of the IT skills in conjunction with the size of the firms that will employ their students when selecting topics for inclusion.

Understanding the COSO 2013 Framework: Four Short Cases for Use in AIS and Auditing Courses

ABSTRACT Since our students will be auditors or accountants after they graduate, they need to understand how to apply and assess the components of the COSO 2013 framework in their evaluations of a client's internal controls and the reports used for decision-making. We present four short cases addressing the components of the COSO 2013 Internal Control—Integrated Framework. The short cases we provide focus on the interaction of the components to help students see how these components combine to form a strong internal control system. Learning objectives of the cases are to help students: 1) practice performing a risk assessment and making recommendations to respond to the identified risks, 2) identify non-accounting information that could be used to monitor operations, 3) evaluate the control environment of an organization in terms of the five principles of the COSO 2013 control environment component, and 4) evaluate potential fraud risk, identifying the information and monitoring activities that could be used to mitigate that risk. A pre- and post-test analysis shows that students, especially undergraduates, exhibited significant improvement in their understanding of the components of the COSO 2013 framework. Implementation guidance and other feedback are included.

IT General Controls Testing: Assessing the Effectiveness of User Access Management

ABSTRACT The verification of Information Technology (IT) controls is a core responsibility of IT auditors. This case places the student in the role of an IT auditor assigned to test the operating effectiveness of a specific IT general control: user access management. In addition to learning about IT controls, the case introduces several Excel functions such as VLOOKUP, MATCH, INDEX, and various text functions. The student documents the results of the IT controls tests by completing a testing matrix and writing a memo. General controls, user access management, and Excel applications are all topics taught in Accounting Information Systems (AIS) and Audit courses. As such, instructors can use this case at the undergraduate or graduate level in an IT Audit, Accounting Information Systems, or Audit class.

A Glimpse into the Sausage Factory: AISEJ Editor Report

ABSTRACT The AIS Educator Journal (AISEJ) is the online, peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the AIS Educator Association. AISEJ has published 59 peer-reviewed scholarly articles dedicated to the teaching of accounting information systems content in 14 annual volumes since 2006. This inaugural editor report describes the activities of AISEJ during Volume 14's operating year of 2018–2019. The report also provides information about the journal approach, processes, operating statistics, and initiatives.

Topics for the Accounting Information Systems Course: A Dual Perspective Approach from Educators and Employers

ABSTRACT Researchers have studied which topics to address in the Accounting Information Systems (AIS) curriculum since the 1980s. Although previous studies have identified several core topics, they have noted that the rapid pace of technology calls for continued research. This study extends prior research by surveying and comparing the views of employers and AIS educators. Even though educators consistently rated the AIS topics higher in our survey than employers did, we find a general agreement between the two groups as to the relative importance of the topics. Educators and employers concur on core AIS topics, including spreadsheet skills, internal controls, and transaction processing/cycles and general ledger reporting. This is consistent with past research. On the other hand, the following areas have gained prominence among educators and employers: Sarbanes Oxley, encryption, SQL, ERP systems, Internet communication systems, and e-commerce. The findings of this study will assist AIS faculty in determining which content will be the most relevant to accounting majors.

Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT): Operations and Revenue Cycle

This paper discusses a case study for use in undergraduate accounting curricula. The case study presents students with an opportunity to apply their accounting information systems (AIS) knowledge in a real-world scenario by examining the provision of mass passenger transportation services in Singapore. The case offers students exposure to the services and utilities industry in a different cultural context compared to the USA. Specifically, it challenges students to (1) compare the revenue cycle of a merchandising firm with the revenue cycle of SMRT, (2) develop a context diagram of SMRT's revenue cycle, (3) verify revenue in the form of EZL transit card charges, (4) identify internal controls in the revenue cycle and related train operations that are supposed to, or should, exist, and (5) apply critical thinking to an accounting issue. This allows students to rise above a generic understanding of the revenue cycle, think critically about the interfaces between the revenue cycle and the train operations, understand how revenue data are generated in real-time, and determine how the physical view of train operations is mirrored in the logical view of its AIS. This case demonstrates that seemingly simple and comprehensible business operations can prove to be complex, and it provides students an opportunity to develop their understanding of AIS concepts at higher cognitive levels using the transportation services industry as a context.

Beyond Excel: Software Tools and the Accounting Curriculum

The ability to use various software and tools is important for students entering the accounting profession. In an exploratory study, we develop a survey to assess accounting practitioners' evaluations of the importance of various software tools, as well as the importance of data analytics and data visualization skills. Responses from 197 practitioners indicate that Excel is the most frequently utilized software / tool, the most important software tool for new hires, and that Excel should be emphasized in university accounting programs. We find that the importance of Excel is consistent across different accounting areas (audit, tax, advisory, and corporate) and across all experience levels. In addition, Adobe Acrobat, PowerPoint, accounting / ERP software, and the FASB Codification were identified as frequently utilized across the various accounting areas and experience levels. Finally, practitioners in each of the different accounting areas and at all experience levels indicate data analytic skills and data visualization skills are important, but that data analytic skills are perceived as more important than data visualization skills. Our study contributes to the accounting information systems literature by identifying the specific software and tools that are relevant to the profession and provides guidance on the software and tools that should be emphasized in university accounting programs.