Preview

Xacc 280 Internal Control Research Paper

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1193 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Xacc 280 Internal Control Research Paper
Internal Controls

XACC 280

By

University of Phoenix

Professor

This paper will discuss the internal controls and how they work in business. I will shed some light on the organizations financial and business policies, process and procedures. The purpose of these internal controls is to protect the company’s resources against fraud, misappropriate funds and most important waste. A company can spend quite a bit of money that does not make the company any profit. This paper will examine all aspects if internal controls and their functions.

When we look at the world of internal controls, there are two main goals for internal controls in a company. First is to ensure
…show more content…
Alternative weakness to internal controls would be conspiracy. There could be employees that are in synergy (finance and or accounting departments) can alter the financial material that neither would be captured by an internal control. This is something that took place in companies like Enron and MCI WorldCom. With all the internal controls set in place, there can still be errors like human errors.
Controls are set in place so the company is protected. This would include things like from theft, fraud and other things that could damage a company and cause a lost in stock price. Sarbanes Oxley was created to safeguard the company and their records are fortified. Business’ that do not follow internal control procedures will lose money an ultimately not be able to keep their doors open. Companies have to understand that there are restrictions to internal controls. Internal controls are most important and have to be in place for a company to grow and have some type of

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Since the Act has been in place if a company indicates weakness within the company, the company stock will decline. Stanford Law School, sponsored by Financial Executives International (www.fei.org), conducted a study that focused on 141 companies between November 2003 and October 2004 that gave detailed disclosures about their material weaknesses had a decline in stock by 5 to 10 percent (Agami, 2006). There can be certain limitations that could keep internal controls from not working effectively. For instance the fall of Enron was because of the staff working to together to defraud the accounting practices for their personal gain. These types of practices can cause internal controls to fail as well as lack of knowledge. If the company’s accountant is unclear on the policies and procedures of internal controls, this will lead the company to fail. All employees must have knowledge of internal controls, because if the employees don’t have the knowledge they cannot practice internal controls, this why it is important that employees should be properly trained on internal control practice. All employees should have the knowledge on what will keep the company safe from failure. It is the responsibility of the company to make sure they have the right people for the right job. If a company does not place the right employees in key positions then this can lead the company to have errors that could make the company fail. If a company does not supply their employees with the correct tools to complete a job the job will not be completed correctly and the whole company will…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Acct 504 Case Study 2

    • 1108 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Internal controls are vital to any company’s business and financial sustainability. Internal controls consist of measures taken by a company safeguarding against fraud, and theft. Internal controls ensure accuracy and reliability in accounting data, and secure policies within the organization. Further, internal controls evaluate all levels of performance. These are addressed with five principles of internal control: Establishment of responsibility, Segregation of duties, Documentation procedures, Physical controls, Independent internal verification, and Human resource controls.…

    • 1108 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Better Essays

    Companies will often use internal controls in the accounting department in order to avoid abuse and inaccurate data recording as well as protecting companies from fraud. Internal controls will also be used by companies as a means to avoid theft of assets, and unauthorized use. The acquisition and disposal of assets is also a very important part of internal controls. These policies and procedures will help companies in the prevention or detection of any unauthorized acquisition, use or the disposition of its assets, as these types of activities could have a negative impact on the company’s financial statements. But in order for the internal controls to work, management has to ensure the proper protocols are being followed.…

    • 1015 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Acct 504 Case Study 2

    • 1426 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Thank you for selecting our firm to provide your company with an evaluation of your organizations internal control system. Internal control systems are vital in securing your organizations assets, it will limit the risk of fraud as well as misuse of your assets. Comprehending how to separate duties among your employees will aid in improving transparency as well as keep your company financially strong.…

    • 1426 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    2) No Altering of Financial Documents- If anyone falsifies or alters financial documents they are subject to criminal penalties that includes up to 20 year in prison.…

    • 710 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Internal Control - Integrated Framework Executive Summary Senior executives have long sought ways to better control the enterprises they run. Internal controls are put in place to keep the company on course toward profitability goals and achievement of its mission, and to minimize surprises along the way. They enable management to deal with rapidly changing economic and competitive environments, shifting customer demands and priorities, and restructuring for future growth. Internal controls promote efficiency, reduce risk of asset loss, and help ensure the reliability of financial statements and compliance with laws and regulations. Because internal control serves many important purposes, there are increasing calls for better internal control systems and report cards on them. Internal control is looked upon more and more as a solution to a variety of potential problems. Internal Control Internal control means different things to different people. This causes confusion among businesspeople, legislators, regulators and others. Resulting miscommunication and different expectations cause problems within an enterprise. Problems are compounded when the term, if not clearly defined, is written into law, regulation or rule. This report deals with the needs and expectations of management and others. It defines and describes internal control to: 1. Establish a common definition serving the needs of different parties. 2. Provide a standard against which business and other entities--large or small, in the public or private sector, for profit or not--can assess their control systems and determine how to improve them. Internal control is broadly defined as a process, effected by an entity's board of directors, management and other personnel, designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the achievement of objectives in the following categories: 1. Effectiveness and efficiency of operations. 2. Reliability of financial reporting. 3. Compliance with applicable laws and…

    • 2817 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Before establishing internal controls, it is essential that the company establishes their control environment. The company’s management must clearly outline its goals, standards and ethics since they “set the stage” for…

    • 1167 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Internal controls play an important role in the success of any organization. The following is a proposal for appropriate controls to cover cash, sales, accounts receivable, inventory, and production.…

    • 918 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Section 404

    • 773 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Researching a company that has had publicly known problems with internal controls is not that hard to find. These controls are put into place to reduce the possibility of fraud, waste, and abuse (FWA) on the annual financial reports of a company. “The Commission voted to adopt rule and form amendments to implement requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002” (SEC, 2003). Section 404 is one of the hardest, most argued, and most expensive to actualize of all Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) for compliance. There must be an Internal Control Report explaining what the managements job is, and a “satisfactory” internal control structure; there should also be a management description of the efficiency of the control structure (SOX, 2016).…

    • 773 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Foamex International Inc.

    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The final responsibility for the integrity of an SEC registrant’s internal controls lies on the management team. U.S. companies need to refer to a comprehensive framework of internal control when assessing the quality of financial reporting to determine that financial statements are being presented under General Accepted Accounting Principles, GAAP. The widely used framework is referred as COSO, Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission, sponsored by the following organizations American Accounting Association, the American Institute of CPA’s, Financial Executives International, the Institute of Internal Auditors, and the Institute of Management Accountants. COSO’s defines internal control as:…

    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    “In response to the number of major corporate accounting scandals rocking the financial world (e.g., Enron, WorldCom, Xerox, KMart, etc.), on July 30, 2002, Congress passed the most wide-sweeping financial reporting legislation since the 1930s (when it established the Securities and Exchange Commission). The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is intended to strengthen corporate financial reporting by assessing stiffer criminal penalties for white-collar crimes, increasing management accountability, and enhancing auditor independence. The act is very specific about management 's responsibility for organizational internal control” (University of Phoenix, 2007, para. 6). According to the University of Phoenix Auditing and Assurance Services, Chapter Five, 2007, the auditor has two primary reasons for conducting an evaluation of a company 's internal control: (1) All publicly traded companies are required to have an audit of…

    • 1165 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In today’s society, internal controls are applied to support an organization 's managers to become more successfully to release the responsibilities by applying and understanding internal control concepts. Internal controls are most frequently saw as "a lot of red tape"; however, internal controls have different circumstances when confirming high moral and ethical values which should be communicated in an organization. Internal controls are essentially composed of five interrelated components which are communication and information, monitoring, control environment,…

    • 912 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Sarbanes Oxley

    • 1489 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Mitra, S., Jaggi, B., & Hossain, M. (2013). Internal Control Weaknesses and Accounting Conservatism: Evidence From the Post–Sarbanes–Oxley Period. Journal Of Accounting, Auditing & Finance, 28(2), 152-191. doi:10.1177/0148558X13479057…

    • 1489 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    To safeguard the assets, enhance the reliability of the accounting records, increase efficiency within the financial operations, safeguard the assets of the company, and ensure proper compliance with the laws and regulations, the Internal Control report is crucial to the company. A controlled environment, risk assessment, activity control, information and communication, and group monitoring should all be a part of the internal control report (Kimmel 349).…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Organisation

    • 2388 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Just as organisations have goals describing their primary business objectives, they also have goals with respect to controlling how these objectives are met. These are the control goals of an organisation which are enforced through a system of internal control. Such a system enables them to adhere to external laws and internal regulations, prevent and detect fraud and continuously enhance the overall quality of the business. Independent of the type of organisation, these internal control systems use common underlying principles to establish and achieve control over business activities.…

    • 2388 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays

Related Topics