Course Syllabus

AIM 6343.0G1 – Accounting Information Systems

School of Management
The University of Texas at Dallas

| Course Info | Technical Requirements | Course Access & Navigation | Communications |

Assessments | Academic Calendar | Scholastic Honesty | Course Evaluation | UTD Policies |

Course Number/Section AIM 6343.0G1

Course Title Accounting Information Systems
Term and Dates Fall 2007 8/16/07 – 12/03/07

Professor Contact Information

Professor Mary Beth Goodrich
Office Phone (972) 883-4775 (Office and Voice Mail)
Other Phone (214) 282-2156 (For urgent matters)
Email Address goodrich@utdallas.edu
Office Location SM 4.220
Online Office Hours By appointment
Office Hours By appointment

Teaching Assistant Sujith Zachariah

TA Office Hours Mondays 8:30am – 12:30pm
TA E-mail Send through webCT
TA Office Location SM 2.501
TA Office Phone # (972) 883-4596 (no voice mail)

About the Instructor

Please listen to Introduction in Course on webCT and see the Introductions area of Discussions.

Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restriction

Required: AIM 6201 and AIM 6202 or course(s) equivalent to undergraduate accounting
principles. Basic knowledge of financial and managerial accounting is essential. Basic
computer proficiency is essential.

Course Description

This course will examine the design, control and operation of accounting information
systems in a computerized organizational environment with a strong business process
orientation. The accounting information system is at the heart of a companies’
enterprise systems. To this end, an understanding and appreciation of accounting
information systems is critical to successfully managing, auditing and developing
systems to support today’s evolving business environment. This course offers a
focused look at accounting information systems as part of enterprise resource planning
systems, with a focus on SAP and other comparable enterprise systems to demonstrate
concepts. Three key themes throughout the course are enterprise systems, E-
business, and internal control and how these components can positively impact the
overall success of a company and a company’s use of their accounting information
system.

Course Syllabus Page 1

Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes

The main learning objectives are:

• Explain the impact of enterprise systems, e-business and internal control of modern
accounting information systems and what is next related to accounting information
systems.
• Explain the integration of accounting with the business side of an integrated accounting
information system. Describe the roles of accountants related to accounting information
systems and of accounting information and information technology in today's business
environment. Describe the impact of accounting information systems and the power of
integrated accounting information systems such as SAP on managerial decision-making,
as well as organizational competitiveness. Explain modern practice in designing
accounting information systems and mainstream use of ERP (enterprise resource
planning) systems, such as SAP, and what is next related to accounting systems and
enterprise systems.
• Explain and describe the accounting systems development lifecycle (SDLC) and what
happens in each stage of the SDLC. Define and explain business processes, the
accounting elements within business processes, and related internal control. Be able to
explain the use of the chart of accounts and general ledger and how the business
transactions of a company feed into the general ledger and use of financial information
for external financial reporting to assist stakeholders in assessing the financial status of
the organization and help a company make decisions through the process of business
reporting.
• Be able to apply internal controls, business process analysis and assessment of whether
an accounting information system as part of the overall systems of an organization is
operating efficiently and effectively, and provides reliable financial information, while
maintaining compliance to laws and regulations. Utilize methods such as flowcharting
business modeling, and control matrices tools for understanding, explaining, and
designing accounting information systems with a business process approach and a
focus on adding value through identifying the information needs of decision makers and
building systems to support those needs effectively and efficiently, while ensuring proper
control.

This course will be a stepping stone for other advanced enterprise systems courses such as
AIM 6338: Accounting Systems Analysis and Design with SAP, MIS 6319: Enterprise
Resource Computing, and AIM 6349: IT Strategy and Control.

Required Textbooks and Materials

Required Texts
Accounting Information Systems, 7th Edition, by Gelinas and Dull, Thomson / South-Western
Publishers, 2008, ISBN-10: 0324378823 or ISBN-13: 978-0324378825

Textbooks and some other bookstore materials can be ordered online through MBS Direct
Virtual Bookstore or Off-Campus Books online ordering site. They are also available in stock at
the UTD Bookstore and Off-Campus Books.

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Course Syllabus Page 2

Technical Requirements

In addition to a confident level of computer and Internet literacy, certain minimum technical
requirement must be met to enable a successful learning experience. Please review the
important technical requirements and the web browser configuration information.

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Course Access and Navigation

This course was developed using a web course tool called WebCT. It is to be delivered entirely
online. Students will use their UTD NetID account to login to the course at: UTD Galaxy:
http://galaxy.utdallas.edu. Please see more details on course access and navigation
information.

To get started with a WebCT course, please see the Getting Started: Student WebCT
Orientation.

If you have any problems with your UTD account or with the UTD WebCT server, you may
contact UTD Computer Help Desk: access Live Web Support, email to: assist@utdallas.edu or
call the UTD Computer Helpdesk at: 972-883-2911. If you encounter any technical difficulties
within the course site, please send an email to gmbasupport@utdallas.edu.

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Communications

This WebCT course has built-in communication tools which will be used for interaction and
communication. Some external communication tools such as regular email and a web
conferencing tool may also be used during the semester. Please see more details about
communication tool information.

Interaction with Instructor: The instructor will communicate with students mainly using the
Announcements and Discussions tools. Students may send personal concerns or questions to
the instructor using the course Email tool. The instructor will reply to student emails or
Discussion board messages within 3 working days under normal circumstances.

At a minimum, you should login to the course site at least 3-4 times per week to check all
course updates, discussion board messages and so on. I strongly recommend checking
ALL webCT email and ALL discussion postings daily.

Please see the graded discussions / participation requirements of the course in the
STUDENT ASSESSMENTS - Graded Participation section. It is your responsibility to
have the technical proficiency to fulfill this requirement and all requirements of the
course.

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Course Syllabus Page 3

 Student Assessments

In this course, I expect that you read all discussion postings, all course notes, listen to all
PowerPoint presentations / audio, and actively engage yourself in this course, such as posting
responses to discussion postings, such as the graded module postings and posting any
questions that you may have that are general in nature.

Your active participation will have a direct impact on your success in this course. You will be
tested on the knowledge you are gaining from the textbook and all methods of learning in
webCT. I hope that you enjoy the flexibility that this on-line course will give you to somewhat
self-pace yourself, but with this in mind, you need to have discipline to stay up with course
work and what is expected. I look forward to getting to know you better. Please let me know
any comments or questions you have. Your positive approach to this course, as to life in
general, will enable you to get the most out of the course. I hope you have a great semester!

Grading Information

Weights / Grade Breakdown

Points
Graded Participation
Posting of Introduction in discussions during first 10
week
Graded Module Postings 30
Team Project 150
0 (or – or + points)
Teaming Evaluation Points
Test #1 100
Test #2 100
Cumulative Final Exam (Test #3) 100
TOTAL POINTS 490

Grading criteria

Scaled Score Letter

Equivalent
100 - 90% 490 – 441 points out of 490 A
89 – 80% 440 – 392 points out of 490 B
79 – 70% 391 – 343 points out of 490 C
Below 69% Less than 343 points out of 490 F

Accessing Grades
Students can check their grades by clicking “My Grades” under Course Tools after the grade for
each assessment task is released.

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Graded Participation
Posting of Introduction

You must post your introduction in discussions by the due date and time. This is worth up to 10
points, assuming you completely answer all required questions. You will receive –5 points for
one day to one week late or -10 points (grade of 0) if later than one week.

Graded Module Postings

Your active participation will have a direct impact on your success in this course and will be
graded as follows:

There are 3 modules in the course and 3 corresponding parts for participation. Participation
points will be on the course content from the module and / or topics related to the team project.
You must have at least 2 value added discussion postings regarding the material – your
observations, questions, responses to other student’s questions, responses to my postings of
questions, etc. These must be posted during the time frames specified on the syllabus and
must be posted on DIFFERENT DAYS and RELATED TO DIFFERENT TOPICS so you are
demonstrating that you are keeping up with the course throughout the semester, with at least
one being a response to the posting of another person. The grading for this will be up to 5
points for each value added posting up to 10 points for each part as follows:

Grading will be as follows:

Module 1: 10
Module 2: 10
Module 3: 10

Note: You should be reading ALL the discussions postings on an-ongoing basis in the Modules
as part of your participation or points may be deducted.

These must be posted during the time frames specified on the syllabus. NO LATE WORK WILL
BE ACCEPTED FOR MODULE POSTINGS.

Class Participation
Students are required to login regularly to the online class site. The instructor will use the
tracking feature in WebCT to monitor student activity. Students are also required to participate
in all class activities such as discussion board activities, chat or conference sessions and group
projects.

Virtual Classroom Citizenship

The same guidelines that apply to traditional classes should be observed in the virtual
classroom environment. Please use proper netiquette when interacting with class members and
the professor.

Policy on Server Unavailability or Other Technical Difficulties

The university commits to provide a reliable online course system to all users. However, in the
event of any unexpected server outage or any unusual technical difficulty which prevents
students from completing a time sensitive assessment activity, the instructor will extend the time
windows and provide an appropriate accommodation based on the situation. Students should
report any problems to the instructor and also email gmabsupport@utdallas.edu. The instructor
and GMBA Staff members will respond to student’s request at the earliest possible time during
the next working day.

Course Syllabus Page 5

Team Project
Please see Appendix A.

A private discussion area will be set up on the discussion board for internal group
communications. A group chat room can also be created for each group to use. A web
conference system, Elluminate Live, is available for use. Teams can schedule a live web
conference for team work. Please see communication tool information for instructions on
making a reservation and other web conference information.

Assignment submission instructions

You will submit your assignments (in the required file format with a simple file name and a file
extension) by using the Assignments tool on the course site. Please see the Assignments link
on the course menu or see the icon on the designated page. You can click each assignment
name link and follow the on-screen instructions to upload and submit your file(s). Please refer to
the Help menu for more information on using this tool. Please note: each assignment link will
be deactivated after the assignment due time. After your submission is graded, you may click
each assignment’s “Graded” tab to check the results and feedback.

For the team project assignment, one group member will submit the assignment for the group
and all group members will be able to view the results and feedback once it’s been graded.

Teaming Evaluation Form

Please see Appendix A.

Online Tests/Quizzes

Test #1 and #2 will be timed, on-line exams. The on-line tests are open book and open notes,
but you need to prepare for them like they were closed book and closed notes because they are
timed exams.

You can access quizzes/exams by clicking the Assessments link on the course menu or see the
quiz/exam icon on the designated page. Each quiz is timed and can be accessed only one time
within the scheduled time window. Please read the on-screen instructions carefully before you
click “Begin Assessment”. After each quiz is graded and released, you may go back to the
Assessments page and click “View All Submissions” to review your exam results.

If you do not take the exam during the specified testing window, you will receive a 0 on the
exam. If you have conflicts with the testing window, you need to let me know as soon as
possible BEFORE the testing window closes.

Self-Quizzes
There will be several self-quizzes available for you to take. These are not graded. However,
they must be taken by the due dates provided and will close up on the due date. These are
good to take as there are some questions from the quizzes will be similar to ones you may see
on the exams and can test your knowledge once the respective section of the course is
completed.

Proctored Final Exam Information

Course Syllabus Page 6

This course requires a proctored final examination. An on-campus class exam session is
scheduled as specified on the TOPICS AND SCHEDULE Note: Per SOM policy, final exams for
online courses can only be scheduled on a Friday or Saturday, due to room availability and
constraint under the supervision of the instructor.

The Final Exam will be cumulative. It will be closed book, closed notes. Details will follow.

Students who are not able to attend this exam session with the instructor can arrange an
individual proctored exam with a testing service of their choice at a date within this required
exam time window specified in the TOPICS AND SCHEDULE. For local students, testing
services are available at the UTD Learning Resources Center. Students who find UTD
geographically inconvenient may use a preapproved testing service at a convenient location. All
individually arranged proctored exams must be completed within the stated exam time window.
Student using either the UTD testing service at the Learning Resources Center or an outside
testing service must inform the instructor, as well as the Global MBA Online office
(gmbasupport@utdallas.edu). A proctored exam form must be completed and sent back to the
GMBA Office before October 15, 2007. Please go to the Proctored Exam Information page to
download the Proctored Exam Form and find all the detailed information and procedures on
arranging a proctored exam. All completed exams must be received by due date in TOPICS
AND SCHEDULE to allow timely grade reporting to the UTD Registrar.

The GMBA Office requests all students who need to use testing services strictly follow the
proctored exam scheduling deadlines. If any student fails to submit the exam form on time, the
student will be required to come to campus and attend the scheduled class exam session (or
seek instructor’s approval for any special arrangements).

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Course Syllabus Page 7

 TOPICS AND SCHEDULE
NOTE: All assignment are due at 11:59pm CST (Central Standard Time)
on the date due.
This course outline should serve as your guideline for where you should be in the completion of
the materials for this course. All course information will be posted in webCT and it is your
responsibility to keep up with the material and submit materials as requested by the time
requested.
Topics What you need to
Unit Week do - Reading /
Starting Assignments and
Other Activities
Module 1 Participation
Discussion Postings must be completed from (Aug. 16 – Sept. 12)
1 8/16 Syllabus Get to know your
class mates and team
Overview of Accounting Information mates: Read and
Systems post intros, webCT
chat or webCT email,
Meet students and agree to work as a regular or private
team and sign up for team projects – reply to intros, etc.
(GROUPS area).
Chapter 1 –
Introduction to
Accounting
Information Systems
2 8/23 Enterprise Systems Contrasted to Post your Intros in
Traditional Automated and Manual Discussion Area by
Accounting Information Systems 8/23/07

Accounting Systems Development Life Chapter 2 –

Cycle (SDLC) “PADIO” Enterprise Systems
Part I: Systems Planning and Analysis
Part II: Systems Implementation &
Operation
3 8/30 General Database Concepts Finalize Teams (or
you will be assigned)
Different Approaches to Business Process by 8/30/07
Modeling with a focus on Semantic
Modeling and REA Modeling / ER Chapter 6 –
Diagrams Relational Databases
and SQL
4 8/30 Documentation Techniques – Finalize Team Names
Flowcharting, DFDs, and other techniques and Team Company
– with a focus on Flowcharting and Project Topic and
submit to Professor
through discussions,
webCT email or
assignments for
approval (-10 points if
not completed) due

Course Syllabus Page 8

 9/5/07

Chapter 4 –
Documenting
Information Systems
5 9/6 Fraud, Ethics and Internal Control Chapter 7 –
Controlling
Information Systems:
Internal Control and its role in Accounting Introduction to
and Business and Accounting Information Internal Control
Systems Development – COSO,
Sarbanes-Oxley, and other guidelines that ALL Module 1 Self-
impact the focus on internal control Quizzes must be
taken by 9/12/07!!!!
9/13 Exam #1 (Exam Window 9/13 – 9/19) Due 9/19/07

Module 2 Participation
Discussion Postings must be completed from (Sept. 19 – Oct. 17)
6 9/20 Controlling Information Systems and IT Chapter 8 –
Processes Controlling
Information Systems:
IT Processes
Business Process Controls (Application
Controls) and Control Matrices Chapter 9 –
Controlling
Information Systems:
Business Process
Controls
7 9/27 Sales / Collection Process Chapter 10 – The
Order Entry / Sales
Sales Process - Order Entry / Sales (OE/S) Process
Process
Chapter 11 – The
Collection Process – Billing / Accounts Billing / Accounts
Receivable / Cash Receipts Receivable / Cash
Receipts (B / AR /
CR) Process
8 10/4 Acquisition / Payment Process Chapter 12 – The
Purchasing Process
Part A: Purchases
Part B: Accounts Payable / Cash Chapter 13 – The
Disbursements Process Accounts Payable /
Cash Disbursements
(AP / CD) Process
9 10/11 Acquisition / Payment Process (cont.) Chapter 14 – The
Human Resources
Part C: Human Resources Business (HR) Management
Processes and Payroll, Fixed Assets, and Payroll
Financing Processes

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 ALL Module 2 Self-
Quizzes must be
taken by 10/17/07!!!!
10/18 Exam #2 (Exam Window 10/18 – 10/24)
Exam Due 10/24/07
Module 3 Participation
Discussion Postings must be completed from (Oct. 25 – Nov. 20)
10 10/25 The Conversion (or Production) Cycle Chapter 15 –
Integrated Production
Processes (IPP)
11/1 Project Submission Week Team Project
Submission due
11/7/07

11 11/8 E-Business TEAMING

EVALUATION
FORMS DUE 11/9/07

Chapter 3 –
Electronic Business
(E-Business)
Systems

12 11/15 General Ledger, Financial Reporting, and Chapter 16 – General

Management Reporting Systems Ledger and Business
Reporting (GL / BR)
A question for you: What’s next in Process
accounting information systems?
ALL Module 3 Self-
Quizzes must be
taken by 11/22/07!!!!
11/22 Thanksgiving Enjoy!
Final Exam (cumulative, proctored final MUST be taken by
exam; closed book; closed notes) – 1 ½ 11/30!
11/23 – hours long -– details on testing location
11/30 and date to be announced on webCT. Final Exam MUST be
(Exam Window 11/23 – 11/30) taken and received in
the GMBA Office (at
Proctored Final Exam Date: least by fax) by
Date: Friday, 11/30, from 9-5 11/30/07!
Room: SM 2.106

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Scholastic Honesty
The University has policies and discipline procedures regarding scholastic dishonesty.
Detailed information is available on the Scholastic Dishonesty web page. All students are
expected to maintain a high level of responsibility with respect to academic honesty. Students

Course Syllabus Page 10

 who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties,
including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. Since
such dishonesty harms the individual, all students and the integrity of the University, policies
on scholastic dishonesty will be strictly enforced.

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Course Evaluation

As required by UTD academic regulations, every student must complete an evaluation for
each enrolled course at the end of the semester. An online instructional assessment form will
be made available for your confidential use. Please look for the course evaluation link on the
course Homepage towards the end of the course.

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University Policies

Student Conduct & Discipline

The University of Texas System and The University of Texas at Dallas have rules and
regulations for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business. It is the responsibility of
each student and each student organization to be knowledgeable about the rules and
regulations which govern student conduct and activities. General information on student
conduct and discipline is contained in the UTD publication, A to Z Guide, which is provided to
all registered students each academic year.

The University of Texas at Dallas administers student discipline within the procedures of
recognized and established due process. Procedures are defined and described in the Rules
and Regulations, Board of Regents, The University of Texas System, Part 1, Chapter VI,
Section 3, and in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities of the university’s
Handbook of Operating Procedures. Copies of these rules and regulations are available to
students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff members are available to assist
students in interpreting the rules and regulations (SU 1.602, 972/883-6391).

A student at the university neither loses the rights nor escapes the responsibilities of
citizenship. He or she is expected to obey federal, state, and local laws as well as the
Regents’ Rules, university regulations, and administrative rules. Students are subject to
discipline for violating the standards of conduct whether such conduct takes place on or off
campus, or whether civil or criminal penalties are also imposed for such conduct.

Academic Integrity

The faculty expects from its students a high level of responsibility and academic honesty.
Because the value of an academic degree depends upon the absolute integrity of the work
done by the student for that degree, it is imperative that a student demonstrate a high
standard of individual honor in his or her scholastic work.

Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, statements, acts or omissions related to
applications for enrollment or the award of a degree, and/or the submission as one’s own work

Course Syllabus Page 11

 or material that is not one’s own. As a general rule, scholastic dishonesty involves one of the
following acts: cheating, plagiarism, collusion and/or falsifying academic records. Students
suspected of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary proceedings.

Plagiarism, especially from the web, from portions of papers for other classes, and from any
other source is unacceptable and will be dealt with under the university’s policy on plagiarism
(see general catalog for details). This course will use the resources of turnitin.com, which
searches the web for possible plagiarism and is over 90% effective.

Email Use

The University of Texas at Dallas recognizes the value and efficiency of communication
between faculty/staff and students through electronic mail. At the same time, email raises
some issues concerning security and the identity of each individual in an email exchange.
The university encourages all official student email correspondence be sent only to a student’s
U.T. Dallas email address and that faculty and staff consider email from students official only if
it originates from a UTD student account. This allows the university to maintain a high degree
of confidence in the identity of all individual corresponding and the security of the transmitted
information. UTD furnishes each student with a free email account that is to be used in all
communication with university personnel. The Department of Information Resources at U.T.
Dallas provides a method for students to have their U.T. Dallas mail forwarded to other
accounts.

Withdrawal from Class

The administration of this institution has set deadlines for withdrawal of any college-level
courses. These dates and times are published in that semester's course catalog.
Administration procedures must be followed. It is the student's responsibility to handle
withdrawal requirements from any class. In other words, I cannot drop or withdraw any
student. You must do the proper paperwork to ensure that you will not receive a final grade of
"F" in a course if you choose not to attend the class once you are enrolled.

Student Grievance Procedures

Procedures for student grievances are found in Title V, Rules on Student Services and
Activities, of the university’s Handbook of Operating Procedures.

In attempting to resolve any student grievance regarding grades, evaluations, or other

fulfillments of academic responsibility, it is the obligation of the student first to make a serious
effort to resolve the matter with the instructor, supervisor, administrator, or committee with
whom the grievance originates (hereafter called “the respondent”). Individual faculty members
retain primary responsibility for assigning grades and evaluations. If the matter cannot be
resolved at that level, the grievance must be submitted in writing to the respondent with a
copy of the respondent’s School Dean. If the matter is not resolved by the written response
provided by the respondent, the student may submit a written appeal to the School Dean. If
the grievance is not resolved by the School Dean’s decision, the student may make a written
appeal to the Dean of Graduate or Undergraduate Education, and the deal will appoint and
convene an Academic Appeals Panel. The decision of the Academic Appeals Panel is final.
The results of the academic appeals process will be distributed to all involved parties.

Course Syllabus Page 12

 Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the Dean of
Students, where staff members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and
regulations.

Incomplete Grade Policy

As per university policy, incomplete grades will be granted only for work unavoidably missed
at the semester’s end and only if 70% of the course work has been completed. An incomplete
grade must be resolved within eight (8) weeks from the first day of the subsequent long
semester. If the required work to complete the course and to remove the incomplete grade is
not submitted by the specified deadline, the incomplete grade is changed automatically to a
grade of F.

Disability Services

The goal of Disability Services is to provide students with disabilities educational opportunities
equal to those of their non-disabled peers. Disability Services is located in room 1.610 in the
Student Union. Office hours are Monday and Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Tuesday and
Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The contact information for the Office of Disability Services is:

The University of Texas at Dallas, SU 22
PO Box 830688
Richardson, Texas 75083-0688
(972) 883-2098 (voice or TTY)

Essentially, the law requires that colleges and universities make those reasonable
adjustments necessary to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability. For example, it
may be necessary to remove classroom prohibitions against tape recorders or animals (in the
case of dog guides) for students who are blind. Occasionally an assignment requirement may
be substituted (for example, a research paper versus an oral presentation for a student who is
hearing impaired). Classes enrolled students with mobility impairments may have to be
rescheduled in accessible facilities. The college or university may need to provide special
services such as registration, note-taking, or mobility assistance.

It is the student’s responsibility to notify his or her professors of the need for such an
accommodation. Disability Services provides students with letters to present to faculty
members to verify that the student has a disability and needs accommodations. Individuals
requiring special accommodation should contact the professor after class or during office
hours.

Religious Holy Days

The University of Texas at Dallas will excuse a student from class or other required activities
for the travel to and observance of a religious holy day for a religion whose places of worship
are exempt from property tax under Section 11.20, Tax Code, Texas Code Annotated.

The student is encouraged to notify the instructor or activity sponsor as soon as possible
regarding the absence, preferably in advance of the assignment. The student, so excused,
will be allowed to take the exam or complete the assignment within a reasonable time after the
absence: a period equal to the length of the absence, up to a maximum of one week. A

Course Syllabus Page 13

 student who notifies the instructor and completes any missed exam or assignment may not be
penalized for the absence. A student who fails to complete the exam or assignment within the
prescribed period may receive a failing grade for that exam or assignment.

If a student or an instructor disagrees about the nature of the absence [i.e., for the purpose of
observing a religious holy day] or if there is similar disagreement about whether the student
has been given a reasonable time to complete any missed assignments or examinations,
either the student or the instructor may request a ruling from the chief executive officer of the
institution, or his or her designee. The chief executive officer or designee must take into
account the legislative intent of TEC 51.911(b), and the student and instructor will abide by the
decision of the chief executive officer or designee.

Off-Campus Instruction and Course Activities

Off-campus, out-of-state, and foreign instruction and activities are subject to state law and
University policies and procedures regarding travel and risk-related activities. Information
regarding these rules and regulations may be found at the website address given below.
Additional information is available from the office of the school dean.
(http://www.utdallas.edu/BusinessAffairs/Travel_Risk_Activities.htm)

These descriptions and timelines are subject to change at the discretion of the
Professor.

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Course Syllabus Page 14

 APPENDIX A
AIM 6343 – Team Project Outline
To Finalize Team Names, Team Company and Team Project topic:
• You need to turn in your team name, the company you want to review, and the project
focus. You must submit all the detail I need by the date in the TOPICS AND
SCHEDULE part of the syllabus or you can get up to –10 points on the project.

• Think about companies that you work with and a key business process that feeds the
accounting information system (AIS) such as (sales / collection (order to cash),
acquisition / payment (purchase to pay), human resources (hire to paycheck), or
conversion (such as the production of finished goods) or an accounting process such as
consolidations, month-end or year-end closing, cost accounting, etc.

• Using any company of your choice – either one that uses SAP or some other Enterprise
System (such as Oracle / PeopleSoft, Infor, JD Edwards, Great Plains) or one that could
possibly benefit from an enterprise resource planning / enterprise system, e-Business
concepts, and/or additional focus on internal control.

To Complete the Team Project:

Complete the following:
• Have the information in one Word document or points will be taken off.

1. PLANNING STAGE (20 points):

a. Give a brief history of the company (you are completing this case on) include the
following (2 points)
b. Explain all the systems that the company uses in conjunction with the accounting
information system (feeds to the accounting system) and how these systems are
used for decision-making and how they support the business processes. State
the focus of your project. (10 points)
c. Define / Explain pervasive internal control (Using ERM and the COSO
framework) explain internal control at the company level. Explain it as it relates
to the 5 components of control and explain the key pervasive controls. (Consult
Chapter 7 and Document posted on COSO Components of Control ) (3 points)
d. Define / Explain the pervasive internal control from an IT perspective (Using the
COBiT framework). How is the IT organization structured, etc. at the company
level? Give sufficient detail for your analysis (Consult Chapter 8) (3 points)
e. Give your overall company assessment of internal control at a high level. (2
points)
2. ANALYSIS STAGE (95 points) - Select one key business process that feeds accounting
or a key accounting process (such as month-end close, consolidations, cost center
accounting processes) that has a priority information systems need in the company and
complete the following:
a. Explain why this process is the focus of the project in more detail. Talk about the
business process (i.e., provide a narrative). Give the detailed accounting
transactions that occur in this business process along with the account coding /
chart of accounts coding related to these entries (Consult Chapter 16 on G/L and
chart of account coding and applicable chapter(s) from 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and/or
15) – CRITICAL FOR THIS SECTION – The team members who do not work for
this organization should compile interview questions as a team and interview the

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 student who does work for the company in focus and write up the narrative and
have the student who does work for the company review the narrative for
accuracy. If one of the team members is going to be interviewing someone else
in their organization or another organization, the interview questions should be
compiled as a team (using the Team Project Case Study Outline as a guideline
for what TO have in the interview question outline). ALL team members must
read and understand the narrative and MUST participate in this part as it drives
much of the paper! – this is a good section to try to do first, once the team project
company and topic are determined. I can review the interview questions ahead
of time if you would like. Doing this section in this manner should help prevent
the individual who works for the company doing ALL the work. (25 points)
b. Complete a Business Model (REA model) of the process (end product should be
similar to Figure 6.5, Page 185). Make sure to include the entity attributes and
key attribute (primary key) (Consult Chapter 6 in the textbook) if you are
completing month-end close or consolidations or other process that would be
difficult to complete an REA model for, you can complete a DFD such as shown
in Chapter 16 or present the professor with your idea of other analyses that you
can complete that would be better here in the early part of the semester to get
approval (15 points)
c. Flowchart the process and use other methods from this chapter to document the
specific business process (Consult Chapter 4 of the textbook). (20 points)
d. Complete a Control Matrix (such as like Figure 9.1, page 286) of the process to
be used in conjunction with the flowchart created (Consult chapter 9 in the
textbook and Document – Business Process Controls in the Course Materials
Section). Explain the present and missing controls in detail (such as Exhibit 9.1
Explanation of Cell Entries for Control Matrix in Figure 9.1, page 287). Have an
annotated version of the flowchart (such as Figure 9.2 on page 288) to show
where the controls exist as related to the flowchart (30 points)
e. Explain any systems or control weaknesses currently in the business process
under evaluation. This will include any higher level controls that are not
designated on the flowchart and can recap the concerns from the control matrix.
(5 points)
3. DESIGN STAGE - Determine alternatives that could assist this company and explain
what those alternatives (at least 2) would do to improve the company. Put some detail
into the analysis, such as researching specific alternatives (such as comparing 2 ERP
systems, etc). (20 points)
4. Summarize your recommendations to management. (5 points)
5. Make sure everyone on the entire team reads through the entire document to make sure
all parts of the project are completed and the project flows well. (can lose significant
points up to -50 points on each submission if the parts do not flow together).
6. Have a professional work product with a Table of Contents. Since this is an electronic
submission, hyperlinks to the specific sections of the paper is recommended (if you
know how), but is not required. (5 points)
7. You must have a bibliography. Bibliography and footnoting is mandatory. In lieu of
footnoting, you can use parenthetical references. Please follow the MLA standard. I
recommend getting the MLA Handbook or doing research to ensure compliance to this.
Cite all works properly. www.Turnitin.com is used for all submitted materials for
plagiarism purposes. Consult the plagiarism document on the webCT site. If you have
questions on what is proper, ask me! (can receive an F (0) on the project if done
incorrectly and/or referral to Academic Integrity Office)

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 8. You must have at least 5 outside sources (other than the textbook) for the paper. (5
points)

If researching SAP R/3, you can use the following resources:

www.sap.com
http://help.sap.com

NOTE: If your team would like to do a slightly different project, please write up a Case Study
similar to this one for my review and approval.

Have fun with the subject matter and be creative – with analyzing systems and processes, it is
essential to be creative in order to facilitate valuable changes and not just “pave the cow paths”.

The below teaming evaluation form must be completed and submitted by the due date and time
as specified in the Syllabus (the same form will be attached in the Assignments area of the
course). In addition to losing points for late submission, points could be deducted for less than
team effort or additional points could be given for above and beyond effort.

Late submission points for late team project work:

Late by one day = -10 points
Late by two days = -20 points
Late by three days = -30 points
Late by four or more days = -40 points plus 10 points for each day later

Late submission points for late teaming evaluation forms will be deducted as follows:
Late by one day = -5 points
Late by two to three days = -10 points
Late by four days = -20 points
Late by more than four days = -30 points
Never turned in = 0 on the project

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 TEAMING EVALUATION FORM

This part of the team project is confidential. Explain the SPECIFIC work each person did and
consider contribution, quality, effort, time, flexibility, leadership, results, timely completion, knowledge,
experience, creativity, initiative, concern for team, delivering a quality product that flows well and is
professional. I will be looking at the scores from each team member to get an idea of the effort each
person put towards the project. If the scores for an individual are consistently low, this could amount to
points being deducted or a failing grade on the Team Project and other teamwork. Form MUST be typed
and submitted through webCT assignments.

My Name
Team Name
(List Team Members in alphabetical order of last names, including yourself).
Score:
Above and beyond – A+ = went above and beyond in some way and deserves a score higher than the
majority of the team (explain why they deserve above and beyond status)
Full contributor – A = should get all the team points because they gave a fair effort (explain why they are
a full contributor)
Less than full - If less than a full contributor, say whether they gave a B, C, D or F effort and you give
support for why you scored them there - why they were not a full contributor.

Ranking: Rank each team member from 1 to X with 1 being overall the best team member (you MUST
rank yourself). Note: no person can have the same number!
Team Member’s Name Score of Team Ranking
Member
Team Member #1
Team Member #2
Team Member #3
Team Member #4
Team Member #5

Explain the SPECIFIC work (i.e. sections of the paper) that each person did on the project and the
strengths of each team member, INCLUDING you.

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What did you like about the group work and did YOU and YOUR TEAM do that worked well?

What would YOU do to improve YOUR work and what could the TEAM have done better?

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