The Effects of Technology on the Accounting
Profession
Technology has changed and molded
most aspects of human existence, from the creation of the wheel and printing
press to the computer and World Wide Web.
Today’s technology has impacted traditional profession, such as
accounting, changing an accountant’s role in the workplace and empowering them
with powerful processing and analyzing tools.
Accounting information systems, known as AIS’s,
are electronic or computerized systems that are designed to maintain accounting
records for businesses (Wikipedia, 2008). AIS’s stores
information related to the financial practices of a company, including accounts
receivables, accounts payables. The purpose of AIS’s
is to make data more accessible to both internal and external users.
Information is easily stored and transmitted; time is reduced in generating and
tracking down reports. Information can
now be sent anywhere in the world at the click of a mouse!
The use of computers has changed accounting in many ways. Before computers accounting was entirely
paper based. There was a fairly standard
way of performing accounting duties that translated from one company or
department to another. With the
introduction of computers and the many accounting programs, the landscape of
accounting has changed dramatically.
Instead of simple paper and pencil record keeping and using a filing
cabinet for safe storage, companies have had to focus on developing compressive
AIS’s. AIS’s have five basic phases used to developing them:
planning, analysis, design, implementation, and support (Accounting
Information Systems, 2001).
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