Strategic Information Systems: Financial Transactions

Discuss about the Strategic Information Systems for Financial Transactions.

Introduction

Computers play an integral part in today's modern life by practically running almost everything. A computer runs programs that allow for smooth management of financial transactions. These programs significantly vary in scope; some of them are for more than just bookkeeping while others are designed to control the whole financial activities and operations of businesses.  Computers help companies to efficiently use their resources thus reducing bookkeeping mistakes which at times may be costly. The essay is about accounting packages used in Australia, development and how it has been received by people, the current number of users, most used accounting software packages, challenges faced by accounting software users, and what is required of the accounting software users.

History of Accounting Packages in Australia

In the past, most small businesses were quite excited putting to use paper-based accounting systems. Later, there emerged Goods and Services Tax (GST) which made many quit paper based accounting systems and subscribed to Goods and Services Tax (GST). Government encouraged small businesses on to computerized systems because they saw the owners would track their operations thus improving their performance as argued by Zeff (2010 p.178). Computerisations of small businesses enabled people submit their records to the government through computers. With accounting software, you do not have to file paper work because it is able to make a Business Activity Statement (BAS).

Lately, we are experiencing technology advancements, and companies are able to innovate accounting software such as MYOB, Intuit QuickBooks, Xero, Saasu, and Reckon.

Intuit's QuickBooks is a well-known accounting software program used by Australian small business owners. Two key factors make QuickBooks as top commercial business accounting software in Australia. The main one is its charge and the second one is the comprehensive features that QuickBooks provide is providing. Commercial business owners are using QuickBooks to track their profits income and costs as said by Alam and Nandan (2010 p.460)

MYOB is another accounting software package recognized in Australia. Its goals are a bit more than just functioning accounting software. The platform is designed to carry out day to day accounting features. However, it is made to help business proprietors gather profitability and make important decisions concerning economic operations. For an Australian company runner, MYOB accounting software program is more than just a store sign up. Having MYOB County interface the factor of sale transactions are put into your whole business operation as described by Dyt (2007 p.1)

Simon (2016 p.6) tells us that Reckon accounting software package is having a significant impact on bookkeepers and accountants. It is a very cheap cloud accounting software recommendable for small and medium sized businesses. The platforms price manner interface allows you to receive debit or credit cards bills using your cell phone.

Development and Adoption of Account Packages in Australia

Research carried out is showing that 14% of Australian small businesses are already managing their businesses using Xero accounting software. This is a high number comparing with the only 11% globally that is using the same software. There is development of easy accessibility of features to allow smooth accountability of financial resources in the regions. The adoption of cloud accounting software's is going on remarkably as said by Wongsim and Gao (2010 p.224). At least two out of every five businesses is already managing their accounts in the cloud. In a year to come four out of every five small business holders will have already adapted to accounting software as seen from Journal of the Economic Science Association by Greiner (2015 p.114).

The Current Market Size of Accounting Packages

Darmadi (2016 p.19) says that software publishing industry is growing at a very impressing rate for the last few years. Growth of this industry is encouraged highly by high use of internet. Most of the small businesses owners are slowly adapting to software accounting at a very high rate. Two out of every five business owners are adapting to accounting software techniques at the moment.  Thirty percent of small business owners are already using accounting software's while more are still subscribing.

Market Leaders and What Makes Them Gain Competitive Advantage

Research carried out by Otley (2016 p.45) shows that Xero is emerging top of the list because they have built a rock relationship with their customers having created trust by being collaborative and open. Xero accounting software is built in the cloud thus having the right to make the dream accounting solution for small businesses in Australia. Invoicing, Inventory, and time tracking among other apps integrate with Xero saving business money and time. Their plans have no lock-in plans contracts or set up fees and it is paid monthly hence making it the leading leader in the market. 158,000 Australians business enterprises are using Xero Accounting packages.

The reasons that are making Xero accounting software be at the top of the game or advantageous are; it has automatic bank feeds that are updated in minutes time, the customer is able to access their financial data anytime, anywhere and with any device, their pricing plans suit all kind of budget, it is very simple to use and appears easy to the eye which many people consider.

MYOB is also appearing in the list of leading accounting software. What is giving MYOB advantage to be in list of top giants is; it is more than just a register store for it integrates both your points of sales with your business in one great platform. It is also awarded being the best in satisfying their customers rating for small businesses accounting software.

Challenges Facing Accounting Packages

1. Lack of security whereby software users are getting worried that foreign parties can access their personal information and may end up losing their money.
2. Reduced speed access whereby the internet is delaying access to the software due to location problems or being far from data centres.

• The inadequate technical support that is making customers have to wait for a long period before having their accounting problem dealt with.

1. Lack of applications; some accounting software's are having limited applications that are very expensive. Customers or users always have to get upgraded versions so as to get what they want.
2. Outdated and inaccurate. Some accounting software are displaying what is inaccurate making the system slow down and errors happen because they are outdated.
3. Weak reporting services. Some accounting software's tend are powerless in helping customers get their business data fast. Users get annoyed since it is simple to put data yet impossible to retrieve it.

• Inconvenient technical support through the call. It is good to teach someone when he is there because he is able to tackle the problem when it happens again because he already has seen what ought to be done.
• Most business owners opt doing things quickly and faster to minimize time consumption. Some accounting software's do not use the keyboard but instead requires mouse which slows down business progress.

1. Poor relationship with management. Users are getting frustrated due to lack of training and guidance on how to use the software thus being clueless and how to fix problems when they appear.

Recommendations

When choosing suitable accounting software, you need to look for ones that are affordable and easy to use. Time-saving features such as automated entries, expense reports, and reconciliations are important. Additionally, look for software that best simplifies the performance of advanced tasks such as data syncing, for instance, with the point of sale and bank accounts.

Also, you also need to find suitable package software depending on your business specific needs. Online accounting software's vary with some users and customers and also the invoices the company generates. If you happen to employ contract workers time tracking and invoicing, features are important.

Conclusion

Accounting software packages are essential for most businesses to rely on them for proper financial record keeping. One should choose depending on the size of the firm, cost and their preferences as seen in the Australian accounting market. With MYOB, Xero, QuickBooks, and Saasu only to mention a few from Australia packages one should mainly consider their features correctly before using them in business entities.

However, having a small business and you want to reduce your spending on software, QuickBooks is the solution. It is easy to use and currently has more features for the price than MYOB. If your business is pretty static and you have MYOB it is appropriate if you stick with it since QuickBooks is not way better than it's worth changing. For big firms, Xero has the best deal for it is equipped with payroll where you can pay your employees and information is automatically automated into the general ledger. Xero also has smooth cash flow with automatic bank reconciliation where you can import your latest bank transactions.

References

 Zeff, S.A., and Nobes, C.W., 2010. Commentary: Has Australia (or Any Other Jurisdiction) ‘Adopted'IFRS? 1. Australian Accounting Review, 20(2), pp.178-184.

Alam, M. and Nandan, R., 2010. Organizational change and innovation in small accounting practices: evidence from the field. Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, 6(4), pp.460-476.

Wongsim, M. and Gao, J., 2010, August. Data Quality Issues in Accounting Information Systems Adoption-Theory building. In Networked Computing and Advanced Information Management (NCM), 2010 Sixth International Conference on (pp. 224-230). IEEE.

Dyt, R. and Halabi, A.K., 2007. Empirical evidence examining the accounting information systems and accounting reports of small and micro business in Australia. Small Enterprise Research, 15(2), pp.1-9.

Hoyle, S., 2016. Where have all the accountants gone? Professional Planner, (83), p.6.

Darmadi, S., 2016. Ownership concentration, family control, and auditor choice: Evidence from an emerging market. Asian Review of Accounting, 24(1), pp.19-42.

Otley, D., 2016. The contingency theory of management accounting and control: 1980–2014. Management Accounting Research, 31, pp.45-62.

Marti?, V., 2016. Application of XBRL-a In the Function of Improvement of Quality of Financial Reporting in Montenergo. Facta Universitatis, Series: Economics and Organization, pp.279-295.

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