HA2042: Accounting Information Systems - Wesfarmers Software Analysis

This report analyzes accounting software options for Wesfarmers, a large Australian conglomerate, and its retail division, Target. The study was prompted by financial misconduct within Target, which led to inflated earnings and damaged the company's reputation. The report details Wesfarmers' key processes and the need for a robust accounting information system to prevent future incidents. It compares two accounting software solutions, SAP and MYOB, evaluating their features and functionalities. The report ultimately recommends MYOB as the most suitable choice for Wesfarmers, highlighting its strong security features, cost-effectiveness, and ability to manage key functions efficiently. The report emphasizes MYOB's multi-user access, payroll management, easy synchronization, and data security, making it a superior choice for the company's needs. The conclusion is based on the need to protect financial and non-financial data, and to improve the overall financial management of Wesfarmers.

Running head: ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SOFTWARE
Wesfarmers
Accounting Information Systems
5/21/2019

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Executive Summary
The aim of this paper is to assess and recommend cloud-based accounting software for
Wesfarmers and its retail chain that is Target. The report is comprised of a detailed
description of the company as well as its key procedure. From the analysis, it has been
recognized that the employees of Wesfarmers division that is Target were involved in
financial misconduct and reflected inflated earning of the company. This impacted the
reputation of Wesfarmers in the market. In order to avoid such kind of incidences in the
company, the report has suggested Wesfarmers install MYOB as the accounting software
which can provide security to the financial as well as non-financial data of the company. In
addition to this, MYOB also offers multiple accesses and can manage key functions of the
company effectively in less time. The accounting software has been suggested by performing
the comparison between SAP and MYOB from which the report provided the conclusion of
finally selecting MYOB as the accounting software for Wesfarmers.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary...................................................................................................................1
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Overview of Wesfarmers.......................................................................................................3
The key process of Wesfarmers.............................................................................................4
Wesfarmers Group Structure..............................................................................................5
The software features and functionalities required by Wesfarmers Target...........................6
Description of Two accounting software...............................................................................6
SAP Accounting Software.................................................................................................6
MYOB Accounting Software.............................................................................................7
Comparison of the software...................................................................................................7
MYOB Features.................................................................................................................7
SAP Features......................................................................................................................8
Suitable System for Wesfarmers............................................................................................9
Conclusion................................................................................................................................10
References................................................................................................................................11

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Introduction
An accounting information system is said to be an electronic suite of accounting that supports
maintaining the company's records. The data is entered in the system for tracking and
arranging the accounting statistics. The system of accounting information is utilized to offer
comprehensive details regarding the organization, comprising financial statements
(VanBaren, 2017). The accounting system is created to record every event and transaction of
the company. The accounting clerk is responsible for entering all the transactions of the
business in the system and then transactions are routinely dispatched in the resultant
accounts. This is essential because any time the data it requires, it can search on the computer
and is managed. The intent of this report is discussed regarding the significance and use of
accounting system in Wesfarmers for overcoming the challenges. The report is comprised of
a detailed description of the Wesfarmers activities and reasons for installing a new
accounting system. In addition to this, the comparison of two accounting software is also
presented in the report such that the best alternative can be selected for the company to
enhance operations.
Overview of Wesfarmers
Wesfarmers is the conglomerate of Australia, with head office in Western Australia. The
company operates its business from New Zealand and Australia in different streams like
fertilizers, safety products, retail, coal mining, and chemicals. Wesfarmers is the leading firm
in Australia in terms of revenue of AU$65.98 billion in the year 2016, overtaking BHP and
Woolworths (Wesfarmers, 2019b). Even, Wesfarmers is known as the Australian biggest
employer with around 220,000 workers. Key activities of Wesfarmers are to deliver
acceptable returns to all its shareholders by exceptional management and financial discipline

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of a varied business portfolio. The key concentration of the entire group is to confirm that
every division possesses strong management competencies that are responsible for the
development and execution of the strategy, along with daily operational performance
(Wesfarmers, 2019a).
The key process of Wesfarmers
The key procedures of Wesfarmers are focused on meeting the organizational intent of
offering satisfactory returns to the shareholders. The key aspects of the procedure are:
Company is regularly investing in the Group businesses where the opportunities for capital
investment surpass return requirements.
Company is also involved in acquiring or divesting the businesses whenever doing so results
in an increased long-term wealth of the shareholder; and
Controlling and managing the balance sheet of the Group in order to attain the perfect risk
profile, and flexibility to take the opportunities or benefit as they arise (Wesfarmers, 2018).
The procedure is also supported by the key enablers:
Poeple – Wesfarmers desire to be the best employer of everyone’s choice. Enticing skilled
workforce and using their distinct aptitudes is considered to be the acute component in
struggling for sustainable success. Wesfarmers identified that where strategies and assets are
critical, but people are the one who eventually drives results or outcomes.
Commercial Excellence – Wesfarmers work to confirm that its employees follow financial
discipline while making every decision in the company.

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Empowering culture – Wesfarmers understands that an authorizing culture is very essential
for providing the outcomes arranged according to the corporate planning framework of the
Group (Wesfarmers, 2018).
Innovation – Wesfarmers is focused on developing a culture that inspires invention, and
rewards creativity and entrepreneurial initiatives.
Social Responsibility – Respect to the suppliers, workers, and patrons and offering save the
environment at the workplace is the basic motive of the company.
Robust Financial capacity – With the management of a strong balance sheet, the entire
organization desires to offer a competitive cost and gain access to capital to work when
opportunities of value-creating are present (Wesfarmers, 2018).
Wesfarmers Group Structure
Source [(Wesfarmers, 2018)]

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The retail segment of Wesfarmers including Target is presently under the news for the
accounting errors. According to Wesfarmers, this has been done by some of the company's
staff who did not follow the accounting policies. The parent company of Target is taking
proper steps against the involved staff. According to the report, it was identified that the
earnings of Target were inflated by A$21m (US$16m) (Smyth, 2016). This has majorly
impacted the market position of the Entire Wesfarmers Group. Presently, Target is an
underperforming unit of Wesfarmers due to which company is planning to change the
accounting information software of the entire group and management staff of the Target.
The software features and functionalities required by Wesfarmers Target
Security – The business is based on the accounting software from its existence. Wesfarmers
require accounting software that can reduce or eliminate the chances of data tampering or
data loss.
Accounting – Accounting is the key requirement of every system. It is very important for
every business to have a system that could do general accounting activities like a ledger,
accounts payable, bank reconciliation, etc. (Dandago and Rufai, 2014)
Budgeting Forecasting – This is also one of the features of accounting systems, which
computes and infers the financial performance of the company and supports in estimating the
budget for the coming year (Weygandt, Kimmel and Elias, 2010).
Description of Two accounting software
SAP Accounting Software
The SAP provides accounting programs appropriate for the businesses of every size, from a
start-up to the largest business of the world. SAP was introduced in Germany in the year
1972, as the third largest software company in the world after Microsoft and Oracle.

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Accounting software is one of the core categories of its business. Different parts of the SAP
accounting software comprises recording, accounts receivable, accounting, etc. This system
helps in increased efficiency which results in easy access to the information and allows
managers of the company to take better decisions for the business (Blount, Abedin and
Erfani, 2016).
MYOB Accounting Software
The full form of MYOB is Mind your own business. MYOB is said to be the company of
Australian tax and accounting software, offering a variety of services to big and small
businesses as cloud-based, browser-based software, or physical installation (Pulakanam and
Suraweera, 2010). According to the analysis of MYOB, around 2 in 3 businesses in Australia
make use of software for accounting and around 60% of them make use of MYOB
accounting software. In addition to this, 60% of the accountants make use of MYOB tool for
assisting their clients (Canstar Blue, 2019).
Comparison of the software
Businesses have to carry effectiveness in their procedures in order to decrease the rate of the
operation and producing high profits. The means through which businesses can make their
process well-organized is by utilizing computerized technology that decreases the working
time and chances of errors. This offers control of the flow of the work that could be handled
as per the need. To enhance the financial systems, businesses make use of reporting and
accounting software. The software that could be used by Wesfarmers to enhance its
operations and reduce the chances of data tempering is SAP and MYOB.
MYOB Features
 Great features of accounting software
 Multi-user access

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 Payroll management
 Easy Synchronization
 Cash Flow Management
 Data security
 Flawless system
The key aim of MYOB is to provide organized software of accounting. MYOB software can
operate a number of key functions efficiently and in less time. This software has made the
procedures of billing and inventory management easier which results in reducing the cost and
wastage (Get App, 2019). The software also supports maintaining the track of cash flow and
monitoring losses and profits. In addition to this, the software could be retrieved by people in
diverse functional subdivisions and divisions of the organization and numerous others in the
foreign market. These features highlight that MYOB is the best software solution which is
used widely by different organizations. MYOB adhere with its security commitment by
following the ISO 31000 Risk management standard, use of the protected encrypted channel,
for all the transactions and communication taking place by ensuring data between MYOB and
computer devise is not compromised (MYOB Technology, 2019).
Another expected facility of the multi-user application is that it allows more than one
individual to operate on single application at the same time. This result in resolving small
probes promptly that could be raised while operating on the system and also reduces
processing time. MYOB software possesses the features where the information of billion
amount and different financial transactions could be recorded in diverse currencies.
SAP Features
 Multi-Currencies
 Cash management

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 Improved incorporation of functional departments
 Multi-Lingual
 Improvises the performance
 Decreases the time period of the sales cycle
 Diverse features for supporting financial activities
There are various features of SAP which are similar to MYOB. Some of the common features
of SAP with MYOB are that it can be utilized by number of people at same time. Secondly,
this software is available in different languages and hence it is effective from a worldwide
viewpoint. Thirdly, the software offers information in multiple currencies and thus it can
easily analyze the transactions of the company's foreign branch (Business Software, 2019).
SAP also incorporates every function of the company and after accessing them support in
forming the targets as well as the goals of the company. The software support business in
tracking, monitoring, and controlling the cost, which increases the organization profit. The
executive level management of the company can plan diverse policies for the coming period
and can get ready for the uncertainty of the future. In addition to this, SAP provides different
digital techniques of recording the figures of sales which concurrently appraises the
information in other functions (Business Software, 2019). The SAP accounting software also
coordinates the collected fund from the consumers and lists downs the entire pending amount,
which supports cash management.
Suitable System for Wesfarmers
The most suitable accounting software for the entire group of Wesfarmers including target is
MYOB. Considering the financial misconduct took place in the Target unit of Wesfarmers, in
which staff members of the company were involved and adopted data tempering for
reflecting the inflated earnings of Target (Parker, 2016). This majorly impacted the reputation

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and image of the entire Wesfarmers Group in the market. In order to resolve these issues and
secure the entire financial and non-financial data, Wesfarmers can install MYOB into its
system. As MYOB adhere with its security commitment by following the ISO 31000 Risk
management standard, use of the protected encrypted channel, for all the transactions and
communication taking place by ensuring data between MYOB and computer devise is not
compromised. The security feature of SAP is not so strong in comparison to MYOB. In
addition to this, MYOB is cost effective as well as helps in managing the time of the
company's top management in managing the transactions of a business. The software also
supports maintaining the cash flow track and monitoring profits as well as losses (MYOB,
2019).
Conclusion
The above report has discussed the key procedures of Wesfarmers and issues it is dealing in
terms of lack of accounting software system. From the analysis, it has been identified that one
of the retail division of Wesfarmers that is Target has recently dealt with some of the
accounting errors. Few of the Target staff was involved in this scandal, they were caught
involved in the financial data tempering, which resulted in inflated earnings of the business. It
is very important to resolve these issues such that Wesfarmers group can again gain its
reputation in the market by adopting appropriate accounting software. The report has
performed the comparison between two accounting software that is SAP and MYOB.
Considering the security requirement of Wesfarmers and security features offered by MYOB
the report has suggested the company to adopt MYOB according to the software. MYOB is
the best accounting software which allows multi-user access, payroll management, cash flow
management, etc. In addition to this, the software is cost effective as well as save the time of

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the top management invested in handling the financial information of the business and
identifying frauds.

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References
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in the accounting curriculum: a systematic literature review and case study. Accounting
Education, 25(2), pp.185-202.
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[accessed 21 May 2019]
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https://www.canstarblue.com.au/stores-services/brands/myob-accounting-software/ [accessed
21 May 2019]
Dandago, K.I. and Rufai, A.S. (2014) Information technology and accounting information
system in the nigerian banking industry. Asian Economic and Financial Review, 4(5), pp.655-
670.
Get App (2019) MYOB Essentials Pricing, Features, Reviews & Comparison of Alternatives
[online]. Available from https://www.getapp.com/finance-accounting-software/a/myob/
[accessed 21 May 2019]
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https://www.myob.com/au/accounting-software/features [accessed 21 May 2019]
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https://www.myob.com/au/about/security/security-commitment [accessed 21 May 2019]

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Parker, J. (2016) Target accounting scandal: Wesfarmers taking action against staff [online].
Available from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-11/wesfarmers-taking-action-over-
target-accounting-scandal/7317178 [accessed 21 May 2019]
Pulakanam, V. and Suraweera, T. (2010) Implementing accounting software in small
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Public Interest, 9(64), pp.98-124.
Smyth, J. (2016) Wesfarmers admits accounting errors at Target subsidiary [online].
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[accessed 21 May 2019]
VanBaren, J. (2017) Importance of Accounting Information Systems [online]. Available from
https://bizfluent.com/about-6510340-importance-accounting-information-systems.html
[accessed 21 May 2019]
Wesfarmers (2018) Annual Report [online]. Available from
https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/docs/default-source/asx-announcements/2018-annual-
report.pdf?sfvrsn=0 [accessed 21 May 2019]
Wesfarmers (2019a) Our Business [online]. Available from
https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/our-businesses/our-businesses [accessed 21 May 2019]
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https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/who-we-are/the-wesfarmers-way [accessed 21 May 2019]
Weygandt, J.J., Kimmel, P.D., and Elias, R.Z. (2010) Accounting principles. Issues in
Accounting Education, 25(1), pp.179-180.

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