Computerised Financial Information Systems

BACKKGROUND TO THE STUDY
According to Phillips (2004), computers are here with us to improve the level of efficiency and to speed up all activities that need to be done.

A computer is a device or machine for making calculations or controlling operations that are expressible in numerical or logical terms. Modern computers are electronic and digital. The actual machinery wires, transistors and circuits is called hardware; the instructions and data are called software.(http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/computer.html).

Financial management especially the accounting section is of crucial importance to the success of any organization because it deals with the classification, analyzing and summarizing of financial information of an organization.

Organizations have therefore computerized their financial systems in a bid to make work easier, faster and therefore produce statements on time. Computerization of the accounting system is a necessity because of the many functions of accountants which are repetitive and require accuracy and speed that the computers can provide.(Oliver and Chapman 1990)

The idea of publishing financial statements at least to members, is a consequence of the development of the concept of limited liability and the spread worldwide of the company with share capital as the main form of organization for larger companies.(Nkundabanyanga K.Stephen).

During the accounting cycle, accountants track, organize and record the financial dealings of a company. At the close of each period, accountants use the information they’ve gathered to prepare financial statements. Income statements, statements of capital, balance sheets and cash-flow statements are four common financial reports.

An income statement   is a type of summary flow report that lists and categorizes the various revenues and expenses that result from business operations during a given period –a year, a quarter or a month. The difference between revenues and expenses represents a...