Page 25 - Accounting Information Systems

xxiv Preface

PART IV: SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES
Chapter 13, ‘‘Managing the Systems Development Life Cycle,’’ and
Chapter 14, ‘‘Construct, Deliver, and Maintain Systems Projects’’
The chapters in Part IV examine the accountant’s role in the systems development
process.
• Chapter 13 begins with an overview to the systems development life cycle (SDLC).
This multistage process guides organization management through the development
and/or purchase of information systems.
• Next, Chapter 13 presents the key issues pertaining to developing a systems strat-
egy, including its relationship to the strategic business plan, the current legacy situa-
tion, and feedback from the user community. The chapter provides a methodology
for assessing the feasibility of proposed projects and for selecting individual projects
to go forward for construction and delivery to their users.
• The chapter concludes by reviewing the role of accountants in managing the SDLC.
• Chapter 14 covers the many activities associated with in-house development, which
fall conceptually into two categories: (1) constructing the system and (2) delivering
the system. Through these activities, systems selected in the project initiation phase
(discussed in Chapter 13) are designed in detail and implemented. This involves cre-
ating input screen formats, output report layouts, database structures, and application
logic. Finally, the completed system is tested, documented, and rolled out to the
user.
• Chapter 14 then examines the increasingly important option of using commercial
software packages. Conceptually, the commercial software approach also consists
of construct and delivery activities. In this section we examine the pros, cons, and
issues involved in selecting off-the-shelf systems.
• Chapter 14 also addresses the important activities associated with systems mainte-
nance and the associated risks that are important to managers, accountants, and
auditors.
Several comprehensive cases designed as team-based systems development projects
are available online at www.cengage.com/accounting/hall. These cases have been used
effectively by groups of three or four students working as a design team. Each case has
sufficient details to allow analysis of user needs, preparation of a conceptual solution,
and the development of a detailed design, including user views (input and output),
processes, and databases.

PART V: COMPUTER CONTROLS AND AUDITING
Chapter 15, ‘‘IT Controls Part I: Sarbanes-Oxley and IT Governance’’
Chapter 15 provides an overview of management and auditor responsibilities under
Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX). The design, implementation,
and assessment of internal control over the financial reporting process form the central
theme for this chapter and the two chapters that follow. This treatment of internal con-
trol complies with SAS 78 and the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the
Treadway Commission (COSO) control framework. Under the SAS 78/COSO model,
IT controls are divided into application controls and general controls. Chapter 15
presents risks, controls, and tests of controls related to IT governance, including organ-
izing the IT function, controlling computer center operations, designing an adequate
disaster recovery plan, and IT outsourcing.

Chapter 16, ‘‘IT Controls Part II: Security and Access’’