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Sharon P. Cox, Ph.D., Gary Hecht, Ph.D., and Kevin E. Jackson

Accounting is the “language of business.” Being able to understand this language allows individuals both inside and outside of an organization to join the “conversation” about how the organization is performing and how it can improve future performance. Financial accounting focuses on the reports that managers generate to provide interested external parties a summary of the firm’s financial position and operations. Managerial accounting focuses on the information and the analytical tools and techniques that help managers and employees make the right business decisions.

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Accounting is the “language of business.” Being able to understand this language allows individuals both inside and outside of an organization to join the “conversation” about how the organization is performing and how it can improve future performance. Financial accounting focuses on the reports that managers generate to provide interested external parties a summary of the firm’s financial position and operations. Managerial accounting focuses on the information and the analytical tools and techniques that help managers and employees make the right business decisions.

In this Specialization, you will learn the fundamentals of both of these purposes of accounting. More specifically, you will understand the financial statements that managers create, and be able to interpret and analyze these statements to assess the financial position of the organization. You will also identify and understand the nature, purpose, and importance of different types of decision-useful accounting information, and use analytical tools and techniques to use this information to make business decisions. Via the capstone, you will apply these fundamentals via the lens of a new business, creating a business plan, forecasts and budgets, and anticipated information needs for decisions made by you as owner and manager, your employees, and external parties such as future shareholders, creditors, and other constituents.

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What's inside

Five courses

Understanding Financial Statements: Company Position

(0 hours)
This course provides a basic understanding of financial statements, focusing on the balance sheet. It explains the purpose and components of a balance sheet, including assets, liabilities, and equity. Through real-world examples, learners will gain insights into the meaning of various balance sheet items and the role of accounting in producing financial statements.

Understanding Financial Statements: Company Performance

(0 hours)
This course provides a basic understanding of financial statements, with a focus on the income statement. You will learn about the purpose of an income statement, its basic components, and how to read and interpret real-world income statements.

Accounting for Business Decision Making: Measurement and Operational Decisions

(0 hours)
Accounting information is the lifeblood of organizations, facilitating and influencing operational and strategic decisions. This course provides an introduction to accounting’s measurement role and how accountants communicate information that helps managers and employees make operational decisions.

Accounting for Business Decision Making: Strategy Assessment and Control

Accounting information is essential for organizations, as it supports decision-making for achieving goals. This course introduces accounting's role in strategy development, implementation, and evaluation. Students will learn to create and communicate accounting information, develop and implement organizational strategy, and implement controls to align decisions with goals.

Fundamentals of Accounting Capstone

(0 hours)
The capstone project will be set in the context of a realistic small-business enterprise, and will require you to think deeply and apply the accounting concepts presented in the other courses in the Fundamentals of Accounting. While navigating the daily operations of the business, you will have an opportunity to consider the accounting implications of the economic events encountered, as well as how these economic events should be communicated to decision makers.

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