Instructions
ACC 620 Milestone One Guidelines and Rubric According to the AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants), a CPA in today’s environment must not only have a high level of technical competence and a sense of commitment to service, but must also have good communications and analytical skills and the ability to work well with people. Employers are looking for individuals who have the ability to analyze and evaluate complex business problems and the interpersonal skills and maturity to make decisions in a client and customer service environment. If you continue to use the company that you adopted in ACC 610, you will apply the technical competence and other skills required by today’s CPAs. Through case-study analysis, you will develop skills such as communication, presentation, and interpersonal relations in conjunction with technical accounting knowledge. If you have transferred directly into ACC 620 and have not had the opportunity to choose a company, or are choosing a different company than you used in ACC 610 you will do so at this time. Throughout ACC 620, you will apply the concepts you are learning using the financial data and business scenarios of a prominent retail company. You may choose from Walmart, Kroger, Amazon, Costco, The Home Depot, CVS Health Corporation or Target. ACC 620: Financial Reporting II is a continuation of ACC 610. In ACC 620, your focus in the final project will be on developing skills in critical thinking and applying accounting theories and practices according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). You will be analyzing situations and communicating results to decision makers with an emphasis on stockholders’ equity, income measurement, income taxes, pensions, leases, and statements of changes in financial positions. Complete critical elements I and II of the final project. I. Stockholders’ Equity A. Determine how your company got its initial financial start in terms of debt (liabilities) or equity (capital). Support your response. B. Analyze the equity section of your company’s balance sheet as compared to your company’s industry average. Rate the company’s performance against its competitors. C. Review your company’s dividend policy and its history. Based on the information, discuss the trends over the past year. II. Income Measurement/Revenue Recognition A. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) came together on a unified project to outline the accounting principles for recognizing revenue and to develop a common revenue standard for U.S. GAAP and IFRS. Research IAS-18, Revenue, and discuss how it would apply to your company. B. Review your company’s revenue over the past two years. Analyze the change in revenue (increase/decrease) and give the reasons for this change. C. Reflecting upon your company’s balance sheet, identify the unearned revenue accounts listed. How does your company handle the proper accounting treatment with regard to recognizing revenue from unearned revenue accounts? Rubric Guidelines for Submission: Your paper must be submitted as a 2–4-page Microsoft Word document with double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, one- inch margins, and at least three sources cited in APA format. Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (90%) Needs Improvement (70%) Not Evident (0%) Value Stockholders’ Equity: Initial Financial Start Meets “Proficient” criteria and uses concrete examples to substantiate claims Determines whether the company obtained its startup financing from debt or equity and supports response Determines whether the company obtained its startup financing from debt or equity, but does not support response Does not identify how the company obtained its startup financing 15 Stockholders’ Equity: Industry Average Meets “Proficient” criteria and uses concrete examples to substantiate claims Analyzes the company’s equity section as compared to the industry average and accurately rates the company’s performance against competitors Analyzes the company’s equity section as compared to the industry average, but does not accurately rate the company’s performance against competitors Does not analyze the company’s equity section 15 Stockholders’ Equity: Dividend Policy Meets “Proficient” criteria, and discussion is exceptionally clear and contextualized Analyzes the company’s dividend policy and its history to discuss the trends over the past year Analyzes the company’s dividend policy and its history, but does not discuss the trends over the past year Does not analyze the company’s dividend policy 15 Income Measurement/ Revenue Recognition: IAS-18 Meets “Proficient” criteria and uses concrete examples to substantiate claims Discusses IAS-18’s application to the company Discusses IAS-18’s application to the company, but discussion is cursory or lacks detail Does not research IAS-18 15 Income Measurement/ Revenue Recognition: Revenue Meets “Proficient” criteria, and rationale is well supported with concrete evidence Analyzes the change in revenue and gives the reasons for the change Analyzes the change in revenue, but does not give the reasons for the change Does not analyze the change in revenue 15 Income Measurement/ Revenue Recognition: Unearned Revenue Meets “Proficient” criteria and displays a nuanced understanding of the company’s internal processes Identifies unearned revenue accounts listed as well as how the company handles the proper accounting treatment with regard to recognizing revenue from unearned revenue accounts Identifies unearned revenue accounts listed, but does not determine how the company handles the proper accounting treatment with regard to recognizing revenue from unearned revenue accounts Does not identify unearned revenue accounts listed 15 Articulation of Response Submission is free of errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, and organization and is presented in Submission has no major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization Submission has major errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization that negatively impact Submission has critical errors related to citations, grammar, spelling, syntax, or organization 10 a professional and easy-to-read format readability and articulation of main ideas that prevent understanding of ideas Total 100%