Читать книгу Financial Accounting For Dummies - Maire Loughran - Страница 76

IN THIS CHAPTER

Taking a quick glimpse at accounting history

Introducing the accountant’s code of conduct (set by the AICPA)

Meeting the public accounting oversight agencies (such as the PCAOB)

Reviewing recent changes (made by the FASB)

Finding out about generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)

If you’re not into following rules, financial accounting may not be the best career choice for you. You may want to consider the performing arts instead, or perhaps politics.

But if you’re the kind of person who thrives in a structured work environment, you’ve come to the right profession. The work of an accountant is carefully guided by standards, rules, and regulations that I introduce in this chapter.

After a whirlwind tour through the history of accounting, I present an overview of the financial accounting code of professional conduct, which is set by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). These standards give you a roadmap to follow when you’re trying to figure out how to interact with your clients or employer and how to handle various accounting transactions taking place during day-to-day business operations.

Next, you meet the financial accounting standard-setting bodies and find out why publicly owned companies (those whose shares are freely traded on a public stock exchange) abide by different standards than privately owned companies.

Throughout this book, I refer to the acronym GAAP, which stands for generally accepted accounting principles. In this chapter, I explain that GAAP define for financial accountants the acceptable practices in the preparation of financial statements in the United States. Finally, I explain how GAAP have been restructured by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) into a more user-friendly format.

I hope you’re hungry, because in this chapter, you get out your spoon and dive into your alphabet soup!