ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS: AN OVERVIEW
SUGGESTED ANSWERS TO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1.1 The value of information is the difference between the benefits realized from using that
information and the costs of producing it. Would you, or any organization, ever produce
information if its expected costs exceeded its benefits? If so, provide some examples. If not,
why not?
Most organizations produce information only if its value exceeds its cost. However, there are two
situations where information may be produced even if its cost exceeds its value.
a. It is often difficult to estimate accurately the value of information and the cost of producing
it. Therefore, organizations may produce information that they expect will produce benefits
in excess of its costs, only to be disappointed after the fact.
b. Production of the information may be mandated by either a government agency or a private
organization. Examples include the tax reports required by the IRS and disclosure
requirements for financial reporting.
1.2 Give an example of how an AIS can improve decision making, and describe the multistep
activities involved in the process.
Decision making is a complex, multistep activity: identify the problem, collect and interpret
information, evaluate ways to solve the problem, select a solution methodology, and implement the
solution. An AIS can provide assistance in all phases of decision making. Reports can help to
identify potential problems. Decision models and analytical tools can be provided to users. Query
languages can gather relevant data to help make the decision. Various tools, such as graphical
interfaces, can help the decision maker interpret decision model results, evaluate them, and choose
among alternative courses of action. In addition, the AIS can provide feedback on the results of
actions.
An AIS can help improve decision making in several ways:
● It can identify situations requiring management action. For example, a cost report with a large variance
might stimulate management to investigate and, if necessary, take corrective action.
● It can reduce uncertainty and thereby provide a basis for choosing among alternative actions.
● It can store information about the results of previous decisions, which provides valuable feedback that
can be used to improve future decisions. For example, if a company tries a particular marketing
strategy and the information gathered indicates that it did not succeed, the company can use that
information to select a different marketing strategy.
● It can provide accurate information in a timely manner. For example, Walmart has an enormous
database that contains detailed information about sales transactions at each of its stores. It uses this
information to optimize the amount of each product carried at each store.
● It can analyze sales data to discover items that are purchased together, and can use such information to
improve the layout of merchandise or to encourage additional sales of related items. For example,
Amazon uses its sales database to suggest additional books for customers to purchase.
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