Daily Startup Procedure

 This procedure should be completed at the beginning of each day before any transactions for the new day are processed.  This procedure ensures that transactions are posted using the correct date, accounting year, and period, and that any errors from prior processing have been identified and isolated.       

1.  Confirm that the ending A/R, A/P, and Inventory sub-ledger balances have been reconciled to the appropriate general ledger control accounts as of the end of the prior days processing.  The reconciliation procedures for each sub-ledger can be performed at the end of each day after all transaction processing has been completed, or at the beginning of the new day before any transactions for the new day are processed.  Note: If one or more sub-ledgers are not in agreement with the appropriate general ledger control accounts, you should produce reports showing the balances in both the sub-ledgers and the general ledger before any transactions for the current day are processed.  These reports should be dated and retained until the error is resolved.  The reports that you produce in this step will be used to determine the variance between the general ledger control accounts and the sub-ledger balance at the point in time that they are run.  Once you have produced the appropriate reports (these would normally include the Trial Balance report, and the aging or valuation reports for each sub-ledger), you may begin processing as required while the error is resolved. 

2.  Confirm that the System Date is correctly set.   The system date determines the date used on the A/P and A/R invoice records which are created during the day, and it is also written to the Entered_On date of all journal entry transactions which are written to the journal entry file.  The System date must be correctly set in order to ensure that the correct transactions are included on the reports which are used during the daily balancing process.  The system date is normally changed as part of the night time process but it can also be set manually as required or the date change can be run automatically as each user enters the system.  Please see the System Administrators Guide for more information about options for setting the System Date.

3.  Confirm that the Accounting Period and Year are correctly set.  Transactions are posted to the general ledger using the period and year assigned to the operator processing the transactions. The system stores a default year and period which each operator picks up as they enter the system.  Some operators can also be granted the ability to change their period and year.  It is very important that each operator uses the correct accounting period and year, and that these variables are updated correctly at the proper time.    Failure to control the period properly can result in errant postings to prior or future periods and or years.  Please see the section on changing the Accounting Period and Year that is presented later in this document.

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Creating a New General Ledger Account