Wiley CPAexcel Exam Review April 2017 Study Guide: Business Environment and Concepts

The Wiley CPAexcel Study Guide: Business Environment and Concepts arms CPA test-takers with detailed text and skill-building problems to help identify, focus on, and master the specific topics that may need additional reinforcement to pass the BEC section of the CPA Exam. This essential study guide: Covers the complete AICPA content blueprint in BEC Explains every topic tested with 662 pages of study text, 599 multiple-choice questions, and 6 task-based simulations in BEC Organized in Bite-Sized Lesson format with 149 lessons in BEC Maps perfectly to the Wiley CPAexcel online course; may be used to complement the course or as a stand-alone study tool

Table of Contents:
About the Authors ix About the Business Professors xi Welcome to Business Environment and Concepts xiii Corporate Governance 1 Internal Control Frameworks 2 Introduction to COSO, Internal Control, and the COSO Cube 2 17 Principles of Internal Control 6 Types and Limitations of Accounting Controls 10 Internal Control Roles and Responsibilities 13 Internal Control Monitoring—Purpose and Terminology 16 Internal Control Monitoring and Change Control Processes 20 Enterprise Risk Management Frameworks 26 The COSO ERM Model 26 Risk Management Policies and Procedures 32 Other Regulatory Frameworks and Provisions 36 Economic Concepts and Analysis 41 Introduction to Economic Concepts 42 Microeconomics 46 Introduction and Free-Market Model 46 Demand 48 Supply 51 Market Equilibrium 53 Elasticity 56 Consumer Demand and Utility Theory 62 Inputs and the Cost of Production 64 Market Structure and Firm Strategy 67 Introduction to Market Structure 67 Perfect Competition 68 Perfect Monopoly 71 Monopolistic Competition 73 Oligopoly 75 Summary of Market Structure 77 Macroeconomics 78 Introduction to Macroeconomics 78 Aggregate Demand 81 Aggregate Supply 87 Aggregate (Economy) Equilibrium 89 Gross Measures—Economic Activity 91 Gross Measures—Employment/Unemployment 95 Business Cycles and Indicators 98 Price Levels and Inflation/Deflation 101 Money, Banking, and Monetary/Fiscal Policy 105 International Economics 110 Introduction and Reasons for International Activity 110 Issues at the National Level 113 Role of Exchange Rates 116 Issues at Entity Level 120 Currency Exchange Rate Issue 120 International Transfer Price Issue 125 Globalization 129 Introduction to Globalization 129 Globalization of Trade 132 Globalization of Production 136 Globalization of Capital Markets 138 Globalization and Power Shifts 142 Becoming Global 146 Business Strategy and Market Analysis 150 Introduction to Business Strategy and Market Analysis 150 Macro]Environmental Analysis 152 Industry Analysis 154 Entity/Environment Relationship Analysis 157 Generic Strategies 159 Summary and Extensions 163 Financial Management 167 Introduction to Financial Management 168 Concepts and Tools 169 Cost Concepts 169 Time Value of Money Tools 174 Interest Rate Concepts and Calculations 182 Financial Valuation 190 Introduction to Financial Valuation 190 Valuation Techniques—General 193 Valuation Techniques—CAPM 195 Valuation Techniques—Option Pricing 199 Valuation Techniques—Business Entity 202 Hedging and Derivatives 210 Capital Budgeting 218 Introduction and Project Risk 218 Evaluation Techniques 221 Introduction and the Payback Period Approach 221 Discounted Payback Period Approach 223 Accounting Rate of Return Approach 225 Net Present Value Approach 227 Internal Rate of Return Approach 230 Ranking Projects 233 Capital Project Ranking Decisions 236 Financing Options 239 Introduction and Financial/Capital Structure 239 Introduction to Short-Term Financing 240 Short-Term (Working Capital) Financing 241 Payables 241 Standby Credit and Commercial Paper 244 Receivables and Inventory 246 Long-Term (Capital) Financing 248 Introduction to Long-Term Financing 248 Long-Term Notes and Financial Leases 249 Bonds 252 Preferred Stock 256 Common Stock 259 Cost of Capital and Financing Strategies 263 Working Capital Management 266 Introduction to Working Capital Management 266 Cash Management 268 Short]Term Securities Management 274 Accounts Receivable Management 278 Inventory Management 282 Current Liabilities Management 286 Ratios and Measures for Working Capital Management 287 Introduction to Ratio Analysis 287 Liquidity Measures 289 Operational Activity Measures 292 Financial Management Risk Concepts—Summary 295 Information Technology 301 IT Governance and Management 302 Risks and Controls in Computer]Based Accounting-Information Systems 302 The COBIT Model of IT Governance and Management 305 Introduction to Enterprise-Wide and Cloud-Based Systems 307 IT Functions and Controls Related to People 310 Role of Information and Technology in Business 314 IT and Business Strategy 314 System Types by Activity 316 System Types by Data Structure 318 Data Structures, Software, and Databases 320 Information Systems Hardware 324 Transaction Processing 326 Emerging Technologies in AIS 330 Emerging Technologies in AIS: Big Data 333 Information Security/Availability 335 The Protection of Information 335 IT Security Principles 335 Managing Cyber Risk 338 IT Policies 341 Introduction to E-Business and E-Commerce 343 E-Commerce Applications 345 ERM for Cloud Computing 348 Mobile Device, End-User, and Small Business Computing 350 Multi-Location System Structure 353 Computer Networks and Data Communication 354 The Internet—Structure and Protocols 358 Logical and Physical Access Controls 360 Logical Access Controls 360 Physical Access Controls 363 Encryption and Secure Exchanges 365 System Disruption/Resolution 368 Organizational Continuity Planning and Disaster Recovery 368 Backup and Restoration 371 Computer Crime, Attack Methods, and Cyber-Incident Response 373 Processing Integrity(Input/Processing/Output Controls) 377 Program Library, Documentation, and Record Management 377 Input and Origination Controls 379 Processing, File, and Output Controls 382 Accounting System Cycles 384 The Accounting System Cycle: Introduction 384 Revenue Cycle 387 Expenditure Cycle 391 Production Cycle 394 HR and Payroll Cycle 397 General Ledger, Reporting, and Financing Cycle 401 Systems Development and Maintenance 404 System Development and Implementation 404 Operations Management 409 Financial and Nonfinancial Measures of Performance 410 Quality Management 410 Balanced Scorecard and Benchmarking 414 Competitive Analysis 418 Ratio Analysis 422 Risk Management 426 Performance Improvement Tools 429 Cost Accounting 434 Manufacturing Costs 434 Spoilage, Cost, and Inventory Flow 440 Cost Behavior Patterns 444 Cost]Volume]Profit Analysis 447 Absorption and Direct Costing 455 Job Costing 462 Process Costing 466 Joint and By]Product Costing 473 Sales and Direct Cost Variance Analysis 476 Overhead Variance Analysis 482 Process Management 487 Cost Relevance 487 Special Decisions 493 Transfer Pricing 497 Activity]Based Costing and Process Management 501 Planning Techniques 506 Budgeting 506 Forecasting Tech niques 511 Multiple Choice Questions 517 Task-Based Simulations 639 Index 649