Ethical Writing Assignment - Instructions

ACNT 2302 Accounting Capstone

Assignment:

You are an assistant in the accounting department of Thunderduck Shoes, a small retailer. The company has a loan that requires the company to maintain a minimum cash balance of $75,000, as reported on its year-end balance sheet. The cash balance in the general ledger was $80,000 prior to recording payroll for salaries of $15,000 that were earned in the current month.

Your supervisor says the only way Thunderduck Shoes can meet its loan requirement is to delay recording the December payroll journal entryl until January of the next year. This would be pretending as if the payroll checks were not issued until after year-end.

You questioned whether this would be ethical. The supervisors reply was, Well, we don't really have a choice. Either we do this, or we violate the terms of the loan agreement and possibly be forced to repay the loan immediately. That could put us out of business. Think of all the people who would lose their jobs! Just wait to record the December payroll journal entry until January probably before many of our employees even get the checks we have written to them.

Required:

Write a 1-2 page technical business memo addressed to your mentor at work discussing the ethical decision you must make. Be sure to consider and discuss the following questions.

• Which elements of the fraud triangle are present in this situation? Which type of fraud is in consideration?
• Who might suffer in the short term if you go along with your supervisor's request? What might happen in the future if you go along with the request this time? If you do not go along, who might suffer in the short term and what could be the long-term consequences?
• You want to be loyal to your supervisor but honest to others who rely on your work. As an accounting assistant, which of these concerns should be most important? Why?
• What alternative courses of action can you take? Which of these is best given the circumstances?

Criteria:

Your business memo should briefly summarize the issue to your mentor at the company that works in a different department. The memo should discuss in detail the ethical considerations as you make your decision. Be sure to use your own words to paraphrase the information.

Extra Credit:

Verify that you proof-read the document by attaching a marked up version of the file as a pdf or picture file in ecampus with your submission to earn 10 extra points.

Business Memo Guidance:

A business memo is a very common task at work for an accountant. It is similar in structure to an email but is a little more formal. Also you do not have to sign a memo like you do an email. The contact information instead is listed in the heading of the memo.

Most business memos are single spaced and left aligned (paragraphs are not indented). There typically is a blank row left between each paragraph or section of the memo. Be sure to use formatting to make the memo easier for the reader. This may include using a title for each paragraph, bold, underline or italic as necessary. You can also include a bulleted or numbered list, as appropriate.

Business memos must be concise and summarize the information in your own words. Do not just copy and paste from a website. Instead paraphrase the information. Be clear in addressing topics and include an introduction, body and conclusion. I highly recommend printing out the memo and proof reading it yourself before submitting. This is good practice for class and also in your career.