Overview

The final project for this course is the creation of an accounting portfolio. The project is divided into three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Three, Five, and Seven. The final product will be submitted in Module Nine. According to the AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants), a CPA in todays environment must not only have a high level of technical competence and a sense of commitment to service, but must also have good communications and analytical skills and the ability to work well with people. Employers are looking for individuals who have the ability to analyze and evaluate complex business problems combined with the interpersonal skills and maturity to make decisions in a client and customer service environment. By adopting a real-life company in this course, you will apply the technical competence and other skills required by todays CPA. Through case study analysis, you will develop skills such as communication, presentation, and interpersonal relations, in conjunction with technical accounting knowledge.

This milestone addresses the following course outcome: Differentiate between the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and the International Financial Reporting Standards for their impact on financial statements. If you have not already done so, select the company that you will use to build your portfolio. You may choose from Wal-Mart, Target, Sears, Kroger, or Amazon. You will continue to use this company for all courses in the series. Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed: III. GAAP vs. IFRS A. Explain the steps that would be needed for your selected portfolio company to transition from GAAP to IFRS. For example, what would this transition entail? What would your chosen company need to do? B. Explain how a financial statement would differ under IFRS as opposed to GAAP. i. How is a financial statement under IFRS different from GAAP? How is it the same? ii. What would the statements for your chosen company look like? Guidelines for Submission: Prepare your paper using Microsoft Word. It should be 2 to 3 pages in length, not including the cover page and reference page. Follow APA formatting guidelines using appropriate headings, double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. Support your arguments with at least three peer-reviewed sources cited in APA format.