Accounting in a Nutshell: Accounting for the Non-specialist

Designed primarily for middle and junior management who deal with financial information without really understanding the content; students who are studying accounting as a non-specialist subject, for example on a business studies or engineering course. The book serves as a basic reference to be used throughout the course.

It will also be particularly helpful in providing the basic grounding that is required before moving on to the more technical and in-depth study of the subject that may be required on some courses. Students who are embarking on a course of study to become a professional accountant will also find this book of major benefit.

In addition to revisions through out, a new new chapter 'Making long-term investment decisions' covering capital investment decisions, extends and rounds out the final part of the book: using Financial Information to Manage a Business. The chapter deals with the investment appraisal process and covers the main investment appraisal techniques from the point of view of a non-specialist: payback periods, accounting rate of return and discounted cash flow methods are just some of the new topics covered.

The focus will be on the level of understanding that a non-specialist requires in the work place as such, in keeping with the rest of the book, the chapter includes practical examples and exercises to enhance the reader's understanding.

* Jargon free and easy to understand - no prior knowledge of the subject necessary
* Focuses on the principles and use of accounting information
* Review questions to assess progress at each stage and many fully worked exercises and examples

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Accounting Statements 1. Who Needs Accounting Statements? 2. The Profit and Loss Account (Income Statement) 3. The Balance Sheet 4. Cash Flow Reporting 5. The Accounts of Not-for-profit Organisations 6. Interpreting Financial Statements: Part 1 7. Interpreting Financial Statements: Part 2

Part 3 Using Financial Information to Manage a Business 8. Management Accounting as an Aid to Management 9. The Analysis of Cost 10. Using Costs for Decision-making 11. Budgetary Planning and Control 12. Making long term investment decisions