After you have completed installation, technical setup, and creating a company, you must specify rules and defaults for how you want to manage finance processes for that company. You can set up multiple companies in the same database, for example, a parent company and a subsidiary. For each company, you complete the setup tasks listed in this topic.
You need to start by setting up the core of the company's accounting records - the chart of accounts. Then you set up posting groups, which makes the process of assigning default general ledger posting accounts to customers, vendors, and items more efficient.
You can use dimensions to add different types of information to every transaction. You can set up your company's basic dimensions, such as Projects and Departments. Later, you can add more dimensions when you need them, and you can set up temporary dimensions for use during a limited time period, for example, in connection with a sales campaign.
Many of the setup tasks must be completed before you can begin recording financial transactions, but most settings can be changed at a later date. Some of the set up tasks are optional, for example, you only set up Intercompany Postings and Consolidations if you are working with multiple companies. Some setup tasks, such as specifying the period during which posting is allowed, must be repeated periodically.
The following table describes a sequence of tasks, with links to the topics that describe them. These tasks are listed in the order in which they are generally performed.
| To | See |
|---|---|
Enter basic information such as the company's addresses and other contact information, VAT registration number, and bank information. | |
Specify posting periods, to restrict users from posting outside the current period. | |
Set up a new chart of accounts or add new accounts to an existing chart of accounts. | |
Use posting groups to specify the general ledger accounts that different types of transactions post to. | |
Use source codes that will be automatically assigned to transactions, and reason codes that you can assign manually, so you can trace transactions to their origin. | |
Set up general journals, including setting up multiple journal batches and default balancing accounts, and assigning reason codes. | |
Set up dimensions, dimension values, shortcut dimensions, global dimensions, default dimensions, and dimension combinations. | |
Open the fiscal year and define its accounting periods. | |
Keep track of all your bank accounts, in any currency. | |
Record transactions in more than one currency or create financial statements in an additional currency. | |
Allow ledger entries in different currencies to be applied to one another. | |
Set up payment due dates and payment discounts, payment methods, reminders, finance charge memos, and payment tolerance. | |
Work with inventory periods, costing methods, and rounding methods. | |
Invoice and collect deposits required from customers or remit deposits to vendors. | |
Report the extent of your trade with other European Union countries/regions, and deliver the report to the authorities. | |
Calculate VAT depending on the customer or vendor's location and the type of item. | |
Transfer transactions electronically from one partner company to another. | |
Consolidate the general ledger entries of two or more separate companies into a consolidated company. | |
Set up a budget name and enter the budget figures. |