How to: Transition your accounting system to Enterprise and track outstanding transactions.

Environment: Comsense Enterprise

In this article:

Understanding the Procedure

This procedure suggests that you finish any incomplete business transactions in the legacy system during your accounting system transition while maintaining Comsense as your consolidated accounting system.

E.g. if you receive a customer payment for a sales order on the legacy system, process the payment in the legacy system.

To transition your accounting system to Enterprise, you need:

• Opening trial balances
• Last reconciled bank statement
• List of uncleared checks and deposits
• Outstanding check amounts
• Outstanding deposit amounts

Setting-Up General Ledger Accounts

Before documenting your opening trial balances, you must set up your accounts in the Chart of Accounts window. See Adding a New General Ledger Account for instructions on setting up accounts in Enterprise. 

Control Accounts

Comsense automatically creates journal entries from system transactions using control accounts but does not allow you to create manual journal entries.

The control accounts are:

• Accounts receivable
• Accounts payable
• Inventory

You need to make a second set of accounts for the legacy system to track the transactions. Do not use the same account class as the new control accounts. You cannot manually track transactions on your legacy accounts in Comsense using control account classes. Use the account classes Other Assets (Assets) and Other Liabilities (Liabilities) for your legacy control accounts. Legacy accounts include:

• Legacy Accounts Receivable (Other Assets)
• Legacy Inventory (Other Assets)
• Legacy Accounts Payable (Other Liabilities)
• Legacy Sales Tax Payable (Other Liabilities)
• Legacy Sales (Revenue)
• Legacy Cost of Sales (Cost of Sales)

Accessing Journal Entry

In the Enterprise left-hand Navigation menu:

1. Click General Ledger

2. Click Journal Entry
   • The Journal Entry window will open

You are now ready to create a manual Journal Entry.

Creating a Manual Journal Entry

Every transaction you process through Comsense automatically creates a new journal entry. The history of the previous accounting system is not on Enterprise and you must add it manually for the initial start-up. 

In the top toolbar:

1. Click New 

In the data fields:

2. Enter a reference for the journal entry
   • Make reference identifiable e.g. OPENBAL
3. Select the date
4. Enter a note
   • The note will automatically appear in the line item notes

You are now ready to enter your opening balance line items from your trial balance.

Filling In the Line Items

List all of the bank accounts outstanding checks, outstanding deposits, and opening balance as separate line items. The purpose of separating the outstanding balances is so you can zero out each line item (during bank reconciliation) as you receive checks and make deposits.

Table 1: Line Item Examples

Recording the Outstanding Checks

In the fillable line item:

1. Select the division

2. Click the button next to the Account field 
   • Find Account window will open
3. Search account by either:
   1. Account information
      • Enter information and click Find Now
   2. List View
      • Click Find Now and Scroll list
4. Enter the outstanding check balance as a credit amount
5. Enter a note
   • Include check number

6. Repeat steps 1-5 for all outstanding checks

Recording the Outstanding Deposits

1. Complete steps 1-3 from Oustanding Checks
2. Enter outstanding deposit as a debit
3. Enter a note
   • E.g. Oustanding deposit

4. Repeat steps 1-3 for all outstanding deposits

Recording the Net Opening Balance

1. Calculate the net opening balance with outstanding deposits and checks
   • Opening balance - outstanding deposit + outstanding checks (example: 100,000 - 8000 + 5000 + 2000 = 99,000)
2. Complete steps 1-3 of Recording the Outstanding Checks
3. Enter the net opening balance
4. Enter a note
   • E.g. Opening balance adjusted to net by outstanding transactions

Recording Non-Bank Account Opening Balances

Enter separate line items for the opening balance of each non-bank account using the legacy accounts from Setting-Up General Ledger Accounts.

Adjusting an Unadjusted Opening Balance

*Note: Only complete these steps if the opening balance journal entry was completed without adjustments for outstanding checks or deposits.

1. Complete steps of Recording the Outstanding Checks
2. Complete steps of Recording the Outstanding Deposits
3. Calculate the difference between the net adjustment and the opening balance
4. Fill in a new line item using the amount from Step 3

5. Enter a note
   • I.e .Opening balance adjustment for net income 

Future Bank Reconciliations on Enterprise

For each bank reconciliation period on the new system, you must create a manual journal entry for all bank charges, interest charges or credits, direct payments, etc. from your bank statement. 

Future Monthly General Ledger Activity on Legacy Accounting System

During your accounting system transition, closeout incomplete transactions from the legacy system in that system. Create a manual journal entry to track the activity from your legacy system on Enterprise. On these entries:

• Use the 'legacy' accounts for the Control Accounts
• Only show the net activity for non-bank account line items
• Track bank account activity using the same method as Filling in Line Items

This method only includes summary information from the legacy accounting system in your balance sheets and profit & loss statements. For detailed accounting information and reporting, refer to the legacy system.