General ledger cheat sheet

The Trial Balance is a summary of G/L account ending balances for the requested period.

1. Go to Accounting > General Ledger > G/L Inquiry.
2. Enter the calendar period in MMYY format.
3. Click Search to populate the screen. This is a listing of all G/L accounts and ending balances for the selected period.
4. Content can be expanded to show detail by clicking the “+” next to an account.
5. Click the Trial Balance button to produce a report that shows the account ending balances for the period.
6. You can also right-click inside the G/L Inquiry screen to export directly to Excel.

   This is an example of a G/L Inquiry for a single accounting period. Accounts display in condensed mode with the period end balance.

   

A Balance Sheet represents a company’s position at a point in time, generally the end of a period.

An Income Statement represents performance over a period of time, generally one month.

1. Go to Accounting > General Ledger > Financial Reporting.
2. Choose a report using the search icon (Balance Sheet or Income Statement).
3. Select the calendar period and level of detail.
4. Click Run to display the report on the screen.
5. Click Print to produce a report.
6. You can also right–click anywhere in the body of the report to export directly to Excel.

A journal entry is a user-directed transaction between 2 or more G/L accounts.

1. Go to Accounting > General Ledger > Journal Entry.
2. The system defaults to a regular, one-time entry. Use Accrual entry only if you want the system to post a reversal in the next accounting period.
3. Choose the calendar period and press the tab key through the fiscal field.
4. Click Next to assign a journal entry number and proceed to the Transaction Date field.
5. Choose a date that occurs within the accounting period.
6. Enter a Description and press the tab key to the first G/L account position.
7. Enter or search for a G/L account and enter the amount as a debit or credit.
8. Press the Tab key to proceed between fields.
9. Total debits and credits must match in order to Save the entry. Once saved, a report will display and the entry will post regardless of whether the report is cancelled.

Templates are useful for recurring entries that happen regularly.

1. Go to Accounting > General Ledger > Journal Template and click New to create a new record.
2. Assign a name and description to the template.
3. Enter the G/L account numbers in the order you would like to display for “live” entries. Dollar amounts are optional and recommended only for entries that don’t change from month to month.
4. Click Save to store the template for use. Note that no transactions are generated until the template is used in a “live” entry.

To use the template in a regular journal entry, follow the instructions above to begin.

1. Choose the template by clicking the spyglass in the Template field.
2. Add or edit dollar amounts and accounts before posting the entry.
3. Every time a template is used, the system will ask if you want to update the template. Choose NO to preserve the original template.
4. The journal entry will post.

   

The Bank Ledger is a detail listing of individual bank entries.

1. Go to Accounting > Bank Reconciliation > Bank Ledger. The main operating account will default.
2. Enter a date to search from and click Search to populate the screen.
3. This is a detail listing of all bank transactions, ordered by date. Transactions may be sorted, filtered and exported to Excel.

   

Regular bank reconciliation is necessary to ensure that the system’s cash balance is accurate.

1. Go to Accounting > Bank Reconciliation > Bank Reconciliation. The main operating account will default.
2. Enter the statement closing date and balance.
3. Click Search to populate the screen.
4. As items are cleared, the right side of the screen will start to build the reconciliation. Note that some items, mainly deposits, are presented as a bold “parent” record followed by the “children” records. These items may be sorted, filtered or clicked for details.
5. Click Save and choose Temporarily Save to preserve what has been cleared so far. A report will generate to indicate the status of the reconciliation so far.

   

   For more information, see Reconcile your bank statement.