Understanding Statistical Journals

These topics provide an overview of statistical journals and discuss how to set up for journal entries using statistics as well as how to create journal entries using statistics.

This section lists prerequisites, provides an overview of statistical journals and discusses:

  • Statistical ledger and accounts method.

  • Statistics code method.

  • Budget checking statistical budgets.

  • Approving statistical journals.

In Oracle's PeopleSoft General Ledger, you can use statistical data to facilitate financial analysis and reporting, as well as to form the basis for allocating certain expenses. You can use statistic codes to track non-monetary amounts, to allocate expenses such as overhead to products, or to calculate a ratio of expense versus the number of customers for a regional expense analysis.

Units of measure determine how to quantify the statistical amount entered on a journal. You must associate each statistical account or statistics code with a standard unit of measure. This controls the units that appear in reports and enables the automatic conversion feature.

Automatic conversion enables you to post journal entries in whatever unit is convenient during journal entry. The system automatically converts entered units to standard units—for example, square yards to square feet. To do this, use the Convert To and Conversion Rate entries on the Units of Measure page. During journal entry, when you enter the statistical amount in square yards, the system converts that amount to square feet automatically, a system message confirms it, and the journal line stores the amount in square feet.

You can use one of two methods to implement statistics:

  • Use a statistical ledger containing statistical accounts used in your journal entries.

  • Use statistics codes associated with monetary accounts.

Depending on how you want to perform statistical accounting, you must define:

  • Units of measure.

  • A statistical ledger and statistical accounts, if you want to use the statistical account method.

  • Statistics codes, if you want to use the statistic code method.

Define a separate ledger to track only statistical data to segregate the statistical information from actual, budget, or other types of monetary information by ledger. To define a statistical ledger, you define a new ledger as you would define any other ledger and only post statistical amounts to that ledger. If you use this method, you must use statistical accounts in your journal entries.

Define a statistical account and associate it with a unit of measure. For example, the Workstations statistical account uses EA. (each) as a generic unit of measure. The Floor Space statistical account might use SQ. (square feet), while the Work Days account would use DAY (days).

You enter two separate journal entries to accommodate the statistical monetary amount of a transaction. For example, if you purchase 100 workstations, the journal entry that records the purchase includes a line for the statistical entry (100 workstations) and an additional journal entry to record the monetary amount.

An alternate way to track statistical amounts is by using statistics codes. This eliminates the need to enter an additional journal entry when there are statistics associated with the transaction. This is because you associate a statistics code with a monetary account. As with other ChartFields, there is a table of valid statistics codes that you can add or update on the Statistics Codes page. These can include items such as floor space, full-time equivalent workdays, shipment size, or generic units.

You create a journal entry where you enter the statistics on the same journal line as the corresponding monetary entry.

For example, using this method, a journal line that records the charge-back of rent expense to an individual department can include the dollar amount of the rent to be charged and the amount of floor space used to determine the charge all on one line.

The budget processor follows the rules for statistical budgets when the 'Enable Statistical Budgeting' check box is selected on the budget definition just as it does other types of budgets.

Statistical journals can be approved using the PeopleSoft Fluid Pending Approvals (summary) Page or the Pending Approvals - Journal Entry Page.