Accountant guide, part 2: setting up the books

This is part 2 of 4 of the Xenia accountant guide: 1. Your overview and how the books work · 2. Setting up the books · 3. Posting, vouchers and the ledger · 4. Bank reconciliation and statements.

Do this once, when the hotel starts using Xenia, and again whenever the hotel opens a new bank account. Open Accounting.

1. The chart of accounts

The Chart of accounts tab lists every account a posting can land in, with its code, name, type (Asset, Liability, Equity, Revenue or Expense) and group. Xenia starts you with a standard hotel chart: cash and bank, the guest ledger, VAT and service charge payable, room, restaurant, bar and laundry revenue, and the usual expenses.

• Use Search, the Type filter and Show inactive to find an account.

• New account adds one at the top level, and Add under adds one beneath an existing account, so it joins that group.

• Edit renames an account or changes its details.

Go through the chart with the hotel's owner or previous accountant, and rename or add accounts until it matches the books you are used to. Do it before you post anything: it is much easier to arrange the chart while it is empty.

2. The bank and cash accounts

Open Bank and cash accounts. You start with Cash on hand, held in account 1110. Add each bank account the hotel uses: choose New account.

• Name: what you call it, for example "GTBank operations".

• Kind: a bank account or cash.

• Bank, Account number and Account name (as the bank holds it).

• Held in: the asset account in the chart where its balance is kept. The default, A new account under Cash and bank, creates one for you.

Choose Save. The bank account appears in the list, with its ledger account, and in the chart as a new account (here 1120 GTBank operations).

An account can be edited, Deactivated when it is no longer used, or Removed if it has never been used.

3. The default accounts

Open Default accounts. Xenia needs to know which account takes each kind of money, whatever the department: VAT payable, Service charge payable, the Guest ledger (receivables), Cash, Bank (default), Guest deposits, and the revenue for departments that have no account of their own.

When something is missing, a notice says so: Some money has nowhere to go yet, here because no bank account was chosen for card and transfer payments.

Choose Fill in the standard accounts. Xenia chooses the standard account for each kind of money, using your bank account for Bank (default). Check each choice, and change any you want from its list. The notice goes.

Next: Part 3: posting, vouchers and the ledger.