Listed below in random order are the eight steps comprising a complete accounting cycle:

Prepare a trial balance.

Journalize and post the closing entries.

Prepare financial statements.

Post-transaction data to the ledger.

Prepare an adjusted trial balance.

Make end-of-period adjustments.

Journalize transactions.

Prepare an after-closing trial balance.

a. List these steps in the sequence in which they would normally be performed. (A detailed understanding of these eight steps is not required until Chapters 4 and 5.)

b. Describe ways in which the information produced through the accounting cycle is used by a company’s management and employees.