Budget and finance best practices | Business, Financial and Human Resources Support

There are minimal standards for best practices that all employees with fiscal responsibilities should be aware of (See policy reference - Ensuring Financial Integrity FIN 129). The State of Arizona has established a Code of Conduct for employees engaged in accounting, financial and budgeting activities. According to the State of Arizona Accounting Manual, this code of conduct applies to all state employees at all state agencies.

The purpose of this page is to provide information on various resources available to assist in defining standards and roles. In addition to the university resources, we've developed a guide targeted toward chair and directors but available to all interested employees, which can be accessed below:

Guide for chairs and directors.

Employees with financial responsibilities — anyone with oversight and/or approval authority over university funds — should be aware of and practice the following:

Segregation of duties

Responsibilities should be divided among different individuals so that no one person has complete control over a transaction.

Accountability, authorization and approvals

Only the person with delegated authority should approve or authorize transactions.

Security over assets

Cash, equipment and inventory should be adequately secured. Reduce the risk of access to the assets. Periodically count the assets and compare with the amounts shown on the control records.

Review and reconciliation

Transactions should be compared with Arizona State University official records per best practice timelines to ensure accuracy, appropriateness and compliance with requirements.