P

Planning

1) The process of establishing fundamental directions, and steps of actions to arrive at desired goals. (2) A major function of management.

Perpetual Inventory

A book inventory kept in continuous agreement with stock on hand by means of a detailed record that may also server as a subsidiary ledger where dollar amounts as well as physical quantities are maintained; Sections of the stockroom are inventoried at short intervals and the quantities or amounts or both are adjusted, where necessary, to the physical count.

Predetermined Cost

A cost ascertained in advance of the operation for which it is incurred.

Purchase Order

A document from a purchaser to a supplier (the terms vendor or seller are synonyms for supplier) ordering goods or services from that supplier. The purchase order usually includes order number, date and supplier details followed by multiple order lines containing: line item number, item number, description, quantity, price, line total, as well as order total.

Packing Slip

A document that is included by the vendor with goods when they are shipped to a customer. This is usually a copy of the shipping docket.

Partnership

A form of organisation in which a group of individuals act as a single entity but are held individually liable for the acts of the partnership, and the acts of each partner acting as an agent for the partnership.

Profit

A general term for the excess of revenue, proceeds, or selling price over related costs; any pecuniary benefit arising from a commercial operation, from the practice of a profession, or from one or more individual transactions of any person; usually preceded by a qualifying word or phrase signifying the inclusiveness of the offsetting expense or cost, as "gross" or "net", according to and followed by an indication of the source and time covered, as "from operations for the year." Either the singular or the plural of the word may be used where two or more related transactions are considered together. Net income is now preferred as designation of the ending figure of an income statement.

Problem definition

A process of the analysis phase of the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) which produces a concise definition of the problem under consideration including the current situation and the desired situation in the light of a given goal. The description of the difference between what you HAVE and what you WANT.

Petty Cash (fund)

A relatively small amount of cash on hand or on deposit, available for minor disbursements, and usually maintained under the imprest system.

Personal Liability

An amount owing by a natural person.

Production Cost

Any cost contributing to a factor of production; a term largely confined to economic theory. Or the cost commonly identified with a manufacturing or processing operation’s.

Perpetual Budget

Continuous budget.

Personal Property

Property or asset of a temporary and moveable character, as contrasted with real property, also known as personalty.