What is multidimensional accounting? How to use it + why you need it

As businesses grow and diversify, managing financial data across various departments, products, or even regions can become a tangled web of confusion. 

Traditional accounting methods often fall short, leaving companies grappling with inaccurate reporting, lack of insight, and a frustrating inability to track performance effectively. Enter multidimensional accounting—a modern solution designed to offer a clear, organized view of financial data.

Multidimensional accounting makes it easier to categorize and simultaneously analyze the finances across a business’s multiple accounting cycles and facets, providing a 360-degree view of operations.

How multidimensional accounting works

Setting up a multidimensional chart of accounts

Do you need a multidimensional accounting solution?

Advantages of upgrading to multidimensional accounting

Navigate midsize and complex business challenges and opportunities

What is multidimensional accounting FAQ

How multidimensional accounting works 

Multidimensional accounting enables a more nuanced understanding of where money is coming from and where it’s going whether it's tracking costs by department, revenue by product line, or expenses by project. 

For growing businesses, especially those with complex operations, the inability to slice and dice financial data in this way can lead to inefficiencies or missed opportunities. But multidimensional accounting can help avoid all that—here’s how it works.

Multidimensional accounting helps segment and analyze information across various dimensions. Unlike traditional accounting systems, which primarily focus on a single dimension—typically accounts—multidimensional accounting incorporates multiple aspects.

Common dimensions in a multidimensional accounting system include:

• Departments: Track financial performance by specific departments
• Products or services: Analyze profitability or costs associated with different product lines or services
• Regions: Understand revenue and expenses based on areas
• Projects: Track profitability on a per-project basis

Many businesses use tags or codes to create a multidimensional account system within their current accounting software. For example, you can turn your current system into a multidimensional accounting one with an accounting numbering system. 

Account numbering system

An account numbering system is a structured way to assign unique identifiers to each account in the general ledger (GL). This system usually combines numbers and letters to categorize accounts, such as assets, liabilities, revenue, and expenses. For example, a revenue account might include a department tag, product tag, and region tag.

Dimensions of a general ledger

From there you can add multiple dimensions to the general ledger. The dimensions of a general ledger typically include:

• Account code: Primary identifier for the type of a transaction
• Cost center: Department or unit within the company responsible for the transaction
• Product/service line: Product or service related to the transaction
• Location: The geographical area where the transaction occurred
• Project code: Identifies the project associated with the transaction

Setting up a multidimensional chart of accounts

Setting up a multidimensional chart of accounts (COA) can be a long or tedious process if you’re using an accounting system that doesn’t have native multidimensional features built-in. But it is possible. Here’s how: 

1. Identify dimensions and segments: Determine the dimensions that are most relevant to your business. These could include departments, products, regions, or projects. 
2. Design the account number structure: Use a system that incorporates these dimensions and allows team members to uniquely identify each account. 
3. Create the account numbers: Each account number should uniquely identify a combination of dimensions. 
4. Assign account descriptions: These descriptions should reflect the dimensions associated with the account, making it easy to understand the nature of the transactions recorded under it. For instance, “Revenue-Sales-North.” 
5. Implement in your accounting software: Put your multidimensional COA in place.

However, the true purpose of multidimensional accounting is to avoid the need for an elaborate account numbering system. Instead of having to build a multidimensional chart of accounts, consider a modern accounting system like Intuit Enterprise Suite that has multidimensional values built in.

Do you need a multidimensional accounting solution?

Multidimensional accounting helps decision-makers better understand what’s going on in their organizations. Businesses that are growing or operating as multiple entities face challenges that standard accounting systems can’t always address. 

If you're growing or complex business with any of the following, a multidimensional accounting solution might be right for you:

• Complex operations like managing multiple departments, products, or locations
• Inaccurate reporting due to inconsistencies or outdated financial data
• Limited insights when trying to understand the performance of different business segments
• Slow decision-making because of a lack of timely, actionable financial information 
• Regulatory compliance with a need to adhere to complex regulations

Accounting features that make multidimensional possible, and easy to integrate and use, will also come with several advantages. For example, you’ll get deeper insights to pinpoint exactly which department, product, or region is driving those costs and why.

Advantages of upgrading to multidimensional accounting 

Multidimensional accounting is a powerful tool for growing, complex, and multi-entity businesses—helping streamline operations, improve financial reporting, and enhance decision-making. 

Here is the value of embracing a system that has multidimensional values, versus trying to adopt your current accounting system to handle various classes: 

• Simplify the chart of accounts: Reduce complexity by using dimensions to manage accounts across multiple entities
• Allocates payments to the correct department or entity: Ensure accuracy by easily assigning and tracking payments 
• Get accurate and consolidated reporting: Financial reports for all entities without manual data adjustments, ensuring consistency and clarity
• Ease intercompany transactions: Automate the recording and reconciliation of intercompany transactions, saving time and minimizing discrepancies
• Identify trends in your business: Leverage dimensions to spot trends and make informed decisions

Navigate midsize and complex business challenges and opportunities

As your business grows, so do the complexities of managing financial data. Multidimensional accounting offers a powerful way to navigate these challenges, providing the clarity and insights you need to make informed decisions. 

Curious to learn more? Discover the benefits of ERP and how enterprise resource planning software like Intuit Enterprise Suite can integrate with multidimensional accounting to enhance your financial management.