Resources, events, agents (REA) is a model of how an accounting system can be re-engineered for the computer age.
[2] In business practice, REA has influenced IBM Scalable Architecture for Financial Reporting, REATechnology,[3] and ISO 15944-4.
Examples of business processes would be sales, purchases, conversion or manufacturing, human resources, and financing.
At the heart of each REA model there is usually a pair of events, linked by an exchange relationship, typically referred to as the "duality" relation.
The pattern is extended to encompass commitments (promises to engage in transactions, e.g., a sales order), policies, and other constructs.
The competing XBRL GL standard however is at odds with the REA concept, as it closely mimics double-entry book-keeping.