Week 1 Assessments
By
Day 1 (Thursday), submit the Academic Integrity Declaration.
By
Day 1 (Thursday), submit your Personal Introduction to the Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 3 (Saturday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin.
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
Key Concept Exercise: Accounting and finance for non-specialists
Accounting
is a dynamic discipline which has changed considerably over time. It
will continue to evolve, especially as business becomes increasingly global in
nature.
This
trend towards globalisation is raising issues such as the international nature
of cross-border transactions, accountability of organisations and (national)
regulatory authorities, and to which countries organisations owe their tax
liabilities. Thus, the international harmonisation of accounting practices is
also an area that is the subject of a great deal of topical debate.
When
preparing accounting and finance information, it is of paramount importance to
identify the user groups (stakeholders) and the type of accounting and finance
statements that need to be prepared, plus the different roles of financial
accounting, management accounting and financial management, in terms of their
use to business.
Alternative
user groups (other stakeholders) and their varying needs are discussed further
in your text (Atrill and McLaney, 2017). In some cases, however, the owners of
organisations may not want other parties to know more than the minimum that
they have to divulge about what is happening within their organisation. One of
the issues that we shall consider in Week 3 is how best to interpret accounting
information that is publicly available and the potential problems faced when
undertaking this type of analysis.
Meeting
alternative users’ (other stakeholders’) needs can be a difficult task for
accountants. As your text explains, information needs to be provided in a timely
fashion, and technological advances have made real-time information a viable
option in some circumstances. The information should also be relevant to
the users’ needs, which means that management accounting and financial
management information is often produced using very different rules from those
that apply in the financial accounting arena.
Reference:
Atrill,
P. & McLaney, E. (2017) Accounting and finance for non-specialists.
10th Ed. Harlow, UK: Pearson Publishing.
To prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 1.
Consider
the different roles of financial accounting, management accounting and
financial management in terms of their use to business.
Consider
the role that accounting and finance play in your organisation (or one you may
be familiar with).
Consider
the difference in how stakeholders and alternative stakeholders use accounting
and finance information.
Consider
ways accounting and finance information can add to the value chain of an
organisation.
To
complete this Key Concept Exercise:
Note
that Part A is due Day 3 (Saturday) and part B is due Day 4 (Sunday).
By Day 3 (Saturday)
Key Concept Exercise Part A
1.
Complete the following table by putting a tick in the appropriate box:
|
Non-current
asset
|
Non-current
liability
|
Current
asset
|
Current
liability
|
|
|
A
tax bill due to the Revenue Authorities by the business in 6 months’ time
|
P
|
|||
|
Amounts
owed to a business by its customers (debtors or receivables)
|
P
|
|||
|
A
bank loan made to the business and repayable in 20 years’ time
|
P
|
|||
|
Stocks
of finished goods (inventories)
|
P
|
|||
|
A
freehold factory owned by the business
|
P
|
|||
|
The
bank overdraft of the business
|
P
|
2. Reorganise the following into a simple statement of financial
position
|
£
|
|
|
Amounts
owed by a business to its suppliers
|
65,000
|
|
Lorry/Truck
(net book value)
|
12,000
|
|
Freehold
factory
|
250,000
|
|
10-year
bank loan
|
45,000
|
|
Amount
owed to the business by its customers
|
16,000
|
|
Bank
balance (overdrawn)
|
40,000
|
|
Owner’s
equity (capital introduced plus retained profits)
|
???
To calculate
|
|
Stocks
of unsold goods (inventories)
|
10,000
|
Key Concept Exercise Part B
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
The
international accounting profession has lost its way and is no longer serving
the needs of different users of accounting information in a manner which is
appropriate and meaningful for the global business environment of today.
Do
you agree or disagree?
Identify
the different user groups who require accounting information and explain how
this information is provided for them.
Discuss
how the status of the accounting profession, both in your country and internationally,
has been impacted by financial scandals in the recent past and describe what
measures have been taken to counterbalance the impact of these.
Do
you think that the measures have been successful?
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
This
assignment is not graded, but you will receive feedback from your Instructor to
help you improve your work. Please take advantage of this opportunity to learn
from your Instructor’s feedback – give the assignment your full effort and ask
for clarification on any feedback you do not understand.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 1 Key Concept Exercise Part A --
Turnitin.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 1 Key Concept Exercise Part B --
Turnitin.
Week 2 Assessments
By
Day 3 (Saturday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin.
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
Key Concept Exercise: Interpreting financial statements
You
have already identified the importance of accounting information for both
internal and external use in an organisation. The purpose of this week is to
appreciate the importance of communication of the financial performance and
position of an organisation, both from a numerical viewpoint and also from a
critical perspective.
It
is important to have an awareness of the numerical aspects of financial
information in order to appreciate the critical perspectives of why certain
concepts and principles are followed in the preparation of financial accounting
information.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 2.
Consider
the purpose of the income statement.
To
complete this Key Concept Exercise:
Note
that Part A is due Day 3 (Saturday) and part B is due Day 4 (Sunday).
By
Day 3 (Saturday)
Key Concept Exercise Part A
Answer
the following questions:
·
An organisation owes £300,000 tax at
1.7.X4 and £450,000 at 30.6.X5. Its income statement for the year to 30.6.X5
includes a tax charge of £400,000. How much tax was actually paid in the year
to 30.6.X5?
·
An organisation buys a tangible
non-current asset for £200,000. It has an estimated scrap value of £20,000 and
an expected useful economic life of 10 years.
·
What depreciation will be shown in the
income statement for year 3?
·
How would the non-current asset be
shown in the statement of financial position at the end of year 3?
·
If the asset is sold for £120,000 in
year 4, how will this affect:
·
the income statement for year 4?
·
the statement of financial position at
the end of year 4?
·
How will the sale of the tangible
non-current asset affect the firm’s statement of cash flows?
Be
sure to demonstrate your numerical workings.
By Day 4 (Sunday)
Key Concept Exercise Part B
The
income statement and the statement of cash flows, in addition to the statement
of financial position, are the three financial statements that organisations
cannot do without. The statement of cash flows was the last one to be
instituted but is now regarded as a necessity in the accounting field.
The
following exercise takes a closer look at the statement of cash flows and
allows time for your thoughts and consideration of its role.
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
What
type of information does the statement of cash flows provide investors?
How
do changes in liquidity affect an organisation?
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
Cash
is the lifeblood of any business, and without it survival is very unlikely.
Do
you agree or disagree?
Explain
what information a statement of cash flows provides to supplement a statement
of financial position and an income statement.
Why
is there still some controversy surrounding published statements of cash flows?
How
important are such statements in terms of the financial reporting requirements
within YOUR country?
Base
your answer upon your reading, further research and your own experiences.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 2 Key Concept Exercise Part A --
Turnitin.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 2 Key Concept Exercise Part B --
Turnitin.
Week 3 Assessments
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the Collaboration
Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin.
Key Concept Exercise: Financial analysis
A
perplexing issue, particularly for many human resource management and marketing
professionals, is the absence of a valuation in the traditional financial
statements relating to human capital and other internally generated intangible
assets, such as brands.
Often
these value drivers of an organisation form a critical key success factor.
Goodwill does appear in many financial statements and this includes intangible
assets acquired by another organisation, which are often subject to large
impairments losses.
However,
this raises questions about the sustainability and volatility relating to
goodwill valuations. It is against this background that accountants have
decided to be cautious in respect of recognising intangible assets in the
financial statements.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 3.
Consider
the controversy of whether human capital should be included in the financial
statements.
Consider
how human capital could be defined and quantified in financial statements.
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
How
do you define human capital?
What
is the importance of human capital?
What
are the reasons to measure or not measure human capital?
To complete this Key Concept Exercise:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
With
the rise of the ‘knowledge economy’, the traditional valuation of an enterprise
as consisting solely of measurable assets, such as buildings, equipment and
inventory, is increasingly being questioned. Human capital, although widely
recognised as an important component of an enterprise’s total value, does not
appear on a statement of financial position (balance sheet).
·
Discuss whether or not you believe
human capital should be included in the financial statements.
·
Identify how you are defining human
capital.
·
What are some of the difficulties that
may be encountered in attempting to quantify and record this (these) asset(s)?
·
If recorded, would such values remain
constant or be subject to change?
By
Day 4 (Sunday) submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 3 Key Concept Exercise-- Turnitin.
Collaboration: Financial analysis
You
will continue this week’s discussion from your initial Key Concept Exercise
submission by reflecting on your fellow students’ submissions.
You
will be providing some critical depth of comment supported by quality academic
references that discuss both the practical and theoretical aspects of
intangible assets and other aspects as you see relevant.
To
prepare for this Collaboration:
Review
the Required Learning Resources and your Key Concept Exercise from Week 3.
Consider
the role and value of human capital in an organisation.
To complete this Collaboration:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
Post
your Key Concept Exercise from Week 3 to the Collaboration Forum.
By Day 7 (Wednesday)
Post
3–5 responses to your fellow students in one or more of the following ways:
Asking
insightful questions about the role and value of human capital in an
organisation
Supporting
others’ views or providing an alternative perspective on whether human capital
should be assessed and reported in financial statements
Discussing
an example related to the issue of reporting human capital in financial
statements
Offering
examples of human capital being measured in an organisation
Extending
the discussion into new but relevant areas regarding quantifying human capital
Ensure
that you spread your collaboration posts across at least 3 separate days of
each week. This will help maximise the value of your collaboration with
classmates and serve to meet the learning objectives for each activity.
Your
collaborative participation will be assessed in three segments. Following the
completion of Week 3, you will receive summative feedback and an initial grade
based upon your participation in Weeks 1–3.
To
access the Collaboration Forum, click on the "Week 3 Collaboration
Forum" link.
Individual Case Study Assignment 1: Cash flow forecasts and
projected financial statements
For
the following Individual Case Study Assignment, you assume the role of someone
who has been asked to provide a business report for a group of friends who have
invested in an organisation, Fashion Clothing. They had heard you are
taking a finance module and have asked for your advice.
The
scenario
A
group of friends have formed a new business called Fashion Clothing, an online
and mail-order clothing business, in which they have invested £200,000 of their
own capital.
They
intend to manufacture and sell quality clothes. They have set up the business
and are selling direct to the final consumer, using a combination of aggressive
marketing across a range of different media and also with the use of an
automated website that accepts online orders.
To
support this, they also have a department of telephone sales and support staff
ready to help customers. The sales staff work in teams and receive a basic
salary plus commission for each successful sale. By the start of July 20X5,
they have spent £150,000 on tangible non-current assets, and they currently
have the remaining £50,000 in their business bank account.
They
provide you with the following forecasted figures for their first 6 months of
trading:
|
£
|
|
|
Sales
for the next 6 months
|
1,350,000
|
|
Cost
of the materials used up in sales
|
390,000
|
|
Labour
costs for the 6 months
|
480,000
|
|
Other
expenses for the 6 months, including marketing costs and £15,000 depreciation
of tangible non-current assets
|
345,000
|
|
Materials
purchased during the 6 months
|
520,000
|
Their
projected cash receipts and payments are estimated to be as follows:
|
Month
(20X5)
|
Sales
Receipts
|
Payments
for Materials
|
Labour
and Other Expenses
|
|
£
|
£
|
£
|
|
|
July
|
150,000
|
120,000
|
These
payments are divided equally over each of the 6 months.
|
|
August
|
120,000
|
100,000
|
|
|
September
|
150,000
|
60,000
|
|
|
October
|
210,000
|
60,000
|
|
|
November
|
260,000
|
60,000
|
|
|
December
|
285,000
|
60,000
|
|
|
Totals
|
1,175,000
|
460,000
|
In
addition to the above, they expect to have to pay a tax bill of £20,000 in
December 20X5 and also plan to buy (and pay for) £30,000 additional tangible
non-current assets in that same month. All transactions will go through their
business bank account.
To complete this Individual Case Study Assignment:
By Wednesday (Day 7)
Provide
a Business Report (1,000 words for the main body of the report) for the friends
who have invested in Fashion Clothing, commenting on the business’ prospects
and including the following five financial statements:
An
opening statement of financial position at the start of July 20X5.
A
monthly cash flow forecast, showing the bank balance at the end of each of the
6 months and indicating what level of overdraft facilities the friends need to
negotiate with their bank manager. Explain what additional expense they should
take into account as a result of needing this financial assistance (overdraft).
A
projected income statement for the first 6 months of trading.
A
projected statement of financial position for Fashion Clothing at the end of
its first 6 months of operations.
A
projected statement of cash flows for the first 6 months of trading and using
the indirect method.
Since
none of the investors have a background in accounting and finance, you should
also explain what each of these statements means as a part of your report.
Keep
the following in mind:
Using
a spreadsheet may help you to produce your cash flow forecast. Remember here
that £150,000 of the initial £200,000 has already been spent. Hence, your
opening bank balance should be £50,000. Your closing bank balance should be
included in your statement of financial position as at 31.12.20X5.
Think
carefully about the £15,000 depreciation charge when working out your monthly
cash outflows for labour and other expenses.
Also
think carefully about the figures for closing stocks (inventories), creditors
(payables) and debtors (receivables).
Please
remember that your qualitative analysis and explanation of your five statements
are just as important as the calculations themselves. These, together
with your presentation of a professional report, will contribute towards your
grade for this assignment.
Please
be sure to re-visit the Key Concept Overviews for Weeks 1 and 2, as well as
Week 3. These should serve as a reminder of the accruals concept, plus the
difference between a cash flow forecast and a statement of cash flows. They
also include detailed numerical examples that should assist with your
calculations for your financial statements.
Ideally
a business report should be produced with a suitable structure and quality of
discussion around the following key areas:
Executive
summary
Table
of contents
List
of figures
Introduction
Main
financial findings.
2.1
Summary of the first 6 months business operations
2.2
Financial accounting statements
Analysis
3.1
Initial analysis in context of the three financial statements.
3.2
Investigations to increase efficiency
Conclusion
References
ANNEX
I: Statement of financial position Fashion Clothing – 01.07.20X5 and 31.12.20X5
ANNEX
II: Income statement Fashion Clothing – 6 months to 31.12.20X5
ANNEX
III: Statement of cash flows Fashion Clothing – 6 months to 31.12.20X5
ANNEX
IV: Projected cash flow forecast for the first 6 months of trading
By Day 7 (Wednesday)
Submit
your Individual Case Study Assignment to the Turnitin link provided.
Be
sure to read over your Individual Case Study Assignment before submitting it to
your Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the
language, citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are
appropriate for academic writing.
To
submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 3 Individual Case Study Assignment 1 –
Turnitin
Week 4 Assessments
By
Day 3 (Saturday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin.
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), submit your Personal Development Portfolio to Turnitin.
Key Concept Exercise: Fundamentals of management accounting
You
have already explored the key differences between management accounting and
financial accounting and now you have the opportunity to apply some
quantitative and qualitative aspects of what you have studied, utilizing the
principles of cost-volume-profit (CVP) analysis.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 4.
Consider
the difference between managerial accounting and financial accounting.
Consider
the manager’s role of analysing and interpreting financial information to help
achieve the organisation’s goals.
To
complete this Key Concept Exercise:
Note
that Part A is due Day 3 (Saturday) and part B is due Day 4 (Sunday).
By Day 3 (Saturday)
Key Concept Exercise Part A
Answer
the following questions:
The
launch of a new product is under consideration. Its unit variable costs will be
£30 and it is estimated that incremental fixed costs of £250,000 will be
incurred if production is commenced. Forecast sales are 50,000 units. At what
level of price for the new product will the organisation break even? If the actual
planned selling price is £48 per unit, what will be the organisation’s margin
of safety?
The
following information is about two organisations, A and B.
|
Organisation
A
|
Organisation
B
|
|
|
£
|
£
|
|
|
Fixed
costs
|
60,000
|
12,000
|
|
Variable
costs per unit
|
0.20
|
0.50
|
|
Unit
selling price
|
0.60
|
0.60
|
|
Expected
sales levels (units)
|
160,000
|
160,000
|
·
Which firm has higher operating
gearing?
·
What is the expected net income of both
firms?
·
What would expected net income be for
both firms if sales were a) 140,000 units and b) 180,000 units?
·
Which firm is facing more risk in terms
of its current sales predictions?
Be
sure to demonstrate your numerical workings.
Key Concept Exercise Part B
A
friend has asked you for some advice: ‘My small business now makes a profit; I
am only too aware of this, as I now face a big tax bill each year, when my tax
accountant has prepared my annual accounts. However, I don't feel much better
off personally, so this is not quite what I had expected when I took the risk
of resigning my job and setting up my own firm. The accountant is now trying to
persuade me to pay her even higher fees, by letting her prepare monthly
“management accounts” for me. She says that I would also benefit from something
called CVP analysis on my various product lines. I know that you are now doing
an MSc. What does she mean here, and is this likely to be worth my paying her
for?’
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
What
is the difference between financial reporting and management accounting?
What
are the benefits and potential problems associated with cost-volume-profit
(CVP) analysis?
What
advice would you give your friend?
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
·
Outline the difference between
financial reporting and management accounting information and explain the
benefits and potential problems associated with cost-volume-profit (CVP)
analysis.
·
How might the technique that you have
discussed assist your friend in the effective management of his business
resources?
·
What advice would you give your friend?
Base
your answer on research, your readings and your own experiences. Please cite
all references.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 4 Key Concept Exercise Part A --
Turnitin.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 4 Key Concept Exercise Part B --
Turnitin.
Personal Development Portfolio: Reflection
Your
PDP will allow you to critically reflect on your personal and professional
development goals.
To
prepare for this PDP Assignment:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 4.
To complete this PDP Assignment:
By Day 7 (Wednesday)
Write
a critically reflective paper (500 words) on the following:
Your
prior and current knowledge, plus experience of the module's key concepts and
themes, including those you have identified as particular areas of interest
Your
previous personal biases and assumptions about key module topics, plus how
these might now have changed
Your
current practice related to key module topics
Potential
areas for your personal development and strategies to continue this growth
(this could include your work or future studies)
By Day 7 (Wednesday) submit your PDP to Turnitin.
This
assignment is not graded, but you will receive feedback from your Instructor to
help you improve your work. Please take advantage of this opportunity to learn
from your Instructor’s feedback. Give the assignment your full effort and ask
for clarification on any feedback you do not understand.
To
submit your PDP to Turnitin, click on the "View/Complete" link for
Week 4 Personal Development Portfolio -- Turnitin - FF
Week 5 Assessments
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the Collaboration
Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin.
Key Concept Exercise: Budgeting and financing the organisation
This
week’s Key Concept Exercise is intended to get you thinking about the use of
budgeting in an organisation. There are many different types of budgets.
This
week, you will consider different budgeting approaches such as flexible, zero-based
and rolling budgets in organisations.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 5.
Consider
the value of budgeting for an organisation.
Consider
the different budgeting approaches.
Consider
the behavioural aspects of budgeting.
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
Consider
different budgeting approaches in an organisation.
Consider
how the budgeting approaches may differ among various organisations, such as a
Fortune 500 company, a small business or a non-profit.
What
are the characteristics of a budgeting system among the various organisations?
What
are some of the ethical issues related to budgeting and the successful
implementation of a budget?
To complete this Key Concept Exercise:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
‘I
don’t need a budget; I run my own business so it’s all in my head. Bothering
with a budget would just be a waste of time and money!’
·
Do you agree or disagree with this
point of view?
·
Discuss the value of budgeting for
organisations of all sizes and types in terms of effective resource management.
·
Explain what characteristics of a
budgeting system are most likely to contribute towards its successful
implementation and how a lack of these might result in ethical problems.
By
Day 4 (Sunday) submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your Instructor.
Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language, citing and
referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for academic
writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 5 Key Concept Exercise-- Turnitin.
Individual Case Study Assignment 2: Budgets and variances
For
this Individual Case Study Assignment, you will provide possible explanations
for the variances that you have calculated and suggestions as to how the
company might try to improve its cost control.
Orchid
Ltd. is a small furniture manufacturer. It was established as a family-owned
business 30 years ago and prides itself on high-quality products.
Most
of its products are made to order as a result of direct orders from internet-based
sales. Typically the company has been profitable, operating at the top end of
the market; recently, however, costs appear to have been increasing and the
company has also seen a decline in its sales.
The
workforce is highly skilled and recently several of the experienced
craftspeople who make the products have retired, and the company has had
problems recruiting, training and retaining suitably skilled employees.
One
of its products, a table, has the following standard costs:
|
£
|
|
|
Direct
materials (8m @ £30/m)
|
240.00
|
|
Direct
labour (10 hours @ £25/hr)
|
250.00
|
|
Fixed
overheads
|
160.00
|
|
650.00
|
|
|
Selling
price
|
950.00
|
|
Standard
profit margin
|
300.00
|
The
table is made from solid oak and the above materials reflect the size of the
table in square metres. The labour required to make the table is highly
skilled.
The
monthly production and sales are planned to be 800 units. The actual results
for March were as follows:
|
£
|
|||
|
Sales
revenue
|
753,300
|
||
|
Less
|
|||
|
Direct
materials
|
(192,500)
|
(7,000m)
|
|
|
Direct
labour
|
(221,000)
|
(8500
hours)
|
|
|
Fixed
overheads
|
(130,000)
|
||
|
Operating
profit
|
209,800
|
||
There
were no opening or closing stocks. The company manufactured and sold 810
tables; this is more than budgeted due to a successful marketing campaign.
To
complete this Individual Case Study Assignment:
By
Day 7 (Wednesday)
Parts
1 and 2 should be submitted as an operating statement, as per your Key Concept
Overview, and within the business report as required for part 3.
·
Calculate the flexed and actual budget.
·
Calculate the following variances:
·
Sales variances; volume and price
·
Direct material variances; usage and
price
·
Direct labour variances; efficiency and
rate
·
Fixed overhead variance; spending
·
Present the above information as a part
of a business report, providing possible explanations for the variances that
you have calculated and suggestions as to how the company might try to improve
its cost control.
This
Individual Case Study Assignment should be around 1,000 words for the main body
of your business report.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday) submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to the Turnitin
link provided.
Be
sure to read over your Individual Case Study Assignment before submitting it to
your Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the
language, citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are
appropriate for academic writing.
To
submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 5 Individual Case Study Assignment 2 –
Turnitin
Week 6 Assessments
By
Day 3 (Saturday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin.
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
Key Concept Exercise: Capital budgeting
This
week you will consider the usefulness of the different types of investment
appraisal techniques and you also have the opportunity to perform some
introductory calculations to confirm your appreciation of the underlying
concepts behind each method.
Many
organisations use multiple investment appraisal techniques in order to evaluate
whether an investment should be undertaken.
It
is also equally important to consider the qualitative aspects of an investment
in addition to the quantitative aspects. For example, many qualitative aspects
including ethical and environmental considerations can affect the viability of
any investment decision and can influence the outcome of the same.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 6.
To
complete this Key Concept Exercise:
Note
that Part A is due Day 3 (Saturday) and part B is due Day 4 (Sunday).
By Day 3 (Saturday)
Key Concept Exercise Part A
For
the following exercise, complete the calculations below. Evaluate different
capital investment appraisal techniques by completing the calculations shown
below:
Bongo
Ltd. is considering the selection of one of two mutually exclusive projects.
Both would involve purchasing machinery with an estimated useful life of 5
years.
Project
1 would generate annual cash flows (receipts less payments) of £200,000; the
machinery would cost £556,000 with a scrap value of £56,000.
Project
2 would generate cash flows of £500,000 per annum; the machinery would cost
£1,616,000 with a scrap value of £301,000.
Bongo
uses straight-line depreciation. Its cost of capital is 15% per annum.
Assume
that all cash flows arise on the anniversaries of the initial outlay, that
there are no price changes over the project lives, and that accepting either
project will have no impact on working capital requirements.
Assess
the choice using the following methods by completing the calculations shown
below:
ARR
NPV
IRR
Payback
period
Calculate
the missing answers:
|
Project
1
|
Project
2
|
|
|
ARR
(see workings)
|
33%
|
???
|
|
NPV
(£’000)
|
???
|
210
|
|
IRR
|
25%
|
???
|
|
Payback
Period (yrs)
|
???
|
3.2
|
ARR
workings (Project 1)
|
Cash
flows
|
200
|
|
Less:
depreciation (see below)
|
100
|
|
Accounting
profits
|
100
|
These
profits are the same each year in this question.
Annual
depreciation (Cost – SV) / 5
|
(556,000
– 56,000) / 5
|
100
|
Average
NBV of investments
|
(556
+ 56) /2
|
306
|
|
ARR
|
33%
|
Be
sure to demonstrate your workings.
Key Concept Exercise Part B
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following question:
What
are some of the alternative methods of investment appraisal?
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
Many
businesses around the world still fail because their capital investment
decisions are based upon a calculation on the back of an envelope and do not
take any of the correct factors into account. Even larger businesses often get
this wrong. This is a true sign of poor resource management.
·
Do
you agree or disagree?
·
Discuss
the alternative methods of investment appraisal and describe the limitations of
these to help justify your arguments.
·
How
do you think that capital budgeting decisions should ideally be made by
different types of organisations?
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part A to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 6 Key Concept Exercise Part A --
Turnitin.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise Part B to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 6 Key Concept Exercise Part B --
Turnitin.
By Day 4 (Sunday)
Post
your Key Concept Exercise Part B from Week 6 to the Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday)
Post
3–5 responses to your fellow students in one or more of the following ways:
Asking
insightful questions
Supporting
others’ views or providing an alternative perspective on the different capital
investment appraisal techniques
Discussing
an example related to different capital investment appraisal techniques
Offering
examples of sensitivity analysis within the context of capital budgeting
decisions
Extending
the discussion into new but relevant areas regarding financial management
To
access the Collaboration Forum, click on the "Week 6 Collaboration
Forum" link.
Week 7 Assessments
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin.
Key Concept Exercise: Working capital management
There
is an cost associated with holding inventories or stocks. Just-in-time
techniques can provide cost efficiencies in terms of a reduction in holding
inventories.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 7.
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
What
are the benefits of just-in-time (JIT) techniques?
What
types of organisations use JIT techniques?
Should
things change if they are running smoothly?
To complete this Key Concept Exercise:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
‘Things
that are running smoothly should not be subject to any control. If you commit
yourself to just finding and fixing problems, you'll be able to carry out
effective control (within an organisation) with fewer personnel’ (Minoura,
2003).
Discuss
what the above statement means and whether you agree with it.
Describe
how an organisation that you have experience of, or have researched, has
benefitted from just-in-time (JIT) techniques and with special reference to
inventory control.
Also
discuss whether the potential benefits—and drawbacks—of such JIT techniques are
limited to large manufacturing businesses or whether they have wider
applications for other organisations.
Base
your answer on research, your readings and your own experiences. Please cite
all references.
Reference:
Minoura, T. (2003) The Toyota production system. Available from: http://media.lexus.co.uk/wp-content/files_mf/1323862732essenceTPS.pdf
(Accessed: 9th November 2016).
By
Day 4 (Sunday) submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 7 Key Concept Exercise-- Turnitin.
Collaboration:
Working capital management
This
week’s Collaboration will enable you to engage with your colleagues in a
further exploration of the important ideas and issues you studied in your Key
Concept Exercise.
To
prepare for this Collaboration:
Review
the Required Learning Resources and your Key Concept Exercise from Week 7.
To
complete this Collaboration:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
Post
your Key Concept Exercise from Week 7 to the Collaboration Forum.
By Day 7 (Wednesday)
Post
3–5 responses to your fellow students in one or more of the following ways:
Asking
a thoughtful question about their post
Offering
contributions based upon your prior experience
Extending
the discussion into new but relevant areas
Modelling
or promoting critical reflection from what you have read
Clarifying
the subject matter being discussed
Ensure
that you spread your collaboration posts across at least 3 separate days of
each week. This will help maximise the value of your collaboration with
classmates and serve to meet the learning objectives for each activity.
At
the end of the module, you will receive further summative feedback and a third
grade based upon your participation in Weeks 6–8.
To
access the Collaboration Forum, click on the "Week 7 Collaboration
Forum" link.
Individual Case Study Assignment 3: Working capital management
and capital budgeting
For
your third Individual Case Study, you provide a business report for BLC Ltd, a
medium-sized UK manufacturing company.
To
prepare for this Individual Case Study Assignment:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 7.
To
complete this Individual Case Study Assignment:
By
Day 7 (Wednesday)
This
Individual Case Study Assignment should be around 1,000 words in total and
should be submitted in the form of a business report (approximately 500 words
for each part).
Individual
Case Study Assignment Part A
BLC
Ltd. is a medium-sized UK manufacturing company based in Liverpool.
The
company is seeking to expand its operations with the establishment of an office
block to house the marketing and human resources staff in Manchester. The
company has narrowed the choice to two alternatives with the following net cash
flow information being available:
|
Year
|
Property
1
|
Property
2
|
|
£000s
|
£000s
|
|
|
0
|
(2,500)
|
(2,750)
|
|
1
|
1,000
|
900
|
|
2
|
500
|
700
|
|
3
|
600
|
800
|
|
4
|
1,000
|
600
|
|
5
|
900
|
700
|
Items
to keep in mind:
The
company’s current cost of capital is 10%.
For
this assignment, ignore taxation.
Required
As
the company accountant is currently on holiday, you are required to:
By
calculating net present value, internal rate of return and payback, advise the company
which option they should take.
Critically
evaluate the other qualitative factors that might be taken into account in this
decision.
Individual
Case Study Assignment Part B
BLC
Ltd. has revenue of £500 million and sells all of its goods on credit to a
variety of different wholesale customers. At the moment the company offers a
standard credit period of 30 days. However, 70% of its customers (by revenue)
take an average of 70 days to pay, while the other 30% of customers (by
revenue) pay within 30 days. The company is considering offering a 2% discount
for payment within 30 days and estimates that 80% of customers (by revenue)
will take up this offer (including those that already pay within 30 days).
The
Managing Director has asked the credit controller if the cost of this new
policy would be worth offering. The company has a £80 million overdraft
facility that it regularly uses to the full limit due to the lateness of
payment and the cost of this overdraft facility is 15% per annum.
The
credit controller also estimates that bad debt level of 2% of revenue would be
halved to 1% of revenue as a result of this new policy.
Required
Calculate
the approximate equivalent annual percentage cost of a discount of 2%, which
reduces the time taken by credit customers to pay from 70 days to 30 days.
Calculate
the value of trade receivables under the existing scheme and the proposed
scheme at the year-end.
Evaluate
the benefits and costs of the scheme and explain with reasons whether the
company should go ahead and offer the discount. You should also consider other
factors in this decision. (Hint: You need to work out the cost of the discount
compared to the interest on the overdraft saved and bad debt reduction.)
By
Day 7 (Wednesday)
Submit
your Individual Case Study Assignment to the Turnitin link provided.
Be
sure to read over your Individual Case Study Assignment before submitting it to
your Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the
language, citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are
appropriate for academic writing.
To
submit your Individual Case Study Assignment to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 7 Individual Case Study Assignment 3 –
Turnitin
Week 8 Assessments
By
Day 4 (Sunday), submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), post 3–5 responses to your fellow students in the
Collaboration Forum.
By
Day 7 (Wednesday), submit your Personal Development Portfolio reflection to
Turnitin.
By Day
7 (Wednesday), submit your UoL Satisfaction Survey.
Key Concept Exercise: Balanced scorecard
The
balanced scorecard’s (BSC) four focus areas are financial, customer, process,
and learning and growth. The scorecard incorporates measures derived from an
organisation’s strategy. Although retaining financial measures of past
performance, the balanced scorecard also introduces the drivers of future
financial performance.
For
this Key Concept Exercise, you critically examine the balanced scorecard.
To
prepare for this Key Concept Exercise:
Read
the Required Learning Resources for Week 8.
In
formulating your Key Concept Exercise, consider the following questions:
What
are the advantages of using the balanced scorecard?
What
are the critical areas that should be considered in its implementation?
Should
the balanced scorecard be used across different organisations?
To complete this Key Concept Exercise:
By Day 4 (Sunday)
In
an approximately 500-word response, address the following issues/questions:
·
Critically evaluate the advantages of
using the BSC approach to performance measurement and identify critical areas
in terms of implementation of the BSC.
·
Should public sector or not-for-profit
organisations develop a BSC?
Use
examples to illustrate your points as well as suitable academic references.
By
Day 4 (Sunday) submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin and to the
Collaboration Forum.
Be
sure to read over your Key Concept Exercise before submitting it to your
Instructor. Make sure the spelling and grammar are correct and the language,
citing and referencing you use when providing your opinion are appropriate for
academic writing.
To
submit your Key Concept Exercise to Turnitin, click on the
"View/Complete" link for Week 8 Key Concept Exercise-- Turnitin.
Personal Development Portfolio: Final reflections
This
week’s Personal Development Portfolio will enable you to engage with your
colleagues in reflecting on what you have learned in this module and its
potential for advancing your career.
To
prepare for this PDP Assignment:
Build
upon the material from your Week 4 reflective paper. In doing so, please
reflect upon the feedback from your Week 4 PDP. Below are questions/issues that
you may again like to further reflect upon:
·
What links have you now identified
between accounting and finance and effective strategic decision making?
·
Further discuss those areas of
financial and management accounting, plus financial management, that have most
resonated with you.
·
How do you see the concepts that you
have studied applying to your professional experience, plus your personal
finances?
·
What steps might you now take to aid
you in the transition of applying the coursework to your workplace?
·
How can you link what you have studied
in Managing Financial Resources with what you took away from your
previous modules?
·
What ethical and cultural issues have
you considered important in this module and how have they impacted upon your views
of global business?
·
Do
you feel that you have improved your ‘key skills’ (report writing, time
management, etc.) as a result of your experiences with this module?
To complete this PDP Assignment:
By Day 7 (Wednesday)
Submit
your reflection (1,500–2,000 words) to Turnitin.
To
submit your PDP to Turnitin, click on the "View/Complete" link for
Week 8 Personal Development Portfolio -- Turnitin.
No comments:
Post a Comment