ACC 3000
Financial Reporting
Trimester 1, 2015
Assignment
VALUE: 25% of OVERALL ASSESSMENT
DUE DATE:
Written work - Friday, 29 May 2015 (The portal will close at 11.59pm AEST – Students
in Adelaide and Brisbane please note to adjust for the time difference accordingly) Presentation – during the tutorial in the week beginning 25 May 2015
Submission: The written assignment should be submitted electronically through the student portal – use the link under “Assessments Overview and Submission” to submit this.
ACC 3000 - Learning Outcome 4: Develop written and oral communication strategies to enable the effective presentation of accounting information to accountants and nonaccountants (working in teams).
REQUIRED: Work in teams (groups) of 3 - 4 and write a memorandum to the board of directors (the members of the board have varying degrees of accounting knowledge or understanding) and then present your findings as noted in the assignment details. Your group presentation will be limited to 10 minutes (for a team of 3 and 12 minutes for 4 members) and each member of the group must present a part of it demonstrating individual oral presentation skills. A separate mark will be given to each member of the team for presentation skills.
The Assignment comprises the following components:
Part A Technical Component (15%) – This mark covers the technical content of your advice and the explanation on each of the issues, the calculations and the sources and references used, and the format of the memo as well as the group technical knowledge during the presentation.
Part B Communication Skills – Oral presentations (10%) – This mark covers the presentation skills of the individual student
Details of Assignment:
You are required to form a team (group) of 3 to 4 members. Let your lecturer know the names of your team members. Select a set of financial statements for a group of companies and obtain approval from your lecturer for the group of companies that you have selected. Please note that two teams may not work on the same group of companies so if another team has already registered their interest in the particular group of companies you will be requested to select a different group of companies.
Read the annual report including the financial statements of the group and write a memorandum to the board of directors clearly explaining some of the technical aspects of consolidation. Make sure that you draw on the group’s specific details to explain the intricacies of consolidation to the board, and as much as possible avoid answering in general terms. Some of the aspects that you need to cover as a team are (but not restricted to):
1. The composition of the group; namely the subsidiaries, associates, any joint ventures and any other significant investments
2. Why did the parent entity have to prepare consolidated financial statements when the subsidiary company is a separate legal entity in its own right?
3. How is the group of companies funded? Share capital, debentures? Any options, bonus issues etc. Who owns the group?
4. Does the published set of group financial statements reveal the company’s policy on corporate governance? Audit committees? Sustainability? Solvency? Where and why?
5. The non controlling interest – where would you find it in the financial statements and what does it represent? Details of any direct and indirect non controlling interest?
6. Has there been any goodwill on acquisition? Or any gain on bargain purchase? Where would you find it in the financial statements and what does it mean? Any impairment?
7. Does the group have any foreign currency transactions? Any foreign subsidiary companies? How have they been accounted for in the financial statements?
8. Any other relevant matter that you may wish the board of directors to make note of in respect of some transaction or event, balance of account or disclosure that will assist them in understanding the financial statements of the group.
Please make sure you follow the guidelines noted in your subject outline especially those relating to presentation of written work, late policy and academic integrity. You should also familiarise yourself with the assessment marking rubric (attached) to guide you in how you can score.
Kaplan Business School is part of Kaplan Inc., a leading global provider of educational services. Kaplan Business School Pty Ltd ABN 86 098 181 947 is a registered higher education provider CRICOS Provider Codes SA/QLD 02426B, NSW 02913J and VIC 02887F ACC 3000/1Trimester2015/Assignment /MIR
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Team Meetings
1. The team should have a minimum of three meetings (the team may have as many meetings as they need to) and should maintain minutes of those meetings detailing - 2. Where the meeting was held
3. People present; absent; apologies
4. What was discussed and agreed on;
5. The follow up action relating to each member of the team;
6. Any other relevant matter, things you agreed or disagreed on etc.
The team meeting minutes should be included with the hard copy of your assignment as an attachment.
Note: The assessment marking rubrics is a separate document and you are advised to read through it to obtain guidance on how the lecturers will mark your assignment.
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Kaplan Business School is part of Kaplan Inc., a leading global provider of educational services. Kaplan Business School Pty Ltd ABN 86 098 181 947 is a registered higher education provider CRICOS Provider Codes SA/QLD 02426B, NSW 02913J and VIC 02887F ACC 3000/1Trimester2015/Assignment /MIR
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