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PQ magazine

AIAs ACCOUNTANCY MEDIA OF THE YEAR 2015

www.pqmagazine.co.uk / www.pqjobs.co.uk

December 2015

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

LECTURERS
CONFERENCE

PQ magazine attended this years


CIMA event on your behalf. So
what are the examiners saying?

AWARDS
MATTER

HOT ACCA
EXAM TIPS

Weve just won one


and it could be
your turn next

Advice and guidance


from the UKs top tutors
for the upcoming exams

SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP
MOVES TO NEXT LEVEL
PQ magazine

EXCLUSIVE
After more than three years
of courting, CIMA and the
AICPA have announced they
are ready to take their
relationship to the next
stage!
The two bodies started their joint
venture way back in 2012, and
when they came together the pair
promised to keep things under
constant review. It would seem that
both parties are still talking and now
want to take the partnership further.
In an exclusive interview with PQ
magazine, CIMAs MD Andrew
Harding explained that in order to
take this next step with the
American Institute of CPAs it is
proposing the creation of a new
association.
Together, that means an
association representing 600,000

current and next-generation


professionals, creating what
Harding believes will be a hugely
influential, truly global body of
professional accountants.
Some 150,000 CIMA and AICPA
members have already taken up
the option to become Chartered

Global Management Accountants


(CGMA).
Harding stressed that CIMA
members and students would
continue to be served by CIMA.
What is being integrated are the
organisations strategies,
management and operations, but

both will continue to operate as


separate membership bodies.
He felt students will be one of the
main beneficiaries of the move, with
better opportunities for employment
and career prospects. Harding
revealed that CIMAs global reach
was already seen a big attraction for
students some one in five new
recruits mention the institutes
global influence as the key reason
for choosing to study with CIMA.
Members of both CIMA and the
AICPA are now being asked to
endorse this new commitment in
2016.
Harding said that CIMA members
were keen to keep hold of their
royal charter, council set-up and
mission, and have a strong affinity
to their own brand. So any
suggestion that this was a step on
the road to a full merger was wide
of the mark. There are no plans for
further integration after this so
they will live together, but arent
going to change their names!

TIME FOR AN ACCA STUDENT COUNCIL

Do ACCA PQs need a student council to


represent the views of all students? That is just
one suggestion coming from the fall-out over the
announcement that the ACCA will no longer be
publishing the exam papers and examiners
answers after each sitting.
Some students feel they havent been properly
consulted about the move and liked the idea of
a more formal arrangement for feedback, such
as a student committee.
However, the ACCA does work hard to engage
with students through its active learning

community. It also has Learning Community


Champions, who advise it on the best ways of
improving the learning community.
The ACCA has upped its game considerably in
recent years to become more engaged with its
PQs, but the news that the paper Q&As were no
longer being published after each sitting just
didnt seem to filter through to students. When
PQ magazine announced the change students
asked: When is this happening? We had to tell
them it already had!
Students really dont like the move. With exam

practice such a major factor in preparing for the


real thing students just could not get their heads
around the fact that they were no longer
available.
As one ACCA said: As good as some books
are, theres no substitute for completing exam
questions against the clock.
Students also want to go over the actual test
they have sat, not an amalgamation of questions
from the last two sittings. That will mean
nothing to me and the experience I went
through, a disgruntled PQ pointed out.

Jakub Stezaly
Kaplan student

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comment PQ

CONTENTS

News
08CIMA OT change Institute set
to introduce scaled scores
10ICAEW professional level
Pass rates hold up well
12ACCA exams All the results
from the first September sitting
Features, etc
06Mind your Ps&Qs A heartfelt
plea to the ACCA; trouble with
getting qualified; and the very
best of social media
14AAT case study Meet an
English international cricketer
who is studying with the AAT

16PQ Awards 2016 Stand out

from the crowd win a PQ


award! Best enter then
18CIMA F1 Top advice on how to
best approach this tricky paper

20ACCA exam tips The best tips


from the best tutors just for you

22ACCA P2 This is the core ACCA


paper, says Clare Finch. So how
do you tame the beast?

23ICAEW spotlight Tackling


scenario-based questions

24CIMA pre-seen We take you

by the hand and lead you


through the Strategic level case

December 2015
28Lets get technical Chattels,

and calculating capital gains tax


29CIPFA Student Network
Meet new president Katie
Goodall
30ACCA exam feedback What
the examiners want from you
31Careers #1 Prepare now for
your new job in 2016
32Careers #2 Life in the NHS;
another PQ career issue dealt
with; and our Book Club
38Fun time A PQ marathon man;
the kangaroo kid; Abbey Road
adventures; and great giveaways
The columnists
Robert Bruce The long and the
short of annual reports
8
Prem Sikka Can the big firms keep
their audit monopoly?
10
Carl Lygo The devastating impact
of the fall in oil prices
12
Subscribe to PQ magazine
Its FREE see page 35 or go to
www.pqmagazine.co.uk
ABC July 2014June 2015

32,233

25CIMA conference All the

action from the recent CIMA


Lecturers Conference and
theres more on page 26

27AAT focus How membership


can help boost your career

Publishers statement: We have a


digital issue of the magazine which
is sent to 8,248 requested readers

Another winning month


It has been a great month for PQ magazine. We won a
major award and were acknowledged for helping
another major accountancy body listen to what their
PQs want. First up, PQ magazine won the Accountancy
Media of the Year Award 2015 (see photo!), courtesy of
the AIA in the wonderful surroundings of BAFTA. Thats
two years in a row PQ magazine has picked up
glassware! Thanks for everyone who voted for us.
We also got a big shout out from Dr Noel Tagoe at the CIMA 2015
Lecturers Conference. The Executive Director of Education went out of
his way to thank us for helping CIMA listen to its students. We pushed
for the institute to look at claims that the CBAs were failing good
students. PQ has also been asking CIMA to let students use their
calculators in the assessment centres. It may seem a small thing to
some, but we understood how important it was. CIMA saw sense in
both cases. OK, we didnt get our way on percentages, but we are
happy students will now receive their scaled scores.
The controversy over the ACCAs withdrawal of exam paper Q&As is
still rumbling on this month. Some PQs are really hoping the ACCA will
have a change of heart. It has given rise to a debate on how students
engender real change and influence policy in their body. Unlike
members, students appear to have little to no power, despite their
annual subscriptions and fees adding millions to the coffers of their
bodies. Without them and their money some of the bodies wouldnt be
able to function in the same way. Remember that the ACCA, for
example, has over 400,000 students. How does it, and any of the
others for that matter, ensure it is doing right by their fee-paying
students? It has been suggested that it is now time for proper student
representation. We have asked all the bodies how they engage with
their students and you will be able to see what they say in next months
PQ magazine. Bet you cant wait.
Graham Hambly, PQ magazine editor graham@pqaccountant.com

Daniel Hopkins
Kaplan AAT student

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PQ have your say

email graham@pqaccountant.com
My plea to the ACCA

questions that you could see in


the real exam. Er we cant do
that because the ACCA doesnt
release them any more.
It is already difficult enough for
students to trace back to where
they went wrong after spending
so much money on an exam
where you get no feedback and
now not even the exam paper.
I know we are supposed to be
moving to computer-based
exams next year, but isnt that
next year? We are still sitting the
same papers, just more
frequently. Why, then, am I and
my fellow students paying for a
system that isnt even here yet? I

I really think the ACCA needs to


rethink its new policy of not
publishing exam questions and
answers after each exam sitting
(PQ, November 2015).
At the very least it will need to
tell examiners to change their
advice to us all! I have just
looked at the ACCA P2 study
guide and it tells us to scan the
most recent past exam paper, as
this provides students with a
clear picture of how P2 will be
assessed and how the
exam is structured, as
well as the likely style
and range of

can understand, sort of, why we


cant see the CBAs, but as the
PQ editor said in his commentary
last month we are only talking of
16 section B questions a year in
most cases.
I was also wondering if the
examiners had perhaps said they
didnt want to/have the time to do
four answers a year. If that was
the case, couldnt the ACCA have
just paid someone to provide the
answers?
Please, ACCA, give us back
our wonderful free resource.
Name and address supplied
The editor says: Over to you,
ACCA

The writer of the star letter each month wins a fantastic I PQ mug!

Hot & Tweet

I just cant pass

I am writing to express my
dissatisfaction with my ACCA
results is there is anyone who
can help? I have done everything in
the book to pass my exams. I took
three weeks out of my holidays as
always, practised more past papers
than before, yet nothing seems to
work for me. I have two papers left,
but it feels like I am stuck at a
crossroads and dont know where
to turn. My marks for P7 and P5
have been 46% and 44%, and
44% and 30%. In my last exam I
sat just P7 and received 46%.
Does anyone have any
constructive advice that will help
me?
A worried student, by email

Thank you PQ!

I am a PQ working in budgetary
control for a local NHS Trust and
recently won some e-books from
EW Publishing through PQ
magazine. Thank you all for that.
The magazine is so user-friendly
and informative. All the articles are
digestible. Since I study P2 I track
Martin Jones articles on IAS and
IFRSs. Ive got three exams to go
P2, P6 and P7. Keep up the good
work.
Patrick Gallagher, by email
The editor says: Thanks for that,
Patrick. Just to give you and other
readers the heads up, we have a
piece from Martin in the next issue.

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LinkedIn was red hot over the ACCAs move to no longer


publish the full exam papers and answers after each
sitting. Worryingly, quite a few students hadnt heard
about this. Most saw the Q&As as an invaluable
resource. One PQ felt that of all the things they do this
must be one of the most simple to administer. Another
said he thought the ACCA was trying to provide focus to help improve
pass rates. Some PQs were also worried that the move would have a
really big effect in developing countries where resources are scarce.
Tutors who mark papers will also have access to the questions, giving
them (and their students) an unfair advantage. Anything that creates a
two-tier system is not good in the long run, said one top tutor.

We have been very


busy tweeting away
@PQmagazine. We got the
ACCA September pass rates out
there first (on 19 October)
thanks for all the retweets.
One recent tweet that also
got you going was: Angry
women lose the ability to
influence people but angry men
can increase their power of
persuasion says research. That
makes me angry. No one knew
whether they should get angry
more or less often!
We have been tweeting from
a whole range of events this
month.
We were
at the
worldfamous
Abbey
Road
Studios
with the
CIOT, the ICBs bookkeepers
summit and CIMAs 2015
Lecturers Conference, and
collecting our Accountancy
Media of the Year award at
BAFTA, courtesy of AIA. There
is little doubt we get out and
about more than any other
accountancy magazine!
Follow us @PQmagazine.

PQ Magazine Fourth floor, Central House, 142 Central Street, London EC1V 8AR | Phone: 020 7216 6444 | Email: graham@pqaccountant.com
Website: www.pqmagazine.co.uk | Editor/publisher: Graham Hambly graham@pqaccountant.com | Advertising manager: Polly Thrasivoulou polly@pqaccountant.com
Associate editor: Adam Riches | Art editor: Tim Parker | Subscriptions: dom@pqaccountant.com | Contributors: Robert Bruce, Prem Sikka, Carl Lygo,
Tony Kelly, Phil Gammon, Jo Daley | Origination and print services by Classified Central Media
If you have any problems with delivery, or if you want to change your delivery address, please email dom@pqaccountant.com

Published by PQ Publishing PQ Publishing 2015

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PQ news

ROBERT
BRUCE
The long
and the
short of
annual
reports
Its that time of year, when surveys of
published accounts are produced and
their findings dissected. The old
chestnuts have been discussed once
more. The length of annual reports is
still growing, despite valiant efforts to
cut stuff out rather than pile it in.
Risk-averse lawyers are the main
reason for clutter in reports; second
to them come regulators. Not because
they keep asking for more, but
because preparers of accounts are
terrified of ditching something and
then getting a dressing-down from the
regulators for having done so.
Not that some of this is not richly
deserved. A report from the Financial
Reporting Review Panel lambasts
companies anonymously (shame!) for
putting in accounting policies for
items or transactions that were
immaterial, no longer relevant or nonexistent. Quite hard, that last one.
They had a go at companies that had
put in accounting policies for hedges
that the companies did not enter into
then criticised firms that included the
translation of subsidiaries in foreign
currency where none existed. It is no
wonder that some investors have said
that they really understand little of the
highly technical stuff that financial
sector companies tend to stuff their
massive annual reports with.
Their suggestion was that firms
could happily print this stuff, but only
if they also provided one paragraph
up front that explained precisely what
it was all about. We are, sadly, back
to the old clich of someone
apologising for writing such a long
letter because they had not had the
time to write a short one.
n Robert Bruce is an
award-winning writer on
accountancy for The Times

CIMA INTRODUCES
OT SCALED SCORES

CIMA has introduced scaled scores


into all its exam results, director of
examinations Steve Flatman told
the recent Lecturers Conference.
From 1 November 2015, OT
results included a grade of pass or
fail, sectional performance
feedback and a scaled score.
Flatman said the OT scores will
range from 0 to 150, with a score
of 100 and above represents a
pass.
For the case study it is a little
more complicated. A scale score
will also range from 0 to 150, but
here a score of 80 and above
represents a pass. However, all
candidates also need to achieve
one-third of available marks in each
competency (excluding leadership

at operational level).
The exams director felt that new
research showed that there wasnt
too much time pressure in the
exams. Overall, 3.7% of OT exams
sat have more than one item
unanswered due to time constraints
(see page 25 for the percentages).
Another big announcement was
the change in calculator policy (see
page 25). There is not going to be a
ban on students taking their own
approved non-programmable
calculators into the Pearson Vue
assessment centres. At one time
there was a worry that students
would be forced to use the
onscreen version.
See pages 25 and 26 for more
news from the recent conference.

ICAEW delays introduction


of computer-based exams
The ICAEW has taken the sensible
decision of delaying the
introduction of the computer-based
exams following the news that a
rival is potentially acquiring its
preferred supplier.
The ICAEW had chosen
learndirect as its partner, only to
discover that Pearson Vue wants to
now buy it. The Competition and
Markets Authority are reviewing the
proposed acquisition.
ICAEW executive director Mark
Protherough said: Our priority is to
maintain the rigour, structure and
quality of the ACA qualification to
ensure that our students continue
to develop the skills needed to
become ICAEW chartered
accountants.
He promised the institute would
keep students and training

Rise in students
over-paying on
student loans
New figures from the Student
Loans Company show there has
been a 10% year-on-year rise in
student loan over-repayments,
leaving more than 70,000
borrowers out of pocket by on
average 580. Figures obtained
via a Freedom of Information
request by accountancy firm RSM
show that borrowers over-repaid
more than 45.4m on income
contingent repayment (ICR)
student loans through their salary
deductions in 2013-14 a 10%
rise over the 41.4m recorded in
the previous year.
RSMs Lesley Fidler said: It
beggars belief that HMRC and the
Student Loan Company cant
develop a more efficient system
that takes the right amount of
money at the right time from
people wanting to repay their
student loans. Fidler felt for
some people monthly loan
deductions are a significant
proportion of their income, and
these overpayments could cause
real financial hardship.
The latest figures also show the
problem is getting worse rather
than better, she pointed out.

ACCA self-study guides

providers updated when we know


more. Protherough also stressed
that work on the computer-based
exams delivery model will continue
unabated.

A new suite of interactive self-study


guides to help PQs through the
ACCA qualification are now
available via the ACCAs website.
The association has launched the
guides for P1 to P7, completing the
full range of self-study support from
the Fundamentals Level through to
Professional level. The guides follow
other ACCA initiatives which include
live web-chat events, Q&A sessions
on Facebook and practice tests for
F1 to F4.

In brief
Stressed out
It seems accountants are
more vulnerable to emotional
problems than any other
profession. A study by AXA PPP
Healthcare found a third of
accountants had suffered
from a mental illness. A
sixth of chartered
accountants have taken
time off because of stress
and half said they felt they
were not supported to
manage their workload, with many
feeling isolated.
8

Goodbye Baker Tilly


Baker Tilly is no more, and
from the end of October staff at the
UK firm became part of one name
and one brand RSM. It has been
acknowledged that the
change will be full of
emotion, and as part of
the relaunch RSM has
announced its new
brand position The
Power of Being
Understood. The
rebrand coincided with RSM World
Day 2015, which is an annual

celebration. The new website can


be found at www.rsmuk.com.

collaboration between both


companies earlier this year.

New shared services body


CIMA and The Hackett Group
have joined forces to create a new
global professional body the
Association of Certified Global
Business Services Professionals.
Together they have also announced
a first-ever formal career
development programme for the
global business services and
shared services sector. This follows
the announcement of a strategic

CIPFA and PIPFA sign MoU


CIPFA and the Pakistan
Institute of Public Finance
Accountants (PIPFA) have signed a
memorandum of understanding
(MoU) to help advance high-quality
public financial management in
Pakistan. The MoU creates a basis
for collaboration between the two
bodies, who will explore
membership routes to give PIPFA
members the chance to join CIPFA.
PQ Magazine December 2015

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PQ news

PREM
SIKKA
What
price an
independent
audit?
After the Enron scandal auditors came
under scrutiny for conflict of interests
arising out of the provision of
consultancy services to audit clients.
The increased fees dependency exerts
pressures to let the lying dogs sleep. It
creates the perception that auditors
are not sceptical enough and have
compromised their independence.
In the US, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
2002 restricted the sale of some
consultancy services to audit clients.
The Big 4 mediated threats of further
action by divesting their consultancy
arms. Questions about conflict of
interests also arose after the 2007-08
banking crash. Banning the sale of
non-auditing services to audit clients
was resisted with claims that these
services were of lesser importance.
It has all changed again. The firms
have rebuilt their consultancy arms
and are pursuing new business. They
oppose a complete ban on the sale of
consultancy to audit clients and claim
that it does not impair auditor
independence. Little evidence is
provided to support such claims. Audit
working papers would shed some light
on auditor scepticism, but they are not
publicly available. If the provision of
other services does not impair auditor
independence then there is no reason
to restrict the delivery of audits to
accountancy firms. Tesco, Marks &
Spencer and others could employ
accountants and enter the auditing
market. The pursuit of consultancy
income is likely to be accompanied by
calls to end accountants monopoly of
the external audit function.
n Prem Sikka is professor
of accountancy at the
University of Essex

ACCA examiners report on


first-ever September sitting

All ACCA P2 sitters have to look


beyond their study texts and
revision courses, says the examiner
in the September report.
A well-prepared student would
have reviewed relevant websites,
including those of the standard
setters (IASB), the profession, and
ACCA to maintain their knowledge
and keep up-to-date with topical
issues. One question normally
focuses on a topical issue.
The examiner stressed that the P2
exam requires candidates to display
more than just rote knowledge of
accounting standards, and it was
emphasised that professional
accountants need to be able to

advise clients with both the correct


accounting treatment and also the
reasons for this treatment.
The P3 examiner ventured that
time pressure in the exam is not
caused by the paper itself but
rather the result of the candidates
unfocused response. Too many
sitters provide lengthy explanations
of theoretical models. Time could
also be saved if PQs avoided
quoting lengthy detail from the case
study scenario.
For our take on the September
Examiners Report go to page 30.
Go to the PQ website for a
breakdown of what subjects were
covered in the September papers.

10

Production/Manufacturing
For 200 years, James Purdey &
Sons has been synonymous with
the unrivalled craftsmanship of
the worlds best shotguns and
rifles. You must be actively
studying towards ACCA or CIMA
qualification (must be at least
part qualified). You will also
need a minimum three years in
a manufacturing/factory
environment. The salary is
37,000-40,000 and the role
is based in Hammersmith.
Top jobs like these dont come
around every day! So go on to
www.pqjobs.co.uk for all the
information you need to apply.

Blooming in
Bloomsbury

Double winner: PQ magazines reigning Distance Learning Student of the


Year Esther Alum recently picked up another award from her own body
the AIA. The audit scholarship student was the star of the AIA awards
held at BAFTA in London. She is now their Student of the Year

ACCA PQs in London have a new


provider on the block, just around
the corner from Holborn tube. From
January 2016, Bloomsbury
Accountancy is planning to offer
part-time evenings classes in all 16
ACCA papers thats F1 to P7.
Classes will run from 6.15pm to
8.45pm on Mondays to Fridays at
Bloomsburys Southampton Place
HQ. See page 17 for more on this.

Passing the professional test

The pass rates for the September


ICAEW professional exams are in,
and the Business Strategy paper
sitters excelled themselves this time
around with a 92% pass rate.
Financial Management stood out,
but only because it was the only
paper that didnt have a pass rate
above 80% it came in at 79.7%.
In all, 3,440 students sat the

September 2015 session, with


6,548 papers being attempted.
ICAEW PROFESSIONAL EXAM RESULTS
Sep 15 Jun 15
Audit & Assurance
87.5% 82.0%
FA & Reporting
83.2% 81.6%
Tax Compliance
83.9% 81.7%
Business Planning Tax 81.3% 78.9%
Business Strategy
92.0% 91.8%
Financial Management 79.7% 81.7%

Bookkeepers should have no fear

Wood: bookkeepers should


move to fixed fees

JOB OF
THE MONTH

Bookkeepers do not need to fear the rise of automation,


claims Michael Wood, co-founder of Receipt Bank.
He told a packed ICB Bookkeepers Summit that
bookkeepers have the best relationship with their clients,
and even when the software takes over some of the more
menial tasks there will still be a need for an administrator
and that will be the bookkeeper.
He told the 700 delegates they need to move all their
clients onto the cloud. Applications there are only going to
get better and better. You also have to embrace
automation and get yourself ahead of the curve. Wood
had two other nuggets of advice move to fixed fees and
get closer to your client, so you understand what they
need before they ask for it!

Some 79.2% of PQs who sat three


papers passed them all. This
compares with 75.3% of sitters who
passed the one paper they
attempted. There were 451 PQs
who didnt pass any of the papers
they sat at this sitting.
PwC students dominated the
prizewinners list with top marks in
three of the six papers.

Social mobility works


for Grant Thornton

One in five of the 300 trainees taken


on by Grant Thornton in 2015 would
not have been considered prior to
the firm dropping its academic
barriers two years ago, according to
CEO Sacha Romanovitch. Unveiling
the firms results, she said Grant
Thornton remained committed to
the industry-wide social mobility
initiative Access Accountancy.
Revenue at the firm rose to 521m
with profits before tax standing at
82m. That gave a distributable
profit per partner of 398,00.
PQ Magazine December 2015

PQ news

CARL
LYGO
Devastating
impact of
the falling
price of oil
The impact of lower oil prices on the
world economy was brought home to
me recently when launching a new
initiative with the Malaysian Institute
of Accountants. An austerity drive in
Malaysia, brought about by oil price
falls, has led to a freeze in the intake
of public servants. The Malaysian
Employers Federation (MEF) has
expressed grave concern about the
plight of graduates entering the jobs
market; there are at least 200,000
who are unemployed and the number
is expected to rise. The decision to
freeze public servant openings means
that 15,000 fewer students will leave
university with a public sector job.
Members of the MEF have also cut
a further 10,000 graduate openings in
the first half of 2015. A big initiative
in the area is the development of the
ASEAN Economic Region, which
would result in free labour movement
between ASEAN nations. This is seen
as a major challenge and opportunity
for local graduates. At the same time,
the government in Malaysia estimates
an additional 60,000 accountants are
going to be needed for the local
economy between now and 2020. Low
levels of English language proficiency
were said to be holding back many
graduates and leading bodies such as
the Malaysian Professional
Accountancy Centres have responded
by introducing English language
courses to help graduates undertaking
professional exams. While Malaysia
rebalances its economy towards the
private sector, it hopes for movement
in world oil prices.
n Professor Carl Lygo is
chief executive of BPP

September sitting
results are mixed
The first-ever September ACCA
exams saw a mixed bag of pass
rates, but it is way too soon to see
any real trends developing.
What is clear is that the P7 and
F9 exam pass rates slumped in
September to 29% and 35%
respectively, when compared with
the June stats (see table).
Meanwhile, the P6 pass rate shot
up by 11 percentage points and F7
by four percentage points. The pass
rates of P1, P2 and P3 also dipped
slightly, and students and tutors
need to keep an eye on these pass
rates over coming sittings.
Overall, when compared with the
summer exam sitting five paper
pass rates went up, six went down,
and one remained unchanged.
Some 40,704 students across 15
countries took the opportunity to use

this new session, with many


opting to sit just one paper. The
ACCA had been forecasting for
30,000, so will be pleased with
the take-up.
ACCAs new director of learning,
Mary Bishop (pictured), said: We
are delighted with the response to

the first of our additional


exam sittings. The number of
candidates taking exams in
September far exceeded our
expectations, demonstrating
there is a real demand from
students and employers for our new
exam sittings.

Smart drugs do work

Top cats: Institute of Legal Finance & Management award


winners smile for the camera. They are, from left, Wendy
Mayers, Marian Yates, Sally Siggers and Amie Lawrence

FRC acts on
complaints
PwC and one of its former
accountants, Stephen
Harrison, are to be
investigated over their role in
the auditing of social housing maintenance
firm Connaught. The Financial Reporting
Council has also issued a formal complaint
against Stephen Hill, Connaughts group FD,
and David Wells, the deputy FD responsible for
treasury management. The complaint is that
their conduct fell significantly short of the
standards reasonably to be expected of a
member or member firm of the ICAEW. Hill
and Wells have also allegedly breached the
fundamental principles of integrity. Connaught
12

ACCA EXAM RESULTS SEPTEMBER 2015 WORLDWIDE


Sep 15
Jun 15
Dec 14
39%
37%
44%
F5 Performance Management
47%
50%
43%
F6 Taxation
44%
40%
43%
F7 Financial Reporting
F8 Audit & Assurance
42%
39%
45%
F9 Financial Managemt
35%
41%
40%
48%
49%
52%
P1 Professional Accountant
P2 Corporate Reporting
44%
48%
50%
45%
46%
48%
P3 Business Analysis
P4 Adv Financial Managemt
36%
36%
33%
30%
28%
30%
P5 Adv Performance Managemt
P6 Adv Taxation
45%
34%
38%
29%
40%
40%
P7 Adv Audit & Assurance

went into administration in 2010 owing more


than 200m to creditors. Meanwhile, PwC has
settled a 1.6bn auditor negligence claim by
subprime lender Cattles. The firm said PwC
should not have signed off the 2006 and 2007
financial statements of the group. Final terms
of the settlement have not been disclosed
Steel closures: the repercussions
Recent steel plant closures are a
crisis for the UK economy that
cannot be underestimated, says
KPMGs Stephen Cooper. He said
that the metals sector is facing a
bigger threat than in 2009 when
the global financial meltdown sent shockwaves
through the industry. News of up to 1,200 job

The drug Modafinil, which enables people to


function with less sleep, also works as a smart
drug, making the brain work better, say researchers.
PQ magazine has highlighted the fact that
Modafinil is already used off-prescription by
students cramming for exams and by those working
long hours.
The study, by the University of Oxford and
Harvard Medical School, found the drug helped
non-sleep-deprived users to improve their decisionmaking and planning. With minimum side-effects,
the study raises ethical question as to whether
society wants people to be able to enhance their
brain power with chemicals. Interestingly, Modafinil
is approved in the US for shift-work sleep disorder
as it helps reduce accidents.
One expert said that there could be issues around
the potential access to such drugs depending on
individual wealth.
cuts in Scunthorpe and Scotland followed the
closure of the SSI steel site on Teesside
(pictured) with the loss of 2,200 jobs.
Simply the best
EYs school-leaver programme has been
named best in the UK in the 2015 Rate My
Apprenticeship (RMA) top employer ranking
(up from ninth last time around). EY offers a
five-year programme with a
hands-on client experience and
a starting salary of up to
21,500, plus the opportunity
to study for two professional
qualifications. Applications for
the 2016 EY School Leaver programme are
now open and school-leavers can apply online.
PQ Magazine December 2015

FULL
RECOGNITION.
Make your hard work pay off with
AAT Professional Membership
Whether youve decided not to complete your
chartered studies, or youre just taking a break,
AAT will provide the recognition you deserve for
the hard work youve put in so far.
As a professional member of AAT you can use
the letters MAAT after your name - it says more
about you than PQ ever could.

PROFESSIONAL
MEMBERSHIP

AAT is a registered charity. No.1050724

Take the next step in your career:


+44 (0)20 3735 2401 aat.org.uk/joinus

PQ profile

The more I study and progress,

the more I enjoy it


Ajmal Shahzad was the first British-born Asian cricketer to play cricket for Yorkshire. Since then he has played
Test, one day and T20 cricket for England. But he has another preoccupation studying for his AAT exams
Tell us a bit about your cricketing
achievements.
Im lucky enough to have been a
professional cricketer for the past 12
years, representing three county teams
Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and currently
Sussex CCC. Ive also represented
England in all three formats of the game
and I was lucky enough to be part of a
T20 World Cup winning squad in
Barbados (in 2010), an Ashes winning
squad in Australia 2010-2011, and to
have participated in the 50-over World
Cup competition that was held in India in
2011.

Howzat! Shazad in action for England

You had to choose between sport and


study when you were younger.
Cricket has been a huge part of life since
the age of 17, when I turned professional
and left my studies behind. But I have a
passion for studying and studied
pharmacology for a year at the University
of Bradford prior to being selected to
represent England.
Your father is an accountant. How much
influence has this had on you?
Yes, my father is an accountant. After
coming to this country and studying
accountancy he worked for a business
and soon after opened his own practice.
This is what allowed me to not only
receive the best education possible but to
also participate in sports and not worry
too much about the future.
What prompted you to start studying
accountancy?
I recently turned 30 and as an
experienced campaigner I know Im
coming towards the back end of my
cricket career. At best I may have six or
seven years. I had to start thinking about
plans for the future. Where would my
income come from? Id be naive to think
all will be OK. Hopefully, six years more
cricket will give me time to plan and
prepare for my future. My father came
over from Pakistan and built his business
from scratch, so it only feels right to be
able to continue to take it forward. I also
know this would make him immensely
proud. His hard work allowed me to
follow my dreams and play cricket
without fear of failure, and I feel I owe it
to him to study hard so he can enjoy his
retirement years.
14

Playing
professional
cricket is a
wonderful
occupation, but if
you dont have a
plan for your
future then life
can quickly
become very
difficult

We understand regular PQ contributor


Philip Dunn also had an influence on
you.
Philip is a friend and keen Yorkshire
cricket supporter, and I speak to him on
a regular basis. After Id explained how I
felt about my years after cricket, he
suggested that I should get back into
studying and think about the
accountancy courses the AAT offers to
get me on the accountancy ladder. All I
can say now is that I feel its the best
decision Ive made regarding my future.
Where are you with your studies? How
do you find time to study?
Im currently studying Level 2 AAT. Ive
completed all but one chapter of this
course (I should have it completed by the
time this article is published). I feel that
to get where I want to be in accountancy
I need to start here to grasp the basic
principles that will give me a solid
foundation to build on. The Kaplan Home
Learning course has allowed me to study
part-time in and among all my cricketing
commitments, and sit my exams when I
feel Im ready. No pressure! Ive found it
immensely stimulating and refreshing. I
also feel its brought an element of

freshness to my cricketing game. It allows


me to switch off away from the game and
concentrate on other goals. Passing
assessments on the Level 2 AAT course, I
feel Im getting closer to my end goal and
that motivates me even more. The more I
study and progress, the more I seem to
enjoy it!
What does the future hold?
Times have changed 10 years ago
studying anything other than cricket was
seen as unnecessary energy expenditure!
When I was coming through the
cricketing system, school, college,
university was seen as a waste of time.
Cricket was everything. But as time has
gone on, and the financial climate has
changed, it seems we are getting paid
less and everything costs more! Playing
professional cricket is a wonderful
occupation, but if you dont have a plan
for your future after cricket, then life can
quickly become very difficult. A
cricketers wage doesnt come close to a
professional footballers. For that reason,
my peers in cricket not only appreciate
and support what Im doing, but are also
proud of me. Likewise my family and
friends. PQ
PQ Magazine December 2015

They say nothing in life is free, but to help you


get ahead with your studies, First Intuition are
offering new students a free* CIMA module.

Find out why FI is the only college to have won


PQ Magazine's College of the Year award
three times in the past five years.
*First Intuition is offering one free course to any student who has not previously studied with First Intuition. The course can be a classroom or online course
for any core CIMA module (Case Study courses not included). This offer applies to 2015 courses booked with the Bristol, Cambridge and London centres.

Birmingham

Brighton
London
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Bristol
Cambridge
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Reading

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020 7323 9636

Dublin

PQ Awards 2016

THE CATEGORIES
PQ of the Year
NQ of the Year
Distance Learning Student
of the Year
Student Body of the Year
Training Manager/Workplace
Mentor of the Year
Accountancy Team of the Year
Accountancy College of the Year
Public Sector
Accountancy College of the Year
Private Sector
Lecturer of the Year
Public Sector
Lecturer of the Year
Private Sector
Innovation in Accountancy
Study Resource of the Year
Accountancy Body of the Year
Accountancy Personality of the Year
Editors Special Award
Online College of the Year NEW
Best Use of Social Media NEW

Who will it be in 2016? Some top names have graced the PQ awards, including (clockwise
from top) Paul The Sinnerman Sinha, who hosted in 2015; Shaun Barry from EastEnders
Williamson; Stephen K Find the Funny Amos; and Richard Donkey Blackwood

Stand out from the crowd

Do you know someone who deserves one of our awards? Well get nominating then perhaps its you!

o you have that X factor? Perhaps


you are struggling to make your CV
stand out from the hundreds of other
CVs hitting employers inboxes? Well, one sure
way to get to base camp would be to become
the 2016 PQ of the Year!
We also understand that sometimes you need
to blow your own trumpet as no one else will, so
we actively encourage you to nominate yourself!
But, remember, there isnt just one award up
for grabs. How about nominating someone who
really helped you get to where you are now a
lecturer, or maybe your mentor/training
manager?
All we need is 250 words, plus any
supporting evidence, on why your nominee (or
you) should be shortlisted for one of our

categories. You can download our application


form directly from the website at
www.pqmagazine.co.uk just go to the pq
awards bar and click to download the form. Or
email us your entry directly, making it clear
which category you are nominating for.
Once you have it all ready send it to
awards@pqmagazine.com, or you can post your
wise words to: The Editor, PQ magazine, 4th
Floor, Central House, 142 Central Street,
London EC1V 8AR. Deadline for nominations is
Friday 18 December 2015.
So come on all you PQs out there, we want to
see you at the Caf de Paris in February.
Remember, if you get on our shortlist we will
send you an invite to the best night out in
accountancy. PQ

OUR SPONSORS
No awards night is possible without the sponsors. And we have only the best

16

PQ Magazine December 2015

Awards 2016 PQ

TIME TO INNOVATE
We take a look at last years winner of the Innovation in Accountancy category KPMG and BPP

nnovation in Accountancy is one of the


more hotly contested categories at the PQ
awards, and 2015 was no different. The
winner was the ACA Intensive Programme
launched by BPP and KPMG.
We spoke to Sarah Mackey, who helps run the
programme at BPP. She described the scheme
as very different from anything out there at the
moment in accountancy. It works a bit like a law
course; students do three years at university,
followed by a years postgraduate study, all
before stepping into work full-time. The
programme allows KPMG PQs to complete most
of their ICAEW qualification within 10 months of
joining the firm. After that students have just the
case study to complete.
A real innovation comes from replacing the
ICAEW professional level with a graduate
diploma in accounting (GDA), developed by BPP
University. The diploma includes a bespoke
theory in practice module to help trainees
bridge the gap between the classroom and the
workplace, although these fast-track students do
have two work placements in the business, in
February and August.
In the first year just 60 students went down
this route. Last year that figure grew to 100 and

PQ Magazine December 2015

KPMGs Michael Walby with


ICAEW director of learning
Mark Protherough and
BPPs MartinTaylor
this year it will be 155. And these numbers
could increase, suggested Mackey.
The course fits in well with the changing
resource demands at KPMG. It needs people to
be upskilled quickly because of the changing
nature of work we are talking automation and
shared services here.
Students, too, love the fact that they can just
focus on their exams.
KPMG has created a USP with this innovative

programme, of that there is no doubt, and our


judges agreed. What they really liked was how
well the programme was supported by BPP
tutors, who share their experience (they are all
qualified chartered accountants) with the PQs.
Each trainee is supported by a performance
coach, who provides proactive support for both
high performers and those that are struggling. It
is hardly surprising that the pass rates are
regularly 95%-plus. PQ

17

PQ CIMA F1 paper

A NUMBERS GAME
taxation. They should demonstrate an
understanding of the differences between tax
avoidance and tax evasion. PQs will also be
required to produce computations for corporate
income tax as well as for capital tax and should
ensure that they are able to do both.

Pass rate: 73%


Technical difficulty: 8/10
Weighting of calculations: 65% (approx)
Weighting of discursive
elements: 45% (approx)
Exam technique: 9/10

The syllabus
.
The F1 exam builds on the knowledge acquired
in Certificate level, in particular C02. F1 covers
the regulation and preparation of financial
statements. F1 will provide the competencies
required to produce financial statements for
individual entities and for groups using
appropriate IFRS. This knowledge will be used as
a basis for more complex adjustments and group
structures as you go on to F2. In addition, F1
gives insight into how to effectively manage cash
and working capital, with the final part of the
syllabus focusing on the basic principles of
business taxation and the application of these
principles.
The knowledge you gain in F1 will be
developed further in F2 and F3 and as such you
should ensure you have a good understanding of
all of the areas of the syllabus before moving on.
The syllabus is broken down into four areas:
Regulatory environment for financial
reporting and corporate governance
(10%): This introduces students to the idea of
regulations for financial reporting and requires
students to explain and understand the need for
regulation in financial reporting when dealing
with incorporated entities. Students should be
able to demonstrate an understanding of the
roles and structures of key bodies such as the
IFRS foundation, the IASB, the IFRS Advisory
Council, the IFRS Interpretations Committee and
the IOSCO. This area also incorporates the duties
of the external auditor and the introduction of the
audit report. Students will also need to have a
good grasp of the key principles of corporate
governance and the need for corporate
governance regulation. They will be expected to
understand the approaches to corporate
governance in primary markets around the
world, in particular the US and UK.

Financial accounting and reporting


(45%): This part builds on your knowledge
from C02 and will be used as a base to build
upon when moving on to F2. An understanding
of this area of the syllabus is fundamental to
students when preparing for the F1 exam but
also when preparing for the case study.
Students will need to demonstrate a good
understanding of and be able to generate
appropriate accounting entries for each of the
examinable adjustment IFRS/IAS such as:
IFRS 5 Non-Current Assets Held for Sale and
Discontinued Operations.
IAS 21 The Effects of Changes in Foreign
Exchange Rates.
IAS 12 Income Tax.
IAS 19 Employee Benefits.
18

Lee-Anne Shema explains how


you can to pass the Financial
Reporting and Taxation paper

IAS 16 Property Plant and Equipment.


IAS 23 Borrowing Costs.
IAS 38 Intangible Assets.
IAS 40 Investment Property.
IAS 20 Government Grants.
IAS 36 Impairment of Assets.
IAS 2 Inventories.
IAS 10 Events After the Reporting Period.
Students also need to be able to produce a
set of consolidated statements in accordance
with IFRS 10 and IAS 28.
Although they will not be asked to produce a
set of financial statements a working knowledge
is required of producing single company and
consolidated financial statements both for
individual elements being tested in OT and in
preparation for the case study.

Management of working capital, cash and


sources of short-term finance (20%):
F1 requires that students should be able to
describe the sources of short-term finance
available to an entity as well as opportunities for
cash investment to be made when available.
Students should also demonstrate an
understanding of how to evaluate the working
capital position of an entity with supporting
calculations such as analysis of trade receivable
days, trade payable days and inventory holding
period ratios. It is likely that the calculation of
these ratios will form part of the OT exam.

Fundamentals of business taxation


(25%): This area covers taxation both in
the theoretical and computational sense.
Students need to be able to discuss the types of
taxation that apply to an incorporated entity,
including the main features of direct and indirect

Sitting the F1 exam


.
The F1 exam, as with all objective test exams, is
a mixture of multiple choice, multiple response,
drag-and-drop style questions and selecting from
drop-down menus. Students will also be
required to type in numerical answers.
Before the exam: Practise as many questions as
you can prior to the exam. Practise them under
exam conditions, to time and without notes. Not
only will this ensure that you have learnt and
understood the syllabus and how different topics
might be tested, it will give you the confidence to
tackle the questions on the day. As with so many
things in life, practise makes perfect! The OT
questions are notorious for having one word in
the question that will change your entire thought
process, so you must prepare yourself for the
way the questions will be asked.
Revise the whole syllabus: All of the syllabus
learning outcomes will be tested in the OT exam.
It is therefore imperative that you study the
whole syllabus and do not selectively learn.
During the exam: Read the question first and
read it carefully there are a range of different
types of questions and it is easy to assume that
the question says something when it actually
requires the opposite. For example, you may
assume the question asks you to select the
statements that are true when it actually asks
you to select the statements that are false.
Timing: You have 90 minutes to answer 60
questions, 1.5 minutes per question. Some
questions will take a little longer but this should
balance out with those that can be answered
more quickly. However, it is important to make
sure that you keep on track throughout the
exam. Checking the clock to make sure that you
have answered another batch of 10 in no more
than 15 minutes is a way of doing this.
Flag for review: The software enables you to
flag questions for review at a later stage. As you
work through the questions and come across
ones that you are not entirely sure about or
perhaps you have lost your way in the
calculations and are wasting too much time, flag
them for review. You can then revisit these
questions quickly and easily at the end.
Particularly with calculation questions, try not to
erase the workings you have done previously
from your whiteboard notepad so that you dont
have to waste time re-doing them later.
Guess! There is no negative marking and so if
you are unsure of the answer at least guess. A
good way to do this with multi-choice questions
is to eliminate any answers that you know are
not correct and then make a choice from the
remaining two or three that you do have. PQ
Lee-Anne Shema, F1 Content Specialist,
Kaplan Financial
PQ Magazine December 2015

Want to make the most of the new ACCA March window? Study with HTFT

Join our ACCA March 2016 programmes and


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PQ ACCA exam tips

Here are our tips,


courtesy of top tutors
from across the land, for
the December sitting of
the ACCA exams
LSBF.

F5
Lifecycle costing with
environmental accounting.
Relevant costing/decision trees.
Budgeting theory/flexed budgets.
Mix and yield/sales mix and
quantity variances.
Divisional performance (ROI, RI).
F6
Q1: Capital gain tax question with
shares including bonus/rights issue
and chattel rules or maybe
corporation tax with rollover and
holdover relief.
Q2: VAT deregistration due date,
surcharges, accounting for VAT, the
annual accounting scheme and
contents of a VAT invoice.
Q3: Inheritance tax including
lifetime gifts into a trust, the
diminution in value principle and
the death estate.
Q4: Property business profits/
losses or maybe a sole trader, with
adjustment of the trading profits
and opening or closing year rules.
Q5: Income tax computing
income tax with employment
income with car benefit, fuel benefit
and accommodation benefit,
interest income/dividend income.
Q6: Calculating corporation tax
possibly including a straddling CAP
or maybe a long period of account
with capital allowances and possibly
adjustment of a trading loss with
loss relief and group relief.
F7
Expect one of the 15 markers to
be on ratios and interpretations with
(possibly) adjustments to be
reflected before a valid comparison.
Expect the big 30-marker and the
15-marker to be on consolidations
and published accounts with
standards.
F8
Ethics, threats to independence.
Confidentiality, when to breach.
Audit risk and response, written
scenario.
Internal controls objectives/
procedures/tests on sales cycle.
Inventory and stocktaking
controls and substantive tests.
Substantive tests on receivables.
Advise company on improving its
governance.
Role/benefits of audit committees.
Roles of internal audit and
comparison with external audit.
Know your ISAs, especially 210,
250, 260, 450, 560, 570, 720.
20

F9
WACC, maybe with capital
structure theory thrown in.
Investment appraisal NPV with
working capital and tax, possibly
also asset replacement.
Risk with forward market hedge
and money market hedge and a bit
of yield curves.
Working capital management with
inventory and cash, overtrading.
Theory questions possibly on
EMH, sources of finance (including
Islamic finance), economics.
P1
Rules vs principles.
Importance of stakeholders.
Internal control disclosure.
Risk diversification.
AAA model.
P2
Q1: There are only three
possibilities: p/l or b/s or cfs, so to
ignore one seems foolish. However,
given there was a p/l in September
it does seem reasonable to focus
less on that. Perhaps 20/40/40.
Q2 & 3: There are subtle
differences between these two. But
essentially both require a discussion
of key FR applied to a scenario.
Expect the usual suspects
goodwill, groups, NCA, revenue,
HFS, EARP, FI and so on.
Q4: Only in the last question does
tipping become meaningful. Here
are some hot current issues:
revenue, financial asset impairment,
equity accounting, changes, SMEs.
P3
Strategic analysis.
Strategic choice and financial
implications of a strategic choice.
Evaluating software and controls
over IT.
Project management.

P4
Investment appraisal using
adjusted present values/net present
values or capital rationing.
Valuation of business using free
cash flows and price-earnings ratio
methods, defensive tactics or cash
offer or share exchange.
Cost of capital using principles of
Modigliani & Miller prepositions or
geared and ungeared betas.
Hedging exchange rate risk using
forward contract, futures contract
and options contract.
Capital reconstruction schemes
designing a capital reconstruction
scheme or assessing the success of
a given scheme.
Real options option to abandon,
expand or delay using the BlackSchole option pricing model.
P5
Balanced scorecard.
Non-financial indicators.
Assessing impact upon
performance management systems.
Value management systems.
Technology and the change of
PM systems.
P6
IHT with the death estate
including BPR and APR and
lifetime gifts into a trust and gifts
with reservation. Domicile including
deemed domicile.
Group question involving losses,
group relief and consortium relief.
Transfer pricing, overseas branch
vs overseas subsidiary.
Partnership with a partner joining/
leaving with opening year rules,
choice of accounting date and
conditions for a change of
accounting date.
Personal pension schemes versus
occupational pension schemes.

SEIS, EIS and VCT conditions and


tax advantages.
Capital gains tax including
entrepreneurs relief, shares
matching rules.
SEIS reinvestment relief.
Group registration for VAT and
overseas aspects of VAT.
Purchase of own shares.
Share options schemes tax
implications.
Ethics.
P7
Audit risk/risk of material
misstatement.
Matters and evidence (accounting
issues and audit work on those
issues).
Audit report scenarios/
implications.
Discussion of benefits of new
style audit report.
Assurance on prospective
financial Info.
If sitting International stream,
audit of public sector performance
information.
Threats to independence.
Advertising.
Reliance on work of internal
audit.
Know your ISAs, especially more
interesting ones such as 250, 402,
540, 550, 560, 600, 720.
If sitting UK Stream, insolvency.

First Intuition.

F5
Lifecycle costing.
Environmental accounting.
Limiting factors.
Relevant costing.
Flexed budget and budgeting
discussion.
Divisional performance.
Mix and yield variances.
F6
Employment/self-employment.
PAYE.
Opening years and change of
year-end for sole traders.
Capital allowances.
VAT default surcharge and VAT
invoice content and annual
accounting.
CGT: Entrepreneurs relief,
chattels.
IHT lifetime and death transfers.
F7
Extracts from single company
accounts, including non-current
assets, taxation and IFRS 15.
Interpretation of accounts
including a statement of cash flows.
Consolidated SFP and/or SPL with
associate, PUP and fair value
adjustments.
F8
Ethics.
Audit risk and auditor response
(including ratio calculations).
Internal control deficiencies,
PQ Magazine December 2015

ACCA exam tips PQ


implications and recommendations
(revenue and receivables or payroll
cycle).
Audit evidence and substantive
testing.
Subsequent events, written
representations and going concern.
Modified auditors reports.
F9
Discussion of the economic
environment and the impact on
interest and exchange rates.
Working capital management
receivables and payables plus
operating cycle.
Investment appraisal and cost of
capital.
Business valuations.
Risk management (currency risk
calculations).
P1
50-mark scenario question to
include: ethics, governance, single
v. two-tier board structures, also
corporate social responsibility.
Optional questions to include
internal controls, governance
committees and directors
remuneration, business risks,
integrated reporting and
environmental reporting.
P2
Q1: group question on foreign
subsidiary. Will contain a variety of
non-group topics, too.
Ethics.
Revenue recognition or leases
current issue.
Deferred tax
Share based payments.
Pensions.
P3
Environmental analysis, people
with financial analysis.
Project management.
Strategic action.
Information technology pricing
strategy.
P4
International investment appraisal
techniques focusing on risk
management tools.
Impact on WACC following
hedging of interest rate risk.
Company valuation based
scenario, possible MBO finance to
structure.
Adjusted present value with link
to real options and Black Scholes
option pricing model.
P5
Critique an existing performance
management system and the
performance hierarchy.
Transfer pricing.
Activity based principles.
Performance management
models (performance pyramid or
building block model).
Value based approaches to
performance management.
Effective use of information
PQ Magazine December 2015

systems.
P6
Business property relief.
Use of second spouse nil rate
band.
Related property.
Groups of companies, trading
and capital losses.
Double tax relief for companies.
De-grouping charges.
Incorporation relief.
Furnished holiday lets.
VAT partial exemption.
Appeals and the four-track
tribunal system.
Benefits in kind or extra salary,
income tax and national insurance
implications.
P7
Business risks in a scenario.
Identifying ethical and other
professional issues in a scenario.
Matters to be considered and
audit evidence for a couple of core
accounting issues.
Money laundering.
Insolvency issues.

BPP.

The full unexpurgated guidance


from BPP for this Decembers
sitting can be found in the PQ
magazine study zone on our
website. Here are some highlights
F6
Employment benefits.
Property income.
Relief for pension contributions.
Adjustments to profit to arrive at
trading income for both companies
and sole traders.
Capital allowance computations.
F7
Q1 & Q2: One likely to be an
interpretation or statement of
cashflows; the other may be a
consolidation question if Q3 is not a
consolidation.
Other possibilities conceptual

HEALTH
WARNING

These tips should


only be used in conjunction
with proper study. We cannot
guarantee that these topics
will appear in the actual
exam as we have not seen
the exam papers. Examiners
are not predictable so it is
vital that all core syllabus
areas are revised fully.

framework, intangible/tangible
assets and impairment, provisions
and contingencies, revenue and
grants, financial instruments
discontinued operations/assets held
for sale or earnings per share.
Q3: could be a single entity or a
consolidation (statement of profit
ort loss and other comprehensive
income and/or statement of
financial position).
Statement of changes in equity,
statement of cash flow extract,
earnings per share calculation or
linked written topic.
Consolidation question with
adjustments, eg fair values,
deferred/contingent consideration,
PUP on inventories/PPE, intragroup
trading and balances, goods/cash
in transit.
F8
Ethical threats and safeguards.
Corporate governance and
internal audit.
Audit planning.
Materiality.
Audit procedures (especially
substantive procedures).
Audit finalisation and audit
reports.
Audit risk.
Internal control and audit
procedures (both substantive
procedures and tests of controls).
F9
Calculations on improvements to
receivables management (eg early
settlement discounts and factoring).
Weighted average cost of capital
calculations (including its
component parts).
Ratio analysis to support
financing decisions.
NPV calculations.
P1
Corporate social responsibility
strategy check out recently
published article.
Ethical and other CSR theories
apply them to the scenarios.
Use of risk and governance
board of directors, remuneration
and reporting.
P2
Preparation statement of financial
position and/or a group statement
of profit of loss and other
comprehensive income or
statement of cash flows including
a foreign subsidiary, discounted
activities, disposals and/or
acquisitions.
Linked accounting adjustment
and social/ethical/moral aspects of
corporate reporting.
Q2 &Q3: deferred tax, foreign
currency transactions, financial
instruments, pensions, share-based
payment, non-current assets
(recognition and/or impairment of
tangible and intangible assets),

borrowing costs, the effect of


accounting treatments on earnings
per share to ratios.
Other question will test a range of
standards such as accounting
policies and the framework, leases,
grants, IFRS for SMEs,
reorganisations, provisions, events
after the reporting period and
related parties.
Q4: revenue recognition, revision
of the conceptual framework,
regulatory issues over adoption and
consistent application of IFRSs,
implementation issues, application
of the definition of control and
significant influence (equity
accounting) , improvements in
performance measurement,
classification in profit and loss vs
OCI, integrated reporting.
P3
Value chain.
Critical success factors and KPIs.
Role of the corporate parent,
including BCG matrix/Ashridge.
Managing strategic change,
including force field analysis.
P4
Q1: expect core subjects such as
project appraisal (domestic or
overseas), business valuations (cost
of capital calculations), and risk
management (hedging).
Q2-4: risk management (currency
or interest rate), business
re-organisation, real options.
P5
Q1: performance management
frameworks (building blocks model
or the balanced scorecard). Also
need to master transfer pricing,
ratios, analysis of quality related
costs, ABC.
Q2-4: common tested areas
include quality management,
information reporting (CSFs and
KPIs), the application of strategic
models (such as PEST, Porters 5
forces, the Value Chain), HR
frameworks (reward & appraisal
systems), risk management and
environmental management
accounting.
P6
These are on the PQ magazine
website (www.pqmagazine.co.uk).
P7
Test planning.
Risk assessment.
Evidence gathering and practice
management.
Non-audit engagement, such as
prospective financial information
(PFI) or due diligence.
Audit completion.
Consolidated groups.
Audit evidence and financial
reporting issues.
Quality control and reporting,
including completion and
PQ
communication.
21

PQ ACCA P2

TAMING THE BEAST


C

orporate Reporting is surely


considered to be the core ACCA
paper. It is, after all, the paper
where we get asked for things like
balance sheets (statement of financial
position) and cash flow statements
(statement of cash flows). It is a paper
about accounting! So why did 66% of
entrants who are after all very near to
being qualified accountants manage to
fail the equivalent paper in September
2015? Why do students describe it as
the beast And what do you need to do to
pass it in December 2015?

Clare Finch explains how you can pass the P2 Corporate Reporting paper

Too much revision time is spent on the


topic of consolidation
It is true that there will be a compulsory
consolidation on the paper. In section A
we are guaranteed either a statement of
financial position (balance sheet), an
income statement (profit and loss
account), a combined statement of
financial position and income statement,
or indeed a statement of cash flows (cash
flow statement). There is a but. In the
section A question, although the
requirement is to prepare the
consolidated x (for 35 marks), just over
half of the marks are usually for the
mechanics of consolidation. The other
marks are for knowing the accounting
standards!
Students try to pass without learning
their accounting standards
When putting your final revision plan
together, a big mistake is to focus only on
consolidation and cash flow you need
to learn your accounting standards. On
top of the section A issue, section B of
this exam is actually full of requirements
like discuss, advice and explain. You
will have to write stuff about accounting
and accounting standards (for around
50% of the marks).
Key to a pass at P2 is knowledge of
your accounting standards. It is essential
you know the basics of them all. First, go
for breadth there are key need to learn
parts.
However, for December 2015, there
are some three-star accounting
standards ones you really need indepth knowledge of:
IAS 24 Related Party Transactions.
IAS 38 Intangible Assets.
IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with
Customers.
IAS 19 Employee Benefits.
IFRS2 Share Based Payment.
IAS 36 Impairment of Assets.
IAS 12 Income Tax.
IAS 32 Financial Instruments:
Disclosure and Presentation.
IFRS 9 Financial Instruments.
22

IAS 21 The Effect of Changes in


Foreign Exchange Rates.
Remember, each of the section B
mixed transactional questions can
involve up to six different transactions.
Too much time is spent making notes
and not enough on question practice
It is now time to stop reading through
files, highlighting and making notes. It is
essential to practise with past questions.
Hopefully, you have been working past
questions throughout tuition. On exam
day you will get an answer booklet
blank pieces of paper, the questions and
a ticking clock. You must practise try
to answer the questions on blank pieces
of paper. After you have given it your best
shot, and not before your time is up (1.8
minutes per available mark), then review
your answer. If you have found a
weakness go back to your file, review the
topic and try another question.
Only with question practise will you be
successful. Imagine you were training for
a marathon. Would you study books
about the route and read explanations of
how to run a marathon? No, you would
put your trainers on and get out there

and actually practise! Well, now is that


time you need to put on your trainers
and start to practise, practise, practise.
And then theres the current issue
Question 4, for 25 marks, can only be
prepared for by looking forward, not back
at previous papers. So even if you have
done all the past questions you will
usually not be prepared for the current
issue. Think about things that are very
current.
You must read, digest, learn and
understand the recent articles. If you
dont, ask your tutor to explain and
simplify, then read it again. Key articles
from students newsletters for December
sitters are Revenue revisited part 1 and
Revenue revisited part 2.
Remember, the syllabus just says
current issues, so it could be anything
really it will be a choice question
though. Ideally, you will always be able to
choose the other two if you know your
accounting standards that is! PQ
Clare Finch teaches at HTFT
Partnership, where she is a partner.
She is the author of A Students Guide
to IFRS
PQ Magazine December 2015

ICAEW spotlight PQ

IN WITH THE NEW

Scenario-based exam questions have been gathering pace for two years. Here the ICAEW looks at how this
approach will work with the ACA Certificate Level Principles of Taxation and Management Information modules

ow can we make studying for the ACA


a more seamless experience? How can
exams be closer to your work
experience? Scenario-based questions are the
way. Until now, Principles of Taxation has
comprised 50 objective test questions in a
variety of formats multiple choice, multi-part
multiple choice, multiple response and numeric
entry. However, from January 2016, there will be
42 questions to the exam. It will start with two
new scenario-based questions worth 10% each,
followed by 40 objective test questions worth
80% in the same format as previously.
The new scenario-based questions test two
main syllabus areas income tax and NIC, and
corporation tax. One of the main aims is to
replicate what you will find in the workplace as
your experience grows, namely computer-based
computations.
Complexity of the workings
.
Lets use the corporation tax question as an
illustration. In the exam you will be asked to
prepare a standard corporation tax computation
using a pro forma template set up on screen.
Within the question you may need to calculate a
figure for, say, adjusted trading profits, capital
allowances and/or non-trading loan
relationships. These calculations may be worth
one, two or possibly even three marks
depending on the complexity of the workings
required. This will be a multi-part question using
the same set of facts.
But not everything is changing. The syllabus
and weightings are to stay the same. The pass
mark will stay at 55%. Sitting the exam and the
time it takes to receive results also stays the
same. There are many opportunities to practise
the new style of questions. Sample questions
that reflect the look and feel of the exam are
PQ Magazine December 2015

available at icaew.com/examresources. ICAEWs


learning materials have been revised to
incorporate the new scenario-based questions
and approved by the examiner. The study text
contains pro formas similar to the real exam,
and the question bank contains hundreds of
exam-standard questions including an
assortment of scenario-based questions.
A scenario style of question will also be
introduced to the Management Information
assessment from January 2016. One scenariobased question will be worth 20% of the marks,
with 32 objective test questions worth the
remaining 80%. The scenario-based question
will have a series of requirements linked to a
single scenario and you will need to enter either
calculated data for example, a cost per unit, a
percentage mark-up or a variance or select
from a drop-down menu which requires you to
make a choice for example, whether a
calculated figure represents an under or over
absorption of overheads. Only certain areas of
the Management Information syllabus are
suitable for scenario based questions.
The scenario-based question will be drawn
from either:
Syllabus area 1 costing and pricing OR
Syllabus area 2 performance management
The exams remaining questions carry equal
marks. The style of objective test questions will
stay the same as those already used, namely
multiple choice, multi-part multiple choice and
multiple response questions. The study materials
have been fully updated to reflect the new
scenario-based questions. The study manual
chapters covering the detailed topics in syllabus
areas 1 and 3 have also been updated to
include examples. The question bank for 2016
has been updated with 15 scenario-based
questions. This, and three sample papers, will

give you plenty to prepare you for the exam.


Sample questions will also be available within
the Management Information exam resources at
icaew.com/examresources
As in the Accounting assessment, there are
rules to be followed when entering answers to
the new scenario-based questions. In particular:
only whole numbers can be entered
rounding up or down doesnt matter, as marking
allows for both;
commas may or may not be used as a
thousand separator, so 1000 and 1,000 are both
acceptable;
negative values can be entered using either a
minus sign or brackets; and
a zero or a dash must be used where no value
is required in a field.
Practise scenario questions
.
A specific example of this final point arises when
entering cost, price or volume variances in a
scenario-based question. The numeric value for
a favourable variance is entered in the
appropriate data entry field in the favourable
variances column, and a zero or a dash in the
corresponding adverse variances column.
Practising the scenario based questions will
make this clear.
If you are planning to take Principles of
Taxation and/or Management Information, there
will be no parallel running of the assessments in
the current format. From 1 January 2016, there
will be only one assessment available for each,
which will include the new scenario-based
questions.
Access support and guidance is available at
icaew.com/examresources. PQ
Reproduced with the permission of ICAEW, this
article was first published in Vital (October 2015).
Vital is the quarterly magazine for ACA students.
ICAEW 2015 (icaew.com/vital)

23

PQ SLCS pre-seen

DONT GET LOST IN

THE WODDS

communities; the government of Marland; the


FSCM (Forestry Stewardship Council of
Marland); the Forestry Authority; its customers;
and a trade union. The company is also
committed to a wide range of sustainability (page
8) and CSR (page 9) pledges. These are rolled
into the companys strategic objectives (page 10)
and code of conduct (page 11). Accreditation by
the FSCM (page 23) seems to be a critical CSF
for the company to maintain.
Evaluating strategic position/strategic options
There are numerous revenue streams mentioned
in the pre-seen, and expansion/contraction of
existing activities and/or diversifying into new
activities is a distinct possibility for Wodd. For
example, aside from managing new plantations,
grants and income can be generated from
tax/grant advice, carbon storage, biomass
production, leasing land to wind farms,
hunting/fishing leases, recreational space and
conservation services. Evaluation of the
competing uses for land could form the basis for
a request on advice on how to make a decision
over the use of land or assets. Net present
values are expressly referenced on page 26.

Dave Halford helps you see the


wood for the trees when it comes
to the CIMA strategic pre-seen

n this article we summarise the key themes


from the Wodd pre-seen for the November
Strategic Case Study sitting, and take a look
at the role that aspects of the E3 syllabus could
play as the stories unfold in the exam.
The pre-seen company is a listed forestry
company, called Wodd, based in the fictional
European country of Marland. The north of
Marland has a climate that is well suited to
growing timber.
Wodds activities are based on forestry
management. Wodd manages both its own
forests and those of its clients, and is accredited
for its management of sustainable forests (all its
forests are accredited). Forestry management
may involve:
Advising on the grants and tax breaks that may
be available for investors.
Planting and harvesting timber.
Project work aimed at creating public
amenities, e.g. cycle paths.
Wodd has struggled in recent years but
stabilised in 2014, and is gaining an excellent
reputation for forestry management. Some of
Wodds markets are volatile or cyclical, and
Wodd is now benefiting from a recovery in
construction and housing and from the resulting
rise in timber prices.
Wodd is a listed company and is committed to
providing steady, long-term returns for its
shareholders. However, it also has a clear public
24

commitment to sustainability and to social


responsibility, and aims to be a leading player in
the industry in this area. Stakeholder trust (in
Marland) is described as the foundation of our
business (page 12).
Wodd is a profitable company, although its
profits (and revenue) are lower than in 2014. Its
cost of sales are far lower than one of its major
rivals (Darrell). Most of Wodds profits were paid
out as a dividend in 2015. The company
appears to be relatively stable in financial terms,
and has a substantial cash surplus and low
levels of gearing (although we are not given any
industry standards to compare against).
A fictional article on pages 27-28 of the preseen (based on a 2011 article in the Guardian
called Forest companies of the future) suggests
that successful companies in this sector will grow
by offering related services, such as energy, and
non-timber services, such as wind farm leases
and selling licenses for hunting and fishing.
There is evidence (page 21) that Wodd is already
successfully moving into service and consultancy
areas.
E3 sets the scene for the strategic level case
study exams (SLCS) and students usually need
to start their thinking in the E3 syllabus for the
first part of Task 1 in the exam, before branching
out as the storyline takes them across all of
Strategic Level, returning to E3 along the way.
Some ideas as to the role E3 will play are
provided below.
Interacting with the organisations environment
managing relationships with a diverse set of
stakeholders will be a challenge for the
executive team. Several groups are namechecked including investors; employees; local

Leading change
The diverse opportunities set out above make
change a distinct possibility. Some proposed
changes could upset existing stakeholders
(hunting and wind farms are controversial
developments) and so the Board may value
advice on how to implement new strategies.
Aside from this the presence of a unionised
workforce, with the power to bring logging activity
to a halt (page 16), means that any significant
changes to working patterns will need to be
introduced with the backing of the union,
probably necessitating some collaborative
negotiations.
Implementing strategy
The diverse revenue streams open to Wodd will
in all likelihood yield differing rates of return. As
a listed company the Board is duty-bound to
maximise returns, making measures such as RI
and ROI relevant. However, for a business so
wedded to sustainability, the broader range of
measures resulting from a Balanced Scorecard
would seem an obvious alternative or
complementary control mechanism.
Role of IS in organisational strategy
There is a conspicuous absence of information
on IT/IS in the pre-seen. This can be interpreted
in two ways.
First, this may be a signal that the examiner
does not view this as an area of great interest for
this case study.
Second, it may be that there will be
opportunities for Wodd to improve its financial
and sustainability efficiency by harnessing
relevant systems, such as environment reporting
software to record and report on relevant factors
such as carbon emissions/capture from different
actives, or tree types. For example, while it grows
quickly and yields the highest investor returns,
does the Sitka spruce have the best overall
ecological impact? PQ
Dave Halford, Strategic Case Study Expert,
BPP
PQ Magazine December 2015

CIMA lecturers conference PQ

SCALED SCORES ARE HERE


CIMA used the 2015 lecturers
conference in London to announce
the introduction of scaled scores
and a calculator policy change. PQ
magazine was there to record it all

Stand and deliver:


Flatman said CIMA
will take raw scores
and translate them
into scaled scores

rom 1 November, the CIMA OT results


will include a grade (pass/fail), sectional
performance feedback and a scaled
score, announced director of examinations Steve
Flatman at the recent Lecturers conference.
He pointed out that with the new 2015 regime
CIMA has introduced multiple versions of the
exams. Each case study in each exam window,
for example, has five forms (five versions) of the
exam. There are also multiple versions of the OT
tests, the content of which will change regularly
over time. The challenge for CIMA was to find a
way to present candidates performance in a
consistent way when, despite best efforts, each
exam or assessment may have a slightly
different level of difficulty.
So percentage pass rates are out, and
Flatman has opted for scaled scores, which are
the industry standard way of resolving this
challenge.
New passing criteria
.
OT scaled scores will range from 0 to 150. A
score of 100 and above represents a pass. CIMA
states: A candidate scoring 100 has reached
the minimum level of competence required.
For the case study, the scaled score will also
range from 0 to 150. Here a score of 80 and
above represents a pass. However, in addition,
candidates also have to achieve one-thirds of
available marks for each competency (excluding
leadership at the operational level).
Flatman stressed that CIMA will take raw
scores and translate them into scaled scores.
That means student who took a slightly harder
version of the exam and achieved a raw score of
say 98 will get the same scaled score as a
student who took a slight easier version of the
exam and achieved a raw score of 99. Both
would, in his example, be awarded a scaled
score of 148/150.
Publishing pass rates
.
CIMA used the conference to formalised the
release of pass rates. In future, the case study

pass rates will be released within two weeks of


the strategic level case study results being
released. Publication of OT pass rates will be
synchronised with the publication of case study
results. In 2015, OT pass rates will cover the
time periods: January 2015 to a specific date. In
2016, OT pass rates will cover the preceding 12
months a rolling reporting period.
Calculator policy change
.
CIMA part qualifieds will also be permitted to
take non-programmable calculators from the
pre-approved list into CIMA exams at Pearson
VUE exam centres. This policy is not timebound, said Flatman, and the new policy will be
applied for the foreseeable future. This applies
to all CIMA professional exams.
If you bring a calculator to the exam, then the
exam administrator will check that it matches a
model from the pre-approved list. That said,
students do not have to bring a calculator to the
centre, as a computer-based one is available as
part of the exam. Students can practise using
the onscreen calculator using the Question
Tutorials hosted by Pearson VUE or by
downloading the practice exam tutorial
(installable MSI version) from Pearson VUE.
Myth busting
.
Flatman revealed statistics that he felt showed
that the majority of candidates have sufficient
time to complete tests. Overall, 3.7% of OT
exams sat have more than one item unanswered

due to time constraints.


This can be broken down further. At
operational level, the percentage of assessment
with one or more items left unanswered is 2.3%.
For management it is 3.3% and for the strategic
papers it is 5.6%.
How ready are you?
.
The conference heard that every student needs
to be familiar with the technology used to deliver
the exams. That means taking the exam tutorial!
Candidates also need to use the question
tutorial hosted by Pearson Vue, which is
accessible over the internet. This will make you
familiar with the types of questions you will
encounter in the exam.
Another resource comes via CIMA Aptitude,
with its formative tests and mock exams.
Students can use these tests to help gauge their
exam readiness and identify their areas of
weakness. These test are produced by third
parties, with support from CIMA, and cost 15
in the UK. You can take these tests either in
practice mode or under timed assessment
mode. In practice mode, PQs attempt questions
at their own pace and get instant feedback to
answers and an explanation of the correct
answer. With timed assessment, sitters are
tested under exam conditions and then get a full
report and links back to any incorrect answers.
PQ will be reporting the reviews of the
management and strategic levels in the coming
months so keep an eye out! PQ

GIVE YOUR #CIMA STUDIES A HEADSTART


First Intuition Birmingham is offering one
lucky student free tuition for a year.
To be in with a chance of winning email
birmingham@firstintuition.co.uk with
#winningnevergetsboring in the subject
field. Full terms and conditions apply
PQ Magazine December 2015

25

PQ CIMA lecturers conference

THE OPERATIONAL LEVEL


E1: pass rates 2015

Overall exam pass rate: % of students who have


passed the exam after one or more attempts
First time pass rate
Total exam pass rate

JanMay
83%

JanSept
86%

.
Variance
+3%

78%
76%

78%
76%

0%
0%

CIMA said it was satisfied with a E1 pass rate that is over 75% for firsttime sitters. There is one clear area that students are struggling with
managing the finance function. This is, however, just 15% of the syllabus.
But it is one area that your tutors (and you) need to look at more closely.
The worry is that if you dont master this area you might struggle when it
comes up in the case study. The first-time pass rate is higher than the
overall pass rate and it was suggested that old students were not looking
properly at the changes in the syllabus. Managing the finance function is a
new area, introduced in the 2015 syllabus.
P1: pass rates 2015
Overall exam pass rate: % of students who have
passed the exam after one or more attempts
First time pass rate
Total exam pass rate

JanMay
56%

JanSept
62%

.
Variance
+6%

45%
43%

46%
44%

+1%
+1%

With P1 it seems that sitters either know their stuff or dont. The two areas
that have a higher proportion of candidates being not proficient are shortterm decision making and dealing with risk and uncertainty. Much of the
syllabus relating to short-term decision making is from the previous P2
syllabus, so students should ensure they are fully prepared for this section.
F1: pass rates 2015
Overall exam pass rate: % of students who have
passed the exam after one or more attempts
First time pass rate
Total exam pass rate

JanMay
79.9%

JanSept
80.7%

.
Variance
+0.8%

75.2%
73.5%

75.5%
73.8%

+0.3%
+0.3%

CIMA felt there has been fairly consistent student performance across the
entire syllabus. Students who pass have a balanced knowledge of the four
syllabus areas. Those that fail seem to be struggling with financial
accounting and reporting in a big way. This is a core F1 area and will be
where the examiner takes most of the questions. One tip given at the
conference was to focus on the learning outcomes rather than just looking
at the content alone.
Operational case study
Exam session
Industry
February 2015
Bottled water production
May 2015
Bicycle manufacture
August 2015
Supermarkets & food retail

Company
Valley Spring
Batton Bicycles
Merchants

Pass rate
44%
67%
34%

So far, the operational case study has concentrated on two manufacturers


and one retail business. Students must remember that the case study is all
about application, said the chief marker. In the first case study in

26

February, there were some very good answers, but a significant number of
very poor ones, which pulled down the pass rate.
In February, there was some good application on E1 aspects, especially
market segmentation, quality circles and outsourcing. Students were also
strong on working capital aspects of F1. Students answers were more
limited on the more technical areas, and a lack of P1 and F1 technical
knowledge was evident. There was also evidence of rote learning, too.
For May, there were far fewer really poor answers, which helped pull up
the pass rate. Application on the whole was also much better and there
were more completed answers. Candidates showed they were good at ABC
to the painting process, variance analysis, outsourcing and SLAs, brand
importance and assessment of creditworthiness. That said, there was still a
lack of some technical knowledge, especially F1 accounting issues.
Another criticism was the lack of balanced arguments in answers when
discussing the suitability of a suggestion. CIMA case study students are
generally poor at suggestions of how information presented to them could
be improved.
August saw a disappointing drop in the pass rate. Here the application
to the scenario, in relation to the less technical aspects, was again
reasonably good. The lack of technical knowledge was very poor. There
was also evidence of pre-prepared answers that were not always relevant
or applied. Markers also felt that some sitters are not stating the obvious
and missing easy marks. PQ

PQ Magazine December 2015

AAT focus PQ

AAT MEMBERSHIP CAN HELP


Y

ouve worked hard to get where you are


today. At AAT we believe that everyone
should be recognised for their
achievements and commitment to their industry.
Thats why our professional membership is open
to part qualified students from other bodies who
are looking to gain recognition and professional
status while they are working towards their next
goal.
As an AAT professional member youll use the
internationally recognised designatory letters
MAAT after your name to show your expertise
and dedication to employers, colleagues and
clients. You will join our community of over
50,000 members, and gain access to a wide
range of career tools to help you achieve your
career ambitions.
Dont just take our word for it. Annie-Lee Cox
MAAT, who workes in corporate tax at Arnold Hill
& Co said: AAT will help boost your career as it
has world recognised status. AAT membership
has increased my confidence, raised my profile
and elevated me to a more senior position.
And did you know that you dont have to be
chartered to offer self-employed services? We
have over 4,000 members who are regulated by
AAT to provide accountancy, taxation and
consultancy services to the public.
If youre planning on continuing your
chartered studies, we help you to gain the

Membership of AAT is open to part qualifieds signed up with other


accountancy bodies. Here AAT explains how this can benefit your career

Annie-Lee Cox:
AAT membership
has increased my
confidence

experience and confidence


you need in your role,
ensuring you keep your
practical skills up-to-date.
And to support you further,
we offer 50% off our
membership fee while you
study.
Our professional
membership is open to
finance professionals who are
part qualified, fully qualified
and full members with other
professional accountancy
bodies. Employers and
clients expect high standards
from AAT members, and so
we will ask you to
demonstrate the same level
of education and experience
as all AAT professional
members.
For further information visit
aat.org.uk/joinus or call the
AATs Customer Service team
on 020 3735 2401. PQ

UNLOCK YOUR POTENTIAL WITH GUARANTEED


WORK PLACEMENT

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Speak to a Course Adviser:


Call: 020 7252 9331
Email: admin@thetrainingplace.org
Visit: www.thetrainingplace.org
PQ Magazine December 2015

Accounting
Business Administration
Customer Service

27

PQ AAT exams

LETS GET TECHNICAL

Nick Craggs explains what a


chattel is and how to
calculate capital gains tax on
the sale of chattels

ew AAT students will have heard


of the word chattel until they
reach the Personal Tax unit. It
isnt a word you would usually find in the
lexicon of the average AAT student.
Unless, that is, they live in Bridlington, on
the east coast of Yorkshire. The harbour
is the location for a sign which I am
sure is the only place you will see the
word chattel outside of a taxation text
book which explains that visitors cant
exhibit, place or maintain any chattel
without the Bridlington Harbour
Commissioners sanction.
I would be interested to see if any PQ
readers have seen chattel out in the
wild, so to speak (well, not really).
Anyway, what is a chattel? A chattel is
defined as a tangible, moveable item
which isnt very descriptive. Basically, it is
anything you can touch other than land
and property.
Any gain on a chattel, which is
calculated as the proceeds when it is
sold, less the cost when it was originally
bought, is usually taxed under capital
gains tax, using the normal rules of
proceeds from sale less cost of purchase.
Chattels exempt from CGT .
However, certain chattels are exempt
from capital gains tax; these are mainly
cars and wasting chattels. Cars are
exempt as they are normally sold for less
than they cost, and it stops those who
otherwise would not normally do so from
completing a tax return just because they
have changed their car. Or, if you are
cynical, from creating losses they could
use against gains! Note that there is no
distinction made between classic cars
and any other types of car. Wasting
chattels are chattels that are not
expected to last 50 years; usual examples
are racehorses and greyhounds (and
arguably some of the boats in Bridlington
harbour!).
The rest are subject to the chattel
rules, which are based around the magic
number of 6,000. There are four
different scenarios, which are dependent
on whether the proceeds of the disposal
and the original cost of the chattel are
above or below 6,000. The first and
easiest scenario is where the proceeds of
the disposal and the original cost of the
chattel are below 6,000. In this case,
the disposal is exempt. This saves a lot of
people having to submit a tax return for
28

Nice work Nick


Craggs enjoys a
99 at Bridlington
Harbour, all in the
name of education

making a small gain that would probably


be covered by the amount of capital
gains they can make tax free each year
anyway.
The second scenario is if the proceeds
of the disposal and the original cost are
both above 6,000. If so, the gain is
calculated as normal, which is the
proceeds less the original cost.
So, for example, if your great Aunty
Mable sold a sideboard for 20,000
which cost her 7,000, her gain would
be 13,000. This is simply the proceeds
less the original cost.
If you sell an item for less than it
originally cost you make a capital loss.
However, if the chattel was originally
purchased for more than 6,000 and the
disposal proceeds are less than the
6,000, then this triggers the third set of
rules. Here the proceeds are deemed to
be 6,000, no matter what you actually
sold the asset for. This will reduce the
amount of your loss.
For example, you bought a signed
Gareth Gates photo for
9,000. However,
since you bought it the
value of the photo has
fallen, and you sold it
for 3,000. The loss
for capital gains
purposes is not
6,000, it is the
deemed proceeds of
6,000 less the
original cost of
9,000, resulting in a
loss of 3,000.
The final and most
complicated scenario
is where the proceeds
are above 6,000 but
the original cost is
below 6,000. In this

scenario, we may need to restrict the


gain. The gain cannot exceed 5/3 of the
proceeds less 6,000. If using the
normal gains computation, the gain is
higher than the restriction, then it is the
amount of the restriction which will be
taxed.
Saul sold his 1959 Les Paul Standard
replica guitar for 10,000; he originally
purchased this for 2,000. The gain
using the normal computation will be
8,000. However, we need to check to
see if the gain is restricted. The
restriction will be calculated as 5/3 x
(8,000 6,000), which is 3,333.
Sauls gain will therefore be restricted
and the chargeable gain will be 3,333
as this is lower than 8,000.
However, if Saul sold his Gibson Flying
V guitar, which originally cost him
2,000, for 15,000, the unrestricted
gain will be 13,000. He will still need to
check to see if he needs to restrict the
gain. The restriction will be 5/3 x
(15,000 6,000), which is 15,000.
This is greater than the gain, so the
chargeable gain will be the 13,000
normal gain.
Why dont you have a go at calculating
the gains on the disposals of the
following chattels?
A piano bought for 4,000 and sold for
8,000.
A signed Kylie LP bought for 4,000
and sold for 14,000.
An antique mirror bought for 3,000
and sold for 5,000.
A dinner table bought for 12,000 and
sold for 4,000.
You can see me work out the answers at:
http://www.firstintuition.co.uk/category/aat/
Nick Craggs, AAT Distance Learning
Manager, First Intuition
PQ Magazine December 2015

CIPFA spotlight PQ

Putting students at the forefront

wouldnt volunteer if I didnt enjoy it.


What is the best event the network put on in
the past 12 months?
Every year, CSN organises the student
conference day at the national conference. Last
time we had a packed room full of over 100
students where we focused on inspiring them as
they continue with their careers after they qualify.
Feedback suggested attendees found the session
on emotional intelligence and demonstration of
the new e-assessments really useful.

Meet Katie Goodall, the new


President of the CIPFA Student
Network and assistant manager,
public sector audit, at KPMG

Why did you want to run for president?


I was really encouraged to get more involved by
CIPFAs regional president in Yorkshire and
Humber, Jayne Stephenson. She highlighted the
benefits of volunteering; not only is it good for
the soul, it also gives you the chance to be
exposed to learning new skills. You also get to
talk to interesting people, many who are at the
top of their careers and, of course, there are the
opportunities for career advancement. After all it
does look great on the CV! It also made sense to
me to take an active role in shaping and giving
back to the institute; to make it more than just
the four additional letters of CPFA that would go
after my name. In terms of membership, student
members are the future of the institute I
wanted to take part in ensuring that future.
How much time do you dedicate to the CIPFA
Student Network (CSN)?
Obviously it is more work on top of the day job,
and for most of us on top of our studies as well.
It does mean giving up a few weekends or lunch

PQ Magazine December 2015

Goodall:
amazing
opportunity

hours at work to support the institute and


develop the events, such as the annual student
conference. Recently, I gave up a couple
weekends to sit e-assessment mock exams so
that we could provide robust feedback. Were
also active regionally as well, developing the offer
the regions can give to students. So yes, it is
extra work, but its an amazing opportunity and I

Do you think PQs appreciate the work the


network does for them?
As long as they enjoy the events we organise and
the work we do helps them in their learning
experiences, such as our work in supporting the
development of regional student networks, thats
all that matters.
Is CIPFA doing a good job of keeping its PQs
informed of the changes ahead?
I think so. For instance, CIPFAs biggest change
for students is the introduction of e-assessments
for a couple of exams from December, with the
remainder to transition to e-assessments for the
June sitting. This has been publicised in
newsletters that we emailed to students, and with
events put on at both the national conference
and out in the regions to demonstrate the new
systems to students. PQ

29

PQ ACCA exams

What ACCA
examiners
want
So how do you impress the people that
matter the examiners? Heres what
they thought of your September efforts
straight from the horses mouth

F5
.
Candidates scored better in section A
than section B. The examiner felt the
calculation aspects in section B were also
encouraging, showing that the technical
side of this paper can be overcome with
good preparation and practice. Too many
candidates do not apply the information
given in the scenario to their answers in
the written sections, and instead try to
rely on knowledge alone. The examiner
said that while the size of the F5 syllabus
may be daunting, good exam technique
is just as important as learning the
management accounting methods and
techniques. To this end, candidates must
review past papers to identify the skills
required in applying their knowledge.

F6
.
The examiner was pleased that almost all
candidates attempted all of the questions.
PQs were advised to work through the
specimen paper, past exam papers and
sample questions in the report and to
carefully review how each of the correct
answers were derived.
F9
.
This was an unsatisfactory performance,
said the examiner. It appears too many
sitters were under prepared. PQs who
rely on question spotting will lose out.
Candidates were also told to take greater
care and be more precise in presenting
answers to numerical questions in section
B. Finally, all workings should be shown
and the requirement read more carefully.
P1
.
There is a temptation for candidates to
simply draw on their knowledge rather
than apply this knowledge in their
answers and reproduce remembered
notes, said the examiner. If you take this
approach you are unlikely to be
rewarded.
P2
.
The examiner stressed that this exam
requires a deep understanding and
knowledge of the Conceptual Framework,
30

IFRSs and code of ethics. You can


expect the questions at this level to
challenge you to show this knowledge
and this requires extensive preparation.
Students need to review relevant
websites, including those of the
standard setters (IASB) and
even the ACCAs own website.

P3
.
The examiner felt there was
evidence that candidates are
reliant on covering a few key
topics in their preparation,
and then attempt to fit these
topics to the question rather
than provide what the question
actually requires. Time management
remains an issue for some candidates. A
way of resolving this would be to avoid
quoting lengthy detail from the case
study scenario, said the examining team.
Instead, PQs should be focusing their
response to the requirements. Lengthy
explanations of theoretical models also
rarely add value. So it has been ventured
that the time pressure is not caused by
the exam itself, but the result of the
candidates unfocused response.
P4
.
Spending too much time carrying out
relatively simple calculation tasks was a
major reason for candidates performing
less well, according to the examiner. Why
cant students use appropriate rounding
for calculations, for instance? It is also felt
that candidates are not using the reading
time effectively, to plan a strategic
approach to tackling the paper and to
choose the optional questions wisely.
P5
.
The examiners continue to be concerned
by the quality of answers. This has been
the case for the last nine diets of P5!
Students must remember that the
questions here demand that scenarios
are evaluated and assessed rather than
described. The difference is fundamental
and crucial, as analysis involves a study
of applicability rather than a description.

P6
.
The examiner was concerned about the
number of students who made no, or
very little, attempt at Q1 (a) (i). It was
also felt too many poorer performing
candidates dont take time to read the
question carefully and think before they
started to write.
P7
.
A good understanding of both audit and
financial reporting issues is required in
order to perform well in this exam. The
examiner said some weaker students
attempt to present answers in a columnar
format. This typically scores fewer marks,
as more often than not they lack the
depth needed. Candidates are also
writing too little for the marks available
and are failing to develop points beyond
simple identification of the facts given in
the question. PQ
PQ Magazine December 2015

careers PQ

Make 2016 a happy new year


Karen Young gives her top tips on
preparing for a new job in 2016

s we head towards the end of the year


its a good time to reflect on your
achievements over the past 12 months,
and also to consider your career goals for 2016.
If you are hoping to find a new job in the New
Year, now is the time to prepare for your search.
So what do you want to do? Where do you
want to work? Think about your motivations for
wanting to leave your current role and what you
hope to achieve by moving; you want to ensure
you are making the change for the right reasons.
Ask yourself: what do I enjoy? What industry
do I see myself working in? In what type of
environment would I like to work? Researching
organisations and roles will ensure that you are
equipped with the information you need to target
your job search. This applies whether you are
hoping to apply for internal jobs or taking your
CV to the external job market.
Meeting with an expert recruiter is helpful as it
allows you to discuss your options with someone
who knows the industry and ensures you have a
clear understanding of the different job roles,
sectors and work environments available. A good
mentor can also help to give you an invaluable
external perspective on your career path and
your next move.

What are your strengths and weaknesses?


A key element to being successful at securing a
new job is to understand what you are good at
so you can effectively sell yourself. It is also a
good idea to note some of your weaknesses and

think about how you can develop these going


forward; you may realise you need to take a
training course to learn new skills or refresh old
ones. You may be asked about your strengths as
well as your weaknesses when you go for

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interview, so the sooner you can identify these,


the better.

Preparing your CV
Reviewing and updating your CV and getting
yourself ready for the interview stage is very
important. Remember, your CV is your sales
pitch to potential employers; you want to stand
out from the competition. Your CV needs to be
up-to-date with your experience, training and
qualifications, and you want to make sure your
previous employment dates are accurate,
explaining any gaps in your employment history.
Always check there are no spelling or grammar
errors although this seems obvious you would
be surprised how many people dont proof read
and you never know if a potential employer will
pick up on your mistakes.
You can ask a recruiter to look over your CV
for you, too. That way they can suggest, if
necessary, how to make this the best it can be
before you start searching and sending it to
potential employers. So if you want that new job
in the New Year get prepared now. Be ready to
take 2016 head on; take the next steps to get
the role you want. PQ
For more information and access to job
opportunities visit www.hays.co.uk/accountancy.
Karen Young, Director, Hays Accountancy
and Finance

To apply now visit www.mmu.ac.uk/PQ or for more information contact


Yvonne Rennison: y.rennison@mmu.ac.uk
PQ Magazine December 2015

31

careers PQ

YOUR CAREER
PROBLEMS SOLVED
THANKS TO

You should pull out


all the stops to get
qualified, says
Walker Dendles
Jordan Dodds

What are the disadvantages to


just being part qualified? I
dont want to sit any more exams but
I am wondering if I am committing
career suicide.

This is a very valid question. I


can understand why you may at
times feel unsure of the benefits of
pushing on and achieving full
qualification. Having regularly
consulted with hiring finance
managers, the emerging theme
appears to show questions being
asked of both the motivation and the
calibre of an individual who isnt
focused on becoming fully qualified.
Obviously, there will be times when
extenuating circumstances dictate
that becoming qualified simply isnt
possible or necessary, in which case,
this will be less of a priority. If this
isnt the case, and it is perfectly
plausible (with some hard work and
potentially long days studying and
working combined!) to qualify, then I
would urge you to do so. Right now,
you may not see the benefits but a
qualified accountant has far more
clout when applying for roles than a
PQ. No doors will be closed by
becoming qualified, but a lot more
will open. Think about it logically: if
you are a part qualified accountant
with similar experience to another
candidate who is qualified and also
going for the same role, immediately
you are at a disadvantage. You will
really have to impress at interview (or
hope the other candidate doesnt
perform well!) to get the job.
It will take hard work and it wont
be easy, but you will see the benefits
long term. Do you really want to find
yourself hitting the glass ceiling five
years down the line because you
were relatively comfortable in a
position and didnt see the need to
complete your exams? Ill leave you to
answer that one.
Contact PQ magazine with your
career issues simply email
graham@pqmagazine.co.uk
Next month: Can taking on an interim
role help boost your experience and
CV and help you move into a different
sector?
32

Life in the NHS


Siobhan Elliott is a finance and contracting assistant accountant working within an NHS
Clinical Commissioning Group, based in Runcorn. She recently became MAAT qualified
and is now studying ACCA. Siobhan is Chair of the FSD North West Student Forum
What time does your alarm
clock go off on a working
day? Depends if I am going to the
gym, so between 6am 7am.
Whats the first thing you do
when you get to your desk?
Say hello to my colleagues,
respond to e-mails and check my
diary for the day.
Whats on your desk? Trinkets,
one with an uplifting quote:
When it rains look for rainbows,
when its dark look for stars.
Whats the best thing about
where you work? My
colleagues.
What or who can you see
from my desk? My finance and
business intelligence colleagues,
as well as a lovely view across the
gardens.
Wheres your favourite place
to go for lunch? I generally

bring my own lunch, so goats


cheese and honey on rice cakes
would be my all-time favourite!
Which websites are your
favourites and why? Local
news, FSD Network, HTFT and
myACCA.
Which websites do you use
for work? Oracle, BI, FSD
Network, and in-house e-learning.
How many hours a week do
you spend in meetings?
Between work and FSD it
averages two to three hours.
What time do you leave the
office? Any time between 4pm
6pm depending on if it is month
end.
How do you relax? Training,
yoga classes, football and I love
reading.
Whats your favourite tipple?
Coconut water or Tia Maria.

How often do you take work


home with you? Work and
home are separate, so if I have
work to do I stay later or go in
earlier.
What is your favourite TV
show? The Big Bang Theory.
Summer or winter? Both!
Summer for the sunny long
evenings and winter for wrapping
up warm.
Pub or club? Depends what
mood Im in, but generally pub
with friends!
Who is your hero? My Nan.
If you had a time machine,
where would you go? In to the
future to see what the world is like
and whats changed.
If you hadnt chosen
accountancy, where might
you be right now? A line of
work to do with health and fitness.

differentiate people from one


another.

In second place was technology


hub Cambridge.

Start up in Brighton
Brighton is the best location
to start up a small business in the
UK, according to new AAT
research. The city came out top
because of its high number of
small business start-ups and its
high density of small and
medium-sized businesses.
Brighton also ranked well for
digital connectivity, coming
second only to Luton for its
superfast broadband penetration.

Back to business
PwC has launched Back to
Business, a 12-week programme
to help people back into the
workplace after an extended
career break. The programme
offers a chance for client-facing
work based on the returners
expertise, interests and skills, and
there is the opportunity to explore
a range of careers offered at
PwC, with a view to returning on
a more permanent footing.

In brief
Time for blind faith
HSBC, Virgin Money,
Deloitte, KPMG and the NHS,
among others, have agreed to
recruit on a name blind basis to
address potential discrimination
issues. Under the new agreement
names wont be visible on
graduate job applications.
Deloittes David Sproul said: We
want to show that everyone can
thrive, develop and succeed in
our firm based in their talent,
regardless of ethnicity, gender,
sexual orientation, or any other
dimension that can be used to

The PQ Book Club


WE REVIEW THE BOOKS YOU
SHOULD BE READING

Persuade: using the seven


drivers of motivation to master
influence and persuasion by
Philip Hesketh (Capstone,
12.99)
How well we do at work and in
life generally is dictated by the
influence we can exert over the
people we encounter. What
motivates your boss? Your CEO?
You? The key lies within these
pages, as Hesketh teaches us
how to understand what makes
other people and ourselves
tick. Underpinning all this are
the seven drivers of motivation
namely, that we want to be

loved, we want to feel important,


we want to belong, we need to
believe we can achieve, we need
both uncertainty and certainty,
we need a place, and we need
to grow and
improve. The
author explains
how each of these
motivating factors
affects us, and
how through a
little self-analysis
we can all better
our lives and our
lot. If we can
understand what drives us, we
can also understand what drives
the people around us.
A large part of how successful
we become is down to the image

we give others, says Hesketh.


His advice in these pages will
help you project yourself better
without appearing arrogant.
This is a very enjoyable and
easy read; the authors
prose is concise, packed
with case studies from the
worlds of psychology and
business, and chock-full of
pithy one-liners (I once had
a job picking asparagus.
The pay was lousy but the
tips were great). The top
50 questions to ask chapter
is really useful, as is the
one on how to improve your
communication skills.
PQ rating: 4/5 You could read
this book in an afternoon time
that would be very well spent.
PQ Magazine December 2015

investing
in people
Group Reporting Analyst

Assistant Reporting Analyst

Health & Pharmaceutical, Surrey

Private Equity, Surrey

To 45,000

To 35,000

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redening mOBODJBMSFDSVJUNFOU
T +44 (0)20 8408 9999 EJOGP!XBMLFSEFOEMFDPVL

www.walkerdendle.co.uk

www.howett-thorpe.co.uk

aim your career sights higher

Farnham ofce: 01252 718777


farnham@howett-thorpe.co.uk
Weybridge ofce: 01932 901900
weybridge@howett-thorpe.co.uk

HAVE YOU GOT THE RIGHT SKILLS?


OPINION IS DIVIDED
The Capability Gap 2015 report lifting the lid on how nance
professionals are rated and how they rate themselves.
Theres a lot to be positive about in nance. Salaries are rising, bonuses are
back and companies are hiring all pointing to more career opportunities.
But despite this, only 42% of nance professionals are focussed on where your
profession is heading and developing skills in these areas, with only 29% working
towards additional qualications. By not developing your skills, you could be
afecting your career prospects.
To add to this, employers rate their stafs prociency in key skills much lower
than their employees rate themselves.
We call this diference of opinion the capability gap.

Rate your skills now at skills.hays.co.uk


Copyright Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited 2015. HAYS, the Corporate and Sector H devices, Recruiting experts worldwide, the HAYS Recruiting experts worldwide logo and Powering the World of Work
are trade marks of Hays plc. The Corporate and Sector H devices are original designs protected by registration in many countries. All rights are reserved. NQ-14133

PQ magazine

Study please tick a box in 1A or 1B

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Your jobs board


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Download the eBook: reedglobal.com/pq

PQ got a story, funny or serious, you want to share? Email graham@pqaccountant.com

MORRISONS
SUED BY STAFF

A RUNAWAY SUCCESS

PQ reader Mitesh Dhimar is another step


closer to his goal running the worlds six
big marathons. He ran London in 2012
and Berlin in 2014. This year it was New
York, which he completed in a time of
seven hours and 12 minutes while
wearing a sumo outfit! Dhimar qualified
as an ACCA this year, so is moving on to
our sister magazine NQ. He runs for Soft
Power Education, a charity based in
Uganda, his fathers home country.
Miteshs next stop will be Tokyo if you
want to support him go to JustGiving:
www.justgiving.com/mitesh1986

One of the stranger stories this month


was the news that several thousand
Morrison employees plan to sue their
supermarket chain bosses after their
personal and financial details were
leaked. It was, in fact, auditor Andrew
Skelton who leaked the data of thousands
of staff because of a grudge. He had
been disciplined for sending personal
eBay packages via the company
mailroom, and as an act of revenge he
had released the salaries, NI numbers,
dates of birth and bank account details of
staff. The data breach cost the company
more than 2m to fix. That grudge saw
Skelton eventually jailed for eight years in
the summer. Morrisons denies it is
responsible and says the legal action is
fundamentally misconceived.

KEVI N ROO-FUL AFTER AUSSIE DEFEAT


CIMAs information solutions
manager, Kevin
McCuaghan, had high
hopes for the England
rugby team in the World
Cup. He made one fatal
error he bet new head of
UK, Paul Turner, that they

would beat Australia in the


group phase. Paul, who
moved from head of CIMA
Australasia to head CIMA
UK in July, was happy to
take the bet! And here we
have the evidence of poor
Kevins forfeit.

HERE COMES THE TAXMAN EP FOR MEGAN DALLAS


CIOTs president Chris Jones chose the perfect
venue for his farewell reception, and the great and
the good in tax turned out for the tour of Abbey
Road Studios. For those not in the know, Abbey
Road was the Beatles second home during the
Sixties and Pink Floyd recorded Dark Side of the
Moon there. So did we get a band singing
Taxman and You Never Give Me Your Money? Or
even Money? Well, no we had a trio of choral
singers warbling the CIOTs charter. Nice though.

W E V E

Basildon (thats Essex)


accountant Megan Dallas
didnt make it through
boot camp on this years
X Factor. However, that
has not squashed her dream of spending
less time behind a desk and more time
behind a mike. She has just released a
new five-track EP called Tattoo, and very
sweet it is too.

NO
CHEATING
PLEASE
Trainee analysts at
leading investment
bank JP Morgan
were recently
sacked for
cheating in their
accountancy
training exam.
Three UK analysts
apparently flew to
New York to take
the test, and had
to pay for their
own flights home
after being caught
sharing answers
and using notes.

GOT THE L OT

PERSUADE BY
PERSUASION!
Whether its asking for a pay rise, pitching to win a
client, going to a job interview or asking a friend for a
favour, you have to learn how people think, explains
Philip Hesketh in his new book Persuade: Using the
seven drivers of motivation to master influence and persuasion.
Hesketh believes its possible to find out whats going to get them to
agree and so can you we have three copies of his book to give away!
Send your name and address to graham@pqaccountant.com head
up your email Persuade giveaway

A STUDENTS GUIDE
PQ magazine has teamed up with Kaplan Publishing
and author Clare Finch to offer you three copies of A
Students Guide to International Financial Reporting
Standards. This is the third edition of Finchs must-read
tome. You really do need to get to grips with accounting
standards to pass accountancy exams and this book is
a breath of fresh air. Yes, we have found a readable
book on accounting standards and want to give you a
chance of winning a copy, worth 25!
To be in with a chance of winning this great prize simply send your name
and address to graham@pqaccountant.com, with A students guide in the
email heading

Terms and conditions: One entry per giveaway please. You must send your name and address to be entered for the draw. All giveaway entries must be
received by Friday 11 December. The main draw will take place on Monday 14 December 2015

TO ENTER THESE GIVEAWAYS EMAIL GRAHAM@PQACCOUNTANT.COM


38

PQ Magazine December 2015

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