10 pages Research work

PM100X Accounting and Finance for Managers Spring 2018 Coursework Brief Handout: 2

nd February 2018

Deadline for Submission: 5

th May 2018

Word Limit: 4,500

Learning outcomes assessed: On completion of the module participants should be able to:

1. Understand the financial objectives of a company and the role of the accountant 2. Describe and analyse the content of the principal financial statements of an

organisation. 3. Demonstrate methods of measuring the financial performance of companies and of

exercising financial controls over operational and financial decision.

This coursework is worth 100 % of the total marks for this module.

EMBA Accounting and Finance for Managers Spring 2018 Coursework Brief

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Coursework Instructions Please read carefully

• Carefully read the module handbook, the marking criteria and the grade

descriptors.

Academic Misconduct

You are responsible for ensuring you understand the policy and regulations

about academic misconduct. You must:

• Complete this work alone except where required or allowed by this

assignment briefing paper and ensure it has not been written or composed

by or with the assistance of any other person.

• Make sure all sentences or passages quoted from other people’s work in

this assignment (with or without trivial changes) are in quotation marks, and

are specifically acknowledged by reference to the author, work and page.

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Assignment Task

As an MBA student you are interested in investing in the shares and

debentures of public limited companies. As a prudent investor you need

to critically assess the value, to a shareholder or debenture holder, of the

information in the financial statement.

You are required to:

Take the most recent published financial statement of your organisation

or an organisation that you are familiar with and:

 Critically appraise what you see as the financial objectives of the

organisation and discuss how that satisfies your personal objectives.

Critically appraise the role played by an accountant in ensuring the

achievement of the financial objectives.

 Critically evaluate the contents of Income statement, Balance sheet and

the Cash flow statement as well as the information gathered by the stake

holders from such statements.

 Critically assess the performance of the company by using appropriate

accounting ratios and investment appraisal methods.

Analyse the relationship between the performance of the company and of

its current share price.

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Attention should be given to the organisation’s capital structure and its

forward strategy. Conclude by deciding with reasons, whether you should

invest in the company.

End of Assignment Brief

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KNOWLEDGE & UNDERSTANDING

INTELLECTUAL & COGNITIVE

SKILLS Graduate Skills: transferable,

employability, practical and

academic skills

Factual and conceptual knowledge and

understanding; use of class

materials; independent

reading

Critical thinking; conceptualisation;

creativity; synthesis, analysis and

evaluation; application; problem

solving and research/investigation

Written, oral and presentation

skills; interpersonal, group and

teamwork skills; leadership

skills; numeracy; digital skills;

practical, professional and

academic skills (including

referencing/presentation )

WEIGHTED AT 30% WEIGHTED AT 45% WEIGHTED AT 25%

MARKIN

G BAND MODULE

LEARNING

OUTCOME

S

CLASSIFICATI

ON

Exceptional analysis of key issues/concepts/ethics.

Exceptional expressive/professional skills.

90 - 100% Achieved at this level

Distinction

Exceptional analysis of key issues/concepts/ethics with

very clear originality and

autonomy.

Exceptional development of conceptual

structures and argument, making

consistent use of scholarly conventions. Exceptional academic skills.

Exceptional development of

conceptual structures and

argument making an exceptional use of scholarly

conventions.

Exceptional research skills,

independence of thought, an extremely high level of intellectual rigour and

consistency. Substantial creativity and

originality

Demonstrates independence

of thought and a very high

level of intellectual rigour and consistency.

Work pushes the boundaries of the

discipline and may be considered for external publication

Exemplary academic/intellectual skill

80 - 89% Achieved at this level

Distinction Outstanding analysis of key issues/concepts/ethics with

clear originality and

autonomy. Outstanding analysis of key

issues/concepts/ethics. Outstanding

expressive/professional skills

Outstanding development of

conceptual structures and

argument making an exemplary use of scholarly

conventions.

Very high level development of

conceptual structures and argument, making consistent use of scholarly

conventions. Considerable creativity and

originality.

Demonstrates independence

of thought and a very high

level of intellectual rigour and consistency

Outstanding research skills,

independence of thought, a high level of intellectual rigour and consistency,

Exemplary academic/intellectual skill

70 - 79% Achieved at this level

Distinction

Excellent analysis of key

issues/concepts/ethics. Excellent analysis of key

issues/concepts/ethics. Excellent expressive/ professional

skills.

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Excellent development of

conceptual structures and

argument making excellent use of scholarly conventions.

High level development of conceptual

structures and argument, making consistent use of scholarly conventions.

Considerable creativity and originality.

Demonstrates independence of thought and a high level of

intellectual rigour and

consistency

Excellent research skills, independence

of thought, a high level of intellectual

rigour and consistency. , Excellent academic/intellectual

skills

60 - 69% Achieved at this level

Merit

Good analysis of key

issues/concepts/ethics. Good analysis of key

issues/concepts/ethics. Good expressive/ professional

skills.

Development of conceptual structures and argument

Development of conceptual structures and argument,

Demonstrates some creativity and originality.

Making consistent use of

scholarly conventions Making consistent use of scholarly

conventions Good academic/intellectual skills

50 - 59% Marginal achievement

at this level

Pass

Satisfactory knowledge of key issues/ concepts/ethics in

discipline. Satisfactory knowledge of key issues/

concepts/ethics in discipline.

Satisfactory expression/ demonstrates some professional

skills.

Descriptive in parts but some ability to synthesise

scholarship and argument. Descriptive in parts but some ability to

synthesise scholarship and argument. Evidence of an element of

creativity and originality

Achieves module outcome(s) Minor lapses in use of scholarly

conventions Satisfactory academic/intellectual

skills

40 - 49% Marginal failure at this

level

FAIL

Basic knowledge of key issues/concepts/ethics in

discipline.

Generally descriptive, with restricted synthesis of existing scholarship and

little argument. Limited in expression and/or

professional skills

Evidence of having met the

majority of LO Use of scholarly conventions inconsistent

29-39% Not achieved at this level

FAIL

Limited knowledge of key issues/concepts/ethics in

discipline.

Largely descriptive, with little synthesis of existing scholarship and little

evidence of argument. Little evidence of use of scholarly

conventions. 0 - 29% Not achieved

at this level FAIL

Inadequate knowledge of key issues/concepts/ethics in

discipline.

Wholly descriptive, with inadequate synthesis of existing scholarship and

inadequate argument. Inadequate use of scholarly

conventions.

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