School Cardiff Business School Department Code CARBS0
Module Code BS2522 Number of Credits 10
Level L5
Module Leader Miss Natalie Forde Semester Autumn Semester Academic Year 2013/4
Outline Description of Module
The aims of the module are to build on students’ understanding, gained from studying the Level One module, Introduction to Accounting, by exploring further the uses and limitations of management accounting information, techniques and procedures.
On completion of the module a student should be able to
demonstrate a broad conceptual understanding of the uses and limitations of accounting information as a decision support tool and as an aid to planning and controlling the financial performance of an organisation.
A. Knowledge and Understanding
Distinguish between financial and management accounting in terms of their functions and intended audiences and show understanding of the importance of non-financial information to businesses in the 21st century;
Display, both through written discussion of principles and through solving numerical problems, a clear understanding of traditional and innovative
techniques and concepts in planning, cost determination, pricing decisions and management control;
Demonstrate awareness of the importance of qualitative, judgmental and commercial factors in decision-making, and the use of accounting techniques and information as tools to support and influence such decisions, rather than as decision-making techniques in their own right.
B Intellectual Skills:
Demonstrate the ability to apply, comprehend and explain management accounting techniques.
C. Discipline Specific Skills:
Evaluate the financial and behavioural aspects of management techniques for planning, budgeting and organisational control.
D Transferable Skills:
Develop the ability to use and interpret quantitative financial data
Develop analytical and study skills through tutorial exercises How the module will be delivered
Teaching: Takes place in the Autumn semester in parallel with teaching for the double module BS2512. There are a minimum of 18 hours of lectures and 4 hours of tutorials, but substantial personal input is required from students.
Pre-reading: A programme of recommended pre-reading is issued to students at the beginning of the semester, identifying core materials and offering suggestions for further reading on each main topic covered. Students who complete the core pre-reading will be able to reinforce their understanding of topics introduced in lectures.
Lectures: Are intended as introductions to the individual topics covered in the module, building on the core pre-reading and suggesting further references for follow-up reading.
Tutorials: A total of four tutorial sessions will be held. Tutorial material, by the nature of the module, is weighted in favour of numerical examples designed to test understanding of key principles. Students are required to prepare for tutorials in advance of the session, to contribute actively to discussions and to be prepared to present their answers to, and discuss them with, other members of the class.
Self-study and revision packs: Topic-specific revision packs containing a selection of self-study materials, including past examination questions with detailed suggested answers, are issued after every tutorial. Students are encouraged to use these packs to assist their understanding of topics and prepare for formal assessments.
Students are further supported throughout the module via the University’s Learning Central electronic communication facilities.
How the module will be assessed Assignment Component
100% - One 2500 word assignment
Formative assessment is provided throughout the programme through tutorial questions, which are designed to test and reinforce students’ base of knowledge and comprehension of individual syllabus topics and to assess their ability to apply this knowledge and comprehension in a range of contexts.
Self-study and revision pack material is designed for self-assessment, and is supplied with detailed model answers to assist students’ analysis of examination technique and presentation as well as to support independent learning. Students are encouraged throughout the module to consult the module coordinator and other teaching staff involved if additional help or guidance is required and to make active use of the Discussion Board facility and the “Learning Central” system.
Summative assessment: The assessment for the module is 100% assignment based. The assignment requires demonstration of key critical thinking and analytical skills; demonstrating evidence of academic research and critical evaluation skills with respect to contemporary and developing issues in performance management.
Assessment Breakdown
Type % Title Duration(hrs) Week
Written
Assessment 100 Performance Management -
Assignment N/A 5
Syllabus content
Background to Management Accounting: The nature and role of management accounting and its relationship to the collection of both financial and qualitative data in organisations; the uses of cost information and its multifaceted nature dependent on the purposes of the end-user.
Cost/Volume Profit (CVP) Analysis: The relationship between business activity and the behaviour of different categories of cost, as evidenced in cost-volume-profit applications; the limitations and assumptions behind this widespread technique.
Product Costing: The identification of cost for product valuation and pricing purposes; the need to reconsider traditional, simplistic techniques of cost and overhead allocation in the light of the changing pace and technologies of modern manufacturing and service organisations.
Short-term Decisions: Short-term operating decisions involving scarce resources;
relevant and opportunity cost for decision-making and the need to base short-term decisions on only those aspects of cost and income which are relevant to the options available.
Pricing: Theoretical and practical aspects of pricing decisions.
Budgeting and Budgetary Control: The planning and control process, including financial and behavioural aspects of budgeting; the identification and analysis of variances between expected and actual outcomes.
Indicative Reading and Resource List
Atrill, P. & McLaney, E. 2009, Management Accounting for Decision Makers, 7th Edition. Harlow: Pearson
Drury, C. 2009, Management Accounting for Business, 4th Edition. Andover:
Cengage Learning
McLaney, E. 2009, Business Finance Theory and Practice, 9th Edition. Harlow: FT Prentice Hall.