AICPA and CIMA expand lifelong learning site with competencies in accounting and auditing

AICPA and CIMA expand lifelong learning site with competencies in accounting and auditing:

The Institute of CPA and Charter of Management Accountants (CIMA) announced today that they have expanded their learning and development of professional web sites to include skills in accounting and financial reporting, including insurance, as part of a larger effort to increasing lifelong learning in the accounting profession.
The site AICPA, CIMA and learning skills launched earlier this year to help Chartered Management Accountant World (CGMA®) designation holders to broaden their skills and build rewarding careers.

In recent months, the site was expanded to include other categories of skills such as auditing employee benefit plan, the government audit and - today - accounting and auditing. Other subject areas will be added in the coming months.

With the addition of the new accounting framework and on-site audit, accountants are now able to analyze where they may have a lack of knowledge and obtain instant personalized recommendations on various learning resources to control this area. The new framework has been developed by some of the best experts in the industry.

"Vocational training is not the quantity of time you spend on a computer or how long you sit through a presentation," said Clar Rosso, vice president of learning and competence AICPA members, in a statement. "This is the acquisition of knowledge and experience that you can and take your career to the next level. That is why an approach to skills development makes sense."

A new feature on the site called "verification of knowledge" gives multiple choice questions on specific topics, with a wrong answer activate links to learning resources on this topic AICPA. In addition, professionals can find nearby conferences leveraging location-based searches. The site is also free and easy mobile.

Cima P2 Exam Question 32

Question No 32:

KL is a transport company that has recently won a five-year government contract to provide rail transport services. The company appointed a new Director to take responsibility for the government contract. She has worked in various positions in other rail transport companies for a number of years. She has put together a team of managers by recruiting some of her former colleagues and some of KL’s current managers.

The contract stipulates that the company should prepare detailed budgets for its first year of operations to show how it intends to meet the various operating targets that are stated in the contract. The new Director is undecided about whether she should prepare the budgets herself or whether she should involve her management team, including the newly recruited managers, in the process.

Required:
Produce a report, addressed to the new Director, that discusses participative budgeting.

Note: your report must

A) Explain TWO potential benefits and TWO potential disadvantages of involving the new and existing managers in the budget setting process.

B) Provide a recommendation to the new Director.

(10 marks)

Answer:

A)An original budget is determined by predicting the expected level of activity and using standard costs to determine the expected variable cost for that level of activity. To this would then be added the expected fixed cost.
Standard costs are based on estimated resource requirements and the expected price of those resources for each unit. These values are then multiplied by the expected activity level to determine the expected variable cost of that level of activity.
Budgets are a statement of the total costs, revenues and resource requirements expected for the budgeted level of activity. It is this budget that is approved by the Board of Directors and used as the basis of comparison with actual results. However, it is most likely that the actual level of activity will differ from that budgeted. In such circumstances a simple comparison between the actual results and the original budget would be both meaningless and unfair because some of the costs and the revenues vary with the level of activity. In order to make a fair comparison flexible budgeting must be used.
Flexible budgeting recognises that, within the original budget, there are some costs and revenues that are affected by the level of activity (variable) and others that are not affected by activity levels (fixed). Using this analysis it is possible to produce a flexible budget showing the expected costs and revenues of the actual activity level. This can then be compared with the actual costs and the differences (variances) used as a measure of performance.

B)In order to fairly measure performance actual activity must be compared with the original budget to understand why the actual activity level differed from those budgeted; and actual costs and revenues should be compared with the flexible budget to fairly measure the actual costs and revenues against those expected for the actual activity achieved. Thus it is important to understand the appropriate uses of each of the original and flexed budget and how standard costs are used to compile the original budget and assist in the preparation of the flexed budget for cost comparison purposes.

Tilley: CIMA focus will remain despite new global association

A new association officially holder assembly CIMA and AICPA American Institute not dilute their brands, CIMA CEO Charles Tilley (pictured) has claimed.

In announcing its plans to launch a new partnership next year Accounting Age Tilley said he would seek to better use of resources to promote their joint nomination CGMA.

"It's not the end of them," Tilley said. "We will continue to promote management accounting, strengthening [the offer] for employers, strengthening our research and development are maintaining our objective of MA and the Royal Charter .."

CIMA and the AICPA have worked together since 2012, providing a description of the global management accounting (CGMA) to the appropriate members. The move caused some controversy with a former president of CIMA describing the joint venture foam "marketing". The initial risk has not been put before the members for a vote.

However, the two bodies are clearly very happy with his progress to take another step forward. The association, which is currently unnamed, will allow the structure and better aligned resources to further promote CGMA designation. "This will allow the partnership in action worldwide," Tilley said. "This is the expansion of our global presence."

A consultation will be launched very soon the founding members of CIMA before the decision is put to a vote at the General Meeting of April 2016. If approved, the new partnership, which will be owned 50/50 between the two bodies created in June

There are currently 150,000 accounting management represented by the CGMA designation between the two organizations. The company has seen the introduction of the principles of comprehensive management accounting, reflecting how to deal with the main risks facing accountants and values ​​that must be respected. A competency framework has also been introduced to support the need for higher skill levels, while being objective and ethical

Monday interview: Myriam Madden, CIMA

For Myriam Madden, director of finance and chairman of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), there was no awareness before leaving school opportunities that the business world could offer.
And they want to travel, she said: "I had that curiosity about business, and I decided I wanted to know more about what makes a successful company."
Madden's career has enabled him to achieve two ambitions, visiting companies around the world and get a sectional view of how they work.
His CV includes leading roles change programs and financial functions in organizations such as Hewlett Packard, HBOS, the Scottish Arts Council, the NHS and Historic Scotland.
She says her desire to make a contribution in the world of business was strengthened when studying for a business degree, and when he looked to the work by CIMA said it appeared to influence key decision makers of the company, such as CEOs and CFO.
The organization is the largest professional organization in the world Management Accountants, trying to help people and companies in the public and private sectors.
Graduate, Madden joined Hewlett Packard in Edinburgh, when the technology giant was looking for graduates with a business background, "he played so much that I wanted to do"
She stayed with the company from 1987 to 2002, working for spin-off Agilent Technologies in telecommunications roles including manager of an agreement to acquire the US, European internal consultant based in London and director of support companies.
Still a resident of Edinburgh to date have already been added to travel a little further, including assignments in the United States and Europe.
While it is clear that there are differences in corporate culture throughout the world, the president of CIMA believes that eventually all the challenges that businesses face are very similar, and accounting management can address these to "on for business success, "regardless of the location of a business.
She was named president of CIMA 2015-16 in the summer and said it was a "fantastic" experience so far, leading to an organization with over 227,000 members and students in more than 170 countries.
One of his goals, he said, was to shake some of the "baggage" that can become a professional organization. "One of my motivations was really draw attention to CIMA as very modern, very dynamic, and meet the needs of the company," says Madden.
It also highlights the ethics and integrity as a key priority and "something that anchors us in all our students from the beginning and our members as they progress through their careers."
He specializes in financial and operational transformation, directed change programs in organizations with different needs and corporate cultures.
These projects can be "very difficult," he admits. "Very often, the obstacles may be the people who buy into the change that needs to be done."
Madden says it is necessary to work in the way of "putting people along this journey ... How to put a frame around it to make it easier to understand?"
Having worked in the public and private sectors, his resume includes part of HBOS between 2002 and 2004, where he led the development of project information tool for financial and operational services. He then joined the Scottish Arts Council, to boost the financial performance in a period of change and simplify the legal structures for a merger. And from May 2012, she was Director of Finance of Historic Scotland.
She said her varied experience has been very useful to him, saying: "I would encourage anyone starting their career to try as many things as you can experience expands and you can also find your own niche.".
Madden and, perhaps not surprisingly, is far from shy about recommending the world of finance and business for young people looking around a career plan.
"I think there is a fund management accounting gives a fantastic start - it just gives you that view across the enterprise," he said.
"Money makes the world, and in fact, you must understand how it makes the world."