TOMORROWS TALENT

GENERATION Y
11 AUGUST 2010
STUDENT ENGAGE
ASK THE EXAMINER
FOOTBALL FINANCES
GOOD GOVERNANCE?
FEATURES
LEARNING CENTRE
22 GENERATION Y ACCA has teamed up with
human resource experts at Mercer for one of
the biggest ever studies of Generation Y
those aged 30 and under. What does
it reveal about the next generation
of nance professionals? Michelle
Perry reports
26 RED RAGE Alex Miller
investigates the governance
and nances of two of the
worlds best-known football
clubs Liverpool and
Manchester United
14 STUDENT BOOK REVIEW The Big Idea
15 STUDENT ENGAGE Ask the examiner
16 CAREER DEVELOPMENT Your job-hunting tips
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18 MY WORKING LIFE Jonas Acquah:
from Ghana to the US
20 MEMBER IN FOCUS Biraj Pradhan, Nepal
4 CONTENTS
DISPATCH
06 GRAPHIC NEWS City of London, and the Operating
and Financial Review
08 JOBS NEWS Career updates from around the world
10 NEWS ROUNDUP Global accounting and nance news
Brendan Murtagh
President
Mark Gold
Deputy President
Dean Westcott
Vice President
Helen Brand
Chief Executive
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ISSN 1473-0979
TECHNICAL
RESOURCES
29 TECHNICAL
ARTICLES
KEY ADVICE ON HOW
TO PASS POLISH
TAXATION
ACCA Qualication
Paper F6 (POL)
HOW TO: BUSINESS
ANALYSIS CASE
STUDY APPROACH
ACCA Qualication
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EXAMINERS
APPROACH TO P5
ACCA Qualication
Paper P5
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ACCOUNTANT
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33 NOTICEBOARD
ESSENTIAL
INFORMATION
ABOUT ACCA AND
YOUR STUDIES
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contact details, annual
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Please email studentaccountant@accaglobal.com with your feedback on this issue
WHATS YOUR STORY?
Why did you want to become an accountant, and
what do you hope to be in the future? Email your
story to us at studentaccountant@accaglobal.com
Welcome to ISSUE 16/2010 of STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
6 DISPATCH
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SKYS THE LIMIT
A barometer for a citys affluence is the number of cranes on its
skyline. As a Drivers Jonas Deloitte survey shows, London has
suffered a 33% fall in space under construction in the past six
months and an even bigger fall of 62% from the peak of the market
two years ago. The figures below refer to the millions of square feet
under construction.
Source: Drivers Jonas Deloitte
THE OFR: A CHEQUERED HISTORY
The Operating and Financial Review a narrative report outlining a companys
social and environmental duties was first mooted in 2001 as part of a
root-and-branch review of company law. Since 2001, however, political
machinations have left the OFR out in the cold. That is, of course, until
May 2010, when the coalition government announced plans to reinstate it.
JULY 2001
OFR cited
as key
development
in company law
reform
MAY 2004
Government
announces
OFR proposals
30 NOVEMBER
2004
Draft OFR published
22 MARCH
2005
OFR regulation
comes into force
28 NOVEMBER 2005
chancellor Gordon
Brown quashes OFR at
11th hour
20 MAY 2010
Coalition
government
announces
plan to
reinstate
OFR
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in place to invest in future
leaders of finance who can help
their businesses grow. Hays
says employers that can offer
compelling progression on top of
remuneration and benefits will be
the most successful in securing
top talent.
Employers in industry and
commerce are now experiencing
skill shortages in key areas of
the finance function. Confidence
to expand headcounts means
that payroll experts especially
those with systems-specific
exposure are the focus of many
organisations attraction and
retention strategies. Meanwhile,
Hays reports a recent steep rise
in demand for accounts payable
staff, which it says is a marked
contrast to this time last year,
when many people looking after
purchase ledgers were being
retrenched. Credit controllers are
also needed for new positions.
03 TEMPORARY WORKERS
AND INTERIM MANAGERS
STEP FORWARD FOR UK PLC
The demand for temporary
and interim workers in the UK
remains strong, with 81% of
finance directors saying they
intend to maintain or increase
the use of agency staff between
now and the end of the year,
according to a survey carried out
by recruiter Robert Half.
Phil Sheridan, UK managing
director for Robert Half, says,
Employers have seen many
benefits that can be gained
by using temporary or interim
accounting and finance staff
within their workforce, with
cost-effectiveness and covering
for unfilled vacancies cited as
some of the biggest benefits.
With the need to be flexible in
this economic environment,
interim staffing has proved to be
a great way to provide efficient
solutions to staffing needs.
01 AUDIT AND COMPLIANCE
SKILL SHORTAGES CREATE
ENTRY POINTS FOR JUNIORS
According to a recent survey
by recruiters Robert Half, chief
financial officers (CFOs) are
finding it harder to recruit into
audit and compliance than
any other part of the finance
function so much so that more
junior candidates are being
advised to focus their job search
on these areas.
Acknowledging that a
long-term career in audit or
compliance is not necessarily
a top priority for many of
those who embark on a career
in accountancy, the company
said the roles might provide an
essential technical grounding
that would still be relevant for
employers further down the line.
Audit and compliance are the
backbone of finance, and can
often be jobs for life, says Clive
Davis, director of Robert Half UK.
Its vital that graduates acquire
the necessary skills needed to
excel in these areas to stand
them in good stead for the rest
of their careers. Furthermore,
working in these roles enables
a thorough understanding
of the business and can be a
springboard to new opportunities
when looking to take the next
step in your career.
02 AUSTRALIAN
EMPLOYERS RAMP UP
RECOVERY RECRUITMENT
Finance managers and financial
controllers in Australia and
New Zealand can look forward
to a heightened demand for
their services as companies
make strategic decisions to gain
leverage from economic recovery,
says recruiter Hays Accountancy
& Finance. Candidates from the
Big Four firms are especially
sought-after by major banks,
many of whom have initiatives
APPEARANCE IS
CRUCIAL TO FINANCE
PROFESSIONALS
The majority of the UKs
accountancy and finance
professionals regard their
personal appearance as a
priority when preparing for
an interview. According to
a survey by recruiter Hays
Accountancy & Finance, over
half of accountants take a
minimum of half an hour
dressing for an interview.
More than a third say fiercer
competition for jobs due
to the economic downturn
influenced the time and
care they took over their
jobhunting outfit.
Just under 60% of
respondents believe
their appearance has the
potential to tip the balance
between two closely
matched candidates. A huge
98% say their appearance
indicates their commitment
and attitude towards the
role, with 85% even giving
consideration to the colours
they wore at interviews.
Mark Sheldon, Hays
managing director in the
UK, says, Competition for
jobs means that candidates
need to pull out all the stops
to secure a new position.
While appearance isnt the
deciding factor, it can help
to swing a decision in your
favour, as it shows a certain
level of professionalism and
commitment. In these times,
jobseekers should be doing
everything they can to put
themselves at an advantage.
8 DISPATCH
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the hard work of all those who
applied. Each of our winners
embodies the ACCA values of
integrity and opportunity; it is an
honour to award the scholarship
to students that have worked
so hard. I know they will make full
use of the support now available
to them. We will be including
a feature on the scholarship
winners in a future issue of
StudentAccountant.
03 IAAER AND ACCA
LAUNCH AUDIT RESEARCH
ACCA has commissioned
research into auditing issues of
global importance. It has been
working in collaboration with
the International Association
for Accounting Education and
Research (IAAER). The research
is to comprise four separate
projects that are intended
to support the work of the
International Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board
(IAASB). Specifically, these
will focus on whether there is
consistency in the application
of auditing standards, the
implications of eXtensible
Business Reporting Language
(XBRL) for the financial
statement audit, the audit
methodology for smaller
audit firms, and the nature
of professional judgment in
auditing. Research teams
from Australia, Germany, the
Netherlands, the UK and US will
present research designs at
the International Symposium on
Audit Research in Singapore, with
interim research findings to be
presented in the US early next
year, followed by delivery of the
final results at a conference in
Europe in October 2011.
04 REDRESSING
THE BALANCE
ACCAPakistan has issued a
new discussion paper calling
01 ACCOUNTANTS
AND SUSTAINABILITY
Helen Brand, chief executive
of ACCA, is one of the key
representatives on the
Steering Committee of the
newly formed International
Integrated Reporting Committee
(IIRC). The IIRC has been
established by the Princes
Accounting for Sustainability
Project (A4S) and the Global
Reporting Initiative (GRI). As the
first professional accountancy
body to put sustainability at
the heart of the role of the
finance professional, ACCA is
pleased to be a participant
in this initiative. The IIRC is
comprised of a cross-section of
representatives from civil society
and the corporate, accounting,
securities, regulatory, NGO,
IGO and standard-setting
sectors. Commenting on the
remit of the IIRC, Helen Brand
said: The role of the IIRC is
to respond to the need for
a concise, clear, consistent
and comparable integrated
reporting framework, reflecting
the reporting organisations
strategic objectives, governance
and business model, and
integrating both financial and
non-financial information.
02 SIMPSON SCHOLARSHIP
WINNERS ANNOUNCED
This years successful students
are Michelle Olinda DSouza from
Bahrain, Adeeso Adetoye from
Nigeria, Muhammad Ali Sheikh
from Pakistan, Natasha Singhal
from Singapore, and Pham
Thanh Huyen from Vietnam.
Choosing a winner from this
years applicants was as an
unenviable a task as ever, said
Laurie Gillow, ACCAs executive
director markets. The final
shortlist was of an exceptionally
high quality and the difficulty in
choosing winners is testament to
10 DISPATCH
ACCA URGES UK
GOVERNMENT TO
THINK SMALL FIRST
ACCA has welcomed the
establishment of the
Office of Tax Simplification
(OTS), which will provide
muchneeded respite
for the UKs financially
challenged small and
mediumsized enterprises
(SMEs). We applaud the
Treasurys decision to
establish the OTS, said Chas
RoyChowdhury (pictured
above), ACCA head of tax.
But to make this initiative
truly of benefit to businesses
of all sizes, it is vital that
the work of the OTS remains
politically independent and
that its recommendations do
not fall by the wayside as the
coalition government shifts
its focus to other areas of
the UK economic recovery.
ACCA has long advocated
the need for governments
around the world to invest
as much effort in supporting
SMEs as they do larger
listed companies. Referring
to SMEs as the lifeblood
of the UK economy,
RoyChowdhury calls on
the government to consider
SMEs right from the start
when designing taxation
policies for business.
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Our exibility ensures your success:
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12 DISPATCH
a strong line of defence against
reputational damage and should
be an essential part of any risk
management strategy. The report
is available at www.accaglobal.
com/tempering
07 WORLD CONGRESS
OF ACCOUNTANTS...
Senior accountants and
representatives of accountancy
bodies will be converging on
Malaysia in November for
the 2010 World Congress of
Accountants (WCOA). Held
every four years by IFAC, the
event is expected to attract
6,000 participants. Its theme is
Accountants: Sustaining Value
Creation. Malaysias prime
minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak,
will give the keynote speech. He
said: The WCOA provides a rare
opportunity for the accounting
worlds pioneers to help build the
framework for assuring an anxious
global investment community.
Through the exchange of
information, creation of networks
and promotion of standards,
the 2010 WCOA participants
will have a significant impact on
accounting best practice for many
years. ACCA is a gold sponsor
of the event. Helen Brand, ACCA
chief executive, says the World
Congress provides a great
opportunity for us to share best
practice and new ideas, injecting
confidence to face the future.
Find out more at www.accaglobal.
com/wcoa2010
08 ...AND ACCOUNTING
ACADEMICS
The World Congress for Accounting
Education and Research will take
place in Singapore in November
attracting accounting academics
from around the world. Held every
four years alongside the World
Congress of Accountants (see
above), the event is the flagship
of the International Association
for Accounting Education and
Research (IAAER). ACCA is a gold
sponsor. See http://congress.
iaaer.org
for a greater understanding of
the potential business case for
gender diversity on the boards
of publicly listed companies.
Despite a rise in the number
of women entering Pakistans
paid workforce during the past
decade, theGenderDiversityon
BoardsinPakistan paper features
a series of recommendations on
what is a priority agenda item
for policymakers and business
leaders around the world. Read
more here.
05 ACCOUNTANTS
IN BUSINESS
A new paper from ACCA, In
PursuitofSustainableBusiness,
examines what has been learnt
by finance professionals over
the past two years. It considers
the agenda for the profession and
the value that accountants can
bring to businesses of all sizes
and in all sectors. It supports
what ACCA sees as the role
of accountants as promoters
of sound business practice,
champions of sustainable
business development and
identifiers of value drivers
which lead to high-performing
organisations. The paper is
available at www.accaglobal.
com/accountants_business
06 CALL FOR
ETHICAL COMPASS
The business world should focus
more on ethical responsibilities
and prioritise the recruitment
of senior executives and
financial staff with strong ethical
compasses, according to a new
ACCA report. RiskandReward
TemperingthePursuitofProfit looks
at where the financial system
went wrong prior to the financial
crisis, with a massive failure of
people risk being identified. It
argues that a strong commitment
to ethical business conduct on the
part of directors and key staff is
MICROFINANCE STUDY
ACCA is examining how accountants can support the applicants
and recipients of microfinance. This is a critical source of
finance for millions of businesses, particularly in developing and
emerging countries. The ACCA team is talking to stakeholders
to explore ways to enhance the probability that businesses that
receive microfinance survive and grow.