Finding a workplace mentor

The first task for a trainee to achieve his or her PER is to get the support of a workplace mentor, who plays an important role in the achievement of the trainee’s PER. A workplace mentors supports a trainee’s development in the workplace and reviews the trainee’s progress and achievement at work by helping the trainee identify which performance objectives they should aim to achieve. They also help the trainee plan the experience needed to achieve targeted performance objectives, evaluate the trainee’s progress on a regular basis, and review the answers to the trainee’s challenging questions. A workplace mentor also signs off the trainee’s performance objective.

A trainee’s workplace mentor should be someone who works closely with the trainee, who knows the type of work the trainee undertakes, and who also knows the quality of the trainee’s work. A trainee’s workplace mentor should be a qualified accountant, and if they are not ACCA members, they should be a member of a professional accountancy or audit body recognised by law in the country in which the trainee works. A trainee may also have more than one workplace mentor or several different workplace mentors over a period of time, all of whom are responsible for helping the trainee to achieve the different performance objectives.

As I am now working in the audit department of the Deloitte Shanghai office as an associate auditor, it would be ideal for me to choose one or more audit managers as my workplace mentors. My counsellor, an audit manager who helps me to plan and manage my own career through effective goal setting, and who is a member of The Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants, may be the most suitable individual to be my workplace mentor, because he supervises my work and knows the type and quality of my work. So I have decided to make an appointment with him to talk about the issues of being my workplace mentor.

In my opinion, no matter whom you choose as your workplace mentor, he or she must have the knowledge and experience to support you. Your workplace mentor will be assessing whether you have met performance objectives, so it is crucial he or she has the expertise to do this.

Some suggestions for those graduates with little or no working experience

Some fresh graduates who have little or no working experience may face a similar problem, in that they cannot get experience until they get a job, but cannot get a job as they have no experience. Fortunately, many large local and multinational companies, - most of them prestigious - have their own campus recruitments targeting fresh graduates who have no working experience. One of the problems that fresh graduates face is how to attract employers’ attention and make themselves stand out. Here follows some suggestions for becoming a successful candidate.

Firstly, candidates must try to avoid low level mistakes in their CVs. When sifting through hundreds of CVs, it’s far easier to find reasons to eliminate candidates than to grant them interviews. Spelling mistakes, lack of clarity and meaning will conspire to reward the application with instant rejection, because no employer wants to have to train someone in such fundamental skills. For those graduates whose written communication skills are weak, practicing frequently is a good way to improve the written skills.

Secondly, try to make non job-related experience count. Although fresh graduates have little or no job-related working experience, they are still likely to have much to offer employers. The secret is to think about the aptitudes required in the job and consider how well their campus and social experience might have prepared them. For example, working in teams, managing time, and dealing with difficulties are skills that can be developed in campus and social activities.

Thirdly, try to make the best use of the knowledge learned during college and ACCA studies. During the interview, an interviewer always asks some job-related technical questions, and candidates need to answer these questions by using the knowledge they have learned during their studies. Some important parts of accounting and finance knowledge should be prepared before attending any interviews, and impressive answers to the technical questions can be the key to successfully being offered the job.

As the global economy goes into meltdown, recruiters are under intense pressure to justify any expenditure related to hiring staff, and more people are coming on to the jobs market. Those who make recruitment decisions are in a strong position to raise the bar when screening candidates, so it’s important for graduates with little or no working experience to try their best to improve their employability in order to get the job offer they desire.

Changes in CAT Certified Accounting Technician Advanced Level Papers.

From June 2009 there will be some minor changes to the Advanced Level papers (5-10).

• The pass mark will be increased from 40% to 50%
• All exams will include some multiple-choice questions (MCQs)
  – 24% of Paper 5 will become MCQs (two-hour exam)
  – 20% of Papers 6–10 will become MCQs (three-hour exams)
• The overall syllabus for the qualification will remain unchanged, although some material from Paper 7 will be moving to Paper 10.

Please note: this does not affect CAT students currently studying for the December 2008 exams, the changes will not be applied until the exams in June 2009.

ACCA briefing paper

How should the EU respond to the financial crisis?

The current financial crisis risks a break-up of accountancy's international language and rules, ACCA has warned European policy makers in its new briefing paper, How should the EU respond to the financial crisis?

'In response to political criticisms that fair value accounting rules caused some of the market volatility, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) revised its rules on fair value accounting; some countries now want the EU to seek exemptions from the international standards,' said Clive Booth, ACCA director of public affairs and media relations. 'This would be a serious step backwards.

'The EU's decision to use international financial reporting standards (IFRS) was a major landmark in the move towards global accounting and similar standards. It is vital that we do not move to a disparate set of regional rules.'

The paper asserts that the focus should be on ensuring that IFRS continues to be a high-quality principles-based accounting language. The EU authorities need to engage with the standard-setting process, as more countries adopt IFRS. The paper also calls for those with IFRS experience to share their views and knowledge.

'In areas such as accounting, being too prescriptive with global measures could backfire,' said Booth. 'Issuing guidance that results in mechanical rule-following could be a recipe for disaster. Principles-based standard-setting and professional judgment have a vital role to play and should not stifle recovery.

'If this can be achieved through the consultative process, it should be possible for EU public and private sector parties to contribute to the evolution of individual standards, from the initial standard-setting phase. In most cases, the EU authorities should then be in a position to give their support to new standards, as they are issued by the IASB.'

The paper concludes that while the crisis has revealed flaws in Europe's own regulatory system, the EU is still well placed to play an active role in designing new global structures and ensuring their transparency and accountability. Developing countries as well as others should be represented, guaranteeing the legitimacy of the decision-making process.

It is essential that Europe plays an active part in shaping the new global governance around progressive values.

Rewards for talented students

Your fees paid

Would you like to study for your ACCA Qualification without having to worry about paying exam or registration fees?

ACCA will reward five talented students who have already proven themselves in the ACCA Qualification exams by paying their exam and registration fees for a period of five years.

To find out more, please click here.

Changes to examinable documents rule.

Examinable documents now updated on annual basis:

Previously, ACCA updated examinable documents every six months, which meant changes to documents for the June exams had to be made and communicated by 30 November of the previous year, and for the December exams by 31 May of the same year. Going forward, ACCA has announced that it will now update examinable documents on an annual basis.

For paper-based exams regulation issued or legislation passed on or before 30 September will be assessed from 1 June of the following year to 31 May the year after. Therefore, paper-based exams in June 2009, December 2009 (and March 2010 for Russian DipIFR only) will be assessed on regulations issued and legislation passed on or before 30 September 2008.

The above rule applies to all papers and paper versions, with the exception of taxation papers, in Hong Kong, Singapore and Zimbabwe.

The annual cut off for taxation papers in Hong Kong will be 31 May, while in Singapore this will be 31 March. The annual cut off for these two regions applies to the December exam session of the same calendar year and June of the following year.

Zimbabwe taxation papers will retain the six month cut off rule. Therefore, legislation passed before 31 May is examinable in the December exam session of the same calendar year and legislation passed before 30 November examinable in the June exam session in the following calendar year.

Regulation issued or legislation passed in accordance with the above dates may be examinable even if the effective date is in the future.

Please refer directly to the examinable documents and syllabus study guides within the students and affiliates section for further detail on all papers and computer-based exams.

This change is applicable to all ACCA’s qualifications: ACCA Qualification, CAT Qualification, DipFM and DipIFR.

When will this change come into effect?

Unless otherwise indicated by the examinable documents, this change will come into effect for the June 2009 exam session. Therefore, the closing deadline for changes to examinable documents was 30 September 2008. These examinable documents will be relevant for the June and December 2009 exam sessions.

As a student, how do I benefit from this rule change?

The major benefits are you will now have longer to prepare for the exams and increased clarity and assurance as to what will be examinable at each exam session.

What are examinable documents and syllabus study guides?

The syllabuses for ACCA's range of qualifications are based on - and make reference to - a range of materials including legislation, standards, exposure drafts and interpretations. Any changes to these types of documents will now have to be communicated by 30 September of each year if they are to be examined in June or December of the following year.

Where can you find the most up to date examinable documents and syllabus study guides?

Examinable documents and syllabus study guides applicable to forthcoming exams can be found in exam paper resources within the student and affiliates section.

Steady growth for ACCA qualification

Over 6,000 students successfully complete exams

A record number of trainees took ACCA exams in December 2008 with 182,449 students taking 365,528 papers. This growth compares favourably with 164,646 candidates taking a total of 335,566 papers in June 2008.

The exam results, issued on 16 February 2009, revealed that 6,447 students successfully completed their final examinations to become ACCA affiliates. There was also an improvement in pass rates at the Professional level, which led to an overall increase in affiliates of 4.4% compared to June 2008.

Clare Minchington, ACCA's executive director - learning and customer service, said: 'This is the third sitting of the current syllabus, which was first examined in December 2007. The exams were well received by candidates, employers, and tuition providers.

'By working closely with our partners and tuition providers, we strive to ensure that students have a 360 degree, global education to enable them to be tomorrow's business leaders in a challenging global environment. Our "Train the Trainer" initiative, where we share best practice with those who teach accounting to ACCA students around the world, has helped students to reach for success.'

The pass rates for the December 2008 sitting of the ACCA Qualification are as follows:

• Paper F1 Accountant in Business - 67%
• Paper F2 Management Accounting - 59%
• Paper F3 Financial Accounting - 50%
• Paper F4 Corporate and Business Law - 39%
• Paper F5 Performance Management - 30%
• Paper F6 Taxation - 53%
• Paper F7 Financial Reporting - 42%
• Paper F8 Audit and Assurance - 43%
• Paper F9 Financial Management - 40%
• Paper P1 Professional Accountant - 53%
• Paper P2 Corporate Reporting - 54%
• Paper P3 Business Analysis - 52%
• Paper P4 Advanced Financial Management - 36%
• Paper P5 Advanced Performance Management - 43%
• Paper P6 Advanced Taxation - 41%
• Paper P7 Advanced Audit and Assurance - 39%

The pass rates for the December 2008 sitting of the Certified Accounting Technician (CAT) scheme are as follows:

• Paper 1 Recording Financial Transactions - 77%
• Paper 2 Information for Management Control - 33%
• Paper 3 Maintaining Financial Records - 45%
• Paper 4 Accounting for Costs - 37%
• Paper 5 Managing People and Systems - 41%
• Paper 6 Drafting Financial Statements - 82%
• Paper 7 Planning, Control and Performance Management - 55%
• Paper 8 Implementing Audit Procedures - 46%
• Paper 9 Preparing Taxation Computations - 73%
• Paper 10 Managing Finances - 60%