financial controller case study

The case study:
Mark, who is a Chartered Accountant (CA), is the Financial Controller of X Pty Ltd
(X). The company imports and distributes one product only and employs 21 people
including the owner, Joseph. This product is imported from Spain.
X has a history of profitability and stable growth. However, in the past 6 months Mark
has been frustrated with Joe’s apparent lack of interest in the business. Customer
complaints are increasing and service levels are declining. As a result, sales have
started to fall for the first time since the company commenced operations.
Joseph places a great deal of reliance on Mark, both for her financial expertise and her
ability to keep things on track when Joseph is on one of his many overseas trips.
One day Mark receives a phone call from a friend, Jackie. Jackie is also in the import
and distribution business, although with a completely different product.
Jackie advises Mark that she has recently had several meetings with the manufacturers
of the product imported and distributed by X. The manufacturers are of the opinion
that X can no longer provide the required levels of service and have decided to cancel
X’s contract and award the distribution rights to Jackie’s company.
Jackie then invites Mark to come and work for her when X inevitably collapses. She
offers Mark a substantially higher salary than the one she currently earns. In addition,
she would like Mark to recruit X’s best operations staff to come to Jackie’s company
with her. Jackie says to Mark ‘. . . obviously, this is confidential so don’t mention it to
anyone just yet, especially Joseph’.

Assume that you are Mark, the financial controller of
X Pty Ltd.

(a) Identify the relevant facts of the above case study to your role as
financial controller of X Pty Ltd.

(b) List the four key stakeholders affected by the above case study.