P5 exam tips – December 2012 sitting

Opentuition

Learning curves and budgeting
Non-financial performance measurement: balanced score card etc.
Transfer pricing
Activity based costing
Environmental management accounting including life cycle costing and costs of quality.

Kaplan Financial

• Building block model linked to CSFs.
• Importance of political factors in performance management.
• Evaluation of a performance management system.
• Corporate failure.
• Divisional performance appraisal and transfer pricing.

BPP

Section A (50-70 marks in total) will contain two compulsory questions; each question will be allocated between 25 and 40 marks. The style of recent exam papers has been that question 1 in the exam has required a high level of data analysis using numerical techniques e.g. ROCE, RI and EVA. Question 2, in recent sittings, has often asked for the application of a performance management framework such as the balanced scorecard, the building blocks model, the performance pyramid and the performance prism. The balanced scorecard and the buildings blocks model are due to be tested.
In section B (30-50 marks in total) you will need to choose two questions from a choice of three. Each question will be worth between 15 and 25 marks. Commonly tested areas include quality management, benchmarking (in both a private & a public sector context), the application of strategic models (such as PEST, Porter’s 5 forces and the BCG matrix), corporate failure models and transfer pricing.

First intuition

Critique an existing performance management system.
Transfer pricing.
ROI, RI and EVA.
Activity based principles.
Corporate failure prediction.
Performance management models.
Assess performance against financial and non-financial (incl environmental) targets.

LCA

Benchmarking.
Impact of external factors on strategy and performance.
The role of performance management systems in business integration – value chain and McKinsey’s 7S’s.
Transfer pricing.
ROI, RI and EVA.
Not for profit organisations – value for money.

Becker

Activity based management.
Value chain analysis.
Balanced scorecard or Fitzgerald and Moon building blocks model.
Critical success factors.
Beyond budgeting/behavioural aspects of budgeting.

best of luck with exam!
ansi