APM*** P5 June 2011 Exam was … Post your comments here and vote in Instant Poll ***

Hi guys,

So what was examined this time?

1. Transfer Pricing
2. BCG Matrix
3. Building Blocks
4. Input/Output Analysis, ABC Costing, Lifecycle view...

dats the only thing i could recall..hehe :)

Q1:division performance(transfer pricing; ROI, RI, EVA); executive information system;
i know that transfer pricing will occur, but i still can't do Q1...the calculation is difficult, and time is limit
Q2: balanced scorecard(never sought it would occur again); stakeholder; NFP org.
Q3: building blocks
Q4: BCG
it's amazing that BCG metrics will occur, i do it as i do in P3....
Q5: environment accounting?
i didn't choose it, it seems like tricky

not bad!

Was it just me then that thought this was a nightmare?
The second question was vague - ok on balanced scorecard but comparing was difficult and who did you put for the 4 stakeholders?
Question 1 - how did everyone calculate EVA?? Where was the cost of equity and also what did you do with the depn as it didnt state accounting was same as economic? I messed up Transfer Pricing as not enough time.
Question 3 - building blocks was really woolly and I just waffled on loads - not many points there.
Question 4 - spent too much time explaining what BCG is and calculating the market share v growth etc - found it hard to answer the rest of this question.
All in all I panicked half way through when realised I was going to run out of time and then lost concentration.
This is my last paper and I have flunked it!!!! Absolutely gutted and not the best way to feel on a Friday afternoon :(

Confused at how zuldlegend put on here what was in exam over 2 1/2 hours ago when it only finished at 1.15 ???

Ummm, it was ok, not too bad. Time pressured, but then, which exam isnt!

I had a nightmare too dude. Like you said those models really through me off got the BCG thing really wrong as well. I completely forgot about the market share aspect of BCG and messed up the building blocks as well.

As i began to ran out of time. Fact is i prepared for this exam a lot different than it turned out to be. For next time I'm going to look at some P3 questions as this was ridiculous !

I prepared loads for this exam too and even covered off all F5 as I didnt do F5 as syllabus changed!! I got 78% in P3 but this exam is something else!!!
Not gonna be qualified this year now!!! Its dragging on and on and am losing focus quickly :(

it was way too lengthy, q1 & 2 just too up way too much time and left fuk all for the other two questions, the scaling of marks are absoultly horrible too a question like 1a is only worth 12 marks when it takes a lot longer then the time allocated per mark to do with just the numerical stuff takes that allocated time, other then that the questions were reasonble

1.ROI RI and EVA Plus TSR
Transfer pricing
EIS
2.Balance Score Card
3.Fitzgerald & Moon Building Blocks
4.BCG matrix
5.Environmental Management Accounting

1. ROI, RI, EVA
Divisional Performance
Performance related bonus scheme
EIS
2.Balance sorecard
Identify Stakeholders
3.Fitzgerald & Moon Building Blocks
4.BCG matrix, Life cycle model for performance measurement
5.Environmental Management Accounting

To be honest, this exam was tough

ABSOLUTE DISASTER.... IF I GET 100% IN WHAT I WROTE MAYBE I WILL GET 50%...
THE PROBLEM I HAD WAS TIME... BUT DID ANYONE GET THESE VALUES (OR WERE WE NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO CALCULATE IT)
I GOT ROI =23.26%, 13.16%
RI = 184.54, 1.58
EVA = 130.36,1.27

FOR QUESTION 1 M/S, SERVICE DIVISION....

Exam was easy,nothing was too hard,but what major problem for me was that,,,there is huge difference in doing a question at home ,and doing 4 question in Exam hall,,,it was really hard to absorb the data ,and then apply that in answers, Hoping For a PASS :D

I thought the questions asked were quite fair to be honest. Balanced Scorecard, Building blocks and BCG are not too challenging but they take a heck of a long time to answer.
The divisional performance in Q1 again was ok but I went way over my time limit on it.
Overall I have a major issue with time in this exam.
I really hope I pass as I think this exam was a lot fairer than previous ones.

this exam looks easy from surface but when you really do it, it cracks mind...I can't finish answering the question. Just hope that I can get a PASS!

what did you use for your cost of equity for eva? I agree it looked easy on the outset but when I started answering the questions I was just stuck on how much I could write to get the huge amount of marks which were available? Except in the BCG where I wrote for pages and it was only worth 7 marks - oops!!
Mark allocation was 33% in one of them and 27% in the other.

Time time time presure. Lots of inoformation in every questions. I felt Q2 was difficult to expain clear, especially for final 2 sub-qustions about stakeholders and BSC comparisation.

I felt that question style was much more different with before, more focus on application of model and knowledge, evaluation and discussion of performance measure approach and strategic related questions like P3. Do you feel about it? How to practice in the future, less questions can be used to be familiar with the new examiner's style

ah now I see - I was trying to over complicate it without the need to - stupid stupid girl - so I messed up big time there then!!! although I did describe EVA!!!

Did anyone out there have time to do the transfer pricing sums? and the impact for each division and the group? on both cost plus and market price? I only had time to describe what they were etc but not enough time to do the calculations.
Gosh I think I would be just finishing it now if I were to do it right :)

how much well i was prepared seems to be an easy but technical one as no figures for balance scorecard and less quantitative data.. time was a limiting factor but overall performance was average due to too much focus on sec b.. only hops on Allah to pass. Best ov luck guys.. at last Acca over,,

Overall the paper was fine. Only Ques 1 was very long and tricky.

Can someone reply please? ==> if a candidate, out of 4 i completed 3 ques, and for ques 1 answered only for 10 marks due to time constraint, is it possible to get a pass assuming the other 3 questions answered s/he scored average 15 - 18 marks?

this was my first sitting and i think i'll fail this one and i am gutted.. because i could have done better.... the paper wasnt too difficult to be honest... it was awfully time pressured and not enough points were coming in my mind. The best question of the lot was Q.3 on building block. I answered it well but had so much to write so took more time than I should have on that question.

Question number 4 on BCG matrix was a bit tricky in my opinion. Part a was good although seven marks were too less because we had to do calculations, draw the matrix and then explain... only 7 marks for doing so much? needless to say i took a lot of time doing it.. Part b was 7 marks as well but I couldnt think of many points. I only wrote a couple of them down...Couldnt think of many criticisms. Part c on remuneration I just didnt get it..Wrote a few lines but nothing special... Question 2 wasn't bad... Part a was pretty straightforward... Got enough points for part b... Was able to identify stakeholders and explain their influences but didnt write too much because of less time.. In part d I was able to identify that the party in consideration is a not-for-profit organization...I did well on the financial and customer perspective part but couldnt think of innovation and internal business perspective...Freaking time...

Question 1 part a, did all the calculations but messed up EVA I think... Part b was extremely tricky and was a massive 12 marks and I think is the real reason I'll fail this one...Didnt have time to do calculations at all... Only attempted about 2 marks out of that one...In part c, I wrote down all the general things which came in my mind about new information system...Some points were good, some were garbage...

Overall, time was a major issue... I didnt have enough time to think about the stuff which was tricky to me..That will be my downfall...:(

@indianjoe777 said:
Overall the paper was fine. Only Ques 1 was very long and tricky.

Can someone reply please? ==> if a candidate, out of 4 i completed 3 ques, and for ques 1 answered only for 10 marks due to time constraint, is it possible to get a pass assuming the other 3 questions answered s/he scored average 15 - 18 marks?

If you get 50, you'll pass...doesnt matter how many questions u attempted...But you sure you'll be able to get 15-18 marks out of 20 in the two Section B questions...I dont think its that straightforward..But good luck anyways.

the questions are so long for me and i can't complete all ( i still have Q4b and c left).my quality in the discussion is not good so, i can't belive that i can get a pass mark :(

@aquafire said:
ABSOLUTE DISASTER.... IF I GET 100% IN WHAT I WROTE MAYBE I WILL GET 50%...
THE PROBLEM I HAD WAS TIME... BUT DID ANYONE GET THESE VALUES (OR WERE WE NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO CALCULATE IT)
I GOT ROI =23.26%, 13.16%
RI = 184.54, 1.58
EVA = 130.36,1.27

FOR QUESTION 1 M/S, SERVICE DIVISION....

I got the same info as you ! pretty sure I'm wrong though ! also i noticed they'd put in the head office allocations in the figure I said that the head office figures have been left in as the question didn't say not to remove it (another needless confusion !). I feel like most of you this paper looks easy on surface however its not easy to do it within the time limit and the requirements for 6-7 marks actually feel like 13 or more in other papers

Umm, for question 4 BCG analysis, you calculate the market share. But market leader market share is not given (except for Dance Clubs), so how are you going to determine high or low share?

@gimvie said:
If you get 50, you'll pass...doesnt matter how many questions u attempted...But you sure you'll be able to get 15-18 marks out of 20 in the two Section B questions...I dont think its that straightforward..But good luck anyways.

I think you must attempt both compuls.Questions to pass at all.
ie q1 and q2 and then the rest

@zonglin said:
Umm, for question 4 BCG analysis, you calculate the market share. But market leader market share is not given (except for Dance Clubs), so how are you going to determine high or low share?

@zonglin said:
Umm, for question 4 BCG analysis, you calculate the market share. But market leader market share is not given (except for Dance Clubs), so how are you going to determine high or low share?

What about 3% figure ive used it. dont know if its right ?