BAP41: Creative Essay Analysis Criteria.

Literature Review

1. Group Presentation due Date and Submission

As per the subject description, a creative attempt or in class group presentation constitutes 10% of the total assessment in this subject. Due date is week 10, 11 or 12 in class time (refer above).

• Groups will be formed / allocated by week 5 (this is the responsibility of the individual student).
• Group presentation time will be allocated from week 5.

Students are required to complete the assessment in groups of 3-5 and do not have an automatic entitlement to adopt some other arrangements without prior permission from the lecturer.

Each group need to follow the creative / presentation / analysis assessment criteria refer section (9) & (10) and each member of the group needs to participate in the presentation (if that option is selected). PowerPoint slides (six slides in one page) are to be submitted in the presentation time in class before presentation.

Each group will also need to submit a Group Assignment Self and Peer Evaluation – marks will not be allocated until this has been completed and handed into you lecturer.

2. Objective

BAP41 covers a range of important theory and practice of issues in Auditing & Assurance. The main purpose of this assessment is to provide students with the opportunity to extend their understanding and practical application in a key audit skill (Analytical Review Procedures) which are used throughout an audit and in practice have been deemed to be effective in highlighting potential earnings management issues.

3. Assessment criteria

In assessing the creative / presentation and analysis consideration will be given to overall neatness, completeness and quality of the creative or presentation, timeliness of submission and demonstrated application of the core skills required to undertake effective Analytical Review procedures.

You will acquire a range of excel skills such as writing formulae to perform accounting analytics and summarising your results using pivot tables, graphs and slicers. Those skills will enable you to prepare an accounting analytics dashboard which will enable reviewers to understand your approach, analysis and conclusions.

You will be required to analyse the financial information of ABC Learning over the period 2000-2007 using Analytical Review techniques such as DuPont Analysis, Common Size, Trend Analysis and the Beneish M-Score models (refer Week 4 lecture) to identify:

• any potential earnings management
• in which accounts and
• for which years.

In assessing the presentation the following criteria including marking criteria (section 9 & 10) will be followed.

Clarity

Presentations are expected to be made in a clear, concise and understandable manner. It is required that an outline be made at the inception of the presentation to show introduction, body and conclusion of the presentation. Presenters’ ability to comply with the outline will be assessed. 

Application of DuPont Analysis, Common size, Trend analysis and Beneish M-Score

Presentation Tools

It is required that Slides must be used. Non-compliance will result in a fail grade. Other visual aids are encouraged to be used (i.e. charts, graph etc.).

Duration

Students should comply with the duration requirement as per unit outline. The presentation time should not exceed 10 minutes. Presentation too long or too short will be penalised. 

In assessing the Creative the following criteria will be used: 

• Research Effort
• Understanding and critical reflection
• Originality / creativity
• Effectiveness of Message 

The creative effort should be no more than 10-15min duration. 

For the detail please refer to attached Rubric’s.

4. Group Presentation:

Students will be required to act as an Audit Senior involved in the Audit of ABC Learning who is completing the Audit Planning and is responsible for the effective Analytical review of the historical financials covering the years 2000-2007.

The results of your review will need to be summarised for your Audit Manager highlighting areas of concern and recommendations in terms of changes to the Audit Strategy.

5. Plagiarism 

Taking another person’s ideas, words or inventions and presenting them as your own without acknowledging your sources (citing or referencing), is plagiarism. Paraphrasing or rewording another person’s work, without acknowledging its source, is also plagiarism. If you are identified with plagiarism assessment mark will be zero.

6. Referencing 

Correct referencing is important for two main reasons. The first is to enable the reader to access source material you have relied upon, should they care to. The other is to ensure that you have properly recognized the contribution of the work of others to your assignment. If you do not do this properly, you are engaging in plagiarism—the theft, intentional or otherwise, of the intellectual or creative work of others. UBBS will not tolerate plagiarism. It is therefore important that you understand how to avoid it. It is important that you adopt a consistent, and adequate, referencing system. Reference system to be used Harvard Anglia. 

7. Groups:

Your group will be required to select a Group Lead who will be the contact person for the group and lecturer. The Group Lead will also submit the Group Assignment on behalf of everyone in the group.

Requirements:  Group Oral Presentations (50 marks reduced to 5 Marks)

From week 5, you will be allocated a group for your Group Presentation. These selected groups will be either self-selected or allocated by lecturer. You will work with the other members and provide a 10 minute presentation in either week 10, 11 or 12 covering your findings, analysis and impact on Audit Strategy. All members of the group must participate for marking and your presentation scores are individual. 

8. Analysis Requirements and Layout:

The PowerPoint presentation (Analysis) is to be in a format acceptable for a professional presentation. The Analysis should include the following sections as a minimum.

1) Introduction (this should state what the purpose of the report is, what Accounting theme is being explored, which company is being reviewed (if applicable), which standards / criteria are being applied etc.)

2) Literature Review (review the relevant Auditing standards impacting your approach)

3) Application of DuPont Analysis, Common size, Trend analysis and Beneish M-Score

4) Analysis (this is the main body and provides your research findings)

5) Summary of Findings (this section highlights the key findings from your analysis)

6) Recommendations (this section summarises YOUR key recommendations and emphasises your JUDGEMENT)

7) Conclusion (this section should reflect upon what you stated in the introduction i.e. what you have done and what you found. The conclusion is about closing the analysis and NOT introducing new material.)

8) Appendices (These are optional and can include any additional findings and materials you believe are relevant)

9) Referencing (Harvard Anglia compliant)

You may find it very useful to make a table using these 9 points as a starting point to review your GROUP’s Analysis.

You should also use the attached RUBRIC (refer Section 9 and 10) to self-assess how well your Analysis reaches the targeted outcomes.  Analysis Rubric

Criteria	HD	HD	Distinction	Credit	Pass	Fail	Fail
Knowledge (25%)	Demonstrated SOPHISTICATED knowledge and understanding.	Demonstrated COMPREHENSIVE knowledge and understanding.	Demonstrated a DETAILED and REASONED level of knowledge and understanding.	Demonstrated SOME level of knowledge and understanding.	Demonstrated a LIMITED but RELEVANT level of knowledge and understanding.	Demonstrated a GENERAL level of knowledge and understanding.	Lacked any real knowledge or understanding.
Judgement (15%)	Presented a SOPHISTICATED and CRITICAL judgement with relevant supporting information which identified the judgement as ground-breaking.	Presented a COMPREHENSIVE judgement with relevant supporting information.	Attempted to present a reasoned judgement with relevant supporting information.	Provided some relevant judgement with supporting information.	Provided limited judgement with relevant information.	Provided some basic information.	Did not provide any basic or relevant information.
Analysis (30%)	SOPHISTICATED /CRITICAL analysis of each of the key issues identified (re Earnings Management) and impacts on audit strategy. Analysis reflects excellent engagement with the context of the theme selected and links to relevant theory / literature.	COMPREHENSIVE discussion of each of the key issues identified (re Earnings Management) and impacts on audit strategy. Analysis reflects very good engagement with the context of the theme selected and links to relevant theory / literature.	Provided detailed and reasoned discussion of each of the key issues identified (re Earnings Management) and impacts on audit strategy. Analysis reflects good engagement with the context of the theme selected or relevant theory / literature.	Provided some detailed discussion of each of the key issues identified (re Earnings Management) and impacts on audit strategy. Analysis reflects some engagement with the context of the theme selected or relevant theory / literature.	Simple discussion of each of the key issues identified (re Earnings Management) and impacts on audit strategy. Analysis reflects limited engagement with the context of the theme selected or relevant theory / literature.	Poor Evaluation or analysis. Significant gaps in the analysis and lack of understanding of the issues.	Little or no evaluation or analysis.
Terminology (5%)	Integrated and applied specific, accurate and relevant terminology	Consistently throughout applied accurate and relevant terminology	Mostly applied accurate and relevant terminology	Used some relevant and appropriate terminology	Limited use of relevant terminology	Used little or inaccurate terminology	Used no relevant and inaccurate terminology
Response (15%)	Presented a sustained, logical and well-structured response applying the Analysis structure points.	Presented an extended, logical and structured response applying the Analysis structure points.	Presented a logical and structured response applying the Analysis structure points.	Presented a logical response utlising some of the Analysis structure points.	Presented a logical response utlising some of the Analysis structure points.	Presented an underdeveloped response	Presented an underdeveloped and incoherent response
Reference (5%)	>25 relevant references provided	> 20 relevant references provided	>15 relevant references provided	> 10 relevant references provided	A minimum of 10 relevant references provided	A limited number of general references provided.	No references provided
Referencing (5%)	Appropriate use of Referencing / citations. Correct referencing throughout. Referencing enhances critical judgement	Appropriate use of Referencing / citations. Correct referencing throughout	Appropriate use of Referencing / citations. Referencing is mainly accurate.	Some effort to use Referencing / citations. Referencing is mainly accurate	Limited effort to use Referencing / citations. Errors demonstrate a lack of attention to detail	Referencing / citations mostly absent / not systemic / incorrect however some effort has been made	No referencing or citations used

10. Verbal Presentation Assessment Criteria

You will be assessed during your presentation on the following components:

The presentation will carry an individual score of 50 marks (reduced to 5 Marks) and will be based on how well students demonstrate the following presentation skills:

• Clear communication and engagement with the audience, use of eye contact to involve audience members
• Appropriateness and use of visual aids
• Ability to answer questions convincingly
• Marks will be deducted for exceeding the overall presentation time limit of 10min

Marks	Marking Criteria
HD 8.5-10	·         Presents in an articulate, logical and confident manner and shows excellent innovation and originality in the presentation ·         Displays a complete set of the technical skills related to this topic ·         Has a sophisticated understanding of the topic presented ·         Shows a refined understanding of the material researched
D 7.5-8.5	·         Presents in a proficient, logical and confident manner and shows some elements of innovation and originality in the presentation ·         Displays proficiency in the technical skills ·         Has a very good understanding of the topic presented ·         Shows a clear understanding of the material research
CR 6.5-7.5	·         Presents in a competent and sustained manner and shows some attempt to be creative with innovation and originality in the presentation ·         Displays competency in the technical skills ·         Has a good understanding of the topic presented ·         Shows some understanding of the material researched
P 5 – 6.5	·         Presents with limited preparation / confidence and shows limited innovation or originality in the presentation ·         Displays limited technical skills ·         Has a limited understanding of the topic presented ·         Shows a limited understanding of the material researched
F < 5	·         Presents with no preparation / confidence and shows no innovation or originality in the presentation ·         Displays few, if any technical skills ·         Has little or no understanding of the topic presented ·         Shows no understanding of the material researched

11. 
    Creative Assessment Criteria

You will be assessed on the following components:

Part A:		Below Expectations	Meets Expectations	Exceeds Expectations
		- fail grade	– pass to credit grade	- distinction to high distinction grade
1. RESEARCH EFFORT
Bibliography		Less than 8 references. Research narrow or irrelevant.	8 references from wide range of sources	More than 8 references from a wide range of sources
					/2
Assessment task informed by research.		Work shows little or no evidence of use of research material.	Research material incorporated into work. Good description of the corporate collapse.	Research material effectively incorporated into work. Sophisticated coverage of the corporate collapse.	/3
2. UNDERSTANDING AND CRITICAL REFLECTION
Understanding		Limited understanding of the role of accounting in the	Sound understanding of the role of accounting in	Sophisticated understanding of the role of accounting
		corporate collapse.	in the corporate collapse. Sensitive to	in the corporate collapse. Sensitive to
			contextual factors.	contextual factors.
					/3
Critical reflection		Limited understanding and critical reflection on the role that Analytical Review procedures could have had on the audit strategy. Descriptive in nature rather than evaluative.	Some acknowledgement and critical reflection on the role that Analytical Review procedures could have had on the audit strategy. Provides some context to the potential change in audit strategy.	Sophisticated understanding and critical reflection on the role that Analytical Review procedures could have had on the audit strategy. Provides detailed context and analysis on the potential change in audit strategy.	/5
3. ORIGINALITY / CREATIVITY
Creation		Work poorly presented.	Work presented in an original and creative	Work presented in a highly creative manner.
			manner.	Demonstrates willingness to be experimental.
					/5
4. EFFECTIVENESS OF MESSAGE
Message		Message absent or vague.	The message is clearly and effectively delivered,	The message is clearly and powerfully delivered. The
			and captures the attention of the	reader/audience is captured by the message.
			reader/audience.
					/2
5. SUMMARY of Analytical Review Procedures Undertaken (Excel spreadsheet with formula’s used and workings applied to be handed in)
		Summary not included or poorly presented.	Clearly presented, formula’s correctly applied with few mistakes	Comprehensive analytical analysis undertaken and correctly applied with no errors.	/5
6. Individual Contribution
Individual		Limited or no contribution as peer reviewed and / or noted by lecturer.	Appropriate contribution as peer reviewed and / or noted by lecturer.	Individual excelled in the team as acknowledged by the peer review and / or noted by lecturer.	/5

• The main purpose of the presentation is to give a detailed insight into how adoption of malpractices can spell doom for an entity via example of ABC LEARNINGS.
• This presentation will include the study of relevant auditing standards
• The Accounting theme that is being explored is the correct preparation and presentation of the financial information.
• The analysis of the financial performance will be done using some effective and time tested financial tools.

Literature Review  

The slides will give us a glimpse of the relevant Auditing standards applicable in our approach:

a)ASA 200:

The Overall Objectives of an Independent Auditor and conduct of an audit in accordance with the Australian auditing standards

1. b) ASA 220:

Quality control for an audit of  financial report and other historical financial information

1. c) ASA 230:

Audit Documentation 

1. d) ASA 240

Consideration of laws and regulations in audit of a financial report

1. e) ASA 315

Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment

1. f) ASA 500:

Audit evidences

Tools used to analyse the financials of the company

a)DuPont analysis:     

1. b) Common size statement analysis:      

1. c) Trend analysis: 

1. d) Trend analysis:      

1. e) Beneish M Score Analysis:

Analysis

1)DuPont analysis:

      The companies ROE has reduced drastically to 14% in the year 2001. This was predominantly due to the ever decreasing trend in profit margin of the company.

2) Common size statement analysis:  

1. a) Common size income statement:

      The company’s EBITDA  and EBIT has reduced after the year 2003. They recorded a  minimum of 17% and 19% respectively.   

1. b) Common size balance sheet:

        it demonstrates that the company’s cash reserves with respect to sales has reduced over the years and the reserves and surplus of the company has become negative over the years (McKee, 2015).

3) Trend analysis:

a)Income statement analysis:

      The rise in the operating revenue of the company is far less or overshadowed by the rise in the operating expenses. This has resulted in lower profitability.

b)Balance sheet analysis:

      There has been increase in the cash balance of the company by cash infusion by way of share capital and increased profitability. This is accompanied by increase in the retained earnings of the company (Knight, 2015).

4) Beneish M Score Analysis:

      The company has been scoring more than -2.22 since year 2003 and the highest being recorded in the year 2006. This implies that the company has been involved high amount of mal practices and manipulation of the data. 

Summary of the findings

a)The company has not generated decent ROE for its shareholders.

b)The company is unable to increase its overall EBITDA and EBIT over the years as a percentage of revenue.

c)The company’s cash inflow as a percentage of revenue has declined over the years.

1. d) The company has been registering an adverse Beneish M score. This indicates adoption of  fraudulent practices.  

RECOMMENDATION

a)Adoption of fraudulent activities by the company must be stopped immediately.

b)In order to substantially increase the returns o the company it must focus on reducing the operating costs of the company.

c)The company must resort to measures which will increase its profitability to ensure reinstatement of the reserves and surplus positive balance.

d)The company should take the opportunity of increasing the return on the new capital being infused in it by the shareholders. 

• The companies need to increase their profitability in order to increase the balance in the reserves and surplus. Because profit and loss account balance is the main component of the reserves and surplus.
• Dwindling Return on Capital may instigate the shareholders to stop investing in the company
• Adoption of fraudulent activities by any company will result in the eventual destruction of its image and business in the long run.

Reference

´Ball, F., Tyler, J. & Wells, P., (2015). Is audit quality impacted by auditor relationships?. Journal of Contemporary Accounting & Economics, 11(2), pp.166-181.

´Bonevski, B., Magin, P., Horton, G., Bryant, J., Randell, M. & Kimlin, M.G., (2015). An internet based approach to improve general practitioners’ knowledge and practices: The development and pilot testing of the “ABC's of vitamin D” program. International journal of medical informatics, 84(6), pp.413-422.

´Cheng, C. & Flasher, R., (2017). Two Short Case Studies in Staff Auditor and Student Ethical Decision Making. Issues in Accounting Education.

´Clikeman, P.M. & Diaz, J., (2014). ABC Electronics: An Instructional Case Illustrating Auditors' Use of Preliminary Analytical Procedures. Current Issues in Auditing, 8(1), pp.I1-I10.

´Kasasbeh, M.A.M., McCabe, C. & Payne, S.,( 2017). Action learning: an effective way to improve cancer?related pain management. Journal of clinical nursing, 26(21-22), pp.3430-3441.

´Knight, M., (2015). Producing Transformative Learning in Business and Professional Communication.

´Le, N. & Lehmann, C.M., (2016). Purchasing Process Internal Control Assessment: A Comprenhensive Case Study Using Data Analytic Software. AIS Educator Journal, 11(1), pp.9-15.

´McKee, D., (2015). New external audit report standards are game changing. Governance Directions, 67(4), p.222.

´Olubunmi, A.G. & Tar, M., (2015). Impact of Psychological Well-Being on the Vocabulary Acquisition Level of Nigerian Adolescents Learning French Language in Rural Settings. Asian Journal Of Humanity, Art And Literature, 2(1), pp.24-28.

´Shabri, S.M., Saad, R.A.J. & Bakar, A.A.,( 2016). The Effects of Internal Control Systems on Cooperative's Profi tability: A Case of Koperasi ABC Berhad. International Review of Management and Marketing, 6(8S).

´Thomas, V., (2015). Learning to adapt. Art Buyer, (2015), p.126.

´Yusoff, M., Rahman, A., Rahman, J.A. & Ab-Rahman, M.S., (2016). Designing a Reliable Academic Quality Management System in Nurturing Future Engineering Professionals-A Case Study. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities, 24.