2020年ACCA考试的几种题型

正确答案：
(b) The launch of any new business is a critical event and a marketing plan a vital ingredient in achieving launch success. Most
companies will associate a marketing plan with the ever-popular 4 Ps. However, the marketing mix can only be decided once
some fundamental marketing decisions have been taken. Firstly, the group need to clearly identify which segments of the
market they are seeking to attract. Segments are made up of groups of customers with similar needs and expectations. If they
are identifying the student market as an important segment they should recognise that there are very different segments within
this group. They are most likely to want to target those students willing and able to pay for a high quality meal and experience.
They are not in the market for low priced/fast food. This requires them to recognise how they are trying to position their
restaurant – high quality and moderate prices looks to be a combination, which will deliver an attractive service and added
value to the customer. The relationship between the customers’ perception of added value and the price charged is, in terms
of Bowman’s strategy clock, likely to be that of a focused differentiator.
For the Casa del Mediterraneo getting the product or service right will involve a complex co-ordination of many different
activities – from buying the right food through to delivering the orders efficiently. As a service, there may be many more things
that potentially can go wrong and it really does come down to the people delivering the service. This involves one of the
additional ‘P’s, involved in delivering services, namely processes, which together with the physical evidence in the shape of
the restaurant, will have a major say in the success or otherwise of the launch. Clearly, the place and the physical evidence
are one and the same thing and the right location will also affect the success of both the launch and the whole venture.
Pricing in a competitive market will be important and many upmarket restaurants price on the basis of what the market will
bear. There needs to be a clear relationship between the price and the value offered. Finally, promotion is perhaps the key
element in the effective launch of the new restaurant. There will need to be a correct choice of media to reach the targetaudience including the use of web-based advertising to get the restaurant known.

正确答案：
(ii) The ROI of Beetown is currently 13·96%. In order to obtain an ROI of 20%, operating profit would need to increase to
(20% x $3,160,000) = $632,000, based on the current level of net assets. Three alternative ways in which a target
ROI of 20% could be achieved for the Beetown centre are as follows:
(1) Attempts could be made to increase revenue by attracting more clients while keeping invested capital and operating
profit per $ of revenue constant. Revenue would have to increase to $2,361,644, assuming that the current level
of profitability is maintained and fixed costs remain unchanged. The current rate of contribution to revenue is
$2,100,000 – $567,000 = $1,533,000/$2,100,000 = 73%. Operating profit needs to increase by $191,000
in order to achieve an ROI of 20%. Therefore, revenue needs to increase by $191,000/0·73 = $261,644 =
12·46%.
(2) Attempts could be made to decrease the level of operating costs by, for example, increasing the efficiency of
maintenance operations. This would have the effect of increasing operating profit per $ of revenue. This would
require that revenue and invested capital were kept constant. Total operating costs would need to fall by $191,000
in order to obtain an ROI of 20%. This represents a percentage decrease of 191,000/1,659,000 = 11·5%. If fixed
costs were truly fixed, then variable costs would need to fall to a level of $376,000, which represents a decrease
of 33·7%.
(3) Attempts could be made to decrease the net asset base of HFG by, for example, reducing debtor balances and/or
increasing creditor balances, while keeping turnover and operating profit per $ of revenue constant. Net assets
would need to fall to a level of ($441,000/0·2) = $2,205,000, which represents a percentage decrease
amounting to $3,160,000 – $2,205,000 = 955,000/3,160,000 = 30·2%.

正确答案：
(b) An illustration of the features detailed above, framed in the context of a University as an organisation in the not-for-profit sector
might be as follows:
The Overall objective might well be stated in the mission statement of a University. An example of such a mission statement
might be as follows:
‘To provide a quality educational environment in a range of undergraduate and post-graduate disciplines and a quality
educational focus for students and the business community.’
More specifically, objectives may be seen as the achievement of ‘value for money’ thereby ensuring effectiveness in areas such
as:
– The provision of high added value to students;
– The establishment of a reputation for recognised expertise in specific areas of research work within the wider community;
and
– The provision of a high quality service to industry and commerce.
Strategies may focus on aspects such as:
– The recruitment and retention of high quality academic staff;
– The development of IT equipment and skills within the institution;
– The mentoring of students in order to ensure high added value and low drop-out rates in intermediate years of study;
and
– The close liaison with employers as to qualities in graduate/post-graduate employees that they will value highly.
The determinants used to measure the results of strategies might include:
– Competitiveness – cost per graduate compared to other institutions; growth in student numbers; number of staff holding
a PhD qualification;
– Financial performance – average cost per graduate; income generation from consultancy work;
– Quality – range of awards (percentages of 1st class degrees); employer responses; measures of quality of delivery of
education, advice to students, etc;
– Flexibility – variable entry and exit points to courses; modular structure; the variety of full-time, part-time and distance
learning modes;
– Resource Utilisation – staff:student ratios; quotas met by each course; accommodation filled;
– Innovation – latest IT provision in linking lecture theatres to information databases; increased provision of flexilearning/
mixed mode course provision.
The application of business change techniques might include the following:
BPR with a focus on IT developments, flexible-learning or mixed mode course provision.
JIT with a focus on moves towards student-centred uptake of educational opportunities e.g. via intranet availability of lecture
and tutorial material linked to more flexible access to staff rather than a ‘push’ system of pre-structured times of
lectures/tutorials.
TQM with a focus on moves to improve quality in all aspects of the learning environment including delivery of lectures, access
to staff and pastoral care issues.
ABM with a focus on activities on a per student basis (both planned and actual) with a view to eliminating activities that do
not add value e.g. cost per lecture per student.

正确答案：
(a) Reliability and Measurement
Fair value can be defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability. The fair value can
be thought of as an ‘exit price’. A fair value measurement assumes that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability
occurs in the principal market for the asset or liability or, in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market
for the asset or liability which is the market in which the reporting entity would sell the asset or transfer the liability with the
price that maximises the amount that would be received or minimises the amount that would be paid. IAS39 ‘Financial
Instruments: Recognition and Measurement’ requires an entity to use the most advantageous active market in measuring the
fair value of a financial asset or liability when multiple markets exist whereas IAS41 ‘Agriculture’ requires an entity to use the
most relevant market. Thus there can be different approaches for estimating exit prices. Additionally valuation techniques and
current replacement cost could be used.
A hierarchy of fair value measurements would have to be developed in order to convey information about the nature of the
information used in creating the fair values. For example quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets would provide better
quality information than quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets which would provide better quality
information than prices which reflect the reporting entity’s own thinking about the assumptions that market participants would
use in pricing the asset or liability. Enron made extensive use of what it called ‘mark-to-market’ accounting which was based
on valuation techniques and estimates. IFRSs currently do not have a single hierarchy that applies to all fair value measures.
Instead individual standards indicate preferences for certain inputs and measures of fair value over others, but this guidance
is not consistent among all IFRSs.
Some companies, in order to effectively manage their businesses, have already developed models for determining fair values.
Businesses manage their operations by managing risks. A risk management process often requires measurement of fair values
of contracts, financial instruments, and risk positions.
If markets were liquid and transparent for all assets and liabilities, fair value accounting clearly would give reliable information
which is useful in the decision making process. However, because many assets and liabilities do not have an active market,
the inputs and methods for estimating their fair value are more subjective and, therefore, the valuations are less reliable. Fair
value estimates can vary greatly, depending on the valuation inputs and methodology used. Where management uses
significant judgment in selecting market inputs when market prices are not available, reliability will continue to be an issue.
Management can use significant judgment in the valuation process. Management bias, whether intentional or unintentional,
may result in inappropriate fair value measurements and consequently misstatements of earnings and equity capital. Without
reliable fair value estimates, the potential for misstatements in financial statements prepared using fair value measurements
will be even greater.
Consideration must be given to revenue recognition issues in a fair value system. It must be ensured that unearned revenue
is not recognised early as it recently was by certain high-tech companies.
As the variety and complexity of financial instruments increases, so does the need for independent verification of fair value
estimates. However, verification of valuations that are not based on observable market prices is very challenging. Users of
financial statements will need to place greater emphasis on understanding how assets and liabilities are measured and how
reliable these valuations are when making decisions based on them.
Disclosure
Fair values reflect point estimates and do not result in transparent financial statements. Additional disclosures are necessary
to bring meaning to these fair value estimates. These disclosures might include key drivers affecting valuations, fair-valuerange
estimates, and confidence levels. Another important disclosure consideration relates to changes in fair value amounts.
For example, changes in fair values on securities can arise from movements in interest rates, foreign-currency rates, and credit
quality, as well as purchases and sales from the portfolio. For users to understand fair value estimates, they must be given
adequate disclosures about what factors caused the changes in fair value. It could be argued that the costs involved in
determining fair values may exceed the benefits derived therefrom. When considering how fair value information should be
presented in the financial statements, it is important to consider what type of financial information investors want. There are
indications that some investors desire both fair value information and historical cost information. One of the issues affecting
the credibility of fair value disclosures currently is that a number of companies include ‘health warnings’ with their disclosures
indicating that the information is not used by management. This language may contribute to users believing that the fair value
disclosures lack credibility.