Professional accountants are often required to provide strategic advice to an organisation about the organisation’s customers.

Which of the following correctly matches the characteristics of customers and the advisory needs of different-sized organisations?

Oliver Ma has been engaged to provide business advice to Aeromatics Ltd as the entity has been experiencing a downturn in profits. Oliver has concerns about the decision-making behaviour of the senior management team.

When Oliver provides strategic advice, which of the following client behaviours correctly matches the potential approach?

When an SME (Small-Medium Enterprise) contacts an accountant and asks for help there is a chain of activity or events that describes the sequence from initially raising the issue right through to implementation and review of the outcomes. The accountant needs to display both technical skill as well as business, behaviour and leadership skills.

At which point in the process is are behavioural skills most relevant?

According to Brownlow and Vetter there are four important steps that can help an accountant understand their customer’s needs.

I Creating a service plan

II Meeting regularly with the client

III Having a formal feedback mechanism

IV Developing your skills and networking

The calculation of the Net Promoter Score is based on asking if a customer is willing to recommend you to a friend, family or colleague on a scale of 1 to 10.

Which step does this align with?

Queensland Health experienced a 1,200% cost blowout as part of their attempts to move from the LATTICE payroll system to a new system based on WorkBrain/SAP. Despite warnings that testing had not been adequate the system as launched and it led to significant anomalies in the salary that employees received.

An official inquiry found that there was poor governance and poor decision making and that the complexity of payroll requirements was underestimated. Only two weeks was allocated to determine the business requirements and solution scope to evaluate the 80,000 employees with almost 25,000 pay combinations.

Based on the traditional project management process, which of the following describes the stage that was not completed effectively and had the greatest impact on the failure of this project?

In a traditional model of communication there are creators, consumers, channels, messages, coding and decoding, and external noise can cause trouble and make communication difficult.

Which of the following best describes the sequence of steps?

You received a poor score on your 360-degree review. Your team members said they didn’t feel you appreciated how tired everyone is given the extra hours they have put in over the past two months. Your senior leadership team colleagues noted that in meetings you tend to start arguments with others because you speak before you have thought through your reasoning.

Which of the following do you need to address to improve your next 360 review score?

Your newly appointed CFO is working well to transition two finance teams into one as part of a merger with another company. One of the things employees have noticed is she acts upon what she says and doesn’t shy aware from holding others to account if they are not seen to be acting honestly. She promotes and motivates others to take control of their areas and own their outcomes.

Which of the following is most likely correct about the CFO and her approach to leadership?

A leader who spends considerable time ensuring team members’ needs are being considered, and that relationships with other teams are strong, sometimes misses on key targets and outcomes.

This type of leader is often described as which of the following?

ZigZag is a family-owned company that has been operating for more than five years. A year ago, ZigZag set up an advisory board mostly composed of family members to help it improve its performance. ZigZag is currently seeking external funding to help it grow, and has recently implemented IT disaster recovery technology as part of its risk management.

Which of the following categories most likely describes this company?

Accountants traditionally use fixed fees or time-based fees for work. Value-based billing is another method. Which of the following best describes a key action to take to help value-based billing work for both accountant and client?

Which of the following project management tools identifies interdependencies between tasks to determine which tasks can be performed at the same time and which tasks require other tasks to be completed first?

Which of the following is a project management methodology based on dividing projects into substages to help better manage and control aspects of the project?

Which of the following benefits every stage of the problem-solving process?

Which of the following modes of communication is the least informal?

John Jackson has the ability to think before he acts and is able to control disruptive impulses.

This demonstrates that John is capable of which of the following components of emotional intelligence?

Which of the following best describes the focus of a middle-of-the-road manager?

Which of the following leadership styles is demonstrated when a leader uses positive emotional content for speeches to transfer their positive moods among followers?

Which of the following roles is performed by someone who acts as the appointed head of a formal work unit?

Which one of the following options represents the least risk to the organisation from implementation of in-house offshoring?

Vennu is an easy to use digital marketplace, listing hire availability for meeting rooms, halls, auditoriums, bars, club-houses and other spaces owned by government, councils, churches, not for profits, sports clubs and other community organisations and making it easy for these organisations to connect with people looking to book local and affordable spaces for events and activities.

Which of the following options best describes Vennu’s business model?

Accounting firms of all sizes are being affected by changing technology. Change presents both opportunity and risk. Firms that fail to adapt will experience declining revenues from traditional services but those that do will be able to work more efficiently, take on more clients and create new value for their clients.

Which of the following options is least important in terms of accounting firms preparing and positioning themselves for future success with their clients?

A monthly car subscription from Audi select is way to experience driving a selection of Audi cars. Depending on which monthly subscription package is selected, subscribers have access to a range of vehicles to drive (a specified number of swaps are allowed each month) along with other benefits including unlimited mileage, comprehensive insurance, 24-7 road-side assistance, concierge delivery and retrieval.

Which of the following options represents the most likely consequence of businesses like Audi Select on the consumption and production of real assets?

Founded in February 2018, Ynomia provides Bluetooth-powered technology to track materials and keep people more connected on construction sites. In August 2019 Ynomia secured $3.6 million seed funding, from investors including Aconex co-founder Rob Phillpot and US specialist Venture Capitalist Brick & Mortar Ventures. Brick & Mortar Ventures is the largest construction tech investor in the US, and just last week closed its $US97 million institutional venture fund, dedicated to investing in hardware and software construction solutions. Aussie real estate technology investor Taronga Group has also invested, as well as Salta Capital, the venture capital arm of Salta Properties.

Which one of the following options best describes what Ynomia has done to fund the growth of their business?

Profound deafness affects about 10,000 to 12,000 adults and 1,400 children in Australia, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, and more than 300 people have had the implants inserted. The Cochlear implant, which gives even people with profound deafness the ability to hear, is considered a major medical breakthrough and a massive benefit for users.

However, many formerly deaf people struggle to adapt to sounds and language they have never heard before. “For some people it’s literally like learning a new language,” said your client, who has come up with the idea for an App specifically to address this problem and come to you for advice on how fund its development.

Which one of the following funding options would you not recommend to him, given this information?

Which one of the following sources of funding for social ventures is most likely to be misaligned with the purpose and objectives of social enterprises?

Unity Housing is an Adelaide-based, not-for-profit Community Housing Provider. They provide a broad range of housing options across South Australia. Tenants include people affected by homelessness, older people and people living with disability, refugees and asylum seekers, people leaving the criminal justice system, women and families affected by domestic violence, and people experiencing mental health issues and other challenges.

They also provide homes for people who simply cannot afford appropriate housing in the private rental market. They are concerned that their current approach to performance evaluation is not adequately demonstrating the organisation’s value to investors. They are interested in learning more about Social Return on Investment Reporting (SROI).

Which one of the following options does not represent information Unity Housing would need to calculate their SROI?

Microfinance makes very small loans to help families establish and develop businesses that would help them emerge from poverty, typically in developing countries. Some commercial microfinance lenders charge high interest rates to counteract the higher default costs associated with this type of lending, whereas other lenders act more like donors and offer funds at very low interest or even interest-free rates.

Which one of the following options best describes the consequences associated with this disparity in interest rates for loans?

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) have proved to be very important in growth and development of a country through the provision of financial services to less advantaged people in society. Assessing the performance of MFIs remains and a challenge and whilst models such as Social Return on Investment (SROI) exist to evaluate performance of social enterprises, there are criticism that approaches to measuring the outcomes of MFI funding overstate the benefits due to selection bias.

Which one of the following approaches to assessing outcomes of microfinancing is least likely to be criticised for selection bias?

As part of a strategic restructure, EZ Ltd is considering moving its accounts payable and receivable functions from Australia to its new office in India. This is expected to yield considerable cost savings in terms of labour costs and office rent. A senior manager will also relocate to manage the business unit in India.

What type of business model is this an example of?

Jenny Jarvis is working as an accountant in public practice. One of her business clients is considering offshoring some financial functions and has asked Jenny for advice.

Which of the following activities should Jenny advise her client to offshore first?

Portobella Ltd is a large Singapore-based retailer considering expanding its accounting department to provide services for other companies in the region.

Which of the following best describes the offshoring driver that this plan addresses?

Mark Moore, a keen inventor, is seeking additional finance for his start-up innovative electronics company. He has been offered finance from a venture capital organisation.

Which one of the following is a potential advantage of this arrangement?

While on holiday in Fiji, Jane Jarvis met Tamahine, a local woman selling coconut drink at a stall near the resort where Jane was staying. She learned that Tamahine was seeking a loan through a local organisation funded by Kiva to buy new drink coolers for her stall. Jane was keen to help Tamahine in this business venture.

Which of the following statements about this is accurate?

Which of the following is the most important method used by service providers to offset consumer concerns due to inherent weaknesses affecting the sharing economy business model?

Which of the following is accurate in relation to Angel investors providing funding for start-up stage ventures?

Which of the following sources of funding is unique to social enterprises?

Which of the following does not distinguish the sharing economy from other parts of the economy?

Which area has accounting for the microfinance sector largely focused on?

Steph Randell is the CEO of Hitek Futures, a software development company. Steph has noticed that employee satisfaction surveys are showing decreasing employee motivation. She is considering methods for addressing this issue.

Which one of the following approaches will best address motivator factors in the Hitek Futures workplace?

Which one of the following functions is most likely to be performed by a dedicated human resources department in a larger organisation?

Carol Yim has just taken over as the CEO of Randwick Ventures, an investment company based in Singapore with offices across Asia. The company’s performance had weakened over the previous three years, leading to the resignation of the previous CEO. While familiarising herself with the company’s operations, Carol is investigating the existing corporate culture.

Which one of the following findings from Carol’s investigations most likely represents a deep truth that affects Randwick Ventures’ organisational culture?

Lawry Financial Services (Lawry), an Australian accounting and financial advice company, has opened a new office in Thailand. The dominant culture in Thailand is considered to be high power-distance and collectivist. James Fraser, the training manager at Lawry, is designing a series of training courses for the newly-recruited staff in the Bangkok office.

Which one of the following would be the most suitable approach for James to take when designing these training courses?

The Majorelle Consortium is a global consultancy company. The company has recently expanded through acquisitions in several countries across the globe. A survey was conducted to determine the overall level of cultural competence of the new employees joining the company.

It was found that these employees were generally accepting that Majorelle’s business approach was helpful, and that they were more effective in their jobs since the acquisitions.

Which one of the following stages of cultural competence acquisition best fits this finding?

Kevin Delaney works as a part-time contract worker for the Science Institute of Australia (SIA), a membership organisation for scientists. In this role, he develops and assesses professional development courses for members. He has recently also commenced a similar role with Mason Training Services, a company that provides coaching and tuition support to SIA members.

Which one of the following statements describes the most important processes that the HR manager at SIA should consider regarding any employees in similar positions to Kevin’s?

Comet Projects is an industrial project management company headquartered in Singapore, with offices throughout the Asia Pacific region. The company has begun to undertake several new regional cross-border projects. The CEO has sought advice from Josephine Chia, the CFO, on the establishment of virtual teams to address these projects.

Which one of the following statements reflects the most appropriate advice that Josephine could offer to assist in the success of this initiative?

Which one of the following technologies or processes would be the most appropriate for an organisation needing to make it easier for employees to locate experts anywhere within an organisation?

Pearlshell Consulting is a financial consultancy operating in the UK and Australia. The company is currently considering an expansion into Thailand through acquisition of a local consultancy. Pearlshell Consulting currently uses a centralised knowledge base for providing product and service information to staff. Patrick Young, the senior Knowledge Manager, is now considering how to best provide this information to the new staff in Thailand.

Which one of the following statements gives the most appropriate first step for Patrick to take?

Mary Bradley is a senior accountant in a national manufacturing company in New Zealand. She has had many years experience in the industry, and is keen to expand her role beyond merely dealing with numbers.

Which one of the following statements represents the best approach for Mary to take to develop a broader role in advising on people management issues?

How can ‘corporate social capital’ be defined?

ARI Ltd is a medium-sized company experiencing high staff turnover. The board of directors is concerned because of the high cost of turnover and loss of internal knowledge. The board recently appointed A-2-Z, an external accounting firm, to help resolve this problem.

Which one of the following is the most effective way for A-2-Z to assist the board in addressing the high staff turnover?

Simlons Industries is a small manufacturing company with three senior managers who are all ‘baby boomers’.

Which of the following is most likely to be the biggest concern for the company?

Which of the following accurately reflects findings from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (2022) about the workforce?

Effective sharing of tacit knowledge will most likely take place in an organisation when

Which of the following is a key reason that organisations should proactively support and foster a knowledge-sharing environment?

Which of the following human resource management tasks describes on-boarding?

Which of the following workers is least likely to face challenges obtaining a personal loan due to loss of job security and unpredictable work arrangements?

Which of the following is the most important consideration for organisations moving to teleworking arrangements?

HR Accountants Ltd (HRA) is a mid-tier accounting firm located in Sydney, Australia. To reduce labour costs, HRA decided to outsource routine book-keeping tasks to an offshore supplier in Singapore.

Which of the following people management issues is most likely to be faced by HRA’s human resource leaders?

In early 2016, the Nigerian economy was facing significant difficulty because of the drop in oil prices. The country exports a large amount of oil and so lower prices means it has less foreign currency and less money to spend on government programs.

One of the problems it faces is that because it sells fuel at a subsidised rate within the country, there are people who will purchase that fuel and then on-sell it overseas at a higher price. This means that despite cheap fuel, many petrol stations have run dry.

Which of the following best describes this situation?

You work in a bank as a senior accountant in the credit department. As part of your assurance role, you are required to review commercial loans to ensure they meet the bank’s minimum requirements.

Assuming your bank has strong views on the importance of food sustainability, which of the following statements best describes your approach to reviewing a $280 million loan to a fuel company to create Australia’s largest biofuel farm?

Which of the following is not an opportunity for all businesses operating within a carbon-constrained economy?

Which of the following is not a negative impact from the introduction of a carbon tax?

Coal-fired power plants use a large amount of water to run their turbines that produces electricity. As water becomes scarcer, governments are looking for ways to reduce consumption. One proposal is to use treated sewerage in power plants.

Which of the following types of water sustainability methods is this most closely associated with?

Oil prices are heavily influenced by major world events including war and political activity.

Which of the following caused the greatest change in oil prices?

Which of the following provides close to one-quarter of all the world’s primary energy?

Food security is a global issue.

Which of the following statements accurately describes recent impacts in relation to food prices?

Comparing the world’s largest economies, which country has the lowest per capita emissions?

Which of the following is a likely impact of a carbon tax or emissions trading scheme on businesses?