BE283-7-AU-SO:
Financial Analysis and Decision Making
2023/24
Essex Business School
Southend Campus
Autumn
Postgraduate: Level 7
Current
Thursday 05 October 2023
Friday 15 December 2023
15
13 July 2023
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
DIP N210JS Business Management,
MBM N21012 MBM,
MBM N210JS MBM
The purpose of this module is to provide students with a well-informed, practical and critical understanding of financial analysis and financial decision-making applicable to the role of divisional and functional managers. It brings together crucial topics from financial accounting, management accounting, and financial management.
The aims of this module are:
- To provide an understanding of published financial statements and how such statements can be analysed to draw inferences about the financial performance and viability of an organisation.
- To provide an appreciation of costing techniques and its role in the wider context of organisational control systems and in a competitive environment.
- To provide a critical understanding of short and long-term decision-making principles and techniques.
- To provide an understanding of the budgeting process and the interlinking of the various budgets within the business and its criticism.
- To provide an appreciation of the major methods to measure performance management.
- To provide an understanding of the methods commonly used to evaluate capital expenditure proposals.
By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the financial accounting framework - including the underlying concepts and principles of accounting and the effect of different methods on the measurement of asset and liabilities and the determination of accounting profit.
- Critically analyse a set of published accounts.
- Explain the use of different approaches to costing.
- Understand the operation of a budgetary control system and identify the major methods to measure performance.
- Develop a critical understanding of short and long-term decision-making principles and techniques, including the use of capital appraisal techniques.
In the financial accounting sessions, we cover the key topics related to information aimed at external users (e.g. preparation of financial accounts and analysis and interpretation of the principal financial accounting statements) while during the management accounting lectures we focus on what is relevant for organisational/internal users – in terms of relying on accounting information to plan, monitor and make decisions.
This module will be delivered via:
- Two hours of teaching per week.
- A mixture of self-study preparation, highlight lectures, individual work and computational exercises during lectures and seminars as well as encouraging online self-learning via MyAccountingLab.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's
reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
MyAccounting Lab Test |
|
100% |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr John Azure, email: john.azure@essex.ac.uk.
Dr Dila Agrizzi
john.azure@essex.ac.uk
No
No
No
Available via Moodle
Of 42 hours, 40 (95.2%) hours available to students:
0 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
2 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.
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