F5 Perfromance Management Accounting: Its Not A Joke

Posted on September 28th, 2010 in Uncategorized by iptools  Tagged , ,

What’s the definition of an accountant? Some may say they are people who solve a problem you didn’t know you had in an way you don’t understand. In the same vein, it is often said that “accounting will prove anything, even the truth”. That said, these pejorative takes, conceal the significance of accountancy generally and more specifically that of performance managementaccounting. The ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) believes value creation and business success are essential for the achievement of a sustainable economic recovery, but without the “language of business”, these are impossible goals.

The ACCA is a worldwide organisation for professional accountants, whose goal is to provide qualifications and development that is relevant for business. These set out to deliver all the key learning upon which management accountancy is founded together with the capabilities to apply it in the workplace. Its core qualification is comprised of fourteen papers and exams. From these, performance management accounting, F5 paper, which has its own microsite, is probably most pertinent.

This covers concepts forming the bedrock of an innovative new wave of accountancy practice in business. For example, throughput accounting, highlights this move in direction. This concept highlights the growing functional interdependence within corporate entities, describing one of the key costing disciplines in decision-making and performance management. In addition, the mechanics and execution of behavioural budgeting is taught. This up to date budgetary methodology is a move away from the conventional quantitative approach and reveals how using budgets as objectives can stretch business performance.

The significance of the accountancy profession generally and its position at the forefront of the broader coporate world, is made clear in a recent survey by the ACCA and Mercer, a human resources consultancy, entitled “Generation Y:Realising the Potential”. The research, aimed to look into the mindset of the youngest echelon of professional accountants and can be found on the ACCA website. Among other things, the research showed that this generation of dynamic and ambitious professionals “see(s) the accountancy qualification as a great step to a broader business career…. Furthermore, Chris Johnson, UK Head of Human Capital at Mercer comments that “Value creation is key for organisations in the future. Increasingly human capital will be the primary source of competitive differentiation”

So after all then, accountancy really is no joke.

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