Company Accounting Team Assignments

Learning Outcome: Develop written and oral communication strategies to enable the effective presentation of accounting information to accountants and non-accountants (working in teams).

Required - Work in teams (groups) of 3 and address the issues noted in the assignment details, and:

1. Write a memorandum to the board of directors (the members of the board have varying degrees of accounting knowledge or understanding) as noted in the assignment details

2. Make an oral presentation to the board of directors as noted in the assignment details

My group is doing the National Bank Australia, (NAB).

The assignment comprises the following components:

Part A Technical Component - This mark covers the technical content of your advice and the explanation on each of the issues, the calculations and the sources and references used, and the format of the memo as well as the group technical knowledge during the presentation.

Part B Communication Skills - Oral presentations - This mark covers the presentation skills of the individual student.

Please make sure you follow the guidelines/policies relating to the presentation of written work, late policy and academic integrity.

Team Meetings

1. The team should have a minimum of three meetings (the team may have as many meetings as they need to) and should maintain minutes of those meetings detailing -

2. Where the meeting was held;

3. People present; absent; apologies

4. What was discussed and agreed on;

5. The follow-up action relating to each member of the team;

6. Any other relevant matter, things you agreed or disagreed on etc.

7. The minutes of the team meeting should be included with the hard copy of your assignment as an attachment.

Details of Assignment:

The class will be ideally grouped into teams of 3. You must discuss the selection of teams with your lecturer who may decide to allocate you into teams or form teams using a random process. Your lecturer may accept a team of 4 members - but you need to discuss this with your lecturer, obtain approval and finalise your team members.

Select a set of financial statements for a group of companies and obtain approval from your lecturer for the group of companies that you have selected. Please note that two teams may not work on the same group of companies so if another team has already registered their interest in the particular group of companies you will be requested to select a different group of companies.

Read the annual report including the financial statements of the group and write a memorandum to the board of directors clearly explaining some of the technical aspects of consolidation. Make sure that you draw on the group company's specific details to explain the intricacies of consolidation to the board, and as much as possible avoid answering in general terms. Please note that your response MUST be in the format of MEMO - a report format will not be marked.

Some of the aspects that you need to cover as a team are (but not restricted to):

1. The composition of the group; namely the subsidiaries, associates, any joint ventures and any other significant investments. The group's main business operations

2. Why did the parent entity have to prepare consolidated financial statements when the subsidiary company is a separate legal entity in its own right?

3. How is the group of companies funded? Share capital, debentures? Any options, bonus issues etc. Who owns the group?

4. Does the published set of group financial statements reveal the company's policy on corporate governance? Audit committees? Sustainability? Solvency? Should it? If so, where and why?

5. The non-controlling interest - where would you find it in the financial statements and what does it represent? Details of any direct and indirect non-controlling interest?

6. Has there been any goodwill on acquisition? Or any gain on bargain purchase? Where would you find it in the financial statements and what does it mean? Any impairment?

7. Does the group have any foreign currency transactions? Any foreign subsidiary companies? How have they been accounted for in the financial statements?

8. Any other relevant matter that you may wish the board of directors to make note of in respect of some transaction or event, the balance of account or disclosure that will assist them in understanding the financial statements of the group.

Team Presentation -

Your team is required to explain the financial statements of the group of companies you have selected to the board of directors making sure you bring to their attention any unusual or interesting information.

Your team presentation will be limited to 10 minutes (per group of 3) and each member of the team must present a part of it demonstrating individual oral presentation skills. A separate mark will be given to each member of the team for individual presentation skills. You must discuss the selection of teams with your lecturer who may decide to allocate you into teams or form teams using a random process.