The building project will be _________ by the government and public donations.
第1题
It can be inferred that the project of building the opera House started when ______.
A.more and more citizens were eager to watch operas
B.a committee decided to hold an important meeting in Sydney
C.Sydney became more and more civilized
D.more and more citizens became dissatisfied with the vacancy of an art center
第2题
principal (lead) contractor to build the Giant Dam Project in an East Asian country. The board of R&M prided itself in
observing the highest standards of corporate governance. R&M’s client, the government of the East Asian country, had
taken into account several factors in appointing the principal contractor including each bidder’s track record in large
civil engineering projects, the value of the bid and a statement, required from each bidder, on how it would deal with
the ‘sensitive issues’ and publicity that might arise as a result of the project.
The Giant Dam Project was seen as vital to the East Asian country’s economic development as it would provide a
large amount of hydroelectric power. This was seen as a ‘clean energy’ driver of future economic growth. The
government was keen to point out that because hydroelectric power did not involve the burning of fossil fuels, the
power would be environmentally clean and would contribute to the East Asian country’s ability to meet its
internationally agreed carbon emission targets. This, in turn, would contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases
in the environment. Critics, such as the environmental pressure group ‘Stop-the-dam’, however, argued that the
project was far too large and the cost to the local environment would be unacceptable. Stop-the-dam was highly
organised and, according to press reports in Europe, was capable of disrupting progress on the dam by measures such
as creating ‘human barriers’ to the site and hiding people in tunnels who would have to be physically removed before
proceeding. A spokesman for Stop-the-dam said it would definitely be attempting to resist the Giant Dam Project when
construction started.
The project was intended to dam one of the region’s largest rivers, thus creating a massive lake behind it. The lake
would, the critics claimed, not only displace an estimated 100,000 people from their homes, but would also flood
productive farmland and destroy several rare plant and animal habitats. A number of important archaeological sites
would also be lost. The largest community to be relocated was the indigenous First Nation people who had lived on
and farmed the land for an estimated thousand years. A spokesman for the First Nation community said that the ‘true
price’ of hydroelectric power was ‘misery and cruelty’. A press report said that whilst the First Nation would be unlikely
to disrupt the building of the dam, it was highly likely that they would protest and also attempt to mobilise opinion in
other parts of the world against the Giant Dam Project.
The board of R&M was fully aware of the controversy when it submitted its tender to build the dam. The finance
director, Sally Grignard, had insisted on putting an amount into the tender for the management of ‘local risks’. Sally
was also responsible for the financing of the project for R&M. Although the client was expected to release money in
several ‘interim payments’ as the various parts of the project were completed to strict time deadlines, she anticipated
a number of working capital challenges for R&M, especially near the beginning where a number of early stage costs
would need to be incurred. There would, she explained, also be financing issues in managing the cash flows to R&M’s
many subcontractors. Although the major banks financed the client through a lending syndicate, R&M’s usual bank
said it was wary of lending directly to R&M for the Giant Dam Project because of the potential negative publicity that
might result. Another bank said it would provide R&M with its early stage working capital needs on the understanding
that its involvement in financing R&M to undertake the Giant Dam Project was not disclosed. A press statement from
Stop-the-dam said that it would do all it could to discover R&M’s financial lenders and publicly expose them. Sally
told the R&M board that some debt financing would be essential until the first interim payments from the client
became available.
When it was announced that R&M had won the contract to build the Giant Dam Project, some of its institutional
shareholders contacted Richard Markovnikoff, the chairman. They wanted reassurance that the company had fully
taken the environmental issues and other risks into account. One fund manager asked if Mr Markovnikoff could
explain the sustainability implications of the project to assess whether R&M shares were still suitable for his
environmentally sensitive clients. Mr Markovnikoff said, through the company’s investor relations department, that he
intended to give a statement at the next annual general meeting (AGM) that he hoped would address these
environmental concerns. He would also, he said, make a statement on the importance of confidentiality in the
financing of the early stage working capital needs.
(a) Any large project such as the Giant Dam Project has a number of stakeholders.
Required:
(i) Define the terms ‘stakeholder’ and ‘stakeholder claim’, and identify from the case FOUR of R&M’s
external stakeholders as it carries out the Giant Dam Project; (6 marks)
第3题
The town of Brighttown in Euraria has a mayor (elected every five years by the people in the town) who is responsible for, amongst other things, the transport policy of the town.
A year ago, the mayor (acting as project sponsor) instigated a ‘traffic lite’ project to reduce traffic congestion at traffic lights in the town. Rather than relying on fixed timings, he suggested that a system should be implemented which made the traffic lights sensitive to traffic flow. So, if a queue built up, then the lights would automatically change to green (go). The mayor suggested that this would have a number of benefits. Firstly, it would reduce harmful emissions at the areas near traffic lights and, secondly, it would improve the journey times for all vehicles, leading to drivers ‘being less stressed’. He also cited evidence from cities overseas where predictable journey times had been attractive to flexible companies who could set themselves up anywhere in the country. He felt that the new system would attract such companies to the town.
The Eurarian government has a transport regulation agency called OfRoad. Part of OfRoad’s responsibilities is to monitor transport investments and it was originally critical of the Brighttown ‘traffic lite’ project because the project’s benefits were intangible and lacked credibility. The business case did not include a quantitative cost/benefit analysis. OfRoad has itself published a benefits management process which classifies benefits in the following way.
Financial: A financial benefit can be confidently allocated in advance of the project. Thus if the investment will save $90,000 per year in staff costs then this is a financial benefit.
Quantifiable: A quantifiable benefit is a benefit where there is sufficient credible evidence to suggest, in advance, how much benefit will result from the project. This benefit may be financial or non-financial. For example, energy savings from a new building might be credibly predicted in advance. However, the exact amount of savings cannot be accurately forecast.
Measurable benefit: A measurable benefit is a benefit which can only be confidently assessed post-implementation, and so cannot be reliably predicted in advance. Increase in sales from a particular initiative is an example of a measurable benefit. Measurable benefits may either be financial or non-financial.
Observable benefit: An observable benefit is a benefit which a specific individual or group will decide, using agreed criteria, has been realised or not. Such benefits are usually non-financial. Improved staff morale might be an example of an observable benefit.
One month ago, the mayoral elections saw the election of a new mayor with a completely distinct transport policy with different objectives. She wishes to address traffic congestion by attracting commuters away from their cars and onto public transport. Part of her policy is a traffic light system which gives priority to buses. The town council owns the buses which operate in the town and they have invested heavily in buses which are comfortable and have significantly lower emissions than the conventional cars used by most people in the town. The new mayor wishes to improve the frequency, punctuality and convenience of these buses, so that they tempt people away from using their cars. This will require more buses and more bus crews, a requirement which the mayor presents as ‘being good for the unemployment rate in this town’. It will also help the bus service meet the punctuality service level which it published three years ago, but has never yet met. ‘A reduction in cars and an increase in buses will help us meet our target’, the mayor claims.
The mayor has also suggested a number of initiatives to discourage people from taking their cars into the town. She intends to sell two car parks for housing land (raising $325,000) and this will reduce car park capacity from 1,000 to 800 car spaces per day. She also intends to raise the daily parking fee from $3 to $4. Car park occupancy currently stands at 95% (it is difficult to achieve 100% for technical reasons) and the same occupancy rate is expected when the car park capacity is reduced.
The new mayor believes that her policy signals the fact that Brighttown is serious about its green credentials. ‘This’, she says, ‘will attract green consumers to come and live in our town and green companies to set up here. These companies and consumers will bring great benefit to our community.’ To emphasise this, she has set up a Go Green team to encourage green initiatives in the town.
The ‘traffic lite’ project to tackle congestion proposed by the former mayor is still in the development stage. The new mayor believes that this project can be modified to deliver her vision and still be ready on the date promised by her predecessor.
Required:
(a) A ‘terms of reference’ (project initiation document, project charter) was developed for the ‘traffic lite’ project to reduce traffic congestion.
Discuss what changes will have to be made to this ‘terms of reference’ (project initiation document, project charter) to reflect the new mayor’s vision of the project. (5 marks)
(b) The new mayor wishes to re-define the business case for the project, using the benefits categorisation suggested by OfRoad. Identify costs and benefits for the revised project, classifying each benefit using the guidance provided by OfRoad. (14 marks)
(c) Stakeholder management is the prime responsibility of the project manager.
Discuss the appropriate management of each of the following three stakeholders identified in the revised (modified) project.
(i) The new mayor;
(ii) OfRoad;
(iii) A private motorist in Brighttown who uses his vehicle to commute to his job in the town. (6 marks)
第4题
(a) Minco is a major property developer which buys land for the construction of housing. One aspect of its business is to provide low-cost homes through the establishment of a separate entity, known as a housing association. Minco purchases land and transfers ownership to the housing association before construction starts. Minco sells rights to occupy the housing units to members of the public but the housing association is the legal owner of the building. The housing association enters into loan agreements with the bank to cover the costs of building the homes. However, Minco negotiates and acts as guarantor for the loan, and bears the risk of increases in the loan’s interest rate above a specified rate. Currently, the housing rights are normally all sold out on the completion of a project.
Minco enters into discussions with a housing contractor regarding the construction of the housing units but the agreement is between the housing association and the contractor. Minco is responsible for any construction costs in excess of the amount stated in the contract and is responsible for paying the maintenance costs for any units not sold. Minco sets up the board of the housing association, which comprises one person representing Minco and two independent board members.
Minco recognises income for the entire project when the land is transferred to the housing association. The income recognised is the difference between the total sales price for the finished housing units and the total estimated costs for construction of the units. Minco argues that the transfer of land represents a sale of goods which fulfils the revenue recognition criteria in IAS 18 Revenue. (7 marks)
(b) Minco often sponsors professional tennis players in an attempt to improve its brand image. At the moment, it has a three-year agreement with a tennis player who is currently ranked in the world’s top ten players. The agreement is that the player receives a signing bonus of $20,000 and earns an annual amount of $50,000, paid at the end of each year for three years, provided that the player has competed in all the specified tournaments for each year. If the player wins a major tournament, she receives a bonus of 20% of the prize money won at the tournament. In return, the player is required to wear advertising logos on tennis apparel, play a specified number of tournaments and attend photo/film sessions for advertising purposes. The different payments are not interrelated. (5 marks)
(c) Minco leased its head office during the current accounting period and the agreement terminates in six years’ time. There is a clause in the operating lease relating to the internal condition of the property at the termination of the lease. The clause states that the internal condition of the property should be identical to that at the outset of the lease. Minco has improved the building by adding another floor to part of the building during the current accounting period. There is also a clause which enables the landlord to recharge Minco for costs relating to the general disrepair of the building at the end of the lease. In addition, the landlord can recharge any costs of repairing the roof immediately. The landlord intends to replace part of the roof of the building during the current period. (5 marks)
(d) Minco acquired a property for $4 million and annual depreciation of $300,000 is charged on the straight line basis. At the end of the previous financial year of 31 May 2013, when accumulated depreciation was $1 million, a further amount relating to an impairment loss of $350,000 was recognised, which resulted in the property being valued at its estimated value in use. On 1 October 2013, as a consequence of a proposed move to new premises, the property was classified as held for sale. At the time of classification as held for sale, the fair value less costs to sell was $2·4 million. At the date of the published interim financial statements, 1 December 2013, the property market had improved and the fair value less costs to sell was reassessed at $2·52 million and at the year end on 31 May 2014 it had improved even further, so that the fair value less costs to sell was $2·95 million. The property was sold on 5 June 2014 for $3 million. (6 marks)
Required:
Discuss how the above items should be dealt with in the financial statements of Minco.
Note: The mark allocation is shown against each of the four issues above.
Professional marks will be awarded in question 3 for clarity and quality of presentation. (2 marks)
第5题
1.The PWA differed from the WPS in that ____.
A、the work projects of the former were carried out by the Federal Government
B、the government subsidized private industry
C、the number of unemployed was reduced
D、the former was government's first attempt to end hardship due to unemployment
2.One method of preventing or alleviating depression Not mentioned by the author is the use of ____.
A、the dole
B、the WPA
C、the CCC
D、job sharing
3.The author implies that ____.
A、individuals on relief do not receive enough money to meet basic needs
B、those who get direct financial aid from the government suffer a loss of human dignity
C、aid should be given in the form. of food subsidies
D、a program of "pump priming" is vital at all times
4.By using the expression "pump priming" as a description of public works projects, the author implies that it ____.
A、was pouring money down the drain
B、lowered human dignity
C、avoided direct charity
D、provided business with initial impetus which would make it self-sufficient
5.The passage mainly talks about ____.
A、the New Deal Era (1933 - 1937)
B、the WPA and the PWA
C、a pattern for the future
D、one-third of a nation
第6题
Herman Swan & Co (HS) is a family-owned company that has made fashionable clothes and leather goods for men for over 100 years. The company has been successful in building a strong reputation for quality by sourcing from local textile and leather producers. It sells its goods across the world through a chain of owned shops and also franchised stalls inside large, well-known stores. The company is still owned and run by the family with no other shareholders. The main goal of the firm is to organically grow the business for the next generation of the Swan family.
Customers are attracted to HS products due to the history and the family story that goes behind the products. They are willing to pay the high prices demanded as they identify with the values of the firm, especially the high quality of manufacturing.
The competition for HS has been increasing for more than ten years. It is made up of other global luxury brands and also the rising national champions in some of the rapidly expanding developing countries. The competitors often try to leverage their brands into many different product types. However, the Swan family have stated their desire to focus on the menswear market after an unsuccessful purchase of a handbag manufacturer five years ago.
The company is divided into a number of strategic business units (SBU). Each production site is an SBU, while the whole retail operation is one SBU. The head office previously functioned as a centre for procurement, finance and other support activities. The company has recently invested in a new management information system (MIS) that has increased the data available to all managers in the business. This has led to much of the procurement shifting to the production SBUs and the SBU managers taking more responsibility for budgeting. The SBU managers are delighted with their increased responsibilities and with the results from the new information system but feel there is still room for improvement in its use. The system has assisted in a project of flattening the organisation hierarchy by cutting out several layers of head office management.
You are the management accountant at HS and have been trying to persuade your boss, the finance director, that your role should change. You have read about Burns and Scapens’ report ‘Accounting Change Project’ and think that it suggests an interesting change from your current roles of preparing and reviewing budgets and overseeing the production of management and financial accounts. Your boss is sceptical but is willing to listen to your arguments. He has asked you to submit an explanation of the change that you propose and why it is necessary at HS.
Also, your boss has asked you for an example of how your role as an ‘internal consultant’ would be valuable at HS by looking at the ideas of brand loyalty and awareness. You should consider their impact on performance management at HS, both from the customer and the internal business process perspectives and how to measure them.
Required:
(a) Describe the changes in the role of the management accountant based on Burns and Scapens work. Explain what is driving these changes and justify why they are appropriate to HS. (12 marks)
(b) Using HS as an example, discuss the impact of brand loyalty and awareness on the business both from the customer and the internal business process perspectives and evaluate suitable measures for brand loyalty and awareness. (8 marks)
第7题
The police searched the building ______ but failed to find out where the bomb was.
A.throughout
B.fully
C.altogether
D.thoroughly
第9题
The building, (which) roof can (be seen) here, is (the) biggest supermarket (in) town.
A.which
B.be seen
C.the
D.in
第10题
第11题
For the second time, the man's head was hit by______.
A. the box of bricks
B. the ladder
C. the top of the building
D. the pulley