What’s New?
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BEST USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA FOR LEARNING – E-LEARNING AWARDS 2012
Nelson Croom recently won two awards at the E-Learning Awards 2012, for the Best Use of Social Media for Learning, and for Excellence in the Production of Learning Content, the latter of which was for a bespoke project for the British Psychological Society.
NEW COURSES
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING
By Juan Carlos Venegas
Money laundering and underlying serious crimes happen in almost every country in the world and the costs involved are huge.A single scheme can involve transferring money through several countries in order to obscure its origins. Money laundering, at its simplest, is the act of making money that comes from Source A look like it comes from Source B. In practice, criminals are trying to disguise the origins of money obtained through illegal activities so it looks like it was obtained from legal sources and the methods used by money launderers are many and varied.
WRITING A BUSINESS PLAN
By Chris Bruce
Successful businesses and investors will have a track record in determining not only which projects are funded through to completion but also those that aren't taken forward. One key tool in the decision making process is the business plan.
Writing a Business Plan helps the learner to create a well-constructed business plan that enables decision makers to better understand the potential project, helps the owner of the business plan to fully think through the project and can then also be used as a benchmarker to track the success of the project.
WORKING IN ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE TEAMS
By Lisa Weaver
The ability to work in a team is a key skill needed for accounting and finance professionals. Teams can range in size and complexity from a team of hundreds of people managed by an engagement partner responsible for the audit of a multi-national organisation, to a team comprised of two accountants working on a project for their manager.
Teamwork skills encompass many things which are essential in today's business environment, and are one of the top characteristics that employers look for in potential new recruits. Issues relating to teamwork, such as ensuring the competence of the team and the importance of supervision, are closely linked to quality control; and for accounting and finance professionals, especially those providing assurance services, demonstrating compliance with relevant quality control regulations will always be of the utmost importance.
MARKET ANALYSIS FOR ACCOUNTANTS
By Peter Howson
Market analysis is not just about the application of analytical techniques to reams of data. So often people say 'we need more data', when there is no more available. At some point a judgement has to be made. While a market understanding must be based on fact, quantitative market research is not some fundamental route to truth and enlightenment. Much of it can be contradictory or incomplete and is only as good as the questions posed and the way they are asked. There is always room for personal judgement, based on qualitative research, experience and gut feeling. In fact, these are more important than choosing between two numbers. This course should help give you the confidence to make those judgements.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
By David Allen
The topic of the corporation's place in society has been debated over several decades but there has been a noticeable increase in the attention paid to it recently. In particular, there has been a focus on how enterprises align their economic considerations with social and environmental ones. Various terms have been used but Corporate Social Responsibility seems to be the favourite.
SUCCESSION PLANNING
As professional accountants grow older their thoughts inevitably turn to their exit - not only from the firm, but from practicing accountancy altogether. As they consider their departure from business life, they wonder if the firm they have built up will have value in someone else's eyes.
During their careers they have built relationships with clients, helped them, served them and supported them. Yet the question remains will the firm be worth anything to anyone else? And if so, how much and to whom?
A succession plan allows for the orderly exit of the practitioner. This means it is not left to chance, and there is a plan in place. This gives a degree of comfort to those involved, particularly staff.
MANAGING YOUR TRANSITION TO IFRS
By Lisa Weaver
Since 2005 all EU listed companies have been reporting under IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) in their group accounts. The UK's Accounting Standards Board is proposing that in the next few years some UK companies and other reporting entities will be required to, or have the option to, move to a more IFRS-based financial reporting framework. The US is also considering a transition to IFRS, as are many other countries such as India and Japan.
The switch from local accounting standards to IFRS must be well thought-out, and its implications understood. It is easy to think that only those involved with accounting and finance need to get involved or will be affected by it. However, the lessons learned by the EU's listed companies in the last phase of conversion to IFRS indicate that a much broader perspective is needed, and that the conversion must be treated as a project to be carefully planned and executed.
