2015 ACCA p3 revision kit BPP

http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ / t.c om sp o og bl ter ial dy ma stu Practice & Revision Kit Look inside ac ca Paper P3 Business Analysis Practice & Revision Kit for exams up to June 2015 Free access to our Exam Success site htt p:/ June 2014 £18.00 ACCA Approved /fr ee BPP House 142-144 Uxbridge Road London W12 8AA United Kingdom T 0845 075 1100 (UK) T +44 (0)20 8740 2211 (Overseas) E Learningmedia@bpp.com bpp.com/learningmedia • Banks of questions on every syllabus area • Answers with detailed guidance on approaching  questions • Three mock exams with full answers and guidance For exams up to June 2015 Contact us One of a suite of products supporting Paper P3 Business Analysis, for use independently or as part of a package, this Kit is targeted at ACCA’s exams up to June 2015 and contains: Practice & Revision Kit Paper P3 Business Analysis This Kit provides material specifically for the practice and revision stage of your studies for Paper P3 Business Analysis that has been comprehensively reviewed by the ACCA examining team This unique review ensures that the questions, solutions and guidance provide the best and most effective resource for practising and revising for the exam Business Analysis BPP Learning Media is dedicated to supporting aspiring business professionals with top-quality learning material as they study for demanding professional exams, often whilst working full time BPP Learning Media’s commitment to student success is shown by our record of quality, innovation and market leadership in paper-based and e-learning materials BPP Learning Media’s study materials are written by professionally qualified specialists who know from personal experience the importance of top-quality materials for exam success ACCA P3 ACCA approved content provider ACCA APPROVED CONTENT PROVIDER http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACP3RK14.indd 1-3 04/06/2014 11:41 co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ log sp o t P R A C T I C E l.b PAPER P3 ym ate ria BUSINESS ANALYSIS tud BPP Learning Media is an ACCA Approved Learning Partner – content for the ACCA qualification This means we work closely with ACCA to ensure our products fully prepare you for your ACCA exams as In this Practice and Revision Kit which has been reviewed by the ACCA examination team we: Discuss the best strategies for revising and taking your ACCA exams  Ensure you are well prepared for your exam  Provide you with lots of great guidance on tackling questions  Provide you with three mock exams  Provide ACCA exam answers as well as our own for selected questions ea cc  htt p:/ /fr e Our Passcard and i-pass products also support this paper FOR EXAMS TO JUNE 2015 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ & R E V I S I O N K I T log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ l.b First edition 2007 Eighth edition June 2014 ria ISBN 9781 4727 1109 (previous ISBN 9781 4453 6653 1) e-ISBN 9781 4727 1173 www.bpp.com/learningmedia We are grateful to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants for permission to reproduce past examination questions The suggested solutions in the practice answer bank have been prepared by BPP Learning Media Ltd, except where otherwise stated © BPP Learning Media Ltd 2014 /fr e ea cc as Printed in the United Kingdom by tud BPP Learning Media Ltd BPP House, Aldine Place London W12 8AA Ricoh UK Limited Unit Wells Place Merstham RH1 3LG All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of BPP Learning Media Ltd ym Published by ate British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library htt p:/ Your learning materials, published by BPP Learning Media Ltd, are printed on paper obtained from traceable, sustainable sources ii http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Contents co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Page Finding questions log sp o t Question index v Topic index vii Helping you with your revision viii Revising P3 l.b Topics to revise ix Reading articles x Question practice x Passing the P3 exam xi Exam information xvi Useful websites xix Questions and answers ria Questions Answers 93 ate Exam practice ym Mock exam  Questions 291  Plan of attack .299  Answers .300 tud Mock exam (Pilot paper)  Questions 317  Plan of attack .327  Answers .328 as Mock exam (December 2013)  Questions 349  Plan of attack .361  Answers .362 htt p:/ /fr e ea Review form cc ACCA exam answers  June 2013 383  December 2013 393 iii http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ co m/ A note about copyright Dear Customer log sp o t What does the little © mean and why does it matter? Your market-leading BPP books, course materials and e-learning materials not write and update themselves People write them: on their own behalf or as employees of an organisation that invests in this activity Copyright law protects their livelihoods It does so by creating rights over the use of the content Breach of copyright is a form of theft – as well as being a criminal offence in some jurisdictions, it is potentially a serious breach of professional ethics With current technology, things might seem a bit hazy but, basically, without the express permission of BPP Learning Media: l.b Photocopying our materials is a breach of copyright Scanning, ripcasting or conversion of our digital materials into different file formats, uploading them to facebook or emailing them to your friends is a breach of copyright ria   ate You can, of course, sell your books, in the form in which you have bought them – once you have finished with them (Is this fair to your fellow students? We update for a reason.) Please note the e-products are sold on a single user licence basis: we not supply ‘unlock’ codes to people who have bought them second-hand htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym And what about outside the UK? BPP Learning Media strives to make our materials available at prices students can afford by local printing arrangements, pricing policies and partnerships which are clearly listed on our website A tiny minority ignore this and indulge in criminal activity by illegally photocopying our material or supporting organisations that If they act illegally and unethically in one area, can you really trust them? iv http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ co m/ Question index The headings in this checklist/index indicate the main topics of questions, but questions are expected to cover several different topics Time Page number Ins Marks allocation Question Answer log sp o t Mins Part A: The overall strategic perspective 93 45 96 45 100 45 102 45 105 45 108 45 111 45 10 114 25 45 12 118 25 45 13 121 25 45 15 124 25 45 17 127 25 45 19 131 25 45 20 134 25 45 21 136 25 45 22 139 25 45 23 143 25 45 24 146 25 45 25 149 Nesta (6/13) 25 Airtite (3.5, 6/06, amended) 25 The Management Press (12/10) 25 Rock Bottom (6/09) 25 iCompute (12/11) 25 Jayne Cox Direct (6/12) 25 Frigate (12/10) 25 Alpha Software 25 ria Part B: Options and organisation l.b 45 8-Hats (6/11) 10 Joe Swift Transport (6/10) 11 MMI (12/08) ate 12 Graffoff (12/12) Part C: Strategic implementation ym 13 Country Car Club (6/08) 14 Ergo City (6/10, amended) 15 Cronin Auto Retail (6/11) 17 Finch Co 18 Chemical Transport (6/13) 19 Perfect Shopper (12/07) tud 16 BeauCo 25 45 26 152 21 Accounting Education Consortium (6/08) 25 45 27 155 22 ISD (12/11) 25 45 28 159 25 45 30 161 24 Tillo Community Centre (6/12) 25 45 32 166 25 Lowlands Bank (12/09) 25 45 33 169 26 HomeDeliver (12/11) 25 45 34 172 27 OneEnergy plc (6/09) 25 45 35 176 28 ASW (6/10, amended) 25 45 37 178 29 Flexipipe (6/12) 25 45 39 182 30 Moor Farm (12/12) 25 45 40 184 31 Institute of Administrative Accountants (12/10) 25 45 41 187 32 Institute of Analytical Accountants (6/11) 25 45 42 189 33 Pharmacy Systems International (6/08) 25 45 44 192 34 World Engines (12/12) 25 45 45 196 35 AutoFone (6/08) 25 45 46 200 36 Academic Recycling Company (6/13) 25 45 48 204 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc 23 Clothing Company (12/07) as 20 Independent Living (12/09) Topic index http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ v Part D: 50 mark questions 37 MidShire Health (6/13) 50 90 50 38 Polymat Tapes (3.5,12/03, amended) 50 90 53 39 The EA Group (12/12) 50 90 55 40 Shoal plc (12/10) 50 90 58 41 Bonar Paint (3.5, 6/07, amended) 50 90 60 42 Hammond Shoes (6/12) 50 90 62 231 43 GET (12/11) 50 90 65 236 44 EcoCar (6/11) 50 90 68 241 45 Oceania National Airlines (12/07) 50 90 70 247 46 ABCL (12/09) 50 90 73 256 47 Wetland Trust (6/10) 50 90 76 262 48 Institute of Information Systems Architects 50 90 80 268 49 The National Museum 50 90 83 273 50 GreenTech (6/09) 50 90 86 281 Mock exam htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate Mock exam (December 2013) 207 212 216 220 225 log sp o t l.b ria Mock exam vi co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Topic index http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Topic index co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Listed below are the key Paper P3 syllabus topics and the numbers of the questions in this Kit covering those topics If you need to concentrate your practice and revision on certain topics or if you want to attempt all available questions that refer to a particular subject, you will find this index useful Question numbers Benchmarking 39 Business process change 17 Capabilities and competences 11, 14 Change management & the context of change 14, 33, 38, 39, 40, 46, 49 Corporate appraisal (SWOT) 41, 43, 45, 47, 50 Critical success factors 43 Culture 5, 7, 37, 38 Diamond model 10 e-business 3, 15 e-Marketing 15, 18, 22, 47 Environmental analysis 2, 43 Five forces 1, 35, 38, 41, 46, 47 Integrated reporting l.b ria ate Investment appraisal 9, 12, 27, 34, 42, 46 Marketing mix 3, 21, 22 16 ym IT controls and continuity planning Mission statements and organisational objectives 41, 42, 47 Organisation structure 4, 7, 9, 48 tud Outsourcing People PESTEL Product Life Cycle Product portfolio ea Stakeholders cc Project management as Process-strategy matrix Software log sp o t Syllabus topic 13, 14, 44 36 41, 44, 47, 48, 49 5, 13, 18, 25, 48 38 40 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 31, 37 27, 29, 32 14, 30, 46, 47 35 Strategic change 14, 33 Strategic options 10, 11, 12, 38, 41, 42, 43 Strategy development 11, 35, 49 Supply chain management 6, 19 Value chain 6, 19, 20 htt p:/ /fr e Strategic capabilities Topic index http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ vii co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Helping you with your revision BPP Learning Media – Approved Learning Partner – content Tackling revision and the exam Using feedback obtained from the ACCA exam team review: log sp o t As ACCA’s Approved Learning Partner – content, BPP Learning Media gives you the opportunity to use exam team reviewed revision materials By incorporating the examination team’s comments and suggestions regarding syllabus coverage, the BPP Learning Media Practice and Revision Kit provides excellent, ACCA-approved support for your revision We look at the dos and don’ts of revising for, and taking, ACCA exams  We focus on Paper P3; we discuss revising the syllabus, what to (and what not to do) in the exam, how to approach different types of question and ways of obtaining easy marks l.b  Selecting questions ria We provide signposts to help you plan your revision A full question index  A topic index listing all the questions that cover key topics, so that you can locate the questions that provide practice on these topics, and see the different ways in which they might be examined Making the most of question practice ate  ym At BPP Learning Media we realise that you need more than just questions and model answers to get the most from your question practice Our Top tips included for certain questions provide essential advice on tackling questions, presenting answers and the key points that answers need to include  We show you how you can pick up Easy marks on some questions, as we know that picking up all readily available marks often can make the difference between passing and failing  We include marking guides to show you what the examining team rewards  We include comments from the examining team to show you where students struggled or performed well in the actual exam  We refer to the 2014 BPP Study Text (for exams up to June 2015) for detailed coverage of the topics covered in questions  In a bank at the end of this Kit we include the official ACCA answers to the June and December 2013 papers Used in conjunction with our answers they provide an indication of all possible points that could be made, issues that could be covered and approaches to adopt ea cc as tud  /fr e Attempting mock exams htt p:/ There are three mock exams that provide practice at coping with the pressures of the exam day We strongly recommend that you attempt them under exam conditions Mock exams and reflect the question styles and syllabus coverage of the exam; Mock exam is the December 2013 paper viii Helping you with your revision http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ co m/ Revising P3 Topics to revise Strategic position log sp o t Firstly we must emphasise that you will need a good knowledge of the whole syllabus Any part of the syllabus could be tested within compulsory Question Having to choose two out of three optional questions does not really represent much choice if there are areas of the syllabus you are keen to avoid There are certain topics that are stressed in the syllabus and therefore are core: The need for and purpose of business analysis (rational model, levels of strategy, strategic lenses)  The internal resources, capabilities and competences of an organisation (value chain and corporate appraisal)  Setting critical success factors (CSF) and key performance indicators (KPI)  Environmental issues affecting the strategic position of an organisation (PESTEL and Porter’s Diamond)  Stakeholders, ethics culture and integrated reporting (stakeholder mapping, scope of corporate social responsibility and cultural web) l.b  ria Strategic choices Portfolio models; the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) matrix, public sector, parenting matrix and Ashridge Portfolio display  Approaches to achieving competitive advantage (strategy clock and generic options)  Methods of development (Ansoff’s matrix, internal development, mergers, acquisitions)  Criteria to assess strategic options (suitability, acceptability and feasibility) ate  ym Strategic action Organisational set up (boundary-less organisations, hollow, modular and virtual) and strategic alliances (joint ventures, networks, franchising, licensing) and concepts of outsourcing, offshoring and shared services  Organisational configurations (Mintzberg)  Managing strategic change  Organisational context of change (Balogun, Hope and Hailey)  Different approaches to strategic development (emergent strategies) as tud  cc Business and process change Assess the stages of the business change lifecycle and the four view model  The role of Harmon’s process strategy matrix  Software solutions ea  Information technology  Principles of e-business including upstream and downstream supply chain management Understand the characteristics of e-marketing using the 6I’s and the use of customer relationship management software (CRM) htt p:/  Analyse IT and application controls and evaluate controls for safeguarding IT assets /fr e  Revising P3 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ix htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 388 ACCA examiner's answers: June 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: June 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 389 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 390 ACCA examiner's answers: June 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: June 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 391 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 392 ACCA examiner's answers: June 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 393 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 394 ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 395 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 396 ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 397 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 398 ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 399 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 400 ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 401 htt p:/ /fr e ea cc as tud ym ate ria l.b log sp o t co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ 402 ACCA examiner's answers: December 2013 http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ ... coverage, the BPP Learning Media Practice and Revision Kit provides excellent, ACCA- approved support for your revision We look at the dos and don’ts of revising for, and taking, ACCA exams  We... This means we work closely with ACCA to ensure our products fully prepare you for your ACCA exams as In this Practice and Revision Kit which has been reviewed by the ACCA examination team we: Discuss... http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ vii co m/ http://freeaccastudymaterial.blogspot.com/ Helping you with your revision BPP Learning Media – Approved Learning Partner – content Tackling revision