Acca Afm Professional Marks
Acca Afm Professional Marks
Acca Afm Professional Marks
There will be 20 professional skills marks out of 100 covering following professional skills:
o Communication
o Analysis and evaluation
o Scepticism
o Commercial Acumen
Distribution:
o Section A:
All four professional skills will be examined
The 50 marks will comprise of 40 technical marks and 10 professional skills marks
o Section B:
Each question will contain a minimum of two professional skills from:
Analysis and evaluation
Scepticism
Commercial Acumen
The 25 marks will comprise of 20 technical marks and 5 professional skills marks
How Professional skills are assessed:
o Communication:
The style of communication should always be determined by intended audience:
Client
Supplier
Senior management
The style includes:
Tone
Familiarity
Level of detail included
Use appropriate format
Inform audience in clear and persuasive manner
Section A will ask for a report. This report should have:
Introduction
Appropriate headings and sub-headings
Calculations should be separated off into an appendix in the spreadsheet
response area
Make use of spreadsheet functionality
Conclusion
Adherence to any specific instructions in the given scenario
Points must be logical and progressive
Avoid repetition
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ACCA AFM PROFESSIONAL MARKS
o Analysis and evaluation:
It is logical interpretation of information and then processing it systematically
Evaluation should always follow any analysis that have been performed
Identifying where data appears to be omitted or where further analysis is needed
to make a recommendation is also important
Estimating future trends and making sensible forecasts of the implications of
decisions which the organisation is making
Ask questions such as:
What do the final calculations suggest?
Are there any financial factors not included in the calculations which could
be relevant for decision making?
Are there any significant non-financial factors that need to be considered?
Marks are awarded for sensible analysis supported by relevant calculations
Think of following areas while evaluating a proposal:
What information is available in the scenario?
Use numerical information provided to perform calculations to form the
basis of your analysis
What information actually means and its impact on the organisation
Cover both advantages and disadvantages
Conclude or recommend
o Scepticism:
Have a questioning approach
To demonstrate effective scepticism, show a combination of:
Probing
Questioning
Challenge within the subject matter
Do the projections given seem realistic?
Possibility of over-optimism in figures
Don’t accuse about bias as this approach will lack professionalism
Appropriate to recognise possibility of bias or self-interest
Challenge view diplomatically rather than directly
Also, don’t consider that everything provided in the question is incorrect
o Commercial acumen:
Show awareness of both the internal and external environments which can affect
the organisation, including any constraints and opportunities
Business awareness
Consider validity and reasonableness of any assumptions made
Consider the nature and size of the entity under consideration and whether the
suggestion being provided is appropriate for the business
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