ACCA: Technical articles

This podcast briefly deals with the new social and ethics committee (SEC) applicable to certain companies in terms of the South African Companies Act (CA), 2008. This is especially important in the context of Syllabus Area F (1) – Management, administration and regulation of companies and close corporations (company directors).

It is always important to be seen as essential to your company as good workers are always in demand. In this podcast we explore the ways in which you can help to make yourself and indispensable member of your team.

LinkedIn is without question one the most important social media networks for professionals. In this podcast we uncover some tips for extracting additional value from LinkedIn to make sure you stand out in a crowded social media network.

You can increase your employability by showing off your people skills. Employers are far more likely to recruit candidates with better interpersonal skills. This is because these skills are a must in increasingly collaborative workplaces.

When you have little or no work experience, good communication skills learnt in the classroom can really help you land your first job. In this podcast we explore the different types of communication that are vital to the career of a professional accountant.

As an accountant, you will be required to make best-practice recommendations to the management and clients on how to reduce costs and risks, enhance revenues and improve profits. To do this, first you will need to research and make sense of complex business and financial information.

In your professional life, good technical skills will be taken for granted. If you want to make a real difference to your career, you need to acquire the soft skills involved in influencing others.

When studying P7, Advanced Audit and Assurance, candidates should remember that current issues is part of the syllabus. One of the particular topics of current issues specifically mentioned in the syllabus is that of IFAC developments. In the context of auditing, this means that candidates should be aware of important projects that are being undertaken by the IAASB. This podcast aims to provide an overview of the more significant currently active IAASB projects.

The aim of F5, Performance Management, is to develop knowledge and particularly skills in the application of management accounting techniques to quantitative and qualitative information for planning, decision making, performance evaluation, and control. This podcast explores the relationship between F2, F5 and P5, the syllabus structure and format of the exam and how best to prepare for it.

This podcast provides an outline of the aim of P5, its structure and how the syllabus is tested. It begins by considering the syllabus and overall aims of the exam, how it relates to previous exams and the format of the exam. It concludes with advice about how best to approach the exam.