“Can I use what I learnt at work?” Accounting education-practice gap

Approaching graduation, the first question for every student is “Will I be able to find a job?” If they find a job, the next question will properly be “Can I perform well at work” This research investigated whether students can use what they have learned when they start work, whether there is a gap, and what gap exists between accounting education and the requirements of practice. This study aims to identify the gap of expectation, skill obtained and skills required between student and practitioners’ point of view. This will provide information to students on what areas should they be paying attention to during study, and inform educators on where gaps exist, and brief employers on areas a graduate of accounting education may lack, so focused training can be provided. A questionnaire was designed using free survey tool Qualtrics. Questions were adapted from four different sources. The survey was sent to a Wintec CBITE accounting tutor. With their consent and permission, the survey link was posted onto a Moodle page to share with Wintec CBITE students. The researcher then collected data though Qualtrics. Analysis was done though Excel. A table was created for each question. Some answers were modified to match the literature’s format of presenting their result to show a fairer and equal comparison. The researcher received a total of 26 responses.,20 of which were from accounting major students. However, only 15 out of the 20 had completed the whole questionnaire. Comparison of the results gained from this study contrast with the literature. Conclusions and recommendations are still to be made

Comparing reporting of MYOB Enterprise Reporter vs Xero HQ Reporter

ABC Chartered Accountants is a public accounting practice located in Te Awamutu, providing professional accounting services to a range of clients. MYOB Enterprise (MYOB AE) is used as office accounting software, and financial statements are produced by MYOB AE reporter. This research compares reporting of the existing MYOB AE reporter with Xero HQ reporter, as an alternative for compliance, efficiency, consistency, and report customizing process, and also to find out any other additional reports that Xero HQ can produce compared to MYOB AE. Semi-structured interviews were used to investigate the insight of MYOB AE reporter and Xero HQ reporter. Actual MYOB AE software, together with some MYOB supporting materials, were used (MYOB. Reporter 3.3.help Designing & Generating reports for your practice .Reporter 3.2) and Xero reporting videos (Xero Partner Resources. 2018), with some Xero reporting information published from Xero (www Xero.com/report template in action) were used. The major findings are that MYOB AE and Xero HQ offer compliance reporting templates for different types of entities. Both software allow customised reports to reflect practice preferences. Customising reports help to keep report consistency and report efficiency at the practice. When customising reports in MYOB AE, formats are created, and in Xero HQ Rich Text Editor, Layout Editor and Report Setting Editor are used. When customizing reports, the time spend on planning a new report will maximize the benefit to the practice. So, the difference between the two reporters is the method of customizing reports

An analysis of the pricing approach of a small importer/distributor enterprise: A case study

Import Co. Limited (not its real name) imports specialised equipment from overseas manufacturers and distributes them to retailors and other users New Zealand wide. The current owners brought the existing business three years ago. The owners of Import Co. Limited have suspicions that the profit margins on a number of their products are minimal. The owners are interested to explore how effective pricing can achieve maximum profits, without requiring any other changes to the business or its market. This study’s aim is to select the most appropriate pricing method for Import Co. Limited. The research presentation intends to answer this aim by exploring two questions. Is there any potential for changes to the method of identifying product costs and determining mark up? And secondly, how will these suggested changes alter the company’s profitability long term? To answer these research questions, a product sample of 76 products were chosen to be analysed. The selection process was based on selecting the most frequently sold items, while considering the product’s manufacturer. The study calculated a suggested selling price of the sample products, based on cost plus pricing methods theory. The suggested selling prices were higher than the current list prices for manufacturers 2, 4, and 5, while suggested prices were lower than the current list prices for manufacturer 3. Manufacturer 1 presented some current prices higher, and some lower. Additionally, average current profit percentages were found for each manufacturer’s sample products, with manufacturer 3 concluded as having high profit to cost and expense ratios. The study recommends establishing more constant shipping expenses for all manufacturers, excluding 1. It also recommends immediately increasing prices of product costs with a current profit percentage of 40% or under, and exploring the prices of products from manufacturers 1, 2, 4, and 5, where the current profit is under a satisfactory level. These changes will see a large increase in product price profitability

The impact of a new accounting standard on financial reporting by Waikato Institute of Technology

The Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec) is a Tertiary Education Institution that is domiciled and operates in New Zealand. As a public benefit entity (PBE), Wintec prepares its financial statements in compliance with the suite of PBE accounting standards. The service performance reporting standard, issued in November 2017, potentially may affect the reporting process of Wintec. This research aims to determine the impact that the newly issued standard PBE FRS 48 - Service Performance Reporting will have on the annual report of Wintec. A structured interview with a member of Wintec's finance team was chosen as a primary method. Alongside the interview, a comparative analysis of Wintec’s statement of service performance and the requirements of the newly issued standard was conducted. The study found weaknesses of the shop through learning the present inventory management system of the shop, and suggestions has been completed to progress the technique. The suggestions were completed through the previous studies and from the interviews

“Can I use what I learnt at work?” Accounting education-practice gap

Approaching graduation, the first question for every student is “Will I be able to find a job?” If they find a job, the next question will properly be “Can I perform well at work” This research investigated whether students can use what they have learned when they start work, whether there is a gap, and what gap exists between accounting education and the requirements of practice. This study aims to identify the gap of expectation, skill obtained and skills required between student and practitioners’ point of view. This will provide information to students on what areas should they be paying attention to during study, and inform educators on where gaps exist, and brief employers on areas a graduate of accounting education may lack, so focused training can be provided. A questionnaire was designed using free survey tool Qualtrics. Questions were adapted from four different sources. The survey was sent to a Wintec CBITE accounting tutor. With their consent and permission, the survey link was posted onto a Moodle page to share with Wintec CBITE students. The researcher then collected data though Qualtrics. Analysis was done though Excel. A table was created for each question. Some answers were modified to match the literature’s format of presenting their result to show a fairer and equal comparison. The researcher received a total of 26 responses.,20 of which were from accounting major students. However, only 15 out of the 20 had completed the whole questionnaire. Comparison of the results gained from this study contrast with the literature. Conclusions and recommendations are still to be made

Studying and improving internal controls at HPC

Hamilton Pistol Club (HPC) is a club that focuses on shooting sports. The club comprises 13 committee members and around 350 non-committee members. The club committee is responsible for running the club, while the other members sometimes partake in the upkeep of the club by volunteering to do so. Auditors have for several years in a row pointed out the club’s weakness in internal controls, especially those related to cash handling. This study will therefore identify and suggest the implementation and improvement of the necessary controls. This is essential to the club, as it wants to grow and most importantly to avoid being defrauded or to mismanage funds. To study the controls, the committee was interviewed and members surveyed. The study has shown that the club needs to have a better method of recording its assets and a more modern way to do its accounting. The audit process is also responsible for the audit opinion received and it would help to have staff that are more skilled

The education and practice gap of accounting

Educators nowadays may equip students for jobs that will not exist in the future (Shusterman, 2015) or jobs that do not exist yet. Many students face confession after graduating from tertiary education. Not knowing what to expect, wondering if they can use what they learn from school at work (Elmes, 2017). This paper aims to gather the opinion of accounting students regarding what they think are the demanded skills to get an accounting job after the completion of education. After reviewing the literature, a questionnaire was produced and sent to students at a tertiary institute to gain their opinion. Results were then compared to the skills required in practice by employers when recruiting. The key findings this study obtained were that there is a gap between what soft skills students think is important for an accounting position compared to that of practitioners’ view as stated by other researchers. Results indicate there is little difference of required hard skills (accounting techniques) from view points of students and professionals. Further studies should be done with larger samples to generalise more widely. Recommendations are that tertiary schools can partner with local business and accounting firms to provide internship program for all accounting major students. Also students should communicate with other accounting students, possible seniors or past students to gain their thoughts on what is currently lacking in the school education

Strategic planning for a SME

The purpose of this research is to find competitive advantages for an organisation and prepare a long-term strategic planning for the SME. In a New Zealand context, small business enterprises play vital roles in business and the economic sector. However, most small business do not have specific competitive advantage and long-term strategies to compete in the market. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches have been used as mixed method research. Interviews and surveys have been done. Using those methods, researchers are intended to use the most effective implementation methodology to find out the best solution to the problem and cause of a SME. Location and customer satisfaction have been identified as the prime factors for the firm to run the business successfully. The business has been operating smoothly without using any further strategies to compete in the market. Recommendations involve pricing, advertising and stock management

Strategic planning for a SME

The purpose of this research is to find competitive advantages for an organisation and prepare a long-term strategic planning for the SME. In a New Zealand context, small business enterprises play vital roles in business and the economic sector. However, most small business do not have specific competitive advantage and long-term strategies to compete in the market. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches have been used as mixed method research. Interviews and surveys have been done. Using those methods, researchers are intended to use the most effective implementation methodology to find out the best solution to the problem and cause of a SME. Location and customer satisfaction have been identified as the prime factors for the firm to run the business successfully. The business has been operating smoothly without using any further strategies to compete in the market. Recommendations involve pricing, advertising and stock management

Business research proposals: 2016, volume 6, issue 1

The proposals contained in this issue have been provided by students of an undergraduate degree program. The use of the proposals within is for educational and research purposes and cannot be copied without the written consent of the editor