Key Skills Flashcards
Define Communication
three aspects: inform, persuade and clarify.
Communication means to express yourself clearly and convincingly through the appropriate medium while being sensitive to the needs of the intended audience and also understanding both the context and situation.
In the exam, this means to present written and numerical work in the required format with a professional tone and use of language and avoiding ambiguity, unnecessary explanations and repetition.
Communication Skill
- Advice on demonstrating “inform”
- Think about who you are addressing in your answer: Who are the audience? eg Board reports focus on strategic issues, along with shareholder and stakeholder concerns.
- Adopt an appropriate tone to suit your audience: eg formal vs informal; use the language they will understand; will they understand the jargon and technical terms, or should you avoid them?
- Use an appropriate style of communication: eg written vs graphic; slides; diagrams
- If the question requirement asks you use a specific format, you must present in that format.
Communication Skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘persuade’:
Persuade using compelling and logical arguments demonstrating the ability to counter-argue when appropriate.
- Support your arguments with facts
- Explain why you think a course of action is suitable/unsuitable
- Use ‘justifying’ words, such as ‘because’: ‘I recommend you do this because…’
Communication Skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘clarify’:
Clarify and simplify complex issues to convey relevant information in a way that adopts an appropriate tone and is easily understood by the intended audience.
- Focus on key points, and avoid unnecessary detail
- Use succinct (Short and Brief) sentences
- Use headings to break down information into clearly identifiable sections
- Present your arguments in a logical order
Define Commercial Acumen.
three aspects: demonstrate awareness, use judgement and show insight.
Commercial acumen means showing awareness of the wider business and external factors affecting business, using commercially sound judgement and insight to resolve issues and exploit opportunities.
- Show deep understanding of the external environment, the internal situation and the key issues that will affect the business, and using your judgement, come up with appropriate recommendations that deal with the situation
In the exam,:-
- this includes considering the change in revenue, Why? and how to improve it?
- cost or profit as an important driver in decision making and
- avoid suggesting solutions which will have a negative financial impact, unless it is to address a wider sustainability issue, such as ethics and governance.
Commercial Acumen Skill
- Advice on demonstrating awareness:
Demonstrate awareness of organisational and wider external factors affecting the work of an individual or a team in contributing to the wider objectives.
- Think about the specific context of a scenario and identify how this affects a decision
- Make sure recommendations are appropriate – and practical – to the context of the scenario
Commercial Acumen Skill
- Advice on demonstrating judgement:
Use judgement to identify key issues in determining how to address or resolve problems and in proposing and recommending the solutions to be implemented.
- Prioritise key points
- Only make points which are relevant to the scenario and which help to address/resolve the issue at hand
- Make sure recommendations resolve issues and/or exploit opportunities
- Avoid making points which are not supported by facts; recommendations need to be justified
Commercial Acumen Skill
3 .Advice on demonstrating insight:
Show insight and perception in understanding work-related and organisational issues, including the management of conflict, demonstrating acumen in arriving at appropriate solutions or outcomes.
Deep understanding of the situation to make appropriate recommendations that will deal with the company issues.
- Make sure recommendations are appropriate and practical in the context of the scenario, eg are they feasible? Will they be acceptable to key stakeholders?
- Make sure recommendations address key issues identified in the scenario
- Make sure decisions and strategies are appropriate for an organisation, rather than just making generic points
- Ask yourself: will the points you are making help the organisation make a decision which successfully addresses the issues it is facing?
Define Analysis?
Logically investigate and process information, on the importance of this information as evidence for your response to a request or objective.
- Investigate - compare information and understand the links of different info.
- Enquire - why it is important, does it provide new evidence?
- Consider- the impact of the information on the business
three aspects: investigate, enquire and consider
Analysis means to thoroughly investigate and research information from a variety of sources and logically process it with a view to considering it for recommending appropriate action.
In the exam, this means to produce relevant analysis from the case overview and exhibits and enquire if this creates new evidence in response to the requirement and a basis for an action you are recommending an organisation should take.
Analysis Skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘investigation’:
Investigate relevant information from a wide range of sources, using a variety of analytical techniques (financial and non-financial) to establish the reasons and causes of problems, or to identify opportunities or solutions.
- Don’t simply repeat points from the scenario; explain why they are significant and/or what are their implications.
- Identify relevant data from different places within a scenario, rather than only including the most obvious (or most easily accessible) points
- Give reasons why a problem has happened, rather than simply stating the problem
Analysis Skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘enquire’:
Enquire of individuals or analyse appropriate data sources to obtain suitable evidence to corroborate or dispute existing beliefs or opinions and come to appropriate conclusions.
- The reference to suitable evidence is key here: data and evidence must be relevant to the points you are making.
- Does data in the scenario support arguments made elsewhere; for example, are revenue figures or profit margins consistent with how well someone says an organisation is performing?
- Or does analysis give evidence to dispute arguments made elsewhere
Analysis Skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘consider’:
Consider information, evidence and findings carefully, reflecting on their implications and how they can be used in the interests of the department and wider organisational goals.
Advice on demonstrating ‘consider’:
- Make use of the information and the analysis findings in the scenario in order to recommend appropriate actions
- How does the evidence in the scenario affect the suitability of a potential course of action?
Define: Sceptisicim
Scepticism means to probe, question and challenge information and views presented, to fully understand business issues and to establish facts objectively, based on ethical and professional values.
Be sceptical of the information presented, is it correct, truthful and complete?
What were the source and the purpose of the information, has it been verified by the third party?
In the exam this means to be aware of the quality, scope, source and age of the information provided, as well as the purpose for which the information was produced and by whom; where necessary suggest information used for analysis, evaluation and decision making is updated, improved or extended through questioning or appropriate challenge. This is so the best possible information is applied before a final decision is made.
Scepticism is assessed over three aspects: probe, question and challenge, as follows.
Scepticism Skill
1.Advice on demonstrating ‘probe’:
Probe deeply into the underlying reasons for issues and problems, beyond what is immediately apparent from the usual sources and opinions available.
- Don’t automatically accept that the initial reason given to explain an issue is correct. is there further evidence to back up claims? (Is the explanation somebody gives you consistent with other evidence? Does the explanation properly explain the issue or problem you are addressing?) For example, if a management accountant is offering an explanation of variance between actual figures and budget, are you satisfied their explanation properly explains the variance?
- Draw together information from different sources, rather than just including the most obvious (or most easily accessible) points. Does information from one source support, or contradict information from another source?
Scepticism skill
- Advice on demonstrating ‘question’:
Question facts, opinions and assertions, by seeking justifications and obtaining sufficient evidence for their support and acceptance.
- Scrutinise any assumptions being made: are they reasonable; can they be supported by the evidence available? (Don’t simply accept everything you are told.)
- Question the motive or rationale behind facts or statements. For example, does the person making a statement have a vested interest in one decision being taken in preference to another? If so, how reliable, or objective, is their evidence likely to be?
- identify additional information or evidence which may be required to corroborate facts or assertions being made
