Name of the program - Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports – Marina Thomas
Design
What Assessment
Analyse
Who
Context
Sequence
Interview
Survey Results
Review & Revise
Reflection
Completion
Feedback
Community
Learner
Community
Topic
Techniques
Activities Tools
Design
Sequence Resources
Collaboration
Assessment
Facilitate
Coaching
Implement
Assess Publish
Mentoring
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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Phase 1: Analyse
Program: Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports
Summary: The aim of this program is to develop the skills and knowledge to prepare flexible budgets, performance reports and use those
tools to analyse budget variances. This program is designed to be delivered in 3 learning sessions
Components/sequencing:
1. Types of budgets, types of costs
2.Flexible Budget Preparation
Combined in 1 session – see Phase 2
3.Responsibility accounting and performance measurement
4. Integration and analysis of reports produced in (3) and (4)
Context:
- Students need this course as a part of their Cert IV (minimum
qualification for an independent contractor-bookkeeper)
- The course is mapped to FNSACCT503B Manage Budgets and Forecasts
from the Business Services Package BSB07
- The course needs to be delivered flexibly because the students are
working and require additional time to practice newly acquired skills at
the place of employment or at home. Due to sensitivity of this
information, it is unlikely that the real workplace data could be used in
classroom or for assessment, so stimulated workplace environment will
be considered for classroom work and assessments.
- Also, due to time and equipment constraints, classroom time would be
used for demonstration of simple budgets prepared manually. At
home/work students will get an opportunity to prepare more complex
and more realistic budgets using MS Excel
Learners:
- Evening students, having full-time jobs
- Have access to a computer in the workplace/at home/library,
with MS Excel installed
- 80% of the students come from non-English speaking background
- 70% of Students are confident users of MS Excel; the remaining
30% are competent in Use Technology course from Cert III, but
have not had practical experience
- 60% do not work/ have not worked in the industry and will not
have access to real data for additional practice
Assessment: Preparing Flexible Budget, performance report and writing a memo to management explaining the variances and recommendations
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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Phase 2: Design
Session 1: Types of Budgets, Prepare Flexible Budgets (block
(1, 2) from Phase 1)
Learning outcome/s: At the end of this section students will be able
-
Describe Flexible and Static Budgets
Describe Fixed, Variance and semi-variable costs
Prepare Budgeted Income Statements that disclose contribution margin
State the flexible budget formula
Prepare flexible budgets
Components/sequencing:
1. Theory: flexible vs static budgets; fixed vs variable costs
2. Contribution margin and change the layout of Budgeted Income Statements from Gross Profit to CM approach
3. State the Flexible Budget Formula
4. Prepare Flexible Budgets
Design the learning experience
Proposed activities:
Proposed assessment:
Individual & group, online &
F2F
Formative & summative
-
-
F2F component:
classroom delivery of
basic concepts and
step-by-step guide on
preparation of the
budget –F2F is
valuable for
accounting courses
Students to discuss
(forum on Moodle)
real life difficulties in
splitting costs in
Collaboration &
connections:
Teamwork, networks
etc
Formative
-
-
E-quiz on types of
budgets and costs
Quality of forum
comments about
their work (or
stimulated workplace
environment, if no
access to Fin Dept)
Portfolio of class and
MS Excel exercises
-
Discussing
problems in
relation to
budgeting and
splitting of
costs
Tools & technologies:
Resources:
What do you need on
hand?
Existing & developed
-
-
-
Moodle forum set
up
Moodle (or any
other) online quiz
set up for
theoretical
questions
Students must
have access to MS
Excel
SMARTBOARD or
projector in the
YouTube: Clip on the difference
between Fixed and Variable Costs
using “puppies business” as an
example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQ5APwtBig
Text Book “Budgeting” by A Banks
and J Giliberti, 3rd Edition
Mini-lecture on Flexible Budget
prepared using Expression
Encoder: an opportunity for
students to see MS Excel way to
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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-
variable or fixed and if
this approach may or
may not suit their
company
Preparations of
budgets using
stimulated workplace
examples
-
classroom to play
YouTube clips
with the Internet
connection
Expression
Encoder minilecture prepared
(or Adobe
Captivate)
prepare budgets, formulas to use.
Also, another opportunity to revisit Flexi Budgets concepts.
Ideally, a practice session should
be developed in Adobe Captivate,
where students can practice their
skills with the immediate feedback
from the program, incorporating
written captions to assist with
non-English speaking background
Moodle to host the resources
including program plans, solutions,
exercises, forums, links,
Expression Encoder session
Review and revise: Student survey – SurveyMonkey, student results, also comments on forum on practical implementation of theoretical concepts
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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Session 2: Responsibility accounting and performance
Report
Learning outcome/s: At the end of this section students will be able
-
Prepare organisational charts
Define responsibility accounting
Identify responsibility centres
Prepare performance reports
Explain management by exception
Identify the major objectives of responsibility accounting
Components/sequencing:
1. Review flexible budgets from Session 1 (including homework assignments), remind that though flexible budget display the range of scenarios,
they are still only budgets. Explain that the next step is to compare budgeted data to actual results for the same level of activity. This is called
‘performance report’
2. Explain that managers’ performance can only be completed for the costs/revenues that he/she can control – link to the theoretical concepts:
organisational charts, responsibility accounting, responsibility centres
3. Prepare performance reports
4. Management by exception and major objective of responsibility accounting
Design the learning experience
Proposed activities:
Proposed assessment:
Individual & group, online &
F2F
Formative & summative
-
-
F2F component:
classroom delivery of
basic concepts and
step-by-step guide on
preparation of the
performance report –
F2F is valuable for
accounting courses
On Moodle forum (a)
give an example of an
organisation chart
(students workplace
or from the Internet),
Collaboration &
connections:
Teamwork, networks
etc
Formative
-
-
E-quiz on
responsibility
accounting,
responsibility
centres and
management by
exception
Quality of forum
comments about
their work (or
stimulated
-
Forum
discussions
Tools & technologies:
Resources:
What do you need on
hand?
Existing & developed
-
-
-
Moodle forum set
up
Moodle (or any
other) online quiz
set up for
theoretical
questions
Students must
have access to MS
Excel
SMARTBOARD or
projector in the
classroom to play
YouTube: Clip on the responsibility
centres
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XcGPyC7JEw&feature=related
Text Book “Budgeting” by A Banks
and J Giliberti, 3rd Edition
Mini-lecture on Performance Report
prepared using Expression Encoder:
an opportunity for students to see
MS Excel way to prepare budgets,
formulas to use. Also, another
opportunity to re-visit Performance
reports concepts.
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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-
-
also explain
responsibility
accounting using that
chart
On Moodle forum (b)
discuss case study on
responsibility
accounting and cost
allocation (I can
provide the case
study, if required –
used to analyse
responsibilities and
discuss responsibility
accounting and blame
– it’s one of those ‘no
single answer’ type –
depends on your point
of view and
organisational policy)
Preparation of
performance reports
using stimulated
workplace examples
-
workplace
environment, if no
access to Fin Dept)
Portfolio of class and
MS Excel exercises
-
YouTube clips
with the Internet
connection
Expression
Encoder (or
Adobe Captivate)
mini-lecture
prepared
Ideally, a practice session should be
developed in Adobe Captivate,
where students can practice their
skills with the immediate feedback
from the program, incorporating
written captions to assist with nonEnglish speaking background
Moodle to keep the resources
including program plans, solutions,
exercises, forums, links, Expression
Encoder (Adobe Captivate) session
Review and revise: Student survey – SurveyMonkey, student results, also comments on forum on practical implementation of theoretical concepts
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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Learning outcome/s: At the end of this section students will be able
Session 3: Integration and Analysis
-
Using Actual Results, prepare relevant Flexible Budgets and then Performance
Reports
Analyse variances between actual, flexible budget and static budget
Write a brief memo to management highlighting problem areas and
recommending areas to be investigated
Components/sequencing:
1. Review Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports preparation (practice exercises from previous sessions)
2. Discuss favourable and unfavourable variances received after completing Performance Reports
3. Analysis of variances
4. Writing a memo to management outlining the findings and their impact on profit
Design the learning experience
Proposed activities:
Proposed assessment:
Individual & group, online &
F2F
Formative & summative
-
-
-
F2F component:
classroom delivery of
basic concepts of
Variance Analysis– is
valuable for
accounting courses
Students to ‘read’ and
draft management
reports to analyse
variances received in
previous sessions on
Moodle
Analysis of
performance reports
prepared earlier
(using stimulated
Collaboration &
connections:
Teamwork, networks
etc
Formative
-
-
Forum
Quality of forum
comments
Portfolio of class and
MS Excel exercises
analysed
Tools & technologies:
Resources:
What do you need on
hand?
Existing & developed
-
-
-
-
Moodle forum set
up
Students must
have access to MS
Excel
SMARTBOARD or
projector in the
classroom to play
YouTube clips
with the Internet
connection
Expression
Encoder minilecture prepared
YouTube: Clip on the variance
analysis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFu2iqmCnX4&feature=related
Text Book “Budgeting” by A Banks
and J Giliberti, 3rd Edition
Moodle to locate the resources
including program plans, solutions,
exercises, forums, links, Expression
Encoder session
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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workplace data)
Review and revise: Student survey – SurveyMonkey, student results, also comments on forum on practical implementation of theoretical concepts
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT FOR THE COURSE:
MS Excel worksheet that requires students to prepare (a) Flexible Budget, (b) Performance Report and (c) write a brief memo to management explaining
the variance and recommending areas to be investigated
Completed spreadsheets are to be uploaded to Moodle for marking
Phase 3&4: Implement & review
These stages are important. After you deliver a session write some notes on the outcomes. When you complete the program make decisions on how it can
be improved. From this feedback it may be necessary to revise and improve your design.
Topic
Outcome
Suggestions for improvement
Learning program template – Flexible Budgets and Performance Reports 30/05/10
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