Unit Outline

In this unit we explore the key functions fulfilled by managerial and cost accounting. The primary purpose of managerial and cost accounting is to provide relevant information to managers within an organisation. Managerial accounting can be thought of as the informal language used within the organisation to facilitate planning, control, coordination and performance assessment. Decision contexts can vary from the broad strategic planning and resource allocation decisions made at corporate or divisional level, to the more specific cost and performance information necessary to monitor individual products, customers or segments.

Environmental management accounting (EMA) extends these principles by integrating environmental costs and benefits into the decision-making process. EMA enables organisations to assess the impact of their activities on the environment, optimise resource use, and incorporate sustainability into their performance measurement systems. The ultimate measure of success for both managerial and environmental accounting lies in their ability to improve internal decision-making through the relevance, quality, and timeliness of the information they provide, while also addressing environmental and sustainability goals.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	Critically analyse management and cost accounting theory and techniques, for business planning and control
2	Evaluate and critically appraise diverse ethical, environmental, social, and economic perspectives, to management decision making
3	Communicate and justify proposals, solutions and recommendations to support management decisions using industry relevant approaches

Alterations as a result of student feedback

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Exam	See the MyLO site for the due date	40 %	LO1, LO2
Assessment Task 2:	Individual Assignment	Week 5	30 %	LO1, LO3
Assessment Task 3:	Individual Case Study	Week 10	30 %	LO2, LO3

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Exam

Task Description:

You will have a final exam covering topics from Weeks 1 to 12. The exam will be conducted face-to-face during the official exam period. Additional details will be made available on MyLO.

Task Length:

Due Date:

See the MyLO site for the due date

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply management and cost accounting theory and techniques, for business planning and control	LO1
2	Explain the role of management and cost-accounting theory and techniques, for business planning and control	LO1
3	Critically appraise environmental, social, and economic perspectives, to management decision making.	LO2

Assessment Task 2: Individual Assignment

Task Description:

This is an individual assessment. It relates to a business case study to which students are required to apply management accounting theory and practice.
The assessment will comprise two parts: first, students will be required to use appropriate and correct computational analysis, based on the case study, which they will submit in an Excel file, to support their evaluation of the data, and their findings; second, students will be required to provide a professional, written report, in which they communicate their findings and recommendations to their client/s or manager/s.
More details will be provided in a separate announcement posted on MyLO, in Week 3.

Task Length:

2,500 words (excluding references).

Due Date:

Week 5

Weight:

30 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply management and cost accounting theory and techniques, for business planning and control	LO1
2	Explain the role of management and cost-accounting theory and techniques, for business planning and control	LO1
3	Prepare a professional business report, using precise business terminology and formal style, to communicate solutions and recommendations, that support management decision making	LO3

Assessment Task 3: Individual Case Study

Task Description:

This is an individual assessment. In this task, you will select one company and create a Sustainability Balanced Scorecard (SBSC) that links the company’s strategy to its economic, social, and environmental performance, following the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards.
You will use information from the company’s annual and sustainability (or integrated) reports over the past 2–3 years to analyse how the company manages and reports its sustainability performance.
This assessment comprises two parts: a written submission (15%), and an oral submission (15%). More details will be provided in a separate announcement posted on MyLO.

Task Length:

1,500 words excluding references, and the oral submission must not exceed 15 minutes.

Due Date:

Week 10

Weight:

30 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Critically appraise environmental, social, and economic perspectives, to management decision making.	LO2
2	Prepare a professional business report, using precise business terminology and formal style, to communicate solutions and recommendations, that support management decision making	LO3
3	Demonstrate ability to orally communicate effective proposals and recommendations that support management decision making	LO3

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Academic progress review

The results for this unit may be included in a review of your academic progress. For information about progress reviews and what they mean for all students, see Academic Progress Review in the Student Portal.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

You will need the following text [the e-book can be purchased online]:

Horngren, CT, Datar, SM, Rajan, MV, Maguire &Tan, R 2017, Cost Accounting: A Managerial Emphasis, 3rd Australian Edn, Pearson Australia, Melbourne, VIC.

This highly regarded text has been prepared for an Australasian audience with local case studies and Australasian standards. Other editions of this textbook are not recommended for studying BFA612.