2017年12月ACCA考试P3商务分析真题及答案解析.doc

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1、2017 年 12 月 ACCA 考试 P3 商务分析真题及答案解析(总分：125.00，做题时间：195 分钟)案例分析题(总题数：4，分数：125.00)Section A This ONE question is compulsory and MUST be attemptedThe companyThe Fidelity Model Corporation (FMC) produces high quality model kits of locomotives, ships and aircraft. These kits contain plastic, metal and gla

2、ss parts and are bought and constructed by enthusiastic hobby modellers. Many of these modellers customise the kits during construction to ensure that the final model accurately reflects the real prototype which they wish to represent. The model kits are relatively expensive and the price reflects t

3、he accuracy, detail, quality and size of the kits. The average price for an FMC kit is $500 and it is estimated that, on average, an FMC customer buys and constructs two FMC models a year.The dealer networkFMC does not sell its model kits directly to the public. It sells them through appointed deale

4、rs who are independent, specialist model shops, often owned and managed by enthusiastic modellers. These shops sell a range of kits, including the kits produced by FMCs main competitor, Barnhoff. FMC mandates a minimum price which dealers must charge for its kits. This is designed to prevent dealers

5、 from undercutting each other. This minimum price reflects a dealer margin of approximately a third of the price. So, for example, a product with a minimum price to the customer of $520 would be sold to the dealer, by FMC, for $390.The model shops are important social hubs for the modelling communit

6、y. Often modellers visit the shops to discuss issues and view product releases with other modellers. It is the model shops which demonstrate the products to prospective customers, provide assistance in construction, trouble shoot any problems with the finished model and liaise with FMC to resolve an

7、y outstanding issues which they cannot address.Pete Waterless, a high profile celebrity modeller, put it succinctly in a recent television documentary.We modellers are a solitary lot. We sit alone in our workshops constructing complex models. Sometimes we just have to go down the local model shop to

8、 see some fellow humans and seek advice and solace. Often we need a little bit of help to build the model. We sit for hours in the shop looking at models and talking about models. Most normal people think we are very boring and, in truth, we are!FMC customer profileIn an attempt to better understand

9、 its end customers, the people who actually buy its kits from the dealers, FMC recently commissioned a customer survey. For two weeks in May, selected dealers were asked to record the age of customers buying FMC products in their shops. Table 1 shows the results of this survey. For example, 45% of c

10、ustomers were males aged 60 to 79.Table 1: Age and gender distribution of customers buying FMC productsThe structure of the companyThe board of FMC consists of the chief executive officer (CEO), the production director, the sales and marketing director and the finance director. The current CEO was a

11、ppointed in 2005. He has considerable experience of the model kit market place.The production director heads up the production department where components for the model kits are fabricated and packaged. There are four teams of ten people in this department, with each team led by a team leader who re

12、ports to the production director. There is also a quality control department of three people with a quality supervisor who reports to the production director. This quality team was established in 2007 by the previous production director to address product quality issues which were affecting the prof

13、itability and reputation of the company at that time. The production director responsible for this initiative has recently retired and a former team leader has been promoted to replace him. The logistics manager is also located in this department. He has a team of 12 drivers and six vehicles which a

14、re used to deliver the kits to the dealer network.The sales and marketing director leads a sales team of nine people who are responsible for servicing the dealer network. Each sales person in this team liaises with between 10 and 15 dealers, depending upon the size of the geographical area they supp

15、ort. The sales team regularly visits every dealer to promote the company, explain changes in the model range and to deliver promotional brochures and display advertising. They also provide the dealers with completed kits of selected models so that these can be shown to customers. They are responsibl

16、e for taking orders from dealers and liaising with production to fulfil these orders. All of the sales team have built up close relationships with the dealers who they are responsible for and many regard the dealers as personal friends. A small marketing team of three people also reports to the sale

17、s and marketing director. One of these people is responsible for national brand promotion, one is concerned with the production of brochures and display advertising and one is responsible for information technology in the company, including the maintenance of the website. The current website provide

18、s information about the companys products and a list of dealers where these products can be bought. The sales and marketing director who led a review of the product range in 2007 has recently left the company. A new sales and marketing director has been promoted from within. She was previously respo

19、nsible for national brand promotion.The finance director heads a small team of four people. Two are responsible for accounts payable and two for accounts receivable. Dealers pay for the inventory they have ordered a month in arrears. For example, they pay for all products delivered in March at the e

20、nd of April. So, only one sales invoice is raised per month for each dealer. The current finance director has been in post since 2011.Most FMC employees have been with the company a long time. They are aware of a recent fall in revenue but believe that this is a temporary problem and little cause fo

21、r long-term alarm. After all, said one, we had similar problems in 2007. However, improvements in quality and a revamp of the product range soon improved things.The Change Agents (TCA)The Change Agents (TCA) is a small management consultancy aimed at delivering real, sustainable change in organisati

22、ons. The board of FMC is concerned about the decline in sales revenue and net profit (see Appendix A) and has commissioned TCA to submit a proposal for addressing this decline.The management summary of TCAs proposal is included as Appendix B. In brief, it suggests a radical change in the business mo

23、del of FMC. It proposes that FMC should sell directly to the end customer via the internet and abandon the dealer network completely.Some of the recommendations of this proposal are based on an interpretation of financial information for FMC for selected years since 2007 ( Appendix A).Appropriate in

24、dustry averages for financial performance for FMCs industry classification (light engineering specialist) are shown in Table 2.Table 2 Selected industry averages for FMCs industry sector (light engineering specialist)A balanced responseWhen TCAs proposal was presented to the board, most of the direc

25、tors were shocked and rejected it immediately as impractical. The sales and marketing director cited the recent customer survey, saying most of our customers are elderly, retired men. I dont see them using the internet to buy things. The production director added that he had read that older people w

26、ere particularly worried about the security and fraud aspects of internet use.However, the CEO wanted a more balanced view and has asked you, as an independent business analyst, to write a report which: Analyses the context of strategic change from the perspective of selected features of the Balogun

27、 and Hope Hailey contextual features model. He notes that TCA makes some reference to this model in its proposal and so he is keen to use it as a basis for analysing the implications of the proposed strategic change. Evaluates the implications of the POPIT four view model for understanding how the b

28、usiness will be changed by the TCA proposal. He is concerned that the company takes a holistic approach to business change. Identifies and assesses likely barriers to moving to the proposed business model from the perspective of the customer. He wishes to understand what factors may prevent or deter

29、 current customers from becoming direct internet customers of FCA.Appendix AFinancial performance for FMC for selected years in the period 2007 to 2016Extract from financial statementsAll figures in $000sAppendix BManagement summary provided by TCAWe were asked by the board of FMC to review its busi

30、ness model, particularly in the light of declining revenues and profit. This appendix summarises the main points of our response to the board of FMC.1. Our analysis of the financial data of the company (Appendix A) suggests that urgent change is required at FMC to address the financial performance o

31、f the company.2. We suggest that selling products through a dealer network is no longer viable. It represents a buying process which is rapidly declining in the commercial market place. We suggest that FMC sells its products directly to end customers and, to avoid competing with itself, no longer pr

32、ovides products through a dealer network.3. FMC has to recognise that 90% of the country now has broadband coverage and that purchases made over the internet are increasing, whilst off-line purchasing remains static.4. Selling products directly to end customers will increase customer reach, increase

33、 profit margins and improve cash flow. Eliminating the dealer margin allows FMC to consider cutting prices whilst at the same time increasing margin.5. Strategic change will be technology-led. The company will require a fully functional e-commerce system allowing customers to browse, order and pay f

34、or products and track their orders. Payment will be made on ordering using credit and debit cards.6. TCA has considerable experience in technology-led change and also capabilities in change management. Our view is that revolutionary change, in terms of the Balogun and Hope Hailey model, is required

35、at FMC. We would be delighted to assist FMC in this revolutionary change, moving FMC from its present traditional business model to a contemporary e-business model.Required:Write the report required by the CEO. This report should:（分数：50）(1).Analyse the context of strategic change at FMC applying fiv

36、e elements of the Balogun and Hope Hailey model: time, scope and nature, readiness, capability and preservation. Use performance data to support your analysis where appropriate.（分数：20）_(2).Use the POPIT four view model to analyse the implications of implementing TCAs proposed strategic change at FMC

37、.（分数：14）_(3).Identify and assess the barriers to moving established customers to the e-commerce model proposed by TCA.(12 marks)Professional marks will be awarded in question 1 for the structure, tone, coherence and clarity of your report. (4 marks)（分数：16）_Section B TWO questions ONLY to be attempte

38、dNCBT plc is a diversified business formed through a merger of Nairo Consumer Electronics and Birit Technology in 1990. NCBT is the holding company for many subsidiaries in a variety of industry sectors including insurance, financial services, clothing manufacture, farming and fertilisers.The compan

39、y is undertaking a strategic review of three of its subsidiaries: Swiftdale Farms, CCB Insurance and Pait Technology. Data for the three companies has been provided for this review, as shown in Figure 1.Figure 1 Financial data for three subsidiaries 20142016Swiftdale Farms this was NCBTs first acqui

40、sition in 1994. NCBT had been a success story in the 1990s technology boom and had a surplus of cash and a number of shareholders looking for growth in the value of their shareholding. In 1994, the farming industry was faced with a number of threats and Swiftdale Farms was opportunistically acquired

41、 for what was considered to be a low price.At the time of the acquisition, the board of NCBT was aware that they had little knowledge of the farming industry but it felt that the managers of Swiftdale Farms were capable and just needed some encouragement. They offered financial incentives for good p

42、erformance, and provided financial resources to assist in the growth of the subsidiary. This initially worked well, but the company performance started to decline in 2010 and NCBT stopped providing financial resources, as they felt they were not being used to add value.In 2016, Swiftdale Farms neare

43、st competitor held 154% market share.CCB Insurance this was acquired in 2011 as NCBT recognised the rapid development of the insurance industry in its home market and also the high margins being earned. CCB Insurance was a relatively new listing on the stock market and the board of NCBT commissioned

44、 a broker to buy shares aggressively on its behalf, so that it acquired a controlling stake. NCBT felt justified in its actions as the share price rose rapidly after acquisition.CCB Insurance has continued to grow with little involvement from NCBT but is now struggling to manage its growth, failing

45、to recruit sufficient new staff or to provide enough office space to cope with its growing operations. It operates in an industry where there are relatively few larger firms and hundreds of smaller companies and where the market leader holds 12% of the market. The economy in which CCB Insurance oper

46、ates is growing at a rate of approximately 2% every year.Pait Technology this is the most recent acquisition, having taken place in 2014. The company manufactures consumer electronics, similar to both of the founding companies of NCBT. It operates in a different country where the industry is just st

47、arting to develop and grow, the way it did for NCBT in the 1990s. NCBT has other subsidiaries situated in this country. The management of Pait Technology are highly knowledgeable about their customers and industry and the company has a good brand name with high recognition. Its nearest competitor ha

48、s an 8% market share.Required:（分数：25）(1).Analyse the financial position of each company (Swiftdale Farms, CCB Insurance and Pait Technology) in the NCBT portfolio. Your analysis should include consideration of the position of each company within the BCG and Ashridge matrices and should suggest an appropriate strategy for each subsidiary as a result of your analysis.Portfolio managers, synergy managers and parental developers are three corporate rationales, developed by Johnson, Scholes and Whittington, for adding value to their business units by the corporate parent.（分数：18）_