BSBFIN501

Case Study – KING EDWARD VII COLLEGE

King Edward VII College

has been operating for 5 years. The College is based in Sydney CBD and has an additional campus in Melbourne. The College offers a range of courses in management, marketing, human resources and international business. It currently has around 500 international students enrolled across all of its courses. Courses are offered at all levels, from Certificate II to Graduate Diploma.

King Edward VII College is very popular due to its competitive pricing structure, innovative teaching methods and state of the art facilities. However, due to the decline in international students because of COVID-19 it wants to expand into other areas, most notably enrolling Australian students.

The College currently employs 25 staff members that include the

CEO

, a Finance manager,

Sales and Marketing Manager

and

Sales and Marketing Assistant

,

Promotions Officer

,

Human Resources Manager

,

Operations Manager

,

Administration Manager

, Office Assistant,

Receptionist

,

Academic Manager

,

Student Services Officer

and approximately 14 trainers and assessors. There is also a Board of Directors consisting of the four owners of the company.

As the Sales and Marketing Manager for the company, you are allocated a budget each year to spend on marketing. The marketing budget is a key item to achieve overall sales targets.

This year the budget you have been allocated is $80,000. Your budget does not include salaries and wages of staff, which is accounted for through another cost centre.

The marketing plan for the year includes the activities below. The amounts in brackets are the cost projections for each activity:

Redesign web site to improve branding ($4,000 in December, another $4,000 in April and $2,000 in May)

Design and implement an incentive scheme for referrals by students ($500 per month)

Conduct a radio advertising campaign from the start of February until the end of June, costing $4,000 per month

Online communications: newsletters, websites. Blogs, Twitter (zero cost: staff time only)

Google ads ($500 per month)

Graphic design ($5,500)

Stand at the Education Expo in December (Package deal $10,000)

Develop and publish Promotional Brochure in November ($2,500)

Sponsor a community organisation to improve local community profile ($20,000 in March)

There is a desire to conduct a TV advertising campaign and a quote of $30,000 has been received to run the campaign over a week. This is obviously well over the budget limit. However, it is considered that this type of advertising will be beneficial.

This year due to the high marketing expenses the usual contingency amount of $10,000 has not been factored in.

© 2021 RTO Works AISL Pty Ltd T/A Rosehill College

RTO No: 41257 | CRICOS Code: 03622A

Level 2 & 4, 616-620 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW2007, Australia

Version 1.0

Last updated: December 2021

Page 1

King Edward VII College

Strategic Business Plan

2021 – 2023

Executive Summary

Established five years ago, King Edward VII College is a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) that provides training to students in business and management.

Our principal purpose is to provide high quality training services to satisfy students’ needs.

Our training is nationally recognised and accredited to meet vocational and educational standards. Courses are designed by highly qualified staff with extensive industry and training experience to achieve teaching and learning excellence, flexibility and personal satisfaction.

We draw on our established relationships with industry and other stakeholders to ensure our courses are appropriate to the demands of our clients and consistently meet their expectations.

Quality is maintained in compliance with the national VET Quality Framework and through our continuous improvement system.

A key objective is to develop the required knowledge and skills for clients to be job ready and competently undertake their chosen role in a wide range of business areas.

Mission

King Edward VII College provides high quality industry training that engenders participation and achievement.

Strategic Objectives

To be a leader in vocational education and training

To be a leader in innovation in the vocational education and training sector

To establish and maintain high quality infrastructure supporting clients and staff

To be well led, high performing, profitable and accountable

To develop our people and resources

Values

The core values underpinning our activities are:

Sustain excellence in training and assessment.

Promote innovation across all of our business operations.

Be a collaborative and caring community.

Embrace difference and diversity.

Demonstrate integrity and equality of opportunity in all activities.

Operate with openness and accountability.

Overview

This new business plan reflects our approach to the coming years. We commenced operations five years ago with relatively low student numbers which then increased significantly.

We do not expect these numbers to increase significantly over the period 2021 – 2023 as we are currently nearing capacity in our Melbourne and Sydney campuses.

We also expect stable costs for our existing campuses with no major increases expected. However, there will be significant financial investment required for the new campuses.

Resourcing

Financial

Due to the success of the College to date, there are significant cash reserves to fund the new campuses, plus general initiatives, including quality training and assessment and continuous improvement and innovation.

Our financial objectives are to maintain these cash reserves, whilst still investing in the future.

Our sales targets are $5,000,000 per year.

Maintain a net profit ratio of at least 40%.

Staffing

Regarding staffing, existing staff will perform key functions across the new campuses such as human resources and marketing. They will also perform any new functions arising such as responsibility for quality and innovation.

Operational Objectives

The following identifies the operational objectives we plan to achieve in pursuit of our strategic objectives.

2021

Priorities

Key performance indicators

July

Improve web site information to attract more students

10% increase in students by June 2021
Improve market share by 5%

September

Conduct annual internal audit

Audit conducted, and continuous improvement identified

October

Develop and implement a cultural sensitivity and awareness program for staff

All staff trained in cultural awareness

December

Staff performance reviews

All staff performance reviews conducted

2022

Priorities

Key performance indicators

January

Identify staff required for new campuses

Staff recruited and in place

January

Provide information sessions showcasing the College (existing campuses)

Identify at least 50 potential sign ups

March

Develop online learning for all courses

All courses offered online by end 2022

July

Conduct annual internal audit

Audit conducted, and continuous improvement identified
Increase student numbers by 12% by June 2022

November

Staff performance reviews

All staff performance reviews conducted

2023

Priorities

Key performance indicators

February

Undertake scoping study for possible offshore campus

Scoping study completed by June 2023 and decision made as to whether to proceed

July

Conduct annual internal audit

Audit conducted, and continuous improvement identified

November

Staff performance reviews

All staff performance reviews conducted

The Market

Market characteristics & conditions

King Edward VII College has two broad segments to its target market consisting of people wishing to gain entry to the industry, as well as people already working in business and management who want to formalise or develop their skills.

Workforce needs for this sector have been identified as the need to develop an adaptive, responsive and diverse workforce, keep up with technology and to build effective leadership and management skills.

This has informed King Edward VII’s choice of course delivery.

We also intend to capitalise on market needs for delivery of blended (classroom and online), as well as online courses.

There are many training providers in our sector and King Edward VII seeks to offer a point of difference through our competitive pricing structure, innovative teaching methods and state of the art facilities.

Situation Analysis

Strengths 

Weaknesses 

Price, value and quality
Clear understanding of student requirements
Delivery mode suitable for client requirements
High quality learning & assessment materials
Committed to quality ethical practice
Ability to adapt to changing market conditions
Effective and practical policies and procedures
Competitive pricing
Friendly organisational culture
Level of available finance for investment

Focus on business and management courses only
High staff turnover of trainers
Lack of diversity in workforce

Opportunities 

Threats 

Potential for offshore delivery
Target market experiencing growth
To target other States and Territories
Current portfolio of courses popular in target markets
Potential to apply for Government funding
Explore innovative processes and product offerings

Changes in Industry/ Government legislation affecting students
Adverse effects of government policies
High level of competition
Other RTO’s bad/ malpractice creating poor perception of training providers to clients
Predicted uncertainties in the world economy impacting level of demand for training
Low price competitors
Failing to satisfy clients demands

Marketing Strategies

Potential students make their decisions based on the reputation of the organisation, quality of courses, pricing, employment options and personal recommendations amongst other factors.

Our strong vocational emphasis and continual industry consultation will ensure our courses are appropriate to develop the skills and knowledge currently demanded by employers and students.

Our market decisions are based on extensive and continuous market research, targeting market segments and clients within industry. We collect our data from a variety of sources including current and potential clients, VET and business sectors, competitors, media and government along with many other sources.

We plan to develop our market share by:

Offering online and blended learning

Providing face to face information sessions

Improving our web site

Continually improving the quality of service given to clients’ pre-enrolment, during course delivery and through the provision of support services while remaining price competitive

Focusing on the provision of courses required by industry

Maintaining effective communication channels with all stakeholders to ascertain industry requirements and then develop products and manage services accordingly

Continually improving communication channels with all our stakeholders, ensuring a flow of timely and accurate information to facilitate effective planning and decision making

Consistently satisfying individual client needs and demands at the same time as developing the knowledge and skills required by industry

Targeting identified growth markets with planned, market appropriate campaigns employing a variety of promotional strategies and advertising mediums

Offering attractive fee structures to our clients

Continually improving the skills, knowledge and effectiveness of King Edward VII College through our commitment to training and development

Regularly reviewing the effectiveness of all our operations and making improvements when and where necessary.

King Edward VII College Financial management Policy and

Procedures

King Edward VII College Budget Policy and Procedures

Purpose

of the Policy

King Edward VII College will operate in a financially sustainable manner balancing revenue and expenditure.

Our financial planning process are as follows:

Financial objectives set for each year.

Budgets set for each year.

Procedures

Budgets are set for each applicable department. Budgets are based on expected sales and expenses. Budgets will be set by the finance team. Each manager must review their budget and may contact the finance team for any revisions. They must present a clear argument for any changes.

A contingency amount is usually included in each budget to account for unexpected costs.

Managers are expected to inform their team of the budget and to provide them with the required resources and systems so as to fulfill their roles. Generally this will include regular meetings to monitor the budget. Team members are expected to report all expenses to managers by providing receipts and so on.

Budgets should be monitored by each Manager every month using our accounting system, Xero, to make sure expenses are on track. Where changes are required, the finance team may be contacted to discuss this. This should also include where contingency amounts need to be varied.

Each manager must review their budget amount versus actual amount at the end of the reporting period. Variances of up to 5% over budget are acceptable. Differences between actual and budgeted amounts must be described, as well as justifications for such.

King Edward VII College Finance Authorisation Policy and Procedures

Purpose of the Policy

All finance transactions as noted in this policy are to be authorised by the noted authorised person prior to the transaction being undertaken.

This policy is to be read in conjunction with other specific finance policies where relevant.

Procedures

Prior to any of the following finance transactions being undertaken, the authorising person noted must authorise the transaction.

Where additional policy is noted, this policy must also be adhered to when undertaking the finance transaction.

Finance Transaction

Authorised Person

Bank Accounts

CEO/

Finance Manager

Issuing Petty Cash

Senior Managers

Business Credit Card

Senior Managers

Authorising New Customers

Finance Manager

Authorising New Suppliers

Finance Manager

Purchasing Stock

Senior Managers

Purchasing Assets/ Equipment

CEO

Debt Collection

Senior Managers

Payment of Invoices

Senior Managers

Petty Cash Policy

Purpose of the Policy

Petty cash should be used to pay for small business expenses up to $100 where payments through accounts payable or credit card are not justified or appropriate

Procedures

Issuing Petty Cash

Petty cash vouchers must be completed before any cash is taken from the petty cash float.

Only up to $100 can be disbursed at any one time.

All petty cash vouchers issued must be approved by a Senior Manager.

Once the petty cash is spent, a receipt or invoice should be attached to the voucher and returned to petty cash with any balance of monies unspent

All completed vouchers must have the following details included:

Issue date of voucher;

Name of person who issued the voucher;

Amount of monies disbursed;

Details of expense;

Invoice or receipt

Signature of approval person

Reconciling Petty Cash

Petty cash float is to be reconciled at least monthly. This is the responsibility of {insert relevant job title here}

All petty cash expenditure must be entered into the financial system once the petty cash has been reconciled.

The balance of monies and vouchers must equal the petty cash float amount before reimbursement can be made.

Reimbursement of petty cash will be authorised by a Senior Manager.

Use of Business Credit Card Policy

Purpose of the Policy

This policy provides guidelines for the issue and use of business credit cards.

Procedures

An employee will only be issued a credit card once the Credit Card Authorisation Form has been completed.

The business credit card can only be used for travel, authorised entertainment and purchases of small value expenses or equipment up to the value of $500.

No cash advances are to be taken using the business credit card unless authorised by the Finance Manager.

Where a business credit card is lost or stolen, the owner of this card is to notify the Finance Manager, who is responsible for notifying the issuing agency and ensuring the card is cancelled.

The business credit card is not to be used for personal expenses.

All holders of business credit cards are required to reconcile the monthly credit card statement to the expense form, attach all receipts for payments made on the credit card and have the expense statement authorised by the Finance Manager.

Upon completion and authorisation of the monthly expense statement, these documents are to be forwarded to the Finance Manager for payment of the credit card statement.

All business credit cards are to be returned to the business when the person is requested to by the Finance Manager or where they are no longer an employee of the business.

New Supplier Policy

Purpose

All new suppliers to the business must be reviewed and accepted in accordance with this policy to ensure that the supplier service is aligned with the business objectives.

Procedures

Choosing a New Supplier

A new supplier must provide our business with quality products, great service, competitive pricing and efficient delivery.

The following information table must be completed prior to agreeing to services

Supplier Selection Background Information

Business Name of Supplier:

Location of Supplier:

Products/Services provided by supplier: (Attach a list if necessary)

Name of business owner/ sales representative:

For how many years has the supplier been trading?

Supplier Selection Review Checklist

For each new supplier being considered the following checklist must be completed:

Is the supplier pricing competitive?

What are the payment terms for this supplier?

What is the return policy for this supplier?

Does the supplier provide warranties, guarantees etc.?

Are the suppliers’ representatives knowledgeable of the products/services and industry?

Is there an alternative to this supplier, has the alternative supplier been considered?

What are the delivery services of the supplier?

Has a credit check been undertaken for the supplier? (attach to this checklist)

Has the

Personal Property Securities Register

(PPSR). been reviewed?

Has the supplier been trade checked? (attach this to this checklist)

Insert relevant additional information to assist in the decision of appointing a new supplier

Appointment of Supplier

The appointment of a new supplier will be authorised by the Finance Manager.

All relevant details of the supplier will be entered into the financial system by Administration Assistance once approval is obtained from the Finance Manager.

The Finance Manager will review information entered into the financial system and independently verify the bank account or other payment details of the supplier to ensure payments made are to the correct supplier

Supplier Payment Terms

All purchases from suppliers must be supported by a purchase order.

Payment terms for all suppliers must be reviewed by {Insert relevant job title here} every {Insert timing of review here, recommended at least once a year}. Following this review each supplier must be approached to seek improved payment terms by Finance Manager.

All supplier payment terms must be a minimum of 30 days.

Any variation to the above must be authorised by Finance Manager.

All supplier payments are to be reviewed once a quarter to ensure that payment terms are adhered to. For payments made to any suppliers earlier or later than the agreed terms. The Finance Manager will prepare a report that details the reasons why payment terms have not been adhered to.

This report will be reviewed and authorised by the CEO.

Please review this report in order to be able to complete Section 3 of your Portfolio.

Budget Report – end of reporting period
Actual marketing spend

Website

$12,500

Referral scheme

$470 per month – 5640

Radio advertising

Cancelled

Google ads

$700 per month

Graphic design

$5,550

Television advertising

$30,000

Education expo

$10,000

Promotional brochure

$2,500

Community sponsorship

$20,000

Notes on budget:

No contingency amount factored into the original budget.

Monthly monitoring missed on three occasions.

Staff report difficulty in understanding how to monitor budgets.

Board of directors

CEO

Operations Manager

Sales and Marketing Manager

Human Resources Manager

Sales and Marketing Assistant

Promotions Officer

Student Services Officer

Assessors and Trainers

Finance Manager

Receptionist

Academic Manager

Administration Manager

Office assistant

PROJECT PORTFOLIO

BSBWRT301 Write simple documents

Trainer Guide

STUDENT VERSION

MANAGE BUDGETS AND FINANCIAL PLANS

BSBFIN501

First published 2021

RTO Works

www.rtoworks.com.au

hello@rtoworks.com.au

0452 157 557

© 2021 RTO Works

This resource is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act 1

9

6

8

, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission as expressed in the RTO Works License Agreement.

The information contained in this resource is, to the best of the project team’s and publisher’s knowledge true and correct. Every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy, but the project team and publisher do not accept responsibility for any loss, injury or damage arising from such information.

While every effort has been made to achieve strict accuracy in this resource, the publisher would welcome notification of any errors and any suggestions for improvement. Readers are invited to write to us at
hello@rtoworks.com.au
.

Business Works is a series of training and assessment resources developed for qualifications within the Business Services Training Package.

Contents

Section 1: Financial management approaches planning

6

Section 2: Financial management implementation

8

Section 3: Financial management monitoring and evaluation

9

Section 4: Financial management improvement evaluation

11

AISL Pty Ltd T/A Rosehill College

RTO No: 41257 | CRICOS Code: 03622A

Level 2 & 4, 616-620 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW2007, Australia

Version 1.0

Last updated: December 2021

| 6

Student name:

Assessor:

Date:

Business this assessment is based on:

Section 1: Financial management approaches planning

Budgets and financial plans
Describe the overall financial objectives for the business,

Describe the budget and financial plans you will use for this assessment to assist in achieving these objectives. Your description should include the purpose of the budget and financial budgets and the reporting period. You should also evaluate and report on the required outcomes for the budget and financial plan.

If you are completing this assessment based on the case study organisation, this will be the information in the simulation pack. If it is for your own business or workplace, you will need to access the budget and financial plan for your team.

Financial management processes
Indicate the name of the policy and procedure/s that is utilised for financial management. Further, describe processes that are used to monitor expenditure and control costs, as well as adjust contingency plans as required.

If you are completing this assessment based on the case study organisation, this will be the information in the simulation pack. If it is for your own business or workplace, you will need to access your workplace’s policy/ procedures.

Budgets and financial plans
Based on your evaluation of the budget/ financial plan, what changes do you believe need to be made to the budget and financial plan? Describe at least one change.

Contingency plans
As you know contingency plans are vital for a budget and financial plan.

Develop a contingency plan for your budget/financial plan, describing at least three possible contingencies.

Negotiation
As documented above, you have identified a change or changes that need to be made to the budget. Assume that you need to negotiate this change with a Manager. Prepare an email here to confirm your understanding of the required budget and financial plan outcomes, as well as negotiate your recommended changes to the budget. Make sure you clearly state why you are recommending the change or changes.

Section 2: Financial management implementation

Complete this section prior to the meeting.

Meeting preparation
As per the instructions in the assessment, you are required to prepare a presentation in order to communicate the financial management plans to your team.

Your presentation can be in a form of your choice such as a PowerPoint presentation.

Your presentation is to include:

Details of the agreed budget and financial plans (assume your change/s to the budget were approved).

Information on the processes that will be used to monitor expenditure and control costs and adjust contingency plans as required.

Details of the resources and systems that your team need to access in order to be able to perform their roles (this will be as per the information you completed in Section 1).

Your presentation must be clear and concise and use a logical structure and language that your audience can understand.

List the name of your presentation here and attach it to your Portfolio.

Attach:

Presentation
☐

Section 3: Financial management monitoring and evaluation

Budget and expenditure reporting
You are required to report on the variance between the actual and budgeted amount for your budget/financial plan following financial management procedures. If you are completing this assessment based on the case study organisation, this will be the information in the simulation pack. If it is for your own business and you can access this information, then report on it. Otherwise review the Budget Report information section in the Simulation Pack, as well as the Financial Management Policy and Procedures.

Please also report on contingencies in this section i.e. how well they were implemented and modifications.

Financial management processes
Review current financial management processes. If you are completing this assessment based on the case study organisation, review the Financial Policy and Procedures, as well as reflect on the financial plan and budgeting planning and implementation process you have followed, as well as any budget variances.

If you are completing this for your own business, review your current workplace processes and the budgeting/financial planning process you have followed for this assessment.

What do you believe could be improved? Describe at least three recommendations. Note that you will need to implement at least one of these below.

Financial management processes improvement
Select one of the improvements and implement it. You will also need to provide evidence of this. For example, you may decide that the budget policy section of the financial management policy needs updating and in this case you will provide an updated policy. You may also decide to recommend a specific amount for inclusion as a contingency.

You must also develop an email to send to your team in order to implement the improvement. Document the email in this section.

Submit your Portfolio to your assessor now and then when you receive feedback complete the next and final sections.

Attach:

Evidence of financial management improvement
☐

Section 4: Financial management improvement evaluation

Provide an evaluation here of the improvement you implemented based on the feedback from your assessor.

Record keeping
As indicated in the assessment task, you must create logical folders for all of your work. Submit a screenshot of these folders. This will ensure you follow record keeping requirements. List the name of your file here.

Attach:

Screenshot of folders
☐

STUDENT
ASSESSMENT TASKS

BSBWRT301 Write simple documents

Trainer Guide

MANAGE BUDGETS AND FINANCIAL PLANS

BSBFIN

5

01

First published 2021

Version 1.0

RTO Works

www.rtoworks.com.au

hello@rtoworks.com.au

© 2021 RTO Works

This resource is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act 1

9

6

8

, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission as expressed in the RTO Works License Agreement.

The information contained in this resource is, to the best of the project team’s and publisher’s knowledge true and correct. Every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy, but the project team and publisher do not accept responsibility for any loss, injury or damage arising from such information.

While every effort has been made to achieve strict accuracy in this resource, the publisher would welcome notification of any errors and any suggestions for improvement. Readers are invited to write to us at
hello@rtoworks.com.au
.

Business Works is a series of training and assessment resources developed for qualifications within the Business Services Training Package.

Contents

Introduction

4

Assessment Task 1: Knowledge questions

5

Assessment Task 1: Checklist

8

Assessment Task 2: Project Portfolio

9

Assessment Task 2: Checklist

13

Final results record

15

Introduction

The assessment tasks for BSBFIN501 Manage budgets and financial plans are outlined in the assessment plan below. These tasks have been designed to help you demonstrate the skills and knowledge that you have learnt during your course.

Please ensure that you read the instructions provided with these tasks carefully. You should also follow the advice provided in the Business Works Student User Guide. The Student User Guide provides important information for you relating to completing assessment successfully.

Assessment for this unit

BSBFIN501 Manage budgets and financial plans describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to undertake financial management in an organisation or work area. It includes planning and implementing financial management approaches and supporting and evaluating effectiveness of financial management processes.

For you to be assessed as competent, you must successfully complete two assessment tasks:

· Assessment Task 1: Knowledge questions – You must answer all questions correctly.

· Assessment Task 2: Project – You must work through a range of activities and complete a project portfolio.

Assessment Task 1: Knowledge questions

Information for students

Knowledge questions are designed to help you demonstrate the knowledge which you have acquired during the learning phase of this unit.

Ensure that you:

· review the advice to students regarding answering knowledge questions in the Business Works Student User Guide

· comply with the due date for assessment which your assessor will provide

· adhere with your RTO’s submission guidelines

· answer all questions completely and correctly

· submit work which is original and, where necessary, properly referenced

· submit a completed cover sheet with your work

avoid sharing your answers with other students.

i

Assessment information
Information about how you should complete this assessment can be found in Appendix A of the Business Works Student User Guide. Refer to the appendix for information on:
· where this task should be completed
· the maximum time allowed for completing this assessment task
· whether or not this task is open-book.
Note: You must complete and submit an assessment cover sheet with your work. A template is provided in Appendix C of the Student User Guide. However, if your RTO has provided you with an assessment cover sheet, please ensure that you use that.

Questions

Provide answers to all of the questions below:

Explain the basic principle of double entry bookkeeping.

Complete the following table to describe the principles of cash and accrual accounting and an advantage and disadvantage of each method of accounting.

Type of accounting method

Description

One advantage and one disadvantage of this method

Cash accounting

Accrual accounting

Explain the two accounting principles on which the calculation and reporting of depreciation is based.

List three types of budgets.

List three key features of A New Tax System (GST) Act 1999.

Outline the four main taxation and superannuation obligations for a business.

List three types of records that a company must keep for tax purposes.

Explain why the ATO conducts audits.

List three key principles that should be followed when managing a work team.

Describe the difference between a static and a flexible budget.

Explain the relevance of electronic spreadsheets to budgeting.

Outline how often business’ must report GST.

Describe the following terms associated with financial statements.

Cash flow statements

Balance sheets

Ledgers

Profit and loss statements

Describe a method that can be used to evaluate a budget or financial plan.

Assessment Task 1: Checklist

Student’s name:

Did the student provide a sufficient and clear answer that addresses the suggested answer for the following?

Completed successfully?

Comments

Yes

No

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

Question 6

Question 7

Question 8

Question 9

Question 10

Question 11

Question 12

Question 13

Question 14

Task outcome:

· Satisfactory

· Not satisfactory

Assessor signature:

Assessor name:

Date:

Assessment Task 2: Project Portfolio

Information for students

In this task, you are required to demonstrate your skills and knowledge by working through a number of activities and completing and submitting a project portfolio.

You will need access to:

· a suitable place to complete activities that replicates a business environment including a meeting space and computer and internet access

· workplace policies and procedures relating to financial management (included in the BSBFIN501 Simulation Pack for students completing this assessment for the case study organisation)

· workplace budgets and financial plans (included in the BSBFIN501 Simulation Pack for students completing this assessment for the case study organisation)

· your learning resources and other information for reference

· Project Portfolio template.

Ensure that you:

· review the advice to students regarding responding to written tasks in the Business Works Student User Guide

· comply with the due date for assessment which your assessor will provide
· adhere with your RTO’s submission guidelines
· answer all questions completely and correctly
· submit work which is original and, where necessary, properly referenced
· submit a completed cover sheet with your work

· avoid sharing your answers with other students.

i

Assessment information

Information about how you should complete this assessment can be found in Appendix A of the Business Works Student User Guide. Refer to the appendix for information on:
· where this task should be completed
· how your assessment should be submitted.
Note: You must complete and submit an assessment cover sheet with your work. A template is provided in Appendix B of the Student User Guide. However, if your RTO has provided you with an assessment cover sheet, please ensure that you use that.

Activities

Complete the following activities:

1. Carefully read the following:

This assessment requires you to demonstrate your skills and knowledge in managing budgets and financial plans.
This project can be based on the case study business in the BSBFIN501 Simulation Pack or you may like to base this on your own business, or a business you are currently working for or are familiar with. Speak to your assessor to get approval if you want to base this on your own business or one you work for.
You will be collecting evidence for this unit in a Project Portfolio. The steps you need to take are outlined below.

Preparation

Make sure you are familiar with the business you are basing this assessment on and have read through the necessary background information and policies and procedures. For the case study business, this is all of the documents included in the BSBFIN501 Simulation Pack. If it’s your own business or a business where you are working or are familiar with, it’s important at this step that you have your business or case study approved by your assessor.
Complete Page 4 of your Project Portfolio for this unit.
Read through the requirements of Section 1, 2, 3 and 4 of your Project Portfolio which include detailed guidance relevant to all the assessment activities.
Remember to create logical folders for all of your work and in the final assessment task you will submit a screenshot of these folders. This will ensure you follow record keeping requirements.

1. Plan financial management approaches.

You are required to plan financial management approaches for a business. This involves:
· Accessing, reviewing and then reporting on the budget and financial plans relevant to your team or department.
· Evaluating budget and financial plan outcomes.
· Preparing contingency plans in case plans need to be varied.
· Identifying if any changes need to be made to the budget and financial plans and negotiating these changes.
If you are completing this for the case study business, you will answer all the questions in your Portfolio based on your Simulation Pack. If it is your own business, you will need to access the budgets and financial plans relevant to your team or department, as well as relevant workplace policies and procedures.

Complete Section 1 of your Project Portfolio.
Submit your Portfolio to your assessor.

Preparing to implement financial management plans

You are to prepare a presentation to provide to your team. This can be any format you wish as per the instructions in your Portfolio. The purpose of the presentation is to:
· communicate the details of the agreed budget and financial plans
· provide support to your team in order to implement the budgets and financial plans
· provide information to your team about financial management processes to monitor expenditure, controls costs and adjust contingency plans as required.
Prepare your presentation following the guidelines in your Portfolio. Make sure your presentation has a logical structure and is in language that your team can understand. Your presentation will last for approximately 15 minutes and you will need to ensure you provide the opportunity for other students to answer questions.

Complete Section 2 of your Project Portfolio.
Submit your Portfolio to your assessor. Your assessor will then advise you of the date and time of your presentation, as well as the students who will be participating.

Implementing financial management plans

In a group round-table style discussion with a student group of approximately two or three, you will provide your presentation.
Each person will have a turn (15 minutes per person) to present their work.
Your assessor will be looking to see that you can:
· demonstrate effective communication skills including:
· Speaking clearly and concisely
· Using non-verbal communication to assist with understanding
· Asking questions to identify required information
· Responding to questions as required
· Using active listening techniques to confirm understanding
· Use language that your audience can understand.

i

This can either be viewed in person by your assessor or you may like to video record the session for your assessor to watch later. Your assessor can provide you with more details at this step. Make sure you follow the instructions above and meet the timeframes allocated.

Monitoring and evaluating financial management plans

If you are using the case study business you are to complete this activity. If you are using your own business, you may analyse information on the budget and expenditure. If this is not possible, you may also complete this same activity.
Assume it is the end of the reporting period. Review the information in the simulation pack and report on:
· Expenditure and income
· Actual versus forecasted budget
· Effectiveness of the financial management processes as per the team’s feedback
· Recommended improvements to financial management processes.
Work on Section 3 of your Project.

Implement agreed improvements

You are to implement one of the recommendations you have identified in the previous activity and provide the required evidence. Follow the instructions in your Portfolio to complete this task.

Complete Section 3 of your Project Portfolio.
Submit your Portfolio to your assessor.

Evaluate improvement

You are to evaluate the improvement you implemented in the previous activity and provide the required evidence. Follow the instructions in your Portfolio to complete this task.

Complete Section 4 of your Project Portfolio.

Submit your completed Project Portfolio

Make sure you have completed all sections of your Project Portfolio, answered all questions, provided enough detail as indicated and proofread for spelling and grammar as necessary.
Submit to your assessor for marking.

Assessment Task 2: Checklist

Student’s name:

Did the student:

Completed successfully?

Comments

Yes

No

Manage the budget and financial plan of an organisation for one reporting period?

Access and review budget and financial plans for work team?

Evaluate budget and financial plan outcomes?

Negotiate at least one change required to be made to budget and financial plans?

Develop contingency plans in case that the initial budget/financial plan needs to be varied?

Communicate details of agreed budget and financial plans to relevant team members?

During the presentation, demonstrate effective communication skills including:
· speaking clearly and concisely
· using non-verbal communication to assist with understanding
· asking questions to identify required information
· responding to questions as required
· using active listening techniques to confirm understanding?

Support team members to access resources and systems to perform required roles?

Implement processes to monitor actual expenditure, control costs and modify contingency plans and according to financial objectives?

Report on budget and expenditure?

Collect and assess information on effectiveness of financial management processes within work team?

Analyse variance between actual and budgeted finances?

Identify and recommend improvements to existing financial management processes?

Implement agreed improvements as per the financial objectives of work team and organisation?

Evaluate and report on agreed improvements to financial management processes?

Task outcome:

Satisfactory

Not satisfactory

Assessor signature:

Assessor name:

Date:

Final results record

Student name:

Assessor name:

Date

Final assessment results

Task

Type

Result

Satisfactory

Unsatisfactory

Did not submit

Assessment Task 1

Knowledge questions

S

U

DNS

Assessment Task 2

Project Portfolio

S

U

DNS

Overall unit results

C

NYC

Feedback

· My performance in this unit has been discussed and explained to me.

· I would like to appeal this assessment decision.

Student signature: Date:

· I hereby certify that this student has been assessed by me and that the assessment has been carried out according to the required assessment procedures.

Assessor signature:

Date:

AISL Pty Ltd T/A Rosehill College

RTO No: 41257 | CRICOS Code: 03622A

Level 2 & 4, 616-620 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW2007, Australia

Version 1.0

Last updated: December 2021

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