ACCA考试F1每日一练(2019-03-14)

正确答案：
1 One of the many skills that managers are called upon to use is counselling. Situations often arise in the workplace where particular and careful people-centred skills are required. It is important that managers understand exactly what counselling involves and the delicate skills involved. In addition, many problems identified by counselling can be resolved through appropriate methods of motivation. Widening and deepening interest in the organisation and its many tasks and departments is a tried and tested method
for motivating employees. However, financial rewards remain a strong and important motivator.
(a) The external counsellor’s role must be as ‘a person who takes on the role of counsellor and agrees explicitly to offer time,attention, advice, guidance and support to another person (or persons) temporarily in the role of client’.

正确答案：

The Company Directors Disqualification Act (CDDA) 1986 was introduced to control individuals who persistently abused the various privileges that accompany incorporation, most particularly the privilege of limited liability. The Act applies to more than just directors and the court may make an order preventing any person (without leave of the court) from being:
(i) a director of a company;
(ii) a liquidator or administrator of a company;
(iii) a receiver or manager of a company’s property; or
(iv) in any way, whether directly or indirectly, concerned with or taking part in the promotion, formation or management of a company.
The CDDA 1986 identifies three distinct categories of conduct, which may, and in some circumstances must, lead the court to disqualify certain persons from being involved in the management of companies.
(a) General misconduct in connection with companies
This first category involves the following:
(i) A conviction for an indictable offence in connection with the promotion, formation, management or liquidation of a company or with the receivership or management of a company’s property (s.2 of the CDDA 1986). The maximum period for disqualification under s.2 is five years where the order is made by a court of summary jurisdiction, and 15 years in any other case.

(ii) Persistent breaches of companies legislation in relation to provisions which require any return, account or other document to be filed with, or notice of any matter to be given to, the registrar (s.3 of the CDDA 1986). Section 3 provides that a person is conclusively proved to be persistently in default where it is shown that, in the five years ending with the date of the application, he has been adjudged guilty of three or more defaults (s.3(2) of the CDDA 1986). This is without prejudice to proof of persistent default in any other manner. The maximum period of disqualification under this section is five years.
(iii) Fraud in connection with winding up (s.4 of the CDDA 1986). A court may make a disqualification order if, in the course of the winding up of a company, it appears that a person:
(1) has been guilty of an offence for which he is liable under s.993 of the CA 2006, that is, that he has knowingly been a party to the carrying on of the business of the company either with the intention of defrauding the company’s creditors or any other person or for any other fraudulent purpose; or
(2) has otherwise been guilty, while an officer or liquidator of the company or receiver or manager of the property of the company, of any fraud in relation to the company or of any breach of his duty as such officer, liquidator, receiver or manager (s.4(1)(b) of the CDDA 1986).
The maximum period of disqualification under this category is 15 years.(b) Disqualification for unfitness
The second category covers:
(i) disqualification of directors of companies which have become insolvent, who are found by the court to be unfit to be directors (s.6 of the CDDA 1986). Under s. 6, the minimum period of disqualification is two years, up to a maximum of 15 years;
(ii) disqualification after investigation of a company under Pt XIV of the CA 1985 (it should be noted that this part of the previous Act still sets out the procedures for company investigations) (s.8 of the CDDA 1986). Once again, the maximum period of disqualification is 15 years.
Schedule 1 to the CDDA 1986 sets out certain particulars to which the court is to have regard in deciding whether a person’s conduct as a director makes them unfit to be concerned in the management of a company. In addition, the courts have given indications as to what sort of behaviour will render a person liable to be considered unfit to act as a company director. Thus, in Re Lo-Line Electric Motors Ltd (1988), it was stated that:
‘Ordinary commercial misjudgment is in itself not sufficient to justify disqualification. In the normal case, the conduct complained of must display a lack of commercial probity, although . . . in an extreme case of gross negligence or total incompetence, disqualification could be appropriate.’

(c) Other cases for disqualification
This third category relates to:
(i) participation in fraudulent or wrongful trading under s.213 of the Insolvency Act (IA)1986 (s.10 of the CDDA 1986);
(ii) undischarged bankrupts acting as directors (s.11 of the CDDA 1986); and
(iii) failure to pay under a county court administration order (s.12 of the CDDA 1986).
For the purposes of most of the CDDA 1986, the court has discretion to make a disqualification order. Where, however, a person has been found to be an unfit director of an insolvent company, the court has a duty to make a disqualification order (s.6 of the CDDA 1986). Anyone who acts in contravention of a disqualification order is liable:
(i) to imprisonment for up to two years and/or a fine, on conviction on indictment; or
(ii) to imprisonment for up to six months and/or a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, on conviction summarily (s.13 of the CDDA 1986).

正确答案：
(b) Trying to focus on and improve the measurement of customer satisfaction.
This is a vital goal. Without monitoring and improvement of levels of customer satisfaction, an organisation will tend to
underachieve and is likely to have problems with its future effectiveness. Positive signals from performance measures made
earlier in the value chain are only relevant if they contribute to the ultimate requirement of customer satisfaction. Tunnel vision
and sub-optimisation are examples of measurement problems that may be reduced through recognition of the need for a
management focus on customer satisfaction. For example undue focus on the importance of maximising opening hours may
lead to lack of focus on other quality issues seen as important by customers.
Involving staff at all levels in the development and implementation of performance measures.
People are involved in the achievement of performance measures at all levels and in all aspects of an organisation. It is
important that all staff are willing to accept and work towards any performance measures that are developed to monitor their
part in the operation of the organisation and in the achievement of its objectives. This should help, for example, to reduce
gaming. At the sports complex an example of gaming might be, a deliberate attempt to understate the potential benefits of
maintaining the buildings in order to ensure that funds would be used for other purposes such as an increased advertising
budget. The directors of Astrodome Sports Ltd must recognise that leisure facilities that appear dated and in a poor state of
repair will cause customers to look for more aesthetically appealing alternatives.
Being flexible in the extent to which formal performance measures are relied on.
It is best to acknowledge that measures should not be relied on exclusively for control. A performance measure may give a
short-term signal that does not relate directly to actions that are taking place to improve the level of performance in the longer
term. To some extent, improved performance may be achieved through the informal interaction between individuals and
groups. This flexibility should help to reduce measure fixation and misrepresentation. For example the percentage increase in
the quantity of bowling equipment purchased is seen as necessarily implying increased demand for use of the bowling greens.
Giving consideration to the audit of the performance measurement system.
Actions that may be taken may include:
– Seeking expert interpretation of the performance measures in place. It is important that any audit is ‘free from bias’ and
conducted independently on an ‘arm’s length’ basis. Thus it is essential that such audits should be ‘free from the
influence’ of those personnel involved in the operation of the system.
– Maintaining a careful audit of the data used. Any assessment scheme is only as good as the data on which it is founded
and how this data is analysed and interpreted.
The above actions should help, in particular, to reduce the incidence and impact of measure fixation, misinterpretation and
gaming.
For example, an audit may show that the directors of Astrodome Sports Ltd are fixated on equipment availability and
misinterpret this as being the key to customer volume and high profitability. The audit may also provide evidence of gaming
such as a deliberate attempt to underplay the benefits of one course of action in order to release funds for use on some
alternative.