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8/8/2019 Carrer Evaluation

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PracticalExperienceRequirements



PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

Contents

A quick guide to the inormation you’ll nd inthis section.

1 The Practical Experience Requirements

2 Guidance on how to ll in your Career Prole

3 Submitting your Career Prole or assessment

At CIMA we are committed to the continuous review

and improvement o our services to you as students

and members, to give you the skills and knowledge to

succeed in a world where new business issues constantly

arise. We also aim to anticipate and ulfl your needs, as

proessionals, responding in areas where you tell us you

need support. So make it part o your career plan to ulflthe requirements or membership and have your practical

experience assessed.

You need to record your experience in a Career Prole.

The Career Prole will include:

• an assessment o practical experience/membership

application orm, signed by a proposer and seconder

• an employment summary

• a detailed record o your experience

• a record o skills development.

We encourage you to submit your Career Prole or

assessment as soon as you have successully completed

the managerial level exams and have a minimum o

three years’ relevant practical experience.

At the very latest, you must make an application within

our years o completing your nal exam, TOPCIMA.

I you don’t submit your Career Prole within our years

you will be removed rom the register.

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Find out more about PracticalExperience Requirements atwww.cimaglobal.com/per

The CIMA qualication is highly respected by

employers throughout the world with many

preerring CIMA because o its unique ocus

on developing practical skills in management

accounting, business and nancial management. The

CIMA qualication is designed to be relevant anywhere

in the world and is the only international, proessional

qualication with a syllabus that has a sole ocus

on the education and training o management

accountants in the business environment.

Glynn Lowth

President o CIMA



1 Practical Experience Requirements

Your questions answered:Why have Practical Experience Requirements?

The Practical Experience Requirements are an essential part

o the CIMA qualication. They complement the exams and

measure whether students have gained enough experience

o applying management accounting skills and techniques

to become a CIMA member.

They also provide CIMA with a basis or assuring potential

employers and people in business that those admitted

to membership are competent to act as management

accountants.

What are the Practical Experience Requirements?

The Practical Experience Requirements describe the range

o practical work experience you need to gain in order to

become a CIMA member.

They are broken down into three areas – Basic, Core and

Supplementary, to show the wide range o unctions carried

out by management accountants.

The detailed Practical Experience Requirements and

outcomes are shown later in this section.

Are the requirements the same or students working in

dierent employment sectors?

Yes. The Practical Experience Requirements are the same

or everyone, regardless o employment sector. The

Practical Experience Requirements have been designed to

be applicable across the broad range o business sectors,

geographic and cultural environments. This should enable

most management accounting students, whatever their

training situation, to obtain experience which meets the

requirements.

How much experience do I need?

You will need a minimum o three years’ relevant practical

experience, some or all o which may have been gained

beore registering as a CIMA student.

You are not expected to have covered every single aspect

o the Practical Experience Requirements. A good spread o

experience is required across the three areas, with at least

18 months o the three years in the core area. Additional orin depth experience in the core area may compensate or

marginal experience gained in the other areas.

How do I record my practical experience?

Your experience should be recorded in a Career Prole.

The Career Prole consists o an assessment o practical

experience/membership application orm, employment

summary, a detailed record o your experience and a record

o skills development.

You should start work on your Career Prole as soonas you start your relevant experience, and then update

this regularly – at least every time your job specication

changes and/or when you change employer.

Section 3 provides guidance on how to complete your

Career Prole.

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How will I judge whether I have sufcient practical

experience to apply or assessment?

As soon as you believe you have the necessary relevant

practical experience, you should submit your Career Prole

or assessment.

You can apply at any time ollowing the completion o the

managerial level exams. In the event o an application being

received with inadequate experience, we will advise you on

how you can improve your application.

What should I do i I have gained three years’ experience,

which is in depth in some areas, but have much less

experience or no experience in others?

You should still submit your Career Prole or assessment.

The membership assessors are ellows o CIMA, with

wide ranging experience, who are able to interpret and

evaluate the range o experience recorded by an applicant.

It is worthwhile submitting your Career Prole in these

circumstances (subject to having a ull 18 months’ coreexperience). I you have ailed to meet the overall standard

o experience required, you will be given advice on what to

do next.

When can I use the letters ACMA?

Only when you have been admitted as an associate member

o CIMA can you describe yoursel as a

Chartered Management Accountant and use the initials

ACMA ater your name. You must not describe yoursel

as ‘CIMA qualied’ or use the letters ACMA in any

correspondence or on any documentation, including your

CV or business card, until you have passed all the CIMA

exams, had your practical experience successully assessed

and been admitted to membership. I you do use ACMA

when you are not entitled to, you may be disciplined. For

more inormation you may wish to reer to Members’

Regulations 11.4 o CIMA’s Royal Charter, Byelaws and

Regulations booklet and Part A o the Ethical Guidelines 5.1.

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Key points1 The Practical Experience Requirements complement

CIMA’s exams syllabus by identiying the essential nancial

and technical skills required to be competent Chartered

Management Accountants.

2 In addition, students should aim to develop their personal,

interpersonal and organisational skills (behavioural skills), or

example, communication, presentation or team working.

3 A minimum o three years relevant experience is required,

spread across all three areas.

4 A minimum o 18 months should be spent in the core area,

but assessors will make a judgement on the overall quality o

experience.

5 Students should indicate the extent o their involvement

in activities, or example speciying whether they had sole

responsibility or the task and/or participated as part o a team.

Area 1: Basic experienceExperience gained in this area should be at a ‘hands-on’ level.

Examples o suitable experience in this area are listed below:

1a Preparing and maintaining accounting records

• Updating the organisation’s ledgers.• Maintaining payroll procedures.

• Preparation and review o a trial balance.

• Reconciliations o debtors, creditors, bank balances.

• Computation o depreciation charges, VAT returns, accruals and

prepayments.

1b Statutory and regulatory reporting

• Involvement in the preparation o annual or interim nancial

statutory accounts, regulatory, or compliance inormation or

the organisation and stakeholders.

• Consolidation o the results o subsidiary organisations.

• Preparation and review o other government nancial returns.

1c IT desktop skills

• Developing computer literacy using proprietary sotware

packages, including spreadsheets and databases.

• Using the internet and corporate intranets.

1d Systems and procedure development

• Involvement in the design, development and implementation o

new or replacement systems and procedures.

• Review o existing systems and processes as part o an internal

or operational audit.

Area 2: Core experienceExperience gained in this area should be as ‘hands-on’ as possible.

Students may be contributing to the activities without necessarily

having ultimate responsibility or the output.


2a Preparation o management accounts

• Preparation, presentation and interpretation o regular

management accounts and related reports; KPIs, fash

reporting, dashboard, and periodic P&Ls.

• Comparison o actual perormance with budget and/or

orecast; analysis and interpretation o variances.

• Preparation o regular reports on capital expenditure,

outstanding debtors/creditors, inventory etc.

2b Planning, budgeting and orecasting

• Preparation, in conjunction with line management, o annual

budgets and orecasts.

• Preparation o departmental budgets and orecasts.

• Working with other departments to develop corporate budgets

and orecasts.

• Preparation o business plans, balanced scorecards, capital

expenditure budgets and orecasts, and ‘zero based’ budgets.

2c Management reporting or decision making

• Preparation o non-routine reports that analyse and interpretnancial/numerical data.

• Evaluating alternative courses o action and making specic

recommendations; ollowing up results o reports.

• Preparation o brieng papers or management.

• Oral presentation o reports using visual aids.

• Assisting with the drating o expert witness reports.

2d Product and service costing

• Application o appropriate principles and techniques, or

example overhead allocation, marginal costing, break-even

analysis and ABC, in order to establish the current and uture

costs o the organisation’s products, services and activities.• Identication o costs and revenues relating to specic business

decisions, or example the introduction, amendment or deletion

o a product or service; pricing, make or buy comparisons.

2e Inormation management

• Dening the inormation requirements o the organisation.

• Identiying and evaluating appropriate inormation systems.

• Managing the process o inormation gathering, processing,

storage and retrieval.

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2 Project appraisal

• Using investment appraisal techniques or the evaluation o

capital expenditure, long term contracts and other projects.

• Evaluating other investments or acquisitions using appropriate

techniques.

• Post-completion audit o projects and investments.

2g Project management

• Management o a project or working as part o a project team,

or example the introduction o a new system or procedures

to the organisation, business process re-engineering or quality

improvement, capital expenditure projects or any other non-

routine activity with a dened output, such as the launch o a

new product or an oce move.

• Internal or external consultancy assignments.

2h Working capital control

• Debt collection, inventory and expense commitment control,

recording and orecasting oreign currency transactions, cash

fow orecasting and monitoring.

• Periodic stock takes, the identication o slow moving and

redundant stock, negotiation o credit terms with customers,

suppliers and bankers.

• Supply chain management.

2i Risk management and business assurance

• Identiying, assessing and managing business risks.

• Disaster recovery planning.

Area 3: Supplementary experienceExperience gained in this area might include responsibility or

research, analysis and evaluation o activities, assisting with

activities or contributing as part o a team.


3a Financial strategy• Identiying the organisation’s unding position, uture

unding requirements, costs and sources o unds, options or

investment, cost o capital and leasing decisions.

• Contributing to longer term balance sheet and capital structure

management.

• Involvement with distribution o earnings policy.

3b Corporate fnance

• Involvement with company aquisitions, disposals, management

buy-outs or buy-ins and corporate restructuring.

• Involvement with take-overs o public companies and deence

against unwelcome bids.• Involvement with corporate governance and the resolution o

ethical issues.

• Company secretarial work, contract evaluation/negotiation.

3c Treasury management

• Negotiation and management o bank accounts and loan

acilities.

• Management o oreign exchange and currency exposure.

• Dealing with export nance, or example documentary credits,

bills o exchange.

• Valuation o nancial instruments.

3d Taxation

• Establishing the organisation’s liability or corporation tax and

other obligations to revenue authorities (e.g. VAT in the UK).

• Establishing, planning and applying the impact o other taxes

and charges, such as sales, regional and payroll taxes collected

by the employer.

• Examination o transer pricing issues.

3e Business evaluation and appraisal

• Review o other organisations’ perormance based on

published accounts and other available inormation or

example competitor review, potential investment or customer

creditworthiness.

• Review o subsidiary or associated company perormance.

3 Business strategy

Contributing to the establishment o the organisation’s long term

business objectives, or example:

• identiying and evaluating external actors which may impact

on the organisation

• identiying and appraising the organisation’s skills and resources

• identiying and dening business options; evaluating these

options, perorming risk assessments and recommending

strategies or adoption

• analysing the economic impact o environmental change upon

the organisation

• analysing market and competitive developments in relation to

marketing strategy

• advising managers on critical economic and nancial

developments

• contributing to the development o the organisation’s

inormation systems strategy as a complement to its business

strategy.

3g External relationships

• Dealing with the organisation’s customers, suppliers, external

advisors, auditors, bankers and investors.

• Dealing with representative bodies and trade associations (or

example CBI, ABPI, Chambers o Commerce), Government

departments and other regulatory authorities, stock exchange

and receivers or administrators.

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1a Preparing and maintaining

accounting records

1b Statutory and regulatory

reporting

1c IT desktop skills

1d Systems and procedure

development

As a result o this experience the student should:

• be able to record day-to-day nancial transactions

• understand the accounting systems and records used in the organisation and the

relationships between them

• recognise the nature and purpose o dierent basic transaction recording techniques

available, whether manual or computerised.


• be able to assist with the preparation o nancial and regulatory reports, in accordance

with Government legislation and accounting standards

• understand the implications or the organisation o such legislation and accounting

standards

• have an insight into the purpose o and reasoning behind such legislation and standards.


• be able to use appropriate computer sotware products to assist with their day-to-day

work

• understand what IT products are available within the organisation and when it is

appropriate to use them.


• be able to analyse a business process; assist with the design o a system (or set o

procedures) to carry out that process eectively and eciently; prepare appropriate

documentation and introduce the system/procedures into the organisation successully• understand the capability o any technology such as computer hardware and sotware

• recognise the needs o the users o the system/procedures.

Practical experience – outcomesArea 1 Basic experience

Practical experience – outcomesArea 2 Core experience

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2a Preparation o

management accounts

2b Planning, budgeting and

orecasting

2c Management reporting

or decision making


• be able to interpret gures/variances and convey their signicance to others

• understand the relationship between prot and loss and balance sheet items and theunderlying events which infuence them

• have an insight into the organisation’s perormance and the actors that infuence it.


• be able to assist line management to prepare nancial projections within dened

parameters

• understand the organisation’s business objectives and be aware o its nancial targets

• have an insight into the internal and external actors and constraints that infuence the

achievement o these objectives and targets.


• be able to identiy key issues, translate nancial/numerical data into non-technical

language, set out logical arguments and present clear recommendations

• understand the needs o dierent recipients/audiences.



3a Financial strategy

3b Corporate fnance

3c Treasury management

3d Taxation

3e Business evaluation

and appraisal

3 Business strategy

3g External relationships


• be able to prepare and evaluate analyses o the nancial consequences o strategic decisions

• understand the nancial strategy o the organisation

• have an insight into the external actors that infuence the ormulation and eectiveness o

that strategy.


• understand the roles o the various parties, or example solicitors, merchant bankers,

accountants, venture capitalists, in corporate nance transactions

• be aware o the regulations and codes o practice which govern these activities

• have an insight into the nancial and strategic reasons or a particular transaction.

• understand the corporate governance structures and controls operating within the organisationand make recommendations or change

• be able to identiy, analyse and evaluate ethical issues as they arise and make

recommendations or their resolution

• contribute to various aspects o company secretarial work, including assisting in the evaluation

and negotiation o contracts.


• be able to contribute to the day-to-day management o the organisation’s nances

• understand the nancial arrangements o the organisation

• have an insight into the actors aecting the appropriateness to particular situations o the

various sources o nance available to the organisation.


• be able to assist with the calculation o the organisation’s various tax liabilities

• understand the taxes and imposts to which the organisation is subject

• have an insight into how the tax regime impacts on the organisation’s business.


• be able to carry out a comprehensive analysis o an organisation’s business perormance based

on published accounts and other available data

• understand the signicance o recognised nancial ratios and the relationship between them• have an insight into the actors that aect the value o a company’s shares.


• be able to carry out strategic business analyses using recognised tools and techniques, or

example SWOT analysis.

• understand the strategic business goals o the organisation and how they have been arrived at

• have an insight into the external actors that infuence the setting and achievement o these

goals.


• be able to deal with third parties proessionally and eectively

• understand the relationships that exist between the organisation and external parties

• have an insight into how these relationships impact on the organisation’s activities and

perormance.

Practical experience – outcomesArea 3 Supplementary experience

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2 Guidance on how to ll in your Career Prole

Contents o the Career ProfleYour Career Prole should include:

Section 1 – Assessment o practical experience/membership

application orm

Section 2 – Employment summary

Section 3 – Detailed record o experience

Section 4 – Record o skills development

Standard orms or use when completing Sections 1, 2

and 4 can be ound on the CIMA website. Section 3 has nostandard ormat and, whilst you are given reedom as to

the presentation o your experience, it should resemble an

extended CV.

Career Profle section 1 – assessmento practical experience/membershipapplication orm

You must complete an assessment o practical experience/

membership application orm, either by hand or online,with a proposer and seconder. These must be people you

have worked or in the past or are currently working or.

They must have direct knowledge o your work and have

been in a more senior position than you in the organisation.

Together they must be able to veriy at least 36 months

o the relevant practical experience that appears on your

detailed record o experience, including 18 months in the

core area. You may have written up a lot more than three

years’ experience but a minimum o 36 months must be

signed o. I your proposer and seconder do not cover the

three years, you will need to obtain one or more signatures

rom previous managers (employers) to cover the minimum

period o 36 months. Please ask your additional signatories

to sign another copy o the assessment o practical

experience/membership application orm. I you are making

your application by post, you will need to download an

assessment o practical experience/membership application

orm rom the CIMA website and complete it by hand.

I you are planning to apply online, this inormation –including details o your proposer and seconder – will need

to be entered electronically.

Career Profle section 2 –employment summary

You must complete an employment summary which lists

all o your jobs since leaving ull time education. This should

be completed in chronological order, starting with your rst

job. Any gaps in your employment must be explained. The

details required include:

• dates rom/to by month and year

• name, business sector, and approximate annual turnover

o the employing organisation

• the number o sta employed (total, in your department,

and reporting to you)

• your position/job title in each post and job title o person

to whom you reported

• the number o months experience, within each

employment, gained in each o the three main areas oexperience.

Note: please take care not to double count your

experience. The number o months experience claimed

across the basic, core and supplementary areas must

not be greater than the number o months spent in the

role.

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Career Profle section 3 – detailedrecord o experience (extended CV)

This section o your Career Prole should provide a ull

history o your relevant experience to date. As a guide it

should be approximately six to eight A4 pages in length (in

single line spacing).

The ollowing inormation must be provided or each

position held or specic role perormed (starting with your

rst job):

• name o employing organisation

• brie description o the organisation

• job title

• breakdown o the number o months spent in each

position or role

• description o your duties and responsibilities

• details o the work you have carried out, why you did it

and the outcomes achieved

• degree o involvement (speciying whether you had sole

responsibility or the task, participated as part o a team,

or acted as an advisor) and to whom you reported.

The important thing to remember is that the detailed record

o experience needs to read like a report, showing how

your work meets the Practical Experience Requirements. It

needs to be more than just a list o bullet points, as such

applications will be returned to applicants with the request

or more inormation to be supplied. It must describe what

you did, how you did it and the outcomes achieved. It is

also important to show your level o responsibility so avoid

using phrases such as ‘assisted with’ or ‘part o a team’ but

instead detail your exact involvement.

Career Profle section 4 – record oskills development

Using the template provided, you must describe how you

have developed each o the ollowing behavioural skills:

• personal

• interpersonal

• organisational.

You will need to provide at least one but no more than three

examples or each skill type. The examples must be takenrom your work based experience and should show the

assessor how you have developed your skill level in each o

the areas.

It is possible that when carrying out a particular piece o

work or project, you demonstrated more than one o the

three skill types. I this is the case, it is acceptable to reer to

that example in each o the three skill areas.

Please visit the CIMA website or urther details o each o

the three skill areas, the template to be used and exampleso how an applicant has described their skills development

in each o the skill areas.

I you need urther advice on completing your Career

Prole, please see www.cimaglobal.comor contact eitherCIMA Contact or your nearest oce.

Note: the terminology used to describe your work

should, where possible, be similar to that used to

describe the CIMA Practical Experience Requirements.

You should emphasise the application o management

accounting techniques.

Note: as part o CIMA’s commitment to quality

assurance, you may be asked to discuss the content

o your Career Prole over the telephone with a CIMA

Assessor.

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3 Submitting your CareerProle or assessment

Once you have completed your Career Prole, you can

submit your practical experience or assessment, either

online, by post or ace to ace.

Online

Applications can be submitted online at

www.cimaglobal.com (available to students who have

successully completed TOPCIMA via your ‘My CIMA’

account).

By post

Postal applications and the appropriate ee should be sent to:

Membership Admissions

CIMA

26 Chapter Street

London

SW1P 4NP

United Kingdom

Face to ace

Complete the same orms as required when submitting your

application by post, then review the list o sessions available

on the CIMA website.

Note: i applying by post please ensure that you keep a

copy o your application or reerence.

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The Chartered Instituteo Management Accountants26 Chapter StreetLondon SW1P 4NPUnited Kingdom

T. +44 (0)20 8849 2251F. +44 (0)20 8849 2250E. [email protected] RT050V0708

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