Financial Decision Making

Module Title	Financial Decision Making
Module Code	25-6025-00L
Semester of Delivery	2
Mandatory/Elective/Option
Level	6
Credit Points	20

Assessment Mode Weighting	CW100


Pre-requisites	Whilst there are no formal prerequisites, students are required to have a reasonable level of financial knowledge
Co-requisites	None

Class Contact Hours
Average Weekly	1.5

Directed Learning
Average Weekly	5

Module Leader	Trevor Hassall
	Sheffield Business School
Module Banding	A
Approval Status	Validated

Rationale

In practice accountants and consultants synthesise subject knowledge, from a variety of areas, and use various skills to solve problems identified within organisations. Experience of integrating knowledge and skills in a practical problem solving environment is essential for the development of professional competence. Students with practical expertise gained via placement will be encouraged to incorporate this into their learning experience.

Summary of Aims

Within a financial context the module aims to develop

and apply an integrated and creative approach to problem solving.
an understanding of the problems inherent in the application of discipline based knowledge to practical situations in a period of change.
the ability of students to work together.
the communication and presentation skills of students.
the ability of students to assess the quality of their own work and that of colleagues.
the information acquisition/research skills of students with particular emphasis on the use of the Internet.

Anticipated Learning Outcomes

On completion of the module, the student should be able to;

Identify the particular subject skills and knowledge appropriate to a particular problem;
Assess the difficulties involved in clearly defining problem areas;
Apply and integrate previously acquired subject skills and knowledge;
Acquire, classify, organise and evaluate appropriate information into a suitable format for the application of decision making techniques;
Communicate a proposed course of action in a way that is appropriate to the circumstances and respond to questioning in an appropriate way
Understand the way they co-operate with others and how to optimise the outcomes of these processes
Assess the quality of their own and other's work
Identify and access appropriate data sources and assess the content of these

Assessment and Feedback Strategy

Case studies are used as the basis for group work and the students are required to undertake a range of activities such as role playing in contexts where ethical dilemmas are encountered. Where presentations are required, these are in a range of different formats including formal public presentations and less formal presentations to a management group. Verbal and/or written comments are provided by staff for each group activity. This is either immediate, in the case of verbal comment, or within a week in the case of written comments.

There is an emphasis on the learning process and this is the subject of peer assessment for group activities (students allocate 50% of group marks). In addition students prepare a learning diary which is an aid to reflection and provides staff with an insight into the learning experience of the student. Assessment of this reflects the level of reflection and critical awareness shown by the student.

All learning outcomes will be assessed through coursework.

Module Assessment Criteria

As will be seen from the detailed aims and objectives on the sheet above, we expect students to develop a range of high level academic and reflective skills. Marks are awarded for assessment as follows:

Learning Outcome	Assessment Criterion	Level descriptors
Learning Outcome	Assessment Criterion	fail	PASS	2.2	2.1	First
Outcome 1		Fails to identify appropriate subject knowledge	General area identified but weakly	General area identified but specifics could be better	Good identification of appropriate subject knowledge	Excellent identification of specific and appropriate subject knowledge
Outcome 2		Fails to identify problems	Identifies problems but not in sufficient depth	Identifies problems well but lacking in creativity and lateral thinking	Good identification of problems, some creativity and insight	Identification of problems displays creativity, insight and maturity
Outcome 3		Fails to identify and apply appropriate skills	Applies appropriate skills and knowledge but not necessarily in an entirely appropriate manner	Applies appropriate skills and knowledge appropriately but not perhaps comprehensively	Applies appropriate skills and knowledge appropriately and comprehensively but a little lacking in creativity and insight	Applies appropriate skills and knowledge appropriately and comprehensively, displays creativity, insight and maturity
Outcome 4		Fails to do this adequately. Poor data and lack of organisation	Data or organisation could be better as could the sources of information accessed	Appropriate information accessed but organisation and processing could be improved	Appropriate information accessed Organisation and processing good but a little lacking in creativity and insight	Really good information accessed Organisation and processing good Displays creativity, insight and maturity
Outcome 5		Disorganised presentation, little indication of getting to grips with issues	Presentation adequate but lacking in imagination. Questions answered but not convincingly	Reasonable presentation using appropriate visual aids etc.	Good presentation. Appropriate approaches to presentation including visual aids etc. answers questions well	Really professional presentation. Displays creativity, insight and maturity
Outcome 6**		Learning diary shows no perception of the learning processes or the way in which groups operated	Learning diary shows some perception of the learning processes and the way in which groups operated but generally lacks analytical insight	Learning diary shows reasonable perception of the learning processes and the way in which groups operated but could develop analytical insights better	Learning diary shows good perception of the learning processes and the way in which groups operated but creativity and insight could be better developed	Learning diary shows really good perception of the learning processes and the way in which groups operated. Demonstrates creativity and insight and also shows self awareness
Outcome 7		Learning diary shows no perception of the quality of the individual's contributions or that of other group members	Learning diary shows some perception of the quality of the individual's contributions and that of other group members but little analysis or interpretation of these	Learning diary shows reasonable perception of the quality of the individual's contributions and that of other group members. There is some analysis and interpretation of these but it needs to be developed further	Learning diary shows good perception of the quality of the individual's contributions and that of other group members. There is analysis and interpretation of these but this could be developed further	Learning diary shows really good perception of the quality of the individual's contributions and that of other group members. There is high quality analysis and interpretation of these that demonstrate real self awareness

Teaching and Learning Strategy and Methods

This is a student based course which involves very little transfer of knowledge but a great deal of application and development of existing knowledge and skills. There is relatively little contact time. Whole group sessions concentrate on skills development and feedback on progress. Otherwise, students attend in groups of approximately 5 for sessions that involve either the presentation of information and analysis to staff who are role playing client audiences of various types, or other activities such as role playing the staff of a business involved in a significant ethical dilemma. Small group sessions last for 40 minutes.

Indicative Content

Involvement in a range of decisions of a financial and managerial nature in a variety of organisational situations and across a number of disciplines.
Introduction to as wide a range of situations as possible, to allow students the opportunity to experience decision making situations and to develop relevant skills in this area from the viewpoint of accountants and managers.

The nature of the current environment will inevitably determine the topic areas covered by the course and these will be continually amended to reflect a balance between the traditional and current emerging issues.

The module does not seek to provide students with a new body of knowledge. It is, rather, concerned with the development and synthesis of the knowledge that students have acquired elsewhere in their studies.

Indicative Reading List

There is no reading list as such. Students are expected to access as much relevant information as possible.

Sheffield Business School, Howard Street, City Campus, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, S1 1WB
Student Support - All Full Time students: Student Help and Information Point, Level 1, Stoddart, City Campus Telephone 0114 225 5256
Part Time Postgraduate and Doctoral students: The Welcome Point, Level 1, Stoddart, City Campus Telephone 0114 225 2820