ACCA Advanced Performance Management 4

Question 1

A hospital measures 'average waiting time to surgery' as a key performance indicator. Under the Balanced Scorecard, in which perspective does this metric MOST likely sit?

Accepted Answer

Customer

Answer

Waiting time to surgery is a service quality measure experienced directly by patients (customers), so it belongs in the customer perspective of the Balanced Scorecard.

Question 2

In Kaplan and Norton's Strategy Map, cause-and-effect linkages flow upward from which perspective to ultimately drive financial results?

Accepted Answer

Learning & Growth → Internal Process → Customer → Financial

Answer

Strategy Maps show that learning and growth capabilities enable better internal processes, which improve customer outcomes, which ultimately drive financial performance.

Question 3

Which type of budget requires managers to justify every line of expenditure from a zero base each period, regardless of prior-year spending?

Accepted Answer

Zero-based budget

Answer

Zero-based budgeting (ZBB) starts from scratch each period, requiring full justification of all costs, which eliminates embedded inefficiencies perpetuated by incremental approaches.

Question 4

In the context of environmental management accounting (EMA), which category includes the costs of preventing pollution before it occurs?

Accepted Answer

Prevention costs

Answer

Prevention costs in environmental quality costing include investments in cleaner technology, employee training, and process redesign to avoid generating pollution in the first place.

Question 5

A firm operating in a hypercompetitive market adopts a dynamic capabilities approach to sustain competitive advantage. What does this primarily involve?

Accepted Answer

Continuously sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring resources to adapt to market changes

Answer

Dynamic capabilities theory (Teece et al.) holds that firms sustain advantage in fast-moving markets by continuously sensing opportunities, seizing them, and reconfiguring their asset base.

ACCA - Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Practice Test

ACCA - Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Practice Test

ACCA Advanced Performance Management 4