cima case study november 2022

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View key dates to help you plan your studies. Plan your CIMA’s CGMA® exams. On-demand tests are available all year. There are four windows a year when you can sit the Case Study Exams (February, May, August, and November).

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Tips for mastering the CIMA Case Study Exams

The CIMA® Case Study exams are the final capstone exams of each level of the CIMA Professional Qualification, which students must pass to gain the CGMA® designation. We explore four tips to help you prepare for the exams.

1)     Understand the three Case Study levels.

Each Case Study exam lasts three hours, with multiple tasks of equal lengths. There is a natural progression to the levels — Operational, Management and Strategic — that simulate how work as a management accountant progresses. To reach the Case Study level, you will have already passed the Objective Tests, which focus on ensuring that you have acquired the knowledge and skills for each pillar.  Case Study exams are more about interpreting data and require practical answers to practical questions and simulate real-life business scenarios.

Operational Case Study (OCS)

• Focus — The short-term role of the finance officer and the implementation of decisions
• Skills you need to convey — How to work with others in the organisation and use appropriate data and technology to translate medium-term decisions into short-term actionable plans
• Stats — Three-hour exam containing four tasks related to the enterprise, performance, and financial pillars; allotted 45 minutes per task, each task has two to three sub-tasks

Management Case Study (MCS)

• Focus — The role of the finance manager involves translating long-term decisions into medium-term plans
• Skills you need to convey — How to use data and relevant technology to manage organisational and individual performance; allocate resources to implement decisions; monitor and report the implementation of decisions; prepare and interpret financial statements to show performance

Strategic Case Study (SCS)

• Focus — The role of the senior finance manager entails long-term strategic decision-making
• Skills you need to convey — How to support organisational leaders to craft strategy and evaluate and manage risks that might prevent the successful implementation of strategy, including sourcing financial resources; value the organisations
• Stats — Three-hour exam containing three tasks related to the enterprise, performance, and financial pillars; allotted 1-hour per task, each task has two to three sub-tasks

2)     Understand the Case Study exam cycle.

• Preseen — Released seven weeks before Exam 1
• Exam 1 — Exam cycle is May and August . The same three to four exam variants are offered both months.
• Results — Released seven weeks after the exam
• Preseen — Released seven weeks before Exam 2
• Exam 2 — Exam cycle is November and February . The same three to four exam variants are offered both months.

C opyright: BPP

3)     Understand the pre-seen materials.

Pre-seen materials — known as ‘preseens’ — are background information about the fictitious organisation featured in the Case Study exam. This information forms the basis of the tasks you can expect to see in the exam. The preseen tells the story of the company, including the industry and context in which it operates, its financial statements, management accounts, markets and competitors. Preseens are usually 26 – 30 pages long. Key tips include:

• Be ready — Familiarise yourself with the company, industry and current events.
• Analyse — Perform an analysis such as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) or political, economic, social and technological (PEST); review financial statements and reporting issues. The end of the preseen will contain live issues regarding what is happening in the industry. For instance, a new standard may have come out that will change reporting standards from the current year to the next and that the Case Study exam must address.
• Cross-reference with the blueprint — Being able to know what you can do is critical. Can you discuss finance options, dividend policy or evaluate digital strategies?

Tackling “I can” from each of the core activities in each of the sections is necessary for success. For instance:

• I can identify relevant costs and benefits.
• I can advise on the communication process.
• I can recommend a dividend policy.
• I can use appropriate technologies to gather data for costing purposes, from digital and other sources.

Have a broad syllabus knowledge and know your company intrinsically. You become the person when you role-play the exam. Avoid prefabricated answers, as the exam will have details not included in the preseens. Your answers have to be relevant to the question. 

4)     Plan your exam approach.

• Manage your time — If you can complete a section early, that time does not get applied to the next section. We suggest spending all of your allotted time within the section.
• Keep your answers real and relevant — Remember this is a role-based exam; identify one or more factors that might be relevant, then explain why that approach would be relevant. The more tangible details you provide, the higher you are likely to score. Do not offer irrelevant arguments for the sake of padding your answers. Aim for neat, discreet paragraphs.
• Understand the scoring — People mark the exams, and the pass rate is 60%. Even though a scale is scored 80 out of 150, 60% is the pass rate. The sub-tasks will be weighted differently. Each case will contain tasks from all five of the core activities:

Evaluate opportunities to add value.

-  Implement senior management decisions.

-  Manage performance and costs to aid value creation.

-  Measure performance.

-  Manage internal and external stakeholder.

• Scoring example

 “For a 12-mark answer, it might be possible to identify, say, four issues. A candidate who aims to write about four topics only has to score three marks for each to obtain full marks.” – MCS Examiner

You have all the tools you need to do well on the CIMA Case Study exams. From all of us at the Association, we wish you the very best for your next Case Study exam.

The content of this article is based on a Case Study Masterclass webinar delivered by CIMA and BPP in November 2020.

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CIMA Operational Case Study Courses

Dedicated to helping you pass

Ever since our first CIMA case study course over 14 years ago, Astranti have become renowned for what are probably the most comprehensive CIMA operational case study courses on the market,  dedicated to giving you the best advice and support to help you pass first time.

And they’re great value too!

Compared to the Official CIMA Provider’s course, we do more analysis of the pre-seen, have a more comprehensive range of exam guidance and study materials, and yet, without their overheads, we’re able to make it cheaper too!

Together with great tutor support from our team of dedicated case study tutors, a personal mentor to support you through the exam and our renowned materials, known for their clarity and simplicity, you can see why students love the course so much – we have an average Trustpilot rating of around 4.8   from over 600 reviews.

This is combined with a double guarantee that means you can try out our course and check it’s right for you without any obligation to continue, while also knowing that your one-time payment is all you’ll ever pay!

Read on to find out more…

“I have used Astranti for all three case studies which in my view is integral to passing, with the most recent pass coming on the SCS exam. Astranti help you develop the correct exam writing style required to pass and gain the additional marks that could be the difference in passing or not. I can certainly say that by using Astranti I have gone into each exam confidently assured that I have given myself the best possible chance to pass.”

CIMA Case Study Student , October 2022

Focused on what it takes to pass

Our course is designed with one thing in mind…

Getting you through the exam

Plus a pass guarantee for peace of mind

Unrivalled support

Dedicated course mentor supporting you from start to finish

Assigned marker focused on giving you personal advice

Case study tutors are on hand to answer all your questions

Great value for money

The most comprehensive case study course

All for a great price!

With instalment options to help spread the payments

Course content

Our goal is to make our premium CIMA operational case study course the most comprehensive on the market.

Over more than 15 years of teaching CIMA case study we’ve considered exactly what students need to support you in order to give you everything you need to pass.

So what exactly do you get?

“Brilliant study material. I used Astranti throughout, sucked in by their free products at certificate level and I’m glad I was! The material provided is brilliant and the course tutors know exactly what it takes to get the pass at the case studies, if you use them and put the hours in you will pass! Couldn’t recommend enough, and achieved first time passes in all professional exams.”

CIMA Case Study Student , July 2022

Pre-seen pack

• Full analysis of the pre-seen , picking out the most important snippets of information so that you don’t miss a thing
• Strategic analysis that links the pre-seen to the key theories and models from the syllabus
• An analysis of the top 10 most likely issues to appear in the final exam according to our case study experts
• Our industry analysis provides an overview of the real-world industry that the pre-seen company belongs to, so you can apply this in the exam to score extra marks
• 30 pre-seen knowledge questions designed to cement your knowledge learned

5x Mock exams with debrief videos

• Fully timed computer-based mock exams , with challenging questions designed to replicate the real exam
• Detailed solutions so you understand where you went wrong quickly and easily and to enable you to learn how to approach a similar question in the real exam
• Debrief videos where our tutors walk you through the best approach to each mock
• 5x mock exams as standard
• 2x bonus mocks for the February and August exam sittings

3x Marking and feedback

• Comprehensive marking and feedback for 3 mock exams from your assigned expert tutor
• Commentary on each script on a section by section basis, tellilng you what’s great and what needs to be improved
• A 7 page summary analysis of each script, guiding you on what you need to do to improve

'How to pass the case study' course

• Get to grips with the case study exam and find out exactly what it takes to pass
• Perfect your exam planning and writing technique
• Find out how to maximise the marks that you score in your final exam
• Learn how to provide the best answers written down in the right way, within the time given in the exam
• Hear exactly what the examiners say about how to pass the case study exam and the mistakes that past students made

Theory revision series

• Designed to refresh all of your syllabus knowledge relevant to the case study exams. We take the most commonly examined theory from E1, F1 and P1 and summarise that for you so you can review theory quickly and easily
• Take the study text with you wherever you are, with both the online and printable versions
• Watch the tuition videos for an even more detailed analysis of the key theory , including worked examples throughout to help with your understanding

Ethics and Questions packs

• Ethics is   the most commonly examined topic at operational case study . As such it’s the most important topic for you to revise
• Our   ethics video   shows you how to pass ethics questions in the exam
• Our   20 practice ethics questions   enable you to master a range of ethical questions and practice the specific method that is proven to enable you to pass these questions
• Our   questions pack  contains 60 case study exam-style questions , helping you to  prepare for your exam.

3x Live online masterclasses

• Attend 3  LIVE  online masterclass days and get instant answers to your questions from our experienced OCS tutor using our interactive chat box throughout each session

Tutor expertise and Discussion hub

• Ask our tutors further questions and join the student/tutor conversation on our discussion hub
• Tailored support from your personally assigned exam marker , with all of the experience you could need to give you the best advice needed to ensure you pass the exam

Personal course mentor

• Support from your assigned mentor from the first day of the course to the last
• They’ll help you work your way through the course at a good pace, keeping up with your desired schedule and hitting the course deadlines as you go with regular catch up emails, video calls, or a combination of the two – whatever works for you!
• On hand to answer your questions or guide you in the direction you need

Exclusive to the course

Tutor & Mentor support

There are so many benefits to studying online, like flexibility, cost savings and the ability to study at your own pace.

However, there are often some challenges too, such as a lack of study structure, lots of distractions, limited accountability and a general feeling of isolation, which can all lead to reduced motivation and momentum!

For this reason, our premium courses give you exclusive access to our tutors and course mentors .

Use our course discussion hubs to contact our expert CIMA tutors whenever you need help with a tricky piece of theory.

And, have regular check-ins with your own personal course mentor via email, video call or a combination of the two, to get help staying focused, hitting your deadlines and ensuring you have everything you need to pass your exam.

How our premium course compares

Giving students value for money is important to us . Why not check out the table below to see how our premium CIMA operational case study course compares to that of the official CIMA publisher?

It's always a good idea to plan ahead as early as possible, and especially so when studying for a challenging professional qualification like CIMA. However, the official CIMA exam dates can be a little tricky to find and navigate.

So we have created a simple guide for you here, where you can browse all the important CIMA exam dates and details over the coming 12 months.

A few provisional points before we get to the exam dates themselves:

• Note that there are only set exam dates for the CIMA Case Study exams. The Objective Test exams can be taken at any point throughout the year, contingent on opening dates and hours for official exam centres
• Since 2019, CIMA has changed slightly the structure of the Case Study exams. Previously there was a new pre-seen released for each exam window (i.e. one for February, one for May, one for August etc). Now, one pre-seen covers two exam windows. So the pre-seen released ahead of the November exam also covers the following February's exam. And the pre-seen released for the May exam also applies to the following August's exam.
• Don't forget to register for your CIMA Case Study exam! Be very aware of the deadlines for registering for each CIMA exam window (see below). Students often forget this one.

1. CIMA Exam Dates 2022/2023

Below you can find a simple table with the exam dates for each window over the next 12 months or so. These are the dates when you can actually sit the exams. If you need to locate an official CIMA exam centre, you can find more information here.

Note that these date ranges are inclusive. So for example, it says "10-12 November", that means you can sit the exam on the 10th, on the 11th, or on the 12th.

Typically the dates fall on a Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. But be sure to double-check, taking into account your local time-zone and how this might affect you.

2. Pre-seen Release Dates

Several weeks before each Case Study exam takes place, CIMA releases the pre-seen document to students. The pre-seen is the document that introduces you to the company and industry that is the focus of the case study. It includes lots of important information that you will be expected to use on the day of your exam to help write your answers.

Usually, you can find the pre-seen document available for download on CIMA's website on the official pre-seen release date (listed below). You can find the most recent pre-seen available for download here.

3. Exam Entry Closing Dates

As mentioned above, this is one that students often forget, or forget to check ahead of time! Be sure to register as early as you can.

Of course, it's important to bear in mind that you cannot register for your Case Study exam until you have officially passed all of the corresponding Objective Test exams at that level (this doesn't necessarily apply to all students, as some students may have been granted exemptions from certain Objective Test exams, e.g. Gateway students for the MCS).

If you are sitting all of the Objective Test exams for that level, you need to factor this into your planning. "Can I realistically have all my Objective Test exams passed by the closing date for the Case Study exam?". An important question to consider!

4. Dates when Exam Results are Released

Important to know the exam results dates, if only to ensure that you time set aside to distract yourself from the nerves/excitement/anticipation in the preceding hours!

Students often ask "but at what time does CIMA release the exam results!?" I'm afraid to say that this one is a bit unpredictable! Sometimes it's literally within seconds of the clock striking midnight (UK time) on the date in question. Other times, students need to wait until later in the morning or even early afternoon to get their results.

That's ultimately at CIMA's discretion, and unfortunately VIVA has no inside knowledge on that particular aspect of CIMA! (... although we're certain we have plenty of insight on others!).

You will typically find your CIMA exam results on your CIMA account, on the CIMA website. So make sure you have your log in credentials ready to go, and your finger hovering over the refresh button...

5. Exam booked? Where to start studying

Now this is going to sound biased, but... VIVA is the place to start! But we say it with good reason. VIVA is an award-winning tuition provider , a certified CIMA learning partner, and a pioneer in terms of delivering premium online learning at a fraction of the cost of traditional institutions.

But don't worry, we're not trying to just sell, sell, sell! You can start learning for your Case Study exam entirely for free , immediately.

We have 2 hours of free pre-seen analysis for every case study exam/window. You can find these free lectures on our YouTube channel here.

We also have tonnes of useful free exam guides and articles in our Knowledge Centre . For example, this extensive guide on how to write a Case Study exam answer here.

If you're impressed by this and want to really nail your exam, then you can explore our award-winning online courses here.

We hope you found this guide useful. If you have any questions, feel free to drop us a message in our chatbox to the bottom right of your screen (or email us at [email protected]).

A huge good luck from the entire VIVA team!

Like to explore how VIVA can help you with your CIMA studies?

Be the first to find out when we release new CIMA resources.

Related resources

Other resources that may be of interest to you.

CIMA Case Study: May 2023

For those students whose first taste of a case study will be in May 2023, what can you expect and how should you prepare?

The pre-seen materials release date is an obvious starting point for preparations, but from personal experience I found that using the weeks BEFORE the pre-seen materials are released as the perfect time to develop a exam strategy and look at the bigger picture on what CIMA expects of a student looking to pass the case study exams first time.

Here are three pieces advice I would give students sitting a May case study exam

Understand your Role

Each CIMA case study exam requires a different approach and mindset, it’s important to understand what role you are playing and how to react to the questions.

Bear this in mind when your answering questions on exam day.

For example, in the SCS exam don’t get drawn into answering a question from the point of view of a Finance Clerk or Manager, you role is Finance Director so you will be required to answer in that mindset – developing strategy and thinking long-term!

Exam Day: Have a Plan

Time management on exam day is crucial and having a plan when answering a question will give you a enough time to produce a full and well balanced answer.

You should have a plan on exam day on how you will answer your question.

Assuming you have 45 minutes for each question in the OCS and MCS (4 questions at 45 mins = 3 hours), I used the below as guideline for answer planning and time management.

• 10-15 mins: read the question, identify requirements and plan your answer with 3 to 5 bullet points.
• 25 minutes: add the detail and develop your answer (think about pre-seen materials, industry analysis and ethics)
• 5-10 minutes: review your answer and adjust where needed.

It’s a natural tendency to rush straight in and start writing out your answering as you see the question, but this can lead to rambling, not answering the requirement and forgetting to add relevant points from the industry analysis or pre-seen materials.

Answer the Requirement

The most common trap students fall into is not understanding the requirement of the question asked, but instead trotting out a pre-rehearsed answer based on the subject.

While it’s important to understand the theory you have studied in the CIMA objective tests, practicing rehearsed statements is not a good idea.

Don’t fall into this trap!

If you identify the requirements of the question and plan your answer around the requirements, you will avoid this trap and maximise your chances of passing the CIMA case study first time.

May 2023 CIMA Case Study Resources

Astranti was the training provider I used to pass my CIMA case studies first time and they’ve recently put together an informative guide on how to crack the case studies !

It’s well worth a read before the pre-seen materials are released later this month.

In terms of the resources, the Astranti course for the May CIMA Case Studies is packed full of resources and tutor support and they have an early sale on their full courses.

• Pre seen materials pack (analysis, top 10 issues, industry examples & 30 questions)
• 5 x mock exams with feedback
• Syllabus theory revision series
• Exam technique series
• Ethics and questions packs
• Tutor feedback
• Pass guarantee & money back guarantee

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Exam Resource

Full post exam materials ocs nov 21- feb 22.

This document contains the full post exam supporting materials for the November 2021 and February 2022 operational case study exam containing:

• pre-seen material
• exam variants
• suggested solutions
• examiners report
• marking guidance