BDS EVALUATION EXAM ANSWERS AND
QUESTIONS SET A+
✔✔Gross profit margin formula and meaning? - ✔✔Gross profit margin = Gross profit /
Revenue x 100. Shows profitability BEFORE operating overheads.
✔✔Operating profit margin formula and meaning? - ✔✔Operating margin = Operating
profit / Revenue x 100. Shows profitability AFTER operating overheads.
✔✔ROCE formula and meaning? - ✔✔ROCE = Operating profit / (Equity + debt) x 100.
Measures how effectively long-term capital/resources are used to generate operating
profit.
✔✔What is a KPI? - ✔✔A performance measure selected to monitor whether the
organisation is achieving its critical success factors (CSFs). A good KPI should clearly
link to what drives strategic success.
✔✔What are the four Balanced Scorecard perspectives? - ✔✔Financial; Customer;
Internal business; Innovation and learning. Use when performance should include
financial AND non-financial measures.
✔✔What are the four types of benchmarking? - ✔✔Internal; Competitive; Activity/best-
in-class; Generic. Benchmarking compares performance/processes to identify where
improvement is possible.
✔✔How should you answer a BDS performance/data analysis requirement? - ✔✔Select
relevant calculations -> state the trend/difference -> explain WHY it happened using
scenario facts -> explain implications -> identify useful further information -> conclude.
Do not dump every possible calculation.
✔✔What are the main functional strategies? - ✔✔Finance; Marketing; Information
technology; Human resource management; Operations; Procurement; Research &
development. Functional strategies translate overall strategy into actions.
, ✔✔What are the 4Vs of OPERATIONS? - ✔✔Volume; Variety; Variation in demand;
Visibility. Do not confuse with Big Data 4Vs.
✔✔What is the purchasing mix? - ✔✔Quantity; Quality; Price; Delivery. Procurement
should balance all four rather than simply choose the cheapest supplier.
✔✔What are the 4Vs of BIG DATA? - ✔✔Volume (amount); Velocity (speed); Variety
(different forms/sources); Veracity (reliability/trustworthiness). Do not confuse with
operations 4Vs.
✔✔Explicit knowledge vs tacit knowledge? - ✔✔Explicit = documented/known
organisational knowledge.
Tacit = personal, undocumented knowledge and expertise held by individuals.
✔✔What cyber-security threats should you recognise? - ✔✔Human/social-engineering
threats; fraud; deliberate sabotage; malware/viruses/corruption; ransomware; denial-of-
service. Also consider unauthorised access and data theft.
✔✔What cyber-security risk-management controls should you recognise? -
✔✔Appropriate systems development/maintenance; backup servers; access controls;
encryption; firewalls; quality controls over third parties in the systems chain; employ
specialist skills.
✔✔What should you check when judging whether data/research is reliable enough for a
decision? - ✔✔Is the sample representative? Are responses reliable? Is data
current/relevant to the future decision? Can it be verified? Is important population data
missing? Are there limitations in collection or processing?
✔✔What are the three simple ethical tests? - ✔✔Transparency: would the company
mind others knowing? Effect: who is harmed? Fairness: would the decision be regarded
as fair?
✔✔What are the five ICAEW fundamental ethical principles? - ✔✔Integrity; Objectivity;
Professional competence and due care; Confidentiality; Professional behaviour.
✔✔What is ESG? - ✔✔Environmental, Social and Governance: a strategic way to
assess sustainability-related risks/impacts and their effect on the organisation's value.
✔✔What is Lewin's Force Field Analysis? - ✔✔Change is affected by driving forces and
restraining forces. To move to the desired state, promote drivers and/or remove/reduce
barriers.
✔✔What cultural barriers to change should you remember? - ✔✔Structural inertia;
group inertia; changes to power structures.
QUESTIONS SET A+
✔✔Gross profit margin formula and meaning? - ✔✔Gross profit margin = Gross profit /
Revenue x 100. Shows profitability BEFORE operating overheads.
✔✔Operating profit margin formula and meaning? - ✔✔Operating margin = Operating
profit / Revenue x 100. Shows profitability AFTER operating overheads.
✔✔ROCE formula and meaning? - ✔✔ROCE = Operating profit / (Equity + debt) x 100.
Measures how effectively long-term capital/resources are used to generate operating
profit.
✔✔What is a KPI? - ✔✔A performance measure selected to monitor whether the
organisation is achieving its critical success factors (CSFs). A good KPI should clearly
link to what drives strategic success.
✔✔What are the four Balanced Scorecard perspectives? - ✔✔Financial; Customer;
Internal business; Innovation and learning. Use when performance should include
financial AND non-financial measures.
✔✔What are the four types of benchmarking? - ✔✔Internal; Competitive; Activity/best-
in-class; Generic. Benchmarking compares performance/processes to identify where
improvement is possible.
✔✔How should you answer a BDS performance/data analysis requirement? - ✔✔Select
relevant calculations -> state the trend/difference -> explain WHY it happened using
scenario facts -> explain implications -> identify useful further information -> conclude.
Do not dump every possible calculation.
✔✔What are the main functional strategies? - ✔✔Finance; Marketing; Information
technology; Human resource management; Operations; Procurement; Research &
development. Functional strategies translate overall strategy into actions.
, ✔✔What are the 4Vs of OPERATIONS? - ✔✔Volume; Variety; Variation in demand;
Visibility. Do not confuse with Big Data 4Vs.
✔✔What is the purchasing mix? - ✔✔Quantity; Quality; Price; Delivery. Procurement
should balance all four rather than simply choose the cheapest supplier.
✔✔What are the 4Vs of BIG DATA? - ✔✔Volume (amount); Velocity (speed); Variety
(different forms/sources); Veracity (reliability/trustworthiness). Do not confuse with
operations 4Vs.
✔✔Explicit knowledge vs tacit knowledge? - ✔✔Explicit = documented/known
organisational knowledge.
Tacit = personal, undocumented knowledge and expertise held by individuals.
✔✔What cyber-security threats should you recognise? - ✔✔Human/social-engineering
threats; fraud; deliberate sabotage; malware/viruses/corruption; ransomware; denial-of-
service. Also consider unauthorised access and data theft.
✔✔What cyber-security risk-management controls should you recognise? -
✔✔Appropriate systems development/maintenance; backup servers; access controls;
encryption; firewalls; quality controls over third parties in the systems chain; employ
specialist skills.
✔✔What should you check when judging whether data/research is reliable enough for a
decision? - ✔✔Is the sample representative? Are responses reliable? Is data
current/relevant to the future decision? Can it be verified? Is important population data
missing? Are there limitations in collection or processing?
✔✔What are the three simple ethical tests? - ✔✔Transparency: would the company
mind others knowing? Effect: who is harmed? Fairness: would the decision be regarded
as fair?
✔✔What are the five ICAEW fundamental ethical principles? - ✔✔Integrity; Objectivity;
Professional competence and due care; Confidentiality; Professional behaviour.
✔✔What is ESG? - ✔✔Environmental, Social and Governance: a strategic way to
assess sustainability-related risks/impacts and their effect on the organisation's value.
✔✔What is Lewin's Force Field Analysis? - ✔✔Change is affected by driving forces and
restraining forces. To move to the desired state, promote drivers and/or remove/reduce
barriers.
✔✔What cultural barriers to change should you remember? - ✔✔Structural inertia;
group inertia; changes to power structures.
