Big support for new accounting case comp
With lockdown bringing about the cancellation of all extracurricular school activities, a group of four Year 13 students from King’s College decided to act.
Led by Year 13 student Andy Wang, the foursome set about creating an event to fill the huge gap in the academic calendar of Auckland secondary school students.
Two months later, the inaugural Auckland Accounting Case Competition was born, featuring entries from nine secondary schools. The competition was sponsored by RSM Accounting firm, CAANZ and Xero. AUT lecturer in Accounting, Gina Xu, provided input into the case study and participated as a judge.
The teams were given details of a retail company in Xero. They were required to produce a report on the performance of the company and make recommendations.
In order to extract accounting reports and examine the performance of the company, the teams had to first get up to speed with the functions Xero offered. Based on the clarity, logic, creativity and presentation of the report, the judges selected five teams to progress to the second round, of which three were selected as winners after a rigorous Q&A session. St Cuthbert’s College took out first place, followed by Maclean's College in second place and ACG Parnell College in third place.
The competition not only tested the students’ accounting knowledge but also provided a challenge for participants to hone their skills of working in teams, meeting deadlines, and crafting and delivering their presentations.
In addition to promoting the accounting profession amongst students, the competition was also about giving back, with all entry fees donated to the New Zealand Red Cross.
“As a judge, I am very impressed with the calibre of the participants. I also admire the courage and initiative of the organisers who have successfully engaged with some major stakeholders in accounting field,” said Gina. “It is an excellent opportunity for AUT to be part of such competitions because it not only raises our profile among some top schools in Auckland, but also improves the recognition of the accounting discipline amongst the high school community.”