3.0. Finance and Accounts

Unit 3 Finance and Accounts

Irrespective of their size, scope and sector, all organizations need robust accounting systems, making finance a core business function. In unit 3, students examine finance and accounts through both quantitative and qualitative methods. They learn how businesses represent themselves numerically through accounts; they also learn how to construct basic balance sheets and profit and loss accounts themselves. By the end of the unit, they will be able to explain the meaning of these accounts by calculating ratios (for example, gross profit margin, net profit margin and return on capital employed (ROCE)) and interpreting the results.

HL students explore aspects of finance and accounts in more depth through the study of further efficiency ratios, investment appraisals and budgets.

Finance transcends mere numbers and connects to the six concepts underpinning the course. The profitability and financial health of an organization may significantly influence its strategy, ethics, and need and willingness to change—and vice versa. The challenge of accounting is for an organization to represent itself through the common language of financial statements, which raises many TOK considerations, for example in relation to the “truth” that may or may not be found in numbers. Unit 3 also provides opportunities for students to think about the attributes of the IB learner profile. They may inquire which characteristics of the learner profile are and, in their view, ought to be valued in accounting and, more broadly, in the financial markets.

Source: IB Business Management Guide 2016:34