Task summary

For this assessment task you are required to assume the role of General Manager of Accountancy Victoria and develop workplace policies and procedures.

Required

• Computer and Microsoft Office
• Access to the internet for research and to review relevant legislation, for example:

* https://www.fairwork.gov.au/how-we-will-help/templates-and-guides/best-practice-guides/effective-dispute-resolution

Accountancy Victoria Style Guide

Assessment Task 2 Instructions: Carefully read the following:

Accountancy Victoria is based in Footscray, a suburb of Melbourne, and provides accountancy and book keeping services for a range of clients.

Accountancy Victoria was established by two Directors who are the Senior Accountants for the company. Other staff employed are: three accountants, a bookkeeper and an Officer Manager. The company is expanding due to the demand for accountancy services and will employ a further three senior accountants in the next 2 months, as well as an Officer Manager and Client Services Coordinator.

You have recently been appointed as the General Manager of Accountancy Victoria. Your role is to manage the day to day operations of the company. The first task you have been allocated is to establish formal systems and processes for a range of areas, as currently most of the company’s systems and processes are informal.

To start the process of creating formal systems and processes, you have been asked to develop systems and processes for workplace communication, consultation, as well as a Code of Conduct and dispute resolution processes.

Each document must be written in clear and concise English, be professionally presented, grammatically correct and error free. The document should also be written according to the Style Guide and be of approximately 2 pages.

Now complete the following activities:

1. Research and develop a Code of Conduct

You are required to research and develop a Code of Conduct. The purpose of the Code of Conduct is so that the staff at Accountancy Victoria are aware of, and follow the standard of behaviour expected of them in relation to their fellow employees, as well as clients. Use the Internet to identify and review staff Codes of Conduct from other organisations.

Your staff Code of Conduct must be in your own words and include:

• Introduction: purpose of the Code
• Scope: who it applies to
• Details of expected personal and professional behaviour (as a minimum, this should address a range of ethical behaviours, as well as behaviours appropriate to working within a diverse workplace)
• Conflict of interest requirements
• Gifts, benefits and hospitality
• Outside employment and consulting
• Use of social media

2. Research and develop a Workplace Communication and Consultation Policy and Procedure

The next part of the assessment task requires you to research and develop a workplace communication and consultation policy and procedure. Your policy and procedure should describe the mechanisms that will be used for internal communications, as well as how staff can provide input into a range of workplace related matters. Your research could include a review of other workplace communication or consultation policies and/or procedures. The document you develop must be in your own words.

The policy and procedure should include the following minimum information:

• Purpose
• Scope
• Communication strategies for communicating with staff: type, purpose and frequency. You should include at least four strategies in your policy and procedure.
• Communication protocols for meetings in relation to sending out of agendas and writing up of minutes.
• Consultation process: ways in which staff can contribute to workplace issues (e.g. surveys, suggestion forms, etc.). You must include at least three. Provide specific detail about the consultation mechanism. For example, for a suggestion box indicate the location of the box and how suggestions will be recorded and actioned.

3. Dispute Resolution Policy and Procedure

The final document you are required to develop is a dispute resolution procedure. This needs to be established so that all staff are aware of what dispute resolution procedures are in place. The dispute resolution policy and procedures needs to address the following:

• Purpose of the policy
• Scope: who it applies to
• What constitutes a dispute
• Responsibilities of managers in disputes
• Responsibilities of employees in disputes
• The process by which a dispute will be handled.

You may review dispute resolution policies and procedures to guide the development of your document. However, the document must be in you own words. Ensure that you review the link provided under “Required” to ensure that your policy and procedures considers relevant legislation.

4. Seek feedback from staff

Assume that you are required to seek feedback from staff on the documents you have developed. When you have completed all of the above documents, you must submit them via email to staff (this will be your assessor).

The email should provide a clear and simple summary of the documents attached and invite staff to provide feedback. As the staff have varying levels of education and the bookkeeper’s first language is not English, ensure your email is written in plain English so as to be easily be understood by all recipients.

The staff (this will be your assessor) will provide you with feedback, which you should incorporate into your documents.

When you have revised your documents based on the feedback provided, you will need to send the final versions to the staff (your assessor) via email again, indicating in a covering email of the feedback that was provided and how this has been incorporated into the revised documents.