The final pre-seen for the November 2024 case study exams is now available and this time, it focuses on Rotomyne. Rotomyne is a lithium mining business, which is a really interesting and topical industry in the real-world.
By now, you should have already gone through the pre-seen and taken some notes. You’ll need to ensure you’ve memorised everything ahead of the exam, so while I’d like to offer some tips here, don’t just rely on summaries like this.
Here are a few of the things I’m expecting to see based on my own reading of the pre-seen.
#1 – Funding
Funding is a key topic at F3, and is frequently examined in the SCS. It also often forms part of other questions, as part of your role is identifying where funding can be raised for any suggestions you make.
Several important concepts are brought together under funding. These include things like equity funding, debt funding and the cost of capital, so be sure to brush up on these topics.
When addressing a funding question, be sure to consider factors like cash flow budgeting and the potential for negative cash flows, as well as gearing and how tangible assets can be used as securities for increased debt.
#2 – Acquisitions
This is also a commonly-examined topic. Part of the reason for this is that it’s fairly easy to write questions for as it includes a lot of the CIMA syllabus, and can be done in a way that reflects real-world scenarios.
When revising acquisitions, there are a lot of topics that can become part of the answer. Some key ones include strategy, risk, change management and a robust competitor analysis.
In Rotomyne’s case, prepare for consultations about the benefits and drawbacks of acquiring competitors, issues with integration, and the need for growth and diversification of services.
#3 – Big Data and Cybersecurity
This is my bold prediction. These are not topics that are hinted at particularly heavily throughout the pre-seen. However, they’re a significant part of P3 and an increasingly important factor in the real world.
When these systems fail, there can be major consequences. For this reason you should read up on topics like how to deal with breaches, raising investment in security, and conducting an operational analysis to identify risks.
As Rotomyne is a company which values innovation and is technology-dependent, this is a topic that could have major effects on the company. This is only increased by the fact that big data is getting more important in the real 2world.
My best wishes to you if you’re sitting the SCS this February or November. Good luck with the exam, and I hope you get the result you’re aiming for.
The CIMA Student 
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