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Throughput accounting

Throughput Accounting (TA) is a principle-based and simplified management accounting approach that provides managers with decision support information for enterprise profitability improvement. TA is relatively new in management accounting. It is an approach that identifies factors that limit an organization from reaching its goal, and then focuses on simple measures that drive behavior in key areas towards reaching organizationalgoals . TA was proposed by Eliyahu M. Goldratt[1] as an alternative to traditional cost accounting. As such, Throughput Accounting[2] is neither cost accounting nor costing because it is cash focused and does not allocate all costs (variable and fixed expenses, including overheads) to products and services sold or provided by an enterprise. Considering the laws of variation , only costs that vary totally with units of output (see definition of T below for TVC) e.g. raw materials, are allocated to products and services which are deducted from sales to dete...

Strategic management

Strategic management is the formulation and implementation of the major goals and initiatives taken by a company's top management on behalf of owners, based on consideration of resources and an assessment of the internal and external environments in which the organization competes.[1] Strategic management provides overall direction to the enterprise and involves specifying the organization's objectives, developing policies and plans designed to achieve these objectives, and then allocating resources to implement the plans. Academics and practicing managers have developed numerous models and frameworks to assist in strategic decision making in the context of complex environments and competitive dynamics.[2] Strategicmanagement is not static in nature; the models often include a feedback loop to monitor execution and inform the next round of planning.[3][4][5] Michael Porter identifies three principles underlying strategy: creating a "unique and valuable [market] p...

Margin

Margin is the difference between a product or service's selling price and its cost of production or to the ratio between a company's revenues and expenses . It also refers to the amount of equity contributed by aninvestor as a percentage of the current market value of securities held in amargin account . Margin is the portion of the interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage added to the adjustment-index rate. BREAKING DOWN 'Margin' In a general context, margin refers to the edge or border of something or the amount by which an item falls short or surpasses another item. Both of these definitions underscore the word's usage in numerous financial contexts including investing, accounting and lending . " To margin " means to use borrowed money to purchase securities. What Does Margin Mean in Investing? To margin, also called buying on margin, refers to the practice of buying an asset where the buyer pays only a percentage of the asset's val...

Managerial Accounting

What is 'Managerial Accounting' Managerial accounting is the process of identifying, measuring , analyzing, interpreting and communicating information for the pursuit of an organization's goals. This branch of accounting is also known as cost accounting. The key difference between managerial and financial accounting is managerial accounting information is aimed at helping managers within the organization make decisions, while financial accounting is aimed at providing information to parties outside the organization. BREAKING DOWN 'Managerial Accounting' Managerial accounting encompasses all fields of accounting aimed at informing management of business operation metrics. Managerial accountants use information relating to the costs of products or services purchased by the company. Budgets are also extensively used as a quantitative expression of the business’ plan of operation. Individuals in managerialaccounting utilize performance reports to note devi...

Management information system

Management information system (MIS) refers to the processing of information through computers and other intelligent devices to manage and support managerial decisions within an organization. The concept may include systems termed transaction processing system, decision support system, expert system, or executive information system. The term is often used in the academic study of businesses and has connections with other areas, such as information systems, information technology, informatics, e-commerce and computer science; as a result, the term is used interchangeably with some of these fresh cut areas. Management information systems (plural) as an academic discipline studies people, technology, organizations, and the relationships among them.[1] This definition relates specifically to "MIS" as a course of study in business schools . Many business schools (or colleges of business administration within universities) have an MIS department, alongside departments of accoun...

Management accounting

In management accounting or managerial accounting , managers use the provisions of accounting information in order to better inform themselves before they decide matters within their organizations, which aids their management and performance of control functions. Definition One simple definition of management accounting is the provision of financial and non-financial decision-making information to managers.[2] According to the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA): " Management accounting is a profession that involves partnering in management decision making, devising planning and performance management systems, and providing expertise in financial reporting and control to assist management in the formulation and implementation of an organization's strategy".[3] Management accountants (also called managerial accountants) look at the events that happen in and around a business while considering the needs of the business. From this, data and estimates...

Lean accounting

The purpose of Lean Accounting is to support the lean enterprise as a business strategy. It seeks to move from traditional accountingmethods to a system that measures and motivates excellent business practices in the lean enterprise. Introduction What we now call lean manufacturing was developed by Toyota and other Japanese companies. Toyota executives claim that the famed Toyota Production System was inspired by what they learned during visits to the Ford Motor Company in the 1920s and developed by Toyota leaders such as Taiichi Ohno and consultant Shigeo Shingo after World War II. As pioneer American and European companies embraced lean manufacturing methods in the late 1980s, they discovered that lean thinking must be applied to every aspect of the company including the financial and management accounting processes.[1] (See also, William Deming.) There are two main thrusts for Lean Accounting. The first is the application of lean methods to the company's accounti...