Chapter 1

Cost and Strategy

About This Chapter

The essence of a successful organization is the ability to plan and control costs and to have the information to make viable financial decisions. To carry out these activities, managers need data that are relevant to their responsibilities and are received in sufficient time to take action. They also need to understand the terms and definitions used in relation to the costs of various activities and feel confident in engaging, manipulating, and analyzing cost information.

To meet managers’ needs for cost information, a significant part of management accounting is concerned with cost accounting, which is based on collecting and analyzing both financial and quantitative data. Traditionally, cost accounting ...

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