Problem: A consulting firm produces a service that requires the use of labor and materials. Each unit of service requires a standard labor time of 30 minutes (0.5 hours). The average pay rate for a labor hour is £20. The consulting firm considers all materials that are required for the service as variable overheads (OH), the cost of which is directly associated with the labor hours worked. It has been estimated that variable OH rate is £10 per service hour.
The budgeted and actual costs, revenue and units for the month November are given in the table below:
Original Budget Actual
Units of Service 1,500 1,600
Sales Revenue £120,000 £124,400
Labor hours 750 860
Labor cost £15,000 £20,210
Variable OH costs £7,500 £8,170
Fixed Cost £68,000 £68,000
Total Cost £90,500 £96,380
Operating Profit £29,500 £28,020
Question 1. Calculate the flexed budget and the key variances between budgeted and actual results.
Question 2. Reconcile the original budget and present the relationship between the budgeted and the actual profit for the month November
Question 3. Discuss the calculated variances, and provide suggestions for better cost management (target length 300 words).