Assignment:
Complete the following readings early in the module:
•Read the online lectures for the Module
•From the textbook, Accounting for Managers: Interpreting Accounting Information for Decision Making, 5th, read the following chapters:
Chapter : Budgeting
Chapter : Budgetary Control
Chapter : Strategic Management Accounting
Module Overview: In the previous modules, you have learned about financial reporting, where you use accounting information for external reporting to communicate the earnings and financial position of the business to external users. You also learned about management accounting that deals with using accounting information to analyze and communicate financial results to internal management for decision-making purposes. As a manager, you need to be forward-looking. Reviewing past financial information of your company is not enough because you need to be able to forecast future financial conditions or operating results. This requires planning various activities of your business.
In this module, you will learn about forecasting, budgeting, and strategic management accounting (SMA) that broadens the concept of management accounting. You will explore how to use accounting information to create a strategic business plan and develop strategies to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage using SMA concepts.
Budget represents an estimate of future costs and revenues and provides you with a plan to utilize labor and material resources. In this module, you will explore the various types of forecasting and budgeting techniques.
Assignment:
To develop a strategic plan, as a nonaccounting manager, you need to analyze and link management accounting data and performance information with business strategies. You also need to extend the scope of management accounting beyond the organization. For this perspective, you will need to focus on variables that are external to the firm, such as variables relating to markets, customers, and competitors. This external focus will help you develop a sustainable competitive advantage, which is the primary element of your long-term growth strategy. In this assignment, you will analyze the factors that affect the long-term growth strategy of a company.
Respond to the following:
•What can you learn from the financial statements of competitors that determine the relative cost position of your company?
•What are some of the ways in which you can secure a sustainable cost advantage over the competition?
•How does maintaining a strong understanding of relative costs help you maintain the competitive advantage?
•How do you use cost structure to differentiate products? Do you think product differentiation is a successful growth strategy? Why or why not?
•What is the usefulness of conducting a customer profitability analysis?
Submission Details:
Write your initial response in 300 to 500 words.Your response should be thorough and address all components of the discussion question in detail, include citations of all sources, where needed, according to the APA Style, and demonstrate accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.