Assignment: Cost Accounting and Management Decisions
Conduct research on a U.S. manufacturing company that produces two or more products.
Write a five to six page paper in which you:
1. Describe the company researched, indicating the primary products manufactured.
2. Examine the effect of changes in the variable cost / fixed cost structure of the company on cost-volume analysis decisions by managers.
3. Analyze the current cost system used by the company to determine manufacturing costs and examine the benefits of using an activity-based cost system over the traditional system for management decisions.
4. Compare the company's sales and cost of sales forecast to the actual sales and costs of sales in the current financial statement. Evaluate strategies management can implement in response to changing conditions affecting budgetary planning and forecasting.
5. Use at least three quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources.
Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:
• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the professor's name, the course title, and the date.
The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.
The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:
• Examine the assumptions of cost-volume-profit analysis.
• Discuss the allocation of costs to divisions, plants, departments, contracts, and products.
• Analyze activity-based costing and activity-based management.
• Analyze the advantage of budgeting, the preparation of a master budget, and other forms of planning.
• Use technology and information resources to research issues in cost accounting.
• Write clearly and concisely about cost accounting using proper writing mechanics.