PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT (6 Credits)

Learning Outcomes:

On successful completion of this Course, students will be able to: Explain and apply cost accounting techniques; Select and appropriately apply decision-making techniques to facilitate business decisions and promote efficient and effective use of scarce business resources, appreciating the risks and uncertainty inherent in business and controlling those risks; Identify and apply appropriate budgeting techniques and methods for planning and control and use standard costing systems to measure and control business performance and to identify remedial action; Identify and discuss performance management information and measurement systems and assess the performance of an organization from both a financial and nonfinancial viewpoint, appreciating the problems of controlling divisionalised businesses and the importance of allowing for external aspects.

Topics:

1. Activity-based costing;
2. Target costing; Life-cycle costing;
3. Throughput accounting;
4. Environmental accounting;
5. Relevant cost analysis;
6. Cost volume analysis;
7. Limiting factors;
8. Pricing decisions;
9. Make-or-buy and other short-term decisions;
10. Dealing with risk and uncertainty in decision making;
11. Budgetary systems and types of budget;
12. Quantitative analysis in budgeting;
13. Standard costing;
14. Material mix and yield variances;
15. Sales mix and quantity variances;
16. Planning and operational variances;
17. Performance analysis;
18. Performance management information systems;
19. Sources of management information;
20. Management reports;
21. Performance analysis in private sector organisations;
22. Divisional performance and transfer pricing;
23. Performance analysis in not-for-profit organisations and the public sector;
24. External considerations and behavioural aspects;
25. Case Study & Revision.