Principles of Cost Accounting
17th Edition
ISBN: 9781305087408
Author: Edward J. Vanderbeck, Maria R. Mitchell
Publisher: Cengage Learning
expand_more
expand_more
format_list_bulleted
Videos
Textbook Question
Chapter 7, Problem 1MC
Flexible budgeting, performance measurement, and ethics
Montevideo Manufacturing, Inc. produces a single type of small motor. The bookkeeper who does not have an in-depth understanding of accounting principles prepared the following performance report with the help of the production manager.
In a conversation with the sales manager, the production manager was overheard saying, “You sales guys really messed up our May performance, and it is only because production did such a great
Required:
- 1. Do you agree with the production manager that the manufacturing area did a good job of controlling costs?
- 2. Prepare a flexible budget for Montevideo Manufacturing’s expenses at the following activity levels: 45,000 units, 50,000 units, and 55,000 units.
- 3. Prepare a revised performance report, using the most appropriate flexible budget from (2) above.
- 4. Now what is your response to the production manager’s claim?
- 5. Assume that you have just been hired as the new accountant. You observe that the production manager is about to receive a large bonus based on the favorable materials, labor, and factory overhead variances indicated in the flexible budget prepared by the bookkeeper. Using the IMA Statement of Ethical Professional Practice as your guide, what standards, if any, apply to your responsibilities in this matter?
Expert Solution & Answer
Want to see the full answer?
Check out a sample textbook solution
Students have asked these similar questions
Preparing a Flexible Budget for Performance Reporting
Suppose you receive the following performance report from the accounting department for your first month as plant manager for a new company. Your supervisor, the vice president of manufacturing, has concerns that the report does not provide an accurate picture of your performance in the area of cost control.
Assignment Details
The chief financial officer (CFO) discussed your analysis and strategy with the executive team and feels that you are the perfect person to work on the corporate budget. Based on the current external environment, the organization has limited resources, and each department has been asked to reduce costs. Based on your experience, answer the following questions:
What type of costs should the departments reduce first and why?
How can the organization prevent budgetary slack in the budgeting process since the bonuses of managers are tied to the budget?
What are some potential ethical issues all organizations deal with in the budgeting process? What are some ways of dealing with these potential problems?
Preparing a flexible budget performance report
Murphy Company managers received the following incomplete performance report:
Complete the performance report. Identify the employee group that may deserve praise and the group that may be subject to criticism. Give your reasoning.
Chapter 7 Solutions
Principles of Cost Accounting
Ch. 7 - Prob. 1QCh. 7 - Prob. 2QCh. 7 - Prob. 3QCh. 7 - Prob. 4QCh. 7 - Explain zero-based budgeting and how it differs...Ch. 7 - Prob. 6QCh. 7 - Which operating budget must be prepared before the...Ch. 7 - Prob. 8QCh. 7 - Why is it important to have front-line managers...Ch. 7 - If the sales forecast estimates that 50,000 units...
Ch. 7 - What are the advantages and disadvantages of each...Ch. 7 - What three operating budgets can be prepared...Ch. 7 - Prob. 13QCh. 7 - What are the three budgets that are needed in...Ch. 7 - Why might Web-based budgeting be more useful than...Ch. 7 - What is a flexible budget?Ch. 7 - Why is a flexible budget better than a master...Ch. 7 - Why is it important to distinguish between...Ch. 7 - Why is the concept of relevant range important...Ch. 7 - In comparing actual sales revenue to flexible...Ch. 7 - How would you define the following? a. Theoretical...Ch. 7 - Is it possible for a factory to operate at more...Ch. 7 - If a factory operates at 100% of capacity one...Ch. 7 - How is the standard cost per unit for factory...Ch. 7 - When allocating service department costs to...Ch. 7 - The sales department of Macro Manufacturing Co....Ch. 7 - The sales department of F. Pollard Manufacturing...Ch. 7 - Barnes Manufacturing Co. forecast October sales to...Ch. 7 - Prepare a cost of goods sold budget for the Crest...Ch. 7 - Prepare a cost of goods sold budget for MacLaren...Ch. 7 - Roman Inc. has the following totals from its...Ch. 7 - Starburst Inc. has the following items and amounts...Ch. 7 - Using the following per-unit and total amounts,...Ch. 7 - Cortez Manufacturing, Inc. has the following...Ch. 7 - Prob. 10ECh. 7 - Prob. 11ECh. 7 - Prob. 12ECh. 7 - Prob. 13ECh. 7 - Calculating factory overhead The normal capacity...Ch. 7 - The Sales Department of Minimus Inc. has forecast...Ch. 7 - Sales, production, direct materials, direct labor,...Ch. 7 - Budgeted selling and administrative expenses for...Ch. 7 - Prob. 4PCh. 7 - Selling and administrative expense budget and...Ch. 7 - Preparing a flexible budget Use the information in...Ch. 7 - Preparing a performance report Use the flexible...Ch. 7 - Preparing a performance report Use the flexible...Ch. 7 - Flexible budget for factory overhead Presented...Ch. 7 - Prob. 10PCh. 7 - Overhead application rate Creole Manufacturing...Ch. 7 - Overhead application rate Roll Tide Manufacturing...Ch. 7 - Flexible budgeting, performance measurement, and...
Additional Business Textbook Solutions
Find more solutions based on key concepts
18. What is the calculation for return on assets (ROA)? Explain what ROA measures.
Horngren's Financial & Managerial Accounting, The Financial Chapters (Book & Access Card)
Discussion Analysis A13-41 Discussion Questions 1. How do managers use the statement of cash flows? 2. Describ...
Managerial Accounting (5th Edition)
What are assets limited as to use and how do they differ from restricted assets?
Accounting For Governmental & Nonprofit Entities
How would the decision to dispose of a segment of operations using a split-off rather than a spin-off impact th...
Advanced Financial Accounting
BE1-7 Indicate which statement you would examine to find each of the following items: income statement (IS), ba...
Financial Accounting: Tools for Business Decision Making, 8th Edition
List five asset accounts, three liability accounts, and five expense accounts included in the acquisition and p...
Auditing And Assurance Services
Knowledge Booster
Learn more about
Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, accounting and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.Similar questions
- Continuous improvement is the governing principle of a lean accounting system. Following are several performance measures. Some of these measures would be associated with a traditional standard-costing accounting system, and some would be associated with a lean accounting system. a. Materials price variances b. Cycle time c. Comparison of actual product costs with target costs d. Materials quantity or efficiency variances e. Comparison of actual product costs over time (trend reports) f. Comparison of actual overhead costs, item by item, with the corresponding budgeted costs g. Comparison of product costs with competitors product costs h. Percentage of on-time deliveries i. First-time through j. Reports of value- and non-value-added costs k. Labor efficiency variances l. Days of inventory m. Downtime n. Manufacturing cycle efficiency (MCE) o. Unused (available) capacity variance p. Labor rate variance q. Using a sister plants best practices as a performance standard Required: 1. Classify each measure as lean or traditional (standard costing). If traditional, discuss the measures limitations for a lean environment. If it is a lean measure, describe how the measure supports the objectives of lean manufacturing. 2. Classify the measures into operational (nonfinancial) and financial categories. Explain why operational measures are better for control at the shop level (production floor) than financial measures. Should any financial measures be used at the operational level? 3. Suggest some additional measures that you would like to see added to the list that would be supportive of lean objectives.arrow_forwardThe management of Hess, Inc., is developing a flexible budget for the upcoming year. It was not pleased with the small amount of net income the budget showed at all sales levels and Is contemplating using a less expensive material. This action reduces direct material cost by $1 per unit. What would be the effects on financial statements and a flexible budget if management takes this approach? Are there other factors that need to be considered?arrow_forwardEvaluating selling and administrative cost allocations Gordon Gecco Furniture Company has two major product lines with the following characteristics: Commercial office furniture: Few large orders, little advertising support, shipments in full truckloads, and low handling complexity Home office furniture: Many small orders, large advertising support, shipments in partial truckloads, and high handling complexity The company produced the following profitability report for management: The selling and administrative expenses are allocated to the products on the basis of relative sales dollars. Evaluate the accuracy of this report and recommend an alternative approach.arrow_forward
- Suspicious Acquisition of Data, Ethical Issues Bill Lewis, manager of the Thomas Electronics Division, called a meeting with his controller, Brindon Peterson, and his marketing manager, Patty Fritz. The following is a transcript of the conversation that took place during the meeting: Bill: Brindon, the variable costing system that you developed has proved to be a big plus for our division. Our success in winning bids has increased, and as a result our revenues have increased by 25%. However, if we intend to meet this years profit targets, we are going to need something extraam I right, Patty? Patty: Absolutely. While we have been able to win more bids, we still are losing too many, particularly to our major competitor, Kilborn Electronics. If we knew more about their bidding strategy, we could be more successful at competing with them. Brindon: Would knowing their variable costs help? Patty: Certainly. It would give me their minimum price. With that knowledge, Im sure that we could find a way to beat them on several jobs, particularly on those jobs where we are at least as efficient. It would also help us to identify where we are not cost competitive. With this information, we might be able to find ways to increase our efficiency. Brindon: Well, I have good news. Ive been talking with Carl Penobscot, Kilborns assistant controller. Carl doesnt feel appreciated by Kilborn and wants to make a change. He could easily fit into our team here. Plus, Carl has been preparing for a job switch by quietly copying Kilborns accounting files and records. Hes already given me some data that reveal bids that Kilborn made on several jobs. If we can come to a satisfactory agreement with Carl, hell bring the rest of the information with him. Well easily be able to figure out Kilborns prospective bids and find ways to beat them. Besides, I could use another accountant on my staff. Bill, would you authorize my immediate hiring of Carl with a favorable compensation package? Bill: I know that you need more staff, Brindon, but is this the right thing to do? It sounds like Carl is stealing those files, and surely Kilborn considers this information confidential. I have real ethical and legal concerns about this. Why dont we meet with Laurie, our attorney, and determine any legal problems? Required: 1. Is Carls behavior ethical? What would Kilborn think? 2. Is Bill correct in supposing that there are ethical and/or legal problems involved with the hiring of Carl? (Reread the section on corporate codes of conduct in Chapter 1.) What would you do if you were Bill? Explain.arrow_forwardThe Lockit Company manufactures door knobs for residential homes and apartments. Lockit is considering the use of simple (single-driver) and multiple regression analyses to forecast annual sales because previous forecasts have been inaccurate. The new sales forecast will be used to initiate the budgeting process and to identify more completely the underlying process that generates sales. Larry Husky, the controller of Lockit, has considered many possible independent variables and equations to predict sales and has narrowed his choices to four equations. Husky used annual observations from 20 prior years to estimate each of the four equations. Following are definitions of the variables used in the four equations and a statistical summary of these equations: St=ForecastedsalesindollarsforLockitinperiodtSt1=ActualsalesindollarsforLockitinperiodt1Gt=ForecastedU.S.grossdomesticproductinperiodtGt1=ActualU.S.grossdomesticproductinperiodt1Nt1=Lockitsnetincomeinperiodt1 Required: 1. Write Equations 2 and 4 in the form Y = a + bx. 2. If actual sales are 1,500,000 in the current year, what would be the forecasted sales for Lockit in the coming year? 3. Explain why Larry Husky might prefer Equation 3 to Equation 2. 4. Explain the advantages and disadvantages of using Equation 4 to forecast sales.arrow_forwardAnalysis of costs for a shipping department Sales volume has been dropping at Mumford Industries. During this time, the Shipping Department manager has been under severe financial constraints. Most of the Shipping Departments efforts are related to pulling inventory from the warehouse for each order and performing the paperwork. The paperwork involves preparing shipping documents for each order. Thus, the pulling and paperwork effort associated with each sales order is essentially the same, regardless of the size of the order. The Shipping Department manager has discussed the financial situation with senior management. Senior management has responded by pointing out that because sales volume has been dropping, the amount of work in the Shipping Department also should be dropping. Thus, senior management told the Shipping Department manager that costs should be decreasing in the department. The Shipping Department manager prepared the following information: Given this information, how would you respond to senior management?arrow_forward
- Which of the following is true in a bottom-up budgeting approach? Every expense needs to be justified. Supervisors tell departments their budget amount and the departments are free to work within those amounts. Departments budget their needs however they see fit. Departments determine their needs and relate them to the overall goals.arrow_forwardRizzo Goal Inc. produces and sells hockey equipment, often custom made for online orders. The company has the following performance metrics on its balanced scorecard: days from ordered to delivered, number of shipping errors, customer retention rate, and market share. A measure map illustrates that the days from ordered to delivered and the number of shipping errors are both expected to directly affect the customer retention rate, which affects market share. Additional internal analysis finds that: Every shipping error over three shipping errors per month reduces the customer retention rate by 1.5%. On average, each day above three days from ordered to delivered yields a reduction in the customer retention rate of 1%. Each day before three days from order to delivery yields an increase in the customer retention rate of 1%, on average. Rizzo Goal Inc.s current customer retention rate is 60%. The company estimates that for every 1% increase or decrease in the customer retention rate, market share changes 0.5% in the same direction. Rizzo Goal Inc.s current market share is 21.4%. Ignoring any other factors, if the company has six shipping errors this month and an average of 3.5 days from ordered to delivered, determine (a) the new customer retention rate and (b) the new market share that Rizzo Goal Inc. expects to have.arrow_forwardSuper Security Co. offers a range of security services for athletes and entertainers. Each type of service is considered within a separate department. Marc Pincus, the overall manager, is compensated partly on the basis of departmental performance by staying within the quarterly cost budget. He often revises operations to make sure departments stay within budget. Says Pincus, “I will not go over budget even if it means slightly compromising the level and quality of service. These are minor compromises that don’t significantly affect my clients, at least in the short term.” Required 1. Is there an ethical concern in this situation? If so, which parties are affected? Explain. 2. Can Pincus take action to eliminate or reduce any ethical concerns? Explain. 3. What is Super Security’s ethical responsibility in offering professional services?arrow_forward
- Which of the following statements about top down budgeting is true? Multiple Choice It is an appropriate method to use in times of financial stress. Eliminates a manager's excuse who tries to claim that his budget is unrealistic The budget process is often more efficient. It allows senior management to better prioritize resources to propelling the growth of the companyarrow_forwardIn order to determine whether or not David should receive a positive evaluation and a bonus for his performance, there are 2 areas that you should consider: First step: Prepare a flexible budget analysis looking at gross sales and variable costs that are controllable by David (just calculate down to Contribution Margin). Second Step: Look at all other expenses and compare actual to budgeted. Determine which costs are controllable and not controllable by David. Remember, some costs are merely allocated by corporate. Based on your analysis above, should David receive a positive evaluation and bonus?arrow_forwardWhich of the following statements is/are true? Select one: O a. One disadvantage of participative budgeting is employees' tendency to overestimate of revenues. O b. In a production budget, beginning inventory in units plus budgeted units to be produced equals unit sales minus targeted ending inventory in units. O C. All of the given statements are true O d. Production and inventory budgets form the basis for developing the sales budget. O e. When managers intentionally set budgeted costs too high and budgeted revenues too low, they are creating budgetary slack.arrow_forward
arrow_back_ios
SEE MORE QUESTIONS
arrow_forward_ios
Recommended textbooks for you
Principles of Cost AccountingAccountingISBN:9781305087408Author:Edward J. Vanderbeck, Maria R. MitchellPublisher:Cengage Learning
Managerial AccountingAccountingISBN:9781337912020Author:Carl Warren, Ph.d. Cma William B. TaylerPublisher:South-Western College Pub
Cornerstones of Cost Management (Cornerstones Ser...AccountingISBN:9781305970663Author:Don R. Hansen, Maryanne M. MowenPublisher:Cengage Learning
Financial And Managerial AccountingAccountingISBN:9781337902663Author:WARREN, Carl S.Publisher:Cengage Learning,
Principles of Accounting Volume 2AccountingISBN:9781947172609Author:OpenStaxPublisher:OpenStax College
Managerial Accounting: The Cornerstone of Busines...AccountingISBN:9781337115773Author:Maryanne M. Mowen, Don R. Hansen, Dan L. HeitgerPublisher:Cengage Learning
Principles of Cost Accounting
Accounting
ISBN:9781305087408
Author:Edward J. Vanderbeck, Maria R. Mitchell
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Managerial Accounting
Accounting
ISBN:9781337912020
Author:Carl Warren, Ph.d. Cma William B. Tayler
Publisher:South-Western College Pub
Cornerstones of Cost Management (Cornerstones Ser...
Accounting
ISBN:9781305970663
Author:Don R. Hansen, Maryanne M. Mowen
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Financial And Managerial Accounting
Accounting
ISBN:9781337902663
Author:WARREN, Carl S.
Publisher:Cengage Learning,
Principles of Accounting Volume 2
Accounting
ISBN:9781947172609
Author:OpenStax
Publisher:OpenStax College
Managerial Accounting: The Cornerstone of Busines...
Accounting
ISBN:9781337115773
Author:Maryanne M. Mowen, Don R. Hansen, Dan L. Heitger
Publisher:Cengage Learning
HR Basics: Compensation; Author: HR Basics: Compensation;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZoRId6ADuo;License: Standard Youtube License