Registry
Module Specifications
Archived Version 2015 - 2016
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Description The aim of the module is to develop business students' understanding of the role of management accounting in organisations. More specifically it will develop students' competence to use management accounting information for planning, performance evaluation, decision making and costing activities within organisations. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Learning Outcomes 1. Explain how management accounting supports the management team of an organisation in the activities of planning, performance evaluation, decision-making and costing. 2. Describe the budgeting process and prepare basic budgets. 3. Ascertain the role of accounting information in evaluating the performance of organisations and produce basic variance analysis. 4. Be able to use the simple technique of break even analysis and Cost Volume Profit Analysis (CVP) to assess how sensitive profit is to various factors. 5. Be able to analyse information using relevant costing principles for various decision scenarios. 6. Be able to explain the purpose and process of product costing and compute basic product costs. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Indicative Content and
Learning Activities Introduction to management accountingNature, purposes and origins of management accounting; management accounting principles; responding to the challenges of the business environment; relationship with financial accounting and with other disciplines and business functions; organisational role of the management accountant.Cost terms and conceptsNature of cost; cost objects; cost classifications for product costing, planning, control and decision making.Cost Volume Profit (CVP) AnalysisThe elements of profit; contribution margin; breakeven point; target profit; sensitivity analysis; multi-product scenarios; usefulness and limitations of the model.Relevant cost and revenue analysisNature and context of non-routine short term decisions; consideration of incremental, opportunity, sunk, avoidable costs (and revenue); application to various scenarios.PlanningNature of budgets; budget period; budget setting process; preparation of functional budgets and cash budgets; flexing the budget.Performance evaluationThe role of budgets and the budgetary process in performance evaluation; comparison of actual to flexible budget; basic analysis of variance; benefits and limitations of budgets; behavioural considerations; balanced scorecard.Product costingThe need for product costs for external reporting purposes; the process of determining product costs with a focus on activity based costing systems. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indicative Reading List
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Other Resources None | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Programme or List of Programmes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Archives: |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||