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This study's objective was the construction of an explicative model to determine the minimum area necessary to be planted in coffee, to afford a living income, on monoculture coffee farms. In the sustainable coffee production scenario, the annual net income of families is evaluated in function of the achievement of a decent standard of living for all of its members. The metric which makes this possible is called living income. Unfortunately, among small coffee farmers, there is a large gap between real net income and living income, which is a multidimensional phenomenon, affected by exogenous, difficult-to-control factors, such as area cultivated in coffee and its sale price, in addition to variables derived from productive models employed, such as productivity, costs, and farm food production. Due to it being a multifactorial phenomenon, data mining algorithms were applied (decision tree and random forest), in order to classify those farms that would close the gap between net and living income. Model iterations were performed on a dataset that gathered historical production cost, income, and cultivated area information from farms located in four Colombian departments. It was concluded that the variables which explain the gap in a monoculture coffee system are as follows: Area planted in coffee, productivity, and sale price., El objetivo de esta investigación se basa en la construcción de un modelo explicativo para determinar el área mínima a cultivar en café, para alcanzar el Living Income en fincas cafeteras de tipo monocultivo. En el escenario de la producción sostenible de café, se evalúa el ingreso neto anual de una familia en función del logro de un nivel de vida decente para todos sus miembros, la métrica que hace esto posible es el Living Income; desafortunadamente en el segmento de pequeños caficultores existe una amplia brecha entre el ingreso neto real y el Living Income, que es un fenómeno multidimensional afectado por factores exógenos o de difícil control como el área cultivada en café y su precio de venta y variables derivadas de su modelo productivo como la productividad, los costos, y la producción de alimentos en su finca. Por tratarse de un fenómeno multifactorial, se aplicaron algoritmos de minería de datos (árbol de decisión y random forest) para clasificar las fincas que cerrarían la brecha entre el ingreso neto y el Living Income. Las iteraciones de los modelos se hicieron sobre un dataset que recopila información histórica de costos de producción, ingresos y áreas cultivadas, de fincas localizadas en cuatro departamentos de Colombia: Caldas, Cauca, Huila y Nariño. Se concluyó que las variables que explican la brecha en un sistema de monocultivo de café son: área cultivada en café, productividad y precio de venta.

A shift towards driverless vehicles in urban logistics will only happen if the use of the new technologies is economically beneficial. For this reason, this paper discusses the question of what autonomous shipment may cost in urban logistics. Using activity-based costing, the distinction between shipment with conventional trucks and autonomous transport robots is analysed. The calculation shows that the omission of the driver does not necessarily lead to a reduction of process costs. Only by also reducing technology costs, autonomous transport in urban logistics can gain economic benefits.

Background and aim: The ageing of the general population, with the increase in chronic diseases, poses the need for using technological innovation to face the growing healthcare needs. The present analysis applied the Activity-Based Costing tool in migraine patients followed at the IRCCS Mondino of Pavia to formalize and quantify the costs of the whole patient’s management process and to estimate the overall economic burden of migraine from the perspective of the National Health Service (NHS). Methods: A two-stage analysis was conducted. The first stage aimed at drawing patient’s pathway, defining all the possible activities and actors involved in the healthcare delivery and treatment for migraine at the IRCCS during year 2022. The second phase was the development of a model to estimate the costs of the entire process by pricing the individual activities. Results: The described model yielded an estimated total annual cost for the overall management of migraine of € 1,222,392, corresponding to a direct cost for a therapy of approximately 6 months per single patient of € 814. The most impactive items on the estimated annual expenditures were hospitalizations, followed by diagnostic examinations after follow-up visits and drugs dispensed by Hospital Pharmacy for home-administration (monoclonal antibodies). Conclusions: This analysis allowed detailing the single activities and resources used in migraine patient’s pathway and then estimating the direct costs sustained by the NHS. The model could be translated to other diseases for optimizing the diagnostic/therapeutic and economic management of assisted patients and improving healthcare resource allocation.

Introduction: An ostomy is a procedure in which an opening is made in the abdominal wall to establish a communication between the intestinal or urinary system and the external environment. Peristomal skin complications pose a constant challenge for the majority of individuals with a stoma, as they represent the most common postoperative complication. The aim of this study was to develop an economic evaluation model for assessing the costs associated with peristomal skin complications. Methods: In order to identify these costs, a survey was conducted in collaboration with the Coloplast Ostomy Forum group with the aim of mapping and documenting the timelines and all activities in the management of these complications. The data obtained from the survey were subsequently analyzed using the Activity Based Costing methodology. Results: The results of this analysis clearly indicate that the expenditure for initial visits is higher compared to subsequent ones, and that severe peristomal skin complications impose a greater economic burden than less severe complications. Specifically, the average total cost for managing severe peristomal skin complications amounts to € 104.6. Conclusion: This kind of analysis could provide support to decision-makers in dealing with a more accurate estimate of costs related to healthcare processes, aiming to implement rates able to “cover” the overall cost of certain healthcare activities. Specifically, there is currently no specific rate aimed at defining the value associated with the care and management of this type of complication, so this study confirms that this is an economic challenge that the National Health Service must address.

The aim of this paper is to explore and evaluate, using bibliometric analysis, the papers published up to January 2021 on the time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) system. In recent decades, companies adopting innovations in production management (e.g., lean manufacturing) have had to look for new methods of cost control. For this purpose, the activity-based costing system was developed, among others, with some implementation drawbacks. In 2004, Robert Kaplan, who developed the ABC costing system, developed the TDABC method. The conclusions of the paper show how the TDABC system has been mainly analyzed in healthcare organizations and little in industrial organizations., Peer Reviewed, Postprint (author's final draft)

There is a very short list of theoretical and empirical studies on the role of management accounting tools in the sustainability of smart cities. While the majority of these studies have addressed this role from the perspective of openness, participation, and hybridisation, others have addressed it in terms of economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Despite their early efforts often focusing on institutionalisation and governmentality processes, their analyses did not address how management accounting tools can be used to achieve sustainable goals, particularly in developing countries with a political and cultural character. This study aims to explore how an activity-based costing/ABC system is configured within urban development organisations to internalise cultural and political sustainability values at the smart city level. It applies a politico-cultural model and uses a case study approach from an Egyptian state-owned smart city enterprise. The findings reveal smart city culture and political/government compliance in the implementation of the ABC system, enabled by enterprise resource planning/ERP technology, within state-owned enterprises/SOEs. This system, seen as an emerging field, was created as a multi-lens reporting system on their political and cultural sustainability in smart cities. While political sustainability refers to SOEs' compliance with the ABC system, cultural sustainability refers to the embodiment of national smart city values in their system implementation. This sustainability costing system of a political and cultural nature has also created recursive dynamics, exemplified by the powerful role of ERP-ABC reports in making participatory sustainability decisions at various organisational and governmental levels for smart cities.

This qualitative study was written to expand the understanding of the potential sustainable use of activity-based costing in a small flexible manufacturing environment. The research was designed as a multiple-site case study, targeting two diverse small manufacturers in this market segment. Information was gathered to develop an understanding of how these firms cost their products, captured base manufacturing data, and the impact their leadership had on the management of costing processes. The information was gathered from documents received and observations on the shop floor at each participant site. In addition, participants from different functions either directly impacting or indirectly influencing the costing processes were interviewed at each site. The common theme at both locations was the minimal level of management accounting knowledge beyond the individuals directly tasked with the maintenance of the costing process. The other two topic themes discussed the way the firms collected production data. The interpretation of the findings by the researcher noted the strong influence of the market and profitability constructs on the leadership’s openness to change. This study will assist practitioners in emphasizing the need to understand the corporate environment before initiating any costing process change. Further research on possible optimum organizational size for the initiation of developing complex costing processes was encouraged, as the need to gain more accurate data is balanced against the day-to-day operational demands of the manufacturer. In addition, the findings noted the need to expand management accounting knowledge outside the accounting function to assist firms in understanding the impact of their actions and the impacts of process improvement initiatives. Key words: Flexible manufacturing, activity-based costing, management accounting.

After more than 30 years of using Activity-Based Costing (ABC) to determine costs, just a few studies have analyzed its publications. This article aims to conduct a systematic, comprehensive literature review analyzing papers on ABC to overview what has been researched and give future research directions. The study includes descriptive, relational and content analyses of 1,260 articles retrieved from Scopus over 32 years (1988-2019). Our research shows publication trends, the most influential journals, authors and countries, citations, H-index, authorship, objectives, keywords co-occurrences, and research methods. Moreover, twelve objective categories are proposed. The results show a still-growing interest in ABC, especially in health and manufacturing, where there have been more practical applications. The case study is the most used research methodology, and the United States is the leading country regarding academic productivity and citations. The study provides useful information for professionals and business managers, and academics.

An accounting system helps to provide information for planning and control of production. This article presents a Life Cycle Costing by using an Activity Based Costing approach of an innovative forestry company. In order to perform a cradle-to-gate assessment the study covers the forest and industrial activities of the forest product processing. The costs of each product in the portfolio are determined by the treatment activities they undergo. The inventory covers several years of activity of the company, which makes it possible to calculate the uncertainty of the average results with Monte Carlo simulation presented in the result section. Based on the results a products portfolio analysis was performed to identify the development progress phases of the mains products to support the product rollover strategy decision.

Disertační práce vychází z provedené literární rešerše, ve které je využito vědeckých zdrojů zaměřených na problematiku kalkulací logistických nákladů skladování. Disertační práce obsahuje vytyčený cíl, kterým je vytvoření kalkulačního systému logistických nákladů skladování u poskytovatele logistických služeb; zabývá se též přehledem vědeckých metod, které jsou využity pro splnění definovaného cíle. Hlavním obsahem je vlastní řešení disertační práce se zaměřením na aplikaci metody activity-based costing a metody případového usuzování v oblasti kalkulací logistických nákladů skladování u vybraných poskytovatelů logistických služeb. Je také provedeno vyhodnocení a diskuze získaných výsledků disertační práce a jsou uvedeny vlastní přínosy doktoranda., The dissertation thesis is based on the literature search, which uses scientific resources focused on the calculation of logistics costs of warehousing. It contains the set goal of the thesis, which is the creation of the calculation system of the logistics costs of warehousing at the logistics service provider, it also deals with an overview of scientific methods that are used to meet the defined goal. The main content is the solution of the dissertation with a focus on the application of the activity-based costing method and the case-based reasoning method in the field of calculations of logistics costs of warehousing at the selected logistics service providers. An evaluation and discussion of the obtained results of the dissertation thesis are also performed and the doctoral student's own benefits are presented., Dopravní fakulta Jana Pernera, Po představení doktoranda byla komise seznámena se stanoviskem školitele a vedoucím školícího pracoviště k disertační práci. Doktorand seznámil komisi se svojí disertační prací formou prezentace. Poté byly předneseny posudky oponentů a doktorand uspokojivě reagoval na připomínky oponentů. V následné veřejné diskusi byly zodpovězeny otázky členů komise, které jsou uvedeny na samostatných listech. Na závěr proběhlo tajné hlasování. Protokol o výsledcích hlasování tvoří samostatnou přílohu., Dokončená práce s úspěšnou obhajobou

In this paper, we focus our attention primarily on management tools and techniques that could be applied in the pre-production stage of the production process, respectively in the R&D stage. Attention is focused on Strategic cost management and its tools in R&D. Innovations and R&D are necessary for business to build competitive advantage, but looking closer at R&D activities, we could see constantly increasing costs, the costs of professional staff, instrumentation, aids, etc. So, it is appropriate to find and apply proper management methods, tools and techniques of strategic cost management. This article is based on the results of research dealing with the cost analysis of a newly developed method for the toxicity testing of nanomaterials. For the purposes of analysis and cost calculation, one of the newly developed validation methods for determining the toxicity of nanomaterials was selected. In the conditions of laboratory research, it was found that mainly activities are the main cost object for cost calculations. It seems advantageous to use the Activity Based Costing method for managing or determining the costs at R&D laboratories or for cost calculations of the newly developed methods., Příspěvek se zaměřujeme na manažerské nástroje a techniky, které lze uplatnit v předvýrobní fázi, respektive ve fázi výzkumu a vývoje. Pozornost je zaměřena na Strategické řízení nákladů a jeho nástroje ve výzkumu a vývoji. Inovace a VaV jsou pro podnikání nezbytné k vybudování konkurenční výhody, při bližším pohledu na VaV aktivity můžeme vidět neustále se zvyšující náklady, náklady na odborný personál, přístrojové vybavení, pomůcky atd. Je tedy vhodné najít a aplikovat efektivní metody řízení, nástroje a techniky těchto nákladů. Článek vychází z výsledků výzkumu zabývajícího se analýzou nákladů nově vyvíjené metody pro testování toxicity nanomateriálů. V podmínkách laboratorního výzkumu bylo zjištěno, že hlavním nákladovým objektem pro kalkulace nákladů jsou především činnosti. Jako výhodné se jeví použití metody Activity Based Costing pro řízení nebo stanovení nákladů ve VaV laboratořích nebo pro kalkulace nákladů nově vyvinutých metod.

An accounting system helps to provide information for planning and control of production. This article presents a Life Cycle Costing by using an Activity Based Costing approach of an innovative forestry company. In order to perform a cradle-to-gate assessment the study covers the forest and industrial activities of the forest product processing. The costs of each product in the portfolio are determined by the treatment activities they undergo. The inventory covers several years of activity of the company, which makes it possible to calculate the uncertainty of the average results with Monte Carlo simulation presented in the result section. Based on the results a products portfolio analysis was performed to identify the development progress phases of the mains products to support the product rollover strategy decision.

The quantification of production/service costs to determine the market price is fundamental in offering the maximum value of satisfaction. Therefore, management accounting is essential. One of the alternative tools is activity-based costing, known as ABC system, an alternative method to overcome the limitations of traditional indirect cost systems, which somehow distort the actual accounting of costs. Will exploring its development, applicability, challenges and benefits still be a possible option? This study aimed at reviewing the scientific literature produced on the activity-based costing system in recent years, identifying trends of adoption and challegnes of implementation in various manufacturing and service firms. High impact journals indexed in PubMed, Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, among others, were analyzed. The results show an increase of publications on the implementation of the ABC system in PubMed (855 publications), WoS (1131) and Scopus (2535). The results show that its applicability remains a possible option as an alternative costing tool for SME managers or owners. This study concludes that the application of the ABC system is adequate to determine real costs and could guarantee more reasonable and competitive prices in the market. However, there is still resistance to its implementation due to human and technological ignorance., La cuantificación de los costes de producción/servicio para determinar el precio de mercado es fundamental para ofrecer el máximo valor de satisfacción, por ello, la contabilidad de gestión es esencial. Una de las herramientas alternativas es el costeo basado en actividades, conocido como sistema ABC, un método alternativo para superar las limitaciones de los sistemas tradicionales de costos indirectos, que, de alguna manera, distorsionan la contabilidad real de los costos. ¿Será posible explorar su desarrollo, aplicabilidad, retos y beneficios? Este estudio tiene como objetivo revisar la literatura científica producida sobre el sistema de costes basado en actividades en los últimos años, identificando las tendencias de adopción y los retos de implementación en diversas empresas de fabricación y servicios. Se analizaron revistas de alto impacto indexadas en PubMed, Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, entre otras. Los resultados muestran un incremento de las publicaciones sobre la implantación del sistema ABC en PubMed (855 publicaciones), WoS (1131) y Scopus (2535). Los resultados evidencian que su aplicabilidad, sigue siendo una opción posible como herramienta de costes alternativa para los gestores o propietarios de las PYMES. Este estudio concluye que la aplicación del sistema ABC es adecuada para determinar los costes reales y podría garantizar precios más razonables y competitivos en el mercado. Sin embargo, aún existe resistencia a su implementación debido al desconocimiento humano y tecnológico.

The cost of health is a recurrent topic that has generated much research, as it affects all of society. Both public and private agents need to know the real cost of treatments, services, and products for decision-making. This article aims to compare the use and research impact of two cost systems widely used in health: ABC and TDABC, which is an evolution of ABC. For doing so, a bibliometric review in Scopus and Medline was carried out encompassing the years 2009-2019. The results show a great increase in publications using TDABC, while publications on ABC stabilized. On the other hand, the TDABC articles presented higher research impacts in traditional and alternative metrics. Articles on TDABC are more frequently cited, published in better journals, and more visible in academic social networks. The findings suggest that scholars and practitioners should focus on TDABC rather than ABC for addressing cost in health for its simplicity, projection, and research opportunities.

Improving healthcare performance has become a need for resource optimisation in a field where they are scarce. Activity-Based Costing (ABC) has been applied for more than 30 years to allocate costs and provide information for decision-making. This paper seeks to review previous literature in the health field that analysed this cost system and its new version, TDABC (Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing). Five hundred ninety articles published from 1989 to 2019 were retrieved from Scopus and Medline. The review includes descriptive, relational and content analyses. Results show that the interest in applying these cost systems is growing, especially in journals focusing on the financial aspects of health, policy and planning, and radiology. However, there is a difference in the application of ABC and TDABC. ABC is more related to efficiency and more used in laboratories. In contrast, TDABC is primarily used in hospitals and addressing the value of health rather than cost-effectiveness. On the other hand, the findings suggest that TDABC present greater opportunities for publication compared with ABC. Its progression is higher and gets more citations. The current article contributes to broadening the field's vision and encourages authors for further research.

Bakgrund och problem: Det har riktats kritik mot den traditionella ekonomistyrningen vilket har gjort att moderna styrmetoder och verktyg växt fram för att komplettera ekonomistyrningen. De faktorer som tvingat fram den moderna styrningen går även att se i musikbranschen. Detta, tillsammans med att ekonomistyrning i musikbranschen generellt sett är outforskat, gör att det blir intressant att undersöka hur skivbolag i musikbranschen använder sig av en traditionell ekonomistyrning eller modern verksamhetsstyrning. Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att genom att undersöka två skivbolags ekonomistyrning kartlägga hur ekonomistyrningen karaktäriseras utifrån traditionell ekonomistyrning och modern verksamhetsstyrning. Metod: Metoden som använts vid denna studie är kvalitativ. Vi har genom fallstudier hos två skivbolag undersökt och skapat oss en förståelse av ekonomistyrningen i bolagen med hjälp av semi-strukturerade intervjuer och kompletterande frågor via mail. Slutsats: Det går att se att skivbolagen övergått delvis till en modern verksamhetsstyrning men att det alltså finns en blandning mellan användandet av traditionella och moderna styrmetoder och verktyg., Background and problem: Criticism has been raised towards the traditional management control which pushed forward modern management methods and tools to complement management accounting. The factors that pushed out this modern management control are possible to see in the music industry aswell. This, together with the fact that management control in the music industry has a research gap, makes it interesting to examine how record labels in the swedish music industry are using traditional or modern management control. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to through the examination of two record labels create an understanding of how the management control is characterized through traditional or modern management control. Method: The method used in this study is qualitative. We have through a multiple-case study at two record labels examined and created an understanding of the management control in the companies with the help of semi-structured interviews and complementary questions through mail. Conclusion: It is possible to see that the record labels has partly moved to modern management control but also that you can see a mix between the usage of traditional and modern control methods and tools.

This study aims to identify opportunities for improvement and cost reduction in a company that produces aggregates through the methodology of Activity Based Costing (ABC). This case study is conducted with field visits; interviews with the owner, managers and process managers; and reviews of financial and accounting reports. The result shows how the ABC allows knowing the cost and profitability of each one of the company products, measured in cubic meters. Furthermore, this methodology enables to identify the activities that represent a higher cost and those that do not add value to the company. In this way, it is possible to foresee opportunities for improvement that might lead to significant cost reductions in the future., O presente estudo tem como objetivo identificar oportunidades de melhoramento e redução de custos em uma empresa produtora de agregados, através da metodologia de Custo Baseado em Atividades (ABC). O estudo de caso realiza-se com visitas a terreno; entrevistas ao dono, gerentes e pessoas encarregadas dos processos; e revisões de informes nanceiros e contábeis. Os resultados mostram como o ABC permite conhecer o custo e a rentabilidade de cada um dos produtos da empresa, medido em metros cúbicos. Além disso, esta metodologia permite identificar as atividades que significam um maior custo e aquelas que não acrescentam valor à companhia. Deste modo, é possível prever oportunidades de melhora de processos que possam conduzir a uma redução de custos no futuro, El presente estudio tiene como objetivo identificar oportunidades de mejora y reducción de costos en una empresa productora de áridos, a través de la metodología de Costo Basado en Actividades (ABC). El estudio de caso se realiza con visitas a terreno; entrevistas al dueño, gerentes y encargados de los procesos; y revisión de informes financieros y contables. Los resultados muestran como el ABC permite conocer el costo y rentabilidad de cada uno de los productos de la empresa, medido en metros cúbicos. Además, está metodología permite identificar las actividades que signican un mayor costo y aquellas que no agregan valor a la compañía. De este modo, es posible prever oportunidades de mejora de procesos que puedan conducir a una reducción de costos en el futuro.

The research purpose was to examine the problems of companies in implementing Activity-Based Costing and, in particular, to analyze the differences in assessing the level of these problems perceived by organizations using the system, considering its implementation, those which had not considered it, and those which had rejected it. The research showed that the problems with ABC implementation seen by adopters were considerably smaller compared to the other groups. A similar difference was noted between enterprises that were considering the implementation of the ABC system (and not considering it at all) and those that rejected it. The last group perceived implementation problems to be bigger than was the case in the groups which were still considering implementation or had not considered it at all. The findings seem to support the view that companies are making ABC implementation decisions rationally. On the one hand, when the problems perceived during implementation are relatively small, the company adopts ABC. On the other hand, when a company perceives the implementation problems as being quite significant, it rejects the implementation. In the middle of the scale are companies considering the implementation of ABC and others that are not thinking about it at all. They assess the perceived problems as moderate and are not in a position yet to decide for or against ABC implementation. There could also be an alternative explanation for the research results. It may be the case that companies, which have not implemented ABC overestimate the implementation problems.

BackgroundVariations in adjusted costs have been observed among trauma centres in the United States but patient outcomes were not better in centres with higher costs. Attempts to improve injury care efficiency are hampered by insufficient patient-level information on resource use and on the drivers of resource use intensity.ObjectivesTo estimate patient-level resource use for injury admissions, identify determinants of resource use intensity, and evaluate inter-hospital variations in resource use.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study including ≥16-year-olds admitted to adult trauma centres in a mature, inclusive Canadian trauma system between 2014 and 2016. We extracted data from the trauma registry and hospital financial reports. We estimated resource use with activity-based costs, identified determinants of resource use intensity using a multilevel linear model and assessed the relative importance of each determinant with Cohen's f2. We evaluated inter-provider variations with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and 95% confidence intervals.ResultsWe included 32,411 patients. Median costs per admission were $4857 (Quartiles 1 and 3 2961-8448). The most important contributors to total resource use were the medical ward (57%), followed by the operating room (OR; 23%) and the intensive care unit (13%). The strongest determinant of resource use intensity was discharge destination (Cohen's f2 = 7%). The most resource intense patient group was spinal cord injuries with $11,193 (7115-17,606) per admission. While resource use increased with increasing age for the medical ward, it decreased with increasing age for the OR. Resource use was 18% higher in level I centres compared to level IV centres and we observed significant variations in resource use across centres (ICC = 5% [4-6]), particularly for the OR (28% [20-40]).ConclusionsResource use for acute injury care in Quebec is not solely due to the clinical status of patients. We identified determinants o

MBA Professional Project, The 2016 Navy Pregnancy and Parenthood Survey conducted by Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division (NAWCTSD) cited that the primary retention influencer for female naval officers is the “ability to have a family.” This project is a policy proposal that targets the primary reason female naval officers are leaving the military. The researchers assessed the viability of implementing EF/IVF (egg freezing and in vitro fertilization) as a retention tool for competitive female naval officers in the unrestricted line (URL) communities. The researchers proposed an EF/IVF pilot program that was analyzed from the ethical and financial perspectives. The ethical perspective justified why the policy proposal should be implemented on the basis of equality, equity, and need. The financial perspective supported the ethical perspective by estimating an overall average program price to implement the proposed EF/IVF pilot program., http://archive.org/details/womenretentionth1094562237, Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy, Lieutenant, United States Navy

[EN] Companies around the world are under pressure to reduce their prices to be competitive. In order to keep profitability, they are adopting lean manufacturing (LM) and its tools to reduce waste and, consequently, the costs. Value stream mapping (VSM) is an efficient LM tool, identifying production flow waste. When it is possible to combine VSM with other LM tool, such as Kanban, a substantial impact in inventory reduction is reached. Additionally, the conventional account system shows limitations in the costs reduction to keep up with LM. The purpose of this paper is to present the results obtained by the application of the VSM combined with Kanban and the new account approach to measure the effectiveness of the cost reduction in the finished goods inventory. Considering that LM tools application in the textile segment has not an expressive number of researches, four hypothesis are presented and validated. The findings are discussed and finally, the research limitations and the practical implications originated by this work are presented as well as topics for further researches are suggested.

The activity-based costing method is considered as a universal management tool that applies to flow mapping and cost behaviour. The basic idea of activity-based costing is to find the true causal link between cost and performance and to display these facts in the calculation system so that the outputs are as close as possible to the reality. This method defines the structure of business processes and activities. Activity-based costing primarily focuses on improving the assignment of overhead costs, which are often allocated on a direct cost basis or direct worked hours. This method was imported to address the problems encountered by logistics service providers. The aim of this article is to use activity-based costing as a management method in a logistics service provider with regard to the cost management. The article is based on research of the world literature especially Web of Science database and Scopus database, in-depth interviews with managers that is the method of the qualitative research and an analysis of internal data of the logistics service provider. The basic advantages of qualitative research are the detailed description and insight into the study of the issue, in addition it responds well to local situations and conditions and can search for local causal connections. The article shows the possibility of using activity-based costing to better calculate the logistics costs of warehousing in a selected logistics service provider., Metoda activity-based costing je považována za univerzální nástroj pro správu, která se vztahuje na mapování toku a chování nákladů. Základní myšlenkou kalkulace activity-based costing je nalezení skutečné příčinné souvislosti mezi náklady a výkony a zobrazení těchto skutečností v kalkulačním systému tak, aby výstupy byly co nejblíže realitě. Tato metoda definuje strukturu logistických procesů a činností. Metoda activity-based costing se primárně zaměřuje na zlepšení přidělování režijních nákladů, které jsou často přidělovány na základě přímých nákladů nebo přímých odpracovaných hodin práce. Tato metoda byla importována k řešení problémů, s nimiž se setkávají poskytovatelé logistických služeb. Cílem tohoto článku je využití metody activity-based costing jako metody řízení nákladů u poskytovatele logistických služeb. Článek je založen na výzkumu světové literatury, zejména databáze Web of Science a databáze Scopus, hloubkových rozhovorech s manažery, což je metoda kvalitativního výzkumu a analýza interních dat poskytovatele logistických služeb. Základními přednostmi kvalitativního výzkumu je podrobný popis a vhled do studie problému, navíc reaguje dobře na místní situace a podmínky a může hledat místní příčinné souvislosti. Článek ukazuje možnost využití metody activity-based costing pro lepší výpočet logistických nákladů skladování u vybraného poskytovatele logistických služeb.

According to the OECD ranking, Switzerland has one of the most expensive healthcare systems in the world. In addition to other reasons, Switzerland introduced the remuneration system Swiss DRG four years ago in order to have an economically affordable healthcare system. Within this new remuneration system, transparency as well as efficiency and effectiveness are important principles. As the facility management is responsible for a third of the hospital costs and supports the core business, it has an important role in underpinning these principles. Currently, new ways of patient catering are being developed and tested. This research sets out to learn about the effects thereof. In order to do so, a mixed-method case study was carried out in three selected Swiss hospitals. The study has revealed that patient catering under new paradigms in order to become more efficient and closer to the needs of the patients is a challenge. The recently developed breakfast trolley can support Facility Managers in hospitals to face these challenges. As a result, different impacts on patients' breakfast between the classical way of patient catering and the new approach with the breakfast trolley could be identified. In addition, a closer look is taken on staff attitude towards this new way of patient catering. These findings provide facility managers in the healthcare sector with additional argumentation to meet the current challenges.

Purpose: To present a literature review showing the trajectory of the ABC model. Design/methodology: Literature review. Findings: This paper analyzes the history of the ABC model and its dissemination process, in the form of articles published in the specialized press. Research limitations/implications: The bibliometric study has been carried out based on specialized journals. Practical implications: Before a new strategic management tool is adopted, its strategic or operational contribution to the organization should be analyzed. The adoption of new tools based on current trends or as part of mimetic processes, could imply financial investments that do not produce the desired effects. Originality/value: This work is an analysis of the trajectory of the ABC model from its appearance to the present time., Peer Reviewed

Objective To assess the organizational impact of the introduction of vedolizumab compared to the biotechnological anti-TNF alternatives to date available in Italy for the management of Ulcerative Colitis (UC) and Crohn's Disease (CD). Methods A questionnaire aimed at acquiring data about the Italian real practice concerning the management of patients affected by UC and CD was administered to a panel of expert clinicians from three Italian centers of excellence. The determination of the cost of the therapies was realized through an Activity-Based Costing (ABC) analysis which identified the differential between the use of vedolizumab and the alternatives. Results The reduced time of infusion of vedolizumab allows a total cost/infusion of €97.89, with savings vs. infliximab of €39.60 (UC and CD). Vedolizumab implies an expenditure of €17,229.84 (UC) and €17,459.63 (CD) in the first year which allows, compared to Infliximab originator (€17,739.60), a saving/patient of €509.76 and €279.97 for UC and CD respectively. In the following years, vedolizumab implies an expenditure of €13,870.55 and €14,049.95 for UC e CD, lower than infliximab (€14,284.73), with a differential of €414.18 for UC and €234.78 for CD. In the comparison with infliximab biosimilar, the results are the same with regard to the administration costs, but the combined cost administration + drug is lower than that of vedolizumab due to the lower expenditure for drugs. Conclusions Vedolizumab implies a reduction of the time spent by the professionals involved in the provision of the treatment, allowing a reallocation of the saved resources.

Le società ICT in-house pubbliche producono ed erogano servizi digitali ai cittadini e alle imprese e sviluppano e gestiscono i sistemi informativi degli enti pubblici loro azionisti. L’affidamento di un servizio a queste società trova giustificazione laddove queste garantiscano costi inferiori al mercato o restituiscano un valore aggiunto maggiore. Le società ICT in-house devono quindi ri-orientare i propri sistemi di controllo strategico-direzionale in una prospettiva di misurazione e rendicontazione del valore prodotto per l’azionista pubblico. Ciò implica la necessità di adottare modelli organizzativi e sistemi di activity-based costing che tengano conto delle diverse attività «di servizio pubblico» nell’ambito della catena di produzione del valore dei servizi digitali

This paper explores the scopes of use of costing information for setting product prices in a competitive market. Setting the optimum product price that reconciles shareholders' and customers' long term goals has never been more difficult. Previous researches have proved the paramount importance of costs for pricing decisions. This paper investigates the influence of ABC costing information on pricing decisions and argues on their dominance over traditional costing systems. Using the hypothetical example of a prune producing company, the analysis reveals significant differences between traditional and ABC cost prices of products, highlighting the benefits of ABC approach. Tracing costs to various production-related activities within a company, the ABC model gives a detailed insight into the types and amounts of costs of attaining specific product characteristics and satisfying different customer demands. This way, the ABC provides the management with considerable discretionary power for pricing decisions, setting a sound basis for product and customer profitability management as well as for the creation of long-term value for shareholders.

Kalkulace logistických nákladů se stala skutečnou výzvou v oblasti logistiky a řízení dodavatelsko-odběratelského řetězce. Značná část logistických výkonů je realizována poskytovateli logistických služeb, tyto podniky hrají klíčovou roli při efektivnějším provozování vybraných průmyslových odvětví. Poskytovatelé logistických služeb si musí být vědomi hlavních provozních faktorů logistických procesů. Tyto procesy by měly být monitorovány a vyhodnocovány prostřednictvím manažerských informačních systémů. V tomto článku bude analyzováno pojetí a význam logistických nákladů a dále budou rozebrány metody kalkulací logistických nákladů u poskytovatelů logistických služeb. Článek vychází z rešerše světové literatury, především ze zdrojů databáze Web of Science., Calculation of logistics costs become a real challenge in logistics management and supply chain. A lot of the logistic performances are carried by logistics service providers; these companies play a key role in the effective operation of selected industries. Logistics service providers must be aware of the main operational factors of the logistic processes. These processes should be monitored and evaluated by management information systems. In this paper, will be analyzed the concept and importance of logistics costs and will be further discussed methods of cost calculation of logistics costs for logistics service providers. The paper is based on research of world literature especially sources from the Web of Science database.

Social sciences / accounting, auditing and business finance, Intenzivna globalna konkurencija i tehnološke inovacije, u kombinaciji sa promenljivim zahtevima potrošača, primoravaju preduzeća da iznalaze nove pristupe i instrumente upravljanja, da menjaju proizvodne sisteme i investiraju u nove tehnologije. Nove tehnologije karakteriše veća fleksibilnost proizvodnih procesa, organizacije rada i upravljanja. Posledica ovih promena je skraćenje životnog ciklusa proizvoda, promena u strukturi troškova i karaktera pojedinih vrsta troškova. Promene u poslovnom okruženju preduzeća su izazvane i podizanjem standarda kvaliteta, povećanim zahtevima u pogledu društvene odgovornosti i održivog razvoja, kao i povećanjem zahteva u vezi sa ekološkom zaštitom, što značajno usložnjava proces upravljanja u savremenom preduzeću. Postizanje i održanje konkurentske prednosti zahteva brza tehničko-tehnološka prilagodjavanja i visoka ulaganja u vezi s tim, visoku proizvodno-prodajnu fleksibilnost kako po širini i dubini asortimana, tako i po veličini serija, prodajnih i postprodajnih usluga. Sve to uslovljava visoke i rastuće opšte troškove, posebno aktivnosti podrške i velike razlike između proizvoda, pojedinih serija, tržišta, grupa kupaca i sl. u pogledu apsorbovanja pojedinih aktivnosti, posebno aktivnosti podrške, pri čemu tradicionalna obračunska metodologija može da produkuje nedovoljno tačne podatke o troškovima proizvoda za odgovarajuća tržišta i kupce. Znatno povećanje učešća opštih troškova u ukupnim troškovima preduzeća, učinilo je da obračunski postupci s opštim troškovima postanu centralni problem obračuna i upravljanja troškovima. Neprimereni postupci alokacije opštih troškova na proizvode i usluge su ključni uzroci netačnosti troškova. Korišćenje direktnih troškova, čije učešće u ukupnim troškovima drastično opada, kao osnove za alokaciju, ne odgovara zahtevu uzročnosti u alokaciji opštih troškova na proizvode i dovodi do ozbiljnih poremećaja troškova proizvoda. Posledice netačnosti podataka o troškovima su donošenje pogrešnih odluk, Intensive global competition and technological innovations together with changing customer demands, force companies to develop new management approaches and instruments, change production systems and invest in new technologies characterised by a higher flexibility of the production process, organisation of work and management. This leads to shortening of the product life cycle, changes in the cost structure and character of particular types of costs, as a result. Changes in the business environment are also induced by a rise in quality standards, increasing demands in regard to social responsibility and sustainable development, as well as growing demands for environmental protection, which significantly makes management process in a contemporary enterprise ever more complex. Gaining and sustaining competitive advantage requires rapid technical and technological adjustments hence huge investments, and a high level of production and sales flexibility as regards not only the breadth/width and depth of the product line, but also the line size, sales and after-sales services. This all leads to high and mounting overhead costs, particularly of support activities, and a broad difference between products, specific product lines, markets, groups of customers, etc. in relation to the absorption of some activities, support activities in particular, where the conventional cost accounting methodology may result in insufficiently accurate data on product costs for some markets and customers. A significant increase of overhead cost participation in the company’s total costs, necessitated that overhead cost accounting procedures be regarded as a central cost accounting and cost management problem. Key reasons for such cost inaccuracies are inappropriate overhead cost allocation procedures for products and services. Using direct costs, whose participation in total costs drastically declines, as a basis for cost allocation, is inappropriate to the cause of overhead cost allocation to

The objective of this study is to present how could be Activity-Based Costing method used for the purpose of the profitability analysis of individual bus and trolleybus lines in an urban mass transport company which operates the land public transport inside the medium sized town in Czech Republic. Activity-Based Costing method had been used, in order to causal allocation of overhead costs to individual operations in order to measure the profitability of particular transport lines. The performed study showed the application process of the Activity-Based Costing and possible information outputs for an urban mass transport company as well as the limitations of the method use in the field of transportation services. The study also analyses the obstacles in effective data collection and processing which implementation team faced during the analysis. The primary limitation of the analysis, is similarly as in other studies, is the quality of the non-financial information which had to be obtained. Study discusses problems related with the fare system, which does not provide the information regarding the route taken by individual passenger. The study presents the how could be ABC method used for the decision making support in urban mass transport company and shows a real example of the ABC system information outputs. © 2016, Institut za Istrazivanja. All rights reserved.

BACKGROUND Through global competition with possibilities for companies to set up production and to secure supply from all over the world the role of purchasing has increased within businesses. In order to achieve business results, a well-working purchasing department plays an important part. To contribute, the purchasing function should not only focus on getting the cheapest price possible, but to take part in shaping strategic directions for their corporation. PROBLEM Duni AB and the business area Meal Service has recognized opportunities in developing their sourcing work by bringing a wider cost focus into their work. By this, they think that they could identify cost saving areas and validate that they make the right decisions based on more aspects than they are doing today. The main objective was therefore to develop a cost model including multiple cost elements besides the purchasing price. PURPOSE The purpose of this study is to create a cost model that Duni Meal Service can use in sourcing and economic life cycle decisions, showing a holistic view of the total cost of purchasing. METHOD Since the objective was to develop and deliver a purchasing cost model to Duni Meal Service a constructive research approach was applied. The focus was on bridging theory and practice and an interview study was held at the principal company, to gain practical knowledge and insight. This together with the theoretical framework, created from our literature studies, worked as a foundation in the analysis and the development of the cost model, as well as for further recommendations given to Duni. THEORY Purchasing Management was investigated, including theory about supplier selection and cross-functional integration. Literature about trade companies was also sought for, since this thesis is limited to traded goods at Duni. In addition, a section of Purchasing Measurements was added since it was mentioned that this might be one of the background issues at Duni. Furthermore, a set of, BAKGRUND På grund av att företag idag har möjlighet att konkurrera globalt genom att flytta produktionen utomlands och att säkra leveranser ifrån alla världens hörn har också inköpsfunktionens roll förändrats. För att nå företagets uppsatta mål är det viktigt att ha en välfungerande inköpsfunktion som jobbar effektivt. Inköpsfunktionen bör inte enbart fokusera på att uppnå det billigaste möjliga inköpspriset, utan också bidra i de strategiska beslut som påverkar hela företaget. PROBLEM Meal Service, som är ett affärsområde inom Duni AB, har identifierat en möjlighet att utveckla deras inköpsarbete, genom att börja arbeta med ett bredare kostnadsfokus. Genom detta, hoppas de kunna identifiera fler kostnadsbesparingsmöjligheter samt ta bättre inköpsbeslut som grundar sig i fler aspekter än vad de använder sig av idag. Därför har huvudsyftet med detta projekt varit att utveckla en kostnadsmodell som även inkluderar kostnadselement utöver inköpspriset. SYFTE Syftet med denna studie är att skapa en kostnadsmodell som Duni Meal Service kan använda I inköpsbeslut samt beslut rörande en produkts ekonomiska livscykel, genom att visa en holistisk bild av den totala kostnaden av ett inköp. METOD Eftersom syftet med denna studie var att utveckla och leverera en kostnadsmodell för inköp hos Duni Meal Service, användes en konstruktiv forskningsmetod. Fokus låg på att länka samman teori och praktik och en intervjustudie gjordes på Duni för att få praktisk förståelse och insikt. Tillsammans med det teoretiska ramverket som skapades genom litteraturstudier, låg detta till grund för analysen och utvecklandet av kostnadsmodellen. Även de framtida rekommendationer som har getts till Duni baserades på den empiriska och teoretiska kunskapen. TEORI Inköpsfunktionens olika delar har undersökts, innefattande teori om leverantörsval och tvärfunktionell integration. Även litteratur gällande handelsföretag eftersöktes eftersom att denna studie är begränsad till inköp av färdigt gods. Det lades, Professional purchasing should look beyond the purchase price and include more aspects in order to take strategic purchasing decisions. Aligning purchasing to the corporate strategies will play an important role for achieving business results. This is what the sourcing team within Duni Meal Service had in mind for this project. Instead of only focus on getting the lowest purchase price possible they wanted to broaden their purchasing cost perspective. Therefore the purpose with this thesis was to develop a cost model that Duni Meal Service can use in sourcing and economic life cycle decisions, showing a holistic view of the total cost of purchasing. To fulfill this purpose, a purchasing cost model was created. The cost model will provide the sourcing team within Duni Meal Service with information about the total cost of a purchase. The model will calculate the total cost based on a number of input parameters filled in by the users. By altering these input parameters the user will see how the total cost vary. Thus, the cost model can for example be used to compare two potential suppliers. Given their different offers, the cost model will show how the total cost will differ between them. By comparing the total cost with the sales estimation, the cost model will also give a direct indication on whether the deal is profitable or not. Moreover, the sourcing team within Duni Meal Service will now have a tool in hand to support purchasing decisions. The cost model will also make sure they make these decisions based on a holistic view of the cost situation, being aware of potential trade-offs. The information provided by the model can also be used to take economic life cycle decisions on already existing products in the assortment. The cost model will show if a product is profitable or not and thus, support a decision about phasing out a product from the assortment. Other actions for a non-profitable product could be to increase the sales price or reduce the cost in potenti

Diplomová práce je zaměřená na kalkulační systém ve společnosti XY, s.r.o. Práce je rozdělena na dvě části. Teoretická část představuje literární rešerši odborných zdrojů, které vymezují základní, výchozí pojmy v souvislosti s podnikovými kalkulacemi. V praktické části je uvedena charakteristika podniku, nákladová analýza, analýza stávajícího kalkulačního systému a kalkulačních metod. Následuje projektové řešení a jeho verifikace., This thesis is focused on the costing system in the company XY, s.r.o. Thesis is divided into two parts. Theoretical part is a literature search of specialized literature that define the basic concepts in connection with the business calculations. In the practical part is charasteristic of the enterprise, cost analysis, analysis of existing costing system and costing methods. Followed by project management and its verification., Ústav podnikové ekonomiky

Purpose: To find a suitable framework for the categorisation of management control tools as guidance for a purpose-oriented choice of management control tools. This is done by applying the iron triangle in the case of Activity-based costing (ABC) in the German public sector. Thereby the ABC adoption in the German public sector is analysed, including the discussion of purpose-oriented versus trend-driven management. Methodology: A quantitative empirical study among German municipalities is performed. Thereby the data is collected through a web-based questionnaire. The data analysis is done on basis of univariate methods as well as with a logistic regression analysis. Theoretical perspectives: The idea to develop a framework for the purpose-oriented choice of management control tools is based on the idea of contingency theory. Evidence concerning the use of ABC in Germany supplemented with findings from other contexts serves as a starting point for the empirical work in this thesis. Empirical foundation: Empirical data is gathered through a web-based self-completion questionnaire from high-ranked civil servants in German municipalities. The questionnaire is developed based on relevant literature as well as insights from practice which are gained through two pre-interviews. Conclusions: The iron triangle is not found suitable for the categorisation of ABC in the context of the German public sector as its three dimensions ‘time’, ‘cost’ and ‘quality’ do not cover the emerging area of transparency. Concerning the use of ABC in the German public sector the most important influential factor seems to be the size of the municipality while hype tendencies imply a rather trend-driven adoption.

Th is paper focuses on issues relating to gauging profi tability under circumstances in Czech healthcare organizations. At present, the trend in healthcare management is for more frequent utilization of advanced economic and cost accounting tools. Th ese qualitatively improve the decision- making process in healthcare establishments, as well as aiding provision of accurate data on the cost and revenue of the outputs of hospital organizations, such as the various diagnoses and types of patients. Herein the authors present analysis of the profi tability of such patient and diagnose- types (DRG) in selected hospital departments of Czech regional hospital. Revenue from insurance payments is compared with costs calculated via the Activity-Based Costing method so as to discern more accurately the proceeds of a given DRG and patient. Th e results of the study highlighted crucial diff erences between the income generated by individual cost objects (i.e. patients and DRGs). Utilizing such information could greatly benefi t decision-making and enhance cost eff ectiveness of the hospital services. However, any healthcare establishment worldwide is strictly curtailed in this by the ethical standards it must uphold when making decisions on potentially raising profi tability. Th e fi nal part of the study discusses the fi ndings of the profi tability analysis performed by the authors in the given context of general healthcare organizations management. © 2015, Economics and Sociology. All rights reserved.

Accurately estimating the cost and reimbursement of individual patients and groups of diagnoses has featured in numerous research studies in recent decades. The ever increasing cost of healthcare services, in contrast with the limited resources available, means hospitals have to utilize more advanced management and economics tools in order to boost their efficiency. Detailed and accurate cost-related information could result in superior decision-making and better resource utilization. The accuracy of calculating costs depends on the costing method used, with traditional methods often giving rise to inaccurate cost allocation. The study presents analysis of the costs and reimbursements of selected DRGs and patients within three particular departments at a Czech regional hospital (ENT, Dermatology and Neonatology). The costs of the given samples of patients were calculated by a custom Activity-Based Costing (ABC) application, comprising a more appropriate approach than a traditional costing method. The ABC methodology applied enables more accurate cost estimation for individual patients and DRGs, also generating a variety of additional cost-related information which could potentially inform any decision-making process. The study discusses the differences between the cost and reimbursement of individual diagnosis groups and cost variances between distinct patients within the each diagnosis, along with the managerial implications of the information obtained.

This paper addresses the long-standing question of how budgetary participation (BP) affects budgetary outcomes. Information technology for enhanced communication (ITEC) and activity-based costing (ABC) are taken into consideration as moderators that might affect the relationship between BP and budgetary outcomes in manufacturing firms. Based on moderated and polynomial regression analyses, the study’s findings indicate that the main effects of BP, ITEC and ABC on budgetary outcomes are not significant, and that while ABC significantly moderates the relationship between budgetary participation and budgetary slack, ITEC does not moderate this relationship. Results also indicate that both ITEC and ABC significantly moderate the relationship between budgetary participation and managerial performance. These findings suggest that the effect of budgetary participation on budgetary outcomes can be contingent on ITEC and ABC although their impact varies with the nature of budgetary outcomes., Export Date: 7 January 2015

The interface between management control and information technology is an under-developed research area with a knowledge gap concerning its implications for financial performance. This study contributes to bridging this gap by investigating the interaction effect of cost control systems and information technology integration on manufacturing plant financial performance. We surveyed a sample of 518 managers of U.S. manufacturing plants, approximately evenly distributed between those using activity-based costing and volume-based costing. Using hierarchical regression analyses, results indicate that while information technology integration and cost control systems do not provide significant independent effects on plant financial performance, they do interact to positively impact manufacturing plant financial performance. Thus, our findings suggest that manufacturing plants will reap the greatest financial performance benefits from investments in activity-based cost control systems when combined with information technology integration., Validerad; 2014; 20131008 (andersn)

Changes in the New Zealand public health sector in recent years, such as heightened political, economic and social pressures to manage and reduce costs while improving the quality of care in conjunction with stringent health care guidelines, have forced district health boards (DHB) nationwide to reassess their approach to health care provision. This has chiefly involved evaluating current practices or institutions; revising health care systems, including locality of treatment; and assessing established accounting systems and mechanisms (or lack thereof) to understand the source of costs and resource consumption. Acknowledging that patient welfare has always held pre-eminence in the New Zealand public health sector, balancing the dual pressures to enhance the utilisation of limited resources and adhere to social pressures to provide sustained high quality health services has been a difficult exercise for DHBs. In recognition of the potential benefits of activity-based costing (ABC), and the fact that the New Zealand public health sector is severely underrepresented in current literature, this multi-site case study examines how sophisticated costing systems (such as ABC), are being used by DHBs. Using an institutional theory framework, this study posits that DHBs will use sophisticated costing systems to (1) improve cost understanding with the goal of managing and reducing their costs; and (2) contribute to more informed National Prices for Inter-District Flows (IDF), the aim of which is to plan and provide services to meet the directives and outcomes outlined by the Ministry of Health. Overall, the findings are compelling and reveal that costing systems are used on three levels to plan and provide health services, including unsophisticated costing systems that are not formally recognised; moderately sophisticated costing systems (such as CostPro) that are formally recognised; and sophisticated costing systems (such as PPM) that are formally recognised. Furthermore, t

As online business activities continue to grow, it is important for organizations to understand the implications of being an e-commerce organization and the appropriateness of applying existing business techniques to e-commerce organizations. This paper examines issues in managing information and communication technologies (ICT) costs in e-commerce organizations and the potentials of the Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing (TDABC) model as a solution to these issues. The reliance on ICT in value creation, the unique natures of ICT costs and the need to maintain updated costing models present new challenges to e-commerce organizations in management of ICT costs. The TDABC model, as a variant of the Activity-Based Costing (ABC) model, inherits the strengths of activity-based paradigm and has unique features that can provide additional benefits to e-commerce organizations.

The study presents the case study of Activity-Based Costing application in selected department of the Czech regional hospital. Objective of the study was to develop and implement the costing system which will allow the calculation of the individual patient cost and will provide the more simplified alternative to traditional ABC approach. First part of the paper presents the contemporary state of knowledge in the field of utilization of costing methods in healthcare organizations. Following part of the paper presents the methodology of the Activity Based Costing method application and introduces the results of the case study performed in the dermatology department of the Czech regional hospital. Final part of the paper includes the proper discussion of the study results.

The study presents the application methodology of standardized Activity-Based Costing (ABC) method for hospital organizations. Objective of the methodology is to allow the organization wide application of the ABC method, with development of general principles of the ABC application in selected hospital departments. Objective of the study was do design the methodology of ABC application which will be simplified in comparison with traditional ABC models and standardized in order to allow the similar structure in various hospital departments. Application methodology was verified on three selected hospital departments which are ENT, Dermatology and neonatology department. Designed application methodology allows the calculation of the patient cost within various diagnoses, with higher accuracy than traditional costing methods.

English: The main objective of this research study was to identify the factors that have a direct influence on the successful implementation of activity-based Costing (ABC) within the Eskom finance division. The secondary objectives are: • to determine whether ABC will be successfully implemented; • to determine the benefits of ABC; and • to determine the effect of external factors on the successful implementation of ABC. Aim: To achieve the above stated objectives, questionnaires and focus group interviews were performed within Eskom. Method: The selected employees were asked to respond to the questionnaire on their experience and their perceptions on the current implementation of ABC within Eskom Distribution Free State Grid. Findings: The findings indicated that there was not sufficient guidance from top management with regards to the implementation of ABC within Eskom Distribution Free State Grid. Conclusion: More clear and concise top-down communication as well as intense user specific training manuals, current system enhancements and more clear inter and intra communication between departments are necessary., Afrikaans: Die hoofdoel van hierdie navorsingstudie was om die faktore te bepaal wat ‘n direkte invloed het op die suksesvolle implementering van Aktiwiteitsgebaseerde Kosteberekening (AGK) in die finansies afdeling van Eskom. Die sekondêre doelwitte is: • om te bepaal of AGK suksesvol ge-implementeer kan word; • om die voordele van AGK te bepaal; en • om die effek van eksterne faktore te bepaal op die suksesvolle implementering van AGK. . Doel: Om die gestelde bogenoemde doelwitte te bereik, is vraelyste en fokusgroep onderhoude by Eskom uitgevoer. Metode: Die geselekteerde werknemers is gevra om die vraelys in te vul rakende hulle ervaringe en sienings oor die huidige implementering van AGK by Eskom Verspreiding, Vrystaat netwerk. Bevindinge: Die bevindinge het aangedui dat daar nie voldoende leiding deur hoofbestuur is rakende die implementering van AGK by Eskom Verspreiding, Vrystaat netwerk. Gevolgtrekking: Duideliker en beknopte kommunikasie van bo na onder sowel as intensiewe gebruikerspesifieke opleidingshandleidings, huidige stelselverbeteringe en duideliker inter- en intrakommunikasie is tussen departemente nodig.

During the recent years, electronic payment methods have become more customary and in cases more preferable. Nevertheless, cash remains a popular form of payment due, inter alia, to its ubiquity. Large use of cash is associated with security issues, investment costs, logistics costs of transport and handling cash, personnel costs, and the like. To deal with these issues, many retailers have, to different extents, outsourced cash handling services to CiT companies. Kappe’ and Schiphol Airport Retail (SAR) are two retail groups functioning at a number of locations in Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. They currently outsource part of their cash handling services to ABN-AMRO and GWK-Travelex. This results in a further increase in costs incurred by Kappe’ and SAR. Consequently, enhancing the efficiency of money flow is of significant importance to both corporations. The aim of this research is to develop cash handling processes which can bring about a more efficiency. This is done firstly by conducting a literature review on the reasons behind large costs of cash handling for retailers. Then the current processes of cash handling at Kappe' and SAR are studied to explore their deficiencies. After that, alternatives (e.g. automation, joint cash office, clustering) which can bring about a more efficient cash handling process are proposed and assessed on criteria of interest to the problem owners (Kappe' and SAR). The implementation chapter is done for the selected alternative. In the next stage, the prudence of the selected processes is e-evaluated by using a multi-criteria analysis methodology and also based on the trends in customers’ use of cash in payments. Finally, given the findings of the research, recommendations are provided for future improvement in cash handling processes., Management of Technology, Transport and logistics, Technology, Policy and Management

The goal of this article is to structure an implementation proposal of activity-based costing in the management of dental services. A descriptive research was carried out through a case study with a predominantly qualitative approach. The study begins with a foray into the theoretical foundations that support the empirical study addressing the importance of strategic cost management, activity-based costing - ABC and the use of ABC in healthcare companies. Then, methodological procedures are presented and the proposal made is discussed. The implementation proposal of ABC comprises four macro-steps: identification of activities, allocation of costs to activities, identification of cost objects, and allocation of activity costs to cost objects. Six dental procedures performed were selected: evaluation, prevention, restoration, endodontics, exodontics and porcelain prosthetic crown. The justification for choosing those procedures is that they are the most representative in terms of occurrence and billing. In addition to the implementation proposal of ABC, the direct costs of each cost object were analyzed. The direct costs identified relate to the materials used and the process of sterilization performed., O artigo tem por objetivo estruturar uma proposta de implementação do custeio baseado em atividades na gestão de serviços odontológicos. Foi realizada uma pesquisa descritiva, por meio de um estudo de caso, com abordagem predominantemente qualitativa. O estudo inicia com uma incursão teórica nos fundamentos que sustentam o estudo empírico, abordando a importância da gestão estratégica de custos, o custeio baseado em atividades - ABC e a utilização do ABC em empresas de saúde. Após, são apresentados os procedimentos metodológicos adotados. Na sequência, discute-se a proposta realizada. A proposta de implementação do ABC contempla quatro macroetapas: identificação das atividades; atribuição dos custos às atividades; identificação dos objetos de custos; e atribuição dos custos das atividades aos objetos de custos. Foram selecionados seis procedimentos odontológicos prestados: avaliação, profilaxia, restauração, endodontia, exodontia e coroa protética porcelana. A escolha justifica-se por se tratar dos procedimentos mais representativos em termos de ocorrência e de faturamento. Além da proposta de implementação do ABC, fez-se a análise dos custos diretos de cada objeto de custo. Os custos diretos identificados referem-se aos materiais utilizados e ao processo de esterilização realizado.

Background: Historically, the use of packaging has often been regarded as a necessary evil, associated with unnecessary costs, but needed to enable distribution of goods. Today many companies have begun to realise that the packaging can have a major impact on the supply chain. For Tetra Pak, it is of great importance to be able to offer deeper insights to the costs incurred by their packages, thus being able to increase the value proposition towards their customers. Problem description: As of the current situation, Tetra Pak has limited insight into the costs that their packages incur for their customers in terms of the material used in the packages. The models in use at Tetra Pak today cannot be used to identify the costs incurred by Tetra Pak’s products specifically in the material inventories of their customers. Purpose: The purpose is to develop a material inventory cost estimation model for packaging material used for liquid food and beverages, which is able to estimate the cost of handling and storing 1000 units of packaging material in material inventory. Objectives: The objectives of this thesis are to identify and define the process undertaken in material inventory, map the process to visualise and create an understanding of the material flow, develop a general cost estimation model and to draw conclusions from the findings of the study. Method: The study is performed as a descriptive qualitative multiple-case study where mainly quantitative data has been used. The inductive approach was used, i.e. empirical data collected through observations during the case study. Conclusions: The cost estimation model can be used to calculate the total cost as well as the cost per activity for 1000 units of material, enabling the user to identify which activities have greater or less impact on the total cost. However, when calculating the cost per 1000 units the consumption period of 1000 units is not taken into consideration which could lead to a misleading result. Anot

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to identify the shortcomings of traditional cost accounting techniques in lean companies and then it seeks to analyse the validity and convenience of value stream costing (VSC) as a tool in a company that has adopted some concepts of lean manufacturing. Design/methodology/approach - The paper reviews the relevant literature in order to discuss the deficiencies of costing methods in lean manufacturing. It evaluates the requirements of VSC and provides a concrete illustration of VSC in the continuous improvement process of a point of sales terminal assembly line. Findings - The paper evidences the possible mistakes of cost accounting. The necessity and validity of VSC in lean manufacturing are presented, followed by a case example. In order to make continuous improvement decisions, VSM, VSC and box score offer complete information on the performance of the value stream. Research limitations/implications - Although accompanied by an application on a real case study, this is not an empirical investigation on the adoption of VSC. Practical implications - VSC requirements agree with the fundamentals of lean management. Therefore, VSC is a valid tool for lean companies, although the applicability depends on the maturity of the lean implementation. Originality/value - This paper contributes to the lean accounting literature because the management accounting literature still lags behind the lean transformation. This is one of the first papers on VSC in relevant journals and the first one to combine VSC and box scores with value stream mapping., Peer Reviewed, Postprint (author's final draft)

This paper presents the study focused on the calculation of the hospitalization cost using the advanced cost allocation procedures. Cost calculation is based on the Activity-Based Costing methodology, which allows the more accurate cost determination. Study was carried out in otorhinolaryngology department of Czech regional hospital. First part of the paper delimitates the issues related with the cost management of the hospitals and describes the problems with accurate cost calculation in hospital organizations. Second part of the paper presents the case study of the hospitalization cost measurement with different types of hospitalization such as planned conventional hospitalization or acute chirurgical hospitalization. Study presents the complete methodology of the hospitalization cost determination.

Paper introduces the methodology for the Activity-Based Costing application in selected hospital department. First part of the paper describes the existing studies of ABC implementation in hospital management and outlines its benefits and restrictions. Following part of the paper introduces the performed case study of the ABC application in otorhinolaryngology department of the Czech regional hospital. Important issues related to the implementation methodology are discussed within the implementation process. These experiences are finally summarized and discussed in order to consider the efficiency of the sophisticated costing system application in hospital management

Πτυχιακή εργασία--ΣΔΟ--Τμήμα Λογιστικής,2010, Η παρούσα εργασία επιχειρεί να αποτυπώσει τις σχέσεις που υφίστανται μεταξύ της δομής των κοστολογικών συστημάτων, από τη μια πλευρά, και της ποιότητας της κοστολογικής πληροφόρησης και της εταιρικής απόδοσης, από την άλλη. Η δομή των κοστολογικών συστημάτων ορίζεται από το βαθμό λεπτομέρειας της κοστολογικής πληροφόρησης, τη συχνότητα με την οποία παρουσιάζεται η τελευταία, την έκταση στην οποία ταξινομούνται τα κόστη σε επιμέρους κατηγορίες, καθώς και το βαθμό στον οποίο υπολογίζονται αποκλίσεις., This paper attempts to depict the relationships that exist between the structure of cost accounting systems, on the one hand and the quality of its cost information and corporate performance, on the other. The structure of the cost accounting system defined by the level of detail of its cost information, the frequency with which presents the latest, the extent to which costs are classified into sub-categories, and the extent to which deviations are calculated.