Applications-of-contemporary-management-现代管理会计技术应用的一个实证研究外文翻译.doc

国际商业管理杂志 2004.12现代管理会计技术应用的一个实证研究：印度工业摘要本文从管理会计的作用出发，介绍了管理会计的发展，简述了管理会计分配间接费用的技术，并研究了此技术在印度工业的应用。而目前，世界经济行业已从制造业开始转向服务业，这对于管理会计是一种新的尝试，随着竞争加剧，对更好会计信息的需求也在增加。管理会计必须提供更详细的信息，才能使企业生存和发展。关键词：管理会计；技术；成本1、管理会计识别，收集，计算并报告信息。这对正在规划，控制和决策的管理人员是有益的。管理会计关注的是提供信息，给这些负责管理企业和其他经济组织的人，以帮助他们做出更好的决策，对未来的组织和控制的执行情况做出决定。管理会计包含各种技术和工具，包括传统的以数量为基础的成本计算制度，预算编制，方差分析和责任会计，用来适应管理人员的传统生产环境。管理会计系统在大企业的事务中扮演着至关重要的角色，如杜邦公司和20世纪初期的通用汽车公司。但是，这些具有成效的工具在当代受到了越来越多的质疑。库珀和卡普兰在一系列的文章中提请注意局限性传统产品成本系统。在20世纪80年代，一个主要的批评是管理会计所使用的技术分配间接费用到产品/服务。传统产品成本核算系统使用量的措施，如劳动时间或劳动分配间接美元费用。在1920年,直接劳力为基础的措施对于分配间接费用是适当的，但对于20世纪80年代的先进制造环境是不合适的。先进制造技术显著改变了许多企业的制造过程。公司生产各种各样的产品，直接劳动成本只占总制造成本的一小部分，并且开销是相当重视的。20世纪80年代，全球竞争进一步激烈，从而出现了必要的管理人员，以便更准确地了解怎样的产品组合、介绍和被遗弃的决定影响其组织的盈利能力。2、传统成本系统还提供不充足的资料，以支持组织不断学习和改进。新的竞争环境要求管理人员和经营者拥有及时、准确的会计信息以帮助他们的处理过程更有效率，更加注重客户。传统的标准成本或灵活的成本系统根据企业的财务报告的编写程序和公布财务信息，通常是每月或每四个星期一次。这些财务信息对于支持组织不断学习和改进来说存在着严重的局限性。有关标准差异的信息推动了一种可控而非学习的观点。此差异对于第一线雇员来说不容易理解，也没有促进企业的综合进程的观点。员工需要一个适当的混合物金融和非金融测量。日本已经开发了创新成本管理系统，如改善成本和伪利润中心，以提高前线员工的能力，从而更有效的发展，提高效率。针对这些批评，一系列行业里的一些具有创新性的管理会计技术已经开发出来了。这些措施包括基于活动的成本，目标成本，战略业绩计量制度，标准和价值链分析。在许多国家该调查的相关文献提供了系统的证据说明使用现代管理会计技术。在发展中国家如印度，目前缺乏有关管理会计实践现状的知识。有人认为，由于文化因素，印度制造企业在采用新的管理会计实务中过于缓慢。现有的文献关于这一问题表明了这样的事实：有必要积极地研究在何种程度上现代管理会计方法已被用于在印度。此外，还需要研究使用现代管理会计技术和财务执行情况之间的联系。3、这项研究做了一个主要的尝试：找到了传统的和当代的管理会计是如何广泛地被用于印度工业的证据。实证研究结果：研究结果发现，在印度公司，这种提高整体盈利能力和“降低成本”的需要对管理会计来说是主要的优先事项。预算规划和控制是最广泛使用的管理会计工具。几乎97的受访者中度或广泛地使用了这些工具。但是，研究结果表明，在印度制造业企业，对于刚刚发展的管理会计技术来说，目前使用的水平更像是一种对比调查。结果表明，该公司使用或实施现代管理会计技术，如基于活动的成本，基于活动的管理，生命周期成本相对于非用户除目标成本外有更大的业务规模。这一调查结果与文献是一致的。约73.3的受访执行或使用基于活动的成本计算时指出，必须有准确的成本信息，产品定价是最重要的原因。研究结果发现了一个积极的连接，这个连接是在ABC法的采用与公司理念，如一定程度的定制，压力竞争，企业规模和比例的开销费用总额这两者之间的。但是，10的水平没有任何分歧被认为是重要的。在印度公司，产品成本的决定是最流行的基于活动的成本核算。约80的人广泛或频繁地使用它。百分之六十的使用ABC法的用户表示，在投资回报率（ROI） 上有重大或明显的改善，其次是营业收入（46.7）。4、研究结果显示，当对比面临高程度的竞争压力的公司，对“自动化进程”面临较低的竞争压力的公司具有明显不同的且更大的优先权。但比较于面临较低竞争压力的公司，面临高竞争压力的公司在“制定一个更有利可图的产品组合”的方面上明显地具有更大的优先权。此外，结果表明，对比较低的竞争压力的公司，暴露于高竞争压力的企业，对于ABC法的“产品上市的决定”、“产品重新设计”和重新设计流程适用范围，选择营销渠道的决定是显著不同的。从这项研究中我们可以得出结论，印度公司使用了各种管理会计技术和做法。然而，这一研究提供了较少的关于这项实践的深入的确切性质和细节，这些技术发起了组织程序和行动。利用各种途径（如案例研究，面试方法）可以尝试调查为什么以及公司如何落实各种当代管理会计技术，落实过程中的陷阱以及成功地完成预定目标。还可以研究采用这些做法的目的是否是要改善性能或者让表现更为现代、合理和有效。二战前，美国货物和服务产出总量约占全世界的四分之一。二战后，美国以外的世界各经济主体均遭战争重创，而美国由于战争需要生产能力大增，劳动力因退伍军人返回而迅速膨胀。结果是战后美国货物和服务产出大约占到全世界总量的二分之一，美国国内消费的大部分产品产自国内，在这样的环境里，美国企业的商业活动即便不是最优化也能生存。随着20世纪六七十年代西欧和亚洲经济的增长，情况开始发生变化。外国竞争者以高质量、高技术产品向美国企业提出严峻挑战。美国企业要想在全球经济中保持竞争力就必须作出变革。 近年来，公司产品、服务的生产和营销方式的变革导致了管理层对会计信息需求的改变。例如，国外竞争增加导致美国企业更加重视产品和服务的质量。对质量的重视和商业复杂程度的提高导致对及时、精确信息的需求增加，从而改变了管理会计的角色。 竞争正在驱使许多制造业和服务业公司对其营销和运营进行重新设计，以更好地满足日新月异的市场需求。这些变革的例子有适时制造、时间管理和全面质量管理。管理会计系统正在被重新设计，以适应产品、服务的创造和传送方式的变革引起的信息需要的变革。 企业要想在这个新的竞争环境里取胜，管理会计必须在两个方面做出变革。首先，管理会计师必须参与到公司的产品决策及创造、营销、传送这些产品的过程决策中来。通过参与决策，管理会计师能够辨认出其他决策者的关键会计信息需要。其次，整个公司的决策者们必须能够恰当地使用会计信息。这意味着决策者必须具备管理会计概念和方法的知识，还意味着他们必须了解会计信息潜在的不准确性。不能在其管理会计系统中作出这些变革的公司很有可能因缺乏足够信息而导致决策失误。 由于美国经济已经成熟，所以它已从主要是制造业经济转变为服务业经济，这意味着提供服务的公司比提供货物的公司更多。这一转变对管理会计的应用有着深刻影响。有形产品的生产使得制造业公司和服务业公司内产品的成本追溯过程有所不同。例如，制造业公司有原材料和产成品存货，而服务业公司没有。 正如制造业公司一样，服务业公司为了做出明智决策同样需要相关、及时和精确的会计信息。但是，服务业公司的管理会计应用往往落后于制造业公司，也许在一定程度上是因为很多服务业公司（如航空、铁路和银行）一直受到管制。管制可能使得服务业公司不如制造业公司那样在乎成本，因为管制往往限制了公司所能够提供的服务并决定了它所能收取的价格。近年来，许多服务行业已经解除了管制，如航空与银行业。解除管制意味着这些公司将在一个更具竞争性的环境里经营。随着竞争加剧，对更好会计信息的需求也在增加。公司要求更加精确地了解其服务的成本，要求能够更好地预测营销与运营变动的财务结果。没有相关、及时和精确的会计信息，服务业公司不大可能兴旺发达。Applications of contemporary management accounting techniques in Indian industry: An empirical studyInternational Journal of Business and Management October, 2004AbstractIn this paper, the role of management accounting paper introduces the development of management accounting, outlining the allocation of indirect costs of management accounting techniques, and studied the application of technology in the Indian industry. At present, the world economy from the manufacturing industry began to shift towards services, which for management accounting is a new attempt, as competition intensify, the demand for better accounting information is also increasing. More detailed management accounting information must be provided to enable enterprises to survive and develop.Keywords:management accounting;technology;cost1. Management accounting identifies, collects, measures, and reports information that is useful to managers in planning, controlling and decision-making. Management accounting is concerned with the provision of information to those responsible for managing businesses and other economic organisations to help them in making better decisions about the future of organisation and in controlling the implementation of decisions they make. Management accounting has a variety of techniques and tools, including traditional volume-based costing system, budgeting, variance analysis and responsibility accounting, to meet the needs of managers in traditional manufacturing environments. The management accounting systems have played a vital role in the affairs of large corporations such as Du Pont and GeneralMotors in the early part of twentieth century. However, the effectiveness of these tools in more contemporary settings has been questioned. In a series of articles, Cooper and Kaplan have also drawn attention to the limitations of traditional product cost systems. One of the main criticisms of management accounting during 1980s was the techniques used to allocate overheads to products/services. Conventional product costing systems use volume based measures such as labour hours or labour dollar to allocate indirect costs. The direct labour-based measures that were suitable to the allocation of overheads in the 1920s were not found suitable to the advanced manufacturing environment of 1980s. Advanced manufacturing techniques dramatically changed the manufacturing processes in many organizations. The companies produce a wide range of products, direct labour cost represent only a small portion of total manufacturing cost in such organisations, and overheads are of considerable importance. Further intense global competition of the 1980s created a need by managers for more accurate information on how product mix, introduction and abandonment decisions affect their organisations profitability.2. Traditional cost systems also provide inadequate information to support organizational continuous learning and improvement. The new competitive environment requires that managers and operators have timely and accurate information to help them make processes more efficient and more customer focused. Traditional standard cost/flexible cost systems prepare and issue summary financial information according to the cycle of the organizations financial reporting process, typically monthly or every four weeks. This financial information has some serious limitations to support the organizational continuous learning and improvement. The information on variances against standards promotes a controlling not learning view. The variances are not easily understandable by frontline employees and do not promote an integrated process view of the organization. Employees need an appropriate mixture of financial and non-financial measurements. Japanese have developed innovative cost management systems such as Kaizen costing and pseudo-profit centers for their front-line employees to enhance their ability to develop efficient and cost effective processes. In response to these criticisms, a number of innovative management accounting techniques have been developed across a range of industries. These include activity based costing, target costing, strategic performance measurement systems, benchmarking and value chain analysis. The survey of related literature provides the systematic evidence regarding the usage of contemporary management accounting techniques in many countries. There is lack of knowledge concerning the current state of management accounting practices in developing countries like India. It is argued that due to cultural factors, Indian manufacturing companies are slow in adopting new management accounting practices. The existing literature on the subject brings home the fact that there is a need for conducting a study to examine the extent to which contemporary management accounting practices have been used in India. There is also a need to study the association between the use of contemporary management accountingtechniques and financial performance.3. This study makes a major attempt to find evidence on how widely traditional and contemporary management accounting practices have been adopted by the Indian industry. Empirical Findings of the Study: The results of the study found that the needs to improve overall profitability and cost reduction are the major priorities for management accounting in Indian companies. Budgeting for planning and control is the most widely used tool of management accounting. About 97% respondents use it moderately or extensively. However, findings of the study showed that current usage level for newly developed management accounting techniques is comparatively more as compared surveys on Indian manufacturing firms. Results indicate that the firms using or implementing contemporary management accounting techniques such as activity based costing, activity based management, life cycle costing have greater business size vis-vis non-users, except target costing. This finding is consistent with literature. Around 73.3% of respondents implementing/using activity-based costing indicated that the need to have accurate cost information for product pricing is the most important reason. Results of the study found a positive association between the adoption of ABC and company characteristics such as degree of customisation, pressure of competition, business size, and proportion of overhead to total cost. However, none of the differences was found to be significant at 10% level. Product costing decisions are the most popular application of activity based costing in Indian companies as about 80.0% are using it extensively or frequently. Sixty per cent of the ABC user respondents indicated a significant or somewhat significant improvement in the Return-on-Investment (ROI) followed by operating income (46.7%).4. Results of the study indicate that companies exposed to low pressure of competition have significantly different and greater priorities for automating processes as compared to the companies having high pressure of competition, Whereas companies exposed to high pressure of competition had significantly greater priorities for developing a more profitable product mix as compared to companies having low pressure of competition. Further, results show that that the companies exposed to high pressure of competition have significantly different and greater importance for the need to have improved processes as compared to the companies having low pressure of competition. The extent of usage of ABC for product launch decisions, product redesigns, and process redesign, choice of marketing channel decisions was significantly different and greater in case of companies exposed to high pressure of competition as compared to the companies having low pressure of competition.From this research, we can conclude that Indian companies use various management accounting techniques and practices. However, this research provides less insight into precise nature and details of these practices, and the organizational processes and actions that precede or are initiated by these techniques. Using alternative approaches (e.g., case study research, and interview method), one may attempt to investigate why and how companies implement various contemporary management accounting techniques, pitfalls in implementing and their success in achieving intended goals. Also one could study, whether adoption of these practices was designed to improve performance or to give external appearance of being modern, rational and efficient. Before World War II, the United States the total output of goods and services account for about one-fourth of the world. After World War II, the world outside the United States have been the main war-devastated economy, and the United States because of the war need to increase production capacity, labor, veterans due to the rapid expansion of the return. The result is the post-war U.S. output of goods and services accounted for approximately one-half of the worlds total, most of the United States consumer products from China, in such an environment, the United States even if the business activities can not be the most optimized survival. The sixties and seventies as the 20th century in Western Europe and Asia, economic growth, the situation began to change. Foreign competitors in high-quality, high-tech products to the United States challenges enterprises. U.S. firms in the global economy to remain competitive we must make changes. In recent years, the company products, services, production and marketing has led to the change in the accounting information needs of management change. For example, increased foreign competition led to U.S. firms pay more attention to the quality of products and services. The importance of quality and business improvement in the level of complexity lead to a timely, accurate information on demand, thus changing the role of management accounting. Competition is driven by many manufacturing and service companies for their marketing and operations re-engineering to better meet the changing demands of the market. Examples of these changes to create a timely manner, time management and total quality management. Management accounting system is being redesigned to suit the product, service creation and delivery of the changes caused by changes in information needs. Enterprises to compete in this new environment to win, management accounting must make changes in two aspects. First of all, management accountants must participate in decision-making to the companys products and creating, marketing, to send these products to the process of decision-making. Through participation in decision-making, management accountants can identify other key decision-makers the need for accounting information. Secondly, the decision-makers throughout the company must be able to use appropriate accounting information. This means that policy makers must have the management accounting concepts and methods of knowledge, but also means that they must understand the potential of accounting information inaccuracy. Not in its management accounting system to make these changes because of the company is likely to lead to a lack of adequate information and decision-making errors. Because the U.S. economy has matured, it has been primarily manufacturing economy to service economy, which means that the companies providing the services of the company than the provision of goo