Chapter 10: Budgeting Flashcards
What purpose of a budget is described below?
A budgeting process forces a business to look to the future. This is essential for survival since it stops management from relying on ad hoc or poorly co-ordinated planning.
Planning
What purpose of a budget is described below?
Actual results are compared against the budget and action is taken as appropriate.
Control
What purpose of a budget is described below?
The budget is a formal communication channel that allows junior and senior managers to converse.
Communication
What purpose of a budget is described below?
The budget allows co-ordination of all parts of the business towards a common corporate goal.
Co-ordination
What purpose of a budget is described below?
Responsibility accounting divides the organisation into budget centres, each of which has a manager responsible for its performance. The budget may be used to evaluate the actions of a manager within the business in terms of the costs and revenues over which they have control.
Evaluation
What purpose of a budget is described below?
The budget may be used as a target for managers to aim for. Reward should be given for operating within or under budgeted levels of expenditure. This acts as a motivator for managers.
Motivation
What purpose of a budget is described below?
The budget acts as a formal method of authorisation to a manager for expenditure, hiring staff and the pursuit of plans contained within the budget.
Authorisation
What purpose of a budget is described below?
Managers may be involved in setting the budget. Extra responsibility may motivate the managers. Management involvement may also result in more realistic targets.
Delegation
What is a quantitative plan prepared for a specific time period. It is normally expressed in financial terms and prepared for one year.
Budget
A robust business plan/budget can often result in anticipating and avoiding what?
Disastrous outcomes
Without a budget, an organisation will be highly…
Inefficient and ineffective.
What kind of planning is long term, looks at the whole organisation and defines resource requirements.
Strategic
What kind of planning is medium term, looks at the department/divisional level and specifies how to use resources.
Tactical
What kind of planning is very short term, very detailed and is mainly concerned with control.
Operational
Budgets are necessary to convince banks and other lenders to do what?
Extend credit
What are Hopwood’s three management styles?
- Budget constrained style
- Profit conscious style
- Non-accounting style
Which of Hopwoods three management styles performance are evaluated on the below?
- Manager evaluated on ability to achieve budget in the short term
- Manager will be criticised for poor results. For example, if spending exceeds the limit set
Budget constrained style
Which of Hopwoods three management styles performance are evaluated on the below?
- Manager evaluated on ability to reduce costs and increase profit in the long term
- For example, a manager will be prepared to exceed the budgetary limit in the short term if this will result in an increase in long term profit
Profit conscious style