Performance Management Flashcards
When comparing service businesses with manufacturing businesses, what is the relevance of intangibility?
Services are intangible and it is therefore harder to measure the quality.
What are the three levels of planning and control in an organization?
- Strategic
- Tactical
- Operational
What are the six dimensions in Fitzgerald & Moons’ building block model?
- Financial performance
- Competitive performance
- Quality
- Flexibility
- Resource Utilization
- Innovation
What are the four perspectives that the Balanced Scorecard focuses on?
- Financial
- Internal
- Innovation and Learning
- Customer
What are ‘key performance indicators’?
Key performance indicators are the measures used to determine whether or not the critical success factors are being achieved.
What are ‘key performance indicators’?
Critical success factors are those areas that the business must focus on if it wishes to succeed.
In pricing, how is the price elasticity of demand calculated?
The price elasticity of demand is the % change in demand divided by the % change in price.
What is the difference between ‘mark-up’ and ‘margin’?
Mark-up is the gross profit as a percent of cost. Margin is the gross profit as a percent of sales.
In the context of linear programming, what is meant by ‘slack’?
Slack occurs when the optimum solution uses less of a resource than the maximum that is available.
When measuring Value for Money for a not-for-profit organization, what are the three E’s?
- Economy
- Efficiency
- Effectiveness
For theoretical transfer pricing, how is the maximum transfer price calculated?
The maximum transfer price is the lower of:
* the selling price less the marginal costs of the receiving division
* the price for which the receiving division could buy the goods externally
For theoretical transfer pricing, how is the minimum transfer price calculated?
For theoretical transfer pricing, how is the minimum transfer price calculated?
How is the RI (residual income) ?
profit before interest and tax- ( Capital Employed* cost of capital (cost of borrowing))
How is the ROI (return on investment)?
profit before interest and tax/ capital employed
In the context of divisionalisation, what is meant by an ‘investment centre’?
An investment centre is a division for which the divisional manager has control over costs, revenues, and investment in non-current assets and net current assets.
What are the three categories of stakeholders in a business?
Internal (employees, management)
Connected (shareholders, suppliers, customers, lenders)
External (government, community etc..)
What are characteristics of a service business that distinguish services from manufacturing?
Intangibility
Simultaneity / inseparability
Perishability
Heterogenuity
No transfer of ownership
Why is important that non-financial performance is measured rather than concentrating solely on financial performance?
Non-financial performance measures (such as quality) and important for achieving future growth. Financial measures concentrate on the past rather than the future.
What is meant by TQM (total quality management)?
TQM is a strategy aimed as creating an awareness of quality in all aspects of a business, thus reducing wastage and inefficiencies.
What is meant by the JIT (just in time) inventory strategy?
JIT involves keeping minimum inventories – producing goods when they are needed and eliminating large inventories of raw materials and finished goods.
What are operational variances measuring?
comparing the actual results with the revised standard.
What are planning variances measuring?
comparing the revised standards with the original standards.
When considering planning and operational variances, what is meant by the revised standard cost?
The revised standard cost is a realistic standard cost after taking into account permanent changes since the original standard cost was calculated.
What is the purpose of an operating statement?
An operating statement is a statement reconciling the actual profit to the budgeted profit, and explaining the reasons for the difference.
If absorption costing is being used, what is the cause of a fixed overhead volume variance?
A fixed overhead volume variance arises when the actual production is different from the budgeted production.
Suggest three possible reasons for the existence of a labour efficiency variance.
*The employment of higher or lower skilled workers.
*The use of better or worse quality materials
*More or less training of workers
Suggest three possible reasons for the existence of a materials usage variance.
The purchase of better or worse quality materials (resulting in less or more wastage)
Greater or lesser efficiency of the production department in controlling waste
A change in the mix of materials
Suggest three possible reasons for the existence of a materials price variance.
A change in the price charged by the supplier
A change of supplier
The deliberate purchase of better/worse quality material
Suggest three possible reasons for the existence of a sales volume variance.
A higher or lower selling price
A change in market share
A change in the size of the overall market
What is the purpose of a flexed budget?
The purpose of a flexed budget is control – the actual results can be compared with the flexed budget results.
What are the main uses of the standard cost of a product?
The main uses are the valuation of inventory, and to act as control (comparing actual with standard costs).
In relation to learning curves, What does Wrights Law (or the ‘doubling rule’) state?
As total output doubles, the average time per unit will fall to a fixed percentage of the previous average time per unit.
Learning curve theory is useful when budgeting for which costs?
Learning curve theory allows the average labour time per unit to be estimated and is therefore useful when budgeting costs that vary with the labour time per unit (the cost of labour, and possibly variable overheads if these are incurred on an hourly basis).
What is the difference between feedback and feedforward control?
Feedback control compares actual results with budget.
Feedforward control compares budget results with forecast.
What is meant by a ‘rolling budget’?
Rolling budgets involve always having a budget for the following twelve months, which involves updating the existing budget and adding an additional period (usually month).
What is meant by incremental budgeting?
Incremental budgeting involves taking the results for the previous period and adjusting for inflation and changes in the expected level of activity.
What is the difference between top-down budgeting and bottom-up (or participative) budgeting?
Top-down budgeting is where the budget is imposed on the budget holder
Bottom-up budgeting is where the budget holder participates in preparing the budget
What are the principal aims / uses of budgeting?
- Planning
- Control
- Communication
- Co-ordination
- Evaluation
- Motivation
- Authorisation and delegation
What is the difference between sensitivity analysis and simulation?
Sensitivity analysis looks at the effect of changes in just one variable at a time.
Simulation attempts to look at the effect of all possible combinations of variables.
What is the attitude to risk of a decision maker who uses the minimax regret approach?
The decision maker is said to be a risk avoider.
What is the attitude to risk of a decision maker who uses the maximax approach?
The decision maker is a risk seeker.
What is the maximax decision rule?
For each course of action, the best outcome is identified (maximum)
The chosen course of action is the one that gives the best (maximum) of the best outcomes.
What is the attitude to risk of a decision maker who uses the maximin approach?
The decision maker is a risk avoider
What is the maximin decision rule?
For each course of action, the worst outcome is identified (minimum)
The chosen course of action is the one that gives the best (maximum) of the worst outcomes
What are the limitations of using expected values for decision making?
1 It is usually impossible for the probabilities to be estimated accurately
2 For a one-off decision, the actual outcome will not be the expected value
3 Expected values ignore the risk and the decision makers attitude to risk
What is meant by the term ‘expected value’ in the context of decision making under uncertainty?
The expected value is the weighted average of the possible outcomes, weighted by their respective probabilities.
What is the difference between risk and uncertainty?
Risk is measurable – several outcomes are possible and the probability of each outcome is known.
Uncertainty is not measurable – there are several possible outcomes, but the probabilities of the outcomes are not known.
What is meant by the term ‘sunk cost’?
A sunk cost is a cost that has already been incurred (and is therefore not affected by any future decision).