Implementing Activity-Based Management in Daily Operations

A practical, applications-rich guide to this new cost management methodology

Implementing Activity-Based MANAGEMENT In Daily Operations

John Miller's lucid presentation of the principles and practice of activity-based management and activity-based costing makes this book required reading for all managers, accountants, and financial officers. Now generally recognized as a more accurate method of determining the relative profitability of various business activities, ABM has become a valuable new tool for management decision making. Miller, whose experience includes the implementation of ABM at Fortune 500 companies, provides step-by-step guidance to its use and benefits:

• Overview of ABM, including basic principles, benefits, uses, various approaches, and implementation models
• Basic techniques of activity/product costing, with comparisons between traditional methods and ABM
• Activity analysis—how to define processes, activities, cost-drivers, and goals
• Data gathering for ABM—collection techniques and interviews
• Examples of real-life implementation plans and situations, drawn from a variety of organizations
• Ongoing system requirements, planning, and performance measurement

Activity-based management and activity-based costing (ABM/ABC) have brought about a sea change in cost management systems. Growing largely out of the work of the Texas-based Consortium for Advanced Manufacturing-International (CAM-I), ABC has, according to BusinessWeek, introduced "new rules for cost management as investment justification, product costing, the total life-cycle costs of products, and how to define better measures of manufacturing performance." Since it was first introduced in 1985, ABM/ABC has evolved considerably and has been applied in service companies, utilities, telecommunications, and government agencies. The use of activity-based management techniques has resulted in a much more accurate determination of the relative profitability of various business activities and, therefore, more profitable management decisions.

This clearly written, example-rich book shows managers, accountants, and financial officers how to put activity-based accounting into practice as quickly and efficiently as possible. This book includes ABM Best

Practices identified by CAM-I and the American Productivity and Quality Center in a recently completed land-mark study. Implementing Activity-Based Management in Daily Operations provides step-by-step guidance on how to implement ABM at the level of daily process operations, and demonstrates, through numerous detailed examples, its benefits for cost management. Applications to a variety of organizations are covered, including service companies, government agencies, and process industries. Practical linkages between ABM/ABC and Total Quality Management and Business Process Reengineering are explained and illustrated.

Implementing Activity-Based Man-agement in Daily Operations covers all aspects of ABM, from activity/product costing, through activity analysis and data gathering, to on-going system requirements and full integration. It is designed for all members of an organization involved in reaping the significant benefits of this new cost management methodology.

JOHN A. MILLER, CPA, is a principal with Arthur Andersen L.L.P. and an adjunct consultant with the Houston-based American Productivity & Quality Center.