12/12/2023
Cost Accounting
Definition Cost Accounting
Answer: “Cost accounting is the process of collecting information about the costs incurred by a company’s activities, assigning selected costs to products and services and other cost objects, and evaluating the efficiency of cost usage. It is mostly concerned with developing an understanding of where a company earns and loses money, and providing input into decisions to generate profits in the future.
Show cost accounting cycle with diagram
Answer: Cost accounting cycle is a process performed during the accounting period in recording data, classifying, determining total cost, determining product cost, determining selling price, controlling cost and decision making.
1. Recording cost data: At the first step of cost accounting it ascertains and records the element of cost for determining of cost of production.
2. Classification of cost: At the second step according to function, nature, and behavior cost accounting classifies the cost.
3. Determining total cost: In this step under cost accounting cost of goods sold of a product is calculated. Cost of goods sold means the sum of all items of expenditure incurred in production for the goods which are sold.
4. Unit cost: At the fourth step unit cost is obtained dividing cost of goods sold divided by total number of unit sold.
5. Selling price: Selling price is obtained by adding profit margin with cost of sales.
6. Cost control and decision making: At the last step of cost accounting by using standard costing and budget and budgetary control system cost accounting control cost and make decision.
What are the objectives of cost accounting?
Answer: The main objectives of cost accounting can be summarized as follows:-
a) Ascertaining Costs: The first and foremost objective of cost accounting is to find out cost of a product, process or service.
b) Determining Selling Price: Business enterprises are run on a profit – making basis. It is thus necessary that the revenue should be greater than the costs incurred in producing goods and services from which the revenue is to be derived.
c) Measuring and Increasing Efficiency: Cost accounting involvers a study of the various operations used in manufacturing a product or providing a services.
d) Cost Control and Cost Reduction: Cost accounting assists in cost control it uses techniques such as budgetary control, standard costing etc.
e) Cost Management: The term ‘Cost Management’ includes the activities of managers in short-run and long-run planning and control of costs.
Tools of Management Accounting
Answer: Management accounting is practice of identify, measuring, analyzing, interpreting, and communicating financial information to managers for pursuit of an organization’s goals. It varies from financial accounting because the intended purpose of managerial accounting is to assist users internal to the company in making well-informed business decisions.
What are the characteristics of a good costing system
Answer: An ideal costing system provides the right and timely information’s to the management at the right time and right direction to take the right decisions. A good costing system must contain the following characteristics to function properly.
1. Simplicity: Should be very simple and clear, so that an average man can understand the functions.
2. Suitability: Costing system must be devised such manner that suits even for the small scale industries.
3. Flexibility: Must be flexible, so that in case of any changes required from time to time in the business are made possible.
4. Economical: Maintaining a separate costing department and recording are quite expensive. Therefore, the expense must on the basis of the finance available and expenses must be less than the benefits derived from the system.
5. Comparable: The records maintained are should be easily comparable with other year records. The past records must serve as a basis to guide the future.
6. Less Clerical Work: Work like preparation of statement and filling forms should be simple and short as most of workers are may not be well educated.
7. Control: An effective way of control system must be implemented over material, labour and overhead cost as it will be helpful minimize the wastage of material, labour and overhead costs.
8. Effective wage system: There should be proper timing schedule for workers for the time the spent on different jobs in order to prepare the wages.
9. Uniformity: All the forms and statements using by the costing accounting system must be uniform in terms of size and design and quality of paper.
10. Departmentalization of expenses: A proper plan should be devised in order to implement department wise expenses as it will be helpful to ascertain the costs and other overheads by department wise.
11. Reconciliation: The system of cost accounting must be capable of being reconciled with financial accounting so as to check the accuracy of both the system of accounting. i.e. Financial and cost accounting.