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1、外文文献翻译译文原文Activity-Based Costing and Management Solutions to Traditional Shortcomings of Cost AccountingABSTRACT: Traditional cost accounting has been one main, widely-used approach to costing both internally and externally. This general ledger system acts as the companys thermometer measuring the h
2、ealth and wealth of the overall business.The conventional methodology though can only summarize the business expenses per the chart of accounts (i.e., labor, material and other).As a result, the company lacks the ability to evaluate the internal efficiency, quality and profitability per product or s
3、ervice line.As a result, the company lacks the ability to evaluate the internal efficiency, quality and profitability per product or service line.The ABC/M approach records, summarizes and reports the spending into costs of activities or processes and eventually associated to each product, service a
4、nd customers.“Unlike traditional accounting reports that make managers react to by being happy or sad, ABC/M data makes them smarter”3.KEY WORDS: Accounting, budgeting, cost, estimating, forecasting, life-cycle, and planningTraditionally quality cost accounting has been based on allocating a subject
5、ive or calculated range of indirect expenses to direct costs.Because of the increase of indirect and overhead expenses in recent decades, the conventional costing method has become ineffective for quality practitioners and managers.To illustrate, one product or service line may require more resource
6、s or time than another.But because the cost of indirect costs are based on a fixed percentage of direct costs (i.e., labor and materials), the overhead expenses are misrepresented or recognized correctly to the final products or services.With the conventional means to cost accounting and cost of qua
7、lity, it is very difficult to identify if such product or servicen is profitable and produced via quality processes or with less wastes 14.The concept of activity-based costing and management (ABC/M) was introduced in the US, initially in the manufacturing sector during 1970s and 1980s. Robin Cooper
8、 and Robert Kaplan brought the ABC/M concept to light and published the body of knowledge in the Harvard Business Review in 1988. Cooper and Kaplan defined the ABC/M method as “an approach to solve the problems of traditional cost management systems;” that is,the conventional cost accounting systems
9、 are often unable to identify correctly the true costs of processes. Consequently, management and quality professionals are unable to make sound decisions or make decisions based on the misrepresented data 14.On the other hand, the activity-based costing and management approach objectively assigns c
10、osts based on the“cost and effect relationships.”The cost of activity is identified and allocated to each product or service if and only if the product or service uses the activity.And in 1987, Robert Kaplan and W. Bruns published in their book,Accounting and Management:Field Study Perspective,the A
11、BC body of knowledge with the initial focus on manufacturing where technology and productivity improvement have reduced the direct costs and increased indirect and overhead expenses 14.Statement of the ProblemIn todays global competition, quality practitioners and management cannot afford the risk o
12、f making decisions based on inaccurate or incomplete data provided by the traditional accounting ledger systems. The introduction and exposure of modern approach to quality and accounting cost is necessary and applicable in both manufacturing products and service delivery.Purpose of the StudyThe the
13、sis work will guide the quality practitioners and decision makers through the unique, more effective approach in defining true costs in the cross-functional processes.This includes the review of the activity-based costing and management approach and application within the total quality management fr
14、amework.Furthermore, ABC/M will be incorporate as the quality solution to conventional cost accounting system via the concepts of lean,cost of quality and forecasting and budgeting.Through the study, the quality professionals and audiences can gain and will be able to expand their perspectives and r
15、oles in cost drivers and allocation for process cost control and improvement opportunities.Limitations of the StudyThe thesis effort is limited to the study of both traditional and activity-based approaches to true costs for management and quality professionals to measure existing quality and effect
16、iveness and make sound decisions and for within the company, organization or department.The review and any recommendation of the quality cost approach and system will not displace the conventional cost accounting method in any mean or capacity, as the general ledger system is the sole, standard tool
17、 and communication instrument widely accepted among companies.Definition of Terms AACE International is the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering International. AACE International is the largest,industry-independent professional society serving the entire spectrum of cost management pr
18、ofessionals, including cost estimators,engineers, schedulers, project managers and project controls.AACE International has over 7,000 members from 78 countries around the world.More details and information about AACE International can be obtained via www.aacei.org. Activity is an element of work to
19、be performed to complete a project; it is process or operation requiring time and associated resources. Activity-based costing (ABC)is a total quality management tool for cost and performance measurement of activities, resources, and cost object (i.e.,products and services).ABC is also known as the
20、“horizontal” or crossfunctional cost view and can provide fact-based insight into the spending and profitability of products, services,customers, districts, distribution lines,and etc. Activity-based management (ABM)is a total quality management discipline on the management of process improvement ac
21、tivities to lower the cost within an organization. ABM includes such activities as cost driver analysis, performance measurement and process improvement opportunities. Cost is the amount measured in money in consideration of goods or services. Costs may include cash expended, liability incurred, and
22、 resources (i.e. time, human and capital). “Cost is one of the three fundamental attributes associated with performing an activity or the acquisition of an asset. There are price (cost), features (performance), and availability (schedule)” 9. Cost Estimating is the collection of activities to predic
23、t the cost of required resources or quantity to create or deliver a tangible or intangible asset. Cost Forecasting is very similar to cost estimating process. A key different between cost forecast and cost estimate is that cost estimate is calculated for the future activities while the cost forecast
24、 is a prediction of the cost to or at completion of any outstanding cost elements required to create an asset. Cost of Conformanceis the cost of prevention and appraisal activities to meet pre-set standards or customersrequirements. Cost of Nonconformance is the cost of internal or external failures
25、. Also,see external and internal failure costs. Cost trending is estimated based on the historical cost information collected from the experience actual over a predetermined duration. This cost trend information focuses on how budgets and expenditures will be impacted relative to the physical accomp
26、lishment or earned value. Essential Activities refer to either value-adding or nonvalue-adding tasks that are required to be performed in a process (or a collection of activities) to achieve a resulting value (product or service) that customers desired. External Failure Costs are expenses from produ
27、cts or services failing to conform to pre-set standards or customers needs. These costs occur after the product or service delivery to the customer. Examples of external failure costs include warranty expenses, liabil-ity claims, legal exposure, replacement costs, and complaint and lost of customer
28、loyalty. Variable Costs are cost elements required in an acquisition of a tangible or intangible asset dependently of the volume of work efforts or outputs. Examples of variable costs include material and production labor costs, production utility expenses and volume- based royalty fees.METHODOLOGYT
29、odays traditional cost accounting system supports enterprise-wide financial reporting and measure the health of the business. However, this conventional approach to cost is somewhat little value to quality practitioners and decision makers in the areas of cost allocation in a valuestream; cost of qu
30、ality or poor quality in the enterprise; and forecasting or budgeting for quality.This thesis study will prove the activity- based costing and management is the quality tool and solution to quality cost shortcomings of the standard accounting work in the area of total quality management. This includ
31、es the introduction to the concept of ABC/M; its significance in horizontal costing approach in the value stream; ABC/M to identify and reduce cost of quality (COQ); and budgeting and forecasting efforts via activity-based model 10.This article will introduce the quality professionals and decision m
32、akers the different approach to defining true costs in the cross-functional processes. This includes the study and the application of the activity-based costing and management approach within the total quality management framework in todays global competition. In addition, ABC/M will be proven as th
33、e quality solution to conventional cost accounting system via the concepts of lean, cost of quality and forecasting and budgeting. The quality practitioners will gain and be able to expand their perspectives and roles in cost drivers and allocation for process cost control and improvement opportunit
34、ies.Activity-Based Costing and Management and Traditional Cost Accounting SystemOne of the important questions to be explored further in this section is how traditional accounting system that has been widely used as the internal and external cost system is considered inadequate. In addition, why can
35、 the activity-based costing and management be a TQM solution of choice to quality cost shortcomings of the conventional costing accounting system? Few key claims shown below will answer the questions posted in details: Existing cost data is not useless; however, it appears incomplete or unprocessed
36、for internal efficiency, profit or quality analysis and decisionmaking process. Traditional cost system denies decision makers the visibility of the true costs created along the end-to-end process. And, Overheads are allocated inappropriately and frequently based on the labor or material expenses vi
37、a the conventional costing approach.Managers have been posted with operational and cost questions one time or the other, if not periodically. With the traditional cost reporting under the general ledgers chart of accounts, many of decision makers are not able to explain if their specific production
38、or service areas of responsibilities are effective, productivity or profitable. Tables 1 and 2 provide the insight of the problem at hand; that is, the expenses are allocated based on the chart of account established by the companys accounting department for both internal and external reporting. Wit
39、h the cost breakdown by the chart of accounts, the recipients (i.e., managers or quality practitioners) of the information can only tell the costs of labor, material and other.In addition, the conventional approach to cost is considered a vertical, organizational or “transaction-centric” costing sys
40、tem. To illustrate, all expenses incurred are associated to the costs within the departments or cost centers. This method lacks the ability to report process costs across-functional, limiting managers the visibility of the true end-to-end costs of each process and system. For example, the pre-mixed
41、powder drink packing can be viewed at department levels such as packing, quality control, shipping and handling. On the other hand, the end-to-end packaging process can be looked at via the “work-centric” ABC/M as collective efforts and resources to manufacture a final premixed powder drink pouch 5.
42、Activity-Based Cost Allocation and Lean Value Stream MapThe standard costing approach was developed in the mid-20th century to meet the decision-making requirement in the mass production type organizations. As manufacturing and service industries change from mass to lean production, because of the c
43、hanges of the demands and the complexity of the consumer goods, the conventional way to approach costing has become unsuited for lean initiatives.As the result, B.H. Maskell suggested a unique view of allocating expenses via the value-steam-based methodology; that is, the cost of a process will be c
44、omposed of the labor, materials and assignable overheadexpenses for solely activities in the value stream and the optimized flow of the process (See figure 1) 8.The reporting of the “value steam profits” was also addressed in the similar manner. With the efforts to identify both cost and profit via
45、the value stream and associated activities, the value stream managers now can understand, measure and become accountable for the expenses, efficiency and value produced by all value-added or essential, related activities in the process1.Source: David K. Narong. Activity-Based Costing and Management
46、Solutions to Traditional Shortcomings of Cost Accounting J. Cost Engineering, 2009( 8)： 11-22 译文作业成本法弥补传统成本会计的缺陷摘要：传统的成本会计是一种被广泛应用于成本内部及外部的主要方法。这是一种担当公司的“温度计”的总账系统，它一般被用于测量整体业务的财富和健康。传统的方法只能总结会计科目图表的帐目业务费用（即人力、物力和其他）。且任何费用和间接费用是不与任何特定的作业或过程所联系的。以至于该公司没有能力来评估每个产品或服务线的内部效率，以及质量和盈利能力。而作业成本法和作业成本管理能补充这些
47、缺陷，并是适用于全面质量管理的解决方案。作业成本法，用于总结和报告作业或进程的花费开销并最终联系到每一个产品、服务和顾客。关键词：会计，预算，成本，估计，预测，生命周期，规划。传统质量成本会计是一种基于间接费用分配主观或直接成本的计算范围。由于近几年来间接费用的增加，传统的成本核算方法对于有才能的实践者和管理者来说已经变得无效了。例如，一个产品或服务可能需要更多的资源或较少的时间。但是因为间接成本的代价是基于一定固定比例的直接成本（例如劳动和材料），因而间接费用歪曲了公认的最终成品或服务。用传统的方法对成本会计和质量成本评价像这样的产品或服务是否能获利，在有品质的进程中或是更少的浪费过程中是很
48、难鉴定的。作业成本法和作业成本管理的概念最初在在20世纪70年代和80年代期间美国的制造业中被介绍。罗宾库珀和罗伯特卡普兰在1998年的哈佛商业评论中把作业成本法和作业成本管理的概念阐明了，并发表了相关知识体系。罗宾库珀和罗伯特卡普兰定义了作业成本和作业成本管理方法作为“解决传统成本管理系统问题的途径，”也就是说，传统的成本会计系统往往不能正确地识别过程的真实成本。因此,管理和质量专业人员不能合理的决策或是在不如实的数据基础上做出了决定14。另一方面，作业成本和管理在“成本和效果关系”的基础上客观地分配了成本。当且仅当产品或服务用于作业，作业成本是被确认并分配给每个产品或服务。1987年，罗伯
49、特卡普兰和W.布伦斯发表在他们的著作会计和管理中：实地研究视角，作业成本法的知识体系最初在制造业种形成，作业成本法的知识体系初始化的焦点定位在那些科技和生产力的改进已大大减少了直接和间接成本和日常开销费用的制造业中14。问题陈述在当今全球竞争形势下，品质从业人员和管理人员在由传统会计总账系统提供的不准确、不完整的数据的基础上有不能做出决定的风险。这种方法在现代的高质量和会计成本暴露是必要的，且在生产产品和服务水平上都适用。研究的目的本文的研究工作是引导质量从业人员和决策者通过独特的、更有效的方法，来确定真实成本的过程。这包括了作业成本法的回顾以及在全面品质管理框架下管理的方法和应用。此外，通过倾斜质量和成本预测预算，作业成本和管理将合并为解决传统质量成本核算的概念系统，并通过学习，使质量专业人员和群众可以获得能够扩大他们的视野，角色和配置成本动因，控制改进工艺成本的机会。研究的不足本文限于传统的
