Assignment: Discussion-Predicting and Developing a Long-Term Growth Strategy

Module Readings and Assignment:       

Complete the following readings early in the module:      
•Read the online lectures for the Module   
•From the textbook, Accounting for Managers: Interpreting Accounting Information for Decision Making, 5th, read the following chapters:   
◦Chapter 16: Budgeting   
◾Chapter 16 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides       

◦Chapter 17: Budgetary Control   
◾Chapter 17 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides       

◦Chapter 18: Strategic Management Accounting   
◾Chapter 18 textbook Microsoft PowerPoint slides     

Module Overview:     In the previous modules, you have learned about financial reporting, where you use accounting information for external reporting to communicate the earnings and financial position of the business to external users. You also learned about management accounting that deals with using accounting information to analyze and communicate financial results to internal management for decision-making purposes. As a manager, you need to be forward-looking. Reviewing past financial information of your company is not enough because you need to be able to forecast future financial conditions or operating results. This requires planning various activities of your business.       

In this module, you will learn about forecasting, budgeting, and strategic management accounting (SMA) that broadens the concept of management accounting. You will explore how to use accounting information to create a strategic business plan and develop strategies to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage using SMA concepts.       

Budget represents an estimate of future costs and revenues and provides you with a plan to utilize labor and material resources. In this module, you will explore the various types of forecasting and budgeting techniques.        

Assignment:  

To develop a strategic plan, as a nonaccounting manager, you need to analyze and link management accounting data and performance information with business strategies. You also need to extend the scope of management accounting beyond the organization. For this perspective, you will need to focus on variables that are external to the firm, such as variables relating to markets, customers, and competitors. This external focus will help you develop a sustainable competitive advantage, which is the primary element of your long-term growth strategy.     In this assignment, you will analyze the factors that affect the long-term growth strategy of a company.     

Task:  

Respond to the following:     

•What can you learn from the financial statements of competitors that determine the relative cost position of your company?     
•What are some of the ways in which you can secure a sustainable cost advantage over the competition?     
•How does maintaining a strong understanding of relative costs help you maintain the competitive advantage?     
•How do you use cost structure to differentiate products? Do you think product differentiation is a successful growth strategy? Why or why not?     
•What is the usefulness of conducting a customer profitability analysis?  

 Submission Details:     

By Friday June 22, 2018 post your response to the Discussion Area.     

Write your initial response in 300–500 words. turned-in on time, Grading criteria followed All assignment qualifications addressed correctly, Grading Criteria followed, Include Question followed by the answer  Reference Page Included Cover page Included, Paragraphs  Indented,  Running-head included, main heading should be centered; all  new  paragraphs should be indented;  paper should be right ragged,   not right justified; references,  should always go on a standalone  page. abstracts are not usually indented; acronyms should be spelled out when using them  for  the first time, for example HR. references as listed are APA  standard.   When you  submit your papers through turnitin.com, your overall  similarity  index  score should not be exceedingly high, with   ten to  fifteen percent  being  the maximum,  Please make sure your APA  formatting of citations. I have provided the  APA resource cite for you. https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01, Please work on using literature within the span of the last 5 years,  keep in mind there should not be any one, two, or three sentence   paragraphs. Your response should be thorough and address all components of the discussion question in detail, include citations of all sources, where needed, according to the APA Style, and demonstrate accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.     

Do the following when responding:  

•Read your answers.  

•Provide substantive comments to posts by ◦contributing new, relevant information from course readings, Web sites, or other sources; ◦building on the remarks or questions; or ◦sharing practical examples of key concepts from your professional or personal experiences  

•Respond to feedback on your posting and provide feedback to ideas.  

•Make sure your writing  ◦is clear, concise, and organized; ◦demonstrates ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and ◦displays accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.     

Grading Criteria: 

Assignment Components     
Initial response was:     
•Insightful, original, accurate, and timely.  
•Substantive and demonstrated advanced understanding of concepts.  •Compiled/synthesized theories and concepts drawn from a variety of sources to support statements and conclusions     

Discussion Response:     
•Offered points of view supported by research.   
•Added challenging questions that promoted discussion.   
•Drew relationships between one or more points in the discussion.     

Writing:     
•Wrote in a clear, concise, formal, and organized manner.   
•Responses were error free.   
•Information from sources, where applicable, was paraphrased appropriately and accurately cited.