The increasing complexities of the business environment together with the changing demands and expectations, implies that every organization needs to know the future values of their key decision variables. In virtually every decision they make, executives today consider some kind of forecast. In any organization, managers play a significant role in implementing Forecasting techniques. Forecasting takes the historical data and project them into the future to predict the occurrence of uncertain events. Forecasting serves as a self-assessment tool for the company. To handle the increasing variety and complexity of managerial forecasting problems, many forecasting techniques have been developed in recent years. Each has its special use, and care must be taken to select the correct technique for a particular application. The manager as the forecaster has a role to play in technique selection; and the better he understands the range of forecasting possibilities, the more likely it is that aContinue reading
Managerial Economics
Managerial Economics generally refers to the integration of economic theory with business practice. It deals with the use of economic concepts and principles of business decision making. Managerial Economics is thus constituted of that part of economic knowledge or economic theories which is used as a tool of analyzing business problems for rational business decisions. Managerial economics can be viewed by most modern economists as a practical application of economics theory in using effectively the firms scarce resources.
Expert Opinion Method of Demand Forecasting
In this method of demand forecasting, the firm makes an effort to obtain the opinion of experts who have long standing experience in the field of enquiry related to the product under consideration. If the forecast is based on the opinion of several experts then the approach is called forecasting through the use of panel consensus. Although the panel consensus method usually results in forecasts that embody the collective wisdom of consulted experts, it may be at times unfavorably affected by the force of personality of one or few key individuals. To counter this disadvantage of panel consensus, another approach is developed called the Delphi method. In this method a panel of experts is individually presented a series of questions pertaining to the forecasting problem. Responses acquired from the experts are analyzed by an independent party that will provide the feedback to the panel members. Based on the responses ofContinue reading
Process Costing and Job Costing
Management accounting uses several costing techniques. Costing techniques are very important to the business management because they help them make sound decisions for the company. They also help companies keep track of the costs that they incur in the production process. Process costing and job order costing are two types of costing techniques that are have a similarity that they both analyze the costs that are incurred by the organization. Though these methods can be used to analyze costs, they differ in their approach. Process Costing This is a costing technique that is used in finding costs in homogeneous or products that are uniform. This technique makes averages of costs for all units to make per unit costs. Work in process account is used to track the process costs. Through this system, a continuous manufacturing process is used to produce identical goods. Computation Procedures for Process Costing Manufacturing costs areContinue reading
Factors Affecting Consumption
Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production. What restricts consumption? The factors which limit consumption are: The product and its limitations: This is a part of market research which is of great importance to product development and design. Solution may be obtained too many important questions such as: Does the product possess all the functional requirements that are desired by the customer? Would it be wise to expand its utility by modifying its design, and if so, how should this be done (design of attachments, the question of versatility, the problem of setting-up versus running times, etc)? How should the design and specifications of the product affect the range of products to be produced, their sizes, the interchangeability of parts from one model to another and the effects of variety on the production schedule? What would be the outcome of a simplificationContinue reading
Exchange Rate Adjustment as an Economic Stabilization Measure in 1991
The Indian rupee is linked to a basket of important currencies of the country’s major trading partners. The major objective of exchange rate policy is to adjust exchange rates in such way as to promote the competitiveness of Indian exports in the world market. Adjustments in the external value of the rupee are therefore made from time to time. The Reserve Bank of India effected an exchange rate adjustment on 1 July, 1991 in which the value of the rupee declined by about 7 to 9 per cent against the major currencies (the Pound Sterling, the US Dollar, the Deutschmark, the French Franc and the Yen). There was another exchange rate adjustment on 3 July, 1991 in which the value of the rupee declined by about 10 to 11 per cent against the major currencies. Between 28 June and 3 July, 1991, the rupee depreciated by about 18 per centContinue reading
Cost-Output Relationship
A proper understanding of the nature and behavior of costs is a must for regulation and control of cost of production. The cost of production depends on money forces and an understanding of the functional relationship of cost to various forces will help us to take various decisions. Output is an important factor, which influences the cost. The cost-output relationship plays an important role in determining the optimum level of production. Knowledge of the cost-output relation helps the manager in cost control, profit prediction, pricing, promotion etc. The relation between cost and its determinants is technically described as the cost function. C= f (S, O, P, T ….) Where; C= Cost (Unit or total cost) S= Size of plant/scale of production O= Output level P= Prices of inputs T= Technology Considering the period the cost function can be classified as (1) short-run cost function and (2) long-run cost function. InContinue reading