Target Costing

"Target Costing is an essential tool for companies striving to achieve and maintain a position of true cost competitiveness."--Back cover.

What would happen if everyone in your company followed a disciplined approach to cost reduction? Go ahead -- imagine it. What would it look like? How can it be done? The answer -- smart cost management. Effective cost management must start at the design stage. As much as 90-95% of a product's costs are added in the design process. That is why effective cost management programs focus on design and manufacturing. The primary cost management method to control cost during design is a combination of target costing and value engineering. Target Costing Objectives: Identify the cost at which your product must be manufactured at if it is to earn its profit margin at its expected target selling price. Break the target cost down to its component level and have your suppliers find ways to deliver the components they sell you at the set target prices while still making adequate returns. Value Engineering: The connection to function: An organized effort and team based approach to analyze the functions of goods and services that the design stage, and find ways to achieve those functions in a manner that allows the firm to meet its target costs. The result: Added value for your company (development costs on-line with added value for your company; development costs on-line with selling prices) and added value for your customer (higher quality products that meet, possibly even exceed, customer expectations.)

Compiling practical recommendations gleaned from more than 20 years of professional experience, Target Costing: Market Driven Product Design provides numerous examples from field authorities that illustrate valuable concepts and approaches employed in the application of target costing to large-scale manufacturing operations. The authors discuss set

Volume two of the Handbooks of Management Accounting Research consists of two groups of chapters. The first draw together research that has focussed on particular management accounting practices. The second set synthesise contributions to the literature that have been focussed within particular organisational contexts. Volume two concludes with a review of research on how management accounting practice and research varies around the world. Special pricing available if purchased as a set with Volume 1. Documents the scholarly management accounting literature Publishing both in print, and online through Science Direct International in scope

With a proven track record for helping companies achieve critical cost reductions without sacrificing customer satisfaction, target costing provides managers and executives with the tools to survive and prosper in today’s increasingly competitive market—without raising prices on customers. Target Cost Management: The Ladder to Global Survival and Success details the preliminary steps required for a company to institutionalize target costing and the two necessary ingredients of target costing—proper organizational structure and cost tables. It describes and illustrates the interrelationships of the major techniques, tools, and methodologies needed to achieve the ultimate success. Jim Rains shares powerful insights harvested during his two decades of studying and benchmarking target costing for leading Japanese corporations including Toyota, Nissan, and Canon. Supplying the understanding and the tools to achieve critical cost reductions while maintaining and even improving customer satisfaction, this book explains the steps needed to reap the rewards of constant, consistent, acceptable, and predictable levels of profitability.

Cooper shows that the key to success in such an environment is the careful balance of cost, quality, and functionality - the survival triplet - in which cost is the critical element. He describes eight innovative cost management techniques - including target costing and value engineering - that have emerged in Japanese firms to manage costs across the value chain.

Essay from the year 2007 in the subject Business economics - Controlling, grade: 1,3, European Business School - International University Schlo Reichartshausen Oestrich-Winkel, course: Vertiefung Controlling, 8 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: Contemporary times are characterized by quick, dynamic, and continuing changes in the economy. Therefore, companies have to adapt flexibly and innovatively to these changes in order to stay competitive and cope with the increasing pressure of competition. In particular, Asian and East-European competitors gain market share by offering products of better quality than in earlier times and for lower costs. Under these conditions, costs represent a fundamental factor for the success of western companies. Accordingly, management and employees have to fully exploit the potential that cost management and reduction measures offer. However, costs are not the only buying decision criterion. Customers expect products with high quality but for a low or moderate price. Correspondingly, companies have to adjust their new product developments and production systems to market requirements. This can be achieved by the Target Costing approach, a tool that is applied in more and more companies. Therefore, the aim of this essay is to explain the goals and method of Target Costing. It starts with giving some background information about Target Costing and its historical development. Chapter three describes the goals of Target Costing. Then, the Target Costing process is explained in detail. Finally, this essay concludes by discussing that Target Costing is an effective cost management tool for developing new products according to market requirements. ...]

Target Costing: The Next Frontier in Strategic Cost Management is the one-and-only reference of its kind, providing practical insights on using target costing to build a culture of excellence in your organization. Shahid Ansari, Jan Bell and the CAM-I Target Cost Core Group focus on the details and show how this strategic management process can provide your customers with the products they want, when they want them, at a price they can afford - and still earn your firm reasonable financial returns. The CAM-I group realized target costing was critical for success in our global economy and collaborated on this landmark work. Relying on state-of-the-art practices drawn from over 80 Japanese works, global best practices and personal experience, Target Costing describes the scope, framework, process and tools for implementing a robust and integrated target costing system.