Cost Accounting For Dummies

by Kenneth W. Boyd

Overview

The easy way to get a grip on cost accounting

Critical in supporting strategic business decisions and improving profitability, cost accounting is arguably one of the most important functions in the accounting field. For business students, cost accounting is a required course for those seeking an accounting degree and is a popular elective among other business majors.

Cost Accounting For Dummies tracks to a typical cost accounting course and provides in-depth explanations and reviews of the essential concepts you'll encounter in your studies: how to define costs as direct materials, direct labor, fixed overhead, variable overhead, or period costs; how to use allocation methodology to assign costs to products and services; how to evaluate the need for capital expenditures; how to design a budget model that forecast changes in costs based on expected activity levels; and much more.

• Tracks to a typical cost accounting course
• Includes practical, real-world examples
• Walks you though homework problems with detailed, easy-to-understand answers

If you're currently enrolled in a cost accounting course, this hands-on, friendly guide gives you everything you need to master this critical aspect of accounting.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118453803
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	03/04/2013
Series:	For Dummies Books
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	1,040,841
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Ken Boyd is a former CPA with over 27 years of experience in accounting, education, and financial services. Ken is the owner of St. Louis Test Preparation (www.stltest.net). He provides online tutoring in accounting and finance to both undergraduate and graduate students.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part I: Understanding the Fundamentals of Costs  7

Chapter 1: So You Want to Know about Cost Accounting 9

Chapter 2: Brushing Up on Cost Accounting Basics 19

Chapter 3: Using Cost-Volume-Profi t Analysis to Plan Your Business Results 31

Chapter 4: Estimating Costs with Job Costing 47

Chapter 5: More Activity, More Cost: Activity-Based Costing 65

Part II: Planning and Control  81

Chapter 6: What’s the Plan, Stan? Budgeting for a Better Bottom Line 83

Chapter 7: Constant Change: Variance Analysis 103

Chapter 8: Focusing on Overhead Costs125

Chapter 9: What’s on the Shelf? Inventory Costing 139

Part III: Making Decisions  159

Chapter 10: Cost Drivers and Cost Estimation Methods 161

Chapter 11: Making Smart Business Decisions with Relevant Information 173

Chapter 12: Making Smart Pricing Decisions: Figuring Total Costs 193

Part IV: Allocating Costs and Resources  211

Chapter 13: Analysis Methods to Improve Profitability 213

Chapter 14: Behind the Scenes: Accounting for Support Costs and Common Costs 231

Chapter 15: Joint Costs, Separable Costs, and Using Up the Leftovers 255

Chapter 16: Tracing Similar Products with Process Costing 271

Part V: Considering Quality Issues  293

Chapter 17: What a Waste! Getting the Most from Spoilage, Scrap, and Reworked Products 295

Chapter 18: Making Smart Ordering Decisions 317

Chapter 19: Quality: Building a Better Mousetrap 337

Part VI: The Part of Tens  355

Chapter 20: Ten Common Costing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them 357

Chapter 21: Ten Ways to Increase Profits Using Costing 363

Index 367