Budgeting and Financial Performance Target: Summary of Chapter 9 - Assignment 7
Budgeting and Financial Performance Target: Summary of Chapter 9 - Assignment 7
Budgeting and Financial Performance Target: Summary of Chapter 9 - Assignment 7
NATURE OF BUDGET
Budgets are unimportant tool for effective short term planning and control in organization.
An operating budget usually covers 1 year and states the revenues and expense planned for
that year.
A. Budget Characteristics :
A budget estimates the profit potential of the business unit
It is stated in monetary terms, although the monetary amounts may be backed up by
non monetary amounts
Generally covers a period of 1 year. In business that are strongly influenced by
seasonal factors, there may be two budgets per year
It is management commmitment ; managers agree to accept responsibility for
attaining the budgeted objectives
The budget proposal is reviewed and approved by an authority higher than the
budgetee
Once approved, the budget can be changed only under specified condition
Periodecally, actual financial performance is compared to budget, and variance are
analyzed and explained.
D. Use of Budget
1. Fine Tuning the Strategic Plan
Budgets that are completed before the beginning of the fiscal year, provide an opportunity to
use the latest available information and are based on the assessment of managers at all levels
of the organization.
2. Coordination
Every central manager of responsibility in the organization participates in budgeting.
Furthermore, when staff assembles the pieces into an overall plan, inconsistencies arise. During
the budget preparation process, various inconsistencies were identified and solutions sought.
The budget functions as a tool to coordinate plans and actions of various units within the
organization to work according to purpose.
3. Assigning Responsibility
The budget authorizes central managers to be responsible for spending a certain amount of
money for certain purposes that have been previously determined without the need for approval
from higher authorities.
4. Basis for Performance Evaluation
The budget reflects a commitment by the manufacturer to his boss. Therefore, the budget
becomes a benchmark against which actual performance can be assessed. This commitment can
change if the underlying assumptions also change. However, the budget is the best starting point
in assessing performance. The budget assigns responsibility to each center of organizational
responsibility.
A. Capital Budget
Stating that capital projects have been approved, plus a number of at the same time for small projects
that do not require higher level approval. At the time of the budget, the project has been assembled into
a single package in total and checked in total. For projects that are retained (not deleted or reduced in
size), an estimated cash that will be issued every quarter is compiled. This is important to prepare a cash
flow statement.
Show the balance sheet implications of decisions included in the operating budget and capital budget.
Some balance sheet parts are useful for controlling.
Indicates how much money is needed during the year which will be supplied by retained earnings and
which must be borrowed from other outside sources, if any. This is important for financial planning.
The treasurer also needs an estimate of the monthly cash requirements as a basis for planning the type
of credit and short-term loans.
A. Organization
Budget Department
The Budget dept., which normally reports to the corporate controller, administers the information
flow of the budgetary control system. Budget dept functions :
Publishes procedures forms the preparation of the budget
Coordinates and publishes each year the basic corporatewide assumption that are to be the
basis for the budgets
Makes sure that information as properly communicated between interrelated organization
units
Provides assistance to budgetees in the preparaion of their budgets
Analyzes proposed budgets and makes recommendations, first to the budgetee and
subsequently to senior management
Administers the process of making budget revisions during the years
Coordinate the work of budget departements in lower echelons
Analyzes reported performanced against budget, interprates the result and prepares
summary report for senior management
The Budget Committee
Consists of senior management members In some companies, CEOs make decisions without
committees. The committee reviews and approves or adjusts each budget. In large, diversified
companies, budget committees may only meet with senior operating executives to review budgets
from a business unit or group of business units.
B. Issuance of Guidelines
In the development of a strategic plan does not involve the central manager of responsibility at a
lower level. The first step in the budgeting process is to develop guidelines that regulate the
distribution of budgets to all managers. The guidelines are stated implicitly in the strategic plan,
modified according to the developments that have occurred since it was approved. The contents of
the guidelines, for example general inflation assumptions and inflation for certain items such as
wages; corporate policy on how many employees can be promoted; compensation at each level of
wages and salaries, including benefits; and the possibility to freeze recruits.
C. Initial Budget Proposal
Most responsibility centers will start the fiscal year with the same facilities, employees, and other
resources as they currently have. Then this budget is based on existing levels, which are then
modified according to the guidelines.
D. Negotiation
Many budget makers tend to budget somewhat lower incomes and somewhat higher expenses, from
their best estimates of these amounts. Therefore, the budget generated, is a target that is easier for
them to achieve. The difference between the budget amount and the best estimate is called slack. In
checking the budget, superiors try to find and eliminate slacks.
E. Review and Approval
The budget proposal is submitted through several levels that are tiered in the organization. When the
proposal reaches the top of the business unit, the analyst collects the pieces together and checks the
total.
F. Budget Revisions
One of the main considerations in preparing the budget is the procedure for revising the budget after
approval. Two general types of budget revisions:
- Procedures that allow systematic budget updating.
- Procedures that allow for revisions under certain (special) circumstances
G. Contingency Budgets
Some companies routinely prepare contingency budget that identify management actions to be taken
if there is a significant decrease in the sales volume from what was anticipated at the time of
developing the budget. The contingency budget provides a way of quickly adjusting to changed
conditions if the situations arises.