Analytical accounting and management control

Duration

40h Th, 20h Pr

Number of credits

Lecturer

Didier Van Caillie

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the first semester, review in January

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

"Cost accounting and management control" discusses the fundamentals of cost and management accounting and the fundamentals of management control, those that are necessary to understand how an organization measures, monitors and controls its costs and how it translates this information into an efficient management control system.
In a first part, this course presents the main techniques that are used for management accounting purposes and shows why they are useful in a decision-making perspective.
In a second part, it describes the characteristics of the main management control systems that are in use in most organizations and proposes an overview of the main techniques and tools that are specific for results controls, action control and individual or cultural controls.
More specifically, having highlighted the specificities of management accounting and having defined its main terms and concepts, this course presents first the cost accumulation process for inventory valuation and profit measurement. Then, it proposes an in-depth analysis of the different techniques used to manage accounting information in a decision-making perspective (cost-volume-profit analysis, activity-based and process-based costing, profitability analysis and pricing decisions and decision-making under conditions of risk and uncertainty).
In its second part, this course discusses the main characteristics of an efficient management control system and presents the different techniques that are used in organizations to ensure that they are efficiently managed daily. A special focus is put on techniques allowing for results controls (financial and accounting approach and organizationnal approach), for action controls (organizationnal approach and production management focus) and for individual control (incentives mechanisms).

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

This course intends to meet the ILOs such as defined for this course in the program of "Bachelor in Business Engineering", i.e.
Strategy : The course will allow students to establish a strategy in order to optimize the value chain of a company, an organization or a project. - based on the analysis of its financial and economic context - taking into account its scientific and technological context - demonstrating  scientific precision and a critical mind Implementation : The course will allow students to take charge of the everyday management of a company, an organization or a project - analyzing his managerial practice with a critical and ethical mind Quality and Performance Control : The course will allow students to plan and implement the performance and quality control in a company, an organization or a project - using the appropriate analytical tools Adaptability : The course will allow students to adapt their managerial practice to the needs of a fast-evolving world - showing curiosity and a scientific precision of academic level - showing creativity, autonomy.
More specifically, it insists particularly on the following aspects :

• Ability to master the fundamentals of cost and management accounting.
• Ability to master the principles and the fundamentals of organisational management control.
• Ability to realize a basic audit of an internal accounting system and of a management control system in an organisation.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

General accounting.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Theory : - "Ex-caethedra" teaching (cost and management accounting) : 24 h - "Ex-caethedra" teaching (management control) : 16 h Exercises : - Exercises presented and prepared under supervision (accounting-based decision making) : 18 h
Practical work, by groups : - Critical analysis of an analytical accounting process in an organization (individual work within a group in a real firm) : 2 h of direct coaching & supervision + individual work (estimated to 20 hours / student).

Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning)

See : http://lola.hec.uliege.be/course/view.php?id=129

Recommended or required readings

Van Caillie D. (2005) : Principes de comptabilité analytique et de comptabilité de gestion, Liège : Editions de l'Université de Liège - 2ème édition, 242 p. (it will be published in an electronic format on the Campus website section for this course)
Merchant K, Van der Stede W. (2011) : Management control systems - Performance measurement, evaluation and incentives, Prentice Hall, 2nd Edition, Chapters 1 to 10

Assessment methods and criteria

During JANUARY:
A written exam

• about PARTIM 1 - Cost and management accounting : theory (25 %) + exercises (25 %).
• about PARTIM 2 - Management control (20 %)

Work placement(s)

Organizational remarks

All the supports that are necessary are available here :
http://lola.hec.uliege.be/course/view.php?id=129

Contacts

Professor : VAN CAILLIE Didier Rue Louvrex, 14 - Bureau 102 4000 Liège Tél. : 04/232 74 34 E-mail : D.VanCaillie@ulg.ac.be

Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the May-June 2020 session

Teaching methods implemented : distance-learning

Assessment subjects

Assessment methods

Contacts

Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the Aug-Sept 2020 session

Assessment subjects

The content and the structure (theory, exercises, organizational audit and management control) for the exam planned in September is similar to the one held in January.

Assessment methods

The exam is 3 hours long as a maximum and is organized as a written / oral exam with the LifeSize platform.
It takes place on Tuesday, September 1 and starts at 9.30 . Students receive then a mail with the questions linked to the different parts of the exam they wish to present : they can choose to translate any mark higher or equal to 10 for each part of the exam passed in January.
At the end of their preparation time, they discuss with me through the LifeSize platform by sharing the document they have prepared, detailing their answers to the asked questions. At the end of this discussion, they send a mail with a copy of this document.

Contacts

Prof. D. Van Caillie
d.vancaillie@uliege.be

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