Financial and Managerial

Accounting
Third Edition
Weygandt; Kimmel; Kieso

Chapter 23
Budgetary Control and Responsibility
Accounting
This slide deck contains animations. Please disable animations if they cause issues with your
device.
Chapter Outline
Learning Objectives
LO 1 Describe budgetary control and static budget reports.
LO 2 Prepare flexible budget reports.
LO 3 Apply responsibility accounting to cost and profit
centers.
LO 4 Evaluate performance in investment centers.

Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2

 Budgetary Control and Static Budget Reports

LEARNING OBJECTIVE 1
Describe budgetary control and static budget reports.

Use of budgets in controlling operations is known as

budgetary control.
• Budget reports compare actual results with planned
objectives
• Provides management with feedback on operations
• Budget reports prepared as frequently as needed
• Management analyzes differences between actual and
planned results and determines causes
LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 3
Budgetary Control Activities

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 4

Budgetary Control
Works best when a company has a formalized reporting
system which:
1. Identifies the name of the budget report
2. States the frequency of the report
3. Specifies the purpose of the report
4. Indicates the primary recipient(s) of the report

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 5

Budgetary Control
Budgetary control reporting system
Name of Report Frequency Purpose Primary Recipient(s)
Sales Weekly Determine whether Top management and
sales goals are met sales manager
Labor Weekly Control direct and Vice president of
indirect labor costs production and
production department
managers
Scrap Daily Determine efficient use Production manager
of materials
Departmental Weekly Control overhead costs Department manager
overhead costs
Selling expenses Monthly Control selling expenses Sales manager
Income statement Monthly and Determine whether Top management
quarterly income goals are met

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 6

Budgetary Control
Question

Budgetary control involves all but one of the following:

a. Modifying future plans
b. Analyzing differences
c. Using static budgets
d. Determining differences between actual and planned
results

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 7

Budgetary Control
Answer

Budgetary control involves all but one of the following:

a. Modifying future plans
b. Analyzing differences
c. Answer: Using static budgets
d. Determining differences between actual and planned
results

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 8

Static Budget Reports
A Static budget is a projection of budget data at one level
of activity
• When used in budgetary control, each budget included
in the master budget is considered to be static
• Ignores data for different levels of activity
• Compares actual results with budget data at the activity
level used in the master budget

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 9

Static Budget Reports
Budget and actual sales data
Illustration: Budget and actual sales data for the Rightride
product in the first and second quarters of 2020 are as
follows.
First Second
. . .

Sales Quarter Quarter Total

Budgeted $180,000 $210,000 $390,000
Actual 179,000 199,500 378,500
Difference $ 1,000 $ 10,500 $ 11,500

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 10

Static Budget Reports
First quarter

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 11

Static Budget Reports
Second quarter

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 12

Static Budget Reports
Uses and Limitations
• Appropriate for evaluating a manager’s effectiveness in
controlling costs when:
o Actual level of activity closely approximates master budget
activity level, and/or
o Behavior of costs is fixed in response to changes in activity
• Appropriate for fixed costs
• Not appropriate for variable costs

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 13

Static Budget Reports
Question
A static budget is useful in controlling costs when cost
behavior is:
a. Mixed
b. Fixed
c. Variable
d. Linear

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14

Static Budget Reports
Answer
A static budget is useful in controlling costs when cost
behavior is:
a. Mixed
b. Answer: Fixed
c. Variable
d. Linear

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 15

DO IT! 1: Static Budget Reports
Problem data
Lawler Company expects to produce 5,000 units of product
CV93 during the current month. Budgeted variable
manufacturing costs per unit are direct materials $6, direct
labor $15, and overhead $24. Monthly budgeted fixed
manufacturing overhead costs are $10,000 for depreciation
and $5,000 for supervision. In the current month, Lawler
actually produced 5,500 units and incurred the following
costs: direct materials $33,900, direct labor $74,200, variable
overhead $120,500, depreciation $10,000, and supervision
$5,000.
Prepare a static budget report.
LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 16
DO IT! 1: Static Budget Reports
Solution

LO 1 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 17

 Flexible Budget Reports

LEARNING OBJECTIVE 2
Prepare flexible budget reports.

Flexible budget projects budget data for various levels of

activity.
• Essentially a series of static budgets at different activity
levels
• Budgetary process more useful if it is adaptable to
changes in operating conditions
• Can be prepared for each type of budget in the master
budget
LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 18
Why Flexible Budgets?
Static overhead budget
Illustration: Barton Robotics static overhead budget.

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 19

Why Flexible Budgets?
Overhead static budget report
Overhead Static Budget report assuming 12,000 units were actually
produced, rather than 10,000 units.

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 20

Why Flexible Budgets?
Comparison
• Over budget in three of six overhead costs
o Unfavorable difference of $132,000 – 12% over budget
• Budget data for 10,000 units, not relevant
o Meaningless to compare actual variable costs for 12,000
units with budgeted variable costs for 10,000 units
o Variable costs increase with production

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 21

Why Flexible Budgets?
Budgeted variable costs, 12,000 units
Analyzing budget data for costs at 10,000 units, you arrive at the following
per unit results.
Item Total Cost Per Unit
. .

Indirect materials $250,000 $25

Indirect labor 260,000 26
Utilities 190,000 19
$700,000 $70
.

Item Computation Total

Indirect materials $25 × 12,000 $300,000
Indirect labor 26 × 12,000 312,000
Utilities 19 × 12,000 228,000
$840,000

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 22

Why Flexible Budgets?
Overhead flexible budget report

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 23

Developing the Flexible Budget
1. Identify activity index and relevant range of activity
2. Identify variable costs, and determine budgeted
variable cost per unit of activity for each cost
3. Identify fixed costs, and determine budgeted amount
for each cost
4. Prepare budget for selected increments of activity
within relevant range

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 24

Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Master budget data
Fox Company’s management uses a flexible budget for monthly
comparisons of actual and budgeted manufacturing overhead costs
of the Finishing Department. The master budget for the year
ending December 31, 2020, shows expected annual operating
capacity of 120,000 direct labor hours and the overhead costs.

Variable Costs Fixed Costs

Indirect materials $180,000 Depreciation $180,000
Indirect labor 240,000 Supervision 120,000
Utilities 60,000 Property taxes 60,000
Total $480,000 Total $360,000

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 25

Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Step 1
Four steps for developing the flexible budget.
1. Identify activity index and relevant range of activity.
• Activity index is direct labor hours
• Relevant range is 8,000 – 12,000 direct labor hours per month

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 26

Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Step 2
Four steps for developing the flexible budget.
2. Identify variable costs and determine budgeted variable
cost per unit of activity for each cost.
Variable Cost per
Variable Costs .
Computation .
Direct Labor Hour
Indirect materials $180,000 ÷ 120,000 $1.50
Indirect labor $240,000 ÷ 120,000 2.00
Utilities $ 60,000 ÷ 120,000 0.50
Total $4.00

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 27

Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Steps 3 and 4
Four steps for developing the flexible budget.
3. Identify fixed costs and determine budgeted amount for
each cost.
• Three fixed costs per month:
o Depreciation $15,000
o Supervision $10,000
o Property taxes $5,000
4. Prepare budget for selected increments of activity within
the relevant range.
• Prepared in increments of 1,000 direct labor
hours
LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 28
Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Monthly overhead flexible budget

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 29

Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Cost equation for total budgeted costs

Fox uses the formula below to determine total

budgeted costs at any level of activity.
Fixed + Variable = Total Budgeted
Cost Costs * Costs
*Total variable cost per unit of activity × Activity level.

Determine total budgeted costs for Fox Company with

fixed costs of $30,000 and total variable cost $4 per direct
labor hour:
• 9,000 direct labor hours: $30,000 + ($4 × 9,000) = $66,000
• 8,622 direct labor hours: $30,000 + ($4 × 8,622) = $64,488
LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 30
Flexible Budget—A Case Study
Graphic flexible budget data
Illustration 10.15
Graphic flexible
budget data
highlighting 10,000
and 12,000 activity
levels

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 31

Flexible Budget Reports
• Widely used in production and service departments
• A type of internal report
• Consists of two sections:
o Production data for a selected activity index, such as
direct labor hours
o Cost data for variable and fixed costs
• Widely used in production and service departments to
evaluate a manager’s performance

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 32

Flexible Budget Reports
Overhead flexible budget report

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 33

Flexible Budgets
Question
At 9,000 direct labor hours, the flexible budget for
indirect materials is $27,000. If $28,000 of indirect
materials costs are incurred at 9,200 direct labor hours,
the flexible budget report should show the following
difference for indirect materials:
a. $1,000 unfavorable
b. $1,000 favorable
c. $400 favorable
d. $400 unfavorable

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 34

Flexible Budgets
Answer
At 9,000 direct labor hours, the flexible budget for
indirect materials is $27,000. If $28,000 of indirect
materials costs are incurred at 9,200 direct labor hours,
the flexible budget report should show the following
difference for indirect materials:
a. $1,000 unfavorable
b. $1,000 favorable
c. $400 favorable
d. Answer: $400 unfavorable

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 35

DO IT! 2: Flexible Budgets
In Strassel Company’s
flexible budget graph, the
fixed cost line and the total
budgeted cost line intersect
the vertical axis at $36,000.
The total budgeted cost line
is $186,000 at an activity
level of 50,000 direct labor
hours. Compute total
budgeted costs at 30,000
direct labor hours.

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 36

DO IT! 2: Flexible Budgets
Solution
Compute total budgeted costs at 30,000 direct labor
hours.
Variable costs:
Total budgeted cost line $186,000
Fixed costs − 36,000
Variable costs at 50,000 hours 150,000
Activity level at intersect (hours) ÷ 50,000
Variable costs per direct labor hour $3
Direct labor hours × 30,000
Total variable costs 90,000
Total fixed costs + 36,000
Total budgeted costs $126,000

LO 2 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 37

 Responsibility Accounting and Responsibility Centers

LEARNING OBJECTIVE 3
Apply responsibility accounting to cost and profit centers.

Accumulating and reporting costs (and revenues) on basis of the

manager who makes decisions about the items.
Conditions:
1. Costs and revenues can be directly associated with specific level
of management responsibility
2. Costs and revenues can be controlled by employees at level of
responsibility with which they are associated
3. Budget data can be developed for evaluating the manager’s
effectiveness in controlling costs and revenues
LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 38
Responsibility Accounting
Illustration 10.17
Responsibility for controllable costs at varying levels of
management

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 39

Responsibility Accounting
Terms
• Responsibility center - any individual who has control
and is accountable for activities
• May extend to any level of management
• Especially valuable in a decentralized company
o Control of operations delegated to many managers
throughout the organization
o Segment – area of responsibility for which reports
are prepared

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 40

Responsibility Accounting
Two differences from budgeting for costs/revenues

1. Distinguishes between controllable and

noncontrollable items
2. Emphasizes or includes only items controllable by
the individual manager in performance reports

• Applies to both profit and not-for-profit entities

o Profit entities: maximize net income
o Not-for-profit: minimize cost of providing services

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 41

Controllable versus Noncontrollable Costs
A cost over which a manager has control is called a
controllable cost.
1. All costs are controllable by top management
2. Fewer costs are controllable as one moves down to each
lower level of managerial responsibility
Costs incurred indirectly and allocated to a responsibility
level are noncontrollable costs.

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 42

Principles of Performance Evaluation
• Management function that compares actual results
with budget goals
• Includes both behavioral and reporting principles

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 43

Principles of Performance Evaluation
Management by Exception

Management by exception means that top management’s

review of a budget report is focused primarily on
differences between actual results and planned objectives.
• Materiality - Without quantitative guidelines, management
would have to investigate every budget difference
regardless of the amount
• Controllability of the Item - Exception guidelines are more
restrictive for controllable items than for items the manager
cannot control

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 44

Behavioral Principles
1. Managers of responsibility centers should have direct input
into the process of establishing budget goals
2. Evaluation of performance should be based entirely on
matters that are controllable by the manager being
evaluated
3. Top management should support evaluation process
4. Evaluation process must allow managers to respond to
their evaluations
5. Evaluation should identify both good and poor
performance

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 45

Reporting Principles
1. Contain only data that are controllable by manager of
responsibility center
2. Provide accurate and reliable budget data to measure
performance
3. Highlight significant differences between actual results
and budget goals
4. Be tailor-made for intended evaluation by ensuring only
controllable costs are included
5. Be prepared at reasonable time intervals

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 46

Responsibility Reporting System
• Preparation of a report for each level of responsibility in
company's organization chart
• Begins with lowest level of responsibility and moves upward
to higher levels
• Permits management by exception at each level of
responsibility
• Each higher level can obtain detailed report for each lower
level

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 47

Responsibility Reporting System
Partial organization chart
Report A
President sees summary
data of vice presidents.
Report B
Vice president sees summary
of controllable costs in his/her
functional area.
Report C
Plant manager sees summary
of controllable costs for each
department in the plant.
Report D
Department manager sees
controllable costs of
his/her department.
LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 48
Responsibility Reporting System
Reports A and B

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 49

Responsibility Reporting System
Reports B and C

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 50

Responsibility Reporting System
Reports C and D

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 51

Responsibility Reporting System
Summary
• Permits comparative evaluations
• Plant manager can rank each department
manager’s effectiveness in controlling
manufacturing costs
• Comparative rankings provide incentive for a
manager to control costs

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 52

Types of Responsibility Centers
Three Basic Types ― Cost Center

• Cost center
o Incurs costs, does not generate revenues
o Managers have authority to incur costs
o Managers evaluated on ability to control costs
o Usually a production or service department

• Profit center
• Investment center

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 53

Types of Responsibility Centers
Three Basic Types ― Profit Center
• Cost center
• Profit center
o Incurs costs and generates revenues
o Managers judged on profitability of center
o Examples include individual departments of a retail
store or branch bank offices
• Investment center

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 54

Types of Responsibility Centers
Three Basic Types ― Investment Center

• Investment center
o Incurs costs, generates revenues, and has investment
funds available for use
o Manager evaluated on profitability and rate of return
earned on funds
o Often a subsidiary company or a product line
o Manager able to control or significantly influence
investment decisions

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 55

Types of Responsibility Centers
Illustration 10.20

Cost Center Profit Center

Expenses Expenses and Revenues

Expenses and
Investment Revenues and
Center Return on
Investment

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 56

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Accounting Question
Under responsibility accounting, the evaluation of a
manager’s performance is based on matters that the
manager:
a. Directly controls
b. Directly and indirectly controls
c. Indirectly controls
d. Has shared responsibility for with another manager

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 57

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Accounting Answer
Under responsibility accounting, the evaluation of a
manager’s performance is based on matters that the
manager:
a. Answer: Directly controls
b. Directly and indirectly controls
c. Indirectly controls
d. Has shared responsibility for with another manager

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 58

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Accounting for Cost Centers
• Based on manager’s ability to meet budgeted goals for
controllable costs
• Results in responsibility reports which compare actual
controllable costs with flexible budget
o Include only controllable costs in reports
o No distinction between variable and fixed costs

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 59

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility report for a cost center
Illustration: The report shown is adapted from the flexible budget report for Fox
Company in Illustration 10.16.

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 60

Types of Responsibility Centers
Assumptions
• Finishing Department manager is able to control all
manufacturing overhead costs except depreciation,
property taxes, and his own monthly salary of $6,000
• Remaining $4,000 ($10,000 − $6,000) of supervision costs
are assumed to apply to other supervisory personnel within
the Finishing Department, whose salaries are controllable
by the manager

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 61

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Accounting for Profit Centers
• Based on detailed information about both controllable
revenues and controllable costs
• Manager controls operating revenues earned, such as
sales
• Manager controls all variable costs incurred by center
because they vary with sales

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 62

Responsibility Acc. for Profit Centers
Direct fixed costs
o Relate specifically to one responsibility center
o Incurred for sole benefit of the center
o Called traceable costs since they can be traced directly to
one center
o Most direct fixed costs are controllable by profit center
manager

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 63

Responsibility Acc. for Profit Centers
Indirect fixed costs
o Pertain to company's overall operating activities
o Incurred for benefit of more than one profit center
o Called common costs since they apply to more than one
center
o Most are not controllable by profit center manager

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 64

Responsibility Acc. for Profit Centers
Responsibility report

• Budgeted and actual controllable revenues and costs

• Uses cost-volume-profit income statement format:
o Deduct controllable fixed costs from contribution margin
o Controllable margin - excess of contribution margin over
controllable fixed costs
o Noncontrollable fixed costs are not reported

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 65

Responsibility Acc. for Profit Centers
Responsibility report for profit center

Report does not show noncontrollable fixed costs of $60,000. These costs would be
included in a report on the profitability of the profit center.
LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 66
Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Report Question
In a responsibility report for a profit center, controllable
fixed costs are deducted from contribution margin to
show:
a. Profit center margin
b. Controllable margin
c. Net income
d. Income from operations

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 67

Types of Responsibility Centers
Responsibility Report Answer
In a responsibility report for a profit center, controllable
fixed costs are deducted from contribution margin to
show:
a. Profit center margin
b. Answer: Controllable margin
c. Net income
d. Income from operations

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 68

DO IT! 3: Profit Center Respon. Report
Midwest Division operates as a profit center. It reports the
following for the year:

.
Budget .
Actual
Sales $1,500,000 $1,700,000
Variable costs 700,000 800,000
Controllable fixed costs 400,000 400,000
Noncontrollable fixed costs 200,000 200,000

Prepare a responsibility report for the Midwest Division for

December 31, 2020.

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 69

DO IT! 3: Profit Center Respon. Report
Solution
Prepare a responsibility report for the Midwest Division for December 31, 2020.

LO 3 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 70

Investment Centers

LEARNING OBJECTIVE 4
Evaluate performance in investment centers.

Return on investment (ROI) is the primary basis for

evaluating the performance of a manager of an
investment center.
• Shows effectiveness of manager in using assets at
his/her disposal
• Factors in ROI formula are controllable by manager

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 71

Return on Investment (ROI)
Controllable ÷ AverageOperating = Return on
Margin Assets Investment (ROI)

$1,000,000 ÷ $5,000,000 = 20%

• Operating assets include current assets and plant assets

used in operations by center and controlled by manager
• Base average operating assets on beginning and ending cost
or book values of assets

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 72

Responsibility Report
• Scope of manager’s responsibility affects content
• Investment center is an independent entity for
operating purposes
• All fixed costs are controllable by center manager
• Shows budgeted and actual ROI below controllable
margin

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 73

Responsibility Report
Responsibility report for investment center

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 74

Judgmental Factors in ROI
1. Valuation of operating assets
o Acquisition cost, book value, appraised value, or fair
value
o Each provides a reliable basis for evaluating performance

2. Margin (income) measure

o Controllable margin, income from operations, or net
income
o Only controllable margin is a valid basis for evaluating
performance of manager
LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 75
Improving ROI
Improve ROI by increasing controllable margin, and/or
reducing average operating assets.
Sales $2,000,000
Variable costs 1,100,000
Contribution margin 900,000
Controllable fixed costs 300,000
Controllable margin (a) $ 600,000
Average operating assets (b) $5,000,000
Return on investment (a) ÷ (b) 12%

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 76

Increasing Controllable Margin
Improve ROI by increasing sales
Improve ROI by increasing sales or by reducing variable
and controllable fixed costs.
1. Increase sales by 10%.
o Sales increase $200,000 and contribution margin
increases $90,000 ($200,000 × .45)
o Controllable margin increases to $690,000 ($600,000 +
$90,000)
Controllable margin $690,000
ROI = = = 13.8%
Average Operating assets $5,000,000

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 77

Increasing Controllable Margin
Improve ROI by reducing variable/fixed costs
Improve ROI by increasing sales or by reducing variable
and controllable fixed costs.
2. Decrease variable and fixed costs 10%.
o Total costs decrease $140,000 [($1,100,000 + $300,000) ×
10%]
o Controllable margin becomes $740,000.

Controllable margin $740,000

ROI = = = 14.8%
Average Operating assets $5,000,000

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 78

Reducing Average Operating Assets
• Assume that average operating assets are reduced 10% or
$500,000 ($5,000,000 × .10)
• Average operating assets become $4,500,000
• Controllable margin remains unchanged at $600,000

Controllable margin $600,000

ROI = = = 13.3%
Average Operating assets $4,500,000

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 79

Improving ROI
Question
In the formula for return on investment (ROI), the factors
for controllable margin and operating assets are,
respectively:
a. Controllable margin percentage and total operating assets
b. Controllable margin dollars and average operating assets
c. Controllable margin dollars and total assets
d. Controllable margin percentage and average operating
assets

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 80

Improving ROI
Answer
In the formula for return on investment (ROI), the factors
for controllable margin and operating assets are,
respectively:
a. Controllable margin percentage and total operating assets
b. Answer: Controllable margin dollars and average operating
assets
c. Controllable margin dollars and total assets
d. Controllable margin percentage and average operating
assets

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 81

DO IT! 4: Performance Evaluation
The service division of Metro Industries reported the following
results for 2020.
Sales $400,000
Variable costs 320,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Average operating assets 280,000

Management is considering the following independent courses of

action in 2021 in order to maximize the return on investment.
1. Reduce average operating assets by $80,000, with no change in
controllable margin.
2. Increase sales $80,000, with no change in the contribution margin
percentage.
LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 82
DO IT! 4: Performance Evaluation
Computation of controllable margin and ROI
The service division reported the following results for 2020.
Sales $400,000
Variable costs 320,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Average operating assets 280,000

a. Compute controllable margin and return on investment for 2020.

Sales $400,000
Variable costs 320,000
Contribution margin 80,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Controllable margin (a) $39,200
Average operating assets (b) $280,000
Return on investment (a) ÷ (b) 14%

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 83

DO IT! 4: Performance Evaluation
Computation of expected ROI for alternative 1
The service division reported the following results for 2020.
Sales $400,000
Variable costs 320,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Average operating assets 280,000

b. Compute expected return on investment for alternative

1.
$39,200
19.6%
$280,000  $80,000

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 84

DO IT! 4: Performance Evaluation
Computation of expected ROI for alternative 2
The service division reported the following results for 2020.
Sales $400,000
Variable costs 320,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Average operating assets 280,000

b. Compute controllable margin and expected return on investment

for alternative 2.
Sales ($400,000 + $80,000) $480,000
Variable costs ($320,000/$400,000 × $480,000) 384,000
Contribution margin 96,000
Controllable fixed costs 40,800
Controllable margin (a) $55,200
Average operating assets (b) $280,000
Return on investment (a) ÷ (b) 19.7%

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 85

Appendix 10A ROI versus Residual Income
Controllable ÷ AverageOperating = Return on
Margin Assets Investment (ROI)

$1,000,000 ÷ $5,000,000 = 20%

Illustration: Electronics Division of Pujols Company has an ROI

of 20%. Pujols is considering producing a new product, a GPS
device (Tracker) for its boats. Operating assets will increase
$2,000,000. Tracker is expected to generate an additional
$260,000 of controllable margin.

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 86

Appendix 10A ROI versus Residual Income
ROI comparison
How Tracker will effect ROI.
Without
Tracker
Tracker With Tracker
Contribution margin (a) $1,000,000 $260,000 $1,260,000
Average operating assets (b) $5,000,000 $2,000,000 $7,000,000
Return on investment [(a) ÷ (b)] 20% 13% 18%

The problem with ROI analysis is that it ignores minimum rate

of return on a operating assets.
Assuming a minimum rate of return of 10%, it should invest in
Tracker because its ROI of 13% is greater than 10%.
LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 87
Residual Income Compared to ROI
To evaluate performance using the minimum rate of return,
companies use the residual income approach.
Controllable Minimum Rate of Return
Margin  × = Residual Income
Average Operating Assets
$260,000  10% × $2,000,000 = $60,000

Without
. . .

Tracker
Tracker With Tracker
Contribution margin (a) $1,000,000 $260,000 $1,260,000
Average operating assets × 10% (b) 500,000 200,000 700,000
Residual income [(a) − (b)] $ 500,000 $ 60,000 $ 560,000

LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 88

Residual Income Weakness
To evaluate performance using the minimum rate of return,
companies use the residual income approach.
. .

Tracker SeaDog
Contribution margin (a) $260,000 $460,000
Average operating assets × 10% (b) 200,000 400,000
Residual income [(a) − (b)] $ 60,000 $ 60,000

If these two investments were evaluated using residual income,

they would be considered equal.
This ignores the fact that SeaDog required twice as many operating
assets to achieve the same level of residual income.
LO 4 Copyright ©2018 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 89