The focus of this study was to determine the impact of activity-based costing (ABC) on organizational performance. ABC can support the strategic management process and provide significant benefit to organizations. Empirical research has provided mixed results of ABC success, which has been the center of controversy since the 1980s. This examination utilized the contingency theory as a theoretical basis for the study. The researcher expected to find that ABC organizations succeed or fail to improve performance due to how well they fit their strategies, structures, and managerial accounting practices to the complex business environment. This study addressed the fundamental question does ABC improve organizational performance? The study found that management accounting practices could only significantly predict organizational performance, as measured by market price, EPS, and asset turnover. The results indicated that ABC organizations have higher asset turnover than non-ABC organizations. However, non-ABC organizations have higher market price and EPS than ABC organizations. The findings indicated no statistically significant differences in operating performance when either ABC or non-ABC accounting practices are used with a low-cost strategy. Finally, the results found no statistically significant differences in operating performance when ABC organizations use a strategy other than a low-cost strategy.
| Date of Award | Oct 26 2009 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Supervisor | Howard Lawrence (Supervisor), Judy Ramage (Advisor) & Tom Griffin (Advisor) |
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