Management Accounting

BED5 Management Accounting

Spring 2025

Autumn 2024
  • Topics

    BED5 is an intermediate course in management accounting and control that builds on knowledge from several bachelor’s level courses, including BED1 Introduction to business administration, BED2 Financial accounting and SOL3 Organisational theory. It is also related to SOL4 Strategic management.

    The course focuses on how decisions and management control systems can increase value creation in different enterprises. The course is divided into two main parts covering the following topics:

    Part 1 Costing and decision-making

    • Estimation of cost functions
    • Allocation of revenues and costs
    • Different costing methods (full cost, ABC, contribution margin, target costing)
    • Use of costing information in pricing decisions
    • Use of costing information for other types of business decisions

    Part 2 Management control systems

    • Integrated corporate governance
    • Budget control
    • Organisational structure and management controls
    • Multidimensional non-financial performance measures (balanced scorecard, quality management)
    • Productivity measurement
    • Analyses of budget variance
    • Transfer pricing
    • Financial performance measurement

  • Learning outcome

    Knowledge

    • Has thorough knowledge of how to estimate cost functions
    • Has thorough knowledge of costing systems for decision-making purposes
    • Has thorough knowledge of the different parts of a management control system, including management control system for sustainability
    • Has thorough knowledge of how productivity can be measured
    • Has knowledge of important financial and non-financial performance measures
    • Has thorough knowledge of transfer pricing systems

    Skills

    • Can estimate cost functions
    • Can design and use costing systems for decision-making purposes
    • Can design a control package
    • Can measure and evaluate productivity
    • Can design and use a transfer pricing system

    General competence

    • Can communicate the above-mentioned elements relating to knowledge and skills
    • Can apply this insight to practical problems (cases)

  • Teaching

    Teaching will primarily take place in the form of ordinary lectures on campus, supplemented by assignments for submission, supervised group assignments, and individual supervision by student assistants. 

  • Compulsory Activity

    Approved two of three assignments for submission.

  • Assessment

    Four-hour written digital school exam. 

  • Grading Scale

    Grade scale A-F.

  • Computer tools

    Excel

  • Literature

    Datar, S. M. og Rajan, M. V. (2021). Horngren's Cost Accounting - A Managerial Emphasis, Pearson.17. utgave

  • Permitted Support Material

    Calculator 

    One bilingual dictionary (Category I) 

    All in accordance with Supplementary provisions to the Regulations for Full-time Study Programmes at the Norwegian School of Economics Ch.4 Permitted support material https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/regulations/https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/regulations/ and https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/examinations/examination-support-materials/https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/examinations/examination-support-materials/  

Overview

ECTS Credits
7.5
Teaching language
Norwegian
Semester

Spring. Will be offered spring 2025.

Course responsible

Associate professor Anita Meidell, RRR (principal responsible)

Professor Trond Bjørnenak, RRR