Lecture 1
Management accountants are trusted to guide critical business decisions and drive strong business
performance. They combine financial expertise and business acumen to achieve sustainable success. They
understand how the different parts of the business need to come together.
Management accountants identify, measure, record, analyze, prepare, interpret, and communicate
information for managers so they make good operational and strategic decisions. These decisions relate to
- Sales management (pricing, advertising)
- Production management (investments in operating assets, investment in productivity)
- Value chain management (internal allocation of resources between activities, outsourcing,
processing further)
Management accountant’s roles:
- Scorekeeper (routine tasks, collects and records financial information)
- Watchdog (designs internal control mechanisms and analyzes budget variances)
- Business partners (support and enhance managerial decision-making processes)
On exam: list of tasks, we have to say if it is more a scorekeeper, watchdog, or business partner task.
Not questions on the exam like; what is the definition of management accounting, but more questions
about; how do you think ……. Is valid and why.
First job: IT controller reporting = more of a scorekeeper task (first three sentences). Also the business
partner (last sentence).
Second job: The first one is watchdog and scorekeeper, the rest of the sentences are business partner tasks.
Third job: Financial controller (remote) = first and seventh is scorekeeper, 2,3,4 & 8 are watchdog.
The CGMA Competency Framework helps management accountants
and their employers understand the knowledge requirements and
access the skills needed for both current and desired roles.
Difference between financial accounting and management
accounting
Management accountants are trusted to guide critical business decisions and drive strong business
performance. They combine financial expertise and business acumen to achieve sustainable success. They
understand how the different parts of the business need to come together.
Management accountants identify, measure, record, analyze, prepare, interpret, and communicate
information for managers so they make good operational and strategic decisions. These decisions relate to
- Sales management (pricing, advertising)
- Production management (investments in operating assets, investment in productivity)
- Value chain management (internal allocation of resources between activities, outsourcing,
processing further)
Management accountant’s roles:
- Scorekeeper (routine tasks, collects and records financial information)
- Watchdog (designs internal control mechanisms and analyzes budget variances)
- Business partners (support and enhance managerial decision-making processes)
On exam: list of tasks, we have to say if it is more a scorekeeper, watchdog, or business partner task.
Not questions on the exam like; what is the definition of management accounting, but more questions
about; how do you think ……. Is valid and why.
First job: IT controller reporting = more of a scorekeeper task (first three sentences). Also the business
partner (last sentence).
Second job: The first one is watchdog and scorekeeper, the rest of the sentences are business partner tasks.
Third job: Financial controller (remote) = first and seventh is scorekeeper, 2,3,4 & 8 are watchdog.
The CGMA Competency Framework helps management accountants
and their employers understand the knowledge requirements and
access the skills needed for both current and desired roles.
Difference between financial accounting and management
accounting
