Management Accounting and Important Elements Making Quick Service

Question: Discuss about the Management Accounting and Important Elements . Answer: Need for information In order to take key decisions, information needs to be collected for the use of the management and other senior staff. These decisions could be related to the introduction of any new variety or variant, pricing decisions, staffing decisions and decisions regarding processes in order to improve the quality. In order to make these decisions, it is imperative that accurate, reliable, relevant information must be made available to the relevant decision makers within the deadline. This enables that key business decisions are taken with clarity and rationale rather than relying on intuition and unreliable sources (Coomb, et. al., 2005). Types of Information and collection The information could be divided into two major types namely financial and non-financial. The financial information typically deals with financial aspects such as pricing, profit margin along with various expenses and the returns generated on the business. However, the non-financial information would typically deal with information that is non-monetary typically to do with the customer experience, issues faced along with quality of service delivered by the staff, sufficiency of staffing and ordering of supplies (Coomb, et. al., 2005). Collection of non-financial information One potential source of non- financial information is through customer surveys which not only provide feedback about the current services but also indicate the potential avenues of dissatisfaction in relation to the existing practices. Based on the feedback from the customers, the management along with the senior staff may make relevant decisions (Bhosle, 2015). The company has set up a dedicated web link for continuous collection of consumers from all across Australia which then is sent to the relevant franchise or store so that if any corrective measures (KFC, nd). This is a potent means of information especially from the consumer perspective. Further, non-financial information about the company could also be obtained through various online platforms where the customers tend to regularly share their experiences and particularly list down any inconvenience which they might have faced. Some relevant non-financial information may also be obtained through industry reports which tend to divulge information on the customer satisfaction, market shares and other non-financial indicators of performance for the firms based in this sector (Bhosle, 2015). Collection of financial information A key source of financial information tends to be management information systems in relation to the operations of the restaurant. These particular systems tend to record the various aspects of financial performance of the underlying restaurant or company as the case may be. Further, this information can then be used for business decision making particularly by focusing on aspects where the company is not performing (Sandhu, 2011). Management Accounting Techniques Management accounting plays a critical role in providing the information that is required by the management to take various decisions in order to maximize the sales and minimize the underlying costs involved (Coomb, et. al., 2005). One of the most crucial aspects with regards to management accounting is the analysis of sales trends. This is critical since it enables the store manager to track the performance of the given store. Based on the underlying trends, the store may need to introduce various alterations in the pricing structure in order to enhance the overall footfalls and the resulting revenues. Suitable promotional measures may be introduced to boost sales on particular days when the business usually remains low. Also, the store may look at rationalizing the processes in accordance with the sales trend of the various products. The processes need to be customized so as to ensure lesser time consumption in the preparation and delivery of frequently ordered items rather than the one which would be required only infrequently (Scarlett, 2005). Further, trends about demand of various products can also be obtained which can enable the store manager to carry out the requisite planning in relation to operational decisions such as staff and inventory planning. This is a critical aspect as manpower costs are a key cost for the business. Also, considering the perishable nature of the supplies and limited storage space, the restaurant manager needs to rationalize orders whereby the availability of stock is also not an issue but at the same time the ordering and carrying costs along with wastage are reduced. Another key aspect of management accounting is the customer feedback regarding the store which may have been collected through a host of techniques. Of particular importance are the customer complaints if any which need to be dealt with on priority. By taking the feedback of the customers into perspective, key store decisions need to be made so as to ensure a better experience for the customers. Performance Management The existing literature tends to support that performance based incentives go a long way in enhancing the motivation of the employees and thereby enhances the overall hard work given by the staff. It is pivotal to note that motivation may be extrinsic or intrinsic. While intrinsic motivation is essentially dependent on the underlying employee, but the organization needs to take definitive measures in order to extrinsically motivate the employees through rewards and promotions (Scarlett, 2005). This ensures that employee turnover remains low and also the employee loyalty is maintained. KFC Australia tends to provide the employees with a rewarding career and as a result tend to spend on the development through training (KFC, 2017). Further, considering that the company employees host of hourly employees, hence the reliance is primarily on rewarding through non-monetary rewards. Besides, there are limited opportunities for rewards for the hourly workers, however the employees on payroll tend to have better opportunities in this regard (Jones, 2010). The performance at work is recognized and the company provides rewards in the form of gift coupons (Nelson, 2012. p.50). Usually cash based bonuses are not given to the employees and additional rewards include free meals and higher % discount on the meals. The company considers these imperative in order to retain the employees which is critical in the fast food industry (Jones, 2010). References Bhosle, O. (2015), 5 important elements making quick service restaurant successful, Customer 360, [Online] Available at https://customer360.co/customer-experience/5-important-elements-making-quick-service-restaurant-successful/ [Accessed April 17, 2017] Coombs, H., Hobbs, D., and Jenkins, E. (2005), Management Accounting: Principle and Application. 4th edn., Brisbane: SAGE Jones, B. (2010). KFC keeps staff recognition and bonuses on the menu, [Online] Available at https://www.employeebenefits.co.uk/issues/june-2010/kfc-keeps-staff-recognition-and-bonuses-on-the-menu/ [Accessed April 17, 2017] KFC (2017), Message from Rob Phipps, Chief People Officer, [Online] Available at https://csr.kfc.com.au/people.html [Accessed April 17, 2017] KFC (n.d.), Guest Experience Survey, [Online] Available at https://u.kfcvisit.com/aus?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 [Accessed April 17, 2017] Nelson, B. (2012), 1501 Ways to Reward Employees, 3rd edn., New York: Workman Publishing Sandhu, J. (2011), Management Information System, [Online] Available at https://jeevan-sandhu.blogspot.in/2011/08/kentucky-fried-chicken.html [Accessed April 17, 2017] Scarlett, R. (2005), Management Accounting- Performance Evaluation. 5th edn., Sydney: Elsevier