Exam 14: Strategic Performance Measurement Systems

Southern Cruises Ltd, which operates in a very competitive marketplace, is considering four categories of performance measures: (i) profitability (ii) customer satisfaction (iii) efficiency and quality and (iv) innovation. The company assigns one manager to each ship in its fleet to oversee the ship's general operations. If Southern Cruises Ltd desired to adopt a balanced scorecard approach, which measures should it use in the evaluation of managers?

According to the Du Pont chart, Return on Investment (ROI) links directly to:

The balanced scorecard requires measures to 'cascade down' an organisation, this means:

Identify and discuss the four main reasons why improved non-financial performance at an operational level may not lead to improved profitability.

Traditional performance systems Indicate the limitations that may occur with traditional performance systems.

Which of the following are likely to cause some non-financial measures to be unable to be translated into financial outcomes? i. Reduced machine breakdowns ii. Increased spending on new technology iii. Improved on-time deliveries iv. Reduced marketing effort

Balanced scorecard Explain the fundamental characteristics of a balanced scorecard.

Which of the following statements most correctly completes the following sentence that identifies some of the limitations of traditional management accounting? 'Traditional management accounting focuses on .....'

Which of the following may result in failure to utilise the freed up resources flowing from improved performance?

On which of the following does a balanced scorecard approach focus on?

As customer expectations increase and stronger competition, organisations have to continually improve their performance to retain their competitive position.

Which of the following is not a limitation of a non-financial measure?

All the following are methods of comparison used in performance measurement. Which are inadequate as modern measures? i. Standard costs ii. Past periods iii. Budget targets iv. Benchmarks

The extent to which a business needs to improve to reach best practice is termed:

Which is the easiest form of benchmarking to establish?

Echo Beetle is an interior design and renovation management firm. The customer perspective of Echo Beetle's balanced scorecard contain these two measures: (1) client satisfaction rating and (2) percentage of projects completed on-time. Which of the following are the most appropriate measures on Echo Beetle's internal business process perspective?

An important concern for all companies in competitive markets is to access competitors' costs. It is clear that competitors will not willingly supply cost data and thus other sources need to be explored. Which of the following may be used to identify competitors' costs?

Which of the following statements is most correct about the selection of performance measures?

Which of the following statements about performance measures is most correct and complete?

Quality and customer satisfaction are non-financial measures that can be drivers of future financial performance.