President Dwight Eisenhower and President Abraham Lincoln share something unusual in common. Neither had the support of family or friends when they ran for president. No one in Lincoln’s family voted for him. And no one in Eisenhower’s home town of Denison, Texas voted for him. Though both lacked the moral support of family and...

Does your cost system need to be precise? Probably not. Does it need to be accurate. Yes! What’s the difference? The four pictures above begin to provide an answer. Accurate costs are random but near the target. For example, I have a refrigerator with a thermostat that keeps it a constant 38.0F. I test it with...

Are you already bored with Activity Based Costing? Have you run out of useful ideas for your activity accounting database? Here are some ideas that may get you out of your rut and back on the road to continuous improvement.  Hold monthly ABM Show & Tell staff meetings. Select employees each month to discuss their...

“The only thing worse than training employees and having them leave is not training employees and having them stay.” This thought provoking statement by Zig Ziglar hits at the heart why many ABM implementations fall short of expectations. Many ABM champions spend all their project budget on software and consultants, leaving little or no resources...

Napoleon once said “When custom and reason are at odds, custom always wins out.” Apparently Napoleon had a lot in common with today’s ABC champions. Over 90% of ABC Pilot Projects successfully demonstrate the principles and benefits of Activity Based Costing. Yet employees simply go back to business as usual right after the final project...

To get a gigantic movement, first bombard a small group with the vision. The first atomic bomb was mostly TNT packed around a tiny bit of U235. The TNT imploded into the U235 causing an “atomic reaction” which then exploded outward. The atomic bomb is a model for creating a large and lasting change in...

If you were on trial for doing Activity Based Management, would they find enough evidence to convict you? Many people are familiar with ABM and ABC.  But “knowing about ABM” is not the same as “knowing ABM”.   Reading a book on marriage is not the same as spending time with one’s spouse. Knowing someone’s phone number...

In his highly acclaimed book Halftime, Bob Buford says that most successful men and women go through a soul-searching period at mid-life. They begin to ask the question that singer Peggy Lee made famous: “Is that all there is?” Most of us spend the first half of our life focused on success. Achieving a successful career, a...

How strong is your marriage?
This thought provoking question was the focus of an article in the April 19, 1999 issue of NEWSWEEK. The magazine published a quiz prepared by John Gottman that tests the strength of a marriage. To take the test, you respond “True” or “False” to each of the following ten statements: I...

Imagine how difficult it must have been to sell the first telephone.  The sales pitch might have gone something like this: Alexander Graham Bell:  “Do you want to buy a telephone?” First Customer:  “What’s a telephone?” Alexander Graham Bell: 
“It’s a thing that you can use to call other people.” First Customer:  “Does anyone else own...