Cost management is Key to Indian Competitive Advantage

At Centre of E- Commerce -IMS Noida, Experts Discuss Strategic Cost Management as Key to Managerial Success

Management Development Programme discussed strategies on cost management to devise better managerial decisions and business strategies to remain cost effective

Noida, 19 March 2016: Leading academics, industry insiders and experts in the field of management came together at leading management institute IMS Noida to discuss the latest issues afflicting the industry and solutions towards better cost management strategies that can keep organizations competitive and profitable.

The three-day periodic Management Development Programme organized by IMS Noida had experts, highlight the importance of striking a balance between cost and quality. The event primarily focused on Strategic Cost Management, a crucial subject in management studies that pertains to the economics of reducing costs without compromising on quality and delivery. The second day of the programme started with a recapitulation of the management cases discussed on activity based costing and cost volume profit analysis of the first day. The morning session thereafter began with the discussion on challenges faced by organization on the financial front like transfer price issues, generating profit centres and various aspects of management control systems and performance related issues. Exhaustive cases relating to these aspects were taken up by Professor Rajendra Patel, former World Bank expert and faculty at IIM Ahmedabad. The participants were enriched with one to one discussion on various aspects of financial controls they are currently practicing in their respective organizations.

While the program discussed new perspectives on methods and techniques for appropriate cost planning, importance of managing costs and aligning them with the business strategy of an entity, it also highlighted the importance of improving management practices for long term growth or organizations.

“We had very healthy discussions among management students, experts and industry insiders into the key challenges of running organizations. Through such programs, the students who are themselves on the threshold of entering the industry get a close understanding of the constantly evolving challenges they would face as management executives. Strategic Cost Management is one of the most relevant aspects of management studies today. Cost effectiveness is the key to competitiveness in a highly connected world like ours. Hence, there is greater need today to recognize different costing systems and strategies and devise better managerial decisions and business strategies to constantly remain cost effective. As a discipline, management studies needs to constantly evolve itself to include in its paradigm the changing needs of the time, which keep throwing up new challenges into the discipline,” said Dr KJS Anand, Executive Director, IMS Noida.

Professor Rajendra Patel, shared interesting accounts and experiences as the key speaker. The participants were also introduced to basics such as costing terminology, cost objects, cost drivers, conventional method of indirect cost allocation and others he also discussed broader aspect such Management Control & Organizational Performance, Performance Measurement – Balanced Scorecard – Beyond Financial Numbers and other in detail.

“The event turned out to be really knowledgeable, thanks to the valuable insights by Prof Rajendra Patel. His experience and knowledge undoubtedly helped us to get a picture of need and requirements in the management studies that would further help us to create good managers and entrepreneurs. His experience with the industry as well as an academic gives him a deep insight into the world of business and entrepreneurial challenges. We are thankful to Prof Patel for his precious time and participation,” added Dr. Debarshi Mukherjee, Associate Dean Management , IMS Noida.