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Practical Lean Accounting: A Proven System for Measuring and Managing the Lean Enterprise
Productivity Press Search Productivity Press by Brian H. Maskell Bruce Baggaley Search Brian H. Maskell Bruce Baggaley
Customer Reviews:
Lean accounting: from concept to execution
I really enjoy reading books that make concept work in practice. This book is one of them. Not only does it give an explanation of the basic calculation, it also covers the side of sales and its translation to the internal organisation.
The Best Management Accounting Book in Years 
"Practical Lean Accounting" is the best management accounting book I've read in 20 years - maybe more. Well written and illustrated with plenty of examples and diagrams, it adds new tools to management accounting and restores the relevance of some older ones. As such I recommend it to all management accountants and students - whether or not you are involved in lean accounting itself.
The aim of the book is to "produce a roadmap for finance managers in companies seeking to transition their organisations into lean enterprises". Lean accounting is a new approach to managing a business and, as management accountants, we have a duty to be there. As the authors say "it's never too early to start dismantling the company's transaction driven control systems. They represent huge amounts of waste and cost to the organisation !".
Specifically, lean management seeks to radically restructure the organisation into Value Streams (rather than functional departments), and this requires new management accounting tools including Value Stream performance measures, Box Scores, new methods of planning and budgeting, target costing and a whole host of other tools. The book explores all these tools in detail. The introduction of "lean" tools also allows significant reduction in transactions in the company's accounting processes, including the elimination of full-absorption costing.
Lean accounting is, therefore, designed to replace "traditional" accounting techniques which encourage inefficient practices such as building inventory, and often lead to poor management decisions (using Standard costs). Traditional measures are also too complicated for operational employees to understand easily and are often too late to be useful in shopfloor decision making. Lean accounting, by contrast, is very much focused on simple visual shopfloor measures for instant decision making, coupled with management accounting tools for longer term planning.
"Practical Lean Accounting" provides a good overview of the lean management process, and excellent linkage to management accounting activities. Highly recommended.
A Guide to Lean Operations Worth Its Weight in Diamonds!
I cannot recall ever seeing a guide to putting in a new control and measurement process of any kind that is as good as this one.
Although its title suggests that it is about accounting only, the authors deal almost as much with how to manage perceptions, progress and processes in establishing lean operations to create a lean enterprise. In addition, the book is designed to allow you to apply its wisdom regardless of where you are in putting in learn manufacturing or services. You simply turn to chapter 18 to run a diagnostic to determine what you should be working on first . . . and what follows.
The book is like a finished diamond . . . each chapter exposes the beauty of another facet of lean accounting. While this creates a little redundancy, its necessary if readers are to be able to use this book by beginning at whatever stage is appropriate for them.
The book is also enhanced by a CD with templates of the formats discussed in the book.
I was particularly impressed with the in-depth continuing example that covers all of the subjects in the book. It made the concepts much easier to understand.
The writing is clear, crisp, and practical.
I have seldom seen lean manufacturing proceed unless it had strong support and direction from the accounting and financial staffs. Yet most such staffs are not yet trained in how to play those roles. With this book, they can.
A key early problem is that traditional accounting will show a REDUCTION in profits when lean manufacturing is first begin. This is because inventories will be reduced, so burden on the reduced production will be higher. That's the opposite of the economic reality, where costs are actually being reduced while inventories become smaller. Many programs are killed at that point without understanding that the effects are temporary. With this guide, you can prepare the organization to anticipate and understand these effects.
The book goes on to give you a good way to decide when various accounting steps can either be dropped or simplified as lean manufacturing reaches the stage of being properly in control of your processes.
I particularly liked the way the book describes how the financial staff can shift its focus to identifying opportunities to enhance profits and cash flow further through lean manufacturing. There's also a good process for how all of the functions should work together to make more progress in this way.
The book is also illustrated with many photographs of actual measurements and controls in place for lean manufacturing. Although the reproduction of these images is often not very good, I think you will get the idea.
Bravo for Mr. Maskell and Mr. Baggaley! They've written a classic.
As I finished the book, I began to think about how many other processes in companies would benefit from this kind of careful measurement and redesign. New product development should be a prime example. Perhaps the authors will take on another such subject in a future book. I hope they will.
A Guide to Lean Operations Worth Its Weight in Diamonds!
I cannot recall ever seeing a guide to putting in a new control andmeasurement process of any kind that is as good as this one.
Although its title suggests that it is about accounting only, the authorsdeal almost as much with how to manage perceptions, progress and processesin establishing lean operations to create a lean enterprise. In addition,the book is designed to allow you to apply its wisdom regardless of whereyou are in putting in learn manufacturing or services. You simply turn tochapter 18 to run a diagnostic to determine what you should be working onfirst . . . and what follows.
The book is like a finished diamond . . . each chapter exposes the beautyof another facet of lean accounting. While this creates a littleredundancy, its necessary if readers are to be able to use this book bybeginning at whatever stage is appropriate for them.
The book is also enhanced by a CD with templates of the formats discussedin the book.
I was particularly impressed with the in-depth continuing example thatcovers all of the subjects in the book. It made the concepts much easierto understand.
The writing is clear, crisp, and practical.
I have seldom seen lean manufacturing proceed unless it had strong supportand direction from the accounting and financial staffs. Yet most suchstaffs are not yet trained in how to play those roles. With this book,they can.
A key early problem is that traditional accounting will show a REDUCTIONin profits when lean manufacturing is first begin. This is becauseinventories will be reduced, so burden on the reduced production will behigher. That's the opposite of the economic reality, where costs areactually being reduced while inventories become smaller. Many programs arekilled at that point without understanding that the effects are temporary.With this guide, you can prepare the organization to anticipate andunderstand these effects.
The book goes on to give you a good way to decide when various accountingsteps can either be dropped or simplified as lean manufacturing reachesthe stage of being properly in control of your processes.
I particularly liked the way the book describes how the financial staffcan shift its focus to identifying opportunities to enhance profits andcash flow further through lean manufacturing. There's also a good processfor how all of the functions should work together to make more progress inthis way.
The book is also illustrated with many photographs of actual measurementsand controls in place for lean manufacturing. Although the reproduction ofthese images is often not very good, I think you will get the idea.
Bravo for Mr. Maskell and Mr. Baggaley! They've written a classic.
As I finished the book, I began to think about how many other processes incompanies would benefit from this kind of careful measurement andredesign. New product development should be a prime example. Perhaps theauthors will take on another such subject in a future book. I hope theywill.
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publisher: productivity press; number of pages: 384; publication date: 2003-12-19; isbn-10 / asin: 1563272431; isbn-13 / ean: 9781563272431; binding: paperback. book description: with a value stream approach at its core, practical lean ...
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