Discussion: Overhead variances & financial goals

We have spent the last few chapters analyzing variances from the static budget. Analyzing variances from budget is important to hold managers accountable for helping a company meet its performance objectives. Speculate on ways that managers can manipulate manufacturing data such as direct labor, direct material, and overhead to meet or exceed target budgets. Understanding that these measurements help organizations meet short-term performance goals, propose at least two non-financial measures that should be part of the goals to ensure long term financial performance of a company.