15. Performing a variance analysis for a production process, the following data is provided:

Cost Element	Actual Cost ($)	Standard Cost ($)
Direct Materials	12,000	10,000
Direct Labor	8,500	8,000
Variable Overhead	5,200	5,000
Fixed Overhead	10,000	9,000

Your requirements are as follows:

• Calculate the total variance for each cost element.
• Analyze the variances into price and efficiency components.
• Present the variance analysis results in a table format.
• Provide a paragraph discussing potential reasons for each variance.
• Discuss strategies for variance management.
• Include a bullet list of recommendations for improving cost performance.