There are many useful online resources regarding budgeting. The following activity investigates the results of a comprehensive budgeting study performed by a very large international accounting firm.

Address:

www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/C2D9FB96F792CFA3852572B10049C87D, or go to www.wiley.com/college/weygandt

Steps

Go to the address above, click on the link to download the full report, and then register to receive the report. (Remove the checkmark to receive future reports.)

Instructions

Scan the report to answer the following questions.

(a) What percentage of respondents report that they are “very satisfied” with their financial planning process?

(b) What are the top six key elements that companies forecast?

(c) What is the percentage of total budget time spent on each of the following budgeting activities?

(1) Data collection/consolidation

(2) Analysis

(3) Strategy/target setting

(4) Review/approval

(5) Report preparation

(d) What percentage of firms spend more than four months to complete a budget?

(e) What percentage of surveyed firms update their forecasts on a monthly basis?