ABC Data; Resource-Capacity Planning; Nonfinancial Performance Indicators Zenon Computer competes at the retail level on the basis of customer service. It has invested significant resources in its customer service department. Recently, the company has installed a traditional activity-based costing (ABC) system to provide better cost information for pricing, decision making, and customer profitability analysis. Most of the costs of running the customer service department are considered committed (i.e., short-term fixed) costs (principally, personnel and equipment costs). The budgeted cost for the upcoming period is $800,000. Activity analysis, recently conducted when the ABC system was implemented, revealed the following information:
Required
1. Based on the preceding information, calculate (to 2 decimal places) the activity cost driver (ABC) rates for each of the three activities performed by the customer service department. Assume that during the period actual cost driver activity levels are exactly as planned. Under this situation, what is the total cost allocated to each of the three activities? For each activity, what is the cost of unused (that is, idle) capacity, rounded to the nearest whole dollar? 2. Suppose that during the upcoming period, activities (i.e., cost-driver quantities) are exactly as budgeted. Suppose, too, that the practical capacity level for each of these activities is 10,000 customer orders, 500 customer complaints, and 500 credit checks. Using cost-driver rates based on the practical capacity level for each activity: (a) What is the cost assigned to each of the three activities, rounded to the nearest whole dollar? (b) What is the unused capacity for each activity (rounded to the nearest whole number)? (c) What is the cost of unused capacity for each activity, rounded to the nearest whole dollar? 3. What actions might the management of Zenon Computer take in response to the analysis conducted in response to requirement 2? 4. What nonfinancial performance indicators do you recommend Zenon Computer monitor in terms of its customer service department? In general, how are these indicators chosen? (That is, how do you justify the items you are recommending?)