Cost Center Practices in Germany and the United States: Impact of Country Differences on Managerial Accounting Practices
Abstract
As business becomes increasingly global, it is important for managers to appreciate that practices that work well in one country may not work as well in other countries. This article compares cost center practices under Grenzplankostenrechnung (GPK), a common approach to cost accounting in Germany, and typical cost center practices in the United States. Differences between Germany and the United States on Hofstede’s uncertainty avoidance dimension and in workforce and management education provide possible explanations for differences in the responsibility assigned to cost center managers between Germany and the United States. Differences in cost center practices concerning classification of costs, measures to use when considering changes in costs, and the size and scope of the cost center between Germany and the United States all support these differences in cost center manager responsibility.
Keywords
Citation
Portz, K. and Lere, J.C. (2010), "Cost Center Practices in Germany and the United States: Impact of Country Differences on Managerial Accounting Practices", American Journal of Business, Vol. 25 No. 1, pp. 45-52. https://doi.org/10.1108/19355181201000004
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
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