Federal Activity-based Costing

Over the last few years, activity-based costing has become a buzz-word in federal government circles. In fact, activity-based costing is an easy concept to understand, since it's exactly what it says: a costing approach that provides transparency in allocating overhead costs and resources directly to products or processes. Although activity-based costing has been used in the private sector for some time, federal agencies are just beginning to adopt the system, primarily due to rigorous new federal budget regulations and an increased emphasis on accountability in government. Federal administrations are learning from the private sector that as with any methodology, there are potential pitfalls, and the main one is that activity-based costing is only as good as the data it's based on. And that's where Cognos comes into the federal activity-based costing picture.

Cognos Shows Expertise in Federal Activity-based Costing

The world leader in business intelligence software, Cognos has decades of experience in making data work for public agencies the world over. As effective strategy execution becomes more imperative in every federal office and practices like activity-based costing are promoted, Cognos performance management solutions are in greater demand. Federal government authorities are recognizing that before activity-based costing can work, a fundamental business intelligence system must be in place. And they're turning to Cognos to provide the basis for a federal activity-based costing initiative that delivers accessible, actionable metrics, accurate definitions, and an underlying data framework for their programs.

Cognos Provides the Business Intelligence Framework for Federal Activity-based Costing

Cognos experts know that performing efficiently is a key consideration throughout government these days, and activity-based costing is a methodology that can help achieve this objective in federal departments. But a single technique in isolation can't bring about truly effective change without an underlying, robust business intelligence capability. Activity-based costing in the federal environment isn't magic: it needs conscientious definition of activities performed and the associated resources used; it needs time-capture libraries and cost-coefficient dictionaries; it needs the ability to query databases, simulate scenarios, and analyze information. Whether in transportation, defense, policing, or healthcare, the federal agencies succeeding with activity-based costing are those that base their initiatives on a Cognos performance management system that consolidates and structures data, provides fast, flexible reporting, and monitors vital performance indicators. With Cognos, federal agencies are using activity-based costing to deliver more efficient, effective and transparent programs, and to improve service to citizens.

Learn more about Cognos solutions for federal activity-based costing here.