Strategic Cost Reduction

For many businesses, Cost Reduction has been a priority for some time. As the Recession deepens and the Credit Crunch bites, however, the urgency has intensified. In a crisis, companies may need to cut many costs to restore their corporate health. Unfortunately, cost cutting is sometimes undertaken carelessly, and may cut a corporate artery; or is performed so persistently that it can lead to a corporate 'death by a thousand cuts'. At other times, cost cutting occurs randomly, meaning that the savings made are only temporary and that the costs re-appear. Cost reduction is often omitted from management books, or is dealt with in a fragmented, incomplete way. Written by a chartered accountant and an engineer, this new book takes a holistic approach to the subject, and is an original practitioners' guide on how to reduce costs in a way which does not ultimately destroy the business. This involves integrating the experience of leading practitioners with the available strategic models and theories. Strategic Cost Reduction is aimed at any person who is in a position to influence the strategy of the business, irrespective of its size, including directors, business unit managers and owner-managers, together with their advisors, such as chartered accountants. While it is written from an Irish perspective, many of the examples given are from multinationals operating in a global context, and so the book has wider relevance. While some success may result from focussing on the more obvious and immediate cost reduction targets, radical cost reduction is unlikely to be achieved by a draconian policy of 'slash and burn.' The ground-breaking strategic perspective described in this book will be far more productive. By careful planning and skilful implementation, it should be possible for companies to avoid the pitfalls and achieve lasting success. Outline of the Book Strategic Cost Reduction is in four parts. Part 1 deals with budgeting and other traditional approaches to cost reduction, including the various functional departments, to assess the effectiveness of existing cost reduction systems. It continues with the measurement of the problem, the setting of cost reduction targets and how to approach an emergency. Part 2 places cost reduction in a wider framework of strategy and values, considering different types of strategies and the critical functional safeguards, which should not be overlooked. It then looks at the wider strategic drivers of cost and approaches the issue by using the value chain, rather than traditional accounting information, which may not identify the root causes of the problem. Finally it delves into the issue of economies and diseconomies of scale. Part 3 outlines the modern operational tools used to analyse and manage costs by world class companies, such as Toyota and Motorola. It discusses 'world class' and 'lean' manufacturing, six sigma and business process reengineering. This is followed by the challenges of benchmarking and outsourcing. It provides a number of case studies and offers practical tips for implementation, as well as outlining the options available. Part 4 deals with issues of implementation and monitoring. It reviews issues around the structuring and rewarding the labour force. It goes on to establish the critical links with the budgeting and costing system, the role and costs of the head office and how quality and values can be monitored through a balanced scorecard. It finishes with a summary of how to plan the journey and get started. Each concise chapter gives numerous examples and illustrations, and each one ends with a checklist of thoughts for the practising manager. The contents of the text are set out below:

About the Author :
Tim McCormick Tim McCormick is a chartered accountant who has worked in the field of financial training since 1990, initially with the Irish Management Institute and since 2004 on an independent basis. He is a non-executive director of a hedge fund. Prior to this he spent 17 years in investment banking. He obtained an MBA from INSEAD in France, qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG in London and graduated with a primary degree in Economics from Trinity College Dublin. Dermot Duff Dermot Duff is SME Programme Director at the Irish Management Institute and specialises in the strategic development of entrepreneurial organisations. He is a director of a number of leading companies. His current research focuses on developing lean organisations in both the private and public sectors, and on strategy execution. Dermot was previously Transformation Manager with Digital, Engineering Manager with Alcatel in Holland, Engineering Supervisor with Storage Technology, CPT and HiTech. He began his career as an Oil Exploration Engineer in Africa & the Middle East, and holds a B.E. (Eng) from University College Dublin and a M.Sc. (Mngt) from Trinity College Dublin.