Cornerstones of Decision Making

Cornerstones of Decision Making provides an excellent perspective and grasp of the conceptual, technical, and practical aspects of enterprise activity-based management (ABM) and activity-based costing (ABC). It emphasizes the ultimate aim of enterprise-wide ABM systems-helping and improving the collective decision making throughout an organization. The generalizations regarding ABM are made practical by using 14 specific case studies of implementations of ABM systems. These studies extend far beyond manufacturing; they include service, not-for-profit, and government organizations. Examples are Blue Cross, Blue Shield, DHL, GTE Supply, and CinCFleet. Many cases span not only several continents but also industry segments and market size. Some organizations are trying to skip pilot projects and move directly to full enterprise-wide rollouts of ABM. Case examples includes American Seating and John Deere Health Care, Inc. The cases include the reports and reaction of the ABM Team members and key organization executives who have valuable implementation experiences to share. A highlight of the book is the Lessons Learned section that ends each case. Each lesson provides a brief generalization that ties directly to the individual case. Of course, there are several lessons that permeate nearly all the cases. Examples include the importance of full-time cross sectional teams, training, patience, and persistence. Above all, as the book's title implies, never lose sight of your objectives. These objectives should focus on improving collective decision making by operating managers. I strongly recommend this book for anybody who wants up-to-date knowledge about both the concepts and practices of enterprise-wide ABM. Its cases vividly illustrate the problems and solutions of how to implement ABM systems that improve collective decision making.