Target Costing: A management control tool and a performance driver

Abstract

A company, while seeking to make a profit, operates within an environment characterized by fierce competition and rapid technological change. Its objective is to capture market share while meeting the expectations of its customers. To achieve this and maintain its market share, the company must implement various management control methods.

The aim of this paper is to provide an in-depth overview of one of the contemporary management control tools, namely the Target Costing method, and to examine its impact on overall business performance. With this in mind, for the company to be able to meet the needs of its customers while maintaining its profit margins at competitive levels, it must undertake cost reduction even before the product is industrialized.

Thus, to better understand our article, we conducted an in-depth literature review to understand the importance of the Target Costing method in improving business performance, as well as an analytical approach.

To achieve our objective, we chose to undertake an in-depth literature review. However, we noticed a lack of documentation on the innovation of this method and its influence on performance and, by extension, on the sustainability of companies. To clarify this relationship, we conducted a literature review that looks at the importance of this tool in improving performance, using an analytical approach aimed at increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the company.

It should be noted that Target Costing offers companies the opportunity to boost their performance by reducing costs, minimizing waste, improving quality, strengthening their competitiveness, adopting a proactive approach to cost management, and aligning the objectives of the different departments of the company with the aim of remaining competitive in the face of technological advances.

This study is expressed through academic and managerial contributions. However, it raises some limitations corresponding to the shortage of articles and publications in the Moroccan context.

Keywords: Management control, target cost, Coporate performance, Moroccan industrial companies, Cost reduction.

Classification JEL : D24 – L00 – L25 – O14

Paper type : Theoretical research