Interactive workbook: Go back over this again - Exercise 14.2 – An example of budgeting objectives and the budgeting process in everyday life - Introduction to Accounting 2e Student Resources

Budgeting

This example continues the topic from pages 510-511 (Budget objectives and the budgeting process) in the book.

Example

Your tutor has given your year group an assignment. The assignment is to be completed by groups of 4 students working together. Marks will be awarded to each group on the basis of the work submitted and the proven ability of group members to work together effectively. There are 8 tasks in the assignment and the assignment is due for submission in 4 weeks’ time.

The objectives of budgeting and the budgeting process will apply to this assignment. Failure to adhere to these objectives and processes will result in a poor piece of work and a low mark. It is certainly no good hoping that everything will just come together in 4 weeks’ time, there must be a detailed plan for using the time most effectively to ensure that all 4 group members are working towards the same goal, that all the tasks are completed to schedule and that the assignment is submitted by the deadline. So how do the objectives of budgeting and the budgeting process apply to your assignment?

Planning

Your group is being forced to plan and look ahead to map out the next four weeks to ensure that the deadline is met
Problems can be anticipated: one member of the group has a sporting commitment each week, another has to go home in a couple of weeks at the weekend for a family event, there is a mutual friend’s birthday party in three weeks’ time and additional time will need to be built in for the inevitable illnesses that prevent team members working to their full capacity
The group will have to consider other assignments that are also due for hand in within the four week period to ensure that these, too, are completed effectively and on time

Communication

At the first team meeting, tasks will be shared out between team members and deadlines communicated clearly to all the group members so that each group member knows what they are expected to do and by what date they are expected to do it
All group members have a copy of the assignment, so they are aware of what is required

Coordination and Integration

All group members agree on the tasks they will take on
Everyone agrees the timetable for completion of each task
Tasks that should be completed first before further progress can be made are prioritized

Control

Your group will hold regular meetings or text each other regularly to review progress and to consider what has been achieved so far and what still needs to be done
Your time plan will be amended to cope with unforeseen delays or unexpected difficulties in tracking down information (for example, the library has lost the book you are looking for and there is no online copy)
Where there is a shortage of data or the research lacks depth, more research will need to be undertaken and time allocated to this
If necessary, weekend social plans will have to be cancelled to give you more time to complete the required tasks
Where you are well ahead of the time budget, then you can move forward more quickly to maintain the momentum to give yourselves more time in which to improve your assignment and submit a piece of work that is better than you expected it to be

Responsibility

One individual team member on their own will not be able to complete all 8 tasks in the assignment effectively in the 4 weeks allowed
Therefore, everyone takes responsibility for their part of the assignment
A large task is broken down into smaller parts and responsibility assigned for completing those smaller parts to individual group members
Each group member is responsible for hitting their weekly targets on progress
If one member of the group performs badly then the group as a whole will suffer, so peer pressure keeps the team up to speed and on task

Motivation

Everyone in the group is motivated to do well to gain a good mark
Small tasks motivate each group member to do well and to contribute to the common good
The reward is a high mark for a well thought out, logically presented, thoroughly researched, integrated piece of work that shows the ability of the group to work together in a coordinated and cooperative fashion