Cost Accounting Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Management Accountants, Financial Accountants and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-A-139

Before you join: Participants should understand basic accounting terminology, including revenue, expenses, inventory, depreciation, accruals and the purpose of financial statements.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Managers rely on cost information to price products, control spending, assess profitability and make production decisions. Poor cost allocation, outdated overhead rates or incomplete variance analysis can distort product margins and lead to incorrect make-or-buy, sourcing or capacity decisions. This course develops the practical cost accounting methods needed to produce reliable cost information for manufacturing, service and project-based operations.

Participants learn how costs behave, how direct and indirect costs are assigned, and how product and service costs are calculated under job, batch, contract and process costing methods. The course covers overhead absorption, activity-based costing, cost-volume-profit analysis, standard costing, flexible budgets and variance analysis. Participants also examine marginal versus absorption costing, relevant-cost decisions, inventory valuation requirements and the structure of management cost reports.

Teaching combines concise instructor briefings with worked calculations, sector-based cases, group problem-solving and spreadsheet-style cost models. Cases may include factory production lines, maintenance departments, project contracts, logistics services and customer profitability reviews. Participants prepare and interpret cost statements, overhead allocation schedules, break-even analyses, standard cost variances and decision-support calculations. They leave with a reusable cost accounting toolkit, including templates and checklists that can be adapted to their reporting cycles.

The course suits finance professionals, operational managers and analysts who work with product costs, budgets, inventory, production performance or profitability reporting. It is especially useful for staff moving from financial accounting into management accounting responsibilities.

What you will be able to do

  • Classify direct, indirect, fixed, variable, stepped and mixed costs accurately
  • Prepare overhead allocation, apportionment and absorption rate calculations
  • Calculate unit costs using job, batch, contract and process costing methods
  • Apply activity-based costing to analyse product and customer profitability
  • Produce break-even, margin of safety and target-profit calculations
  • Construct flexible budgets and standard cost variance analyses
  • Compare marginal and absorption costing profit statements
  • Assess make-or-buy, special-order and limiting-factor decisions using relevant costs

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Calculate and explain product, service and contract costs with confidence
  • Identify cost distortions caused by unsuitable allocation and absorption methods
  • Interpret material, labour and overhead variances for management discussions
  • Support pricing, sourcing and production decisions using relevant-cost analysis
  • Build stronger evidence for progression into management accounting roles

For your organisation

  • More accurate product and service costing for pricing and margin management
  • Earlier identification of material, labour and overhead cost variances
  • Better visibility of customer, product and process profitability
  • More consistent cost reporting across finance and operational teams
  • Stronger evidence for make-or-buy, special-order and capacity decisions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can classify costs and select suitable cost objects, units and drivers.

  • Cost object, cost unit, cost centre and profit centre distinctions
  • Direct materials, direct labour and direct expenses traced to outputs
  • Classifying product and period costs under absorption costing principles
  • Fixed, variable, stepped and mixed cost behaviour patterns
  • Relevant range assumptions tested against production volume changes
  • Cost drivers selected for manufacturing and service operations

Participants can record, value and control material and labour costs.

  • Materials ledger cards reconciled using FIFO, weighted-average and standard prices
  • EOQ and reorder-level calculations linked to carrying and ordering costs
  • Normal and abnormal material losses valued and reported separately
  • Labour timekeeping, time booking and payroll allocation controls
  • Overtime premium treatment distinguished between specific jobs and general production
  • Idle-time cost assigned under normal and abnormal conditions

Participants can calculate and apply overhead absorption rates for operating departments.

  • Production overheads classified by behaviour, function and cost centre
  • Primary distribution apportioned using floor area, headcount and machine values
  • Reciprocal service department costs allocated through repeated distribution methods
  • Overhead absorption rates calculated from budgeted activity and expenditure
  • Underabsorbed and overabsorbed overheads reconciled to actual production activity
  • Machine-hour and labour-hour rates selected for appropriate production processes

Participants can prepare cost records and quotations for jobs, batches and contracts.

  • Job costing sheets record materials, labour, overheads and quoted margins
  • Batch costs accumulated and unit cost derived from batch output
  • Contract accounts recognise work certified, retention money and notional profit
  • Work-in-progress valued using completed units and equivalent cost records
  • Markup and margin calculations support quotations under job costing
  • Cost-plus pricing separates reimbursable costs, profit percentage and contractual terms

Participants can calculate process costs, losses and equivalent unit costs.

  • Process accounts track input, output, losses and transferred costs
  • Normal loss units valued using scrap proceeds and expected yield
  • Abnormal loss and abnormal gain accounts isolate controllable variances
  • Equivalent units calculated under weighted-average process costing procedures
  • FIFO process costing separates opening work from current-period costs
  • Joint-product split-off costs apportioned using sales value and physical measures
  • By-product proceeds treated as other income or process cost reduction

Participants can use activity-based costing to examine product and customer profitability.

  • Activity-based costing assigns resource costs through activities and cost drivers
  • Traditional volume-based absorption compared with multiple-driver product costs
  • Cost pools defined for setups, inspections, purchasing and material handling
  • Driver rates calculated from activity costs and practical capacity
  • Customer profitability analysis identifies service costs beyond product margins
  • ABC results interpreted before pricing, sourcing and process improvement decisions

Participants can analyse break-even points, target profits and pricing scenarios.

  • Contribution margin calculated per unit, sales mix and limiting factor
  • Break-even volume derived using fixed costs and weighted contribution
  • Margin of safety expressed in units, revenue and percentage terms
  • Target-profit sales calculated before and after tax requirements
  • Multi-product CVP analysis uses weighted average contribution assumptions
  • Profit sensitivity assessed under alternative volume, price and cost scenarios

Participants can set standards, prepare flexible budgets and investigate variances.

  • Standard material, labour and overhead costs built from operational specifications
  • Material price and usage variances reconciled to purchasing and production
  • Labour rate and efficiency variances linked to workforce drivers
  • Variable overhead expenditure and efficiency variances calculated from standards
  • Fixed overhead spending and volume variances explained against budget
  • Variance investigation thresholds distinguish significant exceptions from routine noise
  • Flexible budgets restate expected costs at actual activity levels

Participants can prepare decision-support analysis using marginal and relevant costing methods.

  • Cost statements reconcile prime cost, conversion cost and cost of sales
  • Absorption and marginal costing profits reconciled through inventory movements
  • Relevant cost analysis excludes sunk costs and unavoidable commitments
  • Make-or-buy decisions assess avoidable costs, capacity and supplier quotations
  • Special-order pricing tests incremental contribution and capacity constraints
  • Limiting-factor decisions rank products using contribution per scarce resource
  • Cost reports present variances, drivers, actions and accountable owners

Participants can strengthen cost-reporting controls and plan an applied improvement.

  • Cost-accounting control cycle links source records, reconciliations and management review
  • Inventory count discrepancies investigated through documentation, approval and segregation controls
  • IAS 2 inventory measurement requirements distinguished from internal cost reporting
  • Cost allocation policies documented for consistency, auditability and managerial use
  • Monthly close timetable coordinates production data, ledger postings and variance review
  • Application plan prioritises one cost-reporting improvement with accountable milestones

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Cost classification and behaviour analysis worksheet
  2. Overhead allocation and absorption rate template
  3. Job, batch and process costing model
  4. Activity-based costing and profitability analysis template
  5. Standard cost variance investigation checklist
  6. Relevant-cost decision analysis template

Who should attend

  • Management Accountants — need dependable methods for product costing and performance reporting
  • Financial Accountants — moving into internal reporting, budgeting or operational finance roles
  • Cost Accountants — require structured methods for allocation, absorption and variance analysis
  • Finance Analysts — support profitability analysis, pricing and operational decisions
  • Operations Managers — need to interpret cost drivers, standards and production variances
  • Project and Contract Managers — monitor job costs, work-in-progress and contract profitability

Skills and tools covered

Cost behaviour analysisOverhead absorptionProcess costingActivity-based costingVariance analysisRelevant-cost decisions

Tools and standards

IAS 2 Inventories, Activity-Based Costing, Cost-Volume-Profit Analysis, Standard Costing

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short technical briefings followed by worked cost calculations, case-based analysis, small-group discussions and facilitated review. Participants apply costing methods to realistic production, service and contract scenarios, using schedules similar to those used in monthly reporting. Simulations examine the effect of volume changes, overhead allocations, standards and pricing assumptions on reported profit. The final sessions focus on applying the methods to participants' own reporting responsibilities through a structured action plan.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand basic accounting terminology, including revenue, expenses, inventory, depreciation, accruals and the purpose of financial statements. Experience preparing budgets, analysing spreadsheets, processing invoices or reviewing operational reports is helpful. Participants should be comfortable with percentages, ratios and straightforward algebraic calculations. No prior cost accounting qualification is required, and advanced financial modelling, programming or specialist accounting software knowledge is not needed. A calculator or spreadsheet application may be useful during class activities.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should understand basic accounting terms, inventory and the purpose of financial statements. Prior cost accounting study is not required, but comfort with percentages and simple calculations is expected.

Bring a calculator and, if available, a laptop for working through spreadsheet-style calculations. Participants may also bring a non-confidential example of a costing, budget or variance-reporting issue from their workplace.

It is designed for accountants, analysts, finance business partners, cost accountants and operational managers involved in cost control or profitability reporting. It also suits professionals moving from financial accounting into management accounting work.

Financial accounting focuses on external reporting and statutory financial statements. This course focuses on internal cost measurement, cost control, product profitability, budgeting and operational decision support.

Participants can use the templates to review overhead rates, prepare cost statements, investigate variances and assess pricing or sourcing choices. The methods apply to manufacturing, services, projects, logistics and public-sector operations.

The five days provide approximately 32.5 contact hours, delivered from 08:30 to 16:30 each day. Time is divided between instruction, calculation-based cases, group analysis, discussion and application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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