Integrating Activity-Based Costing (ABC) and Theory of Constraint (TOC) for Improved and Sustained Cost Management

Implementing effective cost management approaches has recently gained momentum due to intense competition and increasing customer demands. Moreover, effective cost management approaches have contributed to firms’ competitive advantage in relation to cost leadership strategy. Consequently, firms have implemented contemporary cost management systems, such as activity-based management, business process re-engineering, life-cycle costing, target costing, and theory of constraint (TOC), to enable them to become low-cost producers and compete effectively and sustain their performance. Furthermore, focusing on cost management to improve profitability has led to the integration of activity-based costing (ABC) and TOC. Therefore, the aim of this study is to review literature and discuss how integration of ABC and TOC can result in improved and sustained cost management. While these methods have different approaches in addressing cost management, treating them as complementary cost management approaches can result in improved cost management due to improved product costing, improved cost reporting, improved product-mix decisions, and improved cycle-time management. Improvement in cost management will then result in sustained cost management. Sustained cost management is further enhanced with the investment in information technology that supports cross-functional decision making to continue creating customer and shareholder value to remain competitive in the market.