ACTIVITYBASED MANAGEMENT ABM

A procedure that originated in the 1980s for analyzing the processes of a business to identify strengths and weaknesses. Specifically, activity-based management seeks out areas where a business is losing money so that those activities can be eliminated or improved to increase profitability. ABM analyzes the costs of employees, equipment, facilities, distribution, overhead and other factors in a business to determine and allocate activity costs.

Activity-based management can be applied to different types of companies, including manufacturers, service providers, non-profits, schools and government agencies, and ABM can provide cost information about any area of operations in a business. In addition to improving profitability, the results of an ABM analysis can help a company produce more accurate budgets and financial forecasts.