A research study submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Administration, School of Management

Research Studies Project Report (M.B.A.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2001

It has been recognized that the traditional accounting system, with a narrow focus, is no longer appropriate in the today's turbulent business environment. However, though Strategic Cost Management has been increasingly paid attention by economists, a formal adoption of concepts like Value Chain Analysis and Activity-Based Costing into enterprises is in fact not as simple as we initially thought. One of the biggest hindering forces is people' mindsets. How to change their viewpoints of managing, controlling, and operating a business has been still a great question. With Hai Phong Cement Company (HPCC) being a case study, the research attempts to analyze and identify problems and their reasons, and also opportunities for improvement. Based on the theoretical issues reviewed in Chapter 2, the study is continued in Chapters 3,4, and 5 to consider the possibility to involve these strategic concepts into organizations like HPCC, which had a long time operating under the old management mechanism. With recommendations given in Chapter 6, it is expected that a selective adoption of the strategic management approach will benefit not only HPCC but other enterprises in other industries as well.