Cost Accounting and Cost Management in a Just-in-Time Environment

Just-in-Time (JIT) philosophy and methods are being adopted by many organizations. What are the important implications of JIT for cost accounting, cost management, and the role of management accountants in organizations? This paper examines these implications. The field research underlying our paper includes discussions with (a) North American, European, and Japanese organizations that have adopted JIT, and (b) public accounting/consulting firms engaged by organizations adopting JIT.