Cost accounting. A managerial emphasis

What does the word cost mean to you?
Is it the price you pay for something of value? A cash outflow?
Something that affects profitability? There are many different types
of costs, and at different times organizations put more or less
emphasis on them. When times are good companies often focus on
selling as much as they can, with costs taking a backseat. But when
times get tough, the emphasis usually shifts to costs and cutting
them, as General Motors tried to do. Unfortunately, when times
became really bad GM was unable to cut costs fast enough leading
to Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
ISBN: 978-0-13-2