Companies Are Free to Use the Direct, Step-Down, and Reciprocal

question 54

Essay

Companies are free to use the direct, step-down, and reciprocal allocation methods when dealing with service-department costs.
Required:
A. How does the direct method work? What is its chief limitation?
B. Is the step-down method an improvement over the direct method? Explain.
C. Which of the three methods is the most correct from a conceptual viewpoint? Why?

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Definitions:

Check

A written, dated, and signed instrument that contains an unconditional order from the drawer that directs a bank to pay a definite sum of money to a payee.

Salaries

Regular payments made to employees for their labor or service, typically expressed as an annual amount but often paid on a monthly or bi-weekly basis.

Adjusting Journal Entry

An accounting record entered at the closing of a financial period to distribute profits and losses to the correct period.

Five-Day Week

A work schedule that typically consists of five eight-hour days, totaling 40 hours, usually from Monday to Friday.