Cost Analysis, Control and Optimization Training

Learning Outcomes

• Apply cost classification and behaviour principles to categorise and analyse costs within an organisation.
• Analyse cost-volume-profit relationships to support decision-making and break-even analysis.
• Evaluate cost allocation methods and overhead absorption rates to ensure accurate product costing.
• Design and implement a cost control system, including budgeting and variance analysis, to monitor performance.
• Demonstrate cost optimisation techniques to identify and implement cost reduction initiatives without compromising quality.
• Evaluate the impact of cost decisions on profitability and recommend improvements.

Target Audience

This course is ideal for financial managers, cost accountants, operations managers, and business owners who are responsible for managing budgets, controlling costs, and improving financial performance.

Prerequisites

None — open enrollment

Course Outline

Practicals

Overview

Practical sessions are essential to apply cost analysis techniques to realistic business scenarios. Learners will use spreadsheet software to build cost models, perform variance analysis, and simulate optimization decisions, reinforcing theoretical concepts through hands-on exercises.

Practical Activities

• Cost Classification and CVP Analysis — Learners will classify costs from a given case study and build a CVP model in Excel to calculate break-even and target profit. (4h)
• Job Costing and Overhead Allocation — Using a job costing scenario, learners will allocate overheads using traditional and ABC methods and compare outcomes. (4h)
• Budget Preparation and Variance Analysis — Learners will prepare a flexible budget and compute variances from actual data, then analyse causes and recommend corrective actions. (4h)
• Cost Optimization Simulation — In a team-based simulation, learners will identify cost-saving opportunities, apply value analysis, and make make-or-buy decisions using provided data. (4h)

Summatives

Each delegate is assessed continuously throughout the course via daily exercises, scored practical assignments, and a final summative test at the end.

Practical Assignments — 30%

Practical assignments are observed and scored against a rubric during the practical sessions. Each delegate's practical mark is averaged into a single 100% score and contributes 30% to the final total.

Daily Exercises — 20%

Every training day ends with a multiple-choice exercise scored out of 100%. The scores from each daily exercise are averaged across the duration of the course to produce a Daily Average mark, which contributes 20% to the final total.

Final Test — 50%

On the last day a final summative test is written. It is a multiple-choice paper with multiple-answer questions: each question may have more than one correct option, and a single wrong selection on a question marks the entire question wrong — no partial credit. The final test is scored out of 100% and contributes 50% to the overall mark.

Final Total

Component	Out of	Weight
Practical Assignments (rubric-scored)	100%	30%
Daily Average (multiple choice)	100%	20%
Final Test (multi-answer multiple choice)	100%	50%
Final Total	—	100%

All marks are recorded on the AATICD LMS and visible to each learner under their account.

Certificate

How it works

• Certificates are auto-generated on the AATICD LMS as soon as the marks pass the 50% threshold.
• Each certificate is a branded PDF with the delegate's name, the course title, the unit standard ID, NQF level, credits, and the date of issue.
• You can download or print your certificate from your LMS dashboard at any time after issue — there's no reissue fee and no expiry date.
• If you scored under 50% you can sit the final test again at the next scheduled session at no extra cost.

Where to find it

Sign in to the LMS, open your dashboard, and your certificates appear under My Certificates. Each entry has a View / Download button and a print option.

Training Discounts

Group discounts apply automatically — the more delegates you enrol, the greater the saving. Discounts are calculated at 3% per 5 delegates, scaling up to 40% off for 100+ delegates.

Delegates	Discount
5	3% off
10	6% off
15	9% off
20	12% off
25	15% off
30	18% off
50	30% off
75	35% off
100	40% off

3% discount per 5 delegates, up to 40% off for 100+ delegates. Contact us for a custom group quote.