Chapter 9, Problem 2PA

Profit center responsibility reporting for a service company

Red Line Railroad Inc. has three regional divisions organized as profit centers. The chief executive officer (CEO) evaluates divisional performance, using operating income as a percent of revenues. The following quarterly income and expense accounts were provided from the trial balance as of December 31:

The company operates three support departments: Shareholder Relations, Customer Support, and Legal. The Shareholder Relations Department conducts a variety of services for shareholders of the company. The Customer Support Department is the company’s point of contact for new service, complaints, and requests for repair. The department believes that the number of customer contacts is a cost driver for this work. The Legal Department provides legal services for division management. The department believes that the number of hours billed is a cost driver for this work. The following additional information has been gathered:

Instructions

1. 1. Prepare quarterly income statements showing operating income for the three divisions. Use three column headings: East, West, and Central.
2. 2. Identify the most successful division according to the profit margin. Round to the nearest whole percent.
3. 3. Provide a recommendation to the CEO for a better method for evaluating the performance of the divisions. In your recommendation, identify the major weakness of the present method.