Editor's Letter
By Kathy Williams

Gaining Strategic Alignment: Making Scorecards Work
By William Fonvielle and Lawrence P. Carr, Ph.D.
When linked to its strategy, a company’s measurement system can be used as an organizational alignment tool. The balanced scorecard is particularly effective.

Better Information Through the Marriage of ABC and Traditional Standard Costing Techniques
By William W. Stammerjohan, CPA
Although many academics and some management accountants see standard costing as an outdated technique designed for smokestack industries, a marriage of activity-based costing (ABC) and traditional standard costing techniques can provide relevant information for contemporary use.

Perception is Reality: Managing Student and Parental Expectations is Critical to Increasing Accounting Enrollments
By Noah P. Barsky, CMA, CPA, Ph.D., and Anthony H. Catanach Jr., CMA, CPA, Ph.D.
A comprehensive educational program for both students and their parents is needed to combat the negative perceptions they might have about accounting as a career. Such a program needs to address the changing role of the profession, the impact of the profession’s change on accounting education, management of the student’s undergraduate learning experience, and the realistic evaluation of career options.

Distance Learning: A Beginner’s Perspective
By Clifford M. Nelson
Distance learning has both pros and cons, depending on the professor, the make-up of the students, and the technology. One professor shares his experiences and offers others advice on how to put together an effective distance learning program.