[2] The GPK methodology has become the standard for cost accounting in Germany [2] as a "result of the modern, strong controlling culture in German corporations".
These companies have integrated their costing information systems based on ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software (e.g., SAP) and they tend to reside in industries with highly complex processes.
GPK's objective is to provide meaningful insight and analysis of accounting information that benefits internal users, such as controllers, project managers, plant managers, versus other traditional costing systems that primarily focus on analyzing the firm's profitability from an external reporting perspective complying with financial standards (i.e., IFRS/FASB), and/or regulatory bodies' demands such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) taxation agency.
[5] The origins of GPK are credited to Hans-Georg Plaut, an automotive engineer and Wolfgang Kilger, an academic, working towards the mutual goal of identifying and delivering a sustained methodology designed to correct and enhance cost accounting information.
GPK's multi-dimensional marginal view of the organization supports operational managers with the most relevant information for strategic decision-making purposes about "what products or services to offer" and at "what price to sell them".