This new approach focuses on accountability for activities rather than costs to maximize systemwide, rather than individual, performance. Activities cut across functional and departmental lines, are systemwide in focus, and require a global approach to control. Essentially, this from of control admits that maximizing the efficiency of individual subunits does not necessarily lead to maximum efficiency for the system as a whole. Another significant difference exists; in the ABM operational control information system, both the characteristics of the traditional and activit-base cost management systems.