What differentiates management accounting from financial accounting?

The difference is as follows: Management Accounting is primarily concerned with the collection, analysis and utilisation of internal data for the purposes of managerial decision making. These decisions are centred around ensuring the objectives of the business (usually in the form of wealth creation) are achieved to the maximum effect. Financial Accounting, on the other hand, is primarily focused around providing reports that meet the information needs of a range of users and stakeholders - largely outside the business itself. The nature of reporting is mainly quantitative - as opposed to the mixture of qualitative/quantitative information used in Management Accounting - and relies on reporting objective reliable data in relation to business performance.