Before the crisis most companies took a great interest in the long-term plans and investment projects focusing on strategic management to the detriment of organizing operational management system. This led to the failure of management at all levels to quickly and adequately respond to changes in the external environment. Today when the influence of external factors proves to be so serious, operational accounting comes into the first place. It is especially important for small and medium-sized industrial enterprises. How should it be organized to manage the company in real time and increase its competitiveness without heavy expenses? The article is devoted to these problems.