Concept of Distance Learning in Modern Education System

Introduction Distance learning is defined as a program or course offered by a university or school that provides educational opportunities and is to be completed remotely.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Concept of Distance Learning in Modern Education System specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Other terms defining distance learning include online learning, E-learning and distance education. In the modern world, majority of distant learning are conducted online by accessing a computer equipped with the internet services. In spite of this distance learning being a broad term, it also involves traditional correspondence courses that are completed through the mail (wiseGEEK, 2010). Factors affecting distance learning Accessibility: Technology is a vital element in distant learning. The accessibility of the distance learning courses mainly depend on the awareness of the instructor to the accessibility issues and how the instructor can best handle the course with consideration of accessibility (Cook and Harniss, 2007). Difficulties in accessibility arise when the distance learning concerns people with disabilities e.g. the blind. Moreover, physical accessibility is successfully tackled by distance learning where one does not need to go to class for a lecture (college guide, 2010). Opportunities: Opportunities unveiled by the distance learning are numerous. Apart from completing 100% of the course via the internet, one can attain knowledge and skills for field choices from the distance learning due to constant updating of the programs (Lloyd, 2007). in addition, opportunities provided by distance learning are not equal after all mainly due to lack of consideration of the disabled people by the educational institutions while selecting features of courseware packages that will suit their instructors and students (Cook and Harniss, 2007). Barriers: Tipton (2007) cites Language and time differences as t he main barriers, which affect the distance learning. This is because the internet has made the world a global neighborhood. Advantages of distance learning There are a number of merits associated with distance learning. First, there is no commuting, which means that the distance learning saves time and resources that can otherwise be put into better use. Second, in distance learning majority of the classes are asynchronous; that means it is not compulsory for one to attend a lecture at a stipulated time (college guide, 2010). Third, there is self-paced learning whereby, fast and slow learners are both considered in distance learning, where one can study at a convenient pace (college guide, 2010). Disadvantages of distance learning Despite gaining popularity in modern times, distance learning is constrained the following factors among others. First, the program is relatively complex and costly whereby, the program is facilitated by modern technical facilities, which are usually cost ly (college guide, 2010).Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Second, there is social isolation whereby, majority of the students undertake the distance learning individually, thus making them feel isolated from the rest of the society (college guide, 2010). The gap between â€Å"Haves† and â€Å"have nots† In one way or the other, distance learning has contributed to increasing the gap between the â€Å"haves† and â€Å"have nots†. The high cost involved in enrolling and undertaking the distance learning discriminates the â€Å"have nots† from enrolling in the distance learning courses. In addition to this, the modern equipments used in distance learning may not be affordable to all, thus increasing the gap. Conclusion Despite the barriers and the disadvantages associated with distance learning, the world has embraced distance learning as one of the maj or component in the modern education system. Advancement of technology has also aided in advancing distance learning globally. References Cook, D., Harniss, M. (2007). Accessibility and distance learning: An overview. Web. College guide. (2010). Advantage and disadvantage of distance learning. Web. Lloyd, B. C. (2007). Distance learning. Web. Tipton, J. (2007). What’s The Difference between Distance Learning and American Public Schools? Web.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Concept of Distance Learning in Modern Education System specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More WiseGEEK. (2010). What is distance learning. Web. This essay on Concept of Distance Learning in Modern Education System was written and submitted by user Gael Leonard to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Description of Manifest Destiny

Description of Manifest Destiny Manifest DestinyThe idea of Manifest Destiny was based on the idea that America had a divine providence. It had a future that was destined by God to expand its borders, with no limit to area or country. All the traveling and expansion were part of the spirit of Manifest Destiny, a belief it was God's will for the white man to expand and civilize the North American Continent. A belief that is still arising in our day and age.The years 1840 to 1890 were a period of great growth for the United States. It was during this time period that the United states came to the conclusion that it had a manifest destiny, that it was commanded by god to someday occupy the entire North American continent. The Americans felt that the United States had the right to whatever amount of territory it chose to, and in doing this the United States was actually doing a favor for the land it seized, by introducing it to the highly advanced culture and way of life of Americans.This image depicts the Territorial acquisitions of...In doing this the Americans seized Texas. This added a great amount of land to the United States, but more was to follow. The Oregon Territory became a part of the United States in 1846, followed by the Mexican Cession in 1848 and the Gadsden Purchase in 1853( Encarta "History of USA"). At this point the United States had accomplished its manifest destiny, it reached from east to west, from sea to shining sea. Now that the lands it so desired were finally there, the United States faced a new problem, how to get its people to settle these lands so they would actually be worth having. Realistically, it is great to have a lot of land, but if the land is...

Food, GM foods, Monsanto (with China maybe) Essay

Food, GM foods, Monsanto (with China maybe) - Essay Example It also describes that how the overall process is conducted. The following write up describes the different pros and cons of genetically engineered food products along with the technologies used for the formation of the same. We also witness that how the pioneer company of genetically modified food production called Monsanto effects the market globally though the consequences are not always positive (Marie- Monique Robin in The World According to Monsanto, p.46). It will be noted that the difference in the response of the developed and the developing countries towards these advancements by mainly focusing on US, which provides the largest market for GM food products, and China, which is still a developed country. It will also be studied that the arrival and establishment of Monsanto in China and the overall responses of the country to Monsanto and all the other multinational companies as such (Michael Moss in The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food, p.129). Other books consu lted for this proposal include Getting Real About the High Price of Cheap Food, Story of Stuff, Food essays and Food, Inc. Genetic Engineering : Pros and Cons There are certain limitations to traditional breeding processes. It takes almost a decade to produce plant with the desired traits. Genetic engineering makes this process much faster as well as effective in the most precise way possible. This is done by separating the desired gene from the plant and inserting it directly into the DNA of the other plant by different electrical and chemical processes (John L Seitz, p.49). Genetic modification has broken the natural existing boundaries between different species. For example a frog and a mango can never breed naturally. But genetic modification can make this possible by inserting the genes of frog into the DNA of mango plant creating a new organism. Genetic modification is not only possible for plants and animals but also for humans (Michael Moss, p.125). Many biotechnology compan ies suggest that genetic engineering is the modification of same breeding process which has been used by the farmers since thousands of years. Plants and animals of different species have crossbred to create new species signifying that gene manipulation is completely natural. The only difference is that nature takes millions of years where as genetics can accomplish the same results in months. Long term effects of environment on genetically modified organisms are yet to be studied deeply (Michael Pollan, p.38). It is claimed that genetically modified crops provide a higher yield to the farmers in comparison to the conventional crop. GM crops are more economical as well. Genetic modification in the crops increases their resistance reducing the expense on herbicides and consequently decreasing the cost per acre (Francis Harris, p.165). However, farmers are required to purchase genetically modified seeds each year due to technology agreements adding to their expenses. Some critics clai m that GM crops might cause damage to small scale farmers as they will become indentured to agribusiness companies (Michael Moss, p.129). As a result cost per acre will also increase along with the yield. There are no issues regarding the safety of the food items already present in the market. But this does not mean that they are completely safe. Biotechnology advocates that there are no reasons for concern when

Governance regulations and ethics paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Governance regulations and ethics paper - Essay Example The financial crisis was considered the worst global crisis since the great economic depression. Many economists also perceived the financial crash as the worst in the economic history. The film under study is based on the most extensive research and exhaustive interviews with key financial insiders, politicians and journalists. Many academicians from different fields of knowledge were also included in the research to give their views on the subject. The film analyzed is based on the rise of a rogue industry, which has corrupted politicians, professionals, academicians, and regulators. The film unearths the 2008 global financial crisis that shook the entire global economy since the effects of this depression was felt either directly or indirectly in every sector of the economy. Arguably, the film portrays the financial crisis as a result of poor financial planning, forecasting and greed among some powerful individuals to amass wealth and enrich themselves. In fact, it is through such corruptions among certain powerful individuals, which shook the entire economy that the world is still yet to recover and recoup the financial losses. Definitely, this will take the country a lot of time and resources before it is restored to its former economic status (Furmston and Chuah 67). On the other hand, the entire globe still battles with the implementation of viable and some of the most appropriate economic policies, which steer economic development. Therefore, a lot of funds are required to be invested in the economy to promote economic growth and development. The UK corporate code of governance is also a crucial document that is very important in examining the elements of this case. Precisely, the corporate governance code 2010 was devised in a mid of the financial that shook the entire economy. This economic depression triggered a financial panic and suffering in the country and globally. The main aim of the UK corporate code was to investigate and monitor the performa nce of the listed companies and banks. This code has other aims and objectives as well. The corporate code was intended to facilitate effective entrepreneurial and prudent management for corporate governance to enable a company establish some sound management policies and guidelines, which can deliver the long term success of the entity. From the analysis of Nelson’s book, it is evidenced that good management principles and practices are essential in promoting the growth and development of the economy (Nelson 42). Moreover, the UK corporate code acts as a guide to a number of key components, which are involved in effective and sound governance. The code is based on good governance and transparency, accountability and focus to the core objectives and goals of various business entities. Importantly, the focus is on the long term entities of the corporations. The code aims to help the board of governance discharge their duties on the best interests of the company. In the review, the code saw few, but some significant changes in the â€Å"tone† of the code that guides the general behavior of the board with the hope that these changes help in promoting some clarity and understanding. In regard to the task of the board, and ensure there is efficient and effective communication with various stakeholders (Woodroffe 56). Furthermore, the code aims to ensure there is proper accountability and reduce underpin board ineffectiveness by encouraging that all the

Smart Home For The Aged Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 10000 words

Smart Home For The Aged - Literature review Example The present smart home designs have shifted their focus from automating the physical activities of the elderly to the disciplining of their minds. They have turned into persuasive agents that focus much of their attention on making the elderly self-sufficient from their home space. Smart homes for the elderly focus on the management of everyday activities. Even though efficient, the act of delegating the management of household tasks to intelligent technological agents is set to experience a few vulnerabilities. Population aging is a common issue affecting most parts of the world. In fact, the generation of people aged 60 and above is expected to rise to surprising levels in the next few decades. The same age group makes up close to 11% of the total population in the world (Miller, 2012). The latest estimates indicate that over 22 percent of the population across the world will constitute those above 60 years of age by 2050 (Harper, 2003). The extraordinary pattern of expected changes has elicited a lot of concern in various countries due to a number of reasons. One major reason is that the elderly generation produces and contributes little to the economy as compared to the working-age population. Thus, the rate of economic growth is expected to be slow since a greater population will consist of the older generation. Another reason for alarm is that a greater segment of the population consisting of the elderly will require much support from the smaller percentage of adults who are economically active. Lastly, the elderly population will impose a huge burden on the economy due to their large number. The elderly need more medical care as compared to the younger generation and this can be expensive to the economy (Harper, 2003). However, the issue is of major concern to many countries across the world. The paper considers how the introduction of smart

Accounting Essays Management Accounting

Accounting Essays Management Accounting Current Issues in Management Accounting INTRODUCTION Accounting measures of performance have been the traditional mainstay of quantitative approaches to organizational performance measurement. However, over the past two decades, a great deal of attention has been paid to the development and use of non-financial measures of performance, which can be used both to motivate and report on the performance of business and other organizations. The impetus for such developments has come from both the bottom and the top of the organization. Much performance management at the operational level is carried out using specific indicators of performance, which are usually not measured in financial terms. At the most senior levels, although financial performance is inevitably a major consideration, there has been increasing recognition that other important factors in the effective running of the organization cannot be well captured by such measures (Neely 2002). Thus, non-financial performance measures have undergone significant development, to the relative neglect of the development of improved financial measures. However, the recent publicity surrounding the marketing of economic value added as an overall measure of company performance by management consultants can be seen as a sign of a new emphasis on the financial aspects of performance. It will be argued that there are three different major functions for financial performance measures, and that, although these functions overlap to some extent, major confusion can be caused by applying measures developed for one function to a different one (Neely 2002). Any organization, whether public or private, has to live within financial constraints and to deliver perceived value for money to its stakeholders. The role of the finance function is to manage the financial resources of the organization, and to ensure that the financial constraints it faces are not breached. Failure to do this will lead to financial distress, and ultimately, for many organizations, to financial failure or bankruptcy. Establishment of precisely what the financial constraints are and how the proposed operating plans will impact upon them are a central part of the finance function. There are three main areas of focus for financial plans. Most basically, cash flow planning is required to ensure that the cash is available to meet the financial obligations of the organization. Failure to manage cash flows will result in technical insolvency. For business organizations, the second area requiring attention is profitability, or the need to acquire resources at a greater rate than using them. Although over the life of an enterprise, total net cash flow and total profit are essentially equal, this can mask the fact that in the short-term they can be very different (Neely 2002). Indeed, one of the major causes of failure of new small business enterprises is not that they are unprofitable in the long term, but that growth in profitable activity has outstripped the cash necessary to resource it. The major difference between profit and cash flow is the time period between payments made for capital assets which will generate income in the future and the actual receipt of that income which is needed as working capital. This highlights the third area of focus, namely on assets and the provision of finance for their purchase (Neely 2002). Businesses need to know about their financial performance to access what are the things they are doing right. The paper takes a look at the two forms of accounting systems. The paper will also discuss on the concern towards the financial and management accounting’s linkage and such linkage drawing operating decision making into a short-term, narrow focus not supportive of the most effective operations. ACCOUNTING AND ORGANIZATIONS As instruments, financial statements can only provide representations of the phenomena that guide the decision-making processes of investors, creditors and other interested parties. The serviceability of these statements will be dependent on the extent to which they depict accurately the phenomena they purport to represent. This notion has been explained under a variety of guises in the accounting literature. Accounting is financial map-making. The better the map, the more completely it represents the complex phenomena that are being mapped. Financial statements may be viewed as descriptive accounts of the financial relationships between an entity and its environment from time to time, and changes in that relationship over time (West 2003). Accordingly, a system of accounting may be viewed as a model of the system of financial relationships between an entity and its environment. The function of the accounting system is, therefore, to represent the financial consequences of an entity’s actions and the financial consequences of the endogenous and exogenous factors which determine an entity’s financial status in relation to all other entities. When the laws underlying the accounting model have the same syntactical structure as a corresponding set of laws which govern the phenomena of financial position and financial performance, financial statements may be considered syntactically isomorphic with the actual financial position and financial performance of firms (West 2003). The consequences of faulty financial instrumentation may be severe. Where the decision-making processes of individual investors are misguided, economic inefficiencies with broader social repercussions are likely to ensue. To protect against these adversities, accounting, in common with other systems of instrumentation, needs to be subject to some form of governance or discipline. Consistent with this qualitative standards for accounting information have a long history. They appeared in early bookkeeping manuals and were written into the constitutive documents of commercial ventures and a variety of statutes in the United Kingdom during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Their purpose was to signify the duty to ensure that accounts were properly kept as a basis for representing the financial affairs of public bodies and business firms. rather than seeking to ensure that accounting information corresponds with the actual financial features of firms as at their date and that the function of accounting is therefore served there is evidence that the accounting profession has been, and continues to be, concerned only to ensure that financial statements have been prepared on the basis of prescribed technical accounting rules (West 2003). Were these rules to prescribe an effective system of financial instrumentation, they would provide the means by which the function of accounting would be better served. Accountants of the highest abilities and reputations are willing to give their considered opinion, after due examination, that the financial statements fairly present the position of a company based upon accounts determined in accordance with accepted principles of accounting. It follows that these fundamental truths upon which such opinion is based, and which may be properly dignified with the term principles, are known to the accountant and are matters with respect to which there can be no general disagreement (West 2003). Businesses use accounting as a method to know how they are performing and to see if there is a balance between what the company acquires and what the company takes out. The balance should be maintained so that a firm operates for a longer time. Accounting systems are said to have different forms o ne is financial accounting and the other is management accounting. The next discussion focuses on Financial Accounting. FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING Financial accounting and reporting is essentially a means to provide information. If information is to be useful, there must be uncertainty that can possibly be resolved by such information. To understand why accounting is useful at all, analyzing accounting information in the context of certainty would be clearly inappropriate. An information system provides signals that alter the likelihood of the occurrence of future events or states of the world that are part of a decision problem. A decision problem is characterized by states of the world, their probabilities, actions the decision-maker can choose, results of state-action combinations, and the utilities the decision-maker receives from such results. The usefulness of information can only be assessed in the context of a particular decision problem. Thus, the same information system may be useful in one context but not in another. General-purpose financial accounting and reporting is designed primarily to provide information to pe ople outside the firm, such as investors, creditors, and customers (Hopwood, Leuz Pfaff 2004). These parties are presumably interested in that information and rely on it for their own decision-making. The firm prepares the accounting information, and hence is better informed than the users. Further, some potential users of information have conflicts of interest with the firm. The information asymmetry generates concerns because it is not necessarily in the firms best interest to provide the information at all, or to provide it in an unbiased fashion. It is in such a context that disclosure and earnings management issues arise. Introducing an auditor as another player with asymmetric information and potential conflicting interests adds another layer of incentive issues to be considered. However, there are several features of financial accounting systems that make them peculiar information systems (Hopwood, Leuz Pfaff 2004). Accounting provides periodic information about the financial position of a firm. Accountants use accruals to provide information about transactions and events, not just cash flows. Accrual accounting allocates cash flows to particular periods under specific transformation rules. This information leads to the distinct accounting language, such as stocks and flows, assets and liabilities, and income. The transformation rules include the realization principle, which defines when revenue is recognized; the matching principle, which states that expenses follow the respective revenues; and conservatism, which introduces a bias in the reported income. Financial accounting and reporting is governed by standards or rules developed by standard-setters or legal bodies on a national or international level. The objective is to provide decision-useful information to the stakeholders of the firm (Hopwood, Leuz Pfaff 2004). Accounting information competes with other information sources, which are provided either directly by the firm or generated by intermediaries. To be valuable, the information must have a comparative advantage over other sources, or at least a complementary value. Indicators attesting that this is in fact the case are that investors and analysts usually generate earnings expectations and react to firms meeting or not meeting them, and that they also react to accounting scandals. Firms exert effort in managing earnings. These features make accounting reports a special and important information system. Useful models in financial accounting attempt to capture some of these features (Hopwood, Leuz Pfaff 2004). Financial accounting is focused on the financial issues of the company and it provides financial related information to internal and external people concerned with the company. The main focus of financial accounting is making sure that the stakeholders are given positive financial information. MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING Many companies have turned to their management accounting systems to bypass the limitations of financial accounting. Some of them have developed best practices that give them a firm foundation for true accountability. However, many companies have not gotten beyond the crisis in management accounting that crept into place early in the century. That is, they use management accounting as not much more than a data-gathering device for determining product costs and compiling external financial accounts. Management accounts are driven by the cycle and procedures of financial accounting. The information is most useful for tasks like valuing inventory and aggregating costs across the company (Birchard Epstein 2000). It is an incomplete basis for measuring performance. Any company that has not radically changed its management accounting risks finding it produces problems similar to those created by financial accounting. The two most critical problems are prodding managers into, first, an incessant financial focus and, second, a near total reliance on historical, or lagging, indicators for decision making. The product and service costs that managers receive, the meat and potatoes of managerial accounting, often reveal little about the non financial factors of performance that create costs, like complex product designs or defective customer service. The cost data help managers keep the financial score but not necessarily how to improve their long-term batting average companies that depend on financial accounting and traditional management accounting systems are in crisis because they are missing the first element for making the accountable organization which is relevant and comprehensive measures o f performance. Without systems that extend beyond the financials to non financials and that accurately tally product costs, few managers or executives can deliver a maximum of value to shareholders, customers, or anyone else (Birchard Epstein 2000). Managers widely recognize the problem today. In a study 45 percent of companies said that their performance measurement system had a neutral to negative impact on long-term management. Whats more, respondents who reported the least satisfaction with their performance measurement systems used financials more intensely and used fewer non financials than did respondents who reported more satisfaction. Little surprise that 65 percent said most of their measures came from the current-year financial results. Measures have great power, almost like genetic code, to shape action and performance. Whether at the equivalent of the cell level, the organ level, or the systems level, measures become the directional device that influences or even dictates the shape of the enterprise. Change the measures, and you change the organism. Measures have always had the power to shape a corporations destiny, but the focus on financial figures alone limited their utility (Birchard Epstein 2000). Management accounting of the past forced managers to build world-class organizations and it is build with a truncated set of chromosomes. Today, though, with the help of revitalized cost accounting and non financial measurement, managers can develop a full set of instructions financial, operational, and social for the enterprise. Those instructions give them the capability to create accountability they never had before. The mark of the financially accountable organization has changed. Once upon a time, standard accounting measures like earnings per share were the gold standards of performance measurement. Traditional measures today, if used in isolation, raise a red flag. They signal to investors that managers may be reporting their performance reflexively as slaves to tradition, rather than as leaders of a well-wrought financial and business strategy (Birchard Epstein 2000). As a complement to financial accounting, companies make use of management accounting to check its performanc e and know which operating part of the firm they are not doing well. IMPROVEMENTS IN MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING There is mounting evidence that the deployment of digital technologies by organizations not only affects the economics of operational and managerial processes but also mobilizes extensive social and organizational effects. Digitization impacts the form, substance, and provenance of internal accounting information with attendant consequences on the behavior and actions of organizational participants and on the functioning of enterprises more widely. Knowledge about the influence of the deployment of digital technologies on management accounting thinking, processes, and practices is starting to take shape. As enterprises become increasingly concerned with the generation and the processing of digitized information relating to the production and delivery of physical and digital products and services, the challenge will be to sustain sufficient credence in the monitoring, measurement, and assessment of these altering organizational activities (Bhimani 2003). Trust is core in this regard. If it can be claimed that trust is becoming the most important asset in the digital economy then what comprises trust in internal accountings will likely see transformations. Novel accounting concerns centering on faith in numbers will once again emerge and contemporary control systems will no doubt continue to face calls for reforms. Accounting measures will seek to endanger trust in contexts where what is bought, sold, or produced never assumes physical form. Although service products have always evidenced such characterization, the means by which they are delivered have not ordinarily defied desired transparency or the potential for observation in the same way as digital processes. Counting based on observation or observations enabling evaluations to be made are not always amenable to operationalization in contexts where digital rather than physical transactions underpin enterprise activities (Bhimani 2003). Digital processes often evade physical verification, and established modes of enumeration and evaluation will therefore likely come under question. How far accounting information can be trusted is not subject merely to the development of more rational forms of capturing the economic consequences of organizational activities resting on digital processes. Human interpretations of the significance of deploying digital technologies and their representation in economic terms are also a relevant issue. Alterations in the capture and reporting of information as well as the changing nature of the product that is to be reported upon within digitized organizational contexts will likely have behavioral implications worthy of study. Behavioral accounting research which has traditionally documented similarities and variations in the uses and impacts of accounting information on individuals will raise new concerns, questions, and issues (Bhimani 2003). At the individual level, digitization will affect the type of accounting information being reported as well as the manner in which it is used and the resulting consequences. The rise of digitization which may in part occlude the transparency of organizational affairs, will impact on pressures to portray management accounting work as being technically and internally legitimate. This will prove particularly pertinent in the near future given that, in the recent past, the accountants credibility in public accounting functions has been tarnished. Just as consumers rely on brands to guide their choices as product diversity and complexity grow, and as barriers to entry in many markets drop, so the linkage between the managerial task and the know-how of internal accountants will be shaped by the credibility which management accounting can engender within enterprises. The management accountant will need to project not simply traditional professionalism but the constitution of a digitally cog nizant person. This person must have an appeal to digital spaces in representation of managerial tasks and which combine simulation with traditional reality as well as corporate legitimacy (Bhimani 2003). Just like any other concepts accounting has developed and it became adaptable to the changes in the environment. The digitization of accounting creates a better chance for more accurate information that will prove to be vital for organizations. CONCERN TOWARDS THE LINKAGE Fry, Steele, and Saladin 1998, stated that accounting systems take two forms, management accounting and financial accounting, and can be tightly linked. However, the functions of these two forms of accounting are quite different: management accounting is focused on monitoring and analyzing the effect of management decisions, financial accounting is focused on short-term, external reporting. The concern is that this linkage is drawing operating decision making into a short-term, narrow focus not supportive of the most effective operations. For Fry, Steele and Saladin they have doubts that the two forms of accounting are not used together by companies and decisions are focused only on one form of accounting. In the previous discussions it mentioned that companies use both forms of accounting to make decisions and create strategies. Companies cannot completely disregard the information that are acquired by using the financial and management accounting. The information acquired has a rel ation and are useful in determining the next actions for the company. The linkage between the two forms of accounting does not create a short term focus and it does not create a situation wherein there is no support for effective operations. The linkage between the two creates a better outlook on how a certain problem can be solved and it helps in discerning the effective actions a company should take. CONCLUSION Businesses need to know about their financial performance to access what are the things they are doing right. Businesses use accounting as a method to know how they are performing and to see if there is a balance between what the company acquires and what the company takes out. Financial accounting is focused on the financial issues of the company and it provides financial related information to internal and external people concerned with the company. As a complement to financial accounting, companies make use of management accounting to check its performance and know which operating part of the firm they are not doing well. There is said to be a linkage between the financial and management forms of accounting. This linkage is also said to create a short term, narrow focus that is not supportive of effective operations. The linkage between the two forms of accounting does not create a short term focus and it does not create a situation wherein there is no support for effective operat ion, it provides better decisions to be done and a better focus for a firm. REFERENCES: Amernic, JH Robb, S 2003, Quality of earnings as a framing device and unifying theme in intermediate financial accounting, Issues in Accounting Education, vol. 18, no. 1, p. 5. Bhimani, A 2003, Management accounting in the digital economy, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Black, T Gallagher, L 2004, Are physical capacity constraints relevant? : applying Finance-Economics theory to a management accounting misconception, Australian Journal of Management, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 143. Birchard, B Epstein, MJ 2000, Counting what counts: turning corporate accountability to competitive advantage, Perseus Books, Cambridge, MA. Fry, TD, Steele, DC Saladin, BA 1998, ‘The use of management accounting systems in manufacturing’, International Journal of Production Research, vol. 36, no. 2, p.503-525. Hopwood, A, Leuz, C Pfaff, D (eds.) 2004, The economics and politics of accounting: international perspectives on research trends, policy, and practice, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Neely, A (ed.) 2002, Business performance measurement: theory and practice, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England. West, BP 2003, Professionalism and accounting rules, Routledge, New York.

A Time To Kill (Movie) Essay -- essays research papers

A Time to Kill   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Are things the same now in your life than 5 years ago? Everything in our life is based on change. We would not be where we were today without changes. We have to deal with these changes in our everyday life whether they are bad or good. People do not like some changes that occur and revolt against them to slow down the changing process. We are still not over some of the issues in the Civil War when it’s been 140 years since it ended. We can only presume that changing takes time. As seen in the movie â€Å"A Time To Kill,† issues from our Reconstruction Period after the Civil War, are still being dealt with today. Three of these issues are: Ku Klux Klan, Lack of Payment, and African Americans in Politics.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Ku Klux K...

AT&T “Don’t text while driving” Essay

This deadly Combination is brought to a heart wrenching point in the YouTube video called â€Å"Don’t text while driving† is also a campaign started by AT&T in 2010 â€Å"It can wait†. Everyday people are killed in car accidents. Motor vehicles are responsible for the lives of many innocent drivers and passengers on the road. A common reason responsible for these accidents involve texting while driving. Texting and driving projects horrific accidents whose consequences can be fatal and life changing. AT&T supports drivers to not text and drive on the road through their â€Å"Don’t text while driving† advertisements. In one of the short stories, a young man suffers from brain damage as a consequence to the text message â€Å"Where r† he was sending while operating a motor vehicle. Another one of AT&T’s short stories personifies a sister of a texting and driving victim. AT&T’s video sets a sympathetic mood, uses trustworthy spokespersons and uses style in textual information to appeal to the audience while convincing viewers to not text and drive. AT&T’s â€Å"Don’t text while driving† video establishes a relatable mood highlighted by the setting of the stories. Opening this powerful video is Missouri State Officer Grant Hendrix, he was the first responder on the scene of Mariah West’s fatal accident. He describes her physical disfigurement from her car violently colliding with a freeway barrier. Getting choked up Officer Hendrix then says, â€Å"it’s funny the first thing I noticed about her was her shoes lying in the roadway in a large pool blood I noticed her shoes and I thought this is a young girl, that’s the first thing I thought when I saw this girl and at that point is why I noticed her cap and gown was still in her car and that she was going to graduate the next day this was just a really ho rrific seen all because of a senseless text message† (0:54) Seeing a veteran officer get emotional, even admitting he sees these sorts of things often makes a powerful statement. Near the end of the video he making a poignant statement saying, â€Å"She paid the ultimate  price for her life I’ve had to do this more than once she was not the only victim that I have dealt with and it never gets any easier and it won’t get any easier was it worth it losing your life over that text message†(7:18) In the â€Å"Yeah† story with the sister of a victim, the setting is in the comfort of a home. Audiences can relate to the setting because almost everyone has or strives to have a place to call home. Ashley, the sister of a texting a driving victim, can no longer be at comfort in her own home without her sister. Knowing she sent the text message that caused the death of her sister is something she finds difficult overlook. In contrast, the â€Å"Where r† commercial ends with a young man in a rehabilitation center. He sits in the middle of the clinic holding a sign of the text that changed his life. Surrounding him is a wheel chair, exercise balls, and building blocks meant for children. The setting portrays his new life learning how to function in order to have a normal life again. In both cases, the setting appeals to pathos but in contrasting ways. The audience can relate to both situations by having a place to call home and what the consequences of texting a driving would be if one’s life was changed forever. The relaxed familiarity of a home can quickly change the mood of an audience after a traumatic experience. Additionally, a rehabilitation clinic is not an ideal place for a person to want to spend the rest of his or her life. Pathos is seen in these advertisements by connecting to the audience’s emotions. The setting evokes feelings of sympathy with the audience to create a relatable mood. Not only does the setting persuade audiences to not text and drive, the speakers presented in the commercials are credible and trustworthy. AT&T has respectfully not hired actors to speak about the hazards of texting and driving in their commercials. Instead they use real people who have personal knowledge and experience of the effects of texting a driving. AT&T effectively uses ethos by getting the audience to identify with the spokesperson. They are normal citizens whose lives were completely changed because of a text message. The sister in the â€Å"Yeah† story Ashley, tells of her sister saying how funny she was and how her sister was always texting her. One could tell they had a strong relationship before it was destroyed by the fatal car accident. Likewise, by just listening to the man with brain damage talk, the audience sympathizes with him. As he struggles to put on a  shirt, we see the physical effects the accident has taken on him. This video also strongly appeals to pathos because it makes the audience pity the speakers. An emotional connection is made by the audience and the speakers in these advertisements. With that said, AT&T addresses the problem of texting and driving through ethos and pathos presented by the commercial’s speakers. Along with identifying with the speakers, AT&T’s â€Å"Don’t text while driving† video portrays a unique style to convince the audience to not text and drive. For example, after the speaker tells his or her story, a blank white screen appears with the individual text message in bold, black letters. The bland screen with opposite colors proposes a straightforward persuasion technique that forces the audience to focus on the screen and the message being presented. These simple approaches appeal to pathos because each holds a strong message that stimulates the audiences’ emotions. At the end of the video, AT&T provides source information from Virginia Tech Institute dated from the year 2009. â€Å"Studies show that you are 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident when texting and driving†. (8:21) All of the textual information presented in the advertisement depicts pathos. AT&T constructs a reasonable argument of not texting and driving through the style demonstrated throughout the video. Indeed, texting and driving is a rising problem in society. Many lives are taken or even changed forever because of this selfless act. More people need to be informed of the consequences of texting and driving, and AT&T did just that. AT&T’s â€Å"Don’t text while driving† video convinces viewers to not text and drive through their many persuasive techniques. The commercials not only stimulate the audiences’ perspective, they effectively use visual stimuli to present and desist drivers from texting and driving. In light of the speakers’ credibility, ethos is present in the video as well. The settings, moods, speakers, and style all contribute to the persuasion of an audience in this video. AT&T not only sells cell phones, the company took it upon themselves to present a problem caused by cell phones. AT&T has the ability to engage an audience while promoting a cause and advertising their cell phone company in their â€Å"Don’t text while driving† video. On a personal note I have found myself guilty of doing this from time to time, I am ashamed to admit it but it’s true. I don’t believe anyone should be texting while driving, but how do I argue against something I am guilty of myself?  Do I use the old adage â€Å"do as I say, not as I do†? That seems very hypocritical, but after watching this video I have to say stop and think before picking up that phone while driving. It moved me the most seeing the sister Ashley wrought with guilt over her sister’s death. This was the most powerful for me, having lost someone I too felt guilty over losing it stamped AT&T’s message right in my heart. Lisa Walsh

Dilations Essays - Dilation, Metric Geometry, Free Essays

Dilations Essays - Dilation, Metric Geometry, Free Essays Dilations Dilations in Math, Art, and Science Historically, dilations have been fundamentally indispensable in the development of cultures around the world. The Greeks for example, without dilations would have merely been a bunch of homeless philosophers instead of the brilliant architects they were. In this paper Ill discuss the uses and the history of dilations. Dilations have long been used in the world, both past and present. Early examples include Greek, Roman, and other ancient cultures using dilations to accomplish various complex engineering feats. Overseers would commonly sit a set distance from a construction site, and a pole of some sort with a fixed length was placed in front of them. Because of this layout, the engineers were allowed to see both length and height (if desired) of the specified building or construction. Artists also commonly utilized the use of simple dilations to make scaled and accurate artwork in the 1400 and 1500s. Even today, you see dilations in use. For instance, a picture of the globe, or a map of a particular area can be magnified many times, creating dilation (see the example on the visual board.) On a golf course, you might look at the flagpole at the end of the course to get a fairly accurate sense of the distance from you to the green. Common sense dictates that the smaller the 4 flag is in your perspective, the farther the golf hole is from you, and vice versa. Dilation Instructions: To perform a simple dilation, follow these instructions. Place one point, the size of a pencil tip, at any place on a piece of paper (preferably the near the middle to keep this simple.) Now, measure a compass width to approximately inch. Make a light circle surrounding your dilation origin (pencil dot; dilation center.) Place a dot at any place on that circle, and then exactly inch away from the dot you just made, draw another dot on the circle. After this, measure your compass width to approximately 1-inch wide. Draw another circle about your origin (original dot; pencil dot; dilation center.) Make a line that goes through both your origin, and one of your dots that are on the first inner circle. Do the same with the origin and the other dot on the first inner circle. Now, find the place where each line intersects the second circle and place a dot on those two places. Erase the inner and outer circles and the two lines and you have a dilation! Bibliography NA

Jump Start Your Career as an Administrative Freelancer

Jump Start Your Career as an Administrative Freelancer Working as a freelancer provides more flexibility in employment and allows you  to pick and choose the jobs you  want to do. Administrative freelancers find that they can also apply their office skills to earn a living similar to an in-house administrative employee. What’s special about  administrative professionals is that they have talents in multiple areas, so they can choose whether to concentrate on one specific area, such as bookkeeping, or take on several jobs in several different areas.How to Start Out as an Administrative FreelancerYou can find work as an administrative freelancer by using your skills. Think about the talents  you possess and make a list. Include what you enjoy doing the most and what you are best at doing. Do you enjoy customer service, support projects related to sales or management, accounting, scheduling or other facets of administrative work? Doing job searches in each area widens your potential work base and gives you the opportunity to pick and choose the jobs you like the best.Finding WorkThe first thing a freelance worker needs to know is where to find jobs. The Internet offers multiple job sites to search for freelance work, advertised by different companies. There are also sites that offer multiple listings from different companies that you can search. TheJobNetwork searches multiple sites for you and sends you the listings as alerts so you don’t have to do the job hunting yourself.Tailor Your ResumeA freelance administrative assistant can target jobs related to his or her skills and experience. However, the jobs you apply for may seek  someone capable of doing specific types of administrative work. For instance, if you are applying for a position as a worker who sets up meetings and keeps the daily office schedule, you can write up a resume geared toward that position. A job opening for office accounting work can require a different approach.Making a Living as an Administrative FreelancerOne way to d ecide how much you should charge for your services is to look in your area at the salaries offered for that type of job. When deciding to take a job, keep in mind that as a freelancer you will be paying your own self-employment taxes and other expenses that might have been taken care of by your boss in a regular job.Include a profit margin, money to pay taxes and health care and other expenses that you will be paying yourself.  However, you need to keep in mind that if you are working from home and can set aside space for an office, you may have tax deductions from your self-employment that will lower your net income.Searching for jobs using TheJobNetwork platform makes it convenient to do. Put in your credentials and the type of job you are looking for and TheJobNetwork does the work. It searches multiple sites using your criteria and emails alerts to let you know a job has been located. TheJobNetwork ranks the job so you can tell how closely it meets your expectations.

Innovative Leadership and Culture Matrix and Paper Research

Innovative Leadership and Culture Matrix and - Research Paper Example The matrix diagram provides a relationship diagram of Dell and HP organizational leadership and culture with regard to the four frames model. Lastly, an explanation is provided for the significance of comparing Dell and HP using the selected dimensions with regard to innovative leadership and culture for those organizations. Dell’s Innovative Leadership According to Jones (2007), Michael Dell of Dell Computer, â€Å"adopted a very different approach to managing his company. Dell developed a participative management approach, involved employees in decision-making, and fostered a spirit of comradeship and cooperation among team members to encourage top performance. His management style engendered intense loyalty from his employees, who liked his hands-on approach, and his close attention to managing his company† (p.10). The author noted that â€Å"Michael Dell was careful to watch the teams’ progress closely. When a project seemed not to be working out or was cost ing too much, he would quickly end it and transfer engineers to other projects† (p.10). ... all development promotes individuals from within, creates organizational alignment, develops core capabilities and managerial effectiveness (Jones, 2007). Dell ‘s Culture Change Dell Corporation had experienced a decline in growth in late 2000. The company began to focus on redesigning its culture in a way that would emphasize new values, new rituals and traditions, a new entrepreneurial spirit, and a willingness to invest substantially in improving the knowledge and skills exhibited by workers (How Dell got a soul, 2004). As a result, of this organizational cultural change process, Dell began to experience dramatic improvements in employee satisfaction and worker retention, leading to greater productivity and performance improvements (How Dell got a soul, 2004). Jones (2007), stated, â€Å"Dell’s new innovative organizing approach fosters a different kind of company cultu re† (p.10). This kind of organizational culture provides a work climate where people cooperate to improve their performance. Career management programs also enhance the company’s ability to retain and develop Dell Team members (Jones, 2007). Dell (2012), noted â€Å"people are its most important asset. From a focus on growth and domestic market dominance to one of leadership, talent management, and a global outlook, Michael Dell has created a â€Å"Winning Culture† that includes promoting best practices among its global workforce. HP’s Innovative Leadership According to Quinn and Poletti (2006), HP began to experience a leadership crisis after having grown at a rate of 18 percent a year for 60 years under the leadership of Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard and their record of innovative product development.

Smith Radiators Organizational Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Smith Radiators Organizational Strategy - Essay Example Jeff Brown’s letter to Smith informs us that other suppliers could supply radiators at a lower price than Smith Radiators. On the other hand, even though the organization had built a reputation for manufacturing reliable radiators, one cannot categorically state that Smith Radiators pursued a differentiation strategy. We cannot detect a deliberate management drive towards product improvement or innovation over the 30 or so years that it has been in existence. Secondly, it is noted that Smith Radiators has to be prompted to make an adjustment to its organizational strategy due to the external pressure from Automobiles of America, Inc. (AAI) – the company’s largest customer. Smith Radiator’s implied management failure to articulate a viable organizational strategy and its implied adherence to the particular strategy-structure relationship even though it was no longer relevant to the change in environmental conditions over the 30 years that it has had a relat ionship with AAI are consistent with factors that cause firms to resort to reactor strategies (Miles and Snow 82). That which we can detect though is that Smith Radiators’ HR practices are geared towards direct, process-based control in which the focus is on efficiency and cost containment. This strategy would have been a perfect fit if the organization pursued a low cost strategy. However, since we cannot categorically state that the organization pursues such a strategy, we cannot conclude that its HR strategy is a fit. Smith Radiators worker’s skills are not particularly unique to the firm and thus cannot serve as a differentiating source of uniqueness. The organization therefore exploited the fact that it has generic key employees to negotiate the â€Å"no layoff, no strike† policy in exchange for job security but with low wages with the union. Smith Radiators’ HR strategy and practices have so far enabled it to survive in the competitive market as i t has been able to keep its costs low. The challenge now though is that to meet the new AAI’s supplier requirements, Smith Radiators has to re-think and reformulate its HR strategy to fit the new Just-in-Time (JIT) requirements.