Economic Equality Between The Social Classes Of The Great...

There should be greater economic equality between the social classes of the great United States of America. While there is no agreement of a full blown communist or socialist revolution, a la Karl Marx, there is agreement that there should be slight changes towards this idea of equality. According to the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, a social contract (theory) â€Å"is the view that persons moral and/or political obligations are dependent upon a contract or agreement among them to form the society in which they live† (Friend). The current American contract is debatable, and the exact definition depends on each person individually. Similar to Hobbes and Rousseau alike, Daniel Mallock on American Thinker believes that the social contract†¦show more content†¦Economic inequality is a multifaceted, idea that breaks down into unequal distributions of income, pay, and wealth. Of course, each individual definition is the inequality of distribution of each concept, re spectively (How is Economic Inequality Defined?). Income is the money received from nearly everything a person is a part of: investments, bonds, stocks, property, wages, salary, pension, rent, payment, etc. (How is Economic Inequality Defined?). By definition, those with less of these investments and earnings are at a disadvantage than those with more. Normal class citizens do not own thousands and thousands of stocks, large houses and yachts, nor do they receive these large wages similar to the wealthy. Nonetheless, while this seems like a tiresome argument, the cries are valid. The Scientific American states that, â€Å"The top 20% of US households own more than 84% of the wealth, and the bottom 40% combine for a paltry 0.3%. The Walton family, for example, has more wealth than 42% of American families combined† (Fitz). This notion relates to not only a small fraction of economic inequality, but to a major gap between those that supposedly have it better. Pay refers to the payment from employment only (How is Economic Inequality Defined?). This area is seemingly easier to work with the idea of equality, for a job/career usually relies on skills alone. Usually is a key word only due to the fact that networking and knowing the right people canShow MoreRelatedEssay about The Revolutionary War1417 Words   |  6 PagesThe Revolutionary War The Revolutionary War started on April 19, 1775 at Lexington and Concord. America was very much unprepared with no central government or army. The congress stepped up as the government and began to organize an army. The Revolutionary War did not end until September 3, 1783 with the signing of the final peace treaty between America and Great Britain. The victory in the Revolution War led to the birth of a new independent nation. 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Pamela Spencer Case free essay sample

Pamela Spencer, the manager of HouseMart in Port Madison, New York was confronted by one of the store’s regular customers, Mrs. Kerns concerning the state of her installed cedar fencing after a severe wind and rain storm had hit the area. Mrs. Kerns had contacted HouseMart’s installation manager earlier that morning complaining of her fence leaning at a 45-degree angle and after the installation manager’s inspection, he found that since the fence had been properly installed there was essentially nothing he could do and suggested to Mrs. Kerns that she should contact her insurance company. Mrs. Kerns was unsatisfied with the installation manager’s response and entered the store later that day to confront Pamela just as the store was preparing to close. Pamela explained to Mrs. Kerns that she should give her the pictures of the damaged fencing so she could look at them personally but there isn’t much she could do at the time because the store is closing, and then suggested that Mrs. We will write a custom essay sample on Pamela Spencer Case or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Kerns return to the store the following day to discuss the matter further. Mrs. Kerns agreed to return the next day to discuss the issue at length, leaving Pamela in a predicament about what to tell Mrs. Kerns concerning her fencing. Stakeholders There are several different stakeholders represented in this case. The first stakeholder that comes to mind is Mrs. Kerns. Mrs. Kerns is a frequent customer of HouseMart; however, she often returns products or only buys products that happen to be on sale. Mrs. Kerns is primarily concerned with the value and quality of products as well as customer service in the store. The second stakeholder is Pamela Spencer. Pamela Spencer is the manager of HouseMart. She is primarily focused on managing the store to the best of her abilities while paying special attention to internal operations, profitability, and customer service. The third stakeholder in this case is Dan Zegan. Dan Zegan is HouseMart’s installation manager. He handled Mrs. Kern’s complaint concerning the state of her fence and went to inspect it personally. Dan Zegan is primarily concerned with overlooking the installation aspect of HouseMart’s services, and he deduced that Mrs. Kerns’ fence had been properly installed. The fourth stakeholder represented in this case would be the HouseMart employees. The HouseMart employees are directly involved by coming into contact with Mrs. Kerns on several different occasions with her visits to the store. The employees are primarily concerned with helping all of their customers with their needs and assisting them, but specifically in this case they are tasked with helping Mrs. Kerns. Purpose of Warranty HouseMart gives their customers two different options when it comes to buying fencing. They can buy the fencing outright and install it themselves, or they can buy the fencing and use the contractors HouseMart provides. When the customers go through HouseMart for installation they are set up with independent contractors. HouseMart only suggests and works with the most trustworthy contractors. HouseMart does provide a warranty for fencing. The warranty is a 30-day warranty that guarantees proper installation. The warranty included that if any damage happened to a customer’s fencing due to faulty installation, HouseMart would cover all costs as well as replacement and reinstallation (Brown 51). The purpose of the warranty essentially is to guarantee the installation of the fencing. However, HouseMart can avoid any other reason for replacing the fencing if it does not have to do with faulty installation. By providing their customers with this option HouseMart can basically avoid replacing fencing. Marketing Concept Pamela Spencer manages HouseMart according to the marketing concept, meaning she manages a firms goals that can be best achieved through identification and satisfaction of the customers stated and unstated needs and wants (Marketing). She takes several customer-oriented actions at HouseMart. When Pamela began working for HouseMart as an assistant manager she took some liberties upon herself to improve customer service. She instituted training programs for part-time staff to help improve employee knowledge and to aid the communication process between employees and customers. The workshops helped the staff learn more about the products and become more knowledgeable in key areas for it do-it-yourselfers. During her time as assistant manager she also took it upon herself to personally handle customer complaints to make sure that the proper procedures were followed. Her focus on customer service and improving customer-employee relationships helped her improve upon her marketing concept. During Pamela’s time as assistant manager and even in her current position as manager she has made many improvements to the store as a whole; however, not all of these improvements are based on the marketing concept. Her focus on operations and profitability may have detracted some from the marketing concept. Essential Facts In order to help formulate a good decision for Pamela based on her incident with Mrs. Kerns there are certain essential facts of the situation that must be taken into consideration. One very important fact of this case is that Beverly Kerns is a frequent HouseMart customer who usually comes in once a week (Brown 51). Another important fact concerning Mrs. Kerns is that she buys all types of merchandise from HouseMart but usually only purchases items that are on sale, and almost always returns at least half of the items she bought (Brown 51). The next important fact in this case is that before Mrs. Kerns came to confront Pamela Spencer at HouseMart she had been in contact with the installation manager Dan Zegan about the damage to her fencing. Mr. Zegan had even gone to Mrs. Kerns’ house to personally inspect the damage to the fence and told Mrs. Kerns that the damage was not due to faulty installation and suggested she contact her insurance company (Brown 45). Another important fact in this case is that Mrs. Kerns’ fence was damaged due to a severe September wind and rain storm, but her fencing was installed in April (Brown 45). The next important fact to consider in this situation is the manner in which Mrs. Kerns confronted Pamela Spencer. Mrs. Kerns showed up to the store minutes before the store was closing only to wave pictures of the fence in Pamela’s face while accusing her of ignoring the complaint. Mrs. Kerns even cussed at Pamela while asking her what she intended to do about the mess (Brown 45). One last and important fact to consider in this situation is that Pamela is very familiar with Mrs. Kerns as a customer in her store and has become annoyed with Mrs. Kerns’ attitude and actions, and is letting her personal feelings come into play in her decision about Mrs. Kerns’ fencing (Brown 52). SWOT Analysis According to Ryan Goodrich from Business News Daily, â€Å"The SWOT analysis enables companies to identify the positive and negative influencing factors inside and outside of a company or organization. The key role of SWOT is to help develop a full awareness of all factors that may affect strategic planning and decision making, a goal that can be applied to most any aspect of industry,† (Goodrich). Figure 1 identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for HouseMart. Pamela Spencer’s focus on making HouseMart more profitable as well as her attention to overall operations is a huge strength for the company. Her focus on customer service is also very important because it helps grow and maintain a customer base. Pamela’s no-nonsense approach to her staff makes her an effective manager. Weaknesses of HouseMart include the lack of cooperation with the former manager of HouseMart and the resentment of Pamela by employees. A business is only as good as the people working for them. The huge lack of profitability by HouseMart in the first three quarters of the year makes it difficult for Pamela to make large increases in that area. Opportunities for HouseMart include the fact that with market trends indicate that younger couples now look to buy older homes with the plans to renovate them themselves (Brown 50). This is very opportunistic for HouseMart with all of their do-it-yourself products and knowledge. The housing market regaining its former strength is also opportunistic for HouseMart, because houses both new and old will always need something that is ready to be renovated or fixed. Threats to HouseMart include the competition in the local area from the neighborhood hardware stores to the big box hardware stores. Local business is a lot of times more preferable to people from the area. Another threat is always one that House Mart will come into contact with, and that is the ever changing economic conditions and the new market trends that may steer away from what HouseMart has to offer. Figure 1 Mrs. Kerns’ dissatisfaction Based on the confrontation Mrs. Kerns started with Pamela Spencer, Mrs. Kerns is extremely dissatisfied. The source of Mrs. Kerns’ dissatisfaction stems from the idea that she thinks her fence was not properly installed and that the damage that was done by the storm was solely the fault of the poor installation. The steps that would lead to increasing Mrs. Kerns’ satisfaction as well as other customer’s satisfaction would be to guarantee the installation, and explain to them the cause of damage to their fencing if it was not due to installation issues. After explaining and talking calmly with Mrs. Kerns or other customers about the issue they should both find an alternative to remedy the situation to help satisfy the customer’s needs. By taking those steps you will likely increase the probability that the customer will return. HouseMart’s Customer Satisfaction HouseMart should value customer satisfaction among one of its most important business values. They should value it to the extent that should never lose a customer over dissatisfaction with customer service or problems stemming from faulty products. It is very important in a small community to take every customer’s satisfaction level seriously, because all it takes is one bad incident and then the whole community knows. With an outspoken customer and confrontational customer like Mrs. Kerns it is likely she would spread word of her dissatisfying experience at HouseMart. Alternative Decisions There are several alternatives Pamela Spencer could consider in relation to Mrs. Kerns fencing situation. Mrs. Kerns is a frequent customer of HouseMart; however, she is not a frequently satisfied customer considering she usually returns half of the items she buys. Mrs. Kerns also has the habit of only buying items on sale at HouseMart. Taking into account those two facts, Mrs. Kerns is not an extremely reliable customer when it comes to profitability of the store overall. Pamela could employ the alternative decision of backing up her other manager Dan by agreeing with what he had already told Mrs. Kerns that she should contact her insurance agency. Another alternative decision Pamela could make would be to help Mrs. Kerns replace her old fencing by providing free installation on the new fencing she would buy to replace the old fencing. By using that alternative Mrs. Kerns may become more satisfied because she feels like she is getting a good deal. One other possible alternative cold be to inform Mrs. Kerns that there is nothing Pamela could to do help fix her fencing but could offer her a slight discount on her next purchase. Mrs. Kerns may feel satisfied with that alternative considering her shopping habits. All of these alternatives cost HouseMart, either through discounts, free replacement, or the possibility of losing Mrs. Kerns as a customer altogether. Pamela’s Decision Based on all of the facts from the case I believe that Pamela Spencer should support her installation manager, Dan Zegan’s decision that Mrs. Kerns should contact her insurance company concerning the storm damage to her fencing. I think that Pamela should explain in detail to Mrs. Kerns that she would go herself to assess the damage again to be sure that it was installed properly, and that if it was properly installed that there is nothing she can do because the 30-day warranty guaranteeing installation had expired. If Mrs. Kerns is extremely upset I would suggest that Pamela offer her a slight discount on items she may purchase in the future. I would suggest this decision because in the overall scheme of things Mrs. Kerns is a repeat customer, but she is not a profitable repeat customer. Mrs. Kerns always returns items and only buys items that are on sale. She is also an annoyance to staff and management and provides no real opportunity for business expansion. Overall Mrs. Kerns is not an asset to HouseMart and she should not be given a free fence to replace a fence that was damaged by a storm when insurance can replace it just as easily as HouseMart could.

Management Accounting Present Business Environment

Question: Discuss about the Management Accounting for present business environment? Answer: Introduction The importance of management accounting has grown in the present business environment throughout the world. Management accounting can be said to the art of interpreting the financial results of a company. This interpretation has become very important as valuable conclusions are derived from a practice that caters to the decision maki8ng needs of a company. Management accountants help the management of the company to make important decisions related to investment, finances, operational efficiency etc. Financial results are prepared by accountants while management accountants analyse and interpret information available from such financial statements (Kaplan and Atkinson 2015). For the purpose of this report, one of the biggest manufacturing companies of the UK has been chosen, i.e. Unilever (core.sitename 2016). The objective of this report is to advise the company about increasing their operational efficiency by controlling their costs. The ultimate aim of this cost control is to incr ease the profits of the company. In essence, there are two important factors that are to be dealt with, first, cutting costs of the company and second, increase operational efficiency and increase the profits. This report is directed towards achieving these two goals by emphasizing on the importance of management accounting and its practices with respect to the chosen company. Importance of Management Accounting in Unilever As mentioned earlier, the main responsibility of a management accountant is to interpret the financial statements of the company and enumerate his/her findings in a report that will assist the management of the company to take important decisions related to their business activities (Accountingformanagement.org 2016). The financial results stipulate the changes in financial figures of the present year and that of the previous year. For example, the operating profit of the company is 7515 million Euros as compared to 7980 million Euros in 2014 (core.sitename 2016). It is the function of a management accountant to analyse and bring out the reasons for such a change. Based on the analysis, a management accountant makes forecasts about the future course of the business. These interpretations help the management of the company to take important decisions (Otley and Emmanuel 2013). This is true because the Board of the company has many more crucial responsibilities to perform and therefore , these interpretations form an important source of information to them and help them in imparting their responsibilities. Difference between Financial Accounting and Management Accounting Though the two disciplines are very closely related, both do have a few differences. Financial accounting is concerned with drawing up of financial statements based on the activities of the company while management accounting interprets the financial statements (Ward 2012). Apart from this, there are several other differences as stipulated in the table below: Financial Accounting Management Accounting Information used by external stakeholders of the company. Information is used within the organization by the management, employees and senior personnel. Displays financial results at the end of a particular financial year and states the financial position of the company. It caters to the needs of the management by helping them to make important decisions. It also helps to strategies and fixing of objectives for the organization. There is a legal obligation under the Companies Act 2006 to prepare financial accounting reports. There is no legal obligation for a company to chalk out managerial accounting reports. It is related to the overall performance of the organization. It is related to the results of individual departments of the organization. It focuses on the results of the present situation and that of the previous year/quarter results. It focuses on the results of the present year/quarter and makes forecasts for the future. The format to be followed in filing financial results is fixed under the specific legislative framework. There is no fixed format of a management accounting report as it is used internally and is more informal in nature. International accounting standards such as the IFRS and GAAP apply to financial accounting and financial reports. As these reports are used internally to help make managerial decisions, international standards do not apply to them, as there is no legal requirement of such sort. Preparations of financial statements are required to be done at a stipulated time, i.e. quarterly, half-yearly and/or annually. Management accounting reports are prepared according to the requirements of the organization. Classification of Costs Cost is said to be a sacrifice of important resources to obtain a benefit or any other resource. Generally, in the business world and especially in the manufacturing industry, cost is related to the monetary value of an element. In the course of business, there are a lot of expenses that a concern has incur while procuring materials and manufacturing products and services (Van der Stede 2016). To get a clear idea about the total costs involved in manufacturing a product, it becomes imperative to classify costs under different heads. This helps in taking important decisions related to the manufacturing process. In essence, costs may be classified in many ways depending upon the nature of the cost. Classification based on Types of Cost Product costs are costs that can be assigned to the manufacturing process and can be identified in the financial reports. There are generally the following types of costs: Material Costs: These are costs that a manufacturing organization has to incur in order to procure raw materials for the manufacturing process. Material costs can be further classified into the following: Direct Material: These costs can be directly attributable to cost of the product. Indirect Material: These costs cannot be directly attributable to the final product. Labour Costs: This represents the cost of labour time spent for manufacturing the products. This can also be sub-divided into direct and indirect labour costs. Direct labour costs are the cost that can be directly attributed to the final product and indirect labour is the opposite of that (www.tutorialspoint.com 2016). Overhead Costs: These are costs that a manufacturing concern has to incur other than material and labour costs. For example, an accountants salary, electricity expenses, cost of stationery, depreciation of fixed assets, etc. Classification based on Behaviour of Costs Classification of costs based in their behaviour means the manner in which costs behave with a change in the level of production done by the manufacturing concern. There are mainly three types of costs under this category as follows: Fixed Costs: These costs remain fixed or constant with the change in the level of output. Therefore, these costs are independent of the output level. For example, rent paid for factory premises remains constant whether the output level of the company is zero or thousand units per hour. On the other hand, fixed costs per unit decreases when there is an increase in the level of output as the overall fixed cost amount remains the same (Markowitz 2014). Variable Costs: These costs have a direct relation to the level of output. Variable costs increase with the level of output and vice versa. This means there is an increase in the overall variable cost amount when there is an increase in the total production level. For example, the cost of raw materials increase when there is an increase in the number of units produced by the manufacturing company (Accountingexplained.com 2016). Mixed Costs: Mixed costs are also known as semi-variable costs having both the characteristics of fixed and variable costs. For example, telephone expenses consist of a fixed rental as well as call charges per minute (Diffen.com 2016). Since mixed costs are not much useful in their original form, they are split according to their fixed and variable components by using behavioural analysis and attributed accordingly. Classification based on Functions Costs can also be classified according to their activities in an organization. Classification based on function takes the following forms: Production Costs: These costs relate to the production or goods and services of an organization. Both direct and indirect costs are included within the overall production costs of the organization. Administrative Costs: These costs are incurred in the general administration of the whole business concern and the general management of the business. These are mostly indirect in nature and are also known as administrative overheads (In and gassim 2015). Selling Costs: These costs are incurred in order to sell goods and services manufactured by the organization. These are also known as selling overheads and are indirect in nature. Distribution Costs: These are expenses that are incurred by an organization in the course of distributing the manufactured product to their selling points. These are also indirect in nature. Research and Development Costs: These are costs that an organization has to incur for developing a new product or service. The amount spent on researching new products and developing them come under this head. Variance Analysis Every organization draws up a budget with respect to their operating activities. At the end of the financial year, the actual figures are compared with the budgeted figures in order to find out any deviations in the figures. In managerial accounting, variance analysis is actively used to find out the differences in the budgeted figures. It is also used to analyse the differences in the financial figures (Ziaja et al. 2016). By the help of variance analysis, the performance of the organisation is measured and further policies and strategies are formulated accordingly. Variance analysis is an important tool that is used by the management in order to forecast and make important managerial decisions. The budgeted figures serve as a standard with which the actual figures are compared and analysed (Kfknowledgebank.kaplan.co.uk 2016). Types of Variance Analysis In the course of business operations, the management accountant does different types of variance analysis. These types of analysis are dependent on the various business activities of the organization. The most common types of variance analysis are as follows: Sales Variance The difference in the budgeted sales figures and the actual sales figures are analysed with the help of sales variance. It takes into account the selling activities undertaken by the organisation (Accounting-simplified.com 2016). Material Variance This relates to the amount expended on materials to be used for production. It analyses whether the actual cost of materials were more or less than the budgeted figures and the manner in which it influences sales and revenue generation. Labour Variance This relates to the expenditure incurred on labour. It takes into account the total amount of budgeted labour hours and the rate of each hour and compares it with the actual amount of expenditure incurred in this regard. Overhead Variance Overhead variance takes into account the budgeted overhead amount and the actual overhead expenditure done by the company in the current year. The reasons for the difference are critically analysed and the standards are reviewed and re-visited. Problems and Limitations of Variance Analysis Following are the problems faced by management accountants while undertaking variance analysis: Performance Measurement The performance of key personnel and managers often pose a threat to variance analysis. Proper care should be taken by the managers while working out variances by taking into account authentic data so that the analysis works out to be exact. Improper Accounting of Costs In order for the variance analysis to be successful, accounting records have to be arrived at in a proper manner. The financial data provided for the analysis forms the base of the entire process (Hemmer and Labro 2016). If accounting of costs are not done in a proper manner, the analysis will become inaccurate. Poor Setting of Standards The standards and the budgeted figures have to be logical and practicably implementable. If the contrary happens, the essence of variance analysis is lost. Therefore, it is utmost necessary, that the standards are established in a proper manner for the management to have a full and accurate evaluation of the business process (CIMA 2016). Operational Budgets Operational budgets are budgets that are related to the operational activities of a manufacturing concern. It is prepared annually and functions as a standard with which the actual operational results of the company can be measured and evaluated (CIMA 2016). An operational budget is very important as it influences the operational efficiency of the organization. It includes the total estimates of the resources that are required to carry out the manufacturing activities of the company. It helps in the overall business planning and forecasting of future performance of the concern (eFinanceManagement 2012). Types of Operating Budgets There are generally three different types of operational budgets as follows: Expense Budget: It stipulates the expected budgets during the budgeted year. It gives an idea about the total expenditure that is to be incurred by the organisation during the year. According to the expense needs, finances are arranged to finance the operating activities of the organisation. Revenue Budget: This budget identifies the expected revenue that the company will be earning during the budgeting year from its selling activities. This provides an idea about the income that the company is going to derive in the future and helps in tax planning (eFinanceManagement 2012). Profit Budget: A profit budget combines both the expense and revenue budget in a single statement to give the overall expected financial position of the company. This helps in formulating policies for growth of the organisation along with the maximisation of wealth of the shareholders (Accounting-simplified.com 2016). Conclusion It can be seen from the above discussions that management accounting plays an important role in achieving the objectives of a business organisation. It helps in policy formulation as it gives an actual interpretation of the financial statements of the company. A proper explanation of the financial statements is very important for the management to take proper decisions that will ensure profitability and longterm sustainability of the organisation. An important tool of management accounting is variance analysis. This helps in analysing the difference between the budgeted figures and actual figure during a budget period or financial year. This analysis helps an organisation to rectify its drawbacks and develop core competencies so that the solvency and profitability of the organisation is maintained. Recommendations Following are the recommendations with respect to Unilever and its management accounting practices: More emphasis has to be given to get departmental results related to their operations. Further breakdown of the budgeting period for individual departments Implementing an internal check system so that operational figures are arrived at in a proper manner References Accountingexplained.com. (2016).Cost and Cost Classifications | Types | Managerial Accounting. [online] Available at: https://accountingexplained.com/managerial/costs/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Accountingexplained.com. (2016).Costs by Behavior: Fixed, Variable and Mixed | Managerial Accounting. [online] Available at: https://accountingexplained.com/managerial/cost-behavior/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Accountingformanagement.org. (2016).Classifications of cost | Accounting For Management. [online] Available at: https://www.accountingformanagement.org/classification-of-cost/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Accounting-simplified.com. (2016).Limitations of Variance Analysis Standard Costing. [online] Available at: https://accounting-simplified.com/management/variance-analysis/disadvantages-of-standard-costing-and-variance-analysis.html [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Accounting-simplified.com. (2016).Variance Analysis | Formulas | Examples | Calculation | Importance. [online] Available at: https://accounting-simplified.com/management/variance-analysis/#definition [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. CIMA. (2016).Standard Costing and Variance Analysis. [online] Available at: https://www.cimaglobal.com/Documents/ImportedDocuments/cid_tg_standard_costing_and_variance_analysis_mar08.pdf.pdf [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Cimaglobal.com. (2016).What is management accounting?. [online] Available at: https://www.cimaglobal.com/CIMA-in-business/What-is-management-accounting/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. core.sitename. (2016).About Unilever. [online] Available at: https://www.unilever.com/about/who-we-are/about-Unilever/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. core.sitename. (2016).Annual Report and Accounts 2015 Downloads. [online] Available at: https://www.unilever.com/investor-relations/annual-report-and-accounts/annual-report-and-accounts-2015-downloads.html [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. core.sitename. (2016).Annual Report and Accounts Overview. [online] Available at: https://www.unilever.com/investor-relations/annual-report-and-accounts/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Diffen.com. (2016).Financial Accounting vs Management Accounting - Difference and Comparison | Diffen. [online] Available at: https://www.diffen.com/difference/Financial_Accounting_vs_Management_Accounting [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. eFinanceManagement. (2012).Classification of Costs based on Functions / Activities. [online] Available at: https://www.efinancemanagement.com/costing-terms/classification-of-costs-based-on-functions-activities [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. eFinanceManagement. (2012).Types of Costs and their Basis of Classification. [online] Available at: https://www.efinancemanagement.com/costing-terms/types-of-costs-and-their-basis-of-classification [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Hemmer, T. and Labro, E., 2016. Productions and Operations Management Management Accounting. In, L. and gassim, m. (2015).Cost Classification, Variable, fixed, semi-variable costs. [online] Opentuition.com. Available at: https://opentuition.com/fia/ma1/cost-classification/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Investment Small Business Accountants. (2010).VARIANCE ANALYSIS: MEANING, ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES - Investment Small Business Accountants. [online] Available at: https://www.accountantnextdoor.com/variance-analysis-meaning-advantages-and-disadvantages/ [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Kaplan, R.S. and Atkinson, A.A., 2015.Advanced management accounting. PHI Learning. Kfknowledgebank.kaplan.co.uk. (2016).Kaplan. [online] Available at: https://kfknowledgebank.kaplan.co.uk/KFKB/Wiki%20Pages/Variance%20Analysis.aspx#_x003C_h4_x0020_align_x003D__x0022_left_x0022__x003E_Materials_x0020_variances_0_1_0_2_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0_0 [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. Markowitz, H., 2014. Meanvariance approximations to expected utility.European Journal of Operational Research,234(2), pp.346-355. Otley, D. and Emmanuel, K.M.C., 2013.Readings in accounting for management control. Springer. Van der Stede, W.A., 2016. Management accounting in context: Industry, regulation and informatics.Management Accounting Research. Ward, K., 2012.Strategic management accounting. Routledge. www.tutorialspoint.com. (2016).Cost Accounting Classification of Cost. [online] Available at: https://www.tutorialspoint.com/accounting_basics/cost_accounting_classification_of_cost.htm [Accessed 23 Mar. 2016]. 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Special Populations in The Secret Life of Bees Essay Example For Students

Special Populations in The Secret Life of Bees Essay There are two special populations portrayed in The Secret Life of Bees: African Americans and women. August, June, and May Boatwright along with Rosaleen are all African-American women. Other main characters such as Lily Owens and Zach Taylor fit into one special population but not both. As this film is set in South Carolina during 1964 with a largely African-American cast, racism is certain to be a central theme. The Secret Life of Bees renders the idea of racism as illogical. Each of the Boatwright sisters, Rosaleen, Zach, and the minor African-American characters are depicted with dignity that was reserved only for Caucasians during that time. While Lily’s racism does not manifest itself in the same manner as the men who harass her housekeeper, Rosaleen, back home, she is still prejudiced at the film’s start, Lily just assumes that all African Americans are uneducated because that is how Rosaleen is; however, she quickly learns that is not the case. The Boatwright sisters prove to be just as unique and more intelligent, strong, and bold than anyone else she knows.Another theme present in the film is the importance of female community. Throughout the movie, the audience continually sees women together—for healing, for strength, and to learn to forgive and love. Each of the women is fierce and strong in their own way. We will write a custom essay on Special Populations in The Secret Life of Bees specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Despite the fact that May Boatwright committed suicide, we still saw courageousness within her. Community is essential to women; it allows us the freedom to be who we truly are and to feel loved and protected. It should also be noted that beehives cared for by August, Lily, and Zach serve as a parallel to the community established by August. Beehives are female-dominated structures in which a queen bee is mother t. .these two special populations have always had but was ignored by the majority. Works CitedCollica, K. (2010). Surviving Incarceration: Two Prison-Based Peer Programs Build Communities of Support for Female Offenders. Deviant Behavior, 31(4), 314-347. doi:10.1080/01639620903004812Duman, N. , Kocak, C. (2013). The effect of social support on state anxiety levels during pregnancy. Social Behavior Personality: An International Journal, 41(7), 1153-1163. doi:10.2224/sbp. 2013.41.7.1153Morales, A., Sheafor, B. W. , Scott, M. E. (2012). Social work: a profession of many faces. (12th ed.). Boston: Allyn Bacon.Pantell, M., Rehkopf, D., Jutte, D., Syme, S., Balmes, J. , Adler, N. (2013). Social isolation: A predictor of mortality comparable to traditional clinical risk factors. American Journal of Public Health, 103(11), 2056-2062. doi:10.2105/AJPH. 2013.301261)

Geography of the Korean Peninsula

Geography of the Korean Peninsula The Korean Peninsula is an area located in Eastern Asia. It extends south from the main part of the Asian continent for about 683 miles (1,100 km). As a peninsula, it is surrounded by water on three sides and there are five bodies of water that touch it. These waters include the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea, the Korea Strait, the Cheju Strait and Korea Bay. The Korean Peninsula also covers a total land area of 84,610 miles (219,140 km).The Korean Peninsula has been inhabited by humans since prehistoric times and several ancient dynasties and empires controlled the area. During its early history the Korean Peninsula was occupied by a single country, Korea, but after World War II, it was split into North Korea and South Korea. The largest city on the Korean Peninsula is Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, is another large city on the peninsula.Most recently the Korean Peninsula has been in the news due to growing conflicts and tensions between Nort h and South Korea. There have been years of hostilities between the two nations but on November 23, 2010, North Korea launched an artillery attack on South Korea. This was the first confirmed direct attack on South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953 (there are also claims that North Korea sunk the South Korean warship the Cheonan in March 2010 but North Korea denies responsibility). As a result of the attack, South Korea responded by deploying fighter jets and firing lasted for a short time over the Yellow Sea. Since then, tensions have remained and South Korea has practiced military drills with the United States. Topography and Geology of the Korean Peninsula About 70% of the Korean Peninsula is covered by mountains, although there are some arable lands on the plains between the mountain ranges. These areas are small however so any agriculture is confined to certain areas around the peninsula. The most mountainous regions of the Korean Peninsula are the north and east and the highest mountains are in the northern part. The highest mountain on the Korean Peninsula is Baekdu Mountain at 9,002 feet (2,744 m). This mountain is a volcano and it is located on the border between North Korea and China.The Korean Peninsula has a total of 5,255 miles (8,458 km) of coastline. The south and west coasts are also very irregular and the peninsula thus also consists of thousands of islands. In total there are about 3,579 islands off the coast of the peninsula.In terms of its geology, the Korean Peninsula is slightly geologically active with its highest mountain, Baekdu Mountain, having last erupted in 1903. In addition, there are also crater lakes in oth er mountains, indicating volcanism. There are also hot springs spread throughout the peninsula and small earthquakes are not uncommon. Climate of the Korean Peninsula The climate of the Korean Peninsula varies highly based upon location. In the south, it is relatively warm and wet because it is affected by the East Korean Warm Current, whereas the northern parts are usually much colder because more of its weather comes from northern locations like Siberia. The entire peninsula is also affected by the East Asian Monsoon and rain is very common in midsummer, and typhoons are not uncommon in the fall.The Korean Peninsulas largest cities, Pyongyang and Seoul vary also and Pyongyang is much colder (it is in the north) with an average January low temperature of 13ËšF (-11ËšC) and the average August high 84ËšF (29ËšC). The average January low temperature for Seoul is 21ËšF (-6ËšC) and the average August high temperature is 85ËšF (29.5ËšC). Biodiversity of the Korean Peninsula The Korean Peninsula is considered a biodiverse place with over 3,000 species of plants. Over 500 of these are native only to the peninsula. The distribution of species over the peninsula also varies with location, which is mainly due to the topography and climate throughout it. Thus the different plant regions are divided into zones which are called the warm-temperate, temperate and cold temperate. Most of the peninsula consists of the temperate zone. Sources CNN Wire Staff. (29 November 2010). Seoul Warns: Dear Price if North Korea Attacks Again. CNN World. Retrieved from: cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/29/koreas.crisis/index.htmlCNN Wire Staff. (24 November 2010). After North Korean Strike, South Korean Leader Threatens Retaliation. CNN World. Retrieved from: cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/23/nkorea.skorea.military.fire/index.html?hptT1Wikipedia.org. (28 November 2010). Korean Peninsula - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_PeninsulaWorldAtlas.com. (n.d.). Korean Peninsula Map, Map of North and South Korea, Korea Information and Facts - WorldAtlas.com. Retrieved from: worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/koreanpn.htm

What is Utilitarianism What are two objections to this view Essay

What is Utilitarianism What are two objections to this view - Essay Example The man behind the Utilitarian concept is Jeremy Bentham and he weighed pleasure and pain as the consequence of one’s own action. More precisely, Utilitarianism refers to a concept where in the proportion of pleasure and pain is related to the course of action performed by a human being. According to this concept, only pleasure is good and pain is bad. The Utilitarianism concept can be considered as one kind of consequentialism, where the happiness is considered as the measuring tool to gauge the morality of an action. According to Bentham, only an action can be morally right if it brings utmost happiness to a person. If it is not bringing pleasure then the action is regarded to be wrong. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory which focuses on right and wrong based on an outcome of an action or a policy. This theory is not restricted around the interest of oneself but consider the goodness of other too. One of the principles of utilitarianism is that it gives high importance to t he role of pleasure and pain in our life. Secondly, it considers an action good or bad based on its consequences. Thirdly, this theory equates goodness with pleasure and bad with pain. Thirdly, it acknowledges pleasure and pain as a quantifiable emotion. Bentham has also attached some criteria to measure pain and pleasure like intensity, certainty, nearness and duration. Moreover, the criterion of â€Å"extent† is used to quantify the actions which affect many numbers of people. Objections to Utilitarianism Objection One: The one objection to Utilitarianism is that, life is not all about physical pleasure but the aspects like virtue, knowledge matters too. Is life a phenomenon, where action can be gauged with pleasure and pain seeking emotional element? Is it not core valuable principle of ethics and morality the corner stone of life? It is satirical to think that one achieves physical pleasure by conducting ethical and moral principles in life. Physical pleasure cannot be re garded as an end to the mission of life. Moreover, virtue is accountable only if one performs selfless service which in turn is not a pleasure giving affect. Additionally, knowledge is acquired through pleasure but by hard work and by undergoing painful experiences. Here utilitarian concept cannot be applied as the objection proves that gains from pain taking experience are far more valuable than actions which give only momentary physical pleasure. Response: The response to the first objection is that, life should not be only concentrated and focused on physical pleasures. The aspect like virtue and knowledge matters a lot when it comes to the issue of psychological pleasures of a human being. If a person has knowledge and good character he can gain self confidence and self realization which is far more superior to physical pleasure. . A man’s life should very well reflect morality, modesty and sacrifice. These elements might not give pleasure to a person, but they indeed pro ve his character to be valuable and divine. Moreover, acquiring knowledge requires hard work and the benefit of being knowledgeable is that one acquires wisdom. To acquire wisdom, one must go through various experiences in life and these actions are mostly less pleasure giving. For example, Socrates was a great Greek philosopher, who led an extremely simple life. He Life was not at all luxurious but his knowledge and virtue was par excellence. He never committed any action to achieve happiness but followed justice and morality. He experienced real mental happiness in practicing virtue and ethics but did not opt for physical pleasure as he defined senses as illusionary. Objection Two: Another objection is that,

Policy Brief Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Policy Brief - Essay Example This might lead to worse security situation in that state. Improving law and order in that state might be the first step instead of imposing penalty on possession of guns. Continuing with the previous example of drug control policy, a report was published by GAO on March 26, 2013 (Larence & Kohn, 2013) that mentions a policy by Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), which nose-dived horribly in achieving its goals. The policy was stated in the year 2010 as a part of National Drug Control Strategy. It was supposed to achieve its targets of reducing illicit drug use by year 2015. Various economic analysis models used for evaluating public polices depend on the nature, its goals and the demographics. Deterministic models and simulation models are among the many that are employed by public policy analysts. For the policy by ONDCP, the analytic models used were primarily for studying other aspects of the policy that included politically driven agenda. For instance, there are some states that have allowed the use of medical marijuana. To study the reason as to why they are allowed to smoke weed, needs to go in the analysis if ONDCP is to be successful in reducing its usage. It’s quite startling that the model used to analyze this revealed that such states already had a high usage of marijuana even before medical weed got the green signal from the authorities (Larence & Cohen, 2013). Equity in a public policy doesn’t refer to the stock market shares. It might seem to be closely related to equality but it is not. For instance, equity in a public policy generally refers to proportionate allocation of resources, which is not equality (Nagel, 1983). Resources could be in any form, money, commodity, manpower etc. Relating the concept of equity to the case under discussion, suppose two cities get $200,000 each to collect