Sarbanes-Oxley Free Essays

string(156) " Any significant change or observation made by the signing officers, within internal controls which can negatively impact must be reported by the officers\." Securities Exchange Commission is the highest authority which administers and monitors the audit of U. S Listed Companies at NYSE, NASDAQ and Dow Zones. All U. We will write a custom essay sample on Sarbanes-Oxley or any similar topic only for you Order Now S. Listed Companies which get traded at U. S. bourses, have to comply with the FASB rules and practice GAAP standards of accounting. Non-compliance to any of the auditing rules prescribed by GAAP would be seriously viewed. U. S. Federal Government works in the interest of public investors and it expects all public companies to work in a transparent method by disclosing fair transactions in annual financial statements of all public companies. Particularly, with the collapse of Enron, which is the world’s largest corporation, which shocked the entire corporate world, with the clean opinion of company’s auditor. , Arthur Anderson. The emphasis here is more on auditing committees and board of directors of the company who must participate and work without any prejudicial interest, with the fact that Board of Directors are the fiduciary officers of a company who work and intermediate between shareholders and management of the company whereas Auditors are the representatives of public investors who must in all respects protect and safeguard the investments of public. In spite of highly qualified CFOs, COOs and CEOs, who are penalized for falling part of the non-compliance, officers also invite criminal charges. In order to prevent future scandals in corporate America and also to protect all the investments of investors, President Bush signed the law of SOX on 30th July, 2002 and it was passed through Congress for unanimous support. For the common investor, SOX is a great saver and also enables complete transparency about a public listed company. Further this is also in the interest of Federal Government whose responsibility to safeguard the international businesses and nation’s economy. Discrepancies found in Enron that laid foundation to SOX Enron filed bankruptcy in the year 2001 and the company’s share dropped down from $ 90 per share to $ 0. 30 cents per share. Fortune magazine named Enron as â€Å"America’s most innovative Company†. Enron had nearly $ 101 billion revenues prior to the filing of bankruptcy and it was the most successful company in United States in supplying electricity and natural gas. Surprisingly, all the credit rating agencies viz. , SP, Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Rating have given all good credit ratings until Enrol filed Chapter 11. According to SOX reporting standards , some of the discrepancies found in Enron are viz. , successive resignations of management, inaccurate and unreliable financial statements, CEO stock sales during blackout period, nondisclosure of earlier CEO stock sales, off-balance sheet transactions to hide losses, destruction of documentation and rigging of ratings. After three months of collapse of Enron, another giant Internet company Global Crossing Ltd. , filed its bankruptcy indicating its financial condition. WorldCom followed by Tyco went completely bankrupt indicating disability to run the companies any longer. One common factor in all of the above companies, is either mismanagement or non-practice of professional accounting procedures which yielded the companies to its last stage of fate and certainly, this could have been prevented by methodical and professional accounting procedures particularly with the authentication and certification of Auditors who in all probability are relied upon by the SEC and Federal Government. Therefore, the emphasis here is that auditors have to be free and fair in certifying the financial statements and in order to thoroughly screen the public companies, without leaving any scope for fraudulent account procedures, U. S. Government has initiated SOX law in the year 2002. (Jill Gilbert Welytok Sarbanes-Oxley for Dummies) Literature Review What is SOX law? Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 also called as SOX is mandatory for all organisations including large and small. This legislation is aimed at enforcement of financial practices, regulations and to ensure corporate governance. Sarbanes-Oxley is named after Senator Paul Sarbanes and Representative Michael Oxley, who were main designers in setting number of deadlines for the compliance of legislation. SOX is arrnaged in eleven titles. Some of the most importance sections with regard to the compliance are sec. 302, 401, 404, 409, 802 and 906. Compliance through SOX has to be performed methodically, through proper analysis and study. After a thorough work, SOX leaves no scope for any fraud or misrepresentation of facts and figures and by far, it recommends all the organisations to act in a credible manner stating that â€Å"don’t put off until tomorrow what can be done today! † in order to save companies and also refraining from adverse consequences caused by lenient views either by audit committees or by the management of the companies. SOX has helped many companies to draw benefit from the compliance of regulations as it provides a clear picture of financial status of the company and to those who would like to have to access to the information about a particular company. Further, this also helps the U. S Government to keep a watchful eye on the financial status of companies and keeps a vigilance on the financial system of companies. (A guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002) Methods Section 302 of SOX This section is listed under Title III of the Act and details about â€Å"Corporate Responsibility for Financial Reports†. Section 302 states that periodic filing of statutory financial reports should be certified by the signing officers who must review the report. The report must not contain any untrue or false statements or omissions or misleading statements. The financial statements must state only related information which is fairly presented and must also reflect on the financial condition of the company and must also details the results of all material facts and aspects. The signing officers are responsible for all internal controls and must evaluate these internal controls within previous 3 months and must have reported on the findings. A list of all deficiencies if any found, in the internal controls or any fraud information that involves the employees of the company who are involved in internal activities must be stated. Any significant change or observation made by the signing officers, within internal controls which can negatively impact must be reported by the officers. All the provisions of this Section cannot be avoided by transferring or reincorporating the activities of a company outside United States. Whether company is operating within United States or outside United States, must comply with this Section as a registered company under Securities Exchange Commission. (A guide to Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002, summary of section 302) Section 401 of SOX This section is listed under Title IV of the Act and discusses about â€Å"Disclosure in Periodic Reports†. Financial statements published must be accurate and must not contain any incorrect statements or admit the fact that material information is stated. Financial statements apart from regular Profit Loss Account and Balance Sheet, also include off-Balance Sheet liabilities, obligations or any transactions. To this effect, the Commission would study and report with a complete analysis of off-Balance Sheet transactions and to what extent these are transparent. The Commission has also to decide whether GAAP principles or any other regulations are resulting in its reporting. Section 404 of SOX This section is listed under Title IV of the Act and discusses about â€Å"Management Assessment of Internal Controls†. All Annual Reports of companies have to publish information about the scope and adequacy of the internal control structure and other procedures with regard to financial reporting. This statement must also confirm the effectiveness about internal controls and procedures. A registered accounting firm can also attest and report on the assessment and about effectiveness of the internal control procedures for financial reporting. Section 409 of SOX This section is listed under the Title IV of the Act and details about â€Å"Real Time Issuer Disclosures†. Issuers are required to provide information on material changes pertaining to financial conditions or changes. Public must have access to information on urgent basis and no delay can be made. These disclosures have to be presented in an easy and understanding manner and the information should be qualitative with graphic presentations as required. Section 802 of SOX This section is listed in Title VIII of the Act and pertains to the â€Å"Criminal Penalties for Altering Documents†. This section states that penalties and fines or imprisonment up to 20 years is levied on the persons who are responsible for altering, destroying, concealing, falsifying records or documents or tangible objects. This act done either with an intention to obstruct, impede or to influence a legal investigation is seriously viewed by the SOX officers. Further this section also imposes penalty or fine or imprisonment up to 10 years on any accountant who knowingly or willfully violates the provisions of this section or violates the maintenance of audit or review of papers for a period of 5 years. Discussion SOX is divided into many parts and each part carries certain specific rules and regulations which are prescribed for easy understanding of corporates. SEC-Rules states about SOX SEC Rules and Regulations, which states that officers have to certify about the maintenance, regularity and establishment of effectiveness of the issuer’s internal controls. IC-Primer states about internal control framework, risk control, assessments, audit programs relating to Sections 302 and 404 regarding Certification of Disclosure and Managements’ Internal Controls and Procedures. This framework established by COSO/SAS-78. SOX Act 2002 is aimed at to improve the quality and transparency in financial reporting, independent audit and accounting services for public companies and also to create a Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, to work towards setting up of standards for best accounting practices and also to strengthen the independence of audit firms who audit public companies. Further SOX is aimed at to increase the corporate responsibility and the useful advantages of financial disclosure, to protect the independence of securities analyst and also to improve the Securities and Exchange Commission resources for all purposes. SOA-Manual lists all the key dates and timetable, self-assessment questionnaires, definitions relating to Titles II and III regarding Auditor Independence and Corporate Responsibility. Forms have to be prepared independently or by the assistantship of a practitioner who is engaged to perform accounting compliance services. (Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002, Financial and Accounting Disclosure Information) According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers Report 2006, â€Å"Audit Committees Effectiveness, what works best† focus and emphasis is more on financial statements, compliance and ethics, relationship with external auditors, risk management and internal control which discuss as to how effective practice of auditing can be conducted in organizations. There is also an emphasis about external auditing and internal auditing which is conducted periodically within the internal environment by internal audit committees and whose report can reveal much accounting information about the recording of business transactions of organizations. After the year 2002, which witnessed the unfortunate events in U. S. corporate sector, the entire corporate world, stood up for more accuracy and correct presentation in financial statements. A quote which states â€Å"prevention is better than cure† which is applicable in health, is also now applicable to corporate sector with the fact that, companies would never reach to the last stage of liquidation or bankruptcy, if the companies had been properly conducting internal audits and external audit, and thoroughly complying with the auditing procedures and has been GAAP accounting practices, worst state-of-affairs could have been prevented and many companies could be saved. Another development in the corporate sector that is to be noted is, loss making companies or companies that are performing low in business, are finding many potential ways to save the companies by mergers or acquisitions. In the recent years, throughout the world there have many mergers and acquisitions (MA). For example Daimler-Benz is now called as DaimlerChrysler, JP Morgan Chase Co. , purchased Bank One Corp, CitiCorp purchased Travelers Group, ATT Inc purchased Bell South Corporation. It can be stated here that, MA activity saved many companies in the past decade and even saved jobs of many people. Apart from MA activity, SOX Act is equally protecting companies and public investments and there can be absolute assurance about the compliance of SOX regulations. This is due to the fact SOX aims at checking the fraudulent working of organizations. From another angle, SOX Act credibility is also being questioned by the legislative authorities and another alternative is also being looked for future business regulations. According to the authorities, who believe that the advantages of SOX would never last long which is why another source of compliance is being searched. (How Does The Sarbanes-Oxley Act Impact American Business? ) However, the Federal Government continues to update SOX mandates and in the year 2007, U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved new auditing standard for internal controls. In order to bring more awareness about auditing, SEC and PCAOB are encouraging auditors to undertake risk-based approach in the evaluation of internal controls on financial reporting of public companies. There are many benefits from SOX compliance such as findings can be used in evaluations, it would reduce the costs associated with risk assessment, it would also reveal the risks that an organization is confronted with and the remedial measures available to manage risk, help companies to begin groundwork for risk assessment and to introduce more regulations and specifications and further a risk management program can be developed through SOX compliance. As stated above the success of SOX is quite benefiting to both American companies as well U. S. Federal Government with the fact that SOX identifies assets and activities, monitors the activities and ensures accuracy in financial statements which is the most important activity in checking the health of a listed company. Access to data wherever required demonstrates and indicates the practice of Accounting Standards according to FASB Rules and it reveals complete business transactions of a company. SOX can also retrieve entire events, records, commands given to data server and find out whether there is any mismanagement, forgery or fraudulent activity in the accounting procedures. SOX also generates audit reports which gives a full length of information about each and every company. The information that is provided by SOX enables Government to take necessary steps to issues notices or memos to U. S companies to make necessary corrections wherever required and can also provide plans for remedial measures to save the companies from liquidation. SOX is a wake up call for many American businesses and also to all those foreign companies which are venturing into business with American companies. Conclusion SOX continues to keep the companies under check and investigation about the compliance of accounting procedures as laid in FASB Rules and also about the compliance of auditing procedures in internal controls. It is very difficult for American companies to evade any procedures which come under the purview of SOX and therefore, there is expected to be a neat and clean organizations with excellent auditing committees. How to cite Sarbanes-Oxley, Papers

Effect of Lipid Treatment

Question: Discuss about the Effect of Lipid Treatment. Answer: Introduction: Lipid treatment has a great effect on the HT- 29, HCT 116 and Caco-2 epithelial cells. The lipid treatments may include the palmitic acids, Omega 3 and Oleic acid. The short chain fatty acids such as acetate, butyrate and propionate are the major metabolic products of the anaerobic bacteria fermentation, which takes place in intestine. It acts as the fuel of the intestinal epithelial cells. In view of Asarat et al. (2015), propionic acid refers to the three carbon short chain fatty acid. This has various effects on the colonic functions. SCFA can modify effects of lipid induced epithelial cells either lonely or as a mixture. Different concentration of SCFA affects the intestinal epithelial cells. In this context, the roles of lipid and SCFA are discussed. The assignment focuses on the various effects of lipid treatment on body and the pathways signaling of different lipid activation. In the literature review section, various aspects of the lipid treatment are discussed. Ramakers et al. (2007) mentioned that the treatment of lipids has various effects on the HT- 29, HCT 116 and Caco-2 epithelial cells. The short chain fatty acids include the acetate, butyrate and propionate. These have significant role on the physiological function of the colonocytes and epithelial cells. Sukhotnik et al. (2008) stated that SCFA are co cultured with normal intestinal epithelial or the adenocarcinoma derived. On the other hand, Sun et al. (2017) opined that Omega 3 PUFA have inflammatory property, which have different mechanism. However, in the patients with the bowel disease, the transcription factors (NF-kB) and the intercellular expression are involved in the recruitment of leukocytes. This happens to the side of the increased inflammation. The palmitic acid has affects on the early intestinal adaptation incase of rats, who suffer from short bowel syndrome (Beyaz et al. 2016). The gut bacteria metabolize the short chain fatty acid. On the other hand, as mentioned by Sukhotnik et al. (2008), propionic acid may have effects on the intestinal mucosal wall function. It needs to be mentioned that this barrier functions are rare during the pre weaning. HCT29 and HCT116 are the two human colon epithelial cells. These cells are lined with the FFA4. Vinolo et al. (2011) opined that omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acid is known as the essential fatty acid that is not absorbed in the human body. In a study, Tang et al. (2011) showed that FFA4 identification as the GPCR for the ling chain PUFAs and FFA4 are reported, which is involved in fatty acid stimulation. The involvement helps to release the cholecystokinin and glucagon like peptide 1. Eicosapentaenoic acid has effects on the expression of the Caco-2 enterocytes as well as the oleic acid (Xia et al. 2017). Investigate how SCFA (butyrate, acetate and propionate) either as mixture or alone can modify the effect of lipid induced epithelial cells alterations. Also, the effects of different concentrations of SCFAs on viability, proliferation and apoptosis responses in intestinal epithelial cell. The human epithelial cells can contribute to the regulation of the intestinal immune response through various ways like various immune factors production and inflammation. The immune factors production includes the interleukin (IL8) that acts as the chemoattractant for the neutrophils (Zhang et al. 2016). SCFA has effects on the IECs viability and IL-8 in vitro production. SCFA can be co-cultured with the normal intestinal epithelial or it can be co-cultured with the adenocarcinoma derived. Cell proliferation, viability and production of the IL8 and the expression of the IL mRNA can be determined in cell cultures. This can show that 20 mM of the SCFA was the non-cytotoxic and the growth was enhanced (Mobraten et al. 2013). On the other hand, the HT29 growth was inhibited. The SCFAs regulated the LPS stimulated IL 8 secretion. This happens with the various response patterns. However, no positive effects are seen on IL 8 release from the non LPS stimulated cells. Ramakers et al. (2007) mentioned that the SCFA has effects on the LPS stimulated IL 8 release with the mRNA expression of IL 8. This can explain the anti carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory mechanism of the SCFAs. The fatty acyl co-A contains short chain fatty acid, which can diffuse via the inner mitochondrial membrane (Asarat et al. 2015). The short chain fatty acid activation and the membrane transport is done by the binding to the coenzyme A. when the acetyl CoA enters into the citric acid cycle with the molecule of oxaloacetate, succinyl coA enters as well as the principle (Tan et al. 2014). It is a catabolic process, in which the short chain fatty acids break down. In case of SCFA synthesis lipid metabolism plays significant role. Discuss what the lipids and SCFAs activate in the cells. What pathways signaling are activated (PPAR delta, PPAR gamma, wnt - catenin genes, GPR). Use diagrams to explain them more. Den Besten et al. (2013) mentioned that the GRP is a glycosylated, G-protein and transmembrane that coupled the receptors to activate the phospholipase C signaling pathway. The receptor is expressed in the numerous cancers such as lung, prostate and colon cancer. However, GRP is a protein-coding gene that activates the ligands of gastrin-releasing peptide (Sun et al. 2017). The function of the pathway is to help in the breathing properly. The peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma is a member of nuclear receptor. PPAR- activators are the diverse group of the agents, which ranges from the endogenous fatty acids. PPAR gamma binds with the retinoid X receptor and signal antiproliferative antiangiogenic pathways (Koh et al. 2016). The Wnt pathway causes the accumulation of the catenin in cytoplasm. Kasubuchi et al. (2015) stated that the nucleus acts as the transcriptional coactivator that belongs to either TCF or LEF family. This pathway plays significant role in the mutation, which leads type 2 diabetes, breast and prostate cancer and giloblastoma. In view of Kasubuchi et al. (2015), PPAR- ? function as the integrator of the transcription repression as well as the nuclear receptor signaling. This mainly activates the transcription of the various genes that binds to the specific DNA substances. The target genes include ANGPTL4, CD36 and PDK4. These expressions of genes help to elevate the colorectal cancer cells. APC can repress the elevated expression that is involved in the PPAR- ? signaling pathway (Beyaz et al. 2016). Lipid lowered drug targets the PPAR- ?. In case of obesity, PPAR- ? plays significant role to regulate the metabolic dysfunction and reduce the health issues regarding obesity. Mentioned the additional questions that remaining to be explored in this area, what is still unknown about this topic. There are several facts that are unknown to be explored in this context. Based on the above discussion, it can be concluded that sodium Butyrate helps to treat the HCT- 116 and the HT- 29 cells with the indicated concentration. From the findings, it can be highlighted that PPAR- ?, which is diet modulated can alter the function of the intestinal stem as well as the progenitor cell function. However, the DHA, AA and EPA elicit similar signaling events (Tang et al. 2011). SCFA are co cultured with normal intestinal epithelial or the adenocarcinoma derived. With the various kinetics and the efficiency via GRP120 in the Caco- 2 cells are also elicited. This will help to understand the dietary PUFAs, which influence the inflammatory processes relevant to decline the PUFAs effect in treatment of IBD. The effects of the Caco- 2 dees not affect the PPAR activation (Sukhotnik et al. 2008). Early exposure to the high palmitic acid both accelerates and augments the structural bowel adaptation in the rat model of the SBS. The responsible factors are the lowered cell apoptosis and the increased cell proliferation. HFD affects the progenitor cells and PPAR- ? pharmacological activation. SCFA has effects on the LPS stimulated IL 8 release with the mRNA expression of IL 8. Non stimulated ICAM- 1expression and the cytokine can stimulate the Caco- 2 cells that is cultured for twenty two days with the arachidonic acid. References: Asarat, M., Vasiljevic, T., Apostolopoulos, V. and Donkor, O., 2015. Short-chain fatty acids regulate secretion of IL-8 from human intestinal epithelial cell lines in vitro. Immunological investigations, 44(7), pp.678-693. Bentley?Hewitt, K.L., De Guzman, C.E., Ansell, J., Mandimika, T., Narbad, A. and Lund, E.K., 2014. Polyunsaturated fatty acids modify expression of TGF? in a co?culture model ultilising human colorectal cells and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells exposed to Lactobacillus gasseri, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology,116(5), pp.505-513. Beyaz, S., Mana, M.D., Roper, J., Kedrin, D., Saadatpour, A., Hong, S.J., Bauer-Rowe, K.E., Xifaras, M.E., Akkad, A., Arias, E. and Pinello, L., 2016. High-fat diet enhances stemness and tumorigenicity of intestinal progenitors. Nature, 531(7592), pp.53-58. Den Besten, G., van Eunen, K., Groen, A.K., Venema, K., Reijngoud, D.J. and Bakker, B.M., 2013. The role of short-chain fatty acids in the interplay between diet, gut microbiota, and host energy metabolism.Journal of lipid research,54(9), pp.2325-2340. Kasubuchi, M., Hasegawa, S., Hiramatsu, T., Ichimura, A. and Kimura, I., 2015. Dietary gut microbial metabolites, short-chain fatty acids, and host metabolic regulation.Nutrients,7(4), pp.2839-2849. Koh, A., De Vadder, F., Kovatcheva-Datchary, P. and Bckhed, F., 2016. From dietary fiber to host physiology: short-chain fatty acids as key bacterial metabolites.Cell,165(6), pp.1332-1345. Lou, H., Lu, J., Choi, E.B., Oh, M.H., Jeong, M., Barmettler, S., Zhu, Z. and Zheng, T., 2017. Expression of IL-22 in the skin causes Th2-biased immunity, epidermal barrier dysfunction, and pruritus via stimulating epithelial Th2 cytokines and the GRP pathway.The Journal of Immunology,198(7), pp.2543-2555. Mobraten, K., Haug, T.M., Kleiveland, C.R. and Lea, T., 2013. Omega-3 and omega-6 PUFAs induce the same GPR120-mediated signalling events, but with different kinetics and intensity in Caco-2 cells. Lipids in health and disease, 12(1), p.101. Nagaraj, A.B., Joseph, P., Kovalenko, O., Singh, S., Armstrong, A., Redline, R., Resnick, K., Zanotti, K., Waggoner, S. and DiFeo, A., 2015. Critical role of Wnt/-catenin signaling in driving epithelial ovarian cancer platinum resistance.Oncotarget,6(27), p.23720. Ramakers, J.D., Mensink, R.P., Schaart, G. and Plat, J., 2007. Arachidonic acid but not eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and oleic acid activates NF-B and elevates ICAM-1 expression in Caco-2 cells. Lipids, 42(8), pp.687-698. Sukhotnik, I., Hayari, L., Bashenko, Y., Chemodanov, E., Mogilner, J., Shamir, R., Yosef, F.B., Shaoul, R. and Coran, A.G., 2008. Dietary palmitic acid modulates intestinal re-growth after massive small bowel resection in a rat. Pediatric surgery international, 24(12), p.1313. Sun, M., Wu, W., Liu, Z. and Cong, Y., 2017. Microbiota metabolite short chain fatty acids, GPCR, and inflammatory bowel diseases. Journal of Gastroenterology, 52(1), pp.1-8. Tan, J., McKenzie, C., Potamitis, M., Thorburn, A.N., Mackay, C.R. and Macia, L., 2014. The role of short-chain fatty acids in health and disease.Adv Immunol,121(91), p.e119. Tang, Y., Chen, Y., Jiang, H., Robbins, G.T. and Nie, D., 2011. G?protein?coupled receptor for short?chain fatty acids suppresses colon cancer. International journal of cancer, 128(4), pp.847-856. Vinolo, M.A., Rodrigues, H.G., Nachbar, R.T. and Curi, R., 2011. Regulation of inflammation by short chain fatty acids. Nutrients, 3(10), pp.858-876. Wei, J., Li, Z. and Yuan, F., 2014. Evodiamine might inhibit TGF?beta1?induced epithelialmesenchymal transition in NRK52E cells via Smad and PPAR?gamma pathway.Cell biology international,38(7), pp.875-880. Xia, Z., Han, Y., Wang, K., Guo, S., Wu, D., Huang, X., Li, Z. and Zhu, L., 2017. Oral administration of propionic acid during lactation enhances the colonic barrier function. Lipids in Health and Disease, 16(1), p.62. Zhang, J., Yi, M., Zha, L., Chen, S., Li, Z., Li, C., Gong, M., Deng, H., Chu, X., Chen, J. and Zhang, Z., 2016. Sodium butyrate induces endoplasmic reticulum stress and autophagy in colorectal cells: implications for apoptosis. PloS one, 11(1), p.e0147218.

External Environment and Strategic Management †MyAssignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the External Environment and Strategic Management. Answer: Introduction Strategy refers to a plan of action developed by individuals, groups, business, and organization for smooth operations, growth, and expansion of a business or process. With more people accessing the internet it is has become important for businesses and organizations to develop effective strategies to handle their operations(Sekhar, 2009). Failure to adopt or develop an effective business strategy will only result in the business failing to meet competitor specification resulting customers opting alternative brands. Strategy refers to a businesss action plan related to its product and service development and its production and market expansion. Every business must develop an action plan addressing continued product and service development as well as brand growth, diversification, and growth(Thompson, 2006). Five factors which must be included in a business or organizations strategic or action plan are listed below: It is imperative that every business retains its future vision and growth and expansion plan. This allows the business to constantly evaluate the market and competitors allowing the business to review competitor products and services and identify features the products are offering. This allows for the brand to also include those features to their future designs thus allowing them to remain competitive(Kumar, 2012). It also allows the brand to consider new innovative ideas by studying competitors in the market and combining their features to identify newer and more attractive features that can be infused to the brand's products or services to keep consumers interest interested in the brand's products and services. Failing to put together an innovation, development and growth planning team would result in the brand failing to deliver innovative products and services leading to self-destruct mode. This was experienced by Nokia which was once the best and most popular mobile phone brand but the brand failed to be investing in innovation resulting in the brand's sudden failure and loss. Identification of Strengths and Weaknesses Strategic planning also requires a business or organization to be able to undertake a strengths and weaknesses evolution. This is very important as it would allow the management identify areas the business is strong in but more importantly it would allow the business identify its weaknesses which can be reviewed to determine solutions(Hill Jones, 2007). One of the major concerns linked to many businesses is the failure to analysis, identify and accept their weaknesses. This results in business owners turning a blind eye towards the weakness which gradually disrupts the businesses operations leading to a sudden and serious failure. Identifying and understanding the weaknesses allows the business to work on solutions which help overcome the weakness, in turn, making the business more stable and strong. Strategic development plans must put in place the organizations as well as its staff's development needs. Only focusing on the business or organizations needs and ignoring staff needs would result in losing employee confidence which in turn will result in a high employee e turnover rate. This makes it important for the business to take into business to develop strategic plans which focus on familiar growth for all stake holders as well as offer the opportunity to build and learn new skills and knowledge. Skill and knowledge development among the staff is very important as many may not only be motivated by financial income and may also desire additional learning and skill development(WBP, 2007). By acknowledging their interest a business can win their confidence which would help the business develop more stable strategic and growth plans. Planned Resource allocation and utilization Raw materials and Resource are the most crucial element of any business. Every business depends heavily on raw materials, energy, utilities or man power which is all classified as resources. This makes it critical for the business to carefully plan its resource allocations and usage to prevent over use and wastage which could compromise operational plans. Resources must be evenly allocated and utilization plans developed to ensure even distribution and use of the resources throughout the year or until the resources can be replenished. Lack of planning results in resource exhaustion between projects which result in the forced closure of operations till resources are replenished(Carlos, 2008). The same applies to human resource making it important for businesses to educate and train the public and young professional regarding the profession or skills utilized by the business or organization so as to ensure a steady viability of skilled human resource to handle the businesses operations . The strategic plan must also be well aware regarding both the internal and external environmental factors influencing the business or organizations operations(Analoui Karami, 2003). These are factors which can be controlled by the business are organization. These usually include employee well-being, satisfaction, and performance; Product development and innovation and business expansion(Fitzen, 2009). These are factors which the business can influence to improve its performance and growth. External environmental factors are an element which cannot be controlled by the business directly. Supplier commitment, customer preferences, and government policies among several other elements cannot be controlled by a business or organization(Canzer, 2006). What challenges do organizations face in trying to develop and implement a strategy? Successful strategy implementation requires for the business overcome some challenges related to their development and implementations approaches(Verweire, 2014). Below are some important factors which influence static plan success.Development Development of strategic plans involved having a vision related to the businesses development. This involves the development of plans and strategies which will help improve the businesses operations(Melton, 2011). Some challenges which hamper strategic plan development include: A leader is responsible for managing their department as well as performing market research to identify competitors approaches. This makes it important for the leader to constantly review the market and competitors to determine new strategy development. Business and Organization Strategy also face serious complications related to irate planning where the management does not follow up to implement developed plans. These results in the stake holders investing time towards strategy plan development but the plan are never implemented resulting in the loss of contributor interest towards future plan development. Before announcing the requirement for a strategic plan, it is important to outline the objectives of the plan, selection strategy, and implementation. Strategic planning should not be made just to have strategic plans on paper as this doesnt help the business or organizations development. Another major problem related to the effective development of strategic plans is the lack of understanding related to the benefits of the plan to the business. Without a vision of the intended result, the business or organization heads are likely to not understand the importance of strategy development planning. This would result in the business failing to adopt innovation which would result in the business failing to develop new products with the latest features resulting in the gradual loss of customer confidence towards the brand's products or services. Plan development is only useful if the business implemented the plans making plan implementation another important aspect linked to successful strategic planning and development(Butuner, 2015). Some challenges related to planning implementation include: Partial commitment to strategic plans To execute a strategic plan successful it is critical for the stake holders to place their full attention towards the implementation of the plan. This is very important is it ensures full commitment towards strategic plan implementation and critical towards overcoming the complications related to the implementation of the plan. Partial commitment towards strategic plans will result in stakeholders failing to put their full focus towards the execution of the plan and this will result in missing important aspects. Being a new strategy, it is likely for the plan to experience major complications which require stakeholders full attention and focus to identify and result before they hamper the businesses operations. It is also important to have the right people involved in a project so as to execute and follow up on strategic plan implementation. This requires having academically qualifying as well as experiencing and committed people involved on the project to ensure its success. One major problem associated with failed strategic plan implementation is hiring an only qualified professional who lacks experience and knowledge. Experience and knowledge play an important role towards plan implementation since there are high chances of the project encountering an unexpected complication which may not be resolvable using only academic qualifications. In many situations, the solution to the problem may require previous experience and knowledge which makes it important to have an even balance of stakes holders who are qualified, have experience and vast knowledge for successful strategic plan implementation. Changes dont happen easily and most individuals, businesses, and organization will avoid change due to it disrupting the daily routine. This is clearly seen even at the individual levels where the staff does not accept changing their cabin or workstations easily and this is will most likely affect their performance for a short period before they get used to their surrounding again. The same applies at the business and organization level making it important that new strategic plans are carefully implemented to avoid them creating too many disruptions which will affect the business relatively. Do you think the strategy is still a relevant concept in the modern competitive environment? Modern competitive environment refers to the intensely competitive environment which businesses and organizations have experienced during the past 3 decades. The internet and moderns digital technologies have made improved businesses and organizations operations making it important for businesses to adopt new strategies so as to remain competitive in the global business environment(Stanley, 2012). This makes strategy a very important requirement for every business to adopt so as to remain competitive in the market. Developing effective strategic plans help businesses address the following concerns: Having a strategic plan will act as a guide for the businesses or organization. The strategic plans will clearly define the businesses goals, objectives and timeline with which these plans require to be implemented. Having plans allows the business to follow set guidelines which are critical towards the businesses operations and growth Strategy plans also involved the review and contributions of all business or organization stakeholders which allow the business identify important trends in the market as well as identify opportunity. It is important to identify trends so as to understand what competitors are offering their customers after whom innovation can take hold of the process and propose new ideas to be utilized on the businesses which will help improve the businesses opportunities(Ebener Smith, 2015). Innovation is critical towards any businesses success making it an important requirement for the business to review current trends and opportunities where the businesses or organization can expand their operations and improve success.Creates vision Strategic plans create vision towards the businesses or organization future development and growth. This allows all stake holders to focus their attention towards the businesses growth which is critical towards the businesses success. Vision allows the stake holders to set development and target milestones thus allowing the businesses achieve higher success rates as compared to businesses which do not have a strategic development plan. It also helps organize the staff and stakeholders who can develop long term plans for both their personal and well as business development. Conclusion Businesses and organizations must be able to develop effective strategic plans to address their future developmental needs. Every organization and stake holder must have a growth plan making it important for the business to develop the plans and also involve all stake holders to the strategic planning process. This helps secure the best feedback and approaches linked to the plans which can be used towards development and growth of the projects. Bibliography Analoui, F. Karami, A., 2003. Strategic Management in Small and Medium Enterprises. Cengage Learning EMEA. Butuner, H., 2015. Systematic Strategic Planning: A Comprehensive Framework for Implementation, Control, and Evaluation. Boca Roton: CRC Press. Canzer, B., 2006. E-Business: Strategic Thinking and Practice: Strategic Thinking and Practice. Boston: Cengage Learning. Carlos, F., 2008. Enterprise Resource Planning for Global Economies: Managerial Issues and Challenges: Managerial Issues and Challenges. Hershey: IGI Global. Ebener, D.R. Smith, F.L., 2015. Strategic Planning: An Interactive Process for Leaders. Mahwah: Paulist Press. Fitzen, L., 2009. Marketing Environment: What factors internal to an organisation can have an influence on the way it perceives and responds to its external environment? GRIN Verlag. Hill, C. Jones, G., 2007. Strategic Management: An Integrated Approach. 8th ed. Cengage Learning. Kumar, D.D., 2012. Enterprise Growth Strategy: Vision, Planning and Execution. Cornwall: Gower Publishing, Ltd. Melton, T., 2011. Real Project Planning: Developing a Project Delivery Strategy. Bulington: Butterworth-Heinemann. Sekhar, G.V.S., 2009. Business Policy and Strategic Management. New Delhi: I. K. International Pvt Ltd. Stanley, C.A., 2012. Strategic Planning: A Practical Guide for Competitive Success. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing. Thompson, 2006. Crafting And Executing Strategy:The Quest For Competitive Advantage (Special Indian Edition). 14th ed. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Education. Verweire, K., 2014. Strategy Implementation. Oxon: Routledge. WBP, 2007. Building Knowledge Economies: Advanced Strategies for Development. Washington DC: World Bank Publications.

Mr. Posgais Biology Ii Class Lab Essays - Web Colors,

Mr. Posgai's Biology Ii Class Lab Abstract Mr. Posgai's Biology II class often pondered the thought of insects' attraction to certain colors on flowers. Well, on September 14, 1999, we decided to experiment and figure out which colors on flowers were more dominant over others. Our Biology class divided up into groups of two and three people. Each group took a different colored piece of poster board. One person in each group applied Tangle Trap to the twelve by nine inch area and stapled each board to a piece of lattice. We then took the lattice outside, about fifty feet from the school building and left it outdoors for about forty-eight hours. When we retrieved our lattice, we counted the number of insects on each board and proved our hypothesis, that insects prefer yellow flowers and white flowers over the other colors, to be true. Introduction During the week of September 13, through September 17, Mr. Posgai's Biology II class carried out an interesting experiment involving insects and their color attractions. Pollination is vital to insect and flower reproduction. Birds and insects drift from flower to flower, selecting the appropriate ?flavor? of their choice to carry on their necessary task of nature. With the way nature works, this process sounds to be simple; however, it is much more complicated and in a sense, more unbelievable than you could ever imagine. A bird or insect flies or walks up into the flower to reach the pollen. As time moves o, that same bird and/or insect will move on to something else and carry the pollen with it. The pollen being transferred like this is a major factor in the flower reproduction system. My class came up with the hypothesis that the insects would be most attracted to the colors of yellow and white. Our hypothesis was proved to be true when we brought in the lattice containing all of the individual colored poster board pieces. The results were not surprising to us, as white had gathered eighty three insects and yellow gathering eighty. These colors together almost are more than the rest of the colors' insect amount combined. Materials and Methods -9 Different color poster boards: red, blue, yellow, white, purple, green, black, orange, and hot pink -Tangle Trap -Putty knife -Pencil -Ruler -Lattice -2 sticks Everyone in the class first divided up into groups of three and four people. Each group chose a 14? by 11? piece of poster board of a different color. They took the ruler and marked off with the pencil, approximately a one inch border for handling. With the putty knife at hand, they applied the Tangle Trap to the middle of the board, being careful not to let it get on their hands or clothing. Handling the piece of poster board by the one inch border on the sides, each group carefully took their board and stapled it to the lattice. The lattice was then placed outside (being held up by the two sticks) with all nine different colored poster boards stapled on it, with each piece having a 12? by 9? available trapping space. After about forty-eight hours, they retrieved the lattice and each group took back their assigned color and counted the number of insects on it. Discussion/Conclusion After retrieving our lattice board from outside, and carefully counting over and over, for reassurance, the total amount of insects on each piece of poster board, and the different types, our class came to the final conclusion that yellow, white, and red were the more dominant colors in this particular experiment. Although, this did not exactly match our hypothesis, the results were close. Also, you must take in to consideration when reading this conclusion that we only made one trial. During a normal experiment, there should be more than one test. Afterall, if is hard to determine the facts of nature with multiple experiments, let alone just one. There could also be many other factors which affected our results. An example would be that not everyone calculated exactly a one inch border from the sides of their poster board. Some people may have put the Tangle Trap on their board thicker than others, which would lead to more or less insects sticking to their particular poster board. Another factor may be that the group who was in charge of the purple poster board had to color a plain white piece. Meaning that the board may not be completely purple, and the insects may be attracted to the white spots showing through the colored board.

Physical attractiveness Essays

Physical attractiveness Essays Physical attractiveness Essay Physical attractiveness Essay The sample was composed of 40 students from the University of Warwick, 20 males and 20 females, between 18 and 24 years of age. Equal numbers of male and female participants were used to counter the effects gender may place on perception of physical attractiveness. The subjects participated in the study on a voluntary basis and were an opportunity sample.  Materials  Two consent forms including a brief about the experiment and the participants role within it was provided for the couples being rated and the independent judges, (see appendix A and B.) Separate colour photographs were taken from the neck up of each member of ten long term heterosexual couples using a digital camera. Long term was defined as courting for 6months or over. These couples were told their photograph would be rated for physical attractiveness by independent judges and that the results would be recorded for a psychological investigation, anonymously and confidentially.  Each photograph was printed on a separate sheet of paper and divided into two groups according to sex (see appendix C.) Paper and pens were used for the subjects to record their ranking order of physical attractiveness for the male and female groups. Microsoft excel was used to format these results (see appendix D.)  SPSS (version 10) software was used to calculate the data set.  Design  The enquiry was a correlation study, exploring the relationship between the two variables of physical attractiveness of an individual and the physical attractiveness of their partner. Spearmans rho statistical test was used to calculate the data set because the study was a correlation design and the data was ordinal. However, my results cannot necessarily be accounted for using different cultures, as Anderson et al (1992) found that attractive characteristics varies from culture to culture. Limitations and Modifications Although my results matched my experimental hypothesis, the experiment had many limitations. Firstly, I was not able to control who advertised themselves in the newspaper and therefore the advertisements may not be representative of the general population. Only a certain type of person would put an advertisement into a newspaper. They may be shy or have a personal difference that stops them from going out. It is also possible that they have personality traits that are not typical of the average person. It could be argued that people who advertise in lonely-hearts advertisements could be argued as abnormal. Most people are able to and meet their partners out on social occasions or at their local sports club but those who are writing into the newspapers must be unable to find somebody in theses situations and therefore could possibly be abnormal. Secondly, people may emphasise certain traits, underestimate others and tell lies or not the full truth. This limits the validity of any conclusions that are drawn from the possibly unreliable results. Also, there is the fact that my pre-determined lists are subjective as they are opinion and therefore someone repeating the experiment may deduce completely different information from the same examples when there were no specific references to youth/looks and wealth/finance. This reduces the ecological validity of my experiment even further. As with most experiments, Cultural variations have to also be taken into account. This could be due to the extent to which countries are developed and the differing cultural priorities. For example in some cultures it is a priority for women to get married and have children, whereas for the men it is to provide food for their family. It is now becoming increasingly more common for the womens role to be more providing and for the mens role to be involved with the children. My results draw attention to the fact that women who have youth/good looks and men that are successful/wealthy (and good looking also) are thought to be the most attractive. These results are apparent in the media and aspects of every day life. For example, photos of women on mens magazines are almost always of women who are youthful and stereotypically good looking. Also, mens magazines often contain content that will offer advice on becoming more successful, and therefore more attractive. Also, many adverts aimed at men signify status symbols and therefore support my findings. One explanation for my results may be because of an evolutionary effect; over time men have become more attracted to good looking women as they will be likely to successfully give birth to children and women have become more attracted to men offering resources as they will be more likely to provide for them and their offspring meaning a higher chance of survival. By doing this, healthy genes can be passed on through the generations and the race can continue to survive. This explanation is supported by Darwins theory of evolution. However, men and women may be influenced by the media, peer pressure or other things that make them try and act or appear more attractive. There is a range of further research that could be carried out to gain a further insight into the nature of these findings. For example, the experiment could be repeated using homosexual ads, and see what resources homosexuals offer and compare those findings to these ones. I could also compare results with findings from samples of an older generation past breeding age so that the findings would be irrelevant to evolution. Additionally, a cross culture investigation would be an interesting investigation to be done. One could study how people in different cultures attract their partners and even compare between more economically developed and less economically developed countries.

What factors determines use of a certain device Research Proposal

What factors determines use of a certain device - Research Proposal Example The independent variable will be measured using the coefficient associated with regression of the objector data to be measured. According to Marshall, Data will be collected using mixed methods approach. Data collection tools will include: Key informant interviews, observation and questionnaires. An example of the questions that will be asked involves, According to Ingersoll, Data will be analyzed using contingent tables. The application of the chi-square statistic is used to assess the relationship between the two variables. The investigator takes the observed frequency (O) and compares it to the expected frequency (E) and combined using the following formula. The importance of this study is to understand the factors that determine the use of a device. The results of this study will confirm the already existing data, add to that data or provide new knowledge in the field. This will promote more research in the field and the public and the government will be more interested to know the findings. The plan for this project is as follows: presentation of the research topic, preparation and presentation of the proposal, data collection, data analysis, documentation and final presentation of the

Kohlbergs Principles of Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Kohlbergs Principles of Ethics - Essay Example Lawrence Kohlberg was one of the first serious thinkers to study and know about a person's ability to deal with ethical issues which could develop in later life and also whether education could affect that development (Source: Can Ethics Be Taught). Kohlberg developed a theory of moral reasoning, which according to him was the basis for ethical behavior and has three major levels split into six identifiable stages of moral development as shown below: The Stage 1 is a heteronomous orientation focusing on avoiding breaking rules that are backed by punishment, obedience for its own sake and avoiding the physical consequences of an action to persons and property (Source: Studies in moral development and education). The Stage 2 orientation focuses on the instrumental, pragmatic value of an action. Reciprocity is of the form. The Golden Rule becomes, "If someone hits you, you hit them back". Thus one follows the rules only when it is to someone's immediate interests. What is right is what's fair in the sense of an equal exchange, a deal, an agreement with his (her) own interest (Source: Studies in moral development and education). At Stage 3 individuals are aware of shared feelings, agreements, and expectations which take primacy over individual interests. Hence they define what is right in terms of what is expected by people close to their own self, and in terms of the stereotypic roles that define being good. Thus being good here means keeping mutual relationships, such as trust, loyalty, respect, and gratitude. The thinking is that of local community or family. There is no consideration of the generalized social system (Source: Studies in moral development and education). The Stage 4 shifts focus from defining what is right in terms of local norms and role expectations to defining right in terms of the laws and norms established by the larger social system. Thus defining one's social responsibilities. One must obey the law except in extreme cases in which the law comes into conflict with other prescribed social duties. Obeying the law is seen as necessary in order to maintain the system of laws which protect everyone (Source: Studies in moral development and education). While two stages have been mentioned in the third major level only one stage i.e., Stage 5, has received substantial empirical support. Stage 6 remains as a theoretical endpoint which rationally follows from the preceding 5 stages. This level is called the post conventional level and is characterized by reasoning based on principles, using a "prior to society" perspective. The individual's reason here is based on the principles which underlie rules and norms, but reject a uniform application of a rule or norm (Source: Studies in moral development and education). According to Campbell and Bond (1982) Kohlberg's ideas of moral reasoning, moral realism and morality are based on the premise that at birth all humans are void of morals, ethics and honesty. Kohlberg identified the family as first source of values and moral development for an individual. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy being honest or generous is just not a tendency to do what is honest or generous, nor is it to be helpfully specified as a "desirable" or "morally