Marketing Plan - Rosies Institute of Studies - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 11 Words: 3182 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Marketing Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? MARKETING PLAN Table of Contents 1.0 Executive Summary 2.0 Introduction 3.0 Market Analysis 3.1 Description 3.2 Competitor Analysis 3.2.1 Market position 3.3 SWOT analysis 3.3.1 Internal factors 3.3.2 Weakness 3.4 External Factors 3.4.1 Opportunity 3.4.2 Threats 3.5 PEST analysis 3.5.1 Political analysis 3.5.2 Economic factors 3.5.3 Social analysis 3.5.4 Ever changing Technology 4.0 Customer Analysis: 4.1 What they want: 4.2 Value Drivers: 4.3 Decision Process: 4.4 Support Requirements: 4.5 Price Sensitivity: 4.6 How to reach them: 4.6.1 Social Events: 4.6.2 Seminars: 4.6.3 Advertisement: 4.7 Ideal Customer: 5.0 Market strategy (mix): 5.1 Product: 5.2 Price: 5.3 Place: 5.4 Personality: 6.0 Marketing Promotion: 6.1 Direct marketing: 6.2 Internet Marketing: 6.3 Public Relations: 6.4 Advertising: 6.5 Projected outcomes: 7.0 Conclusion: Executive Summary: Marketing simply means creating demand for your product. In todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s fast moving world where every corporation or company is trying to build up their business, marketing plays an anchor role for such companies. Now, we canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t even think about profit if there is no strong marketing in place. The companies who are giving much importance to marketing are leading the market today. i.e. McDonaldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s, KFC etc. In this assignment I have tried to make a marketing plan for R.I.S College, which comes under the education market. The education market has really rocketed from the last 3-4 years in New Zealand. With the help of this assignment I have tried to lighten some points which play a key role in this market. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Marketing Plan Rosies Institute of Studies" essay for you Create order Introduction: Rosieà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Institute of Studies (R.I.S) is one of the well-known institutions in New Zealand. This institution was established ten years ago by Marion Kerepeti Edwards (Currently working as Director of this Institute). With the lots of experience in education industry. R.I.S has maintained a very competitive position in the education market and is highly preferred by most of the International and Local students. The college is currently providing business (Level-5, 6, 7) and I.T (Level-5) courses to the students. 3.0 Market Analysis: 3.1 Description: The education market in New Zealand has really grown up from the last 4-5 years. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the quality of education and possibility of bright future that is still luring the international students to come and study in New Zealand. No doubt New Zealand economy is strongly supported by the education market. But now the scenario has totally changed. Now this industry has not remained a profitable industr y. Basically there are two reasons behind that. 1) With the introduction of new rules by Immigration of New Zealand (which comes to effect after 2nd of April, 2012) the number of international students specially form Asia has decreased. 2) Competition in the local Market has made the situation even tougher. For example: If the college is ready to provide good quality of education but with a high fees, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s very much possible that such college might be facing many problems. 3.2 Competitor Analysis: 3.2.1 Market position: About 4-5 years back there were very few government and private institutes which were providing studies to the local and International students. But now every month a new institution is introduced in the market. Thus, competition has become very touch today. Moreover, some colleges like Royal Business College, Prime International College, and N.Z.I.O.S College are giving tough competition to R.I.S with their attractive market approach, quick services and fee structure. The only thing which is still favoring R.I.S is its teaching staff. As a student I have seen that students are very much impressed with the tutors behavior and teaching style. No doubt R. I. S. has a very good marketing team due to which numbers of students have studied in this college but within few months I have seen a major drawback of students in the college. Thus, the output is not coming. Secondly, with the closure of Manukau branch is also not helping the institute much. Yes, the Manukau branch was expensive and not much income was coming but. It has become the first choice for the local students. 3.3 SWOT analysis: 3.3.1 Internal factors: 3.3.1.1 Strength: Every college has some strength which helps the college to compete and maintain its position in the market. As far as R.I S is concerned it also has some good points which are enabling R.I.S to merge in the market. 3.3.1.2 Maori Territory Education Provider: R.I.Sà ¢ â‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s strength is that ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a lonely Maori education provider. All other education institutes are being run by Asians or Chinese. But, R.I.S is totally opposite. Due to this benefit of point R.I S is getting the support of local people. 3.3.1.3 Vast amount of experience: R.I.S is among few those colleges of New Zealand who has well experienced staff. Right from the Director to the Tutors and from Marketing Executives to C.S.R, all have worked in the industry for many years. They know their job very well. This experience really counts because if we are talking about the education industry it all depends on contacts and links in the market. Also experience brings knowledge. The combination of these two is really very important for any education provider if he wants to be successful. 3.3.1.4 Branches outside Auckland: There are not many colleges who have their branches outside Auckland. R.I.S does have two branches running outside in Taranga and C hristchurch. These branches are indirectly helping the institution financially. Secondly, it gives variety to the international students also to study outside of Auckland and make their career. 3.3.1.5 Strong marketing team: As I mentioned earlier this industry all relies on marketing and luckily R.I.S has got some good marketing staff lead by Mr. Ross Read and is very well supported by other members. 3.3.1.6 Experienced Tutors: Every Institution is mostly judged through the number of students and the teaching staff. I am very pleased to say that R.I.S has got very good tutors and administration. Friendly attitude and motivating ability is what makes them special. Students like such kind of things and indirectly ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s very beneficial for the institution as well. 3.3.2 Weakness: If this institute has some qualities at the same time it has some weak points also. 3.3.2.1 Lack of variety in the marketing team: The major drawback of the marketing t eam is it has only Asian employees. Due to which mostly students come from India, Fiji, and Sri Lanka, Pakistan to study because they will target the Asian side only. No students are coming from China and other European countries because the college doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have employees who can focus on such market. We all know the importance of China. The variety of students makes a big impact to the college profile. Around 60-70 % of students who come to New Zealand for study are Chinese. Thus, The College is lacking in this field. 3.3.2.2 Having only Indian students: R.I.S only has Indian students in the institute. Yes, having number of Indian students are not a bad thing but its side effect is that students from other communities do not like Indian students. Due to which there are not much variety of students coming to R.I.S. 3.3.2.3 Less variety of courses: R.I.S has courses related to business and I.T only. There are number of students who are interested in doing Hospitality, Management and cookery courses. If the college wants to maintain its position in the market it has to introduce some more courses because then the college will have the variety for the students and can bring interest of students to join R.I.S. 3.3.2.4 Drawbacks in advertisements in Local and International market: Advertisement is the key weapon for every institute. There are many institutes in New Zealand who donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have a very good building but still they are able to bring in number of students. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s all due to their strong advertising. R.I.S is lacking in it. First comes the website itself. We all know that website is like the identity of any college. Mostly, students get lured if the website is good, but ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not in the case of this institute. The institute needs to update it time to time. Moreover, not much advertisement is being done on Radio. In New Zealand large number of people listens to the radio. Suc h tactics needs to be applied. 3.3.2.5 Lack of Flexibility: R.I.S is not running according to the current market trends. Whether its Courses fee or introduction of new courses. Such things are affecting the college straight away. 3.4 External Factors: 3.4.1 Opportunity: The education industry changes very quickly. Thus, there is always an opportunity of gaining some profit in the market. R.I.S should try to pay its attention towards the Chinese students because most of the surveys are suggesting that in the upcoming years highest number of students is looking to come to New Zealand for studies. 3.4.2 Threats: There are some threats which R.I.S should look forward: 3.4.2.1 Increasing number of colleges: The numbers of colleges are increasing day by day. Due to which the ratio of students are also getting affected. 3.4.2.2 Less fee: Due to the decrease of international students colleges have started paying attention to the local market. Many colleges h ave drop down their fees straight away. This has hammered R.I.S also. 3.5 PEST analysis: 3.5.1 Political analysis: New Zealand is seen as a very good country to study. The government is also encouraging the education providers. Thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s why mostly, students of different cultures and countries come to New Zealand for a better future. This friendly education environment is very beneficial for R.I.S. More over the director of the institute Marion Kerepeti Edwards is also form Maori community due to which ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s being liked and appreciated by the local community as well. 3.5.2 Economic factors: Economically New Zealand comes under the developing countries of the world. NZ currency is going up very quickly. A survey done in year 2011 shows that New Zealand government gets around 30-40% annual income from the education providers. This shows the value of colleges in this country. Such facts seems sweet when we are talking about an education inst itution like R.I.S 3.5.3 Social analysis: New Zealand is a multi-cultural Country. People of different countries can be found in one origin here. The social environment is also very good for the education industry because mostly foreigners take study to remain legal in this country or some times to fulfill their job requirements they take business or other courses. Thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s why institution like R.I.S can look forward to grow their business in New Zealand. 3.5.4 Ever changing Technology: Technology is such thing which cannot be bonded. Every now and then we come to know about the new technology in the market. To maintain a good standard R.I.S has to catch with the latest technology, which its being trying to but still there is a long way to go. We all know that young generation is easily attracted by such things. Thus, the college needs to implement these things. 4.0 Customer Analysis: Estimated Percentage of sales: Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s very m uch clear from the graph that year 2011 proves to be very profitable for R.I.S. But on the flip side Year 2012 (currently running) has not bring much to the institute. It might be the effect of the new rules introduced by the immigration due to which very less international students are coming to New Zealand especially from India. 4.1 What they want: Understanding of studentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s attitude and approach for international study is very pivotal in this field. The colleges who are more concerned about all such things and are working on it are now being able to bring more students to their college. Mostly students look for such kind of provider which may be of good standard, which has appropriate fees structure and especially which will be providing some extra facilities to the international students. I think R.I.S should put more efforts in these areas. 4.2 Value Drivers: There are few things in this business which serves as value drivers in this industry. Servi ce and Student support. The college which is good in these two things is always being liked by the students. If we talk about R.I.S, yes no doubt student support is there, but there lack in the field of service. I think the college needs to work on this thing. 4.3 Decision Process: There is no doubt in the fact that studentsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ decision ability is lured by many things. Like: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢College Presentation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Strength of students à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢The ability of college representator. All these factors certainly affect studentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s approach. 4.4 Support Requirements: Every institution needs some sort of support whether it is financial or moral. It always works. R.I.S has got support from the investors, but as per my knowledge thing have stated changing. Probably that would be the reason that Otahuhu branch is being closed. Therefore, college has to pull their socks so that they can stand tall in the market and bring t he investors in. 4.5 Price Sensitivity: In local market course price matters a lot. Yes, international students didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t worry much about the college fee but when students spent some time in New Zealand he becomes more aware about all such things. Bringing such students in the college is really a very big ask. If the price is acceptable, the marketers can easily impress the students. Thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s why price sensitivity always matters. 4.6 How to reach them: There is a lot of competition going on in these days. Colleges have to reach to the students. There are number of things which can help colleges to do so: 4.6.1 Social Events: Social events are a very good place to gain some attention of youth. These are the perfect places where the colleges can do some marketing 4.6.2 Seminars: Arranging some seminars can also make a big difference in the numbers game. Such seminars help the students to learn more knowledge about the college. 4 .6.3 Advertisement: In New Zealand Radio is the best means of advertisement. By going on line to the Radio and answering students question can bring the confidence of students for the college. 4.7 Ideal Customer: Youth is the ideal customers for the colleges. Mainly students who are studying in senior secondary look forward to establish their career in abroad. By paying visit to such schools, telling them about the college and giving them presentation can change things quickly. 5.0 Market strategy (mix): Before heading towards any task proper market strategy is very important. There are some issues which plays key role while making any strategy. 5.1 Product: Courses serve as product in this education industry. Therefore, college needs to have variety of products under its pocket. Courses like Horticulture, Short skilled courses i.e. carpenter electrical, Management courses, Hospitality and cookery etc. No doubt bringing all courses together is very difficult but at least some courses should be in product list of college. 5.2 Price: Price of courses also plays a major role in diverting students mind especially, for the international students. I think College should set the price according to the current market position. If other colleges are bringing their course rates down there is no mean to bond the course rates. Unique selling point is what a college should try to have. 5.3 Place: Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s very important to understand the value of the place where the courses are going to be deliver .Otahuhu was the key spot for the local students. Yes, not much response was received at the starting but slowly people have started knowing about the college. AS per my knowledge, Otahuhu campus was directly giving competition to the near colleges like N.I.T.T, A.U.T etc. 5.4 Personality: Personality matters a lot. As far as R.I.S is concerned I have seen a drawback in college personality in the recent time. Agents who have been in touch with the college are not happy with the service .Commissions are not given properly in time. All this straightly affect the market value of college. R.I.S needs to stop all such things and try to rebuild their fame in the market. 6.0 Marketing Promotion: Promotion is the prime need of today. Without the proper promotion we canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t expect much from the market. There are several ways of doing it. 6.1 Direct marketing: Direct marketing is not like a cup of tea. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a very tough job to perform. The people who are doing this job should have ample of experience to do it. But it brings very positive results also. Because of face to face interaction students comes to know more about the college. 6.2 Internet Marketing: Internet marketing is the latest type of marketing which is being used today by almost all the colleges. R.I.S also has a very good website but still it needs some changes. Mostly students look the college site to get more information about the college. But, In R.I.S site, there is not much to see. Time to time update is needed. 6.3 Public Relations: Public support and good relation can also be very beneficial for the college .Good public support can bring fame for the college. To achieve all that the college executives needs to participate in the public functions etc. and try to tell people about the college. This may also be very helpful. 6.4 Advertising: Advertising is the key weapon behind the success in New Zealand. R.I.S is lacking in this field also. Radio is liked by most of the people here. I think the college should use this mean also. 6.5 Projected outcomes: There are few things which need certain attention. If ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s being done properly not only the sales will boost up but at the same time the college market value will also grow. We all know that whatever is done but the thing which matters is profit. If there is no profit there is no mean in s ticking to one plan. So, changing time to time and adopting new techniques is very important for the success. 7.0 Conclusion: Hammering the last nail I can conclude that running an educational organization is like walking on eggs. I have seen number of changes in the New Zealand education market within the last two years. After the new rules of immigration come in action (2nd of April, 2012) the number of international students has decreased. The colleges are working hard to increase the number of students same as R.I.S is doing. I think it will take some time to change the situation. Because international students will slowly accept the new rules of two years education. Secondly, as a student of R.I.S for the last seven months, I have seen many changes in the institute and have found that the institute has not done very well this year as compared to other colleges. For example; N.Z.I.O.S college which was about to close last year is doing extremely well at the moment. The reason behind that is N.Z.I.O.S reduces its college fee from $5800 to $4800 which has impressed most of the local students. R.I.S should look forward to all such little but valuable changes to improve their position in the market.

A Group Adopting Precious Elderly Essay - 3404 Words

The rocking chair softly squeaks as the tears cruise down the deeply lined face. Thoughts of long past visits, laughter and happier times swiftly race through the minds. Now it seems as if there is only sadness, empty days and lonely nights. The memories no longer bring comfort but instead now only bring pain. This is the story of our elderly. All too often they become the forgotten members of our society. So many times, the elders in our communities are not being socialized. This lack can lead to depression and health problems that perhaps could be avoided under different circumstances. In a case study by Indiana University, in 1994, they studied 1,711 patients 60 years and older. Over a period of nine months, they discovered that 292 of†¦show more content†¦The survey also showed that the elderly are twice as likely to commit suicide as the younger generations. The campaign slogan for the Help the Aged group sums up perfectly the purpose for the A.G.A.P.E. program. There is no substitute for human warmth and contact and our aim with this campaign is to ensure older people no longer feel abandoned by society.† (Womack, 2007) The elderly in nursing homes are the ones generally lacking the most attention. High School student Petal Pearl Nneka Hayes created a study named The Relationship between the Friendship of Nursing Home Residents and their Morale. In this study, she quoted E. M. Gruenberg’s statement, â€Å"Nursing homes promote institutional behavior patterns characterized by apathy, loss of interest, and submissiveness. 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Audit - Assurance and Compliance Financial Interest

Question: Discuss about theAudit, Assurance and Compliance for Financial Interest. Answer: Threats to Auditor Independence: When the audit evaluation is conducted, the auditors are liable to follow the generally accepted auditing standards. The independence of the auditor denotes the freedom of internal or external auditor from parties possessing financial interest in the organisation, which is audited in fair methods (Andon, Free and O'Dwyer 2015). In addition, independence denotes integrity along with an objective approach to the process of audit. The auditor needs to be independent from the client firm, in which the audit opinion would not be affected on the part of any relationship between them. Furthermore, the auditors are expected to provide unbiased opinion in relation to the financial statements to the stakeholders of an organisation. The non-audit services are rendered on the part of the auditors to their clients beyond scope. Such type of services comprises of management and tax-related services along with business promotion of the client. These services are offered for earning additional income or any sort of non-monetary gain (Birkey et al. 2016). Moreover, it is noteworthy that contribution of non-audit services results in independence loss at the time of providing services to the potential clients. The quality of audit is a critical issue, as it often draws criticism stakeholders and regulators. Advocacy, on the contrary, is a threat to the independence of the auditor that requires to be considered in the specific situation. Advocacy denotes the situation, in which an auditor provides an opinion; however, the people feel that there has been compromise in audit quality. In this case, the threat of advocacy is the major risk to the auditor independence. This occurs when the auditor is engaged to promote the cl ients business. Thus, provision of auditory services might violate the ethical code, which could affect the auditor independence. The independence of the auditor could be in risk, in case; the gathers benefits along with the prescribed fees related to audit services. This might occur from obtaining other advantages out of agreement associated with the engagement of audit. In the given case study, the audit firm members have been provided with a holiday package. In case, there is an acceptance of the offer, the independence of the auditor could be questioned. Thus, it would lead to threat of independence with the rise in benefits (Cohen and Simnett 2014). The siblings, spouse, parent, dependent and non-dependent child of an auditor are considered as the close family members of the auditor. The financial interest comprises of guarantee of debt ownership and individual securities concerning intermediary or other individual, if the individual is associated with the control of intermediary or investment decision. The financial controller in the clients business is the father of the accountant. Under such scenario, if the auditor accepts the offer, it might endanger the auditor independence. Hence, if the offer is accepted, the auditor independence is lost (Kend, Houghton and Jubb 2014). With the intention of associating close association with the client, staffs, directors and officers, there is presence of influential risk within the business environment of the client. According to the provided scenario, the auditor might be sympathetic and the person could develop close association with the client. This might have direct effect on the auditors representation, as the individual has valuable client information due to involvement in a previous assignment with LTH. The auditor has offered services to the client through tax calculation and entry of accounting transactions. Hence, the auditor could not carry out analysis of self-audit services. Safeguards to the Identified Threats: The measures that could be implemented to strengthen the auditor independence of the auditor are described as follows: Rotation of the Audit Partner: The system of rotation associated with the main partners reduces the over-familiarity threat along with self-interest and thus, it would promote the objectivity aspect without considerable cost. In addition, the institutional and historical firm knowledge would be present to all the staffs for maintaining audit quality (Knechel and Salterio 2016). Developing Audit Committee for Assuring Transparency: The auditors are needed to be provided with adequate amount of resources and the organisation needs to appoint independent and qualified audit members. Hence, it is crucial for the audit team to analyse independence and objectivity along with ensuring the availability of outcomes to the stakeholders of the organisation. Consistency with the Independent Auditors Needs: The independence of the auditor could be enhanced with the help of effective and robust standards of ethics. Thus, an international group of greater quality independence and ethical standards would reduce the complexities related to the auditing procedures (Ojala et al. 2016). Oversight of the Independent Auditor: The major features of oversight of the auditor associates independence from the political interference and audit profession. Thus, they are needed to give transparency, true and fair depiction coupled with cooperating and sharing confidential data with another with utmost care. Business Risks Related to Purchasing of Spare Parts and Equipment: The two business risks associated with the buying of spare parts and equipment are demonstrated as follows: Strategic Risk: This risk is not involved with the approaches of business and the choosing of the firm for accurate market and products. The strategic risk involved with inventory management is associated with the spare parts management. At one point, the organisation might select ad-hoc, which implies spending items on buying, utilising formal policies and associating the experienced professionals to provide judgement on issues of procedures. At another point, the firm might select to standardise the aspects of management for spare parts in an identical manner like financial management standardisation (Schmidt, Wood and Grabski 2016). The relevant approach for the firm is dependent on the financial investment related to inventory and risk associated with the probable loss. Operational Risk: This kind of risk is related to executing the chosen approach. The firm might introduce a policy associated with stocking to undertake decisions related to standardisation. However, it has been found that the policy is not adequate or the management approach is not in line with the introduced policy. Thus, about the inventory management of spare parts, risk management signifies detecting the effective stuffs and conducting them rightfully (Srivastava, Rao and Mock 2013). Influence of Audit Risk on Account Balance: The risk associated with the strategic risk could be termed as inherent risk. This risk occurs due to error in financial reports or omission rather than the contributory factor related to control failure. Moreover, the complex nature of the transaction or the circumstances requiring higher level of judgement for financial projections is liable for inherent risk (William Jr, Glover and Prawitt 2016). The risk has an effect on the account receivables and inventory balance. Certain accounts and transactions are associated with inherent risk, which has severe impact on the balances of accounts depending on transaction losses. The risks related to operations are termed as detection risk. This risk takes place at the time the auditor is not able to detect the material misstatement associated with the material misstatement. This has been involved with the financial statement of the organisation with the help of substantive tests and evaluation procedures. The detection risks are expected when the auditor fails in implementing the relevant processes (Wong and Millington 2014). As a result, it has severe influence on the balance of accounts, since it is beyond the evaluation of the accountant. The accounts, which are prone greatly to this risk, take into account revenue account, sales account, purchase account and inventory account. References: Andon, P., Free, C. and O'Dwyer, B., 2015. Annexing new audit spaces: challenges and adaptations.Accounting, Auditing Accountability Journal,28(8), pp.1400-1430. Birkey, R.N., Michelon, G., Patten, D.M. and Sankara, J., 2016, September. Does assurance on CSR reporting enhance environmental reputation? An examination in the US context. InAccounting Forum(Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 143-152). Elsevier. Cohen, J.R. and Simnett, R., 2014. CSR and assurance services: A research agenda.Auditing: A Journal of Practice Theory,34(1), pp.59-74. Kend, M., Houghton, K.A. and Jubb, C., 2014. Competition issues in the market for audit and assurance services: are the concerns justified?.Australian Accounting Review,4(24), pp.313-320. Knechel, W.R. and Salterio, S.E., 2016.Auditing: assurance and risk. Routledge. Ojala, H., Collis, J., Kinnunen, J., Niemi, L. and Troberg, P., 2016. The Demand for Voluntary Audit in Micro?Companies: Evidence from Finland.International Journal of Auditing,20(3), pp.267-277. Schmidt, P.J., Wood, J.T. and Grabski, S.V., 2016. Business in the Cloud: Research Questions on Governance, Audit, and Assurance.Journal of Information Systems,30(3), pp.173-189. Srivastava, R.P., Rao, S.S. and Mock, T.J., 2013. Planning and evaluation of assurance services for sustainability reporting: An evidential reasoning approach.Journal of Information Systems,27(2), pp.107-126. William Jr, M., Glover, S. and Prawitt, D., 2016.Auditing and assurance services: A systematic approach. McGraw-Hill Education. Wong, R. and Millington, A., 2014. Corporate social disclosures: a user perspective on assurance.Accounting, Auditing Accountability Journal,27(5), pp.863-887.

The Strengths And Weaknesses Of The American Political System Essays

The Strengths And Weaknesses Of The American Political System Identify and comment on what you see to be the strengths and/or weaknesses of the American system as far as the topics in this section are concerned. The constitutional system of the United States is a puzzling aspect of an American's life. Many do not understand. Some think they understand it and with their slight grasp of it they try to offer solutions to better it. I would like to offer a broad concept of the American constitutional system and its subcategories, which are the executive, legislative and judicial branches, and what I have learned about them. In this paper, I will also present the strengths and weaknesses concerning each category. To begin to grasp the constitutional system, one must first comprehend why it was chosen and why the forefathers composed it this way. Because most Americans, at that time, owned guns and were not formerly educated, the forefathers feared allowing them to rule (lecture 9/27/99). So they took it upon themselves, the well educated, to forge a new democracy. The forefathers chose a mixed government that represented three existing forms of government: a monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy (lecture 9/27/99). The President would represent the elected monarchy, the Senate would represent the aristocracy, and the House of representatives would represent the democracy. The set up of the constitutional system chosen by the forefathers prevented the opportunity for the government to become oppressive (lecture 9/27/99). This was done in several ways. First the forefathers invented separation of powers. The legislative, judicial, and executive branches were set up in the manner that it would be less likely for them to come together. Each department had separate and distinct requirements to fulfill. The requirements will be delineated later on. On the other hand, each branch interfered with each other through checks and balances. The checks and balance system allowed for three important events to occur with each section of the government. The checks and balance system deliberately set the three branches at odds with each other. Each department was made responsible for different electoral pressures. As mentioned before the branches were also given the ability and agility to interfere into the jurisdiction of the other. For instance, the President is responsible to negotiate treaties but the senate must ratify it. Congress can pass it and then the President signs. But even if Congress ratifies the treaty and the President signs it, the Supreme Court can declare it unconstitutional (lecture 9/27/99). This division of power occurs at two levels; the federal and state level. The federal system consists of the President, Congress, and the Supreme Court. The state level consists of a governor, representatives, and local courts. The system seems to work very well but does it? When the forefathers forged the constitutional system there were certain problems that they did see, mainly because the country was relatively smaller and consequently less problems to deal with. The government did not have to be so efficient for it to work. The American society was wealthier in the sense that products were less expensive. For instance energy was cheaper, it only cost $1.15 for gas while in France it was 5 franks. But now the United States is involved in a competitive global economy and therefore lacks the efficiency that it once obtained. Another reason why the system worked so well was because the forefathers intended it not to work rapidly (lecture 9/27/99). Can anything be done about the inefficiency that the system faces in such a competitive modern world? There are some alternatives that Theodore J. Lowi provides in an excerpt entitled Presidential Power: Restoring the Balance, but these solutions will come later on after the presentation of the three branches. For now I would like to expound on the strengths and weakness concerning the formation of the constitutional system. I believe that it was sheer genius. There exists no other government like our own and that has succeeded as well as ours has. The United States remains the only lasting superpower. There are many strengths in the system that allows for this. The separation of powers allows for the distinct role of each branch but with this distinction each branch must check and

Ruth Chris Case Study free essay sample

Dan Hannah, Vice President for Business Development at Ruth’s Chris, uniquely American and successful Steakhouse restaurant was responsible for the development of new business strategy focused on continued growth and company operated restaurants. Even though current restaurants were seeing consistent incremental growth, new restaurants were critical. Hannah knew that the international opportunities offered a tremendous upside. There are currently 10 successful locations internationally. These locations include Canada, Mexico, Taiwan and Hong Kong. Based on the fact that these international locations were doing well and seem to be the path to increased revenue, Hannah decided that he would adhere to the ‘market development’ model. Hannah proceeded to look at market criterias, competition and the meat/beef consumption rate per region/country throughout the world in order find the best suitable locations to grow Ruth’s Chris chain of restaurants internationally. ISSUE IDENTIFICATION Ruths Chris senior team to locate new international markets to increase stores whether owned or franchised, in order to increase revenue. We will write a custom essay sample on Ruth Chris Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The criterias that have eliminated some of the potential prospects include: Liquid net worth of at least $1US million Verifiable experience within the hospitality industry Ability to desire and develop multiple locations Cost of Franchise $100,000US A 5% gross sales royalty fee 2% of gross sales fee as a contribution to the national advertising campaign For Market Selection Criteria, some concerns were: Looking for market that includes beef eaters – people who enjoy eating beef Markets where it is legal to import beef from US Population – high urbanization rates High disposable income Locations where people do go out to eat Locate markets that werent anti – US as Ruths Chris is uniquely American. ALTERNATIVES AND OPTONS: (1) Amend/Extend contracts with international Franchisees to offer: †¢Extension of franchisee territories to allow larger geographical growth within that country †¢extend length of contract in order to give more time to expand within larger territories Pros: (i)These franchisees are already in the international countries and have a better suitable eye for opportunities. Allowing a larger territory, extended time and opportunity for these international franchisee to successfully grow, will be beneficial for Ruths Chris growth internationally. (ii) May increase business partnership with other business owners and potentially replace restaurant competition Cons: (i)These international franchisees may make a bad decision to grow where there is not enough revenue, and could potentially create a bad reputation for Ruths Chris. (ii)This may take time away from current store and level of service may decrease. (iii) This doesn’t expand outside of current international countries To implement an incentive program among current international franchisees. Measurables to be: †¢company owned incentive after X amount of years, driving X amount of sales †¢Number of restaurant expansion within geographical reach, within that country or within a neighboring country †¢Consistency with service and food quality with every restaurant †¢Build future business partnership across that country Pros: (i)Motivation to international franchisees to grow (ii)Increased revenue (iii)Similar cultures of pairing up current franchisees with neighboring countries Cons: (i) Cost associated with incentive Source an equivalent grade of meat to USDA meat locally at potential international markets Pros: (i)Save costs with importing of beef Cons: (i)Time to source quality of meat (ii)Consistency of quality of meat – may not be the same quality every time (iii) Selecting the right market i. e if grade of meat is available, doesn’t mean the market is attractive i. e is it high urbanization? , do people eat out?.. etc. (4) Advertise and publicize the quality of meats/food within international markets that shows a high meat consumption rate such as Central America/Caribbean, Asia and all developing countries. Some advertising techniques may include: †¢Taste sampling at local/public events and shows †¢TV advertising †¢Partner with wineries, beer companies etc to introduce quality of meats †¢Caribbean resorts restaurants Pros: (i)Introduce the quality of food to international markets. (ii)Build relations with potential franchisees in these countries Cons: (i)Very costly – includes a dedicated Ruths Chris team, Travel, Operating costs (ii)Time – need dedicated time for presentation (5) Locate where the top fine dining steak houses are in the world. Already identified are some top steak houses Mortons, Flemmings, Palm, Capital Grill. Identify where these are in the US and/or the world. These restaurants will already be in locations that include beef eaters, high urbanization, people who go out, and people with high disposable incomes. Pros: (i)Less time to survey where the best location is (ii)Good method to identify target areas internationally Cons: (i)Revenue may not be as high as these competitions may already have established most if not all of the customers in that area. RECOMMENDATION Tool: To implement an Incentive program among current international franchisees – Canada, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mexico to reach to nearby countries to expand locations internationally Definition: A program that allows current international franchisees to be rewarded by taking the ownership to expand, challenges themselves, grow, improve service, be consistent with food quality and increase revenue outside of their known territories i. e other potential international markets. This incentive program may include: †¢Start up funds to obtain real estate for new location †¢Reduced advertising agency fees †¢Public Recognition which will only enhance current stores revenue †¢Internal employee/franchisee recognition – wall plaque †¢Discounts for Franchisee family travel once a year to other locations †¢Potential for other business partners e. g. Beverage industries worldwide *this comes with public recognition It is essential to identify where in the world are the potential Ruths Chris stores will be located. Based on the meat consumption rate sheet in Exhibit 3, its already been identified that the top 5 markets are Central America, Caribbean, Asia, Developing countries and middle income countries. Increase territories for the current 10 international Franchisees. Allow for these franchisees to expand to neighboring countries. For example, Central America shows the meat consumption growth rate to be 13. 5%, hence allowing current Franchisee in Mexico to reach across to Central America and Caribbean. At the same time, current Franchisee Hong Kong and Taiwan can be of reach to Asia and other developing countries as their meat consumption rate is between 8. 65% to 9. 45%. These current franchisee may choose to expand or own Ruths Chris in these new international markets. With proof that when Ruths Chris current international franchisee reaches out to these markets, the incentive program will motivate them to keep expanding and looking for ideas, locations and partners to improve revenue. Communication is key to all Franchisees. This will allow transparency to how all international franchisee are performing in building new markets. Monthly or quarterly reports from Franchisee required to show that processes are being adhered to in order to mitigate any potential risks to the name – Ruths Chris and to any confidential recipes that go along with the name. All government documentation required to ensure all steps are legal. Customer survey feedback needs to be obtained to show that the new locations are aligned with Ruths Chris current level of food quality and service consistency. IMPLEMENTATION (a) Ruths Chriss senior management team will source, support, develop, communicate and deliver this Incentive Program. (b) The Incentive program will motivate current international franchisees to expand, grow in other international markets, thus increasing revenue and bringing exposure of service level and food quality to these markets. This Incentive program will be developed and communicated in one month. Rewards of this program can be awarded as early as the next 3 months. (d)This Incentive program is supported by Ruths Chris on a worldwide network MONITOR AND CONTROL (a) Number of international locations (b) Total revenue of each new location (c) Level of market captured by new locations (d) Customer service survey results (e) Time it took to expand to new market

Persuit Of Attention (Book Review) essays

Persuit Of Attention (Book Review) essays In the book The Pursuit of Attention written by Charles Derber, Derber describes how social class has a huge impact on how much attention one gets. Many times the only reason people receive as much as attention as they get is because of their social class and/or status. In this book Derber states, In America, wealth, occupation, and education all significantly affects who gets attention in everyday interactions, with members of privileged groups receiving the most and those in subordinate groups experiencing a certain daily invisibility"(pg58) . This statement proves that people with more wealth and higher status will receive more attention then those in a lower position only because of their class. From my own personal experience I can see that in America the higher your status and wealth the more attention you get. For instance take a charity for an example, a well off person who will donate ten thousand dollars a year apposed to a middle class person who donates one thousand dollars a year most likely will have more attention paid to them because they are helping the charity out more, even though they are both making donations. The wealthy are paid more attention to because more people can benefit from them, then the middle class. In Derbers book he goes on to talk about how the dominant classes in society define themselves as having greater personal and social worth then those who are in loser positions or classes thus feeling they deserve more attention. Derber states, In America, the dominant classes are those which come to control economic, political, and cultural life"(pg59). I agree with this statement because it was been proving right many times. A good example of this is our political leaders. Many of the political leaders that we have in our country are well off before they were put into office and are well off after they leave office, with very few exceptions. Another example o...

Earned Value Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Earned Value Management - Research Paper Example Due to features that allow Earned Value Management (EVM) to fuse scope, cost and schedule tools, it can accurately predict the project outcomes. Safe project forecasting allow for better planning ahead of time and to make necessary adjustments. Moreover, various studies show that project that use EVM techniques have a higher success rate than the projects that don’t use. In addition to these benefits, EVM has also proved useful in substantiating project disputes. Different project managers use EVM according to their specific project requirements; however certain features of EVM are considered essential and can be recognized as the defining criterion for EVM techniques. These implementation features are; The main difference between projects that use EVM and the ones that do not is quantifying processes and their performances. For instance, EVM projects set specific criteria to allocate numbers to any process and its relative performance. This helps in tracking and adjusting overall performance of the project. Usually at the end of each week, the project manager reviews the progress and adds together the planned values (PV) of each individual task to calculate the Earned Value (EV). This review can be done weekly, monthly, or according to the nature of the project. To understand the governing principles of EVM it would be helpful to know that every task of a project earns value. And translating these tasks into numbers helps in analyzing the performance and make appropriate adjustments. As a result, project managers can achieve better project forecasting. Project managers compare earned values with planned values and actual costs for reviewing performance. Such comparisons help project managers and the owners of the project to calculate their return on the money spent. Another feature of EVM that makes it convenient as well as efficient is its ability to measure physical performance in dollar amounts (Kidasa, 2005). This