architectural designs that wouldnt have been possible without the use of computers The WritePass Journal

Write an essay on buildings/architectural designs that wouldnt have been possible without the use of computers Introduction Write an essay on buildings/architectural designs that wouldnt have been possible without the use of computers ). The use of computers in architectural design has made it possible for architects to make use of complex and multifaceted design information. This is possible as a result of the development of computer software which has made it possible to come up with complex designs before the actual process of construction. Computer-aided architectural design programs have resulted in more accurate designs and comprehensive records when it comes to building designs. Ever since 1960, computer aided design programs (CAD) were used by architects in coming up with architectural designs. However, this software lacked some tools which architects considered relevant during their architectural projects. This therefore resulted in the development of a distinct class of software specifically designed for use in architectural design: CAAD. There are various architectural designs which may not have been possible without the use of computers. Examples of architectural designs Without going into explicit detail on the various architectural designs which have utilized computer software to be generated, a known example is the Burj Dubai project whereby the Burj Dubai tower is an architectural design which was created with the use of a computer aided architectural design software program. The Sliding House, Reflection of a Mineral, Byron Bay house, Hangar Prefab, Swiss Charlet and the Marinette Residence are some examples of architectural designs which were generated as a result of the use of computer aided architectural design (CAAD) (Bruinessen, Hopman, DeNucci Oers 2011). The London Gherkin is also an example of a building with a complex design structure which required the utilization of computer aided software to assist in the architectural design. The London Gherkin is known to have an unusual design structure which could not have been designed without the use of computers. It is classified among the 9 most mathematically fascinating buildings in the world. The building is round with a narrow top and a bulge at the centre. In addition to the use of CAAD, parametric modeling was also used to design the building (Josie 2011). The Zaha Hadid building in Hong Kong is also an example of a building with a complex design structure which could not have been created without the aid of a computer software design program. The computer aided design allowed the architects to come up with various design shapes without first settling on the identified shape for the building. Despite the fact that this was a tiring task, it would not have been possible to achieve without the use of computers in the design process (design museum + British council 2007). Another important example of a building with a complex design structure is the Frank Gehrys Fisher center in NYC. The design of this building would not have been possible without the use of computer aided architectural design. This building was named after the architect who designed it that is; Frank Gehry. This architect is known to have indulged in various architectural designs ranging from small to larger buildings. Despite the fact that he had a lot of experience when it came to architectural design, he could not have designed the identified building without the aid of a computer. The building’s style was deconstructive post modern. In addition to this, the design ensured that the ground floor was actually wrapped around sides of his older house. The wrapping extended the house in that it reached the streets (Archinomy 2010). The examples of designs provided above are known to have utilized complex blueprints which could not have been generated accurately without the use of computer programs. New and even more complex designs as still being generated with the help of different computer programs and CAD drafting techniques such as; AutoCAD. The design process of a building requires that the provided architectural drawing be up to date and accurate so as to enable the physical characteristics of the buildings being constructed to be easily defined. The use of computer technology for the production of the sophisticated architectural designs is considered to be more advanced compared to the use of traditional methods since it ensures that the user is provided with   input tools which ensure that the design process is streamlined, drafted and documented for an easier understanding. This makes it easier and more achievable to come up with complex architectural designs without necessarily doing all the design works in one day. How the Work Compares With Other Practices of Design Computer generated architectural designs make use of computer aided design and drafting (CADD) which is software that provides architectural graphics in the form of vectors. The graphics are later utilized in depicting objects and at the same time producing a raster graphic of an object which is to be designed. Comparing this to traditional or other forms of designs, computer aided architectural designs are considered to be more accurate and complex. In addition to this, the designs which are generated through the use of computer software programs can be postponed and cleared at a future date since it requires the architect to save the work and re open it when ready to continue with the design. Other practices of design do not require the use of sophisticated software to come up with the final design product. The reason behind this is that the various design practices involved are not considered to be that complex when compared with the design of a house (Shaffie 2011). The Impact and Effect of the Use of Computers in the Development of Building and Architectural Designs The use of computers in the architectural sectors has reflected both negative and positive impacts when it comes to building and architectural designs. Taking into consideration the positive impact that the use of computers has brought within this sector, it is evident that the use of software has made it possible for architects to come up with more accurate designs. This comes about as a result of the fact that the computer aided software programs which are used in architectural design makes use of vector coordinates to show building measurements which are considered to be more accurate compared to if the architectural design was being designed manually without the use of a computer but through the use of a ruler and a pencil (Bruinessen, Hopman, DeNucci Oers 2011). In addition to the accuracy, the use of computers has ensured that the designs developed in architecture are produced faster in comparison to if the computers had not been utilized. One of the advantages associated to computers is speed. Therefore any activity carried out through the use of computers is done within a limited time period compared to if a computer had not been used to carried out the activity. Every factor which has an advantage is also associated with various disadvantages. This is no exception when it comes to architectural design and the use of computers. For instance, for an architect to come up with a building’s design through the use of computer aided software programs, the architect must to be computer literate. This means that the architect has to spend more time and money to become computer literate so as to be able to make use of the computer software program as required. (Bruinessen, Hopman, DeNucci Oers 2011). Events and External Ideas Have Been Incorporated In the Development of These Architectural Designs There are four major events which marked the early development of computer aided architectural design. The first event is the studies which were carried out by Clark and Sounder which formed the foundation of the layout which was computer aided. This event took place in the years 1963 and 1964. The second event which took place in 1965 involved the manipulation and representation of buildings which were graphical in nature as objects. The third event involved the act of laying down foundations which were used for methods of design. In 1964, this view was considered important to computers use in the architectural design. The final event involved the architectural machine idea. This event took place in the year 1972 within the field of robotics. The machine was meant to be intelligent enough in that it could be involved in any activities of design whilst cooperating with the architect involved in a dialogue (Shaffie 2011). Computer Aided Architectural Design Impact on the Society Concepts which are available in the applications of CAAD are known to have an impact on the creativity and innovation capabilities of the people who use them. Therefore to the society CAAD creates an opportunity for researchers, students as well as professionals, who show an interest in the identified concepts of CAAD as this assists them in building their knowledge on these concepts as they are going to be involved in debate on the various lessons from the past concerning architectural design as well as the present and future impacts on the CAAD innovation. In addition to the reason above, computer aided architectural design has also played a major societal role of ensuring that there is proper urban planning as well as city and regional planning. This plays a part in reducing the disadvantage of congestion and any security or safety risk which may be associated to it (Bruinessen, Hopman, DeNucci Oers 2011). Comparison to Earlier Designs Taking into consideration various architectural designs which have been produced in the architectural field these days, it is evident that the designs produced are more complex compared to the earlier designs. Other than complexity, the designs produced through the utilization of computers are of a higher quality compared to the designs which were earlier produced without the use of computers. This has resulted in various advantages and disadvantages setting in such as: improved safety. The use of computers in architectural design has ensured that there is an improved level of human safety since the chances of buildings collapsing have also been reduced as a result of better design procedures. Other than the advantages, there are also disadvantages associated with the use of computers in architectural design for instance; the fact that architects have to be educated on how to use computers and software is a major impediment. This means spending more time and funds to be able to make use of CAAD. More time spent on design is also a disadvantage associated with the use of computers in today’s design in comparison to earlier design. The reason behind this is that most of the architectural designs which are delivered through the use of computers are complex in nature which means architects have to pay more attention to ensure that the output design presented is accurate as desired. Influence of Computer Aided Architectural Design on the Community Computer Aided architectural design has greatly influenced the community in that it has promoted the existing levels of interaction among the individuals of the community in that community members identify the designs they require and the architects involved ensure that the designs are produced through the help of computers. In addition to this, it has also promoted the existing level of communication which exists in a community in that as architects meet to discuss the various building designs, they take into consideration and the various views that the members of the community may have provided with regards to the type of buildings that they want to have in their neighbourhood (Bruinessen, Hopman,   DeNucci Oers 2011). Impact of Building to Environmental Sustainability Green building has gained momentum as the impact of environmental sustainability has continued to rise in the community. The buildings in which people live in, work in and play in are meant to offer protection from the extremes of nature which may have a negative effect on our health and the surrounding environment in various ways. Green building, also referred to as sustainable buildings have ensured that people are living within constructions considered to be healthy and efficient when it comes to the utilized resources. Buildings ensure sustainability depending on the construction materials used as they ensure efficiency of materials such as energy and water and at the same time ensuring that the risks posed when it comes to health are also limited (Bruinessen, Hopman, DeNucci Oers 2011) Conclusion In summary, the use of computers within the architectural field has proved to be advantageous since it has resulted in the development of architectural designs which are complex in nature. However, architects are required to be familiar with the use of computers to be able to make use of the computer aided architectural software to come up with the complex designs which is a disadvantage. References Archinomy, 2010. Viewed from archinomy.com/case-studies/1931/frank-owen-gehry Bruinessen, T, Hopman, H, DeNucci, T, Oers, B 2011, Generating More Valid Designs during Design Exploration. (Cover story),  Journal Of Ship Production Design, 27, 4, pp. 153-161, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 April 2012. Design museum + British council, 2007, â€Å"zaha Hadid architecture and design†. Viewed from http://designmuseum.org/design/zaha-hadid Desinon, E, 2009,  the History of Building Design.  Viewed April 23, 2012 from  desinon.com/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=50:the-history-of-building-designcatid=35:about-us Josie, W, 2011. Trip base‘9 most mathematically interesting building in the world†. Viewed from tripbase.com/blog/9-most-mathematically-interesting-buildings-in-the-world/ Shaffie, H, 2011. ‘The Roots of computer aided architectural form generation’.   Viewed in April 24, 2012, from http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/hs/Research/COMPUTER%20APPLICATIONS%20IN%20ARCHITECTURE%20-%20FORM%20GENERATION%20TOOLS.pdf Tai, L, 2012,   LANDSCAPE JOURNAL. Assessing the Impact of Computer Use on Landscape Architecture Professional Practice: Efficiency, Effectiveness, and Design Creativity. Viewed April 23, 2012 from  http://lj.uwpress.org/content/22/2/113.short

FAQ About Singapores Location and History

FAQ About Singapores Location and History Where is Singapore? Singapore is at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It encompasses one main island, called Singapore Island or Pulau Ujong, and sixty-two smaller islands. Singapore is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor, a narrow body of water. Two routes connect Singapore to Malaysia: the Johor-Singapore Causeway (completed in 1923), and the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link (opened in 1998). Singapore also shares maritime boundaries with Indonesia to the south and east. What is Singapore? Singapore, which is officially called the Republic of Singapore, is a city-state with over 3 million citizens. Although it covers only 710 square kilometers (274 square miles) in area, Singapore is a wealthy independent nation with a parliamentary form of government. Interestingly, when Singapore gained its independence from the British in 1963, it merged with neighboring Malaysia. Many observers both inside and outside of Singapore doubted that it would be a viable state on its own. However, the other states in the Malay Federation insisted on passing laws that favored ethnic Malay people over minority groups. Singapore, however, is majority Chinese with a Malay minority. As a result, race riots rocked Singapore in 1964, and the following year the Malaysian parliament expelled Singapore from the federation. Why Did the British Leave Singapore in 1963? Singapore was founded as a British colonial port in 1819; the British used it as a foothold in order to challenge Dutch domination of the Spice Islands (Indonesia). The British East India Company administered the island along with Penang and Malacca. Singapore became a Crown colony in 1867, when the British East India Company collapsed after the Indian Revolt. Singapore was separated bureaucratically from India and made into a directly-ruled British colony. This would continue until the Japanese seized Singapore in 1942, as part of their Southern Expansion drive during World War II.   The Battle of Singapore was one of the most grueling in that phase of the Second World War. After the war, Japan withdrew and returned control of Singapore to the British. However, Great Britain was impoverished, and much of London lay in ruins from German bombardment and rocket attacks. The British had few resources and not much interest to bestow on a small, far-off colony such as Singapore. On the island, a growing nationalist movement called for self-rule. Gradually, Singapore moved away from British rule. In 1955, Singapore became a nominally self-governing member of the British Commonwealth. By 1959, the local government controlled all internal matters except for security and policing; Britain also continued to run Singapores foreign policy. In 1963, Singapore merged with Malaysia and became completely independent from the British Empire. Why is Chewing Gum Banned in Singapore? In 1992, the government of Singapore banned chewing gum. This move was a reaction to littering - used gum left on sidewalks and under park benches, for example - as well as vandalism. Gum chewers occasionally stuck their gum on elevator buttons or on the sensors of commuter train doors, causing messes and malfunctions. Singapore has a uniquely strict government, as well as a reputation for being clean and green (eco-friendly). Therefore, the government simply banned all chewing gum. The ban was loosened slightly in 2004 when Singapore negotiated a free-trade agreement with the United States, allowing for tightly-controlled imports of nicotine gum to help smokers quit. However, the prohibition on ordinary chewing gum was reaffirmed in 2010. Those caught chewing gum receive a modest fine, equivalent to a littering fine. Anyone caught smuggling gum into Singapore can be sentenced to up to a year in jail and a $5,500 US fine. Contrary to rumor, nobody has been caned in Singapore for chewing or selling gum.

Strategic Plan for INJAZ QATAR Org Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 8500 words

Strategic Plan for INJAZ QATAR Org - Essay Example The study will also focus on a thorough analysis of the vision, mission, financial ratios, and competitive advantage of Injaz. The internal and external environment of Injaz will be analyzed using SWOT, Porter’s five factors, McKenzie’s 7S framework, and smart objectives generation for the company to achieve success in its operations. Injaz is a subsidiary of Junior Achievement (JA) Worldwide, which is a global nongovernmental organization operating in 123 countries. The establishment of Junior Achievement occurred in United States in 1919 and began international operations in Ontario, Vancouver, and Windsor: British Columbia. Injaz started operation in Levant region in 1999 and with further expansion, operations began in 2004 in the Gulf Region leading to the establishment of Injaz, which this strategic management project is based. Injaz is a nongovernmental organization founded in September 2007 by Sheikha Hamadi Alm Thani who is the chairperson of INZAJ Qatar and AMWAL. She is the deputy CEO of Nasser Bin Khaled Al Thani & Sons Group and CEO of Al Waab City Real Estate Development project. She has a passion for community activities and the development community members, especially women and youth. Injaz was established with the aim of closing the gap between the skills acquired by the students in the learning environment in both public and private institutions and the skills required for success in the working environment. This is achieved through taking the students through entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy, as a measure of augmenting their ability to make a difference and be accountable at their workplace, as a team member and individually. Injaz collaborates with individuals, secondary schools, universities, corporations, and volunteers who take the students through the programs offered by the organization. Injaz courses

Operational Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Operational Plan - Essay Example The name of the company selected for this report is Herbal Tea. The company belongs to the beverage industry and sub-industry, which is non-alcoholic beverages and serves herbal tea brands such as, green tea and organic tea. The overall business of Herbal Tea will include sourcing, manufacturing, packaging, distribution and marketing of Herbal Tea products. Organisation size: During launch of the company, size of the organization is expected to be 500, including executive and non-executive board of directors. However, with expansion of operations, Herbal Tea is expected to double its business size in five years time. Services and products offered: The major products of Herbal Tea will include branded green tea, organic tea, exported tea and exclusive red tea. All these brands will be available in several product variants differing in flavor and herbal properties. The brands of Herbal Tea will also be distinguished in terms of their health benefits. Besides above product offerings, Herbal Tea will also provide online consultation for health-enthusiastic customers. â€Å"To source, distribute and promote best quality Herbal Tea with continuous commitment of incorporating sustainable and ethical development and growth, increasing value to stakeholder as well as promoting corporate practices that respects and protects the Earth and environment in the best manner.† Herbal Tea believes in conducting business in a manner, which is both planet and people friendly. The company will give critical importance to corporate social responsibility and environmental activities will be at the core of Herbal Tea strategy, apart from providing high quality tea. Herbal tea is committed to provide natural and healthy variants of tea, which are affordable and accessible to target customers. The health and overall well-being of consumers is main priority of Herbal Tea and every decision

Final Project AAT Essay Example for Free

Final Project AAT Essay 1.TERMS OF REFERENCE 1.1 The report has been prepared to cover the requirements of the AAT Unit â€Å"Internal Control and Accounting Systems†. 1.2 The objectives of the report are to analyse the accounting function at Inkwell Ltd and to identify any weaknesses, so that recommendations for the implementation of a new and improved system can be put in place, in order to minimise errors and to prevent fraud. 2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2.1 The aim of the report is to analyse and evaluate the current internal control system and accounts receivable ledger of Inkwell Ltd. 2.2 The findings of the investigation highlighted the flowing weaknesses: The Retail shops use stand-alone computers which are not connected to the network. Lack of security measures put in place to safeguard the sensitive personal data held on individuals, and non-compliance with the Data Protection of 1998. Non-compliance with company policy, as updates only carried out once per day. Data lost due to infrequent back-ups are costly in both time and money. The retail shops have a sloppy approach to cash management. Cash only banked twice per week. The company does not produce or provide any instruction and help guides, which employees can refer to in order to find help and advice. The company do not have contingencies in place for staff absences due to illness or annual leave There is no encouragement for employees to attend training courses. Passwords used are not sufficient to maintain an adequate level of security. The company uses a just in time system of production, and any unforeseen upholds in delivery can cause delays and may have an impact on the company’s reputation. There are insufficient control and monitoring procedures carried out by senior personnel. The company allows customers to pay by cheque. The company does not conduct performance appraisals. The company does not conduct regular staff meetings. Management not upholding ethics and integrity, and not practicing their own policies thus creating an ideal environment for fraud and unethical practices to be committed. Staff shortages contributing to processing delays of sales invoices. 2.3 Suggestions and recommendations have been made to help make improvements which will increase the company’s performance and efficiency and to help  create anti-fraud environment. 3. METHODOLOGY 3.1 The research conducted to create this report was primarily obtained from data provided from the AAT website, the Internet, and reference textbooks. 3.2 A period of four months was taken to monitor the Internal Controls system and Accounts Receivable Ledger to gather sufficient data in order to compile the report. 3.3 A meeting was arranged with Inkwell’s Finance Director and Company Accountant to discuss the areas of concern and the procedures that needed to be implemented to make suitable improvements. 4. INTRODUCTION 4.1 Inkwell Ltd is a large private limited company within the private sector, supplying a complete range of re-manufactured inkjet and laser toner cartridges to its customers. Products can be purchased from either the company’s sixty nationwide chain of high street shops, which are situated in most of the UK cities and large towns, or from their on-line shop facility which is accessible twenty-four hours every day of the week. 4.2 The company is run by three directors who are the main decision makers. Inkwell Ltd was created seven years ago by two of the directors, Mr Paul Farnon (Managing Director) and Ms Victoria Dawson (Sales Director). Mr Anil Gupta (Finance Director) joined Inkwell after investing in the company two years ago. The company shares are owned by internal stakeholders only. 100% of the shares are split between the directors, with the Managing Director being the majority shareholder with holdings of 40% and the other directors each holding 30% of the shares. 4.3 Their head office is situated in an industrial estate, based in Birmingham, where the management team, accounts department, on-line shop and large central warehouse are all located. The company has progressively grown since it was initially set up and currently employs one hundred and eighty full-time employees, and has reported revenue of over sixteen million pounds. . 4.4 Inkwell has a mission to become environmentally friendly and promotes this by ensuring that they continue to strive towards achieving a greener environmental future, without jeopardising or comprising the quality of their products and reputation. The company ensures that products meet with 100% quality satisfaction guarantee, and has made a promise that should certain conditions not be fulfilled; that the company’s policy of replacing the products without rejection, will be adhered to without affecting the customer’s statutory rights. The company assures their customers that the recycled cartridges, which are cheaper than the genuine, original products by up to 20%, will meet or exceed the quality of the original cartridges. 4.5 80% of Inkwell’s sales are purchased by non-trade customers. Trade customers represent the remaining 20%, and these customers are supplied goods on credit terms of between thirty to sixty days. 4.6 The Finance Director, who owns 30% of the company’s shares and reports directly to the Managing Director, is qualified to BSc and FCMA standards, and has worked for the Inkwell Ltd for five years on a full-time basis. This Director is entrusted to ensure that all the financial strategies, support the aims of the business and to identify opportunities in order to achieve greater efficiency and cost savings, as well as driving sustainable and profitable growth and optimising profitability and shareholder value 4.7 The Company Accountant, who reports directly to the Financial Director, is AAT and ACCA qualified and has worked for Inkwell Ltd for seven years on a full-time basis. The Accountant complies, analyses and produces the company’s quarterly and annual financial statements 4.8 The Accounting Technician, who reports directly to the Company Accountant, has worked for Inkwell Ltd for six months on a full-time basis. This employee possesses relevant experience but does not currently have any accountancy qualifications. However, the Technician is currently studying for the AAT qualification, with the aim of passing the exams within the following year. 4.9 The General Ledger Clerk, who reports directly to the Company Accountant, has worked for Inkwell Ltd for four years on a full-time basis. This employee’s principal responsibilities are to input financial data into the computer system, in order to produce monthly trial balances. This clerk does not possess any accountancy qualifications. 4.10 The Accounts Payable Clerk, who reports directly to the Company Accountant, has worked for Inkwell Ltd for three years on a part-time basis, and already holds a level two AAT qualification, but has expressed an interest in progressing on to the next level. 4.11 The Accounts Receivable Clerk, who reports directly to the Company Accountant, has worked for Inkwell Ltd for three years on a part-time basis. This clerk has worked previously within the accountancy industry, but does not currently possess any relevant qualifications. 4.12 The Costing Technician, who reports directly to the Company Accountant, is  highly experienced and competent within this role and has worked for Inkwell Ltd for seven years on a full-time basis. This employee does not currently possess any relevant qualifications and has expressed their reluctance and unwillingness to participate on any training activities 4.13 The Payroll Clerk, who reports to the Company Accountant, possesses a level two AAT Accounting qualification, and is enthusiastic about progressing further. This employee has worked for Inkwell Ltd for four months on a full-time basis, and has very limited experience of working within a payroll department. 5.REVIEW OF THE ACCOUNTS SYSTEM 5.1 Inkwell’s policy for their large business customers is generally to trade on a cash-with-order basis for the initial three months of custom, and uses the services of a credit reference agency which conducts the necessary credit checks. The Accounts Receivable Clerk is responsible for carrying out the credit checking procedures, and after liaising with the Sales Director regarding accounts which require a credit limit of more than  £1,000 per month, recommends suitable credit terms. This is a strength of the accounting system in that by using the credit reference agency it will determine the ability of new customers to pay their debts. This will prevent fraud in that customers would not be able to purchase goods knowingly that they could not afford to pay for them, so increasing cash flow. This will also have an impact on the integrity of the customer. However the weakness should be that a full limit should be set, in that the customer is not allowed to go over a total limit, otherwise the customer could do four or five months trading up to  £5,000 and this would escalate further if they were non payers, meaning the debts are more likely to go bad. This would have an impact on the cash flow of the business. 5.2 All new credit limits and changes to existing limits of more  £5,000 per month, have to be approved by the Financial Director. Risk management is  essential for a company’s survival and success. This is a strength in the company as any increase in limits have to be authorised by a senior member of the finance team. This will reduce the risk of fraud, in that no individual has control over the customer accounts, and can extend limits for customers for their own personal gain. 5.3 A potential customer may want to know the price of the goods before deciding whether to proceed with a proposed transaction, and will request a quote either by phone, email or in writing. As a means of preventing fraud, due to either party contesting the quotes given, the company’s preferred method of issuing these quotes is by email. Written quotes are supplied on a customer’s request, however, Inkwell likes keep this method of issuance to a minimum, as paper usage has an impact on the environment and goes against the beliefs of the company. Inkwell, also prefer not to give a quote over the phone, as a record cannot be kept regarding the quote given, and there would be no written evidence to support against any disputes that may arise in the future. Before proceeding with the order a customer can make comparisons between the prices given by different suppliers. If the customer accepts the price given by Inkwell, and proceeds with the order, the price quoted is fixed and cannot be changed, which is contrary to that of an estimate being given. This has an effect on the ethical principle of objectivity, in other words the customer would be free from biased. 5.4 Once an order is placed it needs to be checked by the appropriate sales representative. This is important, as the recorded data may contain errors which require correction and checks must be made to see if any data that has been omitted, needs to be added. The order form is then passed onto the Sales Manager for additional checking, approval and authorisation. This is good practice and carrying out this procedure, helps to minimise the chances of fraud being committed and over charging being recorded on the order form. However, there is still the opportunity of fraud and misuse of funds and assets taking place as other unauthorised members of staff still have regular and easy access to the system, so is a weakness in the accounting  system. 5.5 It is important that the customer produce an order number as this will hep track the order, but the most important thing is that the purchase order must be authorised. Without this signature the order will not be processed. This is a great strength in that it will prevent fraud, in that goods could not be obtained for employee’s personal gain, so creating fraud. This helps enhance the ethical principle of integrity. 5.6 Once an order has been processed, it is sent to dispatches, ready for transportation. Once the goods have reached their destination, both the customer and the delivery driver are required to sign the delivery note. This confirms that the goods are been delivered and received. This will prevent fraud, in that the customer could not deny that they have not received the goods.. However, if the delivery personnel collects the signatures from the recipient in paper form rather than collecting these signatures directly on a smartphone or digital tablet, in order to confirm proof of delivery and receipt, there is a danger that the paper form confirmation may be lost in transit or may become misplaced, therefore providing no proof that delivery ever took place. The outcome to this is that the customer can abuse this situation by contesting that any goods were received. Also the use of paper has a negative impact and significantly endangers the environment. Having the delivery note in paper format is not sustainable to the environment. . 5.7 Sales invoices are created and issued via the use of a goods dispatched listing, which are then sent out to the customers on a weekly basis. The person responsible for the issuing of these invoices is the Accounts Receivable Clerk. The clerk also has the responsibility for inputting the sales invoices into the accounts receivable ledger system, which also incorporates the general and accounts payable ledgers, which all run on the Windows Vista software package. There is a severe weakness in this  procedure as the purchase orders, dispatch notes and sales invoices are not reconciled against each other. This is a weakness in the accounting system in that invoices could be sent out for the incorrect amounts, or incorrect customers are invoiced for goods that may have not been received. The impact on the company would be the delay of payment which would have an adverse effect on the company’s cash flow. This would also have an impact of the company’s reputation of profess ional competence. 5.8 Inkwell chooses to issue invoices by email, unless a customer requests a posted version. The email method is easy to use and quick to deliver. As emails do not use paper they are environmentally friendly. However, a problem with using emails is that viruses can be transmitted, but with due care and attention, and a strong security software in place this can be minimised. This is a strength of the company’s system. 5.9 The software for issuing invoices is Sage Line 50 and the invoices are sent out to the trade customers on a weekly basis as instructed by the Finance Manager. As the invoices are processed electronically this helps to minimise the chances of errors and discrepancies. Many handwritten invoices contain errors in the calculations. Another strength of processing invoices using the electronic method is that transactions can be traced. One positive part of the system is that all sales invoices are checked for errors by the Company Accountant, by the use of the double entry checking system. This means that there are no time delays encountered by having to make amendments to invoices returned due to containing discrepancies in the recorded data so increasing cash flow. This also upholds the company reputation of professionalism. 5.10 Inkwell issues credit notes, in order to credit all or part of a sales invoice, for goods which have been returned by the customers. The credit notes have to be counter checked, approved and authorised before they can be issued. However, the Retail Shop Managers’ actions are not controlled nor  monitored. The company has placed trust in these Managers, so they have been given the authority to issue refunds on any returns they consider necessary. This gives a Branch Manager the opportunity to commit fraudulent activities and to manipulate figures, by abusing their position of power in order for personal and financial gain. 5.11 To improve the profitability of collection by stimulating payments and minimising the occurrence of bad debts, customer statements showing the payments made, sales, sales returns and calculations, are dispatched every month, by the Accounts Receivable Clerk. This method can be used as a reminder to customers that payment is expected and therefore prompt them into making a payment on their accounts. The statements inform the customers of the status of their accounts, and enables them to make comparisons between the records they hold and that of the supplier. If a customer discovers a discrepancy regarding any of the transactions recorded, they can contact the supplier to question this. These statements can be used as an effective method to highlight any overdue payments, which need to be chased. The statements prevent fraud by the company in the customer is able to check all the invoices and credit notes issued. This would prevent the company form over stating their account or adding fraudulent invoices to their account. 5.12 Large trade customers have credit terms accounts held with the company. Each customer is given between thirty and sixty days depending on their account status. Trade customers can also benefit from a cumulative discount, each quarter, based on the value of their orders. This incentive is to try and keep a steady flow of business and increase sales, whilst at the same time increasing Inkwell’s cash flow due to the prompt payments that would be generated. This is a strength of the company in that increasing sales will eventually increase the profits of the company, creating sustainability of the company. 5.13 All cash and cheques received are compiled and recorded in the cash receipt book. These amounts are then entered into the system using the Sage Line 50 package, in order to update the applicable customer accounts. The Accounts Receivable Clerk, who receives the payments, has the responsibility of banking them on a twice weekly basis. The cash and cheques are held in the company’s safe for security whilst waiting to be banked. This is a strength as it prevents the opportunity for the funds to be stolen, creating fraud. However, there is an increased risk that the cash or cheques may be lost or misplaced, particularly in the event of the office being in disarray, during times of low staffing levels, disruption and having to meet tight deadlines. If there is a lapse in internal controls regarding the checking and monitoring of the accounts receivable ledger, this creates the opportunity for employees to commit fraud using recognised fraud schemes such as lapping, skimming/hiking, the kiting of cash and cheques, the improper posting of cheques and also cash/cheque substitution. This would not protect the company’s reputation of professionalism and integrity. 5.14 Customers can attach a remittance advice slip with their cheque payment to inform the company that they have made a payment on their account using the BACS method. This slip details the amounts that have been paid, the amounts that are left owing and what is being paid for. By summarising the transaction details, the slip ensures that the correct amount has been paid. Any discrepancies can be questioned with the customer. The remittance advice slip will be kept with the customer’s records, as proof that payment has been received, and can be referred and used as evidence in the future. This is a strength as time is not unnecessarily consumed by having to figure out what part of the invoice the payment relates to, as this has already been clarified by the customer. The advantage to receiving payment in the form of a BACS transfer is good, because this is instant cash and helps to increase the cash flow. However, the receipt by cheque delays the access to cash. This method of payment is slow as the cheque needs to go through the clearing system, and there is a danger that it may be returned by the bank, if the customer has insufficient funds. 5.15 The company has implemented a policy that should be followed when dealing with overdue accounts. If an account is seven days overdue, the customer is telephoned to request immediate payment. If after fourteen days of the telephone call, the payment is still outstanding, the customer will be sent a letter requesting the immediate payment, in order to bring their account up to date. This is a strength of the company as credit control is an important part of the business, and collecting monies would increase the cash flow and sustainability of the company. 5.16 The company is being proactive in trying to collect payments before they turn into bad debts and escalate out of control. An effective approach to the collection of debt helps to boost the company’s cash flow and avoids the assistance of debt collection agencies, which costs the business money. Accounts more than one month overdue are inspected by the Company Accountant. Accounts which are overdue by more than two months are reviewed by both the Finance Director and the Sales Director. However, this procedure is not executed, which is a major problem. Both Directors avoid any involvement as the Finance Director has the opinion that the task is of a tedious nature and the Sales Director is anxious that her involvement will damage her relations with the customers. The liquidity of a company is very important. Without funds, bills cannot be paid and the company may encounter financial difficulty. There is danger that Inkwell’s future may be put at jeopardy if debts are not being actively chased. No money coming in whilst money is going out has a severe impact on the company’s cash flow. If it is known to the customers that the company would not go to a debt collecting agency, then they may take advantage of this and receive goods knowingly that they could not pay so creating fraud 5.17 The computers which are located in the retail outlets are stand-alone computers. These computers are operated by Windows Vista software and all have Microsoft Office 2007 installed. However, there is a weakness in this system. Although, shop employees using these computers are not allowed to upload, download or connect any external devices, which have not been purchased or approved by the company, as per company policy instructions, issued by the Finance Director on 23rd May 2010, there is no way of monitoring this. All the computers have full internet access including email using the Firefox Internet web browser. Although it is advantageous to have all the computers running on the same software and web browser systems, there is a downside, in that each computer must be updated and configured individually, which is costly to the company. Had the systems been networked, this could have been done all at the same time, remotely, thus saving the company time and money. This would have an adverse effect on the company’s data and therefore would not be secure and compliant with the Data Protection Act (1998). This would also have a negative impact on the ethical principle of confidentiality and integrity. 5.18 The company’s entire computer systems are password protected which is a strength. However, the problem is that when the computers were installed seven years ago, they were all given the same password, which is â€Å"Go Green†, and no action has been taken to make any changes to this. This has created a massive weakness regarding all aspects of security within the accounting system. Trade customers’ account and bank details are open to exposure and this increases the risk of being abused. This information can be accessed and stolen by dishonest and untrustworthy persons who use this information with the intention of obtaining financial and personal gain, so creating fraud. The company’s policy handbook clearly states that each computer must be individually password protected and only authorised users are permitted access. Staff are required to maintain the confidentiality of such passwords used in order to protect security. However, the policy is being ignored and abused by staff, who continue to disregard and follow the rules and regulations, which is evident, when shop employees are allowing unauthorised persons to use the computers for social media etc., without seeking the authority from senior management first. This is a serious breach of the computer policy and security, as this leaves records, bank details and other valuable information of other staff members, customers and suppliers, open to exposure, which in turn could lead to identity theft,  fraud and therefore the Data Protection Act of (1998) is being breached. 5.19 The computers are protected by Windows Firewall that helps to protect the network, against hackers’ or viruses. When the controller leaves the workstation unattended, they are required to log off, however, if they forget to do this, each computer has an automatic timeout installed that has been set at five minutes. If no activity has taken place within this duration, the computer will revert to standby mode (hibernation). This saves on energy which is good for the environment. Whilst in the standby mode, any sensitive and confidential information is hidden from prying eyes, preventing fraud such as identity theft, and without the correct password, prevents any access to gain such information. At the end of the working day, all computers are required to be shutdown. Protecting sensitive and confidential information is complying with The Data Protection Act of (1998). To disable the standby mode, the controller has to enter the correct password, which is â€Å"Go Green†. As this password is known and used throughout Inkwell, any employee is able to gain access to this data, and therefore the confidential information is not being protected or secured. It is the company’s moral duty to protect confidential information, and they are breaching the Data Protection Act (1998), which carries with it hefty fines and can result in prosecution. This does not uphold the company’s reputation for confidentiality and integrity. 5.20 The Finance Director issued instructions concerning the updating and backup procedures of all the IT systems as per the extract of the company policy handbook, dated May 2010. These instructions required that all of the IT systems are to be backed up twice per day, once at lunch time and again at the close of business. The Company Accountant instructed the accounts department to back up data once only, and only at the end of the working day. This requirement has been in force since the Accountant joined the company, therefore totally disregarding the Finance Directors updated policy. This breach of company policy has already resulted in unnecessary losses in time and money. A power cut that took place in October of 2010 at  the head office premises, late in the afternoon, resulted in the loss of most of the day’s work. The majority of this information has been re-entered into the system but came at a cost, due to the number of hours that had to be paid in overtime. This is a weakness and was not cost effective for the company, as these extra labour hours could have been used doing other duties. 5.21 Maintenance of the recorded stock levels in reference to the company’s printer cartridges which are held as inventory in both the warehouse and shops are not controlled by a password protected, Microsoft Excel spread sheet. Due to the omission of password protection being implemented in this area means that there is an increased chance of the data being altered, whether by accident or by intention. The opportunity for fraud to take place is heightened and there is no way of preventing this occurrence happening again, unless the system is password protected. This means that the company is not abiding by the guidelines laid down by the Data Protection Act (1998). It means also that the company is not treating its data with the ethical principle of integrity and confidentiality. 5.22 The Finance Director noticed that the company did not have a proper system in place to record any of the company’s business dealings relating to any of the previous years’ transactions, so the decision was made to purchase an archiving package. However, the Financial Director has lost interest since and no longer considers this task a point of priority anymore. Therefore the implementation of this package has wasted valuable time, effort and money. This is a weakness of the accounting system, in that all records must be kept for six years. By purchasing an archiving system that is computerised would mean that the company would be proactively following the guidelines of the Data Protection Act (1998), but it would greatly help the sustainability of the environment, and would reduce the use of paper. 5.23 The Payroll and Personnel Clerk completes the annual VAT returns using Her  Majestys Revenue and Customs (HMRC) guidelines. This highlights the difference between the input tax charged on the company’s purchases and expenses and the output tax which is charged on the supplies and goods sold to the customers. The net difference indicates whether payment is due to or from HMRC. It is of the upmost importance that the VAT 100 forms are completed promptly and accurately and that payment is made before the deadline is reached. Penalties for submitting a return form late are severe. The Company Accountant is responsible for checking that the details recorded are correct and then passes this form to the Finance Director for re-checking. This is a strength as it minimised the chances of discrepancies occurring or any fraudulent activities being committed. It is against the Law to falsify or omit any information that should be recorded on the VAT 100 form. The company are complying with the VAT Act 1994, s72 (1), (2) and (3) and The Fraud Act 2006. 5.24 The Income Statement and Other Comprehensive Income shows the performance of the company over a given period. This statement shows the company’s income, expenses and the resultant profit or loss figure. The profit or loss can be calculated by deducting all of the expenses incurred including finance expenses and tax costs from the revenue earned to show the profit/loss made. This statement shows entries made using the accruals method. This means that revenue and expenses are matched with each other and recorded when they are recognised (earned/incurred) and not when they are realised (cash received/payment made). Users can analyse the statements and make comparisons with previous years or with other competitors. Both Private Ltd companies and Public Ltd Companies are required by law to submit this statement with the other accompanying statements to Companies House. Various accounting ratios to measure the profitability of the company can be calculated using the financial information as shown on the statement, such as the Gross Profit %, Operating Profit %, and Expense and Revenue %. 5.25 The Statement of Financial Position also referred to as the Balance Sheet shows the company’s assets, liabilities and equity at a given date, and is  useful for interested parties to ascertain the financial health of the business. A formula which is associated with this statement is Assets – Liabilities = Equity. Assets are what the company owns, liabilities are what the company owes and the equity is the residual interest after the liabilities have been deducted from the assets. This statement used in conjunction with the other financial statements can help to assist users when making economic decisions, such as investing, lending, or acquisition etc. This statement can be compared with those of the previous financial years or with the statements of other competitors. The principal users are mainly, investors, lenders and creditors, and like the Income Statement, the Statement of Financial Position also needs to be submitted to Companies House, if the reporting entity is a Private Ltd Company or a Public Ltd Company. Financial information recorded in this statement can be used to calculate various accounting ratios used to measure the Company’s liquidity, effective use of the company’s resources, their financial position and their gearing (the measuring of how much the company is financed by debt). 5.26 The Statement of Changes in Equity is part of the set of the financial statements that accompany each other and shows how the equity has changed over the specific year. The statement links information contained in the Statement of Profit and Loss and Comprehensive Income with that contain in the Statement of Financial Position. The Statement of Changes in Equity shows the entries for ordinary capital shares, share premium, retained earnings, dividends, and unrealised gains on assets etc. 5.27 The Statement of Cash Flow shows the changes in inflows (money coming in) and outflows (money going out) over the financial accounting period in reference to Operating activities, Investing activities and Financing activities. The financial information recorded on the statement gives a user the opportunity to see how feasible it is for the company’s to generate future cash flows, and to assess the company’s ability to meet its obligations and to pay its shareholders their dividends. 5.28 The company does not hold any regular staff meetings and is a weakness in the accounting system. Staff meetings are an effective way to get employees to engage and communicate with each other; sharing and exchanging information and new ideas. Such a meeting would also give staff the opportunity to flag up any problems or issues which need to be addressed. When important decisions regarding the company have been made without the involvement of employees, they can be left feeling frustrated that they have not been given a voice. When the staff members feel undervalued and de-motivated, performance and productivity are affected. Employees may commit fraud as they feel justified by their actions. The number of employee absences may increase and the company will find it difficult to supply their customers as staff shortages may cause delays, due to increased workloads having to be performed by fewer staff members, costing the company money and may damage their reputation. 5.29 The only form of discussion between the departments is via email. Although there is an advantage to using this method of communication, such as convenience, quick delivery, lack of paper (sustainable for the environment), and cost effective, there are also several disadvantages to using this method, as it creates less social contact, messages can be misinterpreted, viruses can be downloaded, unwanted spam, and security issues. Another problem that could have a negative effect on the company is the tension that exists between the Finance Director and the Company Accountant, which has been on-going ever since the Finance Director joined the company two years ago. The Company Accountant was resentful that he was overlooked for this position and feels like he had been demoted. 5.30 The staff members do not get any form of appraisal which would highlight any performance issues relating to each employee. Therefore there is no way of filtering the staff that is underperforming to those that are exceeding requirements and should be considered suitable for promotion. This is a weakness of the company, and not cost effective as employees feel  undervalued and would not work as hard as they should. This will have an adverse effect on the ethical principle of professional competence. 5.31 The company has an issue with regards to staff training. Rather than investing in training courses that would be advantageous to both new and existing employees, the company only provides a one day crash course for new employees. This gives cause for concern as there is no fully trained staff available to cover in the absence of their peers. Also the company does not actively seek to encourage staff to further their skills by encouraging them to participate on any training programmes or courses. This can leave staff feeling demotivated and demoralised. Therefore the employee may become unproductive and uncooperative, which has a negative impact on the company. The company may have an excessive turnover of staff, as employees resign due to the lack of future prospects being made available this can result in a decrease in the overall efficiency of the company, which can cost them dearly. This is a weakness of the system, and is not following the ethical principle of professional competence 5.32 The company does not have any contingency plan in place when it comes to staff absences and so is a weakness of the system. Staff members who are not familiar with the duties of their peers cannot help. This is due to the fact that they cannot get access to useful material such as instruction manuals, guidance tools, help menus, instruction sheets and helplines, as the company have not produced nor made any available. Therefore work does not get done and this has a severe impact on the company as workloads increase, delays occur and errors are made. This can be costly to the company and can damage their reputation of professionalism. 5.33 The company does not have any staff that are adequately trained on work on other practices. This became evident in the month of September when problems linked to the initial stages of the new integrated payroll and personnel system was causing difficulty. The Payroll and Personnel Clerk,  who was only given one day’s intensive training on the system, confessed that she was still struggling to operate the system, even after a month of having worked with it. As no other member of staff was trained on the system, the Payroll and Personnel Clerk had no one to approach who she could ask for help and advice. Another issue that could cause further problems is in the event of the clerk becoming absent from work due to sickness or annual leave, this would have a negative impact on the company because they would have no one who could temporarily cover their role. This is a weakness of the accounting system. 5.34 There is a set of help menus for staff to use on the Sage Line 50 package to help them operate the system correctly. There are step by step guides, online tutorials and PDF guidelines made available, and if any staff member still requires help, they have access to a further phone and email support service. This is a strength as it is cost effective for the company meaning that staff are not tied up shadowing a new employee and are able to still carry on with their own duties. 5.35 Without sacrificing quality, and working towards ensuring a greener environment, Inkwell chooses to use products that are environmentally friendly. This includes the usage of recycled paper that is purchased from specialist suppliers. All employees are required to adhere to the company’s policy of discarding any of unused paper in the recycling bin, which is then sold to a recycling company. Inkwell encourages customers to bring in their old unused ink cartridges in exchange for purchasing re-manufactured ones, and as an incentive Inkwell offers these customers a 10% discount. The company also recycles its own unused ink cartridges, and sends these along with the old cartridges brought in by the customers, to a small number of manufacturers for refilling. This is a strength of the company’s system. 5.36 As an effective way of exposing their existence and improving their image within the community, Inkwell Ltd sponsors the local neighbourhood clean-up  scheme. This helps install pride within the community. Inkwell also receives an incentive from the Government for their involvement. The clean-up scheme brings members of community together, in their quest to clear the streets of refuge and litter. Walls and signs remain free from graffiti. Children can play safely in the streets, and wildlife remains out of harms reach. The clean environment is attracting new home seekers, and visitors therefore bringing more money into the community. Employment is rising due to the influx of visitors and the increasing consumer demand that comes with it, resulting in a happy and satisfied community who look favourably upon Inkwell Ltd. 6. WEAKNESSES 6.1 The company’s high street shops use standalone computers that are not connected to the network. A problem is encountered when installation of new software is required, as this cannot be installed simultaneously but must be installed on an individual basis; this operation is time consuming. Frequent upgrading coupled with regular maintenance is common, and this comes at a price, therefore this is not cost effective for the company. It is difficult to control and monitor the activities performed on these computers so there is a risk of fraud going undetected. A lapse in the adequate security of keeping confidential information protected is violating the Data Protection Act (1998). 6.2. Inkwell uses the password of â€Å"Go Green† throughout the whole company, which is common knowledge. The company is not adequately protecting the privacy of the sensitive information held on individuals, and this increases the risk of fraud. Employees are not demonstrating good ethical practices as they are allowing unauthorised users access to confidential data, which increases the opportunity to commit fraud by abuse and misuse. The company is legally and morally obliged to protect confidential information under the Data Protection Act (1998), but this is being breached. Compliance with the company’s own IT policy is not being adhered to either, as this policy specifically contains clear instructions that all company computers must be  individually password protected. 6.3 Inkwell’s policy that was updated in May 2010 by the Finance Director, gives clear instructions that all IT systems must be fully backed up twice per day. This action should be performed around midday and also at the close of business. The new company policy created by the Finance Director is not being complied with. An incident occurred when the company lost data and this came at a cost to the company in both time and money, and therefore they were negligent in their actions. This is not demonstrating good professional business practices. 6.4 The Microsoft Office Excel program used to store and control inventory levels is password protected but is still awaiting set up procedures necessary to restrict access to authorised users only. At present access is available to all users, which is not complying with the Data Protection Act of (1998), as confidential information is not being adequately protected. Unrestricted access to confidential information increases the risk of fraud, as it creates an opportunity for identity theft and gives a perpetrator the freedom to alter or manipulate the data. The company is not demonstrating good business ethics of integrity and confidentiality, through its negligence to protect confidential information, and they are violating the Data Protection Act (1998). 6.5 On the delivery of goods, the driver and the customer are required to sign a delivery note that shows proof of delivery and receipt. The company uses a paper based proof of delivery. The usage of paper has a damaging effect on the environment, and goes against the company’s beliefs, and this is not sustainable to the environment 6.6 Tension and conflict between the Finance Director and Company Accountant, who are not working together, is having an negative impact on the planning and  organising of work that needs to be carried out and completed. As a result the Accounting Technician has not been able to complete all the tasks that have been given to him, by both parties, but this has gone unnoticed. Work that demands priority and that must meet tight deadlines is left uncompleted and put to the side. Payments are not being collected in a timely manner and this is costing the company money. This is not cost effective for the company. The Finance Director no longer has interest in the projects that he gave to the Accounting Technician to complete, which had initially been considered a matter of importance. Any work that has accumulated regarding these projects has resulted in valuable time, effort and money being wasted, which is also not cost effective for the company. Delays are increased as employees are unable to carry out work until others have finished theirs. These delays have a negative impact on the company’s reputation because they are unable to supply a professional and reliable service. 6.7 Contingency plans are not put in place for the absence of employees who carry out tasks that require day to day processing. Sales invoices were not processed for the period covering the last two weeks of July as the Accounts Receivable Clerk was on annual leave. The company’s negligence in adequately covering this post has resulted in the credit control activities not being carried out, so monies due during this period were left uncollected. This has an impact on the company’s cash flow and is not cost effective for the company. 6.8 Inkwell accepts payment in the form of cheque as well as other methods. Payment by cheque delays the access to funds, as it must go through a three day clearing cycle process, which does not operate on Saturdays, Sundays or Bank Holidays. Even at the end of this process there is no guarantee that payment will be granted as the cheque may be returned to drawer has insufficient funds in their bank account. This is not cost effective for the company and can have a serious impact on the company’s cash flow and profitability. 6.9 Any customer accounts overdue by three months should be referred to a debt collecting agency who works on the behalf of the company to recover any debts owed. This is in accordance with the company’s policy. However, in reality, this policy is rarely followed. The Sales Director, concerned that the active pursuance of any of these outstanding debts may jeopardise the good relations she currently has with the customers, has decided to avoid the involvement of the debt collecting agency. Consequently, Inkwell’s cash flow is negatively impacted due to the lack of money coming in and this is not cost effective for the company. Trade receivables are mounting up significantly and bad debts are increasingly that will ultimately result in having to write them off. This loss in earnings will have to be borne by the company as the funds may become irrecoverable. 6.10 The company do not have regular meetings that give the staff the opportunity to share and exchange information between each other. Regular staff meetings could ensure that better decisions are made through effective communication, and enable staff to disclose any department issues. Because regular meetings are not put in place, this has a negative impact on the company because they are unable operate in an effective and efficient manner. The company is not demonstrating good business practices as employees get demoralised when they feel unappreciated, undervalued and disrespected. This is not cost effective for the company. 6.11 Inkwell Ltd does not have a performance appraisal program put in place in order to monitor the professional development of their employees. Performance appraisals can help to motivate staff and improve company morale, as staff become mindful that good performance can result in promotion and recognition. Due to the non-existence of these programs, management are unable to identify and address any issues or basic training needs of the staff, and therefore are not in a position to offer suitable training that would help staff become better at performing their jobs. This is not making the company cost effective or competitive within the industry 6.12 Inkwell do not offer training programmes to either new or existing employees, nor do they actively encourage staff to engage and participate on any suitable courses, in order to gain new skills, knowledge and qualifications. In a rapidly changing environment, Inkwell needs to be conscious that roles and responsibilities are continually evolving, and should respond to this by ensuring that employees are provided with appropriate job-related training to ensure that they have the necessary skills and knowledge in order to carry out their jobs in an effective manner. The company is not ensuring that the staff are acting with professional competence. 6.13 The company have not produced, nor have they provided any on-site instruction manuals that can be used by employees as guidance tools that are a valuable source of reference. In the absence of staff at short notice, due to sickness, other employees cannot be relied upon to carry out tasks of an unfamiliar nature, as they do not have adequate documentation to hand that contains information that can help guide and instruct the employee to carry out a particular task. This will have a negative impact on labour efficiency in that staff would be shadowing new employees and could be neglecting their own work. 7. RECOMMENDATIONS 7.1 Inkwell needs to remove the standalone computers and replace them with a full networked system. The accounting team would then be able to share data, access information and automatically update all the systems at once. This would save the company money in the long run as once installed it would be far more efficient and increase productivity. A quote can be arranged once decisions have been made concerning company requirements. His is a major overhaul which would be beneficial for the company in the long run, but would require further investigation ensure that the best product was purchased for the best price. 7.2 To comply with The Data Protection Act (1998), Inkwell must make regular updates to password protection every quarter and passwords should be a mixture of alphanumeric characters. Each password should be checked for complexity. Only the employee and the line manager are to know the password. Once in force this will comply with the Data Protection Act (1998). This would not cost the company any money, just for the IT department to set this in place as most computer software has the facility to secure the data. This would enhance the AAT’s code of professional ethics of integrity and confidentiality, and also make them compliant with the law. 7.3 The Accounts Department and Company Accountant must comply with the company policy on backing up the IT system twice daily. This will prevent any possible data loss by accident or otherwise. This will in turn entice other staff to follow suit which will ensure ethical behaviour within the company. This will not cost the company any money as a procedure would need to be typed up or the Finance Manager would put a rota in the daily schedule. It would cost a few labour hours, but as the staff are on salary this would be part of their daily routine. The benefit to the company would be that they would not have to pay extra wages for re-inputting the data lost and therefore make the company more cost effective and competitive within the industry. 7.4 An accurate and updated list with authorised signatories to make entries in the general ledger is of upmost importance to guarantee security of customers’ accounts and prevent fraud. All sales staff should enter transaction information on the relevant sales data spreadsheet and sign it then pass it to the manager for counter checking and password protection before it is forwarded to the Accounts Receivable Clerk. This action will prevent fraud and be insignificant in regards to the cost of implementation. This would not cost the company anything, but the IT department could establish this system, or it could be written up in the company policy  making it mandatory for the employees to do this. The benefit for the company would be that the company would be able to see who made certain transactions and would be able to detect any fraudulent activities and who done them. 7.5 The company should consider investing in electronic signature capture equipment which would remove the problem of paper delivery notes when goods are delivered. It will cost the company initially but will pay for itself in the long term as it would guarantee a traceable signature of the receipt of goods including the data and time and also remove the impact on environmental sustainability. An on line quote from Topaz Systems INC revealed a price of  £86.00 Excluding VAT per device (see Appendix 8.2). This would be beneficial for sustainability of the environment. 7.6 The attitudes of both the Finance Director and Company Accountant need to be addressed. As senior management, they should both pay more attention and interest to reviewing the tasks of staff and ensuring the tasks are being completed correctly and on time. Management should also ensure the tasks are being distributed to the correct staff which will improve efficiency and performance with no costs to the company. It is important that any differences between the senior heads of management are kept behind closed doors. This is being professional and the impact on the company would mean that it would be a happier place to work in, and would lead to better output, making the company more competitive within the industry. 7.7 All invoices must be raised day to day without fail as delayed invoices create delayed payments from customers which reduces the cash flow. The company need to address staff annual leave so as to avoid a situation where there is no cover to continue the day to day invoicing. The company should also promote staff training so that employees are trained on more than one job to allow for any emergency staff absence. It could be that the company could employ agency staff for the cover, but this would come at a cost,  depending on the agency. This would require further investigation to see if the benefits of employing agency staff would actually improve the cash flow of the business. The cheaper option would be for better planning within the company ensuring that all jobs are covered when employees are on holiday. 7.8 The company should look at phasing out the receipt of cheques and promote the use of BACs transfers as the preferred payment method. This allows the company instant control and visibility of all payments and collections, and allows review of the cash analysis. It is the most secure method of payment for the company and customer, prevents fraud and is of no further cost to the company as it is already a system in use by most companies. 7.9 The Sales Director and Company Accountant must review any account that is more than two months overdue and same again when three months overdue. By complying with company policy on this, the Sales Director should promptly pass the matter on to the debt collecting agency in order to recover the money and reduce the debt becoming bad. It will cost the company  £100 plus 25% of any recovered funds but will increase cash flow. However, if overdue accounts are reviewed sooner there is a stronger possibility of avoiding involvement of the debt collecting agency. The fact that this would increase cash flow would able the business to be more competitive within the industry. 7.10 The management must commence regular staff meetings in which any needs or problems can be addressed. Regular meetings will be valuable and important as it will give the staff confidence that the company is listening and acting on any issues they have raised. These could also include the awareness of fraud and the importance of rules and guidelines relating to the Data Protection Act (1998). The costs incurred to introduce regular meetings will be minimal in respect of man hours but will benefit the company in the long term as any problems get resolved and will streamline the running of the business. 7.11 The company should implement staff appraisals as this will allow feedback relating to productivity and performance of each employee. Appraisals have been known to improve staff morale, efficiency, motivation and job satisfaction, and can highlight any training requirements needed. A professional company could be employed to provide this service, but is too costly. A decision was made to devise their own SWOT analysis form and a Performance and Development Plan form, which will cost the company minimal hours of labour only (see Appendix 8.3). This would improve on the AAT’s code of professional ethics in professional competence. 7.12 Regular training programs should be implemented for staff awareness of their role within the company. Regular training will help staff be more accurate and competent to do their job which helps the company and employee, and in the long term is cost effective for the company. An online quote was carried out to find out the cost of a self-study payroll package for levels 1 and 2. The price is  £125.00 exempt of VAT (see Appendix 8.4). This would ensure that staff were up to date with their knowledge making them professionally competent. The company could send their staff to the local training provider and this would enhance sustainability in the community. 7.13 Staff should produce an instruction manual detailing their responsibilities and tasks. This would cost the company minimal labour hours in production but would help the company by allowing staff to concentrate on the task in hand rather than being too focused on training others. This would also ensure the task would be accurately and effectively. This would make the company more cost effective and competitive within the industry. As staff are salaried, this would just be an extra job in their daily routine and the only cost would be the printing of the manuals, however putting the manuals on the staff intranet would not cost money in stationery and printing making it sustainable for the environment.

Politics :: essays research papers

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Arafat and the PLOà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? "We must remember that the main enemy of the Palestinian people, now and forever, is Israel. This is a truth that must never leave our minds." --- Palestinian Authority Justice Minister Freih Abu Middein, speaking at Al Azhar University in Gaza. (Al-Nahar, 11 April 1995; The Jerusalem Post, 17 April 1995) As expressed in the above quote, the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 sparked much resentment from nearby Arab states, which immediately waged war against the new nation. Consequently, a severe refugee problem was created among the Palestinians that had been living in and near the territories that were taken over by Israel. An estimated 726,000 Palestinians were displaced; some were forced to other Arab states in the Middle East, while others were confined to refugee camps in Israel. In the mid-1950s, Arafat and several Palestinian Arab associates formed a movement known as Fatah, dedicated to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“reclaiming Palestine for the Palestinians.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? It quickly became the largest and most popular Palestinian organization mostly due to the fact that it did not define a distinct ideology, and kept a rather vague and unspecified platform in order to avoid too close an identification with any one particular Arab country. Fatah and other splinter sects eventually operated under an umbrella organization, the Palestine Liberation Organization, formed in 1964. Arafat, as a member of the Husseini family, had a niche of credibility, an advantage that allowed him to quickly generate a loyal following (Bickerton 147). Running Fatah became Arafat's full-time occupation, and by 1965, the organization was launching guerrilla raids and terrorist attacks into Israel. The PLOà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Tumultuous Beginning As Israel emerged victorious in the Six-Day War of 1967, and captured the Golan Heights from Syria, the West Bank from Jordan and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict took on a heightened tension. Following th e war, Arafat moved the headquarters of the PLO to Jordan. Terrorist activity was conducted by fundamentalist splinter groups within the PLO, such as the Liberation for Palestine (PFLP), the Palestine Popular Struggle Front, and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), in an attempt to draw attention to the Palestinian cause. In 1968, Arafat and the Fatah got international publicity when they inflicted a significant defeat on Israeli troops who entered Jordan. These PLO's activities increasingly troubled Jordan's King Hussein because it prevented him from considering any negotiated settlement with Israel.

Pharmaceutical Companies and How Their Health Information is Managed Through Clinical Trials Essay

Clinical Trials are critical to how pharmaceutical companies manage health information. Through the years the Federal Drug Administration saw many problems with the use of clinical trials and worked at fixing them. Regulations and guidance was put into place to ensure that sponsors of clinical trials; medical researchers, ethic committees and pharmaceuticals understand how they can efficiently carry out the trials while complying with federal law. Pharmaceutical companies rely heavily on these trials to determine how the health information gained is used for research and marketing on a variety of levels within the company including their main purpose of drug development. The clinical trial is an investigational product in human volunteers to examine effects from experimental drugs, medical device, or biologic, such as a vaccine, blood product, or gene therapy (Bren, 2007, 23). The main problem of many clinical trials in the past was the possibility of bias. Meaning any factor that distorts the true outcome of a study, that leads to overestimating or even underestimating the effect of a drug that was being investigated. But now with better FDA regulations stricter guidelines help to prevent this type of bias. When a pharmaceutical has a drug to market it must first submit an application to the FDA that shows data from controlled clinical trials. FDA then reviews the application to make a decision on whether the clinical trials are well-control or if they show the effectiveness of the product. It must also show that all available data show that the product is safe enough to allow it on the public market. Before 1938 pharmaceutical companies could market a drug without submitting any information to the FDA or for that fact any agency. â€Å"The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) of 1938 was passed when over 100 children died from taking a sulfa drug that had not been tested in humans† (Bren, 2007, 24). The FDA adopted the standard, after this incident, that the benefits of a product outweigh the risks. In 1962 new law created made pharmaceuticals responsible to prove that their drugs were both effective and safe if they wanted to market them to the public. Making clinical trial more efficient was needed. In an article â€Å"The Advancement of Controlled Clinical trials† Bren discusses the future of clinical trials in which the FDA see a future of improving clinical trials by standardizing and automating trial procedures, conduct and data processing. Another addition to the trials would be to use patient reported outcomes. â€Å"For systematic diseases, what really matters is how you feel, not how the doctor feels about you† (Bren, 2007, 28). Another important advancement in managing pharmaceutical companies is how they manufacture and the distribution of medication. This was called the Critical Path Initiative. This focuses on the path which medical products must travel from development to patients. The Critical Path Initiative is FDA’s effort to stimulate and facilitate a national effort to modernize the sciences through which FDA regulated products are developed, evaluated, and manufactured† (Bons, Aubert & Bonnely, 2000). Pharmaceutical companies had already recognized that there were weaknesses that needed improvement in clinical trials and that some could be easily improved while others would need a different type of organization, but in general that none of them were really difficult to address. Choosing an independent institute for conducting surveys and trial would give them an opportunity for impartial opinions in clinical trials. Human subjects is an important key in clinical development and investigators are the spokesperson for that study so improving investigator participation in clinical trials would help to improve subject participation and the quality of the whole trial. So looking at the clinical trial in itself would be how pharmaceutical manage the health inf

Characteristics of Revenge Tragedy

The revenge play or revenge tragedy is a form of tragedy which was extremely popular in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras. The best-known of these are Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy and William Shakespeare's Hamlet. The genre was first categorised by the scholar Fredson Bowers.Contents:Origins, conventions, and themesHistory.Influence.Film.References.Origins, conventions, and themesThe only clear precedent and influence for the Renaissance genre is the work of the Roman playwright and Stoic philosopher Seneca the Younger, perhaps most of all his Thyestes. It is still unclear if Seneca's plays were performed or recited during Roman times; at any rate, Elizabethan and Jacobean playwrights staged them, as it were, with a vengeance, in plays full of gruesome and often darkly comic violence. The Senecan model, though never followed slavishly, makes for a clear definition of the type, which almost invariably includes A secret murder, usually of a benign ruler by a bad person.A ghostly vi sitation of the murder victim to a younger kinsman, generally a son A period of disguise, intrigue, or plotting, in which the murderer and the avenger scheme against each other, with a slowly rising body count A descent into either real or feigned madness by the avenger or one of the auxiliary characters An eruption of general violence at the end, which (in the Renaissance) is often accomplished by means of a feigned masque or festivity A catastrophe that utterly decimates the dramatis personae, including the avenger Both the stoicism of Seneca and his political career (he was an advisor to Nero) leave their mark on Renaissance practice.In the English plays, the avenger is either stoic (albeit not very specifically) or struggling to be so; in this respect, the main thematic concern of the English revenge plays is the problem of pain. Politically, the English playwrights used the revenge plot to explore themes of absolute power,  corruption in court, and of factional concerns that applied to late Elizabethan and Jacobean politics as they had to Roman politics.HistorySome early Elizabethan tragedies betray evidence of a Senecan influence; Gorboduc (1561) is notable in this regard. The â€Å"hybrid morality† Horestes (1567) also offers an early example of the genre.[1] Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy, however, is the first major example of the revenge plot in English drama. First performed 1587 and subsequently published in 1592, The Spanish Tragedy was a popular smash so successful that, with Tamburlaine, it practically defined tragic dramaturgy for a number of years.Refitted with additions by Ben Jonson, it found performance intermittently until 1642. Its most famous scenes were copied, transformed, and—finally—mocked; the play itself was given a sequel that may have been partially written by Kyd. Hamlet is one of the few Shakespeare plays to fit into the revenge category; indeed, it may be read as a figural, literary response to Kyd, wh o is sometimes credited with the so-called ur-Hamlet with which Shakespeare worked.As regards revenge tragedy, Hamlet is notable for the way in which it complicates the themes and deepens the psychology of its models. What is, in The Spanish Tragedy, a straightforward duty of revenge, is for Prince Hamlet, both factually and morally ambiguous. Hamlet has been read, with some support, as enacting a thematic conflict between the Roman values of martial valor and blood-right on the one hand, and Christian values of humility and acceptance on the other. Some academics would also argue the Othello could fit into the category of revenge.A more purely Jacobean example than Hamlet is The Revenger's Tragedy, apparently produced in 1606 and printed anonymously the following year. The author was long assumed, on somewhat unconvincing external evidence, to be Cyril Tourneur; in recent decades, numerous critics have argued in favour of attributing the play to Thomas Middleton. On stylistic groun ds, this argument is convincing.The Revenger's Tragedy is marked by the earthy—even obscene—style, irreverent tone, and grotesque subject matter that typifies Middleton's comedies. The play, though it lacks a ghost, is in other respects a sophisticated updating of The Spanish Tragedy, concerning lust, greed, and corruption in an Italian court. Caroline instances of the genre are largely derivative of earlier  models and are little read today, even by specialists.InfluenceA number of plays, from 1587 on, are influenced by certain aspects of revenge tragedy, although they do not fit perfectly into this category. Besides Hamlet, other plays of Shakespeare's with at least some revenge elements are Titus Andronicus, Julius Caesar, and Macbeth. Other revenge tragedies include The White Devil, Hoffman,The Changeling, The Duchess of Malfi, The Atheist's Tragedy, The Revenger's Tragedy, The Jew of Malta, The Revenge of Bussy D'Ambois, The Malcontent, Antonio's Revenge, The Du ke of Milan, The Maid's Tragedy, Valentinian, The Bloody Brother, ‘Tis Pity She's a Whore†, The Maid's Revenge, and The Cardinal.Thomas Pynchon's novel The Crying of Lot 49 contains an extended parody of the Jacobean revenge-play formula, titled The Courier's Tragedy and written by the fictitious Richard Wharfinger. Most of the action is simply described by the narrator, with occasional snippets of dialogue. In Edward Gorey's masterpiece, The Unstrung Harp, the protagonist, the novelist Mr Earbrass, sees a performance of Prawne's The Nephew's Tragedy, a fictional revenge play performed, â€Å"†¦ for the first time since the early seventeenth century, by the West Mortshire Impassioned Amateurs of Melpomene.†

Significance of Environmental Analysis Essays

Significance of Environmental Analysis Essays Significance of Environmental Analysis Paper Significance of Environmental Analysis Paper Environment refers to all factors, the forces of influence of which have a bearing on functioning of the business. These factors may be internal such as the personnel and internal mechanism of the organization; or external such as competition, government policies, customer preferences, etc. Internal factors are controllable in nature. They include human resources, financial strength, marketing resources, physical assets, technological competitiveness, management structure and nature, company image and brand equity, value system, etc. These factors highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. Weaknesses must be minimized or they may prove fatal to its survival. External factors are beyond the control Of the organization. They refer to the external environment Macro-environment (General environment) as well as Micro-environment (Operating environment). Micro-environmental factors tend to have a direct impact on the firm and are more intimately linked with the company than Macro-environmental factors. Micro- environmental factors include customers, competitors, channel intermediaries, suppliers, etc. Macro-environmental factors may be Demographic such as population size and density, literacy rate; Economic such as economic and fiscal policies of government, national and international trade situation, demand and supply factors; Physical environment and ecological factors such as availability Of natural resources, pollution situation; Technological factors such as availability of latest and competitive technology; or Political and Legal factors such as structure of legislature and stability of ruling political party. The success of every business firm or organization depends on adapting itself to the environment within which it operates. For example, when there is a change in the government policies, it has to make necessary changes to adapt it to new policies. Similarly, a change in technology may render existing reduces obsolete, as we have seen that the introduction of computer has replaced the typewriters. Again a change in the fashion or customers taste may shift the demand in the market for a particular product, e. . , the demand for jeans reduced the sale of other traditional wear. Hence, it is very necessary to have a clear understanding of the concept of business environment and the nature of its various components. Strategic Management Every business must have a strategic management mechanism in order to ensure its survival in the present competitive world. Strategic management involves formulating, implementing and evaluating Ross functional decisions that will enable the organization to achieve its objectives. It is the process of specifying the organizations objectives, developing policies and plans to achieve these objectives and allocating resources to implement the policies and plans to achieve the organizations objectives. It, therefore, combines the activities of all the various functional areas. It ensures correct direction for the enterprise. Strategic management does not replace traditional management activities such as budgeting, planning, monitoring, marketing, reporting and controlling. Rather, it integrates them into a broader context, taking into count the external environment, internal organizational capabilities and organizations overall purpose and direction. It is an ongoing process that assesses the business environment, sets goals and plans to meet the prevailing competitiveness, and evaluates the performance of the enterprise, thus creating a fit between the organization and its external environment and providing a process of coping with change and organizational renewal. STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS [pick] Environmental Analysis Organizations scan the environment in order to understand the external forces of change so that they may develop effective responses which secure r improve their position in the future. They scan in order to avoid surprises, identify threats and opportunities, gain competitive advantage, and improve long- and short-term planning. Organizations usually scan their environments randomly, regularly as well as continuously. To the extent that an organizations ability to adapt to its outside environment is dependent on knowing and interpreting the external changes that are taking place, environmental scanning constitutes a primary mode of organizational learning. Environmental scanning includes both looking at information (viewing) and looking for information (searching). Environmental scanning is considered as one of the critical ingredients in the strategic formulation process. It can provide early warning signals to organizations from emerging environmental uncertainties, risks, threats and opportunities and hence reduce the chance of being blindly shielded. With effective environmental scanning, organizations would be able to obtain more accurate market and industry insights, and thereby be more likely to satisfy current customers and explore new market segments, successfully develop and market a new product or service based on trend analysis, or establish a utter brand image, all Of which would ultimately contribute to the financial performance. MEANING DEFINITION Environmental Scanning means an examination and study of the environment of a business unit in order to identify its survival and prosperity chances. It means observing the business environment both external and internal and understanding its implications for business opportunities. It also involves knowing beforehand the risks and uncertainties as well as threats to the business unit. Environmental Analysis is the monitoring, evaluating and disseminating of information from the external and the internal environment to key people thin the organization. It IS a process of gathering, analyzing and dispensing information for tactical or strategic purposes. The environmental scanning process entails obtaining both factual and subjective information on the business environments in which a company is operating or considering entering. Definitions The process by which strategists monitor the economic, governmental/ legal, market/competitive, supplier/technological, geographic and social settings to determine opportunities and threats to their firms Environmental Analysis is the monitoring evaluating and disseminating f information from the external and the internal environment to key people within the corporation Conceptual Map [pick HISTORY The idea of environmental scanning was developed by Jugular (1 967: Introduction). Jugulars definition was widely adopted in scanning literature (e. . , Albright in 2004; Coho in 1993. Later studies reinforced his definition without substantially altering this perspective, but more attention was given to searching than viewing, and environmental scanning was gradually extended to be a more complete and systematic information process. Daft and Wick (1984) looked at environmental scanning as an organization learning process, which could be divided into scanning (information seeki ng), interpretation (giving meaning to the collected data) and learning (taking action based on the data). Lester and Waters (1989) defined environmental scanning as a management process with three key components, I. E. Obtaining, analyzing and using information about the environment. Hough and White (2004) view environment scanning as a sequence of procedures of identifying, collecting, processing and translating information about external influences into useful decisions and plans. Albright (2004) defined environmental scanning as the internal immunization of external information about issues that may potentially influence an organizations decision-making process. Albright suggests that a formal environmental scanning process has five integrally linked steps: identifying the organizations scanning needs of the organization, gathering the information, analyzing the information, communicating the results, and making informed decisions. IMPORTANCE Environmental Scanning is essential because of following reasons: 1) Prime Influence Environment is a prime influence on the effectiveness of business strategies. If strategic planning is done without considering environment, it is keel to be defective. Besides, the success of the implementation of the strategy depends on the environmental factors. 2) A tool to anticipate Changes Environmental scanning is a very useful tool not only to understand business surroundings, but also as a good instrument to anticipate the changes and be prepared to face the challenges of such changes. 3) Time for adjustment A business unit cannot change the business activities overnight. It needs time to adjust with the changing environment. If it has to face the changed environment suddenly, it may be possible to make immediate hangers according to the demand of the changed environment.