The Treatment of Black Familie essays

The Treatment of Black Familie essays The theories mentioned in this essay have greatly influenced treatment approaches that have affected the lives of Black people. It is also intended to connect the cultural history of Black families and the clinical experiences of family therapists who have worked with these families. Through out the essay, the concept of empowering Black families are pointed out and placed into the treatment process. There is also a focus on the treatment process of family therapy. In her book, Black families in theory, there is a great deal of cultural diversity among Black families. Within the different types of cultural variables that are present in Black families and communities. It ought to be very clear that there is no such thing as the Black family. There is a need for a constant verification of the reality of individual differences within any cultural group. It is also important for the therapist working with these families to recognize the relevance of their background and to validate these skills without giving way to stereotyping either the background itself. Black families are often concerned about the judgment imposed on them by outside agencies and may therefore be sensitive about discussing with an outsider such issues. working with these families to recognize the relevance of their background and to validate these skills without giving way to stereotyping either the background itself. Black families are often concerned about the judgment imposed on them by outside agencies and may therefore be sensitive about discussing with an outsider such issues. Black families are known to be highly unstable and approaching a complete breakdown. The first strength that has been repeatedly recognized in Black families is the strong kinship bonds and extended family relationships. The issue of strong achievement orientation in Black families is often confusing to Whites of different cultures who do not see this put in force accordin...

Overview of the Apps Industry Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Overview of the Apps Industry - Research Paper Example The apps business is well beyond entertainment and gaming apps. It is a flourishing software industry which unveils opportunities for technology seekers who introduced innovation blended with the Internet. The apps stores, particularly Apple Stores, Nokia Ovi and Android markets, are gaining popularity among users. So, the word â€Å"apps† is no longer limited to Smartphones. Various Internet giants like Google and Microsoft have initiated apps stores for their offerings. Apps industry is the result of collaboration between third-party developers and companies for designing, enhancing and trading apps via different sources like smartphones, tablets, social media platforms and others linked with the web. It has tremendous growth potential which can be unleashed using innovation and continuous improvement in features (Stevens 58-74). It can be rightly said that Apps business will set the foundation for Internet’s future model. Apple’s Apps store became an inspirati on for other players in the smartphone industry and was followed by virtual markets like Nokia Ovi Store, Google Android market and Samsung apps (Appling and Pappalardo, 2010). Even outside the smartphone platform, the biggest online retailer Amazon is influenced by the progress of apps store and might introduce it for its Kindle development. APPS INDUSTRY HISTORY: The origin of smartphone industry initiated in 1993 with the invention of IBM Simon. However, 2007 marks the advent of Apple iPhone which gave rise to the smartphone apps market, commonly referred to as â€Å"apps†. The Apple smartphone was a symbol of aesthetics which combined touchscreen display with web browsing in one package. Apps industry has developed over the years beyond smartphones and the mobile apps industry is highly fragmented among several players. The apps stores owned by OEMs by a combination of product, platform and store include Apple apps store and the like. Google’s Android and Microsoft market are the platform providers used on third-party handsets like HTC and Samsung (Allen, Graupera, and Lundrigan 57). There is a difference seen in market dominance of the brands in various countries. For example, US market resists in adopting Nokia system so it was unable to attain dominance in the region, unlike the world market. The prominent carriers are AT&T, Sprint Nextel and Verizon whose integration with the hardware manufacturers is very crucial. The carriers set sales conditions for hardware vendors. Traditionally, the telecommunication carriers subsidized smartphones in order to drive demand from consumers who, in return, sign a contract. This provided a great insight that consumers are eager to purchase expensive high tech machines on lower prices. The collaboration can result in sales rise for hardware manufacturers as well as subscription contracts for the carriers. PERFORMANCE TRENDS: The apps market predominantly consists of four major players: Apple, Blackberry, Nokia Ovi, and Android. Since the apps market has emerged, more than 300,000 apps have been developed and downloaded over billion times. App stores are becoming a norm for mobile apps download for smartphones nowadays. They are penetrating in the market very swiftly with 2.4 billion downloads being done in 2010 (Global stats, 2012).

Adaptive Supply Chain Co-Management manual Essay

Adaptive Supply Chain Co-Management manual - Essay Example Collaboration and competition have often been regarded as incompatible concepts especially as evolutionary biology became well-known in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It was presumed that only the fittest can survive if those with the most desirable traits are naturally selected over those that did not possess these ideas. This mentality spilled over into business literature and led to the manifestation of certain laws such as the Sherman and Clayton Anti-trust Acts (Zeiltin, 2007). However, time illustrated that sometimes certain kinds of cooperation and competition did not necessarily have to replace each other as seen through the formation of professional associations, cartels and business groups. Individuals may participate in a cartel in order to enhance the quality of output or their safety; this may also be done for reasons of efficiency. Some forms of collaboration such as the inter-firm network came about due to rising complexities of organisations. However, they took relatively long periods of time before they came to be accepted as cultural norms; a lot of ambiguity exists on the need for collaboration or cooperation; all of it depends in the nature of acceptance in the concerned nation (Zeiltin, 2007). Businesses today have now moved from the anti-trust mindset of yester years; in fact, it is not uncommon to find some form of collaboration between competitors in almost all industries of the economy. New technologies are becoming more complex and require huge capital investment to develop; markets are getting more turbulent, and the time needed to deliver products to the market is also increasing. Additionally, time and geographical boundaries have shrunk thus indicating that operating business internationally is a critical factor. Government policies are not particularly favourable in conducting business and so are other issues within

Marketing & Sales for Dreamworld theme park Assignment

Marketing & Sales for Dreamworld theme park - Assignment Example The Australia-based wildlife experience offers guests with an opportunity of cuddling the koalas, feeding kangaroos and drawing near to the crocodiles along with the Tiger Island being home to two cougars, eight Sumatran tigers and Bengal tigers charged with the duty to entertain guests alongside the trainers. Moreover, the company includes entertainment facilities like the Australia Animal Facility which takes place on a day-to-day routine therein (James Cook University of North Queensland & National Centre for Studies in Travel & Tourism, 1990). Furthermore, the company organizes for annual events like New Year’s Eve amp for adults and the ultimate single’s day often scheduled for February 13th every year. For a while, brand has proved to be a crucial tool in Dreamworld. For the past 5-8 years, the company has embraced strategies aimed at associating the company with brands with different appeals and capable of remaining relevant event in middle of varied demographic segments. To this end, the company has remained committed to improving its attractions and growing further whilst keeping up with the state of being a top-edge draws within the big Gold Coast. From 1981, the company has been able to develop individualized customer experiences by integrating products and customer initiatives in order to benefit both local and international guests (Australian Tourism and Hospitality Research Conference& Australia, 1990). Besides, the company offers support to local cultures and communities by sponsoring and taking part in charity organizations. The two cases present opportunities that Dreamworld could use to channel promotional messages to its target clients in order to increase its customer base along with the revenue stream (Parsons, 2002). Also, the Company has more opportunities to improve its target customers. More specifically, the company should diversify its customer base to encompass

Small Company Financial Statement Example

Small Company Financial Statement Example Management System DJs Ltd is a private limited company that is run in the style of a regular partnership firm. The two directors David Golding and John Selwood have divided the operating responsibilities of the company into two distinct areas and take care of their individual functions, while doubling up for each other if the need arises. While functional responsibilities are clearly defined, the organisation is otherwise loosely managed with four employees, two managers, (one for sales and front ending responsibilities, and the other for operational management), the chef, and a part time bookkeeper being the key operating persons. Operating systems, rules and procedures lack clarity and are, on occasion, ignored. Recording, accounting, and custodial functions are weak, possibly because of the small size of the business, its single location, and the presence of two hands on owners who exercise their own informal controls and checks to ensure the smooth functioning of the business. Risk of Fraud The risks of fraud, as in any business without structured control and checking systems, are significant. Fraud deterrence and control occurs mainly because of the presence of the two owners of the business, its small size and its compact single locational operations. Frauds can occur, and that too very easily in purchasing, inventory operations, cash management, payment of wages, cash sales and through tampering with the accounting system. Detection of Fraud While the current recording and accounting system is too loose to be of much help in immediately spotting frauds and throwing up alerts, the presence of irregularities and potential fraud can be detected through a number of overall checks in different operational areas. Tracking of movement of goods from the placing of purchase orders through inventory receipts, issues for consumption, and closing stock balances followed by reconciliation of opening and closing inventories with purchases and consumption, will reveal buying, consumption, and pilferage irregularities. Similarly tallying of total sales with cash, credit card and cheque payments, as well as of cash sales with money receipts will give an indication of the accuracy if records and the presence of dishonesty in the sales and collection function. Daily checks may well be unhelpful in this area as the guilty employees may become alert and become careful. It is best to do such checks for fairly long past periods to get accurate results. Overpayment of wages can again come to light if attendance records are tallied with actual wages paid for a specific number of months. Small companies in the UK, while they are mandated to prepare and file annual accounts that represent a true and fair picture of the operations and financial condition of the company, are exempted from statutory audit if their turnover does not exceed 5.6 million GBP or their balance sheet total remains at less than 2.8 million GBP. Considering the size of DJs Ltd and the nature of its business, the company will, in all probability, not be required to face statutory audit. The audit plan should commence with a detailed understanding of the operations of the company and progress to laying out the audit objectives. The audit objectives should include the ascertainment of the reliability of accounts, the legality and validity of company transactions and the adequacy of financial management under practice. The scope of the audit should thus incorporate two separate issues, the assessment of the financial accounting status, as evidenced by (a) the correct recording of assets and liabilities, including off balance sheet items, (b) the existence, ownership, valuation, description, classification and disclosure of assets (c) the legality and correctness of transactions, (d) the completeness and accuracy of recording entries pertaining to the period, as well as their description, classification and disclosure, and the financial management procedures, which need to ascertain economy, efficiency and effectiveness through an analysis of input/output ratios, cash m anagement practices, financial ratio analysis, and the availability of resources in time, as well as their effective utilisation. Apart from laying down the objectives and scope of the audit the audit plan will need to provide for time planning, (based upon a quantification of necessary audit tasks), the criteria for choosing transactions and items for audit scrutiny, the audit methodology to be followed, (involving procedures for checking of vouchers and postings, carrying out reconciliations of bank and supplier accounts, taking physical stock of inventory items, and checking accounts receivables and payable balances with the external parties), the required audit tests, and the allocation of manpower resources. The establishment of materiality is significant in the formulation of a plan. A proper understanding of the business will help in identifying matters of significance and will enable the plan to incorporate materiality factors vis-a-vis nature, amount and significance of transactions. Identification of areas where controls and checks are loose, as elaborated in task 1, will throw up the possibility of r isks and frauds. These areas will warrant more detailed and intensive scrutiny, as well as the need for overall and input/output checks. Formulation and execution of appropriate audit tests are integral to the successful execution of an audit. While audit tests are mainly framed in accordance with established accounting and auditing procedures they need to be adapted to the nature of the industry and provide for the peculiarities of the business. In the subject case the company uses standard SAGE accounting software, which eliminates to a great degree the need to check for manual accuracy and the correctness of posting entries and arithmetical accuracy of generated accounts. However, errors and irregularities can arise in many other areas and a number of audit tests will need to be included in the required audit methodology. Audit tests should start with a sample checking of the accounting correctness of vouchers to ensure that correct accounts have been debited and credited for both revenue and capital transactions. A sample testing procedure involving complete checking of three months vouchers and varying percentage checks for the other nine months should serve the purpose adequately. Journal vouchers need to be checked to test whether proper accounting procedures have been followed for incorporating extraordinary entries or corrections. Audit tests should include checking of purchases for rates accepted, with those available in the market, tallying of purchase orders, goods inward notes and bills, both for value and quantity, as well as reconciliation of inventory, checking of book and actual balances, sales bills for billing accuracy, both for rates and quantities, sales and collection totals. Apart from these tests, bank and supplier reconciliations, and carrying out of ratio analyses for operating and profit margins, debt and liquidity, will help in providing the auditors with an idea of the financial condition of the company. The following statement outlines the details of work to be carried out and its manner of recording for incorporation in the audit report. The scope of the audit will cover work involved in ascertaining whether the prepared accounts reveal a true and fair picture of the operations of the company for the specified period, the financial condition of the company at the end of the period, and whether financial management practices are appropriate for the efficient and effective running of the company’s operations. Audit activity will include assessing the scope of audit, checking of accounts for accuracy and adherence to stipulated accounting requirements and the appropriate financial framework, through standard auditing procedures involving sample and complete checking, carrying out of audit tests, interviewing and questioning required company officials, use of reconciliations, and other analytical tools like input/output studies, ratios and trends. The results of the audit will be recorded in different sections of the audit report, namely in (a) an introduction identifying the accounts that were the subject of the exercise and the relevant financial framework, (b) an explanation of the scope of the audit, (c) an assessment of the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the Companies Act, (d) a section on inconsistencies, if any between the directors report and the actual position, and (e) a description of irregularities, which, if material will find place in qualifications to the report. Companies registered in the UK companies with turnover exceeding 5.6 million GBP or with net assets more than 2.8 million GBP need to undergo statutory audits conducted by registered auditors. Statutory audit reports are part of the annual financial statements prepared by the company for the use of people who wish to obtain reliable information about the operations and financial condition of companies. They are as such used by all stakeholders, namely investors, banks, lenders, buyers, customers and employees for information checked, verified, and certified by independent, external, registered professionals with domain knowledge about their subject. A statutory audit report must begin with an introduction describing the accounts that were the focus of the audit and the financial structure that has been applied in their preparation (i.e. either UK GAPP or IAS) and further contain (a) a clarification on the audit scope along with the accounting standards used in the audit, (b) the opinion of the auditors on whether the accounts have been prepared in accordance with the Companies Act (and, if appropriate, Article 4 of the IAS Regulation), and whether they give a true and fair view of the company’s financial affairs. The auditors must also include their opinion on whether the directors’ report is inconsistent with the accounts, and can, if so warranted, contain qualifications to the prepared accounts. Irrespective of the qualifications the report must include references to matters to which attention needs to be drawn without qualifying the report. Quoted companies also need the statutory report to contain details on di rectors’ remuneration and the consistency of the operational and financial review with the prepared accounts. Provided below is the draft of a suitable letter to the management in relation to the audit of the business under discussion. DJs Limited, Address Dear Sirs, We are glad to inform you that the financial audit of your company has commenced and is proceeding as planned. The scope of the audit has been defined and agreed between the undersigned and your directors, Mr. Golding and Selwood. Our staff will visit your offices on Monday, July 30 to begin the audit work and convey to your officials the details of documents required. We shall be obliged if the required documents are provided and they are given the cooperation required. Yours truly XYZ and Associates Signature Name of Signatory Partner Reference ICAEW, 2007, Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales, Retrieved July 25, 2007 from www.icaew.co.uk

Ross Assessment of Activities in the Middle East :: Politics Political Regimes Essays Papers

Ross' Assessment of Activities in the Middle East Winds of change continue to sweep through lands traditionally ruled by cruel regimes, as the people of these nation-states set aside their fears and vote with their feet. Participation in nations such as Georgia, Ukraine, and Lebanon has increased, and the question lingers as to whether these changes will be merely a breeze, or have more far-reaching and lasting effects. As former U.S. envoy to the Middle East, Dennis Ross, comments on the situations in the Middle East, he analyzes possible outcomes and makes policy suggestions on how to catalyze and encourage further movement away from corrupt authoritarian regimes. In his assessment of activities in the Middle East, Ross recognizes the doubtfulness of any kind of swift and complete transition away from the corruption that so often characterizes the governments of the region. The nuclear situation in Iran, and one of the proposals on how to deal with it, provide a small scale representation of the problems that result from cooperative dealings. Just as the carrots-and-sticks approach to the situation in Iran presents the problem of Iran?s compliance with the terms, so does the general climate of the Middle East. The way in which a nation chooses to present itself and its actions does not always reflect what is actually occurring; gestures and actions are not necessarily supported by genuine sentiment. Despite the fact that his calls for collective action by the United States, Europe, and Japan provide a hypothetically effective solution, the fear may arise that no action will be taken, regardless of the presence of an agreement. Though multilateralism seems to be a good way of handling these issues of corruption, transition, and hopefully, liberalization, it is by no means foolproof. As long as self-interest is prioritized above collective interest on the international agendas of nations like the United States, multilateralism cannot be a sure-fire solution. There exist no guarantees that the continued oppressiveness of various Middle Eastern regimes will prove the greatest threat to national and international security; therefore, there lies the possibility that other issues prove to be more urgent and take precedence. As a result, nations involved in this agreement may have more pressing concerns to address, and choose to withdraw or not participate fully if a response is needed . Ross acknowledges the capability of liberal activity in the region as a force with a possible spillover effect.

Panera Bread Essay

What are the Panera Bread’s primary sources of competitive advantage? In your judgment, are these sources of advantages sustainable? Why or why not? Panera’s primary sources of competitive advantage are: (1) the distinctive nature of its bakery products, (2) its brand strength, (3) the atmosphere of its restaurants, and (4). its position in the restaurant industry Yes,Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) operates the signature restaurant chain Panera Bread, selling hand-crafted breads, sandwiches, salads, and drinks. Panera Bread bakery-cafes are often associated with the concept of â€Å"fast casual†, a mixture between fast food and more upscale casual dining. Customers still pay for their food at the counter, like a traditional fast food restaurant, but Panera arranges tables and chairs to be conducive to group meetings. Most Panera Bread restaurants are located in suburban strip malls and regional malls. As of December 29, 2009, Panera had 1,380 bakery-cafes, spanning 38 states, as well as some locations in Canada. Traditionally, companies like Panera have suffered in recessions, which decrease the frequency with which consumers eat out at restaurants. 1] However, Panera’s strategy during the recession has been â€Å"to stay consistent and not to react to the recession†, keeping costs constant and offering new salads and sandwiches. [2] As a result, Panera’s â€Å"fast casual† niche (between casual dining and fast food) contributes to its relative success; this positioning allowed it to avoid discounting wars and maintain its margins by attracting customers with a higher quality product perceived to be a good value for the money. Panera bread has a great meal of Bacon Turkey Bravo with 28G of fat per meal.