Major Aspects if the Marketing Plan Free Essays

This three year marketing plan has been formulated to curb the negative effects on the perception about the McDonald’s Corporation of the larger community. Further, it is the intent behind the formulation of this plan to make positive use of all the negative publicity targeted towards McDonald’s by criticisms such as those raised by the documentary film â€Å"Super Size Me† and the book and film of the same title, â€Å"Fast Food Nation†, as publicity although negative brings with it the focus and spotlight of the media on the company and any efforts on the part of the Corporation to resurface as an advocate of healthy living will be publicized with as much fervor by the various media. The plan involves an operational as well as marketing shift in focus towards a more healthy life and a balanced diet while promoting healthy habits such as working out as well as encouraging the youngsters of the country to pursue higher education and save money for college. We will write a custom essay sample on Major Aspects if the Marketing Plan or any similar topic only for you Order Now Major Aspects if the Marketing Plan This plan is spread over a time span of three years, outlining the product, pricing, distribution and promotion strategies to be implemented and executed during this time. The plan takes into consideration that while the McDonald’s brand image is one of its greatest strengths, this strength is slowly waning away under the intense scrutiny and attention of the media towards the various criticisms launched against McDonald’s and thus it proposes a revitalization of the McDonald’s philosophy so as to focus on the youth and value a healthy lifestyle, healthy eating habits, smart choices and education. The plan also outline the structural issues that may arise during its implementation and execution, tactical initiatives to turn strategy into action and methods, means and measures for the evaluation and control of the marketing effort through regular marketing audits. The concentration on targeting the marketing efforts towards youngsters will mean a shift from marketing efforts targeted towards children in order to get to their parents’ pockets. This will also mean that the primary target market then will be between the ages of 18 and 35, whereas the secondary market will include other age groups as well. Situation Analysis Analysis of Internal Environment Since it is the world’s top fast food company in terms of sales, it is hard to believe that McDonald’s has only recently recovered from a severe and persistent downturn in sales. CEO Jim Skinner’s strategy for bringing the fast food giant back on its feet has been based largely on improving the quality of food instead of expanding rapidly and increasing the number of locations where McDonald’s is available. Furthermore, out of a total of almost 31, 000 restaurants in around 120 countries worldwide, 75% are being run by franchisees rather then by the corporation itself. In addition to improving food quality through upgrading of facilities, the McDonald’s Corporation has also been consciously attempting to decrease the number of company run outlets, with the plan of transferring ownership of 2300 locations to licensees by the year 2008. (McDonald’s Corporation Company Profile) Analysis of Customer Environment â€Å"With the successful expansion of McDonald’s into many international markets, the company has become a symbol of globalization and the spread of the American way of life† (Wikipedia). The ‘American way of life’ is fast paced, always on the go, technology driven and consistently changing; with divorce rates increasing and the number of single parent families on the rise. The world over, the number of women in the workforce is increasing year by year, contributing to the rise in families with both parents working. â€Å"Fast food restaurants differ from full-service restaurants in that customers generally order and pay before eating† because the typical fast food customer is in a hurry and demands a quick meal. The typical fast food consumer is between he ages of 18 and 35, with no children. (Fast Food and Quickservice Restaurant Industry) Analysis of External Environment According to Hoover’s profile of the Fast Food and Quickservice Restaurant industry, demand in the industry is driven by â€Å"personal income† and â€Å"demographics and â€Å"the profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations, effective marketing, and the ability to provide fast service†. Also, large companies are at and advantage because they can efficiently reap the benefits of economies of scale, making money out of volume rather then big margins (Fast Food and Quickservice Restaurant Industry). The top competitors for McDonald’s are Burger King, Subway and YUM! Foods (McDonald’s Corporation Company Profile) although â€Å"fullservice restaurants; supermarkets; delis; convenience stores; snack shops (donut or bagel shops); cafeterias† and other companies that offer prepared food are all part of the competition (Fast Food and Quickservice Restaurant Industry). SWOT Analysis Strengths Being a multinational company with operations in over 120 countries of the world, McDonald’s global presence and its sheer size as an organization is a huge strength, enabling it to benefit from economies of scale and profit sanctuaries. Other then that, McDonald’s ability of adaptation to local cultures wherever it appears on the globe has enabled it to expand across borders, countries and continents; a feat made possible by the strategy of operating through franchisees and licensees. The other great strengths of McDonald’s are its brand image, brand equity and expansive financial resources. Weaknesses The one weakness of the McDonald’s Corporation is its inability to adapt to changing tastes. Like most big companies, McDonald’s is to an extent a victim of its own success, a giant that is slow to wake up to problems and challenges. Opportunities The opportunities for McDonald’s as a multinational fast food company lie in developing countries which are home to growing markets of fast food and in developed countries where adults remain largely untapped as a market for fast food. Threats McDonald’s faces the threat of immense competition from its top competitors; Burger King, Subway and YUM! In addition to this, threats are also posed by the issues raised in the book Eric Schlosser titled â€Å"Fast Food Nation†, the movie of the same name and the documentary film â€Å"Super Size Me† by Morgan Spurlock. Schlosser’s book alleges that McDonald’s among other fast food companies â€Å"uses its political influence to increase their own profits at the expense of people’s health and the social conditions of its workers† while also questioning McDonald’s practice of advertising tactics which target children. Spurlock’s documentary film, featuring himself as the participant in an experiment where for 30 days, he ate only McDonald’s food raises similar allegations, proclaiming that â€Å"McDonald’s food was contributing heavily to the epidemic of obesity in American society, and failing to provide nutritional information about its food for its customers† (Wikipedia) Analysis of the SWOT matrix In light of the SWOT analysis conducted above, it may be concluded that McDonald’s possesses the capability of overcoming the threats posed by negative publicity caused by the films such as â€Å"Fast Food Nation† and â€Å"Super Size Me† and various other social activists because it has access to the financial resources which would be required to curb this negative publicity. The only thing lacking is a specific focus of the management on this issue and its resolution. Developing competitive advantages McDonald’s can develop competitive advantages by becoming a socially responsible and aware organization, especially by actively supporting a cause which cancels or nullifies the impact of the aforementioned negative publicity. It is proposed that McDonald’s concentrate on social responsibility and public relations by supporting a cause which it can internalize into the organization. The proposed cause is the physical and mental well being of youngsters which includes leading healthy lives free from eating disorders such as obesity, anorexia, bulimia etc and a college education. Developing a Strategic Focus To fight the ongoing battle against negative publicity against McDonald’s it is suggested that the McDonald’s Corporation develop a strategic focus on resolving this issue and through this resolution pave the path for future development and growth of the company. It is proposed that McDonald’s create this strategic focus by concentrating marketing efforts towards youngsters between the ages of 18 and 35 rather then the McDonald’s trademark of the use of ‘ester power’ to influence children. Marketing Goals and Objectives Marketing Goals The goal of marketing according to this plan will be to use marketing communications with the intent of converting the negative publicity targeted towards McDonald’s into positive and turn it into an advantage for the company. Marketing Objectives The objective of the marketing campaign will be to nullify the negative perception regarding McDonald’s that it is contributing towards the spreading of the â€Å"epidemic† that is â€Å"obesity† and establish that McDonald’s is a healthy organization which believes in and values physical fitness as well as personal wellbeing and self esteem. Marketing Strategy The marketing strategy throughout the tenure of this plan will be to focus on youngsters and students, seeking to culminate the habit of working out and eating healthy, making smart choices and supporting education of the youth of the world. Primary Target Market The primary target market for McDonald’s is students and youngsters between the ages of 18 and 35. The secondary target market includes people of all ages who are looking for a quick, yet fulfilling meal as well as children who otherwise run away from eating and would rather play in the park then be home at meal times. Product Strategy McDonald’s will offer its usual, popular products that it is known for, however it will start printing nutritional content on the actual packaging of the product in legible font size, black in colour. However, the quantities of the contents will be reconsidered and changed according to the daily requirement of each by the human body to remain fit and healthy. Pricing Strategy McDonald’s will offer student discounts at its outlets for students living away from home, granted on products specially designed for students redeemable on showing student identity cards at the time of purchase. Distribution Strategy Distribution will be carried out in the usual manner through company owned and franchised outlets and kiosks. Integrated Marketing Communication Strategy The integrated marketing communication strategy will involve the extensive use of advertising and public relations to publicize McDonald’s effort of supporting healthy eating habits and making smart choices. Marketing Implementation The marketing strategy outlined above will be implemented through an extensive media, supporting PR plan and a massive revitalizing effort designed to convert the effects of the negative publicity brought on by issues raised in â€Å"Super Size Me† and â€Å"Fast Food Nation† by focusing on students and youngsters. Structural Issues The structural issues that will be faced during the implementation of this marketing plan may include employee resistance, inconsistencies between company run and franchised eateries and slow conversion from the past practices to the ones proposed in this plan. A major structural issue will be faced in shifting the marketing and operational focus on to young adults instead of that which was previously on children through advertising the McDonald’s toys given away with the Happy Meals and the famous Play Places. Tactical Marketing Activities The tactical activities will include a number of youth oriented programs, which will support healthier eating habits for both, those who eat less then is healthy as well as those who eat more then is healthy, smarter choices by young people and assistance with educational endeavours. Jobs at McDonald’s outlets will be publicized to be open for candidates who are studying at school, college and/or wish to save for a college education; nutritional content will be printed on the packaging of products and will de re-proportioned to be aligned with the requirement of a young healthy human body; public service messages regarding eating disorders such as anorexia and obesity will be funded; Club McDonald’s will be founded where youngsters with eating disorders and the will to take control of their situation will be provided with expert counseling, interaction with others youngsters facing similar problems along with the comfort of knowing that they are not alone. Evaluation and Control Since the goals and objectives of this plan focus on dealing with the negative perception regarding McDonald’s caused by such criticisms as posed by media such as â€Å"Super Size Me† and â€Å"Fast Food Nation†, the evaluation and control measures will also focus on measuring the impact of the marketing effort on such perceptions. Formal controls Formal controls will include the establishment of performance targets for each of the tactical initiatives proposed in this plan on regular intervals, ensuring that these targets are met, and if this is not so then ascertaining the reasons for exceeding or failing to meet these targets on the part of those held accountable. Informal controls Informal controls will take the form of feedback forums on the websites for each tactical initiative as well as the reviews of participants/member of Club McDonald’s. Implementation Schedule and Timeline This plan will span over a period of three years, after which the goals and objectives would have been met in the manner that is outlined in this plan. Each initiative will be timed according to the best possible situational conditions which are conducive the successful implementation of the initiative. McDonald’s will resurface as an advocate of healthy living, smart choices and education for all. Marketing Audits During the three year life span of this marketing plan, marketing audits will be conducted at regular intervals, that once after every quarter of a year meaning that there will be a total of 12 marketing audits conducted throughout the 3 year time span of the marketing plan. Bibliography Fast Food and Quickservice Restaurant Industry. Retrieved on Jun 15, 2007 Fast Food Nation. Retrieved on Jun 15, 2007 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_Food_Nation McDonald’s. Retrieved on Jun 15, 2007 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonald%27s McDonald’s Corporation Company Profile. Retrieved on Jun 15, 2007 ; How to cite Major Aspects if the Marketing Plan, Essay examples

Global Crime Law Enforcement Agencies

Questions: 1. Thread: Unlike American Television programs, crime scene examination in Australia is conducted primarily by sworn police officers who have few if any scientific qualifications. Is there a role for civilians to be employed in Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as Crime Scene specialists? 2. Thread: Police should not have the power to take fingerprints as it is an invasion of privacy and civil rights. Critically discuss. Answers: 1. The crime scene investigators are the law enforced personnel who specializes in collecting and scrutinizing the evidences that are taken from the crime scenes. The Law enforcement agencies, very often, bring together different personnel and designate them as crime scene investigators. In Australia, whenever there is a crime scene, the sworn in police officers who, more or less, are specialized in collecting and evaluating the evidences related to the crime scenes usually investigate it (White, 2016). The television shows featuring forensic dramas have made a huge impact on the concept of the public about the crime scene investigators. However, in Australia, the examination of the crime scenes is very different from what is shown on the television shows like CSI. These forensic dramas shows that the civil forensic specialists and the detectives are the ones who makes the initial investigation of the crime scenes whereas, in reality the sworn in police officers, possessing minimal knowledge about forensic science, investigates a crime scene (Butler, 2016). The foreign experts must investigate the investigation of a crime scene, to be effective. Although the police officers are trained to investigate a crime scene but their lack of specific knowledge to organize and process the evidence, unlike the civilian foreign specialist, may lead to misplacement of the evidences. Further, the involvement of the civilian forensic experts in the crime scene investigation would enable the police officers to concentrate more on their part of specialization, which is to collect and evaluate the evidences in order to prevent any erroneous convictions in the future. 2. Fingerprint identification is a fundamental criminal investigation technique owing to its uniqueness. Fingerprints of every individual are different therefore the accused is easily identified (Maltoni, Cappelli Meuwly, 2017). Although the significance of fingerprints cannot be undervalued, the technique is often considered as an invasion of civil rights and privacy rights. The Criminal Act 1958 has outlined statutory provisions regarding the procedure to be followed by the police officers to take fingerprints. Section 464 K of the Act states that a police officer is empowered to take the fingerprints of any person above 15 years who is believed to have committed any indictable offence. Similarly, the police officers are prohibited from taking fingerprints of children below 10 years. The right to life is more important than the right to privacy. The fingerprints are matched to identify the offenders and defend the rights of the innocents. Moreover, section 464 K (2) ensures that the civil rights are protected as the persons are acknowledged with the reason for taking their fingerprints (Leo, 2015). Therefore, it is evident that if fingerprints were taken following the guidelines stipulated under S. 474 K of the Act, it would not amount to an infringement of privacy and civil rights. Reference List Butler, M. (2016). 2 The Crime Scene.Crime Scene to Court Fourth Edition: The Essentials of Forensic Science, 34. Leo, W. (2015).Fingerprint identification. LawTech Publishing Group. Maltoni, D., Cappelli, R., Meuwly, D. (2017). Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems: From Fingerprints to Fingermarks. InHandbook of Biometrics for Forensic Science(pp. 37-61). Springer International Publishing. White, P. (Ed.). (2016).Crime Scene to Court Fourth Edition: The Essentials of Forensic Science. Royal Society of Chemistry.

Womens Studies On Sex In Society Essays - Gender Studies

Women's Studies on Sex in Society Sex plays a major role in today's society. From television advertisements and violence within society, all forms of media use sex to help sell their products. With the public being exposed to so many different types, the overuse and exploitation of sex is common. Is sex a useful tool, or a ploy to get the attention of the public? In some instances, it even encourages violence. The world we live in today is still man-made, no less now then in the nineteenth century. As Englishmen began to develop an identity in 19th century society, they mirrored the ideals for women of the Victorian period: gentility, weakness, ignorance and submissiveness. Opposing Viewpoints as the relationship of a man or woman to Society on the basis of gender became essential in shaping male and female attitudes towards one another. Over the past twenty years remarkable changes in these traditional male and female roles have been witnessed. The subsequent impact on men, women, and families due to these changes is believed to be, by many social historians, caused by the re-emergence of the women's movement. Recent research has established beyond a doubt that males and females are born with a different set of instructions built into their genetic code. Studies at Harvard University and elsewhere show that marked differences between male and female baby behavior are already obvious in the first months of life. Females are more oriented towards people. Male infants, on the other hand, are more interested in things. Stanford psychologists conclude that women are communicative animals while men are manipulative animals. Some people believe this is hereditary, while others think that if 2 boys and girls were brought up in exactly the same way then all behavioral differences between men and women would evaporate. Beginning in early adolescence, children develop their own ideas of male and female roles with the perception of the conduct and activities of his or her parents and other adults in their world, including characters on television. Young people are exposed to advertising from a very early age. The effect, especially of advertising on television, has a significant bearing on girls' and boys' behavior, and their aspirations. To most children the commercial message is another piece of information received from the television set. It is often difficult for them to distinguish truth from fiction, particularly when the fiction is packaged in compelling words. striking images, and catchy music. An overwhelming amount of the visualizations that young kids see are the stereotypical images of women and girls. This almost makes it seem legitimized, as it is enforced and perpetuated by the mass dissemination of these images in broadcasting. Children know in their minds that women, like men, come in all ages, shapes, sizes, and colors, but they do not see this represented in the broadcast media. The increasing diversity of women's lives is also omitted in most broadcasting. For example, commercials and programming most often portray women as mothers performing domestic tasks, as economically dependent homemakers, or as sexual lures for products or decorative objects. Personally, I have even seen movies that often have sexual violence in them, making it more like an everyday normal thing. Such images constitute a limiting or narrowing of women's, men's, and children's perceptions of themselves and their roles in society. 3 In an intensive study done on American programming, it was found that a sexual act or reference occurred every four minutes on average during prime time. Sex Sells, the old adage goes. Sexiness, as a component of the good life, is a staple for advertisers - Coca-Cola decorated its drug-store posters at the turn of the century with coquettish young women who male drinkers wished to date and female drinkers to emulate. Finnish yogurt makers ran an ad with hot, young, well built Finnish boys holding containers of yogurt, with the slogan Less fat, more taste.... Eat it. This aroused a scandal and nationwide debate. A formal poll was conducted on these ads and some interesting statistics were produced. Two-thirds of respondents were male, and two-thirds thought the ad was sexist. There was a sharp contrast in the female contingent, as the vast majority of whom thought the ads were sexy and quite acceptable. Many newspapers

Implications of labour market flexibility on Human Resource Management The WritePass Journal

Implications of labour market flexibility on Human Resource Management Introduction Implications of labour market flexibility on Human Resource Management ). To fully comprehend the impact of labour market flexibility on international human resource management, it is worthwhile to examine Atkinsons model which forms the basis of strategies that most companies use Atkinson’s model Atkinson’s model identifies four main flexibilities sought by companies: Functional: the functional ability describes the firm’s ability to match the skills of employees with tasks by dismantling the traditional rigidities between different occupational groups (Kalleberg 2001). This is mainly achieved through outsourcing and offshoring of services. External numerical flexibility this involves adjustment of the labour force from external market and is achieved through relaxed hiring and firing regulations and through temporary employment (Leighton 2003) Internal numerical flexibility this refers to the adjustment of schedules or working hours and comprise mainly of part-time jobs (Wilton 2013) Financial/wage flexibility this flexibility involves the wage differences and is done with the aim of ensuring that employment cost reflects the supply and demand of labour (Wilton 2013). It comprise mainly of individual performance wages, assessment based pay and rate-for- the job systems In Atkinson’s model, within the core group, are highly skilled workers with firm-specific capabilities. This group contains a unique resource and thus the focus of human resource managers is ensuring their retention. Workers in the first peripheral group are considered to posses skills which are not firm-specific and hence the firm may rely on external market to fill such posts (functional and numerical flexibility) (Wilton 2013). The second peripheral group comprise mainly of workers under atypical forms of employment, providing both the temporal and numerical flexibility. This model describes how companies respond to the increased need for flexibility. Implications of labour market flexibility on international human resource management A commonly held view is that Labour market flexibility is an essential ingredient for progress. It has been seen for a long time as unequivocally good, helping address the wide problems of unemployment (Rowley 2013). It is also seen as a key ingredient for growth especially under turbulent global economic conditions. According to some commentators, Labour market flexibilities have created a knowledge intensive economy where most of the workers get involved in knowledge intensive work and benefit from high wages attached to those jobs (Schuler Jackson 2005). Labour market flexibility is also seen to be of paramount importance, helping in the control of labour costs and satisfying demand for labour. Having just the right number of workers and hiring others at wages that reflect their differing productivity certainly reduces the labour costs associated with traditional approaches of staffing and training (Silvia 2010).   In addition, they enable the company to adjust to fluctuations in business demand and achieve greater efficiency which is made possible by matching of skills and tasks. In spite of these benefits, critics have argued that most of the benefits of flexible labour markets are short-run and have pointed out to the wider negative impacts on the human resource development. The perspective of a radical upskilling has been criticized by sceptics who argue that the growth of a knowledge economy is overstated and that a significant proportion of non-standard forms of employment are in fact low skilled and poorly paid menial jobs (Wilton 2013). These non-standard forms of employment are also a major source of income inequality, driving the wage gap. They have increased income inequality in many countries. However, it remains unclear as to the extent to which such inequality can be attributed to non-standard forms of work. For example, some economies such as Lithuania, Romania and Latvia have experienced an increase in income inequality despite a decline in atypical forms of work, indicating the possibility of other institutional factors coming into play (Rani 2008) A similar issue of concern relates to job security. As with atypical forms of work, job security is not guaranteed which results in reductions in job tenure and increase in workers mobility across different firms. Although employers may emphasize their role in ensuring employability of workers in terms of the skills that can be transferable across firms as opposed to offering them with job security; it poses the question: just how portable are skills learned on and off-the-job (Vaitilingham 2006 p.28). There is also a concern of the widening income inequality. Flexible working arrangements are seen to further widen the wage gap. However, there is mixed evidences with regard to the impact of labour market flexibilities on income inequality. Whereas studies by Blanchard Landlier (2002) and Giesecke Gross (2004) have argued that there is no upward mobility for atypical forms of employment; studies by Gregg wadsworth (1996) have found these labour market flexibilities as widening income inequality. Perhaps, an issue that has received much attention is the concern of declining employee and employer commitment. Flexible working arrangements such as outsourcing involve contracting out services by the management, which implies engaging labour without obligation (Hall 2013). In return, workers implicated in outsourcing tend to feel little obligation. It can therefore be made that firms that outsource their services runs the risk of reduced employee and employer commitment to human resource development strategies as well. There is a host of other issues of concern associated with non-standard employment such as low pay, lack of promotion, lack of employer pension scheme and even lack of sick pay provision (McGovern et al 2004). This can be seen in the UK and some other Europe countries. Similar patterns of problems have been observed by Kalleberg et al. (2003) in the US, indicating the potentially harmful effects of labour market flexibility on human resources. The national government dilemma of creating a flexible workforce. Labour market flexibility seems to have had tremendous impacts on in the business world. Whereas these atypical forms of unemployment may not be new, the tactics and strategies employed in some countries is. For instance, some labour patterns in Germany mirrors the zero hours contacts in UK (Wilton 2013). The implications of these labour market flexibilities in Human Resource Management and industrial relations are obvious, ranging from increased job insecurity to decreased employee commitment to skill loss and reduced employee loyalty trust However, there remains a dilemma with regard to creating a flexible workforce. Neo-liberal economists hold of the view that labour market flexibility plays an important role in economic progress and is key to overcoming the turbulent effects of economic instability (Wilton 2013). National governments are thus under pressure to minimize the regulation of business practices in response to the changing nature of the labour market. But at the same time, they must strike a balance between economic responsiveness and employee protection. This can be seen with the long battle over the rights for workers working under atypical forms of employment such as temporary contracts, a key characteristic of the labour market flexibility Conclusion Labour market flexibilities such as part time jobs, temporary contract, outsourcing, labour hire and contracting out have significant impacts on human resource development. To some degree, it can be seen that flexible labour markets may minimize labour costs associated with recruitment and staff training. Although such non-standard forms of employment have short-run cost benefits associated with declining employer funded training, the human resource sector will suffer in the long run in terms of reduced employee commitment, skill loss, and declining employee loyalty and trust. Flexible labour arrangements such as outsourcing need not to be viewed as simply a cost-cutting exercise. However, cost reduction continues to become a major motivation for most companies. There is also an imperative need to strike a balance between economic responsiveness and employee protection. Strategies need to be devised that take into consideration both the benefits of flexible working arrangements and its implications on human resources in terms of the job content, job security and loyalty of different groups of workers. References Anagnostopoulous, A., 2008. Labour market flexibility in Central Greece: findings from workplace employment relations survey. Chicago press Blanchard, O. and Landlier, A., 2002.   The perverse effects of partial labor market reform: fixed duration contracts in France. Economic Journal, 112, pp.214-244. Brodsky, m., 1994 labour market flexibility: a changing international perspective. Monthly Labour Review Conley, H., 2008. Work, employment and society: the nightmare of temporary work: a comment on Fevre, Sage publications, vol 22 European Societies, 6, 347-382. Flau, F. and Mittelstadt, A., 2010. Labour market flexibility. OECD Economics and Statistics Department Giesecke, J., Gross, M., 2004. External Labour Market Flexibility and Social Inequality. Gregg wadsworth, 1996. The UK labour market and the 2008-2009 recession. Centre for Economic Performance Hall, 2013. Outsourcing, contracting-out and labour hire: implications for human resource development in Australian organizations. [viewed on 26th November] Available from voced.edu.au/content/ngv21101 Heckley, G., 2005. offshoring and the labour market: the IT and call centre occupations considered. Office of National Statistics Hunter, L., McGregor, A., Maclnnes, J. and Sproull, A., 1993.The flexible firm: strategy and segmentation. British journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 31: 3 Kalleberg, A. L., 2003. ‘Flexible firms and labor market segmentation: Effects of workplace restructuring on jobs and workers’, Work and Occupations, 30(2): 154–75 Kalleberg, A.L., 2001. Organizing flexibility: the flexible firm in a new century. British Journal of Industrial   Relations, pp.479-504 Leighton, P., 2003 flexible labour markets, intermediation and the rise of the strategic individualist: challenges for law. Wales, UK. McGovern, P., Smeaton, D., and Hill, S., 2004. Bad jobs in Britain: non-standard employment and job quality, work and occupations, vol.31 (2), pp.225-249 Penn, R., Lilja, K. and Scattergood, H., 2013. Flexibility and unemployment patterns in the contemporary paper industry: a comparative analysis of mills in Britain and Finland. Industrial Relations Journal. Rani, U., 2008. Impacts of changing work patterns on income inequality. Discussion paper. International Institute for Labour Studies Rowley, C., 2013. Issues in employee resourcing: is all labour flexibility good? London: Cass Business School Schuler, R.S. and Jackson, S.E., 2005. A quarter-century review of human resource management in the US: the growth in importance of the international perspective. Management Review, vol. 16. (1) Silva, S.R., 2010. Human resource management, industrial relations and achieving management objectives. International Labour Organization. ACT publications Taylor, P and Bain, P., 2005. Work, employment and society: india calling to the far away towns: the call centre labour process and globalization. Work Employment Society, vol. 19 Vaitilingam, R., 2006. Human resources, the labour market and economic performance. Manpower. Center for Economic Performance Vicente-Lorente, J. D. and Suarez-Gonzalez, I. (2007). Ownership traits and downsizing behaviour: Evidence for the largest Spanish firms, 1990-1998. Organization Studies, 28: 1613-1638. Warhurst, C., Grugulis, I. and Keep, E. (eds), 2004. The Skills that Matter, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan Wilton, N., 2013. An introduction to human resource management. Second edition. London: Sage publications

Auditing and Assurance Services Identification

The obligation of duty of care varies with the each case scenario as the severity of duty enhances the extent of responsibility. A greater duty of care will arise when it relates to the matters which are presumed to be in the knowledge of professional accountant or where fees are charged (Gay and Simnett, 2010).   A Professional accountant may accept a commission from the third party in connection with the sale of goods and services to a client. In the present case, Peter Harmon, professional accountant advises its clients to purchase computer services from Bunker L Ltd. In consideration Bunker, L Ltd has promised to pay 10% commission. Peter Harmon hasn’t violated Accounting code of ethics. According to Section 120 of APES Code of ethics for professional accountant’s states that a Member in practice may accept referral fees related to the client but only in certain situations (Mironiuc, Robu and Robu, 2012). This acceptance of commission or referral fee creates a self-interest threat objectivity, professional competence and due care but accountant has to disclose the clients about the arrangement in connection with the sale by the third party to its client. Here the accountant has to disclose about the arrangements in relation to the commission to the clients to safeguard the threat relating to self-interest. In this situation, there can be a breach of the principle of objectivity and Professional Competence and Due Care. According to Section 140 of APES Code of ethics for professional accountant’s imposes an obligation on all members to refrain from: In the above case, David Smith has referred it clients to insurance companies without letting them know. It is the obligation of the auditor to maintain confidentiality about the information acquired due to business and professional relationship. However, in the given case the auditor has disclosed confidential information (Glover, Taylor and Wu, 2015). Here David smith has to let know the clients about this fact that he has referred their names and about the arrangements in connection with the commission which the auditor will receive in consideration. In this situation, there is a breach of confidentiality. In accordance with the auditing ethics of Australia, it is important to accomplish audit work by considering professional approach and being committed to the work of client. As per the provided information in the scenario, it can be noticed that there is not a proper aspect for securing information provided by the client as information can be assessed by anyone and it can lead to clients (Glover, Taylor and Wu, 2015). By considering this factor, in this case, there is the possibility of violation of the ethical principle of the objectivity and Professional Competence and Due Care. Arens, A.A, 2007. Auditing and assurance services in Australia: an integrated approach. Pearson Education Australia. Collings, S., 2014. Frequently Asked Questions in International Standards on Auditing. John Wiley & Sons. Gay, G.E. and Simnett, R. 2010. Auditing and assurance services in Australia. Mcgraw-hill. Glover, S.M., Taylor, M.H. and Wu, Y.J. 2015. Mind the gap: Factors contributing to purported deficiencies in auditing complex estimates beyond auditor performance. Available at SSRN 2504521. Mironiuc, M., Robu, B. I. and Robu, A. M., 2012. The Fraud Auditing: Empirical Study Concerning the Identification of the Financial Dimensions of Fraud. Journal of Accounting and Auditing Research and Practice, 2. End your doubt 'should I pay someone to do my dissertation by availing dissertation writing services from

Company IT Upgrade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Company IT Upgrade - Essay Example History Christa group was established in 1988 and was incorporated into Delaware two years later. Since then they have acquired security companies like hightech security in 1998, dimension data in 2000 and many others. They have also worked with like-minded companies like technology associates in 1995, and breakthrough technologies in 1999 to mention but a few. They continue their operations guided by the Delaware state laws. Organizational chart PRESIDENT V.P FINANCE & PLANNING V.P SALES & MARKETING V.P OPERATIONS MANAGER ACCOUNTING MANAGER PLANNING MANAGER MARKETING MANAGER SALES MANAGER DEVELOPMENT MANAGER CONSULTANCY MANAGER HUMAN RESOURCE Departments The company has seven main departments namely; consultancy, development, human resource, sales, marketing, planning, and accounting. The planning department is responsible for formulating long term, short term, and annual development and financial plans for the company. The accounting department is responsible for keep records of re ceipts and expenditures in the company on a daily, monthly and yearly basis. These two departments are headed by the company’s vice president in charge of finance and planning. The human resource department is responsible for hiring members of staff; this involves attracting new employees and keeping all positions in the organizations filled with highly qualified and motivated staff. The consultancy department meets with prospective clients who have requested a new security system, and also look for opportunities i.e. other organizations that would require a new system or improvement of their existing one. This department is responsible for advising the clients accordingly. Another department is the development one responsible for development of the technical security solution suggested by the consultancy department. They also develop systems for individual use. These three departments are headed by the vice president of operations. Two departments under this section of the o rganization are responsible for generation of revenues for the company. The sales department is responsible for attracting and retaining of clients. The marketing department is responsible for the following four main tasks; Provide leadership on serving the clients better Support sales team and distribution partners Manage advertisement and promotions Manage client relations These two departments are under the overall leadership of the vice president sales and marketing. Mission statement To become a world leader in the provision of technical solutions to all our clients. Business model Our business model will outline our strategies to provide the best technical solutions to all our clientele. Our products are aimed at small medium and large organizations. To generate additional funds, advanced security systems for use by the general public will be developed. We have two main departments who will help the company achieve its goals namely; the consultancy department that will offer c onsultation services to our clients and the development department that will develop and implement the solutions provided by the consultation department for the clients. The development department will also be responsible for development of systems for personal use. In this particular case it is of paramount importance to know exactly what the targeted users want. This

The dilemma of managing continuous change in performance management Research Paper

The dilemma of managing continuous change in performance management - Research Paper Example The paper tells that in recent times, change in business environment has been inevitable as business strive to remain relevant and competitive. Bradford and Warner note that the need for change in business environment has been brought about by technological advancements, increased customers and shareholder’s expectations, new initiatives, competition, and the need to increase demand among other factors. Therefore, in order to meet the new challenges and attain the organizational goals and objectives, organizations have introduced several changes. However, introduction of change, whether small or big, to organizational functions and processes have often proved intimidating to some managers and have sometime not yielded the intended outcomes. This has resulted to adopting of change management strategies by managers in order to manage change successfully. According to Bradford and Burke, change management can be defined as the application of a set of principles, skills, processes , and tools for managing people and processes within an organization in order to transition or shift the organization from its current state to the desired or intended future state. Several researches have shown that in the modern competitive environment, it takes more than the known management strategies to realize organization’s full potential Bradford and Warner. There is need for managers to welcome change and manage it effectively in order to achieve organizational success in the long- run. Continuous management of change is critical in performance management. Louis (2004, p. 46) explains that the essence of managing change in the organizations is to improve performance and ultimately achieve organizational goals and objectives. As such, continuous management of change is related to performance management. Performance management refers to activities and processes that ensure that goals are met consistently in a manner that is efficient and effective (Aubrey, 2004, p. 95) . The focus of performance management is in regard to processes, departments, organization, and employees and aims at facilitating overall performance of the organization through attainment of organizational goals and objectives Bradford and Warner (2010, p. 18). 1.1 Purpose of the Study The purpose of this research is to foster an understanding of the dilemma of managing continuous change in performance management. The research purports to get deep insights on the dilemmas of managing continuous change and how they impact on performance management. 1.2 Problem Statement In the face of challenging business environment brought about by increased customers and shareholder’s expectations, technological developments, and competition, management are supposed to make continuous changes in their organizations in order to stay remain relevant and be successful (Bradford and Burke, 2005, p. 22). In the process of managing continuous change in order to improve the performance of organi zation, managers are faced with dilemma. The dilemma is on whether the intended change can lead to improved performance or