Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood. Answer: Introduction: In recent business surrounding, relevance of the conceptual framework in financial reporting of the companies is necessary for financial statements preparation. The companies are offered with all important action course in alignment with doctrines and techniques needed for financial statements preparation (Bamber and McMeeking 2016). Along with that with the help of the doctrines and techniques of the conception of the conceptual framework, it is possible to deal with various business concerns. This also validates that the functions of the conceptual framework are considered in the context of the financial activities of the business companies. Considering the same, IASB (International Accounting Standards Board) has introduced such framework for effective financial reporting purposes. For this reason, the report is intended to analyze the compliance with criteria of objectives, recognition along with qualitative aspects of conceptual framework on the behalf of the organizations (Brusca and Martnez 2016). The organization that is selected within the report is Medibank that is listed within top 100 listed ASX companies. Medibank is positioned as a renowned health insurer that has more than 40 years of experience to offer health cover needs to more than 3.7 million consumers by means of Medibank services such as ahm brands and life insurance. It is gathered that financial reporting based conceptual framework is an important requirement for financial management of the business companies. All the vital information is present within the annual report of Medibank Company regarding the compliance with various aspects mentioned within the financial reporting conceptual framework (Bryce, Ali and Mather 2015). This is the reason for which all the corporate organizations totally comply with the norms set by the conceptual framework of IFRS for better financial reporting. However, this framework is deemed to have three specific objectives and it is vital for Medibank Company to satisfy all of them. The 2017 annual report of Medibank indicates that all the doctrines along with regulations of the Corporations Act 2001 and Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) are implemented within general purpose financial reporting. The share price graph of Medibank in above image indicated that the company is dealing with loss of market share due to several reasons. These include tough competition, high price, average business performance along with decrasing individual healthcare coverage levels that aare causing problems for the company. However, investors are recommended to hold the share of Medibank in the long term as government legislated boots in premium per year that causes revenue of the organization to maintain its market share. There are three objectives based on which a company can abide by the conceptual financial reporting framework that are explained below: Offering Helpful Financial Information Based on the conceptual framework it can be stated that all the companies are responsible for offering meaningful and valuable financial information to its investors that can facilitate them in better decision making (Camfferman and Zeff 2015). Through analyzing the annual report of Medibank Company, it is gathered that vital information is offered to its investors through timely publishing financial statements. The financial statements of all the listed companies in Australian stock exchange must include the balance sheet statement along with the cash flow statements in its finical statements. Along with the same, accounting notes are explained within the annual report that facilitates the users in gathering necessary information. Another conceptual framework objective is that all the companies is responsible for offering important and reliable financial information to its investors in analyzing amount, timing along with uncertainties related with the companys cash flow position (Di Pietr, Ay, Art and Ronen 2016). Evaluation of the annual report of Medibank validates the companys statement of cash flow in a timely manner and it offers important information to the investors related with the financial statements. As per the third objective of financial reporting conceptual framework, companies require reporting all important information concerning its resources that assists Medibank Companys process of financial decision making. Medibank Company develops its financial position statement in a manner so that it is in adherence with the AASB regulations (Henderson, Peirson, Herbohn, and Howieson 2015). The company also offers important information concerning economic resources is disclosed. Addressing conceptual framework-based recognition criteria: It is necessitated by the financial reporting conceptual framework that all the corporate organizations must address the criteria of recognition that is related with the assets, liabilities, revenues, equity as well as expenses. In addition to that, it also requires to company with three major needs (James and Prout 2015). The first need is focused on the financial factors that is to be represented with important information. The second requirement necessitates ensuring faithful representation of all the financial factors. Finally, the requirement is related with such factors those are advantageous for the companys investors. The evaluation carried out in this section will indicate representation of recognition criteria fulfillment on the behalf of the Medibank Company. A company is considered to attain different asset groups. In consideration to the property, plant and equipment aspect it us disclosed through deducting depreciation from the expenses of assets. The expenses associated with these assets are realized in a situation where the future advantages are transferred within the company (Junior, Best and Cotter 2014). For the intangible assets maintained by the company, impairment is observed to be imposed on it. Realization of the impairment loss is conducted on the carrying amount of such certain asset classes mentioned within the financial statements of the company. In case of Medibank Company, there are specific useful lives for all the tangible assets and for such reasons no amortization is deemed to be applicable on them (James and Prout 2015). Certain issues have been faced by the company in maintaining compliance with the division 131 of health benefits fund act that did not consider disclosing any relevant information about benefits in addition to those payable within public hospital cover. This also did not cover regaining the ways in which the company maintains adequate control over all its assets in its custody. In consideration to the expenses of Medibank Company, the realization of the companys expenses is conducted through being relied on distinct segment (Schaltegger and Burritt 2017). The vital expenses associated with the company includes the amortization as well as depreciation expenses, financial expenses, employee benefit expenses as well as net losses and gains on the foreign exchange. Disclosure and realization of such expenses takes place at the time they occur in the Medibank Company. In consideration to the revenues, the management of Medibank Company considers to understand them at the time of point of sale after proper deduction of the taxes. In addition, the provisions associated with the sales are realized relied on the overall analysis. For this reason, the value of sales is deemed to include the revenue from the product sale (Scott 2015). There are few types of liabilities that is deemed to be present in Medibank Company. In case of deferred tax liabilities, the realization of liabilities is observed to be made relied on differences in the rate of tax. In consideration to the contingent liabilities, the primary aspects incudes the matters related with the income tax in the nation, few otherf mattes along with bank guarantees (Williams 2014). Medibank did not follow the standards of the Australian Accounting Standards Board in disclosing information about maintaining adequate control over the incurring the liabilities by Health Benefits Fund. The company also did not disclose information about meeting liabilities to pay benefits in compliance with fund rules. The management of Medibank Company indicates that the provision is not required for such matters as there is decreased probability in the reaps of future outflow of the economic advantages or the amount is not capable to gauge reliably. The ordinary shares are deemed to be segmented in the equity form for the Medibank Company. For this reason, the deduction of incremental is considered from the companys total equity (Bryce, Ali and Mather 2015). Addressing qualitative aspects of conceptual framework: Different qualitative characteristics related with the financial reporting conceptual framework are there for enhancing the overall quality associated with the companys financial reporting. It is vital for Medibank Company in addressing al the qualitative characteristics. The below-stated explanation indicates the extent of conformance with these qualitative features of the financial reporting conceptual framework on the behalf of the company. This aspect indicates that relevance must be signified in the companys financial statements that can facilitate effective decision making of the companys investors. Medibank Company remains aligned with all the recent doctrines and regulations elated to AASB, IFRS along with Corporations Act 2001 (Bryce, Ali and Mather 2015). In addition to the same, the company also considers the present rates that is associated with depreciation, tax and few more aspects. For this reason, the disclosed financial information within the yearly report of Medibank Company is important for effective investment decisions. This factor indicates that the investors of the financial reports are needed to be able to verify all the reported financial statements on the part of the company. In order to address the same purpose, Medibank Company offers the segmentation of all the accounting aspects within the notes of its financial statements (James and Prout 2015). This factor indicates that financial information requires to be offered in this particular schedule. For Medibank Company it is also been observed that the company represents all its financial statements within a decided timeframe to all its investors to take effective investment decision (Bryce, Ali and Mather 2015). With the support of this particular part of the financial reporting conceptual framework, the stakeholders are capable to obtain a viewpoint regarding the differences and similarities within the provided financial information among district financial statements. It is highly important to explain that Medibank Company has represented its financial position statements in graphical manner and through tables (James and Prout 2015). This can facilitate its investors to understand financial position of the company in a clarified manner. For this reason, the investors and the creditors might compare the financial situation and performance of Medibank Company with its competitors in the industry. In adherence to this feature, the corporate organizations are required to disclosure their financial information in a way that becomes simple for all its investors to analyze their financial statements. Medibank Company discloses all its financial statements in definite format for better understanding for its investors. Relied on this aspect, it ca be indicated that it is vital for all the corporate organizations to report their financial statements in a transparent and fair manner. This also indicates that attaining the trust of all its stakeholders is of great relevance (Bryce, Ali and Mather 2015). As per analysis of the audit report of Ernst and Young, the financial statements of the corporate firm are represented faithfully that compiles with all the required accounting standards. Portfolio offers liquidity to cover the insurance liabilities associated with health insurance businesses. Moreover, in such scenario, non-compliance with the faithful representation of extraordinary items, revaluation of plant, property and equipment and valuation of inventories is observed in case of Medibank Company. For this reason, it could also be revealed that Medibank Company has not represented its financial statements faithfully and adequately. Conclusion: The report is intended to analyze the compliance with criteria of objectives, recognition along with qualitative aspects of conceptual framework on the behalf of the organizations. It is gathered from the paper that All the vital information is present within the annual report of Medibank Company regarding the compliance with various aspects mentioned within the financial reporting conceptual framework. Moreover, through analyzing the annual report of Medibank Company, it is gathered that vital information is offered to its investors through timely publishing financial statements. It is also gathered that another conceptual framework objective is that all the companies is responsible for offering important and reliable financial information to its investors. This is ensured by Medibank to analyze amount, timing along with uncertainties related with the companys cash flow position. References Bamber, M. and McMeeking, K., 2016. An examination of international accounting standard-setting due process and the implications for legitimacy.The British Accounting Review,48(1), pp.59-73. Brusca, I. and Martnez, J.C., 2016. Adopting International Public Sector Accounting Standards: a challenge for modernizing and harmonizing public sector accounting.International Review of Administrative Sciences,82(4), pp.724-744. Bryce, M., Ali, M.J. and Mather, P.R., 2015. Accounting quality in the pre-/post-IFRS adoption periods and the impact on audit committee effectivenessEvidence from Australia.Pacific-Basin Finance Journal,35, pp.163-181. Camfferman, K. and Zeff, S.A., 2015.Aiming for global accounting standards: the International Accounting Standards Board, 2001-2011. Oxford University Press, UsSA. Di Pietr, A., Ay, M., Art, S. and Ronen, J., 2016.Accounting and regulation. Springer,. Henderson, S., Peirson, G., Herbohn, K. and Howieson, B., 2015.Issues in financial accounting. Pearson Higher Education AU. James, A. and Prout, A. eds., 2015.Constructing and reconstructing childhood: Contemporary issues in the sociological study of childhood. Routledge. Junior, R.M., Best, P.J. and Cotter, J., 2014. Sustainability reporting and assurance: A historical analysis on a world-wide phenomenon.Journal of Business Ethics,120(1), pp.1-11. Medibank.com.au., 2018. [online] Available at: https://www.medibank.com.au/content/dam/medibank/About-Us/pdfs/MPL_Annual_Report_2017.pdf [Accessed 13 Apr. 2018]. Schaltegger, S. and Burritt, R., 2017.Contemporary environmental accounting: issues, concepts and practice. Routledge. Scott, W.R., 2015.Financial accounting theory(Vol. 2, No. 0, p. 0). Prentice Hall. Williams, J., 2014.Financial accounting. McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Is A Womans Place In The Home Essays - Gender Studies,

Is A Woman's Place In The Home? Is A Womans Place in the Home? Glynis R. Hay Rickards Is Womans Place Is In The Home? I glanced at my watch; it was 3:30 p.m. I logged off the computer picked up my car keys and signaled to my boss. He knows the meaning of that familiar signal. It means I am dashing off to pick up my kids (ages 10 and 13) from school. After picking them up I will take them home and leave them to perform the familiar routine that they have been practicing for years. First they will have their bath, then take the microwave able containers with the specific day labeled from the fridge, placed it in the microwave oven, have their dinner, complete their assignments then head to the baby sitter. The baby sitter being none other than the good old television set or their video games. I would call from my office occasionally to ensure that everything is okay. They have strict orders not to open doors to strangers, and all emergency numbers are at their fingertips. This routine has taught them to be responsible and independent children. At approximately 7:00 pm I would drag myself home, check t heir assignments, have a little chit-chat with them and then head off to bed. I compared this to the days when I used to get the bus home from school and would be greeted by my mother with a smile on her face and a cool drink in her hand. She would ask us the familiar question, which we sometimes forget to answer. How was school today? Did you enjoy you nice lunch that I packed in your lunch kit? After our bath we would sit at the dining table and enjoy a nice warm meal while sharing the days events. In retrospect I can only ask myself this question. What has happened to those good old days? Why did women abandon their place in the home? Prior to the Industrial Revolution which took place in the Eighteenth Century there was no place for women in the work world because most tasks required manual labour and therefore women would not be considered for such tasks because physical strength was required for effective performance. The advent of the Industrial Revolution, which can be described as the historical transformation of traditional into modern societies, saw the birth of mechanization for manufacturing and other processes. Machines were invented to perform most jobs and the need for women to operate these machines became apparent. Piece work shops and textile factories along with other factories were established and women became a part of the workforce. It was noted that most women joined the work force out of economic necessity. The ability to earn wages provided them with a better standard of living, independence, and mobility, and also self esteem, since they were now able to contribute to the worlds economic de velopment. While they enjoyed the status of being independent they had to deal with the negative aspects of being a woman in the working world. Women were forced to deal with the lack of amenities. For example proper rest rooms were not available. Their home life suffered because they had to deal with working a full day in the factory then returning home to perform their domestic chores and looking after their family. They would sometimes perform similar jobs to men but would receive less wages and also had to deal with the pressures of sexual harassment. Women received high praises for their performance on the job, but they were deprived of promotional opportunities and rewards because of their gender. The process of socialization can be negatively affected by the absence of women in the home. While men are seen as the head of the family the women are often responsible for providing the foundation for primary socialization to take place. Socialization is the process by which individuals learn the culture of their society. (Haralambos, 1990, p. 4). Primary socialization is the most important factor of the socialization process as this takes place during infancy. During this process, which can be described as a getting to know you period, the child develops a bond with the family.

Green Technology Essay Example

Green Technology Essay Example Green Technology Essay Green Technology Essay GREEN TECHNOLOGY Green Technology Abstract For the past 10 years global warming has become an increased issue throughout the world. With the help of advances in green technology our world can slowly reach towards becoming not only healthier and more live able it also will help diminish global warming as we know it. Whether at home, in our workplace or at school we all can do our part in ensuring that this will happen. Scientist and the government have made it possible to use many green technologies to aid us in the process. Green technology is said to become one of the biggest movements that there is. Even with being off to a slow start, many see that there are forward advancements made during the process. Some of these technologies are; recycling, water purification, renewable energy and solid waste management just to name a few. Green Technology is the future of our society. Green Technology What is Green Technology? Green technology is the application of the environmental science and green chemistry to conserve the natural environment and resources, and to curb the negative impacts of human involvement. ( wikipedia. org) The goals of green technology are: ( reen-technology. org/what. htm) * Sustainability meeting the needs of society in ways that can continue indefinitely into the future without damaging or depleting natural resources. In short, meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. * Cradle to cradle design ending the cradle to grave cycle of manufactured products, by creating products that can be fully reclaime d or re-used. * Source reduction reducing waste and pollution by changing patterns of production and consumption. Innovation developing alternatives to technologies whether fossil fuel or chemical intensive agriculture that have been demonstrated to damage health and the environment. * Viability creating a center of economic activity around technologies and products that benefit the environment, speeding their implementation and creating new careers that truly protect the planet. Though these are the four major goals to green technology, one of the primary goals of the United States is that we are able to preserve natural resources. By doing so people will see a major change in the world pollution, status and overall wellbeing. : There are many types of green technology but below are four major types: * Energy: a supply or source of electrical, mechanical, or other form of power * Building: a structure and using process that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a buildings life-cycle: from siting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition. * Preferred purchasing: the use of a variety of techniques that enable a consumer to fund products and a manufacturer to find methods of production that have the least negative impact to the environment. General conduct of environmentally preferred purchases will prompt producers and sellers to shift to the green side of the market. * Chemistry: Green chemistry is the application of chemical products that eliminates harm to the environment. * Nanotechnology: the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. The United States is one of world’s largest producers of trash. Trash is calculated out to be 1,609 pounds of trash per person, per year. Recycling is a green technology that takes old materials to make new products. Since recycling opened its doors in 1896 more and more households have taken to the trend to recycle, even though the U. S. only recycles 28 percent of its waste. From 1980-2005, the amount of waste increased 60 percent. From 2007 to 2009, the amount of waste decreased from 255 million tons to 243 million tons. (EPA, 2009) Though still a lot of waste we are on our way to a new recycle trend. Not only does recycling help save raw materials and energy, it frees up a lot of space in our landfills. Old paper is being used for computer paper, books, paper plates, paper towels and toilet paper. According to The Public Recycling Officials of Pennsylvania, for every ton of paper that is recycled, the following are saved: 17 trees 275 pounds of sulfur 350 pounds of limestone 9,000 pounds of steam 60,000 gallons of water 225 kilowatt hours 3. 3 cubic yards of landfill space Practically every hour, nearly 250,000 plastic bottles are thrown out, and takes up to 700 years to decompose. (EPA, 2009) Plastic contributes close to 50 percent of recyclable waste in the dumps. Glass is one of the few products that can be recycled again and again. But when it does end up in landfills it will never decompose. (EPA, 2009) Those facts were just a few to a million that are available and shocking to read. Waste management was created to help save our planet and encourage everyone to be smart and recycle to help do so. With the threat of global warming more households and businesses are turning to geothermal and solar power. Solar power is the conversion of sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaic (PV), or indirectly using concentrated solar power (CSP). Concentrated solar power systems use lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. Photovoltaic convert light into electric current using the photoelectric effect. (Department of Energy. ) With the sun being the largest power plant solar power statistics show that we only use 0. 01 percent of it for our electrical functions. Solar power being a renewable source we will never have to worry about it ever running out. The daily energy that we could get from the sun is around 700 times greater per day than other source that generates electricity combined. Using solar power along with other methods will make a drastic change in pollution levels. Wind Power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, wind pumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships. (Gwec. net) The top ten wind power countries and their wind power capacity as of February 2011 are as follows: 1. United States 40,180 2. United Kingdom 5,204 3. Spain 20,676 4. Italy 5,797 5. India 13,066 6. Germany 27,215 7. France 5,660 8. Denmark 3,734 9. China 44,733 10. Canada 4,008 Since the wind depends on the sun wind power is a type of solar energy. As long as the sun is shining wind power is an unlimited source of energy. Wind energy is one of the lowest priced energy sources, costing 4 to 6 U. S. cents per kilowatt hour. This price has drastically dropped since the 1980’s due to technological advances. The only downside to wind power is that you need constant wind to blow to get constant power from it. No wind no power. Hydroelectricity is the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. (Energy Information Administration international statistics database) It is the most widely used form of renewable energy. According to the most recent statistics from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), in 2006 hydroelectricity contributed 2,997 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to states around the world. All other renewable energy sources such as geothermal, solar, wind, contributed 414. 31 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. Water is in the lead for the most used renewable resource. Top Ten Hydroelectricity Producing States in 2006 (Billion Kilowatt hours) China 431. 43 Canada 351. 85 Brazil 345. 32 United States 289. 25 Russia 173. 65 Norway 118. 21 India 112. 46 Japan 84. 90 Venezuela 81. 29 Sweden 61. 11 If people took the time to think of their actions, the Earth would not have to struggle so much. We are losing rain forests, wetlands, coral reefs, and much more, at substantial rates and have no way to get them back to normal again. Once they are gone, they’re gone for good. In closing go green, don’t just sit back and watch our world die. References www. eia. doe. gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/epates. html www. statcan. gc. ca/pub/57-001-x/57-001-x2003001-eng. pdf environment-green. com/Green_Technology. html green-technology. org/what. htm americanelements. com/AEgreentechnology. html http://whitney05. hubpages. com/hub/Green-Technology brighthub. com/environment/green-computing/articles/112553. aspx Ashford Writing Center Ashford Online Library

Agile Software Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Agile Software Development - Essay Example This research will begin with the definition of agile development as a unique way in which IT projects and management teams are organized and managed for effective and efficient software development. Agile software development is a combination of various methodologies in software development which are based on incremental and iterative approaches in software development. These approaches involve software development process which is characterized by a collaboration of teams in the evolution of software from the requirements and the attainment of a solution to the problem. Â  The teams within the agile software development process are usually, cross functional and self-organizing. Agile software development serves to promote adaptability in software planning, efficiency in the evolution of software during its development and effectiveness and speed in delivery of complete and functional software. The iterative approach to agile software development is the most significant aspect of t he process as it prepares the organization for a flexible and often rapid process of change so that their response to the new software is also fast. The agile software development process provides a framework in which the whole software development process and the cycle are designed in a manner which makes it as interactive as possible. Extreme Programming (XP), Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM), Feature-Driven Development (FDD), Scrum, Lean Development, and Crystal are the most common agile software development methodologies. Â  ... 2010, p. 126). Extreme Programming (XP), Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM), Feature-Driven Development (FDD), Scrum, Lean Development and Crystal are the most common agile software development methodologies. The agile software development process unites the various methodologies of software development into common goals, vision and values. Evolution of Agile Development In 2001 a group of IT and software development experts came together to find a solution to the frequent failure of the traditional software development projects which was caused by poor management of the processes and activities of software development within organizations, companies and public agencies. The group decided to share ideas so that they would come up with a better approach to software development. This group came up with the Agile Manifesto from which the agile software development concept is derived. The Agile Manifesto describes core values that the group who proposed it considered the most sign ificant and relevant in the contemporary software development processes and management (Lee and Xia, 2010, p. 87). Agile software development combines the various development methodologies and approaches in an iterative and developmental process which involves continuous feedback which promotes the development of a refined software system and its efficient delivery to the customer (Mishra and Mishra, 2011, p. 54). The processes of the agile software development include planning, testing, integration and evolution of the software in a continuous process. The evolution of the agile software development processes from the traditional approaches is demonstrated by the fact that the agile software development processes are lightweight and thus adaptable and thus efficiency and

Law Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Law - Research Paper Example 1. Arguments in support of firing the teacher (Pros): There are numerous grounds on which the aforesaid high school teacher is liable to be punished and they are stated as follows: I. The act of posing for an adult website is an immoral act by itself and should not have been committed by the teacher. II. Any teacher is a role model for his students and as such the high school teachers’ act of posing in an adult website gives a bad effect on the ideology of the students. Thus, the teacher should be penalized to prevent further damage on the students’ ideology. III. As a teacher of a school she should have conformed to some public, moral, business, and ethical standards as her actions affect her students and indirectly a larger community, which she did not, making her eligible to be dismissed. IV. Before getting hired by the school, the teacher signed an agreement which read, â€Å"I agree to promote this schools mission of training good and law-abiding citizens who will make this society a better place to live.† The act of posing for the adult website creates a bad impact on the students. It can happen that the students start posing for adult websites following the teacher. The teacher violates her contractual obligation â€Å"of training good and law-abiding citizens who will make this society a better place to live† (Contract clause) and therefore she should be fired. V. It can be presumed that the teacher has caused harm to the students by posing for an adult website once students have come to know about it and this makes the teacher liable to â€Å"be sued personally for causing student injury† and she may â€Å"also lose her job† (Kaplan and Owings 252). VI. The high school teacher was also negligent in doing her duty towards preventing harm to the students. She never thought for an instant that when her act of posing for an adult website is disclosed she may cause a bad impact on the ideology of the students and in directly the future of the students. Moreover, â€Å"neglect of duty and negligence† is a ground for dismissal of a teacher in 26 states of US (Neal 86). 2. Legal provisions in support of firing the high school teacher (Pros): There are numerous legal grounds which entail the dismissal of the high school teacher in this case, which includes dismissal of the teacher for immorality, causing harm, violation of contract, injury to the students and negligence. The burden of proof is on the school for proving through evidence that the teacher actions fulfill one of the aforesaid categories, making the teacher liable to be dismissed. The statutes of many states of US allow the dismissal of a teacher for immorality or unprofessional conduct. Immorality or unprofessional conduct authorize firing of teachers for behavior and choice of lifestyle the community or school board holds wrong or unfitting for teachers (Imber and Geel 193). In the instant case, the act of posing for an adult w ebsite is an immoral act and the teacher is liable for immorality. As stated by Essex in his book that immorality â€Å"is often cited as grounds for dismissal† (197). Immorality is a conduct that offends the ethics of a particular community that makes the teachers unfit to teach. The courts tend to view unprofessional acts of immorality as those actions that have an adverse impact on the teacher’

Customer Segmentation In The Full Service Restaurant Business Marketing Essay

Customer Segmentation In The Full Service Restaurant Business Marketing Essay ABSTRACT. The purpose of this study was to find factors that affect customers intention to revisit restaurants using data mining. A total of 390 usable questionnaires were used in the data analysis. AnswerTree, a data mining software, was used as a major analytical method. AnswerTree enables a researcher to identify and target desirable customer groups and thus is suitable to use in identifying differences between one group with a revisit intention and one group with no revisit intention. Study results indicated that different component factors affected customers revisit intention between the two groups. Three factors (recommendation, living area, and number of dining occasions per week) most affected a groups revisit intention. On the other hand, three factors (recommendation, occupation, and most frequent dining destination) most affected the group with no revisit intention. Study results provide meaningful information for marketing strategies that can be successfully used by full- service restaurant operators. KEYWORDS. Customer segmentation, full-service restaurant, data mining, AnswerTree INTRODUCTION With increasing competition in the restaurant business, marketing strategies need to be more significant to ensure customer satisfaction (Kara et al., 1997; Kivela, 1997; Murphy et al., 1996). Since customer satisfaction affects businesses ability to sustain their status in a competitive restaurant market, many researchers have studied customer satisfaction (Almanza et al., 1994; Andaleeb Conway, 2006; Barsky Labagh, 1992; Domingo, 2002; James, 1995; Johns Tyas, 1996; Oh, 1999, 2000; Oliver, 1980, 1981). Previous researchers have queried restaurant customers to identify the reasons for their decisions to revisit and recommend restaurants to other potential visitors, thereby suggesting effective marketing strategies. Although there is no assurance that customers will make a return visit (Dube et al., 1994), restaurateurs assume that satisfied customers will return while customers who had a poor experience will not come again. Thus, understanding both satisfied and unsatisfied custo mers is an important process in making appropriate marketing strategies. In order to segment customers according to their attributes, knowledge of those attributes is an effective tool in developing appropriate marketing strategies (Bowen, 1998; Gregoire et al., 1995; Klosgen Zytkow, 2002; Reid, 1983; Richard Sundaram, 1994; Swinyard Struman, 1986; Woo, 1998; Yà ¼ksel Yà ¼ksel, 2002). Customer segmentation can be determined by customer attributes such as demographic and behavioral characteristics: buying patterns, attitude and use or response to a product (Kotler et al., 2005). In this study, the term customer attributes was defined as customers demographic and behavior patterns, attitude and use or response to a product via recommendation intention. To identify customer segmentation, data mining was applied in this study. Data mining is the process of finding or classifying trends and patterns in data to analyze customers past behaviors (Adriaans Zantinge, 1997; Chatfield, 1995; Fadairo Onyekelu-Eze, 2008; Kudyba Hoptroff, 2001; Lovell, 1983; Pyle, 1999; Thuraisingham, 1999). If restaurant managers clearly know their target customer attributes, they can develop a better service strategy or make up for their weak points. The aim of this research was to identify factors affecting customers intention to revisit a restaurant. Study results provide meaningful information to the process of developing marketing strategies that can be successfully used by full-service restaurant operators. Further, study results will inform restaurateurs about important and non-important factors in return intention and enable them to select those factors on which to focus on and improve. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Customer Segmentation Customer segmentation is a crucial part of todays overly competitive restaurant business. In the mid-1950s, Wendell R. Smith, an American marketer, first introduced the concept of customer segmentation (Nairn Berthon, 2003). Russell Haley then developed segmentation theory in 1968. Customer segmentation can be defined as a way to separate customers into groups for decision making purposes or to support effective management in acquiring or keeping customers (Bowen, 1998; Bahn Granzin, 1985; Chen et al., 2007; Yà ¼ksel Yà ¼ksel, 2002). Since customer segmentation can help restaurants increase revenue, a marketing strategy based on customer segmentation can be more powerful and effective (Auty, 1992; Bojanic Shea, 1997; Chen et al., 2006). Customer segmentation has encouraged researchers to take a closer look at customer segmentation as part of an effective marketing strategy. Lewis (1981) used discriminant analysis to identify the differences between goers and non-goers with food quality, menu variety, price, atmosphere, and convenience. Bahan and Granzin (1985) investigated four customer segments: health, gourmet, value, and unconcerned. They reported that each group had different preferences for service quality. Auty (1992) divided respondents into three customer groups (student, well-to-do middle-aged people, and older people) and examined restaurant image and atmosphere. Oh and Jeong (1996) revealed the characteristics of four customer segments: neat service seeker, convenience seeker, classic dinner seeker, and indifferent dinner seeker. Bojanic and Shea (1997) sought differences between downtown diners and suburban diners. Yà ¼ksel and Yà ¼ksel (2002) identified the attributes of five customer segments (value seekers, service seekers, adventurous food seekers, atmosphere seekers, and healthy food seekers) based on nine factors (service quality, product quality and hygiene, adventurous menu, price and value, atmosphere, healthy food, location and appearance, availability of nonsmoking area, and visibility of food preparation area). In this study, the researcher divided customers into two groups based on revisit intention in order to identify which factors most affect these two groups. The summary of the literature review is presented in Table 1. Table 1 about here Data Mining To divide respondents into two groups based on revisit intention, unlike previous studies, data mining was used to identify revisit intention in the restaurant business. Data mining was introduced in the late 1980s and developed in the 1990s. Its origin is in the fields of statistics and a specialized area within artificial intelligence (AI) that is part of computer science (Ogut et al., 2008; Roiger Geatz, 2003). According to Fadairo and Onyekelu-Eze (2008), data mining is a way to find information in a huge database. Such information can be used to identify relationships between variables. That is, data mining may be utilized in analyzing a specific data set with the intention of identifying patterns and establishing relationships; using data mining, it is possible to sort through massive volumes of data and discover new information or an analytic method for reasoning useful knowledge and predicting future trends (Bolshakova et al., 2005; Chatfield, 1995; Chen et al., 1998; Groth, 2000; Hand et al., 2001; Koyuncugil, 2004; Lovell, 1983; Westphal Blaxton, 1998). Data mining can perform two basic operations: predicting customer behaviors and identifying segmentation (Lampe Garcia, 2004; Wang et al., 2008). For that reason, many researchers have attempted to apply data mining in the business industry (Keating, 2008; Liu et al., 2008; Rygielski et al., 2002; Zambochovà ¡, 2008). Previous studies have stressed that companies could use data mining to identify customer dispositions or trends regarding the patronizing of certain companies. With this information, companies can focus their efforts on good customers from whom they would make the most profit. Further, all industries can take advantage of data mining in seeking to understand inconsistent segmentation of their target customers. In summary, data mining is a powerful technology that may be used in support of companies engaging in decision-making on issues such as customer attrition, customer retention, c ustomer segmentation and sales forecast (Ogut et al., 2008). CHAID in AnswerTree To apply data mining, the AnswerTree program was used in this study. AnswerTree, a data mining software, is a foreseeable model that shows results in a tree model (SPSS, 2009). Variables may be analyzed in the AnswerTree program in three ways: CHAID (chi-squared automatic interaction detector), CART (classification and regression trees), and QUEST (quick, unbiased, efficient, statistical tree). Basically, the CHAID method is a more comprehensive method and generates more accurate results when using categorical variables, while CART and QUEST are suitable when using continuous variables. Since categorical variables were used in this study, the CHAID method was applied here. The original CHAID method grew from a 1975 doctoral dissertation by Kass, who published a more accessible article four years later (Kass, 1980). Since the CHAID method allows marketers to identify segments in relation to a dependent variable having two or more categories based on the combination of independent variables (Chen, 2003), the CHAID method has popularly been applied in the consumer research field (Haughton Oulabi, 1997; Levin Zahavi, 2001). In the CHAID procedure, a dependent variable and key independent variables are initially chosen. According to chi-squared, the dependent variable can be divided by the levels of a certain independent variable that has the strongest association with the dependent variable. That is, the most important and related independent variable with a dependent variable becomes the first node. This analysis process occurs when one of three criteria are met, according to Berson et al. (2000): 1. The segment contains only one record. (There is no other question that you can ask to further refine a segment of just one.) 2. All the records in the segment have identical characteristics. (There is no reason to continue asking further questions because all the remaining records are the same.) 3. The improvement is not substantial enough to warrant asking the question (p. 162). All variables used in this study were categorical measurements with two or more categorical levels. The stopping rules for AnswerTree analyses were a maximum tree depth of 3, minimum number of cases of 25 for a given node, and significance level for splitting of 0.05. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Data Collection and Questionnaire The data used for this study were collected in Miami via face-to-face interviews. The response rate for the face-to-face interview has revealed it to be the best method among various survey methods (The Monkey Team, 2008). Surveys were administered from May 1 to May 31, 2007. To increase result reliability, we selected respondents who had visited a full-service restaurant within the last one month. The selected full-service restaurants offered full table service and the average guest expenditure was at least $25 per person. Of the 414 questionnaires collected, 24 were incomplete and were eliminated. As a result, a total of 390 questionnaires were used in the data analysis. Since AnswerTree enables a researcher to identify and target desirable customer groups (SPSS, 2009), it is a suitable analysis method for identifying differences between groups. Further, AnswerTree is a more robust method than existing statistical methods in identifying segment characteristics (Byrd Gustke, 2006). There were two groups in the dependent variable: one group with the intent to revisit and one group with no intent to revisit. Questionnaire items for revisit intention were rated on seven-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. To apply CHAID (Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection) analysis, researchers converted the seven-point scale into categorical variable (agree, so-so, disagree). Even though respondents answers were a five or six on the seven-point scale, the information sufficiently ensured positive responses. Finally, those with five, six and seven points were converted into a positive group (agree). On the other hand, those with one, two and three points were converted into a negative group (disagree). Finally, four on the seven-point scale was converted into a so-so group. Among respondents (n=390), 83.33% (n=325) indicated that they were willing to revisit the restaurant; on the other hand, 11.54% (n=45) thought that they would not revisit the restaurant; and 5.13% (n=20) replied so-so, which means I dont know. Customer segmentation can be sorted by demographic and behavioral characteristics such as buying patterns, attitude and use or response to a product (Johns Pine, 2002; Kotler et al., 2005). Independent variables were composed of demographic profiles (gender, age, marital status, occupation, income, living area) and customer attributes in relation to buying behavior, a pattern of full-service restaurant use (how many dining occasions per week, how much spent at a restaurant, frequency of restaurant visits, with whom did they dine there). Finally, to ascertain a response to a product, recommendation intention was used in this study as an independent variable. The summary of data description is presented in Table 2. Table 2 about here RESULTS Figure 1 shows the general model for revisit intention. The general model makes it easy for readers to figure out how many nodes are included in the results and shows the entire model design. In this study, 13 nodes were used to explain the factors affecting a group who intended to revisit and a group with no intention to revisit. For the dependent variable, originally there were three groups: yes, so-so, and no. However, because of small sample size, the so-so group was not divided by descriptor. The dependent variable was divided by five descriptors: recommend intention, living area, how many times to dine per week, occupation, and when often dine. Figure 1 about here In terms of yes segmentation on revisit intention, in Figure 2, the first split was recommend: yes (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=376.4356, d.f.=4; p=.000). In Node 3, 98.10% (n=309) of respondents thought that they had a revisit intention. Node 3 was divided into two groups: Node 7 and Node 8. The second split was based on the variable of Living area: South Florida, other Florida, and other U.S states (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=68.5075, d.f.=2; p=.000). Node 7 was divided into two groups: Node 11 and Node 12. 98.69% (n=302) of respondents (Node 7) who lived in South Florida, other Florida, and other U.S states showed that they were willing to return to the restaurant. The last split was how many times dine per week: over 3 times (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=19.7972, d.f.=1; p=.000). In Node 12, 100.00% (n=254) of respondents who visited the restaurant over 3 times per week indicated that they had a revisit intention. In summary, there were three descriptors as follows: recommend: yes, living: South Florida, other Florida, and other U.S states, and how many times to dine per week: over 3 times. Figure 2 about here Considering no segmentation on revisit intention, in Figure 3, the first split was recommend (no) (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=376.4356, d.f.=4; p=.000). In Node 1, 81.13% (n=43) of respondents indicated that they would not visit the restaurant again. Node 1 then was divided into three groups: Node 4, Node 5, and Node 6. The second pruning tree was based on the occupation variable: office worker (professional, salesman, and self-employed) (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=20.1046, d.f.=4; p=.000). In Node 4, 94.87% agreed that they were not willing to return to a restaurant. Node 4 was divided into two groups: Node 9 and Node 10. The last split was when often dine: lunch (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=25.2973, d.f.=1; p=.000). In Node 9, all office workers (100.00%, n=36) who often visited the restaurant at lunchtime did not have a recommendation as well as revisit intention. In brief, three descriptors split the node: recommend: no, occupation: office worker (professional, salesman, and self-employed), and when often dine: lunch. Figure 3 about here Figure 4 presents summary statistics. The bar graph makes it easy for readers to understand which node most represents the dependent variable and provides the variation for each dependent variable. In this study, the dependent variable, revisit intention, was classified by a maximum tree depth of 3, minimum number of cases of 25 for a given node, and significance level for splitting of 0.05. The bar graph for AnswerTree showed that the particular nodes most often represent groups intention or non-intention to revisit, respectively (Node 12: agree group, Node 9: disagree group). Figure 4 about here Table 3 presents a gain chart of yes segments. A gain chart is a table that summarizes the entire model descriptively. In the gain chart, we can see the percentage representation of each node for the dependent variable. In the case of the yes segment, the root node was 83.33% (n=325). Node 12 was computed by taking 100.00% (Gain: % computed from Node: N divided by Resp: N) and then dividing it by 83.33% (root node). The result was 120.00%, the index score for Node 12. That is, Node 12 (recommend: yes, living area: south Florida, other Florida, and other U.S states, how many times dine per week: over 3 times) represents a root node about 1.2 times. Thus, in the case of yes segmentation, three variables (recommend, living, and how many times to dine per week) are important factors in dividing respondents into groups that answered yes regarding revisit intention. Table 3 about here Table 4 presents a gain chart for no segment. The root node was 11.54% (n=45). Node 9 was computed by taking 100.00% (Gain: %) and then dividing it by 11.54% (root node). The result was 866.66%, the index score for Node 9. That is, Node 9 (recommend: no, occupation: professional, salesman, and self-employed, when often dine: lunch) represents a root node about 8.6 times. Thus, in the case of no segment, three variables (recommend, occupation, when often dine) are important factors in dividing a group that answered no with respect to revisit intention. Table 4 about here Table 5 offers a risk chart indicating the preciseness of the classification. It resembles the percentage of classified respondents in the discriminant analysis. The risk estimate predicted the risk incurred due to misclassification of the respondents in the AnswerTree analysis. A lower risk estimate indicates a more precisely classified model. According to the results of the assessment of revisit intention, the risk estimate was 0.0615385. This means that the precision of classifying respondents in the AnswerTree analysis was 99.9384615%. That is, about 99.93% of the respondents were classified accurately on split nodes. Table 5 about here DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATION In the restaurant business, customer segmentation enables restaurant managers or marketers to develop effective marketing strategies. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that affect intention to revisit a full-service restaurant. To ascertain differences between group intent to revisit and group non-intent to revisit, data mining was used. There has been little use of data mining in the hospitality field. Because data mining is one way to create decision-making models that predict future behavior based on analyses of past activity, using collected data from segment targeting is the best way to create suitable marketing strategies (Lampe Garcia, 2004; Wang et al., 2008). Among the respondents (n=390), 83.33% (n=325) indicated that they were willing to visit the restaurant again while 11.54% (n=45) thought that they would not visit the restaurant again and 5.13% (n=20) were so-so. As mentioned earlier, due to the small sample size, the so-so group was not divided. The AnswerTree results revealed different component factors between the two groups. In the case of the yes segment, there were three descriptors: recommend: yes (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=376.4356, d.f.=4; p=.000), living area: south Florida, other Florida, and other U.S states (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=68.5075, d.f.=2; p=.000), and how many times dine per week: over 3 times (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=19.7972, d.f.=1; p=.000). Analysis results revealed that the more customers like to dine out, the more they intend to revisit a restaurant. In other words, people who have a great interest in dining are more likely to be loyal customers. Moreover, as they intend to recommend the restaurant to other people, keeping such a customer means other potential customers could be positively affected. According to Sà ¶derlund (1998), Word-of-mouth is defined here as the extent to which a customer informs friends, relatives and colleagues about an event that has created a certain level of satisfaction (p. 172). As word-of-mouth can be a significant determinant of behavioral intentions, recommendation intention greatly affects a restaurant businesss sales (Babin et al., 2005; Edwards Meisleman, 2005; Mangold et al., 1999; Mattila, 2001; Sà ¶derlund, 1998). This studys results supported the finding that loyal customers are more likely to encourage other people to also have their exceptional experience, which is consistent with previous studies (e.g., Bowen, 1998). It is less costly to keep an existing loyal customer than to attract a new customer. Also, loyal customers return to make more repeat purchases at the restaurant. Therefore, identifying loyal customers is an important part of the restaurant businesses (Bowen Shoemaker, 1998; Fierman, 1994; Jang Mattila 2005; OBrien Jones, 1995; Orr, 1995; Schneider et al., 1998). From a managerial standpoint, the results of this study based on data mining help restaurateurs in identifying the characteristics of a loyal customer segment. In the case of the no segment , three descriptors split the node: recommend: no (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡ 2=376.4356, d.f.=4; p=.000), occupation: office worker (professional, salesman, and self-employed) (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=20.1046, d.f.=4; p=.000), and when often dine: lunch (à Ã¢â‚¬ ¡2=25.2973, d.f.=1; p=.000). The results of this analysis revealed that office workers who often visited a restaurant at lunch did not intend to revisit. In other words, office workers, salesmen, and the self-employed were less satisfied with lunch at the full-service restaurant. In general, few full-service restaurants focus on lunch for office workers, who usually eat lunch away from the office. Even though some lunch menus do focus on the office worker, offering this meal is usually expensive and time-consuming. However, as office workers tend to eat lunch in a brief span of time, they prefer to eat lunch at fast food restaurants rather than at a full-service restaurant. From a managerial viewpoint, if full-service restaurateurs could provide a lunch menu with low prices as well as quick service, they could obtain part of the office worker market currently going to fast food restaurants. The summary of segments is presented in Table 6. Insert Table 6 The purpose of customer segmentation is to target a certain type of customer when developing a marketing strategy. If a restaurant cannot develop correct and appropriate marketing strategies, they may not sustain their existence in this highly competitive business. As attributes have changed and become more complicated, customer segmentation is becoming more important in providing basic source material for marketing strategies. In order to respond quickly to changing customer attributes, restaurant marketers require rapid access to information on various customer attributes. In this context, restaurant marketers need to be able to identify customers past behaviors in order to predict future tendencies. This ability can be provided and maintained in the restaurant business by using data mining technologies. Data mining enables restaurant marketers to draw information more effectively from databases (Bolshakova et al., 2005; Chatfield, 1995; Chen et al., 1998; Groth, 2000; Hand et al., 2001; Koyuncugil, 2004; Lovell, 1983; Westphal Blaxton, 1998). Through the effective use of data mining, managers can more quickly analyze customer attribute in the restaurant business. This study of customer revisit intention occurred in the Miami area only. Thus, findings might not be generalized to other areas. Another limitation is that study results cannot be applied to all restaurant services, because our focus was on full-service restaurants only. Therefore, findings must be applied to other restaurants with due caution. Lastly, this study did not use a large enough sample size for data mining. Although we used 390 samples to identify and target customer groups, data mining is typically used with a large database. Thus, future research may use data mining with a larger sample size. Data mining was a useful method in predicting restaurant customers intentions to revisit. Unfortunately, very few studies have used this method. Thus, further research in other hospitality fields would benefit from data mining.

The Practices in Leadership Essay Essay

The Practices in Leadership have changed in the post-bureaucratic era. Remember also that your assignment must demonstrate critical thinking, as I have emphasised in each lecture. Question assumptions by considering the negative aspects of post-bureaucratic soft power. Is it desirable in all circumstances? Are there ethical considerations? What about concerns with subtle manipulation and control? You need to grapple with the complexity of the issues – not merely give a one-sided managerialist argument. Leadership is essential in the post-bureaucratic era; however leadership is an extremely complex term that is often an overthought and has an indefinite interpretation in society. Leadership can be defined as the ‘process of directing, controlling, motivating and inspiring staff towards the stated organisational goals’. (Clegg, Kornberger & Pitsis 2011, p. 126). There are many traditional theories of leadership which I will be discussing including personality traits , behaviors, postmodern and the contingency theory. Ernest Shackletons leadership is viewed as ‘nothing short of spectacular’ during his journey across the Antarctic continent overland. One day away from Land, the vessel became iced in, and eventually sank. Shackletons role as a leader was to get every man home alive. Shackleton displayed three leadership approaches/theories he displayed on the remarkable journey .Shackletons ability to lead his men emphasizes technical and personality skills, which both can be learned and developed. The skills approach is centered around this idea, however skills can be also gained through past experiences, as seen by Shackleton, this the main reason the men respected him, due to his well-known knowledge. The style approach was displayed by Shackleton through his tasks and interpersonal relationships with others. Conflicts between men on board the ‘Endurance’ were often resolved by Shackleton, this presenting the style approach being displayed by him. The Contingency Theory was also explored in Shackletons journey, with unforeseen events taking place, and him being able to adapt to these due to his skills, this matching the style of approach. Leaders however in the post bureaucratic era can manipulate and deceive the public, hiding the hidden corrupt ion of which they act. There are many leaders who have violated their responsibilities and abused their power are present in modern day society, however attempt to justify themselves with their position of power. (Herman, S 2007, p.152)â€Å"heads of major nonprofit organizations who have demonstrated corruption and  ineptitude, military leaders whose arrogance and lack of foresight and planning have made us at worst the world’s enemy and at best the world’s laughingstock, heads of state who have boldly lied to the nation and then twisted their words when caught, and media leaders who have pandered to commercial interests while feeding us distortions if not outright lies and delivering products designed to pander to our basest instincts†. There are however leaders with a genuine vision, who encompass courage and determination and are willing to sacrifice their life for their beliefs. Martin Luther King is an example of an active leader who used his power in a positive manner. (Herman, S 2007, p.153) â€Å"Martin Luther King in August 1963 gathered 250,000 Americans for the march on Washington, to inspire the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These leaders who display positive actions encompass egalitarianism and lead individuals without the use of manipulative power. Having a responsible leader in an organization is a common centrally focused objective. Boards of directors seek to select CEO’s who are estimated to be most responsible for the organisations performance and capital. Being responsible and accountable are comprised performance goals in which a responsible leader aims to achieve. Taking responsibility as a leader, involves accountability, dependability, authority and empowerment ( Cameron, K 2011,p.32)