Recent orders
Retailers often create break-even analyses to determine
. Retailers often create break-even analyses to determine the level of sales and must achieve every day to pay the operating costs of their company. Managers will use this information to determine profit margins needed to achieve a certain level of income. Retailers may also review the industry standard or a leading competitor when setting profit margins. Most retailers earn income by volume sales, meaning profit margins are lower on individual goods so high-volume sales must be achieved to earn positive cash flow. This is done through identifying cost drivers and the efficiency with which the cost drivers work and are managed .The type of business being retail the cost drivers associated with this would be mainly aimed at buyer power. A cost driver is one which generates cost .This driver affects cost over a period of time .all manufacturing and factory expenses can be associated with the cost drivers. A retail business deals very intricately by the supplier power not only for accounts payable but also on heavy discounts on the products that they give. This goes a long way in determining the price of the product and margin money that the retail store can get. This is again called a cost driver.
The activity of Quality assurance of products and meeting the correct specifications are another cost driver in the retail segment. Though it cannot be directly associated with the entire department but it is an activity that generates cost hence this is a very important coast aspect in a retail store .
Another important cost driver in a retail store would be associated with the department activities and functions. One store may have to heavily indulge in cost to cost sale during weekends. This is a cost that can be directly linked to the activity of revenue sales .Retail industry is behest with different kinds of cost drivers. Though not clearly associated with direct costs which directly go into the cost of production, the cost drivers nevertheless look at the allocation base of cost in the retail industry.
Capacity management in the retail industry is another cost driver. The efficiency with which the organization is able to handle its supply chain is a cost driver.
2. Variance analysis:
A retail industry definitely needs to have a variance analysis done and ready Since cost associated are typically unstable and dependant on market variations it is important that the retail firm understand the variance between pre set standards and actual performance levels .
Variance analysis setting of predetermined costs which provide a basis of comparing the actual with the standards. The variance if any between the two is critically analyzed for reconciliation. This management accounting techniques which leads to efficiency and cost effectiveness of managerial process. Budget preparations usually use the standard costing procedure. It helps in coordination of all departments to realize the efficiency in operational costs and lead to excellence in efficiencies. It is ideal tools of cost control because ideally every firm would like to control cost reduce wasteful expenditure and set standards which are realizable. the periodic review of standards and actual throw light on operational efficiencies. Standard costing and variance analysis formulate price and production policies .when standards are established it becomes easy for planners to strategies their activities to meet the standards and estimates. The use of standard costing allows for basis of computation of selling price by giving relevance to selling prices. This is based on variance analysis which is a very important tool of control measures in an organization it is the process of computing and isolating the cause of variance between standards and actual by computing individual variances in costs and determining the cost of such variances.
A retail house has to prepare variance report because every item that appears in a variance analysis appears in the operating expenses list. Cost of goods solids a perfect example. A direct expense which forms part of variable cost also appears. All this are part of operating budgets and hence is referred to as a line item in a financial report.
Variance report deals with not only items in the cost profit volume analysis otherwise known as fixed and variable cost. It also reports variances in the form of mark ups and defective goods. It also shows the mark up on profits. Hence it is a line item reporting. Variance report is also known as the income statement which is prepared on a monthly basis. This also shows the operating expenses and revenue out of these items this is the basic financial statement and hence it is called a variance report because it concisely reports items of expenses and sales.
Which white-collar crime(s) would you target first, and why
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White Collar Crime
Which white-collar crime(s) would you target first, and why?
White-collar crimes have been defined as the sort of criminal offenses committed by individuals of high social status and respectability in the duration of their occupations. As a result, white-collar crime is closely related with corporate crime because the opportunity for bribery, fraud, embezzlement, insider- trading, money laundering and forgery are more available to white- collar workers. Though all white-collar crimes are significant, I would target four main types of white-collar crimes; these include public corruption, counterfeiting, tax evasion and bribery. The reason why I would target these crimes first is that they affect a large population of people not just a corporation or a few people (Green 23- 67).
These are crimes that can affect the economy of a corporation, and, therefore, a large group of people if let to spread. Public corruption is the white-collar crime that involves the breach of trust of the public, and the abuse of a public office. Generally, a government official might violate the law when they ask, accept, demand, solicit or agree to take anything in exchange for something else. Counterfeiting is the crime that involves the imitation or copying of items without authority and using the imitation for the original item. Bribery is the same as public corruption, only it also affects the individuals who accept to give anything in return for something else. Tax evasion is another significant crime that involves an individual failing to pay tax (Green 23- 67).
Are there any white-collar crimes you would pay little or no attention to? If so, why?
Yes. Though all white- collar crimes are essential and should be taken seriously, I would give some white collar- crimes less attention to. Examples of these crimes include such things as pyramid schemes, fortunetellers, advanced fee schemes, auto repair schemes, inside trading schemes, coupon redemption schemes, and advertisement schemes. The reason why I would not give these schemes a lot of attention is that they only affect those who are ignorant, and can be avoided if individuals act more diligently and if they inquire about the services being offered to them before going through with deals. Some schemes such as the advertisement schemes are some of the most common avoidable frauds. The advertisers usually warn individuals not to trust such advertisements but people go ahead and trust them. If people practiced more discretion and diligence, these crimes would be done away with (Green 23- 67).
What proportion of resources (money and personnel) would you devote to the different types of white-collar crimes and why?
To fight white- collar crimes, immense resources both in the form of personnel and money are needed. To efficiently fight these crimes, I would assign more money and personnel to the most significant crimes and less money and personnel to the crimes that are less serious. For example, I would assign more resources to such crimes as tax evasion, public corruption, counterfeiting, and bribery, money laundering and other forms of serious frauds. However, less money and personnel would go to less serious crimes such as pyramid schemes, fortunetellers, advanced fee schemes, auto repair schemes, inside trading schemes, coupon redemption schemes, and advertisement schemes because they do not need as much money to be addressed. Some of these crimes require intensive examination, audits, analysis and investigations to be able to come to the truth. The less serious crimes are more obvious and less to solve, and, therefore, need fewer resources to be solved (Hefendehl 761- 89).
What strategies would you apply and why?
There are various strategies that I would use to combat white- collar crime. The first step would be to notify the public about possible fraud schemes, and let them be aware of the imminent criminals. Another strategy would be to limit opportunities of fraud by coming up with internal controls and checking overrides of the established controls. Another strategy would involve managing incentives and pressures inherent in the process of business. Focusing on detection and prevention efforts on risks were possible financial losses are imminent is also another significant strategy. In addition to these, fostering a strong detection perception through fraud identification investigation and detection methods can also be useful. Zero tolerance policy to such crimes should be established, in addition to employing the most ethical employees as I can possibly get (Shapiro 346- 65).
How would you be able to measure your success?
In this case, measuring the success of the above strategies would mean that I would have to note a decline in white- collar crimes. If it were reported that white- collar crimes have gone down, then that would be a good measure of the effectiveness of the strategies. Also another measure of effectiveness if these strategies would be if the public offices perform more efficiently and effectively. Some of the most limiting aspects to the efficiency and effectiveness of most public offices are such white- collar crimes as public corruption and bribery. An increase in the efficiency and the satisfaction of the public about the efficiency of the offices would be an indication that the strategies are actually working. Another thing that can be a measure of success of the strategies is checking of the finances and accounts of a corporate or a public office and comparing the data with that of the previous years. If there is a significant difference then this could be a sign that fraud was present and it has reduced. In addition, if the complaints by the public decline of incidences of being a scheme, then this is a good sign that the strategies might be working (Dumaine 193- 6).
How long would it be until you could see results?
The time it takes for these strategies to work can be varied, varying from one organization to another. However, it should be noted that these strategies could take a while for changes to be noted especially because of the fact they involve the introduction of situations or strategies that can change the culture of the organization. Implementing organizational culture change is never easy and patient should be mastered in this case, as some organizations might take more than a year to implement the basics of fraud control and regulation. However, some changes are easier to manage, and, as it follows, they can be quickly and easily be implemented in a company in a short while. Overall, care should be taken in implementing these strategies because when they are not well designed and implemented into the business process of a company they can be ineffective and inefficient in flushing out white- collar crime (Shapiro 346- 65).
Works cited
Dumaine, B. ‘Beating Bolder Corporate Crooks’. Fortune 193- 96. Print
Green, Stuart. Lying, Cheating, and Stealing: A Moral Theory of White Collar Crime. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print
Hefendehl, Roland. ‘Addressing White Collar Crime on a Domestic Level Any Lessons Learned for International Criminal Law?’ J Int Criminal Justice 8. 3 (2010):769-782. Print
Shapiro, Susan (1990). ‘Collaring the Crime, not the Criminal: Reconsidering the Concept of White-collar Crime.’ American Sociological Review 55: 346–65. Print
What it means to be Human
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What it means to be Human
The issue of human beings and what it means to be human has been present for centuries and for millions of years. Therefore, it is no surprise that philosophers argued and formed philosophies to deduce what it really meant to be human. This paper, therefore, will look at four of such philosophers who came up with different understandings of what human or what being a human means. The philosophers of interest in this case include such people as Descartes, Browning Cole, Dalai Lama, and Sartre all discussed in Kessler’s Voices of Wisdom.
Descartes raises essential questions as to what means to be a human being. As he argues his points, he points out to several major questions in philosophy like the issue of mind and body, the question if the meaning and existence of the soul and the question of human thought. From the brief statements he makes, it is possible to develop a perceptive of what makes or defines human beings and their nature in terms of the interaction of the mind, soul and the body in view of this philosopher.
One of the main arguments that the philosopher makes is that the human being is composed and made up of the soul and body, and he thinks of the two to exist in a substantial union or relation. To him, the human being is, therefore, not a body attached to a soul, or the other way round, rather as an entity that consists of a necessary soul and body. Losing one of these two, therefore, renders one inhuman. To him, hence, death results to inhumanity, as it separates the body from the soul. He also considers that fact that there is a reality in existence outside his own mind and that of humans because it exists or takes place in God’s mind.
To Descartes, therefore, a human being is defined not only by the body, but also by the soul, and the existence of a reality outside the minds of the humans, which exists in the mind of God. The existence if the reality of the minds of humans and that of God is seen when he argues that, ‘so Descartes believed he had established with absolute certainty the existence of his mind as a mental substance and the existence of a perfectly good God…’ (Kessler 462).
Browning Cole is another philosopher seen in Kessler’s book talking about the nature of humanity. She believes that the mind and the body are somehow bound or infused together, the thoughts of an individual exists in the mind and body. This is to mean that to this particular philosopher, for the embodied self, the mind and the body overlap and interact with each other, and the area where the mind and the body overlap and meet is where the thoughts of human beings, as well as, their self or their humanity exists. Therefore, if the body and the mind of an individual are linked together or are bound together, and if the thoughts of human beings exits within both the body and the mind, then the embodied self of humans would be a solution to the issue of mind of body presented by other philosophies.
She looks at the arguments of Plato and Descartes on humanity and human beings and concludes that an individual or human has within themselves a critical power dialectic in which their mind must win over their body and must trumpet this victory in constructs of rationality that is pure by means of which its reality and soundness id ratified and demonstrated. She argues that even though this general dialect is played out and witnessed in numerous cultures from popular morality to religion to existentialism even though it is far from being identified as an isolated peculiarity (Kessler 479).
Dalai Lama is another philosopher featured in this book with essential teachings on what it means to be human and humanity. Most of his arguments on how to be human, and what it means to be human are based on ethics. To him for one to be a fully functional human being, they must express certain ethical values, actions and behaviors. For instance, humans must have compassion, they must have the ability to love and they must take or view the world or the universe as an entity that they are part of and not as separate from them. These are profound, though, simple teachings that this philosopher, and spiritual leader, advices to all those individuals who want to be more human by bringing more love, understanding and compassion to the other people and their lives.
To Lama, most religious entities have the same ideologies if love, compassion and moral ethics all which are added on through spiritual practice, practice of which makes those who practice it better and whole human beings. Lama, therefore, was insistent on highlighting and teaching moral precepts as a way to perfect the functions of the body, mind and speech. The main goal of the teachings and the arguments of this great philosopher is unselfishness of human beings. The philosopher wanted to lead his followers away from deeds and actions that are negative caused by ignorance and introduce them to paths of good. The basic teachings and notions of Lama and his notions on what it means to be human, is that human beings should follow the paths that make them more tolerant, less selfish and more compassionate, as these are the features that define humanity.
Sartre is another essential philosopher in understanding what it means by being human. One of his key beliefs and arguments on humanity was based on existentialism, which led him to formulate the belief that essence comes after existence. Generally, this means that human beings are defined and formed by how they act or by their actions. This is to mean that an essential human nature is not present. Therefore, being a human being is an act of continuously becoming something or someone as shaped by the decision we make and our actions. According to this philosophy, human beings are continuously evolving and do not stop evolving until they die. According to him, one of the motivations of humanity is the fear of death, because death means the end of evolving and, therefore, the end of existence. The philosopher also took an approach to free will that was radically different from the approaches made by earlier philosophers. He thought that since humans were mainly defined by how they acted, then they were completely free. To him, every action a human being makes is made by him alone and the responsibility of being in complete control of how he acts lead to fear. Sartre argued that this existential fear is the price we have to pay for the freedom we have as human beings (Kessler 246- 48).
Work cited
Kessler, Gary E. Voices of Wisdom: A Multicultural Philosophy Reader. New York: Cengage Learning, 2008. Print.