Area of knowledge Essay

It can certainly be argued that though language and emotion play vital roles within any area of knowledge, it is within history that it manifests itself the clearest. History as an area of knowledge presents an opportunity to explore the implications of both language and emotion, and their effect on interpreting history. The understanding of such information is integral to resolving one of the key knowledge issues regarding history: the question of whether it is possible to attain or communicate knowledge through history that is free from filters and biases. The answer to this question is crucial to the further comprehension of what is history as a whole. But before examining language and emotion in the context of history, it is important to define what exactly these words are describing, and understand the values and limitations of both of these ways of knowing separately. Language is defined as a rule-governed, intended form of communication and is one of the main ways of attaining information of the external. It is useful for conveying concepts that are intangible, such as that of history. However, it is merely a tool, a vehicle by which information can travel, and is subject to ambiguity, vagueness, and bias. Emotion as a way of knowing is often defined as a mechanism which gives intuition and helps decision making, but is also commonly cited as an obstruction to knowledge. These two ways of knowing have a great impact upon the acquisition of knowledge in history. One could argue that without language, there would be no history or historical knowledge. Such a bold statement can be made for a variety of reasons, one being primarily that unlike emotion and sense perception, two others way of knowing, language is the most ‘able’ tool in the transfer of knowledge across time. And unlike reason, language can qualitatively describe as well as outline the experiences of individuals in a way that reason cannot fully emulate. One does not need to be (or rather, cannot be) at the decisive Battle of Iwo Jima to know there was an Allied victory, knowledge that sense perception and emotion could not derive. The utility of language is that it enables us acquire knowledge of the external efficiently. This is not to say that language is the perfect mechanism for knowledge transfer in history. As stated above, language is a tool that, once interpreted, will lead to biases as both the sender and receiver’s paradigm will contribute to a certain predisposition regarding any topic spoken. It allows us to label and generalize, to set up a conceptual framework based on relativity. Arbitrary time frames can be set up within history, such as Before Common Era, which when considered seem quite useful in that it allows for quick citation, but is also perplexing. How exactly did people define the ‘Common Era’? To refer to a date in relation to the death of one man allows us to further question why this particular man was chosen. Again this ties into the bias with language, as anyone referencing BCE is undoubtedly predisposed towards Western thinking. Even I retain these biases as well, always confused momentarily whenever I am exposed to the time frame established in Thai culture, such as 2553 (which is coincidentally also referenced to the death of another man). It appears that although language can and does lead to historical knowledge in methods that other ways of knowing cannot, language can never lead to truly objective information precisely for the same reason that it is useful: it is all relative to the paradigm which one is under. The impact of labeling and generalizations also touches upon the realm of emotion and its effects upon history. The age-old adage proclaims that â€Å"history is written by the victors†1 and the victors will more often than not think positively about themselves but not of their opponents. For example, during my Thai history class, my teacher will go at great lengths to explain the courageous nature of the Thai people and the savagery of the Burmese for invading our land, and yet do a complete about face and call the occupation of Malaysia and Cambodia as a noble conquest. This invocation of pride and patriotism is a variety of emotion known as nationalism. And it is this nationalism, or a similar emotional feeling of loyalty, that has fueled much of current history. If language is the tool with which we talk about history, emotion is what caused us to talk about it in the first place. The statement that is being suggested is that the course of human civilization for the past ten thousand years can be charted with the emotions, on the basis that humans are not perfectly rational. Emotional attachments to kingdoms, countries, or governments caused many to go to war; scientific advances were fueled by the undying joy associated with innovation; Adam Smith proposed capitalism to compensate for the inherent greed within us all. Indeed, a more specific event would be the destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001AD. The attack upon the US caused uproar, an escalation of foreign policy security, and a worsening of relations with the Middle East. The many religious motives for such an event leave no doubt that it was based off of emotion, but it remains unclear what the main cause was for. Again, it appears that to mark history as objective facts becomes increasingly hard as the subjective emotions that one has muddle the cause for events. One cannot state that a certain event in history occurred because of another singular event; rather, one must say that it was the amalgamation of these that caused any event. In essence, it appears that emotion and language both play a key role in history, one for it and one about it. However, it seems that these two ways of knowing interact with history in such a way as to make the objective deduction of historical knowledge difficult. Though one can argue that the imposition of conceptual frameworks and the emotionally fuelled decisions are not mutually exclusive with an objective history, it remains that within any human society there will exist a paradigm, a filter, a bias. And in these items will lay prejudice. A quote by Friedrich Nietzche summarizes this: â€Å"To the extent that man has for long ages believed in the concepts and names of things as in aeternae veritates he has appropriated to himself that pride by which he raised himself above the animal: he really thought that in language he possessed knowledge of the world.† We may pride ourselves on being more civilized than animals and for having language, but it is foolish to assume that with only these tools that we have gained any knowledge of the world apart from our own.

The Decision of Johnson & Johnson Acquires Dabao.

The decision of Johnson & Johnson Acquires Dabao. Di Wang MGT 540 MI004 Professor: Arthur Annechino 20th February 2013 Table of Contents Executive Summary3 Introduction4 The reasons of decision6 Decision making style7 The problem in decision making process8 Recommendations9 Conclusion11 Reference12 Executive Summary This paper is talking about the Johnson & Johnson Acquires Dabao. It starts with review the two companies’ history, and then shows the problem of them before acquiring.Further analysis of Johnson & Johnson’s decision with the problems that in their decision making process and also the decision making style that could be found in the acquisition. At last, give some recommendations to JNJ and the conclusion for this whole paper. Introduction Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is an American multinational medical devices, pharmaceutical and consumer packaged goods manufacturer founded in 1886. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and t he company is listed among the Fortune 500.Johnson & Johnson is located in New Brunswick, New Jersey with the consumer division being located in Skillman, New Jersey. The corporation includes some 250 subsidiary companies with operations in over 57 countries and products sold in over 175 countries. Johnson & Johnson had worldwide pharmaceutical sales of $65 billion for the calendar year of 2011. Among JNJ’s well-known consumer products are the Band-Aid Brand line of bandages, Tylenol medications, Johnson's baby products, Neutrogena skin and beauty products, Clean & Clear facial wash and Acuvue contact lenses.Johnson & Johnson came to China in 1985, but until now, in majority of the Chinese people’s hearts, it still stay in the baby care products. In fact, Johnson & Johnson brand in the United States has more than a century history, is the products supplier with most comprehensive and the most diverse medical and health care products and consumer care in the world. The strong outstanding international performance did not make Johnson & Johnson achieve the comprehensive development of a leap in China.Especially in consumer and personal care products, Johnson & Johnson has Johnson & Johnson's Baby, Clean & Clear, Neutrogena and other brands. These brands almost cover each segment of the cosmetics industry. But in each market segment, the market share of Johnson & Johnson's product did not reach the top ten. Johnson & Johnson seems to be considered as a niche brand, which makes JNJ very depressed. In Johnson & Johnson’s view, in order to catch up with other multinationals in China, the best and quickest way is to acquire a local brand and expand its own brand extension and channel coverage.Dabao is undoubtedly the best choice to achieve this strategic goal for Johnson & Johnson. Beijing Dabao Cosmetics Co. , Ltd. its predecessor factory is Beijing Sanlu Factory, is a state welfare enterprises established by the Beijing Government for the emplo yment of the disabled. And with as many as 35% of the disabled workers. The company was founded in 1958, 1985 converting cosmetics develops, produces, sells, and exports herbal cosmetic products in China and internationally. It offers various varieties of skincare, hair care, beauty care, perfume, and clinical series products.The company’s products include slimming creams, breast configuring creams, hair stimulators, senile fleck dispeller creams, eye-bag creams, anti-wrinkle creams, ginseng shampoos and conditioners, and ginseng both lotions. Its most famous product is â€Å"Dabao SOD cream†. It sells its products through department stores and shops. The company exports its products to the United States, Switzerland, Sweden, Greece, Tunisia, Bangladesh, and Cyprus. From in 1997, Dabao won the championship of the domestic sales of skin care products for eight consecutive years. In 2003, market share of Dabao in the skincare industry was 17. 9%, much higher than the oth er competitors. Dabao was trying to get rid of the low-end positioning, but the market performance is far from satisfactory. It seems that Dabao would never enter the high-end market in the industry. In 2004, its brand market share of negative growth, accompanied by declining net profit. Industrial output value and tax sales revenue declined slightly. The total profits and taxes in the decline stage, indicating that there was fierce competition in the market at that time, Dabao brand was facing the increase impact of foreign brands, price wars, increased costs, and many other heavy pressure.On February 27th , 2007, Dabao listing to start the transfer of 100% equity at a price of 2. 3 billion yuan in the China Beijing Equity Exchange. Its transfer form is equity overall transfer. Listing period, Johnson & Johnson (China) Investment Co. , Ltd. , Unilever (China) Investment Co. , Ltd. , Kao Corporation and other international well-known cosmetics companies to come to counseling and due diligence. Johnson & Johnson and Unilever are interested transferee. The Unilever offer only 1. 7 billion yuan, much lower than the listing price. Finally JNJ won at the price of 2. 3 billion, the equity transfer agreement signed on April 18, 2008.July 30, Johnson & Johnson completed the acquisition of Dabao transactions from Beijing Sanlu Factory and the Dabao employee stock holding committee. Acquired the 83. 42% of state-owned shares and 16. 58% of employee shares from both of them. The reasons of decision There are three main reason why Johnson & Johnson make the acquire decision. Firstly, in order to catch up with other multinationals in China, the best and quickest way is to acquire a local brand and expand its own brand extension and channel coverage. Dabao is undoubtedly the best choice to achieve this strategic goal for Johnson & Johnson.Johnson & Johnson can access to the business development department directly, gain the time advantage in order to avoid time delays in pl ant construction. Secondly, Reduce a competitor, and directly get its position in the industry. Thirdly, get the use of high energy market forces. The two corporate uniform price policy, earnings higher than the revenue they gained when they were compete with each other. For example, a large number of information resources will be available for disclosure. Such as accounting income data can be used to illustrate the profitability of the enterprise, lso can be used to evaluate the changes of industry profitability. The acquisition will bring Johnson & Johnson the efficiency of production and operation, the most obvious performance was to achieved economies of scale to help Johnson to improve the control ability of Chinese market. Dabao in the second and third line markets has a strong marketing network and great attraction. Dabao have the mature path in these markets , especially advantage in the wholesale field of the second and third line markets, there will be conducive to the ex pansion of the Johnson & Johnson products field.Also can filling in gaps for Johnson & Johnson in the field of low-end mass cosmetics market. Share the Dabao development experience can reduce the learning cost of accumulated experience for Johnson & Johnson. And save the enterprise development expenses. Low-end cosmetics is very easy to research and development, but to cultivate a mature terminal need to spend more time. So acquire Dabao no doubt go a shortcut for Johnson & Johnson. But its original intention is to clear away the barriers to enter the industry and the market to get priority in China.From Dabao’s view, Dabao acquired by Johnson & Johnson who is more efficient and the replacement of managers has become inevitable, management efficiencies will brought new opportunities to Dabao in the future development. Decision making style For the decision making style in the decision making process, first I found the overestimation bias. â€Å"Overestimation occurs when peo ple overestimate their performance, chances of success or control of the situation† (Bazerman & Moore, 2009, p. 91). JNJ has full confidence for acquiring Dabao company and they believe they will gain most of the market share after they acquiring Dabao.So they give a high price to buy Dabao company, at the price of 0. 6 billion yuan more than their competitor Unilever. Actually, Dabao was facing many problems at that time and even can not survival in the market. So JNJ should did more research for the background of Dabao, and consider that seriously then give the right price to leave more chance for its self to the further development. Another bias I found is the Motivated Optimism bias. The Motivated Optimism bias is the tendency to feel positively about a situation turning out well despite evidence that proves otherwise.This bias was reflected in the staffs’ placement plan that accepted by JNJ. JNJ was positively about giving the disable employees continue working in Dabao even thought JNJ knew that is one of the mean reasons that caused Dabao developed slowly. I also tell the cultural bias from this issue. First there are culture differences between the US and China in doing business. And the two companies have totally different cultural with each other. Dabao is a state welfare company. So there must have many culture issues that JNJ can not avoid.It seems JNJ never make any prepares for that and acquired Dabao in a hurry. The problem in decision making process Because the purchase price failed to reach an agreement, the negotiations had reached an impasse after entered into an equity transfer intention agreement. Dabao listed price 23 million yuan is five times its net assets, 3. 4 times sales. Dabao audited total assets of 6. 45 billion yuan, net assets of 495 million yuan. In 2006, the main business income of 676 million yuan, net profit of 41 million. According to the 2006 assessment report, the total assets of Dabao is 2. 26 billion yuan, liabilities of 295 million yuan, the owner of the equity of 2. 241 billion yuan. The data shows that Dabao listed price of 23 million audited is of five times as net assets of 459 million yuan, which is not a cheap price. The reasonable price should be about 1. 5 billion yuan. In the others’ eyes, the price is debatable, but JNJ still acquisition of Dabao with the price ahead of the competition’s price of 600 million yuan. Another problem is the staff resettlement problem. Dabao has a characteristic, Dabao is a state welfare enterprises with as many as 35% of the disabled workers.And according to Chinese law, employees with disabilities have not been laid off, which is one of the reasons that makes Dabao development difficult. The staff placement problem hindered the acquisition process for a time. Therefore, in the acquisition, placement of workers become the most central issues in addition to price issue. After negotiated for many times, the staff placement plan has reached a consensus. After the acquisition the Dabao employees still be the employees in Dabao’s original parent company: Beijing Sanlu Factory , continues to serve Dabao brand.The employees who have not get the new jobs or do not accept the jobs of the new company's will continue as employees in Sanlu Factory. Recommendations In my opinion, I disapprove Johnson & Johnson’s decision of acquiring Dabao. Before a company makes a decision to acquire another company, two main issues must be taken into consideration: to recover the cost of investment in a short period of time; another is able to play the role of complement and enhance their own original brand. Before the acquisition, the two companies are in the decline stage.Acquired Dabao company for Johnson & Johnson is a certain risk, if Dabao continued its downward trend after the acquisition , then it will certainly contrary to the original intention of Johnson & Johnson to acquired Dabao. That will not only exacerba te the problem of Johnson & Johnson’s products market positioning in China, and it will also affect the overall development of Johnson & Johnson. If Dabao can not become a listed company, Johnson & Johnson will be difficult to recover the $ 23 billion investment cost for acquisition Dabao. Also the difficulty of integration will be to some extent prevent the development of Johnson & Johnson.The huge capital injection and Dabao placement of workers problem will increase the difficulty of the Johnson & Johnson Development. National circumstances and foreign investment risk will be a severe test. The products of the two companies does not match, the future development challenges than opportunities. After the acquisition, the biggest problem is if JNJ could make good use of the Dabao’s channel resources, after all, there are too many differences and even conflicts of the management style between multinationals and local companies.JNJ valued Dabao’s channel resources , however, these are not the hardware resources, if JNJ could not make good use of these channel resources, that may cause the channels unrest as well as loss of dealer. So I think JNJ should maintain the independence of Dabao, make Dabao like its other subsidiaries in the world, became a separate entity, independent operation. And achieve the integration of sales and channel. Dabao has weak research and development ability, so JNJ retain Dabao’s original flagship product and at the same time research and development of new products, in order to seize the market.Johnson & Johnson should change a senior management team for Dabao. Conclusion In order to catch up with other multinationals in China, Johnson & Johnson completed the acquisition of Dabao, a state welfare company has many channel resources but also has develop issues. During the decision making process, Johnson & Johnson met many problems such as the price issue, the employees settling issue. Johnson & Johnson gave a high price and accepted the employees settling plan that came up by Dabao.I do not think that is a good decision for Johnson & Johnson to acquire Dabao because it is difficult to recover the cost of investment in a short period of time and the development will be affected by the issues appeared in the decision making process in the future. Also for the further development I give the recommendations of make good use of these channel resources, maintain the independence of Dabao, retain Dabao’s original flagship product and at the same time research and development of new products, and change a senior management team for Dabao.References :analyzing the reason of johnson &johnson acquired dabao. (2008, August 06). Retrieved from http://bbs. 55bbs. com/thread-1836669-1-1. html Beijing dabao cosmetics co. , ltd.. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://www. dabao. com/ Enterprise merger case analysis of johnson& johnson acquired dabao. (2012, August 09). Retrieved from http://wenku. baid u. com/view/af14c431a32d7375a4178039. html Johnson&johnson. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://www. jnj. om/connect/ Johnson &johnson purchase dabao a sudden change in the situation. (2011, May 27). Retrieved from http://wenku. baidu. com/view/763309976bec0975f465e271. html Johnson & johnson ranks no. 1 in national corporate reputation survey for seventh consecutive year. (2005, December 07). Retrieved from http://www. harrisinteractive. com/news/allnewsbydate. asp? NewsID=999 Klovee. (2008, February 02). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://johnsonjohnsonblog. blogspot. com/2008/02/introduction. html

Accounting Sustainability and Reporting.

Sustainability refers to striking out a balance between present needs and the future needs and accordingly making out a decision for consumption of the resources. In the context of development or consumption of resources, the sustainability means consuming resources responsibly by taking the future needs into consideration (Schaltegger, Bennett, & Burritt, 2006). The business organizations consume scarce environmental resource, few of which are difficult to be restored. Therefore, these organizations should assume a sense of responsibility to use the scarce environmental resources in an effective and efficient manner. The regulators around the world are now being actively engaged in framing the rules and regulations to achieve sustainability in the developments. Major steps at the global level are being taken to enhance the sustainable business developments. In this regard, one of the major steps taken by the regulators is compelling the business organizations to adopt sustainability accounting and reporting practices (Schaltegger, Bennett, & Burritt, 2006). Sustainability accounting and reporting practices are directed to report the steps taken by the companies towards sustainability issues. The companies have been mandated by the government regulations to contribute towards the environment and society for promoting sustainability (Brockett & Rezaee, 2012). The concept of corporate social responsibility emerged which requires the companies to contribute towards the development of society and the environment. The sustainability accounting is a broad concept that provide for aligning the sustainability initiatives with the organizational strategies. Sustainability accounting not only involves reporting on the sustainability initiatives, but it also involves evaluation of the risks and threats to the environment and measurement of the company’s performance from environmental perspective. The issues of sustainability are being considered at the international level requiring the firms to adopt these practices. The adoption of sustaina ble business practices is considered beneficial not for a firm only but for the overall economic environment at the global level (Brockett & Rezaee, 2012). The report presented here is aimed at exploring the significance of sustainability accounting and reporting practices in the overall economic development of a country. In order to achieve this aim, the report will address the following objectives: This research report covers a comprehensive literature review to gather the views of existing literatures on sustainability accounting and reporting. Further, the report takes on data analysis on the subject matter of the research to find out actual impact on the corporations and economy. In this regard, the report precisely describes the methodology used to collect and analyze the data. Further, a discussion taking the view of existing literatures and the findings of the data analysis has been carried out followed by a concise conclusion being drawn.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The literature review section of the entire research report is very crucial. In this section, the researcher gets the knowledge of existing literatures on the subject matter of research, which is necessary to understand the foundation of the research (Jesson, 2011). Further, the review of literature also boosts up the confidence of the researcher by providing a strong foundation for data collection and analysis. The current research focuses on sustainability accounting and reporting, thus, the review of existing literatures focuses around this topic. In order to carry out the review of literatures appropriately, the entire subject matter has been bifurcated into different heads as discussed below. According to Soderstrom (2013), traditionally, the accounting and reporting practices in the firms could be found to be focusing on communicating the financial information and operational data to the stakeholders. However, the process of accounting and reporting has undergone a severe change to include the reporting on the sustainability issues. Over the last two decades, a drastic change in the approaches of reporting to the stakeholders has been witnessed (Soderstrom, 2013). The government regulations made it compulsory for the corporations to report on the corporate sustainability in their annual reports. The origin of sustainability reporting can be traced in way back 1960s and 1970s; however, the popularity was very less. As per the survey conducted by one of the world’s largest accounting firms, â€Å"Earns & Young†, only 1% of the 500 fortune companies were found to be reporting on the social and environmental sustainability in the mid 1970s in the United States (Soderstrom, 2013). According to Zu (2008), in the mid 1990s, triple bottom line reporting was introduced to promote sustainability (Zu, 2008). The triple bottom line model of reporting was primarily aimed at balancing the three crucial aspects of the business such as society, environment, and profitability. This model provided that the business should not only concentrate on the profits, but equal emphasis should also be given to the social and environmental aspects. Further, the triple bottom line reporting model also claims that the profitability of the company automatically increases when proper balance between the needs of shareholders, society, and the environment is maintained. This model greatly emphasized the role of society and environment in building the firm’s business and enhancing the firm’s value in the long run (Zu, 2008). Further, in the year 1997, the Global Reporting Initiative, a non-profit organization was founded, which provided for guidelines in regard to sustainability accounting and reporting by the firms (GRI, 2008). It was the increased need for sustainability that laid the establishment of Global Reporting Initiative in the last 1990s. According to Gupta & Mason (2014), the Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) provides reporting frameworks which assist the corporations in complying with the legal reporting requirements in regard to sustainability. Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) has issued G3 guidelines which cover three core areas of sustainability such as economic, social, and environment. Gupta & Mason (2014), further state that reporting under the G3 guidelines helps the corporations enhance transparency and goodwill in the market which ultimately affects the worth of the company positively (Gupta & Mason, 2014).  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Daizy & Das (2014), Sustainability reporting has become part of the strategic decision making in the firms. Both, management as well as other stakeholders such as shareholders, society, and the government are benefited in some or other way by the sustainability reporting practices. The primary reason for sustainability reporting is to ensure that the efforts made by the corporations towards sustainability are measured and communicated to the stakeholders (Daizy & Das, 2014). Further, in the views of Daizy & Das (2014), the companies can improve their operational efficiency and ensure growth in the shareholder’s value in the long run by implementing and maintaining the sustainability reporting practices. Thus, apart from being a regulatory requirement, the sustainability reporting is also crucial for the long term growth (Daizy & Das, 2014). Further, sustainability reporting assists the management in analyzing the non financial factors and finding out impact of those factors on the firm’s profitability. In the present scenario, it has been really pertinent to measure and evaluate the impact of non financial factors such as society and environment on the financial performance of the firm (Daizy & Das, 2014). It is compulsory for the firms to continually contribute towards the social and environmental sustainability and assess its impact on the firm’s financial performance. This assessment can be carried out with the help of structured data which is prepared through the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Therefore, sustainability accounting and reporting plays a crucial role in analysis and decision making, whether it is being done by the management for internal purposes or by the shareholders (Daizy & Das, 2014).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sustainability reporting has become part and parcel of financial reporting for most of the corporations in the 21 st century (CPA, 2013). The adoption of sustainability reporting has been promoted not only because regulators made is obligatory, but more due to its enduring advantages. The sustainability reporting provides benefits to all type of companies and in particular the large corporations are benefited in the form of enhanced shareholder’s confidence, improved goodwill in the market, and improved operational efficiency. Further, there are many other indirect advantages of adopting the sustainability reporting practices, for example, savings in resource consumption, cost reduction, waste reduction, and improved relationship with regulatory bodies (CPA, 2013).   As per Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012), about 250 companies from all over the world have adopted the corporate sustainability reporting practices and providing a separate report on the social and environmental initiatives (Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin, 2012). The large corporations and particularly the companies listed on the stock exchanges are being more complaint in regard to sustainability reporting than the smaller companies. The authors further state that though the sustainability reporting is increasing at the global level, but it is still imbalanced. It is perceived that the adoption of sustainability reporting adds additional burden on the smaller firms and thus, it has not been made obligatory for them in most of the countries. However, the bigger firms (listed companies) are quite capable to bear that additional burden and also the fact that these firms consume the environmental and economic resources at the large scale and affect the bigger part of the society, leads to making the adoption of sustainability reporting practices compulsory for them (Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin, 2012). Though adoption of sustainability reporting practices is advantageous for the firms but at the same it is challenging also. According to Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012), the first key challenge in implanting the sustainability reporting effectively is identification of the needs of target audience. The sustainability reports are prepared to provide information on the approach followed by the company towards the social and environmental issues. The key challenge is to decide a standard format so that the information is communicated to the target audience in the best manner. However, challenges in this area are to some extent lessened by the guidelines provided by GRI. Further, the firms also struggle in measuring and evaluating the impact of its activities on the society and the environment precisely. It is quite a subjective matter to measure and evaluate the impact of firm’s activities on the social lives and the environment Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012). Despite these challenges, the firms are adopting the sustainability reporting practices all over the world. According to OECD (2008), 120 companies out of total 500 have adopted the sustainability reporting and these numbers are expected to increase further in future. However, the popularity of sustainability reporting is increasing rapidly in Australia, but comparing it at the global level, it seems that improvements are still needed (OECD, 2008). There is a need to make strong efforts by the regulators, government, and the corporations to make sustainability reporting widespread in the country. The regulator has to consider that making the sustainability reporting obligatory for only listed companies would not be enough. The small and medium sized firms should also be encouraged to come forward and adopt the best sustainability reporting practices (OECD, 2008).  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Vasile et al. (2016), the sustainability reporting fixes responsibility on the companies to make legitimate efforts towards development of society, environment, and the overall economy. There are various aspects which could be put into discussion to assess the impact of sustainability reporting on the economy. These aspects are improvement in living standards of the people, savings in the consumption of scarce natural resources, and improvement in firm’s long term profitability. Vasile et al. (2016), further state that development of the society and environment are the elements of economy development, thus, if the efforts are made to improve the society or the environment, the economy will automatically be affected positively (Vasile et al., 2016). According to Higgins (2013), the sustainability and economic development are interdependent on each other. The gross domestic product indicates economic growth. If a country chases high growth in the GDP, it would require increasing the production quantities at a large scale (Higgins, 2013). The increase in production of goods would entail consumption of resources at the large scale. The consumption of resources at a rapid pace is dangerous for the sustainability. Therefore, the need to strike out a balance between the desired economic growth and the consumption of resources in a sustainable manner is essential. Further states that balancing the current economic growth and the consumption of the resources is crucial for long run survival of the economy (Higgins, 2013).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The reporting on sustainability issues has raised awareness in the business firms to save wastage of resources. The reduction in wastage of resources enhances the profitability of the firms which in turn increases the economic growth positively (Higgins, 2013). Further, as part of the sustainability efforts, the business firms are also contributing significantly for improving the societies. The contribution of the firms in this direction is critical to rise up the living standard of the people. Further, the improvement in the living standard is crucial for the overall economic growth. Thus, it could be said that the sustainability efforts made by the firms are essential for the overall improvement in the economic conditions of not only a country but at the global level (Higgins, 2013). In the views of Daly (2014), the economic development in the sustainable manner could be slow but it will be study and long last. The sustainability gives an impression that the resources are not to be used heedlessly (Daly, 2014). The firms are required to keep the needs of future in mind while consuming environmental resources. The consideration of future needs leads to consumption of the resources in a responsible manner which might lead to slow growth. However, the growth may be slow but it would be study. Consuming resources in this manner, the firm will be able to sustain its business for longer term which would ultimately affect its value positively (Daly, 2014).     Ã‚   The views of authors on sustainability accounting and reporting have been analyzed in this section. The literatures were reviewed with the objective of finding out the impact of sustainability accounting and reporting practices on the overall economic development of a country. In this regard, many authors provided their views on the reasons for evolution of the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Some of the authors stated that it has become a mandatory requirement and few of them stated that sustainability accounting and reporting practices affects the value of the firm positively in the long run. Further, review of literatures reveal that though the adoption of sustainability reporting benefits the firm but it is quite a challenging task. However, the implantation of sustainability reporting could be vital for the overall economic development sustainability.  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   A systematic approach is adopted in conducting a research which involves application of appropriate methodology to collect the required data and apply the data analysis tools. The tools and techniques applied in the research for data collection could be scientific requiring application of principles of statics (Olsen, 2011). The selection of appropriate data collection methods and the analytical tools is critical for completing the research in an effective manner. There are two main categories of data collection methods such as primary and secondary. The primary data collection methods comprises of the methods such as survey and interview. Further, the secondary data collection methods comprises of the methods such as review of the documents and observations (Olsen, 2011). It has been observed that the secondary data collection methods are suited the best in the case of qualitative researches. The research carried out in this report aims at exploring the impact of accounting sustainability and reporting practices on the overall economic development (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The research is qualitative in nature, thus, the secondary data collection methods have been applied. For the purpose of this research, the data has been collected through study of books, journal, reports of regulatory authorities and the government. In this regard, it has been ensured that the data collected is latest; therefore, the books, journals, and the reports of the regulatory authorities of the latest years have been referred for data collection (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The data collection was organized in three categories such as reasons for adoption of sustainability accounting and reporting by the firms, impact on the firm’s value of sustainability reporting, and its impact on the overall economy (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The data collected in regard to reasons for adoption of sustainability reporting practices relates to identification of the key drivers of sustainability. Further, the data collected in regard to impact on the firm’s value covers the profitability and net worth of the firm’s before and after the adoption of sustainability reporting. Further, in regard to evaluation of impact on the overall economy, the data relates to macro economic factors such as gross domestic product, standard of living, poverty levels, and reductions in the carbon emissions (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The data collection process has been carried out ethically and in an effective manner so that all the required information could be gathered. There certain limitations of the secondary data, which are required to be made explicit so as to assist the readers in drawing conclusions (Ary et al., 2013). The secondary data is prone to the risk of inappropriateness and there exists lack of control on preparation of the secondary data. Thus, effectiveness of the research carried out based on the secondary data depends upon the accuracy of the data. Further, the ethical concerns in regard to the use of secondary have been adhered to carefully. Proper referencing and citations have been given in the report wherever considered necessary to give credit to the authors whose data is used (Ary et al., 2013).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research report presented here has main goal of finding out the impact of sustainability reporting on the economy of a country. In order to achieve this goal, it has been considered pertinent to find out the reasons for adoption of the sustainability reporting practices. The sustainability reporting provides value addition to the firm in various ways .There are countless parameters which can be used to assess the value added by sustainability reporting as shown in the figure given below: Figure 1: Value Added by Sustainability Reporting (EY, 2013) From the figure show above, it could be observed that there are various areas which are positively affected by adoption of sustainability reporting practices. It could be observed that more than 40% of the total surveyed companies consider that improved reputation is the major factor which drives the adoption of sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). The adoption of sustainability reporting practices enhances the confidence of investors and consumers which helps in building reputation in the market. Further, there were more than 35% companies which claimed that sustainability reporting is crucial in increasing the employee loyalty. Employee’s loyalty is very important for the firms to achieve the targets on time and succeed in the market. Further, few companies also found increase in the consumer loyalty due to adoption of the sustainability reporting (EY, 2013). Further, the sustainability reporting also helped the firms to make their strategies stronger in terms of long run business and refine their visions. Further, there were observed around 25% companies which claimed that achieving reduction in wastage of the natural resources was one of the primary reasons for promotion of sustainability reporting (EY, 2013). The other commonly accepted factors which laid the adoption of sustainability reporting were improved relationship with the regulatory bodies, reduced long term risk, enhanced long term profitability (EY, 2013). Due the above discussed factors, the sustainability reporting has been adopted by various firms world-wide. The following chart shows the growth in sustainability reporting adoption from to year 2000 to 2011: Figure 2: Growth in Sustainability Reporting (EY, 2013) From the chart presented above, it could be observed that there has been a complete transformation since the year 2008. The increase in the number of companies adopting sustainability reporting practices has been enormous from the year 2008 to 2011. Within a period of 3-4 years, the number of companies complying with the sustainability reporting guidelines (issued by GRI) has increased to a significant level (EY, 2013). Further, data has been collected and analyzed to find out the impact of sustainability reporting on the firm’s profitability and its value. The firms perceive that consuming resources optimally keeping the future needs in mind will help them build better tomorrow. Further, the reduction in cost and risk and increase in reputation and quality are expected to lead the firm on the path of high profitability in the long run. The implementation of the sustainability accounting and reporting practices increases the legal compliances and it also put additional burden on the firm in terms of new manpower. Further, the benefits of sustainability reporting accrue over the years in the long run. Therefore, in the short run, the impact on profitability of the firm employing sustainability reporting practices may be adverse, but it would be positive in the long run.  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The data analysis conducted NWOBU (2015) reveals that there exists a positive correlation between the profit after tax and sustainability reporting index. The profit after tax depicts profitability of the company while the score on sustainability index indicates the compliance level of the firm with sustainability reporting requirements. Thus, a positive correlation between profit after tax and sustainability index is the indicative of the fact that with the increased compliance of sustainability reporting, the firm’s experience increase in their profitability. The research of NWOBU (2015) reveals that correlation between profit after tax and the sustainability index is 0.281, which is low positive correlation. The correlation of 0.281 implies that increase in sustainability index would entail increase in the profit after tax, but the increase in profitability might at the low rate (NWOBU, 2015). Further, the correlation between shareholder’s fund and sustainability index was also analyzed. The correlation between these two factors was found to be 0.183, which can again be categorized as positive and low (NWOBU, 2015). Thus, the interpretation would remain as it was before in case of profit after tax. Therefore, the increase in sustainability index would entail increase in the shareholder’s fund. It is to be noted that the shareholder’s fund represents the value of a firm. Thus, it could be articulated that with the increase in sustainability index, the value of the firm increases. However, the increase might be at very slow rate (NWOBU, 2015). After analyzing the impact of sustainability reporting on the firm’s profitability and its value, it is essential to observe the changes in the macro economic factors due to adoption of sustainability reporting practices (Talberth, 2010). In this regard, it is considered crucial to analyze the gross domestic product, standards living of the people, and poverty level. It is argued that sustainable business practices may cause reduction in the overall gross domestic product of the country. The reduction in GDP may be caused due to reduction the production level caused by decrease in the consumption of the environmental resources. For example, if the mining companies decrease the exploration of minerals, the production level of commodities will go down affecting the gross domestic product adversely. However, due to recent shift in the economic and environmental conditions, the gross domestic product is no longer considered to be reliable measure of well being of an economy. The p erformance on sustainability indices is taking place of gross domestic product now a day (Talberth, 2010). Further, the improvement in the sustainability practices also implies contribution to the society at a large scale. The firms working in the economy make combined efforts to raise the living standard of the people. Further, with the rise in the living standard of the people, the poverty level automatically goes down. Therefore, it could be inferred that the improvements in the sustainability reporting enable the economy to stabilize and grow in a sustainable manner (Talberth, 2010).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research carried out in this report addresses the crucial matter which relates to adoption of sustainability accounting and reporting practices by the firms operating in the economy. The aim of this research is to explore that whether the sustainability accounting and reporting is essential for the economy or not. In order to achieve the aim, the activities of the research are bounded by three objectives. The literature review has been carried out around these three objectives and the data analysis has also been conducted by keeping the three identified objectives in the centerfield. The articulation of the reviews of various authors reveals that promotion of sustainability accounting and reporting is really important for the well being of the overall economy (Daly, 2014). The authors state that there are various factors which make the firms to adopt the sustainability reporting. The improvement in the market reputation of the firm is one of the most crucial factors in that regard. The views of the authors reveal that firm’s reputation is improved to a great extent when it complies with the sustainability reporting guidelines. Further, the data analysis also supports this view of the authors. The analysis of data findings reveals that most of the companies consider the market reputation as one of the essential factor in adoption of the sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). Further, there have been identified few other factors as well such as customer loyalty, operational efficiency, and regulatory compliances. These factors also make the firm to comply with the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. In regard to the impact on firm’s financial performance, the authors state that the adoption of the sustainability reporting affects it positively in the long run. However, in the short run there may be adverse effect due to high compliance cost at the beginning. Further, the findings of the data analysis also support this view of the authors. The data analysis depicts that the sustainability reporting and the firm’s financial performance are positively correlated. This implies that the financial performance of the firms which comply with the sustainability reporting practices is found to be better than the firms not complying with it. Further, it has also been explored that the firm’s value (shareholder’s equity) is also affected positively by the adoption of sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). In regard to impact on the overall economy, the authors have stated that sustainability accounting and reporting is necessary to achieve economic development in a sustainable manner (Higgins, 2013). Further, the data gathered from the secondary sources also supports this view of the authors. The findings of the data analysis reveal that adoption of sustainability in the operations leads to contribution by the firms towards social and environmental causes. The firms contribute at the large scale to save the scarce environmental resources and to raise the living standard of the people. Further, the protection of the natural resources is very critical from the view point of sustainability.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The report presented here presents a research study on the sustainability accounting and reporting. The primary aim of the research is to explore the impact of sustainability accounting and reporting on the overall economy of a country. In this regard, it has been considered essential to find out the impact of sustainability reporting on a particular company and then on the overall economy. Based on the findings of the report, it can be concluded that the sustainability reporting is essential for the long term economic development. The articulations drawn from the literature review bring out the fact that sustainability reporting has become crucial for the firms to survive and thrive in the market. The recent developments in the areas of social and environmental sustainability are admirable. The regulators from all over the world are making collective efforts to make the business sustainable and futuristic. The survey report of EY discloses that there has been observed a significant increase in the number of firms adopting the sustainability reporting practices since the year 2008. From the findings of data analysis, it could be articulated that the increased awareness and the enduring advantages of sustainability is pushing the firms to opt for the best sustainability accounting and reporting practices. The major advantages of sustainability reporting have been identified as the improvements in the firm’s reputation, enhancement in the investor’s confidence, employee’s loyalty, and consumers trust. Further, the company is also able build a good rapport with the governmental regulatory authorities. However, there certain challenges which the firms have to while implementing the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Among various such challenges, the high operating cost and administrative problems are the major ones. Though, there are challenges, but the benefits of sustainability accounting and reporting are enduring, therefore, the firms have to make effort to implement it. Further, it was observed that sustainability reporting is also essential to raise the standard of living of the society and the maintaining a proper balance between the present and future needs. From the findings of the research, it could be inferred that maintaining a proper balance is crucial for long term economic developments. The sustainability in operations not only improves the financial performance of the firm but it also enhances its value. Further, the overall economy is affected in a positive manner which is the center point of the sustainability accounting and reporting. Schaltegger, S., Bennett, M., & Burritt, R. 2006. Sustainability Accounting and Reporting. Springer Science & Business Media. Brockett, A. & Rezaee, Z. 2012. Corporate Sustainability: Integrating Performance and Reporting. John Wiley & Sons. Jesson, J. 2011. Doing Your Literature Review: Traditional and Systematic Techniques. London: SAGE. Soderstrom, N. 2013. Sustainability reporting: past, present, and trends for the future. Retrieved February 07, 2017, from https://www.insights.unimelb.edu.au/vol13/04_Soderstrom.html Zu, L. 2008. Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Restructuring and Firm's Performance: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Enterprises. Springer Science & Business Media. GRI. 2008. Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Report. Retrieved February 07, 2017, from https://www.globalreporting.org/resourcelibrary/GRI-Sustainability-Report-2007-2008.pdf Gupta, A. & Mason, M. 2014. Transparency in Global Environmental Governance: Critical Perspectives. MIT Press. Daizy & Das, N. 2014. Sustainability reporting framework: comparative analysis of global reporting initiatives and Dow Jones sustainability index. International Journal of Science, Environment, 3(1), pp. 55-66. Faisal, F., Tower, G., & Rusmin, R. 2012. Legitimizing Corporate Sustainability Reporting Throughout the World. Australasian Accounting, Business and Finance Journal, 6(2), pp. 19-34. CPA. 2013. Sustainability Reporting: Practices, Performance, and Potential. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/~/media/corporate/allfiles/document/professional-resources/sustainability/sustainability-reporting-practice-performance-potential.pdf OECD. 2008. OECD Environmental Performance Reviews OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: Australia 2007. OECD Publishing. Vasile, J., Andrei, Nicolo, & Domenico. 2016. Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Investments in the Green Economy. IGI Global. Higgins, K.L. 2013. Economic growth and sustainability – are they mutually exclusive? Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.elsevier.com/connect/economic-growth-and-sustainability-are-they-mutually-exclusive Daly, H.E. 2014. Beyond Growth: The Economics of Sustainable Development. Beacon Press. Olsen, W. 2011. Data collection: key debates and methods in social research. SAGE. Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., Sorensen, C.K., and Walker, D. 2013. Introduction to research in education. Cengage Learning. Lapan, S.D., Quartaroli, M.T. &Riemer, F.J. 2011. Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs. John Wiley & Sons. NWOBU, O. 2015. The Relationship between Corporate Sustainability Reporting and Profitability and Shareholders Fund in Nigerian Banks. The Journal of Accounting and Management, 5(3). Talberth, J. 2010. Measuring What Matters: GDP, Ecosystems and the Environment. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.wri.org/blog/2010/04/measuring-what-matters-gdp-ecosystems-and-environment

Game Play Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Game Play Project - Essay Example Markers or crayons, yarn, buttons, and glue-sticks are materials that are cheap and are a great way to decorate the puppets without creating a mess. There are many available designs that workers can teach the young patients which can be viewed on Enhantedlearning.com. After designing the puppets, the worker and the children can develop a dialogue about their specific puppet such as their name and basic characteristics. Workers can prompt the children with questions such as â€Å"What’s your puppets name? What’s the puppet’s favorite food, activity, etc? Does the puppet have any brothers and sisters?† Finally, the children can create a story whether through improvisation or writing out a scene and act out the story using their puppets. This activity does not have any major safety risks that need to be addressed. As long as the adult/worker has prepared the yarn before hand, there is no need to bring scissors or any other risky material into the patient†™s environment. The puppet activity can be modified for children as young as four or five and as old as nine or ten.

Recommendation to an ivoirian scholar Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Recommendation to an ivoirian scholar - Essay Example In addition, in America, it is not common for people to just show up at another person’s home unless the latter person has invited them. It is instead customary for them to call beforehand and ask whether the person they intend to visit is either free or not. In addition, it is often necessary for the person visiting the United States to be aware that the family relationships in this country are not often the same as in other parts of the world. This is because while in other countries, it is normal for a family to have a mother, a father, and numerous children; this is often not the case in the United States. It is not uncommon to find single-parent families or individuals who have been married and divorced several times (Goransson 903). However, the American way of life is extremely liberal and this will likely ensure that one has a most pleasant visit. Among the most prevalent obstacles to research in the United States is the fact that there tends to be a lack of adequate f unding for the researcher. This is because for a researcher from outside the country, it is not easy to acquire the funding that one needs unless the said researcher has his or her own funding (Brew 423). It is also a time consuming process for the researcher to obtain permission from the authorities to conduct their research, and even if the researcher does get permission, it is often difficult for him to conduct their research in a manner which is familiar to them. One of the biggest obstacles in conducting research in the United States is the fact that the researcher might not have enough knowledge about scientific methods of research which might end up compromising the research that he intends to conducts (Thompson, Ritenbaugh, and Nichter 112). When conducting research in the United States, the researcher should ensure that all their personal issues that might end up compromising their research are dealt with before the beginning of the research process and this will help the r esearcher to give their full attention to the work at hand hence lending legitimacy and credibility to their research work.2 The official language of the United States is English and being aware that this language might not be the first language of the researcher, it would be best if he was made aware of it so that he can start acquainting himself with it (Collins 146). It may be extremely difficult for an anthropological researcher to conduct his research in country whose official language is unknown to them. It is a fact that the language barrier tends to make a lot of the researchers uncomfortable in their new environment and this would be a great hindrance for them in their research because they do not have the capacity to understand the meanings behind the actions of their research subjects.3 In fact, the language barrier may make the anthropological researcher feel isolated, especially in cases where there are no others from their home countries nearby with whom they can assoc iate. The researcher might end up taking a lot of time and hard work to get to be familiar with the local language so that they might get to conduct their research efficiently. Most researchers who tend to go to other countries tend to forget that

Red Sorghum by Zhang Yimou Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Red Sorghum by Zhang Yimou - Essay Example 2. The cultural significance of femininity in China is highlighted in the article. The idea of the feminine becomes one that is in controversy because of the several clashing belief systems of the film. The Confucian ethics and Buddhist traditions first define the feminine of China in one specific way. This is combined with the class structure that is a part of the feminine, which is defined by the expectations of Chinese culture. The Chinese culture is defined first by the history and memory that defines the feminine into the yin and yang roles. The mythical elements are defined by this as well, which creates different feminine roles that are within the culture. After the traditional roles are defined, the movie moves into ideas of the feminine through the different belief systems in the culture. The movie specifically defines the idea of yin and yang as a part of the cosmic order, which is a part of the traditional roles and the feminine. The controversy is created with this by defining the clash of culture and how it changes between different memories, times and cultural meaning in China. The idea of the feminine, from a cultural context, is based on spiritual meanings that come from history and memory and which are passed down between different generations. In the movie, there is a conflict with the cultural significance of the feminine with the definitions of the feminine becoming controversial with the memories, history and social implications. 3. The idea of the Bakhtinian carnival is one that shows the basic needs of the community and culture. The carnival is represented as an idea of basic needs that humans have, including food, water and shelter. The carnival moves from this to a celebration of the basic human needs that are a part of life in China. The appearance of the carnival and the way that it relates to the culture is one that depicts the basic culture, expressions and acceptance that is a part of

Human Rights and Catholic Church Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Human Rights and Catholic Church - Essay Example The present age has been marked by the attempts of different types that ultimately aim at human rights. Catholic community has been safeguarding the human right endeavors universally. As opposed to the general conception, Catholic Church has always been advocating for the Human Rights and other privileges that make the life of the human beings better and easier. The Church has always given priority to the necessities of all the men and has stood for the well-being of the humanity. This humanity-based approach of the Church has been made clear through the various types of teachings and preaching of the Church. It is, by nature, driven by the better living standard of its followers as well as the entire human race. This is the same reason why the Catholic Church has always raised chorus of disapproval whenever there is a violation of human freedom and threat to the peaceful existence of human. Such uproars for the cause of the humankind have been powerful voice that has touched the uni versal conscience. Among the many examples of this human concern of the Catholic Church stands the contribution made by Pope John XXIII who made a major appeal for the universal Human Rights through the encyclical Pacem in Terris or, to use the English full title, On Establishing Universal Peace in Truth, Justice, Charity and Liberty which was issued on 11 April 1963. The encyclical that addressed the faithful of the Catholic Church as well as "All Men of Good Will" obviously aimed at the human race as a whole. (John XXIII, 1963). Apart from the reaction to the political situation of the time, the encyclical also intended to emphasize the significance of respect of Human Rights as an indispensable corollary of the Christian understanding of men. In the encyclical the Pope emphatically states, "By the natural law every human being has the right to respect for his person, to his good reputation; the right to freedom in searching for truth and in expressing and communicating his opinions, and in pursuit of art, within the limits laid down by the moral order and the common good; and he has the right to be informed truthfully about public events." (John XXIII, 1963, para 12). The first section of the encyclical that aims to establish a vital relationship covers the issues of human rights and moral duties. It is the relationship between man and man as individuals. The encyclical, in the next section, goes on to address the relationship between state and man residing on the shared authority of the former. In the third section, the encyclical makes clear the necessity for equality among the different nations and the need for the state to be subject to rights and duties that the individual has to oblige by. The fourth and the final section of the encyclical clarifies the inevitability for greater relationship between world nations thereby mutually assisting for the cause of the humanity. The universally acclaimed encyclical ends with a plea to the entire Catholic community to assist the non-Catholics as well as the non-Christians in political and social aspect.

Caffeine psychostimulants Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Caffeine psychostimulants - Essay Example One of the advantages of caffeine lies in its ability to cause the release of dopamine in the body leading to hyperactivity. The hyperactivity referred to in this case is not the activity found in hyperactivity disorder, but rather positive activity. The dopamine released activates the part of the brain associated with alertness and attention, as well as problem solving and pleasure (Russel, 2008). Because of this effect of caffeine, the body becomes hypersensitive to the environment around it and appreciation of the body needs. In this case, the capabilities of the brain are improved and increases as it acts as a stimulant all thanks to the activation of dopamine. The boost increases circulation around the body including the brain, where the brain increases even a larger amount of caffeine stimulation than the heart. It is through this dose of caffeine that it improves the mood of the caffeine consumer and allows one to think with enhanced precision and clarity (Gargulinski, 2011). In addition, caffeine contains numerous antioxidants that are crucial for the wellbeing of the human body in that they block the action of free radicals. The presence of these antioxidants in caffeine reduces the chances of developing cancer in a person, and in cases of cancer, its onset is usually delayed considerably. In the absence of caffeine, one remains susceptible to cancer due to free radicals that increase cell death and accumulation of the dead cells (Thompson and Keene, 2004). Other than this, caffeine is beneficial since it plays a crucial role in increasing the longevity of human life. In this case, increased consumption of caffeine increases the human lifespan, which is also caused by the antioxidants fond in caffeine. In addition, the risk of contracting Parkinson’s disease is reduced, especially when consumed for extended periods. One other advantage of consuming

Roche Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Roche - Coursework Example 56). The method is essential for the implementation of innovative approaches, branding strategies, and synchronistic strategies. On the other hand, businesses engage on innovative approaches to evaluate market viability, dynamics of the clients, and the appropriate technology to implement in achieving successful outcomes (OrtuÃŒ n Rubio and GarciÃŒ a-Fontes, 2011, p. 33). The following is a critical discussion seeking to implement the process of marketing and innovation in Roche Pharmaceuticals inclined to appropriate recommendations to decipher its success and probable opportunities in the market. Roche Pharmaceuticals operates in the healthcare industry seeking to deliver astound resolutions in the pharmaceutical and diagnostics market segments. The healthcare industry is composite of many dynamics and business finding the idea of evaluation an inevitable course. Roche’s marketing and innovation programs exist amidst an ever-changing environment for the industry is broadly affected by internal and external environmental forces. Arguably, the healthcare industry exposes the available business entities to uncertainties due to a process of continued degree of competition (Moffat, Bohmert, and Hulme, 2008, p. 107). This also serves to barricade new businesses from entering the market. Roche is a globally renowned producer of medical equipment, taking the divisions of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics respectively (Tinguely, 2013, p. 32). The former field is tasked with applied sciences, and Roche Molecular Diagnostics. Further, the field draws the company into professional and tissue diagnostics, and diabetes care. The latter is tasked to the Roche Pharma, Genentech, and Chugai that serves to enhance its relevance in the industry. However, these facts do not serve as potential solutions to the challenging market situations (Mohr, Sengupta, and Slater, 2010, p. 142).

Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, 521 U.S. 844 (1997) Essay

Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, 521 U.S. 844 (1997) - Essay Example The CDA provisions were in tandem with Christian faith and the Holy bible which deplores immorality. The book of 1Thessalonians 4:3 states,† For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality." The Bible also states in the book of Proverbs 29:17, â€Å"Correct your son and he will give you comfort; He will also delight your soul.† This act sought to safeguard upbringing of children by shielding them from a filthy society that threatens corrupt their morality. However, in the case of â€Å"Reno vs. American Civil Liberties Union,† the court of Supreme upheld a previous lower court decision that the CDA violated two existing provisions of the constitution. The CDA act violated the first amendment that provided freedom of speech. The CDA was found also violating the Fifth Amendment by virtue of vagueness of its words such as â€Å"indecent â€Å"and â€Å"patently offensive† (Law.cornell.edu, 2014). The judges final ruling resonates with an incidence in the Bible where Jesus disregarded Mosaic Law in order to protect a more fundamental right in the book of John 8:7-8 where he saved an adulterous woman from a mob that wanted to stone her, as required by the Mosaic Law. â€Å"He, who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her and when they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones...† Justice John Paul Steven recognized the fact that the government had the responsibility to protect minors from sexually explicit materials but expressed his concern that the provisions unnecessarily suppressed the right to provide information to adults which could be educative. For instance a discussion on birth Control practices. The court was also concerned with the criterion used to define indecent materials or communication. The court argued that CDA â€Å"community standards† criterion implied that other nation- wide internet communication would be

Total Quality Mangement Essay Example for Free

Total Quality Mangement Essay What is Total Quality Management (TQM)? TQM is a management strategy that attempts to maximize the competitiveness of a organization through continual improvement of quality in its products and services. The ultimate goal is to increase customer satisfaction. They premise in this method is that everyone involved is the responsibility of everyone involved in the process; this includes management, workforce, suppliers and even customers. [ (Wikipedia, 2012) ] We will examine two test cases and examine how TQM can help them improve. We will examine their failures and examine how TQM would help them overcome them. In the book â€Å"Out of the Crisis†, by Dr Deming he points out fourteen points that manager must use in order to follow a successful TQM strategy. They are: 1) Create constancy of purpose for improvement of product and service. Management must change from a preoccupation with the short run to building for the long run. This requires dedication to innovation in all areas to best meet the needs of citizens or clients. 2) Adopt the new philosophy. Americans have been too tolerant to poor performance and sullen service. We need a new philosophy in which mistakes and negativism is unacceptable. 3) Cease dependence on mass inspection. Inspection is equivalent to planning for defects; it comes too late, and it is ineffective and costly. Instead, processes must be improved. 4) End the practice of awarding contracts on the basis of price tag. Purchasing departments customarily operate on orders to seek the lowest-priced vendor. Frequently, this leads to supplies or services of low quality. Instead, they should seek the best quality and work to achieve it with a single supplier for any one item in a long-term relationship. 5) Improve constantly and forever the system of operations and service. Improvement is not a one-time effort. Management and employees are obligated to continually look for ways to reduce waste and improve quality. 6) Institute modern methods of training on the job. Too often, employees learn their jobs from other employees who were never trained properly. They are forced to follow unintelligible instructions. They cannot do their jobs because no one tells them how. ) Institute modern methods of leadership. Lower-level managers must be empowered to inform upper management about conditions that need correction; once informed, management must take action. Barriers (such as reserved parking places for top management) that prevent employees from doing their jobs with pride must be removed. 8) Drive out fear. Many employees are afraid to ask questions or t o take a position, even when they do not understand what the job is or what is right or wrong. People will continue to do things the wrong way or to not do them at all. The economic loss from fear is appalling. It is necessary for better quality and productivity that people feel secure. 9) Break down barriers between staff areas. Often staff areas, departments, units, and so on are competing with each other or have goals that conflict. They do not work as a team so they can solve or foresee problems. Worse, one departments goals may cause trouble for another. Each discipline must stop optimizing its own work and instead work together as a team for the company as a whole. Multidisciplinary quality control circles can help improve design, service, quality and costs. 0) Eliminate slogans, exhortations, numerical goals and targets for the work force. These never helped anybody do a good job. Let people put up their own slogans. Although workers should not be given numerical goals, the organization itself must have a goal: never ending improvement. 11) Eliminate work standards and quotas. Quotas focus on quantity not quality. They are usually a guarantee of inefficiency and high cost. To hold a job, a person meets quotas at any cost, without regard to damage to the organization. 12) Remove barriers to pride of workmanship. People are eager to do a good job and distressed when they cannot. Too often, misguided managers, faulty equipment, and defective material stand in the way. These barriers must be removed. 13) Institute a vigorous program of education and training. Because quality and productivity improvements change the number of people needed in some areas and the jobs required, people must be continually trained and retrained. All training must include basic statistical techniques. 14) Create a structure in top management that will push every day on the above 13 points. (Demings, 2000) The Nightmare on Telecom Street In our first test case James Harrington attempts to make a flight reservation by calling a major airline. His experience is an excellent example of a company trying to be so efficient that they alienate their customers. Efficiency is very important to a company, but not at the cost of losing customers. The service failures started even before the phone was answered; the phone rang five times before the auto attendant answered. From there the customer was given an endless amount of choices to get routed to the right department. Once there she was on hold before a live person finally answered the phone. This person asked the caller for the same information they just provided to the auto attendant. Once the caller was verified, the person tells them they have reached the wrong department and gives them another phone number to call so they can start the process all over again. In order for this airline to solve their service failures they need to think of their customers. It is okay to have an auto attendant to direct traffic in the right direction, but maybe only one or two choices before reaching a live person. They also need to give the option of pressing zero and speaking to an operator that would forward the call to the right department. The airline must realize that people like to speak with people, not computers. The phone call is the first impression that the potential client will have of the airline. They need to make this phone call as enjoyable as possible so they will not hang up and call a competitor. The State University Experience The second case study is about a student that is very excited to go to a certain State University and his enthusiasm is diminished by the universities actions. This case is another example where there the customer is an afterthought. In this case it is obvious that there was no thought given to the customer experience. There were difficulties starting with the campus tour and throughout the entire enrollment process. The service failures started the school tour. It is obvious that the university just paid any student to take potential enrollees on a tour of the school; they did not provide them any formal training on what to say or design a specific tour of the school that highlights the schools best features. They did not even make sure that the lights in all the buildings on the tour were on during the tour. It only went downhill from there. The enrollment process was painful, the student kept having to send in the same documentation; the university kept losing stuff. The student sent in everything requested several times and they still ended up enrolling him into the wrong program. A total disaster! This case study is an example of a program that has to be revamped from the beginning. They need to start with meeting and exceeding customer satisfaction. If the tour is going to be in the middle of the summer, they need to make sure that the tour does not spend too much time outside; you need to make sure that people are comfortable. The tour guide needs to go through training on the message the university wants potential students to hear. Finally, the enrollment process has to be more efficient. They need to use technology to make their enrollment process smoother. He should not have to send in the same documents more than once. Conclusion In both test cases you see examples of potential clients being really let down. In today’s competitive environment firms have to make sure that potential clients have a good overall experience. In does not take many unhappy clients to post on their facebook page before you have a nightmare. I believe companies can use the 14 points to improve their TQM and improve their customer experience. Works Cited Demings, W. E. (2000). Out of the Crisis. The MIT Press. Wikipedia. (2012, 3 4). Total quality management. Retrieved 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Total_quality_management

Bob Marley Essay Example for Free

Bob Marley Essay In a time of political, economic, and social unrest, a new way of protest was beginning to emerge from Jamaica in the form of reggae music. It was 1963 when a young man from Jamaica by the name of Robert Nesta Marley, better known as â€Å"Bob Marley†, formed a band called The Wailers, who would undoubtedly become one of the only reggae bands to rise up from the oppression of the third world country. The country of Jamaica had just gained independence from the U. K. in 1962, but was anything but a free nation. Those in power chose to exploit the country’s few main exports, primarily bauxite, a mineral used in the process of manufacturing aluminum. The first ten years of Jamaican independence saw considerable economic growth, but these gains were held back from the country’s urban poor. From his book, Reggae, Rastafari, and the Rhetoric of Social Control, Stephen A. King writes, â€Å"After independence, the Jamaican Labor Party’s â€Å"Five Year Plan† did not produce economic prosperity but, instead, even greater inequity of living conditions† (47). King quotes Adam Kuper, â€Å"As the Jamaican Labor Party encouraged foreign countries to invest in and expand Jamaica’s manufacturing and bauxite industries, the traditional pursuits of agriculture, forestry, and fishing dropped to a low of 10 percent of Jamaica’s gross domestic product in 1968 (47). Marley chose to join the Rastafarian movement, a religious program that was a prominent group in Jamaica. The Rastafarian faith helped to fuel Marley’s purpose in music, which was to empower and inspire those who were being kept down by the nation’s wealthier class. A small rural village called Nine Miles located in the parish of Sainte Ann is where Bob Marley was born. Marley lived with his grandparents in the community of Sainte Anne, people who followed traditions they had learned from their early African ancestors. These customs included storytelling which would be one of Marley’s signature qualities during his songwriting career. When Marley was a teenager, his mother decided to take him away from Sainte Anne, and moved him to Jamaica’s capital Kingston in the vicinity of Trench Town. This would be where Marley would begin to embark on his musical journey. Like most urban Jamaican cities, Trench Town was poor and all of its inhabitants including the teenage Marley lived in poverty. During this time Marley learned how to defend himself against the rough town locals, and instead of following them Marley decided to pay closer attention to music. As one author writes,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Despite the poverty, despair and various unsavory activities that sustained some ghetto dwellers, Trench Town was also a culturally rich community where Bob Marleys abundant musical talents were nurtured. A lifelong source of inspiration, Bob immortalized Trench Town in his songs No Woman No Cry (1974), Trench Town Rock (1975) and Trench Town, the latter released posthumously in 1983† (Ruff, â€Å"Bob’s Early Life†). Marley’s beginnings in the music industry were with a form of music known as ska. Ska came about in Jamaica during the late 1950’s and early 60’s. Ska was inspired by American RB music that could be heard through U.S. radio airways on the transistor radio. Ska was a blending of America’s RB and Jamaica’s island beat, a mixture of calypso and mento. Author Stephen A. King writes, â€Å"Perhaps ska can best be characterized as a product of creolization, borrowing heavily from black American music (jazz, gospel, and RB), while also incorporating indigenous (mento) and African elements into its sound† (24). Many citizens of Jamaica could not afford radios to listen to music or keep up on any news reports coming from the island. So the Jamaican sound systems, mobile devices such as vans or musical equipment on wheels, would be used to host dances, and the deejays would also use their sound systems to inform his listeners on political happeni ngs. King states that, â€Å"As one of the few affordable social activities for the poor, the sound system brought music to places where the voice of the poor could be heard without interference by local authorities† (16). Like most of the world during this time, the black population was not allowed any political power, and many began to seek ways to resist. One of the methods used as a means to passively fight back against the imbalance was the Rastafarian religion. The Rastafarian religion was born early in the twentieth century, but its roots date back as far as the late 1800’s when slaves felt compelled to revolt against the plantation owners on the belief that God was calling them to fight for freedom. In 1927, a man named Marcus Garvey brought forth to Jamaicans the basis of the Rastafarian religion, which was to look to Africa for the crowning of a king. This would be a sign for Jamaica that freedom is near. From Africana, the Encyclopedia of the African and the African-American Experience, author Roanne Edwards quotes Garvey: â€Å"Look to Africa for the crowning of a king to know that your redemption is nigh† (Edwards 1592). In 1930 Ras Tafari was crowned emperor of Ethiopia and  baptized with the name Haile Selassie. From that moment on the Rastafarians of Jamaica would recognize the king of Ethiopia as the livi ng messiah. The religion of Rastafarianism was meant to empower Jamaica’s black population by reflecting heavily on African heritage and believed that the western society was today’s kingdom of Babylon, a corrupt city that profited from the oppressed. Part of the Rastafarian faith was to grow dreadlocks, this would become one of Marley’s signature features, but Marley was not following any trends, his purpose for wearing his hair in dreadlocks had deeper meaning than mere fashion. As quoted from Rolling Stone, â€Å"Until Babylon fell, according to one legend; the Rastas would not cut their hair. They grew it long in a fearsome appearance called dreadlocks† (Gilmore 5). Another element from the Rastafarian Movement was the use of marijuana to create a deeper connection with Selassie. Marley used marijuana as a creative outlet in songwriting and Marley, along with many Rasta musicians, followed the ritual of smoking marijuana or â€Å"ganja† for thi s spiritual experience. Marley’s songs came from a deep spiritual determination, to spread the message of the Rastafarian faith and to fight against those who sought to put down the poor and less fortunate of the world. According to author Rex Ruff, â€Å"Bob Marley reaffirms his adherence to Rastafari on Forever Loving Jah from Uprising the final album released during his lifetime. Uprising features the acoustic Redemption Song which implores the listener: emancipate yourselves from mental slavery none but ourselves can free our mind, reiterating the self-empowering convictions that Rastafarian tenets have sought to establish (Bob and Rastafarian Beliefs). The poor of Jamaica were subject to deprivation because of the decisions that were being made by the political parties put in place after Jamaica had become a free nation. On one hand, there was the Peoples National Party, led by Michael Manley, who fought for constitutional rights, and on the other hand, there was the Jamaican Labor Party, led b y Edward Seaga, who desired to put Jamaica’s capital interests abroad before the welfare of the nation. Both the People’s National Party and the Jamaican Labor Party were primarily run by white members and Marley took neither side, but was said to have small favor towards Michael Manley’s People’s National Party. In 1976 the December elections were drawing near and violent protests were taking over the streets of Kingston. Marley had become such a prominent idol for  Jamaican citizens and the People’s National Party thought a concert performed by Marley would help calm the city during the election. Marley agreed to perform with his band The Wailers at the Smile Jamaica concert. Although Marley had expressed political neutrality, some believed that Marley had favor for Michael Manley’s side. During rehearsal, just two days before the concert, Marley and some members of his band were shot at. No one involved in the shooting were killed, but both Marley and his manager at the time suffered injuries. Marley went on to perform at the Smile Jamaica concert to keep the peace, but fled the country immediately after the show ended. After the Smile Jamaica concert Marley performed again at the One Love Peace concert where he persuaded Michael Manley and Edward Seaga up on the stage to shake hands. This concert symbolized Marley’s true desire for peace and harmony between the political parties of Jamaica’s new government. As Gilmore writes, â€Å"On April 22nd, at the One Love Peace Concert, Marley managed to coax both Michael Manley and Edward Saga onstage with him and held their hands together with his in a gesture of coexistence† (Gilmor e 9). Marley died of cancer at the young age of 36, but his music is still alive and reaches hundreds of people every single day. One of the things that made Marley’s music so effective was his ability to speak an intense message through a creative melody. From Rolling Stone, â€Å"He was a superb melody writer, and his songs’ insinuating pop hooks pull the listener into the realities Marley was describing† (Gillmore 12). Although much of the Marley legacy lives on in America as a mere trend, one who chooses to look deeper into his message will feel the power Marley had intended through his poetry that was meant for an oppressed nation.

Examining whether glaxoSmithKline has successful internal innovation

Examining whether glaxoSmithKline has successful internal innovation 1) GSK is a leader in the pharmaceuticals industry with 7 per cent of the world market. Its mission is to better the quality of human life so that the people feel better, live longer and is able to perform the tasks assigned to them properly. This can only be achieved by proper planning and implementation of research and development programmes. GSKs purpose of merger was to improve R D (as it would also obtain technology from outside) because it looks to excel in internal innovation by making use of the knowledge and learning provided by individuals of other organisations. These individuals might be experienced, trained, flexible, committed and help the firm to accomplish its goals which is its primary objective. The main aim of internal innovation is to outperform its competition by implementing new ideas into developing new and better products which are sustainable in the market. GSK focuses on providing drugs at a cheaper rate to the developing countries. GSKs strategy is to nurtu re, distribute and make things easier. It implements its strategies by employing a large number of people in different countries. The employees research to produce new pharmaceuticals to treat the diseases focused on. However, GSK is facing a problem of patent expiry. It has 30 patented drugs that are nearing expiry. So it wants to redefine its range of drugs by focussing on its R D. The individuals involved must have a positive attitude and should be willing to take risks. They should learn from each other and also understand what others are doing. That would help in implementation. Implementation involves the proper utilisation of resources and capabilities of a firm. It involves the management of innovation and focuses on managing politics, control and fighting with change. 2) GlaxoSmithKline wants to ensure that the firm focuses on the best science. It realised that to be successful in future, it needs to be more innovative. So it reorganised its research and development area to improve efficiency and accomplish its goals. It created 70 Discovery Performance Units (DPUs) which focussed on eight therapy areas for future growth of the company. However, GSK successfully completed or extended 21 new drug discoveries in the year 2008. Innovation involves the implementation of ideas into some new product and the new product leads to new opportunities. In case of GSK, it would generate more revenue if the ideas are implemented properly. New technology provides a competitive edge to the firm. The four elements of implementation are leadership, engagement, alignment and extension. The 70 DPUs would affect these four elements. The DPUs are compact, fully authorised, determined and integrated teams which are responsible for a small part of the pipeline associated with the production of a drug. The teams include scientists, marketing specialists, engineers and others from key business domains to work on innovations. The exchange of ideas amongst its own scientists through building alliances and meetings are encouraged. They showcase different compounds and potential products. R D groups of individuals gather and learn about new products and processes. In case of GSK, leadership would focus on creating procedures for innovation and distribute sufficient resources for crucial activities. It would help in the induction of supportive systems and policies and set up adequate infrastructure for achieving the required goals. Engagement would focus on building a knowledge based cultu re, education, progress and mentoring. Alignment would help in building a competent organisation and would bind rewards to accomplishments. Extension would help in examining organisational capabilities and search for other prospects. It would also develop and share lessons learnt. Implementation ensures that the goals and support of management are understood properly. It also involves looking out for people who possess the necessary skills required to meet the project objectives. The internal culture and external environment of GSK would also affect the implementation effort. We can expect disinterest, apprehensions, satisfaction, hostility and competition for resources. The teams might become satisfied with their achievements and their ideas could be clashing with each other. They may lack the necessary skills. This would hinder the future growth of the firm and it would not be able to accomplish its goals. However, engagement would help them overcome the problem. Implementation also involves setting up of scrutinising system which addresses possible technical and market uncertainties arising out of radical, continuous change and competition from the external environment. Radical change involves high risk whereas continuous change involves low to medium risk. This is because radical change has a wider impact on the firm as the failure of the product will demotivate the firm and decrease its revenues whereas continuous change has a marginal impact on the firm because improvements are made to the existing product or service. Radical change involves major streamlining of the firm, product line or market. The case study shows that GSK has a background and the processes that support innovation. It also hires individuals to conduct research and develop new products, encourages employees to try out new ideas, undertake risks and experiment. The first part of these processes involves constructing a structure for innovation. Proper teams and co-ordination between different units in an organisation like GSK are needed for the successful implementation. It needs to organise special training and development programmes for the employees, providing technical knowledge about the product, programmes on marketing the product, focus on building new skills in employees and encouraging cross functional activities. 3) GSK needs to evaluate its total organisational performance because it is large, the external environment factors (political, social, economical, technological and competitive factors), the strategic environment, information systems and structural analysis. An organisation involves human, physical, financial and information resources and how these resources are used in the management, operations, production and integration of ideas and actions. The output is the products and services. However, it needs a process to evaluate the diverse ideas and products because it produces far more ideas and products than it can follow at any given time. Cost plays a crucial role when it comes to evaluating an idea. GSK also needs to evaluate the innovation cost which is the internal cost to develop and distribute and also the true cost to the customer to purchase and use. It needs to calculate the costs for development and marketing, market penetration and sales when evaluating a new product and service. It needs a business plan (expected revenue, cost of producing a product or service and profits to be generated) to commercialise the ideas. The evaluation process helps GSK in assessing the kind of innovations it should continue supporting or initiate support for. The team promoting the product should have the ability to justify the product at each step of the process. It should continue with ideas or products that are generating revenue and doing well in the market. It should also start developing new products which have the potential to do well in the market because that will provide competitive advantage to the firm. It would create new opportunities and customers. The shareholders would not hesitate to invest in the firm if it is doing well because they would get appropriate returns on their investment. The evaluation system is designed to be flexible and helps GSK to discontinue those projects that are not meeting expectations. In other words, those projects are hinder ing the growth of the firm. GSKs disciplined and focussed approach has the most influence on how well it evaluates progress towards stated innovation goals. It sees where and how resources are allocated within R D. It terminated more than 35 per cent of discovery projects following the reorganisation in 2008. Those projects might not be meeting its expectations. The DPUs were given financial support for three years after the termination of the projects. The financial support aids the R D group to focus on granting the best science and the best product for the consumers but at the same time it also gave them tough timelines to produce a profitable product. If the product is not profitable it will reduce the revenues of the firm. In that case the firm would have to discontinue with the product. In 2008, GSK received 30 per cent of its revenues from products that had been in existence for less than three years as an outcome of these innovation efforts. It means its revenue was coming from new products. It gained t he first mover advantage. However, it needed to improve its old products. GSKs widespread internal development efforts often lead to innovations that do not fit with the companys main focus. 4) There are three types of control systems: financial control, strategic control and cultural control. They all have advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of financial control are that it is quantitative and easy to understand. The disadvantages are it can become narrow, internally focussed and analysis paralysis is possible. The example of financial control is that it leads to percentage of profit increase from new products. GSK employs financial control because 30 per cent of its revenue has come from products which have been in existence for less than three years. The advantages of strategic control are that it sets direction, more qualitative and fits environment. The disadvantages are it is hard to justify based on some financials, can lose sight of where the firm is. The example of strategic control is that it leads to increase in market share. The case study shows that GSK employs strategic control because its widespread internal development efforts often lead to innov ations that do not fit with the companys main focus. The advantages of cultural control are that it is very behavioural and qualitative. The disadvantage is it requires managers to be involved on a personal level. The example of cultural control is that it leads to value enhancement. GSK employs cultural control because it develops external discovery teams with other firms or universities or research labs. However, it can be seen that GSK faces a vague institutional environment because it emphasises both on financial and strategic control and firms that prefer strategic control to financial control adopt strict corporate authority. The choice of innovation mode is affected considerably by the firms internal control procedures. Therefore a model was developed to look at the relationship between a firms internal control procedures and preference of innovation mode. Using a sample of 585 Chinese firms, this study tests the proposed model. The findings show that strategic control has a negative relationship with incremental innovation but a positive relationship with radical innovation, while financial control has a positive relationship with incremental innovation but a negative relationship with radical innovation. So, GSK should employ strategic control for radical innovation and financial control for incremental innovation. There is a need to make amendments if a gap is identified between goals and performance. This can only be achieved through proper planning. GSK needs to be more cross functional by rethinking of the business processes. In particular the knowledge, equipment and processes must be managed and controlled properly. The processes used by the firm for its internal innovation must be redesigned and looked upon for improvements to meet its objectives. It will help GSK gain competitive advantage. Key decisions should be made by those involved in the innovative process. They would identify new opportunities and find solutions to the existing problems. GSK should develop new goals if the existing goals do not match its capabilities. The goals must be rational and easily achievable because that would save time and money. The individuals involved must have strong personal idea and ethics with the firms values and goals.