...Case Study--American Tool Works American Tool Works (ATW) is a leading U.S. manufacturer of high-quality power and hand tools, such as electric drills, hammers, and so forth. The company has manufacturing facilities all over the world, and its main markets are in Europe and North America. Products are sold through distributors and dealers or directly to home owners and tradesmen. ATW enjoys a very successful partnership with its distributors and dealers. This channel provides about 80 percent of its revenue, and, as a result, is the focus of the new management team that took over in 2004. The relationship between ATW and its distributors and dealers may take two forms: Large distributors tend to have a vendor-managed inventory (VMI) agreement with ATW. In this situation, ATW monitors the inventory levels of various products at the distributors' facilities, and makes additional shipments as necessary. Midsize and small distributors do not have the technical capability to participate in the VMI relationship, since they don't have the technology to automatically transfer the necessary sales and inventory information to ATW. Many of these distributors sell not only ATW products, but many products from firms that compete with ATW. The large distributors are typically pleased by the performance of the VMI agreement. ATW Supply Chain VP Dave Morrison recently instituted a series of meetings with ATW's key large dealers. In these conversations, the dealers emphasized the following: ...
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...United States of America. The text is intended to show the long term impact of overpricing health services on the American economy. For instance, the author argues that a lot of money from the government is being spent on the provision of health care wrongly bypaying for services that are overpriced through its insurance programs. The author argues that the government and other stakeholders are contributing to the high cost of health care due to them failing take initiatives aimed at reducing this cost. Therefore, the author uses the text as a tool of convincing Americans on the need of reducing the unrealistic cost of health services in order to reduce the negative implications of the high cost of health care to the economy in the future. For purposes of ensuring that his message gets the attention of the readers he uses different persuasive strategies. First, the author uses the strategy of social proof as his persuasive strategy. The author uses the findings of other researchers to support the argument relating to the impact of the high cost of health care to the economy. For example, the author uses the study conducted by MCkinsey&Co.consultingcompany to support the theme of the text. Secondly, the author uses comparisons as a persuasive strategy. In this case the author uses the cost of treating cancer, which many readers can relate to. The author gives the case of Sean, who had to pay $83,900 in advance in order to get treatment and chemotherapy from MD Anderson cancer...
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...The newspaper article I came up with is an editorial from The Washington Post titled “The NSA must disclose more to make it case”. This article touches on a sensitive topic which has spark out a debate across the country. The article says “the bulk collection of phone ‘metadata’ and call records is a potentially powerful tool that could reveal sensitive facts about nearly every American’s life if abused, and according to the article this practice was disclosed by the NSA’s former contractor Edward Snowden who demands extensive checks to guard against misuse (Washington Post, 2013). According to the article, a taskforce was formed and was to submit a report to President Obama, in their report they would like to see a higher legal standard applied in accessing phone records by government. The report proposed an end to the bulk collection of records, calling on the NSA to approach phone companies and ask for records as when investigators need them on a case-by-case basis. Government officials seemed to open in considering this arrangement but voiced concern that investigative speed may be lost in the interest of privacy protection (Washington Post, 2013) The article argued that for the NSA to make a strong case, it must demonstrate the national security benefit to the program. It further did mentioned of the U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon who issued an injunction to prevent the bulk collection of the data. His actions gives the government a chance to appeal and he ruled that...
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...institution you are faced with many task and responsibilities. Managers must be equipped with both technical and interpersonal skills in order to thrive in today’s business world. These skills include leadership, motivation, team work, conflict-resolution abilities and an understanding of diversity and diversity management. Today’s work population is constantly changing; we encounter different people from all walks of life. As a result there is more interaction among people from diverse cultures, beliefs, and backgrounds than ever before. Maximizing and capitalizing on workplace diversity has become an important issue in the field of management. According to some experts “Diversity can have two competing perspectives. The first perspective embraces the “information value of diversity” and the importance of “celebrating our differences”. The second perspective believes that diversity contributes to conflict because “similarity attracts” and therefore, it is best not to draw attention to diversity and instead emphasize that as human beings our commonalities far outweigh our differences. The first perspective argues for customization, while the second advocates for homogenization. Whatever your perspective, the facts remain the same; today’s work population is changing and with any change comes both challenges and opportunities for organizations and their leaders. Diversity Management is a combination of programs, policies and activities that support an environment wherein...
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...Ethical and Legal Issues in Nursing NUR/391 July 28, 2013 Mary Nicks, MSN, RN Ethical and Legal Issues in Nursing In this paper ethical and legal issues will be reviewed concerning the decisions and responsibilities of the nurse in the case of Marianne who has had a stroke and the decisions that the family is facing for treatment or end of life care. The legal and ethical issues in a malpractice case that occurred several years ago and the responsibility of the nurse to her employer, the nurse being sued, the client in question, and the institution’s client will be reviewed. The areas that will be reviewed include how the American Nurses Association Code of Ethics would influence a final decision in each case study, how personal and societal values can influence the ethical decision making, the fundamental legal aspects of each case study, and the legal responsibility of the nurse in the work setting. The ANA code of Ethics must be followed in practice and is an especially useful tool when there are difficult legal and ethical issues that arise in nursing practice. In the example of the malpractice case for negligence, as a witness to questionable practice, it is the nurse’s primary responsibility to protect the safety of the patient. Although the nurse was correct in reporting the episode to administration, she also had a duty to counsel the nurse about the inappropriate standard of care. The ANA is clear that when a nurse is aware of questionable practice...
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...45th President of the United States of America, and he represented the first African American to ever win this office. To many the election was a fulfillment of Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream for social and political equality for African Americans. Still others, including the newly elected President, reached back to Lincoln. President Obama would also, invoke the founding fathers, giving credit to the social experiment that democracy is and thus hinting to the efforts of Washington and others. The days that followed the Obama election would be filled with symbolism leading to the concert on the steps of the Lincoln memorial, and the day of service, called by the President, in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. the day before inauguration. The election of President Obama seemed to have brought full circle the experiment of democracy. The dreams of the founding fathers were present, the echo of Lincoln’s consequential Presidency were present, and certainly the dreams and speeches of Dr. King were front and center in this cultural moment. Yet the cultural moment represented so much more than a continuum of ideas and dreams of significant men. This moment was one of the first major societal changes in a generation. Perhaps not Ironically, the election of Barak Obama had ripple effects upon social change in the United States and what came full circle on November 4, 2008 for the African American and minority communities would begin to happen for yet another oppressed minority...
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...Introduction Smoking is one of the biggest health problems seen throughout the United States. It is estimated that cigarette smoking contributes to around 450,000 deaths every year and cost the U.S. $193 billion annually in direct medical expenses and lost productivity (Porter 2013). Cigarette smoking is an addictive habit and for the majority of smokers is very hard to quit, especially by themselves. It is difficult if one is a non-smoker to grasp and understand the dynamics of the addiction and successful quitting usually requires a significant amount of assistance and support. Nurse practitioners are there to provide professional assistance by helping patients take the appropriate steps and measures to ensure their success in smoking cessation. Difficulty of Smoking Cessation In general, most people who smoke know smoking is bad for their health and can contribute to many other health problems and even death, so why can’t they just quit? If it were that easy there would be significantly less smokers in this country. The problem is not the desire to quit but rather the actual act of stoping smoking for good. The fact of reality is there are plenty of smokers out there who want to quit but just can’t due to the complexity and addictive nature of the habit. The three main components of tobacco smoke include; tar, carbon monoxide and nicotine (McEwen 2014). Most of the health issues that arise from smoking cigarettes are directly linked to tar and carbon monoxide components...
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...TOOL KIT Maximizing Your Return on People New tools can show you which investments in employees are driving company performance now and which you should emphasize to advance your strategic goals. by Laurie Bassi and Daniel McMurrer M J.D. King ANAGERS ARE FOND OF THE MAXIM “Employees are our most important asset.” Yet beneath the rhetoric, too many executives still regard – and manage – employees as costs. That’s dangerous because, for many companies, people are the only source of long-term competitive advantage. Companies that fail to invest in employees jeopardize their own success and even survival. In part, this practice has lingered for lack of alternatives. Until recently, there simply weren’t robust methods for measuring the bottom-line contributions of investments in human capital management (HCM) – things like leadership development, job design, and knowledge sharing. That’s changed. Over the past decade, we have worked with colleagues worldwide to develop a system for assessing HCM, predicting organizational performance, and guiding organizations’ investments in people. hbr.org | March 2007 | Harvard Business Review 115 TOOL KIT | Maximizing Your Return on People Using the framework we describe here has the obvious and immediate practical benefit of improving organizational performance. More broadly, though, as the links between people and performance come into focus, organizations will also begin to appreciate the long-term value...
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...Trident University Module 1 Case Assignment MGT501 Management and Organizational Behavior In this case study I will analyze Ms. Myers journey to a different culture than she was used to how it went wrong and what she might have done better to try and better prepare herself for the journey that she thought she could handle. I’ll analyze the problem using Hofstede’s five dimensions of culture to compare Korean and American assumptions. I will also make recommendations to her management style that might have helped accommodate the Korean environment. Linda Myers journey started out with good intentions and she felt she had a good idea of what she was getting herself into since she had been consulting for Asian firms and thought that she understood the culture well enough to fit in. Her problem was also compounded by the fact that she would be a woman trying to trail blaze into a field and culture dominated by men. It definitely did not help that she didn’t speak the language and from the reading doesn’t appear to have tried to really learn it instead relying on her associates to speak to her in English or having to use an interpreter. She came into the job with big ambitions and plans to change her Korean associate’s way of doing business not understanding that they didn’t want to change. Now let’s look at Hofstede’s five dimensions of culture to compare Korean and American assumptions. First, Power Distance (P/D) According to Mind Tools: This refers to the degree of...
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...company. Some of the things we will discuss will be that of how my chosen corporation American Express applies some of the forecasting techniques to better develop the company. There will also be the analysis of production plans, master production schedules, and carrying inventory and how it relates to the overall American Express budget. Along with all the above we will also compare and contrast how planning usage differentiates between a service organization such as American Express and a manufacturing organization. Lastly we will also compare and contrast the use of material requirements planning system concepts. When it comes to forecasting it is first important to determine the different types of forecasting and how they are classified. In forecasting there are four basic types which are qualitative, time series analysis, casual relationship, and simulation. The first forecasting type qualitative is "subjective or judgmental and are based on estimates and opinions", (Chase, Jacobs, & Aquilano, 2006). Some of the main characteristics of qualitative forecasting are market research which is encompassed by collecting data by surveys and interviews which help determine market hypothesis. This research is most commonly used for long range and new product sales. This would be a great description as to when American Express uses surveys to improve on new production of invoicing and reporting tools to provide to our clients. Another characteristic to qualitative forecasting is historical...
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...ISSUES IN ACCOUNTING EDUCATION Vol. 26, No. 1 2011 pp. 155–162 American Accounting Association DOI: 10.2308/iace.2011.26.1.155 Bioscience Company: Accounting for Idle Plant Assets Victoria Dickinson, Paul Kimmel, and Terry Warfield ABSTRACT: Bioscience Company and its auditors have been in discussions with the SEC concerning the accounting for its long-lived assets. Among the issues being discussed is the company’s discontinuation of depreciation on productive assets that it had used previously, but it was not currently using. The case permits a technical examination of depreciation and impairment accounting issues with consideration of the FASB’s asset/liability measurement approach, fair value accounting, use of the FASB Codification, and comparisons to International Financial Reporting Standards. The case requirements are divided into basic requirements, which would be appropriate for intermediate level students; and advanced requirements, which would be more appropriate for accounting seniors, as well as M.B.A. and fifth-year accounting students. Keywords: accounting for long-lived assets; depreciation; impairment. INTRODUCTION ristin Murphy recently joined the audit team of one of the more interesting clients in her accounting firm’s practice. An important issue has arisen for this client on a topic that she has not encountered in her four years with the firm. Following is some background on the client and the accounting issue under consideration. K BIOSCIENCE...
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...(1999). Comparative Racialization: Racial Profiling and the Case of Wen Ho Lee. UCLA L. Rev., 47, 1689. The author in this article gives an insight on comparative racialization using a case study of Wen Ho Lee who was a Chinese American. He was a nuclear physicist and was accused of spying on the American intelligence. The authors aim in using Wen Ho was to show the difference between racial treatment among African Americans and Asian Americans. This article further gives a comparative analysis of different cases of racial profiling and the different underlying categories in racial profiling among different races in the United States. This article relates to the thesis statement in the sense that it is not centered on one ethnic group or race, but it give a comparative analysis to help the ready understand different categories of racial profiling, as well as, how they happen. Further, the article details on why the minorities are the way they are, as well as, why they feel inferior compared to white Americans in the United States. Meehan, A. J., & Ponder, M. C. (2002). Race and place: The ecology of racial profiling African American motorists. Justice Quarterly, 19(3),...
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...costs of products, services, processes, activities etc. Activity based management makes this cost and operating information useful by providing value analysis ,cost drivers and performance measures to initiate, drive and support improvement efforts and to improve decision making abilities. This report deals with the application of ABM in American Seating company. Company was faced with increasing competition and it wanted to become a cost leader. The company lacked the information about true product and services cost to decide on which business areas to pursue. Company implemented ABM to conduct a detailed analysis of its activities and more accurately mirror resource consumption by process, product and customer. Company successfully identified customer profitability differences and achieved 40 % reduction in order processing costs. ABM was later incorporated into continuous improvement efforts, planning sessions and budgeting process. Table of contents Sr no | Topic | Page no | 1 | Introduction | 3 | 2 | Literature review | 4 | 3 | Basics of ABC | 5 | 4 | ABM implementation steps | 6 | 5 | Understanding ABM through a case study | 6 | | 5.1 | Company overview | 6 | | 5.2 | Business Issue | 7 |...
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...supervision, and accurately and objectively identified higher risk juveniles who most need and can most benefit from rehabilitative treatment. Monthly statistics tell the story. In April 2007, the department was managing a caseload of 400 juveniles with a staff of 10 supervising field officers and an outpatient treatment budget of $120,000. Today, the total caseload is down to about 280, as the department has done a better job keeping very low risk youth out of the system altogether. Of those youth who do enter the system, some 150 low risk youth are supervised by 1 1/2 officers with diversion programs and minimal supervision, while the remaining officers are managing the 130 moderate to high risk juveniles (a 38% reduction in individual case load size) and providing individualized treatment through programs such as FFT (Functional Family Therapy) and T4C (Thinking for a Change)– cognitive behavioral programs that have shown through research to reduce a youth’s likelihood to reoffend. continued on page 8 Yolo County CA Probation Department Achieving Positive Outcomes with Assessments.com With her County experiencing a dramatic 70% reduction in juvenile residential placement over a three-year period, the chief of Yolo County Probation was being questioned by other juvenile justice...
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...cultures, Chinese and American, on the issue of parenting. The two different cultures have different aspects when it comes to parenting. Chinese and American cultures differ when it comes to parenting. American culture tends to complement a child and praise unlike Chinese who tend to criticize. There are main instances where Chinese Americans have been treated with a complimentary lifestyle in school but have a different culture of criticism when they are back at home. It is very confusing...
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