An overview of the concept of cosmetic accounting Essay

An overview of the concept of cosmetic accounting - Essay Example From this research it is clear that cosmetic or creative accounting is a process where accountant use their knowledge about accounting rules to change or manipulate the reported figures of the company’s business accounts. Cosmetic accounting can be describe in different ways like it is referred as the terms of income smoothing , earning management , earning smoothing or somewhere as financial engineering. The term cosmetic accounting is used when ,accepted accounting techniques those are not allow to use as to report financial results of a company, and with the help of creative accounting those prohibited techniques are used to manipulate accurate picture of the company. The methods of creative accounting are noteworthy because they remain in use as generally accepted accounting principal. As an author every company is fiddling its profit, every sets of published accounts are based on books which have been gently cooked or completely roasted. This deception is all in perfectly good taste. It is creative accounting. Creative accounting also based on some unethical elements like as accounting details of a restaurant can be anything (true and fair). The creativity in such details is like showing a half glass of water as half-full instead of presenting it as half-empty. Both statements are correct but both can paint different pictures and create different images in user’s mind. Sometimes, creativity accounting can be described as accounting manipulation.... This way, the management can reduce the net income’s fluctuations from one period to another. An explanation why cosmetic accounting is considered as blessing or curse: Cosmetic accounting can be considered as blessing when it contributes to clear or maintain the existing accounting system. And it can become a curse when it is used un-ethically to treat unfairly a specific group of users of financial statements. Most of the accountants believe that cosmetic accounting can be used as both of blessing and curse. According to a survey only 10% respondent think that this technique could be a blessing and 21% think that it is a curse. Cosmetic accounting can be used in two ways Positive Negative Simply the positive one can treat as blessing as to represent the true and fair position of the company. It can use to polish the account interests, but also as an accounting engineering consist on agreed accounting policies. As according to International Accounting Standard 1, â€Å"Compa nies can chose any procedure for maintaining their accounting records from the set of procedure those are declared true and fair† Negative form of cosmetic accounting is when this technique is used unethically to damage a specific group of users of financial statements. For example Companies can use a technique to include capital profits as operating Profits from the sale of properties and shares. Companies can record unrealized capital gains as operating profit. Companies can include the profits of their associated companies as their own profits to make the better financial position. In short the Positive one recognizes genuine changes in the business accounting practices while the Negative one reflects undesirable

Cultural differences in leadership

Cultural differences in leadership To what extent is leadership culturally dependent? Take a look at the following statements collected from interviews with different managers from different countries: The American people value two types of leaders. They search for empowerment from leaders who establish self-sufficiency governance and assign authority to subordinates. They also give high opinion to the confident, forceful, risk-taking and bold leader as personified by John Wayne. The Dutch puts high importance on egalitarianism and are doubtful about the significance of leadership. Words like manager and leader are seen to be dishonoured. If a father is in employment as a manager, Dutch children will not acknowledge this to their friends. Arabs adore and give veneration their leaders as long as they are in authority! Iranians search for supremacy and strength in their leaders. Malaysians imagine their leaders to act in a manner that is meek, reserved, and distinguished. The French value two types of leaders e.g. Mitterand and De Gaulle. Mitterand is an example of a harmonious builder, association former and successful negotiator. De Gaulle seen as an example of a strong charismatic and enigmatic leader. Given the quick expanding of globalization of firms and improved interdependencies among countries, the need for greater understanding of cultural pressures on leadership and managerial practices has never been higher. In recent times, managers of global organisations face stern and hastily altering in international competition. The up-and-coming drift in the direction of an international economic society is apparent and this 21st century we find ourselves in may just become called the global world (McFarland, Senen, Childress, 1993). The huge significance depended on the interaction and communication in todays business world which is becoming known as a global village makes it mandatory for multinational firms and their leaders to dig deeper to acquire the knowledge of other global leaders and their culture to be able to better interact and conduct lucrative business with them without offending their way of life. As national economies, political systems, cultures, technologies, res ources and industries increasingly converge perhaps to meld, perhaps to take shape in new forms global management skills and abilities become more important to all organizations. These skills will be diverse. (Parker, B. (2005) p. 24). The globalization of firms shows quite a few leadership and organizational challenges which the success of organisational leadership happens to be majorly dependent on for the success of international operations. There are essential limitations in conveying theories from one culture to the next. What is successful in a particular culture may not necessarily be as victorious or openly accepted in another culture. According to Triandis (1993), leadership researchers would be able to modify theories by exploring cultural dissimilarities as constraints of those theories. According to Northouses (2004) general definition of leadership Leadership is a process whereby a person influences a group of people to achieve a common goal. Organizational leadership can be described as the ability of a person to inspire, persuade, encourage and allow others to contribute towards the effectiveness and success of the organizations of which they are members (GLOBE PROJECT, 1997. Pg.5). In addition, the GLOBE PROJECT research (1997) views culture as being operationally defined by the use of measures reflecting two kinds of cultural manifestations: (a) the commonality (agreement) among members of collectives with respect to the psychological attributes specified above; and (b) the commonality of observed and reported practices of entities such as families, schools, work organizations, economic and legal systems, and political institutions. With the ever growing trend of globalization in todays world which is categorized by the never-ending growth of global trade and to a greater extent international mergers acquisitions, the necessity of knowing and having a better grasp of the different qualities of various cultures become s mandatory for individuals working in these conditions. A lot of the impending disagreements, inconsistencies and disturbances in international joint ventures are mainly a result of the lack of taking into account the cross-cultural differences when establishing the venture (Lichtenberger, B. et al., 1993). Apart from companies that have the intention or plan or already have merged or acquired companies from other countries, this understanding is very vital for companies which are located in other counties with the intent of doing business with other companies from different countries. When it comes to the stage of outsourcing and transferring of production products or plants, issues arise on the matter of deciding which particular manager will be the most appropriate to put in the national or regional branches of the firm. The cultural background of the manager and that of the firm would also be considered. The kind of manager that will be able to go about the operations of the fi rm with little or no distractions from the culture of the firm and its employees and also how effective leadership for the firm can be guaranteed are all issues that would be taken into consideration when choosing a suitable manager. With the help of a feasible framework to assist in conducting and directing cross-cultural leadership research, it is easier understood. Some of these frameworks would be discussed below. One of the many research carried out on cross-cultural issues in leadership includes the Globe Project. The prime researcher of GLOBE (the Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Effectiveness Research Project) is Robert J. House, along with numerous co-prime researchers and an international coordinating group. He directs a group of over 190 researchers from all over the globe in the study of the different types of networks of leadership, organizational culture and societal culture. Other dimensional frameworks include those by Hofstedes (1980), Schwartz (1999), Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck (1961) Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (1997), Hofstede (1980, 2001) and those which were originated during the GLOBE study (e.g. House et al., 1999House and Hanges, Ruiz-Quintanilla, 1997;). According to Bass , B. M. et al, one of the major characteristics of a charismatic leader is having an enormous influence on its followers (Bass, B. M. et al. (1990) p. 184). The supervision and management of a charismatic leader will direct its followers to performing better as it increases their motivation and zeal to become more productive which in turn increases the power and authority the leader has over them therefore, charismatic leadership is extremely vital in the organizational context as well (Hwang, A. et al. (2005) p. 963). Charismatic leaders are often seen as very energetic and self-motivated individuals who offer motivation and encouragement, are enthusiastic about what is necessary and competent (De Vries, M. K. (1996) p. 486). Therefore, following a charismatic leader is not just obeying orders to satisfy the superior, it is more a conviction about the performance and the beliefs of the leader (Ladkin, D. (2006) p. 173). This implies that the influence of a charismatic leader is hig hly accepted by his followers. They do not follow the leader because they have to but do so because they feel a sense of loyalty and attraction towards the leader. Charismatic leaders are viewed to require strong emotional and social skills because of the need of an intimate communication with the subordinates and offering the inspiration needed for them (Grove, K. S. (2005) p. 258). The United States and Japan have been chosen as comparison cultures due to their highly divergent relevance for a broader understanding of communication phenomena in cultures. According to Hofstede (2001, pg 9), the United States is a highly individualistic culture. However Japan is a collectivistic culture. Japanese management and leadership styles have received extensive attention in both the scholarly and popular management literature in the United States (Hofstede, 2001, pg 9). Ochi (1981) suggested Theory Z due to the organizational management principles in Japanese firms. He suggested that most Japanese firms operations could be implemented by some of the American firms. Therefore, Japan is seen to have a similar culture to that of the United States for scholars examining leadership within organisations. Leadership in the United States is identified by recognising leaders functions in organisations and grouping the various kinds of leadership found into different leadership styles. For example, Yukl (2002) defines leadership as leadership is the process of influencing others to understand and agree about what needs to be done and how it can be done effectively, and the process of facilitating individual and collective efforts to accomplish the shared goalsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Leadership is treated as both a specialized role and a social influence process (Yukls 2002 pg. 5). Yukl (2002) also suggested that decision making is an important function for leaders. Therefore, the techniques which different leaders decide to engage in making decisions has been raised as a subject matter which has to be further investigated. A way of making efficient decisions by a leader is known as participatory leadership. Yukl (2002), also suggested that a lot of the functions of administrators and managers inc lude deciding executing decisions involving the different procedures needed to complete a particular task, choosing the right subordinates, finding solutions technical difficulties, deciding on which subordinate deserves a pay increase and so on. In addition, Indvik, 1986 proposed that supportive leadership has been proven to show that there is consistent strong positive connection between the subordinates satisfaction and the organisations commitment and also with fair to strong connections with the subordinates positions uncertainty and performance in the United States. The moderate masculinity and low power distance ratings for the United States culture are highly reflected in these findings. Directive leadership has also been a significant factor in most United States firms with some analysis made which showed strong positive associations determining the subordinates satisfaction and role ambiguity and moderate positive associations with the surbordinates performance (Podoff, Tudor, Schuler, 1983). Nevertheless, these findings are profoundly based on the characteristics of the firm and the individual. Kerr and Jermier (1978) argued that employees who are extremely skilled, knowledgeable and certified will need little or no directive leader role model to be able to carry out their responsibilities. As pointed out by Hofstede (1980) and Smith and Peterson (1988) the exceedingly high individualism trait found in the United States strongly relies on the participative management processes. Keys and Miller (1982) proposed that the reason for the effectiveness leadership style is due to the fact that their style of decision making has lead to inherent job contentment, dedication, allocation of decision making and increased levels of motivation. Ochi (1981) proposed that the Japanese culture is seen as a collectivistic culture. Therefore the practise in the Japanese organisations would be to put emphasis on collective responsibility and collective decision making. According to Hirokawa (1981), he used a communicative perspective to explain the Japanese firms style of participative leadership communication. Leaders in Japanese firms are meant to act as effective communicators in order for them to be fully understood and effective. Managers aid, persuade and assist the flow of information and knowledge between their members and this also leads to the effectiveness of the Japanese firms. Most leaders in Japanese organisations endeavour to sustain harmony within the firm and also adopt a bottom-up process of decision-making so that they are more accessible by their workers. The United States, as depicted by Hofstede (1980) is highly individualistic, medium on masculinity and low on power distance and uncertainty avoidance. Howell and Dorfman (1988) explained paternalism in the United States as medium while Confucianism in Japanese firms needs reverence and submission from subordinated to leaders who have in the past responded with highly paternalistic attitudes (Peter W. Dorfman et.al, 1997) The high achievement and high individualism motivations that characterizes United States employees are shown in rewards and retribution contingent on a persons performance (McClelland Boyatzis, 1982). Over and over again, affirmative effects for reliant reward behaviour in the United States has been proven by Podoff and his associates (1992). Showing concern for followers and getting engaged in their private lives is expected by managers in japanese firms therefore these organisation are exceedingly hierarchical and are firmly organized (Chen, 1995) Given the various leadership styles and differences and similarities between the United States and Japan, some recommendations on how to better achieve effective leadership between them from ( from the Japanese perspective) is discussed as follows. In affective cultures, such as the United States, leaders tend to exhibit their emotions. They reveal their thoughts verbally and non-verbally. Touching, gesturing and strong facial expressions are commonly used and their statements are made fluently and dramatically while in neutral cultures, such as Japan and China, leaders do not tend to show their emotions. They do not reveal what they are thing or feeling. Physical contact, gesturing or strong facial expressions are not used and their statements are mostly said in a monotonous voice. Some of the key factors that a Japanese Manager should keep in mind before venturing out to the U.s to lead a group of employees is that he should avoid a detached, ambiguous and cool demeanor as this will be perceived as a negative behavior. They should try and find out whose work and enthusiasm are being directed into which projects so that they are able to better appreciate the vigor and commitment the U.S employees have for these efforts towards their jobs. They should let people be emotional without personally becoming intimated by their behavior. These Japanese managers also have to work a bit on themselves as this is not just a one-way street. They should not put off stride when the employees create scenes and become hysterical; they should take some time out for sober reflection and not react on impulse. They should also keep in mind that the purpose of the business is typically focused on themselves as a person rather than the aim or purpose of the proposition that is being presented. In conclusion, as discussed above about the different leadership frameworks in which both countries fall into, it is quite clear that the differences out-weighs the similarities in their leadership styles. These differences need to be taken into consideration if an effective leadership is desired.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) :: essays papers

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Preemployment screening can help management avoid hiring problem employees. However, employers must carefully walk through the screening process, or they may find themselves in violation of the discrimination laws set by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Security Management, with the assistance of legal experts, has reviewed the docket of 131 recent ADA cases at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to see whether any instructive trends are evident. The docket consists of ADA cases currently under litigation or recently decided. Most of the cases reviewed concerned preemployment issues, rather than disagreements that arose during employment. The ADA divides employment into three time periods: before the job offer, after the job offer, and employment. During the first stage, an employer is not allowed to ask questions that are likely to cause the applicant to reveal a disability. At this stage, the employer cannot require medical tests and can only ask whether an applicant can perform essential job-related functions, with or without reasonable accommodation. After an offer has been made but before the applicant has started working, employers have the freedom to ask any type of medical question or require any medical test, but employers are limited in what they can do with this information. At this stage, the job offer is considered conditional; however, a conditional offer can be withdrawn only under two conditions: if the test reveals that the applicant cannot perform the essential functions of the job (with or without reasonable accommodation) or if placing the candidate in the job-given the applicant's medical condition-would pose a direct threat to the health or safety of the applicant or other employees. As an example of the second situation, an employee who suffers intermittent, unpredictable blackouts could not drive a forklift without posing a direct safety threat in the workplace. For current employees, employers can only require medical tests or ask medical questions when they are job related and necessary for business reasons. The only exception is drug testing. The ADA does not protect current users of illegal drugs, nor does it consider drug testing a medical exam. Thus, employers have the right to test their employees or applicants for unlawful drugs at any time.

How does Stevenson explore duality in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde? Essay

The idea of duality, in this case, of people displaying duality of character, being â€Å"two faced†, of showing contrasting sides to a person, was of much interest to people in the late 19th century, due to the way it reflected upon their society, and was a key concept of Gothic literature written at the time. In this essay, I shall see how Stevenson explores this, the techniques and methods he uses, and the way in which he shows us how duality is significant in Victorian society. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was one of the first novels to re-introduce the Gothic literary genre, and thus has several elements that are common to other Gothic novels, which I shall explore in this chapter. With Gothicism being a genre of horror fiction, almost all Gothic novels have some kind of monster as the antagonist. Mr Hyde, although generally regarded as human (a point which I will explore further later on), is quite obviously a monster in the original sense, that is, a being of pure evil and sadism. He is described as a repulsive, grotesque person, for example, by Mr Enfield: â€Å"There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable †¦ he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point.† The fact that his features are not truly described, but only hinted on vaguely, is also important; it is common for Gothic literature to prey upon the fear of the unknown. Hyde as a monster is only ever witnessed through the eyes of others’, in other words, at no point in the novel do we get an explanation from his viewpoint. This is also another Gothic technique, designed to de-humanise the monster: if we could see things from it’s perspective, we could sympathise with it, therefore this is not allowed. In this novel, the idea of a monster is combined with another Gothic element: the double. The double is the idea of duality taken to an extreme, physical level: a character who has two different forms, often with one being good, the other evil. Common doubles in Gothic literature include werewolves, people who transform from regular humans into a wolf form, and vampires, people who, by night, become blood-sucking monsters. Hyde is the double of Jekyll; although he has a different form, he is not an entirely separate person, but is the evil side of Jekyll. By creating Hyde, Jekyll allows himself to express his innermost desires, without receiving the consequences, such as shame, guilt, or a loss of respect and reputation. This is part of one of the key themes of the book, which is exposing duality in Victorian society, that will be explored later. Finally, there is one thing that sets Jekyll and Hyde apart from other Gothic novels. Usually, they are set in very remote places, often in foreign, Catholic countries. This distances the reader from the often scary events happening, however, in Jekyll and Hyde, the fact that it is set in London makes the events seem much closer and real, and therefore scarier. Other than this minor point, however, it is easy to see how Stevenson uses the Gothic genre to explore duality in the book. Stevenson also uses a particular style of writing and a variety of techniques that help to explore duality, for example, the story is titled as â€Å"The Case of†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , which, as well as being a case as in a particular event, it is in some ways presented almost as a legal case. As the story unfolds, we see Mr Utterson on an investigation, with â€Å"evidence† in the form of accounts from Mr Enfield, the maid and others, as well as various letters and the will made by Dr Jekyll. At the end of the book, we get the full statements of the two main witnesses, Dr Jekyll and Dr Lanyon. As noted before, Mr Hyde’s recollection of the events is never known. By writing in this way, Stevenson clearly shows us contrast between the protagonist â€Å"prosecutor† and the antagonist â€Å"defendant† in the book, as well as involving the other characters as more neutral witnesses, but leaving it open to speculation whether they are in this case necessarily good or bad, exposing their duality, for example with Dr Jekyll, who, although he obviously hates Hyde for his crimes, still continues to crave becoming him for the purposes of expressing his desires. Another technique Stevenson uses is symbolism, mostly in the form of weather, for example, the city streets were filled with smog when Hyde was out, and in chapters 2 and 4, where Utterson and others are trying to find Mr Hyde, there is a thick early-morning fog. This, although common in London at the time, still had associations of secrecy and obscurity, as it was the domain of people like Jack the Ripper, and therefore the perfect setting for the crimes of Mr Hyde. As well as weather, Stevenson used the symbolism of doors and windows also as metaphors for secrecy. For instance, in Jekyll’s laboratory, it is always behind the closed cabinet door that he transforms into Hyde, and it is only when this door is broken down that the mystery is solved. Also, when Utterson and Enfield go to speak with Jekyll in Incident at the Window, the window serves as a barrier between Utterson and the truth that Jekyll hides. To understand how the book as a whole expresses duality, it is important to understand how contemporary readers would have viewed and reacted to the book. Obviously, at the time it was published, readers would have not suspected the idea of transforming into an evil doppelgà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½nger was the key to the mystery about Jekyll and Hyde. We should bear in mind that the most logical solutions are that Jekyll and Hyde were having a homosexual relationship, that Hyde was the illegitimate son of Jekyll, or that Jekyll was somehow being intimidated and controlled by Hyde, possibly via blackmail or debt; contemporary readers would probably have guessed that one of those was the most likely to be the case. It is also important to understand how readers would have viewed Hyde. In the late 19th century, many post-Darwinist theories about evolution and creationism were being discussed and debated, and people were beginning to accept the idea that humans were descended from apes. From this came the idea that people who were socially unacceptable, that is, anyone who did not confirm to the Victorian ideals of etiquette and manners, could be regarded as less evolved, and in a way sub-human. This is highly evident with Mr Hyde, who is described as being very short, deformed and ape-like. There is, however, a final point about the readers of the book, which I regard as one of the most important, and it is what made the book so shocking and controversial at the time. This is the way in which the book exposes the duality that was present in Victorian society, which is displayed by the important characters in the book. Society and culture at the time were based highly on etiquette and conformity, and of appearing the best as possible in public. Any person’s vices were kept behind closed doors, even with close friends and family, and thus, this lead to people leading very separate public and private lives. In Jekyll and Hyde, Stevenson shows this to some extent with all of the major characters, the most significant of which I shall explore further. Mr Utterson seems to be the most single-track, sincere character, however, he does display moral ambivalence as a lawyer. In his own words, â€Å"I let my brother go to the Devil in his own way†. At first, it seems that it is good of him, as a lawyer, to not judge people at all, however, although this seems helpful, it can also be bad, for example it means that he will not step in to help someone who is â€Å"going to the Devil†, but rather let them sort things out in their own way. He only seems to change this at the end of the book, and that is only because Poole suspects that Hyde has murdered Dr Jekyll. Mr Carew, an MP, is clearly shown as being a well-mannered gentlemanly figure, but because of this, we can not help but wonder why he is out in a shady district of London at night, and what he said to anger Mr Hyde so much (if anything). This shows once again the idea of having a private life, kept hidden and separate from your public life, which is what Carew appears to be doing. Finally, there is Dr Jekyll. Throughout the book he is described as a good man, who was respectable, admired by his friends, as someone seen as nearly perfect by Victorian standards. However, beneath the public face we can see that his fascination with Mr Hyde is not purely scientific. Once he has experienced what it is like to be in Hyde’s body, he begins to crave it more, this is because, through Hyde, he can do things that are completely unacceptable, even by modern standards. The book suggests that, as well as murder, he practised many sexual perversions, and similar acts. This shows how a man can fall and become a lesser human, as noted before, and that this is achieved by science. At the time, people believed in the idea that humanity could reach a peak level, and then devolve, becoming ape-like once again, Jekyll and Hyde could be seen as a metaphor for this. As you can see, Stevenson uses these characters effectively as well a wide variety of literary techniques and in the style of a Gothic novel to explore duality and how it relates to society at the time.

Importance of Time Essay

Time is said to be eternal. It is said that it has neither a beginning nor an end. Yet men are able to measure it as years, months, days, hours, minutes and seconds. They have also given meanings to the words – past, present and future. True, time has a meaning. It moves.Yet time is said to have no holiday. It exists always. Every movement of creation is linked with time. One cannot grow paddy in a month nor can a child become an adult in a year. Everything is fixed . Time is a free force. It does not wait for any one. It is commonly said that time and tide waits for no man. Time is money. A minute not usefully spent is an eternal loss. You can never get back the lost minute. One has to strike the iron when it is hot. The time flies and never returns. If you waste time it wastes you. To utilize time fruitfully, we must take concrete steps as to how we are going to use it and what we are going to do with it. There is a proverb which says that killing time is not a murder; it is a suicide. It means, by wasting time one is not harming others. On the other hand one is harming himself. A man who is a part of nature cannot complain against time. Time is powerful. It conquers all. Men are only to obey it. Man cannot say that he has nothing of his own. Time which is valuable is all his own. If you are not on time and miss the train, you miss it fore-ever. So also the time, once you miss it, it flies off. You can never catch it. Hence it is called fleeting time. Let us learn to use our time fruitfully. This is the key to success because time can create us or destroy us. It all depends on how we utilize time.