Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico Essay

Aztec culture Presentation  â â â â â â â â â â The historical backdrop of various individuals and how they lived in the past is significantly clarified through their social lifestyle. Individuals lived in various geological regions, however because of comparable ethic and racial foundation they shared a typical foundation as far as social, political, social, and strict convictions. Aztec domain is one of the social orders that lived in various land areas which included New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada, yet had comparative culture. The domain was framed by a large number of individuals who relocated and settled in Mexico with the vast majority of them living in Tenochtitlan (Pennock, 2011). The Aztec had a culture that was confounded albeit wealthy in strict and fanciful convictions. The individuals culture enveloped expressions (carvings on creatures and strict pictures) music, dressing, move, drinks, sports, food, games, and customs that could include human penance and they were moved f rom one age to the next.  â â â â â â â â â â The Aztec domain accepted that a family was the most significant viewpoint that meant life and new ages. The family was made out of men, ladies, and kids and every part had a particular obligation towards the family. Men were answerable for searching for food through chasing and assembling of wild organic products. Ladies were left to prepare food and do the weaving employments while they dealt with youngsters during the day. Youngsters or little fellows were prepared on the best way to chase and assemble products of the soil by their dads and some went to class. Then again, little youngsters were prepared on the best way to do family unit errands by their moms notwithstanding weaving. A family was begun through convention marriage that was led through functions and was between little youngsters as youthful as fifteen years and men as youthful as eighteen years (Pennock, 2011).  â â â â â â â â â â Art was one of the manners in which the Aztec culture recorded data on various convictions, religion, and war passage. The accounts helped the individuals to move their convictions and cultiure to different ages so they would be constant from one age to the next. Since in the early Aztec culture scarcely any innovation on recording and saving data were accessible, they recorded their data educate regarding canvases and works on the bark of trees. The compositions and canvases were then put away in the sanctuary and individuals could peruse and utilize the works of art to become familiar with their history and they fighting experience (Smith, 2008). The works of art was finished utilizing different subjects, for example, bugs, creatures, fish, and plants. Besides, others reflected religion convictions and divine beings that were significantly positioned in sanctuaries. Henceforth, craftsmanship was significant in the Aztec culture as it was utilized t o record their exercises and occasions that could be passed from one age to the next.  â â â â â â â â â â Religion was obvious in Aztec culture. The Aztec individuals adored various divine beings and goddess that were classified by their duties. Since Aztec individuals were fundamentally ranchers, they led customs in type of services each prior year planting with the goal that they could guarantee that they could get a decent yield and reap. The functions included human forfeits that were devoted to divine beings, Tezcatlipoca (Hassig, 2013). The human penances were gotten from kids or detainees that were caught during war with the neighboring social orders. They accepted that human blood and heart was significant in order to reinforced the divine beings and goddesses and favor them with great harvests notwithstanding their insurance and vanquishing different social orders to get more detainees for human penances. In addition, they fabricate enormous sanctuaries that were intended for playing out the human penances (Smith, 2008).  â â â â â â â â â â The Aztec realm additionally had a one of a kind dress that was utilized to distinguish them with their way of life that was a piece of craftsmanship. The material of the dressing was for the most part a lovely texture of brilliant hues that was entwined and customized to various plans. The splendid hues and configuration were one of a kind to Aztec individuals and helped them to relate to their way of life. The dressing hues were likewise used to recognize social class as the quality and the plan were special to social class (Dwyer, Stout, and Stout, 2013). The affluent class were portrayed with the best characteristics and plans as the ordinary person material quality was low.  â â â â â â â â â â Dance was acted in accordance with strict and social exercises in the general public. In certain occurrences, moving was proceeded as a strict custom that was intended to satisfy divine beings so they could offer gifts to the individuals and shield them from malicious (Dwyer et al, 2013). Besides, the move was likewise done to shading functions that differed from diversion to ceremonial services. The moves were acted in backup with music. The music was sang and played as a type of ceremonies or players to divine beings. Distinctive music had various subjects. Some music was only for amusement while others were simply committed to divine beings. Also music was performed dependent on seasons. Different instruments, for example, drums, woodwinds, and clatters were utilized to play music just as reciting as an approach to love divine beings. In this way, moving and music were utilized by the Aztec to safeguard their societies from one age to the next.  â â â â â â â â â â The way of life has different games and sports that were significant in their way of life. The games gave diversion to pioneers and others recognized in the social class. The diversion was additionally done during functions in the general public. In addition, the games could likewise be performed to depict strict significance. For strict functions, games were performed during human or other penance to pacify the divine beings with the goal that they could acknowledge the forfeit and do as the individuals had played.  â â â â â â â â â â The Aztec realm had various types and extraordinary food that were rich and concentrated with flavors. The dishes that were normal and well known among the Aztec were tortillas, tacos, and tamales. There were different nourishments that were accumulated by men like seeds of sage plants that were basic as grain, eggs, canines, turkey, and bunnies (Culture and Arts, 2013). In contrast to different societies, the greater part of Aztec food was made with bean stew peppers as the fundamental zest. Rarities that were normal among the Aztec individuals were green ooze. The food was gotten from Lake Texococo and its taste was contrasted with that of cheddar. More often than not delighted in water as a type of rewards and in exceptional events or functions brew was the fundamental type of beverages. The Aztecs additionally delighted in beverages, for example, hot improved chocolate and now and again octilli. The last was basic among the respectable individual s and others of a higher social class.  â â â â â â â â â â Aztec individuals everyday life included farming as a type of financial practices. Their principle sort of yield that they developed was corn. The individuals were persevering and devoted cultivating to their divine beings and they had the option to have crops in excess. Barely any rehearsed water system on the dry terrains while the greater part furrowed on shallow lakes. Ranchers moved mud and soil from dry land to the shallow lakes consequently shaping islands, chinampas that they thus utilized as land for agribusiness (Cohn, 2013). The islands were extremely fruitful and profitable, which brought about food excess. The overflow food and different harvests were offered to different networks and neighboring domains through Tlateolco advertise that assembled different networks. In spite of the fact that Aztecs needed money related framework, they utilized bargain exchange of trade of products and ventures.  â â â â â â â â â â The Aztecs were more often than not associated with wars where they catch detainees for human penance and slaves for their monetary purposes. They utilized pointless weapons to battle different clans and neighboring networks (Clendinnen, 2010). A portion of the weapons that were normal among them were wooden clubs. The clubs were edged with bits of obsidians that were sharp shaping an apparatus that they ordinarily alluded to as macuahuitl. The weapon was utilized to ground the foes without executing them so they could be caught as slaves and detainees for human penance. Different weapons predominant among the Aztecs were lances and bolt that could either cripple or execute the adversaries. End  â â â â â â â â â â Aztec culture was wealthy in works of art, for example, carvings of various pictures. They accepted family as unit of life and marriage was between a man and ladies. In family, men were trackers and finders while ladies prepared food and weaved garments. The individuals had various sorts of nourishments, for example, eggs, grains, meat, and fish. Fiery pepper was basic among the network. The individuals had strict convictions and loved numerous divine beings and goddess that were classified dependent on occasions or season. They yielded individuals for the divine beings so as to be secured and their territory to be honored. What's more, they had various games that could be played in the midst of functions or strict ceremonies. Move was normal among the individuals in blend with music. So also, move and music was done as a method of love or diversion in services. The individuals had an interesting dress that distinguished them with their way of life. References Clendinnen, I. (2010). The expense of mental fortitude in Aztec society: papers on Mesoamerican culture and culture. Cambridge University Press. Cohn, J. (2013). The Aztecs. New York: Gareth Stevens Pub. Culture and Arts. (2013). Mexico Country Review, 178-184. Dwyer, H., Stout, M., and Stout, M. (2013). Aztec history and culture. New York, NY: Gareth Stevens Pub. Hassig, R. (2013). Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico. College of Texas Press.

‘Miss Havisham’ by Charles Dickens Essay

Havisham exposition. ËœMiss Havisham is a severe and turned character from the novel ËœGreat Expectations by Charles Dickens. Song Ann Duffy takes this character and investigates her lamentable life in the sonnet ËœHavisham. Duffy utilizes Dark subjects, structure, imagery and other graceful strategies to communicate Havishams scorn for men after her grievous wedding when she was dismissed by her fiancã ©. Duffys utilization of these beautiful methods make a vile character and causes Havisham to feel genuine to the peruser. To start the sonnet Duffy utilizes a stunning short sentence, which contains differentiating word decision to pass on an unexpected tone from Havisham. The opposing interesting expression additionally frightens the peruser and handles our consideration as we don't anticipate this start. ËœBeloved darling jerk. This differentiating word decision gets a handle on the peruser as it proposes a threatening account voice. The plosive Ëœb sound rehashed all through the sentence makes an evil mind-set as it is forceful and sounds touchy and irate. This likewise recommends she is composing a twister love letter to her past sweetheart communicating her disdain toward him. This threatening account voice and dim environment made makes the peruser imagine that Havisham is an extremely vile character and Duffys utilization of story voice and tone causes Havisham to feel genuine. Following this Havisham starts to show a greater amount of her self centeredness and self-nauseate as she believes she is an in-complete lady, un-needed and left relinquished. She demonstrates this to the peruser when she uncovers her appall with her conjugal status. ËœSpinster. Duffys utilization of a threatening story voice proposes that she is letting this word out and the peruser, we can hear that she severely dislikes her dejection and her detached life. This single word sentence is utilized not exclusively to surprise the peruser however to accentuation Havishams severe tone. The sharp murmuring Ëœs sound makes a vile state of mind as it passes on sentiments of contempt, outrage and retribution from Havisham. This away from of self-hatred makes Havisham an extremely vile character and the threatening account voice causes Havisham to feel genuine to the peruser. As the sonnet proceeds Havisham begins to show her psychological rot as her language corrupts down to sounds that no one but she can comprehend. She even starts to make carnal shouts which are emblematic of dimness and passing. Ëœcawing nooooo this neologism of Ëœno proposes a bestial persona where her feeling of language has separated to a progression of commotions which feature her outrageous mental rot. This additionally proposes her self indulgence however causes the peruser to feel compassion toward the storyteller as she frantically shouts at the divider demonstrating how lost and unfortunate she has become after some time. The Ëœcawing is additionally emblematic of death and murkiness as it is taking after a crow which the peruser joins with death, obscurity and the villain. This blend of neologism and imagery makes an evil mind-set. Duffys utilization of neologism to accentuation Havishams mental rot causes her to feel genuine to the peruser and her carnal individual adds to her evil character. Duffy proceeds to show Havishams layers of sentiments as she communicates her outside sentiments of contempt, outrage and vengeance which diverge from her actual sentiments of adoration for her past darling. It is the dismissal from her sweetheart which sends her into this descending winding which in the long run outcomes in her sentiments of contempt for all men and urgent need for vengeance. Ëœloves loathe behind a white cover This paradoxical expression places love and detest next to each other and hides the two feelings behind an emblematic white marriage cloak, which is amusingly white and stands out from her hatful state. The cover additionally hides her face, feelings and both her psychological and physical rot which adds to the vile mind-set. This threatening story voice keeps on adding to the evil mind-set and Duffys utilization of the mix of imagery and a confusing expression make a vile character. The profundity of feeling from Havisham using this paradoxical expression ad ditionally causes Havisham to feel genuine to the peruser. In the end Havishams self indulgence joined with her psychological rot makes for a sensational end to the sonnet as her feelings breakdown and she is un-ready to contain her sentiments. She leaves the peruser on a let-down as we are left thinking about what befell her in her defenseless powerless state. ËœDont think its lone the heart that b-b-b-breaks. Duffy utilizes vagueness to give a few translations of the closure as we are un-certain with respect to how Havisham wraps up. The rehashed Ëœb sound could be the last beats of her breaking heart, it could be her voice breaking as she recalls her destiny, it could be her final words as she at long last genuinely and truly separates. It is the vulnerability of Havishams end that makes an evil mind-set and causes her to feel genuine to the peruser. Taking everything into account, ËœMiss Havisham a character from the novel ËœGreat Expectations by Charles Dickens is additionally investigated in the sonnet ËœHavisham via Carol Ann Duffy. In the sonnet Duffy uncovers Havishams vile character and causes her to feel genuine to the peruser. Duffy achieves this through the utilization dim topics to communicate Havishams vile character and a threatening account voice is utilized to cause Havisham to feel genuine to the peruser. Duffy likewise utilizes imagery, word decision and other graceful procedures to accentuation Havishams severe and bent character. The vile state of mind is made all through the sonnet as Havisham uncovered her contempt for men and shows her physical and mental rot as she has been disconnected from the world for such a long time. 954 words. Calum Stephen.

Writing-College Essays - Creating A Profitable College Research Paper

Writing-College Essays - Creating A Profitable College Research PaperCollege essays are written to be remembered. They should be original and interesting. In order to put together a good essay, you should learn about the different types of essay writing, how to write them, and the various points that you should put across.College essays must first start with an introduction. This is an important part of any essay because it establishes the overall theme of the piece and gives a brief introduction to the writer. When writing a college essay, you should remember that the purpose of this introduction is to allow the reader to get to know you as the writer and as a person and as a writer.Once you have begun the introduction with a short paragraph, write your main points in one sentence. Explain them briefly summarize your main points. Make sure that you do not go into great detail or too long about your subject matter. The introduction serves as your introduction to the rest of the paper . If you do it well, your reader will want to read on.The next thing you need to consider when writing a college essay is where to begin your research. You may want to begin by reading a book or article that tells you about the topic at hand. You should then review these materials in order to figure out what the topic is all about.If you find that you have all of the information you need when you get to the university library, you can check out the appropriate books. It is wise to use a textbook that you have already read, since the class papers have been covered in previous classes. This way you can skip the notes and get right to the point.You can also look for resources on the internet that will help you with your college essays. There are sites that have lists of essay prompts for various courses. The sites will also give examples of college essays from past years.The important part of writing a college essay is that you include a thesis statement. You should include this in eve ry paper you write. You should keep in mind that this is not only the end of the essay, but also the beginning because it sets the tone for the whole piece.Some students feel that their opinions should be heard when they write college essays. A well-written thesis statement will provide information about yourself and your opinion. Your thesis should include the facts that support the premise, as well as a conclusion.

The Use of Nature in Siddhartha and A Doll’s House Essay

The Use of Nature in Siddhartha and A Doll’s House Herman Hesse and Henrik Ibsen make extensive references to and use of nature in their respective masterpieces, Siddhartha and A Doll’s House. This includes the use of nature as imagery, symbolism, and to create a motif. While the objects in nature do differ because of the location of the stories, there is also overlap. In Siddhartha Herman Hesse refers to two symbols of nature, birds and water, specifically the river. The first reference to a bird is when Siddhartha decides to leave the Buddha. He realizes that he is going through one of many changes, ceasing to be a Samana but unable to go back to being a Brahmin. In response Siddhartha, â€Å"shiver[s] inwardly like a small animal,†¦show more content†¦As a result of this dream, Siddhartha leaves Kamala and his life as a rich man. When Kamala learns this, she releases the songbird, symbolic of how Siddhartha’s soul is now free from the sins sustained by leading a rich life. His soul now lives free of its spiritual cage, allowing Siddhartha to work towards his goal of Nirvana. Later, Hesse makes another bird reference demonstrating that the bird is symbolic of Siddhartha’s soul. Siddhartha analyzes his life after having the startling dream. He concludes that all of his decisions to this time have been correct, because the â€Å"bird in his breast† (Hesse 98) is still alive. Hesse uses the breast, location of the heart, for where the bird lives because it provides more support for the motif that he is creating. Like the previous references, this one establishes that the bird is symbolic of Siddhartha’s soul, because the heart is where the soul â€Å"lives.† Another nature symbol serving as a motif is the river. This motif is used to represent the physical world around Siddhartha and his transition through it. The first reference comes when Siddhartha (as a Samana) is wandering after leaving the Buddha. He comes to it, and needs to cross to continue along a footpath on the other side. He does so, encountering Kamala on the other side and leaving the life of a businessman. The use of the river comes into play as a border, symbolizing the line he crosses when he transitions from a wanderer to a

In Zimbabwe we can see large pyramids these large pyramids...

In Zimbabwe we can see large pyramids; these large pyramids are all called the â€Å"Great Zimbabwe† or the houses of stone. The country of Zimbabwe is named after these pyramids. The stone pyramids were built in stages between 800 and 1500 A.D. Looking at historical evidence from archeological sites we see that the ancient people that lived in the region of Zimbabwe had skills in agriculture, rearing domestication of animals, and iron works. (Sibusisiwe Mubi) In different ages different people inhabited Zimbabwe, from city dwellers to hunter gathers. The city dwellers took part in agriculture and domestication of animals, whereas the San people who did not live in cities mainly hunted animals for their food or gathered fruits. The history†¦show more content†¦This period in Zimbabwe’s history saw a big influx of white settlers. The post world war II era saw the rise of the African middle class who were educated and acquired positions and jobs such as professors, doctors, engineers etc. Around 1965 the growth of nationalism started among the African people of Zimbabwe. Workers took part in strikes; students held demonstrations and people in general were not happy with their situation in the country. This led the people of Zimbabwe launch a liberation war in 1966. This war lasted till 1970. The liberation war saw the support of Zimbabwe’s neighboring countries like Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Botswana. Smaller resistances kept continuing and the power of the British government slowly started decreasing and finally Zimbabwe became an independent state on 18th April, 1980. (Gov. of Zimbabwe) General Environment Government structure As soon as Zimbabwe became independent in 1960, Robert Mugabe was elected prime minister. 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Social Psychology Definition Paper - 1122 Words

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Accounting Concepts

Questions: Analyse this report based on your accounting studies and prepare a report showing how Dick Smith went from some very optimistic results (provide evidence) in this 2015 annual report to being liquidated. You should use some basic information such in this report such as: a. A description of the core business of the company including full details of its operating activities. b. A discussion on any significant issues emerging from the Directors Report. c. A discussion on the Corporate Governance Statement. d. A calculation of the key financial ratios for 2015 f. Other information Answesr: 1. Introduction and Brief findings When it comes to consumer electronics, Dicksmith Holding Ltd is the first name that flashes on peoples minds. It is based in Australia and its key operations aim to provide their customers with a strong and reliable channel platform. Because of this policy of customer satisfaction, Dicksmith has attained the position of the most convenient and largest retailer of consumer electronics and its stores have massively expanded worldwide reaching a scale of 393. Consumers are provided with a high sense of convenience by these strong, structured and integrated platforms so that consumers can shop through the stores or at the go or even from their houses (Dicksmith, 2015). Despite these benefits over other competitors, there came a time when some of the stores of Dicksmith Ltd had to be closed down that made the company opt for better opportunities and redevelop its processes. Although some of the stores had to be closed down, yet the company did not lose hope and it strived to open further stores across Australia and New Zealand. Moreover, the company does not have to worry because it enjoys goodwill and brand appeal in the market that keens to sell a wide variety of products ranging from entertainment to computers and other accessories (Dicksmith, 2015). In the year 2013, a very different concept named MOVE was launched that aimed to focus on the consumer electronics along with fashion and in relation to this, it concentrated on connectivity in order to provide a widespread variety of different products like mobile phones, computers, headphones and other accessories etc. Latest products relating to consumer electronics as well as fashionable accessor ies are provided by the company as the range of its concept MOVE are regularly updated. For customers satisfaction and maintenance of high fashion theme all around, the company maintains strong relations with the leading designers and it also aims to diversify the MOVE stores to gain more efficiency in the market. From the strategies and operations of the company, it can be clearly observed that the company purposes to cater to the requirements of the customers and fulfill them. 2. Director Report A directors report of a company can help to ascertain any information regarding the directors and at any time. From the directors report of Dicksmith Holding Ltd, the number of meetings held by the company can be witnessed together with the directors who attended the meetings. It is observed that there were nine meetings of directors, three meetings related to remuneration and nomination committee and four meetings relating to audit and finance were held during the financial year. The Board of company has appointed the remuneration committee that aims to provide support to the Board itself and helps in deciding the remuneration of directors and other executives. It also provides help in attracting beneficial employees for the company and retaining the old employees whose value is very helpful for the company (Lubatkin, 2007). By this process, shareholders value can be created by way of both long-term and short-term investment scheme. The remuneration of directors and executives are d ecided by way of their performance and remuneration environment and it is paid irrespective of any factors like gender, age etc. It can be observed from the annual report of the company that it has followed all the statutory regulations by ensuring compliance and providing transparency associated with the remuneration process in the report. It can also be understood that there does not exist any kind of scheme associated with retirement benefits of non-executive directors and the annual report also makes this clear. The directors report also portrayed attention on insurance, indemnity deeds and right to inspect and access the books of accounts of the company by every director (Crane Matten, 2010). It is however a matter of issue that the seven year term might be extended by the company where specific assessments starts to operate before the expiry period of seven year. The company can take steps to indemnify the employees as well as the directors against the liabilities but the directors are altogether satisfied with the provisions of non-audit services in the year. The directors report of the company provides an opinion that independence of director is safeguarded that is it can neither be influenced nor be compromised by the services disclosed in the report (Crane Matten, 2010). Other issues portrayed through this report relate to the exchange rates, differences in consumer demands, competition and discretionary nature of spending etc. 3. Corporate Governance An authorization in written form has been adopted by the Board of Dicksmith Holding Ltd which is helpful in providing sheer strength to the operations of company. This authorization or charter contains information on the role, responsibility and composition of the Board, delegation of authority etc and this charter can be availed from dicksmithholding.com.au website. Also, the interest of shareholders has been given due concern by the Board by complying with the principles of corporate governance that has in turn enabled the company to take advantage of various opportunities, assess and evaluate its performance (Goergen, 2012). The annual report contains details on the code of conduct of executives, directors and other employees that ensures the concept of transparency. Dicksmith Ltd has also been able to frame the Audit Committee and align it with the principles of Corporate Governance. This committee comprises of three non-executive members and majority of them are independent members (Benz Fray, 2007). The corporate governance principles of the company not only ensure transparency in the company but it also pursues high values of ethics and morality that makes the company advantageous over others (Cogan, 2009). This strong ethics is required to be followed and maintained by every member of the organization. The company has also introduced a risk management team in order to counter the risks and evaluate the power of framework. This team or committee contains three members and majority is independent (Corporate Governance principles, 2014). Combining the work efficacy of internal audit with the risk management team helps to prevent various hurdles in the company and thus enhancing its operations (Lubatkin, 2007). 4. Ratio Analysis a. Current ratio The current ratio is one of the major ratios that stress on the liquidity position of the company. It helps in providing an answer that whether the company has proper set of assets to meet the obligations. The ideal ratio is 2:1 that means the company have current asset of $1 for every $2 of current liability (Guerard, 2013). For Dicksmith, the current ratio has declined marginally. This indicates that the current liabilities increased more than the increment in the current assets. Current ratio 2014 2015 Current asset 335906 389979 Current Liabilities 266807 316527 Current ratio =current asset/ current liabilities 1.258985 1.232056 b. Acid test ratio It is a better indicator than the current ratio because it eliminates the component of inventory at the very beginning (Guerard, 2013). The ideal ratio here is 1:1 but in case of Dicksmith the quick ratio is marginally lower and indicates the ratio is not ideal. Moreover, it is an alert for the management as a whole. Quick ratio 2014 2015 Quick Asset 82092 96935 Current liabilities 266807 316527 Quick ratio =quick assets/ current liabilities 0.307683 0.306246 c. Receivable turnover The receivable turnover projects that the receivable are collected 5 times a year and moreover, it remains unchanged both the years. It is needed to have a strong receivable turnover for better operations. Receivable turnover 2014 2015 Net credit sales 1227604 1319670 Average inventory 253814 273429 Receivable turnover = net credit sales/ average inventory 4.836628 4.826372 d. Inventory Turnover This ratio projects that inventory is sold 4 times a year and remained unchanged in both the years. However, the management must ensure that the inventory are sold regularly that will stabilize the companys inventory turnover ratio. Inventory turnover 2014 2015 cost of goods sold 919602 992828 Average inventory 253814 273429 Inventory turnover ratio = cost of goods sold/average inventory 3.623133 3.631027 e. Net profit Margin This ratio portrays the net profit to sales. The computation of this ratio indicates that there has been an increment in the net profit margin (Gibson, 2012). However, the ratio is lower and this can be cited due to less net profit. Net Profit Margin 2014 2015 Net Profit 19826 37905 Revenue 1227604 1319670 NP Margin =- Net profit/revenue *100 1.615016 2.872309 f. Gross profit margin This ratio is the ratio of gross profit to sales. The gross profit margin of Dicksmith has dropped marginally indicating that the management has not been able to have a strong control over the cost of goods sold (Horngren, 2013). GP margin 2014 2015 Gross Profit 308002 326842 Revenue 1227604 1319670 GP margin = gross profit/revenue *100 25.08969 24.76695 g. Assets turnover The Asset turnover ratio highlights the management effort to generate revenue. Therefore, a high ratio is required and is even an ideal one. For Dicksmith the ratio has declined that indicates the management has not been able to utilize the assets in a profitable manner (Gibson, 2012). A higher ratio projects a strong situation but the ratio has dropped in this case. Asset turnover ratio 2014 2015 Sales 1227604 1319670 Total assets 451171 508521 Asset turnover ratio = sales/ Total assets 2.720928 2.595114 h. Return on Assets The main aim of this ratio is to stress the way in which the utilization of the assets are done. The ratio is very poor for Dicksmith that implies the improper utilization. Therefore, the management must pay heed to this ratio to derive strong returns (Horngren, 2013). Return on assets 2014 2015 Net income 19826 37905 Avg total Assets 451171 479846 Return on assets = net income/ Avg total Assets 0.043943 0.078994 i. Return on Equity Return in equity implies the manner in which the equity has been utilized to generate returns (Brigs, 2013). The ratio has enhanced in the year 2015 that gives an implication of the better use of the component of equity. Return on equity 2014 2015 Net income 19826 37905 shareholder equity 166940 169147 Return on equity = net income/ shareholder equity 0.118761 0.224095 j. Earnings per share EPS can be termed as the share of the portion of the company that is attached to every share of common stock that is outstanding in nature. When the EPS is higher, the company has a higher profitability scenario and vice versa (Brigs, 2013). EPS for Dicksmith has declined in 2015 that is not a strong indicator. Earnings per share 2014 2015 0.16 0.08 5. Evidence of Optimism The most relevant motive of a listed company is to safeguard the shareholders interests and Dicksmith Holding Ltd successfully fulfills this motive. The security holders of company are being given accurate and adequate information by making proper disclosures so that they can exercise their rights efficiently. Optimism of Dicksmith is clearly evident from its reports and several other widespread discussions. Dicksmith Holding Ltd is being identified as one of the biggest equity heist of all times as it successfully transformed $10 million to $520 million and that too within two years. The private equity assumes a special place of importance as it is considered as one of the most biggest ever witnessed. All these information about the company and its governance can be availed through the website and it can be learnt how a ten million dollar company got transformed into such a massive company in a short period. The regular participation of security holders and communication with the company also favored the company and fetched various benefits. This showcases the strong relations of the company and hence also provides an evidence of optimism as the shareholders are attracted when their interests are safeguarded and when the company has strong fundamentals (Lemke, 2014). Conclusion It can be observed that corporate governance has played a major role in enhancing the management of the company and making the company reach significant heights. After getting listed and following the ASX principles, Dicksmith witnessed significant growth within one year itself as it successfully complied with all the required obligations. But it is to be noted that in relation to the growth of company, it is the Board that must be complimented. The main reason is that the concepts of disclosure helped the company to gain a firm position on the minds of shareholders. Through a ratio analysis of the company, it can be observed that the company has performed well and has a strong future and only a few ratios must be stressed upon. But the reason that led the downfall of Dicksmith and made it enter into receivership is that it failed to acquire required funds in order to back up the business. Even in 2015, the sales and cash position of the company were significantly below expectations that was due to a poor point in the last quarter of the year. But however the major failure witnessed are the companys inabilities to provide finance for re-stocking. Going by the entire discussion and highlighting on various ratios it can be commented that Dickmsith is not a good bet at the current point of time because liquidity position is shaken as indicated by the quick ratio. Moreover, net profit margin is not strong to provide solidity. The other ratios like asset turnover, equity turnover are projecting a weak scenario. Therefore, it is not good to invest in the company at the current point of time. References Benz, M., Frey, B.S. (2007). Corporate Governance: What can we learn from public governance? Academy of Management Review, 32(1), 92-104 Brigs, A. (2013).Financial reporting analysis. Mason, Ohio: South-Western. Cogan, D. (2009). Corporate Governance and Climate Change: Making the Connexion, Oxford University Press. Corporate Governance principles. (2014). Corporate Governance principles 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2016, Crane, A., Matten, D. (2010). Business Ethics: Managing Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability in the age of globalization. New York: Oxford University press Dicksmith. (2015). Dicksmith profile. Retrieved May 21, 2016, Dicksmith Corporate Governance. (2015). Dicksmith Holdings 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2016, Gibson, C. (2012).Financial statement analysis. Mason, Ohio: South-Western. Goergen , M. (2012). International Corporate Governance, Prentice Hall. Guerard, J. (2013).Introduction to financial forecasting in investment analysis. New York, NY: Springer. Horngren, C. (2013)Financial accounting. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W: Pearson Australia Group. Lemke, L. (2014). Regulation of Investment Advisers. Oxford University Press.

Stomata Lab Report Essay Example

Stomata Lab Report Paper During those high-carbon-dioxide times, lands with fewer stomata will have an advantage and will be common. On the other hand, when carbon dioxide levels are low, plants need many stomata in order to scrape together enough carbon dioxide to survive. During low-carbon- dioxide times, plants with more stomata will have an advantage and will be common. (Understanding Evolution) Therefore, the question to be tested will be if you count the number of stomata of the same species of leaf at different stages of life will the number of stomata be different? My hypothesis is if we count the number of leaf stomata at three different stages of life then the umber of stomata will be less as the leaf gets older because the leaf is dying. (Understanding Evolution) Procedure Approximately three leaves of the where gathered to use in this experiment. Each leaf was at a different stage of life: alive, dying, and dead. A thin cast of a tiny part of the surface of the underside of each leaf was created using NYC clear nail polish. The imprint of each leafs underside was viewed one at a time under a light microscope using the cast, which was carefully removed from each leaf with a piece of packing tape. The stomata were completely visible and were able o be counted under the lowest view setting of xx. The stomata of each leaf were observed and counted four times. When viewing the stomata in each leaf for detail, the setting of xx was used. This made the view of the stomata large enough to tell whether they were open or not. The number and description of the stomata of each leaf was recorded. We will write a custom essay sample on Stomata Lab Report specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Stomata Lab Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Stomata Lab Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The leaf that was alive had an average of 34. 5 stomata counted in the one specific area observed, the dying leaf had an average of 31. 75 stomata in the area observed and the dead leaf had an average of 29. 25 stomata in the area observed. These averages were results f four different trials in which the stomata were counted and observed in the specified area of each plant, every trial having a new person count the stomata. The stomata of the dead leaf were closed; the stomata of the leaf that was alive were open. The stomata of the leaf that was dying varied. In some places, the stomata were opened, in others, they were closed. The stomata that were open were bunched in separate areas of the observed section of the leaf, as were the stomata that were closed. Neither of the different stomata were mixed between each other in the dying leaf. All three leaves stomata were scattered around n the observed area and did not have a noticeable pattern to their placing. Conclusion: The data gathered shows that there is, in fact, a difference in the number and the appearance of stomata in three different life stages of an American elm leaf. However, the differences in the number of stomata are slight, calculating to a difference of only 5. 25 stomata between the largest and smallest average. The leaf that was alive had the greatest number of stomata, followed by the dying leaf and then the dead one, which had the least number of stomata. The numbers of stomata seem to descend as the leaf dies. However, this difference s insignificant considering that the stomata that were counted were a part of a very tiny area of the leaf (smaller than a fraction of a centimeter). The difference of stomata in each leaf came out to only 5. 5, which isnt a large enough difference in the stomata of a small area of the leaf to be determined as significant. Further investigation would have to be performed in order to test this and get more accurate results. The difference that was significant was that of the appearance of the stomata. In the dead leaf, the stomata were closed; in the leaf that was alive, the stomata were open. The stomata o f the dying leaf however, aired. Parts of the section viewed under the microscope consisted of opened stomata, others consisted of closed stomata. This might be because the leaf wasnt completely dead, or parts of the leaf were still alive. When something is dying, the working parts of it do not stop functioning completely, they shut down at various times. This explains why some the stomata are open and some were closed. There was no significant difference in the number of stomata between the three leaves; however there was a dramatic difference in the appearance of the stomata in each leaf. If I were to re-do this lab in the future I would make ere to keep my fingers off of the viewing part of the tape. I think it may have altered our results in the end, like the number of stomata should have been without outliers. Another error that I have discovered was that we used different microscope power for the leaves. We should have used all the same power on each leaf for more accurate results to be sure we were viewing the same amount of area. The data also proves this because for the alive and the dying leaf we used the xx zoom, but we used xx zoom for the dead leaf. Id infer that we did this because the dead leafs stomata were closed which could have made them harder to see.

Animal Imagery of Moral Reversal Essay Example

Animal Imagery of Moral Reversal Essay Example Animal Imagery of Moral Reversal Essay Animal Imagery of Moral Reversal Essay In William Shakespeare’s Macbeth. the subject of moral corruptness is portrayed through the moral reversal of animate beings through out the drama. Shakespeare utilizes this scheme to assist set up the subject to his audience. This type of reversal is normally connected with Macbeth himself and the more he grows self corrupt. the more abundant the carnal imagination. Toward the beginning of the drama. Macbeth is portrayed off as a king of beasts in comparing to a coney. an bird of Jove in comparing into a sparrow. demoing Macbeth’s bravery and courage ; †¦Yes’ as sparrows bird of Joves. or the hare the king of beasts. If I say sooth. they were as cannons overcharged with dual cracks†¦ ( Act I: Scene II: Line 35 ) . This image merely helps set up further the moral reversal and corruptness throughout the drama because. as a reader. Macbeth is here seen as a brave brave adult male. a hero if you must. But as the drama goes on. we drastically see a alteration in Macbeth as he grows more corrupt and following along with it. we see the alteration in carnal imagination associated with Macbeth. Not merely does Shakespeare utilize carnal imagination to portray Macbeth and his ain corruptness. but he besides uses it to arouse it by picturing moral upset amongst the animate beings themselves. demoing how Macbeth’s actions non merely impact him. but the balance of nature as good. On Tuesday last A falcon tow’ring in her pride of topographic point. Was by a mousing bird of Minerva hawked at and killed. And Duncan’s Equus caballuss – a thing most unusual and certain - †¦Turned wild in nature†¦ Tis said they ate each other. This scene was depicted after Duncan’s decease by the homicidal manus of Macbeth. This non merely shows how Macbeth’s negative actions upset the balance of nature. but it shows the destroying of balance with in Macbeth himself. This comparing to Macbeth before being portrayed as a king of beasts. an bird of Jove. as this brave adult male. shows his displacement in character. It’s a great word picture of his corruptness come oning within contrast to earlier word pictures. We have scorched the serpent. non killed it. She’ll be close and be herself. whilst our hapless maliciousness remains in danger of her former tooth. In Act III Scene II. Macbeth thinks of Banquo in this manner because of the witches’ stating he will do male monarchs. but non be one himself. Macbeth refers to Banquo like this because he has identified Banquo as a menace that could. as a serpent can. skulk in the undergrowth and work stoppage him when he least expects it. It is an dry usage of the image. since it is Macbeth who truly is the snake. Macbeth falls deeper in his corruptness. merely doing him to seek out to get rid of others who he sees as a threat . The carnal imagination here helps portray this image and this item. Macbeth says o. full of Scorpios is my head. beloved married woman! Meaning his head is full of immoralities and dark ideas. This shows his realisation of his corruptness. and here we can see more that Macbeth has fallen deeper into his ain corruptness in contrast to early portraitures of his corruptness. Throughout Macbeth. Shakespeare uses carnal imagination non merely every bit metaphorical imagination. but to portray the autumn of Macbeth and his interior corruptness.

Marketing Strategy Justification with a Model Essay

Marketing Strategy Justification with a Model - Essay Example As a brief overview for the company’s product offering, it can be said that, the company’s product offering includes mainly developing latest technology devices in the field of pyrometrics, ceramic insulation, ceramic filtration, technical ceramics and various kinds of products of porous nature. The company, Mantec Technical Ceramics Limited is a leader all over the world in the B2B domain, in regards to their solution based offerings for highly innovative process and materials of ceramic technical (Mantec Technical Ceramics, 2012). Overview of Market The world, today, is getting increasingly dependent on technology. Ever since the widespread evolution of internet, emerging from the US during the middle of 1990’s, people have started to integrate and align their lives in relation to the developments happening in terms of technology and the latest communication devices. The four generations comprising of Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y and the Millennium Generation have increasingly got dependent on the latest technological developments like the high end touch screen mobile phones, tablets PCs, laptop computers and the highly modernized I pads for availing the convenience and facilities provided by various products and services offered by today’s fast evolving Ecommerce based companies (National Tour Association, 2002, p. 17). This huge inclination of consumers worldwide for various kinds of technological devices have automatically triggered the demand for various small and vital components required for the production of these high tech devices. One particular product, which has become a key component for the development of these high tech technological devices and has experienced a sudden peak in demand, is the multi layer ceramic capacitors. The need for these ceramic capacitors has been tremendously high in markets, which produces high end portable devices in mass scale. As of today’s date, a large amount of these p ortable technological devices in manufactured in China and South East Asian countries, with them being recognized as the global hub for manufacturing of portable electronic products (Rajan, 2010). Identification of Market With the increase in demands for the latest technology high end portable devices by consumers all around the globe, there has been a tremendous spike in demand for the production of capacitors of ceramic nature. This demand for ceramic capacitor products has been increasingly high in markets where there has been a massive and large scale production for these high end technological devices. The entire Asia Pacific markets are increasingly considered as a global hub for production of electronic devices of portable nature (Rajan, 2010). Going by a micro level comparison of the demand forecasted for this multi layer ceramic capacitor on a market by market basis, it can be said that there are three scenarios that are arising in terms of future growth prospects in this p articular capacitor segment. In China, there has been a rising demand for the production of various portable devices like laptops, mobile phones and devices of similar nature. As a matter of fact, the demand for multi layered ceramic capacitors

Research Methods in Psychology An investigation of selfconscious Essay

Research Methods in Psychology An investigation of selfconscious emotions using qualitative methods - Essay Example For psychological researchers and analysts, more information is needed on the social situations that lead to these emotions, as well as the specific social interactions that can alleviate or heighten the negative emotional experience. The aim of this research project is to gather data from males and females relating to their own experiences with guilt, shame and embarrassment and to interpret the factors involved as well as the differences between men and women. To discover the different social situations and interactions that separate men and women in their experiences of guilt, shame and embarrassment, ten questionnaires containing three questions on the topic were distributed to five men and five women. Each question asked the informant to identify different situations in which he or she has or would experience guilt, shame and embarrassment. The questions left room for large or small descriptions by informants, and the unstructured form of each question ensured that those filling out the questionnaires weren't led in any particular direction in terms of their answers. Answers were therefore expected to be unique to every man and women who filled out the questionnaire. To interpret this data, keywords were extracted from the questionnaires, which had been separated into two sets representing women and men. The two sets of keywords were compiled for each question and compared to one another in terms of repetition and connotation. The keywords could then be sorted into specific categories depending on their relation to social interaction, personal emotional history, family, friends, and other factors. This comparison made it possible to identify themes on the subject of guilt, shame and embarrassment that were unique to men and women, as well as those that were seemingly universal. Results Qualitative research offers an unstructured look into the social interactions of people, something that psychologists can benefit from only if they can pinpoint certain factors and understand clearly what is actually going on. These questionnaires showed a clear trend between the outlook of men and women in regards to the situations that make them feel guilty, ashamed or embarrassed. Where women tend to feel immediate emotional responses in situations that involve their friends and family, they also are more susceptible to emotional response to strangers and acquaintances who appear to sit in judgement of them. Men also exhibit emotional responses when the situation involves family or friends, but many men can experience feelings of embarrassment more often in social situations that involve work acquaintances or other casual peers. One man described an occasion where he would feel embarrassed as "when I screw up on the job and everyone at work knows about it". Men were generally on par with women when it came to feelings of guilt and shame, in that these feelings tended to happen most often when family and close friends were involved. One woman said "I have felt the most ashamed when I have let my family down, either by hurting their feelings or depriving them of something I could have provided". Both men and women experienced guilt, shame and

Bdo Benchmarking Assignment Essay Example for Free

Bdo Benchmarking Assignment Essay When considered in general terms Turnbull described it as: â€Å"All influences affecting the institution processes, including those for appointing the controllers and/or regulators involved in organising the production and sale of good and services†¦.. it includes all types of firms whether or not they are incorporated under civil law. † (Turnbull, 2002:181) Factoring in all other definitions, in its simplest terms it can be defined as the â€Å"exercise of power over corporate entities† (Clarke, 2004). It is not the same as the management and the running of the company, it is concerned with how the Board of Directors, who are the governing body of a company, supervise management, because it is they who are responsible for holding the management of a company accountable and ensuring the company is being ran in a way which is favourable towards the shareholders and other stakeholders. It is the Directors’ responsibility to develop strategy and policies for the ompany and to determine the direction the management should take the business in and the Directors have overall responsibility for the performance of the company (Tricker, 2012). While the phrase ‘corporate governance’ wasn’t coined until the 1960’s and not commonly used until the 1980’s, it has really been in a gradual process of evolution since the 16th century and joint venture trading. One of the major developments in world economies which brought the need for corporate governance to the fore was the introduction of limited liability companies in the 19th century. What this meant was when companies were incorporated they became a separate legal entity, separate from their shareholders and with similar legal rights to buy, sell and transfer shares and assets, to employ people and to sue and be sued in the name of the company. This meant the liability for any company debts lay with the shareholders and not the management or the company. Add to this the fact that because of the introduction of the stock market, shares could be easily bought and sold, meaning the shareholders could be vast in numbers and have a large geographical spread. Due to the fact that all corporate entitites need to governed, the implications of this were that the management (executive control) and the shareholders (owners) were often separated (Tricker, 2012). Situations such as these, are where corporate governance is deemed to be most necessary because there is a root assumption, that members of management who do not own the company are likely to be more reckless with someone else’s money, i. e. the company’s, than they would be with their own money (Having Their Cake, 2013). This is known as the agency dilemma, which will be expanded upon later. Electing a Board of Directors who have the interest of the shareholders at the forefront of their mind, allows members to indirectly oversee the actions undertaken by the management, in order to ensure that as agents of the shareholders, the management is performing in line with the best interests of the corporation (Lashgari, 2004). 1. 2. Selection of a Case Company However, as Turnbull pointed out in ‘Corporate Governance: Its scope, concerns and theories’ (2002), having a restriction of only publicly traded corporations in studies of corporate governance, limits the validity of any onclusions drawn about the most efficient arrangements for corporate institutions with regards to good governance practices and the effect they have on a company’s performance. As Jensen said in 1993: â€Å"Privately held entities could provide the most form of enterprise. † (Jensen, 1993, cited in Turnbull, 2002). It was with this in mind that I chose BDO LLP UK (BDO), which is an incorporated partnership company in the UK, which is owned and ran by its members/partners. It is a company which offers financial accounting, audit, tax and business consultancy services (BDO LLP UK website, 2013). . 3. About the UK Financial Accounting and Audit Sector With the ever increasing focus on corporate governance for companies across the World, not just in the UK, audit firms such as BDO, KPMG and Deloitte are becoming more important because it is there job to ensure that companies are adhering to regulations laid out in the UK Corporate Governance Code (2010, revised in 2012). It should naturally follow that audit companies will have extremely good corporate governance practices put in place, however, this is not necessarily the case. Since 2000 there have been a number of high profile scandals within the International Corporate Financial Accounting industry, for example, Enron were found to be inflating revenues and hiding debts and there was also the Bernard Madoff â€Å"Ponzi Scheme†, where the real scandal was that the robbing of millions of pounds worth of people’s money, escaped the attention of auditors and regulators. ). Due to such scandals, many national regulators implemented new corporate governance requirements to improve standards (Mitchell Van der Zahn, 2009). In the UK new regulations with regards specifically to audit companies were also introduced, targeted directly at a certain group of companies. As of January 2010, 95% of the auditing work in the UK was being carried out by 8 firms, BDO being one of them. It was deemed that such companies had built upon their reputation to gain dominance in the UK market and the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) felt it was in the Public’s interest for these companies to be transparent and in order to maintain public trust be exemplars of best corporate governance practice. This led to the introduction of the Audit Firm Governance Code (2010) by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), which drew from aspects of the 2010 UK Code and established principles such as the appointment of independent non-executives within the governance structure of their company. While such rules did not apply outside of the targeted companies, it was the hope of the ICAEW that it would provide a benchmark of good governance for other companies to follow (ICAEW website, 2013). With such a bold statement being made about the importance of corporate governance in this field of work, it seemed to me to be an obvious choice to choose one of the 8 companies on the ICAEW’s list for my case-study. 1. 4. About BDO LLP UK As detailed earlier BDO LLP UK is an incorporated partnership company in the UK, which is owned and ran by its members/partners and it provides financial accounting, audit, tax and business consultancy services. It is the 6th largest accountancy firm in the UK and is a member of the BDO International Network, which itself is the 5th largest accounting organisation in the World. In an attempt to break into the top 4 big firms in the UK, BDO LLP UK completed a merger with PKF, a rival firm, in April 2013 (Keynote, 2013). After researching BDO LLP UK, it became very clear that corporate governance was of the upmost importance to the company. Not only did it have specific areas on its website dedicated to corporate governance and corporate social responsibility but it also had a number of relevant publications regarding corporate governance. One article for example, ‘Making Internal Audit Relevant’, discussed the high quality of corporate governance in the UK found by studies carried out by the FRC, it went on to say that this was underpinned by the UK Corporate Governance Code and that it was vital in maintaining the attractiveness of the UK market, to encourage new investment (BDO LLP UK website, 2013). My research also found that BDO had carried out a joint study with the Quoted Companies Alliance, which considered the introduction of a mandatory corporate governance code for small and mid-capital audit companies in the UK. Just as a point of fact, this was a proposition that 92% of such companies agreed with. One of the major indications that BDO think corporate governance is vital to the success of a company is that they produce an annual transparency report, which has an appendix of a statement of compliance with the Audit Firm Governance Code (2010). They have also went to great lengths to create a summary report in 2012 for businesses which they audit, detailing any changes to corporate governance regulations and focusing on leadership and effectiveness, reporting, risk, audit, remuneration and investor relations (Corporate Governance for TMT Businesses, 2012). It seems to be an interesting idea to look at a company who places so much emphasis on good corporate governance, not only for itself but also the companies it works for, to see if they do comply completely with the codes and if they are in fact â€Å"exemplars† of good practice. . Theories of Corporate Governance There are various theories and philosophies with regards to corporate governance, all of which, as a collective, have laid a foundation for the development of different corporate governance systems around the world (Lashgari, 2004). This paper will look at a number of these theories and how they relate to BDO, in order to gain a better understanding of th e governance standards at BDO. 2. 1. Agency Theory In the 1930’s, Berle and Means published ‘The Modern Corporation and Private Property’, it provided the first debate about the agency dilemma and set a basis for agency theory. They suggested that where ownership is separated from management or is widely dispersed, it becomes difficult for owners to have an effective check on the autonomy of corporate managers. The agency dilemma was further refined in the 1970’s, when theories were brought to the fore suggesting agents (managers) are likely to be self-interested and will serve their own interest before those of the principle (owners). Such theories also suggested that in order to counter this problem companies have to incur agency costs, for example, to create incentives to align the interest of the agent with the company and the cost of monitoring the conduct of agents. Many other theorists have a problem with agency theory because it does not even attempt to explore the possibility managers are not self-interested and opportunistic. However, they cannot deny that it has een very influential in developing market-based governance mechanisms and board-based governance mechanisms. Due to BDO being an incorporated partnership and their shares not being publicly traded, we will only look at the board-based mechanisms (Having Their Cake, 2013). Agency theory has caused internal reform of boards, there has been an increase in executive share options schemes, meaning that managers are being offered equity in the company they will manage, in order to â€Å"align their interest† (Having Their Cake, 2013). Agency theory has also led to the introduction of independent non-executive directors onto Boards of Directors, in order to ensure the actions of the management are being sufficiently monitored by the board themselves and role of boards have been greatly elaborated, they are becoming more involved with the setting of objectives of companies and monitoring of any actions taken by management and stricter provisions have been put in place to ensure the separation of the roles of chairmen and chief executive (Cadbury Committee, 1999). When applying agency theory to BDO, it is easy to see that there is a situation of agency and principle, with the fact that there are 193 partners in the firm and only 5 partners who are part of the Leadership Team (LT- management) which is responsible for the overall management of the company and is chaired by the Managing Partner. It is also noticeable from their 2012 ‘Transparency Report’ that all members of the LT have been partners in the company for a number of years, with currently the shortest term being 12 years. This could be considered good governance by BDO because in an effort to avoid the agency dilemma, they ensure their management team is made up of partners, whose interest is already aligned with the interests of the business. The transparency report also states that BDO have a Partner Council (equivalent to a Board of Directors) which is independent from the LT and responsible for the overall governance, in particular the oversight and accountability of the LT. They are also responsible for choosing members of the LT and for electing independent non-executive directors, for which there are 2 at BDO. These independent non-executive directors sit on the LT and report to the partner council of any issues of compliance with governance, policies and procedures, for which they are responsible for providing information on to the LT. The Partner Council is chaired by the Senior Partner who performs a client facing role and is responsible for managing all decisions. He also attends LT meetings in a non-executive capacity to facilitate his oversight role of the governance of the company (Transparency Report, 2012). As we can see the management team is subject to a lot of oversight and monitoring by the Partner Council and the roles of the Senior Partner and Managing Partner are completely separate, this is all a way of ensuring the company has a high standard of governance and to also ensure the management is acting in the best interest of the all the owners. BDO goes to a big effort in organising their governance structure in order to avoid the problems arising from the agency dilemma. 2. 2. Resource Dependence Theory This theory originated from studies performed by Pfeffer and Salancik (1978), they suggest that board members and non-executive directors can provide a firm with a vital set of resources. Non-executive directors are appointed with the expectation that they will support the organisation with its problems and to be a source of expertise which executives can draw upon for skills and advice and they can also be a source of contacts and information which they have gained through their past experience (Having Their Cake, 2013). At different stages in the life-cycle of companies, they have very different needs from their non-executive directors. To young entrepreneurial companies, non-executive directors can be a cheap source of legal, financial or operation management skills, while publicly listed companies are in need of network connections such directors can provide, for example, sources of finance. They can also provide the benefit of attaching a good reputation to their company. Mature businesses, with which we are most concerned because BDO falls into that category, can use non-executive directors for their relevant market or managerial experience and from the consumer confidence which can be gained from that person’s good reputation being affiliated to their company (Having Their Cake, 2013). Applying this theory to the independent non-executive directors of BDO, we can clearly see from the Transparency Report (2012) that both have experience of past non-executive director roles and both bring their own experience in a relevant field, Lesley MacDonagh with a high level of experience of law and business management which she gained from being a Managing Partner at Law firm Lovells and Lord David Currie having experience of business management from eing a Dean of Cass Business School and a past Chairman of OFCOM and he also has sound knowledge of the legal system from being a member of the House of Lords. This places them perfectly for their positions of overseeing the governance of and business management of BDO. 2. 3. Stewardship Theory This theory, which originated from the works of Donaldson (1990), suggests that directors can have motives which are ‘pro-organizational’ and counters the assumption by agency theorists that management aims are based in self-in terest and are not aligned with those of the shareholders. Donaldson even goes as far as to suggest that negative investor assumptions of the management will have the opposite effect to what was intended and can actually weaken the leadership of a company by weakening the management’s authority when splitting the decision making power between the board and the management. Donaldson also put forward the theory that inside managers and directors have possibly spent their lives working for the company they govern and because of this not only have a strong understanding of how the company is ran, therefore are able to make superior decisions, but also they will have naturally built a strong affiliation and personal investment in the success of the company. He also points out that decisions made by a board of outsiders could be of a lower quality because they would not be in a position to fully understand the company because they would not have access to the same informal knowledge sources and would lack any information which could inform them of the contextual nature of any business situations. All this in turn could lead to low firm performance (Nicholson and Kiel, 2007). As was stated earlier, BDO has a LT which is made up of partners who have been working for the company in a particular field and have been a partner for a number of years. The field they are responsible for as part of the LT is relevant to the field they have been previously working in, for example the Head of Audit and Tax, Paul Eagland has been a Tax Partner for 17 years. This ensures that any decisions that are being made are informed with the necessary knowledge to make the correct decision for the company. Also, as has been stated previously working for the company has long has built a strong affiliation to the company and its success. With regards to the non-executive director element of the board, it is made up of both independent members who come from outside the company (such as mentioned previously) and Directors such as the Senior Partner who has been with the company for a number of years, this allows for any gaps in the knowledge of the directors to be covered because there is an overlap between the meetings of the LT and the Partner Council when the Senior Partner sits in on LT meetings as an affiliated non-executive director. This ensures that the company is practicing good governance and that the board cannot be misled by the management as to how the company is being ran and if the interests of the other Partners are being looked after (Transparency Report, 2012). 2. 4. Stakeholder Theory Freeman (1980’s) put forward a whole new idea in terms of corporate governance theories, he argued that it should not simply be just the shareholders’ or partners’ interests which should be considered when making business decisions, he suggested that companies should be ran with the interests of all stakeholders in mind. Other stakeholders include employees, who have invested their time and skills in the company and have an invested interest in the company’s success, in order for them to ensure job security. This, Freeman classes as a direct interest in the success of the company, other direct stakeholders include customers and suppliers. What Freeman classed as having an indirect interest in the performance of the company includes the community as a whole and the environment (Having Their Cake, 2013). There is a major problem with this theory, which is that it is hard to operationalize because it is difficult to decide the weight that should be given to different stakeholders but accepting this difficulty, some theorists have suggested that while ultimately they are accountable to the shareholders, they must take into account the interests of other stakeholders when making decisions. This demand for ‘stakeholder value’ is legitimised through a number of examples, take globalisation; the spread of business and corporations across the world has led to environmental damage, an increase in corporate corruption and excessive executive pay has been, for example with RBS, to come hand-in-hand with company downsizing which has a direct impact on employees. In the name of good corporate governance, the increase in the value of stakeholder interests has led to an increase in business ethic codes and heightened corporate practice visibility and corporate reports of social responsibility and environmental matters (Having Their Cake, 2013). According to BDO’s website and their Transparency Report (2012), the company takes the interests of various stakeholders into account when making decisions about how the business is run, in a number of different ways, through policies and procedures: * Ethical Requirements The company has a Professional Services Manual and an Audit Manual, which contain rules relating to ethical conduct of employees, management and Partners. It is easily accessible on the company intranet and is supplemented with training and is designed to comply with International and UK Ethics Standards. The Partners and staff sign annual declarations as to their compliance to the code and the company has an Ethics Partner who is tasked with providing guidance as to correct ethics and also with maintaining compliance. * Client Relationships BDO has 5 core values which all partners and staff are committed to, they are; honesty and integrity, taking personal responsibility, mutual support and strong and personal client relationships. To aid in these values and to help deliver a quality service to clients, the company has robust client and engagement procedures. They carry out risk assessments on every potential client, before signing a contract and this helps to ensure that not only is the company secure but also that they provide the client with the sufficient standard and amount of staff they are in need of. The HR department also has clear policies and procedures when it comes to recruitment in training, to ensure the company has a sufficient number of staff who are competent and meet the required ethical standards, all in the name of providing a quality service to clients. * Employee Relationships BDO have an inclusive culture when it comes to recruitment and training and development, it provides every staff member with the same opportunities to progress regardless of differences. They have strong policies and procedures regarding regular reviews, which are performed bi-annually. They also seek to adopt the most relevant recruitment selection tools, in order to ensure the fit and quality of those joining the company. They also provide employees with ‘learning maps’ and ‘career and performance wheels’, which helps with career development and ensures promotions only occur when the staff member is ready. This all aids in the success of the company. * Corporate Social Responsibility BDO actively support and develop the local community, they have an established network of over 20 champions in the UK, tasked with â€Å"stimulating local ideas and initiatives† to help developing the community. They have a Community Volunteering Policy, allowing employees to take 6 days a year to volunteer, and they are not restricted to volunteer at certain organisations. It can be whatever is important to them. BDO ensure the negative impact their business has on the environment is minimised and have an Environmental Policy which can be accessed at the follow address: http://www. bdo. uk. com/about-us/corporate-social-responsibility/environment. Considering this, it could be said that with regards to ‘stakeholder value’ BDO practices good corporate governance. . BDO Governance in Practice 3. 1. Transparency Report Due to the EU’s 8th Directive on transparency reporting being adopted, in April 2008 the Professional Oversight Board published the Statutory Auditors (Transparency) Instrument (2008), requiring auditors of companies with a public interest to publish annual transparency reports. It also detailed requirements that such reports must meet, including systems of q uality control, independence practices and procedures and information about the company, i. e. he structure and the management. The BDO Transparency Report (2012) is available at: http://static. bdo. uk. com/assets/documents/2012/09/Transparency_Report_for_the_52_weeks_ended_29_June_2012. pdf . Transparency reports are used to demonstrate the quality of audit processes and practices of a company and are also used to encourage a high level of confidence and trust from stakeholders and the business community. BDO also provided a statement of compliance with the Audit Firm Governance Code (2010), which can be seen in Appendix A. The transparency includes details of the Governance Structure of the UK Firm, including the management and implementation of independent non-executive directors, the values of the company, the Internal Quality Control System, the Risk Management Control System and details the policies and procedures regarding independence, whistleblowing, professional development and partner remuneration. 3. 2. Statement of Compliance with the Audit Firm Governance Code One of the most important aspects of the Transparency Report is the Statement of Compliance with the Audit Firm Governance Code. Some of the key aspects of which include compliance with: * the owner accountability principle- the Partnership Council reviews decisions made by the Leadership Team, the management * the management principle- strategic and operational leadership is provided by the LT * the professionalism principle- the whole firm is committed to quality work and professional judgement and values. The firm’s management and the Head of Risk and Quality reinforce the appropriate ‘tone at the top’, instilling professional and ethical values in the firm. BDO employees are expected to comply with an internal code of conduct * the Involvement of independent non-executives principle- BDO appointed Independent Non-Executives in July 2008, comply with the same independence requirements as our partners and employees and they have sufficient experience and expertise to command the respect of the partners * the Compliance Principle- BDO have policies and procedures to ensure they comply with professional standards and applicable legal and regulatory requirements * the whistleblowing policy- all actions arising out of incidents of whistleblowing, are reported to the Head of Risk and Quality who will make an annual report the Internal Reporting Principle- LT, Partnership Council, Audit Committee and Risk Committee are supplied with information in a timely manner and in a form and of a quality which enables them to discharge their duties * the Financial Statements Principle- BDO publish annual audited financial statements in accordance with UK GAAP While BDO provide a very clear statement about how compliant they are with regards to the Audit Firm Governance Code, we must look at the FRC’s ‘BDO LLP- Audit Quality Inspection, 2013’ which considered the corporate governance compliance of BDO in order to get a true understanding of their standard of corporate governance compliance. 3. 3. FRC Annual Review of BDO The FRC found that in most areas there were appropriate policies and procedures in place for its size and client base and they found that all the statements that were made in the Transparency Report were consistent with their understanding of BDO’s policies and procedures of the firm. However, when the FRC reviewed the audits BDO carried out themselves on other companies, they found that a number of governance codes were not being adhered to: * Firstly, they were not always providing a high standard of quality auditing, failing to challenge explanations and inputs from managers, they did not always report the disclosure deficiencies which were identified to the Audit Committee and there was a lack of adequate communication with the Audit Committee with regards to inaccurate information, which led to safeguards that had been put in place not being properly assessed. Secondly, the FRC found that the audits were not always being reviewed thoroughly enough and audit quality issues and omissions in reports were not being identified. * Thirdly, BDO were found to not have complied fully with ethical standards in a number of different ways; * The business plan inferred that fees should be set lower if non-audit fees are likely to be earned, this goes against their own required ethical standards and their own * Performance evaluation criteria including the cross-selling of non-audit services * The list of entities which partners held shares and could generate a conflict of interests was not up to date. A more robust set of procedures was suggested to ensure that this list was kept up to date in future Lastly, the Internal Quality Review was not of a high enough standard, it did not provide a sufficient level of detail and clarity of explanations of significant findings. 4. Conclusion We can see that BDO go to great lengths to try and ensure that they are fully compliant with corporate governance codes and regulations, not only with their policies and procedures a nd the way the company is managed but also with governance structure of the company and the values and focus of the aims and objectives of the company. They also have a strong focus on transparency and ethics within in their business and this is linked to their value of providing great customer client relationships with professionalism, honesty and integrity. They also go to great lengths to aid the companies with which they work, in complying with corporate governance codes, again this is all in the name of developing excellent quality and trustworthy client relationships, in order to maintain and improve the success of their business. However, as we can see from the FRC review, there are gaps in their governance compliance, in particular with internal reporting and ethical standards, but it will have to be seen in the coming years of reviews if the increase in transparency and an even greater focus on corporate governance will lead to BDO closing such gaps. 5. 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