The key personal features needed Essay Example for Free

The key personal features needed Essay CASE STUDY: Laurie and Joe want to open up a hairdressing salon. They have had previous experience running and managing a shop and now they want to run their own business. Write a report discussing the key personal features needed, suitable establishment options for Laurie and Joe and finance options they should take into account. Key personal features: To ensure success when establishing a business, laurie and joe need have the three key personal qualities – entrepreneurship, personal qualities (motivation, experience, expectation) and other influences (cultural background, gender). Entrepreneurship: As an entrepreneur, the basic qualities required are to be: Assertive, Determined, Very organised and responsible, Willing to take risks, Good with people, A good leader, Motivated, Dedicated, Confident, Realistic, Healthy, Resilient Laurie and joe must have a desire to succeed and have drive and energy which relates to the personal qualities of a person. A person wanting to establish their own business needs to have motivation, experience and expectation. Personal Qualitities: Motivation: Motivation refers to your personal drive, determination and desire to achieve a goal or objective, in this case setting up a business. There are several reasons for why people start up their own business but it is usually due to: Having independence and being your own boss Choosing the location and fellow employees Gaining more control over own destiny and increasing personal wealth Having something to leave to family Accepting a challenge Security Experience: An experienced person would have: Knowledge of the product and service being entered Skills in management such as communication, ER, accounting and finance, marketing and operations Organizational and customer service skills. It would be best if Laurie and Joe satisfied these requirements in order to have the best chance at a successful business. Expectation: Expectation relates to the person’s level of ambition and self confidence. Someone with high expectations will have a vision for the future of the business. Some expectations that Laurie and Joe should have include: Financial rewards Independence Success Role as the boss Security of future employment Opportunity to use skills Other influences: Other influences include cultural background and gender. For laurie and joe, cultural background would not be a big factor for the success of their business as they want to open a hairdressing business. With gender, Laurie and Joe would just have to consider if they will be open to both genders and if customers would allow the opposite gender cut their hair. Suitable establishment options: Before setting up their own business, laurie and joe must choose one of three establishment options – starting from scratch, buying an existing business or buying a franchise. There are advantages and disadvantages for all three options so Laurie and Joe must pick the one most suitable for a hairdressing business. Starting from Scratch: Starting a business from scratch usually only occurs when: A new product is being introduced on to the market Existing businesses aren’t meeting customer needs There is a large demand and the market is growing. If these circumstances don’t exist, it would be more difficult to start from scratch. However as Laurie wouldn’t be providing a new product, only the last two circumstances would need to be considered. Although it can be difficult to start a business from scratch, there are some advantages: The owner has the freedom to set up the business the way they wish If funds are limited you can start on a small scale There is no goodwill to pay for The owner can determine the growth of the business The owner can choose the location However, as noted above, there are some disadvantages when starting from scratch such as: Time is needed to develop a customer base, employ staff and develop lines of credit from suppliers Profit levels could be low at start up and the business could have liquidity problems There is a high risk of failure and a measure of uncertainty Finances could be hard to obtain As Laurie and Joe want to establish a hairdressing business, it is recommended that they choose to start from scratch as it would be most suited for their needs. Buying an existing business An existing business may be purchased instead of starting from scratch as it may already be a successful business and would have an established customer base, employees, equipment and location. Although there are a few advantages, there are also disadvantages when it comes to buying an existing business. Advantages: Sales to existing customers will bring in automatic income The inventory and supply networks are set up Equipment is available for immediate use Employees could be a good source of advice Previous business owner could provide training and advice If the business had been successful it could be easier to obtain finances Disadvantages: Some employees may resent any changes to the business operation The existing business could have had a poor reputation within the community The value of the goodwill could make the business overpriced Assets could be old and overvalued The location can’t be changed and the existing layout may be difficult to change For Laurie and Joe, buying an existing business would be the most suitable†¦. Buying a franchise: A franchise is license by a parent company to an individual to operate the parent company’s business on their behalf. The franchises make up a chain of businesses under the parent companies name. a franchisor is the large organization and a franchisee is the individual(s) that operates the business on behalf of the company. Finance Options: Laurie and Joe have two options when it comes to how to finance the establishment of the business. The two options are owner’s equity and debt finance. Critical issues in business success and failure: When Laurie and Joe first start their business, there are five critical issues to be aware of. They are: Having a business plan Identifying and sustaining competitive advantage Using technology Avoiding overextension of finance Managing cash flow While most small business fail in the first couple of years, careful attention to these critical issues will help the business to succeed. Having a business plan A business plan is the blueprint for future growth and development within a business. It sets out the desired goals and strategies to direct the business. A business plan is essential to long-term success and must be followed. It should also be modified when there are changes in: Technology The competition The economy The customer’s needs When setting up a business plan, Laurie and Joe would need to consider the prime function of the business, the mission statement, plans and strategies and budgeting. Laurie and Joe should also include why they want to establish the business, the goals they wish to achieve, the steps necessary to achieve their goals and the time frame in which the steps and goals should be achieved. Identifying and sustaining competitive advantage Sustainable competitive advantage refers to the ability of a business to develop strategies that will ensure it has an ‘edge’ over its competitors for a long period of time. To have a sustainable competitive advantage Laurie and Joe would need to think about pricing (higher or lower than competitors, prestige pricing), quality, value (a good price for the quality of product/service) and the features of their product or service. Laurie and Joe would be best off charging the same price as competitors but provide a better quality service and hair products. Laurie and Joe could also think about using the differentiation strategy in which they would offer customers something that is not already offered by competitors. Use of technology Technology is having many effects on businesses and the advancements and changing technology are allowing business to advertise and communicate to customers in more convenient ways. As Laurie and Joe are setting up a hairdressing business, technology wouldn’t be a big factor. A hairdressing business wouldn’t rely on internet applications such as e-commerce and most likely wouldn’t even have a website. The only technologies a hairdressing business would require are EFTPOS machines so that customers don’t have to pay cash which therefore widens the customer base. Avoiding overextension of financing and other resources Overextension of financing and other resources refers to when business owners go over the budget and spending money on resources which are usually financed by external sources such as banks. To avoid overextension of financing and other resources, Laurie and Joe need to pay close attention to gearing, equipment/furniture/stock and budget. Gearing refers to the proportion of debt and equity finance that a business uses to finance its activities. If a business is highly geared then there is a high level of debt resulting in a greater risk. Therefore it would be best for Laurie and Joe’s business to have low gearing, so more equity than debt.

Verbal Behavior Essay -- Analysis, Skinner

Skinner's book â€Å"Verbal Behavior,† first published in 1957, presented his ideas about the influence of language can be used in the framework for behavioral research and analysis. The main argument presented by Skinner was that verbal behavior was different than other forms of behavior and deserved to be separated in a distinctive category, and Skinner considered language development as the result of mediation of other people while nonverbal behavior was enforced through the physical environment. Skinner defined the basic verbal operants in his analysis of verbal behavior, which include the mand, tact, intraverbal, echoic, and the autoclitic operants, and he distinguished the type of consequence for each operant. Furthermore, the theory defines the audience as a discriminative stimulus that will affect language development as it gives the signs of possible rewards or punishment. There was no previous research on the topic, so the lack of data available for writing the book and lack of experiments in the book, and the theory was subject to severe criticism and ignored in the academic community for several decades after it was published (McPherson, Bonem, Green, & Osborne, 1984). Although Skinner's language development theory was not accepted in the academic community or applied frequently in research until the 1990s (Sundberg, & Michael, 2001), Skinner's verbal behavior theory successfully defines verbal operants relevant to the basic behavioral principles. This essay will show that the main implication to the development of this theory is the severe criticism of Skinner's theory as unsound and consisted of plagiarized traditional ideas. Despite the criticism against Skinner's theory, it is questionable if the criticism itself prov... ...tals of language development, applying Skinner's theory could rule out those errors and prove to be successful in its applications. Rather than criticizing Skinner's theory based on the lack of empirical evidence presented in his book, or denying the effectiveness of the theory for several seemingly irrelevant reasons, such as the unclear definition of its correlation to a neurological-genetic theory (MacCorquodale, 1970), empirical research should provide clear evidence on the credibility of Skinner's theory. Although the entire theory does not have to be proven successful, several aspects of Skinner's theory have proven successful in conducting behavioral interventions (Sundberg & Michael, 2001). Recent studies show increased use of Skinner's language development framework, so the criticism against the theory was obviously a major implication to its development.

Accounting and Auditing: Crazy computers

FASB (Financial Accounting Standards Board) plays the role of determining Generally Accepted Accounting Principles to ensure proper accounting standards are followed. According to FASB, revenue is recognized once it is earned.Commission in Crazy Computer's case is recognized immediately since Crazy Computers collects the cash on behalf of Third Party insurance and then pays it. Commission however should not be added to sales because when balancing the equation, Sales is equal to opening stock plus purchases less closing stock.This means that by adding commission to sales the equation may not balance and it will be exaggerated. The commission revenue consists of income and it is therefore used in the final statements of accounts to calculate the profit of the business.Commission received from TPI can therefore be used when coming up with profits for the year. In case Third Party Insurance agrees to re insure, revenue to be obtained from Third Party Insurance (TPI) will only be recogni zed after Third Party Insurance pays up the amount to Captive Insurance Company (CIC).Commission revenue can only be recognized immediately if Crazy Computers will automatically be deducted from the $110 that the company gives to Third Party Insurance so that it does not have to wait for TPI to pay. This would mean that Crazy Computers would have $165 at the end of the sale then give $25 to TPI.However, it may not show whether the computers on their own were able to sustain themselves without the boost from the commissions earned. When Crazy Computers introduce CIC, they will still get the commission but it will be offset when the amount received from TPI is added.Even as Crazy Computers recognizes revenue from sale of third party insurance on behalf of TPI, it should be careful when it comes to receiving the money back for re-insurance through CIC. The best method to account for the funds to be collected from the Captive Insurance is to do them separately from Crazy Computers.This is because Crazy Computers and CIC are two different kinds of businesses. FASB advices that in order to check the progress of a business it is good to gauge its profitability which is done by subtracting the expenses from sales made by the business.This will ensure that when it comes to paying claims, revenue received from Crazy Computers should not be used for CIC obligations. It will also ensure that the money collected from CIC is not to be used in the computer business unless Crazy Computers borrows from CIC.If Crazy Computers was to account for CIC revenue together with the computer revenue, calculating profits would get complicated since the revenue received is not made from sales only. In other words, treating the two businesses as separate entities will ensure the profitability of the two can be determined.Crazy Computer's idea to create a wholly owned subsidiary would be a good idea if the Third Party Insurer agrees to re-insure with them. Based on the transaction illustrat ed in the case study, currently Crazy computers pay $110 for insurance such that TPI takes responsibility for any obligations from customers.Because CC gets commission for every sale made then from the $200 received it is left with $80 after paying the sales persons $10. With the introduction of CIC and if TPI agrees to re insure with CIC, CC will get $ 85 back out of the $110 paid to TPI.This means that cash received goes up from $80 to $165. CIC would therefore be profitable. However, in case of any third party obligations CIC will be solely responsible. This is why it is extremely important for Crazy Computers to ensure that CIC's income does not mix with computer income so as to ensure each department can sustain its own expenses.Word count (635).ReferenceFASB. (2008). Financial Accounting Standards and Revenue Recognition.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   from http/www.fasb.org.

Efficiency of solar energy - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 602 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2019/10/30 Category Energy Industry Essay Level High school Tags: Solar Energy Essay Did you like this example? For centuries humans have used the sun as a source of energy. When people talk about solar energy, it reminds me of my childhood growing up in a small remote village. We had no access to electricity. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Efficiency of solar energy" essay for you Create order Most of our energy source was paraffin, wood, and charcoal. However; the sun was very resourceful, water was poured in metal containers and set them in the open field to absorb radiation from the sun. We used the hot water for laundry and bathing. Additionally, we used the sun to accomplish simple household tasks such as drying laundry, lighting, heating, cooking, pasteurizing or drying food to preserving it. With advanced technologies, utilities use sophisticated ways to tap solar energy and convert it to electricity. According to Environmental Protection Agency, solar is energy derived from the suns radiation. Solar energy is the most reliable and an effective source of energy because of government subsidies, low maintenance costs, and its health benefits. Government subsidies are offered to encourage homeowners to switch to renewable solar energy and lower their energy usage. State and federal government offer incentives such as investment tax credits, state tax credits and property tax exclusions to owners of solar installations. The federal government allows a deduction of 30% of the solar power system costs off federal taxes through an investment tax credit (ITC). Sometimes, the value of solar panel system is excluded in the property taxes assessments, which means even though the value of the property has increased by the addition of the solar power system, the property tax bill remains the same. Also available are subsidized solar loans offered by the state, NGOs or utility companies to finance the purchase of the solar panel system at reduced interest rates. In addition, installation owners through net metering credits can sell excess power back to the utility company if they have the grid. These financial supports help to furthe r reduce the initial installation costs of system, making it affordable to many homeowners. Solar panels require low cost of maintenance after installation. However; to keep the panels working effectively, basic annual maintenance and cleaning are needed. There are no repairs and replacements necessary because the solar system does not come with any moving parts. The panels stand up well against destruction. SolarWorld USA, a reputable solar panel manufacturer offers 20-year product warranty, and a 25-year performance guarantee covering defects that affect functional capability during this warranty period. Belur, a contributor of solar power world article, talks about the smart PV inverters that can automatically detect and repair faults therefore eliminating the need for onsite maintenance crew. This increases efficiency lowering the operations and maintenance costs. Producing electricity from solar energy rather than coal brings significant health benefits. Once solar panels are constructed and delivered to the work site, they produce no harmful gases whatsoever and do not require any fossil fuel to operate. The air and water pollution discharged by coal plants are harmful to human health. These emissions are associated with causing illnesses such as asthma, neurological damage, and cancer. Unlike coal, solar energy plants do not require water to operate. They do not pollute water resources or strain supply by competing with agriculture, drinking water systems, or other important water needs. Solar energy is the most efficient and clean source of energy that will benefit to our community in the long run. With government financial support and minimal operating costs, homeowners and solar system renters will afford to install the solar energy. Electricity utility bills will be reduced significantly. Also, solar being a clean source energy will create a safer environment for the future generations.