Discussion 2 Week 8 Tips for Effective Proposal Writing Assignment

Discussion 2 Week 8 Tips for Effective Proposal Writing - Assignment Example The sample proposals where obtained in the following links: http://www.coloradogrants.org/assets/pdf/centerville-community-center.pdf; and http://www.netplaces.com/grant-writing/sample-federal-grant-proposal/. There are areas where deviation were present in terms of tendencies to use long sentence structures and not using tabular structures to highlight information in a more concise and easily understood manner. 2. Using the criteria presented in Chapter 13 of the textbook for writing effective proposals, rewrite at least one section of a proposal that you identified through the e-Activity and explain why you made those changes. To re-write one portion of the proposal submitted to the Community Technology Center (CTC) grant project, the following portion were noted to be ineffective: â€Å"The Districts middle school population meets the criteria for at-risk: 71 percent come from low-income backgrounds; 68 percent are minority; 22 percent receive special-education services; 15 percent are bilingual† (Sample Federal Grant Proposal, n.d., p. 1). It could be re-written this

Security aspects of network Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Security aspects of network - Essay Example Companys products enable IT managers to bypass costly RF surveys. Instead, they can use low-cost, commoditized access points. With Sputniks firmware, these access points configure themselves, and are controlled from a central management console. So instead of installing a few costly access points from vendors such as Cisco Systems Inc., Sifry said, an enterprise could mount a larger number of inexpensive access points and forgo the RF survey. Carriers are particularly interested in wide area wireless technology because it can help to boost cell phone coverage within buildings. The No. 1 reason enterprise customers switch carriers is poor service, Sly said, and this product can help carriers keep their customers, but it also gives them a presence inside the enterprise. SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- While Wi-Fi networks are often seen as simple and inexpensive to deploy, there are plenty of hidden costs and complexities lurking under the surface. Now, a number of new vendors are poised to rem edy those problems. Wireless LAN deployments are often expensive for companies because RF surveys, which help ensure proper network coverage, can cost as much as $1,000 per access point, said Albert Lew, director of product management for Burlington, Mass.-based wireless LAN vendor Legra Systems Inc. IT departments usually lack the expertise to do these surveys themselves, he said. Interference is also becoming a problem for many businesses, said Tyler Burns, product marketing manager with Ottawa-based wireless products manufacturer IceFyre Semiconductor Inc. He noted that the growing popularity of Wi-Fi, and the numerous technologies that compete with it, are taking up much of the space in the 2.4 GHz RF band.

The American Dream Essay Example for Free

The American Dream Essay What is the American Dream? There are a myriad of aspects to it, but one general idea: the ideal life. It is making a lot of money, being respected, and triumphing difficult situations. The American Dream has been pursued by many, but only few make it all the way. One very good example of the American Dream is Andrew Carnegie, the founder of what is known as U.S. Steel. Carnegie was born in Scotland to a poor family. As a teen, he emigrated from Scotland to the United States. He was portrayed as a hard working individual who was very intelligent and disciplined. He took it upon himself to read and learn as much as he could. Carnegies first job was a telegraph messenger boy, and later upgraded to work for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company as a telegraph operator. His persevering work allowed him to quickly advance through the company, and he became the superintendent of the Pittsburgh Division. He continued making investments and made good profits throughout the civil war, and finally left Pennsylvania Railroad and started his own iron companies, eventually Keystone Bridge Works and Union Ironworks. Carnegie saw how bad the wooden railroads were, so he proceeded to slowly replace them with iron ones. Carnegies charm, perception, and hard work led to becoming one of the worlds most famous men of the time, and led to the first corporation in the world with a market capitalization in excess of one billion when he sold his companies to John Morgan who called them United States Steel Corporation. The rise from the poor boy in Scotland to the second richest man in America. He had plenty of initiative and persevered throughout his life to become what he wanted to be. He retired as one of the most respected men in the world, and he will be in the history books forever. He was polite, educated, wealthy, intelligent, respected, and perceptive. Andrew Carnegie lived the American Dream. This still holds true today, as many immigrants come to the United States for better, more successful life. This is what the states were founded upon, and, hopefully, will never die. Life, liberty, and the p ursuit of happiness. Overcoming all obstacles, becoming someone no one else is. Everyone dreams of the American Dream.

The Arguments For Regulation Accounting Essay

The Arguments For Regulation Accounting Essay History is filled with examples where crisis and scandals paved the way for regulatory interventions in the financial markets. The UK introduced major changes in its regulatory practice after the fall of the Barings Bank as a result of the financial scandals during the 1990s. The Financial Services Authority was deregulated in order to develop more rigid and consolidated regulations that conformed to the practice that were prevalent in the industry. Similarly, the US saw a major shift in its financial accounting regulations after the Enron catastrophe. The financial crisis of 2007-2009 has resulted in bringing the issue of standardizing the regulations on financial accounting practices. Regulators worldwide have realized the systematic risks inherent in the financial markets and the critical role that regulations can play in sprouting and exacerbating the fiasco. Accounting standards plays a vital role in financial accounting and reporting in order for investors to make good decisions. Financial accounting and reporting are subjected to various regulations such as the Securities exchange Commission (SEC), the financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). They differs from countries due to the differences in the economic, social and political factors involved. (P. Brown) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created in response to the major stock market crash in 1929 to restore investor confidence. At that time, financial statements were often poor in quality and not audited. Arguments for regulation Over the years there have been many arguments over the necessity for regulation. Accounting regulations are needed in the industries that are susceptible to monopolistic behaviours to protect stakeholders interests. These monopolies undermine the competition, as they would try to beat the competitor that poses a threat to their share in the market. Hence, regulation can help the governments in maintaining the efficiency of the markets to keep them attractive for investors and maintaining fair trade. Arguments in favour of regulation correspond to the market failure, government will be able to help through regulations. Moreover, regulations should be considered when there are businesses and financial institutions that offer windfall profits due to new innovation; the organization is able to achieve high profits. Suppliers will use unethical practices to charge a large sum of money by excluding the true cost, which is known as externalities. In addition to these, there are information asymmetries that exist where firms do not fully disclose their decisions. Bushman and Landsman (2010) suggest that optimal disclosure of financial information are beneficial because failure to do so might cause investors sceptical assumptions. Proponents of the regulations maintain that markets usually place their interest above the best benefit of the society. Thus, interventions in the regulations are necessary. Regulations are considered to provide a strong and focused control over the activities that are deemed important by the society. In the meantime, regulations can be seen as the strict process for performing and action in the corporate environment such as in order to set up, manage and end an organization, one has to follow the regulations laid out in the corporations law (Sloan, 2001). But regulations should not be considered as negative as it helps in managing, controlling and getting results from various business activities. For example, the rules and checks that are built into the regulations, give people the confidence that these regulations would not allow people to step out of their authority and conform to the regulatory requirements; that are developed keeping their interests in perspective. The move from governments brought light into the issue of regulating the accounting processing in the industry. Accounting is primarily responsible for providing relevant information for decision making required to make decisions of economic nature. This information is prepared by accountants and professionals in the industry which are responsible for maintaining the record of the financial and accounting data for the company. This information is published in the annual financial reports as well as the stock exchange helping investors to make informed decisions. Moreover, there are regulations relating to the application of taxes as well as the procedure through which organizations are formed and established. The statutory and financial requirements ensure that the organizations are capable of meeting their financial and corporate responsibilities (Bushman and Landsman, 2010) Hence, regulations play an integral role in the functioning of daily business organizations in the modern world. There are a large number of operations that need regulations as they contain data that is critical for efficient operation of the organizations. This information should not be put at risk and placing regulatory requirements on its collections and maintenance is a safe way to ensure the efficiency of the accounting process (Hoogendoorn, 2006). Arguments against regulation Nonetheless, there are a number of perspectives on the issue of regulating the financial markets. The critics of the idea present the argument that these regulations are not needed as the market players act in an efficient manner to serve the society and efficiently utilize their resources. Characteristics of principles-based and rules-based standards A standard consist of principles and rules that apply to given accounting issue (Nelson, 2003). Schipper (2003) suggested that accounting standards in US are more rules-based but often based on principles while IAS and IFRS are more principles-based. Principles-based standard According to ICAS (2006), principles-based accounting standards are based on a conceptual framework. They suggest that such standards require a clear hierarchy of overarching concepts, principles that reflect the overarching concepts and limited further guidance (ICAS, 2006). The principles-based deliver a comprehensive way in preparing the financial statement yet has the flexibility to overcome any situations. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 required the SEC to assess the viability of a principles-based accounting system. The SEC focused their studies on objective-oriented standards, which is similar to FASBs definition of principles-based standards but Benston et al., (2006) propose that it is more optimal as it offer a narrower framework that limits the scope of professional judgement but allowing more flexibility. In 2008, Grant Thornton issued a White Paper suggesting six high-quality characteristics of principles-based accounting standard. This include; faithful presentation of economic reality, responsive to users needs for clarity and transparency, consistency with a clear Conceptual Framework, based on a defined scope that addresses a broad area of accounting, written in a clear and understandable language, use of appropriate judgment (Grant Thornton, 2008). Benston et al., (2006) agrees that principles-based tend to have more professional judgement. The practice of professional judgment is reinforced to give a true and fair view of the organisations performance. The fundamental advantage of principles-based accounting is that its broad guidelines can be practical for a variety of circumstances. Precise requirements can sometimes compel managers to manipulate the statements to fit what is compulsory. Rules-based standards According to Nelson (2003), rules-based standards have more bright line threshold, more rules, have more scope exceptions and large volume of implementation guidance. Example for bright-line rules-based standards is the managing of capital lease and operating lease. The principle contrast being that a capital lease might need to show up on the asset report of the carrier whereas operating lease do not need any recording. Two distinguishable lease transactions are characterized contrastingly based upon the GAAP renting guidelines (Maines, 2007). Rules-based increases the comparability especially when accountants and regulators have different opinions on interpretation of accounting issues. The FASB developed rules-based standards to increase verifiability for management, auditors and regulators who seek for a clear view of accounting issue. This is related to the reduction in litigation as guidance to protect them from any lawsuits or criticism for aggressive reporting (Benston et al., 2006). If organisation fails to conform to these rules, it has to face legal consequences due to the fact that investors entrust the organisation to meet the regulatory requirements and make their decisions based on the interpretation of financial data. Regulators often prefer rules to avoid unpredictable of later enforcement. Rules reduce discretion of preparer making their judgement less likely to be motivated by the yearning of personal benefits (Coglianese et al., 2004). Moreover, some managers prefer rules-based standards as business arrangement to prepare financial statement. To achieve desirable financial result, they get to gain opportunities by lobbying for treatment of different type of business arrangements (Maines, 2007). Why are principles-based standards more useful than rules-based standards? Many commentators have suggested that the US accounting standard is more rules-based. Rules are thought to be simple but in reality it could complex and easily be manipulated. For instances, tax regulations are mainly rules-based causing problem to arise when organisation start a new transaction not under the rule guideline. Making it difficult for auditors to clarify the inconsistencies (Coglianese et al., 2004). Benston et al., (2006) agree that the complexity of rules can become dysfunctional when the economic changes or when managers structure transactions that meet the rules. Therefore, theres no need to reduce earnings management and improve the quality of financial reporting because mangers will eventually find his way to meet rules by violating them that overcompensate for judgemental discretion. Thus, many regulators are now leaning towards the principles-based approach. Application of rules-based according to Schipper (2003) is undesirable because the check-box mentality tend to risk the quality of financial reporting whereas principles-based exercises professional judgement. Regulators believe that rules-based approach foster creative accounting, neither comprehensive nor comparable. It is a delusion that rules-based could completely eliminate risk of litigation. Instead of rules-based, principles-based accounting systems provide a true and fair framework with effective communication that are required by stakeholders. Risk of litigation will always remain but principles-based will minimise the risk (ICAS, 2006). Rules exist because a standard is based on poor principles. Using applicable principle would reduce the need of having detailed set of rules, therefore complexity of the rules could be minimised and standard will increase its comparability (Nobes, 2005). Furthermore principles-based standards are meant to provide a more precise accounting statement reflecting the companys performance reason because as the used of principles-based increase, manipulation of rules would reduce. Study result shows that corporate managers prefer principles-based. Objectives are yet again the flexibility when they could report what they believe of the consequences, beneficial of forecast earnings and if management reimbursement is related to their target (Philips et al., 2010). The study have also indicated that principles-based focus more on reporting the true economic circumstances, however with that much liberty auditors might challenge managements misappropriation of standards. Thus, focusing on one or the other standard will not necessary solve the transparency of financial reporting. There are two matters to take into consideration when engaging into principles-based standards. The issues are to reduce the weighting given to comparability relative to other qualitative characteristics in the conceptual framework and to increase professional judgement in both transaction and financial statement (Bennett et al., 2006). Problems standard setters have in promulgating standards that are principles-based Accounting standards are promulgated to assist the objective of financial reporting; some parties believe that collapse of a company was caused by the incompetent standards. Problems standard setters find promulgating principles-based standard is because rules-based standard is favourable at times. Rules-based standards are able to achieve qualitative characteristic of comparability in financial reporting whereas principles-based are not able to. Criticism of principles-based arise when uncertainty of the standard reflects a risk of regulator sanctions. Uncertainty can be accepted only if regulator agree to the firms interpretations and respond correspondingly (Black, 2007). Level of uncertainty will increase if standard setter developed internal understanding of the guideline not shown in the firms statement. Moreover, applying principles-based standard will have diminishing effect on the aggressive reporting than strengthening audit committee. (Agoglia et al., 2011) According to Coglianese et al., (2004) move to principles-based may rise problem such as insufficient training to make professional judgment, therefore training will be required. Moreover in the absence of rules, managers may disclose biased information thus company may need to professional resolve (Maines, 2007). Managers do not always apply accounting standards in good faith, they are always biased and now with the flexibility of principles it is criticised that rise of potential for earning management (Nelson, 2003). Providing suitable resolve may be challenging because auditors find difficulty in predicting how principles will be applied to certain litigation. Despite the limitation of rules-based, some standard setter would still prefer rules to principles just to avoid both uncertainties and litigations. Conclusions We can conclude from this discussion that accounting has been not been able to receive a complete regulatory pack that can provide a theoretical foundation for the financial accounting domain. The individualistic approach to developing these theories has not been successful because they miss out on some important factual information. Globalization has caused a number of challenges to the accounting domain as more and more companies have moved their systems from manual to computerized systems. Therefore, regulators face a raising problem of devising regulations that ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the accounting information. There are many mixed feelings regarding the ideas to regulate accounting. However, despite the mixed opinions, the idea to regulate accounting is strong. It is not only the responsible thing to do, but it will also safeguard the public form companies and fraudulent activities that could occur. To not regulate accounting laws and practices will only leave room to gather more mistrust in the accounting.

The TECH 497 Team Project Reflection Paper of Clifton Adams

What I have learned Every group project provides a teachable experience and this one has been no different. I have learned some things during this Capstone team project, however, more than not, this team project has reinforced or refreshed my memory regarding lessons that I have already learned during the numerous other group projects that I have participated in and lead during my collegiate development here at Davenport University. One of the most significant things that I have learned during my project experiences is that, whether or not one is labeled as the team leader or project / group manger / leader is far less important that how one leads the group. I have, on occasion, lead groups from behind even though I have not been elected or otherwise been placed into a leadership position. What I Would Do the Same There are several things that I have, and will continue to do the same when working in a group. When people collect to form teams, a collective team personality is formed which can cause individuals to act contrary to how they normally would under the same circumsta...

America Censored: A Battle of Rights Essays -- Censorship Censoring Me

America Censored: A Battle of Rights Welcome to the United States of America. This is the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. A place where our forefathers once gathered and drew up the foundation for which we live our lives. The Constitution of the United States grants us a certain amount of freedoms for which we cannot be punished for. The first amendment to this constitution of the Constitution allows us the freedom of speech, religion, the right to assemble, and to express ourselves in a way in which we feel fit. Under this amendment, people such as musicians and newsmen and able to write and speak what they feel without being told that it is wrong. They cannot be manipulated to change their thoughts or views on a topic, or can they? Even though the first amendment protects freedom of speech and press people everyday fight not to be censored because they write and speak what they feel. When people are censored for speaking their mind, it shows that the first amendment is nothing more than a falsehood that pr otects some but not all. Letà ­s start this off at the very beginning. What is Censorship? According to The American Heritage College Dictionary to censor is, "To examine in order to suppress or delete anything considered objectionable" (American Heritage College Dictionary 226). So basically it is when a select group of people go through books, movies, and music, and ask that anything that might be seen as offensive to a group of people or anyone in general be removed from the publication. Right away you can see how by doing this a personà ­s first amendment is being violated. If, as Americans, we are granted the freedom of speech and expression then having something you write or say censored directly violates th... ... day they die. Why donà ­t we let them use it and everyone just worry about themselves. If you donà ­t like something then stay away from it. Ità ­s as simple as that. If it wasnà ­t for the first amendment people like Tipper Gore wouldnà ­t even have the freedom to speak her mind of what she was against. I think people need to step back from trying to act as god and control their lives. The freedom of speech and expression is one of the greatest things that we, as a country, have. How many countries out there can you get arrested for speaking out in public on an issue. The first amendment is such a great thing but it needs to hold true for all. If something is censored it is as if the government is playing favorites and if that holds true then we are not a free country at all. For everyone out there who is against censorship I have just one more thing to say to all of you...

Basic Business Concepts

Business: It is the act of manufacturing, producing or buying and selling of goods and services whose aim is to make profit. A product may be defined as the output which could be in terms of services or goods within the normal business transaction.Generally, the fundamental goal of business if to make profit through optimization of its costs and revenue. However, business organizations are the entities that are ideally driven by the profit motive. Non profit making organizations does not aim atmaking profit. 2. Every business activity involves various participants/stakeholders.They include producers/manufactures, distributors, consumers and legal entities (John, 2006). Producers/manufacturers make the goods and services for use in the business process. Consumers are involved in using the products that are manufactured and produced in business processes. Distributors create channels of goods and service transfers from the manufactures to the consumers. Legal entities/government create s the legal layout of conduct between the other three participants. Studying business in the today’s American society is ideally an important aspect that provides information on the aspects that ensure strong business functionality.It provides the most rational knowledge that would help to succeed in any business process. However, business process is affected by various aspects such as international forces of demand and supply, income of the consumers, government regulation, availability of raw material, and economic systems (John, 2006). 3. Economics is the study of fundamentals of incorporating the scarce resources in processes that yield the highest benefit to the community. There are various economic systems which include; Traditional economy is that characterized by techniques and models based on social foundations.It involves resource inheritance and brings a passive sense of togetherness and community. It has low technology and no competition. Command economy is that w hich is controlled and planned by the central government. It is shaped by the will of the government. The means of economic production are owed by the people. It can be found in Vietnam. Market economy is controlled by forces of demand and supply. Government rarely fixes the prices. Private corporations govern the control of distribution and exchange. Example is United Kingdom.Mixed economy compliments both market and command economy. There are both the hands of government and corporations. It is governed by high freedom in its activities. An example is in US (John, 2006). 4. Supply is the total amount of goods and services offered in the market by the produces. Demand id the total quantity of goods and services required for consumption in the market. Price is the single cost paid for a unit of goods or services. Competition refers to the interactive process between suppliers and consumers within the market to yield an equilibrium quantity and price.In America, the competitive natur e of the market ensures the interaction between the quantities of goods and services supplied and demanded to produce an equilibrium price and quantity for the supplies and demands levels (John, 2006). 5. There are four types of competitions. Perfect competition is where we have many suppliers and consumers who interact cohesively with one another to yield an equilibrium quantity and price. Example is the hotel industry. Monopoly competition is where there is one supplier against many consumers. He/she controls the pricing of the goods and services.Example is the development in new communication technology. Duopoly competition is the competition between two suppliers. It may include the development in mobile phone technology between two manufactures. Oligopoly competition is where there are few sellers and many buyers. It may include the market of electronics. 6. The government uses various attributes to measure the state of economic development. They include; Inflation: This is the subsequent increase in the price of commodities. GDP: It is the sum total of all goods and services produced within a country within one year.Unemployment: It is the relationship between the workforce that is willing and also able to work and is in the process of finding a job compared to the number that is absorbed in the employment industry. Consumer Price Index: This is relative changes in the prices of consumer goods within the economy. The rate of unemployment is relative to the level of GDP. Higher unemployment implies lower GDP. This is because, there are low levels of income earned by the household and consequently law levels of aggregate demand within the economy. Economic fluctuations are usually desirable in the economic functionality theory.This is ideally because such fluctuations are detrimental in clearing the various markets within the economy. The federal government in America performs the role of ensuring both strong fiscal and monetary policies which ensure a str ong economy (John, 2006). 7. Service economy is the economy endowed with product output that is governed by services rather than goods. In America, service economy refers to the economic domains implied by the supply and demand of services as product outputs. Reference John Robert (2006) Economic Theory: An Introduction. New York, Prentice Hall