Product Life Cycle of Nokia Essay Example for Free

Product Life Cycle of Nokia Essay INTRODUCTION In the present context, managing has become one of the most important areas of human activity because of increasing role of large and complex organisations in the society. Because of their increasing role, the organisations have attracted the attention of both practitioners and academicians to find out the solutions for business problems. Concept Defining the term management precisely is not so simple because the term management is used in a variety of ways. Being a new discipline, it has drawn concepts and principles from a number of disciplines such as economics, sociology, psychology, anthropology, statistics and so on. Each group of contributors has treated management differently. For example, economists have treated management as a factor of production; sociologists have treated it as a class or group of persons; practitioners have treated it as a process comprising different activities. DEFINITION â€Å"Management is the art of getting things done through and with people in formally organized groups† Koontz â€Å"Management is the art of knowing what you want to do and then seeing that it is done in the best and cheapest way† – F.W. Taylor â€Å"Management is the art of securing maximum results with minimum effort so as to secure maximum prosperity and happiness for both employer and employee and give the public the best possible service† John Mee. â€Å"Management is the accomplishment of results through the efforts of other people† Lawrence â€Å"Management is simply the process of decision making and control over the action of human beings for the expressed purpose of attaining predetermined goals† – Stanley V. â€Å"Management is a process involving planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling human efforts to achieve stated objectives in an organization.† From the above definitions, the following features are identified:1) Organised Activities: Management is a process of organized activities. Without organized activities, two groups of people cannot be involved in the performance of activities. Where a group of people are involved in working towards a common objective, management comes into existence. 2) Existence of objectives: The existence of objectives is a basic criterion of e very human organization because all organizations are deliberate and purposive creation and, therefore, they should have Introduction to Management some objectives. Without objectives, it becomes difficult to define the direction where organized group of activities would lead to. 3) Relationship among resources: Organised activities meant to achieve common goals are brought about to establish certain relationships about the available resources. Resources include money, machine, material, men and methods. All these resources are made available to those who manage the organization. Managers apply knowledge, experience, principles for getting the desired results. Thus, the essence of management is integration of various organisational resources. 4) Working with and through people: Management involves working with people and getting organisational objectives achieved through them. The idea of working through people is interpreted in terms of assigning and reassigning of activities to subordinates. 5) Decision Making: Management process involves decision making at various levels for getting things done through people. Decision making basically involves selecting the most appropriate alternative out of the several. If there is only one alternative, there is no question of decision making. Nature of Management: The study and application of management techniques in managing the affairs of the organization have changed its nature over a period of time. The following points will describe the nature of management 1) Multidisciplinary: Management has been developed as a separate discipline, but it draws knowledge and concepts from various disciplines like psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics, statistics, operations research etc.,. Management integrates the idea and concepts taken from these disciplines and presents newer concepts which can be put into practice for managing the organisations 2) Dynamic nature of Principles: Principle is a fundamental truth which establishes cause and effect relationships of a function. Based on integration and supported by practical evidences, management has framed certain principles. However, these principles are flexible in nature and change with the changes in the environment in which an organization exists. 3) Relative, Not absolute Principles: Management principles are relative, not absolute, and they should be applied according to the need of the organization. Each organization may be different from others. The difference may exist because of time, place, socio-cultural factors, etc.,. 4) Management: Science or Art: There is a controversy whether management is science or art. An art is personal skill of business affairs. Art is characterized by practical knowledge, personal creativity and skill. The more one practices an art, the more professional one becomes. Management can be considered as an art because it satisfies all these criterion of an art. A science is a systematized body of knowledge of facts. It can establish cause-and-effect relationships among various factors. It involves basic principles, which are capable of universal application. Management can be considered as science because it satisfies all these criterion of a science. Introduction to Management 5) Management as profession: Management has been regarded as a profession by many while many have suggested that it has not achieved the status of a profession. Profession refers to a vocation or a branch of advanced learning such as engineering or medicine. 6) Universality of management: Management is a universal phenomenon. However, management principles are not universally applicable but are to be modified according to the needs of the situation. Importance of Management Management has been important to the daily lives of people and to the organisations. The importance of management may be traces with the following. 1) Effective utilisation of Resources: Management tries to make effective utilisation of various resources. The resources are scarce in nature and to meet the demand of the society, their contribution should be more for the general interests of the society. Management not only decides in which particular alternative a particular resource should be used, but also takes actions to utilize it in that particular alternative in the best way. 2) Development of Resources: Management develops various resources. This is true with human as well as non-human factors. Most of the researchers for resource development are carried on in an organized way and management is involved in these organized activities. 3) It ensures continuity in the organization: Continuity is very important in the organisations. Where there are no proper guidelines for decision making continuity can not be guaranteed. It is quite natural that new people join while some others retire or leave the organization. It is only management that keeps the organization continuing. 4) Integrating various interest groups: In the organized efforts, there are various interest groups and they put pressure over other groups for maximum share in the combined output. For example, in case of a business organization, there are various pressure groups such as shareholders, employees, govt. etc. these interest groups have pressure on an organization. Management has to balance these pressures from various interest groups. 5) Stability in the society: Management provides stability in the society by changing and modifying the resources in accordance with the changing environment of the society. In the modern age, more emphasis is on new inventions for the betterment of human beings. These inventions make old systems and factors mostly obsolete and inefficient. Management provides integration between traditions and new inventions, and safeguards society from the unfavorable impact of these inventions so that continuity in social process is maintained. Functions of Management:To achieve the organisational objectives managers at all levels of organization should perform different functions. A function is a group of similar activities. Introduction to Management The list of management functions varies from author to author with the number of functions varying from three to eight. Writers Henry Fayol Luther Gullick R. Davis Management Functions Planning, Organizing, Commanding, Coordinating, Controlling POSDCORD- Planning, Organising, Staffing, Directing, Coordinating, Reporting, Directing Planning , Organising, Controlling Planning, Organising, Motivating, Coordinating, Controlling Planning, Organising, Staffing, Leading, Controlling Koontz Different authors presented different variations. By combining some of functions, these are broadly grouped into Planning, Organising, Staffing, Directing, and Controlling. 1) Planning: Planning is the conscious determination of future course of action. This involves why an action, what action, how to take action, and when to take action. Thus, planning includes determination of specific objectives, determining projects and programs, setting policies and strategies, setting rules and procedures and prepar ing budgets. 2) Organising: Organising is the process of dividing work into convenient tasks or duties, grouping of such duties in the form of positions, grouping of various positions into departments and sections, assigning duties to individual positions, and delegating authority to each positions so that the work is carried out as planned. It is viewed as a bridge connecting the conceptual idea developed in creating and planning to the specific means for accomplishment these ideas. 3) Staffing: Staffing involves manning the various positions created by the organizing process. It includes preparing inventory of personal available and identifying the sources of people, selecting people, training and developing them, fixing financial compensation, appraising them periodically etc. 4) Directing: when people are available in the organization, they must know what they are expected to do in the organization. Superior managers fulfill this requirement by communicating to subordinates about their expected behavior. Once subordinates are oriented, the superiors have continuous responsibility of guiding and leading them for better work performance and motivating them to work with zeal and enthusiasm. Thus, directing includes communicating, motivating and leading. 5) Controlling: Controlling involves identification of actual results, comparison of actual results with expected results as set by planning process, identification of deviations between the two, if any, and taking of corrective action so that actual results match with expected results. Introduction to Management TAYLOR SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT The concept of scientific management was introduced by Frederick Winslow Taylor in USA in the beginning of 20th century. â€Å"Scientific management is concerned with knowing exactly what you want to do and then see in that they do it in the best and cheapest way† Since Taylor has put the emphasis on solving managerial problems in a scientific way, often, he is called as father of scientific management and his contributions as the principles of scientific management. Taylor carried experiments about how to increase the efficiency of people. On the basis of experiments, he published many papers and books and all his contributions were compiled in his book â€Å"scientific management†. His contributions are divided into two parts. Elements and tools of scientific management Principles of scientific management FEATURES / ELEMENTS AND TOOLS OF SCIENTIFIC MANAGEMENT 1) Separation of planning doing: Taylor emphasized the separation of planning aspect from actual doing of the work. In other words planning should be left to the supervisor and the worker should concentrate only operational work. 2) Functional foremanship: Taylor introduced the concept of functional foremanship based on specialization of functions. In this system, eight persons are involved to direct the activities of workers. Out of these four persons are concerned with planning viz., route clerk, instruction card clerk, time and cost clerk and disciplinarian. The remaining four persons are concerned with doing aspect of the job, viz., speed boss, inspector, gang boss and maintenance foreman. It is against to the principle of unity of command.

The Role of Media on Middle Eastern Conflicts Essay example -- News Co

The Role of Media on Middle Eastern Conflicts 'By now, all of us realize that there is a high powered media campaign aimed at promoting the war on Iraq and shaping the views of the American people, relying on media-savvy political strategy to sell the administration's priorities and policies' 'Systematic sources of bias in TV coverage of international affairs not only distort information, but can also restrict citizens' awareness and options, and thereby produce more social control. The focus here is on the way TV news formats can limit, constrain, and distort information about terrorism.' The relationships between countries in the Middle East and with the West have never been ones of peace or tranquility, and in recent years these relationships seem to be headed in a downward spiral. Currently, there has been an increasingly intense clash between the citizens of all societies that is largely a reaction against what is perceived through the news media about the other society. While the general public goes about watching their favorite nightly news broadcasts, they are unaware that the very knowledge they hope will educate them about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the War in Iraq, is actually one of the primary factors leading to the strain between our two differing societies. This is largely the result of the way news coverage is produced and presented in the United States, the Middle East, and around the world. In the United States, there are many facets that determine how news about the Middle East is produced and presented. Ultimately, these news reports deter mine how the American people view Middle East societies and unfortunately, how they view people of Middle Eastern ethnicity within the United States.... ...s without the possibility of individual bias, people around the world cannot attain an accurate depiction and thus a truly educated understanding of world affairs. This lack of knowledge leads to a host of consequences, one of which is the violence that comes from those naà ¯ve to that which is different. As well, an increased sense of apathy toward government policies and our administrative leaders has enveloped our country because a majority of the American public is aware of the faulty nature of our media system. As a result of the multitude of structural problems that plague the media system, which include all of the examples presented here, people?s perceptions about the conflicts in the Middle East, both the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the war in Iraq, are skewed and are an inherent cause of the continued clashes resulting from misconceptions about others.

Accounting In China Essay

1. Introduction †¢ China’s rapid economic growth in the past two decades has amazed the rest of the world. †¢ With China’s accession to the WTO, business activities with and within China will further expand. †¢ China fully understands that a sound financial reporting system plays a key role in the process of economic development. †¢ The Chinese Ministry of Finance (MoF), who has the responsibility for regulating accounting matters in China, has set itself the objectives of fostering investors’ confidence in financial information, increase transparency of financial reporting, and harmonize with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), so as to reduce the costs of raising capital by enterprises and alleviate the risk of financial crisis. 2. History Of Development †¢ The old accounting and regulations were designed to meet the needs of a planned economy, and therefore focused on whether the production goals of state-owned enterprises and their financial and costs plans were being met. †¢ Accordingly, the objectives of accounting and performance measurement some twenty years ago were significantly different from the financial reporting objectives in a modern market oriented economy. †¢ Significant accounting reforms were undertaken in the past two decades due to several factors such as: âž ¢ Since China opened its door to foreign investments in 1979, the rapid growth of its economy, international trade and securities markets has shaped new objectives for financial reporting. âž ¢ State-owned enterprises now look a lot like profit-oriented businesses, and managers and other users need reliable and relevant financial information on which to base decisions about the efficient allocation of capital. âž ¢ At the same time, china has reached out to the international community to form joint ventures and gain greater access to the latest technologies and the world’s capital markets. See more: Homelessness as a social problem Essay †¢ In the 1980s, the MoF issued the first set of accounting regulation, which was formulated by reference to international accounting practice, for joint ventures in China. †¢ In 1992, due to rapid development of the Chinese securities market, the accounting System for Experimental Joint Stock Limited Enterprises was promulgated by the MoF in order to standardised accounting practice and disclosures by listed companies. This System was subsequently replaced by the Accounting System for Joint Stock Limited Enterprises (JSLE) in 1998. †¢ The 1992 regulation moved away from the traditional fund-based Soviet accounting model and incorporated many common Western accounting practices. †¢ In the same year, the MoF promulgated the Accounting Regulations for Foreign Investment Enterprises (FIE), the Accounting Regulations for Share Enterprises. †¢ In 1993 the Basic Accounting Standard for Business Enterprises came into force. It imposes some basic rules (e.g. that double entry bookkeeping must be used, that a cash or funds statement must be included in the financial statements, and that consolidated financial statements must be provided where appropriate); set out a conceptual framework of China accounting and make some detailed rules of financial reporting. †¢ The conceptual framework introduced on a broader scope new accounting concepts and essential elements of financial statements that were in many respects based on international practices. †¢ The conceptual framework aspects of the regulation are reasonably close to US and IASC precedents. †¢ However, these pronouncements were still found to have essential differences with international practice such as limited disclosure of financial information for the users to understand the results and financial position of the reporting enterprise. †¢ Another difference is that the regulation does not specifically identify the primary user or purpose of financial statements. Instead, a hierarchy of users includes the government, banks, the public and an enterprise’s own management. †¢ This is very different from the US or IASB which emphasis on financial decision making by outside investors. †¢ In addition, the ASBE is based on historical cost without the revaluation allowed in IASB or UK rules or the increasing use of fair value in IASB/US/UK rules. †¢ Furthermore, ‘substance over form’ is not established as a principle in China. 3. The New Accounting Standards And Accounting System (Development after 1993). †¢ In 1993, with funding from the World Bank (US$2.6 million), the MoF engaged Deloitte Touchee Tohmatsu (DTT) as consultants to develop a body of Chinese Accounting Standards (CAS) broadly in line with accounting and financial reporting practices used internationally. †¢ Exposure Drafts on about 30 standards have since been published between 1994 and 1996, and they were generally closely in line with the standards of the IASC. †¢ In 1997, the first standard was issued. It is on disclosure of relationships and transactions with related parties. †¢ In the same year, China joined the IASC, and became an official observer at Board meetings. †¢ In October 1998, an Accounting Standards Committee (CASC) was founded within China’s MoF. It comprises academics and members of accounting firms as well as government experts. †¢ In 1998, the Ministry of Finance issued the Accounting System for Joint Stock Limited Enterprises (JSLE) to replace the accounting System for Experimental joint Stock Limited Enterprises in order to standardise accounting practice and disclosures by listed companies. †¢ In 2000, DTT was reappointed as consultants for the second phase of the project. †¢ China accounting has achieved remarkable progress in unifying its accounting practices since Year 2001. †¢ In the same year, MoF issued a new comprehensive Accounting System for Business Enterprise (the ‘System’). The new System replaced the Accounting System for JSLE form January 1, 2002. †¢ In other words, all JSLE (including all listed enterprise) and FIE are now required to follow one unified new System. The system introduces the concept of substance over form and extends the requirement for consideration to all assets. †¢ The MoF plans to ultimately require all medium-size and large enterprises (other than financial enterprises) to adopt the new System, and announced its expectation that state-owned enterprise will adopt the new system over time. †¢ When fully implemented, the new System will replace the numerous inconsistent industry accounting regulations, enabling the financial statements of different types of enterprises to become more comparable. 4. Impact Of The New Systems On FIE †¢ Before adopting the new System, FIE’s financial statements which were prepared in accordance with the Accounting Regulation for FIE could not properly reflect the enterprise’s actual financial position and operating results, the enterprise had to make numerous adjustments when they compile financial statements under overseas accounting standards, such as IAS and US GAAP. †¢ The process was time consuming and imposed additional cost of investment to the foreign investors. †¢ After the adoption of the new System, the differences between FIE’s financial statements under PRC GAAP and those prepared in accordance with international accounting practices will reduce further, thereby enabling the foreign investors to assess the performance of their investments more efficiently. 5. China Accounting Standards Convergence With IFRS †¢ The importance and acceptance of IFRS has increased significantly over the past few years. †¢ While actively pursuing convergence with IFRS, the MoF necessarily has to ensure that accounting standards appropriately address the national circumstances that exist during this transitional period in the economy. âž ¢ A very significant portion of the economy is dominated by state owned enterprises. Even after enterprises are restructured into joint stock enterprise and branched out from the government structure, functional or regional government that remain stakeholders still exert significant influences over the enterprises and their trading partners and their transactions. âž ¢ Free markets are not sufficiently developed in many areas. âž ¢ Financial statements are multi-functional, serving not only the needs of the investors but also other interested parties including the State for supervisory and management purposes. âž ¢ Enterprises and professional intermediaries such as auditors and valuers are at a developing stage. During this transitional period, accounting standards must be realistically implementable by the preparers and auditors of financial statements. †¢ On 16 February 2006, the Chinese Ministry of Finance and the International Accounting Standards Board formally announced that Chinese Accounting Standards (CAS) will converge with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on 1 January 2007. †¢ Converging CAS with IFRS is one of many successful initiatives undertaken by the PRC government over the past global economy. †¢ Investors, analysts, regulators and other interested parties in recent years have been increasingly demanding more consistent and reliable financial reporting from companies around the world. †¢ The adoption and consistent application of accounting standards based on IFRS principles is widely viewed as a commitment to transparent financial reporting by these constituents. Transparent financial reporting is considered as the foundation of investor confidence. †¢ The process of convergence has been started way back in November 2005 when several meetings had been held between MoF and board members of IASB. †¢ The process of convergence will involve integrating the IFRS principles into CAS and will result in the amendment of all existing standards and the issuance of an additional 22 Specific standards. †¢ While the revised CAS will not reflect a literal translation of IFRS, their scope will include all IFRS principles. In additional, they will contain interpretive guidance to address the accounting for specific types of transaction (e.g. combinations of companies under common control) and industry accounting issues (e.g. extraction of petroleum and natural gas). †¢ The new CAS will comprise 1 basic standard and 38 specific standards. †¢ The revised CAS will first be applied to listed companies from 1 January 2007 and gradually applied to other types of entities. †¢ There will be differences between the revised CAS and IFRS to reflect unique circumstances in China. †¢ These differences, among other things, relate to: a. A prohibition of the reversal of asset impairment once it has been made; b. The accounting for certain government grants; c. Related party disclosures between State owned enterprises that have no direct investment relationship. 6. Challenges faced by China in converging with IFRS. †¢ The effect of changing accounting policies involves some efforts such as: âž ¢ Re-designing the financial reporting process to ensure that management has sufficient reliable financial information with which to prepare financial statements that comply with the standards, particularly in regards to the increased levels of disclosure required, and properly supports critical accounting estimates and judgements. âž ¢ The people involved in the financial reporting process will need to develop a new expertise and competency in applying revised CAS. âž ¢ Developing new accounting policy manual; integrating new CAS internal management reporting (budgeting, forecasting, performance measurement) and external reporting (financial, statutory, investor) into daily operations across the organization. âž ¢ Implementing ongoing and sustainable processes such as valuations of share options and derivatives, impairment testing hedge documentation and effectiveness testing, etc. âž ¢ Require identification of new data requirements due to financial statements and disclosure requirements. âž ¢ Train the head office and business units of the new reporting requirements. âž ¢ Provide training to finance and also non-finance staff including key management (e.g. finance, treasury, tax, human resource and sales) on new CAS principles and new reporting requirements. THE NEW SYSTEM OF CHINESE ACCOUNTING STANDARDS Key features and impact of the new accounting standards 1. The new accounting standards represent convergence with International financial Reporting Standards. †¢ Most of the newly issued standards and revised standards make reference to the equivalent IFRS and adopt the principles and treatments similar to its counterpart. †¢ As a result, the financial statements prepared in accordance with the New Accounting Standards will be more comparable with those prepared in accordance with IFRS. †¢ Overseas investors and users of financial statements will understand the financial statements of Chinese enterprise better and the cost of re-preparing financial statements for Chinese enterprises when getting overseas listing will be reduced. 2. The requirement of fair value measurement †¢ Under the new accounting standards, debt restructuring and no-monetary transactions will be measured at fair value and gains that meet certain criteria will be recognized in the income statement. †¢ Whereas before the revision, those transactions were carried at book value and any gains arising from those transactions were not allowed to be recognized. †¢ In practice, the determination of fair values may not be easy for many entities and various valuation techniques are required. 3. Specify accounting treatments for important accounting issues such as business combinations and consolidated financial statement. †¢ In the past, there was neither formal accounting standards nor comprehensive and detailed guidelines in the area of business combinations and consolidated financial statements. †¢ As a result, accounting treatments for similar business combination transactions may have varied across different enterprises causing much confusion and inconsistency. †¢ Therefore, the issuance of the standards on â€Å"Business Combination† and â€Å"Consolidated Financial statement† will provide comprehensive and more authoritative provisions and guidelines on these important accounting issues. 4. Specify treatments on new accounting issues and certain previously off-balance-sheet items will be recorded in the balance sheet †¢ Derivative financial instruments will be recognized on the balance sheet instead of only being disclosed in the notes to the financial statements. †¢ All shares and share options granted to employees to be measured at fair value and expensed in the income statement. 5. Standards relevant to important specialized industries †¢ The New Accounting Standards will include a number of standards that are relevant to those specialized industries. †¢ For example, the four standards on â€Å"Financial Instruments† will have an impact on accounting practices in various financial institutions. †¢ The standards on â€Å"Direct Insurance Contract† and â€Å"Re-insurance Contracts† will affect players in the insurance sectors. †¢ The â€Å"Extraction of Petroleum and Natural Gas† and â€Å"Biological Assets† are standards that are issued specifically for enterprises operating in the petroleum and gas industry and agriculture industry respectively. 6. Impairment of Assets †¢ The previous accounting regulations in China allow the reversal of impairment under certain circumstances. †¢ However, under the new standard, it specifies that any recognized impairment loss for fixed assets and intangible assets cannot be reversed in future accounting periods. †¢ The restriction on impairment loss reversal does not apply to inventories, trade receivables and bank loans. 7. More detailed requirements on disclosure †¢ The new standards provide users of financial statements with more relevant and transparent information, which will facilitate their economic decision-making. †¢ For instances, in respect of accounting policies and accounting estimates, the basis for the determination of significant accounting policies and accounting estimates is required to be disclosed. †¢ In relation to financial instruments, a detailed disclosure on the enterprise’s financial risk exposure is now required. 8. Transitional adjustments †¢ The New Accounting Standards were applicable to listed companies effective from 1 January 2007. †¢ The MOF has issued transitional provisions which are included in the standard on â€Å"First Time Adoption of Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises†. †¢ The standard requires that at the date of transaction, an entity should reclassify, recognize and measure all assets, liabilities and owners’ equity in accordance with the New Accounting Standards and prepare an opening balance sheet. †¢ These transitional provisions may reduce the workload and complexities for preparers’ adoption of the New Accounting Standards.

Shippai in Translation

The Japanese word shippai,  pronounced sh-pay, is a common word that means failure, or a mistake. I may also generally indicate being unsuccessful at something. Explore more about this word below. Japanese Characters Ã¥ ¤ ±Ã¦â€¢â€" 㠁â€"㠁 £Ã£  ±Ã£ â€ž Example Shippai wa seikou no moto. (proverb)Ã¥ ¤ ±Ã¦â€¢â€"㠁 ¯Ã¦Ë† Ã¥Å Å¸Ã£  ®Ã¥â€¦Æ'。 Translation:  Failure is a stepping-stone to success. Antonym seikou æˆ Ã¥Å Å¸