European Studies Essays Welfare State and the European Nations

European Studies Essays Welfare State and the European Nations Welfare State and the European Nations â€Å"The phrase ‘welfare state’ was first used in the late 1930s, to distinguish between the policies of the democracies and the war state of European dictators† (Spicker, 2003). From the late nineteenth century, features of a welfare state began emerge in parts of Western Europe. The first European country to put in place a welfare state was Germany in 1883. The then Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck introduced a mandatory national accident and sickness insurance law. The insurance was financed by state subsidy (Spicker). A welfare state is â€Å"a state where more than one half of all government expenditures are devoted to social policy, as opposed to the economy, the military, law and order, infrastructure and other traditional functions of the state† ( Spicker, 2003). Judt (2006) defines a welfare state as a state which is primarily concerned with dispensing welfare to its citizens. Such states spend the bigger proportion of their public expenditures on welfare. Get help with your essay from our expert essay writers According to Gough (2006), welfare states in Europe were established during the Second World War. Their main purpose was to tackle the five evil giants that were facing most of Europe at that time. These evils included: Poverty: Because of the war, many people were sick, jobless or widowed hence were poor. Diseases: Despite many people being sick, they could not afford to seek treatment. Ignorance: At that time, school-leaving age was 11. Most children were forced to drop out of schools because they could not afford to pay fees. Squalor: Majority of the population lived in poor housing facilities (slums) because council houses were inadequate. Idleness: As a result of the war, most people lost their jobs and became unemployed. The welfare state was therefore established to ensure that children stayed in school; free medical treatment for all was introduced; new council houses were built and more towns established to provide better housing facilities to the slum dwellers and more industries were started to help reduce the unemployment rate. There are several objectives of a welfare state. Equitable distribution of wealth and resources: Welfare states used progressive method of tax collection whereby people with higher incomes paid more taxes and those with lower incomes paid less tax. This method of taxation helped in reallocation of public money and shifting of resources from the resource-rich regions to resource-poor regions. This was effective in achieving regional balance and in narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor (Spicker, 2003). Income and standard of living maintenance: People can temporarily or permanently be rendered incapable participating in the labor market. This can be due to old age, or sickness. This normally results in loss of income for themselves and their families. But in a welfare state, income maintenance was assured whether or not someone was working. This was normally â€Å"achieved through a variety of public insurance schemes,† (Judt, 2006). These included deductions from an employee’s salary, contributions made by the employers and the state. These deductions and contributions were deposited into an insurance fund from which individuals were entitled to certain benefits, depending on the level and the number of contributions made. These â€Å"insurance schemes covered unemployment, sick pay and old age pensions,† (Gough, 2006). Helping the disadvantaged groups: welfare states started programs to assist those groups that were considered worse-off than others. Gough (2006) says that: For instance, European countries have taken specific measures to combat rural poverty; support families with children; provide for re-training and early retirement in industrial problem regions; assist especially those with structural employment problem (the long-term and older unemployed; youth unemployment). Provision of a public safety net was another objective of welfare states. Welfare States ensured that each individual enjoyed â€Å"a minimal level of decent human existence if no other resources are available,† (Gough, 2006). In the pre-industrial era provision for such individuals was mainly done by â€Å"local charities, communities, nobleness oblige, and the churches †¦ on a much smaller scale† (Gough). Most Welfare States used their welfare policy as a form of economic governance. According to Gough (2006), â€Å"the economies of continental Europe, often called organized market economies, are characterized by a more pronounced role for the government in the economy †¦.† Unlike in other states, the different economic sectors were usually in harmony rather than in competition with each other. This contributed to the overall economic organization and stability, and is the reason why such economies were often labeled ‘organized market economies.’ Welfare states put up policies aimed at poverty eradication. Such programs included Medicaid and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). However, such programs were not popular among the majority of the population because they only served the marginalized people who comprised a smaller proportion of the population. The creation and development of the welfare state followed different patterns in each of the European countries. The men behind the European welfare state shared Keynes’s view which he voiced before his death in 1946. Keynes said that â€Å"after the World War II, there would be a craving for social and personal security in Europe. And there was. The welfare state was constructed primarily as a security revolution rather than a social revolution,† (Judt, 2006) The German welfare system was based on the three main principles. The first one was â€Å"subsidiarity.† This principle holds that â€Å"services should be decentralized or independently managed† (Spicker, 2003). The role of the state was limited only to areas which could not be covered by other means like military services. In Germany, high income earners were not covered by the main social insurance system; they were left to make their own decisions. Economic development was another principle surrounding the German welfare system. Provision of social services was based on this principle. This was clearly evident in â€Å"the close relationship of services to people’s position in the labor market. Social benefits were earnings-related, and those without work records found that they were not covered for important contingencies† (Spicker, 2003). Additionally, the state’s spending on welfare had to be directly related to the principle of economic development and growth. Welfare state in Germany was originally established by Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck who introduced the principle of ‘corporatist structure’. According to Spicker, 2003: This principle was developed by Bismarck on the basis of existing mutual aid associations, and remained the basis for social protection subsequently. Social insurance, which covered the costs of health, some social care and much of the income maintenance system, was managed by a system of independent funds. The French system of welfare was regarded as the most generous welfare system. It involved provision of a wide range of social services, rendering it very complex and expensive to maintain it. In France, the welfare system was â€Å"based on the principle of solidarity,† which was declared in the first article of the French Code of Social Security (Spicker, 2003). However, the term â€Å"solidarity† was ambiguous and was used in different circumstances to mean different things. To some people, solidarity referred to cooperative mutual support whereby people who benefited from national welfare schemes were expected to contribute on an equal basis. To others, solidarity meant interdependent relationships, â€Å"common action, mutual responsibility and shared risks† (Spicker, 2003). The Swedish Welfare System was viewed as an ideal form of welfare state. The system offered institutional care in that it offered â€Å"a universal minimum† (Judt, 2006). Like all welfare states, the Swedish government offered benefits to the unemployed, the sick people, and retired citizens. However, for a long time this welfare system was not effectively practiced because as Judt (2006) says, â€Å"the Swedish population had a strong tradition of entrepreneurship and hard work and continued to work hard even though they now had the option to live off government.† However, with time, people adapted to the welfare system. The welfare state of the United Kingdom was established by William Beveridge in 1942. The aim of the state was to curb the social problems that British citizens were facing due to the effects of the Second World War. The government took the responsibility of providing for its people. This policy resulted in high government expenditure and an increase in the state’s key responsibilities. In addition to the provision of the basic services (education, health, housing and employment) the state also increased â€Å"regulation of industry food and redistributive taxation† (Gough, 2006). Most Welfare States did not last long because of various reasons. The first major reason was the nature of taxation and the salary structure. In most welfare states, the social benefits and salaries for the low-skilled workers were among the highest in the world, whereas those for the high-skilled workers were lower compare to those of other countries. Additionally, the high-skilled workers paid much higher taxes than the low–skilled workers. This attracted more low-skilled workers into these states, becoming a burden to the Welfare State. The issue of immigration also led to the collapse of the welfare state. Because of the social benefits a welfare state offered, it attracted people from the low income countries. Fjordman (2006) notes that â€Å"†¦ they experienced †¦ disintegration with the introduction of mass immigration of persons who did not have the cultural background necessary to uphold the welfare state.† Lastly, the nature of the services that a welfare state provided contributed to its collapse. Education and health services especially are â€Å"ones on which people wish to spend more money as they become richer. Old age and retirement pensions imply that the government would have to spend more as the population ages† (Fjordman, 2006). Because of this, the ratio of public spending to Gross Domestic Product was high and it became practically impossible to meet all the social demands of its citizens. REFERENCES Fjordman, C. The Welfare State: The Root of Europe’s Problems. The Brussels Journal. 2006, March 08 Gough, I. European Welfare States: Explanations and Lessons for Developing Countries. University of Bath http://64.233.169.104/search? Judt, T. The Future of Decadent Europe. The Globalist. 2006, June 02. Spicker, P. The Welfare State. Centre for Public Policy and Management: Robert Gordon University http://www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/wstate.htm

The Zipper :: essays research papers

The zipper is a very common fastener used to secure all kinds of things, especially clothing. But the zipper wasn't always around. Before the zipper was invented, buttons were used in fastening clothes, and so were hooks and eyes that had to be fastened manually. When the zipper first came out, it was somewhat of an oddity; it wasn't widely accepted. But slowly, more and more people started noticing its convenient applications, and soon it could be seen everywhere. The zipper started off as a novelty, and because of its convenience, it is now a necessity.The first zipper was invented by Whitcomb Judson. He devised it to do up boots, and got the device patented on August 29, 1893. He called it the "clasp locker". The clasp locker was much bulkier than the zipper we know today. It was a series of two rows of hooks and eyes that could be fastened by a "slider" (which was the most important part of Judson's invention). Another big difference from today's zipper is that after zipping up the fastener, the slider would detach right off the garment. Then to open the clasp locker, the slider would be re-attached at the top of the locked clasps, upside down, and then pulled down.About a year after the patents were issued, a close friend of Whitcomb Judson, named Harry Earle, and a lawyer named Lewis Walker met up with Judson, and they formed the Universal Fastening Company. They weren't very successful. One of the main reasons was that the clasp locker didn't work very well. The fastener frequently jammed, and easily rusted. But in April of 1896, some Post Office Department representatives went to the company and inspected the Judson fastener on a mailbag and pronounced it satisfactory. Twenty mailbags equipped with the fasteners were ordered. That was one of the first orders Universal Fastening Company got, and it wasn't repeated. It's assumed that the mailbags were discarded due to faulty fasteners.While Judson tried to improve his fastener, the company struggled to get customers. But soon they weren't so worried about trying to sell it, and more worried about finding useful applications for it. In early promotion, it was described as a "20th century device". Also "remarkable in its simplicity, rapidity, security, utility". The fastener would be shown applied to skirt plackets, gloves, corsets, boots, shoes, and leggings. A little later in the decade, Judson came up with a new separable fastener, called the C-curity fastener, although its patent wasn't issued until 1905.

Poe essay

Tuesday Great literature is often influenced by the lives of those who write it. Edgar Allan Poe is a clear example of a life influencing art. Two tragic events or afflictions from Edgar Allan Poe's life that influence much of his writing are violent death and the use of alcohol. Each of these reflects into two stories each. The first tragic event would be violent death. This affliction comes up in many of his pieces of writing, especially in â€Å"The Raven† and â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart†. Examples from the poem â€Å"The Raven† that illustrate a heartbreaking death would be the loss ofLenore, of course. Text support is the line â€Å"And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor† On many occasions Poe mentions the loss of his beloved Lenore. The violent, tragic roll comes into place when the raven says his sorrow and despair will go away nevermore. In â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart†, the narrator loves this old man; however he stalks h im for 8 nights and murders him. After the murder, he buries the old man's body beneath the floor boards. These 2 tragic deaths express his feelings about how every woman he loved died a bloody, unfortunate, scary death due to tuberculosis.The Tell-Tale Heart† is a great candidate for the second tragic event or affliction as well, being the use of alcohol. It doesn't make much sense that the narrator would kill somebody he loved, right? If you notice, he mentions his â€Å"disease†, referring to alcoholism. The abuse of alcohol made him go mad. The second example out of text would be â€Å"The Black Cat†. The narrator refers to the term â€Å"fiend intemperance† When he is overtaken with alcohol, he becomes more and more irritable and moody†¦ so he killed his cat that loved him the more he hated it.In real life, Poe was known to use lcohol, which made him go insane. He became very irritable and crazy while under the influence and that definitely chang ed him for the worse. As you can see, Edgar Allan Poe incorporated many factors of his life and real dilemmas into his writing. Maybe that's why he was such a great writer, because it was how he expressed his true feelings. Some people play sports, some people draw, some people have other hobbies to express themselves, Poe wrote. Poe's stories and poems were indeed fiction, but definitely have a little bit of a realistic edge to them. poe essay By agullo

Meursault and Marie - 792 Words

Meursault as â€Å"The Stranger† The way a person reacts to ordinary situations determines the opinions of others based on their behavior. Yet, when this behavior is abnormal or different from the rest of society, it causes society to form an opinion based totally on a person’s behavior not their true personality. In Meursault’s case, his strange opinions and unexpected remarks put him in this position, without ever really giving him an opportunity to be truly understood. However, Meursault cannot change his actions and behaviors from the past, therefore making him responsible in the society he freely chooses to live in. Meursault’s complete indifference to society and human relationships causes him to appear as the actual â€Å"stranger† with†¦show more content†¦His encounter with the Arab shows how the presence of other people in his life makes absolutely no impression on him. Taking the Arab’s life was something he did as a natural reaction, he pulled the trigger think ing it was justified where as any normal human being would think other wise. Once on trial, Meursault constantly observed the people in the courtroom as if he had no idea of how the rest of society lived. Every thing he saw was new to him and it brought him a feeling of excitement, as if he was enjoying being on trial. Fear only came after his verdict. He didn’t even consider his fate early on in the trial because he was in awe of the rest of society; their behaviors and actions were all new to him. In chapter three part two Meursault explained this by saying: Usually people didn’t pay much attention to me. It took some doing on my part to understand that I was the cause of all the excitement. I said to the policeman, â€Å"Some crowd!† He told me it was because of the press and he pointed to a group of men at a table just below the jury box. He said, â€Å"That’s them.† (83-84) The only thing Meursault is worried about is the press, not the fact that his fate is about to be determined by a group of people that don’t even know him. He doesn’t even care about death at this point, only how he is excited to see all these new people and be able to watch the court proceedings. Before Meursault’s incarceration, he lived a life of desire based on his ownShow MoreRelatedMarie and Meursault: Meant to Be or Want to Be?830 Words   |  4 PagesMarie and Meursault: Meant to Be or Want to Be? â€Å"It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over, that Mamam was buried now, that I was going back to work and that really, nothing had changed.†(1.1.15) These are some of the words that ran through Meursault’s mind after his mother’s death. He was very isolated from her so he felt as if nothing had changed. He was not the most outgoing person but the same cannot be said about his love interest, Marie. Throughout the novel, The Stranger, MeursaultRead MoreMeursault And Marie s Relationship973 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"That evening Marie came by to see me and asked me if I wanted to marry her. I said it didn’t make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to†(Camus 41). When Meursault states this in Camus, The Stranger, it becomes aware, if not already, that his relationship with Marie is quite different than other peoples relationships. Their relationship has already been noted as odd due to the fact that it started the da y after Meursault came home from burying his mother and showing no grief thatRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Stranger 1191 Words   |  5 PagesThe Characterization of Meursault in The Stranger In The Stranger, the author Albert Camus, initially portrays Meursault as a monotonous character lacking emotions toward the events surrounding his life. 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Living in Algiers in the 1960s, Meursault originates from a post-modernist time ofRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1411 Words   |  6 Pagesof Salamano and Marie are utilized in order to contrast the author’s ideas about contemporary philosophies. Albert Camus’s creation of minor characters such as Salamano and Marie in The Stranger embody the expectations and perspective of society. Camus’s purpose in utilizing minor characters is to contrast societal norms and ideals to absurdist principles and values. Albert Camus’s creation of the character Salamano in The Stranger provides a contrast between him and Meursault, polarizing the perspectivesRead MoreThe Stranger Character Analysis1634 Words   |  7 Pagesof a man named Meursault, who received notice that his mother had passed away. Meursault was not emotionally connected to his mother, and his reaction is not what the reader would expect, as he did not seem to care at all. Therefore, the day after attending his mother’s funeral, Meursault goes to the beach and meets up with his girlfriend, Marie. After the beach, Meursault and Marie go to a movie and spend the night together. When he returns home from work the next day, Meursault runs into his neighborRead MoreCharacter Analysis of Meusault in The Stranger637 Words   |  3 Pagesin The Stranger, Meursault is mentally not attached to the world. He is unable to decipher good or bad in his actions. The passing of his mother has no effect on him or a girl’s con tinuous proposal whom he is very attracted too, also, he murders a man for no apparent reason and does not see anything wrong in doing so. Meursault is seen as a careless monster too society. At the beginning of this story Meursault is told his mother has passed away. 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However, in his interactions with females in this book, Meursault’s thoughts and actions center on himself and his physical desires, observations, and feelings, rather than devoting his attention to the actual female. Living in Algiers in the 1960s, Meursault originates from a post-modernist time ofRead MoreThe Stranger Essay1048 Words   |  5 PagesThe novels protagoinist, Meursault, is a distanced and indifferent young man. He does not believe in God, and lives his life with seemingly sensuous abandon. After Meursault is caught up in the life of a local pimp, he rather inexplicably murders a young man on the beach, and is put on trial. In a ridiculous and seemingly arbitrary trial, he is essentially tried and found guilty for failing to adhere to societys beliefs and morals. It is during this trial that Meursault comes to terms with the

Huáscar and Atahualpa Inca Civil War

From 1527 to 1532, brothers Huà ¡scar and Atahualpa fought over the Inca Empire. Their father, Inca Huayna Capac, had allowed each to rule a part of the Empire as regent during his reign: Huà ¡scar in Cuzco and Atahualpa in Quito. When Huayna Capac and his heir apparent, Ninan Cuyuchi, died in 1527 (some sources say as early as 1525), Atahualpa and Huà ¡scar went to war over who would succeed their father. What neither man knew was that a far greater threat to the Empire was approaching: ruthless Spanish conquistadors led by Francisco Pizarro. Background of the Inca Civil War In the Inca Empire, the word Inca meant King, as opposed to words like Aztec which referred to a people or culture. Still, Inca is often used as a general term to refer to the ethnic group who lived in the Andes and residents of the Inca Empire in particular. The Inca Emperors were considered to be divine, directly descended from the Sun. Their warlike culture had spread out from the Lake Titicaca area quickly, conquering one tribe and ethnic group after another to build a mighty Empire that spanned from Chile to southern Colombia and included vast swaths of present-day Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia. Because the Royal Inca line was supposedly directly descended from the sun, it was unseemly for the Inca Emperors to marry anyone but their own sisters. Numerous concubines, however, were allowed and the royal Incas tended to have many sons. In terms of succession, any son of an Inca Emperor would do: he did not have to be born to an Inca and his sister, nor did he have to be eldest. Often, brutal civil wars would break out upon the death of an Emperor as his sons fought for his throne: this produced much chaos but did result in a long line of strong, fierce, ruthless Inca lords that made the Empire strong and formidable. This is exactly what happened in 1527. With the powerful Huayna Capac gone, Atahualpa and Huà ¡scar apparently tried to rule jointly for a time but were unable to do so and hostilities soon broke out. The War of the Brothers Huà ¡scar ruled Cuzco, capital of the Inca Empire. He, therefore, commanded the loyalty of most of the people. Atahualpa, however, had the loyalty of the large Inca professional army and three outstanding generals: Chalcuchima, Quisquis, and Rumià ±ahui. The large army had been in the north near Quito subjugating smaller tribes into the Empire when the war broke out. At first, Huà ¡scar made an attempt at capturing Quito, but the mighty army under Quisquis pushed him back. Atahualpa sent Chalcuchima and Quisquis after Cuzco and left Rumià ±ahui in Quito. The Caà ±ari people, who inhabited the region of modern-day Cuenca to the south of Quito, allied with Huà ¡scar. As Atahualpas forces moved south, they punished the Caà ±ari severely, devastating their lands and massacring many of the people. This act of vengeance would come back to haunt the Inca people later, as the Caà ±ari would ally with conquistador Sebastià ¡n de Benalcà ¡zar when he marched on Quito. In a desperate battle outside of Cuzco, Quisquis routed Huà ¡scars forces sometime in 1532 and captured Huà ¡scar. Atahualpa, delighted, moved south to take possession of his Empire. Death of Huà ¡scar In November of 1532, Atahualpa was in the city of Cajamarca celebrating his victory over Huà ¡scar when a group of 170 bedraggled foreigners arrived at the city: Spanish conquistadors under Francisco Pizarro. Atahualpa agreed to meet with the Spanish but his men were ambushed in the Cajamarca town square and Atahualpa was captured. This was the beginning of the end of the Inca Empire: with the Emperor in their power, no one dared attack the Spanish. Atahualpa soon realized that the Spanish wanted gold and silver and arranged for a kingly ransom to be paid. Meanwhile, he was allowed to run his Empire from captivity. One of his first orders was the execution of Huà ¡scar, who was butchered by his captors at Andamarca, not far from Cajamarca. He ordered the execution when he was told by the Spanish that they wanted to see Huà ¡scar. Fearing that his brother would make some sort of deal with the Spanish, Atahualpa ordered his death. Meanwhile, in Cuzco, Quisquis was executing all of the members of Huà ¡scars family and any nobles who had supported him. Death of Atahualpa Atahualpa had promised  to fill a large room half full with gold and twice over with silver  in order to secure his release, and in late 1532, messengers spread out to the far corners of the Empire to  order his subjects to send gold and silver.  As precious works of art poured into  Cajamarca, they were melted down and sent to Spain. In July of 1533, Pizarro and his men began hearing rumors that the mighty army of Rumià ±ahui, still back in Quito, had mobilized and was approaching with the goal of liberating Atahualpa. They panicked and executed Atahualpa on July 26, accusing him of treachery. The rumors later proved to be false: Rumià ±ahui was still in Quito. Legacy of the Civil War There is no doubt that the civil war was one of the most crucial factors of the Spanish conquest of the Andes. The Inca Empire was a mighty one, featuring powerful armies, skilled generals, a strong economy and hard-working population. Had Huayna Capac still been in charge, the Spanish would have had a tough time of it. As it was, the Spanish were able to skillfully use the conflict to their advantage. After the death of Atahualpa, the Spanish were able to claim the title of avengers of ill-fated Huà ¡scar and march into Cuzco as liberators. The Empire had been sharply divided during the war, and by allying themselves to Huà ¡scars faction the Spanish were able to walk into Cuzco and loot whatever had been left behind after Atahualpas ransom had been paid. General Quisquis eventually saw the danger posed by the Spanish and rebelled, but his revolt was put down. Rumià ±ahui bravely defended the north, fighting the invaders every step of the way, but superior Spanish military technology and tactics, along with allies including the Caà ±ari, doomed the resistance from the start. Even years after their deaths, the Spanish were using the Atahualpa-Huà ¡scar civil war to their advantage. After the conquest of the Inca, many people back in Spain began wondering what Atahualpa had done to deserve being kidnapped and murdered by the Spanish, and why Pizarro had invaded Peru in the first place. Fortunately for the Spanish, Huà ¡scar had been the elder of the brothers, which allowed the Spanish (who practiced primogeniture) to assert that Atahualpa had usurped his brothers throne and was therefore fair game for Spanish who only wanted to set things right and avenge poor Huà ¡scar, who no Spaniard ever met. This smear campaign against Atahualpa was led by pro-conquest Spanish writers such as Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa. The rivalry between Atahualpa and Huà ¡scar survives to this day. Ask anyone from Quito about it and theyll tell you that Atahualpa was the legitimate one and Huà ¡scar the usurper: they tell the story vice versa in Cuzco. In Peru, in the nineteenth century, they christened a mighty new warship Huà ¡scar, whereas in Quito you can take in a  fà ºtbol  game at the national stadium: Estadio Olà ­mpico Atahualpa. Sources Hemming, John.  The Conquest of the Inca  London: Pan Books, 2004 (original 1970).Herring, Hubert.  A History of Latin America From the Beginnings to the Present.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1962.

Analysis Of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie The Dangers Of A...

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, in a TED Talks presentation titled â€Å"The Dangers of a Single Story†, introduces her concept of the single story as having an incomplete perspective on topics such as race, gender equality, and sexual identity that translate to how people perceive each other. People who suffer from a single story rely on their partial judgment to make decisions about others rather than to make decisions on what is factual. Being exposed to various literature is crucial in avoiding the dangers of a single story because literature allows readers access to the immense library of knowledge from millions of writers. Readers have the privilege to see the world from thousands of different perspectives which allow individuals to immerse in a world from the author’s point of view and reflect upon their own lives. Consequently, readers make better decisions and are more open-minded compared to individuals who do not study the literature. Studying different types of li terature expose readers to a number of perspectives that help develop critical thinking skills essential to understanding their society and promoting diversity. In addition, literature encourages mindfulness crucial in the workplace because it eliminates cultural bias while eradicating partial thought processes that lead to single stories. Reading various types of literature, especially multicultural literature, helps people eliminate cultural bias and introduce various perspectives into culture that supportShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie s Ted Talk, The Danger Of A Single Story1237 Words   |  5 PagesChimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s inspiring TED talk, The Danger of a Single Story, proves how stories influence the way we perceive the world. She describes the single story as a narrative that surrounds only one perspective. The objective of her speech is to inform her audience that assuming something is true based on a single piece of information gives us incomplete and incorrect perceptions. Society is an accumulation of social stories, it is never just one thing. There are multiple, contingentRead MoreCultural Practices between Men and Women in Nigeria1858 Words   |  8 Pagesis revealed and documented. This project is a collection of fictional short stories, it is titled Cold Heart and Ot her Stories. The theme of these stories will revolve around emotional and domestic abuse on women, the stories are a reflection of the everyday lives of young Nigerian females as they, in the words of Nadaswaran(2012), â€Å"mature into their understanding of personhood as ‘woman’†. As a collection of short stories written from the point of view of a Nigerian female, this research portfolioRead MoreAnalysis Of The Novel Esperanza Rising 1776 Words   |  8 Pagesasparagus season would be a long season, one in which Esperanza’s mettle is tested. While packing asparagus, Esperanza listens to the chants and threats of the strikers. The workers have to cross picket lines to get to the sheds to store the asparagus. Danger encroaches the migrant work camp like the heat of the impending summer. Los Duraznos (Peaches) summer harvest portrays life in full swing. Increased temperature brings with it heated arguments and fiery tempers prompted by love and anger. Finally

Cloud Accounting Software for Business-Free-Samples for Students

Questions: Discuss about the Importance of using Accounting Software Packages by Business Organizations. Answers: Introduction The present reports aims to demonstrate the importance of using accounting software packages by business organizations nowadays for staying competitive in the marketplace. In this context, the report presents an evaluation of an Australian company that is using accounting software packages. The company selected for the purpose is Woolworths, one of the largest retail companies of Australia. The report demonstrates the organizational structure of the company, operational problems in its present organizational structure, type of accounting software used by the company and the control problems faced by the system. Moreover, it also develops and describes the sales flowchart of the company. In addition to this, the report also describes the development and adoption of accounting software packages, the current market size, the leaders in the market and the current challenges faced by the users of the accounting software packages. At last, the report provides the recommendations for improv ing the current gaps in the current accounting software packages used in Australia. Current Organizational Structure Coyne (2016) stated that the Woolworths Limited, a leading supermarket giant having approximately 3,500 stores across Australia and New Zealand. The company operates its business areas such as supermarkets, liquor retailing, gaming machines, hospitality services and department stores. Thus, the company has a large complex structure to manage and therefore has adopted the use of computing devices for streamlining its business processes. The company has primarily adopted the use of software tools such as Access and Excel. However, the company faced lot of issues such as data duplication with the use of these software tools. This resulted in large wastage of time of the employees in carrying out their daily operational activities. The company, therefore, opted for the integration of other software packages for synchronizing its business operations and managing its complex organizational structure efficiently. The company currently adopts the use of SAP for managing its complex business operations. The adoption of SAP has helped the company in gaining control over its internal business processes and thus managing them properly (Coyne, 2016). Operational Problem According to Chanthadavong (2016) the organizational structure of Woolworths was largely complex primarily as it adopts the software tools such as excel and access that accounts for various operational errors due to data duplication. These software tools were also unable to compile all the master data of the company and thus it has no shared database. This eventually results in spending large amount of time in integrating the vast amount of organizational data collected from its various business divisions. This impacts the decision-making process of the company leading to decline its productivity and profitability. The company has then recognized the importance of developing and implementing an efficient accounting software packages for streamlining its operational processes. The implementation of the SAP system has enabled the company to simplify the nature of its operational process and performing all its activities quickly and easily. The company recently integrates the use of MYO B and POS (Point of Sale) accounting software package for managing its internal business processes. These accounting software packages has proved to be largely beneficial for the company for easy management of data and therefore aiding in quick decision-making. The software was able to integrate the accounting data from the various operational units of the company and making the organizational structure efficiently (Chanthadavong, 2016). System Acquisition Method Hall (2015) stated that the system acquisition method refers to the type of system procedure adopted for the development and implementation of a software system by an organization. The Woolworths Limited as such as adopted the use of an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software system for implementation of is accounting software package. The ERP software system is specifically developed to integrate the information of various detriments units of an organization have large and compiles business structure. The Woolworths Limited is a supermarket giant of Australia and therefore has various departments units. As such it needs an accounting software system that is able to integrate the accounting information from its various departments such as accounting, HR, logistics and manufacturing into a single database. The database can be shared easily across various departments of the company through the use of ERP software system. The MYOB accounting software used by the company is an ERP sy stem that possesses the ability to integrate all the accounting information into one linked platform thus facilitating in easy handling of the accounts (Hall, 2015). Sales Flowchart Various Symbols used in Process flowchart Sales Process Flowchart implemented in the Woolworth through using the MYOB Description of the sales procedure used by the Woolworth in their organization The sales procedure described here is the online and most intensive system used by the Woolworth for making sales through B2C channel. This system is follows series of steps that are mentioned below: A: Sales Department: This department requires looking after the customer order and forwarding them to the credit department. This step is linked with the shopping cart of the customer and followed to the online processing of payment through the secure server. The sales department after verifying the payment from the credit department processes the customer order and sends them to the respective warehouse where goods are stored. Sales department also intimate the customer that their order has been processed and will be shipped on the respective date (E-Commerce: Purchasing and Selling Online, 2017). B: Credit Department: The main objective of the credit department to verify the payment details of the order made by the customer and sends them to the sales department after verification. Credit department uses the secure server to receive the payments from the customer so that their bank details will not been hacked by others. C: Warehouse Department: This Department receives order confirmation of the particular product from the sales department. All the order details have been properly mentioned in the sales order to make the work easy for the warehouse department. After hatching the demanded product by the customer, it passes to the shipping department to make it deliver to the customer. D: Shipping Department: This department receives the goods from the warehouse department and ships them to the customer address as mentioned in the sales order. It also intimates the shipping details to the customer. Control Problems As per the views of Liguo (2014) the MYOB accounting software system besides providing advantage of efficient management of cash flow and payroll of an organization is also associated with some drawbacks. The major control problem associated with the use of MYOB software is that it is not such user-friendly. Thus, the employees of the company need to be well-trained for its use otherwise it may result in poor management decisions and occurrence of unintentional errors in recording and processing of data. The lack of knowledge on employees part to run the software can also result in destruction of valuable data of the company. In addition to this, the use of MYOB accounting software is also associated with the drawback of occurrence of fraudulent activities within the company. The data security is one such issue in this context as the use of accounting software packages can result in breach of privacy of confidential data by sharing it online which becomes vulnerable to be attacked by hackers. The sharing of confidential data on online platform by accounting software can result in the occurrence of loss of valuable information of the company to the competitors. As such, the company is required to develop efficient security checks to prevent the loss of valuable data by adopting the use of accounting software packages (Liguo, 2014). Development and adoption of the accounting software packages Mageto (2017) stated that the use of accounting software packages is on increase among Australian organizations as such software helped the businesses to automate their manual accounting processes and improving the operational efficiency. The introduction of accounting software has changed the system of accounting functions in Australian business firms. The Australian businesses at present largely incorporate the use of cloud based accounting software such as Xero, Quick books, MYOB and many others. This accounting softwares are based on internet and are very helpful in integrating the accounting information from various sources into a single linked platform. The businesses largely face the problem of integrating the accounting information from its various business units into a single platform before the development and adoption of cloud based accounting software. There was lack of co-ordination among the various operational units of an entity such as sales, production, logistics, in ventory and distribution. As such, the businesses face large problems in managing the organizational structure and streamlining their business processes. This led to the development of accounting softwares that are able to synchronize the business operations and thus leading to increased flexibility in the organizational structure of business entities. The increased popularity of cloud based accounting software for improving the operational efficiency has led to its larger adoption and integration among Australian business firms (Mageto, 2017). As per Hall (2015) this was mainly because the traditional accounting system is associated with the major limitation that it is not internet based and needs to be installed properly on each computer device. However, the cloud based accounting software is integrated in nature and internet based and therefore requires less time in implementation and adoption. The major benefits provided by cloud accounting are automation and integration over the traditional accounting software. This software proves to be largely useful to the business firms for developing sales and purchase order, conducting multi-currency transactions, integrating payroll and doing online bill payment. The Woolworths has also incorporated the use of cloud based accounting software that is MYOB for managing its internal and external, business structure efficiently (Hall, 2015). Current market size There is increased demand of cloud based accounting software in the Australian market among both SMEs and large scale companies. There are large number of accounting software available in the market such as Xero, Zoho books, Quick books and MYOB. The increased demand of this software is attributed to the automation and integration benefits provided by them. This has lead to the strong growth of the accounting software industry in the Australia driven by increased online connectivity. The industry is expected to record a growth of about 7 per cent in the coming five years with the increase in revenue to about 8.5% (Software Publishing in Australia, 2017). Leaders in the market and their Competitive Advantage The top leaders in the accounting software industry of Australia are Xero, MYOB, Quick Books and Zoho books. The XERO has largest market share of about 65% followed by MYOB. There is intense competition among these as they offer almost similar accounting software package. They compete mainly on the price that is based on the scale of operations business nature and structure. These software companies attain their competitive advantage by achieving customer loyalty through providing good customer service (Software Publishing in Australia, 2017). Current gaps or challenges encountered by users or customers of accounting software/packages According to Terkper (2008) the current gaps in the accounting software packages are as follows: Lack of Security: The cloud based accounting software are internet based and therefore the data shared can be accessed by the hackers resulting in the theft of confidential information. Inadequate Reporting Service: The users face problems in getting their data out from the accounting software packages as it is easy to input the data but rather difficult to retrieve it back. Lack of Efficiency: This accounting software is not such user-friendly and thus requires lots of efforts on the part of the users for their easy use and maintenance. The users also cannot customize these software as per their demand as the features are extremely complicated to be understood. Compatibility Issues: The accounting software is sometimes not compatible with the user programs and thus the users cannot import some data into their program due to compatibility issues (Terkper, 2008). On the basis of above accounting software challenges, it is recommended to business companies to adopt the use of traditional accounting procedures for managing confidential accounting data. This is necessary for prevention of theft of data that can result in sharing of valuable information to the competitors. Also, the companies integrating the use of accounting software should develop strong security architecture for data security and provide proper training to all its employees and leaders for proper use of accounting software (Rangaraju and Kennedy, 2012). Conclusion It can be summarized from the overall discussion held in the report that cloud accounting software is largely useful for businesses to automate their accounting procedures. However, the business companies need to adopt proper security procedures for avoiding the safety issues such as theft or illegal activities that can occur through the use of accounting software References Chanthadavong, A. 2016. Woolworths upgrades HR system to the cloud with SAP. [Online]. Available at: https://www.zdnet.com/article/woolworths-upgrades-hr-system-to-the-cloud-with-sap/ [Accessed on: 22 August, 2017]. Coyne, A. 2016. Woolworths makes fixing IT a priority. [Online]. 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