Janet Jackson :: Essays Papers

Janet Jackson You know she's a Jackson. And you know she's a singer. Of course, you know the girl can dance. You know she's a leading lady in Hollywood. And maybe you still think of her as a cute little girl with a famous last name and big , bright eyes. Do you think she's what she was yesterday? Better think again. As many of her other fans and followers already know, the only label that fits her is†¦ Janet. Time flies when your having fun and that's the way she wants its. Since the grown Miss Jackson burst upon the music scene in 1986 with Control Selling eight million records and establishing her as a bold, sensual, independent woman, she's been breaking the molds and banishing the stereotypes the world would set for her. She's not just the cute, little girl- actress we loved on "Good Times" and "Different Strokes" or the earnest teen we followed of "Fame." She's not the Jackson family's baby-not any more. Clearly, the only thing you can safely say about her is that she's Janet. And that's saying a lot. Consider that she's already appeared in five television series, made seven albums, and starred in a major motion picture. She's sold over 24 million albums worldwide, achieved five Top Five hits from her 1986 record, Control and a record seven Top Five Hits from the 1989 Rhythm Nation 1814 album, four went to no.#1. She followed that up with a record breaking world tour, a movie and her self-titled album Janet. You might think that a woman with a pedigree and resume as impressive as this would have had a smooth ride all along. Not so. Says Janet, "I went through a great deal of pain from about sixteen to nineteen and a half†¦ Pain that I really wouldn't wish upon anyone." During those years, challenging years for anyone, Janet released two albums, Janet Jackson (1982) and Dream Street (1984). She spent a difficult and lonely year away from her family in New York while appearing in "Fame," and by the time she was nineteen, had been through a divorce after a short-lived marriage to James DeBarge of another somewhat less famous singing family, the DeBarge Family.

Building a global network

The paper shall examine some of the challenges that PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) are confronting after a merger between Pricewaterhouse and Coopers and Lybrand. The company is one of the most influential within its respective business arena. Such a position presents a fresh set of challenges in terms of creating an efficient and fully functioning network. These issues shall be examined below. Importance of having a knowledge base or intranet resources The latter company had benefited from the economies of scale that emanated from creation of such a large and influential global company.Consequently, there was a need to ensure that one of the most important qualities in business was attained and this was speed. The latter trait would only be efficiently carried out if the companies under consideration had fast technologies to help them achieve this. One of the latter modes of technology is the use of intranet and possession of a knowledge base. (PWC, 2000) The intranet would go a long way in facilitating communication between a series of stakeholders within this firm. Some of them included its employees, the company’s suppliers, its clients and many more.Since these stakeholders were distributed globally, then there was a need to make sure that this information was shared efficiently and the best way to do this was through the utilization of a sound knowledge management system or the intranet. A good knowledge base was also essential in adding value to the various clients by providing them with easy access to their resources. Intranet would also assist in boosting the process of deployment that provided products and services within the firm. In addition, the knowledge base was also essential in ensuring sound management of those resources.Lastly, the use of the intranet was important in ensuring that the merger was effectively carried out. This was because the latter form of technology would ensure that information was fist captured, then updated and distr ibuted effectively within this organization. In other words, knowledge within the two firms would be made available to the entire organization and this would make the process a whole lot more effective. Advantages and disadvantages of the Knowledge curve implemented at PWC There are a number of strong points that the Knowledge Curve (the intranet) that was implemented by PwC.First of all, it provided a platform against which all the knowledge within the firm was incorporated. This meant that the Knowledge Curve was instrumental in providing a tool for providing the company with a source of competitive advantage. (Thomas, 2000) The Knowledge Curve was also advantageous because of its profiling capabilities. Through this methodology, it was possible to understand the needs of the company on the basis of geography, line of business and industry. This intranet system was important to the company because it would assist the company to achieve knowledge management both at global level and also at office level.However, there was a problem with the Knowledge Curve owing to the fact that certain priorities at office level would not be implemented on a global level. This was because only the aspects that were common between various firms would be included in this global level system of profiling. (Law, 1998) It should be noted that this limitation was dealt with by providing Knowledge Curve homepages for each office. This would go a long way in ensuring that personalized information was restricted for these areas. Another major disadvantage was that it was difficult to customize this respective system.This eventually led to the creation of another website whose purpose was to ensure that local needs within each enterprise level were addressed. The latter website was known as the bridge. By adding such extra features, then it can be said that Knowledge Curve was a bit ineffective at achieving most of it objectives. (Lambert and Langley, 2000) How PWC would encourage user s to contribute knowledge towards the intranet First of all, PWC could ensure that they break down all the bureaucratic systems within the company.This means that the former mentality where it had been held that the support teams are implementers while the more experienced members were the decision makers should be changed. By doing this, people who are more in touch with what is going on at the ground will be encouraged to participate more within the intranet system within the company. The company needs to ensure that there is a flatter structure implemented on the ground. This will go a long way in encouraging participants to contribute towards the internet because they will feel more valued by the organization.While the company has gone a long way in eliminating some of the office politics within the organization, there are still relatively high numbers of issues that need to be implemented by this company in order to boost participation. Since there is still a management board t hat does project approvals and constitutes the management board, then people within the organization may still be feeling a little inhibited about contributing towards that intranet. Fewer powers need to be given to this board so as to boost an open environment.How PWC could facilitate awareness about the intranet and encourage users to utilize the knowledge base PWC was faced with an enormous task of informing all its one hundred and fifty thousand employees who are distributed across one hundred and fifty two countries for this receptive company. Consequently, there was a need to look for methods that could apply in such a wide geographical arena. Presentations are always a good way of informing people about something new. Consequently, the latter company could utilize this method to inform people.It could carry this out by visiting various offices hence talking to people face to face and making them understand some of these issues properly. (Law, 1998) Besides using presentations , there is a need to interact personally with these potential users through the utilization of direct instructions. The company could go a long way in promoting awareness by distributing literature in the system. Since PWC is implementing the system on a global scale, then there is a need for the company to ensure that all the respective groups understand the intricacies involved through a method that leaves room for the communication of vast amounts of data.Other ways in which this company can create awareness include; †¢ Flyers †¢ Posters †¢ Wallet cards †¢ Give a ways †¢ Many more The company can also go a long way in ensuring that various professionals understand how to use this system. This can be done by implementing sessions tailored for such groups. Examples are all the accountants within the firm. By addressing a particular profession, then the company will have shown them just how specific the intranet will be to their respective needs. Promoting a wareness should not just be restricted to understanding the system itself.Awareness needs to be done through a two way exchange. In other words, the system needs to be made in such a manner that the underlying problems faced by the users need to be understood by the incoming team. One such example is the Knowledge Point help desk in which individuals can address their problems through such a system. Besides this, there is also a need to look into some of the challenges that the group is likely to encounter through a survey. Here, respondents can be asked about how they found the intranet and what the company can do to improve it.Tracking this intranet on an annual basis can also go a long way in ensuring its success. (Anonymous, 1998) Issues that PWC could encounter for intranet users outside PWC Most of the problems to be faced by intranet users outside of this organization will emanate from the fact that there are still a number of corrections that are yet to be done in the proces s. An example of this issue is in terms of its Notes usage; the company is yet to implement a regional basis of this system. Consequently, the following Notes names will have to be carried out †¢ Country †¢ City †¢ Line of serviceSince ensuring the implementation of such system would take up a lot of time, then it can be said that the security of the user will be at stake. Another way in which security issues could present a hurdle to the respective clients under consideration is through the implementation of a private link to the client’s system. This can be problematic owing to the fact that implementing it is too complex thus leaving security needs unmet. An example of how such a problem was revealed was when the PWC tried implementing a private system for Hong Kong which was the centre point of all Asian Pacific clients.This was implemented through Australian, New Zealand and Hong Kong gateways. Utilization of such measures could be very problematic owing t o the fact that so many security bridges can arise out of such a complex system. Evaluation of Lotus and the Knowledge Curve Benefits of using such systems Also, the intranet was very important to this company because of the fact that it was quite simple to implement. In other words, it was relatively easy to package, capture and also deliver knowledge to the respective users.Whether PWC could manage diverse and huge information with its technical infrastructure PWC can definitely manage such a diverse information system owing to the fact that it implemented a rationalization program. This was done in order to eliminate duplication of work that arose out of the availability of two sources of data. Besides this, the company was in need of synchronizing all the numerous databases that were located within different geographical areas. In order to solve such a problem, the company chose to delegate duties to lines of service.Doing this was an effective and adequate way of making sure th at all the problems being faced were dealt with meticulously. Besides that, the IT team would have been overburdened by the problem. Each line of service member was supposed to carry out identification of the data owner. PWC was able to carry this out effectively also data owners were assigned the task of regularly updating information so as to ensure that the data base was valuable. Carrying out these painstaking tasks to completion was an indication that the company can manage vast amounts of data. (Lotus, 2000)Additionally, this company is capable of covering most of its challenges to be faced in managing huge databases by choosing to maintain open rather than closed systems. Closed systems may work for relatively small companies. However, companies of a global nature such as PWC are in need of making sure that people can update and access information as smoothly as possible and an open database would definitely be the way to go. Lastly, PWC was able to eliminate the duplication problem that it was facing at the beginning of their merger. This was also another painstakingly slow process since it was manually done.Since the company was able to do this effectively, then one can assume that the company can be able to carry out the process of managing even larger amounts of data in the future. Ways in which the Knowledge Curve structure could be improved The Knowledge Curve could be improved in the future trough working on local Knowledge Curves. Already, the Development team has been assigned with this task. They need to ensure that all data is analyzed at local levels in order to streamline some of the tax management, document management and executive recruitment tasks (Farhoomand, 2000)In order for the knowledge curve to work, there should be improvement of the company’s networking system. Servers for data sharing need to be worked on. Also, there are a number of related task that need to be managed and target include; monitoring, internet services, n etwork management and security systems. The Knowledge Curve also requires continuous improvement of the Lotus Notes Infrastructure, this can best be achieved through the process of recertifying all identification within this systems. Besides this, the process of addressing through the use of initials needs to be implemented.The Knowledge Curve needs to be in line with recent technologies. This needs to be done in such a manner that items such as voice recognition technologies need to reflect such perceptions. In line with this is the issue of upgrading the power system within the company. Lastly, the Knowledge curve can also be improved through a sound feedback teams. First of all, they need to ensure that calls are answered promptly. Also, they need to improve their level of integration between the use and the integration of internal networks.How PWC should disseminate the service to its clients The company is interested in ensuring that most if not all the services offered to thei r respective clients are done in an effective manner. In order to do this, then clients should not be treated as if operational challenges are part of their problems. The company needs to ensure that the transition is as smooth as possible. (Leong, 1999) First of all, the company should send notifications to their clients about any recent upgrades within their system. This can be done through email.Thereafter, the company should give details about those changes and leave room for inquiries from clients in case they do not understand the instructions. Shortly after, the company needs to carry implementation in one stage. This can be done in short intervals so as to ensure that the entire process is covered within a relatively short time. Customers can get weary of this by implementation if they constantly have to grapple with new changes. It would be best to get it over and done with at one go. Whether PWC should offer the service for free or for a feeSince PWC prides itself in the v alue addition within its services, then the company should offer the service as a bonus to their clients. The rewards of implementing such a system will be depicted in the returns obtained by the system. PwC will be more effective in responding to client needs and they will also have a large capacity for managing information received from their respective clients. Consequently, the system will improve their profitability through more satisfied consumers and a wider client base. There will be no point in charging them for this because if PwC was to do this, they would be trying to get double benefits.Conclusion Building a global network is a huge challenge for PwC but this company has more than enough capabilities to deal with this issue. First of all, their networking team has been able to manage effectively and they will continue to do so. Secondly project, development and customer care groups have also done their part. The company needs to keep up this effort in order to ensure th at their Knowledge Curve has succeeded. References PWC (2000): Homepage, retrieved from http://www. pwcglobal. com/ accessed on 24th Jan 2008Anonymous (1998): Moore Schiro: We changed the competitive landscape; Accounting Today, 28th September Thomas, S. (2000): Focus – Keeping pace with knowledge; Information Week Review, 155 Leong, K. (1999): Marketing Gets Innovative, Internet week, 3rd May, Lambert and Langley (2000): PwC Interview, Hong Kong, 1st February Lotus (2000): Definition of Notes, retrieved form http://www. whatiscom/notes. htm 30 May Farhoomand, A. (2000): Price water house Cooper: Building a global network; Asia case research centre Law, G. (1998): And then there were four; Management journal, 45, 1

High School Social Studies Courses Needed for College

High School Social Studies Courses Needed for College Choosing the high school courses that will best prepare you for success in college can be a difficult process, and social studies, though an important subject for a strong college application, is easily overlooked, particularly if you arent planning to enter a liberal arts program. Many students are much more concerned about their math, science, and foreign language requirements. Requirements for high school preparation in social studies vary significantly among different colleges and universities, and the term social studies can mean something different to different schools. What Courses Count as Social Studies? Social studies is a broad term that encompasses fields of study related to culture, government, civics, and the general interactions of people within a complex national and global context. War, technology, law, religion, and immigration all have a place within the category of social studies. High school classes in social studies typically include United States History, European History, World History, U.S. Government, Human Geography, and Psychology. Keep in mind, however, that colleges are free to define social studies as broadly or narrowly as they choose. What Social Studies Classes Do Colleges Require? Most competitive colleges recommend at least two to three years of high school social studies, which generally includes history as well as courses in government or civics. Here are some specific recommendations for high school social studies coursework from several different institutions: Carleton College, one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country, requires three or more years of social science. The college does not specify what courses it prefers students to take under the label of social science.Harvard University, the prestigious Ivy League school, is more specific in its recommendation. The university wants to see that students have taken at least two, and preferably three years of courses that include American history, European history, and one other advanced history course.Stanford University, another prestigious and highly selective university,  wants to three or more years of history/social studies. The university wants these courses to include a meaningful essay writing requirement so that applicants are prepared for the rigors of university humanities and social science classes.Pomona College, an excellent liberal arts college and member of the Claremont Colleges, wants to see a minimum of two years of social sciences (the term the school uses fo r social studies), and the college recommends three years. Clearly when a highly selective school recommends something, applicants should take that recommendation very seriously. UCLA, one of the countrys top  public universities, requires two years of study. The university is more specific about this requirement than many other institutions. UCLA wants to see one year of world history, cultures, and geography; and or one year U.S. history or one half year U.S. history and one half year of civics or American government.  Williams College, another top-ranked liberal arts college, does not have any specific academic requirements for admission, but the schools admissions website notes that they look for the strongest program of study offered at a students school, and that competitive applicants have typically taken a four-year sequence of courses in social studies. The table below gives you a quick glimpse of typical social studies requirements for different types of colleges and universities. School Social Studies Requirement Auburn University 3 years required Carleton College 2 years required, 3 or more years recommended Centre College 2 years recommended Georgia Tech 3 years required Harvard University 2-3 years recommended (American, European, one additional advanced) MIT 2 years required NYU 3-4 years required Pomona College 2 years required, 3 years recommended Smith College 2 years required Stanford University 3 or more years recommended (should include essay writing) UCLA 2 years required (1 year world, 1 year US or 1/2 year US+1/2 year civics or government) University of Illinois 2 years required, 4 years recommended University of Michigan 3 years required; 2 years for engineering/nursing Williams College 3 years recommended What Social Studies Classes Do the Strongest Applicants Take? You can see from the selective colleges above that all schools require two or more social studies classes, and many require three. The reality is that your application will be strongest with four classes, for its important to remember that colleges look more favorably upon applicants who have done more than meet the minimum requirements.What you take will largely depend on what your school offers. A student who takes a course in U.S. history followed by courses in African American history and America at war shows depth of knowledge and intellectual curiosity, but courses beyond basic American history arent offered in many school systems.   In general, however, you should take the most challenging courses available to you. An IB curriculum will certainly impress the admissions officers, as will AP classes in history and government. If you have the option of taking classes through a local college, those dual-enrollment classes in history, politics, sociology, psychology, government, and other social sciences will also make a good impression and help demonstrate your college readiness. College admissions officers are looking for students who have challenged themselves throughout high school, taking on advanced coursework in multiple subjects. Because social studies is an area in which most schools only require two or three years of study, you have an opportunity to present yourself as a well-rounded and dedicated student by taking additional courses. This is particularly true if you are applying for a college program in history, civics, or any of the liberal arts.

How to Write a Synthesis Essay

How to Write a Synthesis Essay How to Write a Synthesis Essay There are two basic ways of dealing with information: analysis and synthesis, known since the days of the Ancient Greeks. Analysis is a method by which a person is able to â€Å"break down† a problem to its â€Å"parts† and to examine them afterwards. This is the analytical approach, or the strategy to check every single detail one by one. Synthesis consists of bringing different parts, entities, or groups together in one whole. Real synthesis is difficult to be performed as it requires lots of knowledge. The main goal of every synthesis is to gain new information based on something already known. How to write a synthesis essay essential tips Not as easy as you think In the case of your synthesis essay, you will have to write on a well-defined topic by using a few important sources. That means, you will be given the task to work with the sources in order to incorporate the information, which is available in them, in your writing. At the beginning you will think it is a piece of cake to write such an essay. However, having read all sources, you will feel confused and unable to accomplish the task. But this is the essence of every synthesis: to derive the most useful information and to formulate your own theory, conception, or idea. For instance, you must work on the problem with the human rights in the country X. There are six excerpts from articles in newspapers dealing with this issue. From them you must use at least three (if not all six). The idea is to exercise your skills of deriving important information and basing your thesis on it. Synthesis Essay Writing Tips There are some tips for writing a synthesis essay which you should follow. 1. You should comprehend perfectly your topic and task. If needed, ask your teacher. If you cannot ask anyone, then rely on the texts. The topic must be narrow and clear. Usually the assignment is accompanied by additional explanation of the context. 2. Write some notes on each text. Try to present them with up to five short sentences (but only in your draft). These notes will contain useful information which can be found precisely on the first text, or the second text, and so forth (and not in each of them). Now you are able to incorporate them at different places in your paper. 3. Plan your work according to your own thesis. You can choose one of the sources as fully corresponding to your standpoint. You can also select a text containing the opposite opinion. If it is not possible, you can merely present at least two sources as essential parts of your text. Remember: you should integrate these ideas, and not to describe them. The synthesis essay is not a summary, but it is rather a new point of view justified by opinions manifested by other authors (that you must refer to as your primary sources). 4. This essay has the same structure as every other essay intro, body part, and conclusion; additionally, you should add a list of references and to insert references everywhere you quote a given source. The only significant difference from the most popular types of essay is that here you must write according to your sources. From all said up to here, it becomes clear that your synthesis essay requires creativity as well as the other types of essay do. So, don’t adhere too much to your sources- it may transform your paper into a boring attempt of summarization. Present your own thoughts on a topic while referring to various sources, and your synthesis will be successful.

Comparing IFRS to GAAP Brandi A Collins Essays - Free Essays

Comparing IFRS to GAAP Brandi A Collins Essays - Free Essays Comparing IFRS to GAAP ACC/291 April 27, 2015 Comparing IFRS to GAAP Essay Both the FASB and the IASB together moving to the fair value capacity for the financial instruments. FASB and ISAB both want to move towards a fair value capacity. Both the FASB and IASB believe in the fair value capacity to produce a more precise explanation for the companys financial records. Theres a difference in opinions between the two agreeing and disagreeing on the aspects like as, the banks doubting the system will make it easy to guesstimate accurately since the fair value is done by estimation. To answer their differences they have decided to meet on mutual grounds by concealing the fair value information of the financial reports in transcripts as well as permitting the companys relatively than require them to record some of their financials at fair values in their financial statements. The usage of fair value is a replacement for the historical cost method. Element depreciation is any detailed part of a depreciable asset that has different estimated useful lives. Element depreciation should be distinctly depreciated and is allowed to be used by the IFRS but the GAAP will very rarely us component depreciation. This should be used to view the depreciation as a distribution of cost over the assets useful life. Each asset should be depreciated distinctly for certain groups although seldom one asset will equal a number of other assets making it whole. This is irregular, and becoming one asset would only allow their own useful life. IFRS will allow revision of plant assets to their fair value at the date of reporting. Any company that decides to use the revision framework must follow the procedures if the revision, when the company does choose to use the revision it must be useful to all these assets within the same class. If the assets are suffering a rapid price change they must then be upped at an annual rate. Product development imbursements can be logged as development expenses while others are logged as development costs. The difference between development cost and development expenses is that a cost is used when an expense is made for imports to develop assets and assets for imports such as land purchased will remain an asset to the company as long as they own it. A cost would be something the company purchases that will devalue such as a vehicle for the company that will continue to devalue as time passes. The IFRS will outline contingent liability as a possible requirement that is not recognized by the financial reports, they may however be exposed if a certain criteria is met. A liable liability could be something from the companys past such as a law suit depending on the ending of the lawsuit. The company will have liability or no liability at all. For the IFRS, they use necessities which are also defined as a liability that is of tentative timing and amount, these can be employee vacation pay, warrantys and any anticipated loss . The alteration between GAAP and IFRS are slight in regards to accounting for their liabilities. GAAP for example, will list their liabilities and assets in the priority of their liquidity. Not all companys follow GAAP and will list their liabilities prior to their assets and may show their long term liabilities previous to their current liabilities. IFRS will require the effective-interest process when they are remunerating the bond discounts and premiums, while GAAP will allow the use of the straight- line method, and IFRS will not distinguish the bond at a premium or discount they must be known at by the net amount of the bond. In respects to the ideal stock the IFRS and GAAP both will require the preferred stock to be redeemed at a specific time in the future as well as be reported as a debt. In conclusion there are a lot of comparisons in the GAAP and the IFRS, though it seems that the IFRS may be somewhat more open on their practices and require more while the GAAP will rarely use some of the practices that the IFRS will use. References: Financial accounting 7e, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (2013), required text book reading

Fiduciary, regulatory, and contractual Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Fiduciary, regulatory, and contractual - Essay Example For example, an individual entrusting their money to a bank to keep it safely or use it for investment purposes, in this case the bank acts as a fiduciary to the individual. In this type of relationship, an individual, in a vulnerable position, vest his or her confidence justifiably, in good faith and trust in the other person’s advice, assistance or some protection. In this relationship, good conscience needs the action of a fiduciary at any given time for the interest and benefit of the individual who trusts. To indicate that an individual is fiduciary only opens a new chapter and direction for further investigation and inquiry. To whom is the individual fiduciary? What are the obligations that the individual owe as a fiduciary? The norm of the law aims at shaping a conduct that is in existence due to imperfection. It may be used to proscribe conduct or in the calibration of incentives or even in changing individual preferences. Regulation can also be used in rule enforcement and monitoring as established by the legislation either primary or delegated (Griffiths-Baker 67). Regulations focus at creating constraints, limitation or creating a duty. It takes several different forms including self-regulation as exercised by several industries and companies through association of trades, contractual obligations that bind many parties together among others. State mandated regulation attempts outcome production that might not occur, prevent or even produce outcomes in several places to what might probably occur or prevent outcomes in several areas in different timescales that would occur. In this way, regulation is viewed as an artifact of the implementation of statements of policies. Examples of regulations include control of market entries, wages, prices, effects of pollution, approval of developments, employment of some people in various companies, standard of production for some goods.

Journal 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 7

Journal 3 - Essay Example The application of this policy helps to motivate employees to attain higher goals (Blazey, 2013). Effective retention strategy is also part of compensation policy in organization. This strategy helps employees to remain committed on the organization to build successful career. Benefits policy can also help organization to attract best employees for the organization. Some of the necessary benefits plans of organization are to focus on employee needs, increase employee satisfaction and motivate existing employees by keeping them healthy (Henderson, 2002). Some of the benefits provided by organization are retirement benefit, insurance policy, sick leave, income protection on disability, vacation leave and substitute work engagements. The application of compensation and benefits can help organization to increase revenue which can lead to effective customer service interaction and high productivity. The successful compensation and benefit plan can help to attract competent employees and maintain sustainability in the competitive