Report on Financial Statement Fraud Scheme Case Study the...

Report on Financial Statement Fraud Scheme Case Study: The Importance of Timing ACC/556 Professor University of Phoenix December 19, 2011 Memo To: The Management From: Forensic Auditor Date: 12/19/2011 Subject: Case Study on the Importance of Timing and Financial Statement Fraud Scheme As our company is in process of conducting investigation to detect any financial statement fraud or abuse, I have come across the case where expenses were recorded in the financial statement under the period it was disbursed to vendor and actual services occurred in next or other financial year period. It’s against the regulation of SEC and GAAP guidelines. In this particular case the repair were completed in current†¦show more content†¦The sampling tools and techniques used in this investigation consists systematic random selection of data from selected sources. The forensic accountant use computer forensics, data analytics and interviews to allow them to assemble much of the required evidence for an investigation. This abuse was detected when we see the invoice of heavy amount paid by end of the last year without any inspection report or repair completion document in file. The furt her investigation showed it was done later this year. No employee took any funds to commit financial fraud or larceny but the financial statement were misleading to the users of those statements. A company may experience such type of abuse or corruption schemes developed at any given time, more than one area or all over the company. Corruption can be performed by fraudster employees who intentionally and wrongfully use their influence to gain personal financial gain from company business transaction. It can be limited to a particular department or it may exist in all structural levels. It is vital for a company to review financial status routinely to ensure proper accounting and reporting procedures are followed in entirety of company business transactions. It is extremely important to review before an end of year transactions with heavy amounts to ensure validity of amount and services occurred in that financial year.Show MoreRelatedAcc 5561986 Words   |  8 PagesCourse Descrip tion In this course, students are introduced to the conduct of fraud examinations, including a discussion of specific procedures used in forensic accounting examinations and the reasoning behind these procedures. Topics include an overview of fraud and abuse, forensic evidence, substantive procedures for cash outflow irregularities, substantive procedures for asset irregularities, financial statement fraud, and examination reporting. Policies Faculty and students/learners willRead MoreFinancial Statement Frauds29904 Words   |  120 Pages2002:53 Financial Statement Fraud - Recognition of Revenue and the Auditor’s Responsibility for Detecting Financial Statement Fraud - Tiina Intal and Linh Thuy Do Graduate Business School School of Economics and Commercial Law Gà ¶teborg University ISSN 1403-851X Printed by Elanders Novum Abstract Financial reporting frauds and earnings manipulation have attracted high profile attention recently. There have been several cases by businesses of what appears to be financial statement fraudRead MoreCauses of Bank Failure6382 Words   |  26 PagesIf your money is FDIC insured, you probably don’t need to panic. Bank Officers’ Fraud Let us have an example from USA Former TBW CEO Pleads Guilty in $1.5 Billion Bank Fraud Scheme WASHINGTON—Paul Allen, the former chief executive officer (CEO) at Taylor, Bean Whitaker (TBW), pleaded guilty today to making false statements and conspiring to commit bank and wire fraud for his role in a $1.5 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failure of TBW. The guilty plea was announced today by AssistantRead MoreAcca P7 Notes24991 Words   |  100 PagesINTRODUCTION TO THE PAPER 2 CHAPTER 1 – REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT 3 CHAPTER 2 – PROFESSIONAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS 8 CHAPTER 3 – PRACTICE MANAGEMENT 13 CHAPTER 4 – ASSIGNMENTS I: THE AUDIT OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 16 CHAPTER 5 – ASSIGNMENTS II: GROUP AUDITS 42 CHAPTER 6 – AUDIT REPORTS AND OTHER REPORTS 45 CHAPTER 7 – ASSIGNMENTS III: OTHER ASSIGNMENTS 57 CHAPTER 8 – CURRENT ISSUES AND DEVELOPMENTS 63 INTRODUCTION TO THE PAPER AIM OF THE PAPER The aim of the paper is to apply relevantRead MoreIca Gh Syslabus26672 Words   |  107 Pagesthe New Scheme Objectives and Expected Performance Outcomes of Each Part PART 1 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Financial Accounting Fundermentals Business Management Economics Management Information Systems PART 2 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Quantitative Tools in Business Audit and Internal Review Business and Corporate Law Principles and Practice of Taxation PART 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Financial Reporting Public Sector Accounting Cost and Management Accounting Financial Management PART 4 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Advanced Financial ReportingRead MoreSolution to Auditing and Assurance Service: 1,12,B, 329605 Words   |  119 PagesThey cannot produce the information for themselves because of these conditions. Company managers and accountants produce the information. 1.3 Information risk, in contrast to business risk, is the risk (probability) that the information (mainly financial) disseminated by a company will be materially false or misleading. This risk creates the demand for objective outsiders to provide assurance to decision makers. 1.4 Students can refer to the AAA and AICPA definitions in Chapter 1. Some instructorsRead MoreProfessional Misconduct58343 Words   |  234 PagesComplaint Council Disciplinary Committee Council High Court (if need arises) Complaint Council whether it is fit D.C. (Ist Schedule) fit for case or not (Having evidences explanation unfit than recommended report (Prima facie opinion reject supply to council Whether complaint is fit. It is not deciding) Council Pass the decision Refer to H.C (If in Ist ScheduleRead MoreChapter 1 Accounting Information Systems and the Accountant14769 Words   |  60 PagesSystems—A Deï ¬ nition Accounting Information Systems and Their Role in Organizations CASE ANALYSES The Annual Report Universal Concrete Products Ross, Sells, and Young, LLP REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDED READINGS ANSWERS TO TEST YOURSELF WHAT’S NEW IN ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS? Suspicious Activity Reporting Countering Terrorism Corporate Scandals and Accounting The Sarbanes-Oxley and Patriot Acts ACCOUNTING AND IT Financial Accounting Managerial Accounting Auditing Taxation CAREERS IN ACCOUNTING INFORMATIONRead MoreOrganizational Fraud9733 Words   |  39 PagesORGANIZATIONAL FRAUD [pic] Submitted by: Amit Goel(amigoel@gmail.com) Mohit Goel Executive Summary For many organizations, â€Å"getting it right† or â€Å"getting it wrong† is a matter of survival. This study talks about the issues like, ‘organisational fraud’, ‘ethics’ ‘empowerment’ in an organisation and their relation to standards of good behaviour in order to explore various ways in which occurrences of ever increasing frauds can be checked. Organisational Fraud can be perpetrated by thoseRead MoreWaste Management33554 Words   |  135 Pagesaccounting fraud and auditor legal liability c a S eS inc lu de d in t hiS Se ction 4 89 99 4.1 Enron Corporation and Andersen, LLP Analyzing the Fall of Two Giants . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Comptronix Corporation 4.3 Cendant Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Identifying Inherent Risk and Control Risk Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 119 127 137 Assessing the Control Environment and Evaluating Risk of Financial Statement Fraud

Analysis Of The Poem George Washington Crossing The...

On a stormy December night in 1776 general George Washington and his men braved the cold and crossed the Delaware River to attack unsuspecting British soldiers. This bold move helped to turn the tides of the American Revolution and proved to be one of the most important American victories of the war. This historical battle was commemorated through a painting by German artist, Emmanuel Leutze. The painting of George Washington crossing the Delaware River properly represents the fighting spirit and resiliency of the colonial forces during the American Revolution. The painting depicts one of the most decisive victories of the American Revolution. Prior to the battle American morale was very low, even Washington was becoming doubtful. The continental army was forced out of New York and pushed across most of New Jersey on a desperate retreat induced by many British victories. The British troops that occupied the small town of Trenton were convinced that American morale was much too broken for any sort of attack†¦ Washington had other plans. (Encyclopedia Brittanica) Washington and 2,400 of his men crossed the Delaware River on Christmas Eve under the cover of a storm. They were totally undetected. This bold move was completely unexpected and carried out mostly out of pure determination. At the time of the crossing the continental army was severely undersupplied. The only two American casualties were a result of frostbite. They were not properly prepared for the cold northeasternShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of The Poem George Washington Crossing The Delaware River 867 Words   |  4 PagesOn a stormy December night in 1776 General George Washington and his men braved the cold and crossed the Delaware River to attack unsuspecting British soldiers. This bold move helped to turn the tides of the American Revolution and proved to be one of the most important American victories of the war. This historical battle was commemorated through a painting by German artist, Emm anuel Leutze. The painting of George Washington crossing the Delaware River properly represents the fighting spirit andRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 Pagespage intentionally left blank Organizational Behavior EDITION 15 Stephen P. Robbins —San Diego State University Timothy A. Judge —University of Notre Dame i3iEi35Bj! Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo Editorial Director: Sally Yagan Director of Editorial Services: Ashley Santora Acquisitions Editor:

Contributing Factors in Construction Accidents

Question: Discuss about the Contributing Factors in Construction Accidents. Answer: Introduction: The focus of discussion in the current research is to identify the relation between the project safety and the number of non-conformances and/or the volume of the rework in the construction sites. The research in the evidence based literature review indicates that there is positive relation between these two aspects, there is positive relation between the project safety as well as the non-conformances at the construction site reworks. The current report is a focus on this exhaustive relation and the study is performing to relate these two different aspects. Also recommendations based discussion is provided with proposals to reduce the safety incidents as well as to reduce the amount of rework on construction sites. The relationship between the safety and quality outcomes do have very limited attention in the construction and the engineering management domain. One of the main factor responsible for the development of such scenario is the fact that the contractors and the builders are not interested to reveal the sensitive information related to the reworks and the associated factors that are relating these incidents with the accidents in general. In accordance with the report presented by Love(2015), there is an extensive 31 months analysis of the relation between the incidents and rework and based on the observations it is indicated that the risk profiles for incidents and the NCRs are established with the mathematical analysis. The data indicated as high as mean ratio of incidents to rework NCRS to be 1:7. Also it is indicated that the relation between incidents and the rework NCRS (p0.05). Similar indications are reported in other recent empirical evidence based reports; It is found that ther e two statistically significant relationships; the OSHA recordable rate is positively correlated to rework (r2 =0.968, p-value =0.032); Also the first aid rate is positively correlated to the number of defects (r2 = 0.548, p-value=0.009) (Wanberg, 2013). There is indication that the most compelling reason for the strong positive correlation between rework and injuries is the fact that rework involves demolition, schedule pressure as well as unstable work processes. Mortenson construction works have used computer automated, virtual environment technology at the Peguala Ice Arena at Penn State and in the course of time they catched and fixed the problems early. Typical tools like virtual images of mechanical systems are employed to prevent the mistakes that involve the rework in general. Reworks are increasing the construction schedules and delaying the delivery, Further reworks are contributing to the worker injuries and billions of lost revenue (Moore). The problems of NCRS and reworks can be tackled with multiple dimensions. It is required that there should be sufficient care provided at the outset for the sake of exhaustive preplanning of the projects, Also there is need that there should be sufficient allocation of the resources available for completing the project, projects should be subjected to every measure that actually works on to complete the schedule in time. Also there should be strategic promotion of leadership at the work place as well workers should be encouraged to take pride in their work. Further there should be extensive considerations to be taken to encourage strategies for promoting the safety and quality. Also it is not impossible to totally avoid the scheduled delays. It is required that there should be exhaustive planning and effective contracting process to enhance the quality and safety in the work and thereby there should be means to avoid the delay in the works. There should be steep release of the funds in accordance with the project progression requirements and secondly there is need that there should be fines and penalties for the project delays and this inturn will effect the project progression and scheduling process. Construction business is quite fast and there is need for companies to catch these recent strategies to avert the delays and the progression methodologies to avoid the delays and to keep up the competitive edge in the market(Construction drive). Apart from these basic considerations there is need to enforce recommendation like those of ARCTM, where is there is specific reference made towards the workers training for the job which he is expected to make, enforcement of working conditions which are safe and accident free. Also there is considerable responsibility of the project manager there lies in enforcing better operational conditions in the work place. All of them should be followed with very detailed and specific enforcement at each and every stage of project progression (Abdelhamid,2000).It is also indicated that apart from the basic issues such as workers ignorance and contribution of the apathy of the management towards the workplace safety, there are also issues such as incompetent risk management at the work place as well as improper design of ergonomics at the construction site as well as issues such as deficiencies of the work place being employed in the workplace. All of them do have collective impact on the work place operational integrity and the operational performance (Haslam, 2005).Hwang(2014) indicated that there are several instances of reworks in the construction industry happening because of the lack of systematic planning to avert the same. Hence as per his proposal usage of knowledge based systems to record the ongoing technological progression of the construction works and approaches for elimination of the rework will provide opportunity to enhance the betterment of the organizational performance to avoid reworks in construction. Better design and KMS will contribute in this regard. A comprehensive project management involving design management, communication management, filed management, project scope management, project process management, active rework, project plan management, external environment management etc required for minimizing the project rework in the construction industry (Ye, 2014). Conclusion: The evidence based research findings in relation to the empirical relation between NCRS of reworks and the accident incidents at the site indicate that there is great need to avert the escalation of conditions to the extent of safety incidents as well there is need to avoid loss of revenues to the company in the form of delayed project deliveries as well as in the form of revenue loss due to accidents and related procedural problems and obligations. At the outset there is need to change the traditional construction process monitoring methodologies to more advanced and better technology enabled processes and procedures. Also as indicated in the previous discussion always the project control should be in the hands of able leadership and there should be systematic and strategic interventions from the beginning of the project to avoid delays and expectation mismatch requirements. Also while drafting the contractual obligations there should be sufficient insight and all the terms and the regulations of the project are required to be prepared in detail so that there will be quite a good control of the project progress while preventing the happening of the delays as well as the associated problems of revenue loss from the project. References: Anon., n.d. [Online] Available at: Moore P, Contractors confront the growing costs of rework, Engineering News record, 28/11/2012 Anon., n.d. [Online] Available at: Wanberg J et al, Relationship between Construction Safety and Quality Performance, Journal of Construction Engineering Management, Volume 139, Issue 10, October 2013 Anon., n.d. [Online] Available at: The Dotted Line: How to avoid schedule delays through careful planning, effective contracts, https://www.constructiondive.com/news/the-dotted-line-how-to-avoid-schedule-delays-through-careful-planning-eff/440167/ Abdelhamid, T.S. and Everett, J.G., 2000. Identifying root causes of construction accidents.Journal of construction engineering and management,126(1), pp.52-60. Hwang, B.G., Zhao, X. and Goh, K.J., 2014. Investigating the client-related rework in building projects: The case of Singapore.International Journal of Project Management,32(4), pp.698-708. Haslam, R.A., Hide, S.A., Gibb, A.G., Gyi, D.E., Pavitt, T., Atkinson, S. and Duff, A.R., 2005. Contributing factors in construction accidents.Applied ergonomics,36(4), pp.401-415. Ye, G., Jin, Z., Xia, B. and Skitmore, M., 2014. Analyzing causes for reworks in construction projects in China.Journal of Management in Engineering,31(6), p.04014097. Love, P.E., Teo, P., Carey, B., Sing, C.P. and Ackermann, F., 2015. The symbiotic nature of safety and quality in construction: Incidents and rework non-conformances.Safety science,79, pp.55-62.

Tannery Industries in the Hajaribagh Area and Its Impact on the Urban Form and Morphology Essay Example

Tannery Industries in the Hajaribagh Area and Its Impact on the Urban Form and Morphology Essay Hazaribagh is a densely populated unplanned area of Dhaka city where about 185 leather processing industries have been operating and discharging solid and liquid wastes directly to the low-lying areas, river and natural canals without proper treatment. For this unsympathetic development of the city urban living environment is deteriorating and becoming unlivable. Hazaribagh area is an unplanned area where leather processing industries have begun to develop from 1950s. Due to the rapid expansion of these industries since 1950s and their untreated toxic effluent discharge, it has a measurable impact on the living environment of this area. The regulatory measures are not that much practiced to restrict pollution. So the contamination level has reached to a level that the citizens are suffering from different pollution related problems. A detailed level policy frame work and planning implication is essential for the development of the area and for ensuring livable environment. To assess the environmental degradation of heavy metals of water samples, heavy metals and organic carbon content of sediment were analyzed by many project works and thesis. This study is based on secondary source materials and is focused on how these tannery industries evolved in this particular place? Why it has emerged so rapidly? And what impact it has been extending to the surrounding zones especially on the forms and morphology of the neighborhood. TABLE OF CONTENT 1. Introduction4 2. Objectives and scope of the Study5 . Methodology5 4. History of Tannery Industry in Bangladesh6 5. Hazaribagh Tannery in Dhaka City6 6. Hazaribagh Tannery: Impact on the form and morphology in Surrounding Environment 8 6. 1Houses and Residence of Hazaribagh Tannery9 6. 2Road Network and Drainage System of Hazaribagh Tannery10 6. 3Locations of Industries11 6. 4UNIDO environment Programme 12 7. Findings and Analysis12 7. 1 Socio economic condition of surrounding area13 7. 2 Physical condition of sur rounding areas14 7. 3 Biodiversity and Pollution14 8. We will write a custom essay sample on Tannery Industries in the Hajaribagh Area and Its Impact on the Urban Form and Morphology specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Tannery Industries in the Hajaribagh Area and Its Impact on the Urban Form and Morphology specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Tannery Industries in the Hajaribagh Area and Its Impact on the Urban Form and Morphology specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Tannery Relocation and Settlement of Hazaribagh Tannery and15 Redevelopment of Hazaribagh Tannery Area 9. Recommendation and Conclusion19-21 10. References 22 1. Introduction Tanneries are the oldest industries in Bangladesh of which 95 percent are concentrated mainly in Hazaribagh area of Dhaka city. It is also a potentially rich manufacturing sector in terms of both financial return and social benefits. Hazaribagh with an area of 3. 8 square kilometer is surrounded by Mohammadpur thana on the north, Kamrangirchar thana on the south, Dhanmondi and Lalbagh thanas on the east, Keraniganj upazila and Buriganga river on the west. It is situated on the south-west part of capital Dhaka. The first tannery industry in Dhaka was established hundred years ago. Later on for the higher profit, concentration of industries increased with in a short period of time. This uncontrolled expansion of industrial zone extended its pressure on physical condition of environment and transformed the area to a brown field. It is now very essential to redevelop the site in planned and controlled manner. Due to the rapid growth of populations demand of housing is also increased and urbanization extended to this peripheral zone. The Hazaribagh area has a great mix up of industrial and residential activities. This residential areas has a huge shortage of ancillary facilities. Further more toxic pollutant from the industries is a serious threat for them. The dumping of untreated wastes from tannery industries in Hazaribag, Dhaka is the major source of pollution of Buriganga. The chromium released from the Hazaribag tannery industries has been contaminating the water of the river Buriganga for the last forty-five years. This highly polluted water is spreading various diseases including cancer. A statistics available from the Department of Environment reveal that 95 per cent of the tannery industries have been built in unplanned way at the congested places of Hazaribag during the last fifty years. At present during the peak monsoon about 21 thousand and 600 cubic meters of liquid toxic wastes are dumped daily into the river Buriganga from the 185 tannery industries of Hazaribag. There is no alternative way to dump this liquid toxic waste at the time of continuous production of tannery industries. Unfortunately a recent observation of Hazaribagh clearly shows an active decay and destruction primarily attributed to unplanned growth and poor maintenance. This area now appears no more than an inner city unhygienic environment. Technical compatibility is necessary to improve the houses and the community with certain policies. An architect is one who has the socio cultural consciousness, technical assistance, historical knowledge and moreover intuition by which he can foresee the befitting three dimensional redevelopment of an area. As a student of architecture, the main concern of this study is to propose the Community a guideline for healthy living environmental keeping the unique fabric of the area with cultural and historical consciousness. 2. Objectives and scope of the study The study area has been selected here for investigation as an important and ensitive part of the Dhaka city which is associated with very hazardous environment. The major objectives of the study are: †¢ To improvement the accessibility these areas by providing a sustainable living environment. †¢ To revitalize their living standard and to improve social awareness. †¢ To identify of social infrastructure, and environmental condition of Hazaribagh tannery area to minimize those problems. In this study at first the pa per describes the history of the tannery industry in Bangladesh as well as the background on the Hazaribag Tannery. Based on that, this paper analyses some findings of Hazaribagh tanneries and its impact on the form and morphology. This paper than addresses some means and ways to overcome the problem for better living in that area. 3. Methodology The study is based on relevant literature review, their analysis and cross–checking of the situation with field level observation and discussions. 4. History of Tannery Industry in Bangladesh From 1800 to mid 1960 South Asian used the vegetable tanned crust, a non-polluting tanning process which worked well as an environmental friendly process. The process was introduced in Bangladesh in the late 1940s. At first tanneries emerged in the Hazaribagh of Dhaka and Chandgao of Chittagong. This business was dominated by the Indians. Soon Pakistani entrepreneur replaced the Indians. After independence of Bnagladesh in 1971 changes took place in every sector and the Leather industries were not beyond it. In 1972, Tanneries Corporation has launched by the Government to make this sector more profitable. Afterwards a powerful committee was formed by the EDB (Export Development Bureau) to earn more foreign exchanges. In 1977, the Government imposed an export duty on wet blue leather which forced the industry to covert crust and finished leather into value added leather products. Many joint ventures took advantage of the Promotion and Protection Act of 1980 which brought a large amount of foreign investment to Bangladesh and the leather industries in Bangladesh flourished. 5. Hazaribagh Tannery in Dhaka City Hazaribagh, Dhaka’s biggest leather processing industrial zone, is in the middle of one of the most densely populated residential districts. Its industries freely dump untreated toxic waste directly into the low-lying area, river and natural canals. According to the Department of Environment (DoE), nearly 22,000 cubic metres of untreated and highly toxic liquid waste is discharged by the tanneries every day into the water bodies including the River Buriganga, the lifeline of the capital. Aquatic life forms of the Buriganga are seriously threatened. Residents in Hazaribagh area have been complaining for a long time that the tanneries spread bad odor and pollute the air beyond tolerable limits. pic] Dhaka city map In the Hazaribagh area processing of animal hides is done by the deadly chemicals. This work involves soaking the skins in chemical-mixed water, liming and de-liming, scrapping off meat and fat and removing hair from rawhides, and finally tanning. And all this is done with bare hands. Every day workers are exposed to poisonous chemicals like chromium, sulphur, manganese, copper compound, lead and many more. Accord ing to experts, the dangerous mixture of chemicals, acids and dyes used in the tanneries are extremely hazardous to human body. Surrounded by high walls and with very little ventilation, the air inside the factories is suffocating with fumes, heat and odour of chemicals. While large factories have some facilities, the condition in smaller factories is deplorable. 6. Hazaribagh Tannery : Impact on the form and morphology in surrounding environment The leather industry sector, which is the fourth largest foreign exchange earner of the country contributing about six per cent of total export earnings, produces 150 metric tons of solid waste every day contaminating the environment and water of the metropolis. 9 per cent of the total wastage comes from processing of hides and skin, and accumulates in the swamp-sludge and the part of the solid waste is collected by the Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) and taken to landfill sites. A woman sits with her child on the threshold of her shack in a bamboo slum. Her home is built directly over a pool of chemical waste from a nearby tannery plant which processes animal hide to m ake leather. The only way she and her children can get out of their house is by wading through the toxic water Sewerage and garbage infrastructure is poorly developed in Dhaka and it is estimated that only 18% of domestic sewerage enters the sewerage systems. Al. Highly toxic water released from Hazaribagh Tanneries accumulating in the low-lying areas inside the city’s protected embankment has been diverted into the adjacent water-retention points in the Mahammadpur slum areas. During heavy rainfall or in flood, the toxic water enters into thousands of houses. The area has been used as a dumping place for tannery waste for many years. 6. Houses and Residence of Hazaribagh Tannery The residents of the citys western part continue to suffer from the adverse effects of pollution caused by some 200 tanneries in Hazaribagh and surrounding areas. The dreadful stink of the tannery district can be smelt from miles away the residential areas like Rayerbazar, Jhigatola and parts of Dhanmondi. Even the fumes emitted by tanneries often damage their gold and silver ornaments and affects home applia nces such as TV, fridge, computer and air conditioner systems. Foot path and the adjacent area of Hazaribagh Tannery The tanneries discharge the effluents and wastes into the river system causing a large area of acid sludge alongside the flood protection embankment and the liquid wastes are dumped in the river through a flood control regulator-cum-sluice gates. During monsoon months, the flood protection embankments protect Dhaka from heavy flooding while making it difficult to flush-out waste water, thereby creating environmental hazard. During the dry season the waste water is flushed out into the river causing pollution of the river water and affecting the aquatic flora and fauna. The dumping of the solid wastes is seriously affecting the soil and plants, besides vitiating the air, groundwater and human health etc. The water quality of the river Buriganga during wet season and dry season are heavily polluted so that dissolved oxygen in the river water is found to be nil during the dry season and no aquatic animals can live in this condition. Most of the waste effluents are subjected to natural decomposition in the environment, causing serious pollution problems affecting soil, water, air and human life. Stressing the need for treatment methods to combat pollution including segregation of processed waste water, sedimentation, neutralisation and biological treatment, about half the tanneries apply some kind of solid waste reuse, while 90 per cent of the finished trimming wastes are used by the local shoemakers in and around the Dhaka City. Chemical analysis suggests that tannery wastes are characterised by strong colour, high biochemical oxygen demand, high pH and high dissolved salts. Disposal of these wastes into water course or onto land, with or without prior sedimentation, creates a great problem in the environment in the vicinity. So, it has become essential to treat the waste to a certain degree prior to its disposal. 6. 2Road Network and Drainage System of Hazaribagh Tannery At present, the existing sewage outfalls, the sewage lift operations consisting of 16 pumps and local residential drains are not adequate to properly and efficiently remove all the waste products generated by the factories and population of the affected area. This is partly a maintenance problem but an nvironmental problem was created by the discharging of wastewater with excessively high solids content and a dangerous level of chromium among other heavy metals and toxic materials. The waste water is discharged into open drains and ultimately finds way onto land surface and into natural waters in the vicinity. The roads are more or less always covered with smoke and dusts. The smoke bas ically evolved from the burning materials of the tanneries and it creates serious havoc there Untreated effluents flow unabated through the drains at Hazaribagh tannery zone leaving the workers exposed to health hazards. The toxic elements also pollute the Buriganga River A clean technology can overcome environmental pollution caused by the tanneries. Physical, chemical and biological cleaning methods for waste water are used in this sector. Physical treatments include mainly screening and primary sedimentation, the only treatment which is provided in most of the tanneries in Bangladesh. Screens are required to remove flashing, hairs and other floating substances. A continuous flow sedimentation tank designed on maximum hourly flow with four hours of detention is found to be effective in 90 per cent removal of suspended solids. However, in most of the tanneries, the fill and draw sedimentation tanks are used and found to be more efficient. But the effluent may be discharged into the sewer chock age. 6. 3Locations of Industries The water in the low lying areas near Hazaribagh, with a direct link to the Buriganga River, is polluted in such a degree that it has become unsuitable for public uses. In summer when the rate of decomposition of the waste is higher, serious air pollution is caused in the whole of Hazaribagh area, including a part of not too far high-class residential area, by producing intolerable obnoxious odors. . 4 UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Origination) environment programme An Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) study has carried out by and a Dhaka-based consulting firm selected by UNIDO that has submitted a report. A five-member committee formed by the Ministry of Industries has identified a 7. 5 acre plot of land in a suitable location at Hazaribagh for the construction of the central effluent treatment plant (CETP). A Dutch consultancy firm has been engaged to prepare the engineering requirements to treat the effluent and a landfill for safe disposal of tannery sludge. . Findings and Analysis Wastes generated from the leather processing industries located in the southwestern part of Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, pose serious threat to the environment. Ground water as well as the ecosystem of the area is on the verge of huge pollution making its way to be recognized sooner or later as one of the most polluted City in south Asia due to industrial activities. Untreated sewage water is released into the Buriganga. According to the Environment Department, along with the sewage from Dhaka, up to 40,000 tons of untreated tannery waste is released directly into the river every day. The unregulated operation of such large number of tanneries within a residential area has been identified by many sources as serious threat to the surrounding environment and public health. A study titled Leather Industry: Environmental Pollution and Mitigation Measures conducted by a research organization named Society for Environment and Human Development describes the physical look and smell of the area as frightening, intolerable and horrendous. According to the said study the Hazaribagh area accumulates large quantity of solid and liquid wastes in the low land on the west side that is ultimately pumped out on the other side of the Dhaka Protection Embankment, i. e. , to the river Buriganga. Such unregulated dumping has caused immense harm to the water quality of the river Buriganga and its aquatic resources that call for immediate remedial measures. Rice and wheat were grown in a pot experiment in soils from the tannery area. The wheat showed delayed maturity and stunting growth while rice showed late flowering and maturity with dark green colour. In another experiment it was observed that application of tannery effluents to soils of differing textures resulted in reduction of yield of rice, the research said adding that the adverse effect was more pronounced in light soils than in heavy soils. The effluent was also found to negatively affect performance, nodulation and growth of mung beans (dal). 7. 1 Socio economic condition of surroundings area The water in the low-lying areas near Hazaribagh, with a direct link to the Buriganga River, is polluted in such a degree that it has become unsuitable for public uses. In summer when the rate of decomposition of the waste is higher, serious air pollution is caused in the whole of Hazaribagh area, including a part of not too far high-class residential area, by producing intolerable obnoxious odors. The pollutants of tannery wastes are of inorganic, organic and toxic nature and require elaborate treatment before disposal to prevent physical, chemical and biological pollution of the receiving body of water. The tannery waste with high concentration of dissolved solids, suspended solids, chloride, color, ammonia and very high BOD and COD with no dissolved oxygen is being discharged every day in the receiving water. Extent of this problem shows how horrible situation the corporate bodies of our country can cause. The recent obligation set by the government to move these tanneries to other places in two years time shows how accommodative and least proactive the businesses are in Bangladesh. 7. 2Physical condition of surrounding areas The Hazaribagh tannery complex and other industries, primarily the glue and paint industries located in the same general area, have affected water and air quality in a large poorly drained area locked behind a 9 meters high flood control embankment constructed in 1989-1990 in south-west Dhaka City. Up until the time of embankment construction, the contaminants were washed to the Buriganga River by annual flooding. At present, the existing sewage outfalls, the sewage lift operations consisting of 16 pumps and local residential drains are not adequate to properly and efficiently remove all he waste products generated by the factories and population of the affected area. This is partly a maintenance problem but an environmental problem was created by the discharging of wastewater with excessively high solids content and a dangerous level of chromium among other heavy metals and toxic materials. 7. 3Biodiversity and Pollution There are more than 200 small, medium and large tanneries, the majority of whom produce leather on a regular basis and process more than 180 million sq ft or 74,000 tons of raw hide and skin annually. The peak production level is 400 tons a day which takes place during the Eid-Ul-Azha period. The industry subsequently creates about 106 tons of solid waste, and 13,500 cubic meters of tannery effluent daily, which is discharged into a major river causing irreparable damage to the environment. During peak production levels, the discharge effluent increases to 21,600 cubic meters and the emission of solid waste is about 170 tons per day. The pollution emanating from the tanneries is directly affecting surface water, ground water, the soil and air of the Hazaribagh area. The wastewater discharge from the tanneries is polluting the Buriganga river water and making the water completely unsuitable for any use. Furthermore, the adjoining residential areas are also badly affected by the emission of a bad odour from Hazaribagh. During the dry season, the water quality of the Buriganga and the Turag river deteriorates tremendously due to the low dilution factor. The extent of environmental pollution by the leather industry has been publicised in the countrys media as well as in many foreign media. Many foreign organisations have shown an interest in extending financial and technical assistance by carrying out surveys. Chemical analysis suggests that tannery wastes are characterized by strong color, high BOD, high pH and high dissolved salts. Disposal of these wastes into water course with or without prior sedimentation, creates a great problem in the environment, especially in the river Buriganga. Wastes are not usually treated to a certain degree before it goes to the river. 8. Tannery relocation and Settlement of Hazaribagh Tannery and Redevelopment of Hazaribagh Tannery Area Relocation of the tannery zone from the citys Hazaribagh area to the leather estate at Savar remains caught up in the complex procedures of setting up the central effluent treatment plant (CETP) while the pollution continues to play havoc on environment. Another major obstacle to the relocation project is most of the land and property at Hazaribagh is mortgaged against bank loans. Until the banks release the mortgaged property it would be impossible to shift from there. But still the project sees no headway as various issues remain unresolved. The issue of relocation of the tannery units from the residential areas of Hazaribagh has also been discussed several times at the decision making level of the Government with no concrete result as yet. Losing its beauty and glory, Buriganga is now almost a dead river. There is no high wave anymore. For miles, it contains poisonous and stinky water obstructing the livelihood of the people living and working on its banks. Using its polluted water, the slum dwellers and low-income group people are getting affected by various waterborne diseases. The tannery industry in Bangladesh is expanding, despite the social problem created due to environmental pollution. The quality of liquid waste discharged from these tanneries varies from 10 to 15 gallons per square feet of hides and skins processed. This comprising waste water, organic particular and toxic chemicals is discharged in open drains and ultimately finds its way onto land surfaces and in natural waters in the vicinity. As a result, water, air, soil, shelter and food are getting continuously polluted. There are many hazards associated with the chemicals used in the tanning processes. But the hazards can come out in two ways. One is directly by external exposure or inhalation of the chemicals used and retained, or through the waters of canals and rivers after mixing with the released effluents. Substantial work has been done to study this. But the other way, which is probably not yet studied, is the entering of harmful chemicals into the food chain through the use of solid wastes as feed staff. This is a recent phenomenon happening at large extent for the last several years. The pollutants of tannery wastes are of organic, organic and toxic nature and require elaborate treatment before disposal to prevent physical, chemical and biological pollution of the receiving body of water. The tannery waste with high concentration of dissolved solids, suspended solids, chloride, colour, ammonia etc. is being discharged every day in the receiving water. pic] Hazaribagh Leather Industry and Slums in Dhaka A clean technology can overcome environmental pollution caused by the tanneries. Physical, chemical and biological cleaning methods for waste water are used in this sector. Physical treatments include mainly screening and primary sedimentation, the only treatment which is provided in most of the tanneries in Bangladesh. Screens a re required to remove flashing, hairs and other floating substances. A continuous flow sedimentation tank designed on maximum hourly flow with four hours of detention is found to be effective in 90 per cent removal of suspended solids. However, in most of the tanneries, the fill and draw sedimentation tanks are used and found to be more efficient. No appreciable reduction of dislodged solid, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, colour and chloride can be achieved in the physical treatment process. But the effluent may be discharged into the sewer chockage. The key targets which are identified for reducing environmental impact of leather processing are replacement of chromium, more efficient use of chemicals, sulphide-free unhairing, possibly with hair recovery, utilisation of wastes, reuse of water, odour control, solvent free finishing and N-free delimiting. Todays tanners, experts say, are not only hard-pressed by the high costs of compliance with increasingly restrictive environmental legislation, but are also faced with a confusion of competing claims for alternative clean technologies. A practical database is required that would enable the tanner simply and rapidly to shortlist the most appropriate technologies for his specific needs, with the aim of minimising the costs. It would be essential for the tanner to be able to identify existing users of the technology and independent leather experts, as well as the manufacturers or inventors, whom the tanner could then separately consult. The database should give an indication of the level of development of each technology and its extent of use, since systems inevitably range from those just at research and development (RD) stage to well-established technologies in widespread use. This study also recommends building of appropriate waste treatment plants for neutralizing harmful chemicals before disposal of the waste into the environment and called upon the government to fix a legal limit value for discharge of tannery effluent to surface water. Hazaribagh tannery industries are situated in the midst of a densely populated residential area surrounded by slums, and the area is one of the worst polluted areas in Bangladesh. Its total land area is 25 hectares and this zone is categorized as Red zone according to the Department of Environment, where the morbidity rate is highest in the world. The effluents contain dissolved arsenic, sodium sulfate, lime, acids, salts, dyes, oils, suspended solids, organic matters and heavy metals like chromium, lead, etc and a study showed that very high accumulation of chromium (15,000 mg/kg of sediment) at the topsoil upto a depth of 3m in Hazaribagh area and very high concentration of chromium of about 4000 mg/L has been detected in tannery wastewater. To protect the urban environment of Dhaka City and by recent directives from High Court, Bangladesh Government has decided to shift the tannery industries from Hazaribagh area to Savar. The works for shifting the industries have already started. The dismantling area will be a real Brownfield, which would need proper investigation of the extent of pollution and to formulate guidelines for the remediation of the contaminated lands with respect to country’s socio-economic context for sustainable urban development in this area. In future, the area will be used for residential, commercial and recreational purposes. The presence of potentially contaminated sites in urban areas may cause potential threat to human beings, causing both surface and groundwater ollution by toxic, inorganic and organic substances. The aim of this research project is to reclaim urban polluted sites in Dhaka City by means of demonstration of the technical and economic feasibility of innovative soil remediation technologies. The action will be focused on the demonstration, by means of pilot experiences, of the technological and economic feasibility of innovative soil remediation technologie s for the reclamation of polluted soils in Hazaribagh Tannery area and Tejgaon Industrial area in Dhaka city. The remediation of soils in urban polluted sites will promote land-use management, the integration of new socio-economic activities in these urban areas, reduce the human exposure to toxic pollutants, promote a sustainable urban planning of these zones and contributing at the same time to quality of life through a more sustainable development of the capital of Bangladesh. 9. Recommendations and Conclusion Dhaka has been growing haphazardly due to lack of appropriate planning. The study area is very important and sensitive part of the Dhaka city which is associated with very hazardous with environment as well as community. The study of this project recommends the following: †¢ Redevelopment of the land of Tanneries with appropriate planning principles and development with adjoining areas. With the help of the appropriate authority and some developers the total land area may be redeveloped so that it can be habitable. †¢ Max uses of the site can be as green space for eco friendly environment. In Dhaka most are the places are not echo friendly and are quite densely populated so the proposed area may be made more eco friendly. †¢ Improvement of accessibility of these areas by providing a sustainable living environment. At present the accessibility in the Hazaribagh area is quite difficult this need to be improved a lot for better living. †¢ Revitalize the living standard improvement of social awareness of the local people of that area. The social awareness of the local people is also very important for better living it is most important to develop the social awareness of the people. Conserving some old buildings for important functional purpose. This can be done by transform it an attractive urban community space of urban civic life which could act as a hub to link the old the new parts of Dhaka. The countrys 220 tanneries, mostly located in Dhaka, are releasing a large quantity of toxic waste at the time of processing of leather, causing a severe environment al pollution. The pollution is seriously affecting the livelihood of some 0. 1 million people in and around the Hazaribagh area of the capital city. Some 194 of the tanneries are now housed in the citys Hazaribagh area, which is on the brink of an environmental disaster. There is no denying that most of the urban-based industries in Bangladesh pollute environment. Of them, tanneries do the extreme damage. Most of the tanneries are located in urban areas and their relocation outside the metropolitan city has not been done. It is essentially a by-product industry utilising hides and skin from animals raised primarily for their meat. In Bangladesh, the tannery solid wastes are converted to protein-concentrate to be used as poultry feed, fish feed, and in production of organic fertilizers. Over the last several years it is a common phenomenon in the largest tanning area of the country, the Hazaribagh tannery area at the south-east part of Dhaka city. One of the major concerns of these activities is the heavy metals, especially chromium, used in the tanning processes. Tanneries in the citys Hazaribagh area discharge some 21,600 square meters of liquid wastes everyday. These harmful wastes, including chromium, lead, sulphur, ammonium, salt and other materials, are severely polluting the capital city and the river Buriganga. No body knows how much harm and potential carcinogen diseases will occur to the slum inhabitants. There is no warning from the Government or aid giving agencies or their representatives. This is the vicious circle that the poorest groups are the worst victims of the foreign currency earning schemes. As per the directives by the High Court to the government on relocation of the tanneries from Hazaribagh area to Savar in eighteen months time. We were nothing short of happy when the Prime Minister had announced quite a while ago her governments decision to relocate the tannery plants from a densely populated area to a more suitable exclusive zone. But sadly it has so far remained a declaration of intent only and a mere announcement. The agencies concerned have made little headway in relocating the tannery industry. As the tannery industries in Bangladesh are well established, they cannot be shifted without enormous losses. However, efforts are in progress to shift the Hazaribagh tanneries to a suitable place in Savar, yet, at every stage of leather processing, clean technology must be applied. When new industries are set up, clean technology will have to be followed for protecting the environment. The present situation suggested that the relocation of Hazaribagh tanneries may take several more years to be completed since the authorities are facing various complications regarding land acquisition, setting up an Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP), and due to reluctant tannery owners. With the prolonged delay in implementing the Tk 1. 5 billion Dhaka Tannery Estate Project (DTEP), the Buriganga River and millions of residents in the western part of the capital are set to face renewed onslaught of toxic emissions in the coming years. But due to sluggishness, non-awareness and ignorance by the countrys policy makers about tannery pollution, especially the ministry of environment and forest, environmental pollut ion by the tanning industry has continued since 1972. The environmental condition in the Hazaribagh tannery area is deteriorating but the government did not give the area the urgent environmental protection it needs. Considering the state of the environment presently prevailing, and the unbearable pressure and rapid urbanization, environmental education in Bangladesh is a crying need of the hour. Social and ecological changes today take place rapidly and affect more and more people. Environmental education can help a person in understanding these changes and provide necessary skills for adjusting them. In the above light, it is evident that the promotion and enhancement of environmental education throughout Dhaka City can help people become aware of the preservation of environment. 10. References 1. M. Azizul Islam Kazi and M. Shahidul Islam, 2006, Heavy Metal Concentration in Tannery Solid Wastes Used as Poultry Feed and The Ecotoxicological Consequences; Department of Soil, Water and Environment, University of Dhaka and Analytical Research Division, BCSIR Laboratories, Dhaka. 2. Mamun, Muntasir, 2003, Dhaka Samagra, Anannya, Dhaka. 3. Spreiregen, Paul, D. , The architecture of towns and cities, McGraw-Hill Book Company, London. 4. Mamun, Muntasir, 2004, Dhaka, 4th edition, Anannya, Dhaka. 5. DMDP, 1995, Structure Plan, Master plan and detailed area plan for Dhaka city, (volume-1), Dhaka. . DMDP, 1995, Structure Plan, Master plan and detailed area plan for Dhaka city, (volume-2), Dhaka. 7. Haque, Dr. , Sirajul and Sultana, Dr. , Sakila, 2002, Atlas of Urban Geography, Dhaka. 8. Chowdhury, Islam, Qamrul 1999, State of Environment Report 1998, Forum of Environmental Journalists of Bangladesh (FEJB). 9. Sarker, N. , C. and Khan, A. , U. , 2005, Health care facili ties of tannery workers in Hazaribagh Area, Dhaka, Bangladesh. 10. Ahmed, Rukanudin, 2005, Existing Environmental Status of Hazaribagh, Dhaka, Training Institute for Chemical Industries, Narsingdi. 11. http://www. cas. net, Dec. 19, 2008. 12. http://www. atimes. com, Nov. 02, 2008. 13. http://www. elaw. org, Dec. 18, 2008. 14. http://www. independent-bangladesh. com, Dec. 18, 2008. 15. http://www. who. int, Nov. 24, 2008. 16. http://www. worldbank. org, Jan. 07, 2009. 17. http://www. flonnet. com, Nov. 16, 2008. 18. The Daily Star, Published on: Nov. 30, 2008. | | | | | 22 momenunnessa student id: 1008012018 course title: urban design practices

My Religious Belief System Essays - Belief, Epistemology, Truth

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Quantitative research

Quantitative research Introduction (150) Quantitative research is the investigation of phenomena that give themselves to exact measurement and quantification, which attached a rigorous and controlled design (Polit Beck 2008). Its has main purpose is to measure concept or variables objectively in numerical and statistical process, also relationship between variables (Parahoo 2006). The research methods are obtained from research design and generally include sample, intervention (if applicable), instruments, data collection, and data analysis (eds. Joyce Meredith 2006). In many instances, the quantitative research needs such as questionnaires or interview, computers and large sample sizes. This article is to explore of a quantitative research by Kalij and William (2009) the view of its data objectivity, sample size and selection, process data collection, data presentation and analysis, using the relevant references to support this discussion. The objectives are to prove with evidences if the Khalij and Williams study (2009) fulfills the requirements of quantitative research. Objectivity (150) Objectivity is amount of involvement of the researcher relates during the collection and analysis of the data (Marcella n.d.a). Polit and Beck (2008) argued objectivity meant researcher tend to stay away any impression of subjectivity or impersonal during study process. Parahoo (2006) explained the data which collected and analyzed are expected to be free from bias between researcher and participants. It means the researcher is detached or does not active participate from practice and there is no intervention between researcher and participant. Also the participants use the same actual measurements for data collection. Further the bias of research can be minimized and the objectivity of the study can be maximized. In The Kalish and Williams study (2009) showed that they did not participate and used measurements to collect the data. It showed in their study that during data collection, they involved staff nurses in four hospitals and used psychometric testing tool. Hard data (148) Hard data is characteristic of quantitative study. Polit and Beck (2008) said that quantitative data are the information obtained during process of study course in a quantified (numeric value). (Janet Houser 2008) argued the other numerical data specific patients symptoms put in rank order the scales which contained intervals, comparisons between subjects. Other instance the researchers with rigorously designed tools should be able to grasp the reality (Parahoo 2006). For example scale of depression and pain in numeric value. That means the data can be measured and quantified in some way. In the nursing practice we always face with the hard data. For instance are physical (height, weight, gender), physiological (vital signs, laboratory results, visual acuity), past medical histories, psychological and social or behavior. This data are shown in Kalish and Williams study (2009) during their study while collected data: sample size, genders, experience, education degree, and work location in quantified data. Statistic (142) Statistic is very important aspect in the quantitative research. After data are collected can be analyzed using statistic and presented in numerical form. Polit and Beck (2008) said that statistic is an estimate of a parameter, calculated from sample data. They emphasized statistics are used to test hypotheses and evaluate the believability of the finding. Researchers usually use statistical computer to expedite calculation and ensure accuracy (ed. Joyce and Meredith 2006). They mentioned statistic methods are used in every process include in the final report to search the correlations, comparisons of means, trend and significance of finding to refute hypothesis. Its reinforce that statistic is one of characteristic in quantitative research. Its applied in Kalishs study process while selecting data sampling and analyzing data which showed in the tables and the data was analyzed by statistical computer, descriptive statistic and inferential statistic. Sample selection (269) Janet Holt (2009, p. 235) said that sampling is the process to select a small group of participant for study with the goal of making generalization from large population based on findings. Polit and Beck (2008) argued that sampling is the process of selecting portion of the population to represent from the entire population element. There are differentiation ways in sample selection; sampling designs, sample size and sampling steps. Polit and Beck (2008) mentioned that there are two sampling designs; probability sampling and non probability sampling. Probability sampling contents; simple random, stratified random, cluster and systemic sampling. The non probability sampling has contents; convenience, quota and purposive sampling. Janet Houser (2008) explained sample size in quantitative research to determine sample in adequacy is power. Its an analysis to indicate the large of sample which needed to adequately detect a difference in result variable. Polit and Beck (2008) suggested the steps in this research sampling as follow; the population identify, the specific eligibility criteria, the specific sampling plan and sample recruitment. They emphasized researcher during sample recruitment to gain the participant cooperation use means of courtesy, persistence, incentives, research benefits, sharing results, convenience, and endorsement. This study sample collection was implemented in the kalishstudy. They used random sampling to collect the participant data from four hospitals in different unit. The study used N symbol which designed for the total number, and n symbol is designed for number of subject. They took large sample size with total samples (N=1098). They applied ratio of sample size during sample collection. They gained the participant cooperation which provided incentives (jumbo-sized candy and bar a pizza party). Data collection (285) Parahoo (2006) said data collection is methods to measure the data sampling which utilized the instrument tools: questionnaires, observation schedule and other measuring tools. He emphasized that the methods should be predetermined, structured and standardized. Polit and Beck (2003) developed data collection plan include identifying data needs, selecting types of measures, selecting and developing instruments, pre testing the data collection package, and developing data collection forms and procedures. They stressed Important aspects should be considered while implementing the data collection plans are the selecting research personal and personal and the training data collector. Nancy and Susan (2007) explained data collection is the process of obtaining the subject and collecting the data for the research. They explained five tasks during data collection process: recruiting subjects, maintaining consistency, maintaining controls, protecting study integrity, and solving the problem. Structure, quantifiability, obstrusiveness, and objectivity are important elements when selecting data collection instruments (Marcella n.d.a). We have to understand and maintain the important dimension the data collection methods when applied in the data collection plan, and implementing. The obtained data should be accurate, valid, and meaningful to respond the questions. Kalish and William implemented the data collection process in their study. They applied the approaching methods to maintain the important dimensions in data collection such as a tool of missed nursing care and reason for missed care. The Data collection plan used to identify data needs for instance in the describing sample characteristic of participants (table 2.). They construct the tool in their survey to gain the quantify data. While implementing data collection, they selected research personal is staff nurse experts. The training data collector was done which distributed a copy of tool, informed consent form and a letter explaining the study. Data analysis and presentation (299) Joyce and Meredith (ed. 2006) said data analysis is a systematic method of examining data gathered for any research investigation to support hypothesis. This system implements in the data analysis process: the data analysis preparation, the sample description, reliability of measurement test, exploratory analysis conduction, exploratory analysis, confirmatory analysis and posthoc analysis conduction (Nancy Susan 2007). Parahoo (2006) stated analysis data can be obtained from measurement level, and then analyzed with statistical level. He mentioned two statistic levels those are descriptive statistic and inferential statistic. There are several statistical computer programs (SPSS, SAS, LISREL, EQS, etc) which help the researcher to calculate these test statistics and their sampling distribution (eds. Joyce Meredith 2006). Marcella (n.d.b) explained there are two types of inferential statistics are parametric (t-test, ANOVA, Multiple regressions) and non parametric (Chi-square, Rank Correlation, Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis). Quantitative research result may be presented in the tables, charts and graphs (Michael, Patricia Frances, 2007, cited Russell, 2005). In conclusion that data analysis is systemic method of examination data started from data collection which used measurement level then data were analyzed by statistical level and presented in the tables, charts and graphs to support hypothesis. Kalish and Williams study (2009) implemented the data analysis process which utilized measurement level and statistical level which completed using SPSS in their study. First step is checking of data accuracy using ordinal scale. The second is describing sample, they use central tendency and dispersion to test the contrast validity. The third is testing the reliability of measurement, they applied cronbach alpha coefficient. Fourth they conducted exploratory analysis as the extraction technique and varimax as orthogonal rotation method, also analyzed using oblique rotation. Fifth they conducted the confirmatory analysis used AMOS version 16. Last step they used analysis of variance (ANOVA) to conduct posthoc analysis. Result study was presented in the table presentation. Conclusion (118) This essay has tried to explore the Kalish and Williams study (2009) about the development and psychometric testing of a tool to measure missed nursing care. Their study has approached and fulfilled the major requirement of quantitative research characteristics that include objectivity, hard data and statistic. They applied quantitative study process which consists of conceptual, design and planning, empirical, analytic and dissemination phase as suggested by Polit and Beck (2004). They also utilized data analysis process of Nancy and Susan (2008). In general view of Kalish and Williams study (2009) has applied the quantitative research systematically. Improvement progress monitoring was done, but effectiveness overview the tool is still recommended to apply in the base practice for long period. References: 1. Carol L. Macnee Susan Mc. Cabe (2008) Understanding nursing research: using research in evidence-base practice, 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott and William a Wolter Kluwer Business. 2. Denise F, Polit Cheryl Tatano Beck (2010) Essentials of nursing research: appraising evidence for nursing practice, 7th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincot William Wilkins. 3. Denise F, Polit Cheryl Tatano Beck (2008) Nursing research: generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice, 8th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincot William Wilkins. 4. Denise F, Polit Cheryl Tatano Beck (2003) Nursing research: principle and methods, 7th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincot William Wilkins. 5. Kader Parahoo (2006) Nursing research principles, process and issues, 2nd ed. Hamspire: Palgrave Macmillan. 6. Janet Holt (2009) Reading research series quantitative research: an overview, British Journal of Cardiac Nursing, Vol. 4(5), pp. 234-236. 7. Janet Houser (2008) Nursing research: reading, using and creating evidence, Jones and Bartlett Publisher, Sudbury. 8. Joyce J.F. Meredith W. (eds) 2006, Encyclopedia of nursing, 2nd ed. New York: Springer Publishing. 9. Marcella Hart (n.d.a) Birthing a research project: data collection, International Journal of Childbirth Education, Vol. 22(3) pp. 27-31. 10. Marcella Hart (n.d.b) Birthing a research project: data analysis, International Journal of Childbirth Education, Vol. 22(4), pp. 24-28. 11. Michael Coughlan, Patricia Cronin Frances Ryan (2007) Step-by-step guide to critiquing research. part 1: quantitative research, British Journal of Nursing, Vol. 16(11), pp. 658-663. 12. Nancy Burns Susan K. Grove (2007) Understanding nursing research: building an evidence-base practice, 4th ed. Missouri, Saunders an Imprint of Elsevier.

Adding International Perspectives to Vocational Education Essay

Adding International Perspectives to Vocational Education International work opportunities are increasing as the borders of the U.S. economy expand to embrace international markets. Future workers will need to develop global awareness and an understanding of competitive, cultural, and economic factors that influence ways of doing business in order to work in the international arena. This Digest examines the instructional approaches and strategies used in vocational education to prepare students to work in a global environment. The Industrial Age expanded the vision of U.S. workers beyond their local communities to the country's national borders. The current Information Age moves the focus to global boundaries. To meet the competitive challenges of a global economy, businesses are looking for workers who have cross-cultural knowledge; intercultural communication skills, and an awareness of the political, geographical, and technological conditions that influence work in other countries (Hart et al. 1994; Philpott 1994). In a survey to elicit chief executive officers' expectations of collegiate international business preparation, "84% of the chief executive officers indicated that 'global awareness' is a key ingredient of international business expertise" (Hart et al. 1994, p. 104). The preparation of individuals for work in a global economy is a challenge to educational institutions. Considering the limited international experience of most students, the challenge is formidable. Smith and Steward (1995) contrast the cross-cultural education experiences of U.S. students to those of students from other countries. They note that "currently there are 240,000 Asians studying in the U.S. and less than 5,000 U. S. students stud... ...chool, and Community." Business Education Forum 49, no. 3 (February 1995): 44-47. Pachnowski, L. "The Internet: A Powerful Resource for Educators." Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Eastern Educational Research Association, Boston, MA, February 1996. (ED 393 447) Philpott, M. "Business Beyond Our Borders: An Integrated Approach." Business Education Forum 48, no. 3 (February 1994): 21-25. Smith, M. O., and Steward, J. F. "Communication for a Global Economy." Business Education Forum 49, no. 4 (April 1995): 25-28. Sutliff, L. "The English Translation." Vocational Education Journal 71, no. 4 (April 1996): 38-39, 57. Wismer, J. N. "Training for Trade: Role of American Community Colleges." Paper presented at a conference of the American Council on International and Intercultural Education, Colorado Springs, CO, April 21, 1994. (ED 371 789)

Integrated Performance Management Through Effective Management Control

9 Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control WERNER BRUGGEMAN Performance measurement and performance management are vivid themes in the literature on management control. So, it is only natural that we investigate how this literature has contributed to the field of Integrated Performance Management. The purpose of this chapter is to describe how management control systems can be used to effectively manage company and business performance.First, we define the scope of management control and describe the link with organizational strategy. Then, we focus on the three elements of the management control system: (1) the management control structure; (2) the control process; and (3) the management control culture (beliefs systems). We will describe these three elements in greater detail and give an overview of the findings in mainstream contingency research studying the effectiveness of control systems in various environmental and organizational contexts.Manageme nt control defined Management control and the link with strategy Following Anthony and Govindarajan (1995), management control can be defined as a process of motivating managers to perform actions and activities in line with the goals and strategies of the organization. According to this definition, an organization is ‘under control’ when its members do what the management wants them to do. Management control comprises various tasks, among which are:Planning the future activities of the organization; Coordinating the activities of the various members of the organization; Communicating information; Evaluating this information; Deciding on the actions to be taken; and Influencing people to adapt their behaviour according to the company goals (Anthony and Govindarajan, 1995). Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 153 From the definition above, it follows that management control plays a central role in managing the company’s perform ance and the implementation of its strategies.Therefore, it is of vital importance that management behaviour, which is stimulated by the management control system, is consistent with the strategy to be implemented (the so-called ‘intended strategy’ – see also Chapter 6). The starting points of the management control process are the mission, the vision and the strategies of the organization. We refer to Chapter 6 for a more thorough discussion of each of these concepts, but recapitulate them very briefly here. The mission of an organization is a description in general terms of the role of the company towards its stakeholders.It describes the reasons for the company’s existence, its strategic focus and values, as well as how the long-term goals should be realized. The goals are descriptions of the long-term desired future of the company. The mission and goals translate into strategies, which specify the way in which the vision aspired to should be reached. T he strategy in turn is translated into concrete performance objectives or targets. This is usually done through formalized action plans.Management control and goal congruence The purpose of management control is to maximize congruence among the goals of the organization, its various entities and its individual managers. This is called goal congruence. The way in which managers react to management control information depends to a large extent on their personal goals. For effective management control, it is important to be able to measure the impact of these motivators, because they largely determine the behaviour of people in an organization, as well as the desirability of the consequences of their behaviour.Business Management Study GuideThe management control system should be designed in such a way that, whenever managers take decisions that fit into their personal goals, these decisions should also be in the interests of the company as a whole. In other words, the management contr ol system must create the conditions to foster a feeling within the members of the organization that they can best realize their personal goals by contributing as much as possible to the realization of the general company goals.It is clear that the way in which managers are evaluated and financially rewarded for their performance plays a significant role in reaching ‘goal congruence’ (see also Chapter 13). Goal congruence is an important condition for effective performance management. The problem of goal congruence can be described in more detail in the following way. Corporate goals are translated into departmental goals, and in these departments people are working who also have their personal goals. A first problem that can arise is a lack of congruence between the corporate and departmental goals.For example, a department or division of a company can have a long-term vision that says it is desirable to stay small and be profitable (in other words ‘small is 154 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework beautiful’). On the other hand, top management might be striving for a company goal of strong growth and therefore wants the division to grow. In this case, there is a lack of congruence between the different visions, and a number of meetings will have to be organized to align the goals and strategies.However, there is also the possibility that the division manager is opposed to the growth of his division because he is personally reluctant to make the required efforts. In this case, there is a conflict between the personal goals of the manager and the goals of the company. Role of management control in performance management Verifying whether the company (or the business unit or department) is on track is an important management function. Management control is an important instrument for motivating personnel to act in accordance with the goals and strategies of the organization.This motivation is one of the major driving force s of the performance and the value of the company. The management control system must be adjusted to the goals and the strategies of the company and it must be optimally aligned. The contribution of control to strategy implementation Robert Simons (1995) has outlined how management control can contribute to effective strategy implementation. In his book, Levers of Control, he introduced four key constructs that must be analysed and understood in order to implement strategy successfully: core values, risks to be avoided, critical performance variables and strategic uncertainties.Each construct is controlled by a different system, or lever, the use of which has different implications. These levers are: †¢ Beliefs systems, used to inspire and direct the search for new opportunities. †¢ Boundary systems, used to set limits on opportunity-seeking behaviour. There are three broad categories of boundary systems: business conduct boundaries, internal controls and strategic boundar ies. 1 †¢ Diagnostic control systems, used to motivate, monitor and reward achievement of specified goals.Diagnostic control systems attempt to measure output variables that represent important performance dimensions of a given strategy: critical performance variables. These factors must be achieved or implemented successfully for the intended strategy of the business to succeed. Diagnostic variables should be measured, monitored and controlled, but reporting on them to higher management is on an exception basis only, when a value falls outside a normal control limit and corrective actions must be taken. Interactive control systems, used to stimulate search and learning, allowing new strategies to emerge as participants throughout the Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 155 organization respond to perceived opportunities and threats. As a fourth lever of control, these systems focus attention on strategic uncertainties and enable strategic r enewal (i. e. , emergent strategies). Figure 9. 1 Levers of control Source: Simons (1995: 159) Control of business strategy is achieved by integrating these four levers of control.The power of these levers in implementing strategy does not lie in how each is used alone, but rather in how they complement each other when used together. Two of the control systems – beliefs systems and interactive control systems – motivate organizational participants to search creatively and expand the opportunity space. These systems create intrinsic motivation by creating a positive informational environment that encourages information sharing and learning. The other two levers of control – boundary systems and diagnostic control systems – are used to constrain search behaviour and allocate scarce attention.These systems rely on extrinsic motivation by providing explicit goals, formula-based rewards and clear limits to opportunity-seeking. These four levers create tension between creative innovation and predictable goal movement. This tension requires managers of effective organizations to know how to achieve both high degrees of learning (innovation) and high degrees of control (efficiency) (Simons, 2000: 304). Levers of control and the organizational lifecycle Developing an integrated control system does not happen overnight. Managers of small entrepreneurial firms perform their strategic control 56 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework rather informally. As the business grows larger, however, informal processes become inadequate. Simons (1995, 2000) illustrates how the levers of control can be successfully implemented as a business grows and matures (see Figure 9. 2). Figure 9. 2 Introduction of control systems over the lifecycle of a business Source: Simons (1995: 128) In their most recent book, Kaplan and Norton (2001) point out the importance of using the Balanced Scorecard (see Chapter 3) as an interactive control system.It is clea r from Figure 9. 2 that an organization must have some experience with other control systems before it can exploit the Balanced Scorecard in this way. Diagnostic systems, boundary systems, and internal control systems are all necessary, but they do not create a learning organization aligned to a focused strategy. Some Balanced Scorecard implementation failures occurred because organizations used their scorecard only diagnostically, and failed to get the learning and innovation benefits from an interactive system.The CEOs of successful Balanced Scorecard adopters succeeded because they use the scorecard interactively, for communication and to drive learning and improvement. They set overall strategy and then encouraged people within their organization to identify the local actions and initiatives that would have the highest impact for accomplishing the scorecard objectives. (Kaplan and Norton, 2001: 350) Management control versus task control Anthony and Govindarajan (1995) distingui sh management control, which ultimately is about implementing strategies, from strategic planning and control and task control:Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 157 †¢ Strategic planning and control is the process of determining and evaluating the goals of the organization, and formulating or reformulating the broad strategies to be used in attaining these goals. Strategic control refers to the maintenance of the environmental conditions of strategies. Strategic control is used to evaluate the background of existing strategies and the environmental assumptions on which the strategies were formulated.It can also involve the reformulation of strategies. †¢ Task control is the process of ensuring that specific tasks are carried out effectively and efficiently. For example, internal audit and internal control are often associated with task control. Elements of a management control system In the previous paragraphs, we have described the i mportance of management control for strategy implementation and for performance management. In the remainder of this chapter, we go deeper into the details of the management control system and focus on its compounding elements.A management control system consists of three basic elements: (1) the management control structure; (2) the management control process; and (3) the management control culture. The first element, the management control structure, deals with the division of the organization into ‘responsibility centres’. A distinction needs to be made among the various types of responsibility centre, such as ‘revenue centres’, ‘expense centres’, ‘profit centres’, and ‘investment centres’. Determining the optimal structure is part of the task of management control.The second element in a management control system, the management control process, comprises the cycle of: planning for the expected input and output; mea suring the results; comparing plan to reality; and, finally, adjusting if necessary. The third element is the management control culture or the beliefs systems. This is the combination of communal values and behavioural norms, which determine the behaviour of managers and staff. Choosing an effective management control structure To manage an organization according to certain objectives, you must first choose an appropriate management control structure.A management control structure is the system of basic principles for the functioning of the organization or the organizational structure in which the management control will take place. Hellriegel, Slocum and Woodman (1992: 5) define the organizational structure as ‘the structure and formal system of communication, division of labor, coordination, control, authority and responsibility necessary to achieve the organization’s goals’. 158 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework Elements of a management contro l structure When defining the management control structure, the following questions must be answered: What are the various departments in the organization? †¢ What are the responsibilities of the various department managers? †¢ How are the activities of the various departments coordinated, and what are the coordination mechanisms? Defining the departmental structure In organizing for effective performance management, the company may choose a functional organization structure, a multidivisional structure, a matrix organization or a network organization structure. When choosing the functional organization structure, the tasks are grouped based on the functional specialty to which they belong.Traditionally, the following departments are presented in the organizational chart: ‘Sales and Marketing’, ‘Engineering’, ‘Production’, ‘Distribution’, ‘Purchasing’ and ‘Finance’. An organization can also be co ntrolled within a multidivisional structure, which is a structure based on products or markets instead of functions. If based on products, we have a product-oriented department structure. The sales, development, production and purchasing activities with regard to a certain product are concentrated in one, individual department. On the other hand, the organization could also be structured around markets.In this case, all tasks that deal with a certain geographical market are grouped. The multidivisional structure groups management tasks in divisions, each of which focuses on a certain product or geographical area where the products are sold. Division managers are responsible for the daily operational decisions within their division. Top management no longer wants to engage itself in daily problems, but instead focuses on the important strategic decisions (e. g. , investment decisions, acquisitions and divestments). When designing a multidivisional structure, the business unit concept can be taken as a starting point.In this concept, the organization is structured around strategic business units or SBUs. An SBU is an operating unit of a planning focus that groups a distinct set of products or services sold to a uniform set of customers, facing a well-defined set of competitors. Many companies have a combination of functional and product- or market-oriented structures in their organizational structure. They prefer to work in a matrix organization. On the horizontal line, we find an R&D manager, a production manager, a financial manager and a purchasing manager.On the vertical line, we see the various business or product line managers. They are responsible, first of all, for the marketing and sales of their product line, but they must also take care of the coordination between the various functional departments. Staff members in the various functional departments are thus led by two managers. Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 159 Defining the responsibility of managers After determining the department structure by which the organization will be controlled, it is important to define the responsibilities of each department.A department or an organizational unit, led by a manager with clearly specified responsibilities, is called a responsibility centre. An organizational structure is therefore a hierarchy of responsibility centres. Delegated responsibility demands appropriate authority. When assigning the responsibility for a specific output to a certain department, this department should also have control over its output. So, responsibility requires the existence of ‘controllability’. Delegated responsibility also requires an appropriate ‘accountability’.A manager is considered to be ‘accountable’ when he or she is assessed according to the realization of his or her objectives. In other words, performance is monitored, and if his or her performance turns out to be b ad, management will take the necessary actions. A responsibility centre is not only assessed on its output (which result has been achieved? ), but also on its input (how many inputs were used? ). In general, a responsibility centre should be assessed on two basic criteria: efficiency and effectiveness. Efficiency is the relation between output and input.The more cars that are made in a car manufacturing company with the same production costs, the more efficient the operation is. The cost per unit (i. e. , the total production cost divided by the number of units produced) is therefore an efficiency norm. Effectiveness expresses the extent to which the realized output is aligned with the goals and strategies to be realized. It could be that the sales department has become more efficient by selling more with the same people, but that the sales efforts were focused on markets in which the company has chosen not to be active for strategic reasons.In this case, the sales efforts were not effective, i. e. , they did not contribute to the realization of the corporate strategy. When designing a management control system, one must determine what efficiency and effectiveness mean concretely for each department and how these can be measured. Assigning responsibilities to the departments means determining the right performance measures. The responsibilities of the manager can be divided into financial, strategic and operational responsibilities. Performance measures must be defined for each of these responsibility areas.We call them financial, strategic and operational performance measures. With regard to the financial responsibilities, we can distinguish among the following types of responsibility centres: expense centres, revenue centres, profit centres and investment centres. †¢ Expense centres are departments that are responsible for the costs they have made (input), but whose output is not measured in financial terms. In a functional organization structure, typic al expense centres are the production department, the R&D department, the purchasing department and the financial department.Staff functions are also usually controlled as expense centres. 160 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework †¢ Revenue centres are departments in which the output, but not the input, is measured in financial terms. Typical revenue centres are the sales departments. Their management task is not concerned with the costs incurred; instead, they strive to reach a turnover objective. †¢ In a profit centre, the manager is responsible for the costs and also for the revenues of the department. Thus, the ‘profit centre’ manager receives a profit report for his or her department. In investment centres, the profit as well as the investments (‘assets employed’) are measured. The department manager has the authority to take investment decisions and is also responsible for the profitability of the investments made. A typical per formance measure for investment centres is the return on investment (ROI). Regarding strategic responsibilities, a manager’s task not only involves realizing financial goals; the manager and his or her team may also be charged with contributing towards realizing the competitive strategy of their division and the general strategy of the company.For example, the general company strategy may be concerned with growth in all business units and with global operations. Choosing and formulating this strategy may be the work of general management, but translating it into the business unit may be the responsibility of the division manager. The division manager may also be responsible for defining and developing a competitive advantage (in the areas of quality, flexibility and customer service, for example) for his or her business unit. The manager may be responsible for constantly tracking the evolution of customer satisfaction and adapting the competitive strategy in time to this evol ution.When strategic responsibilities are also delegated to a lower level in the organization, the manager responsible should be evaluated with regard to the level of success of the chosen strategies. Performance measures must be determined for this as well. The method of the Balanced Scorecard (see Chapter 3) may be of help here. Finally, regarding operational responsibilities, it is obvious that managers of responsibility centres are also responsible for managing daily operations. A number of ‘key performance measures’ can be defined for this, which are followed up closely by top management.The division manager may be asked to realize objectives with regard to inventory levels, processing times, products out of specification, revision times, etc. Restriction of responsibilities and freedom of action Each responsibility centre is restricted in its activity by a number of rules and procedures. Rules are formal expressions of the behaviours that are permitted and not per mitted to the members of a department. Procedures are descriptions of steps to be followed in executing a task or in making decisions.Rules and procedures provide a detailed specification of the kinds of responsibility and freedom of action the responsibility centre has or does not have. They indicate how the responsibilities and freedom of action are restricted. The Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 161 indicated restrictions can be expressed in a positive or negative way. Positive responsibility restrictions describe what the responsibility centre manager may do. Negative restrictions describe what the manager is not allowed to do.Some restrictions relate to responsibilities, others are involved with the manager’s freedom of decision. The freedom of an individual in an organization can also be restricted by general codes of behaviour, which result from existing laws, statutory provisions and ethical values. These are meant to prevent t he potential mix of personal and company interests (e. g. , they indicate in what way confidential information should be treated). Restriction of responsibilities and freedom of action are all part of the boundary systems of a company.These are ‘explicit statements embedded in formal information systems that define and communicate specific risks to be avoided’ (Simons, 1995: 112). Coordination mechanisms When the department structure and the responsibilities of the various departments are defined, rules must be set up with regard to the actions between departments as well. The responsibility for realizing the global company goals and strategies cannot be split up into independent partial responsibilities. Departments and divisions must cooperate in various areas.Therefore, it is important that rules with respect to this cooperation be defined that motivate the managers maximally to target their efforts towards realizing the global company goals. There are two important kinds of rules that coordinate actions between departments: (1) formal coordination mechanisms (task forces, standing committees, integrating managers); and (2) transfer price systems. Choosing the optimal management control structure Designing the management control structure involves a number of choices. The decision can be made to manage in a functional structure or in a divisional tructure. Within a divisional structure, the divisions can be structured around products, markets, business units, or a combination of these. One can also choose to work in a matrix organization. Then, a choice must be made regarding the degree of delegation of responsibilities. A department can be led as an expense centre, a revenue centre, a profit centre or an investment centre. The responsibilities of these centres can be restricted in various ways, and cooperation between departments can be coordinated by several coordination mechanisms and rules regarding transfer prices.In some companies, manage ment control is characterized by a detailed set of formal rules, centralized decision power, limited delegated responsibilities and a strict hierarchy of authority. Such a structure is called mechanistic. At the other end of the spectrum, we have the organic organizations. They are characterized by few rules, decentralized power of 162 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework decision, group decision-making, broadly defined functional responsibilities and a flexible application of the hierarchic relations.We can now ask the question: Do optimal choices exist? In order to answer this question, we must first define what makes a management control structure optimal. The answer to this question can be found in the description of the task of management control: the objective of management control is to motivate managers maximally to realize the corporate goals and to implement the strategies. So, a management control structure is optimal when it maximally stimulates the desired goal-oriented behaviour and minimally leads to undesired (or dysfunctional) behaviour.To be able to choose a management control structure, one must predict what the effect of the choice will be on the management behaviour and whether the expected effect is desired or not. For example: †¢ A company that wants to realize a competitive strategy of flexibility (custom-made work) in its business units wonders if it is optimal to manage the departments in a functional organization structure, in which the sales department is responsible for the turnover and the production departments (as expense centres) are responsible for the price of the products made.To be able to answer this question, we need to know to what extent the production managers are inclined to handle specific customer demands in a flexible way when the price of the products is the most important performance measure. †¢ Universities lead their faculties and departments as discretionary expense centres with respect to educational activities. In the short term, the deans and department heads are responsible for the costs of their faculties and departments, and not directly for the number of students and the revenues.As a consequence, the professors are not motivated to have many students, and they organize very few (if any) activities to influence and increase the number of students in the short term. Faculties and departments could also be managed as profit centres. The question is: What would be the effect on the management behaviour of deans, chairmen and professors? Would they act in a more commercial way? Would they lose their interest in research? Would this lead to overly aggressive competition among universities and, if so, is aggressive competition a corporate strategic choice within educational policy?To be able to make an optimal choice of management control structure, good insight into the strategy that is to be realized is crucial. The choice of the management control structure mus t be aligned with the strategic choices of the company. Knowledge of how managers will be influenced by certain structural choices is also important. One can learn from one’s own experience or from the experiences of other companies. In most cases, companies learn from their own experience. Setting up a management control structure is a dynamic process. The key is to look forIntegrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 163 both well-motivated and dysfunctional management behaviours in the existing structure. Ultimately, the process should yield new ideas for improving the structure to promote the desired behaviour and eliminate the dysfunctional behaviour. Experiences from other companies can also be helpful. A significant part of the literature on management control focuses on research of the general tendencies and patterns in management behaviour in various types of management control structure.A general conclusion is that there is no management control structure that is optimal for all control situations. The optimal management control structure depends on the situation. The research that studies which management control structure best suits which type of environment is called ‘contingency research’. This contingency research has focused on two major contingency variables: (1) the environment; and (2) a firm’s strategy.Study of the first contingency variable has helped identify the appropriate structures to fit the levels of uncertainty in the environment (Burns and Stalker, 1961; Lawrence and Lorsch, 1967; Galbraith, 1973; Drazin and Van de Ven, 1985). Structure is generally discussed in terms of mechanistic versus organic approaches to organizing, and it is believed that more organic structures are best suited to uncertain environments. These are structures that focus on ‘clan control’, i. e. , social control coordinated by integrative mechanisms such as task forces and meetings.Contingen cy research also shows that management control structures should be well suited to the company’s chosen strategy. Different strategies may require different control structures. A popular typology deals with the strategic mission of business units, which may vary from a ‘build’ strategy, to a ‘hold’ strategy, a ‘harvest’ strategy and, finally, a ‘divest’ strategy. The objective of a build strategy is to increase market share and production volumes, while a hold strategy tries to protect the existing market share and maintain the current competitive position.A harvest strategy focuses on maximizing cash flow and profit in the short run, even if this is at the expense of market share. Last, the divest strategy concerns the decision to withdraw from a certain business. Other strategy typologies that are often used in the management control literature come from Porter (1985) and Miles and Snow (1978) (see Chapter 6 for more infor mation). Evidence from the strategy/organizational design research suggests that for strategies characterized by a conservative orientation (defenders), harvest and cost leadership are best served by entralized control systems, specialized and formalized work, simple coordination mechanisms, and directing attention to problem areas (Miles and Snow, 1978; Porter, 1985; Miller and Friesen, 1982). For strategies characterized by an entrepreneurial orientation (prospectors), build and product differentiation are linked to a lack of standardized procedures, decentralized and results-oriented evaluation, flexible structures and processes, complex coordination of overlapping project teams, and directing attention at curbing excess innovation. 164 ?The Integrated Performance Management Framework Designing an effective management control process Phases in the management control process The management control process can best be represented by a closed loop control cycle (see Figure 9. 3). Th e process starts from the strategy of the company, from which the action programmes are derived. Once the programmes are set up and approved, their financial implications for the coming year can be expressed in a budget. At the end of the budget period, the actual performance is measured and compared to the budget.The results of this analysis are then reported to top management and used in the evaluation of the efficiency and effectiveness of the responsibility centres concerned and their managers. The management control process thus starts from strategic planning and target setting and consists of the following five phases: Figure 9. 3 The management control process Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 165 †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Planning action programmes (programming); Preparing the budget; Executing the plan; Measuring performance, following up the budget and reporting; and Evaluating and rewarding.Important design parameters o f the control process When used in an appropriate way, the budgeting process may motivate managers to improve performance. The motivating impact of the budget is influenced by the following parameters. The level of management commitment to budget targets First of all, companies may use the budget to assess the financial impact of their strategic action plans. In this case, budgeting is primarily used as a feed forward control mechanism and its primary function is to support the planning process (‘budgeting for planning’).Budget targets are an indication and show the direction in which the company wants to go, but managers do not feel a strong pressure to realize the targets. Budget targets can also be seen as commitments for the managers. In this case, the budget is used for control. Top-down versus bottom-up budgeting Budget targets may be imposed topdown by executive management (in consultation with the division managers, or not). Besides this, there is also a bottom- up process, in which each division sets up its own budget, yet within the general goals and directions of the company.The global company budget is then formed by combining the various sub-budgets. The level of participation during the budgeting process When setting up a budgeting process, an important parameter is the level of participation managers may have in the target-setting process. We can talk about participative budgeting when subordinate managers participate in the budgeting process and in defining the budget objectives. Participative budgeting involves back-and-forth communication between superiors and subordinates – they share information and converge on a mutually acceptable budget.It is generally agreed that involvement in setting up the budget leads to higher acceptance than when the budget is imposed fully from the top. Moreover, it is assumed that participative budgeting has a positive effect on the commitment of the division managers who have to realize the b udget later on. The difficulty of budget targets It is necessary to think about guidelines regarding the degree of difficulty in realizing the budgets (‘goal difficulty’). Certain companies have a policy of realistic budgets, where the budget objective will be accepted if it most probably can be reached.Other 166 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework companies prefer challenging budgets, where top management expects the division managers to work very hard. The basic assumption behind challenging budgets is that managers can always achieve more with their team than they think they can. The task of top management is to stimulate managers to try to excel themselves over and over again. In this situation, managers who submit realistic budgets are evaluated poorly beforehand and a more challenging budget is imposed on them from the top.Whatever the budget philosophy, a budget can be accepted if it holds sufficient task content, i. e. , if the team in the departme nt will have to exert a lot of effort to realize the budget. As a general rule, the set targets ought to be realistic but challenging. This means that they may not be set unattainably high, which results in frustration and manipulation of data, but they may also not be too easily achievable, because then most of the performance stimulus disappears. Tolerance for budget slack It should also be verified whether or not the budget is too pessimistic.Some managers may be inclined to build a certain ‘slack’ into their budget. The phenomenon of budget slack occurs when a manager submits a budget in which a certain ‘buffer’ is built in so that the budget objectives are relatively easy to reach. Indeed, in a participative budgeting process the tendency might exist to ask more than one strictly needs to cover oneself against unforeseen circumstances or out of fear that top management will reduce the budget by a certain amount.For example, if the purchasing department fears that it will no longer be able to buy raw materials at the prices that were budgeted in the past, it can ask for extra means for this part of the budget. It can also be that managers prefer not to set the budget standards too high in companies where their bonuses are calculated on the degree to which they have reached their budget objectives. In all these cases, the general interests of the company are not respected because, by building in budget slack, the company funds are not optimally allocated.Fairness in budget target setting When assessing the budget, one should verify whether the task content of the budgets of the various departments are of equal value. The budget negotiation process is not only a vertical negotiation process in the organization, it is also a process of comparing the planned efforts of the various departments. Dynamic managers, who always work with challenging budget objectives, may become demotivated when they discover that other departments are tole rated when they exert less effort (i. e. , make less profit or be less productive).However, equally balancing the task content of the budgets of the various departments presents difficulties because the management problems may differ widely per department (e. g. , different management functions, product groups, markets, etc. ) and the concept ‘task content’ is difficult to measure objectively. The task content of a budget depends on the experience of the manager and his or her team. There is also a certain Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 167 psychological insight involved here.Some managers, along with their teams, feel more quickly swamped with work than others. In any case, clear imbalances in the performances of the various departments need to be eliminated as quickly as possible. For instance, in a profit centre structure, where all divisions are making profits and a certain division is constantly in the red, a thorough restr ucturing plan must be set up in the short run to make the department profit-making as fast as possible. Tightness of budget control With regard to following up the budget, a choice can be made between tight and loose control.The tightness of the control is determined by the degree to which restrictions are imposed on the freedom of subordinates and emphasis is placed on reaching the predefined objectives. In most cases, it is assumed that tight control provides more certainty that the people in the organization will act as is expected of them. This can be done by determining the activities in detail, by following up very accurately the results of the departments, and by exerting pressure on the responsible managers to adjust quickly potentially unfavourable anomalies. With tight budget control, it is frequently (e. g. monthly) verified whether the real costs and revenues are in accordance with the planned short-term objectives. Undesired anomalies in the budget are not tolerated and must be eliminated quickly. The advantage of tight control is that managers become more aware of the importance of costs and profitability, and they actively seek ways to eliminate inefficiencies. However, tight control may also have undesired dysfunctional effects. Focusing on short-term results too intently may encourage managers to organize actions that optimize profitability in the short term, but that are disadvantageous in the long term.For example, in order to reach its budget figures, the purchasing department may decide to buy cheaper, but qualitatively inferior, raw materials. However, this may lead to significant quality problems in production and possibly to lower quality end products, which result in losing the goodwill of the customers. When the emphasis is primarily on reaching budget objectives in the short term, managers may also not be motivated to make the strategic investments that are necessary for the long-term survival of the company.Moreover, excessively tig ht budget control may lead to building in ‘slack’ when setting up the budget objectives or to playing accounting tricks to artificially boost the short-term results. On the contrary, with loose budget control deviations from the budget that arise in between are overlooked by top management, and there is a trust that potentially unfavourable anomalies will be eliminated by the divisional managers at the end of the budget period. The budget is used more for communication and planning, and there is less pressure to undertake immediate short-term actions to adjust the results.The use of budget performance in rewarding managers When setting up the budget, for managers of responsibility centres it is required that the 168 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework proposed objectives be realized (although we know some companies that start paying bonuses when only 80 per cent – and even 60 per cent – of the budget target is realized). At the end of the yea r, the actual results are compared to the planned objectives and are further analysed by means of variance analysis.In this way, the budget is an ideal basis for evaluating the performances of the responsible managers. Managers who succeed in realizing the proposed objectives must be rewarded for their good performance. This reward may be of a financial nature (e. g. , bonus, salary increase or other financial advantages), but the reward may also be more focused on non-financial motivators, such as promotion, extension of responsibilities and recognition. A bonus for performance relative to the budget can be determined subjectively or by formula.To be effective, the reward system must be designed in such a way that it optimally motivates the managers to act in accordance with the corporate goals and strategies. Optimizing management control process policies A management control process (and more specifically, the budgeting process) is effective when it motivates managers on the vari ous levels of the organization to perform actions in line with the organizational goals and strategies. From contingency research on management control, evidence suggests links between strategy and the characteristics of the management control process.Defenders, and companies with conservative, cost leadership strategies, find cost control and specific operating goals and budgets more appropriate than entrepreneurs, prospectors and companies with product differentiation strategies (Simons, 1987; Dent, 1990; Chenhall and Morris, 1995). Chenhall and Morris (1995) have found that tight control is suitable for conservative strategies; they also found tight control in entrepreneurial situations but, importantly, operating together with organic decision styles and communications.Some research has been focused on the relationship between the chosen competitive strategy and the management control process. Differentiation strategies are associated with a de-emphasis on budgetary goals for pe rformance evaluation (Govindarajan, 1988). Govindarajan and Fisher (1990) found that product differentiation with high sharing of resources (between functional departments) and a reliance on behavioural control was associated with enhanced effectiveness.Bruggeman and Van der Stede (1993) found that business units implementing differentiation strategies based on a make-to-order strategy preferred loose control in budgeting, while business units with a cost leader strategy or a differentiation strategy based on standard products found tight budget control more suitable. They also found that bottom-up budgeting and a commitment to budget targets was considered optimal for all competitive strategies. Overall, Van der Stede Integrated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 169 2000) has shown that product differentiation strategies are associated with less rigid budgetary control, but this is also associated with increased budgetary slack. It has also been suggeste d that bonus systems must be suited to the strategy. Anthony and Govindarajan (1995) suggest that formula-based bonus determination approaches should be used with a harvest strategy and that subjective bonus determination is optimal for build strategies. Contingency research has also found relationships between characteristics of the management control process and the level of uncertainty in the environment.Companies operating in an environment of unpredictable change require an appropriate set of control process characteristics. Uncertainty has been related to performance evaluation characterized by a more subjective evaluation style (Govindarajan, 1984; Moores and Sharma, 1998), less reliance on incentive-based pay (Bloom, 1998), non-accounting style of performance evaluation (Ross, 1995), and participative budgeting (Govindarajan, 1986). As environmental uncertainty increases, using more participative budgeting increases performance. In contrast, when environmental uncertainty is low, participative budgeting ecreases performance. In situations where environments are stable and predictable, there is little informational benefit from participation because superiors have sufficient information to develop budgets. Companies may also operate in a hostile, difficult environment. This is an environment that is stressful, dominating and restrictive. Environmental hostility has been associated with a strong emphasis on meeting budgets (Otley, 1978). Hostility from intense competition has been related to a reliance on formal control and sophisticated accounting, production and statistical control (Khandwalla, 1972; Imoisili, 1985).The optimization of target-setting approaches seems to be related to task complexity. Locke and Latham (1990) found that difficult goals lead to higher performance, but this effect is moderated by task complexity. The result leads us to expect that performance will be higher when managers are invited to work towards challenging targets, exc ept when the performance task is too complex. The appropriateness of bottom-up budgeting has been associated with information asymmetry between superiors and subordinate managers (Shields and Young, 1993).When subordinates have much better information about their business than their superiors do, bottom-up budgeting leads to more accurate budgets, arising from the use of the subordinates’ better information. When top-down budgeting is used in the case of high information asymmetry, subordinates may reject the budget because it is not consistent with their information. Top-down budgeting is beneficial in situations where superiors have sufficient knowledge about the subordinate’s activities being budgeted. 170 ? The Integrated Performance Management FrameworkThe role of beliefs systems The management control culture is the third and final part of the management control system. Managers’ behaviours and actions are not only influenced by structural and procedural e lements, but also by the formal beliefs systems in the organization. Simons defines beliefs systems as ‘the explicit set of organizational definitions that senior managers communicate formally and reinforce systematically to provide basic values, purpose, and direction for the organization’ (Simons, 1995: 34).Beliefs systems are an important element of an organization’s corporate culture. The corporate culture is the set of values, beliefs and norms of behaviour shared by members of a firm that influences individual employee preferences and behaviours (Besanko et al. , 2000). Ouchi (1980, 1981; Ouchi and Johnson, 1978) considers culture as an alternative control system in the organization. He introduces the idea of clan control, by which he means control through an internal system of organizational norms and values. Culture influences the behaviour of individuals.Individuals who value belonging to the culture will align their individual goals and behaviours to th ose of the firm and pay more attention to selfcontrol. A culture that is intensively held by most employees is called a strong culture. Culture can support a company’s competitive advantage (Barney, 1986). It is supportive when the values espoused by the culture are very much in line with the chosen direction and the performance objectives of the firm (e. g. , a company with a product leadership strategy where all employees love to change things and learn from new experiences).In this case, we talk about a ‘high performance culture’. In other words, the culture is clearly aligned with the strategy of the firm. Of course, the opposite also holds. If there is a cultural misfit, culture can also be a source of persistently poor performance. This occurs when the values underlying the firm’s culture are in conflict with the chosen strategic direction. For example, a culture stressing efficiency, stability and routine behaviour will not support the implementatio n of a flexibility strategy. In this case, culture may be a barrier to change and managers will experience a ‘low performance culture’.So, it is important that the majority of the employees believe what top management believes. It is the task of management control to define a set of common beliefs. It frequently happens that top managers have explicitly expressed the vision, the mission, the goals, the key values and the strategies of the firm, but lower-level managers and employees do not share the underlying beliefs. Goal statements about creating shareholder value are experienced as ‘grand terminology’ when employees do not feel the passion of working on value-creating projects.A strategy of highquality products will not succeed if all employees are not convinced that they should work to ‘zero defect’ and do their work ‘right the first time’. Many flexibility strategies fail because people do not like ‘to change their Inte grated Performance Management through Effective Management Control ? 171 Figure 9. 4 The origins of unhealthy corporate cultures Source: Kotter and Heskett (1992: 145) 172 ? The Integrated Performance Management Framework plans. ’ In general, successful strategy implementation needs beliefs systems supporting the chosen strategy.The beliefs of employees and managers may be hard to change, but they can be influenced by training sessions, by inspiring leadership, and by demonstrating the success of the new strategy and successful strategic projects. John Kotter and James Heskett (1992) have written a book about corporate culture and performance in which they propose a stepwise approach to the creation of a high-performance culture and focus on the origins of healthy and unhealthy corporate cultures. Their ideas are presented in Figure 9. 4 and Figure 9. 5. Figure 9. 5 The creation of a performance-enhancing culture Source: Kotter and Heskett (1992: 147)Integrated Performance Ma nagement through Effective Management Control ? 173 Conclusion Control and evaluation is the fourth component of our Integrated Performance Management Framework. In this chapter, we have shown the important role of management control for strategy implementation and for performance management. Developing an appropriate management control system is a prerequisite for effectively managing an organization. On a broader level, Simons (1995) has shown that control of business strategy is achieved by integrating four levers of control.These levers create tension between creative innovation (emergent strategies) and predictable goal movement (intended strategies). This proves the crucial role of control in the strategy implementation and performance management process. We then focused our attention on the three basic elements of the management control system: (1) the management control structure; (2) the management control process; and (3) the beliefs systems. We have analysed optimal manag ement control structures and processes from a goal congruence perspective.That is, we have investigated how to design a management control structure and process that maximally stimulates goal-oriented behaviour and leads to minimal dysfunctional behaviour. Attention is also paid to how strategy affects the choice for a particular management control system. It is clear that management control also interacts with the organizational behaviour component. From Chapter 10 on, we investigate this fifth component in greater detail. Note 1 Business conduct boundaries are those that define and communicate standards of business conduct for all employees.Like the Ten Commandments, they specify actions that are forbidden. Internal controls are the policies and procedures designed to ensure reliable accounting information and safeguard company assets. Strategic boundaries define what types of business opportunity should be avoided, thereby drawing a box around the opportunities that individuals a re encouraged to exploit. Strategic boundaries are installed to ensure that individuals throughout the organization are engaged in activities that support the basic strategy of the business (Simons, 2000: 289).