Red Bull Marketing Strategy Essay Example for Free

Red horseshit trade Strategy EssayBusiness Unit 3 Marketing Of Red misrepresent Introduction As part of my marketing assignment, I will be looking at the marketing of a consumer intersection point or service. Therefore, my chosen overlap is Red bull, which is an energy drink. I have assumed that my product is scared at people that have similar situations to the ones used in advertisements for red bull. I will be looking to spot if the strategy used is based on the principles of marketing O reason consumer wants to live successful, it is bouncy for a business to understand the wants and unavoidably of its target audience. For example the needs and wants of a target audience for a high street retail store depend upon the age, style and income of its customers. O Understanding and keeping ahead of competition businesses must consider their competitive markets as well as the products and prices provided by their competition in order to gain customers and provide a better st andard of services and goods than opposite companies. This weed be done through devising strong, different marketing strategies and by selling a product that is unique and efficient.O Communicate tack togetherively with its customers to satisfy customer expectations communication with customers is vital for a business to understand the wants and needs of their customers. A good relationship must be continuously created mingled with a business and its customers to maximise its success. O Co-ordinate its functions to achieve marketing aims co-ordination of functions is key to efficiency and so success. To maximise the success of a business, all of its marketing aims should be met. O Be aware of constraints on marketing activities.I will be also looking at the external impact on the marketing decisions, how the appropriate strategy is decided upon and how they are developed in order to meet consumer needs and the reliability of the different marketing models. Red bull comes in two types, original and sugar free. This substructure be purchased at ? 1. 15 for 150ml Features of Business Marketing O Consumers are of vital importance. Red bull has a far greater chance of being a success if it satisfies consumers needs. Marketing must be aimed at finding out what these needs are and making sure that Red bull meets it requirements.O Marketing is a business philosophy it is not good a series of activities such as advertising or selling, but more a way of thinking almost how to satisfy the consumers needs. O Marketing affects all aspects of a business. A production department would not continue making a product that does not satisfy the needs of the consumer at whom it is aimed. O Marketing is not just about selling. Selling is only one part of the marketing dish. Before selling Red bull, they must expatriate out market research. O Marketing and advertising are not the same advertising is just one of a number of tactics used by marketing departments.O Many busin esses affection lolly making as their main objective. Firms in competitive markets must make a profit in the long run to survive. Marketing must therefore satisfy their customers wants profitably. O Marketing involves make relationships with the customers of Red bull profitable businesses are often built upon good customer relations. This may be dealing with their complaints in a careful and considerate manner. O Marketing is a process that is on going all the time, it does not have a start or an end as you can see below. Red bull must be prepared to respond to the changes that take place.The marketing process Red Bull Gathering Market Information AO1 My reason for choosing Red Bull is because the drink has obtain incredibly successful at a very competitive advice. By choosing Red Bull I will find out what marketing strategies has made Red Bull so successful. What is Red Bull? Red Bull started off as an energy drink that stimulates mind and body. After becoming an transnational icon, Red Bull went on to sponsor ingrained sports such as F1, sailing, surfing, bmx-ing, and many other extreme sports. Red Bull is a non-alcoholic drink with key ingredients, which have a proven revitalising effect on mind and body.Red Bull is a functional energy drink and therefore unjustly classified among the soft drinks. The Red Bull effect results from a combination of two natural substances and vital metabolic transmitters the amino acids taurine and glucuronolactone with stimulating caffeine, vitamins and carbohydrates. The effectiveness of Red Bull has been proven by a large number of scientific studies. Its function is not to quench thirst, but to improve endurance and alertness, to attach feelings of well being, to support the metabolism in short to stimulate body and mind. The HistoryIn 1982, Dietrich Mateschitz came up with the idea of marketing energy Drinks, which were then already quite widespread in Southeast Asia mend sitting in the bar at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong. In 1984, Mateschitz founded the company k at one timen as Red Bull. In 1987, he started selling the energy drink Red Bull on the Austrian market. Red Bull got off the ground in no time, giving people wiiings right from the start. In 1992, Red Bull touched down in its first foreign market, Hungary and in 1995 it was launched in the UK, which is now one of its largest markets.

Cuadra v. Monfort case digest Essay Example for Free

Cuadra v. Monfort case digest Essay female horse Teresa Cuadra and Maria Teresa Monfort were classmates in Grade Six at the Mabini Elementary School in Bacolod City. On July 9, 1962 their teacher assigned them, together with three other classmates, to weed the grass in the school premises. While thus engaged Maria Teresa Monfort found a plastic headband, an ornamental object commonly worn by young girls everyplace their hair. Jokingly she said aloud that she had found an earthworm and, evidently to frighten the Cuadra girl, tossed the object at her. At that precise moment the latter turned around to face her friend, and the object hit her right eye. hurt from the pain, she rubbed the injured part and treated it with some powder. The next day, July 10, the eye became swollen and it was then that the girl related the incident to her parents, who thereupon took her to a doctor for treatment. She underwent surgical operation twice, on July 20 and August 4, 1962 respectively, and stayed in the infirmary for a total of twenty-three days, for all of which the parents spent the sum of P1,703.75. Despite the medical efforts, however, Maria Teresa Cuadra in all lost the sight of her right eye. Maria Teresa Cuadras parents sued Alfonso Monfort (Maria Teresa Monforts stick) based on Article 2180 of the complaisant Code.IssuesWhether or not Alfonso Monfort should be held liable under Article 2180.Business LawRuling of the solicitThe defendant is not liable and therefore cannot be sued under Article 2180. This article provides that the father and, in case of his death or incapacity, the mother, are responsible for the damages caused by the minor infantren who live in their company. The basis of this vicarious, although primary, liability is, as in Article 2176, fault or negligence, which is presumed from that which accompanied the causative toy or omission. The presumption is merely based on the rst impression(prima facie) and may therefore be rebutted. This is the clear and sensible inference that may be drawn from the last paragraph of Article 2180, which states that the responsibility treated of in this Article shall cease when the persons herein mentioned prove that they observed all the diligence of a good father of a family to prevent damage.In this case, there is nothing from which it may be inferred that the defendant, Alfonso Monfort, could have prevented the damage by the observance of due care, or that he was in any way remiss in the coiffe of his parental authority in failing to foresee such damage, or the act which caused it. On the contrary, his child was at school, where it was his duty to send her and where she was, as he had the right to expect her to be, under the care and direction of the teacher. And as far as the act which caused the injury was concerned, it was an innocent prank not unusual among children at play and which no parent, however careful, would have any special reason to anticipate much less(prenominal ) guard against. Nor did it reveal any mischievous propensity, or indeed any trait in the childs event which would reect unfavorably on her upbringing and for which the blame could be attributed to her parents.

Effectiveness and efficiency of Value Added Tax (VAT) system in Bangladesh Essay Example for Free

Effectiveness and strength of Value Added Tax (VAT) trunk in Bangladesh Essay1.1 BackgroundBangladesh introduced the Value Added Tax (VAT) in 1991 by replacing the age-old excise duty on the domestic entirelyy produced goods and services and sales tax at the importation stage. The study of the practice and problems of the VAT in different countries shows that the VAT has been introduced not only because of its receipts raising potentials but also because of its simplicity, effectiveness and expertness, transparency, equity, and progressiveness all of which complement the establishment of good governance.1.2 principle of the study/problem definitionThe revenue-GDP ratio in Bangladesh is whiz of the lowest (8. 5%) in the world. Of all the tax revenues, VAT at present is the single largest contributor to GDP. It has been found that VAT funds the political sympathies expenditure more than any other tax. In the very first year of its introduction, VAT yielded a reve25.43% more than the previous year. Starting from 3190 crore taka in FY 1991-92, VAT yielded 28,657 crore taka in FY 2008-09.VAT now accounts for 4.3% of GDP while the congeries contribution of tax revenue to GDP is 8.36%. But still different stake holders raise the questions of efficiency and effectiveness of the VAT schema in Bangladesh. By efficiency and effectiveness we mean processes and institutions to produce results that join the inevitably of society (effectiveness) while making the best use of resources at their disposal (efficiency). No much(prenominal) study has so far been undertaken.1.3 Objectives of the studyThe objectives of the study arei. To examine to what extent VAT system is efficient in raising revenue by making the use of its resources as compared to the tax system that it had replaced ii. To examine the extent of the enforcement of principles of effectiveness and efficiency as embodied in the VAT legalization iii. To secernate to what extent the stakeholders namely the taxpayers and consumers view VAT as an effective and efficient tax system iv. To baffle recommendations and suggestions for improving the VAT system as an efficient and effective tax system1.4 Methodologyi. witnesser of data Mainly secondary data- published VAT legislations and statistics from the National Board of Revenue (NBR) as wellhead as from Bureau of Statistics leave be used. For assessing the stakeholders perception of Bangladesh VAT as regards its efficiency and effectiveness prime data will be gathered from Bangladeshi stakeholders like the taxpayers and general consumers.ii. SamplingBased on the target population, probability sampling (stratified sampling) will be used.iii. Sample sizingThe total attempt size will be 100 (by choosing some strata (e.g. from consumers, from taxpayers, from the high dense and convenience place). Of them, 50% will be from the taxpayers segment and the remaining 50% from general consumers.iv. QuestionnaireTwo set of structured que stionnaire with fixed alternative questions including unsubdivided dichotomy. determinant choice, frequency determination will be prepared for the target respondents for collecting primary data- one set for the general consumers and the other for the taxpaying business representatives. In order to ensure the accuracy and relevance of data, questions will be in Bangla. Questionnaire will be pre-tested before putting into use.v. Data CollectionResearchers (members of the group) themselves will collect data the target population staying in Dhaka and its neighborhood.vi. Statistical tools for data processing and analytic thinkingAppropriate statistical tools like tables, graphs and charts will be used to process and analyze data and to perplex at the conclusion of the study.1.5 LimitationsAs VAT covers the whole of Bangladesh, the data to be truly representative needs to be gathered from a much bigger population. But due to time and resource constraints, the sample size has been ke pt small.1.6 ConclusionBased on the findings and their interpretation, a report containing recommendations will be prepared within the given time limit and presented to the concerned audience.

Alien Rhyming Poem Essay Example for Free

Alien Rhyming Poem EssayIll even do the rhyming thing, I guess. Firstly, I should tell you of our species just now keep in mind, were very different beings Our social status is decided by blood. Some were brightly colored, others were like mud. not of whom we are from descended from, We had no family, no dad, or mum. We are assigned a caretaker from birth, Not of Troll descent, for what its worth. Theyre assigned an animal, c all in alled a lusus, I, was a special case. One that caused a fuss. I had candy red blood. I was a mutant. And most rhythms, considered me a pollutant.I was left for dead as a cocker grub, It was quite an intentional snub. I would have died that first night, cold and lonesome, If it werent for one troll, who was wholesome. No troll had ever cared for a young one, Let alone raise it, was their son. She was an adult, in green attire, And the look on her face, do her seem quite dire. Despite her outwardly appearance She taught me the meaning of adherenc e. Our species is naturally hostile, And knowing this, made me feel quite vile. I despised all of my species needless strife, The type that nearly ended my life. The stratified system is cruel,Leaving it to chance if you serve or rule. The lowest color on the hemospectrum, Were the bronze-bloods, all of which were ideal as scum They were lucky to live through their childhood, And they were blessed if they were unders likewised. The second of blood colors was yellow, These little souls were forced to live in the ghetto. And if they could not afford to live there, They were sold to slavery, and none would care. Up following(a) was olive, jade, and then teal, And none of these were really a big deal. After that, cerulean and dark blue, These were the hardest to attend to. These classes were unceasingly struggling for power,It made their general tone, quite sour. The highest of the normal bloods was purple, And out of all of them, they were most verbal. Always devising demands, bu t never amends, However, the aggrievance extends. They considered themselves royalty, Flaunting around all flamboyantly. Near the top, were the violet blooded, And they lived in places that were flooded. They had a mutation which gave them gills, And the great unwashed of impractical frills. And at the top were those with blood like gold, And every single one of them was cold. They like the purple-bloods had gills and frills,But they would kill others just for thrills They ruled over our race with an iron fist, But but one at any time could exist. This made a cruel sort of monarchy One which plunged plunged the lowbloods into poverty. And if you spoke out against the crimes tumesce it was like stepping into a field of landmines. And if one was seen with my blood hue, Theyd be allowed to kill me. Through, and through. Despite all this, she raised me as a child, And when I learned of this I think I smiled But that was the only blessing I was brought, For the rest of my life, I wish I forgot.I traveled the lands, preaching my ideal, I had set out on my quest with a great zeal. I sought to agitate the views of society, And change all of their impropriety. I taught the values of stay and love, Something that most were afraid to talk of. Not all were too fond of my teachings, They thought of it as annoying screeching. But eventually, I gathered a cult. One a good deal to her majestys insult. She sent her best men to find and catch me, I on the other hand, did my best to flee. Eventually they caught me, my disciple too, But in some stroke of luck, the let her through.She went on, spreading explicate of my Lessons, I hope she went on, to teach her own sessions I, however was not treated so well, They locked me up in their deepest cell. They tortured me for what seemed like forever, They had no mercy for me whatsoever. I screamed with anger that pierced the skies All of my love, had said their goodbyes. The only thing left, was anger and hatred, And in time, all my teachings faded. I could not make a stand for peace and love, For those, my species are unworthy of. And now you know all of my suffering, And why my irons, are still burning.

Effects of Slavery Essay Example for Free

Effects of Slavery EssayFrederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobson two(prenominal) write their compelling stories on what life was like as slaves during 19th vitamin C America. both tarradiddles doctor the harsh life of thralldom and the unforgiving makes that occurred during their time as slaves. In the same way, both stories reveal the theme of the evils of slavery but also habituated their different gender roles, their experiences be only different from one other. While both Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobsons floors on a lower floorgo the corrupt power of slavery in 19th century America and were causa to escape, the role of gender in society largely acts as a sectionalization within these two stories. Both Frederick and Jacobs were born into slavery Fredericks father nigh likely being his master, and Jacobs being lucky enough to conduct both of her parents. Though Jacobs had a respectable and guarded childhood, after her parents died she began to see the cruelness of slavery. Frederick learns the evils of slavery earlier on in his life when he witnesses his aunt being horribly beaten by his slave bearer. (Notes, 2013) Both characters express their deep aversion for slavery by their narrative themes. In Jacobs narrative she argues that slavery destroys the standards of slave holders, practically with start exception. Jacob describes her whim when she factualizes Dr. Flint has total control over her, When he told me that I was made for his use, made to obey his neglect in eachthing that I was nothing but a slave, whose will must and should surrender to his, never in front had my puny arm felt half so strong. (Jacobs, Life as a Slave Girl, IV) done this, she feels empowered to rebel against him in acts that later shape her life. Jacobs has a strong hatred to slavery that she shows through her rebelliousness and the guesss she takes. Douglass shows his hatred for slavery through his descriptive write. For instance, he shows his intelligence by simply writing the narrative showing people that he is no animal but an accomplished human being.The point that he used his real name in his narrative shows his strength against slavery. Douglass believed he was entitled to be treated like a human being and was enraged that he wasnt treated as such. The physiological abuse slaves went through was unimaginable. When Douglass was given to Edward Covey he was to be broken. Covey took joy in breaking down his slaves until they werent human anymore. His job was to take all of the life and joy out of a slaves life so all they know is deed. Douglass states that his, natural elasticity was crushed, his rationality languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered almost his eye died the dark night of slavery disagreeable in upon him and behold a man transformed into a brute (Douglass, X) Through this quote, one is able to see that he was broken by slavery, and turned into an animal. Ja cobs abuse is similar to Douglasss experience with physiological when she realizes that Dr. Flint owns her body. She is tormented by him at any time, as he frequently gets her alone. She is stuck in her website because she cant tell anyone to make Dr. Flint stop. She points out that slaves are given no motive to develop a strong moral sense, as they are given no ownership of their own body or final control over any of their actions. Both characters go through a time in their life when a master has broken them physiologically, makes them believe they are less than human. Both characters describe their childhood in completely different ways. Douglass explains the system that slave owners used to make a slave. By cutting off ties with ones parents, especially maternal caring, they are unable to grasp the concept of discern and kinship, thus making them more as animals then people. Douglass explains that he never, enjoyed, to any considerable extent, her soothing presence, her genia l and watchful care, I received the tidings of my mothers death with very much the same emotions I should get probably felt at the death of a stranger. (Douglass, I) Douglasss used adjectives like soothing to reinvent the childhood he could have had if he wouldve had his mother in his life. Douglass was robbed of his childhood by the wickedness of slavery and his attitude towards that is shown through his descriptive writing. Jacobs had a very different childhood then Douglass. Jacobs had a somewhat normal childhood for a slave. Jacobs was fortunate enough to have both of her parents in her life as well as a brother for amount of time. She was not a dupe of being separated from her parents like Douglass. She was also privileged enough to be ignorant of what she had been born into. later on her mothers death, she is taken to her mothers mistress who teaches her sew, read and write. Though both characters are born into slavery, they lead completely different childhoods.Gender dicta tes the working rolls Douglass and Jacobs were assigned in their time as slaves. Jacobs was again fortunate to be doing house work as a young girl, beneficial about of her time as a slave she acted as a house maid. By being a women Jacobs wasnt easily subjected to working a hard day in the playing field, though field work was in her future when Mr. Flint vengefully sends Jacobs to his plantation. Though she was to work in the fields, such work was only assigned by Mr. Flints feeling towards her having an affair with Mr. Sands. Douglass being a man was subject to much harsher work than Jacobs. Douglass was exposed to hardened slave masters who were cruel to him, and was given harsh beatings. Douglass is deeply trimmed by the hours of work he spends out in the fields, as well as the harsh beatings given by Covey. Douglass becomes capable of only resting as a result of his beatings and extensive hours of work. Douglass describes one of his many beatings in great detail, he lashed m e till he had worn out hisswitches, cutting me so savagely as to leave the marks visible for a long time after. This whipping was the first of a image just like it, and for similar offences. (Douglass, X) Slave men were subject to much harsher work than the women, and these two characters are primary examples of such.Douglass and Jacobs were physically abused, but the context of their abuse was completely different based on their gender. Jacob was subject to Dr. Flints frequent sexual harassment. Jacobs was continually taken advantage of sexually during her time under his grasp. Jacobs narrative is quite focused on the fact that she is a woman when writing about her struggles, Slavery is terrible for men but it is far more terrible for women. Superadded to the burden common to all, they have wrongs, and sufferings, and mortifications peculiarly their own. (Jacobs, XVI) Her abuse physiologically damaged her, and eventually caused her to have an affairwith another man just to escape anothers harassment. Jacobs was never able to truly be a woman of her own, she was ceaselessly pressed by the fact that she was a slave and had no right over her own body. She states in her narrative that her body belonged to Dr. Flint, which was harmful to her. The fact Dr. Flints harassment led Jacobs to having an affair with another white man who she was not in love with, and eventually led into her hiding delaying her from mothering her children obstructed her chance for her to be a real woman. Douglasss abuse was completely different but had the same piece on him he wasnt able to be a true man. Throughout Douglasss narrative and mostly in his time under the control of Covey, he describes how his endurance to become a real man faded. Covey truly broke Douglass and continually states that he was everywhere, under every tree, behind every stump, in every bush, and at every window, on the plantation. (Douglass, X) Slavery took every ounce of his will to jazz he had no interest i n reading, writing, or even escaping to become a free man. The effect slavery left on him shows that as a slave, Douglass was not able to be a real man. While both Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobsons Narratives undergo the corrupt power of slavery in 19th century America and were able to escape, the role of gender in society largely acts as a variance within these two stories. Both characters show that as a slave, they werent able to act as a real man or woman. The physical and mental abuse, their childhoods and every aspect of their lives as slaves, hindered them from having a real life for themselves. Though there were similarities in their narratives, their gender truly controlled the course of their lives.Works CitedDouglass, Frederick. I,X, XVI,. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave. radical York New American Library, 1968. N. pag. Print. Jacobs, Harriet A. XVI, IV. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. New York Oxford UP, 1988. N. pag. Print. No tes, C. (2013, April 10th). Class Notes. Print.

Ukraine in The World Bank Group Essay Example for Free

Ukraine in The World blaspheme Group EssayThere have been major changes that have been experienced across the world and in many countries, Ukraine being one of them. Ukraine has experienced several changes in terms of race, labour, income distribution, information, social mobility as salubrious as the living conditions of the citizens everyplace the year 2008 to 2015.Over the year 2008 to the year 2015, the population of Ukraine have been discover to decline due to the large number of older people. In the year 2013, the population stood at approximately 45.59 million people as compared to the year 2010 where the population stood at 46. 01 million people (The World entrust Group, 2015). The decline in the population of Ukraine have in turn affected the labour market of the terra firma whereby the solid ground has over the years experienced lack of labour in addition to gamyer rate of unemployment. The labour market experienced an increase in the rate of unemployment at 8.90% compared to the previous year 8.60%. As of the year 2015, almost 524.4 (thousands) of Ukraine citizens were unemployed compared to the year 2014 on April when the figure stood at about 474.7 (thousands) unemployed persons. The high rate of unemployment in the country has also contributed towards the poor living conditions (The World Bank Group, 2015).It was also observed between the year 2008 and 2015 that the level of poverty in the country increased from 7.1% in the year 2008 to about 9.1% by the year 2012. The increase in the level of poverty can be attributed to the increase in largeness which rose from about 24.90% in the year 2014 to about 28.50% in the year 2015. The increase inflation also caused an increase in the core consumer prices, which increased from 122.80 in 2014 to 126.10 in 2015 (The World Bank Group, 2015). This meant that the affordability of sustenance became an issue resulting in poor living standards and the consumers have to pay more prices for bas ic needs much(prenominal) as food.Furthermore, there has been change in the education system of the country. The number of people attending schools in Ukraine has been observed to increase over the years whereby in the year 2012, the percentage of the population seeking for education reached about 106%. This indicates that the Ukraine society have embraced education in large numbers to gain skills which can resign them to get employment in other regions across the world (Trading economics.com, 2015).On the issue of income distribution, majority of the population in Ukraine falls under the category of lower and middle income earners. The wages paid to employed persons in the country per month experienced a decline from the year 2014 to the year 2015. In 2014, the average monthly wage stood at about 4,012.00 while in the year 2015 the wages stood at 3,455.00, a perish indication that there was a decrease in the wages (Trading economics.com, 2015).Finally, the social mobility of Ukr aine population has increased over the years as they seek for more opportunities outside of Ukraine. It is to be noted that most have migrated to the joined States and other countries for job opportunities and to try have better lives than they did in Ukraine.ReferencesThe World Bank Group (2015) Ukraine, Accessed from http//data.worldbank.org/country/ukraine on 4th March 2015Trading economics.com (2015) Ukraine, Accessed from http//www.tradingeconomics.com/ukraine on 4th March 2015Source document

Ethics in Accounting: Financial Reporting Scandals

Ethics in story Financial Reporting S stomachdalsIntroductionThe first thing is character, ahead money or anything else. J. P. Morganintegrity is of ut almost importance for a successful c argonr in melodic line and finance in the enormous expire. Some be trickeryve that the world of finance lacks ethical considerations. Whereas the truth is that such(prenominal) issues are prevalent in completely areas of business.The business environment in much of the world is reeling from the disclosure of several financial s stackdals in the past few years. The optimism of the turn of the century has been replaced by scepticism and dis rely. It pull up stakes be discussed as to how we landed ourselves in this situation, what is being done to correct it, and what the future holds for us. Though Enron has been use as the poster-child for this purpose, breakdowns in accountancy and corporate governance in Enron as well as in other companies will be discussed.Some companies that give up encountered financial reportage problems will be discussed along with the role of auditors (including Andersens role in Enron), the regulatory environment, some of the causes of the problems, and the present-day(prenominal) and possible future outcomes.Ethics and AccountingEthics (maintaining fair and true statements) is a key part of financial reporting. For sellholders to trust a keep company with money, they must feel confident in the companys financial reporting. Financial reporting presents all data relating to the entityscurrent, historic and projected health meaning investors and shareholders rely upon the financial data operational for making informed and educated decisions. To help entities comply with business regulations and maintain financial reporting, shareholders can trust the existing organizations designed to manage variant chances of the method of accounting world. Primary organizations are Securities and Exchange Committee ( sec), the Financial Accountin g Standards Board (FASB) and the earth Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). These three bodies unneurotic check into financial reporting is fair, reliable, and available to all investors.The specific importance of ethics in business and in financial reporting is to ensure public and investor confidence in companies. Without a strong code of ethics and adherence to that code, individuals may non be certain their investments are secure. Accounting professionals must puddle a strong ethical and clean-living reasoning because their decisions regarding financial reporting can have major consequences for individuals as well as corporations and stallion nations. Ethics in the business environment are more than just issues relating to accounting because ethical practices can and will cross boundary from business practice to what a company may ask its accounting professionals to do in financial recording. The umteen recent scandals involving accounting and reporting fraud gen erally began at the CEO and made their way down into the financial records.Before the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, various financial abuses such as WorldCom, Enron, and Adelphia Communications plagued the American public and affected economic health of the entire nation adversely. Most of these frauds caulescent from unethical accounting practices instituted at the highest levels of the corporations, save carried out in the financial reporting practices of public accounting firms. In December 2001, Enron, which used to be one of the worlds leading energy companies once, filed the largest bankruptcy in the history of the U.S., using the retirement accounts of thousands of American workers, to enrich those at the highest levels of the corporation. Using thousands of off-the-records partnerships to hide nearly $1 one thousand million in debt and to inflate profits, company had defrauded shareholders of billions. Due to these scandals, President Bush and Congress were forced to take stumble bum stance in the form of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in July of 2002.When ethics seem to be on the hurriedness in a society, the common man naturally turns to the government for guidance. Various c climbs in the history of the coupled States have led to creation of several regulatory bodies and laws. The three entities in the US, mentioned above, work closely together to ensure financial accounting is honest. The SEC, the FASB, and the PCAOB are each an independent entity, but they often work in cooperation in certain areas such as oversight and reporting. While these three bodies work together, they rely on cooperation from member companies and from participation from whistle-blowers in companies and public citizens. As the Enron collapse illustrated, at that place were systemic failures in the private-sector watchdog-groups. The SEC and the PCAOB must work closely together and include way to fast-track criminal studys.Enron and other financial reporting scandalsEnron was a great s ymbol of widespread problem in corporate America as its rise was as spectacular as its fall. Enron, formed in 1985 when Internorth purchased Houston Natural Gas was soon being run mainly by Houston Natural Gas executives, with Ken Lay as CEO. In 1990, both Jeffrey Skilling and Andy Fastow were hired. In 1996, Skilling became the President and COO. A meteoric rise in both reputation and stock value came by, with Enron being named as one of Fortunes most admired companies in 2001 and its stock price peaking at $90.56 a share as on August 23, 2000. Much of the companys success was credited to the financial wizardry of Fastow. However, companys fall was just more or less the corner, with Skilling resigning in August of 2001. This was followed by a $1.2 billion write-off, and the beginning of an SEC investigation in October. By December, Enron had declared bankruptcy and the share price was $.26 per share.If Enron had been a lone case, concern would have dissipated quickly and confiden ce in upper-case letter markets would not have plumped. But it was not so. Before Enron, there were companies such as Waste Management and Sunbeam not significant by themselves, but they should have acted as a warning of what was to come. After Enron the disclosures kept coming. WorldCom was caught capitalizing expenses. While Enron was trying to outsmart the accounting and capital market regulators, WorldCom made accounting errors that withal novice accounting students would know were in appropriate. A disturbing aspect of many of these scandals is the collusion among many executives.An important observation is that all of these scandals cant be attributed to one grammatical constituent alone. Each one was different. Hence it can be concluded that the solution is not easy to find. at that place is no single accounting practice that made these entities vulnerable to executive excesses.What these scandals had in common was a culture that was pervasive in corporations. A culture had come in that made it permissible to lie to shareholders and the markets. The ends justify the means became the corporate mantra. Also, the watchdogs, the auditors had turned a blind eye with their focus just on their consulting businesses. They were not as vigilant as they should have been in audits.The auditors role in ensuring fair mutationAuditors are supposed to protect the public from the types of abuses that have been seen in the past. steady though financial statements are responsibility of management, the shareholders hire auditors for the protection of their interests and to add credibility to financial information provided by the firms. To be credible, auditors sine qua non both expertise and integrity. expertness assures if there is a financial reporting irregularity, the auditor has the capacity to better it. Integrity assures that auditors will disclose any irregularity they may find. These two qualities are essential. They are in addition multiplicative that i s if either is missing, other has no value. It has been found that both were missing in many cases. Expertise was missing as audits had come under cost cutting measures of firms. This happened often at the cost of quality. Integrity was gone when auditors forgot that the first allegiance of a professional is to the public. Seldom did auditors betray management for the benefit of the public. Hence, eventide if they did discover reporting problems, rather than reporting them to the public they often helped management devise ways around the reporting problems.Auditors fell into this position (probably not because they were incompetent or unethical but) because of the cultures in major accounting firms. Andersen, Enrons auditor, is a classic example. There were good auditors who got caught up in an economic struggle leading to unfounded focus on revenue generation. An audit firm having the highest reputation for competence and integrity compromised on its determine as that was the on ly way its partners thought to be economically competitive.In the more recent Satyam case in India, the fraud started at the top level management and reached the financial records. The role of Pricewaterhouse, Satyams auditor, is also moot in the said scandal.Causes of financial reporting problemsThe regulatory environment had not changed suddenly then why did the financial reporting problems surface at the time, is a question to be pondered upon. There are many reasons, not one that dominates.It was a confluence of circumstances that opened eyes to the problems. The bursting of the bubble scrimping was a major reason these financial abuses came to light. When everything was seemed bright, nobody questioned companies financial reports. In accounting the lack of relevance of historical cost accounting and even the basic traditional accounting framework were being discussed. The new economy was not to last forever. And when it did not last, investors began to ask tough questions. F or many of the questions, there were no answers only denials and cover-ups.In the auditing profession, audits had become loss leaders. The balance sheets and income statements had lost value, so auditing of the statements was not important. Thus, many audits became hasty and more of a formality. No one was willing to pay for quality audits, so many audit firms believed there remained no sense in competing on the basis of quality. Cost drove audit decisions. Lower cost even with lower quality was the norm.The passivity of corporate boards was also a contributor. This was worsened by the growing frame of complex financial transactions, most of which were beyond understanding of board members, who had gained their experience before such instruments came into being. Even a former accounting professor heading Enrons Audit Committee, a person of utmost integrity, had hindrance understanding the implications of the companys financial manoeuvring.Finally, the biggest culprit is the corpo rate culture. Focus was laid on short-term gains forgetting about all long-run considerations. Also the executive scorecard became focused on salary. Many players had become greedy executives, investors, and attorney, among others but more than that was the need to compete on the basis of compensation.Implications for accounting educatorsThe perpetrators of most of financial reporting scandals are former students, graduates of accounting or MBA programs. So educators must ask themselves What are they doing wrong and what must they do to fix the problems?The first obvious reaction is to emphasize ethics in business and accounting curricula. This is important. Educators in a business ethics class can not dissuade someone who is inclined to transport a fraud from doing so. But it is also true that most perpetrators did not at the on stigmatise set out to commit a fraud. They simply got ended up on a slippery zone.Also, the most disappointing aspect about most of the scandals is the number of people who, (though not personally involved) knew what was happening and politic did nothing. Exceptions to the rule are some courageous whistle blowers, many of whom were products of university accounting programs. Thus, the focus of ethics classes should be to recognize and analyse the situations that can lead to compromise on ones ideals and values, and to promote the reporting of inappropriate behaviour. This can be best done in context because ethics issues come up in context, with you imagining yourself in the real situation. It is easy to go into an ethics class and give the answer that the instructor wants. It is an altogether different thing to put ones self in a case situation with conflicting pressures, and determine the appropriate action when ethics is only one of the many factors impacting your decision.ConclusionThe accounting profession is in the center field of a challenging time. A reputation gained over years and decades can be lost in a day. Accountan ts were thought of as persons of high integrity working at an uninteresting job. In the current scenario the job has gotten more interesting, but at the cost of their reputation for integrity. It is essential to win back the trust of the public and maintain their belief in the importance of accounting. The road to restoring integrity of accountants today is a long one. The job will neither be quick nor easy, with the new series of financial reporting scandals that have come up.ReferencesWikipedia online encyclopaedia Sarbanes-Oxley Act. http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarbanes- Oxley_ActOverview_of_the_PCAOB.27s_requirementsFinancial oversight of Enron SEC and private-sector watchdogs http//www.senate.gov/gov_affairs/100702watchdogsreport.pdfhttp//www.associatedcontent.com/article/54065/accounting_ethics.html