Accounting Information System and Managers Decision Making

Information System plays an influential role in determining the success of an organisation. The function of the information system is to collect, store and process data into information, through the assistance of a set of interrelated components. The processed information is later distributed to support decision making in an organisation (Oz, 2006). Information system can be decomposed to two main elemental subsystems namely as Accounting Information System (AIS) and Management Information System (MIS). AIS mainly process financial transactions of an organisation. However, it also processes some non-financial transactions that have a direct impact on the financial transactions. Contrastingly, MIS primarily process non-financial†¦show more content†¦AIS helps organisation to occupy and sustain a strategic position by providing accurate information on a timely basis. Although AIS improves the value chain of an organisation, there existed a greater need of the integration of financial and non-financial events due to a dynamic competitive environment. Consequently, the advent of highly integrated set of standardised modules such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) enabled organisations to automate and integrate key organisational activities (Hall, 2008). Thus, the integration of both the financial and non-financial information system has radically enhanced the decision making process of an organisation. The emergence of ERP systems has marked a commencement of a new era of efficient and productive decision making. These systems not only enabled the companies to integrate their key processes but also responsive to real time information (Al-Mashari, 2001). Thus, the implementation of information systems led to various perceived benefits such as augmented flexibility in information generation; improved quality of financial reports; increased application integration; and ease of database maintenance. Thus, the effect is felt on organization planning and decision making at all levels in an organization. (Spathis and Constantinides, 2003). Hence, organisations are forced to stay up to date with new technologies for its survival.Show MoreRelatedBus 630 Week 1 Discussion1014 Words   |  5 PagesBUS630 WEEK 1 Ashford University MANAGERIAL ACCOUNTING: This week students will: 1. Explain the primary ethical responsibilities of the management accountant. 2. Illustrate the key principles of managerial accounting including cost concepts. 3. Distinguish between the behavior of variable and fixed cost. 4. Explain the significance of cost behavior to decision making and control. 5. 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Finance, Funding and Legislative Frameworks For Success Assignment

Essays on Finance, Funding and Legislative Frameworks For Success Assignment FINANCE, FUNDING AND LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORKS FOR SUCCESS By Submission Finance, Funding and Legislative Frameworks for Success 1. Measurement against the organizations KPIs A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) refers to a given set of quantifiable measures used by an industry, or a particular company within the industry to measure, or compare its performance, in relation to meeting both its strategic, as well as operational goals. The financial statement provided for the Restaurant Group reflects the financial performance of the company during the fiscal year of 2012 to2013. The KPI for financial growth of the company KPI projected a target of ï ¿ ¡500m, while the exact performance of the company during this period was ï ¿ ¡580m. This shows that the company exceeded its KPI financial target. The company equally targeted to improve its market presence by opening new restaurants and serving more meals to its target customers. During the fiscal year of 2012 through to 2013, the company opened 35 new restaurants, increased its like-for-like sales by 3.5%. In addition, the company also served over 43 million meals to its customers during the year, as well as provided employment opportunities to over one thousand new job seekers. As for operational efficiency, the company increased its operating margin to 12.9%. The EBITDA increased to ï ¿ ¡107.8m. The profit before tax increased to ï ¿ ¡72.7m. The EPS increased to 28.0p per share. The proposed full year dividend increased to 14.0p per share. On the other hand, the operations were strongly cash generative. The operating cash flow  £116.8m, up 15%. The company also recorded a strong current trading, with total sales up 10% and like-for-like sales growth at 3.5% for the eight weeks to 23 February 2014. 2. Evaluation of the uses of KPIs in assessing organization performance Using KPIs is instrumental in assessing the performance of an organization in the sense that it sets a benchmark on the targets or goals for which the organization has to achieve. These benchmarks set the precedence of performance for which every company operating in a given industry should achieve in order to be within the profit margin. The Restaurant Group operates in the food and hotel industry, which deals with serving drinks, beverages, as well as meals. As such, some of the common benchmarks considered when assessing the Key Performance Indicators within the industry include the number of meals served, the number of new restaurants or new outlets opened by the company, as well as the amount of revenue collected by the company over a given fiscal year. The determination of the values of each KPI depends on the market forces affecting the sales volumes and purchasing trends, such as the forces of demand and supply, as well as consumer preferences and purchasing habits. Marr (2014) argues that the KPI is set at a value that shows the industry is stable and profitable considering the current market forces and situation. As such, using KPIs to assess or evaluate the performance of an organization enables the company to gauge its performance status with expected market ratios. This is turn pushes the company to work even harder to improve on the areas where it appears to be performing much lower than the set values by the industry on the KPIs. Furthermore, achieving a performance higher than the provided values of the KPIs also enables the industry to concentrate on the areas where it has a dismal performance level. 3. Discussion and explanation of your results As mentioned above, KPIs are instrumental in measuring the performance of these companies in such a way that it considers a variety of key performance aspects of the industry. As for the Restaurant Group, it is imperative for the administrators to consider the four key divisions under which the divisions of KPIs fall, thereby making it sustainable across the divide. The first is the quantitative indicator, which is possible to be measured on numerical terms. The second is the qualitative indicator, which is not possible to measure on numerical terms. The third is the directional indicators, and these are instrumental in specifying whether the organization is improving in performance or not improving, or in a worst-case scenario, making losses. The fourth is the process indicators, which measure the efficiency of the organization in a specified or particular procedure (Baroudi, 2010). Using KPIs to evaluate the performance of the Restaurant Group is instrumental in determining the exact performance lines that the company needs to improve in order to achieve market threshold, as well as maximize on its profit margins. This is majorly because KPIs in most cases follow the SMART objectives when analyzing the performance output of a particular company, meaning that the sought targets need to be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant to the business, and Time-dependent. 4. Discussion of the advantages and limitations of the analysis techniques Advantages Some of the advantages that the Restaurant Group enjoys when they employ the application of KPIs in evaluating its performance include standardization, creation of customer loyalty, as well as making accurate long-term predictions. Performance measures have a tendency of encouraging rigid behavioral outcomes thereby eliminating creativity and innovation. This will in turn lead to standardization of manufacturing procedures in order to achieve preset results. KPIs will enable the restaurant to improve the levels and quality standards of its services and meals, and this will eventually enhance the quality of service delivery for their clients, who will gain more confidence and trust in the company and its products (Parmenter, 2012). In the end, the customers will continue patronizing their outlets across various locations in order to continue enjoying their services. This makes them loyal customers to the brand and its products and services. Disadvantages However, some of the disadvantages of KPIs fall under measurements whereby some popular metrics of success are not easy to measure and quantify in figurative terms, such as employee engagement, or the level of employee satisfaction. In addition, the expenses incurred during such measurement procedures can sometimes be too high or a little expensive for the company to roll out appropriately in order to reap the benefits of KPIs as performance indicators. References List The Restaurant Group. Retrieved from http://www.trgplc.com/sites/default/files/file/TRG_AR13.pdf

The Case for Microsoft Essay Example For Students

The Case for Microsoft Essay As far as Ive seen, this entire ordeal is over a FREE browser that Microsoft includes with windows for FREE and gives out on the internet for FREE just as Netscape and most other browser companies do. I have yet to see where Microsoft is charging extraordinary prices for any of these FREE programs nor do I see how Netscape, in using the governments definition, a monopoly itself, is being forced out of business by Microsoft’s FREE browser. Remember: the charge is against including Internet Explorer with Windows, not the Windows monopoly itself. What this entire case boils down to is that a few Washington liberals are upset at Microsoft for daring to be successful. These are the kind of people that hate wealth, capitalism, and anything that is more successful than them. My intention is to show that the case against Microsoft as a monopoly is weak and that the government is wasting its time. As the government jumps to the defense of the â€Å"all-too-often† taken advantage of consumer, they have accomplished very little. They tried to prevent the release of Windows 98 (a much anticipated and highly demanded program that was and is available at reasonable prices) but didn’t even phase the consumers second thoughts. The government is costing taxpayers millions of dollars to pursue this suit against Microsoft. Microsoft’s operating system near monopoly is probably good for us. It is much better to have one operating system than 20 or even 2. Software compatibility, technical support, and setup are much more simplified with one operating system. Programs today are specifically designed to be Windows compatible. Would you rather have 20 (local) phone companies, each with a different line and number running into your house or one, as is the case now? Also, Internet Explorer brings browser competition to a market that is essentially monopolistic itself (at least if you apply Janet Renos definitions of monopoly). Internet Explorer gives Netscape a competitive product where before virtually none existed. The purpose of antitrust laws is to prevent only harmful monopoly. Microsoft’s operating system near monopoly is harmful in very few ways. Nor is Intels chip near monopoly harmful, nor is Netscape’s browser near monopoly. Other reasons easily explain how Microsoft came abou t to its size and how new companies constantly spring up in the computer industry. Computer software is a very volatile industry. To succeed in this industry all you basically need is a good program and a way to offer it for sale. When Microsoft, or any other software company, makes a program they only have to write it once. When this is done, reproduction of this program is very simple. All they have to do is copy it on a disk. Since making an extra disk containing the program costs all of 2 cents, it is more costly for the software company to print the box and manuals than it is to make one extra disk. With this situation occurring, a good program, once written, can be produced marketed at virtually no additional cost. Well you say, â€Å"if disks only cost 2 cents, why cant windows sell for 2 cents?† Remember that it costs Microsoft to develop a new program. No matter how cheap a disk is, other costs such as salaries, factories, storage, and programmers always exist. Even though development costs are sunk and additional production costs are nonexistent, other costs are incurred. Besides, supply and demand determines where a price will fall. Another thing about the computer market is its ever-changing program market. As I said earlier, anyone with a good program can be successful in the computer industry. Programs come about all the time. For example, the most popular finance program is Quicken. Microsoft’s version, Money, is included with many of its programs yet Microsoft, the multibillion dollar a year company, has considerably less users than Quicken, with mere tenths and hundredths in sales than the annual income of Microsoft. Another example is Accessories Paint compared to Print shop or EXPLORER compared to NAVIGATOR. Microsoft offers its own products as complements to Windows, often for FREE, but consumers still prefer others. For all we know, anyone literate in programming may develop a better program than Windows. If consumers like it , we may soon find another browser monopolist. For reasons similar to this, computer industry leaders have vastly changed in just a few years. At times Apple, IBM, Intel, Netscape, ATT and even Commodore, have or had large, sometimes monopolist-like markets. Characteristics of monopolies that cause trouble are (1) restriction of output, (2) higher prices along with this restriction, (3) restriction of entry to a particular market and, in a few cases, (4) lack of innovation due to lack of competition. Not a single one of these problems is experience with Microsoft. These problems are only drastic when an item is in a secluded market with no close substitutes. Computers are definitely not necessities and there are few barriers to entry in the computer market (the only noticeable being computer literacy). Microsoft certainly does not restrict output and hold prices at extreme levels. If they did, nobody would buy Windows 95 or 98 when it came out. There is no reason to buy an upgrade e xcept that people are looking for something new or something bigger and better. New versions of Windows do not sell because consumers aren’t forced to buy them. They sell because consumers want them. Many of Microsoft’s major products are included with Windows. Giving products away at no monetary cost is certainly not restricting output. Even more, it is the lowest price the company can sell at. The only cost of getting Internet Explorer, or Netscape Navigator for that matter, is a tied up modem for about 45 minutes. This is even avoided when Explorer or Navigator are included free with another piece of software such as Windows or, in Netscape’s case, the software you get when you sign up with an online service. Netscape had an almost full monopoly (90%) and still has a semi-monopoly at 65-70% of the browser market. So what they are worried about? They use the same methods of distribution of their software by offering it for free and having Internet providers in clude it with their registration software. Before Internet Explorer came along, we sat for long periods waiting for browser upgrades. There was essentially one browser Netscape two point something. Upgrades have been almost constant since the introduction of Explorer. The result: two companies with advanced browsers competing to build a better browser. .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .postImageUrl , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:hover , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:visited , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:active { border:0!important; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:active , .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49 .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u0a945d37a8a0806218740ccb0e4d2e49:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Open Boat vs. Hurricane Hugo EssayMicrosoft is not the only operating system to choose from. While very practical and well suited for the current computer industry, Windows is not alone. Many other operating systems, some even FREE, are available. There are around nine in the US alone: Linux, Caldera, Solaris by Sun, BSDI, Unix for the PC by Digital, BeOS by Be, Rhapsody by Apple, OS/2 by IBM, and the Macintosh OS. Globally there are bigger companies that have more of the global market. So how is Microsoft a monopoly if there are nine other substitutes in the US alone? Once again though we are not really talking about the operating system market but I just had to make a bi g point. Finally and most importantly, what right is it of the government to tell Microsoft how it can and cannot configure its own software? Once Windows is installed, consumers have the option of disabling as much of Windows as they like. If you dont like Explorer, disable it and get Netscape (for FREE). We dont need Janet Reno to decide this for us. Just remember that Microsoft is a free company- able to write its own programs the way it wants to just as you can do if you so desire! Dont let Washington liberals fool you with their charges when Microsoft shows hardly any characteristics that make a monopoly dangerous. We are facing a great abuse of the government’s anti-trust laws for their only purpose is to stop dangerous (and ONLY dangerous) monopoly. Washington should not be able to get in the way of a successful company over Microsoft’s right to include their FREE software with their own program. Bibliography:

The Meeting free essay sample

The room is silent other than the steady hum of the air conditioner. Businessmen and location supervisors all sit around a large rectangular table, waiting for the man in charge. There is a projector screen at the head of the table with an opening slide displayed. It reads â€Å"Monthly Safety meeting† in plain black text on a white background. A few of the men lean back in their chairs and relax. Two start a casual conversation. Even in the silence of the room I cannot understand them because they are mumbling so quietly. It’s an early Monday morning, and everyone is still a little drowsy from the weekend. Suddenly the big door in the back of the room whooshes open. A deep, carrying voice greets the room with a â€Å"Morning! † The men in the room all perked up and fixed their posture. The man who entered was Mike Guinn. He is the head engineer at Noble Energy. We will write a custom essay sample on The Meeting or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page A lot of people question why the engineer will be conducting a safety meeting. Mike had worked out in the field for many years before getting to where he is now. He knows how it works, and that is why it is his job to conduct the meeting. A few of the men greet him and shake his hand. The others have been here before and they know the drill. Mike has a cup of coffee in his hand that he finishes as he approaches the projector in the front. He sets his mug on the table and looks out at the others. By now they have settled back in their chairs and relaxed a bit. Mike is a man that likes to get right down to business. He quickly turns around and grabs the remote that controls the slide and advances it. â€Å"I’d like to do this as quickly as possible. † He says. He had told me beforehand that the meeting focused on some important information, but was one of the dullest parts of his job that he has to endure. The others in the room seem to know this, as the meeting seems to be done as more of a formality than anything else. Before starting he strikes up a conversation with a man who he appears to know very well. You can tell by their casual banter with a few of the others that, although is he is technically their superior, everyone in the room seems to treat Mike as more of a colleague. They talk about golf and professional sports, or how the weekend went. There is clear respect for his position and authority, but it seems that he wants to let them know that they are all a part of the bigger picture. Everyone is working together for the success of the Company. He starts the slideshow. The first few slides go through fairly fast. Mostly graphs and statistics of past performances with their company compared to others. He explains to them every graph and where they rank according to the competition. A few people are taking notes. I was very impressed with how they ranked. The Company seems to be doing very well. It is very clear that they strive to be better than the next closest competitor, and you can tell Mike takes a sense of pride in that. In every chart displayed, he focuses mostly on the good aspects of the information, but if there is an issue he makes that clear and asks the others what they can do to solve it. Most of the slides so far in the show have been very boring. No pictures, just a lot of text and graphs. The information is important to the businessmen in the room, because it is their job to keep the information in check. To the rest of them it seems that they are just trying to get through with it and on with their day. A slide comes up with just one chart on it. Not much text. Mike takes a pause at this one before speaking to let everyone take in the information. After a few seconds of silence he says â€Å"This chart shows our quarterly safety analysis from last quarter compared to this quarter. † Although I don’t understand much of the information, it is apparent that the current quarter is below last. Mike explains in a positive tone that the company did everything right out in the field to get all of the great results shown in previous slides, but they had a major accident a few weeks ago that caused this quarters to drop. A driver of one of their trucks pulled onto a busy highway in the night and caused an accident. A few people were hurt, but it was all resolved and taken care of. Aside from that accident Mike was very proud of how well everyone did and put a lot of emphasis on the good parts of the report. To let them know that he appreciates all of their hard work to keep everyone safe. He set up a date to host a barbeque out on a location so they can celebrate a good safe month, with the people who make it happen. The final part of the meeting consisted of what you would expect at a safety meeting, the routine standards that everyone hates discussing. At this point he dismissed the businessmen to go back to their jobs. The location supervisors stayed in the room. They are the people whose job it is to keep the crews out in the field safe. They are the ones that need to know proper procedure and how to react when an accident occurs. They keep the workers doing their jobs safely. This is where the meeting gets very boring. Everyone in the room had heard all of this information a hundred times. But because of the accident a few weeks ago, corporate is pushing safety even harder. Mike does his best to keep the information interesting. He relates what he can to things that the others have had to deal with before, by bringing up specific events that each supervisor has been through. Maybe an accident a few years back or some praise for being accident free. This helps them understand the information so if a similar accident occurs, they know what to do. To close the meeting, Mike congratulated everyone one final time on their exceptional performance. He dismissed everyone and started to close down his computer. One man stayed behind to talk to him. This was also the man Mike had started a conversation with at the beginning of the meeting. They appeared to be good friends. Maybe someone Mike had worked in the field with before. They talked for a few minutes about life and how things were going. By the end of the conversation the projector was all packed up and it was time to leave the room. While most men would just go in, do the meeting and get out, you could tell Mike was different. He had respect from everyone he worked with, and did his best to connect with everyone else on a personal, yet professional level. There is a good bond between him and his co-workers. They know that if there is a problem, he’s the one to talk to. He will do his best to get it done and get it done right. Although it was just a standard safety meeting, it showed me how putting just a little effort into your career can earn you respect from everyone you work with, and make your job a lot easier. Sitting in on that meeting really showed me a lot about one of the possible careers of my future. Mike love for his job gave me positive reassurance about my decision to become and engineer.