Cost Centres, Profit Centres, Investment Centres Essay Example for Free

Cost Centres, Profit Centres, Investment Centres Essay The increasing complexity of today’s business environment makes it virtually impossible for most firms to be controlled centrally. Decentralisation is a necessary response to this increasing complexity and involves the delegation of decision-making responsibility by senior management to sub-ordinates. The structure is such that decision making is dispersed to various units within the organisation, with managers at various levels making key decisions relating to their centre of responsibility. These centres of organisational activity are known as responsibility centres and may be defined ‘as a unit of a firm where an individual manager is held responsible for the unit’s performance. ’1 The performance of each centre and its manager is measured and controlled through a system of responsibility accounting which is based on the principles of locating responsibility and tracing costs/revenue/investments etc. to the individual managers who are primarily responsible. The division of the firm into separately identifiable units of responsibility allows for more accurate measurement of managerial performance because local information is more thorough. Overall, in order to obtain an accurate measurement of managerial performance, measures should be based on elements which the manager can control or significantly influence. There are three main types of responsibility centre. A cost centre is the lowest level of responsibility, and performance is measured in terms of the costs incurred by it. Cost centres do not generate revenue and therefore have no profit objectives, which differentiates it from profit and investment centres. Managers of cost centres are accountable only for controllable costs and are not responsible for level of activity or long-term investment decisions. Managerial performance is measured by efficiency of operations in terms of the quantity of inputs used in producing a given output. The basis of this type of measurement lies in comparing actual inputs to budgeted controllable costs or some predetermined level that represents efficient utilisation. Cost control and efficiency of operations are the main elements of this type of unit. However, costs in general can be difficult to measure, trace and allocate and it can be difficult to differentiate between controllable and uncontrollable costs. This poses a major drawback for the evaluation of cost centres and their management, since cost is its main element of measurement. The focus being mainly on costs, makes this centre some-what weak in terms of evaluation and measurement of managerial performance. Cost centres can be split into two different types; standard cost centres and discretionary cost centres. In the former, measurement is exercised by comparing standard cost with actual cost. Variances would be indicative of the efficiency of the centre and therefore its managers’ performance. Discretionary cost centres are centres where output cannot be measured in financial terms, for example advertising and publicity, RD etc. ‘Control normally takes the form of ensuring that actual expenditure adheres to budgeted expenditure for each expense category.’2 However, a major problem with this type of responsibility centre is the measurement of the effectiveness of expenditure and the determination of the efficiency of the centre itself and its management. A profit centre offers an additional element to the measurement process in that both inputs and outputs are measured in monetary terms. The manager of a profit centre has increased autonomy as s/he is responsible for revenue as well as costs; hence it is easier to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of managerial performance in financial terms. ‘In this situation, managers are normally free to set selling prices, choose which markets to sell in, make product-mix and output decisions and select suppliers.’3 A profit centre differs form a cost centre in that its main objective is to maximise profit and the performance of the manager is measured in terms of profit made. Top executives allocate assets to a profit centre, and the manager is responsible for using these assets to make a profit. Each profit centre has a profit target and has the authority to adopt such policies that are necessary to achieve these targets. Profit centre managers are evaluated by comparing actual profit to targeted profit. Profit analysis using profitability ratios or segmented income statements are used as a basis for evaluating managerial performance. The major issue with profit statements is the difficulty in deciding what is controllable or traceable, and in order to assess the managers’ performance rather than the economic performance of the unit, measures must be based on controllable profit only. Another difficulty arises in allocating revenue and costs to profit centres, as it is unlikely that the profit centre is completely independent. This has prompted many firms to use multiple performance measures such as a balanced scorecard, which measures non-financial as well as financial elements of the unit. The measurement of profit is also compounded by the use of transfer prices and agreeing on its ‘fairness’. Transfer prices are allocated to goods transferred from one unit to another within a firm. The implication of transfer prices is that for the selling unit it will be a source of revenue and for the receiving unit it is an element of cost, and as a result each division may act in its own interests. Transfer pricing therefore has a significant bearing when calculating revenues, costs and profits of responsibility centres. The choice of transfer pricing method is important because it affects goal congruence as well as performance measurement. However, it is difficult to determine the correct transfer price, as there are a wide variety of methods available, varying from negotiation to approaches based on the market or based on cost. The investment centre manager has increased responsibility in comparison to the cost and profit centre managers and as a result there are further options for managerial performance measurement by top management. The investment centre manager has responsibility for revenue and costs, and also has the authority to make capital investment decisions. This type of unit represents the highest level of managerial autonomy. An investment centre differs from a profit centre in that investment centre management is evaluated on the basis of the rate of return earned on the assets employed or the residual income earned, while profit centre management is evaluated on the basis of excess revenue over expenses for the period. The manager in charge has the objective of profitability, depending not only on sales but also on profitability of the capital used. Overall, investment centres offer the broadest basis for measurement in the sense that managerial performance is measured not only in terms of profits, but also in terms of assets employed to generate those profits. Performance can be measured using a variety of tools, and this ensures that the drawbacks of one method are overcome by the merits of another. This in turn leads to more accurate results and is one of the main reasons why investment centres are so popular as a means of managerial performance measurement in large companies. Both the effectiveness and the efficiency of the manager can be assessed by reference to the accounting data available. Investment centres offer many qualities required for good managerial performance measurement. For example, they provide incentives to the unit manager, they can recognise long-term objectives as well as short-term objectives and the increased responsibility means there are more controllable factors for use in performance measurement calculations. Return on investment is a measurement approach in common use in investment centres. This method has the advantage of being simple and easy to calculate. ‘ROI expresses divisional profit as a percentage of the assets employed in the division.’4 It has the further advantage of motivating managers to achieve the best return on investments in order to achieve the associated rewards. ROI provides a return measure that controls the size and is comparable to other measures. It can be used as a common denominator for comparing the returns of similar businesses, such as other divisions within the group or outside competition. It is widely used and most managers understand what the measure reflects. However, some complications arise in the calculation of this method. For example, difficulties regarding the calculation of profit, some of which are described above. Profit can be defined in a number of ways and this enables the figure to be manipulated. In the case of the figure for investments, the question arises whether this should be total assets (gross or depreciated), total operating assets or net total assets. The result would differ in each case, but if consistency is maintained throughout the organisation, decisions would remain unaffected. Another difficulty that may arise in relation to this method is that managers may focus on self-interests rather than the overall goal of the organisation and some profitable opportunities may be ignored because s/he fears potential dilution of existing successful endeavours. Furthermore, ROI does not adequately recognise risk. A manager who generates a large ROI result may be investing in riskier assets which may not be consistent with organisational goals. Use of ROI as a managerial performance measure can lead to under or over investment in assets or incorrect asset disposal decisions, in order to achieve the result the manager requires to accomplish his reward. To overcome some of the above difficulties, many firms use residual income to evaluate managerial performance. This method seeks to motivate managers to invest where the expected returns exceed the cost of capital. For the purpose of managerial performance measurement, ‘it compares the controllable contribution of an investment with the targeted rate of return.’5 There is a greater possibility that managers will be encouraged to act in the best interests of the company. Another advantage of this method is that it is more flexible because different cost of capital rates can be applied for different levels or risk. Though ROI and RI operate on a similar basis, RI proves better in certain circumstances. For example, if ROI is chosen as the measuring technique, managers may be reluctant to make additional investments in fixed assets as it may bring down the ROI for their centre. RI calculation results would be more accurate in these situations. However, residual income does not overcome the problem of determining the value of assets or the figure to be used for profit. If RI is used in a short-term perspective, it can over-emphasise short-term performance at the expense of long-term performance. Investment projects with positive net present values can show poor ROI and RI results in early years, leading to rejection of projects by managers. Residual income also experiences problems in comparing managerial performance in divisions of different sizes. The manager of the larger division will generally show a higher RI because of the size of the division rather then superior managerial performance. Another drawback for this method is that it requires an estimate of the cost of capital, a figure which can be difficult to calculate. Economic value added is an extension of the residual income measurement. It measures surplus value created by total investments which include funds provided by banks, shareholders etc. Its key element is the emphasis on after-tax operating profit and the actual annual cost of capital. The latter aspect differentiates it from the RI measure, which uses the minimum expected rate of return. EVA is a further step towards encouraging centre managers to concentrate on the overall goal of the organisation rather than their own self interests, hence reducing dysfunctional behaviour. The above measures are financial measures. As stated previously, it is important also to study non-financial aspects, such as customer satisfaction, quality, internal processes, growth etc. in order to get a more complete picture when measuring managerial performance. The above measures also focus on performance within the investment centre and do not consider the performance relative to overall company objectives. In conclusion, it can be stated that in order to assess managerial performance as opposed to the economic performance of the division, it is vital to make a distinction between the controllable and uncontrollable elements used in the chosen calculations. Each measurement technique is not without limitations, but these difficulties can be overcome by using a wide variety of measurement tools and striking the right balance between them. Of the three types of responsibility centre, an investment centre can be considered to yield better results, as it allows for the broadest basis for measurement, making it widely popular as a means of managerial performance measurement. 1 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 653 2 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 654 3 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 654/655 4 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 845 5 IPA Manual, Management Accounting, P 239

Dandelion Wine :: essays research papers

Dandelion Wine is a book written by Ray Bradbury. Dandelion Wine is a book about a summer through the eyes of a 12-year-old boy. It establishes a change of Douglas’s childhood to manhood. It will show how a young, orgulous boy goes through many stymies. Douglas Spaulding is a boy growing up in a somewhat deserted town. The time was 1928. Douglas’s house is an el dorado. Doug lives near an umbra, to others though it is just a ravine. It is just going to be the start of a new summer when Douglas finally realizes that he is free and alive. Douglas goes through many changes along the way, some for the best and some for the worst. There are many ways to describe a boy amazing as Doug, but three characteristics come to mind. Doug is mature, smart, and lively. Maturity can be used in many ways. For Douglas it is this particular summer when Doug starts out as a boy and by the end he has become more educated about life and learns to handle many difficult situations well. How many 12 year olds can cope with death of important people at that time of their lives? Douglas is forced to deal with it quite a few times. One day Doug meets an old man named Colonel Freeleigh. The Colonel is 100 years of age. The Colonel is a very old man who is quite sick and lonely. The Colonel is at the point in his life where he needs a nurse to take care of him. The Colonel is overjoyed to receive company. The Colonel regales Doug and two of his friends with stories of when he was younger. The Colonel shares stories such as the Civil War, Ching Ling Soo, and Pawnee Bill. After Doug had visited the Colonel he passed away that night. This is the first death Doug had to come to terms with. Doug was emotionally distraught, but learned that the Colonel died for what he believed in, happiness. Doug is best friends with Jon Hugh. Doug had known Jon his whole life. One day Jon decided to tell Doug that his dad got a job and they were going to move that night. A myriad of emotions ran through Doug’s head at this time. Doug wondered if he would ever get to see Jon again. The realization that they had so little time and so much to do kicked in.

Introduction Of Intravenous Urography Definitions Health And Social Care Essay

Radiography scrutiny of urinary piece of land via endovenous injection of contrast media ( giving liquid substances straight into a vena ) .This construction became as a flow or urination.This flow did n't demo a clear image in a general x-ray.Although, with endovenous urography process, contrast media is injected into vena ( endovenous injection ) . The contrast media will flux through all the venas, that is focused at the kidney part and flows out at ureter and go as urine.The contrast media will be opaque to the x-ray.So, kidney, ureter, urethra construction and saddle sore vesica will be shown clearly as white or opaque countries on the x-ray image.The x-ray image is known as endovenous urography.PurposeIntravenous urography will finish information all about kidney disease, ureter and chafe bladder.This process consists of two phase.First, it needs good functional of kidney to filtrate dye comes out from blood to urine.Time that needed for dye to be on X ray is related with kidney function.Second stage gives anatomical image of urination piece of land. Between foremost proceedingss, the dye will give clear image of kidney, stage that called as nephrogram.The other image will follow dye that passes down to the ureter and saddle sore bladder.The last movie is taken after urine comes out will demo how the saddle sore vesica is emptied well.Intravenous urography by and large undergoes for valuate the abnormalcy construction or obstructor of the micturition piece of land.INTRAVENOUS UROGRAPHY HELPS IN THE PROBLEMSKdney rocks in the kidney ( a rock in kidney or ureter will be shown clearly on the x-ray movie ) , Urine infection ( if patient has infection at the vesica or kidney, endovenous urography helps to happen if patients has obstructor or unnatural kidney ) , haematuria / hemorrhage in piss ( it is caused by infections, annoyance and tumour in kidney.with endovenous urography, it can assist to happen the cause ) , obstructor or amendss at any portion at urination piece of land can be seen by endovenous urography.Contrast MEDIAHigh- osmolality contrast media ( HOCM ) or low-osmolality contrast media ( LOCM ) are acceptable but the undermentioned ‘high hazard ‘ groups should have LOCM such as babies and little kids and the aged, those with nephritic and / or cardiac failure, ill hydrated patients, patients with diabetes, myelomatosis or sickle-cell anemia, patients who have had a old terrible contrast medium reaction with LOCM or those with a strong allergic history.ADULTS DOSE50 milliliter.PAEDIATRIC DOSE1 ml kgE†°? .PATIENT PREPARATIONNo nutrient for 5 hours prior to the examination.The patient should non be overhydrated but should be usually hydrated.Dehydration is non necessary and does non better image quality.Patients should be, sooner, be ambulatory for 2 hr prior to the scrutiny to cut down intestine gas.The everyday disposal of bowel readying fails to better diagnostic quality of the scrutiny and its usage makes the scrutiny and its usage makes the scrutiny more unpleasant for the pati ent, others claim there is no grounds this is advantageous. The patient should avoid the heavy repast prior to the scrutiny to cut down the sum of intestine gas, and the vesica should be empty.If the scrutiny is to be performed on a patient who has antecedently had a terrible contrast medium reaction, consideration should be given to administrating methyl Pediapred 32 milligram orally 12 and 2 hr prior to injection of contrast medium inaddition to guaranting that a LOCM is used Preliminary radiogram should be taken to show possible calcifications, concretions or other abnormalcies in the venters to happen the place of the kidneys, and to look into the technique factors.Preparation BEFORE INTRAVENOUS UROGRAPHY EXAMINATIONThe kidney should can be filter the contrast.For that, it is rare to make if the patient has unfunctional kidney.Before the process, the patient needs to undergoes blood trial to do certain the kidney is good function.The patient should inform the physician if there are any allergic reaction, prior to the contrast media likes iodine.The patient informed that do non devour any heavy repast certain hours before the procedure.This is to do certain, the patient ‘s colon is free from nutrients that can do the image became clear .The patient will be given laxatives ( dulcolax / heavy doses causes painful cramps ) before the procedure.the intent is to clean the intestine that can do the x-ray image more clear.The patient will besides be given the informed consent for patient understand about the procedure.If patient has diabetes and takes Glucophage, the patient should halt takes the pills for two yearss before the examination.This is caused by the combination of Glucophage and contrast media that maybe gives side effects to the kidney.AFTER THE PROCEDUREAfter the endovenous urography process, the physician will name the movies discourse how to do colony with the patient and family.As an illustration, the physician can non see both of the kidney x-ray image clearly after four hours, the patient should let them to see for the following process. There are many causes of the obstructors is kidney stones.the other causes are mass, tumour or malignant neoplastic disease at the tissue near the ureter.Sometimes, the hemorrhage in kidney can do blood coagulum that cause obstructor of micturition from gall vesica and ureter. See of this scrutiny, the physician will do two actions ; either waiting for yearss for the rocks pass out in urine or refer to the specializer of the Urology that maestro in micturition disease.If the endovenous urography shown the obstructor of big rock in the upper or in-between portion of ureter, the urologist possibly used lithotripter machine that send sound moving ridges to interrupt rocks to little atoms that can go through through the ureter easy and comes out from organic structure via piss.PRELIMINARY FILMSupine, full length AP of the venters, in inspiration.The lower boundary line of the cassette is at the degree of the symphysis pubic bone and x-ray beam is centred in the mid-line at the degree of the iliac crests.TechniqueThe average antecubital vena is the preferable injection site because flow is retarded in the cephalic vena as it pierces the clavipectoral fascia.A 19-G is advanced up the vena to cut down the hazard of a perivenous injection and the injection is give n quickly as a bolus to maximise the denseness of the nephrogram.Upper arm or shoulder hurting may be due to stasis of contrast medium in the vein.This is relieved by abduction of the arm. The patient is undress ( have oning infirmary gown ) and lying on the x-ray table.The contrast media is injected into venas or the arm.Ptient possibly feels pain.The contrast media is filtered via kidney and to ureter.The uninterrupted x-ray image is taken at the venters, normally every five proceedingss to ten proceedingss. Patient is lying on the x-ray tabular array when the x-ray image is taken but, the patient will teach to travel to the lavatory for micturution before the last x-ray image is taken.Although, a few x-ray image is taken for hours before the examinationin certain conditions.Patient can endorse place after the process is done.Patient can devour normal repast after the scrutiny.MoviesIMMEDIATE FILMAnteroposterior ( AP ) renal areas.This movies is exposed 10-14 seconds after the injection ( arm-to-kidney clip ) .Its purposes to demo the nephrogram, as an illustration the nephritic parenchyma opacified by contrast mediain the nephritic tubules.5-MINUTES FILMAP nephritic areas.This movie is taken to find if eliminations is symmetrical and is priceless for measuring the demand to modify technique, as an examplea farther injections of contrast media if there has been hapless initial opacification. A compaction set is now applied around the patient ‘s venters and the balloon positioned halfway between the anterior superior iliac spinal columns, as an illustration exactly over the ureters as they cross the pelvic brim.The purpose is to bring forth better pelvicalyceal distension.Compression is contraindicated after recent abdominal surgery, after nephritic injury, if there is a big abdominal mass and when the 5-minutes movie shows already distended calyces.15-MINUTES FILMAp of nephritic areas.There is normally equal distention of the pelvicalyceal systems with opaque piss by this time.Compression is releasd when satisfactory presentation of the pelvicalyceal systems has been achieved.RELEASE FILMSupine AP abdomen.This movie is taken to demo the whole urinary tract.If this movie is satisfactory, the patient is asked to empty their vesica.AFTER MICTURITION FILMBased on the clinical findings and the radiological findings on the earlier movies, this will be either a full-lengt h abdominal movie or a coned position of the vesica with the tubing angled 15 & A ; deg ; caudad and centred 5cm above the symphysis pubic bone. The chief value of this movie is to measure vesica voidance, to show a return to normal of dilated upper piece of lands with alleviation of vesica force per unit area, to help the diagnosing of vesica tumours, to corroborate ureterovesical junction concretion and, uncommonly, to show a urethral diverticulum in females.RISKS AND SIDE EFEECTSThere are small opportunities to acquire malignant neoplastic disease from radiation exposure.Radiation dosage that effectual from this process this is 3msv, same like people who are got the radiation in one year.Contrast media that is used in endovenous urography can do to irritation reaction to patients, sometimes it need medical treatment.Pregnant adult female should inform physician or radiographer if they are pregnant. Small per centum of patient that got serious allergic reaction to contrast media, like unable to talk, breath or sup, swollen at lips and lingua, low blood force per unit area or faint.During the contrast media is injected, patient feels hot.This allergic reaction to contrast media is rare to happen.The effects is inflammation of the tegument, annoyance and conceited lips, The serious effects is hard in take a breathing and swoon cause of the low blood force per unit area.DecisionRadiographer demand to hold a high grade of cognition, accomplishment, consciousness and involvement in this field so that they can carry through their day-to-day responsibilities efficaciously without seting patients life in danger.Contrast media is used in endovenous urography so that there are opaque or white countries at the kidney construction, ureter and vesica and this aid in better more clear x-ray image.Intavenous urography is an x-ray process that is used to name kidney jobs, ureter, vesica and ure thra tract.This construction became it as micturition tract.The urination piece of land did n't demo clear image in general x-ray image. Although, with endovenous uroraphy, contrast media is injected into the vien ( endovenous is the giving of liquid substances straight into a vena ) that focused at kidney and comes out through the ureter as urine.Contrast media will be opaque to the x-ray.So, the kidney, ureter and vesica will shown as white or opaque countries in x-ray image.X -ray image that green goods is known as endovenous urography.

Polynices Should Be Buried In Sophocless Antigone

Sophocles’ play, Antigone, is centered around the conflict of whether Polynices should be buried or exposed to the elements for the wild dogs and vultures to tear apart his body. The play opens at the end of Polynices’ attempted invasion, which made him a traitor of Thebes, and it is revealed that both Polynices and Eteocles had fallen. The new king of Thebes, Creon, decrees that Eteocles will be buried with honored, but Polynices will be left unburied and exposed to the elements. Antigone tells Ismene, her sister, that Eteocles, they, say, has been given full military honors, rightly so—Creon has laid in the earth and he goes with glory down among the dead. But the body of Polynices, who died miserably—why, a city-wide proclamation,†¦show more content†¦Antigone’s situation exposes a problem that has plagued societies to this day. The problem being religion and state. Religion and state is a very controversial topic and is quite difficult to navigate through. This philosophical issue raises moral dilemmas that can cause great divides among parties due to where the values of said parties lie. For example, an individual who was raised with nationalistic ideology that stressed the importance of being devoted to one s country, rather than personal religious views would side with Creon. On the other hand, an individual who is god-fearing and puts their personal values above their country would not think twice about obeying divine laws and putting the laws of man aside. This is the mindset that Antigone possesses. Therefore, she is justified in her actions due to divine law reigning supreme. â€Å" Nor did I think your edict had such that you a mere mortal could override the gods the great unwritten unshakable traditions†(Antigone 82). Antigone was honoring and being obedient to the decrees of the gods. In regards to will of the gods, there was an argument during class that the gods did not want Polynices buried. I ndividuals of this believe reference the fact that the gods fought on behalf of Thebes to defeat Polynices and his army. The chorus sang: â€Å"Zeus hates with a vengeance all bravado, the mighty boasts of men.