Activity Based Costing at Steinway Sons Essay Example

Activity Based Costing at Steinway Sons Essay Literally for generations, Steinway Sons has been crafting fine pianos that are the overwhelming choice for highly skilled musicians worldwide (Steinway   Sons, 2006).   These pianos are created not by the speed of a computer, but by the talented hands of trades people who are experts at what they do.   Perhaps due to this tradition and reputation, Steinway Sons is often not viewed for what it is- a profit driven company that must control costs like any other.   In this paper, the control of cost within Steinway Son’s unique crafting process will be discussed, as well as the consequences of the alternative to controlling and monitoring costs.Activity Based Costing at Steinway SonsActivity Based Costing, which is to say the process of describing, identifying, and assigning costs to the tasks within a manufacturing process, is quite effective, given the right type of company and activity to which it is assigned, but it is not a universal concept that can be applied h aphazardly to all processes and organizations.   For Steinway Sons, the essential question is whether or not the firm is a good candidate for Activity Based Costing.To answer the Activity Based Costing question for Steinway Sons in a few words, the firm should not utilize the practice.   The reasons why they should not are a bit more complex.   First, the Steinway Piano, even in standard models, is unique every time one is made because of the fact that the craftspeople who make them perform many of the crafting tasks by experience and instinct, rather than by machine and blueprint.   Second, because of this unique process of manufacturing, it is very difficult to quantify the actual amount of time and material that each process should take, thereby making activity based costing inexact and largely ineffective.Alternatives to Activity Based Costing-and ConsequencesWhile Steinway Sons appears to be ill suited to Activity Based Costing, there are also some factors that need to be understood which could complicate the use of traditional cost allocation.   Once again, because of the fluctuations in processing time, materials used, and so forth in the creation of a Steinway Piano, a caveat is offered in terms of traditional cost allocation.   The allocation itself must be performed not under the assumption that all costs, even in a unique process, will remain static; true, there are fixed costs that are static regardless of other factors, but to assume that all costs remain the same would be to invite disaster from several viewpoints.When costing calculations are flawed, there is a distinct possibility that the resulting pricing will in turn be incorrect.   If pricing is allowed to be incorrect, one of two things are likely to happen: either the product will be priced too low to cover costs and generate a suitable return on investment, or the price will be hyper-inflated to the point where the company literally prices itself out of business, as cons umers choose a lower priced alternative-even in the case of a top quality item like the Steinway Piano.   This is a financial balancing act, to be sure, but it can be done.SummaryIn closing, perhaps the best takeaway from this research is that in finance and accounting, there are some areas that are not absolute.   For Steinway, and other firms, the challenge will remain to be the proper accounting techniques to guarantee long term viability of the business and a bright future.References(Steinway   Sons, 2006) (Steinway Sons 2006 Factory Tour)Steinway Sons. (2006). A Factory Tour. Retrieved October 25, 2006, from Steinway Sons Web Site: http://www.steinway.com/factory/tour.shtml

Physical Sexual And Emotional Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay Essays

Physical Sexual And Emotional Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay Essays Physical Sexual And Emotional Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay Essay Physical Sexual And Emotional Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay Essay The slaughter of the inexperienced person is increasing each twenty-four hours, and the public witnesses the act, yet does non come to the assistance of the kids. Childs are being physically, sexually, and emotionally abused by both aliens and familiar faces. Obvious marks of maltreatment are shown, but some are excessively afraid to inform the constabulary section or other organisations that will maintain kids safe. This leads to emotional or physical harm to the kid, even decease. All maltreatment is non obvious to others unless they are a portion of the family. For those who survive maltreatment, non-profit organisations are at that place to assist them get the better of this test in their life. Non-profit organisations can assist forestall physical, sexual, and emotional kid maltreatment, or help a kid who has been abused in order to salvage them from psychological unwellness and jobs with society. The types of kid maltreatment in the universe today are physical, emotional, and sexual. Physical kid maltreatment is the 2nd most often reported signifier of kid maltreatment. It accounts for 25 per centum of all instances of kid maltreatment ( MedicineNet ) . Physical kid maltreatment is physical hurt inflicted upon the kid with barbarous and/or malicious purpose. Physical maltreatment can be the consequence of punching, whipping, kicking, biting, combustion, agitating, or harming a kid physically. ( MedicineNet ) Emotional kid maltreatment is the 3rd most often reported signifier of kid maltreatment. It accounts for 17 per centum of all instances of kid maltreatment ( MedicineNet ) . Emotional kid maltreatment includes Acts of the Apostless of committee or skip by the parents and other health professionals that could do the kid to hold terrible behavioural, emotional, or mental upset ( MedicineNet ) . In instances of emotional maltreatment, the Acts of the Apostless of parents, without any injury evident in the kid s behaviour or status, are sufficient to justify the intercession of kid protective services ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . An illustration of emotional kid maltreatment is when parents or health professionals use utmost signifiers of penalty, such as imprisonment of a kid in a dark cupboard. Another signifier of kid maltreatment is sexual kid maltreatment. Sexual kid maltreatment is a signifier of maltreatment in which an grownup or older stripling uses a kid for sexual stimulation. In the web article Child Abuse and Neglect: Recognizing and Preventing Child Abuse, it states that the types of sexual kid maltreatment contains indecorous exposure of the genitalias to a kid, exposing erotica to a kid, inquiring or coercing a kid to prosecute in sexual activities, irrespective if the act is completed or non, physical contact with the kid s genitalias, except during a medical test, sexual contact against a kid, screening of the kid s genital organ without physical contact, except during a medical test, or utilizing a kid to bring forth child erotica ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . These lay waste toing Acts of the Apostless may go forth the kid psychologically sick, physically injured, or dead. In order to forestall these state of affairss, information on the features of all three signifiers of kid maltreatment is needed. Common features of parents that physically abuse their kids are: holding low defeat tolerance, impaired rearing accomplishments, a sense of incompetency in parenting, a history of maltreatment, and unrealistic outlooks of kids. They besides express choler unsuitably and are isolated socially ( Fennell A ; Anne p.1 ) . In Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, Fennell and Anne give a quotation mark from Bredehoft, an person who describes the features of opprobrious parents. He states, A parent who comes from a dysfunctional household ; abuses drugs or intoxicant ; is intellectually low operation ; has emotional unwellness or important physical unwellness, history of illegal activities, matrimonial jobs, been investigated for kid maltreatment or disregard ; a kid with important behaviour jobs or wellness jobs ; inadequate support system for the household ; several immature kids in the place ; important fond regard jobs between the parent and the kid ; grounds of force i n the place ; and/or fiscal emphasis. This information is of import in order to try to forestall physical kid maltreatment. Without this cognition, the kid will endure. The longer the physical maltreatment continues, the more serious the effects will go. Child Abuse and Neglect: Recognizing and Preventing Child Abuse states, Short term effects of kid maltreatment include instantaneous hurting, agony and medical jobs in some instances, or even decease caused by physical hurt. Emotional effects besides are the effects of physical kid maltreatment. It includes choler, ill will, fright, anxiousness, humiliation, lowered self-esteem and inability to show feelings ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . Last, behavioural jobs are effects of physical kid maltreatment. Children become aggressive towards others or suicidal behaviours, overactive, enable to organize friendly relationships with equals and hapless societal accomplishments, and besides poorer cognitive and linguistic communication accomplishments than non-abused kids ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . The long term effects are what may take kids astray. Long term effects of kid maltreatment include physical and psychological jobs such as long term physical disablements. Examples are encephalon harm or oculus harm. Another long term affect would be disordered interpersonal relationships, for illustration, trouble swearing others within big relationships or violent relationships, a sensitivity to emotional perturbation, feelings of low ego regard, depression, an increased potency for kid maltreatment as a parent, and drug or intoxicant maltreatment ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . These effects will do the kid as an grownup to hold troubles in society. They are most likely to hold jobs with employment, have mental unwellnesss, commit offenses, and perchance go homeless. With intercession and placing the state of affairs the possibility that the high hazard of meeting these effects will diminish, and it will be easier for the kid to retrieve. Sixty-seven per centum of kids or striplings are 17 and under ( Prevent Child Abuse NY ) . In order to forestall sexual kid maltreatment, society must separate and respond upon the state of affairs. Sexual maltreatment does non ever occur upon contact. Exposing a kid to sexual state of affairss or stuff is sexual maltreatment. Many believe that misss are the lone gender at hazard of being sexually abused, but male childs are at hazard every bit good. Child sexual maltreatment is chilling, but it is even scarier to cognize that most sexual maltreatment is committed by grownups or older striplings that the kid knows and should be able to swear. For illustration, statistics show 93 per centum know their maltreater, 34 per centum abused are by household member, and 59 per centum are abused by person trusted by the household ( Prevent Child Abuse NY ) . Shame and guilt are the general effects of sexual maltreatment among kids. They frequently consider that in some manner they are responsible for the maltreatment. This can take to self-loathing and sexual jobs as they grow older. Children that are sexually abused are frequently either overly promiscuous or unable to hold intimate dealingss as an grownup ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . The shame of sexual maltreatment makes it really hard for kids to come frontward. They may worry that others will non believe them, will be angry with them, or that it will do struggle in their household. Because of these troubles, false accusals of sexual maltreatment are non common. In order to assist forestall sexual maltreatment, many organisations supply a list of warning marks. Prevent Child Abuse gives warnings of a sexually abused kid, Having problem walking or sitting, shows knowledge or involvement in sexual Acts of the Apostless inappropriate to his or her age, or even seductive behaviour, makes strong attempts to avoid a specific individual, without an obvious ground, does non desire to alter apparels in forepart of others or take part in physical activities, an STD or gestation, particularly under the age of 14, and runs off from place. ( Prevent Child Abuse NY ) Sticks and rocks may interrupt my castanetss but words will neer ache me. At a immature age many kids are taught this phrase in order to educate them non to be concerned with what others articulate. Contrary to this old expression, emotional maltreatment can badly damage a kid s mental wellness or societal development, go forthing wombs of emotional kid maltreatment are: Changeless denigration, shaming, and mortifying a kid naming names and doing negative comparings to others, stating a kid he or she is no good, worthless, bad, or a error, frequent shouting, endangering, or intimidation, disregarding or rejecting a kid as penalty, giving him or her the soundless intervention, limited physical contact with the kid, no clinchs, busss, or other marks of fondness, and exposing the kid to force or the maltreatment of others, whether it be the maltreatment of a parent, a sibling, or even a pet ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . Warning marks of emotional maltreatment consist of overly withdrawn, fearful, or anxiousness about making something incorrect, or demoing extremes in behaviour ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . For illustration, the kid will be highly obedient or highly demanding ; highly inactive or highly aggressive, does non look to be attached to the parent or health professional, and acts either unsuitably grownup, taking attention of other kids, or unsuitably childish are besides marks of emotional maltreatment ( Saisan, Smith, A ; Segal ) . Emotional Abuse earnestly interferes with a kid s cognitive, emotional, psychological or societal development. Douglas Besharov provinces in Acknowledging Child Abuse: A Guide for the Concerned, Emotional maltreatment is an assault on the kid s mind, merely as physical maltreatment is an assault on the kid s organic structure ( Besharov ) . Danya Glaser finds that emotional maltreatment can be more strongly prognostic of subsequent damages in the kids s development than the badness of physical maltreatment ( Glaser ) . Surveies have shown that an baby who is badly deprived of basic emotional nurturance, can neglect to boom and can finally decease. Babies with less terrible emotional want can turn into dying and insecure kids who are slow to develop and who have low self-prides. Although the seeable marks of emotional maltreatment in kids can be hard to observe, the concealed cicatrixs of this type of maltreatment grows in legion behavioural ways, such as insecurity, hapless self-esteem, destructive behaviour, angry Acts of the Apostless, backdown, hapless development of basic accomplishments, intoxicant or drug maltreatment, self-destruction, trouble organizing relationships and unstable occupation histories. Emotionally abused kids turn up believing that they are lacking in some manner. This will go a rhythm where the kid that was abused will mistreat their kid when they are older. Child maltreatment has increased over the old ages, and so hold the non-profit organisations to assist kids that have been abused. One such organisation is Kids In Total Health. This organisation was created, in 1995, by two female parents that realize the importance of assisting abused kids take back their childhood. This plan helps raise kids s ego regard and motivates them so that they have the tools to develop entire mental, emotional, and physical wellness. Their plans include gymnastic exercises, soldierly humanistic disciplines, guitar lessons, voice lessons, and summer cantonment. This organisation besides pushes persons to assist others that are abused by informing them so they are able to assist. Their mission statement is, Kids In Total Health ( KITH ) is giving abused kids back a piece of their stolen childhood, by allowing their wants. KITH offers plans that raise self esteem, helps to actuate the kid which gives them the tools necessary to develop entire mental, physic al and emotional wellness. As a charity we provide both fiscal and emotional support to the kid and households of abused kids, so that they may mend. KITH besides has a direct impact on the kid s ability to execute better in school, place, and in society. KITH is aiming our young person that needs a small something particular so that they someday can state I am non a victim, I am a subsister. This statement gives hope and encouragement to those who have been abused. It besides informs them that it is clip to take back their artlessness that was stolen from them long ago. During my research I came across narratives of kids being sexually, physically, and emotionally abused. In February 2009, a female parent in Dallas, Texas, was charged with disregard after her nine-year-old died from complications of diabetes after she failed to assist her manage her disease. In June 2008, a female parent in North Central Texas had her three kids taken off because of a instance of Munchausen syndrome by placeholder ( Iannelli ) . In January 2009, two parents in Dallas, Texas, were charged with mistreating their six-month-old baby so badly that he was in intensive attention and it was thought that he was non traveling to be able to retrieve. Besides a female parent s fellow was charged with the decease of her six-year-old boy ( Iannelli ) . In December 2008, a male parent was charged with the decease of his three-month-old baby who was found unresponsive, with bone breaks and liver lacerations ( Iannelli ) . February 2009, a male parent in Lodi, California, was charge d with physical maltreatment after a school employee noticed and reported Burnss on a six-year old pupil, which were thought to hold been inflicted by a apparels Fe. She had besides been beaten with a stick and her female parent was charged with child hazard. In the same month a female parent and her live-in fellow in Janesville, Wisconsin, were charged with maltreatment after repeatedly hitting her three-year-old girl to the point that she required exigency encephalon surgery. Besides is this month a fellow of a kid s female parent in Wilmington, Delaware, hit and killed a 16-month old miss because she would nt halt weeping ( Iannelli ) . In January 2009, in Fall River, Massachusetts, a female parent was charged with firing her four-year-old surrogate boy with a curling Fe, doing third-degree Burnss that required tegument transplant surgery ( Iannelli ) . These are merely a few narratives of kids being abused. In the universe today, some kid maltreatment goes unreported, and others are reported to late. Society is needed to halt kid maltreatment and salvage our artlessnesss. Maltreatment happens every twenty-four hours. The slaughter of the artlessness continues. There are non-profit organisations that are willing to assist kids in demand of love and attention, but without acknowledging the marks of maltreatment they are unable to assist. Even though I merely gave one organisation there are 1000000s out at that place such as: Rescue Me Service Center, Free Art for Abused Children, Bikers Against Child Abuse, and Dreamcatchers for Abused Children, and many more. Even though is highly hard to forestall maltreatment, it is non hard to assist a kid after that horrific act is over.