Impact Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Supporters of companies going public suggest that gaining additional capital is one of the benefits medium sized companies gain by going public. The rationale for going public is to float the shares of the company through the stock market by starting an initial public offer (IPO) inviting the public to purchase its shares and raise additional capital. Once the company has met all of the requirements for filing Security Stock and Exchange (SEC) they are in compliance with SOX.Under SOX section 404, requires all CEO and CFO to certify and report to the public the effectiveness of internal control over the financial statements. Secondly, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is another benefit accrued by a medium sized company by going public through publication of it information. Aside from profitability, corporate social responsibility aids company to position ineffective market-based solutions to social. By CSR redirect negative problems caused by corporate operations onto the consum er and protecting their interests while hampering efforts to find just and sustainable solutions.The rationale of publishing company information is to give the company a platform to state its willingness to take into consideration the stakes of all stakeholders involved in its financing and operations. This increases public confidence in the company. Going public also benefits a medium sized company by increasing its competitive advantage in the global market. Going public is a strategic objective by some medium sized companies to become competitively aligned. Finally, gain competitive advantage all through expanded capital base and improved public confidence.Create an argument that the same goals may be achieved if the company remains a privately held entity. Provide support for your answers The opponents of public listing held that a company can acquire the benefits of going public while still being private and more efficient. For instance, Leuz (2007) asserts that a company can g ain additional capital through borrowing loans from banks as opposed to going public. Corporate social responsibility can also be obtained even for privately owned companies that actively engage in community advancement programs.In this way, the company meets the requirements of its stakeholders without exposing itself to public scrutiny and retains its ability to maintain a competitive advantage through internal strengths and enhanced customer relationship management (Dolvin & Pyles, 2007). The opponents of going public also hold that a corporation can devise ways of being strategically aligned while retaining its private status. For instance, a private company can make objectives that are strategically aligned to its vision and mission and narrow its market niche to serve the needs of its customers.This can be achieved through strategies such as being the least cost provider for commodities or emphasizing unique customer experience through the provision of quality products. This d isqualifies the perception that a company can only gain competitive advantage by going public (Li, Morton & Sonja, 2008). When a company decides to go public, it can typically obtain capital by issuing stocks or bonds. Suggest four (4) leading financial rations that will be evaluated and how each will impact the company’s decision to obtain expansion funds. Determine whether the results of the ratios would alter the decision to go public.Financial analysis serves as both a control and planning tool. Aids in making important company decisions obtain expansion funds and also on the decision to go public or remain private. Liquidity ratio illustrates the ability of a company to pay its accrued debt in the short term. A company with high liquidity ratios is not advised to obtain expansion funds through debt since it cannot pay up the already accrued debt. It would be advisable for such a company to generate expansion funds by going public since this increases the equity ratio and reduces the debt and liquidity ratios (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).Activity ratio assesses the ability of the company to convert its assets to cash. When activity ratio is high, the company should go public since it already has liquid cash and needs to save up more of its finances through the floating of shares compared to borrowing cash. Profitability ratios assess the measures that organizations will use in making money. It mainly assesses the profitability of a company against the earnings ratio, and when this ratio is low, the company needs to remain private then go public since its profitability will not attract any investors (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).Debt ratio is aimed at assessing what amount of the company capital structure constitutes debt capital. Where the company has a lower debt ratio, it means that it has more of equity than debt, which is a good state in a company. In this case, the company can borrow debt capital or go public to gain more funds as it has a stron g debt ratio. That it is essential to analyze the financial ratios of a company prior to deciding, whether to obtain more funds by going public (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).By researching, the results of SOX compliance surveys assess the financial impact that SOX might have on your company if it decides to go public. Considering the impact SOX compliance, take a position as to whether your company can overcome the challenges posed by identifying the potential advantages and disadvantages that SOX may have on your company. SOX is a legal framework developed by the United States with the aim of increasing the accountability and transparency of listed companies, especially pertaining to the cost of going public.Transparency is one of the advantages gained by a medium sized company that uses SOX to go public. Structures put in place through SOX monitor the internal systems of the company, prevent failure, ensure accurate disclosures and improves the management of risk of the company. Th is enhances the transparency of the medium sized company and increases its credibility among the public and potential shareholders (Kaserer, Mettler & Obernberger, 2011). Going public with SOX also enhances the reliability of medium sized companies.The consumers and members of the public are able to predict the company’s behavior since the company publishes its accounts. Through transparency and improved public scrutiny, shareholders and other stakeholders such as customers are able to view the profit of the company, the prospectus and evaluate the ability of the company to meet their expectations in the future. The consumers can through public scrutiny develop confidence on the medium sized company going public via SOX, which increases customer base and profitability of the company (Litvak, 2007).Additionally, a medium sized company benefits from going public through SOX by enhancing investor confidence in the ability of the company to offer viable returns to investorsâ€⠄¢ investment. For example, an investor will be more confident in investing in a company that publishes its financial statements as a requirement of going public. This is because the investor will be able to view the profits of the company and its ability of the provide high returns on the investors capital. This benefits the company through investor loyalty and attracts more potential investors (Li, Morton & Sonja, 2008).Cost is one of the major negative impacts of SOX if a company goes public. For example, a company has to incur underwriting cost, which is a, direct cost for a company going public. The company going public under SOX also incurs indirect costs like under-pricing of its shares in the stock exchange (Wintoki, 2007). The Company also incurs legal cost since lawyers are needed to advise the company on legal consequences of going public. In most instances, the cost of a company going public through SOX outweighs the benefit of going public and may have adverse effects o n the company Leuz, 2007).Lack of secrecy is another adverse effect of a company going public through SOX. For example, a company that discloses its financial records risks sharing its strategic plans with its competitors, which robs the company the ability to remain competitive since its strategies and secrets are available for public scrutiny (Litvak, 2007). Moreover, involvement of external auditors is another adverse effect of SOX going public to medium sized companies. Example; prior to being private where a company would have just an internal auditor, a company that goes public also needs an external auditor to verify the internal systems of the Company.This further exemplifies the operations and the auditing costs of the company by going public as a report of the external auditor are more reputable compared to that of an internal auditor (Grifin & Lont, 2005). Make recommendation as the CEO regarding the alternative (i. e. , going public or staying private) that will best sup port the company’s expansion goals. As the Chief Executive Officer of a medium sized company, I recommend that the medium sized company should go public as this will support the company’s expansion goals.This is affirmed by the fact that going public fits into the strategic objectives of the company by being strategically aligned to gain competitive advantage. Although there are costs incurred during going public if the team is committed to the process and there are available resources to go public; economic feasibility evidences that the benefit of going public outweighs the risk and viable venture for any medium sized company. Moreover, though SOX has been challenged, the benefit that accrues to a medium sized company by going public affirms the rationale for a company to go public.

AIDS and YOU (May 1987) Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers

AIDS and YOU (May 1987) By Martin H. Goodman MD (this essay is in the public domain) Introduction: AIDS is a life and death issue. To have the AIDS disease is at present a sentence of slow but inevitable death. I've already lost one friend to AIDS. I may soon lose others. My own sexual behavior and that of many of my friends has been profoundly altered by it. In my part of the country, one man in 10 may already be carrying the AIDS virus. While the figures may currently be less in much of the rest of the country, this is changing rapidly. There currently is neither a cure, nor even an effective treatment, and no vaccine either. But there are things that have been PROVEN immensely effective in slowing the spread of this hideously lethal disease. In this essay I hope to present this information. History and Overview: AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Defficiency Disease. It is caused by a virus. The disease originated somewhere in Africa about 20 years ago. There it first appeared as a mysterious ailment afflicting primarily heterosexuals of both sexes. It probably was spread especially fast by primarily female prostitutes there. AIDS has already become a crisis of STAGGERING proportions in parts of Africa. In Zaire, it is estimated that over twenty percent of the adults currently carry the virus. That figure is increasing. And what occurred there will, if no cure is found, most likely occur here among heterosexual folks. AIDS was first seen as a disease of gay males in this country. This was a result of the fact that gay males in this culture in the days before AIDS had an average of 200 to 400 new sexual contacts per year. This figure was much higher than common practice among heterosexual (straight) men or women. In addition, it turned out that rectal sex was a particularly effective way to transmit the disease, and rectal sex is a common practice among gay males. For these reasons, the disease spread in the gay male population of this country immensely more quickly than in other populations. It became to be thought of as a "gay disease". Because the disease is spread primarily by exposure of ones blood to infected blood or semen, I.V. drug addicts who shared needles also soon were identified as an affected group. As the AIDS epidemic began to affect increasingly large fractions of those two populations (gay males and IV drug abusers), many of the rest of this society looked on smugly, for both populations tended to be despised by the "mainstream" of society here. But AIDS is also spread by heterosexual sex. In addition, it is spread by blood transfusions. New born babies can acquire the disease from infected mothers during pregnancy. Gradually more and more "mainstream" folks got the disease. Most recently, a member of congress died of the disease. Finally, even the national news media began to join in the task of educating the public to the notion that AIDS can affect everyone. Basic medical research began to provide a few bits of information, and some help. The virus causing the disease was isolated and identified. The AIDS virus turned out to be a very unusual sort of virus. Its genetic material was not DNA, but RNA. When it infected human cells, it had its RNA direct the synthesis of viral DNA. While RNA viruses are not that uncommon, very few RNA viruses reproduce by setting up the flow of information from RNA to DNA. Such reverse or "retro" flow of information does not occur at all in any DNA virus or any other living things. Hence, the virus was said to belong to the rare group of virues called "Retro Viruses". Research provided the means to test donated blood for the presence of the antibodies to the virus, astronomically reducing the chance of ones getting AIDS from a blood transfusion. This was one of the first real breakthroughs. The same discoveries that allowed us to make our blood bank blood supply far safer also allowed us to be able to tell (in most cases) whether one has been exposed to the AIDS virus using a

To Build a Fire and Young Goodman Brown Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

To Build a Fire and Young Goodman Brown - Essay Example Another interesting point is that Hawthorne makes sure to clarify that the journey which Goodman Brown makes into the forest is done at night and not during the day. If any trespasser were asked what comes to his mind with the thought of a dark forest, it can safely be assumed that by and large the first response would be related to the creepy feel that a dark forest exuberates. The dark forest sets the tone of the story and makes it clear to the reader from the start that what he is about to read is not a happily ending romantic novel or a light comedy, rather the dark thought provoking nature of the story comes across instantly. Therefore, the very first role played by the most predominantly used element of nature in the story, the forest, is to highlight the feel of the narrative and set the mood of the story. Time and again references have been made in the novel to the nature of the forest by the use of adjectives such as â€Å"gloomy,† â€Å"dark,† â€Å"silent,â €  â€Å"wilderness,† and so forth. ... As Goodman Brown continues with his journey in the forest he meets an old man, who has not been given a name but it appears to be obvious that Goodman Brown does know that he will be meeting this man and that the meeting was not a coincidence. The conversation between Goodman Brown and the old man revolves around the old man challenging Goodman Brown’s belief in the goodness of the people of the society and his father and grandfather. From this conversation it appears as though the old man represents the devil or the temptation that attracts man towards evil. Hawthorne makes it a point to specify that the â€Å"old† man is sitting under an â€Å"old† tree while waiting for Goodman Brown, so that the reader can instantly make the connection of the old man with evil because there is an inherent eeriness associated with old trees with their sagging roots. Furthermore, the stick which the old man is narrated to be holding is constantly compared to a black serpent as follows, â€Å"But the only thing about him that could be fixed upon as remarkable was his staff, which bore the likeness of a great black snake, so curiously wrought that it might almost be seen to twist and wriggle itself like a living serpent,† (Hawthorne, 8). Here we see another element of nature coming into play, the snake is said to be amongst the most venomous of all animals and the fact that the old man holds this stick with such comfort reflects on his association with evil. An interesting piece of conversation from the story is as follows, "Come, Goodman Brown," cried his fellow-traveler, "this is a dull pace for the beginning of a journey. Take my staff, if you are so soon weary,† (Hawthorne, 9), this suggestion of the old man to Goodman Brown can have

Increased Labor Demand and the Equilibrium Wage Essay

Increased Labor Demand and the Equilibrium Wage - Essay Example For example, in the given scenario, that the September 11th attacks on the United States altered the perceived need for a particular type of labor, to wit, security personnel, the relevant market shift is an increase in demand. Once the demand has increased, supply and demand are no longer balanced, and the market equilibrium is disrupted. To reset this balance, wage and the value of marginal production must also increase to the point where stability is again achieved. Simply put, and assuming that supply remains unchanged, the greater the demand for a particular type of labor, the greater the marginal value of a particular worker's product, and, thus, the greater must that worker's wage be to achieve market equilibrium. It is logical that the September 11th attacks created a greater demand for security personnel. Society became much more concerned with creating safe environments at locales such as airports, in airplanes, at events where large amounts of people congregate, and at globally-recognized structures.

What is the stated purpose of Canadian multicultural policy Has Essay

What is the stated purpose of Canadian multicultural policy Has multiculturalism been successful for whom - Essay Example This study now seeks to establish the stated purpose of the Canadian multicultural policy. It also seeks to answer whether or not multiculturalism has been successful, and if it has, for whom it has been a success. This study is being undertaken in order to establish a comprehensive understanding of Canada’s multicultural policy, including its impact and its implications in the current trends of globalization. The purpose of the multiculturalism policy of Canada is to â€Å"recognize and promote the understanding that multiculturalism reflects the cultural and racial diversity of Canadian society and that multiculturalism is a fundamental characteristic of the Canadian heritage and identity† (National Capital Commission, n.d, p. 1). In effect, the policy also aims to call on federal institutions to carry out their programs and projects in due consideration of multiculturalism; and to implement various activities with a modicum of sensitivity and in response to the multicultural setting of Canada (National Capital Commission, n.d). In more detail, the Canadian Multiculturalism Act sets forth that the Canadian government acknowledges and supports the fact that multiculturalism expresses the cultural and ethnic diversity of their society and recognizes the right of the people to preserve and share their heritage (Canadian Multiculturalism Act, 1988). Their policy also acknowledges and supports the understanding that multiculturalism is a major characteristic of Canada’s society and that it helps shape the future of Canadian society. The policy also supports the holistic and equal participation of the people from various ethnicities in all aspects of Canadian society, assisting them in eradicating barriers to participation (Canadian Multiculturalism Act, 1988). The purpose of the act is also to recognize that various

Other Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Other - Essay Example However, Tough’s portrayal of Geoffrey Canada’s passion to change the prevailing perspective that I share with millions of other people in America made me sit up in awe, curious to find out if his grand plans for Harlem’s children will work. His promising idea begins with very early interventions, even as early as from the womb, and to empower parents with the right skills to raise their children well. Canada is interested in combining educational, social, and medical services to help all children to grow up with the right foundations regardless of their family’s socio-economic status (4). He envisions that the only way to solve the problem of poverty in America is to â€Å"transform every aspect of the environment that poor children were growing up in; to change the way their families raised them and the way their schools taught them as well as the character of the neighborhood that surrounded them† (19-20). It would seem like a tall order, but com e to think of it, it does make sense to start a-fresh with people who are appropriately trained to combat poverty as they grow up to be intelligent, compassionate and productive citizens. My mindset before reading this book was that it is society’s fault that poverty is so widespread. The cause of the deterioration of morals is mainly due to people’s need to acquire their basic needs from a society that does not give them enough opportunities to live a high quality of life just because they are poor and uneducated. This book has caused in me a paradigm shift that problems should be addressed from the grassroots level, in this case, from childhood or earlier on. To be dependent on society or government would only be setting oneself for failure if one does not do anything out of his own initiative. Children should develop their skills early on so they can be self-reliant. Tough echoes this: â€Å"Skill begets skill; learning begets learning. Early disadvantage, if left

Jewish Marriage Ceremony Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Jewish Marriage Ceremony - Essay Example The Temple Executive Director handles a broad range of details and logistics. The director is well placed to offer answers to numerous questions in relation to the planning of the wedding ceremony. Further, the temple is also used as a wedding ceremony. Besides the temple, Jewish wedding ceremonies occur in other settings, such as hotels, gardens, and restaurants (Ahabah 4). Before the couples settle for a location outside the synagogue, they are required to consult with the Rabbi to be sure whether it would be suitable for them to travel to that place. According to Jewish customary laws, the Rabbi of the congregation where the wedding ceremony is taking place to officiate at the marriage ceremony. However, at Beth Ahabah, this procedure is a matter of policy (Ahabah 4). The couples are allowed to choose a different Rabbi to officiate for their marriage ceremony even though he is not affiliated with the location congregation. Before the actual marriage ceremony takes place, the bride and groom are required to discuss with the Rabbi many of the details surrounding the ceremony itself. Additionally, most of the families arrange rehearsal ceremonies to practice the recessional, professional, and the placement of people on the Bimah. Typically, a wedding florist, consultant, or photographer conducts the rehearsal. During the rehearsal ceremony, the Rabbi is not expected to attend. The rehearsal ceremonies are normally scheduled with the executive director and if they are held on Fridays, they must be conducted before 6 pm.