Mid term Questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Mid term Questions - Assignment Example The barrage of rumors in March, 2012 of an impending coup d’etat which flooded China’s blogosphere and convincingly reported gunshots and tanks in the streets of Beijing aptly exemplifies the extent of this cyber threat. According to Batchelor, Bobrowicz, Mackenzie and Milne (2012), the development can be dangerous and panic-inspiring when such information is created and disseminated by an individual of high social standing. In like manner, the extent of this danger is underscored by the fact that social networks are the very tools which were used for coordinating the Arab Spring. It is clear that some of the organizers of the Arab Spring may have been stationed outside target countries, but instead used the cyberspace to manipulate the conscience of the masses. Q. 2: The Future of P2P From a casual glance, the future of P2P file sharing program appears bleak, considering the fact that it is receiving tremendous levels of resistance from governments, international trade agreements and lobby groups. This resistance may call for the need to annul the use of P2P file sharing program and replace it with another one (Pankaj, Hyde and Rodger, 2012). However, P2P file sharing program may be compelled to exist in another format, without being faced out as a whole. There is veracity to the standpoint above because, totally facing out of P2P file sharing calls for the introduction of more and stronger restriction laws which may further bring constitutional problems (such as the contravention of the First Amendment to the US Constitution) which exceed piracy. Abdul-Rahman, Weiss and Santoro (2010) are poignant that it is inappropriate to use Napster’s failure to forecast P2P’s. This is because, unlike P2P file sharing system, Napster failed because of it had a centralized system which bundled unfiltered search engines with software which uploaded and downloaded data. Q. 3: Reasons for Facebook’s large User Base According to Robert Metcal f (born April 7, 1946), the value of a telecommunication network is proportional to the square of the number of users who are connected into that network. This is known as the Metcalf’s Law. DeJong (2012) links the widespread use of Facebook and the notoriety which Facebook enjoys, to Metcalf’s law. Herein, DeJong (2012) is categorical that the number of Facebook users increases, just as the value of a fax machine increases with the total number of machines in a network. Thus, Facebook enjoys an increasingly large and expansive population, simply because it has a greater number of users in the world of online social networks. Q. 4: On Second Life Being the Future It is clear that the future of Internet use and connections hold nothing promising for Second Life, due to a number of reasons. According to Mayer-Schonberger and Crowley (2006), some of these reasons include poor quality assurance, congestion and moral problems. As for quality assurance, it is known that Lind en Lab focused too much on the introduction of newer features to the production environment, in lieu of fixing long-term bugs which cause financial losses for Second Life users. It is against this backdrop that on April 30th, 2007, 700 frustrated Second Life users sent an open letter of protest to Linden Lab, highlighting their concerns over Second Life’s quality assurance. In another wavelength, it is widely known that Second Life has had serious setbacks stemming from congestion. This is because a single region hosted on a single CPU accommodates a limited

For the Research Assignment, you will compose a research project that Proposal

For the Assignment, you will compose a project that can be used as a springboard for your Capstone projects. Y - Research Proposal Example On the contrary, it has been widely been cited that oversees field experience encourages brain drain given that most managers and students get absorbed oversees after completing their studies given that there are better working conditions and better pay than it is the case in their home countries. This way, home countries end up losing skilled persons. This shows that international field experience does not add value on the overall managerial skills of managers as earlier thought but instead encourages brain drain. Conclusively, international filed experience has heavy financial impacts to students, as well as the company involved, it causes brain drain, and alters the overall character traits of good managers, therefore, it should be discouraged. In this context, this paper seeks to oppose the practice of sending managers and students oversees with a view that it impacts negatively rather than positively on business management. Introduction. The thesis indicates that there is a rela tionship between International Field Experience and Business Management. In this context, International Field Experience refers to situations in which students, or those in management positions explore studies oversees with a view to gain knowledge, skills and experience. ... Contrary to what is believed by many who apparently have been arm twisted to incline towards believing such studies, international field experience have more disadvantages than advantages and, therefore, they should not be encouraged. As research would have it, international field studies practically bear heavy burden to business organizations than it is thought. With, limited research conducted in support of discouraging international field experience on business management, it is an issue worth subjecting to scrutiny. For this reason, this paper proposes a study to investigate the pros and cons of international field experience with a view to oppose the practice of business organizations sending students oversees for studies. The thesis of this investigation is, therefore, that the International Field Experience bears heavy negative impacts on business management and it should be discouraged. Purpose of international field experience. This subject is of great importance in business management. Its main purpose has always been to enlighten managers a better view than it has erroneously been thought. Although, in the business students’ academic program, field experience plays a crucial role as it gives students a room for application of the knowledge gained while in the classroom, as well as giving students a chance to continue learning under a professional supervisor during the field work. It bears heavy cost to an organization and it encourages brain drain. The objective of the research. This is a research work that is set out to among other things achieve one key objective. Thus, the overarching objective was to find out supportive evidence for the negative impacts of international

Discuss what is the importance of sex education in early childhood Dissertation

Discuss what is the importance of sex education in early childhood (3-8 years) and what is parents' attitude and teachers toward - Dissertation Example Education related to sex is for mounting youthful proficiencies so that they formulate knowledgeable preferences about their activities, and sense assurance and familiarity about performing on these options. It is extensively established that children possess right to be educated about their body and also should be imparted sex education as it is a method that aids them to safeguard and protect self in opposition to mistreatment, utilization, unplanned pregnancies, or from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), HIV and AIDS. By imparting sex education, they are empowered to discuss issues influencing them, they do possess right get their requirements meet up, also assist these children to take pleasure and in understanding sexuality as well as their affiliations (Sex Education That Works). Apart from family atmosphere and preaching, school atmosphere plays an essential role in educating students about sexuality. Some schools educate their students about the subject as they are well eq uipped and feel it is necessary for the child development, while other schools never like to handle the subject (Kirby, 1999). Humans have developed a society with different temperaments, perplexing environment of varying morals, contentment seeking and progressiveness and open-minded attitudes. It is observed that children are coddled in adult sexual performance enhancing the rate of divorces between couples. This is tragic for the children as they are being pulled by their parents (Ketterman, 2007). According to Wight and Abraham (2000), it is necessary to develop sex education on the basis of theoretical knowledge. This programme is undergoing controlled research trial in UK. Wight and Abraham (2000) further state that it is difficult to translate research based conclusions drawn regarding imparting sex education into acceptable, replicable and potentially effective classroom lessons. It is imperative to incorporate the theoretical ideas with high precision and care to create an awareness in the classroom culture. It is evident that every teacher has a different skill to teach and the incorporated information must be explicit enough to be transmitted in the manner and procedure it should be (Wellings,, 2001). It is essential to have the appropriate directions to safeguard the children and future generations from any kind of mishap (Ogunjini, 2006). Sex education is required to develop a healthy approach as well as to afford the budding minds with a vision and an outlook so that the mistakes that were done in the past could not be repeated. The mistake encompassed the birth of AIDS and STDs, had sex education would have gained magnitude in the past and concern about educating individuals would have been started a few dreaded diseases could have been prevented (Ketterman, 2007; Bryan, 1996). According to Eyre and Eyre (1999), children must be educated in an explicit manner about the sex and sexuality. It is essential for them to have complete information and it is always better to start early as soon as the child is three years of age and till the child is eight, the child must be able to be aware about many things in life and should grasp the situations, happenings going around. Sexuality begins at birth. As soon as the child is born everyone likes to know- "a boy or a girl?" Children are classified by their gender and thus they learn to discriminate between

Relocating a Hamptons Store Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Relocating a Hamptons Store - Essay Example Early Planning The following discussion evaluates the plans that Hamptons on High Street has to moving to an existing building in order to take advantage of a better location with higher visibility and more space for inventory as it is received, stored, and put out onto the floor. This evaluation will provide context for the ways in which construction issues are addressed, providing charts and potentials for the project in an examination of the management of the build. One of the most important parts of creating a project of the size of refitting a building in order to move the Hamptons store to a better location is fully organising the project and planning for unexpected delays in order to best utilize the time that is available so that contingency plans can mitigate risks. Through an evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the plan, the project appears to be an advantage to the store and well planned. 1.1 Ghant Chart The following chart provides for the established schedule f rom the week of February 13, the date the building contractor will have access to the building, to the end of the project. The organisation of the build has been determined by information gathered by Tony Peterson is Technical Co-ordinator for Construction Services in the Store Development Group. The problem with the build schedule is that a great deal is riding on the accomplishment of all of the electric and mechanical within the first week of construction, which does not allow much time for issues that may arise that could delay the project (see Figure 1). A better solution would be to overlap some of the processes so that there is time to make sure the build can be accomplished through a more balanced program. Figure 2 shows a revised chart that can provide for some time allowances for issues as they arise. Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Electric    Mechanical    Sprinkler Services    CCTV    Design Features                Ceiling Grid             F looring                Equipment                Doors    Refrigeration    Dressing       Figure 1 Tony’s Estimation of Construction In the revised version, the electric and the mechanical work are given two weeks, the allowance of extra time actually allowing for the probable occasion of problems that might delay the work. Through positioning the CCTV and the Sprinkler Services in the second week, the first week of construction is allowed open for the electric and mechanical, the goal of being prepped for those two installations in the first week providing for appropriate time to anticipate what might go wrong. Equipment and flooring should overlap as some will be placed before the flooring is done, and other would be placed after the flooring is done. In addition, in providing for two additional weeks, design changes as problems arise in relationship to the fact that this is a refit. Although previous planning can avoid most problems, it is likely that some will occur as reworking the existing building progresses. Although the build has been determined through an existing plan this might allow for more risk management where certain more unpredictable concepts are considered. However, budgetary concerns must also be taken into consideration. Week 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Electric       Mechanical       Sprinkler Services    CCTV    Design Features                Ceiling Grid       Flooring                Equipment                Automatic Doors    Refrigera

Plato on reality and the soul Essay Example for Free

Plato on reality and the soul Essay Socrates believed that the soul is pure and the body is corrupted, where wisdom is accounted for the soul and needs, thus the materialistic and carnal desires are to the body. Plato’s Phaedo discussed in the world of forms. Any entity or object has a quality or feature or multiple properties. And these properties are prior conditioned to the soul. Plato’s metaphysics can be drawn primarily from the influence of his teachers Paramenides, Heraclitus, and of course Socrates. First, the concept from Parmenides’ belief that there could be only one being, and this is a never changing entity. It has a static quality. This is where Plato derived his concept of the world of forms. It is a different concept in the material world wherein it is an always changing world. Change can be accounted as the only thing common and the only thing consistent as Heraclitus described the notion of â€Å"flux†. Academicians account that most of Plato’s thinking was influenced by Socrates. Socrates however was not at all articulate in conveying a Metaphysical or Epistemological discussion; rather, he conveyed more ethical notions. For Socrates, The idea is for one to take care of the soul so one can be happy, or attain the truth. This is especially true and evident in the Phaedo where Plato accounts the last hours before Socrates separated his soul from the body. Plato’s Metaphysics can be analyzed as a completion of that of Socrates’. The notion of the world of forms or the world of ideas is an eternal and immovable form. In contrast to this world is Chaos or the world of objects which receives the form. For example, an artist created a vase; the material form of this object is only a receiver or only partakes into the idea of the vase. The object is thus not a perfect representation of the real idea of the vase. The two worlds are joined together which infuses the soul and makes possible to Heraclitus’ idea of the visible world. The world of forms can be stated as perfect and the world of objects as an approximation of it. This meant that men strive to achieve it but fall short of achieving such perfection because the body is corrupted. Forms are independent and the world of objects is dependent to forms because they seek to compare to the perfect image. But because the senses are blurred they can never be perfect. It is also evident this pattern of ideas based on Socrates. Plato points out that a man seeks for the truth and in this speculative journey makes a man better and in turn achieve good. Another evident notion of this is in discussing perfect equality. When you look at perfect equality, you notice that it is not perfectly equal. There and then we can suppose that the idea of this equality had been existent to the soul prior to the unison of it with the body. This intensifies the ideas that the soul existed before the body. However, once the soul was united with the body, the soul’s knowledge of ideas falls into the subconscious. During sleep, man reminisces and recognizes the world of Ideas and thus there is realization. The soul from the moment it unites with the body recognizes an irrational soul that is derived from the corruption of the material world, dissatisfaction and the seeking of pleasure. This soul is situated in the heart. The soul that comes from the world of Forms is situated in the head, on top of the irrational soul, controlling its impulses and conditions the body to live within the confines of reason. Plato in his writings in the Republic described that the end result of an individual in the Good. In his society (or the republic), he stated that this is the final goal of everyone and it is not just a reward. A just man, one of Plato’s virtues, is rewarded not only in this lifetime but until one is reincarnated. This eminent idea that the soul preexisted before the body in the world of forms and its separation of the soul to reach the world of forms represents how the soul is immortal. For Plato, there is a division between the world of forms and the world of objects. In his analogy of the sun, he contrasted the two as those that are merely visible and those of intellectual value. He further explains this through the analogy of the line. Plato described four forms of knowledge. One is of the idea of pure images, dreams and imaginations. In account to the concept of the soul, as discussed earlier, the soul in the preexistence of the body originally comes from the world of Forms. Once the soul infuses with the body, all its knowledge of the world of forms becomes part of the subconscious. Through dreams and the imagination, which is a process of the head, the seat of the rational soul, it recounts and reminisces the truths in the world of forms. The next is the perception of sensible objects that gives attribute and judgment to visible materials. We imply that a certain item has such an attribute but it can change in another similar form. Another one is of mathematical knowledge which is not a perfect knowledge and one of philosophical knowledge that explains more the ideas as eternal and absolute realities. The four types of knowledge can be condensed into two more specific forms. The first two can be accounted as opinions for the things in which we perceive through sensing may look like such in one way and different in another. Another one is called understanding, in which the realities of these objects can or cannot be. It is a more logical, scientific knowledge. The idea of the soul reaching the world of forms is from an inferior to a superior level and its main goal is to reach that state where happiness exists. In the world of objects, there is always dissatisfaction. He further illustrates his ideas through the cave. He stated that the world the secludes us is an illusion to what is the truth, once we step out of the cave we get blinded by the light but as we refocus and look not into the reflections and shadows, but the real perfect forms,we see the truth and the real objects. This process of release from the cave to the outside world represents enlightenment, which in the case of Socrates’ beliefs is the separation of the soul to the body, to attain the truth. In Phaedo, Socrates sums up these arguments and philosophical intertwines by pursuing death himself. According to Socrates, the only way for one to attain the truth from all the imitations and corruptions of the material world is through death. One should never be afraid of something that would give enlightenment. Man should even welcome it when the time arrives. The world of objects prohibits a man to philosophize, thus he has a hard time attaining this virtue of justice and good. There are various distractions that hinder man to the truth. Death for Socrates is the liberation of the soul. Death is also not merely a separation of the soul and body. It is a process and an end state that progresses to achieve the truth. Dissatisfactions, pleasures, emotions inhibit the call of reason and wisdom thus inhibiting philosophy. This separation is an ultimate embrace to the truth until the time comes when the soul unites with a body as an incarnate. Plato ultimately bridges the connection between the soul and the world of forms. As is reiterated, the ultimate goal of man is good, happiness and wisdom. These ideas or forms are not of existence in the world of objects. The world of objects, are perceived representations of man through various forms of knowledge, (of opinions and of logical knowledge). The objects man builds are imitations, thus they are not perfect. Man has a perception of what is perfect because the rational soul is of prior existence in the world of forms. The world of objects cannot be perfect and man cannot be happy because the human body is predisposed to various entanglements with pleasures, emotions, diseases, and imperfections. Philosophers are to accept death for it liberates man from the soul. The soul has its ultimate goal in essence is to go back to the world of forms. In that way he would be able to attain good.

The History Of Public Relations Worldwide Media Essay

The History Of Public Relations Worldwide Media Essay Public Relations have come a long way all around the world (Lee Johnson, 2005). The term public relations was first used by Dorman Eaton in 1882 (Smith, 2010), when he addressed Yale Law school graduates on the The Public Relations of the legal profession. He used the term to refer to an organisations role in serving the public welfare. But actually, public relations go back even further. It is believed that it has existed in the Antiquity. The Greeks called it semantikos meaning semantics which they defined as how to make people believe things and do things. Another example of public relations is in the Ancient Rome when Julius Caesar wrote the first campaign biography, to convince the Roman he would make the best head of state. Certainly during the early of the twentieth century public relations became more significant. In fact, in 1903 Ivy Lee distinguished himself as the first public relations counselor. Wikipedia states that he is among the founding fathers of public relations. He was a counselor to governments and railroads. One of his famous clients was D.Rockefeller (Smith, 2010). Lee believed that public relations should be about: Telling the truth Providing accurate fact The public relations director must have access to top management and must be able to influence decisions Another founding father that marked the history of Public relations is Edward Bernays, student and nephew of Sigmund Freud ( Wikipedia).In 1918, he advised the President of Czechoslovakia to announce Independence on a Monday rather than on a Sunday, to get maximum press coverage. In 1923, Bernays published Crystallizing Public Opinion, (Smith, 2010) in which he established several public relations principles. He said that public relations had these functions include: To interpret the client to the public, which means promoting the client To interpret the public to the client, which means operating the company in such a way as to gain the approval of the public He also advised public relations professionals to seek out group leaders and other key communicators (opinion leaders), who would be able to pass along ideas to other members of the public. Other Bernays concepts were: Public relations is a public service It should promote new ideas and progress Public relations should build a public conscience Some other public relation pioneers are Elmer Davis, who was a former journalist during World War 2. He coordinated public information from the military and also mobilized public support for the war effort in order to decrease the enemys moral. Pendleton Dudhey was also a pioneer of public relations consultant. In 1909, he opened an agency. He emphasized a lot of the public information model of public relations (Smith, 2010) Later in 1957, Anne Willian Wheaton became the associate press secretary to American President Dwight Eisenhower. Her appointment called attention on the growing role of women in public relations (Smith, 2010). Definition of Public Relations Public relations is defined as being aspect of communications that involves promoting a desirable image for a person or group seeking public attention in the Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. It also states that the purpose of Public relations is to generate good news, be cautious about what to print or to broadcast, to forestall bad news and analyse the situation, minimize the damage and provide the media with information in moments of crisis. The Barrons Marketing Dictionarys definition goes further by adding that apart from seeking understanding, Public relations also seek acceptance from the public and is about building a sympathetic relationship with the latter, and that it is more concerned about issues rather than products or services. The Marketing Dictionary also states that employees, investors, voters are not to be forgotten when building relationships. Grunig and Hunt support these statements by saying that PR is the management of communication between an organization and the public. Rubel (2007), further elaborates that some of the PR activities are to speak at conferences, to deal with the media, to defend the reputation of an organization, to communicate to the employees, and to engage in social media. Phillips and Young (2009), agree with the fact that the engagement in social media forms part of Public relations since they say that communication tools like personal computers, mobile phones, video game consoles can be used for interactive communication and can thus be used for Interactive Public Relations. In contrast to these statements, the World Assembly of Public Relations Associations perceives PR as an art and a social-science which analyse trends, forecast their consequences, provide organizational leaders with advice, and implement planned programs of action which will be beneficial to the organization and the public. Objectives of Public relations As per the statement in the Reference of Business, to bring forth, sustain and defend the image and reputation of a company, are some of the main objectives of Public relations. It also claims that a companys reputation does have an effect on the consumers buying behaviour and consequently affects the sales and revenue. Other goals which it puts forward are, to generate relationships with the employees, the stockholders and investors, the media and the community. Furthermore, there is the aspect of providing the publics with information about a company or its new legislations, or even educating them about the uses of a product. These points are elaborated in knowthis.com where it is said that PR tools such as newsletters, websites and so on can be used to educate the audiences about products and services and that the objective of Public relations can also be to reinforce a brand by building positive relationships with the publics and enhance the image of the company, because this can prove to be helpful especially in moments of crises. Moreover, it supports the idea that Public relations can help increase sales by stating that a good news release can stimulate demand, thus increasing sales. Advantages of Public relations When it comes to the advantages of Public relations, it can be noticed that credibility is a recurrent word. In an article on Drypen, it is said that one of the advantages of Public relations is that it nurtures credibility, unlike advertising. Which implies that the publics are apt to believe in a news release published in the newspaper or in a magazine but, on the other hand, will be quite sceptical about the advertisement of a product in the newspaper or in a magazine. On top of that, PR messages are viewed as news providing detailed information about a product and are more likely to attract the audiences attention. It is also mentioned that Public relations cost much less than advertising and can be more effective, in the sense that, it can be used to reach small market segments, especially for companies with financial problems. Another advantage is that it helps an organization establish a good image which can be of great help to the latter in case of crisis. Knowthis.com furthe r adds that it may happen that other media pick up an article about a company and contributes in spreading the news to different locations. Disadvantages of Public relations One of the disadvantages stated on TutorsOnNet.com is that there may be distortion of information, in the sense that, the company may be deceived with the end result due to the fact that some information written in the draft have been modified in order to suit the news story and other features in the newspaper. Another disadvantage is that, there is the possibility of the public not being interested in the news release because of some other, more serious news such as war, disasters, crime and so on. On knowthis.com, it is also mentioned that, PR campaigns may not necessarily bring high return on promotional expense, especially if the news media does not consider it important or worth running a story brought forth by a company. Moreover, the fact that the impact of traditional news outlets is decreasing, professionals in the Public relations field are compelled to look for new means to attain the target markets. Advantages of In-House Public relations In a research on the Public relations industry, it is said that, some advantages of in-house PR are that it operates on a full-time basis. Thus the PR officer and other staffs in the PR department are able to dedicate much time working on a PR campaign unlike agencies which have to deal with different clients. Another advantage is that the PR officer can be quickly informed about changes or any other information regarding Public relations since the latter is an integral part of the organization. Moreover, there is the aspect of value for money, in the sense that, the PRO can easily have access to research materials, videos, photographic library of the company, which can be used when working on the house journal or even when dealing with the media, thus working economically. PR department initially cost a lot as compared with consultancy fees, but in the long term, it is greater value for money. Disadvantages of In-House Public relations As stated in the study on the Public relations industry, one of the main disadvantages of in-house PR is the lack of impartiality, training and experience. In an article on issuesinimc.wikispaces.com, it is said that, when it comes to in-house PR, there is the risk of the PR manager bringing some elements of bias in favour of the company. It also adds that it is difficult for managers to train employees from different branches if ever a company has many branches, thus resulting in lack of training. According to Jefkins (1993), PR managers being considered as experts in their field, consequently possess a limited public relations experience, that is, they do not have much knowledge of the general public relations practices. Advantages of Public relations Consultancy On careerride.com, it is said that, one of the advantages of PR consultancy is that it cost less. In addition to that, PR consultancy organizations have a wider experience of the general public relations practices and on top of that, they are more familiar with the media and have good media relations, issuesinimc.wikispaces.com. The article on the Public relations industry also includes the fact that external PR consultancy being an independent organization, will not bring elements of bias. Disadvantages of Public relations Consultancy The disadvantage which is stated on careerride.com is that PR agencies deal with several different clients and not only one client and is therefore not available full time. They may also find it difficult to cope with the companys internal culture. In the Public relations industry study, the disadvantage which is stated is the lack of relationship intimacy and that they have to be loyal to different companies at the same time. The article on issueinimc.wikispaces.com, also include the issue of remoteness of the agency from the company. Definition of Litigation PR Litigation public relations  is the management of the announcement process  during the course of any legal dispute so as to influence the outcome or its impact on the clients overall  reputation (Haggerty, 2003). Background study Petitioners and prosecutors have extensively used mass media to get their part of the story out to the public, but the formal practice of litigation PR, a sub-specialty of crisis communication, first appeared in the early 1980s. Since then, the need for litigation PR has grown immensely as media exposure of court cases and the law has increased. Most parties to a lawsuit have important interests that expand beyond legal concerns. Negative publicity about a litigant can cause damage to an individuals reputation that a courtroom win years later may not salvage. Thus, parties to cases, whether civil or criminal, cannot disregard the impact of negative publicity on public opinion (Reber, Gower, Robinson, 2006). Basic Concepts of Litigation Public Relations- The First Concept-Litigation PR  is to influence the outcome of the court case by encouraging early or favorable arrangement or by pressuring the tribunal into bringing lesser or no chargers (Haggerty, 2003). The Second Concept-Litigation PR  is to protect the clients reputation before and during the trail. In this regard, litigation PR is similar to reputation management. Reputation management is about managing public opinion of an organization or individual. It is about attitude toward the individual and not knowledge itself. An essential aspect of reputation management is influencing attitude about the individual and corporation, which can encourage positive foundation to the benefit of the organization (Haywood, 2002). Litigation PR and Media Coverage Litigation PR on the part of defendants is needed, especially in high-profile cases because the media have unnatural bias in favor of plaintiffs and prosecutors. When allegations are made public, the media tend to cast the lawsuit in terms of victim versus villain. News stories regularly lead with the plaintiff or prosecutors allegations. If the defendants responses are included at all, they appear well into the story. Thus, the defendant is forced on the defensive from the outset. In such situation, working with the media to create more balanced, accurate, and less sensational coverage of a lawsuit is necessary element in defending high profile defendants (Hantler, Schwartz, Goldberg, 2004, p.  8). Fitzpatricks Six Objectives of Litigation Public Relations 1. Counteracting negative publicity. 2. Making a clients viewpoint known. 3. Ensuring balanced media coverage. 4. Helping the media and the public understand complex legal issues. 5. Defusing a hostile environment. 6. Helping resolve the conflict (Fitzpatrick, 1996). To achieve those objectives, the first step is to establish reliability with the media as an information source. The next step is to manage the flow of information to the media so that the right message gets out. The third step is to develop a message that supports the clients position and get that message out to the media and the public (Fitzpatrick, 1996, Haggerty, 2003, Reber, Gower, Robinson, 2006). Differences between Litigation PR and Other PR Practices Litigation PR is highly dependent on the media. Although the practice of PR involves far more than just mediated communication, litigation PR remains dependent on the media. It is because of the medias increased attention to lawsuits that litigation PR has become a necessity for many high profile clients (Gibson, 1998). Because typical public relations campaign strategies and tactics may not be appropriate and may even be harmful at certain times during a lawsuit, the legal tactic must take procedure (Schweitzer, 2003). Litigation PR is more regulated than regular public relations because of the potential to prejudice the legal process (Gibson, 1998). Litigation PR is directed with the emphasis of one-way, irregular communication. Because the law is adversarial in nature, creating a win-lose situation, the goal of litigation PR is to strengthen the legal strategy and theory of the case to make sure a win and to diminish damage to the organizations credibility and reputation (Reber, Gower, Robinson, 2006). Public Relations (PR) Strategies Public Relations involve an array of programs designed to maintain or augment a companys image and the products and services it offers. Successful implementation of an effective public relations strategy can be a vital element to a marketing plan (Berry and Wilson, 2000). In public relations practice, strategy typically refers to the overall concept, approach, or general plan for the program designed to achieve a goal (Cutlip, 2006). A public relations (PR) strategy may play a key role in an organizations promotional strategy. A planned approach to leveraging public relations opportunities can be just as important as advertising and sales promotions (Berry and Wilson, 2000). According to Lages and Simkin (2003), plans give focus and direction to every strategy. Smith (2008) highlighted the point that careful planning leads to programs that are proactive and preventative, rather than to activities that are merely reactive and remedial. So, in order to ensure the success of Strategic Public Relations Planning, Cutlip et al (2003) proposed the four-step problem solving process. PUBLIC RELATIONS STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS Four-step Process Strategic Planning Steps and Program Outline ______________________________________________________________________________ Defining the Problem 1. The Problem, Concern, or Opportunity Whats happening now? 2. Situation Analysis (Internal and External) What positive and negative forces are operating? Who is involved and/or affected? How are they involved and/or affected? ______________________________________________________________________________ Planning and Programming 3. Program Goal What is the desired solution? 4. Target Publics Who-internal and external-must the program respond to, reach, and affect? 5. Objectives What must be achieved with each public to accomplish the program goal? ______________________________________________________________________________ Taking Action and Communicating 6. Action Strategies What changes must be made to achieve the outcomes stated in the objectives? 7. Communication Strategies What message content must be communicated to achieve the outcomes stated in the objectives? What media best deliver that content to the target publics? 8. Program Implementation Plans Who will be responsible for implementing each of the action and communication tactics? What is the sequence of events and the schedule? How much will the program cost? ______________________________________________________________________________ Evaluating the Program 9. Evaluation Plans How will the outcomes specified in the program goal and objectives be measured? 10. Feedback and Program Adjustment How will the results of the evaluations be reported to program managers and used to make program changes? Major Public Relations Tools According to Kotler and Armstrong (2007), there exist various tools that can be used in the practice of public relations. One of the major tools is news whereby PR professionals find or create favourable news about the company and its products or people. They argued that news stories can sometimes occur naturally, and at times the PR person can suggest events or activities that would create news. They mentioned that Speeches can also create product and company publicity and that increasingly, companies are giving talks and speeches at trade associations or meetings for building companys image. Another common PR tool is special events which ranges from news conferences, press tours, grand openings, star-studded spectaculars, or educational programs designed to reach and interest target publics (Kotler and Armstrong, 2007). Also, public relations people prepare written materials to reach and influence their target markets. These materials include annual reports, brochures, articles, and company newsletters and magazines. Audiovisual materials, such as films, slide-and-sound programs, DVDs, and online videos are being used increasingly as communication tools. Corporate identity materials can also help create corporate identity that the public immediately recognizes. Logos, stationery, brochures, signs, business forms, business cards, buildings, uniforms, and company cars and trucks all become marketing tools when they are attractive, distinctive, and memorable (Kotler and Armstrong, 2007). Trends in Public Relations Interactive public relations use internet technologies and tools such as search engine, Web 2.0 social bookmarking, new media relations and social media marketing to allow firms circulate information without relying only on conventional publications and communicate directly with the public, existing and potential customers. It is sometimes called social PR which comprises of a combination of search-optimizing press releases, creating social media releases through tools like Pitch Engine and blogger outreach to promote company news and announcements. Even though press releases were distributed online for more than a decade, its only in the last few years that tools and techniques for combining PR with social media have really emerged, and they continue to evolve. It incorporates all forms of communication and is not solely limited to online press releases and bloggers, but instead uses every element of building relationships while maintaining the significance of the spoken word. Social Media It is mostly talked trend in the public relations industry. PR professionals are communications specialists, and blogs, forums, online video and social networking offer the ability to communicate more affordably and efficiently than ever before. Social media channels give PR expert the possibility to gain access to consumer opinions and behavior. Online Press Releases Newsrooms Press release purpose is changing and it is written with keyword-rich content and distributed with the only aim of better optimizing sites for search engines. The formatting and functionality of press releases and online newsrooms are evolving to integrate social bookmarking, video, blogs, podcasts and RSS feeds. Social Bookmarking Social bookmarking is a method for Internet users to organize, store, manage and search for bookmarks of resources online. Basically the file is not shared but they are bookmarked to refer later on. Social bookmarking sites such as Digg, Del.icio.us and Reddit have changed the way PR consume and share news. Search Engine Optimisation Search engine optimisation has aim to guide and improve website rankings on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, or MSN Search. In order to optimise web pages, different methods can be used such as using keywords in the HTML coding, Meta and Title tags, and also Alt tags on images. Good design and easy navigation in the website also helps to optimise it for search engines. However it could be argued that there are some flaws with SEO. There is always the chance of getting too much business. A company with a highly successful website may find that business is moving faster than they can cope. With something such as pay per click advertising, it would be easy to turn off or remove the advertisements, but it wouldnt be as simple to remove a whole website in order to slow down sales. Social networking Social networks are websites that enable individuals to interact with one another via the internet. It allows its users to use this platform to gain interest from web users on a professional or social basis. These websites allow people to not only get to know one another but to also share Photos, music, view TV clips, messages and blogs. In this way Social networks are used by companies in order to promote their brands or products to the public or for general use and as a way of making friends. Examples of social networking platforms are Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Foursquare, etc. These are all online tools companies can use to get more in touch with their customers, create a more personified brand image, and share information about the firm. Sending press releases. Though tied to PR for the past few decades, this is also used in marketing. Press releases are great ways to alert people of new things happening, and great ways to pitch the media. Having a blog. If companies would rather not pitch the media and communicate with their customers through this and social networking, blogs can be a great outlet for information sharing. Hosting forums, chats, chatrooms, etc. This is a means to provide a way for customers to contact you with complaints, concerns, questions, etc. Customers will talk about you anyways, and with the availability of places for them to do so, they have no reason not to. Being more personable. This can be hard to fake, so it takes actual effort, time, and energy. The company needs to utilize the tools above and actually be available and accessible. Going above and beyond expectations. This is something used in customer service, but in PR, you can do the same thing. Customers are used to companies doing the minimum to satisfy their needs, but satisfying and creating loyal customers are very different tasks. RSS Feeds RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds, is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works-such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video-in a standardized format. They are very efficient tool to monitor regularly updated online content, such as: blogs, news headlines, forum posts and podcasts. RSS feeds give PR specialist the ability to consume and filter massive amounts of information and news from mainstream and social media sites. Its reader checks the users subscribed feeds regularly for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor and read the feeds. RSS allows users to avoid manually inspecting all of the websites they are interested in, and instead subscribe to websites such that all new content is pushed onto their browsers when it becomes available. PR 2.0 PR 2.0 makes use of a combination of social media tools that are available to communications expert to attain and better communicate directly with consumer audiences and influencers. Social Media is a way that allows audiences to drive the communication in their communities. PR expert are starting to incorporate PR 2.0 into their strategy and planning as an effective way to communicate directly to Web 2.0 audiences so as to raise awareness and increase brand awareness. Nowadays these tools are available to reach the audiences who want to control their own communication to know about different brands. Web 2.0 technology combined with an audiences desire to build and share content has transformed the PR industry. PR Podcasts, Vidcasts and Webcasts Podcasts, vidcasts and webcasts are three effective tools available to PR professional whose job is to get the company news to the targeted audiences. Podcasting involves recording to a digital file that can be distributed over the net using syndication feeds for playback on a computer, MP3 player or iPod. Vidcasting is a video-on-demand video clip delivered to computers and can be downloaded and watched at the viewers convenience. Webcasts differ from podcasts and vidcasts in that they can either be live or recorded. Webcasting can be thought of as broadcasting via the Internet.

Study On A Paperless System Information Technology Essay

Study On A Paperless System Information Technology Essay Many organizations, in an effort to increase their effectiveness and efficiency in order to develop competitive advantages in their marketplace, are eager to develop information technology on their business systems. The age of information technology provides possibilities for an effective coordination of business process. Different partners and parties transact electronically in the modern commerce environment and this creates a push factor for accounting and auditing systems to convert into paperless forms as well. Over the last decade, climate change became one of the top key concerns for all countries. More and more nations are concerned with the sustainability of the worlds environment and are trying to contribute by various policies such as reducing their carbon footprints, conserving on resources, building greener environments and preserving wildlife habitats. The challenge is to maintain economic growth without threatening the long term survival prospects of mankind. One of the key issues with regards to the environment is deforestation. Food and Agricultural Senior Forestry Officer, Dieter Schoene, said, at a United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change workshop in 2006, that We are working to solve two of the key environmental issues deforestation and global warming at the same time The removal of trees causes many problems including destruction of natural habitat and damage to our atmosphere. One reason for deforestation is the production of paper. Paper pulp is made of wood. Paper production accounts for about a large percentage of felled trees, and thus paper conservation has been a key concern for the world with plenty of researchers, conservation groups, campaigns and initiatives with the aim of reducing paper usage. A typical sale transaction will consist of but not limited to: the quote, the purchase order, the proforma invoice, the delivery note, the sales invoice. This means that one transaction will use at least five pieces of paper and this does not include other documents like the bank payment advice, beneficiary advice and other functions that lead to the sale. In 2007, Singapore had at least 160,000 small medium enterprises. If each business had a conservative average of 20 sale transactions per month, 16 million sheets of paper would have been used which is the equivalent of 32,000 reams of paper. That would mean to the world a lost of at least 1,800 trees every month just because of Singapores SMEs alone. Paperless system is used for automating the accounting information processes. Automation in accounting system means reducing the paper dependency, and it will provide effectiveness. An effective paperless business system will make paper an option rather than a necessity and thus reducing the usage of paper in the corporate world. It is for this reason that paperless systems have also become a need for business processes with many professionals believing that going paperless is no longer an option but a must. Another reason is that paperless systems involve technology which could make the business much more effective. The rapid rise of paperless business solutions and providers around the world goes to show that more and more businesses have identified pursuing a paperless office as a strategy that can help them gain a competitive advantage in their marketplace. It has been observed that internationally (Hannon, Neal 2004) many regions are adopting and shifting towards electronic transactions, electronic business systems and even the development of Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), a standardized digital language for business financial reporting. The EU for example already has a large and extensive list of directives covering the usage of electronic transmission of financial transactions, customs and trade documents, taxation issues, online privacy and security. Almost all countries in Asia have electronic transaction laws, with the exception of Sri Lanka and Nepal which have pending legislation. In Singapore there are many statutes that govern the administration of documents within organizations. A recent addition is the Electronic Transactions Act 2010 where it is specifically stated that where a rule of law requires any document, record or information to be retained, or provides for certain consequences if it is not, that requirement is satisfied by retaining the document, record or information in the form of an electronic record if conditions are satisfied (Singapore Statutes). The Singapore Standard for Auditing, namely SSA 500, also deals with electronic documentation. It has specified that electronic evidences are accepted as long as they fulfill the requirements. However it has also stated that electronic evidences are not as reliable as original documents. This contradicts the Electronic Transactions Act 2010 where the original documents may actually be in electronic forms. It is in the above context that this study attempts to investigate the awareness of the implementation of the Electronics Transactions Act 2010 in Singapore. It further attempts to examine whether such awareness translates into an intention to adopt paperless accounting systems and if there is no intention to adopt paperless accounting systems then the reasons for companies resisting the intention to pursue a paperless office. For the above purpose, the study will conduct a survey on the awareness of paperless accounting and the Electronic Transactions Act 2010 in Singapore and whether it has impacted the way businesses operate in various industries. It will also survey on the reasons that hamper businesses from adopting electronic transactions as part of their operation models. The study will also attempt to find out what can be possible push factors to help businesses adopt paperless accounting. LITERATURE REVIEW The case for paperless accounting and chasing paperless offices have been researched and discussed by many practitioners and researchers, yielding a lot of literature on this topic both in popular and academic sources 2.1 The Case for Paperless Accounting Paperless accounting is based on electronic transactions where all business transactions are recorded electronically. The literature available on this topic is generally from popular sources with very little scholarly research attempted. The literature on paperless accounting from both popular and academic sources is primarily targeted on the benefits of going paperless, ways to implement a paperless office. They are focused on building the case for businesses to adopt a paperless strategy. Many researchers and practitioners believed that businesses must adopt paperless processes as part of their strategies. As a company grows and the transactions increase it will require a paperless system for its business processes (Webster 2004). James Blaylock (2005) believed that Going paperless is no longer an option, but must for a CPA (Certified Public Accountant). Businesses have to go paperless in order to keep up with their competition. The mentality has changed. For example in 2005, a survey by PCPS/Texas Society of CPAs National Management of Accounting Practice (MAP) showed that 41% of CPA respondents indicated that they would consider going paperless, and 20% already have done it. 25% of the firms are planning to go paperless, but 13% will not consider it. Later in 2008, CCH Incorporated surveyed accountancy practitioners who have implemented paperless system. Of those of were surveyed, 95% would recommend the idea of setting up paperless offices to other users. However some researchers have also challenged the notion that paperless is the way to go. Paper is still the most widely used form of document medium due to its many benefits that is not easy to replace and will still co-exist with electronic documents in the long term (Liu and Stork, 2000) Paper usage cannot be reduced significantly unless work practices are re-organized and the digital alternative to paper has to be improved. Until that happens, offices will still most likely have paper around (Sellen 2003). This view is further re-emphasized by Gragg (2004) where he pointed out that it is difficult to depend solely on electronic documentation due to swift developments in software technology and hard copies will unlikely go away permanently. It is also wrong to assume that there will be no printing costs in a paperless office since a lot of people will carry on to print out the documents that are sent to them electronically, even if huge investments have been made to obtain technol ogy that help to store documents digitally. What Sellen and Gragg observed in 2003 and 2004 respectively still hold true today. The world usage of paper is still increasing. Some businesses still stick to paper. Even those which have invested in technology to automate their business processes still rely heavily on paper documents. For example, it is not uncommon to see executives printing out hard copies of their email correspondences. Logistics and shipping companies still require hardcopies of the bills of lading and certificates on goods. Banks and tax authorities still require hardcopies of hand-signed institutional documents. In such cases, businesses should look at usage of recycled paper which is more environmentally friendly although the ultimate aim should still be at reduction eventually. Therefore the case for paperless offices is very obvious with many benefits that all businesses should strive to achieve. Paperless accounting can bring about increased efficiency while at the same time lowering the costs of accounting (Gullkvist 2002). Brian Steinert, director of specialty software product management at CCH, in a supplement to Accounting Today, said that Because of the amazing efficiencies that result from streamlined, integrated workflows; because of the greater productivity brought about when professionals have anytime/anywhere access to what they need and anywhere/anytime ability to collaborate with their peers; because young professionals expect and embrace paperless processes; because all professionals will spend more time on high-level, high-value work; because money will be saved in the long run simply by buying and storing much less paper. Cost reduction will be the primary objective for many vendors who are considering implement paperless business processes (Davis 2005). Reduction in paper usage will also reduce the damage to the environment. The amount of literature available on paperless accounting suggests that it is a widely known concept around the world. However the lack of literature on the adoption rate of paperless accounting systems even in the United States and Europe, which are considered to be more developed in terms of technology, suggests that the actual awareness of the public is much lesser. A survey on the awareness of paperless accounting in Singapore should yield negative results. 2.2 Electronic Transactions Act in Singapore Many regions around the world are experiencing pressures for legal and regulatory changes due to the growth of paperless offices. The paperless office demands that transactions are documented electronically. Therefore the laws related, for example taxation and contract laws, need to be updated to recognize digital records of transactions as legal documents. As the information technology environment develops over time, nations will also move to improve their laws governing electronic commerce. This can be observed from the United Nations Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts (UN Convention), adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 23rd November 2005 which was based upon the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce issued in 1998. The main driver for the new Convention was the fact that the electronic commerce environment in 2005 was very different from 1998 due to the evolution of the Internet. Singapore, being the first country in 1998 to follow the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce, on 7 July 2010 was the first Asian country to confirm its alignment to the new Convention, which is aimed at minimizing differences between laws in different countries. Therefore Singapore needs to update its Electronic Transactions Act (ETA) 1998 to complement the UN Convention and this resulted in ETA 2010. The ETA 2010, although based on the one in 1998, has introduced many key changes, one of it being Clause 9 which provides that Where a rule of law requires certain documents, records or information to be retained, the requirement is satisfied by retaining them in the form of electronic records subject to certain safeguards. If the rule of law already expressly provides for such retention in electronic records, the clause will not apply. A public agency may impose additional requirements for the retention of electronic records under its jurisdiction. This is the critical change that allows for the feasibility of a paperless office as businesses are no longer required to keep paper records of their business transactions by law. Besides financial reporting purposes, the other reason that companies archive their financial transactions is for audit purposes. In the Singapore Standard on Auditing under SSA 500, A31 states that Audit evidence in documentary form, whether paper, electronic, or other medium, is more reliable than evidence obtained orally (for example, a contemporaneously written record of a meeting is more reliable than a subsequent oral representation of the matters discussed) This is consistent with the ETA 2010 and further enhances the notion that companies no longer have to generate invoices in paper forms. Businesses can choose to issue their invoices in digital formats to their clients. The digital invoice will be recognized in the eyes of the law as a legal document. As the ETA 2010 was passed only in July this year, it is expected that most executives will be unaware of this change in the Act and subsequently, most will not have plans to adopt paperless accounting systems yet. The survey will attempt to determine if this is indeed the case. METHODOLOGY The primary research instrument used in this paper is a questionnaire which is piloted among members of the public working in finance related positions across a wide range of industries. The diversity of the members surveyed was as wide as possible in order to obtain a good mix of responses from members in both IT-savvy industries and non IT-savvy industries. The survey was administered and collected between October-November 2010. In keeping with the topic that is being discussed the questionnaires were sent out either via e-mail as attachments or through transfers via thumb drives and respondents were encouraged to complete and return in the same manner. The questions were structured in order to get feedback of respondents awareness of the Electronic Transactions Act 2010, whether it has impacted the way their businesses operate. If it has no impact yet, the survey will aim to find out why the business has not adopted a paperless transactions as part of its operations and what factors will push the business to adopt paperless systems. Surveys were distributed to 200 possible respondents from through digital survey forms. Although the target members were requested to reply in digital formats with respect to the topic in questions, some respondents replied through their own paper formats of the survey. Instructions and explanations are clearly stated should the respondents face any difficulties in understanding the questions. RESULTS 4.1 Question one After 2 reminders, the surveys were returned by 124 (62 percent respond rate) respondents. The breakdown of the respondents according to their industries is shown in the chart below. Chart 4.1 Breakdown by Industries Although an attempt to survey a wide diversity of respondents was made, 47% of the respondents came from the Banking and Finance and the IT industry. This is highly due to the fact that almost half of the 200 surveys were distributed at 2 commercial buildings physically where the tenants at both buildings consisted mainly of companies providing financial services or IT-related services. In order to obtain a more accurate response rate for different industries, the survey should have been distributed in a fixed number per industry. It must also be mentioned that a larger sample of respondents is needed in order to obtain more accurate results that can be indicative of the total population. 4.2 Question 2 The second question of the survey was to find out whether the respondents were aware of paperless accounting. The results of the survey are shown below. Q1 Q2 Yes No Banking and Finance 32 19 13 Fashion 5 1 4 Food Beverage 13 1 12 IT 26 9 17 Logistics 4 0 4 Manufacturing 11 2 9 Pharmaceutical 1 0 1 Property 1 1 0 Retail 20 1 19 Trade 10 4 6 Government 1 0 1 Total 124 38 86 Table 4.1 Question 2 results Out of the 124 respondents, 69% of the respondents were unaware of what is paperless accounting. This is consistent with what was concluded in the literature review. Although paperless accounting is widely discussed in both popular and academic articles, the adoption and awareness rates are much lower. This is especially the case as shown by the results above, where almost 74% of the respondents who are aware of paperless accounting come from IT-savvy industries. And even within the IT-savvy industries, only 28 out of the 58 respondents (48%) are aware of what is paperless accounting. Clearly, more has to be done in order to increase the awareness. 4.3 Question 3 The third question of the survey asked if respondents are aware of the Electronic Transactions Act 2010. As discussed in the literature review, the awareness level should be low since this Act was only in effect since Jul 2010. The results of the survey are listed below. Q1 Q3 Yes No Banking and Finance 32 6 26 Fashion 5 1 4 Food Beverage 13 0 13 IT 26 6 20 Logistics 4 0 4 Manufacturing 11 0 11 Pharmaceutical 1 0 1 Property 1 0 1 Retail 20 0 20 Trade 10 1 9 Government 1 0 0 Total 124 14 110 Table 4.2 Question 3 Results The results are almost one-sided with 88% of the respondents stating that they are unaware of the Electronic Transactions Act 2010. Most are unaware that invoices no longer need to be in paper form and can be sent via electronic means. This can be considered as a failure on the part of the government when the residents of a country are unaware that the country is the first Asian country to ratify the UN Convention. The government will need to raise awareness through more media coverage, campaigns and gazettes. 4.4 Question 4 The fourth question of the survey tries to find the adoption rate of paperless accounting by businesses in Singapore. The results are tabulated below. Q1 Q4 Yes No Banking and Finance 19 0 19 Fashion 1 0 1 Food Beverage 1 0 1 IT 9 6 3 Logistics 0 0 0 Manufacturing 2 0 2 Pharmaceutical 0 0 0 Property 1 0 1 Retail 1 0 1 Trade 4 1 3 Government 0 0 0 Total 38 7 31 Table 4.3 Question 4 Results Since the results of the previous 2 questions have indicated that there is a lack of awareness of paperless accounting and the Electronic Transactions Act 2010, only 38 respondents answered this question. The rate of adoption of paperless accounting systems cannot be high. Based on these 38 respondents, only 18% of the companies implemented paperless systems. Based on the results of this survey, Singapore is on a long road to becoming a paperless society. It is worthy to note that among the 19 respondents in the Banking and Finance industry who are aware of what paperless systems are; none of them were in companies that implemented such systems. This is highly likely due to the nature of their industry where paper documents are required. 4.5 Question 5 Question 5 asked respondents, whose companies have not implemented paperless systems, the reasons behind their companies decisions. A list of 5 options was offered to the respondents and they were allowed to choose more than one. The following chart shows their responses. Chart 4.2 Reasons for not adopting Paperless Systems Out of the 38 respondents, only 3 felt that paperless systems were costly. A majority of 30 felt that their suppliers and clients required paper documents and thus there was no need for them to adopt paperless systems. This clearly shows that the respondents and their clients/supplier as well are unaware of the new Electronics Transaction Act 2010. Half of the respondents felt that paperless systems are not adopted as it was not a standard procedure in their industry. Thus if their competitors started adopting paperless systems, they will highly likely follow suit as well. 13 respondents felt that there was no need to implement paperless systems since it is not mandatory by law and 7 felt that there were not many incentives to adopt such systems. 4.6 Question 6 Question 6 surveyed all the respondents on the factors that will push their companies to adopt paperless accounting. Again, a list of 5 options was offered and respondents were allowed to choose more than one option. The chart below shows their response. Chart 4.3 Push Factors for Paperless Accounting The biggest push factor for companies to adopt paperless accounting systems is for the government to make is a legal requirement. This is indicated by the response of 66% of those surveyed. 76 of the respondents indicated that they will consider adopting paperless systems if it is one of their industry standards. Half of the respondents felt that there is a need to create more awareness of paperless accounting. It is also worthwhile to note that less than 30% of respondents are looking at incentives and costs of adopting paperless accounting. CONCLUSION This survey, carried out in late 2010, found a low level of awareness and adoption rate of paperless accounting. The results of this study must be interpreted in the light of the response rate of 62%, which were obtained after 2 reminders. The final sample size of 124 respondents is definitely not a good indicator of the total population. The fact that 47% of respondents came from 2 out of at least 8 different industries shows that the distribution of the survey was not conducted wide enough although the time given for the survey to be conducted has to be taken into consideration. Basically this means that more time and resources need to be allowed in order for a similar survey to be conducted on a wider scale. A survey that yields at least 1000 respondents that are equally distributed across different industries will be a better indicator of the total population. The results of the survey indicate low awareness of both paperless accounting and the new Electronic Transactions Act 2010. Survey respondents have indicated that there should be more awareness made about paperless accounting. This indicates that there is a lot of potential in the Singapore market for companies that provide digital document management services. The government can increase the awareness of paperless accounting by setting up a national framework for a paperless society as well. This framework should be aimed at resolving the issues that are creating resistance to paperless accounting and helping Singapore businesses to switch to paperless accounting systems progressively. When businesses adopt paperless accounting systems, there are a few authorities that will have to be involved as well. For example, the Monetary Authority of Singapore will have to look into solutions that can enable banking and financial institutions to adopt paperless business processes without compromising on risks and securities. The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority will have to look into the acceptance of electronic financial statements. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore will have to come up with solutions that enable business to file their taxes electronically. By creating such frameworks and support, businesses can be assured of a smoother and easier transition as they adopt paperless accounting systems. This will greatly reduce the resistance to the adoption of paperless business processes that currently exists. The survey results should be interpreted with caution as they indicate only respondents awareness of paperless accounting and the Electronic Transactions Act 2010. However it does indicate that there is a need for more research to be done regarding actual business adoption rates of paperless systems and the benefits that both companies and the environment enjoy with the reduced usage of paper.