Consulting Services in Information Technology Essay Example for Free

Consulting Services in Information Technology Essay Before discussing the role of consulting service firms in procurement of Information Technology resources and solutions, we will first describe some rules of thumb that dictate the selection process for aforesaid purpose. The basic rule is â€Å"the simpler the better†, but this often leads to oversimplification of complex tasks (Braley, 2009) and we must avoid wastage of time and resources that occurs due to unnecessary attention to detail. There is a myth that a well-written contract is of primary importance in procurement process. This assumption is not true and leads to a lack of effort in making things go right. Next rule is that one must not sacrifice effectiveness of day to day data collection and other important activities on the assumption that output is the sole primary concern of the system. Schedule of projects must be realistic, which is rarely the case, leading to a myth that projects never complete on time (Braley, 2009). Having discussed some of the myths and realities of IS procurement, we will now compare and contrast the approaches of different consultancy firms in selection process. Accenture is a worldwide corporation that provides services in the areas of outsourcing, management consulting and technology (Accenture, 2009). As their value proposition â€Å"High Performance. Delivered. † suggests, they value constant innovation to perform better and their results show that their commitment to their clients is exemplary. Extensive research is their strongest arm which lets their clients procure the best available solution to their specific problems. Accenture works together with customers, including governments, to help them perform much better (Accenture, 2009). Their 2008 revenues were in excess of $25 Billion and income was around $1. 6 Billion showing strong growth from their 2007 results (Wikipedia, 2009). In contrast, Infosys, based in India, has slightly different values but the same quest for excellence. This $4 Billion revenue generating company provides technology-enabled business solutions to help businesses win in a Flat World (Infosys, 2009). The term Flat World is of key importance here. Their philosophy of by passing structural issues and minimizing bureaucratic hassle is embedded in this term. Today, they lead worldwide in the next generation of IT and consulting (Infosys, 2009). Their philosophy enables them to use IT to introduce dynamism in a corporation to make it flexible to adapt to rapid changes in today’s world. We discussed two successful IT consultants with very different philosophies but one goal: to provide their clients with the specific solutions that make them leaders in their fields. Accenture believes in extensive research and harnesses its power, whereas Infosys flattens an organization for timely and helpful results. The rules of thumb, that we discussed earlier, are evidently practiced within both consultancies we discussed. For example, Accenture practices the simplicity rule when it uses research to know exactly what is required by client and the level of understanding of end users. Infosys does not let perfection of RFP hinder its flat world dream by putting least emphasis on mere documentation and more focus on tangible results. One trend in today’s IT market is for more and more IT consultancy firms to venture into solution-builder business themselves (Wikipedia, 2009). This diversifies their market portfolios and increases their customer base. We conclude our discussion by pointing out that the trend mentioned above is good for customers as it provides them complete IT solutions within one roof. Both the consultancies we discussed aim to be that one roof for governments and corporate clients.

Essay --

Paper 1 Two psychological theories used for explaining behavior are behaviorism and social learning theory. Although the two both deal with behavior, they focus on slightly unalike components in their efforts to explain why people act the way they do. Behaviorism and social learning theory have convincing sources of support so there is no well-defined response to which one does a superior job at explaining behavior. Behaviorists believe that development is not tied to biologically determined stages. Development results from organization of existing behaviors. There are two categories of learning: classical conditioning and operant conditioning. Classical conditioning focuses on associations linked to involuntary behaviors. Pavlov is the father of modern learning theory. Through his experiment he discovered that an unconditioned stimulus could automatically trigger an involuntary response. For example, a dog was placed in a dark room and a light was turned on. After 30 seconds some food was placed in the dog’s mouth, stimulating the salivation reflex. This procedure was repeated several times- each time the presentation of food was paired with the light. After a while the light, which initially has no relationship to salivation, produced the response itself. The dog has been conditioned to respond to the light. In Pavlov’s terms, the presentation of food was the unconditioned stimul us. The light was a conditioned stimulus; its effect required conditioning. Salivation to the food was called the unconditioned reflex, salivation to the light a conditioned reflex. John Watson was the founder of behaviorism in the Unites States. He extended classical conditioning by accounting for a greater variety of learning. Watson formulated two ... ...avior, some behaviorists believe physical discipline is an operant technique that gains immediate compliance. However, there are other behaviorists who believe that physical discipline does not teach on how to behave. They believe it is better to reward behaviors that are incompatible with the undesired behaviors. Extinction can be a better alternative in some cases. From a social learning theorist perspective, physical discipline is a model of aggressive behavior that the child would observe, learn and use. It could cause long term behavioral problems such as the child might use aggression to resolve conflict in their current or future relationships. It is better to explain to the child what she can do and why so the child internalizes rules. Behaviorists believe in using direct reinforcement. However, social learning theorists believe in vicarious reinforcement.

Away and ‘Waiting on the world to change’ Essay

Change is a process, transition or alteration that affects all aspects of life and can affect attitudes, beliefs and behaviours. Michael Gow’s play ‘Away’ conflicts emotional, spiritual and mental change expressed through the characters along their journey of change. Gow has chosen characters such as Coral, Tom and Gwen to demonstrate the different types of changes that occur in the play ‘Away’. Gow uses techniques such as Intertextuality, allusion, structure, stage direction and symbolism to present the transformations the characters experience. In the song ‘Waiting on the world to change’ composed by John Myer, change is demonstrated through the reference of war and the hope of a change in future. Myer uses poetic techniques and symbolism to show the changes presented in the song. Change can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. Emotional change is displayed through both texts although it is displayed through Gow’s play ‘Away’ more so than in Myer’s song. Gow presents emotional change demonstrated by the Character coral. The emotional breakdown experienced by Coral due to her son’s death showed the audience her inability to function normally. Her journey is about an emotional recovery as she lost her social identity and struggles to find connection with others as she â€Å"can’t find anything to say† (Act 2, scene 2). Coral learns to symbolically ‘walk again’ and reconnect with the living world and accepts that there is life and death. Change can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. The use of Intertextuality of a play with in a play represents the life of the characters. Coral’s ‘Stranger at the shore’ symbolises Coral’s internal change and it shows that she has overcome her emotional, mental and spiritual conflicts and her character has encountered transformation. â€Å"I’m walking, I’m walking† Coral says in the ‘stranger at the shore’ at the end of the play which symbolises her internal change and the acceptance of her son’s death. Similarly, the sense of emotional change expressed through the lyrics in John Myer’s song is helplessness as he sings â€Å"It’s hard to beat  the system, when we’re standing at a distance.† John Myer is expressing frustration through emotive language in the fact that he alone cannot change the world to a more positive place. Change can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. Spiritual change was explored through the character of Tom in Gow’s play ‘Away’ as he demonstrates to his parents that he is aware of his approaching death and he accepts his fate. This is shown through the intertextuality technique of a play within a play and it acts as a symbolic metaphor used to represent the life of the character and an insight of what will happen to them as the play continues. As Tom becomes more accepting of his illness, his character demonstrates spiritual changes. Gow uses the structure of the play to the advantage of displaying Tom’s spiritual change throughout the play as not everything is revealed at once, keeping the audience engaged. When Tom’s illness is revealed, it inspires other characters such as Gwen, to encounter change also. When Gwen is informed of Tom’s illness, her thoughts of him change and in turn her personality towards others changed also. The reality of Tom’s death alters the perspectives of the characters and their encounter spiritual change in the way that they learn to appreciate the value of the present, but also to know where they are heading. It can be seen that change can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. Gow uses Gwen’s character to display mental change. At the beginning of the play Gwen is highly critical of Tom, unaware of his condition. Her change can be demonstrated through her dialogue as at the beginning of the play it shows negativity and seen as a source of conflict which changes to caring and of value. â€Å"This case won’t close† is an example of the attitude and conflict that Gwen was expressing before her character encountered change. Her change in attitude and perspective made her realise what she has is of real value. The techniques that present Gwens lack of self-understanding are stage props. In act 4, scene 2, the Bex she refers to was used as a remedy for what she can’t cope with. Later on Gwen rejects the prop of Bex and tries to come to terms with her new self. The turning point of Gwens change is the knowledge of Tom’s illness. Stage directions such as the miming in act 5, scene 1 where no dialogue was used to the reconciliation taking place between characters such as Coral and Roy and Gwen and her family. The relationship between Gwen and her family after her changes becomes closer as Gwen shows them affection. An example of this would be the difference in reactions when Gwen received her Christmas presents. She was affectionate and thankful, showing her character’s change by comparing that to her previous reaction when Jim ‘forgot’ the presents at home. Changes can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. Gow uses allusion in his play ‘Away’ which helps to present conventional meanings about the concept of change to the audience, achieved through the use of Shakespearean texts. It is a stage direction as the fairies in the opening scene symbolise a storm which refers to the internal conflict within the characters and the consequences of their individual changes just like a storm creates changes after it has occurred. The storm is a necessary destruction that brings the characters together on a ‘magical’ beach to be restored and reconciled. The characters at this point have all experienced change and the storm is a catalyst of their transformation. Upon coming home after the family holidays, the play completes a full circle by ending the play where it started. As the play completed a full circle, so have the characters that have undergone a total transformation in outlook by the end of the play. Shown through Gow’s play ‘Away’, changes can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who experience it. Alternatively, ideas of change presented in the Myer’s text/clip are different to those shown in ‘Away’. Ideas of change presented are that change is gradual and takes time. The composer’s attitude towards change is that its affects may not be immediate and this is expressed through the repetition of the phrase ‘waiting’. The repetition emphasises the need for time as well as hope that change will come one day. It serves as an indication that change is gradual and this reflects on the message being expressed by Myer. In order for change to occur, Myer expresses that a change of attitude and perspectives is needed. â€Å"We see everything that’s  going wrong with the world and those who lead it.† These lyrics assist in conveying the composer’s message that people don’t have the right attitudes or contributions to make a change. It can be seen that change can take many forms and has a range of effects on those who ex perience it. Change is clearly expressed through both texts and provides similar values or concepts in encountering change. Coral’s mental and emotional state is overcome by the acceptance of her son’s death while Tom and Gwen present spiritual and mental change when the reality of Tom’s condition has been recognised. Gow presented change through techniques such as symbolism, structure, stage directions, allusions and intertextuality. John Myer’s text resembles change with the use of poetic techniques and symbolism. The song displays the hopefulness and determination for a changing future. Both texts use techniques to show the change encountered and both focus on the value of change. As it if evident in both texts, change can take many forms and has a range of effect on those who experience it.

auditing Essay - 1046 Words

Auditing Theory and Practice Case 1 WorldCom: A Focus on Professional Responsibility Prepared by: EL Ahmadi Med Reda Worked With: Ibtihal Slassi Fall 2013 1- Auditor independence refers to the disinterest from the internal and external parties that could influence the professional judgment of an auditor. In other words, auditor independence is the lack of any interest that may create a threat or a risk of material bias regarding the reliability of the financial statement. Furthermore, the main aim of auditor independence is to improve the consistency and the reliability of information that might be used in decisions making. Another role of the auditor independence is to enhance the cost-effectiveness of†¦show more content†¦Andersen provided the WorldCom company with different services in addition to audit’s profession like consulting, litigation support, and tax services. The last element is that Andersen had a mutual interest: Andersen was well paid the WorldCom Company and was considered as â€Å"the 20most important engagement†. He was also â€Å"the largest client of its Mississippi office for 3 years†. However, Andersen was showing his independence in fact more than his independence in appearance. He was not a partner of the WorldCom Company even he had experienced a long-term partnership. 3- Referring to paragraph 36 of PCAOB Auditing Standard N °.2,.auditors are required to be independent and to exercise professional skepticism. Due to the limited access to the information, Andersen did not exercise the professional Skepticism, which is an essential element of the principles of the due professional care. WorldCom Company limited his access to information by allowing him to rely on the printed ledgers rather than the computerized General Ledger. His demand for asking and meeting some employees was not permitted. Indeed, he was not able to collect evidence for the different misstatements made by the company because of the scope limitation. Moreover,Show MoreRelatedA Description of Auditing857 Words   |  4 PagesAuditing is a systematic process of objectively obtaining and evaluating evidence regarding assertions about economic actions and events to ascertain the degree of correspondence between those assertions and established criteria and communicating the results to interested users (Boynton Johnson, 2006). In auditing there are many attributes that describes the auditor’s work. Elements of the Ge nerally Accepted Auditing Standards are followed by auditors. The Generally Accepted Auditing StandardsRead MoreLifestyle Auditing1284 Words   |  6 PagesINTRODUCTION Lifestyle auditing is the study of a person’s standards of living and uses this information to confirm whether it is consisted with their reported income. This involves the tax authorities conducting independent investigations on business trusts, individual tax payers and company. This is done to ensure that monthly living the monthly living expenses of the tax payer are consistent with his assets and income statements that what was declared. Lifestyle auditing is one of the criticalRead MoreInternal Auditing And External Auditing Industry Essay1472 Words   |  6 Pagesemerging firms and laid the foundations for fierce competition amongst existing industries. Internal auditing is no exception. In order not to face complacency or obsolescence, the internal auditing industry has to be proactive and adapt to changing market trends. Indeed, the possibilities available to internal auditing in our current global economic climate are limitless. Nevertheless, for the auditing industry to remain successful in today’s fast- paced world, it has exploit every resource and turnRead MoreThe Importance Of Auditing And The Advantage And Disadvantages Of Auditing1578 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction This report explains what auditing means the purpose of auditing and the advantage and the disadvantages of auditing. Also explains what Expectation Gap means and how different people have different views on it, looking at what auditors consider their responsibilities are and what are the expectations. Also looking at the history of the expectation gap and the different definitions people came up with over the years. The Definition of Audit Auditor is an independent qualified accountantsRead MoreAuditing Ethics987 Words   |  4 Pages101-1). In Goodbread’s case this refers to the fact that he had shares of stock (direct financial interest) in his possession when he was the audit engagement partner who oversaw the audit of Koger Properties, Inc. Under the Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS) there are three sections, General Standards, Standards of Fieldwork, and Standards of Reporting. Under the General Standards section of GAAS there is a specific standard for independence and it reads, â€Å"The auditor must maintainRead MoreAuditing Stages2137 Words   |  9 Pagesexplain how an auditor goes about the process of auditing financial statements and presents the five basic stages that the auditor performed during the financial statement audit at Maryward Primary School in Kwekwe for the year ending 31 December 2012. In order to be in a position to fulfil auditing responsibility to report on the client’s annual financial statements, the auditor followed a series of procedures and activities as required by the auditing profession. The auditor applied the followingRead MoreEthics Auditing1374 Words   |  6 PagesEthics Auditing: Identify the benefits and limits of ethics auditing. Is there a strategic role that ethics auditing may play in a company? Ethics Auditing By definition, an ethics audit is a â€Å"systematic evaluation of an organization’s ethics program and/or performance to determine its effectiveness.† (1) This concept of ethics auditing is fairly new and few companies have conducted an ethics audit. However, performing such audits will likely become more mainstream as recent legislation encouragesRead MoreEssay On Auditing1647 Words   |  7 Pageset al. 2010). The aim of this paper is to identify the role of auditing and draw a conclusion regarding its relevance and practical usefulness in detecting and preventing unlawful and wrongful doing associated to financial reports of corporations. First this paper will focus on reasons behind auditor’s failure to identify and report fraudulent conduct. Then the paper will argue in favour of the utility and importance of auditing financial statement in spite of the lack of commitment in fraud discoveryRead MoreComtemporary Auditing1155 Words   |  5 Pagescould result in lost clients or legal actions against them. Adjustments may be required to reflect real earnings and may become more complex as well as subject to further discussion with management being required. Refer to red flags- 3. What auditing standard, if any, requires auditors to determine whether their clients have properly classified key amounts in their periodic income statements? Identify three methods that audit clients can use to put a favorable spin on their reported operatingRead MoreAuditing Reflection1208 Words   |  5 PagesINTRODUCTION This report consists of 5 reflections related to auditing standards and each case was extracted from internet sources. The purpose of this report is to reflect and understand each case. REFLECTIONS First reflection is on China sky case for its non-compliances with SGX. Next is the case on corporate governance where new rules were proposed to improve risk management and risk control. Third will be the extracted information of executives’ compensation in