Use of Alumni Tracer Study to Maintain Curriculum Relevancy

Use of Alumni Tracer Study to Maintain Curriculum Relevancy Distance education can play a crucial role in the professional development of a developing country like Indonesia by meeting human resource requirements. It caters to the requirement not only those who are unemployed but also of those who are on the job. Their knowledge can be updated through continuing education programmes. In-service teacher education is an investment in human capital, which brings benefits in the form of enhanced educator productivity, and higher levels of output. One of the most important functions of the education sector is to provide knowledge and skill to various sectors of the education area. It is widely argued that the structure and pattern of education, especially at the elementary and secondary stage, has to be purposefully re-oriented towards new national standard to join together with the projected future pattern of graduation requirements. Currently, most of the countries of the world, especially Indonesia, has given due importance to in-service teache r education to provide diversification of educational opportunities so as to enhance individual professionalism, reduce the gap between urban and rural area of skilled teacher and provide an alternative for those pursuing higher education. Distance and online learning in the Open University of Indonesia (UT) has been greatly developed as a methodology for providing education for those who formerly may have found further education inaccessible for various reasons. In the purpose of accreditation process, UT put a finest on compliance and included some reporting requirements in tracer study that necessarily lead programs toward excellence or increase in-service teacher students impact on their schools and distance learning. In writers opinion, Universitas Terbuka can responsively maintain curriculum relevancy and usefulness for professional development. Ornstein and Hunkins (2009, p.15) argue that curriculum development includes how a curriculum is planned, implemented and evaluated, as well as what people, processes and procedures are involved... Curriculum models help designers to systematically and transparently map out the rationale for the use of particular teaching, learning and assessment approaches. They suggest that although curriculum development models are technically useful, they often overlook the human factor such as the personal attitudes, emotions, values involved in curriculum making. Therefore they are not a method and should not be a substitute for using professional and personal judgement on what is a good approach to develop student learning. UT organized alumni tracer study in 2009 and got more than 10.000 responses but in this paper the writer only use 200 responses to be analyzed randomly. Tracer study encourages UT to solve complex problems confronting professional development. It is also common for higher educational institutions to have their graduates make an evaluation of their learning experience and the quality of learning which they received. This evaluation process often takes the form of graduate or alumni surveys, which are sometimes referred to as tracer studies. It is focused not only on measuring teacher and program performance, but also other alumni and other aspects. UT should know the fortunes of their graduates in order to make a complete assessment of how the educational process has impacted their graduates. With the tracer study result, UT is able to make development and modifications on their programs that could enhance their students chances of achieving success. In this paper the use of the trace r study will be discussed as an effective method of evaluating the success of distance and online programmes to provide and maintain curriculum relevancy for professional development in UT. THE OPEN UNIVERSITY OF INDONESIA UT which was established in 1984 is a national university constituted under the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Indonesia Number 41 Year 1984 and has the same legal and academic status as any other national university in Indonesia. UT is quite unique as it is the only university in Indonesia that is dedicated to distance learning. The academic programmes of the UT are specifically designed to enable persons who have graduated from senior high school to pursue a higher education. The programmes of the university enable students to join in at the level of the qualifications they possess and are structured from certificate and proceed to diploma, bachelor degrees and graduate degrees. At present with a total student enrolment of around 639,049 (http://www.ut.ac.id/ut-dalam-angka.html, 2010), UT has the largest student bodies in the country. The students are enrolled in more than 30 programmes of study out of which 96 per cent of the students are employed and around 82 per cent are teachers. The completion of programmes by students become more difficult for students who enrol at Open Universities as they are compelled to study while working and attending to their normal family responsibilities. It is pertinent therefore, to examine the alumni satisfaction after they graduated from UT. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN UT The Characteristic of UTs students UTs students are similar with the other ODL students. Its characteristics are classified as non-traditional students (Easton, 2003): have internal motivation to seek higher education and self-discipline to undertake study. One of the motivations is they can study while working for people who for some reasons cannot attend face to face education, for example people living in rural areas, in isolated islands, who cannot move to the cities where there are universities. UT differs from other open university on two accounts. It requires formal entrance qualifications and it has both full-time as well as part-time students (Hiola Moss, 1990).   The lack of time and funds promote students to apply in UT. Potential UTs students are not a captive market. UT can at least rely on a student intake derived from the geographical location in which they are approximated. Proximity and subsidized fees through scholarship often make nearby institutions the first option for students. For those who cannot physically attend, UT provides education from certain places on the world by ODL. The prospective distance education student can therefore join in UT for the type of programme they wish to pursue which are congruent with their professional and personal goals. UT has many competitors around the world, because the demand for ODL has grown extensively. Many private and public universities have increased their student intake by offering online programmes. With the large number of institutions participating in ODL it has become a highly competitive market for providers. Distance education has taken on the characteristics of a service industry, with students becoming the loyal customers for the education product. The need for customer satisfaction therefore increases the necessity to have students evaluate the product (Millington, 2008). Student responses on these matters can gauge the level of satisfaction with the course itself and institutional planners can implement improvements where dissatisfaction has been expressed. However, this form of evaluation does not measure the outputs and outcomes of education. Furthermore, UW-Stout conducts surveys on all its alumni one and five years after their graduation. Bosshart, Wents, and Heller (2009) state these surveys provide critical information for assessing and determining the effectiveness of programs. These results may then be utilized for program improvement. Schomburg (2003, p.25) identifies the outputs as attributes such as knowledge and skills, and outcomes as transition to employment, work experience and service to society. He suggests the use of the tracer study by institutions as a method for knowing the destiny of their graduates and the relationship between their study and their professional reward. (p.29). Tracer Study and Curriculum Development Although the usual end of the course evaluation can ask for the student to assess whether they have gained the knowledge and skills necessary for fulfilling their personal objectives, there is really little proof of this until the student has completed the entire course of study and has entered the workforce. By surveying a cohort of graduates from: a specific institution; profession; discipline; graduation date; level of education; or a combination of these for comparative analysis, Schomburg (2003) presents examples of issues which can be addressed in tracer studies. Biographical data on Where are our graduates now may supply information on income, job title, nature of employment, and years of employment. He also believes that surveys should also include information about the kind of work task the relationship between study and work, and professional values and job satisfaction. The use of tracer studies to provide and maintain curriculum relevancy for professional development have been conducted by Harald Schomburg and his colleagues at the Centre for Higher Education and Work, University of Kassel, Germany, have done considerable research on conducting tracer surveys, constructing effective tracer study questionnaires and their statistical analysis. They have conducted survey projects such as the CHEERS (Career after Higher Education-a European Research Study) which investigated the links between higher education and graduate employment in Europe. They have done similar research in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Zembere and Chinyama (1996) tried to find out what factors are important for professional success of graduates taking into account personal factors and identify key aspects of the continuing professional education of graduates in University of Malawi. Another tracer study is conducted in Nigeria (Ugwuonah Omeje, 1998) with the results as follows: Link and match in both the industries and higher education profiles. Broad based and trans-disciplinary curriculum planning and development Collaboration between higher education institution and industries. Tracer study conducted for open and distance learning (ODL) is not many. One of them is done by the Staff Training and Research Institute of Distance Education (STRIDE) at the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). In addition, tracer study also completed by the Nigerian Institute (NTI) which launched its Nigeria Certificate in Education by ODL in 1990 in response to urgent need to train more teachers. The findings of the study were that the performance of ODL graduates was as effective in the classroom as that of their peers who had studied in the traditional way. Based on the tracer study result, the Institute itself had improved its management and monitoring systems (Umar, 2006). ALUMNI TRACER STUDY FOR MAINTAINING CURRICULUM RELEVANCY AND USEFULNESS Provision Of a Working Definition Of The Tracer Study Concept For the purposes of this discussion tracer study will be taken to mean: A period when institutions of learning set up regular intervals of time to venture into the field and follow their past graduates to find out what they are doing with the training they received and find out from them how best they think the institutions who trained them will be able to help them upgrade their acquired knowledge and skills through the reform and innovation of curricula and course programmes including school-based or work-based professional development to live up to the expectations of the constantly changing technological and scientific working environment and employer demands (Boaduo, Mensah Babitseng, 2009). In educational research, according to Schomburg (2003), tracer study is a survey of graduates from institutions of higher education since its target groups is the alumni. The ILO Thesaurus 2005 defines a tracer study as an impact assessment tool where during evaluation the impact on target groups is traced back to specific elements of a project or programme so that effective and ineffective project components may be identified. Schomburg (2003, p.36) notes that graduate surveys are popular for analysis of the relationship between higher education and work. They provide quantitative-structural data on employment and career, the character of work and related competencies, and information on the professional orientation and experiences of their graduates. The alumni tracer study in UT has objectives to build strong bonds between the institution and its graduates, because the alumni are the excellent source of advice for improvements of institution and to measure the extent of professional and academic careers pursued by the graduates after gaining knowledge and skills through academic institutions. Many questions were designed so that appropriate answers could be ticked off. Some open-ended questions were developed to get suggestions, comments, explanations and clarifications. Immediate supervisors or employers were requested to provide views on UTs graduates in their employment, in terms of theoretical knowledge, practical experience/skill, job performance, strengths, weaknesses and suggestions for improvement. Assuming that peers can be the most important appraisers of their fellow UTs graduates, as they are very close to them in many respects, peer groups were asked to state the strengths of UTs graduates. A scaling technique was applied to measure the relevancy and usefulness of tracer in professional and academic development of UTs graduates. Some questions were featured in a tabular format to assess job profile that UTs graduates considered before and after their studies at UT. This was done to get information on the number of positions held, year of starting and ending j ob, title and level of the positions, influential positions, name of the employers organization, type of employers, major responsibility, and awards, rewards or promotions. The position levels in categorically divided into three stages such as survey organization, data collection, data analysis and report writing. Curriculum Relevancy and Usefulness for Professional Development in UT The alumni tracer study consists of many aspects. Some of them are impact study that seeks to determine graduates satisfaction with the institution especially with curriculum relevancy and usefulness. Another one is professional development study to determine the extent to which the curriculum has developed them qualified in their career. As the writer said that the majority of learners are already working, they need to develop their competencies and skills to stay relevant and useful. The attributes that would be developed in the distance education in the future are knowledge and skills, perspectives, contextual problem solving, networking and competency-based outcomes (Boettcher, 2006). UT should have planning to accommodate these new emphases and provide curriculum relevancy for its alumni to incorporate their education and professional competencies. Academic curriculum as a tool used to develop the skills, roles as a vehicle, which attributes can be transferred during the learning process (Fallows Steven, 2000). In the academic curriculum dimension for 2009, both of items are majority rated satisfactory (Table 2.). It is shown that alumni are generally satisfied with the curriculum developed by UT. In writers assumptions, one of the contributors of the curriculum relevancy is the rich composition of participants in academic curriculum development, which consists of lecturers, students, curriculum specialist, professionals and experts in certain fields from government parties or private industries. Another contributor is the use of information and communication technology in learning process. According to Listyarini, Ratnaningsih and Yuliana (2010), alumni and stakeholders perceived that alumni had improved in their knowledge and skills of ICT and learning media. Strategy to Provide and Maintain Curriculum Relevancy Earlier in this paper it was suggested that the findings of tracers studies could be used to reform ODL programmes. As seen in the African studies graduate dissatisfaction with resources, technology and the need to enhance teacher competence in audio-visual technology points to where institutional investment and reform could be targeted. The Malawi study revealed the importance of interpersonal skills and proficiency in English. This information could be used by curriculum planners for the incorporation of these skills into training and course content. The Nigerian study indicated a need for greater linkages with the industrial sector to make programmes more relevant to the manufacturing industry, especially for engineering. Most importantly, the fact that tracer studies can show that the quality of ODL graduates is comparable (as with the NTI) with those of traditional education suggests that they should be an integral tool for evaluating ODL. Tracer studies of ODL graduates can provide the information needed to reform educational programmes to bring about the fit between the requirements of the employment world and study. Surveys do have their disadvantages: it is sometimes difficult to locate alumni and have them complete questionnaires. Schomburg (2003) warns that the graduate might not always be able to identify the relationship between the knowledge acquired during study and their professional lives and that research findings are valuable inasmuch as planners can turn the findings into concrete reforms. However, this paper suggests that the tracer study can be an information provider as well as an evaluation tool. The success of graduates can be used, as a maintaining strategy to develop curriculum. UT can use the information gathered to adapt their courses to the demands of professional development and modify programmes to expand professional advancement through ODL. Zhou, Varnhagen, Sears, Kasprzak, Shervey (2007) examine the role of technology in continuing professional development and learning. They investigate whether online delivery of professional development is a successful alternative to other forms of professional development. This study provides a rich account into the challenges and tensions as to how leaders in higher education create and facilitate a shared, communal vision in the context of online curriculum delivery. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS This paper has provided documentary analysis about the need to use tracer study paradigm for the enhancement of the quality of courses offered in UT in Indonesia to be able to meet the demands of the changing educational demands of the new century. A working definition upon which the whole discussion was based has been provided. It is important to indicate that tracer study is a means of gathering important information about past graduates of higher institutions to be able to identify what they are doing with the training they obtained and what could be done to add to their expertise through these institutions to be able to reform their course programmes to keep up with the needs of the rapidly changing technological and scientific age. The result confirmed that UT is making a significant contribution to its distance learner by providing opportunities to improve their knowledge and skills, not only to perform better in their careers but also in providing the opportunity to pursue their studies to a higher level. This reflects the success of UT in providing the culture of lifelong learning among its learners. The most important thing is that the majority of alumni indicated that they would recommend their colleagues to study at UT for professional development purposes. It must be indicated that tracer study survey is a very tedious and complicated exercise. Extensive efforts should go into tracking and contacting individual graduates and alumni. There is need to step up the process of providing regular opportunities for alumni to register and create a forum electronically and through the web. Furthermore continuous efforts should be made to collect data progressively before and after graduation which will contribute to the improvement of the analysis of future tracer studies. Additional data can be collected for the type of institutions, nature of work, and ranks of the past graduates. The following recommendations are provided as a means to help improve tracer study in the future: (1) database developing for all higher education institution in Indonesia, (2) Establishing network between UT and its graduates, and (3) developing a committee of alumni tracer study for the whole higher education institution in Indonesia.

Joseph Andrews Essay -- essays papers

Joseph Andrews In Fielding’s Joseph Andrews you see a variety of characters. They range from the shallow, vain and proud characters like Lady Booby and Mrs. Slipslop to the innocent, sincere, and virtuous like Joseph and Fanny. The presence of Lady Booby, and all of the people like her that are portrayed in the same selfish and dishonest way, bring out the importance of the clergy. Most of the clergy that we meet in the story don’t fit our vision of â€Å"holy people†. They didn’t fit Fielding’s vision either. Parson Adams is the only character that represents what Fielding considers to be the proper role for the clergy. He believes that the proper role for the clergy is that they should give moral guidance and they should be virtuous and charitable. There are many examples of charity made by Parson Adams because Fielding believes that charity is part of the proper role for the clergy. But I think that Adams will stand out more if I show how uncharitable the rest of the characters are. While at The Dragon Inn, Joseph meets Mr. and Mrs. Tow-wouse. Mr. Tow-wouse is the owner of the inn and for his brief presence in the book he is good-natured, unlike his wife who is greedy and very uncharitable. When her husband gets a shirt to clothe naked Joseph she states, â€Å"Common charity teaches us to provide for ourselves and our families; and I and mine won’t be ruined by your charity, I assure you† (93). Later on, Joseph meets Mr. Barnabas. He is a clergyman but a disgrace when compared to Adams. Adams’ office as a clergyman is important because â€Å"no other office could have given him so many opportunities of displaying his worthy inclinations† (95). Barnabas is sent to Joseph’s room in the inn to comfort him because he has been severe... ...ical and obsessed with worldly possessions. They are supposed to be leaders of faith but instead come off as two of the most appalling characters in the book. But in contrast to the rest of the clergymen, Parson Adams is extremely charitable and honest. He and Joseph always act on their beliefs and defend them by any force necessary. Fanny and Joseph are morally superior characters, but they are still characters. Adams emerges as an individual. He gave Joseph and Fanny moral guidance any time they needed it and he puts his principals of charity into practice. â€Å"Now, there is no Command more express, no Duty more frequently enjoined than Charity. Whoever therefore is void of Charity, I make no scruple of pronouncing that he is no Christian.† (185). In Fielding’s mind the role for the proper clergyman is to be honest, give moral guidance, and at all times be charitable.

Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda :: History of Osama Bin Laden

Osama Bin Laden who is better known as Al Qaeda's Emir-General was born on July 30, 1957 in Saudi Arabia to Muhammad bin Judah bin Laden and Humid. He was the seventeenth child out of fifty-two. Osama went to Kin Abdulaziz University where he began studies in economics and management but left college in his third year. While at the university he learned Islamic studies and became very intrigued with this religion. Osama's father always urged his children to refrain from politics and religion debate, but Osama seemed interested in government and international politics. In 1973 Osama focused his time and energy on resources and advancement of Islam and Islamism. He also gained higher knowledge in mujahid fighting with wealth and sake for Allah. Osama is well established among the Afghan people. He is one of the scholars of the Jihad as well as being the main commander of the mujahideen worldwide. Dr. Abjullah Azzam leading Islamist influenced Osama for the next 10 years. Together in 1984 the two set up the Afghan service Bureau. Osama's first cam, al-Ansar, in Jaji in Afghanistan's Pakita province was built. In 1982 Essam al-Ride, a flight instructor, joined al Qaeda where he served as procurement officer and Osama's personal pilot. During this time Osama's father died and he inherited a huge sum of money, which he invested. He began to build several training camps and quest houses for the Arab mujidian's. In the mid 1980's Osama began to import machinery, building roads, cave complexes, and supervising the blasting of massive tunnels. Osama then began to win over the Afghan people by becoming humble and starting to live a simplistic life. He seemed to have the ability to befriend and communicate with fighters and live with the Afghan peasants. During his stay on the Afghan-Pakistan border his religious convictions began to deepen. In 1987 what was known as the Lion's Den Operation occurred, exposing Osama to Soviet poison gas. He suffered minor injuries from this attack. This in turn upset him and his dislike of the soviets grew. Osama's wealth and influence made him a natural leader of the Arab Mujahidin people. Osama spent much of his time after this on the front line while Azzam was the one who conceptualized Al Qaeda.

The Diesel Hybrid Combustion Engine Essay -- Auto Cars Automobiles Mec

The Diesel Hybrid Combustion Engine Two main types of engines powering everyday machinery are diesel and gasoline internal combustion engines. Both vary on efficiency levels, but are still effective. Diesel engines have high efficiency levels, such as producing great amount of torque at very low rpms. They are also known for their fuel-efficient behavior and capability to produce low emissions. Their capability to produce power at an efficient rate with little wear on the engine, this makes these engines ideal for hybrid integration. Hybrid integration takes a typical engine and combines it with an electric generator and motor, with the application of other electrical systems applied. Allowing the machinery to generate energy, with lower fuel consumption and cleaner emissions. Toyota is one of the leaders in the automobile hybrid design. The design goes as follows, â€Å"a VVT-I gas engine with an advanced electric motor to not only power the Prius, but also recharge the vehicle's batteries thanks to an ingenious generator and regenerative braking system†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Toyota). This regenerative braking system allows absorption of the heat energy used to brake and uses that energy to recharge the cars batteries. This system makes the car self-reliant. Even though this engine uses gasoline, the development of diesel hybrids will be the next step in innovation. Comparison: One of the main areas is the on-board fuel combustion of these engines. In tests performed by MIT, the relative consumption of on-board fuel energy for a typical gasoline internal combustion engine measured about 88%, while the Diesel-Hybrid was at 52% (Weiss 27). These tests demonstrate how much more ene... .... Design News (19 August 2002): 1-5. Peckham, Jack. â€Å"Diesel Hybrids Come Out Best In Energy, Greenhouse Gases†. Diesel Fuel News (16 April 2001): 1-2. Peckham, Jack. â€Å"Diesel Hybrids Bus Beats CNG On Key Criteria†. Diesel Fuel News (29 October 2001): 1-2. Siuru, Bill. â€Å"Hybrid’s working on the railroad: Green Goat electric switching locomotive shows promise of hybrids for rail; can be powered by diesels or microturbines†. Diesel Progress North American Edition (December 2002): 1-3 Toyota Prius. Toyota Corporation (multiple locations). http://129.33.47.206/html/shop/vehicles/prius/technology/prius_technology.html Weiss, Malcolm A., Heywood, John B., Schafer, Andreas., Natarajan, Vinod K. â€Å"Comparative Assessment of Fuel Cell Cars†. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Laboratory for Energy and the Environment (February 2003): 1-29.

Marketing Communication Essay

â€Å"Brand positioning is an attempt to create and maintain a unique representation of the brand in customer’s mind, a representation that is expected to stimulate choice of that brand† (Rossiter, 2005, p.42). Positioning, in fact, refers to how customers think about different brands in a market. Through brand positioning a company attempts to build a sustainable competitive advantage on product attributes in the consumer’s mind. Nevertheless, developing a successful positioning strategy is not easy. Positioning products in a complex market can be one of a company’s most difficult decisions (Gwin, 2003, p.30). Brand positioning is the first stage of marcoms planning. â€Å"Before the manager can make a reasonable decision about where the brand should be headed via its marcoms, the manager first has to decide – to change, if necessary, or to shore up and reconfirm – the brand’s positioning† (Rossiter, 2005, p.32). The three-level procedure for positioning, presented by Rossiter and Bellman (2005, p.42), contains T-C-B positioning model, I-D-U benefit analysis and a-b-e benefit claim model. The T-C-B positioning model requires managerial decisions on three factors – Target Customer (T) for the brand, Category Need (C) into which the brand should be positioned and Key Benefit (B) which will be offered by the brand. In order to correctly determine the category need, benefits sought and the purchase decision process, managers have to rely on a customer research. The most useful types of research are individual depth interviews and Marcoms Situation Audit (Rossiter, 2005, p.44). The Target Customer decision answers the question â€Å"Who is the brand for?†, and it has to be defined for different types of customer, known as stakeholders. However, the most important is the decision on End-Customer target for brand positioning, and it should be defined as broadly as possible, including all current and potential users of the brand. Category Need (C) is another positioning decision, and it aims to answer the question â€Å"What is the brand?†. It is essential that the Category Need is identified and described in customer language and from customer’s point of view. The Key Benefit (B) decision is the third factor in the brand’s positioning, and it includes several sub-decisions. Firstly, managers have to decide between central, differentiated and central me-too benefit positioning within the category. Secondly, the decision on the emphasised benefit type has to be  made. The benefit to be emphasized, or the Key Benefit, can be instinctual, archetypal, emotional or rational. Finally, managers must decide on entry-ticket benefits that have to be mentioned, and any inferior benefits, which should be tr aded off or omitted in the marketing communications. Key Benefit (B) selection for the T-C-B brand positioning decision is accomplished by conducting an I-D-U Benefit Analysis of competing brands in the category. The manager has to select the Key Benefit that is important or motivating to target customers (I), deliverable by the brand (D) and unique to the brand (U) (Rossiter, 2005, p.62). To decide which benefits are important, deliverable and unique, managers have to evaluate the potential of multiple benefits, using multiattribute model. Importance or desirability of benefits could be determined by identifying the important customer benefits in a product category, and asking users to rate the desirability of each benefit. To find out the Delivery, the same customers who provided the importance ratings could be asked to rate how well each competing brand delivers on each of the important benefits. Uniqueness, or differentially superior delivery, could be determined by calculating Brand Preference score from I-D-U ratings – by multiplying delivery rating of the brand by the importance weight for each benefit and then summing them (Rossiter, 2005, p.64). After completing the I-D-U analysis, managers have to choose one of five strategic options for increasing the brand’s market share via Key Benefit positioning. These options are: to increase the brand’s perceived delivery on an important benefit; to increase the perceived importance of a benefit; to decrease a competitor’s perceived delivery; to add a new benefit; and to change the choice rule. The a-b-e benefit claim model is the third, final stage of positioning. This model looks at the structure of benefit claims, and distinguishes between attributes (a), which are ‘what the brand has† (objectively), benefits (b), which are â€Å"what the customer wants† (subjectively), and emotions (e), which refer to â€Å"what the customer feel†. Decisions made in T-C-B positioning model, I-D-U benefit analysis and a-b-e benefit claim model are incorporated in the positioning statement for the brand. In our consultancy report we used T-C-B positioning model to perform the  positioning analysis for Mortein insect spray. Keeping in mind that the definition of Target Customer should be broad and include all current and potential users of the brand, the End-Customer target for Mortein insect spray was defined as â€Å"Consumers of household insecticide products†. Category Need into which Mortein insect spray is to be positioned was defined, from the customer’s point of view, as â€Å"Insect killers†. The benefit to be emphasised, or the Key Benefit, was identified as â€Å"Fast killing of insects†. We decided to adopt central positioning within the category because Mortein is the leading brand in the Australian household insecticide market. Rational approach, or Rational Selling Proposition, which is focused on a functional performance benefit, was used to identify the Key Benefit. Since the choice between brands of insect spray is Informationally motivated, the rational approach is the best alternative for identifying the Key Benefit. In order to identify the importance or desirability of benefits, we provided a small sample of users of insect spray with a list of benefits, and asked them to rate each of these benefits on a 9-point scale from extremely desirable to extremely undesirable. From their responses we found out that the most important benefits were fast killing, low price and safety. To determine the delivery by each brand we asked the same group of users to rate, on a five point rating scale, how well different brands perform on each of the important benefits. Mortein insect spray scored 4.5 on fast killing, 1.5 on price and 5.0 on safety. Uniqueness was estimated by calculating the Brand Preference score for Mortein insect spray, which was 32.5, or72% of the Ideal brand score. Based on that analysis, first I-D-U strategy option – to increase our brand’s perceived delivery on an important benefit – has been selected. We would like to increase the delivery rating on the most important benefit – fast killing, and, also, to slightly increase delivery rating on price. Regarding the a-b-e benefit claim model, since Mortein insect spray is an Informationally motivated product, we decided to use e-→b (negative emotion → benefit), or Problem-solution benefit chain. People feel annoyed because of the presence of insects in their homes (they have a strong negative emotion), so Mortein will offer them a benefit of fast killing of insects. There are also other models for brand positioning that managers can employ. Perceptual mapping techniques are frequently used to aid managers in making brand positioning decisions (Kohli, 1993, p.10). Perceptual maps could be used to determine where the brand is positioned with the respect to the competitive brands, and to help identify product or service attributes which are important to customers, and which can be used to differentiate one company’s offering from the others in the category. The perceptual mapping delivers a graphic map of the various attributes, locating in space the different brands already in the marketplace with relation to each other and with relation to various attributes uncovered by quantitative surveying of customers and potential customers (Cahill, 1997, p.101). Amongst various techniques of perceptual mapping, the most frequently used are Factor Analysis, Discriminant analysis and Multidimensional Scaling. Factor Analysis is essentially a data reduction technique in which the objective is to represent the original pool of attributes in terms of a smaller number of dimensions or factors (Kohli, 1993, p.10). After the factors have been identified, the brand’s ratings on these factors are used to position the brands in perceptual space. Factor Analysis works best for promotional and communications strategies because it yields more affective dimensions (Gwin, 2003, p.33). Discriminant analysis is also used to reduce the number of attributes to a smaller number of underlying dimensions. However, unlike Factor Analysis, it focuses on attributes which show differences between brands (Kohli, 1993, p.11). Since it yields more objective dimensions, Discriminant analysis is most often used for new product design. Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) enables managers to map brands spatially, so that the relative positions in the mapped space reflect the degree of perceived similarity between the brands. Respondents are asked to evaluate brands in pairs, judging the overall similarity of the brands, not individual attributes (Kohli, 1993, p.12). The best use of Multidimensional Scaling is in established markets, with numerous brands available to respondents. On the other hand, Gwin and Gwin (2003) favour another tool, the Product Attributes model, over perceptual mapping techniques. Product Attributes model assumes that consumer choice is based on the characteristics (or attributes) of a brand. The consumer’s choice is based on maximizing the level of satisfaction received from the product attributes  subject to a budget constraint (Gwin, 2003, p.32). The main strength of this model is the ability to incorporate the impact of price into assessment of brand positioning. Perceptual mapping is useful because it makes easier for people to see and understand relationship when they are presented graphically, rather than when they are offered in columns of figures or in long verbal descriptions (Cahill, 1997, p.101). If we used perceptual mapping in our consultancy report it would, enable us to locate different brands in space, and, actually, see what Mortein stands for in relation to the competitors. Nevertheless, this technique has several drawbacks. Firstly, it compares only two, usually most important attributes, while other attributes ate neglected. Secondly, there is no way of representing benefit importance in perceptual maps because the attributes are invariably plotted as though they were of equal importance (Rossiter, 2005, p.70). In our particular case, for Mortein insect spray, if we employed perceptual mapping, we would probably obtain similar results to those from I-D-U benefit analysis. However, by using perceptual mapping techniques, we would have to spend considerably more time and effort on research and statistical analysis. Therefore, we believe that the I-D-U model favoured by Rossiter and Bellman (2005) is superior to perceptual mapping and other models of brand positioning. References Cahill, D., (1997), How Consumers Pick a Hotel: Strategic Segmentation and Target Marketing, The Haworth Press, Inc., New York Greenberg, M., and McDonald, S. S., (1989), ‘Successful Needs/Benefits Segmentation: A user’s Guide’, The Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 6, Iss. 3, pp. 29-36 Gwin, C. and Gwin, C., (2003), ‘Product attributes model: A tool for evaluating brand positioning’, Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, Vol. 11, Iss. 2, pp. 30-42 Haley, R., (1995), ‘Benefit segmentation: A decision-oriented research tool’, Marketing Management, Vol. 4, Iss. 1, pp. 59-63 Kohli, C. and Leuthesser, L., (1993), ‘Product positioning: A comparison of perceptual mapping techniques’, The Journal of Product and Brand Management, Vol. 2, Iss. 4, pp. 10-20 Kotler, P. et al., (2004), Marketing, 6th edition, Pearson Education Australia Rossiter, J. R. and Bellman, S., (2005), Marketing communications; theory and applications, Pearson Education Australia Wedel, M. and Steenkamp, J. E. M., (1991), ‘A Clusterwise Regression Method for Simultaneous Fuzzy Market Structuring and Benefit Segmentation’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 28, Iss. 4, pp. 385-392

Berkeley College Essay

Today’s generation is now considered as only one click away. The World Wide Web has undoubtedly disregarded all the distance and is successfully connecting people from all the parts of the world. As a matter of fact, computers are now used as classrooms. An online school wherein you get to learn all things a normal school has to offer. And the best part is you can do it effortlessly. Berkley College is an online university where you can get to study on your home with international classmates online. You can get your reference books at no time, despite of the weather on your place or other havocs. They are all bound to give you all your needs for your own convenience. There could be numerous reasons why students prefer the online school rather than the usual one with infrastructures. But one of the major reasons might be the convenience. When you are having your studies on your own home, you can get to do all course works that you have to finish. Whether it is taking care of your baby, your jobs and other things you have to spend time on, you can all do it and at the same time study with Berkley Online College. And the best part is- there is no specific time for your classes! You can access with your school twenty four hours and seven days a week whenever and wherever. There would be no doubt about the flexibility of your online education. You can study anywhere that pleases you as long off course, there is an internet connection to depend on to. Because of its flexibility, students all over the world prefer it too. So that would be a double advantage: comfort while studying and international classmates. Yes, you can get to understand other culture and nations by means of your online international friends. So there is nothing to be afraid of. On the other hand, there are a million reasons to try Berkley Online College. References http://berkeleycollege. edu/Online/index. htm Berkeley Online College

Sample Question

Sample Question 5312 Fall 2009 Student:___________________________________________________________________ 1. Corporate governance include concerns about: A. business ethics and social responsibility. B. the responsibilities of the board of directors. C. equitable treatment of stakeholders. D. disclosures and transparency. E. all of the above. 2. The most powerful corporate governance legislation to date has been: A. the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002. B. the creation of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. C. Corporate Ethics Code of 2005. D. the regulation of inventory management practices by the SEC. . The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002 does not specifically prohibit an independent auditor from performing the following non-audit function(s) for an audit client: A. financial information systems design and implementation. B. internal audit outsourcing services. C. tax services. D. â€Å"expert† services. E. SOX specifically prohibits an independent audi tor from performing all of all of the non-audit services for an audit client. 4. Which is the following descriptions is not one of the â€Å"Seven Financial Shenanigans† identified by Howard Schilit and listed in Exhibit 10-1: A. ecording revenue too soon or that is of a questionable quality. B. boosting income with one-time gains. C. failing to record intangible assets which the company has ownership rights to. D. shifting future expenses to the current period as a special charge. E. failing to record or improperly reducing liabilities. 5. The explanatory notes to the financial statements: A. should be referred to if more than a cursory, and perhaps misleading impression of a firm's financial position and its results of operations is to be achieved. B. are not an integral part of the financial statements. C. nclude a great deal of detailed information that is potentially useful only to a financial analyst making a detailed appraisal of the future prospects of the entity. D. are used by many entities to hide information from the reader of the financial statements by including in the explanatory notes information that should be shown in detail on the financial statements themselves. 6. The nature and content of disclosures relate to all of the following except: A. accounting changes. B. segment information. C. fair market value. D. contingencies and commitments. E. events subsequent to the balance sheet date. . Which of the following is nota topic that is likely to be discussed as a significant accounting policy? A. Depreciation method. B. Earnings per share of common stock calculation details. C. Inventory valuation method. D. Method of estimating uncollectible accounts receivable. 8. The explanatory notes to the financial statements: A. are not an integral part of the financial statements. B. explain the significant accounting policies of the company. C. usually disclose the amount of the company's bad debts expense. D. describe management's product de velopment plans for the coming year. 9.Significant accounting policies are described in the explanatory notes to the financial statements because: A. there isn't enough space for them to be included in the captions of the financial statements. B. if the accrual basis of accounting is used, â€Å"matching† of revenues and expenses may not take place. C. the reader must be aware of which of the alternative generally accepted accounting practices have been used. D. none of the above. 10. When an entity changes its accounting from one generally accepted method to another generally accepted method: A. financial statements of all prior years are changed to maintain comparability. B. n explanatory note stating that the change was approved by the Financial Accounting Standards Board is required. C. the dollar effect of the change on both the balance sheet and income statement must be disclosed. D. changes like this are not permitted. 11. The impact of changing price levels on amounts reported in financial statements is: A. reported as a separate item on the balance sheet. B. accomplished by reporting assets at their replacement cost. C. required to be described in the explanatory notes to the financial statements. D. encouraged, but not required to be described in the explanatory notes to the financial statements. 2. Management's statement of responsibility: A. explains that the entity's financial statements are the responsibility of the entity's auditors. B. states that the financial statements are free of significant error. C. affirms that management is responsible for assuring adherence to internal control policies and procedures. D. guarantees that the firm has operated in a highly ethical manner. 13. Firms that issue registered securities are required to file, with the SEC on an annual basis, which of the following? A. An annual report. B. A prospectus. C. A form 10-K. D. A set of financial statements. E.All of the above. 14. A firm's cash dividends were $ 3. 96 per share of common stock for calendar 2006. In 2007 the stock was split 3 for 1, and in 2008 a 10% stock dividend was issued. Dividends per share for 2006, to be reported in the firm's annual report for 2008, are: A. $3. 96 B. $1. 45 C. $1. 32 D. $1. 20 15. Business segment information is included in the explanatory notes to financial statements because: A. the amounts shown on the financial statements of most companies are just too large to comprehend. B. current and potential investors can make more informed judgments about the company. C. et income from various geographic areas can be clearly determined. D. by combining these amounts for each segment, ROI and funds flows for the company as a whole can be determined. 16. For 2006, Skresso Co. reported $3. 64 of earnings per share of common stock. During 2007 the firm had a 4% common stock dividend. 2006 earnings per share to be reported in the annual report for 2007 are: A. $3. 79 B. $3. 64 C. $3. 50 D. $3. 49 17. Managemen t's statement of responsibility: A. usually refers to the company's system of internal controls. B. emphasizes that the auditors are responsible for the financial statements. C. ncludes a disclaimer of responsibility for the level of the P/E ratio of the company's common stock. D. gives the president of the company an opportunity to explain why profits changed. 18. Which of the following is the proper paragraph sequence for an independent Auditor's Report? A. Scope, introduction, opinion. B. Introduction, scope, opinion. C. Opinion, scope, summary. D. Introduction, opinion, scope. 19. A firm's independent auditors have the responsibility to: A. assess the firm's accounting policies. B. ascertain the firm's profit potential. C. uncover all fraudulent activities. D. assess management's discussion and analysis. 0. The independent auditors' report usually: A. presents a â€Å"clean bill of health† for the company. B. refers to the quality of the company's products or services. C. includes an opinion that the financial statements are correct. D. includes an opinion that the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, financial information about the company. 21. An audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards includes each of the following except: A. examination, on a test basis, of evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. B. valuation of the efficiency and effectiveness of management. C. assessment of the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management. D. planning and performance of the audit to obtain reasonable assurance that the financial statements are free of material misstatements. 22. Which one of the following methods is no longer a Generally Accepted Accounting Method? A. Purchase accounting. B. Fair market value method. C. Pooling method. D. None of the Above. 23. Which of the following require an explanatory note in the independent auditors' report. A. basing the opinion on the work of another auditor.B. Uncertainties about the outcome of a significant event that would have affected the presentation of the financial statement. C. Substantial doubt about the entity's viability to continue as a going concern. D. None of the above. E. Items a, b and c are correct. 24. A management that wanted to increase the financial leverage of its firm would: A. raise additional capital by selling common stock. B. use excess cash to purchase preferred stock for the treasury. C. raise additional capital by selling fixed interest rate long-term bonds. D. try to increase its ROI by increasing asset turnover. 25.For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007, a company reported earnings per share of $3. 25 and cash dividends per share of $0. 50. During fiscal 2008, the company had a 3 for 2 stock split. In the annual report for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008, earnings per share and cash dividends for fiscal 2007 would be reported, respecti vely, as: A. $3. 25 and $0. 50 B. $4. 85 and $0. 75 C. $2. 17 and $0. 33 D. $1. 09 and $0. 17 26. Financial leverage: A. arises because most borrowed funds have a fixed interest rate. B. arises because most borrowed funds have a variable interest rate. C. usually has no bearing on the risk associated with a company.D. is a concept that does not apply to individuals. 27. A potential creditor's judgment about granting credit would be most influenced by the potential customer's: A. current ratio at the end of the prior fiscal year. B. most recent acid-test ratio. C. trend of acid-test ratio over the past three years. D. practice with respect to taking cash discounts offered by current suppliers. 28. Another term for the price/earnings ratio is: A. cost ratio. B. sales multiple. C. earnings multiple. D. profit ratio. 29. An entity's current ratio will be influenced by: A. the inventory cost flow assumption used. B. riting off an overdue account receivable against the allowance for uncol lectible accounts. C. the depreciation method used. D. issuance of a stock dividend. 30. If a firm's debt ratio were 25%, its debt/equity ratio would be: A. 25%. B. 50%. C. 33. 33%. D. 75%. 31. An individual interested in making a judgment about the profitability of a company should: A. review the trend of working capital for several years. B. calculate the company's ROI for the most recent year. C. review the trend of the company's ROI for several years. D. compare the company's ROI for the most recent year with the industry average ROI for the most recent year. 2. Which of the following is not a category of financial statement ratios? A. Financial leverage. B. Liquidity. C. Profitability. D. Prospectus. 33. When a firm has financial leverage: A. ROI will be greater than ROE. B. ROI will usually be less than it would be without leverage. C. risk is greater than if there isn't any leverage. D. the firm will always have a higher ROE than it would without leverage. 34. When a corporat ion has both common stock and preferred stock outstanding: A. dividends on preferred stock are paid only if the company has current earnings. B. ividends on preferred stock must be paid before dividends on common stock can be paid. C. preferred stockholders receive the same dividend per share as common stockholders. D. dividends on preferred stock are paid only if dividends are to be paid on the common stock. 35. A leverage buyout refers to: A. one firm issues stock to take over another firm. B. one firm trades its stock for the stock of another firm. C. a firm goes heavily into debt in order to obtain the funds to purchase the shares of the public stockholders. D. one firm pays cash for the shares of a takeover firm's shares. 36.The dividend payout ratio describes: A. the proportion of earnings paid as dividends. B. the relationship of dividends per share to market price per share. C. the percentage change in dividends this year compared to last year. D. dividends as a percentage o f the price/earnings ratio. 37. The price/earnings ratio: A. is a measure of the relative expensiveness of a firm's common stock. B. does not usually change by more than 1. 0 (e. g. 8. 2 to 9. 2) during the year. C. can be used to determine the cash dividend to be received during the year. D. is calculated by dividing the earnings multiple by net income. 38.If a firm's payment terms for sales made on account to its customers were 2/10, n30, the number of days' sales in accounts receivable would be expected to be: A. less than 10. B. between 10 and 25. C. between 25 and 40. D. over 40. 39. A common size income statement: A. uses the same dollar amount of revenues for each year. B. expresses items as a percentage of revenues. C. makes comparisons between years more difficult. D. is useful in estimating the impact of inflation. 40. Management's use of resources can best be evaluated by focusing on measures of: A. liquidity. B. activity. C. leverage. D. book value. 41.Asset turnover cal culations: A. are made by dividing the average asset balance during the year by the sales for the year. B. are made by dividing sales for the year by the asset balance at the end of the year. C. communicate information about how promptly the entity pays its bills. D. should be evaluated by observing the turnover trend over a period of time. 42. The comparison of activity measures of different companies is complicated by the fact that: A. different inventory cost flow assumptions may be used. B. dollar amounts of assets may be significantly different. C. only one of the companies may have preferred stock outstanding.D. the number of shares of common stock issued may be significantly different. 43. A higher P/E ratio means that: A. the stock is more reasonably priced. B. the stock is relatively expensive. C. investors are wary of the stock. D. earnings are expected to decrease. 44. Which of the following is(are) an example of a measure of leverage? A. Debt yield. B. Debt payout ratio. C. Preferred dividend coverage ratio. D. Debt/equity ratio. E. All of the above. 45. The inventory turnover calculation: A. is wrong unless cost of goods sold is used in the numerator. B. is wrong unless sales is used in the numerator. C. s an alternative way of expressing the number of days' sales in inventory. D. requires knowledge of the inventory cost flow assumption being used. 46. Book value per share of common stock of a manufacturing company: A. is not a very useful measure most of the time. B. is calculated by dividing market value per share by earnings per share. C. reflects the fair market value of the company's stock. D. is the same as the total balance sheet asset value per share of common stock. 47. If the P/E ratio of a company's common stock were 12, and its earnings were $ 2. 50 per common share: A. the market value of the common stock would be $20. 3 per share. B. the market value of the common stock would be $25. 00 per share. C. an increase in earnings of $0. 20 per share, with no change in the multiple, would result in a market price increase of $2. 40 per share. D. an increase in earnings of $0. 20 per share, with no change in the multiple, would result in a market price increase of $1. 67 per share. 48. The concept of operating leverage refers to which of the following? A. Operating income changes proportionately more than revenues for any given change in activity level. B. Operating income changes proportionately less than revenues for any given change in activity level.C. Operating income changes proportionately more than income for any given change in activity level. D. Operating income changes proportionately less than income for any given change in activity level. 49. As the total volume of activity changes: A. the total of variable costs changes. B. the total of fixed costs changes. C. variable costs per unit change. D. fixed costs per unit stay the same. 50. A firm has revenues of $120,000, a contribution margin ratio of 30%, and fixed expenses that total $56,000. If revenues increase $20,000, then: A. operating income will increase by $6000. B. operating income will be 0.C. fixed expenses will increase $8000. D. the contribution margin ratio will increase by 1/8. 51. Each of a company's several product lines has a different contribution margin ratio. Total sales in 2007 were 20% higher than total sales in 2006. Total contribution margin for 2007 will be: A. the same as it was in 2006, regardless of changes in sales mix. B. 20% higher than it was in 2006, regardless of changes in sales mix. C. more than 20% higher than it was in 2006, if the sales mix changes and proportionately more high contribution margin ratio products are sold in 2007 than in 2006. D. ess than 20% higher than it was in 2006, if the sales mix changes and proportionately more high contribution margin ratio products are sold in 2007 than in 2006. For questions 52, 53, 66, 79 and 84 the following graph is needed. [pic] 52. If sales volume were to decrease 10%, from 4,000 units per month to 3,600 units per month, operating income would: A. not change B. decrease $10,000 C. decrease $24,000 D. decrease $40,000 53. If the selling price per unit were to drop $2, from $100 to $98, the sales volume were to increase 500 units to 4,500 units per month, and advertising expense were to increase by $1,000: A. he break-even point would increase. B. the break-even point would decrease. C. the contribution margin ratio would increase. D. operating income would decrease. 54. The cost of a single unit of production in excess of the breakeven point in units is: A. its fixed cost and variable cost. B. its fixed cost only. C. its variable cost only. D. none of the above. For questions 55 and 64 the following graph is needed. [pic] 55. Using the high-low method, the variable rate for maintenance is: A. $0. 40 B. $0. 80 C. $1. 20 D. $2. 50 56. The term â€Å"relevant range† refers to: A. the range of activity where costs will fluc tuate. B. he range of activity where fixed costs change as activity changes. C. the range of activity where total variable cost remains constant as activity changes. D. the range of activity where cost relationships are valid. 57. A firm's products have an average contribution margin ratio of 40%, which will be maintained for the next month even though fixed expenses are expected to rise by $20,000. In order to keep operating income for the month from being affected, revenues will have to increase by: A. $ 8,000 B. $12,000 C. $20,000 D. $50,000 58. The cost formula for monthly customer order processing cost has been established as $100 + $0. 5 per order. It is expected that 5,600 orders will be processed in May and 6,400 in June. Total order processing costs for May and June combined will be estimated to be: A. $ 940 B. $1,060 C. $2,000 D. $2,500 59. The contribution margin ratio always decreases when the: A. breakeven point decreases. B. fixed expenses increase. C. selling price in creases and the variable costs remain constant. D. variable cost increase and the selling price remains constant. 60. Knowledge about the behavior pattern of a cost is important to understanding the effect on net income of a change in sales volume because as sales volume changes: A. et income will change proportionately. B. the effect on net income will depend on the behavior pattern of various costs. C. fixed costs will rise proportionately. D. variable costs will not change. 61. Management accounting is: A. a highly technical subject that people in personnel or engineering should not be expected to understand. B. performed by individuals who seldom work with people in other functional areas of the organization. C. the principal activity involved in determining the goals and objectives of the entity. D. an activity that gets involved with virtually all of the other functional areas of the organization. 62.What percentage of the contribution margin is profit on units sold in excess of the breakeven point? A. It's 50% to the contribution margin ratio. B. It's equal to the variable cost ratio. C. It's equal of the gross profit ratio. D. It's 100%. 63. ABU Co. has several products, each with a different contribution margin ratio. If the same number of units were sold in July as in June, but the sales mix changed: A. operating income would be the same in June and July. B. fixed expenses in July would be in a different relevant range than in June. C. the company's overall contribution margin ratio would be the same in June and July.D. total contribution margin in July would be different from that in June. 64. Using the high-low method, the monthly fixed component of maintenance cost is: A. $1,600 B. $1,200 C. $1,100 D. $1,300 65. When the cost behavior pattern has been identified as fixed at a certain volume of activity: A. any change in volume will probably cause the cost to change. B. it is appropriate to express the cost on a per unit of activity basis. C. the t otal cost will not change even if the volume of activity changes substantially. D. the total cost may change if the volume of activity changes substantially. 66.The break-even point volume of units is: A. 0 B. 360 C. 720 D. 1000 67. An example of a cost likely to have a fixed behavior pattern is: A. sales force commission. B. production labor wages. C. advertising cost. D. electricity cost for packaging equipment. 68. The formula for expressing the total of a fixed, variable, or mixed cost at any level of activity is: A. total cost = fixed cost + (variable rate * volume of activity) B. total cost = fixed cost * volume of activity C. total cost = fixed cost * variable rate D. total cost = fixed cost – variable cost 69. As the level of activity decreases: A. fixed cost per unit decrease.B. variable cost per unit decrease. C. fixed cost remains constant in total. D. variable cost remains constant in total. 70. The contribution margin format income statement is organized by: A. r esponsibility centers. B. functional classifications. C. sales territories. D. cost behavior classifications. 71. As the level of activity increases: A. fixed cost per unit increase. B. variable cost per unit increase. C. variable cost per unit decrease. D. fixed cost per unit decrease. 72. Managerial accounting supports the management process most significantly by: A. measuring and reporting financial results after the fact.B. determining the goals and objectives of the entity. C. providing estimates of financial results for various plans. D. establishing operating policies to be followed during a period of time. 73. An example of a cost that is likely to have a variable behavior pattern is: A. sales force salaries. B. depreciation of production equipment. C. salaries of production supervisors. D. production labor wages. 74. A 10% change in a firm's revenues is likely to result in a change of more than 10% in the firm's operating income because: A. not all of the firm's costs will change in proportion to the revenue change.B. the firm has financial leverage. C. the contribution margin ratio will change in proportion to the revenue change. D. only fixed expenses will change in proportion to the revenue change. 75. An example of a cost likely to have a mixed behavior pattern is: A. sales force commission. B. raw material cost. C. depreciation of production equipment. D. electricity cost for the manufacturing plant. 76. Cost behavior refers to: A. costs that are both good and bad. B. costs that increase at a quicker rate than others. C. costs that decrease at a quicker rate than others. D. costs that are variable or fixed. E. one of the above. 77. Which of the following statements doesnot describe a characteristic of management accounting? A. Management accounting must conform to GAAP. B. Approximate amounts rather than accurate amounts or refined estimates are often used in management accounting. C. Management accounting places a great deal of emphasis on the f uture. D. Management accounting is more concerned with units of the organization rather than with the organization as a whole. 78. Simplifying assumptions made when using cost behavior pattern data include: A. relevant range and liquidity. B. fixed activity and linearity.C. relevant range and linearity. D. activity range and variability. 79. The contribution margin ratio is: A. 40% B. 60% C. 62. 5% D. 70% 80. Which of the following terms do not appear on the contribution margin format income statement: A. gross profit. B. contribution margin. C. operating income. D. variable expenses. 81. A management decision that would have a long term influence on the operating leverage of a firm would be: A. increasing the advertising budget. B. substituting robots for hourly paid production workers. C. increasing prices in proportion to raw material cost increases.D. having a season-end sale of seasonal products. 82. Which of the following activities is not part of the management planning and c ontrol cycle: A. data collection and performance feedback. B. implementation of plans. C. providing information to investors and creditors. D. revisiting plans. 83. The relevant range concept refers to: A. a firm's range of profitability. B. a firm's range of sales. C. a firm's range of rates of return. D. a firm's range of activity. 84. The break-even point in terms of total revenues per month is: A. $30,000 B. $60,000 C. $75,000 D. $100,000 85.When the high-low method of estimating a cost behavior pattern is used: A. cost and volume data must be reviewed for outliers. B. the direct result of the high-low calculations is the fixed expense amount. C. the highest and lowest sales price and volume amounts are used in the calculation. D. the resulting cost formula will explain total cost accurately for every value between the high and low volumes. 86. The shift in the amount of manufacturing overhead costs applied to the mix of products produced that occurs when using a single cost dri ver rate as compared to using activity-based costing rates is known as: A. nderapplied overhead B. overapplied overhead C. cost absorption D. cost distortion 87. An excess of cost of goods manufactured over cost of goods sold for the period represents: A. an increase in gross profit. B. a decrease in work in process inventory. C. overapplied manufacturing overhead. D. an increase in finished goods inventory. 88. A predetermined overhead rate is used to: A. keep track of actual overhead costs as they are incurred. B. assign indirect costs to cost objects. C. establish prices for manufactured products. D. allocate selling and administrative expenses to manufactured products. 9. Which of the following will cause income determined with absorption costing to be higher than income determined with direct costing? A. units produced equals units sold. B. units produced is greater than units sold. C. units produced is less than units sold. D. income determined with absorption costing will alw ays equal income determined with direct costing. 90. The overhead component of product cost is: A. the sum of the actual overhead costs incurred in the manufacture of the product. B. likely to be the same amount for every product made by the company. C. n estimated amount based on labor hours, machine hours, or some other activity. D. determined at the end of the year when actual costs and actual production are known. 91. For the partial value chain functions given below, which sequence is correct? A. design, production, marketing B. marketing, production, distribution C. research and development, production, distribution D. customer service, marketing, distribution 92. Total manufacturing costs for the month on the statement of costs of goods manufactured equals: A. variable costs + fixed costs + mixed costs. B. work in process inventory – finished goods inventory.C. cost of goods sold – cost of goods manufactured. D. cost of raw material used + direct labor cost incu rred + manufacturing overhead applied. 93. An example of a cost likely to have an indirect relationship with products being manufactured: A. production labor costs. B. raw material costs. C. electricity costs for packaging equipment. D. none of the above. 94. Costs may be allocated to a product or activity for many purposes, but care must be exercised when using allocated costs because: A. direct costs identified with the product or activity may not be accurately assigned.B. fixed costs will change in total if the volume of activity changes. C. all costs may not have been allocated to the product or activity. D. arbitrarily allocated costs may not behave in the way assumed in the allocation method. 95. The production cost of a single unit of a manufactured product is determined by: A. dividing total direct materials and direct labor for a production run by the number of units made. B. dividing total direct materials, direct labor, and manufacturing overhead for a production run by t he number of units made. C. ividing total direct materials, direct labor, manufacturing overhead and selling expenses for a production run by the number of units made. D. dividing the selling price by the gross profit ratio. 96. An example of a cost that is likely to have a direct relationship with products being manufactured: A. sales force salaries. B. depreciation of production equipment. C. salaries of production supervisors. D. production labor costs. 97. The sequence of activities that add value to the organization are: A. the value processes. B. the chain of production events. C. the value chain. D. the strategic cost initiatives. 8. Which of the following activities is not included in the organization's value chain? A. marketing. B. finance. C. customer service. D. research and development 99. Cost accounting is a subset of: A. financial accounting. B. process cost accounting. C. job order cost accounting. D. managerial accounting. 100. The three components of product costs are: A. direct material, supervisor salaries, selling expenses. B. direct labor, manufacturing overhead, indirect material. C. direct material, manufacturing overhead, direct labor. D. manufacturing overhead, indirect material, indirect labor.