Decades ago when I was sitting where you are, the profs would put articles from academic and workplace journals on reserve in the library for us to read. Frankly I never got it, they were boring and dreary seemingly never making a point. I am seeking to do just the opposite with you by pointing out things that are interesting to read that actually relate to what we do in class.
With that in mind this afternoon Tues 10/31/06 I am putting last Wed and Thursday's WSJ on reserve in the library. If you are subscribing, here are the articles of interest, page number first
Wednesday Oct 25 2006
A1 The study of forensic accounting is exploding, this article about thieves counterfeiting bar codes explains why and how.
A14 Mercenaries are as old as war itself; Gov Schwarzenegger led a group of them in the movie Predator. A write suggests on page A14 that may be the best way to solve the genocide in Africa. The idea of the French Foreign Legion was also along these lines, hire someone else to fight so the French don't have to.
B1 Still made in America, Viking stoves in dirt poor Mississippi churns out high end kitchen appliances. The secret is the Dell method of make no product until it is ordered, keeping inventories to a minimum and following the JIT dictum. Interesting, this company just started in the 1980s. Here is another example along the lines of Legend Aircraft on the blog, can you think of a product for which there is a ready market? Note many of these are high end products.
D1 Companies are buying iPods for their employees. It tuns out podcasts lower training costs and make it easier for employees to learn new methods. Again, here is cost accounting at work, lowering the cost of Dr. Deming's training. It also makes it easier on the employee life style to listen when they can instead of attending day long seminars away from home.
D3 Big Brother is snooping around again with iLike, a program that identifies what music you prefer so your friends can tune in. Remember the post about data mining and how Amazon is using such techniques to identify which products you might buy next, here is another variation.
Thursday October 26, 2006
A2 Clear Channel com templates a buyout, here is the perfect example of how the ratios and concepts of debt to equity we study in class play out in a real world scenario. Also factor in the home grown Mays group that does not want someone else messing with what they see as their company, will this deal make?
C3 Here is a tombstone ad, notice how it looks like a tombstone? What does it tell you , who underwrote the deal? The underwriting business is now dominated by a few large firms alike in the 1970s when there were many more small firms.
D3 A survey indicates that donors would give more if they thought charities did a better job of controlling administrative costs. We are studying just that in cost accounting in chapter 9 about budgets. Here is another growing demand for accounting expertise-could you help a non profit reign in its costs? How would you tackle the project?
Friday October 27, 2006
B1 Bill Ford discovers globalization, will this work for Ford, where has he been the last ten years anyway?
W1 A female writer takes a ride in a 'soccer mom' $250K Ferrari, designed for women in skirts. Question, who ever saw a mom at a soccer game in a skirt? It is a cleverly written piece but what caught my eye was the table later in the article. Turns out the buyers of such exotica own multiple cars like this. And she reveals the clever marketing strategy of making a limited supply of cars keeping the cachet of the brand alive, as well as the prices of the older vehicles. A fun read and evidence the market for high end products is alive and well.
DLE
PS I highlighted the titles of the articles for you so they are easily found.