Key Industry Trends Economics Many factors of the economy help to indicate certain trends in the tax industry. The Gross Domestic Product has been calculated at an increase of 3.9% the first quarter of 2004. Consumer spending has also increased .4% from the last year. Both of these statistics may indicate an upward trend in the nation’s economy. A consumer may have more disposable income therefore, they may be more apt to spend their extra money on a tax preparation service. This would reveal a positive effect for H&R Block. The unemployment rate has increased nationally while the employment rate is decreasing. This may result in a decrease of the amount of tax returns that H&R Block files annually, due to the amount of taxpayers that have become unemployed. Either these people may have no taxes to file due to their job loss, or they may not have the extra money to pay for a tax preparation service. If a person is out of work then they may have the extra time to file their taxes in their own time. Demographics There are many trends in national population characteristics that indicate both opportunities and threats to H&R Block. The U.S. Census Bureau predicts that the U.S. will experience a large increase of the Hispanic, Asian, and many other ethnic populations. This will create a large demand for employees that are at least bi-lingual. H&R Block also has an opportunity to open temporary offices in parts of the country that would benefit consumers requiring an employee to speak their native language. The U.S. Census Bureau has also indicated an increase in the percentage of the nation’s population that is college educated. This may pose a threat to the tax preparation industry. A person that has received at least a 4-year college degree may obtain the knowledge to prepare their own taxes, thus eliminating their demand for a tax preparation service. On the other hand, their college education may indicate an ability to earn a better income, so they would require the services of an organization like H&R Block. With the baby boomers now entering their fifties, birthrates indicate fewer births and more deaths among the population. This would obviously result in less people needing to file taxes, therefore less demand for a tax preparation service. It is important for an organization to analyze the appropriate economic factors and respond with the correct actions so that they may maintain a competitive advantage within their industry.
Murray’s view on college is more practical; if college education became wide spread, and less people went to vocational schools, there will be a significant change in the current job market, and a significant hit to taxes.
The United States tax system is in complete disarray. Republicans and Democrats agree that the current tax code is complex, unfair, and costly. The income tax system is so complex; the IRS publishes 480 tax forms and 280 forms to explain the 480 forms (Armey 1). The main reason the tax system is so complex is because of the special preferences such as deductions and tax credits. Complexity in the current tax system forces Americans to spend 5.4 billion hours complying with the tax code, which is more time than it takes to manufacture every car, truck and van produced in the United States (Armey 1). Time is not the only thing that is lost with the current tax system; Americans also lose great deal of money complying with the tax code. Resources that are currently wasted on record keeping, filing forms, learning the tax code, litigation, and tax avoidance. The cost of complying with the current tax code totals about $200 billion annually, or $700 for every man, woman, and child in America (Armey 1). The overwhelming consensus that the current tax system is inadequate has ignited the search for tax reform. There are numerous proposals for tax reform; one particular proposal brought forth by various conservatives is the idea of national flat rate income tax. The idea is to replace the current income tax with a single rate that everyone pays.
McDonald’s Corporation (MDC) known for its famous golden arches is the number one largest chain of fast food restaurant in the world. With headquarters in the United States and restaurants in 120 countries serving around 86 million customers a day. About 80% of the restaurants are operated by a franchisees or affiliates. McDonald's revenues come from the expenses paid by the franchisees such as fees, royalties, rent, as well as sales in company-operated restaurants. According to Hoovers, McDonald's Corporation in 2013 made and annual revenue of $28,105.7 compared to $27.5 billion made in 2012. Most of the restaurants are freestanding units offering dine-in and drive-through service, but McDonald's also has many restaurants located in airports, retail areas, and other high-traffic locations. The company has nine major markets – Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, the UK, and the US – that account for 75% of sales. Although McDonald is a leading brand, the top companies that give McDonald competition include: Doctor’s Associates Inc., YUM! Brands Inc., Starbucks Corporation, Darden Restaurant Inc., and Burger King
Protects the taxpayer during hard times, when income is reduced, the tax rate also become shifts to a lower bracket.
As we all know, marketing is a necessary part of our daily life. Not only are products and services marketed, but we market ourselves as part of everyday business. I spent time this week speaking with a close friend of mind who is a Store Manager for H&R Block discussing the 4-Ps and how they pertain to his organization. It was very interesting to see how different industries market their products and services. Does the thought of receiving your tax return immediately grasp your attention? Well it has definitely helped H&R Block in boosting their ability to attract customers. It seems as thought immediate gratification is a promotion marketing tool that many companies are now using. After briefly describing the 4 P's of marketing we will review how H&R Block utilizes all of the steps in their marketing mix.
According to McConnell, Brue, and Flynn (2015), elasticity is an important concept that helps answer many economic and business questions (p. 135). It increases the understanding of consumer markets by explaining to some degree how changes in price and income affect supply and demand. In addition, elasticity allows supply and demand to be analyzed with greater accuracy. Businesses use elasticity to decide how to price products and services which helps them to be more competitive. The information that is gathered about how consumers respond to prices can also help to reduce uncertainty and risk. Price elasticity measures how sensitive a thing is in relation to price. The following is a brief examination of price elasticity of supply and demand.
According to The Statistic Portal “McDonald’s has grown into a global giant with increasing restaurant numbers years-on-years – in 2014, McDonald’s had 36,258 restaurants worldwide.” In 2015, number of franchises in the United States are 12,836, Canada are 1,181, and international are 15,527; the company personally owned 6,714 restaurants. The numbers of people who visit McDonald’s has increasing from 108.52 million in 2009 to 113.82 million in 2013 (The Statistic Portal). McDonald’s serves 1% of the population every day. People can easily find a McDonald’s restaurant around them; it is everywhere: in the malls, air ports, and even in hospitals. People have been eating McDonald’s since the company opened in 1948. Nowadays, it is often being
For example, in 2012 a Bangladesh factory producing garments for American and European companies caught fire killing 117 factory workers (Cooper, 2014). Additionally, in 2013 another factory in Bangladesh collapsed killing 1,100 workers, which was caused by foundational issues from the upper floors being built without a permit (Cooper, 2014). These incidents ignited outrage over both unsafe and unfair working conditions as well as the exploitation from MNCs, who had extremely profitable contracts with these factories. Consequently, due to public outcry the formation of enhanced government regulations, oversight, business initiatives, and public efforts have surfaced (Cooper, 2014). Although these issues have not been completely resolved, the question over the extent of which MNCs are responsible for adequate workplace safety remains a controversial topic. However, strategic efforts from these companies indicate the importance and necessity of remaining proactive in a globalized economy. These efforts consist of the formation of minimum workforce standards, compliance regulations, financial support, and long-term contractual
Teacher evaluations are very important. Most of the time, they have a negative feeling attached to them. Some teachers view evaluations as a way of them getting written up for what they are not doing and not as a way of growing and improving to help them teach their students. This also depends on how the principals frame and do teacher evaluations. I wanted to focus on teacher evaluations because I want to show how having a good teacher evaluation can lead to teacher and student growth in the school.
McDonald's was started in 1955 by Ray Kroc and has grown to more than 30,000 restaurants in 121 countries. McDonald's also had $10.1 billion in system-wide sales and $271.9 million in corporate profits on revenues of $3.7 billion in the year 2001.
Price Elasticity is the measure in responsiveness of consumers to changes in the price of a product or service. The evaluation and consideration of this measure is a useful tool in firms making decisions about pricing and production, and in governments making decisions about revenue and regulation. “Price Elasticity is impacted by measurable factors that allow managers to understand demand and pricing for their product or service; including the availability of substitutes, the consumer budgets for the product or service, and the time period for demand adjustments.” The proper consideration of Price Elasticity allows managers to set pricing such that the effect on Total Revenue is predictable and adjustments to production are timely. The concept of Price Elasticity is employed in the management of commercial firms and government.
McDonald's is the world’s leading food service retailer with more than 30,000 local restaurants in 121 countries serving 45 million customers each day.
In today’s market, McDonalds faces numerous challenges such as fierce competition, a more health conscious customer, and the continual need for improved customer satisfaction and menu. McDonalds needs to go through some changes in order to remain ahead in the fast-food industry.
McDonalds is a strong company that has been around a long time and is ingrained into the memories of many people. They have indisputably strong brand recognition and loyalty. However, it may be time for McDonalds to undergo a makeover, especially in the areas of quality and their link to health concerns. It is pretty clear that McDonalds isn’t going bankrupt anytime soon. McDonalds has the ability to do good things for the world if they exchange some of their money saving ways more socially responsible practices.
What are the causes of the weak safety record of the Bangladesh garment industry? Do Western companies that import garments from Bangladesh bear any responsibility for what happened at the Rana Plaza and other workplace accidents? The causes of the weak safety record of the Bangladesh garment industry are because of Western companies that import garments from Bangladesh and the government. The government could utilize their power to improve the conditions in Bangladesh, but instead they sit around and do nothing about it. Additionally, Western companies and others like it that chose to conduct business with industries like in Bangladesh seek to produce their products effectively and efficiently. Therefore, poor work conditions should be expected because those companies should know the situation those industries is in because their country is poor. Nevertheless, Western company’s do bear responsibility for what happened at the Rana Plaza along with other workplace