This paper aims at analyzing the initiatives, which such large organizations as Apple Inc. takes to improve their social, environmental and financial sustainability. The paper also sheds light on the way the organization can deploy cost accounting procedures to enhance their sustainability. Furthermore, the paper highlights the variations in the use of cost accounting by the company under consideration and companies in the past. In addition to that, the paper identifies the limitations in the current strategies of the organization and proposes recommendations to improve these limitations.
The following section highlights the policies that have been adapted by Apple Inc. to enhance its social, environmental and financial stability.
In order to enhance its social sustainability, Apple Inc. has adapted the following policies and procedures. Apple Inc. provides all its suppliers with Apples supplier Code of Conduct. It is mandatory for all the suppliers to follow this code of conduct. This code of conduct consists of rules and regulations in relation to the treatment with employees, provision of safe working conditions, and a number of environmental issues and consideration, which are to be followed by all the suppliers of Apple (Faculty Members of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, 2013).
Apart from that, onsite audits are being conducted by Apple Inc. to ensure that all the suppliers follow the code of conduct. In addition to that, Apple Inc. consistently monitors the requirements of the society and makes necessary changes in its code of conduct. It is also ensured that corrective actions are being followed and implemented in an appropriate manner (Faculty Members of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, 2013).
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...ment, United States of America. (2012). Managing sustainable development, 5-15. Washington, D.C: Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, United States of America.
Faculty Members of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. (2013). A critical analyze of the sustainability of Apple Inc., 1-11. Maynooth: National University of Ireland, Maynooth. Retrieved from http://s3.amazonaws.com/ppt-download/appleinc-140109151801-phpapp01.pdf?response-content-disposition=attachment&Signature=lPhcOVOL9uvWLXxbg0fGEtcpzoI%3D&Expires=1399377940&AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIW74DRRRQSO4NIKA Faculty Members of the Royal Holloway, University of London. (2010). True cost accounting, 3-53. Surrey: Royal Holloway, University of London.
Taylor, T. (2000). Current developments in cost accounting and the dynamics of economic calculation. Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics
A company’s character traits can enable them to act in accordance with reason. Possessing good virtues is what makes a company or person moral and actions taken reflect those virtues. Apple has possessed some unmoral virtues that have caused them to do business with an unethical company. These traits can hurt their business and could cause the public to no longer purchase from them. Walmart is prime example, when people found out about how they were treating their employees. There are several people who choose not give them business. Apple is attempting to earn trust back from the public by doing what is necessary to turn things around with their suppliers. They have stated that will not tolerate inhumane working conditions or the use of child labor and are becoming more accountable.
The Governor’s major duties are to oversee other executive branches of the state and governs through executive order while also managing state budget. They are also the Chief legislator, Chief negotiator, and crisis manager. They also have the power to Line-item Veto, which gives the Governor the power to cut out certain portions of new legislation while keeping the rest of the bill. The Lieutenant Governor’s duties are defined by the Governor. The Attorney General is the State's chief legal officer and gives legal advice to the state government while representing the State in legal action. The Auditor of Ohio is the State’s “Watchdog”. They carry out performance and fiscal audits for Ohio public agencies. The Ohio Secretary of State oversees business licensing and filling and maintains legislative and administrative records.
Their suppliers shall abide by all relevant anti-corruption laws and regulations of the countries in which it operates, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and applicable international anti-corruption conventions ("Apple Code & Credo"). Apple respects intellectual property rights and safeguards customer information. All suppliers shall manage technology in a manner that protects intellectual property rights ("Apple Code & Credo"). Apple encourages community engagement and extends this social responsibility to suppliers by necessitating encouragement to help foster social and economic development and contribute to the sustainability of the communities in which it operates. Responsible sourcing of minerals is another ethic policy that Apple holds a high regard for. Their supplier must be in accordance with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) “…Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas, on its entire supply chain with respect to the sourcing…” of all metals, including tin, gold, tantalum, and tungsten contained in its products—this must be accomplished to decide whether those metals are from the “…Democratic Republic of the Congo (“DRC”) or any adjoining country and, if so, to determine whether those metals directly or indirectly financed or benefited armed groups that are perpetrators of serious human rights abuses in the DRC or an adjoining country” ("Apple Code &
Marshall, D.H., McManus, W.W. & Viele, D.F. (2011). Accounting: What the numbers mean (10 ed). New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Marshall, M.H., McManus, W.W., Viele, V.F. (2003). Accounting: What the Numbers Mean. 6th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies.
Nike is one of the biggest footwear and apparel manufacturing companies in the word. The company came into existence in 1964 by Bill Boweman and Phil Knight and named it as the Blue Ribbon Sports. The company changed the name to Nike, which is Greek word meaning victory, in 1972 after producing a good brand of shoes that became popular among the athletes (NIKE, Inc., 2001). Since then, the company has been successful, dominating the world market of athletic shoes. The company’s products are sold in more than 170 countries across the world. The company also sponsors various sports events at national and international levels. The company slogan “just do it” is catchy and attract many people tom buying its products. This makes the company to grow continuously due to wide and stable customer base.
[4] Colin Drury, Management and Costing Accounting, (7th edition), Chapter 3, Cost Assignment, p. 54-59
Robbins et al. (2016, p.93), describes ethics in business as “a set of rules or principles that defines right and wrong”. Various theories centre around ethics in business, and a company adhering to a certain standard of ethics has the power to decide if they reach their maximum potential. Apple is one of the few exceptions of this concept. Panorama, the BBC’s longest running current affairs programme, dedicated an episode to exposing Apple and their shocking dishonesties covering a variety of areas of their business. The three focal points of Apple’s abandonment of ethics highlighted in the broadcast consist of; the employed workforce and their arduous lives at select factories around the globe, the Foxconn suicides incident, and the process in which Apple acquires their raw materials for their products. When something as simple and expected as respecting basic human rights must be called into question, there is a moral duty to shed light on the company’s exploitation of
"College Accounting Coach." Process Costing-Definitions And Features(Part1) « Process Costing « Cost Accounting «. Feb. 2007. Web
Cost Accounting: Its role and ethical considerations Introduction: Accounting is the process of identifying, measuring, and communicating economic information about an entity for the purpose of making decisions and informed judgements. The major areas of within the accounting are: Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting/Cost Accounting and Auditing- Public Accounting Managerial accounting is concerned with the use of economic and financial information to plan and control the activities of an entity and to support the management in planning and decision-making process. Cost accounting is the subset of managerial accounting and it helps management in determination and accumulation of product, process or service cost. Role of Cost Accounting: Increased competition and uncertain business conditions have put significant pressure on corporate management to make informed business decisions and maximize their company?s financial performance. In response to this pressure, a range of management accounting tools and techniques has emerged.
The tremendous success that Apple has been for the efforts that they have made not only in ensuring that they produce quality products, but also in ensuring that they are socially responsible in their business model (Avetisyan and Ferrary 2013, 115-133). Apple is believed to be one of the companies that are socially responsible in the world, but has received criticism from all corners in the world (Aguinis and Glavas 2012, 932-968). The criticism has worked to the advantage of Apple since it has been able to improve in their social responsibility. The paper discusses the environmental and social performance regarding Apple and how it impacts the society and how the operations of the company should be done (Backer 2013, 805-879). Both the areas
Marshall, D., McManus, W., & Viele, D. (2004). Accounting: What the numbers mean. [University of Phoenix Custom Edition e-text]. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies.
Apple is changing their environment, throughout their entire organization, by measuring their carbon footprint on the environment. Apple is the first company in the industry to reduce their footprint by showing the impact their product line is having on the consumers’ use. They will continue to measure and identify areas that can make the most significant impact for reductions. Apple is in accordance with the regulations and restrictions that government agencies have put in place for the components used in the manufacturing of their products. Apple is one of the first to measure their carbon footprints, which allows them to be a front runner for the industry and to change their components for helping to promote their new products through their brand for customers to be able to purchase all of their product lines. This allows the industry to follow suit and to do the same for their products.
The sustainability of the ecosystems on which the global economy depends must be guaranteed. And the economic partners must be satisfied that the basis of exchange is equitable” (World). This quote demonstrates the complexities of sustainability. Another thing corporations should focus on when trying to be sustainable is their environmental impact.