...Jamaica Water Properties Introduction The case is about an accounting fraud that involves the Jamaica Water Properties, Inc. This fraud was discovered by David Sokol, who was at that time served as COO (Chief Operating Officer) of the Jamaica Water Properties, Inc. The main culprit was Ernest Grendi, JWP’s CFO, helped by several of the company’s senior accountants. Moreover, the company’s external auditor, Ernst & Young, seems to be involved as well. This case will show regarding the auditor independence, its duty as professional accountant, fraud, and the perspective from the employees toward their higher-ups management. Background Its company’s name, before becoming as JWP, was the Jamaica Water Supply Company. It began its operations in 1886 as a small business that delivered water to a few neighborhoods in the Queens borough of New York City. Gradually, the company expanded its geographic market and eventually became one of New York State’s largest water utilities. In the mid-1960s, Martin Dwyer took control of the company. Dwyer realized that the heavily regulated water utility industry limited his company’s profit potential, so he decided to expand it into other business. Because of his familiarity with governmental agencies, Dwyer began offering various contracting and construction services to local municipalities. Over the next several years, the company expanded into other lines of businesses by acquiring a varied assortment of small firms in the New York...
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...Financial Corporation Limited CA:ELF +0.26% . The combined organization, which will be referred to as Travelers Canada, will remain headquartered in Toronto. "The combination of Travelers Canada and The Dominion is an exciting development," said Alan Schnitzer, Vice Chairman and head of Travelers' Financial, Professional & International Insurance business segment. "It creates an exceptional platform for strengthening our presence in Canada and expanding our relationships with customers and brokers. We look forward to leveraging the strengths and expertise of both organizations to deliver an expanded range of products and an even higher level of service." About Travelers The Travelers Companies, Inc. TRV +0.11% is a leading provider of property casualty insurance for auto, home and business. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Travelers has approximately 30,000 employees and generated revenues of approximately $26 billion in 2012. For more information, visit www.travelers.com. Forward-Looking Statements The statements in this press release regarding the anticipated benefits from the transaction are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ include, but are not limited to: risks relating to pursuing new markets and opportunities, particularly in international markets; the risk that the acquisition and the integration of the acquired business...
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...15, 2014 Jamaica Water Properties Case Study During a time in our recent history when greed and self promotion was the benchmark that most financial and managerial directors of companies, both public and private, seemed to strive for, David Sokol stands out above the crowd. Instead of looking to further his own self-image, career, or standing, instead of taking what most people would view as the easy road, Mr. Sokol did the right thing. He chose ethics, morals, and a straight compass to guide his career. Was it an easy road? No, but it was the right one. Would I be able to do the same thing? I would hope so. Although we never know with 100% certainty what we would do in a specific situation, I would hope that I would handle it the same way he did. David Sokol once said, “If you ever obtain something by lying, it’s worthless. Integrity is the highest order of the day.” I completely agree. One of the most important ways to maintain a good reputation, both personally and professionally, is to have honesty and integrity. Without those attributes, words are meaningless. I also agree with his decision to refuse the “staying on bonus” and leave the company. Although one might wonder if the outcome would have been different if he had stayed on to see them through the difficult period the company had in its future. But, Mr. Sokol knew that accepting that bonus would not have been a very ethical choice given the dire situation he knew Jamaica Water Properties (JWP) was...
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...within their firm? 3.- Should business, accounting firms, and other organizations explicitly reward ethical behavior by their employees and executives? 4.- What measures accounting firms can take to reduce the risk that personal relationships between client personnel and members of an audit engagement team will adversely affect the quality of the audit? 5.- Was the 1988 “retention engagement” that Ernst & Young made with JWP appropriate? 6.- Why Ernst & Young agreed to pay a large settlement to JWP’s stockholders but chose to contest the lawsuit filed against it by the insurance companies? Facts In 1886, the Jamaican Water Supply Company began operations as a small business delivering water to a few neighborhoods in the Queens borough of New York. In the mid-1960’s, Martin Dwyer took control of JWC and realized that the heavily regulated water utility industry limited his company’s profits potential. Therefore, He decided to branch out into other businesses and began offering various contracting and construction services to local municipalities like installing telephone lines, working on street lighting projects and developing traffic control systems. The company continued to expand into other lines of businesses through acquisitions. To finance these companies Dwyer borrowed heavily from banks and other lenders. The high interest rates, the nationwide recession, and a series of poor decisions by Dwyer and his management team had driven the company to the verge of bankruptcy...
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...Jamaica © 2011 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington, DC 20433 Telephone 202-473-1000 Internet www.worldbank.org All rights reserved. 1 2 3 4 08 07 06 05 A copublication of The World Bank and the International Finance Corporation. This volume is a product of the staff of the World Bank Group. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed in this volume do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. Rights and Permissions The material in this publication is copyrighted. Copying and/or transmitting portions or all of this work without permission may be a violation of applicable law. The World Bank encourages dissemination of its work and will normally grant permission to reproduce portions of the work promptly. For permission to photocopy or reprint any part of this work, please send a request with complete information to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; telephone 978-750-8400; fax 978-750-4470; Internet www.copyright.com. All other queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher,The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax 202-522-2422; e-mail pubrights@worldbank.org. Additional copies of Doing Business 2011:...
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...access to more resources than other; the distribution of those resources is inherently unequal. Societies can be stratified on any number of dimensions. In the United States, the most widely recognized stratification systems are based on race, social class, and gender. Social Stratification on Health Jamaica Throughout history and even today Race and Class has placed a major impact on the identity of Jamaicans. “Race has been used to render ethnicity” (Austin-Bross, D.2006 Pg 213). Class, however is a social construct that is used to group people into a hierarchy of social stratification. Included are upper, middle, lower and newly stratified ‘working class’. Due to such stratification, persons of the ideal race and class are viewed as superior. Jamaicans have lost their identity and it has also encouraged low self esteems and confidence. Black persons from the lower class has been discriminated against and put to shame. This was the case during the slavery period and even today. Ideologies of the ‘right’ class and race originated from white plantation owners who viewed black people as ‘property. Between 1658 and 1798, approximately 281,000 slaves were imported to Jamaica. Thousands died in the middle passage or became ill and died after arrival. The period of adjustment to plantation conditions known as “seasoning” took one to three years. This period was accompanied by mortality rates of 1/4 to 1/3 of the slaves being “seasoned”. Epidemics were common on plantations and...
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...Field Trip Summary Report Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Submitted by: C. Turner EAS 201, Spring 2012 INTRODUCTION New York City is home to a diverse grouping of species - a varied assembly of organisms, each with its own form, function, and range of desirable living conditions. The CUNY SPS course “The Nature of New York” invites learners to investigate urban ecosystems, and evaluate the relationship between humans, the environment, and the ability of all living systems to do well on the planet. JAMAICA BAY WILDLIFE REFUGE As part of the natural science program, students were offered a guided tour though Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, New York, led by Professors George Jackman and Dr. Kwesi Amoa. Wildlife refuges are generally legislatively-protected territories where nature is supported and meant to thrive without the threat of harmful interference.1 The Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge was developed as part of President Theodore Roosevelt’s efforts to preserve and protect the nation’s natural resources in the early 1900’s. Currently managed by the National Park Service and part of the Gateway National Recreation Area2, the site is well known for its inhabitance of wild birds, and is home to various terrestrial and marine fauna. The park is surrounded by Jamaica Bay, and its landscape features two large fresh water ponds, a salt marsh and seasonal plant life.3 The weather for our winter field trip was mild (low to mid 40’s). The wind was brisk and the sun was shining...
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...Izetta Clay 11/24/12 Prof: Jeff Ambrose ENG 100 Research Paper Hurricane Sandy's in KINGSTON, Jamaica KINGSTON, Jamaica Hurricane Sandy's howling winds and pelting rains lashed precarious shantytowns, stranded travelers and downed power lines Wednesday as it roared across Jamaica on a course that would take it on to Cuba and then possibly threaten Florida and the Bahamas. Sandy's death toll was at least two. An elderly man was killed in Jamaica when he was crushed by a boulder that rolled onto his clapboard house, police reported. Earlier Wednesday, a woman in Haiti was swept away by a rushing river she was trying to cross, in some southern towns of Jamaica, a few crocodiles were caught in rushing flood waters carried them out of their homes in mangrove thickets, showing up districts where electricity was knocked out, local residents reported. One big croc took up temporary residence in a family's front yard in the city of Portmore. Wednesday evening the hurricane's eye had crossed Jamaica and emerged off its northern coast near the town of Port Antonio, meteorologists said, but rain and winds continued to pound the Caribbean island, and hurricane conditions were predicted to last well in the night. It was the first direct hit by the eye of a hurricane in Jamaica since Hurricane Gilbert 24 years ago, and fearful authorities closed the island's international airports and police ordered 48-hour curfews in major towns to...
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...Agricultural Research and Development Institute Category Activity Description Agro-Industry/Agriculture Animal Production and Sam Motta's Goats and Sheep Demonstration and Marketing Systems Training Centre Animal Production and Hounslow Goats and Sheep Demonstration and Training Marketing Systems Centre Animal Production and Small Ruminant Production and Marketing Systems Marketing Systems Development Crop Production and Marketing Systems Livestock Feeds and Feeding systems Enhanced Hot Pepper Production Feeding Systems development for ruminants Education/Research PROCICARIBE PROCICARIBE Caribbean Integrated Pest Management Network Caribbean Small Ruminant Network (CASRUNet) Soil and Water Management Studies in the Rio Minho Valley Project Environment Hillside Farming Systems of Jamaica and the OECS Integrated Pest Management Integrated Pest Management Integrated Pest Management Integrated Pest Management Integrated Pest and Pesticides Management...
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...Jamaica Water Properties A Case Study The case is about an accounting fraud that involves the Jamaica Water Properties, Inc. The fraud was characterized by misapplication of purchase method of accounting for acquisitions, recording fictitious assets, improper accounting for NOLCO, non-recording of appropriate allowances for uncollectible receivables, and misapplication of the percentage-of-completion method of accounting for long-term contracts. Ernest Grendi made the fraud possible, company CFO as helped by three senior accountants. These were aimed to inflate the price of the company stocks because of overstated earnings that caused them to receive sizable bonuses. However, JWP internal auditors just tolerated all of these because of their fear of being fired. In addition, Ernst & Young, the company’s external auditor, knowing the fraudulent activities, have been issuing an unqualified opinion for six consecutive years. This has been seen as a product of the close relationship between Grendi and his co-conspirators with E&Y. 2011 JAMAICA WATER PROPERTIES: A Case Study Jamaica Water Properties A Case Study The case is about an accounting fraud that involves the Jamaica Water Properties, Inc. The fraud was characterized by misapplication of purchase method of accounting for acquisitions, recording fictitious assets, improper accounting for NOLCO, non-recording of appropriate allowances for uncollectible receivables, and misapplication of the percentage-of-completion...
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...How do I get to the villa from the airport? Our villa offer complimentary grounds transportations for bookings of one week or more. For booking of less than a week, we can arrange airport transfers as well as a van or car packages provides the easiest most convenient way for the villa bound traveler to see Jamaica. Your driver will personally meet you at the Airport. No need to wait in lines for rental cars or the confusion of driving after a long flight. Your party and luggage will be comfortably transported directly to the villa. Upon on arrival at your villa you will be met by the villa manager who will introduce you to your staff. Your butler will have prepared and serve you tropical drinks on arrival. The manager will give you a tour...
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...HND Hospitality Management UNIT 39 - TOURIST DESTINATIONS LO3 -Understand how the characteristics of destinations affect their appeal to tourists. LO4 –Understand issues likely to affect the popularity of tourist destinations. [pic] [pic] Name: Carole Lewis TABLES OF CONTENTS PAGES Details of the topic 1 Name ID number Date of submission Contents page 2 3.1) Compare the appeal of current leading tourist destinations with that 3 of currently developing tourist destinations. 3.2) Evaluate how characteristics of a tourist destination affect its appeal 4 4.1) Analyse issues that affect the popularity of tourist destination 4 4.1) Analyse issues that affect the popularity of tourist destination (cont’d) 5 4.2) Discuss the potential for responsible tourism to enhance the host community at 5 worldwide tourist destinations 4.2) Discuss the potential for responsible tourism to enhance the host community at 6 worldwide tourist destinations (cont’d) References ...
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...Table of Contents Abstract INTRODUCTION: * Rationale * Problem Statement * Main Purpose of Study ……………………………………………………………. * General objectives * Specific Objectives * Hypothesis/Research Questions LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS................... METHODOLOGY/RESEARCH DESIGN * Scope and Limitations …………………………………………………………….. * Procedures * Data Sources * Budget....................................................................................................................... * Instruments * Budget ……………………………………………………………………………... Results and Discussion ……………………………………………………………………. * SWOT Audit ………………………………………………………………………. * SWOT Matrix …………………………………………………………………….. Recommendations ………………………………………………………………………… Summary and Conclusion References Appendices Abstract Extensive importation of foreign products continues to cripple the Jamaican economy. The country imports just about everything as such this limits the amount of foreign exchange that could contribute effectively to the country’s development. The importation of paper is an area of concern which we believe must receive careful attention and must be seriously addressed. Paper is a resource that is utilized daily in many operations if not all and this precious resource has to be imported from other countries while the resources available in the country which could be adequately utilized in producing...
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...caribbean studies notes MODULE ONE LOCATION AND DEFINITION OF THE CARIBBEAN REGION Definition of the Caribbean Region Geographical This describes the area washed by the Caribbean Sea and is often described as the Caribbean Basin. It would therefore include most of the islands of the Lesser Antilles, Greater Antilles as well as the mainland territories in Central America (Costa Rica, Belize, Panama, Honduras) and Northern South America such as Columbia and Venezuela. The common link here is the Caribbean Sea. Geological There are deep seated structural features of Caribbean geology which also identifies commonalities. It is the area that is defined by the Caribbean Plate and which experiences similar tectonic, seismic and volcanic features and processes. Historical It describes the area that saw the impact of European colonization, slavery, indentureship and the plantation system. this refers to all the territories so that one way of defining the Caribbean is to identify those countries that experienced the rule of specific European countries. Thus the Caribbean may be defined as being broken up into the English, French, Dutch and Spanish speaking countries and territories. Political In the Caribbean at least three types of governmental systems are found. They include Independent States, Associated States and Colonial Dependencies. CHARACTERISTICS OF SOCIETY Society Society is a collection of people occupying a defined geographical...
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...TOPIC: Employee Engagement [pic] Name: Debbie Ann Marie Mccalla Course # and Title: MGMT 591: Leadership and Organizational Behavior Instructor: Professor Vicki Boone Date: Sunday June 2, 2013 MGMT 591: LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR PROJECT OUTLINE Organization Overview The organization of interest that I will base my course project on is, Sunset Jamaica Grande Resort and Spa. This is currently a three star rated all-inclusive hotel, which is located on the island of Jamaica. This property consists of two towers, the north and south towers, which total to 730 rooms, which is situated along the beach front. There are a variety of amenities such as: a spa, slot machines casino, four specialty restaurants, two grills, a main buffet dining area, seven bars (including a swim up bar), lavish pools with Jacuzzis and water slides, conference rooms that holds 2500 persons, banquet facilities, business center, private beach, tennis courts, gym and a night club. The majority of Sunset Jamaica Grande guests are from North America and Europe, which clearly identifies the hotel’s peak season to be in the winter. While training at SJG as a trainee manager in food and beverage, I have realized a breakdown in relationship development, employee feedback, employee motivation, poor accountability, employee recognition, and employee freedom and respect. The hotel went from having over 600 employees to a little...
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