Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Investor Ratio Analysis

Investor Ratios There are various ratios that are designed to help investors who hold shares in a company to assess the returns on their investment. These are: Dividend per Share The dividend per share ratio relates the dividends pertaining to an accounting period to the amount of shares in issue during the period. The ratio is given as follows: Dividend per share = Dividends pertaining to a period Number of shares in issue The ratio provides an indication of the cash return a shareholder receives from holding shares in a company.Although it is a useful measure, it must be remembered that the dividend received will usually only represent a partial measure of the return to an investor. Dividends are usually only a portion of the earnings generated by the firm and available to shareholders. A business may decide to plough back some of its earnings back into the business in order to achieve future growth. These ploughed back profits belong to the shareholders and should in principle inc rease the value of the shares. Thus w h e n assessing the total return to an investor we must look at both the dividends received and any movement in the share price.The dividend per share for Alexis Ltd is given as follows: Page 1 of 5 Dividends per share can vary considerably between companies. A number of factors will influence the amount that a company is willing or able to issue in the form of dividends to shareholders. These factors include: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ The profit available for distribution to investors The future expenditure commitments of the company The expectations of shareholders concerning the level of dividend payment The cash available for dividend distributionComparing the dividends per share between companies is not always useful as there may be differences between the nominal value of the shares issued. It may be more useful to monitor the trend in dividends per share over a period of time. Dividend Yield Ratio This ratio relates the cash return from a share to its current market value and is given as follows: Dividend Yield Ratio = Dividend per Share Market Value of a Share * 100 1 The ratio for Alexis pic is given as follows: Page 2 of 5 In essence this ratio measures the real rate of return on a share.Investors can compare the returns from a company's shares to the returns that could be earned by investing either in another company or by investing in another form of investment. Dividend Cover Dividend cover (for ordinary shares) looks at how many time a firm's profits (after interest, lax and preference dividends) cover the ordinary dividends. Dividend Cover = Profit after interest, tax and Pref Share Dividends Ordinary Share Dividends For Alexis plc this ratio is calculated as follows: Interpretation: Alexis plc profits covers ordinary dividends 3. 96times.Dividend cover is calculated using the profit after interest and tax figure because banks, government and preference shareholders have a preferential claim on the pro fits of the firm. This ratio is of particular interest to ordinary shareholders. Earnings per share The earnings per share relate’s the earnings generated by the company during a period and available to shareholders to the number or snares in issue. For ordinary shareholders the amount available will be net profit after interest, tax and preference dividends because banks, the government and preference shareholders have a preferential claim on the profits of the firm.Page 3 of 5 Earnings per share = Earnings available to ordinary shareholders Number of ordinary- shares in issue For Alexis plc this ratio is calculated as follows: The EPS is regarded by many investment analysts as a fundamental measure of share performance. Tracking the EPS over time can help assess the investment potential of the company's shares. Care must be taken when comparing EPS from different firms as capital structures differ from one firm to the next. Price Earnings (P/E) R a t i o The price earnings ratio relates the market value of a share to the earnings per share.It is calculated a s follows: P/E Ratio = Market value per share Earnings per Share The P/E Ratio for Alexis is calculated as follows: Page 4 of 5 The ratio reveals that the capital value of the share is 9. 4 times higher than its current level of earnings. The ratio is essence is a measure of market confidence in the future of the company. A high P/E ratio means that relative to profits the price of the share is quite high. Why would this be the case? The higher the P/E ratio the greater the confidence in the future earning power of the company i. e. lthough current earnings are low investors expect them to increase in the future and therefore investors are prepared to pay a high price for the share in relation to the current earnings of the share. A low P/E ratio means that the share price is quite low compared to earnings – this implies a pessimistic view of the future. Nobody will be willing to pay a high price for a share in a company that has unexciting trading prospects. Because the P/E ratio gives a guide as to market confidence in a share it can therefore be helpful when comparing different companies although P/E ratios per sector will vary. Page 5 of 5

Against the Machiavellian Principles of Politics Essay

According to Machiavelli, the affairs of the state reside in the power of the prince. It is the prince which determines, directs, and unifies the components of the state. The prince therefore should act to preserve, strengthen, and protect his position from danger, whether external or internal, without due moral consideration. In short, with the preservation of the state in mind, the prince should act with political diligence to promote it, regardless of the means. According to Machiavelli, â€Å"he who considers what ought to be done rather what is done will rather find himself in a state of ruin than preservation† (Machiavelli, 29). Political action free from any moral consideration is based from three assumptions: 1) Human nature is corrupt and selfish. It is impossible for the prince to satisfy all the needs of the people without injuring the welfare of others. The people is always eager to overthrow their government, to mock the instruments of the state, and to criticize the actions of the prince, whenever their interests (whether political or economic) are affected. According to Machiavelli, â€Å"Because this is to be asserted in general of men, that they are ungrateful, fickle, false, cowardly, covetous, and as long as you succeed they are yours entirely; they will offer you their blood, property, life and children, as is said above, when the need is far distant; but when it approaches they turn against you† (Machiavelli, 29); 2) Morality and religion only limit the actions of the prince. In fact, when fortune fades away, the prince may become unable to defend himself from disconcerting threats. It is therefore important, according to Machiavelli, for the prince to â€Å"guard himself as from a rock; and he should endeavour to show in his actions greatness, courage, gravity, and fortitude; and in his private dealings with his subjects let him show that his judgments are irrevocable, and maintain himself in such reputation that no one can hope either to deceive him or to get round him† (Machiavelli, 32). The prince should endeavour to show himself as the bearer of righteousness, fidelity, and religion, without endangering his own power. This impression is only used to preserve the power of the state. Only in this way can religion and morality be twisted for the benefit of the prince; 3) The success of a prince is never solely dependent on law, morality, or religion. Sometimes, political success is achieved by political deception, alteration of political favors, and in general by arms. It is therefore necessary for the prince to use these instruments to preserve the instruments of the state. It is this condition that the position of a prince who took the state by arms is much more endangered than that of a prince appointed by the people or the Church. To preserve his power, the prince must take moral considerations and religion as only instruments of that purpose. General Critique In order to provide a more comprehensive criticism against Machiavellian politics, there is a need to draw important propositions from different thinkers and theories. Some of the selected philosophers and social theorists are as follows: St. Thomas Aquinas, Immanuel Kant, Rousseau, and Montesquieu. According to Aquinas, morality and religion are necessary instruments for the governance of the state. In his book â€Å"De Regnum† (On Kinship), Aquinas argued that it is always necessary for the ruler to take the precedents of moral and religious obligations as a means to please Divine justice (Curtis, 431). For Aquinas, the foundation of the state is divine in orientation. It is founded by the grace of the Divine Being (who willed the creation of the state after man’s fall). A prince who disregards the religion and morality disregards the Creator. Aquinas here does not disregard the necessity of preserving the power of the state. What Aquinas emphasized is the excesses of unscrupulous rule – a condition which would be punished by God. For Aquinas, a good prince ‘will always be favored by God’ (and preserve his base of power). Rousseau argued that morality is borne out of the so-called ‘social contract. ’ The people gathered to appoint a ruler who would promote their interests. The ruler has the following obligations: 1) to protect the people from threats, 2) to maintain peace and order, 3) to promote solidarity and good governance, and 4) to relinquish power whenever the people chooses a new ruler. A ruler who fails to accomplish these tasks would lose his position. The state, however, would remain intact because the instrument of power resides not in the prince but in the people. According to Rousseau, a prince who put all the instruments of power in his hands is more likely to fall than a prince who measure his authority based on public will. Montesquieu offered a more critical and comprehensive understanding of the position of the prince. According to him, an unruly rebellion of the people is tantamount to political disobedience – a violation of the law of the land. This instance applies only if two conditions are met. First, the ruler does not show any violation of the law. And second, the people unlawfully breaks the social contract and sought to depose a good government. In short, according to Montesquieu, there is no need for a ruler to follow the Machiavellian principles because the law is the manifestation of social and moral obligation, the codec of ethics (Curtis, 613). Here, one may infer that the actions of the ruler should be based solely on this criterion. A ruler who follows the law would never fall in disgrace. Using Kant’s universal moral standards (in his book â€Å"Prolegomena†), one can create a set of moral standards which would be used in judging the actions of a ruler. First, one should determine whether the consequence and intensity of political actions. If a political decision disfranchises a significant portion of the population, such decision is illegitimate (not morally neutral). Second, one may determine the means by which decisions are carried out. Here, legality is an important factor. Third, one may determine whether the actions of the state are in congruent with accepted international standards of morality. Here, an external standard is added in order to ensure the moral efficacy of the state in all levels. The proper enforcement of these external standards is either left to the disposition of international agencies or to the efficacy of treaties. In short, internal political standards of morality are enforced by the state (the people serve as the watch guard of the state). Machiavellian concepts of political deception and moral neutrality have no standing in this type of political set-up. Works Cited Curtis, Michael. The Great Political Theories. New York: Avon Books, 1981. Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. Trans. by W. K. Marriott. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1995.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

The Wrestler by Dudley Talcott

Originally created in 1929 by Connecticut-born sculptor Dudley Talcott, The Wrestler is a testament to the power of the modern age. Nearly a century after its creation, its imposing presence is potent enough to earn itself the position as the symbol for the Florida International University Wolfsonian Art Museum. At nearly seven feet tall, the aluminum sculpture is oddly comforting. Its blend of a few key human features and a featureless facade gives it a quality of quiet strength, softening its powerful bulk. It seems only fitting that such an ominous figure of peaceful might would be displayed at the Olympic games in Los Angeles three years after its creation. This piece of art is one of subtle meaning, leaving it open to a variety of apt interpretations. Dudley Vail Talcott was born in 1899 into an artistic and encouraging family. He was supported in his artistic endeavors instead of being pushed to adopt a more commercial career. Talcott studied briefly at Yale University but never earned a degree. He opted instead to travel, attending open classes at Academie de la Grande Chaumiere in Paris before traveling to Norway. Alcott spent his time in Norway exploring Norwegian fjords by canoe and working on a North Sea fishing boat. He later published two books documenting his experiences replete with his own drawings and photographs. By 1927, Talcott was exhibiting his work in New York and Chicago. He quickly gained repute as America’s premier sculpture, creating works in his own distinct style but still showing signs of more traditional approaches. By this point, Talcott was being commissioned for large-scale installations such as fountains while working on smaller pieces of a more personal nature. The Wrestler, one of his earlier works, already showed distinct signs of Talcott's style. The 1920s saw American artists being presented with competing mediums in which to express visual modernity. Modern applied arts of French influence were the modes of choice for architects and interior designers. Many sculptors chose to create works based on pre-classical Greek figures; this refers to the rendition of the human form in expressionless poses and facial features. Being born on the heels of the industrial revolution, Talcott was caught up with the rest of the country in the wave of awe and wonderment that came with experiencing such a radical change in the cultural and economic landscape. The advent of the automobile and the plane physically changed the American landscape. Jazz, considered to be one of the truly American art forms, was born shortly followed by the invention of the radio. Home refrigeration as well as penicillin, a cure-all antibiotic, was changing the way of life on the home front. Modernism, an artistic philosophy founded on the breaking of traditions and the abandonment of convention, was increasingly becoming less of a philosophy and more of a reality. Modernist art is characterized by sleek, minimalist design. It forgoes extravagance and ostentatious splendor for subtle elegance. A bloom in popularity of science fiction, introduced by films such as Metropolis, had introduced robots into popular culture and fueled an already rampant wonder of new technology. Talcott fused all these modernist ideas into The Wrestler. His faceless visage and geometric musculature are reminiscent of an automaton, yet the inclusion of ears, nipples, and male genitalia humanize what might have been an otherwise cold form. This humanization of his sculpture is evocative of nude Greek figures in the pre-classical eras. The use of aluminum as a medium allows Talcott to express a sense of futurism through material alone. Though it is the most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust, it did not become commercially available until the early nineteenth century. It was initially isolated in 1845 but until the early 1900s was only used for small applications, most notably jewelry. Once techniques were developed to produce aluminum in industrial quantities, it becomes something of a wonder material for engineers. Its durability, relatively low density, and resistance to corrosion made aluminum ideal for architectural and aviation applications. Its resistance to corrosion and ductility in particular made it apt for public sculptures and architectural ornaments. Frank Lloyd Wright, acclaimed architect and modernist, is credited by some sources as being the first to use aluminum as a decorative medium in architecture in his design of the walkway of the Polk County Science Building of the Florida Southern College. The esplanade features tapered aluminum columns that give the appearance of mechanical function. Each column is divided into three sections that give the illusion that they can retract and extend. This esplanade reflects modernist appreciation for the aesthetic appeal of the machine. Combined with its robotic form that is only vaguely human, The Wrestler is a tribute to the power of progress. Talcott entered The Wrestler in the Sculpture division in the arts portion of the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Arts competitions based on sports-themed works were a part of the Olympic games from 1912 to 1948. This portion of the Games was discontinued due to concerns about amateurism and professionalism. The competition had divisions for music, literature, painting, architecture, and sculpture. In context of the Olympic games, The Wrestler can take on meaning in addition to the modernist ideals it embodies. It can be argued that in removing some of the distinguishing features of the form, this statue transcends humanity. In spirit with the Olympics, it is free from some of the unavoidable evils of the human experience such as political, religious, and racial prejudice. The choice of athletic event depicted also adds another layer of meaning. Wrestling is classically a sport of control, as opposed to outright dominance. This sense of control refers to more than just control over one’s opponent; it also refers to control oneself. An effective wrestler is equal parts brute and master strategist. A match can be said to resemble a game of chess played with the limbs. Many eastern cultures and the predecessors of our own western culture, the Greeks, valued wrestling as a means of transcendence and self-discovery. The Greek philosopher Plato, a wrestler himself, saw the sport as a means to keep the balance between intellect and brawn while simultaneously experiencing a microcosm of human existence. American anthropologist Clifford James Geertz noted in his study of Indian culture that they view wrestling as â€Å"a story they tell themselves about themselves†¦. When in the competitive pit, a wrestler stands alone as the distilled essence of his way of life. He stands alone with his own background, his own unique history of success and failure, his own strength and skill, and his own style and technique. † Indians collectively believed being a wrestler was as much a description as a title. They revere not only the competitor as a champion but as one who has â€Å"lived up to the ideals of a rigorous life,† implying that wrestling goes beyond the barrier of recreation and ventures into creed. It can be said it is viewed as a religion without a formal doctrine, something existent in all cultures in some form or another. Dr. Jospeh S. Alter, sociocultural anthropologist and professor of medical anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh, stated in a similar study focusing on the symbolic meaning of the body in the practice of North Indian wrestling, â€Å"When in the competitive pit, a wrestler stands alone as the distilled essence of his way of life. He stands alone with his own background, his own unique history of success and failure, his own strength and skill, and his own style and technique. We find the paradoxical nature of life mirrored in wrestling: despite requiring the presence of an opponent and being a custom that spans across every culture, wrestling is a solitary practice. In light of this new meaning, The Wrestler can be seen as representing humankind’s control over its future through the balance of intellectual progress and unbridled force. Furthe rmore, The Wrestler is an icon of the solidarity of the modernist movement. Without centuries of precedence and influence to rely on, a subculture of artists devoted to testing preconceptions had charged themselves with creating things that until then had never been. One could argue that modernists influenced the establishment of existential philosophy for the very reason that they were the first to strip themselves of their preconceived notions and were completely free to create as they saw fit. The Wrestler can serve as an allegorical figure for the modernist movement as a whole. Modernists stand alone in the proverbial ring, alone with their opponent (convention and classical conformity) with nothing but their own skill, style, and technique. A similar ideal is embodied by the sculpture that took the silver that year. Wrestling, by Hungarian sculptor Miltiades Manno, depicts two wrestlers in the heat of combat. While The Wrestler is more of a stoic figure of progress and strength, Wrestling is extremely detailed. Each facial feature is carved into an expression of exertion and each muscle is anatomically accurate. This sculpture is an example of a neo-classical Greek figure. Historically, these figures are more expressive and much more anatomically correct due to a better understanding of the human body; the increasing realism of the sculptures coincide with medical advancements of the era. In contrast to Talcott’s piece, Manno’s statue is a more literal depiction of the sport it is based on. A portrayal that is more analogous in meaning to that of The Wrestler is the portrayal of Jacob’s wrestling match with God. In this rendering, the match is an allegory for the triumph of man (in this case) over a higher power. He is left permanently handicapped from the match implying that, though it is possible to prevail, there are severe consequences in wresting command from those above us; we are to allow ourselves to be controlled as opposed to taking control of our lives ourselves. The sentiment behind The Wrestler is that humankind is in control of itself. Though similar in the use of wrestling as a metaphor for control, the two depictions differ in their ultimate meaning. Another work of Talcott’s, his monument to renaissance astronomer Copernicus, is also closely related in significance to The Wrestler. The monument features a modernist representation of the heliocentric model, the sun symbolized by three interlocking discs and the Earth’s orbit symbolized by a sixteen-foot ring. At its time, Copernicus’ heliocentric model was innovative. It was a widely held belief that the Earth was the center of this solar system. It seems fitting that a modernist would be the one to commemorate Copernicus’ revolutionary concept. As with all things, ways of seeing The Wrestler have changed with time. Aluminum is no longer a new and futuristic material. Robots and advanced technology are now commonplace. Most people do not even leave their houses without a cell phone, a device that would have been more science fiction than nonfiction to people of the 1920s. Without the novelty of a new material and style, this statue is still a poignant testament to the enduring character of the human spirit. The Wrestler stands proud and resolute; his broad shoulders and intimidating musculature are symbolic of the force of willpower. It is this willpower that fueled the scientific and cultural progress that was so idolized by early nineteenth century modernists and subsequent artistic movement such as post-modernism. In regards to my personal reaction to this piece, to say that I was moved by this piece is a severe understatement. As a wrestler myself I have always found competition to be a exercise in both physical and mental faculties far surpassing the development of body and mind separately. In fact, I’m a firm believer that the most valuable gains from a life spent wrestling have nothing to do with athleticism. Once my body loses its ability to handle the demands of this sport, I will not miss it. When that day comes my mind will still retain its ability to strategize at the capacity I have trained it to do so. I will still have the iron will to turn my goals and aspirations into inevitabilities. I will still be able to grapple with the foes of peace and tranquility in my life and overcome them with ease. I will still be a wrestler. This is a sentiment shared by anyone that has ever defined him or herself through this sport. The fact that this piece uses wrestling to convey such a complex and layered message stirred up these emotions in me; I have been on a hiatus from actively competing due to several orthopedic injuries so these feelings have lay dormant until recently. Tascott’s use of wrestling to convey his point struck a chord in me, allowing me to relate to the concepts presented in his despite my birth being over sixty years after these ideas were relevant. I think it is his appeal to basic constituents of the human condition, though, that arrests the attention of what would be an otherwise oblivious passerby. I believe this is the reason it was selected to be the symbol of the Wolfsonian museum. It is intimidating yet approachable; it is simple yet alluring, cold yet inviting. To borrow a line form Winston Churchill, The Wrestler is â€Å"a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. †

Monday, July 29, 2019

Financial Statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Financial Statement - Essay Example Since it should be goal of he company to benefit its shareholders, it is called bottom-line measure of performance. Accordingly it is 22.5 % as calculated below Return on equity= Net profit after tax/ Total equity =m 467/ 2074 = 22.5 % for 2005-06 = " 392/1397 = 28.06 % for 2004-05 The decline in ROE in 2005-06 is due to abnormal increase in other reserves shown under equity... This is also known as Return on capital employed (ROCE) and also calculated on pretax profit. Liquidity/Solvency Liquidity means the speed and ease with which an asset can be converted into cash. Liquidity has two dimensions. Ease of conversion versus loss of value. Any asset can be converted into cash if its price is cut sufficiently. A highly liquid asset is therefore one that can be sold without significant loss of value. An illiquid asset is one that cannot be quickly converted into cash without a substantial price reduction. Assets are listed on the Balance Sheet in order of liquidity meaning that the least liquid assets are listed first. Current assets are Cash and those assets convertible into cash over the next 12 months. Bills Receivable for instance represents amounts collectible from the customers for sales already made to them. These are therefore expected to be realised in the near future. Inventory that is stock-in-trade is the least liquid of the current assets. Current Ratio is one of the best known and most widely used ratios to ascertain company's solvency/liquidity. It is defined as Current Ratio = Current Assets / Current Liabilities CurrentAssets m 3,666/Current Liabilities m 3,432 = Current Ratio1.07 for 2005-06" " 2,752/ "...Assets are listed on the Balance Sheet in order of liquidity meaning that the least liquid assets are listed first. Current assets are Cash and those assets convertible into cash over the next 12 months. Bills Receivable for instance represents amounts collectible from the customers for sales already made to them. These are therefore expected to be realised in the near future. Inventory that is stock-in-trade is the least liquid of the current assets. The current ratio of 1.07 indicates that company is efficient enough to use all its current assets without keeping them surplus and idle. It has also shown remarkable improvement from the last year's negative current ratio of 0.84. Quick ratio is calculated ignoring the value of inventory included in current assets for its obvious shortcomings of the least liquid of all current assets besides possible overvaluation and inclusion of damaged, obsolete and lost stocks. It can also include over purchased and slow moving items. These will impede liquidity. Quick Ratio or Acid -Test ratio is so named to indicate the current assets sans inventory's quicker liquidity. BA has no stock in trade as mentioned above except for "expendable spares and other inventories" valued m 83 since it is a service industry.

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Book review preliminary sheet(history) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Book review preliminary sheet(history) - Essay Example One of the issues that I may pursue in my discussion is how the media and the popular culture including sport and other stately pleasures have been used to construct the Canadian identity in order to develop a better understanding of the meaning of being a Canadian. In addition, I will also dry to look into what the popular symbols of Canadian identity have in common. In this regard, each of the five chapters will serve as a case study in itself. Finally, another possible area of focus in the book will be to discuss the different ways through which the State mixes into the everyday lives of the citizens. According to Patricia Cormack and Cosgrave, the absence of Tim Horton’s coffee from daily routines might make individuals not only unusual- but a popular brand in the country and also an overwhelmingly susceptible. Don Cherry’s muscular patriotism appears not to abide by CBC’s restlessness attempts to reduce all cultures to a list or a

Saturday, July 27, 2019

The Time Surrounding The Lottery Research Paper

The Time Surrounding The Lottery - Research Paper Example The late 1940s, the time when the story was written, was a time of political and social upheaval. Due to the complicated events that took place during and after World War II, and the beginning of the â€Å"Cold War,† many things that had been taken for granted in society were being questioned by people. This led to the creation of Womens Rights movements, but also to the Truman Doctrine and, later, McCarthyism—both movements which supported the status quo. These contradictory movements for change and against it show that â€Å"The Cold War affected almost every aspect of American life.† (â€Å"Introduction†) The story shows a definite nod to the increasing social awareness of women in 1940s America. During World War II, women had begun to work and take on more responsibilities, and they became used to being treated more like equals. After the end of the war, they were expected to go back to being submissive and agreeing to everything their husbands told them to do. Obviously, this did not sit well with many liberated women. This aspect of the story is more of a reflection than a criticism. It can be seen in how the various female characters in the story are critical of the tradition of the lottery. This is obvious from the story, because there are many places where women question the established traditions, like Mrs. Adams, who says that " Some places have already quit lotteries† (Jackson, 308). However, it is equally obvious that the men disagree. This was the same in reality, where many men were opposed to feminism because they wanted to remain socially superior to the other gender. In other words, â€Å"society defined experiences centered around males, with females as mere accessories.† (Feminism) Even though Feminism didn’t really exist until the 1960s, there seem to be very strong elements of it in â€Å"The Lottery† with female characters like Mrs. Adams. The

Friday, July 26, 2019

Comment about the shooting issue in UCSB Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Comment about the shooting issue in UCSB - Essay Example Deterrence is one of the crime prevention strategies and allowing for gun ownership, by eliminating stringent laws to ownership promises a solution. With a sole objective to kill, and later to commit suicide, the knowledge that another person with a gun may be present in a target area is a sufficient deterrence (ViewCaps n.p.). This is because the person could attack the criminal and apprehend him or her before many people can be executed, a factor that means that the criminal intention may not be successful and therefore discourages such attacks on people. In addition, the knowledge that other people may be possessing guns in a targeted area can be deterrence because even if the suspect intended to commit suicide after attacking people, existence of other gun owners could terminate the suicide objective and lead to prosecution of the attacker. Consequently, government should enact rules that facilitate gun ownership, as deterrence strategy, to prevent gun related attacks such as the one witnessed in the Isla Vista community shooting. This is particularly because armed law enforcement personnel are not always available to respond to such gun related

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Designing and Implementing Effective HRD Programs Essay

Designing and Implementing Effective HRD Programs - Essay Example Hence, selection of appropriate methods that fulfill the purpose of training has an incremental effect on employees’ skill set and motivation, and relevance to management’s objectives needs to be selected (Carr, 1999). Â  In the light of my past experiences, it was observed that where HR department managed to select appropriate training topics for the workforce, training sessions intended to develop soft skills i.e. presentation skills etc, were considered as a leisure activity due to ineffective evaluation processes with intangible outcomes. A thorough analysis of the research method helped in developing an understanding that evaluation processes need to be amalgamated into the lesson plans and overall activity planning. Furthermore, peer evaluations and knowledge of industry’s best practices on the subject matter along with a concrete understanding of intended outcomes helps in developing relevant and effective evaluation processes. Â  Rockwell Collins faces a major issue of lack of accessibility of training resources to the employees as it has an extensive workforce scattered at different stations. Since the HR department is centralized and does not have a physical presence outside headquarters, it is important to identify how the training can be made available to the employees outside the physical proximity of HR department. First and foremost, support of organizational leadership needs to be acquired in order to extend delivery of training in secondary workstations. Secondly, close observation of employee performance and work schedule needs to be performed. Where HR department is aware of employees schedule outside headquarters, sending company’s trainers at a particular destination and arranging training may do the needful.

About horror movies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

About horror movies - Essay Example The kind of character they portray in these movies is mostly driven by their ambitions in life. Unlike men who become comfortable with their statuses quickly, women are doing whatever they can to either maintain their facial looks or get the basic human wants (Wada-Marciano 12). A lady like Mrs. Li, for example, goes adopts a behavior of eating dumplings prepared from fetus for the sake of her looks and rejuvenating his husbands love Dumplings (Chan,2004). Greed also contributes to their characters in these horror movies because some of the females are conducting merciless killings just for food. In Onibaba film, we see two women killing soldiers, taking their armor and trading them for delicious meals. Such an action portrays greed because one has to sacrifice life of another for a single meal. Onibaba(Shindo,1964). Ambition and greed are portrayed more horrifying in female than in men. Let us start with Dumplings observations. The film shows the work of the experienced cinematographer Christopher. He applies moving camera shots best seen when Mrs. Li and Mei visits a mansion under construction. The two converse about politics as the camera moves with their talk and moves. The second instance of a moving camera is when Mei seduces Mr. Li inquiring whether the dumplings work Dumplings (Chan,2004). Mrs. Li is rich, so she does not have to pursue material things but she is after her fading beauty. In pursuing her husband’s love lost to a masseuse, Mrs. Li seeks advice from the local Chef Mei, who gives her dumplings to make her younger and beautiful. It works and Mr. Li starts loving his wife again even without an idea of what is happening Dumplings (Chan,2004). Mrs. Li receives compliments from friends for her youth and beauty, but somebody recognizes a fish like smell on her face. Mr. Li asks to be taken to Mei and after taking the fetus dumplings, he falls in love with Mei without

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Applied managment & theory - xerox case study Assignment

Applied managment & theory - xerox case study - Assignment Example In order to analyse the change of management in Xerox, it is necessary to adopt many management theories to analyse friction by friction. PEST analysis, comprising of Political, Economical, sociocultural and technological factors, according to which the marketing environment is made up of three aspects, internal environment, micro environment, macro environment etc. The internal environment consists of staff that is also called internal customers, office technology, wages and finance etc. Micro environment is external customers, agents and distributors, suppliers, out competitors etc. Macro environment consists of Political and legal forces, economic forces, sociocultural forces and technological forces etc. PEST is concerned only with the Macro Environment, which is concerned with the production of the company. "The first is efficiency in the production of a given set of outputs. That is, with a given capital stock a given technology and a given set of resource prices, firms should be producing goods and services with a minimum expenditure of the economy's resources," (Cyert, 1988, p.36). Xerox had to overcome many problems while going through Change Management. It could not compete with the Japanese competitors because of high manufacturing cost. Internal culture and leadership suffered due to mindsets bordering towards complacent inertia. But later, leadership went through an immense transformation that led to the present enviable state of the company. It improved the quality of its products and the organisation turned the corner. In 1990s, Xerox introduced digital photocopiers, high-end laser printers with attached scanners and these products made Xerox march ahead of its competitors in this mercurial field. "Xerox worked to turn its product into a service, providing a complete "document service" to companies including supply, maintenance, configuration and user support." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xerox Xerox created excellent name for itself in the employment front as well. Company received 100% rating on the first Corporate Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign in 2002. "They have maintained this rating in 2003, 2004, 2005. Xerox has been recognized by a number of other organizations for its diversity leadership as well." Ibid. As far as the political factors are concerned, the political scenario has a very large influence on business. It depends on the stability of the political environment, how could the tax regulation going to affect the company, what could be the Government's stand in marketing ethics, government's economic and industrial policy etc. It also depends on its religious or secular policies and if they are religion oriented enough to disturb other cultures or if there are any regional or international agreements and compulsions. Xerox did not face many problems due to political problems in home country, but it must have faced problems in other countries like Asian Specific countries, and to some extent, in India. "But, according to a recent article (Cordtz, 1974, "Xerox is moving into an awkward agethe company resembles a muscular adolescent who has grown so fast that he finds it difficult to coordinate his newly acquired strength" (page 117)" (Burke, 1977, p.22). In economic factors deal with market trends, economic predictions, theories of long and short term both, international market trend, any upcoming national and

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Why states act through formal International Organizations Essay

Why states act through formal International Organizations - Essay Example The paper tells that in the earlier centuries, humans spread out to new geographical territories for various purposes. These territories with the passage of time evolved into civilizations, kingdoms and eventually into states or countries. However, this ‘evolution’ part was not a smooth affair, as certain territories wanting to annex more territories and also to dominate others, indulged in wars and other aggressive actions. These aggressive actions led to major wars including two World Wars. On the positive side, from the last few centuries, especially from the second half of the 20th century, states have become more ‘civilized’ and are acting in a more controlled manner. This happened and is happening due to various factors and one of the key factors is the formation of formal International Organizations (IO) by the states themselves. States wanted to develop omnipresent overseeing organization or organizations, which can handle a state’s ‘int eraction’ with other countries in sensitive issues, pre-empt any detrimental actions carried out by one state against others, warn and act against states and their governments, when they act against their own people and also to manage social welfare issues like health, education, refugee issues, science, etc. This formation of IOs have actualized a positive environment throughout the world, with the countries acting with self-discipline, minimizing aggressive overtures, and at the same time indulging in welfare activities. However, this is not the scenario all the time, because certain countries without following the tenets of the IOs continue to act aggressively and unilaterally. Even amidst these dishonouring of the IOs, countries tend to obey and act through IOs for certain valid reasons. Historical Background The earliest precursor or the historical prototype of the present day International Organizations is the Delian League. According to Zweifel (2006, pg.31) Delian Lea gue was started around 4th century AD as an association among the Greek city-states, dominated by Athens, with the main â€Å"purpose of facilitating military cooperation against their common enemies†. Although, other regional groupings were formed by the territories to oversee and manage the relations among themselves throughout the last few centuries, nothing materialized on a large geographical scale. One of the main reasons why that did not actualize is because of the absence of sovereign states all over the world particularly in Europe. The evolution of territories and kingdoms into states or modern-day nations did not start till 17th century, with the complete evolution taking place mainly in the second half of the 20th century. According to Archer (2007, pg.4) the key turning points for the formation of IOs were the Peace of Westphalia, 1648, which ended the Thirty Years War and the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Before that, the concept of European unification based on Ch ristianity dominated the political circles of various European territories. However, when that did happen, it facilitated the formation of sovereign state system in Europe, and later throughout the world. Thus evolved states also understood the need to actualize a natural law or entity that can guide and manage the relations between them, and in that direction created bilateral, trilateral and even quadrilateral agreements. However, those agreements among states and did not enlarge maximally. However in the next few centuries, nothing concrete evolved due to various historical reasons including conflicts among the various states, imperialism, etc, etc. Although, international cooperation in terms of collective action happened with the Concert of Europe (1815-1914), Geneva Convention in 1864 and even Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in 1889, it was not until after the First World War, that the work for the development of International organizations got started. Because of the unpreced ented suffering caused by the First World W

Monday, July 22, 2019

First flight Essay Example for Free

First flight Essay First flight The warm wind blows past me. Only two colours can be seen in all directions. The bright blue of the mid day sky and the bronze, bare earth carrying on for miles. Across the endless plains are plants speckled by plants that look more like scattered ants from here. I close my eyes and face the sun. Burning rays hit my face. I stand on the edge of a canyon, my bare feet burning on the hot desert sand. My toes curled over the edge. I imagine what may lie at the bottom of this seemingly endless fall. I think of a rushing river ripping at the walls, making the canyon deeper and deeper. I imagine myself falling through the air straight to the bottom of the canyon. I know if I dont do this now I will be stuck to walk this planet like every other being. I tilt my body forward, I start to lose my balance, my heart is racing, and with one last gulp of air and my eyes closed I dive forward. I feel the air separating as I cut through it. My body spinning as I fall. I open my eyes and watch the sides of the gorge rushing past me. It feels nice, no wonderful, superb, and magnificent, as if time has stood still. Faster, faster. I rush towards the end. The end of being trapped, without freedom to do what you want, go where you please. I close my eyes again and enjoy this amazing feeling. Voices mumble in the background. They grow louder as I drift back into reality, turning into shouts. I snap open my eyes. The bottom is very close, a tiny stream trickles through the giant crack in the earth, nothing like I imagined before. Is there anything I can do now? I try to remember what Im supposed to do. Before I could recite her lessons word for word but now when I need them most, my head is only filled with her face. The bottom is so close now I can see the ripples in the water; I can make out the colours of the stones underneath the clear running water. My heart is racing faster than ever before, I want to scream but nothing comes out. I pull my head up and the spinning stops. I realise Im dizzy and everything is swaying back and forth. I pull my wings out just in time and I glide above the tiny stream. The bottom, which was once so far away, my claws dangle just above. I flap my wings, pull my legs in and start to make my way back up to the top. My dizziness fades and I notice as I make my way back to the top, the plants clinging to the side of the beaten walls. When I reach the top I see the terrified look on my mothers face which she is trying to cover up with a smile. I plant my feet on the hot desert sand. I look at her and she shakes her head. I turn to my brothers talking about how amazing I was. Mum turns and they follow her talking about how it will be one of their turns tomorrow. I turn back to the edge of the canyon and face the sky with my eyes close. Ive done it. My first flight.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Introduction To Opportunity Cost Commerce Essay

Introduction To Opportunity Cost Commerce Essay It is a very powerful concept when someone has to make a decision to select a particular product or making a choice. In simple words, opportunity cost means choosing or making a best decision from different option. When one has to make a decision in between various actions to select only one particular work at a time is called opportunity cost. Example: From a economist point of view when a kid has to make a decision to choose between ice cream and chocolate at a time. When the kid has got a limited pocket money of $10 only and ice cream cost is $8 whereas chocolate cost is $15. So, the kid will have to select ice cream only as the kid has only limited cash in hand. It is also an example of scarcity too. In this example, there is scarcity of money. NEEDS AND WANTS According to Macpherson (1977, p.27) defines needs and wants as The problem of needs and wants is both an ontological and a historical problem. NEEDS The basic requirement to satisfy human beings desire is included in needs. Needs are a basic necessity which are used in daily life like food, water, clothing, medicine, shelter etc. A mans survival is dependent on these needs only on the primary stage. In a modern society the basic needs keeps on changing according to the society standards. In case of modern society the basic needs of a man may differ from clothing to electricity, food to running water, shelter to furniture, medicine to electronic items etc. After talking about primary needs, secondary needs is the another topic which are needed to be explained. In case of secondary needs the necessity can be regarded as luxury. Like an automobile is a necessity in The United States. As the country grows to progress and development, the luxury too gets into necessity item for the people. At earlier stage cars could be only affordable by rich people. But at present, many of the middle level income people are also willing to afford it. Growth in a countries economy helps one to go beyond his or her limits. WANTS Wants include needs but it goes beyond that. Before we get deep into wants, we should understand the gap between needs and wants. According to Heibroner (1962, p.135) makes the statement that Consumer demand is no longer driven to essentials but hesitates before a whole range of possible luxuries and semi-luxuries. It means that now a days, consumer demand are unlimited and its no longer situated in a stage where consumer use to select between luxury and semi-luxury products. Due to the growth in economy, now most of the middle class people are also willing to afford luxury products. In a few years back was just a dream for them to afford the price for a luxury product. SCARCITY It is a stage when the wants are not satisfied up to the satisfaction of people. When the production is not enough or sufficient, to satisfy the demand for a particular commodity, the problem of scarcity arises. The scarcity keeps on changing from one society to various countries. As the society keeps on developing, the standard of living also gets higher. The demand also keeps on increasing according to the economy of a country and the satisfactory level of the society. So, the resources get scarcer to produce goods and services for the satisfaction of wants. OPPORTUNITY COST According to (Pearce, 1983, p.322) opportunity cost can be defined as opportunity cost can only arise in a world where the resources available to meet wants are limited so that all wants cannot be satisfied. In simple words, we could say that the wants and needs of human being are unlimited. But the resources available in the market are limited. And so, it is not possible to satisfy each and every wants and desires of human being. And thus, the topic opportunity cost arises in a world. Choosing the best alternative when there is scarcity for a particular product, it can be measured in opportunity cost for the satisfaction of the needs and wants. The value of the next best alternative which is available in the market is termed in as opportunity cost. ADVANTAGES OF OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost provides a benefit of choosing one option over another. It may be personal or business related, opportunity cost arises when we select one option over another taking into consideration that the selected option has better advantage comparing with the another option. It helps one to study each and every facilities and satisfactory level of various products similar in nature, when the resources are limited. Opportunity cost provides us awareness towards choosing the best alternative product, which helps one to make fully informed and to make appropriate planning and decision making, which helps to maximize ones resources. Price of a product plays an important role in considering opportunity cost, as it allows us to consider and compare prices between each alternative product and to select the most effective and satisfactory product from the option. DISADVANTAGES OF OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost consumes a lot of time to calculate the features, price, budget, success ratio, satisfactory level etc of a product and many times we do not have time to evaluate the benefits of every product to choose the best alternatives. The biggest disadvantage of opportunity cost from a economist point of view is that the opportunity cost is not considered in accounting process of any company accounts. And so, the cost of opportunity involved in a selection of a particular product and the alternative product which was not selected, cannot be taken into accounts for future studies at all from a financial point of view. PRACTICE OF OPPORTUNITY COST IN REALITY Opportunity cost is calculated everyday by a human being who has the desire to purchase any product available in the market. Whether it may be implicit or explicit cost, it is considered into opportunity cost itself. An example of opportunity cost in case of financial sector is as given below:- A decision maker must study the impact of opportunity costs deeply before making the decision. If we consider a situation of an investor, whether to make investment in stock market or mutual fund investment. If a person makes an investment of $20,000 in Mutual Fund Investment of any company for one year, then he thinks what if he had put the same $20,000 in stock market rather than mutual fund investment. Perhaps he may expect a return of 20% on stock, and then the investor has an opportunity cost of $4000.Mutual fund may only provide a return of 10% ($2000). Then the investor has to consider the risk taking capacity, if he goes directly with stock market. As stock market value keeps on changing from time to time and there is always a risk of losing the money. In case of mutual fund investment, investor finds it more safe and secure for his money. There is very less chance of losing the money as compared with stock market. Hence, the investor may take the decision on the best alternative to invest in after considering the opportunity cost. PRACTICES ADOPTED BY ORGANIZATION IN RELATION TO OPPORTUNITY COST Opportunity cost is very important concept in financial sector. Especially in business progress related strategies. Opportunity cost helps one to examine the details and to make a profitable deal in a business purchase and selling process. The opportunity cost is the value mentioned to the next best choice. When an organization makes a decision to purchase an asset over another, there the organization is transferring the opportunity cost offered by another asset which was not selected. From my personal investigation on use of opportunity cost in business world, opportunity cost helps the organization to manage time with fully efficiency. Opportunity cost helps the organization to manage time with full efficiency. Even the business organization has to analysis which productive material should be purchased or not. Evento study the profitability level of various materials before purchasing it. It helps in a better decision making. Examples of opportunity cost in Business organization: A company has $2 million to spend on a project. The company can decide to invest the money for advertisement purpose of the particular product at the time of launch in the market. If they decide to invest the money in production and to buy machinery and all then the opportunity cost gets lost for advertisement purpose. And if they decide to spend the money on advertisement purpose, then the opportunity cost will be the organizations ability to produce commodity with more efficiently. Another example for business organization is that an organization owns a building in which it operates its function and so, it does not have to pay any rent for the office room space and all. But from economist point of view the business owner might have kept the office space for current use itself or the office space might have given for rent for money. So, that the owner could have earned from the rent but if the owner will not consider or provide the office space for rent then there is a loss in business expenses according to economist view point. But in real life accountant of a business organization cannot provide any loss expenses due to opportunity cost in any accounts. Even though opportunity cost is not considered by the accountants in case of financial accounts and all. But it is very much important for a manager of the business organization to consider opportunity cost in relation to business strategies. A business manager must consider opportunity cost in calculating the opportunity expenses in the organization for analyzing the profitable deals available in the market. It also helps in utilizing limited resources efficiently. CONCLUSION The value of the next best alternative which is available in the market is termed in as opportunity cost. It means choosing or making a decision from different options. From a economist point of view when a kid has to make a decision to choose between ice cream and chocolate at a time. When the kid has got a limited pocket money of $10 only and ice cream cost is $8 and chocolate cost is $15. So, the kid will have to select ice cream only as the kid has limited cash in hand. It is also a better example for scarcity too. When we talk about opportunity cost, we must take scarcity, needs and wants also into consideration. As, the basic needs to satisfy human beings desire is included in needs. Needs are a basic requirements which are used in daily life like food, water, clothing, medicine, shelter etc. A mans survival is dependent on theseneeds only on the primary level. Saying about wants it includes needs but it goes beyond that. Now a days consumer demands are unlimited but the resources are limited. It makes the demand margin to get higher, comparing with supply or resources. Scarcity is a stage when the wants are not satisfied up to the mark. When the production is insufficient to satisfy the demand for a particular commodity the problem of scarcity arises. Opportunity cost provides a benefit of choosing the best option available in the market after concluding the advantages and disadvantages. It also provides awareness towards choosing a product. From a business concern opportunity cost helps to maintain time management to make business decisions. Even opportunity cost involves limitations like consumption of a lot of time and opportunity cost is not considered by accountants.

Acceptance of MNC Mutual Fund by IFAS

Acceptance of MNC Mutual Fund by IFAS Introduction Mutual fund is a trust that pools the savings of a number of investors who share a common financial goal. This pool of money is invested in accordance with a stated objective. The joint ownership of the fund is thus â€Å"Mutual†, i.e. the fund belongs to all investors. The money thus collected is then invested in capital market instruments such as shares, debentures and other securities. The income earned through these investments and the capital appreciations realized are shared by its unit holders in proportion the number of units owned by them. Thus a Mutual Fund is the most suitable investment for the common man as it offers an opportunity to invest in a diversified, professionally managed basket of securities at a relatively low cost. A Mutual Fund is an investment tool that allows small investors access to a well-diversified portfolio of equities, bonds and other securities. Each shareholder participates in the gain or loss of the fund. Units are issued and can be redee med as needed. The funds Net Asset value (NAV) is determined each day. Investments in securities are spread across a wide cross-section of industries and sectors and thus the risk is reduced. Diversification reduces the risk because all stocks may not move in the same direction in the same proportion at the same time. Mutual fund issues units to the investors in accordance with quantum of money invested by them. Investors of mutual funds are known as unit- holders. ORGANISATION OF MUTUAL FUND Mutual funds have a unique structure not shared with other entities such as companies of firms. It is important for employees agents to be aware of the special nature of this structure, because it determines the rights responsibilities of the funds constituents viz., sponsors, trustees, custodians, transfer agents of course, the fund the Asset Management Company(AMC) the legal structure also drives the inter-relationships between these constituents. The structure of the mutual fund India is governed by the SEBI (Mutual Funds) regulations, 1996. These regulations make it mandatory for mutual funds to have a structure of sponsor, trustee, AMC, custodian. The sponsor is the promoter of the mutual fund, appoints the trustees. The trustees are responsible to the investors in the mutual fund, appoint the AMC for managing the investment portfolio. The AMC is the business face of the mutual fund, as it manages all affairs of the mutual fund. The mutual fund the AMC have to be register ed with SEBI. Custodian, who is also registered with SEBI, holds the securities of various schemes of the fund in its custody. SEBI SEBI regulates mutual funds, depositories, custodians and registrars transfer agents in the country. The applicable guidelines for mutual funds are set out in SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 1996, as amended till date. An updated and comprehensive list of circulars issued by SEBI can be found in the Mutual Funds section of SEBIs website. Some segments of the financial markets have their own independent regulatory bodies. Wherever applicable, mutual funds need to comply with these other regulators also. For instance, RBI regulates the money market and foreign exchange market in the country. Therefore, mutual funds need to comply with RBIs regulations regarding investment in the money market, investments outside the country, investments from people other than Indians resident in India, remittances (inward and outward) of foreign currency etc. Stock Exchanges are regulated by SEBI. Every stock exchange has its own listing, trading and margining rules. Mutual Funds need to comply with the rules of the exchanges with which they choose to have a business relationship. Anyone who is aggrieved by a ruling of SEBI, can file an appeal with the Securities Appellate Tribunal. Sponsor: The sponsor is the promoter of the mutual fund. The sponsor establishes the Mutual fund registers the same with SEBI. He appoints the trustees, Custodians the AMC with prior approval of SEBI, in accordance with SEBI regulations. He must have at least five year track record of business interest in the financial markets. Sponsor must have been profit making in at least three of the above five years. He must contribute at least 40% of the capital of the AMC. Trustees: The Mutual Fund may be managed by a Board of trustees of individuals, or a trust company a corporate body. Most of the funds in India are managed by board of trustees. While the board of trustees is governed by the provisions of the Indian trust act, where the trustee is the corporate body, it would also be required to comply with the provisions of the companies act, 1956. The board of trustee company, as an independent body, act as protector of the unit holders interest. The trustees dont directly manage the portfolio of securities. For this specialist function, they appoint an AMC. They ensure that the fund is managed by AMC as per the defined objectives in accordance with the trust deed SEBI regulations. The trust is created through a document called the trust deed i.e., executed by the fund sponsor in favor of the trustees. The trust deed is required to be stamped as registered under the provision of the Indian registration act registered with SEBI. The trustees begin the pri mary guardians of the unit holders funds assets; a trustee has to be a person of high repute integrity. Custodian: Often an independent organization, it takes custody all securities other assets of mutual fund. Its responsibilities include receipt delivery of securities collecting income-distributing dividends, safekeeping of the unit segregating assets settlements between schemes. Mutual fund is managed either trust company board of trustees. Board of trustees trust are governed by provisions of Indian trust act. If trustee is a company, it is also subject Indian Company Act. Trustees appoint AMC in consultation with the sponsors according to SEBI regulation. All mutual fund schemes floated by AMC have to be approved by trustees. Trustees review ensure that net worth of the company is according to stipulated norms, every quarter. Though the trust is the mutual fund, the AMC is its operational face. The AMC is the first functionary to be appointed, is involved in appointment of all other functionaries. The AMC structures the mutual fund products, markets them mobilizes fund, manages the funds services to the investors. Other Service Providers RTA The RTA maintains investor records. Their offices in various centres serve as Investor Service Centres (ISCs), which perform a useful role in handling the documentation of investors. The appointment of RTA is done by the AMC. It is not compulsory to appoint a RTA. The AMC can choose to handle this activity in house. All RTAs need to register with SEBI. Auditors Auditors are responsible for the audit of accounts. Accounts of the schemes need to be maintained independent of the accounts of the AMC. The auditor appointed to audit the scheme accounts needs to be different from the auditor of the AMC. While the scheme auditor is appointed by the Trustees, the AMC auditor is appointed by the AMC. Fund Accountants The fund accountant performs the role of calculating the NAV, by collecting information about the assets and liabilities of each scheme. The AMC can either handle this activity in-house, or engage a service provider. Collecting Bankers The investors moneys go into the bank account of the scheme they have invested in. These bank accounts are maintained with collection bankers who are appointed by the AMC. Leading collection bankers make it convenient to invest in the schemes by accepting applications of investors in most of their branches. Payment instruments against applications handed over to branches of the AMC or the RTA need to be banked with the collecting bankers, so that the moneys are available for investment by the scheme. Through this kind of a mix of constituents and specialized service providers, most mutual funds maintain high standards of service and safety for investors. Distributors Distributors have a key role in selling suitable types of units to their clients i.e. the investors in the schemes. Distributors need to pass the prescribed certification test, and register with AMFI. Asset Management Company (AMC) Day to day operations of asset management are handled by the AMC. It therefore arranges for the requisite offices and infrastructure, engages employees, provides for the requisite software, handles advertising and sales promotion, and interacts with regulators and various service providers. The AMC has to take all reasonable steps and exercise due diligence to ensure that the investment of funds pertaining to any scheme is not contrary to the provisions of the SEBI regulations and the trust deed. Further, it has to exercise due diligence and care in all its investment decisions. As per SEBI regulations: The directors of the asset management company need to be persons having adequate professional experience in finance and financial services related field. The directors as well as key personnel of the AMC should not have been found guilty of moral turpitude or convicted of any economic offence or violation of any securities laws. Key personnel of the AMC should not have worked for any asset management company or mutual fund or any intermediary during the period when its registration was suspended or cancelled at any time by SEBI. Prior approval of the trustees is required, before a person is appointed as director on the board of the AMC. Further, at least 50% of the directors should be independentdirectors i.e. not associate of or associated with the sponsor or anyof its subsidiaries or the trustees. The AMC needs to have a minimum net worth of Rs10 crores. An AMC cannot invest in its own schemes, unless the intention to invest is disclosed in the Offer Document. Further, the AMC cannot charge any fees for the investment. The appointment of an AMC can be terminated by a majority of the trustees, or by 75% of the Unit-holders. However, any change in the AMC is subject to prior approval of SEBI and the Unit-holders. Asset Management Companies In India INDIAN AMCs Axis Asset Management Company Ltd. Baroda Pioneer Asset Management Company Limited Birla Sun Life Asset Management Co. Ltd. Canara Robeco Asset Management Co. Ltd. DSP BlackRock Investment Managers Ltd. Edelweiss Asset Management Limited Escorts Asset Management Ltd. HDFC Asset Management Co. Ltd. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co. Ltd. IDBI Asset Management Ltd. IDFC Asset Management Company Private Limited J.M. Financial Asset Management Private Ltd. LIC Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. LT Investment Management Limited Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Co. Ltd. Motilal Oswal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Peerless Funds Management Co. Ltd. Quantum Asset Management Co. Private Ltd. Reliance Capital Asset Management Ltd. Religare Asset Management Company Private Limited Sahara Asset Management Co. Private Ltd. SBI Funds Management Private Ltd. Sundaram Asset Management Company Limited Tata Asset Management Ltd. Taurus Asset Management Co. Ltd. UTI Asset Management Company Ltd. MNC AMCs AIG Global Asset Management Company (India) Private Ltd. Bharti AXA Investment Managers Private Limited BNP Paribas Asset Management India Private Limited Daiwa Asset Management (India) Private Limited Deutsche Asset Management (India) Private Ltd. FIL Fund Management Private Ltd. Fortis Investment Management (India) Pvt. Ltd. Franklin Templeton Asset Management (India) Private Ltd. Goldman Sachs Asset Management (India) Private Limited HSBC Asset Management (India) Private Ltd. ING Investment Management (India) Private Ltd. JP Morgan Asset Management (India) Private Ltd. Mirae Asset Global Investments (India) Private Ltd. Morgan Stanley Investment Management Private Ltd. Principal PNB Asset Management Co. Private Ltd. Pramerica Asset Managers Private Limited Mutual Fund Industry in India The Evolution The formation of Unit Trust of India marked the evolution of the Indian mutual fund industry in the year 1963. The primary objective at that time was to attract the small investors and it was made possible through the collective efforts of the Government of India and the Reserve Bank of India. The history of mutual fund industry in India can be better understood divided into following phases: Phase 1. Establishment and Growth of Unit Trust of India 1964-87 Unit Trust of India enjoyed complete monopoly when it was established in the year 1963 by an act of Parliament. UTI was set up by the Reserve Bank of India and it continued to operate under the regulatory control of the RBI until the two were de-linked in 1978 and the entire control was transferred in the hands of Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI). UTI launched its first scheme in 1964, named as Unit Scheme 1964 (US-64), which attracted the largest number of investors in any single investment scheme over the years. UTI launched more innovative schemes in 1970s and 80s to suit the needs of different investors. It launched ULIP in 1971 and six more schemes during 1981-84, Childrens Gift Growth Fund and India Fund (Indias first offshore fund) in 1986, Mastershare (Indias first equity diversified scheme) in 1987 and Monthly Income Schemes (offering assured returns) during 1990s. By the end of 1987, UTIs assets under management grew ten times to Rs 6700 crores. Phase II. Entry of Public Sector Funds 1987-1993 The Indian mutual fund industry witnessed a number of public sector players entering the market in the year 1987. In November 1987, SBI Mutual Fund from the State Bank of India became the first non-UTI mutual fund in India. SBI Mutual Fund was later followed by Canbank Mutual Fund, LIC Mutual Fund, Indian Bank Mutual Fund, Bank of India Mutual Fund, GIC Mutual Fund and PNB Mutual Fund. By 1993, the assets under management of the industry increased seven times to Rs. 47,004 crores. However, UTI remained to be the leader with about 80% market share. Phase III. Emergence of Private Sector Funds 1993-96 The permission given to private sector funds including foreign fund management companies (most of them entering through joint ventures with Indian promoters) to enter the mutual fund industry in 1993, provided a wide range of choice to investors and more competition in the industry. Private funds introduced innovative products, investment techniques and investor-servicing technology. By 1994-95, about 11 private sector funds had launched their schemes. Phase IV. Growth and SEBI Regulation 1996-2004 The mutual fund industry witnessed robust growth and stricter regulation from the SEBI after the year 1996. The mobilisation of funds and the number of players operating in the industry reached new heights as investors started showing more interest in mutual funds. Investors interests were safeguarded by SEBI and the Government offered tax benefits to the investors in order to encourage them. SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 1996 was introduced by SEBI that set uniform standards for all mutual funds in India. The Union Budget in 1999 exempted all dividend incomes in the hands of investors from income tax. Various Investor Awareness Programmes were launched during this phase, both by SEBI and AMFI, with an objective to educate investors and make them informed about the mutual fund industry. In February 2003, the UTI Act was repealed and UTI was stripped of its Special legal status as a trust formed by an Act of Parliament. The primary objective behind this was to bring all mutual fund players on the same level. UTI was re-organised into two parts: The Specified Undertaking, The UTI Mutual Fund Presently Unit Trust of India operates under the name of UTI Mutual Fund and its past schemes (like US-64, Assured Return Schemes) are being gradually wound up. However, UTI Mutual Fund is still the largest player in the industry. Phase V. Growth and Consolidation 2004 Onwards The industry has also witnessed several mergers and acquisitions recently, examples of which are acquisition of schemes of Alliance Mutual Fund by Birla Sun Life, Sun FC Mutual Fund and PNB Mutual Fund by Principal Mutual Fund. Simultaneously, more international mutual fund players have entered India like Fidelity, Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund etc. There were 29 funds as at the end of March 2006. This is a continuing phase of growth of the industry through consolidation and entry of new international and private sector players. Key Developments over the Years The mutual fund industry in India has come a long way. Significant spurts in size were noticed in the late 80s, when public sector mutual funds were first permitted, and then in the mid-90s, when private sector mutual funds commenced operations. In the last few years, institutional distributors increased their focus on mutual funds. The emergence of stock exchange brokers as an additional channel of distribution, the continuing growth in convenience arising out of technological developments and higher financial literacy in the market should drive the growth of mutual funds in future.AUM of the industry, as of February 2010 has touched Rs 766,869 crores from 832 schemes offered by 38 mutual funds. In some advanced countries, mutual fund AUM is a multiple of bank deposits. In India, mutual fund AUM is hardly 10% of bank deposits. This is indicative of the immense potential for growth of the industry. The high proportion of AUM in debt, largely from institutional investors is not in line with the role of mutual funds, which is to channelize retail money into transforming mutual funds into a truly retail vehicle of capital mobilization for the larger benefit of the economy the capital market. Various regulatory measures to reduce the costs and increase the conveniences for investors are aimed at. ADVANTAGES OF MUTUAL FUND Professional Management Mutual funds offer investors the opportunity to earn an income or build their wealth through professional management of their investible funds. There are several aspects to such professional management viz. investing in line with the investment objective, investing based on adequate research, and ensuring that prudent investment processes are followed.   Affordable Portfolio Diversification Units of a scheme give investors exposure to a range of securities held in the investment portfolio of the scheme. Thus, even a small investment of Rs 5,000 in a mutual fund scheme can give investors a diversified investment portfolio. With diversification, an investor ensures that all the eggs are not in the same basket. Consequently, the investor is less likely to lose money on all the investments at the same time. Thus, diversification helps reduce the risk in investment. In order to achieve the same diversification as a mutual fund scheme, investors will need to set apart several lakhs of rupees. Instead, they can achieve the diversification through an investment of a few thousand rupees in a mutual fund scheme.   Economies of Scale The pooling of large sums of money from so many investors makes it possible for the mutual fund to engage professional managers to manage the investment. Individual investors with small amounts to invest cannot, by themselves, afford to engage such professional management. Large investment corpus leads to various other economies of scale. For instance, costs related to investment research and office space get spread across investors. Further, the higher transaction volume makes it possible to negotiate better terms with brokers, bankers and other service providers.   Liquidity At times, investors in financial markets are stuck with a security for which they cant find a buyer worse; at times they cant find the company they invested in! Such investments, whose value the investor cannot easily realise in the market, are technically called illiquid investments and may result in losses for the investor. Investors in a mutual fund scheme can recover the value of the moneys invested, from the mutual fund itself. Depending on the structure of the mutual fund scheme, this would be possible, either at any time, or during specific intervals, or only on closure of the scheme. Schemes where the money can be recovered from the mutual fund only on closure of the scheme, are listed in a stock exchange. In such schemes, the investor can sell the units in the stock exchange to recover the prevailing value of the investment.   Tax benefits Specific schemes of mutual funds (Equity Linked Savings Schemes) give investors the benefit of deduction of the amountinvested, from their income that is liable to tax. This reduces theirtaxable income, and therefore the tax liability. Further, the dividend that the investor receives from the scheme is tax-free in his hands.   Investment Comfort Once an investment is made with a mutual fund, they make it convenient for the investor to make further purchases with very little documentation. This simplifies subsequent investment activity.   Convenient Options The options offered under a scheme allow investors to structure their investments in line with their liquidity preference and tax position.   Regulatory Comfort The regulator, Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has mandated strict checks and balances in the structure of mutual funds and their activities. These are detailed in the subsequent units. Mutual fund investors benefit from such protection. LIMITATIONS OF MUTUAL FUND   Lack of portfolio customization Some securities houses offer Portfolio Management Schemes to large investors. In a PMS, the investor has better control over what securities are bought and sold on his behalf. On the other hand, a unit-holder is just one of several thousand investors in a scheme. Once a unit-holder has bought into the scheme, investment management is left to the fund manager (within the broad parameters of the investment objective). Thus, the unit-holder cannot influence what securities or investments the scheme would buy. Large sections of investors lack the time or the knowledge to be able to make portfolio choices. Therefore, lack of portfolio customization is not a serious limitation in most cases.   Choice overload Over 800 mutual fund schemes offered by 38 mutual funds and multiple options within those schemes make it difficult for investors to choose between them. Greater dissemination of industry information through various media and availability of professional advisors in the market should help investors handle this overload.   No control over costs All the investors moneys are pooled together in a scheme. Costs incurred for managing the scheme are shared by all the Unit holders in proportion to their holding of Units in the scheme. Therefore, an individual investor has no control over the costs in a scheme. SEBI has however imposed certain limits on the expenses that can be charged to any scheme. These limits vary with the size of assets and the nature of the scheme.   No guarantees No investment is risk free. If the entire stock market declines in value, the value of mutual fund shares will go down as well, no matter how balanced the portfolio. Investors encounter fewer risks when they invest in mutual funds than when they buy and sell stocks on their own. However, anyone who invests through a mutual fund runs the risk of losing money.   Management risk When you invest in a mutual fund, you depend on the funds manager to make the right decisions regarding the funds portfolio. If the manager does not perform as well as we had hoped, we might not make as much money on our investment as we expected. However, if we invest in Index Funds, we forego management risk, because these funds do not employ fund managers. TYPES OF MUTUAL FUND Equity Funds are considered to be the more risky funds as compared to other fund types, but they also provide higher returns than other funds. It is advisable that an investor looking to invest in an equity fund should invest for long term i.e. for 3 years or more. There are different types of equity funds each falling into different risk bracket. In the order of decreasing risk level, there are following types of equity funds: Aggressive Growth Funds In Aggressive Growth Funds, fund managers aspire for maximum capital appreciation and invest in less researched shares of speculative nature. Because of these speculative investments Aggressive Growth Funds become more volatile and thus, are prone to higher risk than other equity funds. Growth Funds Growth Funds also invest for capital appreciation (with time horizon of 3 to 5 years) but they are different from Aggressive Growth Funds in the sense that they invest in companies that are expected to outperform the market in the future. Without entirely adopting speculative strategies, Growth Funds invest in those companies that are expected to post above average earnings in the future. Speciality Funds Speciality Funds have stated criteria for investments and their portfolio comprises of only those companies that meet their criteria. Criteria for some speciality funds could be to invest/not to invest in particular regions/companies. Speciality funds are concentrated and thus, are comparatively riskier than diversified funds. There are following types of speciality funds: i. Sector Funds: Speciality Funds have stated criteria for investments and their portfolio comprises of only those companies that meet their criteria. Criteria for some speciality funds could be to invest/not to invest in particular regions/companies. Speciality funds are concentrated and thus, are comparatively riskier than diversified funds.. There are following types of speciality funds: ii. Foreign Securities Funds: Foreign Securities Equity Funds have the option to invest in one or more foreign companies. Foreign securities funds achieve international diversification and hence they are less risky than sector funds. However, foreign securities funds are exposed to foreign exchange rate risk and country risk. iii. Mid-Cap or Small-Cap Funds: Funds that invest in companies having lower market capitalization than large capitalization companies are called Mid-Cap or Small-Cap Funds. Market capitalization of Mid-Cap companies is less than that of big, blue chip companies (less than Rs. 2500 crores but more than Rs. 500 crores) and Small-Cap companies have market capitalization of less than Rs. 500 crores. Market Capitalization of a company can be calculated by multiplying the market price of the companys share by the total number of its outstanding shares in the market. The shares of Mid-Cap or Small-Cap Companies are not as liquid as of Large-Cap Companies which gives rise to volatility in share prices of these companies and consequently, investment gets risky. iv. Option Income Funds: While not yet available in India, Option Income Funds write options on a large fraction of their portfolio. Proper use of options can help to reduce volatility, which is otherwise considered as a risky instrument. These funds invest in big, high dividend yielding companies, and then sell options against their stock positions, which generate stable income for investors. Diversified Equity Funds Except for a small portion of investment in liquid money market, diversified equity funds invest mainly in equities without any concentration on a particular sector(s). These funds are well diversified and reduce sector-specific or company-specific risk. However, like all other funds diversified equity funds too are exposed to equity market risk. One prominent type of diversified equity fund in India is Equity Linked Savings Schemes (ELSS). As per the mandate, a minimum of 90% of investments by ELSS should be in equities at all times. ELSS investors are eligible to claim deduction from taxable income (up to Rs 1 lakh) at the time of filing the income tax return. ELSS usually has a lock-in period and in case of any redemption by the investor before the expiry of the lock-in period makes him liable to pay income tax on such income(s) for which he may have received any tax exemption(s) in the past. Equity Index Funds Equity Index Funds have the objective to match the performance of a specific stock market index. The portfolio of these funds comprises of the same companies that form the index and is constituted in the same proportion as the index. Equity index funds that follow broad indices (like SP CNX Nifty, Sensex) are less risky than equity index funds that follow narrow sectoral indices (like BSEBANKEX or CNX Bank Index etc). Narrow indices are less diversified and therefore, are more risky. Value Funds Value Funds invest in those companies that have sound fundamentals and whose share prices are currently under-valued. The portfolio of these funds comprises of shares that are trading at a low Price to Earning Ratio (Market Price per Share / Earning per Share) and a low Market to Book Value (Fundamental Value) Ratio. Value Funds may select companies from diversified sectors and are exposed to lower risk level as compared to growth funds or speciality funds. Value stocks are generally from cyclical industries (such as cement, steel, sugar etc.) which make them volatile in the short-term. Therefore, it is advisable to invest in Value funds with a long-term time horizon as risk in the long term, to a large extent, is reduced. Equity Income or Dividend Yield Funds The objective of Equity Income or Dividend Yield Equity Funds is to generate high recurring income and steady capital appreciation for investors by investing in those companies which issue high dividends (such as Power or Utility companies whose share prices fluctuate comparatively lesser than other companies share prices). Equity Income or Dividend Yield Equity Funds are generally exposed to the lowest risk level as compared to other equity funds. Money Market / Liquid Funds invest in short-term (maturing within one year) interest bearing debt instruments. These securities are highly liquid and provide safety of investment, thus making money market / liquid funds the safest investment option when compared with other mutual fund types. However, even money market

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Incompetent Job Performance In Public Service Essay -- Work Employment

Incompetent Job Performance In Public Service Historically public employees have been viewed by the general public as being overpaid, inefficient, ineffective and unresponsive to the needs of the public. The news media’s constant reporting of scandals, financial misappropriations and unethical behavior in the public service further substantiate the growing lack of confidence the public has in the competence of public service organizations. In 1989 the National Commission on the Public Service, the Volcker Commission, reported that the need for competence and trustworthiness in public service was steadily growing not diminishing. (Nigro, 9) The goal of the Volcker Commission was to identify the necessary changes to personnel policies and practices that would counteract the increasing public lack of confidence in the ability of public service organizations to satisfy public demands. Many local governments that experienced the budget cuts, fiscal restraints and organizational turmoil of the 1990’s have determined that to enhance their competence, gain public trust and to avoid future financial difficulties, it is imperative that the staff of public service organizations become more professional, better trained and responsive to public needs. Managers in public service organizations have a vitally important role in the effort to create competence and gain public trust. Traditionally, the job of a manager has been defined as one who keeps things going in an organization. Generally the focus of a manager is on monitoring, directing and refining the current performance of the organization. (Whetten, 14) A manager gets things done through people. Leaders are those who establish the vision and set the direction of t... ...ers, Inc., 1996 5. Nigro, Lloyd G., Felix A. Nigro. The New Public Personnel Administration. Itasca, Illinois: F. E. Peacock Publishers, Inc., 1994 6. Scott, Michael P. â€Å"7 PITFALLS for MANAGERS WHEN HANDLING POOR PERFORMERS and HOW TO OVERCOME THEM† February 2000 Online. Available: http://web5.infotrac-college.com/wadsworth 7. Segal, Jonathan A. â€Å"Performance Management For Jekyll and Hyde† February 1999 Published in HR Magazine, Legal Trends. Online. Available: http://www.wolfblock.com 8. Vaughan, Susan. â€Å"Rethinking Employee Evaluations† Los Angeles Times, 8 April 2001 Work Place, Part W, Page 1 9. Whetten, David A., Kim S. Cameron. Developing Management Skills, 4th ed. New York: Addison-Wesley Inc., 1998

Friday, July 19, 2019

Race and Ethnicity in Social Sciences Essay examples -- Identity Gende

Use of the Terms "Race" and "Ethnicity" in the Social Sciences Defining identity can be complex and therefore we have to investigate the factors involved that make us who we are and how we are seen by others, collectively or individually. Social scientists have to consider the key elements which shape identity, the importance of social structures and agency involved. The differences and/or similarities between us are the focus that categorise and label us in society. Knowing who we are is important for many reasons including, social rights, obtaining a passport, housing, health, employment, marriage, and over all, being able to ascertain who we are, and belong. The terms ‘race’ and ‘ethnicity’ are central features in the process of categorisation. ‘Racial’ or ‘Ethnic’ identifications are produced as part of a social process, which is dynamic and changing. Therefore we know that identities are not static and terms such as ‘race’ and ‘ethnicity’ cannot cover the changing categories without being dynamic terms themselves. The use of quotation marks with these terms is adopted to emphasise that the terms are broad terms and aim to avoid discrimination or misrepresentation of groups under the umbrella term. ‘Race’ is commonly used by media and society to portray the physical differences between people, however, social scientists choose to show that the term does not refer to exact biological differences, is stereotypical, and the quotation marks emphasise the concept as ...

Thursday, July 18, 2019

An Ounce of Cure :: essays papers

An Ounce of Cure An Ounce of Problems Problems, we think they all disappear when we try to live life as though they never happen. In the fictional story of â€Å"An Ounce of Cure†, her teenage crises of the undying love for her boyfriend was persistent even after she was â€Å"dropped†. This mid-teenage problem, to her, was the end of her pre-destined life. Teenagers often exaggerate their tragedies, which result in sometimes life threatening situations. The theme of this story is even though we feel like our whole life has flipped over it will get better and our problems will die out. The narrator in this story expresses her point of view as she lives through this horrible stage in her teenage life. The characters that Alice Munro uses in the story are common and very realistic. The narrator never gives her name. She is the major character in the story and conveys this in first person. She is considered the reliable character since she is telling of a stage in her own life. I think she in insecure do to her parents already â€Å"hoping for a lesser rather than a greater disaster—an elopement, say, with a boy who could never earn his living, rather than an abduction into the White Slave trade.†(451) She has been given this pre-conceived destiny, which also contributes to her instability and by her boyfriend leaving her. Here in the story the character could be considered a dynamic character. The fact that her drinking and her attempt at suicide are spread throughout the whole town places a cloud of remorse and shame over her. She paid a great deal for her mistakes and learned from them. I think her mom could be considered a static-flat character. Here her daughter is trying to grow up and get a boyfriend, going to high school, and babysitting on the side and her mother still does not want to see her daughter as â€Å"gentleman material.† She has this fixed idea that her daughter will marry some person who cant make a living. By the end of the story, the narrator gets over him and goes on with her life, which I’m sure her mother is appalled.

Whirlpool: Maintaining a Sustainable Competition in the Industry

The U.S. appliance market was completely saturated in 1986. Increased pressure from other companies like GE who implemented a $1 billion restructuring project on its appliance division, and Electrolux, a company that just inherited WCI and hence became a huge presence within the U.S., gave the Whirlpool top management concern on how to stay competitive. Whirlpool knew that the three main markets for home appliance were in the U.S., Europe and Japan. The U.S. market, as previously stated was saturated. Most U.S. appliance purchases were replacement purchases, which did not allow for much add-ons. This made the U.S. a battleground for intense marketing and increased pressures to cut costs dramatically. The unsaturated European market had more potential in 1986. Europe had a large market share in 1986 that analysts suspected would last well into 1993. Europe also had more potential for innovation and add-ons as opposed to simply replacement appliances like those of the United States. One concern over Europe, however, was that it was extremely fragmented and hence not easy to achieve economies of scale. Japan, the last player was also a site for potential growth. It was a smaller market than Europe, however, and there was already a strong presence of Japanese appliance manufacturers there. Whirlpool considered pursuing a joint venture with Phillips, an internationally established company. Phillips has an established appliance department, but Phillips wanted to concentrate its efforts on other projects like welding, energy cable and furniture. Phillips was willing to spin-off its appliance division and to give Whirlpool a certain percentage of the new company. Based on the fact that Whirlpool wants to remain a competitive player in the appliance industry, it should pursue international expansion and clench the first mover advantage over GE while increasing pressure on Electrolux. Whirlpool should go along with the Phillips joint venture due to Phillip†s strong international presence and its strong appliance division. Whirlpool should consider concentrating on expansion in Europe. The countries may be fragmented, but there is evidence that there is increased future collaboration amongst the countries and their purchasing decisions. Furthermore, Whirlpool can cut costs by vertically integrating its components and changing only the exterior of the appliances if need be.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Barnesandnoble.com & Technology

Technology and internet made livelihood more than good nowadays. Part of first appearance is the integration of websites where adept potty sully legers that they need and stick it shipped directly at their doorstep. Barnes and stately is one of the most bank site when it comes to online harborselling. This paper aims to evaluate the website on with its strain model, ethical, legal and security issues. A discussion will in any case be presented on how the website uses communication technologies in two effective and non effective ways. unrivaled of the largest give-and-take chains break ins in the US has been Barnes and dreadful.It started as a local book stick in and find ways to make book buying more convenient by creating their own website. Online booking selling seems to abide one disadvantage over store book selling. The guests in the stores atomic number 18 subject to feel the book and read excerpts of the book. In such a circumstance, they would be more i nterested in buying the book and would find the book its capitals worth. With time, the internet is beginning to change, and many of the manufacturers atomic number 18 beginning to show case the increase and actually permit the customer to attempt it using the internet.With the bookshelf model, it does seem that it would be dearly-won to get the investment to setup the place, go on shelves and get the logistics. In comparison, an online store does non require more of investment and root. The customer can access the online bookshop from approximately any part of the world and can select the book. The user would need scarcely a computer, an Internet connection, and a social station username and within a short issue of time the product would be delivered to the house. Studies have shown that when the damage of a product was lowered, beneath the willingness to pay, the customer is more likely to find oneself the product.The customer would obtain the product satisfactoril y, if the price equals the willingness to pay. The customer would not be beaming if the price of the product is higher than the willingness to pay. Barnes and statuesque has a good reputation and has it stores laid in various parts of the US. flock are paying more money for Barnes and fearful products because it is more renowned and started as a local store. Barnes and grand caller- turn up went online and offered the customers huge discounts for online hardcover and paperback versions (up to 30 %).Barnes and Noble wanted to become the attractor in online bookselling by displacing other online bookstores. They entangle that online business offered much greater opportunities, as people could not find a bookstore with a variety. People from level off other countries could do online sponsorping and change the gross sales of the ac corporation. The investment over infrastructure and position up a shop was much higher compared to a bookstore compared to online shopping. Pe ople, who did not have the time to appear for a bookstore, could now do it setting in the comfort of their homes. This seemed to be one of the greatest advantages of online shopping.Through online shopping, the books could be advertised and marketed and this could really boost sales. Barnes and Noble operated a categorization induction in Jamesburg, and slowly this facility began to expand. They developed a actually efficient dodging in comparison to Amazon, and claimed to fiddle the book to the customer much express than what Amazon actually did. However, the trading operations of both, Barnes and Noble and Amazon were similar. Barnes and Noble alike created get out web features compared to Amazon. They also separated out the online operations from the bookstore in score to evade tax.This practice is considered to be unethical and illegal because it is the prime responsibility of a business to adhere to tax rules. At the back end of the operations, Barnes and Noble also tried to establish relations with the publishers and the wholesalers. One advantage the company had observed was that the operations were much lesser compared to a timeworn bookstore as infrastructure cost were saved. Barnes and Noble soon began to offer to the online customers, books at the wholesale or warehouse rates. The company also offered several(prenominal) function.The packet fauna of Barnes and Noble company permitted the customers to store face-to-face data and also buy the books very easily. They also signed up with several Internet organizations such as AOL and the immature York Times to provide extra services. AOL provided software and news services. This is one good outline as the communication technology is maximized and at the same time security issues are intact. As Barnes and Noble offered personalized services, it could be combined to the Harvesting model of substitution. Barnes and Noble also tried develop a website much richer than other websites.They b egan to involve the operations of the book supply system so as to make better the online strategy. The software technology utilized by Barnes and Noble was also much superior to prove that the company really has a good business model. Barnes and Nobel website had its name already established in the online book market. They were seeking to make relationships with the customers and improve their business further. The graphics of the website that belonged to Barnes and Noble was much more esthetically pleasing compared to others. The principal(prenominal) targets of the website were the buyers which is really a good strategy in business.Several benefits of the business model of the website gives way on the costs of the books, marketing, advertisement, brand name, services provided, reputation, delivery time, discounts provided, range of after sales services, etc. Barnes and Noble is really a customer friendly website. Reference Barnes and Noble (2009), Books, Online. Retrieved Febru ary 18 2009 from http//www. barnesandnoble. com/bookstore. asp? z=y,. Barnes & Noble Booksellers (2009). Retrieved February 18 2009 from http//www. washingtonpost. com/gog/book-events/barnes-and-noble-booksellers- rockville,798835. html