Pygmalion: the Play and Higgins Essay

Pygmalion is a primarily Shavian reworking of Ovid’s Metamorphoses with undertones of Cinderella. Romance and satire dominate both the play’s plot as well as style. Shaw takes a strong central situation–the transformation of a common flower girl into a lady–and surrounds it with superficial trimmings. There is technical innovation in the plot structure since Shaw, under the influence of Ibsen, replaces the stock Victorian formula of exposition, situation and unraveling with exposition, situation and discussion. The plot thus has three distinct stages of development. In the first stage Professor Henry Higgins, who is an expert in phonetics, transforms a common flower girl into an artificial replica of a lady by teaching her how to speak correctly. Prior to this Eliza’s life has been miserable. As a poor flower girl she coaxes money out of prospective customers and is thrilled when she suddenly receives a handful of coins that Higgins throws into her basket. She lacks the capacity to express her feelings articulately and an indiscriminate sound of vowels â€Å"Ah – ah – ow – ow – oo† serves to connote a multitude of emotions ranging from pain, wonder, and fear to delight. However she is not entirely depraved and is at least self-reliant enough to earn her own livelihood by selling flowers. In Act Two Eliza arrives at Higgins’ laboratory at Wimpole Street and haughtily demands that Higgins teach her to speak correctly so that she can become a lady in a flower shop. This desire for financial security and social respectability constitutes a step forward in her larger quest for self- realization. For Higgins Eliza is simply a phonetic experiment, a view that dehumanizes her and results in the creation of an artificial automaton-like replica of a lady. In the second stage of the play the audience encounters an Eliza who has become an artificial duchess. She is no longer a flower girl but is not quite a lady. During Mrs. Higgins’ at-home she proceeds to deliver Lisson Grove gossip with an upper class accent. She is nothing more than a live doll and there is an element of crudity in her parrot-like conversation. The mask of gentility that she wears only partially hides her low class background. Shaw demonstrates here that having fine clothes and the right accent are not enough to make a lady. The fact that the Eynsford-Hills fail to see through her facade implies that they too do not possess true gentility. By the time that Eliza returns after her triumphant society appearance at the Ambassador’s ball, she no longer exhibits this element of crudity. She has benefited from Higgins’s lessons in achieving social poise and has acquired the ability to articulate her thoughts and feelings. She has begun to think for herself and is capable of manipulating any situation to her advantage. The play enters into the third phase of development in Act Four. Eliza now encounters the great moment of truth and reality of her situation. Her education has created in her an intense dissatisfaction with the old way of life and she is not exactly pleased about the avenues open to her as a lady. She realizes that her social acquisitions do not enable her to fulfill her aspirations or even earn a living. She becomes aware of the wide disparity between her desires and the inadequacy of the means for fulfilling them. She repudiates Higgins’ suggestion that she could marry a wealthy husband and wryly comments that earlier â€Å"I sold flowers, I didn’t sell myself† while now that she has been made a lady she isn’t fit to sell anything. She has thrown away her mask and reveals a newfound maturity. She throws Higgins’ slippers at him and thereby breaks free from a life of subjugation and dependence. Critics feel that at this point the play enters into a period of calm and the main impetus of the action dissipates. Eliza’s society appearance has been a tremendous success and after the climatic encounter between Higgins and Eliza in Act Four the dramatic tension disappears. Eliza runs away to Mrs. Higgins and the only issue left is the resolution of her relationship with Higgins. The readers have to agree that the main impetus of the action has disappeared since all the preceding acts had been gearing up for the crucial moment of Eliza’s test. Now Alfred Doolittle’s strategic second appearance performs a resuscitating act for the play in its dying stage. Doolittle’s transformation from a dustman to a gentleman also provides an ironic comment on Eliza’s metamorphosis. After this brief spirit of energy the action returns to the issue at hand – the relationship between Eliza and Higgins. Eliza has developed into a self-sufficient woman and has become a perfect match for Higgins. She has garnered the requisite strength of character and maturity of thought to face life courageously. Gentility has become an integral aspect of her personality. No longer afraid of Higgins, she treats him as an equal. She negates his role in her transformation and insists that it was the Colonel’s generosity and courteous behavior, which truly made her a lady. She rejects Higgins’ proposal that he, she and Pickering live together like old bachelor friends and astounds him by announcing that she will marry Freddy instead and support him by offering herself as an assistant to Nepommuck. Higgins, although hurt at Eliza’s suggestion of assisting the detestable Nepommuck, is nevertheless happy that Eliza is no longer a whining helpless creature but a tower of strength and a woman at last. The play concludes on an uncertain note and the readers do not know whether she might indeed marry Higgins. This reflects Shaw’s inherent distaste for finality. In the majority of his plays the issues and conflicts they deal with are never quite resolved and the audience is left wondering about what will happen after the curtain falls. However Shaw realizing the importance of an ending does provide a resolution in the epilogue. The dramalies neither in the conflict, nor in the discussion or the exposition. The conflict itself arises over the issue of the resolution of the problem. Unless there is a resolution, there is no drama, for the action remains incomplete. Action always has to be completed either comically or tragically. Hence in the epilogue, Shaw resolves the issue by making Eliza marry Freddy Hill. It was typical of Shaw to have provided such an anti-romantic conclusion to the play. Many commentators accuse Shaw of deliberately twisting the natural end of Pygmalion merely to make the play unromantic. But critics would do well to remember that the actual point of ending is not the issue of Eliza’s marriage but her achievement of liberty. While throughout the play Higgins boasts of having transformed a common flower girl into a duchess, after Eliza’s climactic assertion of independence from his domination he remarks, â€Å"I said I’d make a woman of you; and I have. † In this perspective the original ambiguous ending seems preferable to the neat resolution given in the epilogue.

Comparing Manchester Airport to Starbucks

One of the aims of Starbucks is Global Responsibility. This is similar to Manchester Airport's aim Environmentally Friendly because Manchester Airport is planning to cut the amount of CO2 emissions and recycle more; also Manchester Airport provide triple glazing windows for people who live very close to Manchester Airport so that they aren't affected by the sound. Starbucks is intending to make 100% of their cups recyclable by 2015, also to make 100% of their coffees in high quality, to contribute over 1 million lion hours of community service by 2015, to make 100% of their coffees fair traded. Also Starbucks is aiming to reduce energy and water conservation plus, Starbucks staff cleans their equipments such as mugs, cups etc, so that it's re-usable. These are similar because both of the company is planning to make the environment better by recycling plus they both care about other people and the planet because Manchester Airport is providing triple glazing windows, in addition, Starbucks is paying their farmers with fair trade. This shows that both of the company care about other people because they provide something to customers so that it's suitable in the condition they live in. Differences They are also different because Manchester Airport runs only in tertiary sector because they provide a service to people. Starbucks runs on entire sector primary, secondary and tertiary because they pay farmers to grow the beans so they are primary, they are in the secondary sector because they roast the beans into coffee, and they are in the tertiary sector because they sell the products and provide a service to customers. In addition there is also a big difference between both because Starbucks sells products such as coffees, cold drinks, equipments etc. Also Starbucks produces its own product. Manchester Airport only rents out space to Airlines. Starbucks serves cold drinks, hot drinks, muffins and cake and more and they even merchandise cups with the Starbucks logo on it. Manchester Airport provides a service; they have shops in the airport so that you can buy food and drinks. Plus on top Manchester Airport's activities has a massive difference compared to Starbucks the only similarity is that they both work in the tertiary sector plus, they both provide a service to customers. Starbucks coffee company and Manchester airport are very different business so their activities are not similar at all. Starbucks activities involve selling more than just coffee; they sell cold beverages, hot beverages and have a wide variety of different types of teas. Starbucks also sell merchandise such as Which Business is bigger? Starbucks business is far bigger than Manchester Airport; this is because Starbucks run internationally, Starbucks runs in more than 55 countries and they have 16,635 stores worldwide therefore, they are making massive profit worldwide and so they would need more staff to operate the business. Manchester Airport has only has one airport in Manchester, they are not an international business so they make less profit and so they have less staff. Competitors Competitors Manchester Airport – Liverpool and Heathrow Both of the company's competitors are similar because their rivals do exactly the same thing. Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero and Costa Coffee is Starbucks rival runs in all of the sectors, pay their farmers with fair trade, provide coffee and recipes, provide cold drinks and sell equipment, for example espresso machine and filter machine. Costa Coffee sells coffees such as espresso, cappuccino, Americano etc. These drinks are exactly the same as what Starbucks provide. However Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero has a different theme which is used on its website, it's very different compared to Starbucks, Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero has a black background on its website and the logo is just a plain blue rectangle box that says Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero. This website doesn't look that appealing, because it's very plain nor does it look posh. Costa Coffee website theme is a maroon background and a plain white logo saying â€Å"Costa†. Starbucks logo looks more nicer than Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero and Costa Coffee because it's not just plain it's a circle logo that says â€Å"Starbucks Coffee† and on the centre it shows a coffee, the background of the website is cream and has a picture of a leaf at the back, the website is also well organised, it's more far more easier to navigate therefore it would be more appealing to customers. I think that Costa Coffee won't be able to compete well against Starbucks because they only have 442 Stores and also Cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ Nero has only 520 shops worldwide, whereas Starbucks has 16,635 Stores, Starbucks website looks far more organised and more expensive than both of their competitors therefore, I believe that Starbucks are successful on being competitive. Liverpool and Heathrow Airport are just exactly same as Manchester Airport because they rent out space to airlines and provide a service to customers. Heathrow is Manchester Airports main UK competition because it has 5 terminals, more airlines fly from there, particularly long haul flights to the US with British Airports. To compete Manchester Airport could rent out to airlines for less money so that they try to gain more business with long haul companies such as continental virgin Atlantic. Liverpool John Lennon Airport is main local competition – they specialise in Budget Airlines such as Ryan air and Easy jet, therefore Manchester Airport has got to attract budget airlines. Qatar airlines fly from Manchester Airport. Manchester Airport has better services such as shops, restaurants etc. Heathrow Airport has 67 million customers every year, whereas Manchester Airport has only 53 Million customers every year. So I believe that Manchester Airport isn't that good at competing with other airlines, however they can improve by making more space so that more airlines can fly, and make more long haul flights and rent space to airlines for cheaper so that they get more airlines.

A Review of Multmodal Learning Styles Essay Example for Free

A Review of Multmodal Learning Styles Essay ? Cara making, outllnes ana time lines created, ana In tne cnolce 0T pnyslcal environment used for study. A read-write learner absorbs information through written forms: lists, reading texts or handouts, detailed note taking, power points, and additional resources like paper or online articles about the subject. Student A also uses some of the strategies of this style with the additional research on the topic, multiple proof reading of written content, and reading of all assigned texts or handouts. Review of the learning strategies of both the read-write and the inesthetic learning styles shows helpful strategies not currently used by Student A. This student can also benefit by incorporating several learning strategies from each style. The kinesthetic strategy of relating the information to their own life experiences and finding real life examples would help Student A to retain and recall information as it is attached to real life references the student has already internalized. Using the read-write strategies of rewriting information several times and turning the content of a graph or diagram into a written summary would help Student A clarify and retain nderstanding of that content. Using the VARK Learning Style Assessment is a helpful tool for any learner. It gives helpful information that allows the student insights into how they learn and offers strategies to make the most of that learning style and avoid the problems that can be associated with that style. It is also very helpful for a student to understand that there are other learning styles and be aware of the focus of those learning styles. This aids in translating information given in another style in to the student’s style for optimum learning and also helps the tudent translate their style to accommodate the learning style of another when teaching information. References Deep and Surface Approaches to Learning. n. d. ).

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 17

Case Study Example Labor standards cost is another bottleneck as it is high. Maintenance of the machinery requires people to do the work. These people consume funds that drain the company (Truckseat Case Study, 3). The production line is a bottleneck in the sense that the cost of raw materials has increased by double digits. This impacts negatively on the company has the company is forced to pay more for materials that previously cost less. At the same time the quality of products produced are below the customer expectations. When customer expectations about the product are lowered, loyalty becomes elusive (Truckseat Case Study, 3). The bottlenecks drain the company immensely. The reason for bottlenecks is because when the company does not make maximum gains from the products while spending as much to settle labor cost, maintenance of machines not to mention the quality of the products. Bottlenecks are eminent in the delivery section as well. Case in point is that there is no clear determination as to when products should be made and availed to the customers. Consequently, there is a disconnect in the sense that there is no proper market survey to establish demand and supply chain. So in essence, what happens is that sometimes products are sometimes manufactured and not delivered for the simple reason that there is no ready market to have the goods. Another bottleneck arises when the customers are in need of the products but the production levels are low. This happens due to poor forecasting of the market to determine market needs and wants. The level of customer satisfaction is below average in the sense that the quality is not up to the standards expected by the clients. The qualitative analysis figures are in the appendices. 2. Stocks can be an effective lever to remove the bottleneck: select where (along the production flow) to position the decoupling  point: Compare different feasible alternatives of decoupling

Samina Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Samina - Essay Example A child with a recurrent cough often turns out to have asthma and sometimes it can be difficult for the doctor to make a diagnosis of asthma straight away. Measuring the Peak Flow Rate (a simple breathing test) with a simple meter at home is often very useful in making the diagnosis and monitoring treatment. (Asthma) In patients with asthma there is chronic inflammation in the bronchi (air passages). This makes their walls swell up so that they become narrower and muscles around the air passages become irritated so that they contract, causing sudden worsening of symptoms. The inflammation can also make mucus glands produce excessive sputum which further blocks up air passages which are already narrowed. If the inflammation is not controlled with treatment, as well as causing acute attacks, it can lead to permanent narrowing and scarring of the air passages so that eventually asthma drugs won't relieve the symptoms any more. This process is known as airway remodeling. (Asthma) Most asthma patients are diagnosed and treated by their GP. Most GPs have asthma clinics where the practice nurse will look after patients with asthma. Most asthma patients can expect to live normal lives and have a normal life expectancy. However, deaths and disability can still occur in patients with asthma and this is usually due to a failure to take preventive treatments properly and regularly. The case ofThe case of Sameena, represents highly allergic sensitivity leading to respiratory as well as skin related problems. Her asthma condition is not well managed at home, and reluctance to abide by the preventive measures in maintaining allergy free home environment, controlling allergic exposure and proper peak flow meter use, has led to conditions where her visits to clinic has increased indicating more dependence on the use of inhalers. There is no cure for asthma at present but modern drugs can control the inflammation to stop it causing symptoms and leading to disability in the future from airway remodeling. The best medicine available at present to control inflammation (and the most important treatment for the vast majority of patients), is a steroid inhaler. It is very important to understand that these medicines need to be used regularly because they are preventers i.e. medicines which protect patients from asthma. Reliever inhalers (e.g. salbutamol) only temporarily relieve the spasm in the airway muscles. This helps to relieve symptoms but does not control the underlying inflammation. Many patients are tempted to rely on their reliever medicine alone. If you have been prescribed a preventer medicine it is very important to use it regularly even when you feel well. (Asthma) The first British guidelines on asthma and management in adults were produced as a result of a joint initiative between the British Thoracic Society (BTS), The Royal College of Physicians of London, the King's Fund Centre and the National Asthma Campaign in 1990. The emphasis of the guideline is on effective administration of the medication, especially inhaled steroid which should be used in milder cases than previously recommended. The guideline reiterates that inhaled steroids are the first choice preventive drug and that a long-acting beta-2 agonist should not be used without concomitant inhaled corticoid steroids (The 2003 recommendation that there should be a trial of other treatments before increasing the inhaled steroid dose above 800mg per day in adult and 400 mg per

Developing Marketing Communication- Promotional Practice Report for Essay

Developing Marketing Communication- Promotional Practice Report for Sainsbury Christmas Campaign 2014- Christmas is for sharing - Essay Example This paper is focused on Sainsbury’s promotional campaign for Christmas. It covers the promotional activities of the company, the target audience, medium of communication and usage of required tools. Christmas in UK is the biggest celebration where the people involved in merry making, social gathering, and exchanging gifts. This gives the retail firms an opportunity to meet the customers’ need of buying gifts and other specialty goods for Christmas. The sudden rise in the purchase volume before the Christmas allows the retail firms to increase their sales thereby increasing their revenue. Thus Christmas is a major event that every retail company looks forward to. Sainsbury has designed its marketing campaign for Christmas termed as â€Å"Christmas is for Sharing† to attract the customers at a motivational level to buy and share gifts for their loved ones (Sainsbury’s, 2014). According to the theories discussed by Kotler and Keller (2011) approaching a customer group is done by three basic steps, segmentation, positioning and targeting. The segmentation allows the firm to select a market segment. For Sainsbury, it is the UK retail market segment. Positioning suggests how the firm wants its customers to perceive its value proposition. Finally targeting involves selecting a particular demographic from the entire population. Sainsbury is a multi brand retail store that offers a large portfolio of products belonging to a wide variety of piece range. Moreover, the ‘Christmas is for sharing’ does not target any particular customer segment, which suggests that Sainsbury has designed it Christmas promotional campaign for its entire customer base. Thus the target audience for this campaign is the entire UK population. However, Sainsbury is best known for its balanced positioning thereby targeting the middle and upper middle class of the society (Saunders, 2013). Thus it can be stated that the advertisement seeks to draw the attention of the entire UK

Character analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Character analysis - Essay Example He was the 11th son of Jacob and was the favourite amongst his all sons. The entire and complete theme of Joseph’s story is given in Surah-e-Yusuf in the Quran. The character of Joseph is sketched as a young boy who is quiet, bashful, and courteous. He has the gifted quality of prophecy to interpret dreams. The story introduces Joseph’s dream about â€Å"eleven stars, the sun, and the moon which are in a position that are bowed before him†. He understands the meaning of this dream and was hesitating to inform his father about it due to his fear of being an audacious boy but soon he communicates with his father about this dream. He also interprets this dream as a message from God to Joseph to become the messenger of God and enlighten their family’s prophecy. The second part of the story was Joseph's brothers’ plot against Joseph, as they all abhorred him for being the favourite of their father. The character of Joseph’s brothers is described a s dark. They planned a conspiracy against Joseph and persuaded Jacob to grant them acceptance to take Joseph with them. Jacob granted them permission with affliction and on a condition that they had to keep an eye on him and to bring him back in absolute condition. However, Joseph’s brothers wended their plan and dropped Joseph into a well and left him there alone. Upon returning home, they came up with a lie told to their father that Joseph has been attacked by a wolf and showed to him a blood stained shirt as a proof of their calumny but their father did not believed them. While Joseph was extricated from the well by a caravan passing by and he was sold to a well off merchant named Aziz (Potiphar). Joseph’s character has been evaluated as a grown up person as a truthful, meek, innocent, and compliant person who distinguished well among virtuous and sin. He has been described as a very attractive and alluring man. While living as a slave at Potiphar’s place he was seduced by Potiphar’s wife but he constantly disdained her, as his character was pure and dignified. The Potiphar’s wife accused Joseph in front of the town for seducing her; due to this allegation, Joseph was sent to prison where another theme of story hits the line. In the prison, more shades of Joseph’s personality came into view as a preacher of God’s messages he appraised the prison-mates upon God’s belief and divinity when they came towards him asking for their dreams’ interpretation. Secondly, he has been appeared to have an adroit and intelligent personality who has the power to assure other men for his perspective of religious values and convictions. He assured them to interpret the meaning of their dreams and fulfilled his promises, which shows the trustworthy and honest shade of his character and he was testified by the two prison-men as a Muhsin. He had been a dignified and virtuous person all through which can be analyzed by the fact that he aggrandized prison life rather than being induced into sin. He possessed such spiritual powers that did not let his faith decline; instead, it enhanced and became unchallengeable with the time. A principal shade of his character as a truthful person can be evaluated when Joseph was informed by the king’s butler for interpreting the king’s dream and Joseph then acceded for interpreting the dream but he still preferred honor over sin which made it possible for him to stop conspiracy against him once he was freed from the prison by the order of the

Marketing Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 5

Marketing Management - Essay Example "the organization wide generation of market intelligence pertaining to current and future customer needs, dissemination of the intelligence across departments, and organization wide responsiveness to it" (in Weitz, Wensley; 2002, Pp. 72). It is essentially concerned with devising strategies which aim to fulfill the needs and wants of the target customers. The market oriented organizations, thus adopt approaches which are customer centric and put the customers first, and all the organizational activities are planned in accordance with the needs of the customers. The key characteristic of any market oriented organization is its unconditional support for its customers’ needs. Toyota is one such company which has consistently monitored the needs and demands of its customers and catered to all their concerns by developing products which are not only suitable to them but are beneficial to the environment at large. It was the first auto manufacturer which developed the environmentally friendly Prius, keeping in mind the growing concerns of its customers about global warming, generating high customer value in the process. Toyota has adopted the TQM and J.I.T. philosophies which ensure better value to its customers (Langford, Male,

Leisure and Tourism Operation Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Leisure and Tourism Operation Management - Essay Example Another aim was to prove that the hypothesis of acceptance of this culture leads to devastating consequences and that high turnover must be prevented, minimized, and managed. In order to meet the aims of the study, it was necessary to examine the causes and nature of turnover, whether it is considered to be bad or if it is considered to be good and necessary in the operation of companies. Existing arguments were examined as some believe that high turnover is desired in the hospitality industry yet some do not believe it to be a positive thing. Another argument included turnover as a culture for the industry. Interviews from hotels/resorts owners and managers were used to provide which proved the writer's hypotheses and aims. Turnover is when employees stay only for a short time before moving on or becoming dismissed for one reason or another. (D'Announzio-Green, Maxwell, & Watson 2002, quote Barron and Maxwell, 1993, p. 5). "Turnover is the result of both quits and layoffs. Thus, some turnover is a result of jobs in one firm being destroyed and jobs in another firm being created- and hence due to the reallocation of jobs across the economy in response to changes Student's Last Name 3 in product demand. A majority of job changes, however, are because workers reshuffle across the same set of jobs, and this worker reallocation occurs over and above job reallocation," as written by Lane (2000). Some hospitality industry sources report that turnover rate is between 100 and 150 percent each year. This causes poor attitude amongst staff and affects the quality of service and care that is given to the customers. (Crabtree, 2005.) It is usually considered to be a bad thing; however, research has shown that a little turnover is essential to the well being of an organization. Scholtz (n.d.) reports that there are companies who have a turnover rate of ten percent or more and think it is a good thing because "they are replacing the bottom performers with new people will improve organizational performance." A certain amount of turnover may be desired by businesses. Some examples include high-pressured jobs with lots of customer contact such as working the counter at a fast food outlet or a high-volume cafeteria. (Mullins, 1998, p. 176.) At some time, pressure, difficult customers and repetitive tasks will affect performance. Therefore, some turnover is good. However, its negative con sequences far outweigh the positive and turnover can snowball and get out of control if not managed properly. There are many other consequences including lack of respect from the public, first experience on the job, harassment by customers, less than par working conditions, low wages, terrible work schedules, etc. A culture of high turnover in the company may consist of victimization at work. Whether it is by customers, other staff members, or management, this is extremely detriment to all. Victimized employees can experience a high level of stress, low tolerance of stress, tiredness, and headaches.

Federal health care policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Federal health care policy - Essay Example tient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) is an example of federal health policy that was passed and enacted in March 2010 (Cronin & Aponte, 2012). Over the past decades, federal health care policies have been criticized based on their implementation, effectiveness and consistencies with the constitutional framework of federalism. This paper, therefore, primarily aims at describing how the Obamacare raises the question of federalism, including the pros and cons in debates about the policy. It also provides the effectiveness of this policy and its consistency with the constitutional framework of federalism. President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law, in March 2010 (Cronin & Aponte, 2012). He outlined that Obamacare program will introduce tax credits that will help small businesses offer insurance to their employees, restrict insurance firms to drop or limit a patient’s coverage due to illness, enable individuals with pre-existing conditions to quality for insurance, and allow people of up to 26 year remain on their parent or guardian’s policies (Cronin & Aponte, 2012). A number of reforms, under this bill, have been implemented while others are scheduled for implementation, in the next few years. Both the Democrats and Republicans have since criticized the bill, even after it was passed by congress. They argue that this bill will only reduce the access and quality to healthcare, and reduce a person’s ability to purchase health insurance (Cronin & Aponte, 2012). The debate about Obamacare concerns its effectiveness in enabling all Americans access and pay for their health insurance plans. People supporting Obamacare argues that this legislation builds on the existing health care system, and uses the available medical providers, doctors and plans. It also provides affordable and accessible healthcare for Americans (Jacobs & Skocpol, 2012). Patients will be able to negotiate about health care decisions with their

Issue in Sports Essay Example for Free

Issue in Sports Essay A sport is often characterized as a physical activity where people are engage in a competition either for past time or recreation. Being described as a physical activity, getting into certain sports is an excellent way of maintaining good health and a healthy lifestyle. A side from the good benefits one can get through sports, it is a perfect method for self improvement as well. In life, self improvement is significant. But for others, improvement seems so hard probably for the reason that they feel inferior to other people. In sports people are free to join. It’s just a matter of choosing a specific endeavor that you want to do base on your strengths and weaknesses. This is to further strengthen your capabilities and improve on your weaknesses. With sports you will be open to different kind of pressures, trials, environments and you will have the chance to meet a lot of people. Through this, one can gain the confidence to handle pressure and trial not just by playing sports as well in life. In addition, one will have the confidence to intermingle with others and the chance for superior self improvement. For example, Basketball is one of the ideal sports used for self improvement. First, Basketball is a sport that revolves around discipline and dedication. For one to be a good player, you must have the discipline, balance life and time management to attend everyday practices and at the same time carry out other responsibilities as an individual. With this practice one can have the ability to distinguish priorities and make productive use of time. Second Basketball is a game that tests the mental ability of an individual. Due to the fact that playing basketball handles a lot of pleasure, there is one part of the game that makes a player or an individual overcome psychological barrier and perform well under pressure and have a positive outlook in life. Lastly, basketball is a team sport that helps develop self confidence to interact with others and perform a certain role in a team similar to a community. With winning as the common goal, players must observe discipline, dedication and compliance with the rules. This winning technique of basketball may perhaps be the same recipe in achieving every individual’s personal goal.

External And Internal Determinants Of Capital Structure Finance Essay

External And Internal Determinants Of Capital Structure Finance Essay 1: Introduction 1.0 Introduction The literature on capital structure theory has made significant progress after the trend setting publications of Modigliani and Miller in1958. After the publication of Modigliani and Miller research work, various researchers have developed theoretical models based on the balancing of tax effect and inefficient distribution of information. Recently, there are many models that focus on the relationship between product and market or the effect of a particular ownership structure on the capital financing decisions of a firm (Bhaduri 2002). These models have been developed pertaining to many different sectors of economy such as manufacturing by Long and Malitz (1985) and Titman and Wessels (1988). Miller and Modigliani (1966) tested these models in the context of power generating and electric companies, while Jensen and Langemeier (1996) have focused on the agricultural firms. Among the noteworthy models proposed by researchers, the static trade off theory carries the primary importance. Modigliani and Miller (1958) contended that the static trade off theory is based on the assumption of friction and information-wise perfect markets. They also proposed the irrelevance theorem which implies that the financing decisions of firms have nothing to do with the value of organisation and their cost of financing. Titman and Wessels (1988), Rajan and Zingales (1995) and Graham (1996) have conducted their empirical research to investigate the important determinants of capital structure proposed in the theoretical models by finance commentators. In the majority of research, they found that firms decisions to achieve the target capital structure are spontaneous. In the imperfect market, these target ratios are not instantaneous and incomplete while in perfect market, these financial decisions are perfect and spontaneous. It means that firms try to adjust their optimal capital structure spontaneously as the cost of capital varies in the market. Marsh (1982), Jalilvand and Harris (1984) found that the main impediments in the way of adjusting capital structure are the adjustments and transaction cost associated to market imperfections. These imperfections arise due to the inefficiencies in financial market such asymmetric distribution of information and transaction cost etc. These researchers have found that the firms financial decisions usually taken in a two step process. Marsh (1982) and Jalilvand and Harris (1984) explained that in the first step, a firm decide its target capital structure and in the next phase, it strives to attain that target. Spies (1974), Taggart (1977), Jalilvand and Harris (1984) and Ozkan (2001) stated that financial behaviour of a firm can be best described by the partial adjustment model. In this partial target adjustment model, it is assumed that a firm adjusts to the target capital structure spontaneously. One common attribute in the research is that the capital structure of a firm varies with the change in industry type. Even after the efforts of numerous researchers, no single universally accepted capital structure theory exists. There are also a comparatively small number of empirical researches conducted up till now on this topic. One possible reason for the small number of empirical research is the intangible and conceptual nature of determinants proposed by the authors (Titman and Wessels 1988). However, the available empirical research has focused on certain factors such as the size of firms; profitability and volatility of earnings before interest, tax and depreciations etc. These determinants came out after the studies conducted in the developed countries such as the United States (USA) and the United Kingdom (UK). After the integration of markets, it is becoming increasingly more important to study these markets to test the validity of these determinants. Because of the confl icting ideas pertaining to the financial behaviour of firms, it is important to have practical research based on theoretical foundations to establish a valid capital structure determinant model. 1.1 Objective This research paper will endeavour to determine the factors which serve as an impetuous for changing the capital structure of firms across the different industries operating in the United States of America (USA). The main objective of this research will be achieved investigating the relationship between following determinants; Capital structure and profitability Capital structure and tangibility Capital structure and economic growth of the country Capital structure and rate of inflation Another objective is to find and evaluate the impact of internal forces which play an important role in changing the capital structure of a firm. Literature Review: 2.0 Introduction This chapter attempts to establish the theoretical foundation of determinants of capital structure. First of all, the effect of different industry types on the capital structure has been given. Then the different capital structure theories have been described. After that, all the possible external and internal determinates of capital structure has been discussed. Lastly, the latest development in the macro and micro environment, which have significant bearing on the capital structure of a film, are discussed 2.1 External and Internal Determinants of Capital Structure In this time of financial distress, where many companies are facing impending bankruptcy because of the liquidity crunch and mismanagement of resources, it is imperative for financial managers to use the optimal mix of debt and equity in order to drive down the cost of capital and thereby increasing the profitability of their firms. Another impetuous for using optimal mix is that the financial analysts, investment houses, common stock buyers and bond rating bureaus usually compare the financial leverage of a firm with industry average figures before taking investment decisions (Moyer et al. 2009). Hence, it is in the very interest of a firm to decide its optimal capital structure in order to make its financial health more conducive to further investment by yielding handsome returns (DeAngelo and Masulis 1980). As per definition, capital structure of a firm is the mix of the total long and short term debt plus the total amount of equity (both preferred and common) which is raised by a company to finance its total capital requirements (Investopedia 2009). According to Brigham and Ehrhardt (2001), there are many internal and external factors which a financial manager has to be mindful of before chalking out business plans and policies. Similarly, decisions of capital structure are the outcome of many internal and external variables (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). External variables consist of many macroeconomic factors such Gross Domestic Product (GDP), unemployment, inflation, interest rates and tax policies etc (Besley and Brigham 2007). GDP is the accumulated market worth of finished goods and services produced within the boundaries of a country during a particular period of time, usually one year (Investopedia 2010). Nominal GDP (inflation not adjusted) should not be confused with real GDP (inflation adjusted) as the increase in nominal GDP (merely increase in prices) doesnt mean that country has made more money during a certain period (Investopedia 2010). Inflation means the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services over a period of time, usually measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and GDP deflator (a ratio of nominal and real GDP) (Investopedia 2010). Some other important variables of macro economy are the economic growth, budget deficit and poverty. These macroeconomic factors indicate the aggregate economic performance of an economy (Investopedia 2009). As these macroeconomic factors are the result of many sub factors which collectively make a very complex economic system (Campbell, McConnell and Brue 2008). These factors, by nature, are out of the control of a firms manager so he/she cannot influence the determinants. They instead have to adjust the proportion of debt and equity according to their respective costs. Some other important external variables which affect a specific capital structure are the taxation, profitability, the interest expense, the effect of agency cost and the level of business risk faced by the company (Moyer, McGuigan and Kretlow 2009). Besides these external variables, there are many internal factors which a business manager has to consider before selecting a particular mix of debt and equity. These internal variables can be the industry specific variables such as the effect of seasonal levels of sales or these can be the internal to the firms such as the style and attitude of management. Entrepreneurial organisations, for example, have the tendency of taking bolder and riskier business decisions as compared to bureaucratic ones which shows more risk-averse behaviour. Among the most prominent internal variables are the level of profitability, degree of risk appetite of business managers and the tangibility of fixed assets etc. 2.2 Effect of industry type on the capital structure of a firm There are a lot of variations in the capital structure of firms across the different industries all over the world (Scott and Martin 1975). Capital structure of firms varies with the change in type of industries and even within the same industries (S. Titman 1984). It is evident from the Table 1 that the firms which are operating in the drugs and industrial machinery sector do not use a large amount of debt as compared to firms which are in the retail and utilities business (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). Some possible reasons are the uncertainties inherent in the research projects carried out by these firms or the chances of product liability law suits (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). Due to the low level of debt financing, these firms are also experiencing low level of financial distress (i.e. the times interest earned ratios are high) as compared to the other sectors as shown in table 1 (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). However, the firms which belong to the utilities sector usually rely heavily on debt financing which is evident from their common equity ratio as shown in table 1 (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). The major portion of total debt comprises of long term debt which they usually raise by issuing securities and mortgage bonds against their huge fixed assets (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). Another rational behind this phenomenon is the stable sales figures as compared to the other firms which have volatile sales (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). This factor enables these types of firms to use more debt financing because they can easily forecast the expected level of future sales and can have an optimal business risk (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). 2.3 Theoretical Foundations of Capital Structure Franco Modigliani and Merton Miller (famous as MM) (1958) are pioneers, having studied the impact of internal and external determinants on the capital structure of an organisation (cited in Bhaduri 2002). In the years since, there has been a large volume of research by many researchers to determine the individual effect of these environmental factors on the capital structure of a firm in different countries of the world (Al-Najjar and Taylor, 2008). Modigliani and Miller proposed that in a supposed no-competition world, the value of a firm is independent of its capital structure (cited in Bhaduri, 2002). Further they also assumed that their theory is valid under the assumptions of perfect competition, no taxation cost, not transaction cost. They also stated that the productivity of firms is not dependent on mode of financing (cited in Bhaduri, 2002). In the above mentioned scenario, internally generated sources of funds are almost the perfect substitute of external funds (Bhaduri, 20 02). Hence, companies are indifferent to the sources of financing. After the publication of their work, researchers have found some imperfections such as Kim (1978) introduced the idea of bankruptcy cost. The idea of facility of tax shield was introduced by DeAngelo and Masulis (1980) and the agency cost by Jensen and Meckling (1976). All these researchers agreed that the optimal capital structure is the most realistic solution to the capital structure dilemma faced by the todays firms. As the cost and benefits of leverage changes from one industry to the other, many previous researchers are of the opinion that industry must have significant impact on the capital structure of firms (Scott and Martin 1975). Every firm tries to chase the average industry ratios (Tucker and Stoja, 2007). Ang (1976) said that firms can only have an optimal gearing ratio rather an ideal universal ratio for all in the real world scenario. Remmers et al. (1974) agreed with the Ang (1976) by stating the gea ring ratio of firms varies with industries. They also said that firms that belong to the same industries face same environmental conditions which lead them toward common earning and sales patterns (Remmers, Wright and Beekhuisen 1974). Scott (1972) and Scott and Martin (1975) said that most of the firms tries to choose the gearing ratio that is appropriate to their risk/return profile and their inherent business risks. Antoniou et al. (2002) found that the UK, German and French firms continuously adjust their debt ratios according to the target ratio, but at their own rates which is contingent to whether they belong to the manufacturing or services sector. Bradley, Jarrel and Kim (1984) said that the agency cost and bankruptcy cost are just the partial determinants of leverage. It means that these factors also have impact on the capital structure of firm but in a less likely fashion. Many researchers endeavoured to tackle the issue of optimal capital structure (Bhaduri 2002). All these works have collectively contributed in the development of financial theory (Bhaduri 2002). In spite of all these efforts, there is no one comprehensive solution to the capital structure dilemma (Titman 1984). Moreover there have been very little practical evidence regarding determinants of capital structure till recently (Harris and Raviv 1991).The main reason behind this limited number of empirical research evidence on this topic is the abstract nature of determinant such as size of firms, their growth rates, intensity of capital, gross profits, volatility of future sales and free cash flows and the impact of taxation on changes in the capital structure of a firm (Harris and Raviv 1991). Another important issue is pertaining to the geographical locations that most of the available research works have focused on the United States of America (USA) market (Bhaduri 2002). Less economically developed countries (LEDCs) lag behind due to the neglected role of the private sector in the economic development of country and the limited sources of funds for the companies belonging to the LEDCs (Bhaduri 2002). 2.4 Main Factors Influencing the Capital Structure of a Firm The chief determinants of capital structure are the attributes and factors that have very significant impact on the leverage ratio of a firm. The following is the detail of the most relevant determinants of capital structure of a company. Asset Structure According to the agency cost and asymmetric information theories, the composition of tangible assets owned by a company greatly affects its capital structure (Jensen and Solberg 1992). Agency cost theory states that shareholders of a firm, which has high proportion of debt in its capital structure, have the intention to invest sub-optimally (Galai and Masulis 1976; Jensen, Solberg and Zorn 1992). A positive relationship has also been found between the collateralisable assets and debt structure of a firm. Another factor is the over consumption habit of business managers which ultimately reduces the value of a firm (Bhaduri 2002). Financial Distress If a firm is using a huge amount of debt and it has to pay heavy payments periodically, there is very high probability that it will go bankrupt in the case of falling revenues or future free cash flows (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). This implies that the firms, which are having volatile sales figures, usually use less debt financing in order to avoid probable financial distress (Ensen and Meckling 1976). Fear of bankruptcy forbade the firms to rely heavily on the debt financing (Bhaduri, 2002). Non-Debt Tax Shield DeAngelo and Masulis (1980) said that one of the firms objectives of using debt financing, is to avail the benefit of a tax shield because interest expense reduces the taxable income of a firm. So the firms which have a large non-debt tax shield are likely to use less debt financing. Size There are is large number of evidences that the firms which are large in size and well diversified are less likely to experience financial distress (Demsetz and Lehn 1985, Remmers, Wright and Beekhuisen 1974). This encouraged them to use relatively large amount of debt financing (Warner 1977; Ang and McConnell 1982). Age The age of firm is also a very pertinent factor that influences the firms decision about having a specific of capital structure (Scott 1972). Young firms are more intended to use debt financing because of the high appetite for risk taking and limited amount of information at hand (Scott 1972). So they find borrowing from banks a cheaper and convenient way as compared to use equity financing. Growth Fast growing firms experience a higher cost of agency problem as compared to the firms which not growing very fast. Bhaduri (2002) said that fast growing firms have more chances of adjustments in the coming years. Hence there is a negative correlation between the longer term debt and the future growth of a firm. Myers (1977) said that the short term debt is the remedy to this problem. By doing this, fast growing firms dont need to enter into long term debt contrast and can easily adjust their capital structure according to the requirements of growth and financial conditions (S. Myers 1977). Profitability If managers of a company are not capable and credible enough to convince venture capitalists to lend capital, they will preferentially rely on the internal sources of revenue (e.g. retained earnings) (Myers and Majluf 1984). Myers and Majluf (1984) noted that profitable firms usually have more money as retimed earning in order to invest in the growth projects. Hence there must be negative relationship between debt proportion and historical profitability of the company (Myers and Majluf 1984). Uniqueness It is found that the firms which are producing unique kind of products usually have low leverage ratio (Bhaduri 2002, Antoniou, Guney and Paudyal 2002). These firms face great difficulty in borrowing debt from the financial institutions because in case of liquidation, their assets cant be used for some other substitute purposes (Auerbach 1985). Industry effect It is one of the most important variables that affect the capital structure of firms (Harris and Raviv 1991). The companies which belong to those industries where there is greater degree of uncertainty in the research projects and expected future sales, they rely less on debt financing (Remmers, Wright and Beekhuisen 1974). Contrary to this, the firms which have more level of certainty in their future cash flows and huge amount of fixed assets, they intended towards more debt financing (Remmers, Wright and Beekhuisen 1974). Maksimovic and Zechner (1991) said that the diversity of technologies used by firms is also the key determinant of using their capital structure. They argued that the firms which are using multiple technologies have the facility of sourcing capital from various sources of financing (Maksimovic and Zechner 1991). Where these firms can raise their funds from multiple sources, they can also reduce their risk by spreading over the wide range of technologies (Maksimovi c and Zechner 1991). 2.5 Most Important Capital Structure Theories 2.5.1 Static trade-off theory This theory of capital structure assumes that company should pursue a financing mix where tax shield advantage should be equal to the interest rate expense, keeping the other factors constant such as credit crunch and probability of bankruptcy costs (Jensen and Meckling 1976). This theory mainly deals with the pros and cons of issuing fixed asset securities like debt (S. Myers 1977). It assumes that there exists an optimal point under which the value of the firm is maximized. This optimal point is achieved by balancing the benefits and cost of issuing more debt (Myers 2001). One of the main advantages of issuing more debt is to take the benefit of tax deductable. This simple benefit can be more complicated when manages and owners have to pay personal tax and the issue of an absence of tax shield (Myers 2001). Debt financing also reduces the chances of agency conflict (Maksimovic and Zechner 1991). The rational is that the use of debt reduces the amount of free cash flows at the dispo sal of managers and there reducing the chances of conflict between managers and shareholders (Jensen and Meckling 1976). 2.5.2 The Trade-Off Theory of Capital Structure The basic idea behind this theory is that a firm normally conducts the cost-benefits analysis before taking any decision regarding its capital structure (Tucker and Stoja 2007). It means that company will just rule out the possibility of convenience in this important financial aspect as stated by the pecking order theory (Jensen and Meckling 1976). In spite of criticism by Miller (who called it a comparison of horse and rabbit), the advanced dynamic model of this theory is very robust and practical (Tucker and Stoja 2007). 2.5.3 Pecking order theory The pecking order theory talks about the cost of asymmetric information (Myers and Majluf, 1984). It says that firms choose their sources of financing according to the rule of least effort or least resistance (Myers and Majluf 1984). This implies that the firms will choose the equity financing as a financing mode of last resort (Myers and Majluf 1984). According to this theory, firms will prefer debt financing as long as it is feasible and when it is no longer possible, then they will opt for equity financing (Myers and Majluf 1984). 2.6 Capital Structure and Financial Risk The Financial risk of a firm is the risk associated with a lack of a sufficient amount of future free cash flows in order to meet its short term obligations (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). In other words, financial risk also increases as the use of fixed income securities increases like preferred stock increases in the total financing of the firm (Harris and Raviv 1991). Brigham Ehrhardt (2001) asserted that as the amount of debt increases in the overall mix of capital structure, the degree of financial leverage increases. Financial leverage means that the total amount of debt that is used in the capital structure of a firm (Harris and Raviv 1991). Another related concept is that of operating leverage which means that the portion of fixed cost used in the total cost of production of a particular product or range of products (Moyer, McGuigan and Kretlow 2009). Investors are very much concerned about the financial risk of firms because this is the kind of additional risk which they have to bear because of debt financing besides equity, in the firms total capital structure (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). It is the main objective before the financial managers to design the capital structure so that the value of the firm is maximized and at the same time mitigate the risk at hand (Harris and Raviv 1991). To gauge the financial risk of a firm, Times Interest Earned (TIE) ratio carries special importance in the eyes of these investors (Besley and Brigham 2007). Times interest ratio is of immense importance to analyse the true interest cost coverage ability of a firm (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). TIE depends upon three important factors: the amount of debt in the total capital structure, the cost of debt and the profitability of the firm (Haugen 1995). Usually the industries which are less leveraged such as Drugs and electronics etc. have a very high TIE ratio (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). However, the firms which are in the business of retailing or utilities which rely more on debt financing, have low interest coverage ratios (see table1) (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001).There are also variations in the capital structure of individual firms operating in the same industry due to the different attitude of managers and their particular risk/return profiles (S. Myers 1977). The firms where manger s are more aggressive and have high risk appetite usually use more debt financing than those firms where managers are risk-averse (Hull 2008). The tools used to find the optimal capital structure are EBIT/EPS Analysis and EPS indifference Analysis (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). 2.6.1 EBIT/EPS Analysis Earnings Per Share (EPS) of a firm vary with changes in the amount of debt in the capital structure of a firm (Warner 1977). Theoretically, as the amount of debt increases in the capital structure, the financial risk increases (Warner 1977). Because of this high financial risk, investment houses change higher interest rates for the further debt which ultimate increases the cost of capital for a firm (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). Surely extra amount of financial leverage increases the capability of a firm to earn higher earnings per share in the coming years (Jensen and Solberg 1992). Brigham Ehrhardt (2001), however, suggested that EBIT/EPS ratio should range from 0 to 5%. To find the exact point in this range, financial managers have to conduct an EPS indifference analysis. 2.6.2 EPS indifference analysis The purpose of this analysis is to find out the point where a firm is insouciant as to whether it uses debt or equity for the same ratio of EPS (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). Brigham and Ehrhardt (2001) found that a firm will report higher EPS at a low level of sales and firm is using the more equity than debt. On the other hand, an organization will experience faster increase in EPS with the increase in sales if a firm is using more debt than equity (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). The point worth noting is that if business managers are confident about a certain level of sales of their firm, they should go for debt financing and vice versa (Besley and Brigham 2007). Financial risk of a firm is usually measured by interest coverage ratio, fixed charge coverage ratio and longer debt ratios (Moyer, McGuigan and Kretlow 2009). These ratios are usually compared with industry average ratios to gauge the true financial health of a firm (Moyer, McGuigan and Kretlow 2009). These ratios are also compared to the previous years ratio of the same firm to determine the trend of firms performance over a period of time (Brigham and Ehrhardt 2001). The Financial risk of a firm depends upon a number of factors such as financial leverage, Operating leverage, expected future free cash flows and so on. Because of the intense competition and uncertainty in the market, it becomes essential for the finance executives of companies to manage the risk of their organisations by either diversification, adopting an optimal capital structure, or using the sophisticated derivative securities (Hull 2008). An optimal capital structure is to arrange the financial structure of the firm in such a way that minimises the weighted-average cost of capital and thereby maximises the value of the firms stock (DeAngelo and Masulis 1980). The dilemma here is that when a firm is trying to maximise its EPS by increasing the amount of debt, its financial risk also increases at the same time (DeAngelo and Masulis 1980). On the other hand, if a firm tries to minimise its financial distress, it has to reduce its financial leverage which ultimately hurts the EPS of the firm (Bhaduri 2002). Hence there arises the need of an optimal financial structure which increases the EPS of a firm and reduces its overall finan cial distress simultaneously (Bhaduri 2002). This choice of the optimal capital structure depends upon a number of factors such as the size of firm, its growth rate, cash flow projections and product and industry characteristics. (Bhaduri 2002). There is a school of thought advocating that derivatives are the most useful tool to hedge financial risks at the firms level (Jalilvand, Tang and Switzer 2000). Yet there is another group who believe that there are some alternative (i.e. using less debt financing) as compared to the typical hedging techniques available which can be used to reduce the financial risk at corporate level (Berkman, Bradbury and Magan 1997). From these studies, it is evident that managing the financial risk of firms is very important for firms in order to be competitive in the market place. Some companies have made internal risk management policies as part of their corporate business strategy (Maksimovic and Zechner 1991). Smith and Stulz (1985) commented on the goal of risk management in these words: The primary goal of risk management is to eliminate the probability of costly lower-tail outcomes those that would cause financial distress or make a company unable to carry out its investment strategy(p. 3 95). It is clear from the words of Smith and Stulz (1985) that the main goal of companies is to manage risk by either means. During the last decade, there has been a lot of research on the impact of industry in deciding the capital structure of firms (Booth, et al. 2001). Booth et al. (2001) studied whether the factors affecting the capital structure of firms are country specific or not. For this purpose, their study focussed on ten developing countries: India, Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Zimbabwe, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, Jordan and Korea. They reported that: In general, debt ratios in developing countries seem to be affected in the same way and by the same types of variables that are significant in developed countries. However, there are systematic differences in the way these ratios are affected by country factors, such as GDP growth rates, inflation rates and development of capital market (Booth et al. 2001 p. 118). The institutional owners who hold large amount of shares of a firm also play a very significant role in deciding the capital structure of these firms (Al-Najjar and Taylor 2008). As these owners have the right to elect the board of directors, they can influence the mangers of their firms to adopt specific risk management policies and finance capital in a certain and specific manner (Al-Najjar and Taylor 2008). 2.7 Financial market Dysfunction In developing countries, banks and other financial institutions are main sources that provide liquidity to the economic system by advancing credit to the films (Demsetz and Lehn 1985). In repressed financial system, banks provide short and medium term loans to the young and established entrepreneurs; while big and developed financial institution provide long term loans to the big corporation (Kester 1986). These loans are mostly given to the particular sectors of national economies such as agriculture and transport and housing (Antoniou, Guney and Paudyal 2002). Governments used to influence these commercial institutions to favour certain sectors and advance soft credit to the small industry (Leech 1987). Regularity agencies mostly restrict the banks from advancing credit to certain limits (DeAngelo and Masulis 1980). Antoniou, Guney and Paudyal (2002) said that the limitation on the financial institutions by the authorities result in the form of credit rationing. Another hu

Exploitation Of Conflict Minerals In The Congo Politics Essay

Exploitation Of Conflict Minerals In The Congo Politics Essay The Democratic Republic of the Congo, once a European colony relinquished for its vast amount of raw minerals, gained independence in 1960 from France and has for more than twelve years suffered from continuous civil war over the distribution and control of said resources. Moreover, violence has become so deadly in this region, from forced labor, torture, recruitment of child soldiers, extortion, and killings by armed groups to oppress and control civilians, that it has been regarded as being the .deadliest conflicts globally since World War II. (Prendergast, 2009) Scholar Michael Niemann (2007) reported that Corrupt national and local government, various rebel movements, and governments and armed forces of Rwanda, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, and, to a lesser extent, Angola, Namibia, and Chad all conspire for one thing- to profit from the mineral and other wealth in various resource enriched areas of the country (p. 25). One of these minerals includes Columbite-tantalite coltan for short one of the worlds most sought-after materials; the refinement of coltan leads to a highly heat-resistant metal powder called tantalum. This powder can sell for $100 a pound, and slowly is becoming increasingly vital to modern life. For the high-tech industry, tantalum is magic dust, a key component in everything from mobile phones made by Nokia and Ericsson and computer chips from Intel to Sony stereos and VCRs. (Essick, 2001) Mineral conflict in the Congo is not only a national concern but an international one as well, as most consumers of products that use the minerals exploited from the Congo live outside the country. Prendergast (2009) reported, Consumers in the United States, Europe, and Asia are the ultimate end-users of these conflict minerals, as they inadvertently fuel the war through purchases of these electronics products. Consequently, many people are directly connected to this issue as they are part of a group that legitimatize and unintentionally spur such conflict. Thus, it is important to appreciate the gross antiquity the consumer of the final product sanctions and endorses by virtue of the use of certain products that may contain coltan. In addition to this, this is relevant to Canadas relationship with the Third World because Canadians are a large group of this consumer population. Three important areas of discussion in regards to Congolesian conflict mineral development are: the country s struggle to establish viable states on the ruins of repressive colonial states and how this relates to internal maintenance of socio-economic hierarchy, the related role of a paltry economy, and mineral industrialization in regards to globalization and the role of national and international governments. The goal of this paper will be to outline, within the realm of these three subtopics, the national and international shortcomings/ hindrances and adverse progressions to reduce current mineral conflict in the Congo. Despite frequently promoting colonization as a key contributor to developmental regression, professional and scholarly literature on Congolesian conflict often varies in regards to what particular element of Congolesian culture is most reflective of such regression. (Economic standing, political makeup, etc.) Scholar Michael Niemanns (2007) journal War Making and State Making In Central Africa, specifically concentrates on critically analyzing the concept of the African failed state, recognizing the Western bias inherently stemming from the dominance of colonial powers. Niemann (2007) advocated for a governmental space where . alternative forms of rule and political community can be explored, forms that have a longer staying power than the mostly failed attempts to create the veneer of a liberal democracy which the palimpsest of the repressive colonial state remains visible. (p. 23). Niemann also and most importantly affirms a principle of sovereignty in Congolesian government that w as not only clearly apparent under colonial rule, but also continuously apparent in modern Congolesian government as well (p. 27). This particular issue of modern Congolesian rule as a means of mineral conflict hindrance can best be understood with reference to internal maintenance of socio-economic hierarchy as it relates to colonial legacy. Both Niemann and scholar Severine Autesserre (2009) indicated the influence of the national and local elite. Niemann presented a specific argument: the process of class formation on the continent is incomplete[and].. African states tend to be repressive, rather than hegemonic, but nevertheless fully functioning for the purposes of the class alliance in power. (p. 26) He reported that Efficiency. is not a necessary prerequisite for a functioning state..[and] stresses that the African role in the global system is not one of marginalization or dependence, but one of extraversion, through which elites have long constructed external relations to strengthen their power within their own spheres. (p. 26) Consequently, Niemann concluded that although these relations have proven asym metrical, it does not detract from the fact that they worked well for Congolesian elites. Complimentary to this notion, Jackson (2002) also indicated the prominence of the elite minority in the form of corrupt government when he reported the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.exploit minerals and other resources through stealing stockpiles, entering into agreements with transnational corporations to produce, procure and sell these resources in a global market (p 519). Thus, colonial legacy which is reflective and extended in socio-economic hierarchy according to Niemann and Jackson, proves to be an integral part in both understanding and unpacking the issue of mineral conflict in the Congo. Moreover, in order to begin to understand the upkeep and maintenance of such conflict, it would appear critical to first understand the legacy colonial rule has left on the make-up of national and local Congolesian elites. Furthermore, as Niemann points out, it is difficult not on ly to apply liberal democracy to Congolesian government and recognize it either as a veneer or perhaps even a solution, without first considering the impact and legacy colonialism has left on the political makeup of the country. Similar to Niemanns point on colonial rule, Stephen Jacksons (2002) journal Making a Killing: Criminality Coping in Kivu War Economy spoke of the Congos lucrative economy based on artisanal mining of tantalum ore, highlighting a radical mutation of livelihood strategies responding to an economy profoundly destroyed by colonial and post-colonial neglect and greed. (p. 517) Both scholars articulate the legacy of colonial rule , so to speak, but also focus their research on separate cohesive hindrances on conflict reduction. While Niemann highlighted the importance and withstanding failure of developing political rule separate from Western idealized liberal democracy, Jackson focused his research on the recurring danger of the paltry and dependent Congolesian economy. Noteworthy scholar Carol B. Thompsons journal US Trade with Africa: African Growth Opportunity also provides sufficient economic reasoning in cohesion with colonial legacy. Thompson (2004) reported that the Congos expor ts are non-processed minerals and agricultural products. Although the countries are now independent, their exports remain colonial products. (p. 458) In his writing, Thompson also provided a remark by President Joquim Chissano of Mozambique that, although not specific to the Congo, articulates the role colonialism has had and continues to have in various African countries economy: .circumstances have confined us to act as producers of raw materials and unprocessed goods for export to the rich countries of the North. While we are passed to open upon countries and streamline our methods of doing international business, so that the global economy may sink roots, invisible barriers are still making it difficult for us to access resources. (Thompson, 458) Both Thompson and Jackson do an effective job of explaining the impact that colonial rule has had both implicitly and explicitly on the economy of the Congo. This is further proven in the United Nations Human Development Report (2003) that stated that Africas share in the world fell from about 6 percent in 1980 to 2 percent in 2002, and its share of world imports from about 4.6 percent in 1980 to 2.1 percent in 2002. (p.ii) The report also went on to state that subsequently Africas heavy dependence on primary commodities as a source of export earnings has meant that the continent remains vulnerable to the vagaries of the market and weather conditions. (Economic Development in Africa: Issues on Africas Trade Performance, 2003, p.ii). Similarly, the Congo, once officially a colony of France, was exploited primarily for its raw mineral wealth. Today, although technically an independent country, the Congo remains highly dependent on raw minerals, coltan in particular. It is this heavy re liance that enables not only economic instability but also related conflict (Jackson, 2002). Furthermore, it is also important to contextualize the financial situation of the Congo in order to better understand, in detail, any economic hindrance on reducing mineral conflict. In recent years, because of the pressure of declining oil prices, the depreciation of the dollar, and burdensome debt service, the Government of the Congo has been forced to adopt austere financial measures. After slashing its 1986 budget by 40 percent, the government entered into a Stand-By Agreement with the IMF which made possible the rescheduling of Congos then $1 billion in foreign debt. (Congo: U.S. goods are extremely competitive here right now,1998) A subsequent Paris Club rescheduling, debt relief granted by commercial banks, and World Bank structural adjustment also helped avert what would have otherwise been a large capital-account deficit. (Congo: U.S. goods are extremely competitive here right now,1998) Production in the forestry sector has gradually increased due to improvements in the tran sportation system and the opening up of new concessions in the north. (Congo: U.S. goods are extremely competitive here right now,1998) Consequently, such information is, although brief, critical in establishing sound understanding of further encumbrance on the reduction of Congolesian mineral conflict with respect to economic instability. Closely related to discussions of the implication of colonization on the Congolesian economy, are ones involving the exploitive effects of mineral industrialization and globalization on African states and the role of national and international governments to curb such behavior. As the countries of the world increase their interdependence and co-relation, African states, including the Congo, are not only forced to deal with establishing themselves on the ruins of repressive colonial state, but simultaneously adapt to increasingly globalized, and thus changing markets. The success and adverse hindrances as a result of this, will be explored in the following few paragraphs. Most scholarly and professional literature recognize the direct role that exploitation of conflict mineral in the Congo has played in the onset and preservation of warfare, (Niemann; Collier, 2003; Prendergast, 2009; Global Witness Limited, 2009) though provide various explanations to suggest the role globalization has had in the conflict. P. Collier of the World Bank reported in a policy report that, in a cross-national statistical analysis of civil war onset in 161 countries since 1960, the extent of primary commodity exports is the strongest single influence on the risk of conflict (2000, p. 10). By way of explanation, he argues that primary commodity dependence creates better opportunities to finance rebel groups which in turn enable rebellion. Niemann (2007) explicitly spoke of globalization and Transnational Corporations when he stated that cell phones have revolutionized the way we communicate, but in Central Africa their biggest legacy is war. Nearly 3 million people have die d in Congoover coltan in the conflict that is really over natural resources sought by foreign corporations (p.39). Essick (2001) similarly indicates that the demand for tantalum took off with the boom of high-tech products and with it a new sinister market began flourishing in the Democratic Republic of Congo. (para. 3). Despite providing context for why globalization does in fact take place, Global Witness Limited is the only source that provided framework to explicitly suggest why corporations have not sanctioned or cut their ties from mineral conflict. Global Witness Limited (2009) reported on the trading houses based in Goma and Bukavu that buy, sell and export minerals produced by or benefiting the warring parties and how houses are officially censed and registered with the Congolese government act as a cover for laundering minerals which are fuelling the conflict. (p. 7) Global Witness Limited focused on how these companies sell the minerals on to a range of processing and man ufacturing companies, including firms in the electronics industry. (p. 8) Global Witness Limited also reported on the difficulty and lack of initiative from corporations and governments to regulate chain minerals. In the following few paragraphs international and subsequently national, initiative will be explored. One of the most pronounced hindrances on the reduction of mineral conflict in the Congo is the national governments failure to address the role of Rwanda as a channel and trading post for the products which benefit the warring parties of the Congo. Global Witness Limited reports indicated this point, as well as that In theory, Rwandan customs officials check the paperwork accompanying all consignments from the Congo, but the government has not been pro-active in delving deeper into the origins of the minerals transported across the border.. (p. 71) As well, Global Witness Limited also stated that neither the Rwandan government nor mineral trading companies operating in Rwanda are conducting due diligence to ensure that trade is not benefitting any Congolesian warring parties. (p. 71) Thus, from the Global Witness Limited report, it would seem that a major encumbrance on the reduction of national mineral conflict stem from the ease with which such minerals can cross the border into Rw anda; something that is helping to fuel the conflict. Adversely, progression in the reduction of mineral conflict seems to have been made with regards to national governmental initiatives within the country itself as of 2010. Although the Global Witness report indicated a lack of government corresponding action, this report was issued in 2009 and obviously does not address the most current initiatives of the government. According to the 2009 report, Neither of the two main initiatives launched in late 2007 the Nairobi communiquà © of and the Amani Programme arising from the Goma agreement-including concrete actions to stop the involvement of the warring parties in the natural resource trade. (p. 77) However according to Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series (2010) the government of the Congo has suspended all mining operations in three eastern provinces, North Kivu, South Kivu and Maniema on the border with Uganda, Rwanda and Burundiafter the United States threatened new legislation to ensure stricter contro ls to ensure DR Congos minerals were obtained legally. (para. 1). It was also reported in the article that as of September of the same year, Congos armed forces had recaptured the coltan specifically in Walikale, a town torn by over 15 years of mineral conflict. (Democratic Republic of Congo: Enyele Attack, 2010). Subsequently, national governmental initiatives by virtue of such suspensions, seem to be progressive in absolving some mineral conflict within the country. With specific respect to the countrys struggle to establish viable states on the ruins of repressive colonial states and how this relates to internal maintenance of socio-economic hierarchy, the related role of a paltry economy, and mineral industrialization in regards to globalization and the role of national and international governments, mineral conflict complexity in the Congo has been explored. Though scholars and academics vary in their research according to different enablers of such mineral conflict, from political instability to economic condition, all seem to agree to some degree the importance of historically contextualizing the conflict. For example, political instability and maintenance of socio-economic hierarchy are not merely a static political or social reality of Congo, but the by-product of over a hundred years of instilled and exploitative colonial rule. Moreover, as much as mineral conflict is harmful in itself, it is important to recognize that by virtue of colo nial legacy that has created socio-economic hierarchy, there are still those that benefit from the exploitive behavior and subsequent mineral conflict. Similarly, economic conditions of the Congo also must be understood with reference to colonial rule of the past, as well as current exploitive behavior of rich countries on developing countries primary commodified economies of the present. Again, industrialization of mineral resources in the Congo and national and international government initiatives, or lack of, must be understood with reference to historical power relations. There is a high demand for coltan as the consumer population of technologies that use this precise metal grows. However as this demand grows, it would appear that companies have capitalized on historical power relations to exploit countries like the Congo with little regard to things like labor conditions and rebel control. Although there has been some progression in the way of conflict mineral reduction, it wo uld appear that there are still many hindrances that need to be first addressed in order to continue this progression. Canadian consumers must recognize not only the existence of mineral conflict, but also appreciate how their purchases fuel directly such conflict and endorse exploitive behavior. The next step in reduction of mineral conflict in the Congo after this recognition is to recognize the historically relevant legacy of colonialism that continues to be reflective in elements such as national financial condition and political stability. Once this occurs, it is then important to start asking questions. Is it possible to reconfigure socio-economic hierarchy in the Congo that has prevailed with the help of paternal countries for over a hundred years? Is it possible to screen mineral trade and purchase without greatly stalling and bruising the mineral dependent economy of the Congo? There are many enabling factors that contribute to mineral conflict in the Congo and there are a number of related issues that much be recognized and absolved before real progression can take place. The most important element however remains the same, this is not merely an international conflict that is the by-product of something inherently Congolesian, but the result of international exploitive and historical behavior.

The Impact of Eleanor Roosevelt as First Lady Essay -- biographies bio

The Impact of Eleanor Roosevelt as a First Lady   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Before Eleanor Roosevelt, the role of the first lady was not a political role; it was merely just a formal title of the president’s wife. Eleanor Roosevelt paved the way for all presidents’ wives to come by being active in politics during and after her husband’s presidency. Of course, she did not have instant success; she had many trials which helped her become an important and influential role model. Eleanor Roosevelt’s dedication to her husband, her activeness in politics, and her volunteer work enabled her to change the role of the First Lady.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eleanor Roosevelt was born on October 11, 1884 to Elliot and Anna Hall Roosevelt. Her mother was very beautiful and thought of Eleanor as a disappointment and would even make fun of her and call her mean nicknames like â€Å"Granny† (Cook, 21, vol. 1). Her father adored her and she adored him but he was never around due to the fact that he was an alcoholic and a drug addict (Morey, 14). When Eleanor was seven years old, her parents got a divorce; which left her mother, Anna, to raise the children alone (Spangenburg, 4). Eleanor’s parents both died shortly after, her mother when she was eight, and when she was ten she learned that her father had died as well. Eleanor and her two younger brothers were sent to live with their Grandmother Hall (Morey, 16-17).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although Eleanor did not have a pleasant childhood, things started to look up when she started dating her fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. They were married on March 17, 1905 (Cook, 162, vol. 1). Eleanor’s Godfather, Theodore Roosevelt, the current president, agreed to walk her down the aisle at her wedding (Morey, 25-27). After their wedding, Franklin and Eleanor’s house was still not ready, so they lived with Franklin’s mother, Sara, who was not very fond of Eleanor. Once Eleanor started having children Sara even insisted on helping raise them because she considered herself to be a better mother than Eleanor (Morey, 28). Eleanor gave birth to 6 children, but lost one and from this became depressed. This was a hard time for her especially living with Sara. Finally, in 1910 they moved away from Sara to Albany, New York so Franklin could run for Senator (Cook, 184-186, vol. 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eleanor Roosevelt was dedicated to Franklin and was always helping him out behind the scenes. When Franklin became... ...er own experiences and observations. Eleanor also said, â€Å"I had really only three assets: I was keenly interested, I accepted every challenge and every opportunity to learn more, and I had great energy and self-discipline.† (Spangenburg, 99) Eleanor Roosevelt changed the role of the first lady by her dedication to her husband through everything, her involvement in politics, and her willingness to help others through her volunteer work. Works Cited Black, Allida M. Courage in a Dangerous World. The Political Writings of Eleanor Roosevelt. New York: Coumbia University Press, 1999. Cook, Blanche Wiesen. Eleanor Roosevelt 1884 1993. Vol. 1. New York: Penguin Books Ltd, 1992. Eleanor Roosevelt 1933 1938. Vol. 2. New York: Penguin Books Ltd, 1999. Lash, Joseph P. â€Å"Eleanor Roosevelt.† Encylopedia Americana. 1997 ed. Levy, William Turner, and Cynthia Eagle Russett. The Extraordinary Mrs. R. A Friend Remembers Eleanor Roosevelt. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1999. Morey, Eileen. The Importance of Eleanor Roosevelt. San Diego: Lucent Books, Inc., 1998. Spangenburg, Ray, and Diane K. Moser. Eleanor Roosevelt A Passion to Improve. New York: Facts on File, 1997.

Efficacy of Rehabilitative Programs Essay -- Correctional Programs, re

Criminal justice programs around the world face various challenges especially in rehabilitating the behavior of inmates within correctional facilities. The purpose of this research paper will be to assess the various issues that exist in rehabilitative programs within prison systems. Basically, rehabilitation programs are used to correct and rehabilitate criminal offenders so that they can emerge as useful members of society once they complete their prison sentences. Some of the rehabilitation programs that are commonly used to reform inmates include counseling, health and fitness programs, transcendental meditation, academic programs and religious programs. These rehabilitative programs are usually based on the assumption that criminal behavior in most suspects is caused by some contributing factor such as a history of violence, psychological or mental disorders (Barkan & Bryjak, 2009). Such an assumption does not refute that some criminals make their own personal choices to break the law but rather it argues that these personal choices are usually caused by certain factors which contribute to criminal behavior. Rehabilitation programs are therefore based on such perspectives where the various correctional programs are designed to deal with criminal enforcing behavior. For example counseling programs could focus on the behavior that led to the criminal offender committing the offense while educational programs could focus on how to change negative behavior to positive behavior. Correctional programs in prison facilities are therefore important in reducing the recurrence of criminal behavior as well as reducing recidivism among probationers and parolees (Barkan & Bryjak, 2009). In general, rehabilitation programs have been effe... ...on are usually focused on keeping the prisoners mentally happy. Religious programs provide inmates with coping mechanisms and spiritual guidance which enable them to deal with prison life. These programs also provide forums for prisoners where they can be able to forgive motivate and reconcile with their fellow inmates within the prison (O’Conner & Pallone, 2003). The efficacy of these programs has also not been determined by criminologists given that most prisoners who practice religion in prison fail to do so once they are released. Religious programs are therefore seen as temporary measures that enable prisoners to find spiritual solace in either Christian religious programs or Qaran readings. The overall effectiveness of these programs will however be determined by the number of prisoners who have not recorded any repeat offenses on being released from prison.

Will Canada Become The 51st St :: essays research papers

Is Canada going to be swallowed up by the United States? A political cartoon based on Pierre Trudeau's famous quote, 'Living next to you (the United States) is like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even tempered is the beast, one is affected by every twist and grunt.'; was made. This means when something occurs in the United States, we too are affected. If the United States goes to war, because we belong to N.A.T.O., Canada would support their position. If McDonalds, an American based company, were to close down, then many Canadian workers would lose their jobs since McDonalds is well established in Canada. Many Canadian businesses are American owned, such as Ford, Burger King, Chevrolet, Wendy's, and Walmart to name a few. Also, many more sports teams are owned in America than in Canada. For example, only 5 hockey teams exist in Canada, while the United States has at least 5 times more teams. Our players must be payed in American funds, and one American dollar i s worth $1.50 in Canada. Those are some ways Canada is being swallowed by the United States.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  However, Canada is a valued trade partner for the Americans. For example, the United States has a dire need for our natural resources, such as water. Having polluted their own water supply, the now looks to Canada for the solution to their problem. If Canada were to become a part of the United States, our water would become polluted, forcing the United States government to buy even more clean water from another country for even more people. Also, the differences in our political systems would mean change for both the United States and Canada, which would doubtlessly upset millions of people. Would we have a President or a Prime Minister? Indeed, our 'assimilation' would be difficult. However, youth would have little trouble fitting in, since we wear the same clothes, listen to the same music, watch the same television shows, and play the same games.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  But how would the assimilation begin? The answer is simple. If Quebec were to win a referendum and leave Canada, we would lose much of our industry. After Quebec, the maritime provinces would also leave, which would cripple us further. In desperate need of a stable economy, we would begin negotiations with the United States. The House of Commons would become a meaningless symbol, along with many of our historical buildings and monuments.

Information Systems Technology Essay

Computer engineers are responsible for analyzing, designing and building software applications in an IT firm concerned with developing application software’s for various businesses. Once the primary analysis is done by the system analyst the coding phase is prepared by the software engineers where they have enough programming experience to bring the design model into a running system. They are responsible to get the logical design in paper to implement into a physical working system. They use their programming ability to design the business modules. They are usually concerned with the development of the system and taking care of the user interfaces, business rules implementation and the design methodologies which are required by any business employing information systems. They are also responsible for selecting the right programming tool for designing the user interface and enveloping the functionalities of the concerned tool in framing the business policies. Role of software tester: Software testers work in collaboration with the software engineers to eliminate the bugs in the software. They are primarily concerned with testing the software for checking the software for fulfilling the requirements and checking whether the software runs successfully with the requirements fulfilled. This is mainly concerned with validation and verification of the software. They prepare test cases to test the software for boundary checks, limit checks, data type checks, calculations of business processes and many others. They create and maintain reports to keep track of the systems reports and account of the defects which are found in the process. The classification of the defects is the next step. The defects are either corrected by the software tester or are forwarded to the software engineers to be corrected and submit again for errors. They are usually concerned with elimination of anomalies which are quite a hindrance in the business environment and pose a great threat to data and security. References /Bibliography See: http://getaccess. westone. wa. gov. au/careers/ profiles/data/OCC247. asp See: http://www. bls. gov/oco/ocos267. htm

Samsung Mobile

A PROJECT REPORT On Consumer Awareness And Satisfaction Towards Samsung Submitted to: Ujjal sandhu (Lect. Dept of Management) Submitted by: Prem Kumar Masters of Business Administration (2nd semester) DR. I. T. GROUP OF INSTITUTES Chandigarh-Patiala Highway, Jalalpur (Banur), Near Chandigarh Affiliated to Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar. 2010-20 CERTIFICATE Certified that this project report â€Å"Consumer Awareness And Satisfaction Towards Samsung. † is the original work, Prem Kumar. , who carried out the project work under my supervision as a part of Assignment of Research Methodology. ______________________ Ms. Ujjal sandhu (Lect. Dept of Management) DECLARATION We hereby declare that the project entitled â€Å"Consumer Awareness And Satisfaction Towards Samsung† submitted for the Assignment of Research Methodology is our original work and the project has not formed the basis for the award of any degree, associateship, fellowship or any other similar titles. S ignature of the Student: _____________________ Prem Kumar Place: Date: ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Heartfelt thanks to the following people†¦. A Few typewritten words of thanks can-not really express the sincerity of my gratitude.But I am still trying to put into words my gratefulness towards all who have helped & encouraged me in carrying out this project. I would like to thank Prof. P P ARYA (Director, DR. IT. ) to give me guidelines and my worthy thanks to my teacher Ms. Ujjal sandhu (Lect. Dept of Management) for their valuable contribution during the academic session and guidance in preparation of this project report. Finally, yet importantly, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to my beloved parents for their blessings, my friends/classmates for their help and wishes for the successful completion of this project. Name of Students, Prem KumarTable of Content Chapter | Topic| Page Num. | 1| CERTIFICATE| 2| 2| DECLARATION| 3| 3| ACKNOWLEDGEMENT| 4| 4| TABLE OF CONTANT| 5| 5| LIST OF TABLE| 6| 6| Chapter – 1 Introduction| 7| 7| Chapter – 2 Literature Review | 12| 8| Chapter – 3 Research Methodology| 13| 9| Chapter – 4 Result and discussions| 16| 10| Chapter – 5 Finding and Conclusion| 25| 11| Reference| 25| 12| QUESTIONNAIRE| 26| 13| Appendix| 27-28| | | | | | | List of Table Chapter | Topic| Page Num. | 4. 1| Profession| 15| 4. | Do you have a mobile phone| 16| 4. 3| Have you ever heard about samsung| 17| 4. 4| which companies cell phone are you using| 18| 4. 5| In which industry the brand name Samsung is involve. | 19| 4. 6| what is tagline of Samsung| 20| 4. 7| what makes you to buy Samsung| 21| 4. 8| You prefer Samsung because of | 22| 4. 9| will you recommend Samsung to other | 23| 4. 10| acording to you which is close competitor of Samsung| 24| CHAPTER – 1 INTRODUCTION * Consumer A consumer is an individual who purchase or has the capacity to purchasegoods and services offered for sale by marketing institu tions in order to satisfy  personal or ousehold needs,wants or desires. According to a statement made by Mahatma Gandhi, ‘consumer refers to the following, â€Å"A consumer is  the most important visitor on our premises. He isnot dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an outsider to our  Ã‚  business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us an opportunity to do so† So  consumer  is  like  the  blood  of  our  business  and  also  a satisfied customer is a word of mouth advertisement of a product / services * Customer satisfaction: Satisfaction is the person’s feelings of pleasure or disappointment resulting rom comparing a product’s perceived in relation to his or her expectations. In general, if performance of the products matches the expectations, the customer is said to be satisfied. Customer satisfaction, a business term, is a measure of how products a nd services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectations. In a competitive marketplace where business complete for customers, customer satisfaction is seen as a key differentiator and increasingly has become a key element of business strategy. If performance exceeds expectations, the customer is said to be highly satisfied or delighted.If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is said to be dissatisfied. * INDUSTRY PROFILE In 1977  Samsung Electronics  launched the Telecommunication Network , and in 1983 it initiated its  mobile  telecommunications business with the hope that this would become the company's future growth engine. In 1986, Samsung was able to release its first built-in car phone, the SC-100, but it was a failure due to the poor quality. In spite of unsuccessful result Ki Tae Lee, the then-head of the Wireless Development Team, decided to stay in the mobile business. He asked the company to buy ten  Motorola  mobile phones for  benchmarking.After 2 years of R;amp;D Samsung developed its first mobile phone (or â€Å"hand phone† in Korea), the SH-100 in 1988. It was the first mobile phone to be designed and manufactured in Korea. But the perception of mobile devices was very low and although Samsung introduced new models every year, each model sold only one or two thousand units. Samsung Telecommunications  is one of five business units within  Samsung Electronics belonging to the  Samsung Group, and consists of the Mobile Communications Division, Telecommunication Systems Division, Computer Division, MP3 Business Team, Mobile Solution Centre and Telecommunication R;amp;D Centre.Telecommunication Business produces a full spectrum of products from  mobiles  and other mobile devices such as  MP3  players and  laptop computers to telecommunication network infrastructure. Headquarters is located in  Suwon  South Korea In 2007 Samsung Telecommunication Business reported over 40% growth and became the second largest mobile device manufacturer in the world. Its market share was 14% in Q4 2007, growing up form 11. 3% in Q4 2006. At the end of November 2011, Samsung sold more than 300 million mobile devices and set still in secondSAMSUNG In India Samsung Electronics commenced its operations in India in December 1995 and is today a leading provider of Consumer Electronics , IT and Telecom products in the Indian market. Samsung India is the Regional Headquarters for Samsung’s South West Asia operations, which provides employment to over 8,000 employees with around 6,000 employees being involved in R;amp;D. In 2010, Samsung India achieved a sales turnover of US$3. 5 billion.Samsung began operations in India through its manufacturing complex located at Noida (UP), which today houses facilities for Colour Televisions (including 3D, LED and LCD Televisions), Mobile Phones, Refrigerators, Washing Machines and Split Air Conditioners categories. Samsung Electroni cs commenced its operations in India in December 1995 and is today a leading provider of Consumer Electronics , IT and Telecom products in the Indian market. Samsung India is the Regional Headquarters for Samsung’s South West Asia operations, which provides employment to over 8,000 employees with around 6,000 employees being involved in R;amp;D.In 2010, Samsung India achieved a sales turnover of US$3. 5 billion. Samsung began operations in India through its manufacturing complex located at Noida (UP), which today houses facilities for Colour Televisions (including 3D, LED and LCD Televisions), Mobile Phones, Refrigerators, Washing Machines and Split Air Conditioners categories. Samsung commenced operations of its second state–of-the-art manufacturing complex at Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu in November 2007. Today, the Sriperumbudur facility manufactures Colour televisions, Fully Automatic Front Loading Washing Machines, Refrigerators and Split Air Conditioners.Samsung Ind ia has two R;amp;D Centres in India – at Delhi and Bangalore . While the Delhi R;amp;D Centre develops software solutions for hi-end televisions such as Plasma TVs, LCD TVs and Digital Media Products, the Bangalore R;amp;D Centre works on major projects for Samsung Electronics in the area of telecom, wireless terminals and infrastructure, Networking, SoC (System on Chip) Digital Printing and other multimedia/digital media as well as application software. Samsung India is a market leader in product categories like LED TVs, LCD TVs, Slim TVs and Side by Side Refrigerators.While it is the second largest mobile handset brand in India, it leads in the smart phone segment in India. Samsung India has won several awards and recognitions for both its corporate initiatives as well as its product innovations in audio visual, home appliance, IT and telecom product categories. Apart from development of innovative technology, Samsung places great importance on acting as a responsible corpo rate citizen in the communities where it operates. Its CSR programs respond to the social and environmental needs and seek to give back to communities that support the company.In 2009, Samsung launched the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiative – ‘Samsung Hope Project’ with projects in the areas of education, culture, sports, social welfare and community development. Each program under the Hope Project uniquely addresses the needs of individual communities while emphasizing on innovations for development of the community including education, technology, engineering and IT technical training. Consumer research is the systematic collection and analysis of consumer information for the purpose of important decision making for marketing.Consumer research plays an important role in marketing process, helps in consumer measurement, market potential, sales forecast, each element like product mix, distribution mix, price, effectiveness of an advertise ment campaign, consumer acceptance of a product. Infiercely competitive situation, it is extremely critical for and organization to monitor the customer relationship on a regular basis. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEWS This chapter contain the review of literature releted to SAMSUNG handsets and customers satisfaction and awareness towards it. There are various tudies which have already been conducted on the customers satisfaction towards Raymond SAMSUNG handsets . the review studies focused on the SAMSUNG brands quality, brands perception and thinking of people towards it. 1 Marks (2006) found that inspite of increasing competition in the mobile phone sectors the SAMSUNG is still a brands that leads the market intems of customers satisfaction level. In this study is also found that the customers using SAMSUNG handsets were more satisfied with its features from the customers using handsets of other companies. Martensen (2008) found that the Indian customers are having a hight level of a wareness when it comes to SAMSUNG. The customers are awar about the taglines of the company and most the customers also identify the logo of the company while the customers of other companies were not aware about their company and the customers were also satisfied with SAMSUNG handsets. CHAPTER – 3 RESEARCH METHOLOGY The research methodology section contains the objectives of the study, ources of data, research design, tool for data collection and sampling techniques. Objectives of the study 1 . To identify the customers awareness level towards SAMSUNG handsets. 2 . To indetify the customers satisfaction level towards SAMSUNG handsets. 3 . To identify the different criteria considered by the customers while buying SAMSUNG handsets. 4 . To identify customers perception towards SAMSUNG as a brand. Sample size Our sample was 50 respondents. Sources of data The study used primary and secondary data. Primary data:- The primary data was collection from the respondents from dr. t gr oups of institutes using questionnaire. Secondary data:- The secondary data was collected from internet, books and magazines. Research design:- A descriptive research has been conducted to study consumer awareness and satisfication towards SAMSUNG because it has gathered the data that described events and then organized, tabulated, depicted and described the data obtained from consumers of SAMSUNG and other brands. We used descriptive statistics to describe the basic features of data of our study. They provided us simple summaries about the sample and the measures of our study.Descriptive statistics helped us to simplify large amounts of data in a sensible way. Sampling techniques:- The sampling techniques used to collect data is convenience sampling. For this study, 50 respondents have been taken as a sample ana data is collected from them. One of the most common examples of convenience sampling is using student volunteers as subjects for the research. We use it when we are unble t o access a wider population, for example due to time or cost constraints. Tool of data collection:- The data has been collected through questionnaires using graphical techniques ofSPSS CHAPTER – 4 Results ;amp; Discussion Table4. 1: Profession? Option| Response| Percentage| Student| 20| 50%| Business| 10| 25%| Working| 8| 20%| Other| 2| 5%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 50% of respondents are students ,25% of respondents are business , 20% of respondents are working and remaining 5% are working. TABLE 4. 2: Do you have a mobile phone? Option| Response| Percentage| Yes| 39| 97. 5%| No| 1| 2. 5%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 97. 5%% of respondents have mobile and remaining 2. % have not mobile. TABLE 4. 3: Have you ever heard about samsung? Option| Response| Percentage| Yes | 40| 100%| No | 0| 0%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 100%% of respondents are heard about Samsung mobile and remaining 0% are not heare of it. TABLE 4. 4:which companies cell phone are you using? Option| Response| Percentage| Nokia| 15| 37. 5%| LG| 6| 15%| Samsung| 13| 32. 5%| Motorola| 4| 10%| Other| 2| 5%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 37. 5%% of respondents are using nokia phone , 15% are using lg mobile, 32. % are using Samsung mobile, 10% are using Motorola mobile and 5% are using others mobile TABLE 4. 5: In which industry the brand name Samsung is involve.? Option| Response| Percentage| Automobile| 2| 5%| Sports| 0| 0%| Peteroleum| 0| 0%| Telecommunication| 38| 95%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 5% of respondents were that Samsung in automobile and 95% of respodents were that Samsung mobile in telecommunication. TABLE 4. 6: what is tagline of samsung? Option| Response| Percentage| I am the next| 30| 75%| What the next| 6| 15%| Stay connect| 4| 10%| Other| O| 0%| Interpretation:-From the above table we conclude that 75% of respondents aware about the tagl ine of Samsung mobile TABLE 4. 7: what makes you to buy samsung? Option| Response| Percentage| Advertisement| 30| 60%| On choice| 6| 12%| Friedns opinion| 5| 10%| Other| 3| 6%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 60% of respondents buy nokia by seeing advertisement , 12% influenced by on choice , 10% through their friends opinion and 6% because of other factors TABLE 4. 8:You prefer Samsung because of ? Option| Response| Percentage| Feature| 6| 15%| Price| 3| 7. 5%| Brand name| 20| 50%| Service| 10| 25%|Other| 1| 2. 5%| Interpretation:- From the above table we conclude that 15% of respondents prefer Samsung because of its feature, 7. 5% because of its price, 50% because of its brand name, 25% because of its service and 2. 5% because of other factor TABLE 4. 9 will you recommend Samsung to ohter ? Option| Response| Percentage| Yes| 35| 87%| No| 5| 13%| Interpretation:- in the graph 87% respondes recommend Samsung is favor and 13% is not favor in Samsung. TABLE 4. 1 0 acording to you which is close competitor of samsung ? Option| Response| Percentage| Nokia| 30| 75%| Motorola| 7| 18%| LG| 3| 7%|Spice| 0| 0%| Interpretation:- IN graph 75% compitotrs are nokia than the Samsung. FINIDINGS:- 1. Among the total of 40 respondents qwsin them 39 having mobile phon. 2. From the study undertaken majority of the respondents 100% were aware about Samsung. 3. Among the respondents 32. 5% were using Samsung mobile phones. 4. Among the respondents 60% people buy Samsung because of their advertisement. 5. Among the respondents 50%people prefer Samsung because of its brands name CONCLUSION We came to the conclusion that most of the customer of Samsung mobile were aware and satisfied with Samsung mobile car.Most of the respondent trust Samsung mobile as a brand and in future will recommend Samsung mobile to others also. In spite of having competition in the automobile industry Samsung mobile still stand above all and it has been able to maintain satisfaction lev el in its customers which in turns attracts others new customers also REFERENCES 1. http://www. samsung . com 2. https://www. scribd. com QUESTIONNAIRE TOWARDS SAMSUNG NAME:- ADRESS:- Q. 1. Do you use mobial phone ? 1. yes 2. No Q. 2 Have you ever heard about Samsung ? 1. yes 2. No Q. Which companies cell phone are you using ? 1. Samsung 2. Nokia 3. LG 4. Motorola Q. 4. In which industry the brand name Samsung is involved ? 1. Automobile 2. Peteroleum 3. Sports 4. Telecommunication Q. 5 what is the tagline of Samsung ? 1. I am the next 2. What the next 3. stay connect 4. Other Q. 6 What makes you to buy Samsung ? 1. Advertisment 2. Friend opinion 3. Own choice 4. Other Q. 7 you prefer Samsung because of 1. Feature 2. Brand name 3. Price 4. Services 5. Other APENDIX Data view VARIABLE VIEW