Monday, December 30, 2019

Should Every Able-Bodied Citizen Do Military Service

Should Every Able-Bodied Citizen Do Military Service? Many countries in the world have already abolished mandatory conscription to the military forces, some don’t have armed forces at all, while there are still nations where this conscription is obligatory. Everything depends on the significance of the country on the international level, the influence it has on the other countries, as well as the plans and ambitions of each government. I live in one of the countries where conscription is obligatory and I can but say that the majority of men are not satisfied with this reality. Some of them are not ready physically, others mentally. They are ready to do anything just not to serve in the army. I’ve heard so many stories of how they escaped from this duty that I can definitely say that obligatory conscription doesn’t bring any good but one – it teaches people to use their imagination and acquaintances to stay safe and sound at home. At the same time, there are strong-body and strong-minded people who are ready to do military service for the given period of time, and it doesn’t make them depressed. They know that this service won’t do them any harm and they are ready for it. I am completely sure that they are the ones who have to be conscribed, but for this no obligatory requirements at the country level are necessary. Thus, I believe that only those who feel that military service will do them more harm than good should be conscribed. There is no need of making people suffer and seek the ways to escape their duties. Governments also have to do everything possible in order for people not to be afraid to do military service, that is provide proper living conditions and securing their safety.

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Essay on Government - 923 Words

Government Government! You cant live with it! You cant live without it! It is the common cold that everyone dreads. The American Heritage College Dictionary, Third Edition defines government as, The exercise of authority in a political unit in order to control and administer public policy. Websters Desk Dictionary of the English Language defines government as, The political direction and control exercised over a nation, state, community, etc. The common individual might define government as the root of all evil. The thing about government is that no one stops to think about how government came about. Government falls into two categories; monarchy or a republic. A monarchy is a form of government that is always headed by a†¦show more content†¦King Fahad has complete control over its citizens in all aspects pertaining to their country. Laws, punishments, and regulations are in the hands of King Fahad. If the government of a country does not fall into any of these categories, it is a republic. A republic is defined in Websters Desk Dictionary of the English Language as any government in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them. There are three types of republics; dictatorship, oligarchy, or democracy. A dictatorship is a republic ruled by one individual. Cuba has a dictatorship. Fidel Castro is the main contributor to Cuban society. He oversees his people yet allows his people the right to vote him in or out of office. An oligarchy is another type of republic. This type is ruled by a select few. An example of an oligarchic society would be France. King Louis XV is king but he has a complete parliament to assist him in the law making procedure of France. The third type of republic is a democracy. A democracy is defined as a society ruled by the majority. An example of a democratic republic would be the United States. There are four theories that coincide with government; divine, natural, social compact, and force. The divine theory was developed out of religion. The theory states that government ordained itself from God, and its main purpose isShow MoreRelatedGovernment And State And Government Essay1597 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Government and state is like a two sides of a coin. Some political thinkers do not make any distinction between state and government. As a state Bangladesh has experienced different types of government since 1971 including democracy and military government. None of the experience is good for the people of the state. As a form of government democracy has some advantages and also some disadvantages. 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This creates government transparency and allows its citizens to hold their leaders accountable for their actions. In order to create this transparency in today’s society, a technical system must be set in place. This technical system needs to contain government documents which are easily accessible to the p ublic. But, not all documents should be housed in

Saturday, December 14, 2019

New Jersey’s Proposals to Cut Health Care Spending Free Essays

string(122) " households could fail to access the life sustaining drugs as well as the related services necessary for positive living\." In virtually every corner of the United States, State governments are grappling with the inevitable challenge of deriving a balanced budget given the outstanding deficits in revenues, a scenario largely precipitated by the financial crisis that has hit the nation. New Jersey is no exception. Indeed, state officials have increasingly found themselves faced with the reality of soliciting sufficient revenues to fund the topmost priority issues, unlike in previous budget allocations. We will write a custom essay sample on New Jersey’s Proposals to Cut Health Care Spending or any similar topic only for you Order Now In an attempt to draw a balanced and fair budget for the 2010 fiscal year, various proposals have been advanced. One of the efforts that can not escape notice is the idea of cutting funding for the state’ FamilyCare. The proposed strategy in realizing such an objective involves freezing the enrollment of parents between 150 and 200 percent of the federal poverty level and the implementation of co-payments for individuals in Medicaid and the AIDS Drug Distribution Program (ADDP) (NJ for Health Care, 2009). Indeed, the budget dilemma facing the state is understandable, given the severe economic conditions. Whereas the idea of cutting monetary allocations on some items would suffice in minimizing the critical budget deficits that are essential in facilitating the advancement of the state’s yearly programs, adopting a rational approach based on critical evaluation reveals the utter need to reconsider the said proposals. In an economy where a significant majority is struggling to meet the high costs of living, the proposal to cut back FamilyCare enrollment of parents is evidently a grave issue that can be described as a matter of life and death. The fact that a healthy population is vital in the enhancement of economic prosperity is an indisputable reality that the state authorities embrace. In essence, the provision of Medicaid prescription drug benefits as well as the upgrading of Drug Distribution Programs for AIDS patients is essential in promoting health and wellness among New Jersey residents. Amidst the tough economic times, the advocacy of a sound healthcare policy is of critical significance. As such, the proposal to cut back funding on health-related programs like FamilyCare, Medicaid and ADDP should be inevitably reconsidered. The Significance of the Proposed Changes on Health Care The availability of quality and affordable health care services is necessary in the advancement of individual well-being. From a medical perspective, the client (patient) is the most important person. A general look at the proposed cuts and co-pays gives the indication that they will affect the ability of individuals to meet health care costs at a time when the cost of living has reached significantly high levels. In reality, the proposals will have a significant impact on health-seeking behavior, which constitutes a direct concern for the nursing and medical professions. The Impact of the Proposals from Positive and Negative Perspectives Generally speaking, the idea of coming up with a single healthcare policy that is not only budget-friendly, but which adequately addresses the health needs of the American population has remained elusive. At the national as well state level, financial analysts have year in year out grappled with the task of allocating funds to diverse priority issues. The idea of substituting certain financial allocations with others discerned to be of more socioeconomic consequence, often with mixed repercussions, has emerged as one of the most popular trends. Indeed, years of research and analysis has depicted the initiative of cutting health care spending on specific items as a double-edged sword. Positive Consequences One of the healthcare policy issues that have been extensively studied is the effect of Medicaid drug co-payments. Examining the results reveals a significant degree of consistency in as far as the programs’ ability to minimize the overall healthcare expenditure is concerned. A longitudinal survey carried out in thirty eight states revealed that co-payments play an important role in barring individuals entitled to Medicaid benefits from filling prescriptions during a particular year, holding all other factors constant (Mason, Leavitt, and Chaffee, 2007). The predominant argument advanced in support of such behavioral trends is that beneficiaries of government-sponsored healthcare programs are inherently motivated to excessively utilize healthcare services funded by the government, which include ADDP and Medicaid, when compared with those with private insurance (National Organization for Women, 2007). By extension therefore, implementing co-pays suffice in instilling an increased sense of responsibility on beneficiaries of such programs, thus minimizing the tendency to seek unnecessary medical care. In essence, the rationale behind the suggestion to implement co-pays is based on their underlying assumption that the move would discourage unnecessary consumption of the Medicaid and ADDP programs which have traditionally been sponsored by the New Jersey government. In the long-run, the move is expected to save the state from excessive expenditures, and the arising funds directed to other priority issues. Negative Consequences A closer evaluation depicts the proposed healthcare cutbacks as likely to precipitate numerous unintended consequences in the long-term. For instance, it would expose the residents of New Jersey to increased health risks and dangers. This is particularly so considering the vulnerable population groups such as the poorest of the poor, the physically and mentally challenged, and those suffering from terminal illnesses. According to preliminary projections, the Medicaid proposal will affect an estimated 418,000 of the most vulnerable individuals, while the ADDP one will affect about 7,500 individuals registered under the program (NJ for Health Care, 2009). Indeed, New Jersey’s FamilyCare program acts as the principal health insurance plan for low-income families within the state (Castro, 2007). Thus, the decision to close the insurance programs and implement co-payments will have far-reaching consequences on health-seeking behavior amongst these vulnerable groups. The most obvious result would be to deter patients from seeking healthcare at the appropriate times. This would serve to exacerbate their health conditions, and majority would definitely end up requiring specialized hospitalization and emergency attendance. For instance, baring individuals with HIV/AIDS from accessing the AIDS Drug Distribution Program and imposing co-pays implies that a significant majority from low-income households could fail to access the life sustaining drugs as well as the related services necessary for positive living. You read "New Jersey’s Proposals to Cut Health Care Spending" in category "Papers" While the assumption that depicts co-pays as serving to reduce unnecessary expenditures for individuals entitled to state-sponsored medical programs like Medicaid and ADDP could hold under certain circumstances, there is also a strong counterargument that the opposite could be true. Denial of the existing health insurance program (FamilyCare) which is fairly affordable would precipitate avoidable scenarios such as healthcare emergencies as well as serious illnesses (National Organization for Women, 2007). On another front, raising co-payments encourages patients to avoid cost-effective healthcare, and instead, seek medical attendance when their health status has significantly deteriorated. Examining the previous results of implementing co-pays gives provides strong indications that they indeed cause disadvantaged and marginalized groups to forego healthcare services, even those often described as fundamentally essential. In the last financial year for instance, the state of Oregon eliminated co-pays for prescription drugs after it emerged that the state’s Medicaid program co-payments were precipitating significant shifts in treatment patterns (Mason, Leavitt, and Chaffee, 2007). According to an investigation carried out in the same year, Medicaid co-pays for low-income individuals not only failed to reduce health costs as envisioned in the initial plan, but also precipitated clients to prefer a waiver of the co-pay as opposed to seeking medical services. The overall result of such tendencies is to inevitably increase the associated healthcare bills. Thus by implementing the FamilyCare, Medicaid and AIDS Drugs Distribution programs, the state of New Jersey would end up incurring more costs. From a practical point of view, this increased burden would be transferred to the ordinary taxpayer who has to pay additional taxes so as to cater for the unplanned healthcare expenditures. According to an analytical survey conducted by the Hispanic Directors Association of New Jersey (HDANJ), the proposed cuts are indeed shortsighted, and will most likely have severe financial implications (NJ for Health Care, 2009). This is not only in reference to the direct costs incurred in curative care, but as well those initiatives deemed to alleviate disease causation and spread. A case in point is when we consider the possible costs of patients who contract infectious diseases like the HIV virus, simply because they lack concise awareness of how the infection is transmitted. Similarly, it would be necessary to embrace a relatively new approach in the institutionalization of mentally sick clients who fail to receive appropriate outpatient counseling (Castro, 2007). In practice, these and other cases would most likely make the state and county governments incur additional and unplanned healthcare costs. Why the Nursing Professional Body Should Oppose the Proposed Cuts and Co-pays Examining the available body of evidence provides sufficient proof that the proposals to freeze the enrollment of parents in FamilyCare and implementation co-payments for individuals in Medicaid and the AIDS Drug Distribution Program are not only unnecessary, but also poses unprecedented health risks and dangers to the residents of New Jersey. It is imperative that nursing professional organizations throughout the state join hands with the rest of the citizenry in ensuring that these proposals are not implemented, considering the pivotal nature of the nursing profession in advocating for sound healthcare policy and promoting individual wellbeing in society. Indeed, the nursing fraternity should fight these cuts by using whichever means possible to influence state authorities to safeguard the health for all residents through the restoration of funding for the State’s FamilyCare, Medicaid and AIDS Drug Distribution Programs. This could be achieved by heeding the recently derived initiative of making phone calls to the state headquarters so as to express dissatisfaction with the proposals. Rationale for the Decision The proposals to cut health care spending on programs like Medicaid and ADDP in the state should not have been advanced at such an inappropriate timing. Indeed, the current financial crisis facing the nation as a whole has not spared New Jersey. Examining the unemployment rates reveals that they have attained record-high proportions. As more and more citizens are laid off thus losing individual and family healthcare insurance, the situation is becoming more and more desperate for many residents, particularly for low-income households. At a time when living costs have attained unprecedented levels, the move to cutback enrollment in the State’s FamilyCare for poor working adults as well as the initiative to implement co-payments for individuals who least can afford them could not be less untimely and misplaced. To further highlight why the proposed cuts and co-pays are unwarranted, it is worthwhile mentioning that New Jersey has indeed received unanticipated federal funding aimed at stimulating the state’s economic growth. Recently, for instance, the state received a windfall of an estimated two billion dollars (for Medicaid) and another one hundred million dollars (for FamilyCare) in additional federal funding, both of which were unexpected (). Despite the fact that these funds were largely utilized to correct the deficits in the state budget, it would have been similarly important to use a certain percentage cushion the health cutbacks. Indeed, this was the actual intention of the Congress. By utilizing the additional funds in appropriate ways, New Jersey would have probably won itself even more federal funding to meet its priority issues. In a nutshell therefore, implementing the said proposals is certainly a misplaced option, considering that it would have been avoided had the sound allocation mechanisms been employed. According to recent projections, an estimated seventy thousand people would be removed from the FamilyCare program, the only major health insurance scheme for low-income households should the stated proposals go through (NJ for Health Care, 2009). Likewise, the proposed move to implement Medicaid co-payments will affect the majority of those it is intended for: the elderly, poor, and children. The increased premiums and co-pays for health care have the implication that these vulnerable groups will be unable to access and afford essential medical services. Indeed, thousands of children in New Jersey could end up losing coverage for essential health care services such as payments for hearing aids, eyeglasses, and speech therapy among other necessary therapies hardly affordable to low-income households. In addition, implementation of co-pays for patients registered in the ADDP means that the less disadvantaged may experience unprecedented challenges in accessing drugs, counseling services, and any other necessary therapies and therapies. Overall, the implementation of the proposed cuts and co-pays make it hard for New Jersey residents to access quality and affordable health care which has often been cited as a necessary prerequisite for economic growth and development. As evidence from the Oregon case where similar cutbacks were implemented, the overall state expenditure on healthcare is likely to increase, rather than decrease. Though proposal to implement FamilyCare cuts and Medicaid programs co-payments may lead to reduced costs in the short-term, the unintended consequences such as the tendency by patients to seek medical services when their health condition has deteriorated will mean additional in the long-term. Rather than the envisaged intention of lowering costs, the implementation of the proposals will only serve to place extra pressure on the state coffers, which in turn will be redirected to ordinary taxpayers. As New Jersey’s Senator Joseph Vitale recently observed, not only will vulnerable families be affected, but the state economy will also be hurt (NJ for Health Care, 2009). According to state projections, investing a single dollar in FamilyCare generates about four dollars in business activity, which translates to a loss estimated at forty million dollars (The Star-Ledger Editorial Board, 2009). Evidently therefore, the implementation of the proposed cuts and co-pays will have vast, disastrous and multiple consequences on individual families and the state as a whole. Those arguing for the implementation of Medicaid and ADDP co-payments also seem to neglect the essentiality of good health. By making healthcare services less affordable particularly for low-income families, the proposed co-pays will push individuals to the edge where they will continuously face one inevitable dilemma: that of choosing between basic necessities like food and housing on the one hand, and heath care needs on the other. The overall result would be to discourage health-seeking behavior. By implication, the nursing and medical professional fraternities will be faced with the increased task of attending to patients in critical conditions, which puts unwarranted burdens on an already strained health care system. Conclusion Considering the tough economic conditions that prevail in the state of New Jersey, it is imperative that the proposals to implement cuts for FamilyCare and co-pays for Medicaid and ADDP programs be reconsidered. Particularly for individual families earning low incomes, the implementation of such initiatives presents a situation where one is increasingly faced with the dilemma of choosing between heath care needs and other necessities of life. Considering that the harsh economic conditions may force the State’s residents to opt to satisfy the more pressing needs of food and rent at the expense of health care services, it is necessary to reexamine the proposals. In a nutshell, the New Jersey State authorities should focus on expanding health care insurance coverage for all residents irrespective of their socioeconomic status or race, rather than suggesting cuts and co-pays which will not only harm individual families, but the wellbeing of the state as a whole. References Castro, R. J. (2007). Time to Keep the FamilyCare Promise. New Jersey Policy Perspective. http://njcitizenaction. org/hcfallingshort. pdf Coalition for a Moral Budget. (2009). Press release: Medicaid and ADDP co-pays will harm the most vulnerable New Jerseyans call upon legislature to eliminate co-pays from budget. Mason, D. J. , Leavitt, J. K. , and Chaffee, M. W. (2007). Policy politics in nursing and health care. (5th ed). Edinburgh : Elsevier Mosby. National Organization for Women. (2007). Tax cuts hurt the poor. Opposing Viewpoints: Poverty. Ed. Viqi Wagner. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2007. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Apollo Library. Retrieved June 25, 2009 from http://find. galegroup. com/ovrc/infomark. do? contentSet=GSRCtype=retrievetabID=T010prodId=OVRCdocId=EJ3010159287source=galesrcprod=OVRCuserGroupName=apolloversion=1. 0 NJ for Health Care (2009). Senator Vitale, Chair NJ Senate Health Committee stands with advocates to oppose cut backs to NJ FamilyCare, Medicaid and the Aids Drug Distribution Program. May 12, 2009. Retrieved June 25, 2009 from http://njcitizenaction. org/hcpress20090512a. html The Star-Ledger Editorial Board. (May 26, 2009). N. J. FamilyCare funding: An avoidable budget cut. The Star-Ledger. Retrieved June 25, 2009 from http://blog. nj. com/njv_editorial_page/2009/05/nj_familycare_funding_an_avoid. html How to cite New Jersey’s Proposals to Cut Health Care Spending, Papers

Friday, December 6, 2019

Corporate Financial Management of Superannuation Fund †Free Samples

Questions: 1.What are the important factors that should be considered by tertiary sector employees when they are deciding whether to place their superannuation contributions in the Defined Benefit Plan or the Investment Choice Plan? What issues relating to the concept of the time value of money may be important in this decision-making process? 2.If the efficient-market hypothesis is true, the pension fund manager might as well select a portfolio with a pin. Explain why this is not the case? Answers: 1. The concept of superannuation fund has come in as a convenient mode to save for a comfortable retirement. Retirement needs a lot of funds and that is possible when an individual is able to plan it properly keeping into consideration the time frame and other factors that come into the picture. It encourages the savings habit especially among the tertiary sector employees and also increases the responsibility of the employer towards the employees in the form of systematic contributions to the fund. Hence a lot of factors need to be considered in deciding the type of fund, timing of the contributions, market forces and anticipation of returns from different types of investments, so on and so forth. A few of these factors with specific reference to the time value of money have been discussed. The Efficient Market Hypothesis has also been analyzed from a fund managers angle in selecting and deciding on the most appropriate type of portfolio. Superannuation Contributions Almost every active country encourages the habit of saving and investing in retirement benefits to ensure a balanced and good life for employees during the later years of life. With the increasing focus and regulations framed by the governments requiring mandated contributions by the employers, there are large amounts being deposited every year under the head of superannuation contributions. As per ASIC (2016) earning adequate returns from these investments becomes the responsibility of the financial institutions as the ultimate motive of superannuation contributions has to be achieved. Thus a lot of factors have to be considered by the fund managers with whom the superannuation contributions are placed to ensure that the required amount of money is made available to the employee on retirement. In consideration of the economic sector, there are three major and relevant sectors namely primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. The major role of the tertiary sector is to share their experiences, wisdom, and productivity with those in the primary and secondary sectors as the root level problems and benefits are first identified by the tertiary sector employees (Libby et. al, 2011). To ensure the quality retirement life for employees, the government introduced the concept of mandated employer contributions which was at 3 percent and later enhanced to five percent from the year 2005. Due to this systematic allocation and savings, the burden of social security on the state gets reduced and the superannuation investment and pension payments system are seen upon as a beneficial mode in many other countries (ASIC, 2016). As the returns from such superannuation funds represent the savings over the entire term of employment, it is essential to ensure that the contribution amounts are in vested in proper return bearing sectors (Davies Crawford, 2012). When the lump sum amount is paid to the employee on retirement, it should be substantial and hence the factors that need to be considered are discussed hereunder. Unisuper Limited is one of the biggest individual and industry based superannuation funds that manages and offers services to the employees of the tertiary sectors. The two main kinds of superannuation plans are Defined Benefit Plan and Investment Choice Plan (Goyal Wahal, 2008). A new revolution in the superannuation funds industry is that now employees have the options of choosing among the superannuation fund products offering different types of retirement options and an enhanced flexibility in deciding the kinds of assets for the investment of the superannuation fund contributions. A brief understanding of the types of the funds is highlighted. Under the Defined Benefits Plan, the final amount is paid upon the retirement of the employee. Such amount is determined after taking into account factors like the last drawn salary of the employee, the age of the employee, the number of years of service, etc (Parrino et. al, 2012). Under this plan, the employees are allowed to pool their contribution amounts and invest in the designated assets selected upon by the trustees and fund managers of the Unisuper Ltd. As the final payout amount is already decided, the returns from the portfolio investment become insignificant as it is not going to have an impact on the final payout which is decided by a formula. The returns from the portfolio of assets do not impact the individual employees but have to be considered by the fund managers. Thus, in a nutshell, it can be understood that it is the duty of the fund managers and trustees to ensure that there is sufficient amount ava ilable for payment upon the retirement of the employee (Shah, 2013). The second type is Investment Choice Superannuation Fund. In this option, the annual amount of employer and employee contributions are retained in an accumulating account and managed by private institutions. The returns from portfolio assets are also added in these accounts and the administrative and management expenses are met from the same accounts. As the investment options are open, the employees can do a risk and return analysis and designate the investment amounts to certain types of assets like shares, fixed securities, or such other options upon discussion with the fund managers. The strategies have to be evolved and reviewed by the individual employees as the final payout depends upon the actual returns and the realistic amounts available in the accumulating accounts upon the retirement of the employee. Thus the employees encounter the risks related to the superannuation contributions. Relevant Factors to be considered As it is evident that under the Defined Benefits Plant, the payout amount is a fixed sum and will is not impacted by the volatility of returns. Thus it is a safer option for employees requiring steady returns. Under the Investment Choice Plan, if the employees have a higher risk appetite and are confident that their own analysis and the analysis of the fund managers can provide higher returns, then they can go in for this option (Albrecht et. al, 2011). Apart from this, the other factors include the ability to manage funds. If employees are knowledgeable about the markets and returns, then they can take up the responsibility of managing and invest in the portfolio based on their expertise and strategies and thus opt for the Investment Choice Plan. On the other hand, if employees are incapable of managing their funds, then they can designate their funds to establish institutions like Unisuper Limited and save themselves from potential losses and wait for the safe and fixed return amounts. In such cases, the Defined Benefit Plan turns out to be beneficial. Apart from this, the tertiary sector can opt for the Investment Choice Plan when they are having additional sources of income generating assets and hence the returns from superannuation funds can be variable. On the other hand, if the employee is not having another additional source of income generation and has to depend upon the superannuation amounts, then the Defined Benefits Plan is a better option as it ensures a uniform return without being affected by the market movements. Time Value of Money Consideration There is always an opportunity cost involved in respect of investments. Time Value of Money takes into consideration the current value of future cash flows and the future value of the current investments. As money grows with time, it is essential to evaluate whether the designated investments are growing in line with the rate of returns from the markets. For instance, $100,000 today is not going to be the same $100,000 upon retirement, it would have got depreciated and hence these factors are essential in the decision-making process for selection of funds (Libby et. al, 2011). Hence, time value of money comes into action when deciding a future course of an action. The retirement funds need to be determined to keep into consideration the time value of money as the same amount will not be the same in the future course of time. The superannuation contributions and retirement payouts are a life times earnings of the employees. Hence it is essential that the employees efficiently understand the concept of time value of money and make proper decisions with reference to the future value of presently invested amounts. The portfolio of investments should be studied on a historical basis to understand its past performance and also predict the future performance based upon the predictions from experts (Vaitilingam, 2010). The past performances provide a trend that can be evaluated to predict the future course of action and to know the pattern of behavior. As time value of money aims for higher returns, there can be a few bad years as well due to the global economic conditions having an impact on the returns from investments. Thus the employee also has to determine the number of years they can wait to get the desired returns. This is more like a provisioning for bad market performance. The factors relevant in such cases would be the availability of alternative income generation options and the waiting period which includes preparing the employee for both the best and worst conditions and situations. Thus time value of money concept is pretty significant and has to be considered to ensure safe returns. 2. Efficient Market Hypothesis The efficient market hypothesis believes that share prices are a result of the market reactions and incorporates all the available market information to reflect the most efficient stock price. Hence it is assumed to be perfect. But this hypothesis does not hold true due to the following reasons: Markets behave in an irrational manner and hence fair price is a myth. Investor psychologies are unpredictable and cannot always reflect the true price level. Hence theories based on this are undependable. If the stock markets are assumed to be performing properly, then it is in line with the random walk theory but in reality, investors are rational but the situations and events are uncertain. Due to the above shortcomings, the fund manager cannot select a portfolio with a pin due to the following reasons: The portfolio designed and selected might not be a very well diversified one leaving it open and susceptible to unique risks that do not usually reap rich rewards. Such a portfolio might also be open to too many systematic risks for the individual investors. In case the investors are having other primary investment options in riskless assets yielding higher rewards, then resorting to the efficient market hypothesis might not be a risky venture, else such a portfolio might have a pretty high beta in consideration of the individuals risk preferences (Northington, 2011). A fund manager has to meet certain specific return goals and risk goals. Experience from the stock markets has time and again proved that there is no way to control the expected, anticipated and unanticipated risks of the portfolio. Markets have no memory and there is no easy way to make money out of the stock markets. There are different types of risks involved in the case of short-term interest rates versus long-term interest rates (Porter Norton, 2014). Hence portfolio selection needs to be done on a calculated and systematic basis. For stocks of smaller companies, the market size is relatively lower in comparison to those of higher companies (Deegan, 2011). Hence the price movements of such smaller stocks are a clear reflection of market inefficiency. As per Fama (1998), every stock is fundamentally different in terms of market competition, capital structure, volatility, financial potential, etc. Hence the market can never adjust itself to suit the requirements of all the stocks. As the statistical analysis is bound to its inherent limitations, the exact market performance in line with the efficient market hypothesis can be termed as a mere coincidence. The taxation structure of different individuals is of critical nature as certain assets tend to earn surpluses due to the higher taxability. In such cases, the after-tax returns to individuals in low tax brackets on such assets turn out to be favorable. But this again does not hold good for all cases (Marsh, 2009). Upon consideration of the above factors, it can be understood that portfolio selection cannot be done with a pin. The fund manager still has significant jobs to be done which are as follows: The fund manager needs to ensure that the portfolio is well diversified. A large number of stocks in the portfolio do not essentially ensure a proper diversification. The risk of a diversified portfolio should be appropriate for the client. The expected money should be made available to the client on retirement for which the risk of the portfolio needs to be reviewed at regular intervals (Fama, 1998). Lastly, the portfolio has to be tailored to take advantage of the special tax laws and benefits for the pension funds. Such options make it possible to increase the expected returns of the portfolio without increasing the risk. Thus the risk bearing ability aids in the decision-making process. The investment risks and return profiles have to be considered together in deciding upon the type of superannuation fund and investment according to the efficient market hypothesis. References ASIC 2016, Type of funds, viewed 16 May 2017 https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/superannuation-and-retirement/how-super-works/choosing-a-super-fund/types-of-super-funds Albrecht, W, Stice, E Stice, J 2011, Financial accounting, Mason, OH: Thomson/South-Western. Davies, T Crawford, I 2012, Financial accounting, Harlow, England: Pearson. Deegan, C. M 2011, In Financial accounting theory, North Ryde, N.S.W: McGraw-Hill. Fama, E.F 1998, Market Efficiency, Long-term Returns, and Behavioral Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, vol. 49, pp. 283-306 Goyal, A Wahal, S 2008, The Selection and Termination of Investment Management Firms by Plan Sponsors, Journal ofFinance , vol. 63, pp. 1802?1827. Libby, R, Libby, P Short, D 2011,Financial accounting, New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Marsh, C 2009, Mastering financial management, Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall Northington, S 2011, Finance, New York, NY: Ferguson's. Parrino, R, Kidwell, D Bates, T 2012, Fundamentals of corporate finance, Hoboken, Porter, G Norton, C 2014, Financial Accounting: The Impact on Decision Maker, Texas: Cengage Learning Shah, P 2013, Financial Accounting, London: Oxford University Press Vaitilingam, R 2010, The Financial Times Guide to Using the Financial Pages, London: FT Prentice Hall.

Friday, November 29, 2019

The Edutained American Essays - MTV, Now You See It, Brain Rules

The Edutained American The ?Edutained? American You may try to deny it; many of us do. We are our own people, with our own thoughts, feelings, and opinions. We are individuals, and nothing influences us without our knowledge and permission. Certainly not the media; we create the media, after all, and direct it with our own tastes and preferences. It is merely a part of our lives, a not-too pervasive part. We say this with absolute certainty and still know that we lie. For the media is not a part of our lives, it is our lives. It directs us, moves us towards what its creators, directors and sponsors want us to see. Everything we do is not media influenced, it is media-dictated. In some ways, our modern information systems are helpful. They are, after all, informative. From these systems we learn, we process the information they bring on current events, popular culture, and every other subject known to man. But the information is tainted. It is filtered through the corporate sponsors and the agendas of those who bring it to us. Therefore we bow to the opinions of those who give us our knowledge on every subject they expose us to, from the clothes we buy, to the music we listen to, the films we see, books we read, politicians we vote for, religions we believe in. Our thoughts are not our own. What does this mean to the world in which we live? How does this effect our leaders, our schools and our families? And in a society so permeated with media, how do we regain ourselves? Part One: What are our influences? For many of us who attend college now, the media has been around us since birth. The television was a effective babysitter, and we grew up accustomed to the quick, joke-a-minute style of cartoons and situation comedies. With the advent of MTV in 1981, we learned to absorb information through the two and three minute stories offered on that channel, as well as VH1 and BET. These channels opened to us a world that most of our parents simply didn't see as children. One hour of MTV's Total Request Live can show a child a re-enactment of JFK's assassination, done by Marylin Manson, in one of the most popular videos of the week. The words of the song, however true and relevant they may be, are lost in the image, in closeup and slow motion. Vidoes by pop bands, while less violent, are no less disturbing in their objectification of humans and in their motion sickness inducing, rapid-fire images. They cater to a generation that already suffers from shortened attention spans by providing whirling sights that can be easily understood in the half-second they are shown. They show a world of anger, violence and cynicism. True, they often reflect the feelings and actions in parts of the nation, but also bring those to the sight of impressionable children who would not otherwise have known of it until they were much older. At the same time, the video-babysitter separates child from parent and makes us reluctant to ask what these images meant. After all, we are led to identify with the musicians and models in the videos, and they often assure us that our parents do not understand and cannot be trusted. The information we soak up through these vignettes generally point to a distinct set of values, at odds with those of our parents. While they ask for respect and obedience within reason, we learn that adults are the outsiders, the butt of jokes and objects of ridicule, probably not very bright either. The regular television shows that we sit down to watch, often with our parents, are not much better. It has become much cooler to defy and be irreverent than to listen. This is certainly nothing new, one need only look at the flappers of the 1920s to see that youthful rebellion has been around for as long as anyone still alive can remember. It does seem, however, that the adolescent exuberance and resistance of the Baby Boomer generation became something very different for their children, something darker and dangerous. Of course, the television that they were raised with stressed old-fashioned family values: respect for elders, kindness to neighbors, do your homework, eat your broccoli. The shows that children and young adults watch now are very different. We see insults thrown left and right, especially

Monday, November 25, 2019

Definition Essay Sample on Mexican Drug Cartels

Definition Essay Sample on Mexican Drug Cartels Defining a Drug Cartel and Organized Crime There is no widely accepted definition of what a drug cartel is or the characteristics that define a drug cartel. To further complicate matters, there is no widely accepted definition of what characteristics define an organized crime group.   Law enforcement agencies and academics all utilize their own definitions.   To simplify matters, definitions of organized crime were chosen for comparison and defining purposes.   Specifically, the definitions I am referring to are those offered by Carter (1994) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (1994). In order to define a drug cartel, I have formed a definition of a drug cartel from pieces of other definitions.   These definitions are from the United Kingdoms Office of Fair Trading (2006), Joseph Finckenauer (2005), and David Carter (1994).   The definition used for a cartel is from the United Kingdom’s Office of Fair Trading, which defines a cartel as an agreement between businesses not to compete with each other (2006). Finckenauer (2005) argues that organized crime can be defined by crime of choice or organization or behavior.   This means that certain crimes such as drug trafficking require an organized structure, compared to homicide which can be conducted by a single person. David Carter gives a summary of characteristics of organized crime, which are Profit accumulation. Longevity. An organizational structure, which facilitates criminal activity. The use of violence. Efforts to corrupt government officials, police, and corporate officials (1994). Employing Carters definition combined with the definition of a cartel and taking Finckenauers argument into consideration, a description of a drug cartel begins to form.   However, these definitions do not clearly differentiate how a drug cartel is different from any other organized crime group.   Therefore, for the purpose of this thesis I have formed a definition of a drug cartel   from the above definitions and the research conducted into drug trafficking organizations.   The definition used for this thesis of a drug cartel is a structured group, which exists for an extended period of time.   A drug cartel is large in number of members, covers a large amount of territory, and has extensive connections with foreign and native criminal groups.   The group uses violence and corruption to continue its criminal activity, and its main source of profit is from drug trafficking. A drug cartel differs from a drug trafficking organization, because it is an amalgamation of independent organizations that agree to work together under the direction of specific leaders and a main boss.   A drug trafficking organization can be considered the single unit that when combined with other drug trafficking organizations form a drug cartel.   Not every Mexican drug trafficking organization is part of a cartel. The Beginnings of Drug Trafficking in El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Jurez El Paso, Texas is located at the farthest western point of Texas.   Northern and western routes lead into New Mexico.   Las Cruces, New Mexico is only a thirty to forty minute drive.   Jurez, Mexico is to the south, and can be accessed by any one of El Paso’s four international ports of entry.   El Paso and Jurez form the largest international metropolitan area in the world (Draper 1995).   Several major highways also pass through El Paso, which gives drug traffickers options for transportation and convenient access to the rest of the United States.   El Paso’s proximity to the border, major highways, and a major airport make it highly desirable to drug traffickers who need to move their goods quickly. Drug smuggling in Mexico was a substantial business several decades before Colombian drug cartels began to gain power.   In the nineteenth century, the opium trade between Mexico and the United States was a growing business due to an influx of Chinese immigrants into the Southwest United States (Lupsha and Schlegal 1980).   During World War II, the United States supply of illegal narcotics and various goods, such as rope, medicines, and tires became scarce in the United States.   Mexican smugglers were able to utilize the porous 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border to bring anything from hemp to heroin to U.S. citizens (Lupsha and Schlegal 1980).   Mexican smugglers simply added drugs to the various goods they transported into the United States (Poppa 1998).   Finckenauer, Fuentes, and Ward (2001) describe these smuggling groups as mom and pop distribution franchises.   These smaller groups utilized family connections to store and transport goods throughout the United States.   Mexico became a frontrunner in poppy and marijuana production, and these mom and pop smuggling groups began to grow into major crime families and informal criminal organizations (Lupsha and Schlegal 1980). During the 1970s, American law enforcement began to focus on the growing cocaine usage in the United States and specifically on Colombian drug cartels.   Slowly, American authorities learned that the Colombians were fond of using Caribbean routes to transport cocaine into the United States.   They used Florida heavily, especially Miami as a port of entry.   In the 1980s, American authorities began to tighten control over the drug flow through the Caribbean, and Colombian cartels had to find another route to get their product to the customers (Constantine Testimony 1995).   They began to utilize Mexican smugglers who had been penetrating the U.S.-Mexican borders for generations.   Chepesiuk (2003) argues that the Colombian use of the Mexican smuggling group was unavoidable.   The earliest reports of a Colombian presence in the El Paso/Jurez area are from 1983, when an operative arrived in Jurez to begin making contacts there.   The unknown operative belonged to the Medel lin cartel from Colombia, a notoriously violent cocaine trafficking organization (Draper 1995).   He arranged for the Medellin cartel to use the El Paso/Jurez port of entry as a crossing point.   The cartel would fly the cocaine into the interior of Mexico, and utilize the various Mexican smuggling families to transport the cocaine to the border and across into the United States, where a Medellin employee would meet the load and take it to its designated city (Draper 1995).   From this business arrangement, the Jurez cartel began to grow and establish itself as a major drug trafficking organization.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

House of Wisdom Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

House of Wisdom - Essay Example It is  impossible  to  envision  Western civilization without fruits of Arab science. Al- khwarizmi’s art of Algebra, the well researched and explained medical teachings and  philosophy  of Avicenna, the new geography and cartography introduced by al-idrisi or the  thorough  rationalism of Averroes (Jonathan, 2009). It is  evident  how uneducated the westerners were. Their leader was an  implacable  cleric who had appeared from nowhere to massive  popular  acclaim; he exhorted his charges to holy war against the infidels with promises of a home in paradise. Diseases and malnutrition were  rife. Medical care often involved exorcism or the amputation of the injured limb. Torture and other ordeals settled criminal cases. Few had any  learning  at all.  The little  education  that they had consisted of memorizing out dated texts under the watchful eyes of  hidebound  doctors of religion.  They did not understand basic technology, scien ce or mathematics. They could not  date  their most significant holy days nor could they  chart  the  regular  movement of the sun, moon and planets. Natural phenomena such as  eclipse  of the moon or a sudden change in  weather  terrified them; they thought it was black magic. Pope Uban II appealed to the princes in the French town of Clermont to end their  ceaseless  warring to  turn  their murderous energies on the unbelievers of the East. The  fighting  and denouncing of the Muslims by the European Christians and the Westerners began to  obscure  any  recognition  of the Muslim way of life and their contribution to science. This message consisted of four themes, some of which still resonate today. One was that Islam distorts the word of God, and the other was that Islam  was  solely  spread  by  violence. The third one was that Islam promoted pervertedsexuality  of humans by encouraging the  practice  of polygamy, for examp le, the way the sultans behaved in their Kingdoms, and through their excessively  modest  way  they carried themselves out. Finally, they also believed that the Antichrist was a muslim(Jonathan, 2009). These were just prejudices because some of the European philosophers, who had earlier denounced the Muslim way of life, later appreciated and acknowledged their contribution to  education  (Jonathan, 2009). As most Westerners denounced the Muslims, an Englishman named Aderlard of Bath one of the early pioneers of the Arab teachings who brought about the wonder of astronomy geometry astrology and other fields to the medieval West, looked at the Muslims differently, he left his home in search for education. In addition, he believed that the Muslims had the best education. He had no interest in the debaucheries of his fellow Europeans. Unlike the holy warriors unleashed by Pope Uban II, he had the  determination  to learn from the Muslims rather than killing them under the sign of the cross. While the crusaders saw only evil in the Muslim infidel, Aderlard sought the  light

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Western Imperialism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Western Imperialism - Essay Example Western imperialism is a recurrent theme in much of the historical and anthropological literature.By looking at a map of Africa, we can see a graphic example of how imperialism has affected the evolution of African countries and how the period of the "great empires" has devolved to "spheres of influence" in Africa today (Kindersley).The irony in analyzing imperialistic settling in Africa is that Africa provided the starting point for humanity over 2 million years ago. The great age of colonization from Europe started with the explorations of the Portuguese, shortly followed by the Spaniards, the Dutch, and then the rest of Europe.The English started the slave trade in the well-known "triangle" route between the UK, Africa and the Caribbean, starting in the early 1600's. On the route from the UK to West Africa, the ships' captains transported rum and trinkets, and sometimes firearms. They picked up slaves in West Africa, generally dealing with the coastal tribes who kidnapped or trade d for slaves from the interior of the Continent. The slaves were then transported to the Caribbean, generally to work on sugar plantations. At that point, the ships dropped off slaves and bought rum to transport back to the UK. The French began a similar trade, sourcing slaves for their plantations in the Caribbean.The rest of Africa was largely ignored until the Dutch settlers-the Boers-came to Southern Africa in the late 1700's. They co-settled with the English and engaged in wars against the tough native Zulus, Bantus and other tribes of the southern part of the Continent. The "golden," or "infamous," depending on your viewpoint, age of colonization was the 1800's. During that period, slavery declined but other forms of exploitation thrived. The discovery of gold and diamonds in South Africa and Rhodesia led to a renewed interest by Great Britain in that area. King Leopold of Belgium took over the Congo in the 1860's and ran it as a personal fiefdom for its mineral wealth. France took over what is now called French Africa (centered around the Ivory Coast), while Germany took what was then called Southwest Africa, but is now called Namibia. They also took Zambia. In East Africa, the British took Kenya and Tanganyika (now part of Tanzania), but failed to take the Sudan (Kitchener's famous routing in Khartoum). The French failed to take Madagascar, but took Reunion as an important naval base. They took Algeria, first as a French colony in the 1800's, then as a French "dpartement outre-mer," or non-contiguous state within France itself. The US only had a marginal role, with the 1820's founding of Liberia as a home for freed slaves. The capital of Liberia, Monrovia, was named after President James Monroe. In the early 1900's, the Italians managed to take Ethiopia. Their control was always loose, and generally limited to the Coptic Christian part of the country. During the Mussolini years of the 1920's and 1930's there was a constant low-level war, which resulted in Italy's loss of Ethiopia in the early 1940's as they pulled back their troops to the home country. Imperial rule in Africa varied from one conquering country to another. By far the worst human rights atrocities were committed by Belgium's King Leopold and his successors in the Congo and Rwanda, the two Belgian colonies in Africa. Brutal suppression by mercenaries kept the population down while the land was mined for copper, diamonds and gold. Probably the best (post-slavery) administrators were the French, who inculcated the West African colonies with language, investment and promotion of locals to important government posts. With independence in 1960 and beyond, the European colonists gradually abandoned their colonies. Portugal (Angola), Germany (Namibia) and Belgium (Congo and Rwanda) have the least to do with their former charges. France has retained stronger contacts through the CFA zone (there is

Monday, November 18, 2019

Interactions Between Policymakers And Scientists Essay

Interactions Between Policymakers And Scientists - Essay Example The understanding of the political leaders often originates from those whom they interact with and their environment. Hence, knowledge due to scientist interacting with policymakers and politicians contribute significantly in trying to find the solutions to the global warming while formulating regulations. Global warming brings together the policy makers and scientists who try to determine causes and possible solution. The continuous exchange of ideas between scientists and policymakers across the globe shows the urgency of the matter. Moreover, these interactions between scientists and policymakers define the types of regulations in place in trying to control climate change. Governments use many ways in an attempt to control climate change based on the scientific evidence. However, there are opposing groups of people that view climate change as a natural factor that does not require human intervention (Humphreys, Blowers, James & Jehlicka, p. 17). This contradicting opinions and uncertainty from science play a significant role in the formation of climate change policies. In the scientific context, uncertainty involves lack of understanding or measurement of something. In the past, scientists had limited access to policymakers that deterred their interaction and exchange of ideas. The scientist had the knowledge of possible future impacts if people take no actions to limit the emission of global warming. However, the passing scientific knowledge to politicians proved challenging until the introduction of scientists in the government department. Besides, the formation of IPCC involving both policymakers and scientists increased their interaction (Humphreys, Blowers, James & Jehlicka, p. 75). There were also limitations in passing the information between the policymakers and scientists due to the language that scientist used in the description.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Procter Gamble: Business Model

Procter Gamble: Business Model Business level strategy: Procter and gamble (Strategies and recommendations) Executive Summary William Procter and James Gamble founded Procter and Gamble in the year of 1837, and started working as a candle and soap maker. It is a consumer goods manufacturing company whose slogan is improving lives and moving towards betterment with time. Unique Selling Preposition of Procter Gamble is â€Å"our one product is equal to one vaccine towards the betterment of consumers†. It sells the products in more than 180 countries around the globe. It has also undertaken a number of brands, one of them are Revlon. The product being offered by Procter Gamble are health care, grooming, beauty, home care and fabric, family and baby care, pet care and snacks. Some of the company’s items earned a profit of $1 billion each year and some around $50 million annually. Procter Gamble is on maturity stage and potential competitors are Unilever, L’Oreal. It is facing fierce competition by competitors. Since it is one of the most growing companies, it has captured thousands of mi nds all over the world. It operates in countries like China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, India, Indonesia etc. the strategies of Procter Gamble in order to sustain its goodwill and profitability in the market are: availability of its products, concentration on growing opportunities, evolving more products, concentrating on most strong and profitable markets, devoting and dedication towards research and development etc. products being offered by the company are Ariel, Tide, Vicks, Crest Tooth Paste, Gillette products, Head Shoulder shampoo, Olay, Oral-B, Pantene, Always, Bounce, Herbal Essence, Ivory soap, Gain, Whisper, Mr. Clean, Puffs tissues, Safeguard soaps etc. OVERVIEW OF OFFERINGS AND CUSTOMER SEGMENTS OF THE COMPANY PROCTER AND GAMBLE Procter and Gamble is an American based company, known as PG mostly, is one of the largest and leading multinational consumer goods and manufacturing company which operates all over the world (Ranker, 2015) since 1837 till Today and offering jobs to the millions of people from all around the world (PG, 2015). Procter Gamble was founded and named on William Procter and James Gamble. It deals with multiple natures of products such as hair care products, personal care products including cosmetics (Nguyen, 2013), tissues, odor control products, home care products such as detergent and much more (PG, 2014). Company says â€Å"We are in the business of making life better every day, our each packet is equal to each vaccine towards the betterment and enhancement† (PG, 2014) and it is working firmly on that. Millions and billions of customers uses PG’s products which satisfies their needs and demand they like it to be (PG, 2014). Multiple of brands are associated with this company whose profitability touches more that $1 Billion each year (PG, 2015). Some of those star brands are Ariel, Tide, Vicks, Crest Tooth Paste, Gillette products, Head Shoulder shampoo, Olay, Oral-B, Pantene (PG, 2014), Always, Bounce, Herbal Essence (Forbes, 2014), Ivory soap, Gain, Whisper, Mr. Clean, Puffs tissues, Safeguard soaps which earns net profit of Billions of US Dollars every twelve months (PG, 2014). Procter and Gamble serves more than 180 countries and 6.5 million customers across the globe (PG, 2014). It operates in Asia (Japan, China, Hong Kong, Korea, New Zealand, India, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, Pakistan, Turkey, and Bangladesh etc) (PG, 2015), Latin America, North America and Western Europe. It has its head quarters in Singapore for Asian region (Lafley, 2008). Critical discussion And Strategies of Procter and Gamble: One of the most important and say efficient strategy of Procter Gamble is availability of its products (Global-Operations, n.d.). Products manufactured by this company are highly available worldwide and are being offered and sold on convenience stores, super markets, hotels, motels, retailers, wholesalers, drug stores and intermediaries (MIT, 2015). The product availability of the company gives it an edge and makes it far superior that its competitors like Unilevers etc (SlideShare, 2015). Consumers get products easily and effortlessly when they are in need of a vaccine to make their life better (Favaro, 2013). The availability and accessibility of the specific products makes it brand brawny and hefty (PG, 2015). This in turns makes customer loyalty towards the brand much tough and muscular with time and targeted customers start trusting the brand, and same is the case with Procter Gamble (PG, 2015). Supply chain of the brand is as strong as it needs to be in order to result in a s uccessful chain management (Favaro, 2013). Likewise many other competitors of the brand, PG a further strategy is Research and Development (Riley, 2014). Brand devote approximately $2 billion each year on its RD department contains 8000 employees around the world (Ng, 2015). In spite of having 8000 employees in its RD department, company somehow failed to initiate a further brand successfully (Nisen, 2013). Hence, it faced intricacy regarding the department. One of the professors, named Charles Fine suggested the company to have a view on the world as innovation lab (SlideShare, 2012). Subsequently they start sourcing innovation through valued supply chain network as they deals the customer on one on one basis because of which they are rich on the drawbacks as well as the complains for products (MODE, 2015). This step resulted in innovation success rate three times than it was before. To take advantage of the advice, PG also launched its own website which motivates and welcomes innovations as well as feedback by the targeted customers, shareholders, stakeholders, partners and general public for further enhancement of the products (Khosla Sawhney, 2014). Another significant strategy being applied by Procter Gamble as an efficient and effective tool is change management (GCI, 2014). The company observes and on the blink of an eye takes action to bring up the change and exploit the opportunity to meet consumer’s expectation on the very first place (Neff, 2014). As competition is growing faster and fastest, very next moment involves business bodies in the shock of sudden and significant change. PG is a brand, who knows splendidly about their vision (Tode, 2014). Company takes change management as its one of the most crucial and unavoidable manner (Lafley, 2014). Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care, said by Theodore Roosevelt (Forbes, 2012). Famous saying that is being followed by PG as it should be as it focuses and devotes more of its attention and care to the products who works as stars in portfolio and because of which entire corporation is enjoying free lunches, such as US market is strongest market being targeted by PG (SlideShare, 2012) and they are continuously treating it as focal point with jam-packed devotion and dedication in order to make it strongest (PG, 2014). Before finishing the strategy, I more point to be mentioned is Procter Gamble’s strategy is concentrating on improving operations, at least better than competitors (SlideShare, 2013). This is one of the rich ways to win customers trust and loyalty towards the brand (PG, 2014). When introducing to one more line of attack of Procter Gamble, it is essential to say that to uphold and retain its brand image; it is all about captivating trust and confidence from the targeted segment of market (Pakistan-Business-Journal, 2015). At the end of the day, all the steps, strategies, planning, developing and designing starting from a scratch is followed by a reason of winning trust and loyalty from customers because when nothing else seems to be helpful, this tactic does and it is not a piece of cake to get one’s trust. It takes abundant of efforts and plentiful of care, since one slip can destroy the whole. One more strategy being introduced recently by Procter Gamble is â€Å"Connect+Develop†. In this age of advancement, where the whole of the universe has become a global village, the connection is necessary for any company to float up in the lively market with its loyal consumers. However, in this social age, in which each and every individual is socializing has made us little more aware about our surroundings and circumstances taking place in this village (PG, 2015). Bruce Brown, Chief Technology Officer said â€Å"this strategy has helped us to deliver a number of successful and leading innovations which has accelerated the growth of Procter Gamble critically†. The company is by hook or by crook managing to uphold this strategy and maintain its prospering innovation rate. Laura Becker, General Manager said that they wanted develop and connect themselves in order to deliver products that has a greater level of innovation such as Swiffer Dusters which has broken down the innovations for market place manipulation. Moreover, she also stated that a category of products will be made that changes marketplace, and attracts customers which claim that they require the company’s products as they fulfill their requirement as per their wishes (PG, 2012). RECOMMENDATIONS In order to maintain its position in the market, Procter Gamble should keep an eye on its most profitable brands and products to even polish them so that not any competitor would have been able to eradicate the demand of leading products. For example, Swiffer Dusters-a product introduced by PG which changed the direction of market trend so seriously. As market conditions and market trends are changing so drastically these days, Procter Gamble should have a close look than its competitors to innovate and exploit opportunity from the changing trends of market. If brand to be a brand get successful innovations, it could have touch top position in the markets as well as in the sights of consumers, investors, shareholders, stockholders and regulating bodies. Creating a recommendation culture could aid to Procter Gamble for being more victorious and unbeaten company in the market. Motivating and encouraging culture could be proved as back bone behind the success of the brand. Managing change as soon as possible could also be proved as a strong tool behind the success. Since incorporating change in this unpredictable competing environment cold give support to the accomplishment of goals, reaching to the vision and creating win-win situation at the end of both, consumers and company. Better growth opportunities to the employees will in return adds to employee’s sincerity and dedication towards work. Employees, who are the core bodies of any organization, will work dedicatedly and devotedly for their organizations, this will result in better quality works and services to the organization. Quality assurance and image building could also prove to be helpful to capture the minds of targeted consumers. CONCLUSION Procter Gamble was founded by William Procter and James Gamble. It deals with multiple products such as hair care products, personal care products including cosmetics. Millions and billions of customers uses PG’s products which satisfy their needs and demand. Procter and Gamble serves more than 180 countries and 6.5 million customers across the globe. One of the most important and efficient strategy of Procter Gamble was found to be its item’s availability. Consumers get products easily and effortlessly when they are in need of a vaccine. The availability and accessibility of the specific products makes it brand brawny and hefty. This in turns makes customer loyalty towards the brand much tough and muscular with time and targeted customers start trusting the brand, and same is the case with Procter Gamble. Supply chain of the brand is as strong as it needs to be in order to result in a successful chain management. The company observes and takes action to bring up cha nge and exploit the opportunity to meet consumer’s expectation at instant. Company takes change management as its one of the most crucial and unavoidable manner. Bibliography Favaro, K., 2013. Does PG Need Product Innovation or Strategic Innovation?. [Online]  Available at: http://www.strategy-business.com/blog/Does-PG-Need-Product-Innovation-or-Strategic-Innovation?gko=b27ca [Accessed 12 February 2015]. Favaro, K., 2013. Does PG Need Product Innovation or Strategic Innovation?. [Online]  Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/boozandcompany/2013/07/12/does-pg-need-product-innovation-or-strategic-innovation/ [Accessed 12 February 2015]. Forbes, 2012. The Perfect Marketing Strategy for Soap, Soda, and Startups. [Online] Available  at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/brianclark/2012/04/24/entreproducer/ [Accessed 12 February 2015]. Forbes, 2014. Procter Gamble. [Online] Available at:  http://www.forbes.com/companies/procter-gamble/ [Accessed 12 February 2015]. GCI, 2014. The Strategy Behind PG’s Divestments. 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Wednesday, November 13, 2019

The Only Man I have Ever Loved Essay -- miscellaneous

The Only Man I have Ever Loved Life is a made up of a collection of moments. Some people say that one must learn from obstacles that everyone struggles with. Some people say that every challenge helps to achieve stregth of character and self-growth. Ever since I remember, the most significant change in my life was the loss of my father. Even though it was a very hurtful experience, it helped me to know myself better as a person, realize that I can realize on myself and understand what an inspiration my father was and still is to me. First of all, everything was special and different when my dad was alive. Since he was the one who maintained the family economically, there was nothing to discuss about when he had made a decision. For instance, when I was a teenager, my dad always wanted me to join the art group at school, which was noticeably unpopular among the students at my high school. Since I would do anything to keep my dad happy, I decided to join the art group in spite of my dislike of drawing. At that time I had the idea that I didn't know what I was going to do with my future. I was suppose to go to engineering school just because dad said so. As time evolved, I recognized that I wasn't going to be satisfied working in a field that didn't seem interesting to me. When my father died, I understood that I was the one responsible for building my future, and that was when I actually started to work on what I really enjoy doing: science. By working in that area, I fe...