Copying and Simulation

Copying and simulation are two very different, yet very similar things people often misinterpret. In the process of copying, an identical clone of the original work is produced. On the other hand, the process of simulation can be defined as creating a different material with similar characteristics and a much similar output. Copying is an easy, fool proof way to create an efficient and correctly functioning piece of work, while as simulation is more complicated.Simulation, on the other hand, is much more complicated. In simulation, a much modified version of the object, one that fulfills the purpose of the initial object is created. Examples of copying are all around us. A simple example is the duplication of the DNA in a cell during the basic cellular process of mitosis. Another example is photocopying your friend's notes for an upcoming test or assignment. Another example is mass production of identical materials in a factory.Examples of simulation are more common than copying. The most basic example of simulation is the human race, where there are people possessing emotional and physical trait that are very different, yet al are able to accomplish the same tasks. All humans eat, sleep, drink and socialize, but not all them do so in the same way. Humans were also created for the same purpose, therefore meeting the criteria of simulation. Another example of simulation is various types of phones.While they all work to accomplish the same tasks, they contain different processors, and come in various shapes and sized. Copying and simulation are two valuable processes with many similarities and differences. While copying must produce an identical version of the object, simulation creates something that must only be similar in purpose and result. Copying and similar are extremely different, yet extremely similar. By Miriam-H. Raga

Strategic Planning – Ibm 2009

CASE ANALYSIS: IBM IN 2009 Analysis Industry: Computer Services Industry Porter’s 5 Forces 1) Risk of entry by potential competitors The risk of entry by potential competitors is relatively low (+). This is due to the newly entrant competitors that need a large market capitalization, software materials, services and consulting; to gain consumer’s interests. If consumers are able to choose buying their products from a large company that are adequate in the computer hardware, services and consulting, other technological services, they would rather choose a large firm than a smaller firm that do not have adequate resources. ) The intensity of rivalry among established companies within an industry The intensity of rivalry among established companies within this industry is relatively high (-). This is because there are big firms such as Oracle that are neck in neck with other large firms such as IBM, trying to acquire every software there is that helps them gain a competiti ve advantage. 3) The bargaining power of buyers The bargaining power of buyers is relatively low (+). This is because in this industry that is supplying a particular product or service is not composed of many small companies and the buyers are large and few in number. Also, buyers are unable to purchase in quantity, because many of the firms in this industry offer services and consulting, and software that buyers use. 4) The bargaining power of suppliers The bargaining power of suppliers is relatively high (-). This is because the product that suppliers sell has few substitutes, and the profitability of suppliers is not significantly affected by the purchases of companies in this industry. Also, switching costs are great as consumers will need to move from their original product to another supplier. 5) The closeness of Substitutes to an industry’s product The closeness of substitutes to an industry’s product is relatively low (+). There are hardly any substitutes as for many consumers, the importance of the market for technology products and a source of high-tech workers for serving these types of software when consumers need help. The less technological advanced products are unable to satisfy similar customer needs. Forces – Conclusion: This industry is a 3 star industry. What IBM should do is: * IBM should use their competitive advantage to surpass their competitors, and be the monopoly in the industry, instead of being in a competition neck-in neck with other leading competitors * Since the product that suppliers sells has few substitutes, and the bargaining power is extremely high, IBM should acquire the supplying companies, to reduce their cos ts some more, and for suppliers not to have the bargaining power that they have currently. Life Cycle: Growth stage * E. G. In this industry, it is growing because consumers are becoming more and more familiar with the now technology-advanced products when technology in the world is advancing rapidly. Also, most of the large firms usually have control over technological knowledge as a barrier to entry which diminishes most of the smaller firms, which lessens the chance of a new entrant. The Value Chain IT Provides low cost-traditional IT services or value-creating, customizing consultant solutions depend on it having the distinctive competencies to develop state-of-the-art software applications across business processes and industries * Recent advances have increased the power of business intelligence software to identify ongoing changes and forecasts many events after acquiring Cognos (software) * Another advancement was that the IT department came up with a new initiative to make it easier for geographically dispersed people to interact and collaborate without the time a nd expense of in-person meetings. They were using virtual technology which other people inside and between companies to exchange instant messages, chat verbally, share real-time presentations, and virtual meetings Hardware * The systems and technology group put its resources into developing new kinds of mainframes and servers that would appeal to a wider number of customer groups and expand global sales. This will give them more power and flexibility for the IT product they buy from IBM * Currently IBM sells its mainframes directly to customers through its own sales force to protect lucrative software and service revenues that accompany these sales. By doing that, IBM’s mainframe installed base had doubled because IBM’s ability to deliver increasing amounts of processing power to customers at a decreasing cost * Such as self-contained server would eliminate the need for expensive IT consulting and service; it would offer companies with a low-cost alternative and companies could simply order as many of Cisco’s (one of the acquired software) server racks as needed to operate or expand their business Competitive Advantage Distinctive Competencies: are firm specific strengths that allow a company to differentiate its products from those offered by rivals and/or achieve substantially lower costs than its rivals. IBM’s distinctive competencies is acquiring the different servers and software to help the company gain a competitive advantage as the company integrated many technological advanced products that surpasses other firms in the industry Intangible Resources: are nonphysical entities that are created by managers and other employees, such as brand names, the reputation of the company, the knowledge that employees have gained through experience, and the intellectual property of the company, including that protected through patents, copyrights, and trademarks. The intangible source here is the brand name and reputation that IBM had built all these years, leading to one of the top companies in the computer service business. Capabilities: refer to a company’s skills at coordinating its reso urces and putting them to productive use. * IBM’s skills at coordinating its resources and putting them to good and productive use by the drive to focus the efforts of all IBM employees on satisfying the needs of clients was one of the capabilities that made IBM have this competitive advantage Functional-Level Strategies EFFICIENCY * The simplest measure of efficiency is the quantity of inputs that it takes to produce a given output; the more efficient a company is, the fewer the inputs required to produce a given output and the lower its cost structure will be. * E. G. In 2007, IBM spent $11. 8 billion to acquire 36 software and 18 service companies in the fields such as security, data management, and Web commerce * QUALITY * The CEO’s strategy was to focus on high-profit margin products that directly complemented its service and software offerings. IBM had sold off its PC business to Lenovo; its disk drive business to Hitachi, and its printer business to Ricoh. By doing this, IBM is able to focus on high-profit margin products and ditch the failing products in the company that are sold off to other companies * INNOVATION * By keeping up with the technology advancements, IBM had announced a new â€Å"virtual world† IT initiative to make it easier for geographical dispersed people to interact and collaborate without the time and expense of in-person meetings. These virtual worlds are interactive, immersive Web sites based on the use of three-dimensional graphics. This allows people to exchange instant messages, chat verbally, share real-time presentations and ideas in private, virtual meeting spaces that exist permanently in real time so people can meet on regular, periodic, or impromptu bases. * CUSTOMER RESPONSIVENESS * At this stage, the sales of its new mainframes of IBM were up by 25%; software revenue rose 5%, helped by increasing sales of its popular WebSphere software package that improves the performance of a company’s electronic commerce and business applications Building Competitive Advantage Through Business-Level Strategy Competitive Positioning High Market Segmentation * What IBM is doing is high market segmentation where they could choose to recognize the differences between customer groups and make a product targeted toward most or all of the different market segments. The customer responsiveness and high and products are being customized to meet the needs of customers in each group. * E. G. IBM had shifted its products to higher profit-margin services and automating traditional business processes such as procurement, finance and human resources which was leading to increasing numbers of long-term service contracts between large firms. Differentiators * Clearly, IBM is a differentiator. This is due to how IBM was able to acquire different software from companies which then was able to offer clients high profit-margin software application to satisfy their needs. IBM was able to differentiate their products from the leading competitors and satisfy consumers that the other competitors clearly could not Business-Level Strategy and the Industry Environment Main strategies that companies can adopt to deal with decline: * Leadership strategy The speed of decline and the intensity of competition in the declining industry are moderate. Through aggressive acquisitions, IBM was able to acquire much software to create high profit-margin products to satisfy customer needs and to also provide clients with their best service and consulting. The open standards approach that Gerstner’s approach was that as IBM’s consultants went from client to client assessing their needs; they were able to provide detailed feedback to IBM’s other divisions about whether their products were adequately meeting clients’ needs. Gerstner’s strong focus on being close to clients had the additional advantage of spurring innovation throughout the organization. Chaining * They establish networks of linked merchandising outlets that are interconnected by IT and function as one large company. The enormous buying power these companies possess through their chain of nationwide stores allows them to negotiate large price reductions with suppliers that promote their competitive advantage * With IBM, the company is able to link with other software companies and IT back up servers that could connect as one large company. By doing so, it allows IBM to create a competitive advantage in regards to price reduction from suppliers. Strategy & Technology Technological Paradigm Shifts * This occurs when new technologies come along that revolutionize the structure of the industry, dramatically alter the nature of competition, and require companies to adopt new strategies to survive. * E. G. When technology has been advancing, IBM innovated a new product that made geographical dispersed people to interact and collaborate without the time and expense of in-person meetings called the new â€Å"virtual world† from the IT department. Also, IBM had put its resources to good use by developing new kinds of mainframes and servers that would appeal to a wider number of customers groups and expand global sales. Proprietary standard * Establishing a proprietary standard as the industry standard may require the company to win a format war against a competing and incompatible standard. Strategies for doing this include producing complementary products, leveraging killer applications, using aggressive pricing and marketing, licensing the technology, and cooperating with competitors * E. G. IBM could produce complementary products, leverage killer software that they have been acquiring and perfecting it, also using aggressive pricing and marketing to let gain new consumers. Strategy in the Global Market By serving as a global market, a company can potentially utilize its production facilities more intensively, which leads to higher productivity, lower costs and greater profitability. Global sales also increase the size of the enterprise, so its bargaining power with suppliers increase, which may allow it to bargain down the cost of key inputs and boost more profitability. IBM made the investment to establish huge, low-cost service delivery centers for its global clients by improving the software necessary to automate the management of networks and data centers, and develop IT to improve telecommunications, especially Internet services. From India, IBM runs a whole range of IT services for its global customers. In Bangalore, IBM has a command center that monitors the ope ration of the database server networks of more than 16,000 clients. Through this, IBM was forced to eliminate 20,000 jobs in Europe and the US, and move these jobs to India as the cost of labour in India is significantly low. Corporate Level Strategy Vertical Integration * This could enable IBM to achieve a competitive advantage by helping build barriers to entry, facilitating investments in specialized assets, protecting product quality, and helping to improve scheduling between adjacent stages in the value chain * One of the disadvantages is that it increases bureaucratic costs if IBM’s supplier becomes lazy or inefficient, and it reduces flexibility when technology is changing fast or demand is uncertain Strategy Outsourcing By strategic outsourcing of value creation activities, it may allow a company to lower its costs, better differentiate its products, and make better use of scarce resources, while also enabling it to respond rapidly to changing market conditions * One of the disadvantages is that if IBM outsources important value creation activities or becomes too dependent on the key suppliers of those activities * IBM has invested in India to take advantage of its growing importance as a m arket for technology products and a source of high-technology workers. IBM made the investment to establish huge, low-cost service delivery centers for its global clients, improve the software necessary to automate the management of networks and data centers, and develop IT to improve telecommunications. IBM runs a whole range of IT services for its global customers, including software delivery services such as upgrading and maintaining client software and managing and protecting database centers in India. Also in Bangalore, IBM has a command center that monitors the operation of the database server networks. The largest of IBM’s three global IT service centers are in India, Brazil, and China. IBM’s scope was to expand traditional outsourcing operations and attract more and more global clients to compensate for reduced profit margins so it can still increase profits from this group. Related and Unrelated Diversification Acquisitions * Acquisitions are used to pursue vertical integration or diversification when a company lacks the distinctive competencies necessary to compete in the industry. Acquisitions are often perceived as being less risky than internal new ventures because they involve less commercial uncertainty. * IBM has done many acquisitions, such as Lotus, CenterPoint Energy, Phillippines PSBank, PTT Chemical Public Company of Thailand, Skynet in Lithuania, Cognos etc. which helps IBM increase its expertise in specialized IT services to strengthen its competitive advantage Corporate Performance, Governance, and Business Ethics ROIC 1) Participate in growing market 2) Take market share from competitors ) Consolidate industry through horizontal integration 4) International expansion, vertical integration or diversification * E. G. For IBM, pursing strategies to maximize profitability and profit growth helps a company to better satisfy the demands that several stakeholder groups place on it, not the other way around. Also, by maximizing returns to stockholders, IBM could boost its profitability and profit growth rate to be consistent in satisfying the claims of s everal other key stakeholder groups. Ethics * Despite the argument that maximizing long-run profitability and profit growth is the best way to satisfy the claims of several key stakeholder groups, a company must do so within the limits set by the law and in a manner consistent with societal expectations * It is incumbent on managers at IBM to make sure that the company is in compliance with these laws when pursuing strategies. Unfortunately, there is plenty of evidence that managers can be tempted to cross the line between the legal and illegal in their pursuit of greater profitability and profit growth. IBM could hold many various seminars on the topic of ethics and to try and implement ethical protocols when dealing with an issue that arises. Implementing Strategy in Companies that Compete in a Single Industry Strategic Reward Systems * Organizations strive to control employees’ behavior by linking reward systems to their control systems. Based on a IBM’s strategy (cost leadership or differentiation), strategic manager must decide which behaviors to reward. Selecting, Developing an Action/Implementation Plan * Disadvantage of acquisitions * Many acquisitions fail to increase the profitability of the acquiring company and may result in losses. Acquisition may fail to raise the performance of the acquiring companies suggesting that acquisitions usually destroy rather than create value. As IBM is acquiring many types of software to enhance its competitive advantage, but it may fail to raise the performance of the acquiring companies for four reasons * Companies frequently experience management problems when they attempt to integrate a different company’s organizational structure and culture into their own * Companies often overestimate the potential economic benefits from an acquisition * Acquisitions tend to be so expensive that they do not increase future profitability * Companies are often negligent in s creening their acquisition targets and fail to recognize important problems with their business models * IBM should be firm on their management organization structure to refrain any management problems with IBM makes an acquisition * IBM should weight out all the pros and cons to distinguish whether the acquisition is beneficial to the company or not. Also, when doing the acquisition, IBM should think of all the important problems that align with their current business model * Outsourcing * IBM will fail when their profitability is now substantially lower than the average profitability of its competitors; it has lost the ability to attract and generate resources, so its profit margins and invested capitals are shrinking rapidly. IBM will have to acquire many new software to keep their competitive advantage * IBM should incorporate quality control in those countries that they have outsourced their services and consulting to continue to attract and generate resources and have profit margins still high

Muscle movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Muscle movement - Essay Example ment to the muscles and many sets of muscles in the body work together in conjunction with each other in the form of various types of levers to bring about movement as a whole process. The typical skeletal muscle consists of three parts: It’s origin from a bone where it is attached to a large area, its main body of muscular tissue and the insertion at the other end which is in the form of a glistening white tendon. The body of the muscle is made up of hundreds of cylindrical fibers which usually run all the way from the origin to the insertion. These cylindrical fibers are composed of an array of myofibrils which are a specialized category of animal cells. Each muscle fiber develops from the fusion of many cells called myoblasts. Muscles contract by the action of Acetyl choline, a neurotransmitter secreted through the nerves which brings about a change in the action potential at the neuromuscular synapse leading to binding of actin and myosin molecules and bringing about contraction. Antagonistic Muscles: For every group of muscles that move a specific portion of the body, there is an opposite group of muscles which brings about the opposite movement. Such pairs of muscles are called antagonistic muscles. The main pairs of antagonistic muscles and their respective movements are explained below: 1. Biceps-Triceps: The upper end of the biceps or its origin is at the scapula and its other end or insertion is on the radius bone of the forearm. Contraction of biceps brings about flexion or rising of the forearm and is called a flexor muscle. The antagonistic triceps relaxes at this time. The triceps is located behind the upper arm and its origin is at the scapula as well as the Humerus bone in the upper arm and the point of insertion is at the Olecranon process of the ulna. Its contraction brings about straightening of the arm and hence it is known as an extensor muscle. 2. Anterior tibialis and gastrocnemius muscles: This pair is located in the lower leg. When a

Familial Duty and Responsibility Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 13

Familial Duty and Responsibility - Essay Example In the east, familial duty is extremely important. This duty creates a bond between family members that help create a strong society. One example of the loyalty is towards the elderly. Children feel a duty to care for elderly parents. Instead of placing their elderly in nursing homes or elderly retirement centers, it is common for three or four generations to live under one roof. This not only helps the elderly but the whole family unit. Both parents can work outside of the home, while grandparents can watch their grandchildren. This helps family finances by eliminating not only the cost of caring for an elderly parent outside the home but the cost of daycare as well. The advantages of having several generations in one house can benefit more than the family, but society as a whole. If grandparents are home when children go and come home from school, children are less likely to get into trouble. If a child does get into trouble, an adult is there to handle the problem. Teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol use, criminal activity, and other mischiefs would be controlled by a loving grandparent. Another example of how familial loyalty could benefit Americans would be in the marriage. In the east, duty comes first. Marriage is a duty. In America, many individuals do what makes them individually happy, not what makes others happy. Extramarital affairs and divorce are common. This breaks the familial unit. For Americans to embrace and benefit the eastern way of life, marriage would have to be taken more seriously. When an individual does what makes them happy, then others around them do the same. Americans have forgotten to treat people how they want to be treated. Why would children want to take care of parents that put them through messy divorces? Divorced parents do not understand why children grow up so bitter.  Ã‚  

Global Warming is Media Hyped Hysteria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Global Warming is Media Hyped Hysteria - Essay Example The first article has been published by an environmental agency and therefore, it has used ethos in its writing to convince the readers. The use of scientific explanations and relevant theories are used to explain the drastic ramifications of global warming. ‘trading program would harness American ingenuity to decrease heat-trapping pollution, cost-effectively..’(EDF). The Second article, on the other hand, is a speech by a political leader and therefore, one is able to find the text full of pathos and logos to sway the public perception. Inhofe has cleverly used creative imagery and mental images to provide a relatively coherent explanation for his arguments. ‘Advocates of alarmism have grown increasingly desperate†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Inhofe). The first article lacks emotional appeal and relies heavily on scientific facts which are stark in their explanation and therefore, fail to impress the common man. Inhofe, on the other hand, has combined logos in his pathos. Citing previous press releases, Inhofe’s rhetoric of the discourse was designed to inflame the feeling of outrage against the media hype and has asked ‘if CO2 is the driving force for global climate change, why do so many in the media ignore the many skeptical scientists who cite these rather inconvenient truths?’. The structured and well laid out article has tried to explore the issue through the myths that are common among the masses but the lackluster style has failed to convince the masses because it is not tempered with modules that have a significant impact on human emotions. Inhofe has shown that facts and figures need to be used in a manner that it can impact the human psyche through clichà ©s and metaphors. â€Å"’60 Minutes’ failed to inform its viewers that a 2005 study by Ola†¦.that the interiors of Greenland are gaining ice and mass and that†¦ The Arctic was warmer in the 1930s than today†.  

Patch 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Patch 1 - Essay Example In order to impart education effectively, teachers have to adopt appropriate and efficient resources according to nature of the lesson. One of these resources is Information Communication technology which has stemmed out of technology-enhanced learning. Technology-enhanced learning depicts usage of technology in overall learning process. It is often misunderstood as E-learning, however it refers to use of technology which facilitates interaction between the instructor and student. Usage of technology allows the students to perform critical analysis by immersing themselves in learning and deduce meaningful information out of the content that is being shown to them. This technique allows students to perform self-directed questioning that facilitates two-way learning between teacher and student. Web-based learning and study guides through selected CD-ROM based lessons can be effective resources for technology enhanced learning. The rationale behind this tool is based on Kolb’s ex periential learning theory (1971) and Schank’s learning by doing (2010). These theories illustrate that experiencing the learning process, breaking down information into manageable bits and processing them is further facilitated when a student is actively engaged in them. If a student is asked to visit several websites about museums and analyze their differences accordingly, they are actually undergoing a virtual tour which enhances their meta-cognitive and problem solving skills. Furthermore, engaging student in writing a report about this tour with the help of ICT tools such as Word processing tools would help them perform more analysis and share their inputs about what they have learned. Allowing students to view content available on Web makes them perform critical analysis, find out relevant information and deduce meaning out of it. Although it is a tedious process that requires teacher’s supervision but it is more efficient in engaging students instead of simple i nstruction based lectures. In order to enhance overall language development and learning in students, it is important that they are made to think and transform their thoughts in appropriate words. For this purpose, using interactive whiteboards and videos can be effective media. Using whiteboards, drawing diagrams and flowcharts helps students to think through teacher’s instructions and correspond to them accordingly. Therefore, information is being received, processed and illustrated in the form of questions and feedback by students. Furthermore, using videos and audios help students to use experiential learning strategies and perform mind mapping which not only gives meanings to words but also make them more memorable by attaching images to them. Learning appropriate dialect can be facilitated by allowing students to imitate teacher’s words and figure out meaning from them. Usually teachers in communication classes use audio aids which help students understand approp riateness of different communication styles and vocabulary usage. According to Genishi (1988), children learn better

Christianity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Christianity - Essay Example Little is known about the origin of the historical Jesus. According to the Biblical accounts, Jesus is born by Mary in a stable during the Jew’s celebration of the Feast of the Light. The accounts also show that he is born during the time of a social and political turmoil in the Jewish nation because of the Roman invasion. The people are expecting a Messiah which will overthrow the abusive leader and who will save them from their destitute condition. However, Jesus Christ, the Messiah of the Christians is born in a manger which has also been predicted in the Bible’s Old Testament. Jesus is the single most important figure in Christianity. However, the deity of Christ is always often debated in the Christian world. While some sects believe that Jesus is the Son in the godhead, others believe that He is an incarnation of the Father himself, while still others believe that he is just human but not god. In Islam, Jesus is believed to be the greatest prophet of Mohammad. During Jesus’ time, He is opposed by the Jews because of their claim that He is destroying the law given to Moses by God himself. However, Jesus explained to them that he is not sent in the world to destroy the law but to fulfill it. It should be noted that through enough Jesus preaches the same law in the Ten Commandments. The first four laws, He summarized as loving God with all thy heart, soul, and mind while the last six He summarized as loving other people as one’s self. This is at the heart of Jesus message—for a man to have a personal relationship with his God and a harm onious relationship with his fellowmen.

Developing Competitive Advantage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Developing Competitive Advantage - Essay Example In analyzing the information sharing, this paper will look at relevant examples so as to elaborate on the inherent need of information to both the customers and the firms. Discussion The supply chain becomes more efficient with the increased coordination of activities due to automation. Consequently, the need for inventories is reduced. Proctor and Gamble (P&G) is a company that has been operational in the world for a long time. The manufacturer has a relationship with the retailer Wal-Mart (Clark & Lee 2000, p. 126). The relationship between the two companies has to be analyzed from a transactional perspective as well as from an operational and strategic one. The two companies, apart from sharing information with each other have gone ahead to share the same information with their customers. This has stemmed from the need by the companies to involve their customers in the pricing of products as well as increasing the value of these products. The basis of the relationship between the companies and the customers is based on mutual trust. P&G and Wal-Mart are not only partners but also competitors. Therefore, the trend that they have set in the sharing of information can be analyzed from the benefits that the two derive from being in a relationship with each other as well as with their customers. The sharing of information has to be approached cautiously. Naturally, many companies are skeptical that the information that they share with the customers as well as competitors would be used in a negative manner which may hurt the company’s profitability. Doctors concede that the patient they treat today have a major difference from the patients that they treated in the years gone by. Once a patient seeks out a doctor, the patient is usually armed with information regarding the treatment procedures that are available for the conditions that they may have. The doctor will start by giving the patient the preliminary information regarding the condition from where th e patient will inquire more on the treatment procedure and the condition. The patients will want to know the different risk factors that are involved in treatment as well as the benefits that are to be gotten from the procedures. This sharing of information between doctors and patients explains why the business environment is changing. The consumers of certain products require that the producers share the information that they have on the products (Seidmann & Sundararajan 1998, p. 34). There are very many chat rooms on the internet that are aimed at sharing information on a hoard of topics. The members of these chat rooms will critique as well as praise some products. At the end of it all, the consumer is armed with the necessary information in order to make a certain purchase. When Michael Dell started IBM, the cost of a computer was $3,000. This suggested that the markup from selling the machines as well as the costs were too high. He saw it prudent to reduce the costs associated with the assembly of the machines so that they would retail at lesser prices. In attempting to do this, he had to use less expensive methods of sourcing for the raw materials as well as internal ways that would cost less. The box, speakers, memory, hard disks and drives were being

- ISLAMIC BANKING AND FINANCE Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

- ISLAMIC BANKING AND FINANCE - Research Paper Example Sukuk have gained popularity in Islamic finance as one of the best strategies to raise funds over the last few decades. Sukuk can be termed as legally acceptable certificates or securities issued in the Islamic economy with the intention to raise capital. These certificates serve the same purpose as bonds in the western economies. Bonds are not accepted in the Islamic finance structure since they carry an interest rate. Charging interest on securities is not acceptable under the Islamic sharia laws since it violates the principle of contractual certainty and mutual benefit between the financier and the debtor. According to the Islamic faith, wealth is God given, and mankind was created to guard and make good use of wealth and resources. In this regard, charging interest on bonds is against God’s will on equality and brotherhood. The Islamic sharia law is the foundation on which the Islamic finance is built. For any financial decision to be acceptable in the Islamic economies, it must fulfill all the requirements enshrined in the sharia law. Sukuk is an Arabic word used to refer to securities that are structured in accordance with the provisions of the Islamic law and intended to raise capital (Ariff, Iqbar, and Mohamed 13)Sukuk are used to stand in place of undivided shares in the ownership of real/visible assets concerning a specific investment undertaking. For Sukuk to be issued, there must be a clear record of the existing tangible assets on the balance sheet of the entity intending to raise capital. The process of issuing Sukuk starts by identifying the assets of the entity to assess their validity. The next step involves arrangement of an effective organizational structure that respects the Sharia law. Once an effective organizational structure has been established, the adjacent step involves the application of a suitable Sariah structure. Once that has been accomplished, a lead manager is

Female Genital Mutilation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Female Genital Mutilation - Essay Example It can result in death through severe bleeding leading to haemorrhage shock, neurogenic shock as a result of pain and trauma and/or severe and overwhelming infection and septicaemia. It is routinely traumatic. Other harmful effects include: Failure to heal; abscess formation; cysts; excessive growth of scar tissue; urinary tract infection; scar neuroma; painful sexual intercourse; increased susceptibility to HIV/AIDS, hepatitis and other blood-borne diseases; reproductive tract infection; pelvic inflammatory diseases; infertility; painful menstruation; chronic urinary tract obstruction/ bladder stones; urinary incontinence; obstructed labour and increased risk of bleeding and infection during childbirth. (Harrison 2001) Female genital mutilation/cutting is a fundamental violation of the rights of children and women as outlined in numerous international conventions, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. (WHO 2005) As a health professional who is culturally sensitive I would advise her to stick to her decision without fail. But she should make sure that she tries her level best to explain the medical complications of this procedure to her family members to the best of her ability rather just snubbing them by labelling them ignorant.

”Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe Essay Example for Free

†Things Fall Apart† by Chinua Achebe Essay In †Things Fall Apart† Chinua Achebe takes us to a Nigerian village at the time of the British colonization of Africa where substantial changes are affecting the inhabitants. Okonkwo is a proud African man who strives to succeed in the Igbo society. In his early days he created a name for himself by being a successful wrestler. He then put enormous effort into making his farm prosperous by working hard and creating a big family. That he appreciates hard work and discipline defines him as a father. When he realizes that his oldest son Nwoye is not of the quality he requires, he feels himself obligated to take action mostly with the use of violence thought he finds little pleasure in beating the children and views. It is rather a way to obtain respect and his way of parenting. To some extent this domestic aggression is accepted and is an acknowledged part of the Igbo culture. Apart from the elevated position he acquires other clansmen do not always agree with his impulsive nature as for the incident during the week of peace when he beat his wife. At first sight Okonkwo is a confident man who has no fears. This is deeply rooted in the view of how a man should be in their culture where the ability to not show any emotions is highly redeemed. But actually, a lot of his actions can be traced back to fear and insecurity. This fear clearly has to do with Unoka, his work-shy father who left nothing over to his son but debt after his death. Eventually, these moral standards conflict Okonkwo when affection starts to grow for Ezinma, the daughter of his second wife, feelings which he experiences are difficult to handle. He also feels especially bad after he killed the adopted boy Igbomefuna, an act that puts Okonkwo in a depression that if nothing else demonstrates that something has changed in his character. †Okonkwo was also feeling tired, and sleepy, for although nobody else knew it, he had not slept at all last night. He had felt very anxious but did not show it. When Ekwefi had followed the priestess, he had allowed what was  regarded as reasonable and manly interval to pass and then gone with his machete to the shire†. (p 82) One could wonder why he follows even though the priestess had requested to be alone with Ezinma during the sprititualic ritual. It is evident that breaking the rules of the ritualic traditions is not something he could let himself do easily. Not mainly would it be fright of the gods. Okonkwo tries to keep up a facede which involves obeying the traditions of his ancestors as for not showing emotions. And with a past as a warrior it is understandable why he is keen to not look weak. Reference list: Things Fall Apart – Chinua Achebe Litterature Criticism And Theory – Andrew Bennet Nicholas Royle (p.63-70)

Limitations of Interviews in Social Research

Limitations of Interviews in Social Research Why might you decide to use in-depth interviews for a research project? What are the potential limitations? Give examples of studies which have employed this technique well and discuss critically why in your opinion they are good examples. In the social research an interview/interviews are a frequently used mode of data collection. The aim is for the interviewer to elicit from the interviewee or respondent all manner of information. (Bryman, 2008:192). In-depth interviewing is more commonly known as a method that enables the researcher to explore the deeper structure of ideas presented by the participants. Many sociologists use in-depth interviewing to explore a multitude of substantive and theoretical topics (e.g., Bell and Hartmann 2007; Quark 2007; Read and Oselin 2008). (Healey-Etten, V., Sharp, S.,2010: 157). There are many types of interviews that can be used to carry out research however, I am going to describe why it may be beneficial to use in depth interviews for a research project and the potential disadvantages and previous examples of in-depth interviews that have been used to carry out research. Sociologists commonly use this popular method because it enables further detailed exploration about peoples subjective experiences, meaning-making, accounting processes, and unspoken assumptions about life and the social world in general.Two primary objectives of in-depth interviewing are exploration and verification (Johnson, 2002). One reason why it would be useful to conduct an in-depth interview, would be to reduce error due to interviewer reliability. The aim of this concept is to keep error down to a minimum, as should error occur it would have an adverse effect on the validity of the measure. The validity would be compromised if there is a high possibility of error occurring. However, due to the benefit of standardisation in depth interviews are useful to clarify any potential confusion. For example, in a self-completion questionnaire the participants. However, with the help of an interviewer the ambiguity can be clarified and the responses given by the interviewee are more li kely to be valid, based on the fact their answers where given under full understanding of the question. Interview control questions (ICQs) are in fact investigation questions aiming at both verification and exploration. A study that has exemplified the use of in depth interviews, was reported by Ramji Hasmita that focused on exploring commonality and difference in in-depth interviewing: a case-study of researching British Asian women. This research focuses on the experience British South Asian womens lives in London, and how a female British Asian researcher to explores this topic by investigating how and to what extent common social attributes are a result of influence. It examines these issues through a discussion of how the shared cultural identity of the researcher and the interviewees emerged as both a point of commonality and difference in the research process; with the researcher being positioned in terms of both because of the interviewees agency in interpreting their cultural commonality. Issues regarding Indian culture and religion emerged as points on which interviewees exercised agency and interpreted the researchers cultural identity. This was the basis on which they claimed commonality or difference and this assessment consequently impacted on their interaction with the researcher. The article suggests that more attention needs to be given to how assumptions made by interviewees regarding the cultural identity of the researcher through their agency and interaction in the research process shapes interview dynamics. (Ramji, H.,2008) Regardless of the differences between therapy and research interviews, and considering the similarities in approach and outcomes, I am suggesting the argument that participating in in depth interviews can be inherently therapeutic. Additionally, qualitative researchers must recognise the importance of this therapeutic possibility because it can and should affect participants reactions, interviewers approaches, and how researchers can make a difference in peoples lives. As well as clinical interviews, the social research interview context is a space for sharing stories, which can provide credible information for researchers and provide a platform for alleviation and healing. It has been recognised by several health practitioners and researchers that engaging in conversation can be liberating, as it encourages emotional release and can provide a sense of comfort at times. Sharing information and feeling building relationship by trying to understand ones mindset can also raise self-awar eness and perhaps even reform their perspectives on certain topics. This organization of thoughts can trigger new perspective and aid in promoting resolutions. The in-depth interviews are not aimed to act therapy, but it is therapeutic in that it offers a space for relaxation through sharing. In 2013 Yvonne Kahl, Johannes Jungbauer published an article reporting qualitive research regarding, Challenges and Coping Strategies of Children with Parents Affected by Schizophrenia: Results from an In-Depth Interview Study. The research consisted of thirty-four children undergoing in depth interviews to find out different forms of coping mechanisms they used to deal with their parents who were battling the mental health disorder, schizophrenia. The children who were being interviewed, expressed many obstacles in which they face daily, and in conclusion the report recognised through what was said by the interviewees that there is a desperate need for more professional support, to assist the children who are affected to discover more and appropriate forms of coping. (Kahl Jungbauner, 2013). The reason I believe an in-depth interview was more useful in understanding the question being researched here is due to the sensitive nature of the Schizophrenia and the stigmatisation of ment al health disorder. Through the in depth interviews the children conveyed many aspects of fear in relation to fear, frustration and stigmatisation as emotions they regularly feel concerning the relationship with their parents. As previously mentioned, in- depth interviews can be therapeutic and can offer a space for relaxation through sharing therefore would have been more useful as oppose to questionnaire, in enabling the interviewees to be as open as possible. Of course, with any form of research comes limitations. Regarding in depth interviews, there are many ethical issues. Although interviews may naturally be therapeutic for participants, and offer rich data, this quality can pose challenges to interviewers. As researchers encourage sensitive disclosures, role confusion may occur (Dickson-Swift, James, Kippen, Liamputton, 2006; Weiss, 1994). Participants could mistake the interview as therapy and, as such, the interviewer as a therapist. Researchers must carefully maintain boundaries to protect the researcher-participant relationship and ethical obligations to do no harm (Birch Miller, 2000; Dickson-Swift et al., 2006; Haynes, 2006). Boundaries can be achieved through minimizing personal disclosure, debriefing (Dickson-Swift et al., 2006), recognizing distress signals (Kavanaugh Ayres, 1998), drawing back when responses become negative (Haynes, 2006), and being direct about the research relationship. Because researchers are not train ed counsellors, they might experience emotional vulnerability, guilt, fatigue, and burnout (Dickson-Swift et al., 2006). The researchers role is listener, learner, and observer, not counsellor or therapist. A list of local counselling resources should be available for participants to highlight this distinction. References Willis, G. B. (2005). Setting the stage for cognitive interviewing: first principles of questionnaire design. In Cognitive interviewing (pp. 12-33).: SAGE Publications Ltd doi: 10.4135/9781412983655.n2 Healey-Etten, V., Sharp, S. (2010). Teaching Beginning Undergraduates How to Do an In-depth Interview: A Teaching Note with 12 Handy Tips. Teaching Sociology, 38(2), 157-165. Free, C., Lee, R., Ogden, J. (2002). Young Womens Accounts Of Factors Influencing Their Use And Non-Use Of Emergency Contraception: In-Depth Interview Study. BMJ: British Medical Journal, 325(7377), 1393-1396. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.serlib0.essex.ac.uk/stable/25453157 Ramji, H. (2008). Exploring commonality and difference in in-depth interviewing: A case-study of researching British Asian women. British Journal of Sociology, 59(1), 99-116. doi:http://0-dx.doi.org.serlib0.essex.ac.uk/10.1111/j.1468-4446.2007.00184.x Kahl, Y., Jungbauer, J. (2014). Challenges and coping strategies of children with parents affected by schizophrenia: Results from an in-depth interview study. Child Adolescent Social Work Journal, 31(2), 181-196. doi:10.1007/s10560-013-0316-2

Financial Risk Management in Mauritius Banking Sector

Financial Risk Management in Mauritius Banking Sector During the past 10 years, there have been great changes in the Mauritian banking sector and this is a continuing process that will not stop here. This is mostly because of fast innovations in the financial markets and the internationalization of the financial flows. Other factors like technological development and deregulation have both triggered competitive pressures and also provided new opportunities among banks. But these opportunities are also subject to complex risks that challenge traditional approaches to banking risk management. These factors have influenced the financial world on the international level and the Mauritian banking sector has not been left unaffected. The growth of international financial markets banks have been exposed to a wider access to funds. As a result of which banks have been developing new products, services and techniques. The receipt of deposits and granting of loans, being the traditional banking practice, is today only one part of a banks activities. These new instruments have also drawn interest to areas where financial risks were earlier thought to be relatively unimportant. Hence banks are now exposed to a greater variety of risks and their ability to measure, monitor and steer risks accordingly is becoming a decisive parameter for their survival. The aim of this project is to provide an overview of the management process of financial risks in our Mauritian banking sector as risk is the fundamental element that influences the financial behavior. Banking Risks Banks are faced with a wide array of risks in their course of their operations, as illustrated in the figure below. In general, risks are categorised into three different parts: Financial Risks, Operational Risks and Business Risks. Figure 1: Categories of Banking Risks Banking Risks Financial RisksOperational Risks Business Risks Interest Rate Risk 1) Business Strategy Risk1) Legal Risk. Foreign Exchange Risk 2) Internal System and Operational Risk 2) Policy Risk. Credit Risk 3) Technology Risk 3) Systemic Liquidity Risk 4) Management and Fraud (Country) Risk. Source: Annual Report on Banking Supervision 2000 BOM Financial risk concern the effective management and control of the finances of an organisation and the effects of external factors such as availability of credit, foreign exchange rates, interest rate movement and liquidity risk. For this project only the financial side of Risk Management is going to be considered. Focus will be on the four main types of risks which are: Interest rate Risk is the risk borne by an interest-bearing asset, for example in this case a loan, due to variation in interest rates. Foreign Exchange Risk is a form of risk that crop up due to the change in price of one currency against another. Credit Risk is the risk of loss due to a debtors non-payment of a loan. Liquidity risk is the risk to earnings arising from a banks inability to meet its obligations when they come due. Operational risks are related to a banks overall organisation and functioning of internal systems, including computer-related and other technologies, conformity with bank policies and procedures and measures against mismanagement and fraud. Although these types of risks are important, emphasis will not be put on them in this project. Business risks are associated with a banks business environment, including the macroeconomic and policy concerns, legal and regulatory factors and the overall financial sector infrastructure and payment system. Outline of Chapters Chapter 2:Literature Review This chapter will focus on previous studies and surveys carried out with respect to financial risks encountered by banking institutions around the world. It will also focus on the different techniques used to manage these types of risks. Chapter 3:Overview of the Mauritian Banking Sector This chapter aims at giving an overview of the current Mauritian banking sector and also information pertaining to risk management. Chapter 4:Research Methodology In this chapter an outline of the methods used to collect data and carry out the research is given. The way in which the interview questions have been set and how the data has been analysed using different techniques. Chapter 5: Presentation of findings and Analysis This chapter which is the main one aims at presenting and explaining the answers received from the different interviews and data from the annual reports of banks, in a structured way. Chapter 6: Recommendations and Conclusion This last chapter consists of the suggestions regarding financial risk management for the Mauritian banking sector and also the answer to the main question. 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Defining Financial Risks Financial risks in the banking field are the probability that the result of an action or event could bring up unfavorable impacts. Such outcomes could either cause direct loss of earnings or capital or may result in limitations on banks capacity to meet its business objectives. Such constraints pose a risk as these could influence a banks capacity to perform its ongoing business or to take advantage of opportunities to advance its business Risks are frequently defined by the negative impacts on profitability of numerous separate sources of uncertainty. While the types and degree of risks of an organization may be exposed to depend upon a number of factors such as its size, complexity business activities, volume etc, it is believed that generally the banks face Credit, Market, Liquidity, Operational, Legal and Systemic risks etc. 2.2 Definition of Financial Risks as Per Basel II The role of risk management in banking has changed from the simple insurance of identified risks, to a discipline that concentrates on complex econometric and financial model of uncertainty. Financial risk management has been defined by the Basel Committee (2001) as a sequence of four processes: the identification of events into more or broad categories of market, credit, operational and ‘other risks and specific sub-categories; the assessment of risks using data and a risk model; the monitoring and reporting of the risk assessments on a timely basis; and the control of these risks by senior management. The first Basel Accord (1988) analysed only credit risks in the banking book; the Basel Amendment (1996) extended this to market risks in the trading book; and now the new Basel 2 Accord that will be adopted by all G10 and many other countries in 2007 refines credit risk assessments to become more sensitive and extends the calculation of risk capital to include operational risks. 2.3 Distinction between Risk Management and Risk Measurement? Risk measurement is a key part of the general risk management process, but its certainly just one of the parts. Other, similarly key parts include defining risks, setting policy risk limits and guidelines, and taking action when those limits are threatened of being breached. Risk management is as much about people, procedures, and communication, as it is about quantitative methods involved in risk measurement (Suren Markosov, 2001). Risk measurement, however, is important to the success of the risk management process. Part of the risk measurement task is to guarantee that the risk measures being used are suitable to the nature of the risks, and since these risks can be quite various in nature, so can the necessary choices of risk measures. 2.4 Why do Banks manage Risks? The analysis of risk management reported in Santomero (1995) gives us a lists of dozens contributions and at least four separate rationales considered for active risk management. These include managerial self-interest, the non-linearity of the tax structure, the costs of financial distress and the existence of capital market imperfections. Risk is a fundamental part of the banking business, it is not amazing that banks have been using risk management ever since there have been banks the industry could never have survived without it. The only modification is the degree of sophistication now necessary to reflect the new complex and fast moving environment (Laurence H Meyer, 2000). The Asian financial crisis of 1997 has shown us that ignoring necessary risk management can also add to economy-wide difficulties. The long period of extraordinary economic growth and prosperity in Asia had hidden weaknesses in risk management. Many Asian banks did not think about risk or conduct a cash flow analysis before giving way loans, but rather lent on the basis of their relationship with the borrower and the availability of guarantee despite the fact that the security was often hard to seize in the event of default. The result was that loans including loans by foreign banks grew faster than the capacity of the borrowers to repay. Risk management is clearly not free. In fact its expensive in both resources and in institutional disturbance. The cost of delaying or avoiding proper risk management can be extreme: failure of a bank and possibly failure of a banking system (Laurence H Meyer, 2000). 3.4 Determinants of Risks When banks are exposed to risk, this implies that they are vulnerable to financial distress and failure. Determinants of risk are thus causes of problem bank failure. The common causes of bank failure are: Management. Argenti (1984) attributed 17% of his A-scores to management style and composition. He attributed another 71% to accounting deficiencies, poor response to change, over-gearing, over trading and large projects; all of which hinge upon capabilities of management. Arguments that he put forward was that management is the primary and single most important cause of financial distress. Asset quality Loan and advances comprise a substantial portion (50%-80%) of commercial banks total assets and they account for more than 70% of their income. This highlights the banks role as financial intermediary. â€Å"Asset quality is the most important determinant of bank risk exposure†. This was pointed out by Hefferman (2000), Gonzalex-Hermossilo (1999), and Hardy (1998). The asset quality of a bank is affected by various factors such as, over concentration, insider lending and political loans. Over-Expansion Banks that grow quickly tend to have unjustified risks and often find that their administrative and management information system cannot keep up with the rate of expansion. Too much liquidity by way of rapid deposit growth could also be a problem in that management may undertake riskier credit proposals and this will adversely affect the asset quality. Capitalization Capital adequacy ratio is a function of adjusted risk assets. A bank can either maintain this ratio by increasing its capital or reducing of adjusted risk assets. The prime objective of this control is to protect depositors. However Blum (1998) found that with the incentives for asset substitution, capital adequacy requirements may actually increase risk. This was found in the case of J.P Morgan and Deutsche Bank. In Mauritius the BOM has adopted a capital adequacy ratio of 10% to match international standards. Fraud Fraud is one of the key determinants of risk. However it is closely related with the management competence that some fraudulent activities have passed off as incompetence. The BCI and Barings Bank are good examples. 2.5 HOW ARE RISKS MANAGED? As pointed out by Anthony M. Santomero (1997) there need to be essential procedures that must be put in place to carry out satisfactory risk management? In essence, what techniques are employed to both limit and manage the different types of risk, and how are they implemented in each area of risk control? The management of the bank relies on a series of steps to put into operation a risk management system. These can be seen as containing the following four parts: 2.5.1 Standards and reports, 2.5.2 Position limits or rules, 2.5.3 Investment guidelines or strategies, 2.5.4 Incentive contracts and compensation. In general, these tools are used to measure exposure, define procedures to manage these exposures, limit individual positions to acceptable levels, and encourage decision makers to manage risk in a manner that is consistent with the firms goals and objectives (Oldfield and Santomero, 1995). To see how each of these four parts of basic risk management techniques achieves these ends, we elaborate on each part of the process below. 2.5.1 Standards and Reports The first of these risk management techniques involves two unlike conceptual activities, i.e., standard setting and financial reporting (Santomero and Babbel, 1996). They are listed jointly because they are the sine qua non of any risk system. Underwriting standards, risk categorizations, and standards of review are all traditional tools of risk management and control. Consistent evaluation and rating of exposures of various types are essential to understand the risks in the portfolio, and the degree to which these risks must be mitigated or absorbed (Hodgson, 1999). The consistency of financial reporting is the next ingredient. Obviously outside audits, regulatory reports, and rating agency evaluations are necessary for investors to measure asset quality and firm level risk. These reports have long been standardized, for better or worse. However, the need here goes beyond public reports and audited statements to the need for management information on asset quality and risk posture. Such internal reports need similar standardization and much more frequent reporting intervals, with daily or weekly reports substituting for the quarterly GAAP periodicity. 2.5.2 Position Limits and Rules The use of position limits, and minimum standards for participation can be categorized as a second method for internal control of active management. According to Santomero (1995) risk taking is restricted to only those assets or counterparties that pass some prespecified quality standard. Then, even for those investments that are eligible, limits are compulsory to cover exposures to counterparties, credits, and overall position concentrations relative to various types of risks. While such limits are costly to set up and control, their imposition restricts the risk that can be assumed by any one individual, and therefore by the organization as a whole. In general, each person who can commit capital will have a well-defined limit. This applies to traders, lenders, and portfolio managers. Summary reports show limits as well as current exposure by business unit on a periodic basis. In big organizations with thousands of positions maintained, precise and well-timed reporting is difficult, but even more necessary (Lopez, 2003). 2.5.3 Investment Guidelines and Strategies Investment guidelines and recommended positions for the instant future are the third technique commonly in use. Cummins et al (1998) provide that under this means of management control, strategies are shaped in terms of concentrations and commitments to particular areas of the market, the extent of desired asset-liability mismatching or exposure, and the need to hedge against systematic risk of a particular type. The limits described above show the way to passive risk avoidance and diversification, because managers generally work within position limits and prescribed rules. Beyond this, guidelines offer firm level advice as to the appropriate level of active management, given the state of the market and the willingness of senior management to absorb the risks implied by the combined portfolio. Such guidelines lead to firm level hedging and asset-liability matching. In addition, securitization and even derivative activity are rapidly growing techniques of position management open to participants looking to reduce their exposure to be in line with managements guidelines. 2.5.4 Incentive Schemes Banks can enter incentive compatible contracts with line managers and make compensation linked to the risks assumed by these individuals, and then the need for complex and costly controls is decreased. However, such incentive contracts require precise position valuation and proper internal control systems. Such tools which include position posting, risk analysis, the allocation of costs, and setting of required returns to various parts of the organization are not irrelevant. Despite the complexity, well designed systems align the goals of managers with other stakeholders in a most desirable way. In fact, most financial debacles can be traced to the absence of incentive compatibility, as the cases of the deposit insurance and so clearly illustrate. The association of managerial compensation to book earnings can bring about acquisition of investments with negative convexity, duration mismatch risk, liquidity risk and credit risk, whose book profits are higher than their expected return (Cummins et al., 1998). STRATEGIES USED BY BANKS TO MANAGE RISKS INTEREST RATE RISK All banks face interest rate risk. This type of risks occurs when long term mortgages are funded by short term deposits. Interest rate risk is like the â€Å"blood pressure for banks and is vital for their survival.†(Ron Feldman and Jason Schmidt) Furthermore, according to the Basel Committee (2001) â€Å"interest rate risk is the exposure of a banks financial condition to adverse movements in interest rates. Accepting this risk is a normal part of banking and can be an important source of profitability and shareholder value.† According to the Bank of Jamaica each banking institution needs to establish explicit and prudent interest rate risk limits, and ensure that the level of interest rate risk exposure does not exceed these limits. Interest rate risk limits need to be set within an institutions overall risk profile, which reflects factors such as its capital adequacy, liquidity, credit quality, investment risk and foreign exchange risk. Interest rate positions should be managed within an institutions ability to offset such positions if necessary. Gap analysis, duration analysis and stimulation models are interest rate risk measurement techniques used by the Bank of Jamaica (2005). Each technique provides a different perspective on interest rate risk, has distinct strengths and weaknesses, and is more effective when used in combination with another. Gap Analysis A simple gap analysis measures the difference between the amount of interest-earning assets and interest-bearing liabilities (both on- and off-balance sheet) that reprice in a particular time period. Duration Analysis Duration is the time-weighted average maturity of the present value of the cash flows from assets, liabilities and off-balance sheet items. It measures the relative sensitivity of the value of these instruments to changing interest rates (the average term to repricing), and therefore reflects how changes in interest rates will affect the institutions economic value, that is, the present value of equity. In this context, the maturity of an investment is used to provide an indication of interest rate risk. The longer the term to maturity of an investment, the greater the chance of interest rates movements and, hence, unfavourable price changes. Simulation Models Simulation models are an important complement to gap and duration analysis. Simulation models analyse interest rate risk in a dynamic context. They evaluate interest rate risk arising from both current and future business and provide a way to evaluate the effects of strategies to increase earnings or reduce interest rate risk. Simulation models are also useful tools for strategic planning; they allow a banking institution to effectively integrate risk management and control into the planning process. FOREIGN EXCHANGE RISK It is the current risk to earnings and capital arising from negative movements in currency exchange rates. It refers to the impact of adverse movement in currency exchange rates on the value of open foreign currency position. The use of hedging techniques by the Bank of Jamaica is one means of managing and controlling foreign exchange risk. Many different financial instruments can be used for hedging purposes, the most commonly used, being derivative instruments. Examples include forward foreign exchange contracts, foreign currency futures contracts, foreign currency options, and foreign currency swaps. Generally, few banks will need to use the full range of hedging techniques or instruments. Each bank should consider which ones are necessary for the nature and extent of its foreign exchange activities, the skills and experience of trading staff and management, and the capacity of foreign exchange rate risk reporting and control systems. CREDIT RISK Credit risk is the oldest and important risk which banks exposure and important of credit risk and credit risk management are increasing with time because of some reasons like economic crises and stagnation, company bankruptcies, infraction of rules in company accounting and audits (Dr.Adem Anbar, 2006). For the Norinchukin Bank in Japan (2006), transactions involving credit risk are one of the most important and strategic sources of earnings. In addition to assessments of the risks present in individual loans and other assets, the bank conducts comprehensive risk management from the perspective of its overall credit risk portfolio. In this way, the bank works to generate earnings proportionate with the level of credit risk it takes. While frequently strengthening its credit analysis capabilities, the bank conducts expert checks on the standing of borrowers, taking due account of their characteristics as cooperatives, private corporations, public entities, or non-residents. To conduct credit analysis on private corporations and public corporations, the bank has established the Credit Risk Management Division, which is separate from the Corporate Business Management Strategy Division, to prepare credit analyses by industry, drawing fully on the expertise the bank has historically acquired. To achieve greater accuracy in assessments, each senior credit analyst in charge of a certain industry assesses each client and business through comparisons with competitors in the same business, making use of industry research capabilities. Credit risk is measured for loans, guarantees, foreign exchange and securities, such as corporate bonds, as well as for swaps and other off-balance transactions. Measurement of risk volumes are conducted according to types of transactions partners, including domestic and overseas corporations and financial institutions. Based on estimates of the total credit extended, the bank uses information related to credit risk— such as rating transition ratios that measure the probability of rating changes and are computed based on background history and future business prospects, default ratios by rating, recovery ratios in the event of default and correlations among the creditworthiness of corporations and other entities to conduct tens of thousands of simulated scenarios, under various assumptions regarding defaults and rating changes for its customers and their products—to determine the distribution of potential losses. For the estimated potential losses, the bank calculates two risk volumes: the â€Å"expected loss† that corresponds to the loss that can be expected on average over the next year and the â€Å"probable maximum loss,† which is defined as losses that can be expected under the worst case scenario. This enables the bank to check expected profitability against risk and determine the risk capital to be allocated for each business category. LIQUIDITY RISK Liquidity risk is the risk that could occur if an institution does not have enough funds accessible to meet all its cash outflow obligations as they become due. Liquidity risk management ensures that funds will be available at all times to honour the institutions obligations (Bank of Mauritius). A liquidity risk management involves not only analyzing banks on and off-balance sheet positions to forecast future cash flows but also how the funding condition would be met (Bank of Pakistan). The latter involves identifying the funding market the bank has access, understanding the nature of those markets, evaluating banks current and future use of the market and monitor signs of confidence erosion. Banks use a variety of ratios to quantify liquidity. These ratios can also be used to create limits for liquidity management. However, such ratios would be meaningless unless used regularly and interpreted taking into account qualitative factors. Ratios should always be used in conjunction with more qualitative information about borrowing capacity, such as the likelihood of increased requests for early withdrawals, decreases in credit lines, decreases in transaction size, or shortening of term funds available to the bank. To the extent that any asset-liability management decisions are based on financial ratios, a banks asset-liability managers understand how a ratio is constructed, the range of alternative information that can be placed in the numerator or denominator, and the scope of conclusions that can be drawn from ratios. Because ratio components as calculated by banks are sometimes inconsistent, ratio-based comparisons of institutions or even comparisons of periods at a single institution can be misleading. Cash Flow Ratios and Limits. One of the most serious sources of liquidity risk comes from a banks failure to roll over a maturing liability. Cash flow ratios and limits attempt to measure and control the volume of liabilities maturing during a specified period of time. Liability Concentration Ratios and Limits. Liability concentration ratios and limits help to prevent a bank from relying on too few providers or funding sources. Limits are usually expressed as either a percentage of liquid assets or an absolute amount. Sometimes they are more indirectly expressed as a percentage of deposits, purchased funds, or total liabilities. Other Balance Sheet Ratios. Total loans/total deposits, total loans/total equity capital, borrowed funds/total assets etc are examples of common ratios used by financial institutions to monitor current and potential funding levels. EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE ON FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES USED BY BANKS CREDIT RISK MANAGEMENT Credit operations are traditionally the main source of income as well as risks for banks. I am going to elaborate on the result and analysis of market central bank meeting participants carried out by Ramon Moreno in 2005. It was found that 40% of the respondents to his survey cited credit to household as an important source of credit risk. According to Moreno, a distinct increase in credit to the household sector has altered risk exposures and he also found that in some countries there is significant credit risks on the banking book associated with asset price fluctuation for example lending for residential real estate accounts for around 25% of total loans in Hong Kong and Korea, around 19% in Hungary, Poland and Israel, but lower in Colombia and Mexico. Another study carried out by Santomero in 1997 found that banks usually use a credit rating procedure to evaluate investment opportunities in order for credit decisions to be made in a consistent manner and to limit credit risk exposure. By using such a procedure banks were able to monitor the quality of its loan portfolio at any time. It was found that the credit quality report signals changes in expected loan losses, if the system is meaningful. Also many banks are starting to develop concentration reports, indicating industry composition of the loan portfolio. Moody had developed a system of 34 industry groups that may be used to report concentrations. Reports such an industry grouping to illustrate the kind of concentration reports that are emerging as stand in the banking industry. Moreover a credit risk survey study was done in the Turkish Banking by Dr Adem ANBAR, where he found that there is main quantitative credit risk measurer. There are expected loss (EL), unexpected loss (UL) and credit value at risk (CVAR). Although these credit risk measures are used for measuring credit risk of one asset, particularly they are used for measuring portfolio credit risk. Only 35% of the bank used these measures. According to Dr Anbar, 30% of the banks said they measured credit risk using a portfolio credit risk model and software developed mostly by them. Furthermore 95% of the bank used internal credit rating system and a credit scoring model in credit risk analysis. This technique was used to determine credit limits, to determine problematic credit and credit risk measurement. According to the study there are 3 approaches in Basel II for credit measurement. These are Standardised Approach (SA), Foundation Internal Ratings Based Approach (FIRBA), and Advanced Internal Rating Based Approach (AIRBA). It was found that 60% of the banks used the first method and 20% the FIRBA and 20% the AIRBA. Dr Anbar found that in general the tools which are used by Turkish banks are collateral, credit limits and diversification but they dont use methods like loan selling, securitization, credit insurance for transferring credit risk. One reason for that was that these types of methods havent been developed in Turkish sector yet. INTEREST RATE RISK MANAGEMENT The tradition has been for the banking industry to diverge somewhat from other parts of the financial sectors in the treatment of interest rate risk. According to Santomero (1997) institutions that do not have active trading businesses, value-at-risk has become the standard approach. Many firms use this model but in some cases it is still in an implementation process. According to his analysis, commercial banks tend not to use market value reports and guidelines but rather, their approach relies on cash flow and bank values. This system has been traditionally been known as the GAP reporting system. This system has been supplemented with a duration analysis. (Hempel, Simonson and Coleman, 1994) Most banks, however have attempted to move beyond this gap methodology, they have concluded that the gap and duration reports are static and do not fit well with the dynamic nature of the banking market. Furthermore, according to the survey, many banks are using balance sheet simulation models to find the effect of interest rate variation on reported earnings overtime. This system requires relatively informed repricing schedules as well as estimates of prepayments and cash flows. The simulation system being completed, reports the resultant derivations in earnings associated with the rate scenarios considered. Officials then make use of cash, futures and swaps to reduce this risk. 2.7.3 LIQUIDITY RISK MANAGEMENT The liquidity risk that does present a real challenge is the need for funding when and if a sudden crisis arises. Standard reports on liquid assets and open lines of credit, which are germane to the first type of li

Seperate And Unequal, Frederic Essay examples -- essays research paper

Separate and unequal: Blacks and White women. Many may say that blacks and white women had more in common than people thought they did in the pre civil war era. A point worth arguing is that there are a few similarities and too many differences to list. No matter how you twist reality to make it seem the worst for women, they were at least treated as humans and not like barn animals. Before 1861, many white males valued their farm animals higher than their slaves. Although white women were not treated with the equality to white men that we see in the world today, they should not even be classified with blacks of the pre civil war era. Blacks and white women were treated in a common manor, because neither group was really free. Both had to listen to what the white males told them to do without haste or incompetence. At the time, it would be safe to say that America was for the white males. Because they were the only people who had any say in the rules that governed peoples lives. Even from day one, the Constitution of the United States of America contradicts the way that things were and the way they would continue for some time. The first amendment grants freedom of religion, speech, and assembly. It states â€Å" Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise, thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech†¦or the right of the people to assemble.† (Primis, 95). Even with this being law both blacks and white women were not allowed to choose what church to attend or allowed to voice their own opinions; both conditions violate the 1st amendment. The 9th amendment also states something contradictory to the way life actually was, it says: â€Å"The enumeration in the constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.† (Primis, 96) This means no person can deny any other person his or her rights given in the Constitution of the United States of America. Evidently the forefathers who founded our government did not consider white women or blacks to be members of our country. But each state sure decided to recognize them when it came time to decide the number of delegates that each state would have in congress. Although blacks only counted as 3/5 of a person they were being acknowledged as members of our society and were denying them their freedom given to them in th... ...south. They were free, except their ideas, thoughts and property became under their husbands control after marriage. According to feminist Sarah Grimke, a South Carolina Quaker, â€Å" the very being of a woman is like that of a slave, is absorbed in her master. All contracts made with her, like those made with slaves by their owners, are a mere nullity†(Primis, 141). She feels like a slave. Why? It is because her husband now owns what she used to before they wed. But how many white women were actually treated like slaves to say that the very being of a woman was like that of a slave? None, if any. What husband would make his wife eat dough out of ashes or sleep on the clay with only a blanket to cover her? To say that white women had even half of the injustices and struggles that blacks had would be unfair to the accomplishment achieved through their fight for equality. Although there are many arguments saying that blacks and women had more in common in the pre-civil war era than normally assumed, I think that there is more than enough evidence to state the opposite. Blacks had so many more injustices than women did and the similarities between the two groups are few and far between. Seperate And Unequal, Frederic Essay examples -- essays research paper Separate and unequal: Blacks and White women. Many may say that blacks and white women had more in common than people thought they did in the pre civil war era. A point worth arguing is that there are a few similarities and too many differences to list. No matter how you twist reality to make it seem the worst for women, they were at least treated as humans and not like barn animals. Before 1861, many white males valued their farm animals higher than their slaves. Although white women were not treated with the equality to white men that we see in the world today, they should not even be classified with blacks of the pre civil war era. Blacks and white women were treated in a common manor, because neither group was really free. Both had to listen to what the white males told them to do without haste or incompetence. At the time, it would be safe to say that America was for the white males. Because they were the only people who had any say in the rules that governed peoples lives. Even from day one, the Constitution of the United States of America contradicts the way that things were and the way they would continue for some time. The first amendment grants freedom of religion, speech, and assembly. It states â€Å" Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise, thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech†¦or the right of the people to assemble.† (Primis, 95). Even with this being law both blacks and white women were not allowed to choose what church to attend or allowed to voice their own opinions; both conditions violate the 1st amendment. The 9th amendment also states something contradictory to the way life actually was, it says: â€Å"The enumeration in the constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.† (Primis, 96) This means no person can deny any other person his or her rights given in the Constitution of the United States of America. Evidently the forefathers who founded our government did not consider white women or blacks to be members of our country. But each state sure decided to recognize them when it came time to decide the number of delegates that each state would have in congress. Although blacks only counted as 3/5 of a person they were being acknowledged as members of our society and were denying them their freedom given to them in th... ...south. They were free, except their ideas, thoughts and property became under their husbands control after marriage. According to feminist Sarah Grimke, a South Carolina Quaker, â€Å" the very being of a woman is like that of a slave, is absorbed in her master. All contracts made with her, like those made with slaves by their owners, are a mere nullity†(Primis, 141). She feels like a slave. Why? It is because her husband now owns what she used to before they wed. But how many white women were actually treated like slaves to say that the very being of a woman was like that of a slave? None, if any. What husband would make his wife eat dough out of ashes or sleep on the clay with only a blanket to cover her? To say that white women had even half of the injustices and struggles that blacks had would be unfair to the accomplishment achieved through their fight for equality. Although there are many arguments saying that blacks and women had more in common in the pre-civil war era than normally assumed, I think that there is more than enough evidence to state the opposite. Blacks had so many more injustices than women did and the similarities between the two groups are few and far between.

One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich - Analytical Essay

Russia, has a lowest ever temperature of –44 ºC, and an average of 104 days a year above 0 ºC and a yearly average of 261 days below 0  ºC. It is the second coldest continent in the world only behind Antarctica, it snows on average 111 days of the year. It is dark, gloomy, freezing and miserable in the winter, and in the summer, cold, dark, and gloomy. Camps for political prisoners seemed even colder, especially with no real heating and limited clothes to wear on these wintriness days. The camp which was the bases of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s novel A Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich was initiated by Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1953 until 1956. Stalin, which means â€Å"man of steel†, constructed one of the tightest and toughest communisms in history. He is such a dominant figure in Russian history, even though he will always be remembered to heavily contributing to bringing Russia down. This was no general camp, but a so called â€Å"special† camp for long term prisoners. Shukhov was a political prisoner, in fact not one of these prisoners were common criminals. Stalin had established many camps like this, full of spies, prisoners of war, and those who rebelled against his system of government. The camps were in poor condition, the government spent as little on them as possible, all the repairs and erections of new buildings was all done by it’s inhabitants. The primary theme in this nobel prize winning novel is the endurance of humanity and fight for survival. Survival is a fight every human must take part in, although ones fight is much easier than anothers. The fight for survival is tough in the camp especially under the severe conditions, the cold and the brutality of the guards and camp life. The author has paid special and close attention to the weather, the bitter cold, it is not made an extremity, but the facts. A prisoner had 1 grubby blanket, covering his mattress, which incidentally was made of sawdust, this blanket was supposed to help them keep warm through those winter nights. â€Å"No one ever took his wadded trousers off at night- you’d grow numb with cold unless you wore them under your blanket.† The amount of work the prisoners were required to do was enough to keep them going, but then to have to worry about the cold, and completing the task to the captains expectations, man life for prisoners was tough. Although prisoners maintain the... ...as all over other parts of the camp. The camp has no real source of heating, and if you are lucky a bit of heat may be thrown your way. The work was labor intensive, with all of it one by hand. The days where a lot of work was done, when it was warm, when the team worked together were the good days, they were the easy days where the stolen time didn’t seem so bad. However the days when it was miserable cold and the jobs weren’t completed to satisfaction were the long days, the hard days to survive. Although at the end of each day, there was dinner, a time where each prison had a few scared minutes to himself, and was only concerned for himself. The significance of a piece of bread and a bit of kasha was extraordinary. This novel is living proof of the struggle of survival for prisoners in communist countries. It illustrates problems we all face in our everyday lives, especially cultural and religious conflict. It was published to awaken the world to the horrendous conditions Stalin put these prisoners in, and shows what kind of man he really was. The novel consists of cold hard facts about Stalin’s prisoner camps, and a story of courage and hope despite the conditions and odds.

Christmas Gifts You Love (to Hate) :: essays research papers

Christmas Gifts You Love (to Hate) Zack Imus Christmas. The most exciting and anticipated holiday of the year. A time when visions of sugar plums--or stereos, new cars, the latest computer, and various other desirable and expensive gifts--dance through our heads. Unfortunately the reality of Christmas gift-giving is often a far cry from our visions. When we're children, it seems as the holidays approach that anything is possible. But as we mature and gain experience with this annual observance it eventually begins to dawn on us that it might not always be all it's cracked up to be. By the time we've reached our late teens--when, coincidentally, the potential for receiving truly outstanding gifts is optimized--we realize that Christmas gifts are seldom what we hope for. In fact, from year to year it becomes possible to actually predict the kinds of gifts you'll unwrap on Christmas morning. Let's look at a few examples. The Necessity Gift The necessity gift is one that always seems like a really great idea to your mother or grandmother, but which is invariably a big yawn to unwrap. Let's be realistic, how excited is anybody likely to get over a dozen pairs of matching socks, a hairbrush, winter gloves or underwear? Slipper Sox, new sheet sets and toothbrushes also qualify. After unwrapping such a gift, a person is likely to exclaim: "Gosh, you shouldn't have!" And mean it. The Token Gift The Token Gift might be received from almost anyone. Though it seems like an intimate friend or close relative wouldn't stoop so low, experience proves that token gifts take up where imagination and/or money leaves off. So it's possible to receive these kinds of gifts from the most unexpected sources. One present in this category is the ever popular "soap-on-a-rope." I've never seen these marketed in June. But come early November the soap factories undoubtedly pay double-double overtime to their workers in order to meet the vast holiday demand for nameless, pungent-smelling brown soap manufactured over the top of what appears to be a six-foot-long shoe-string. A note of caution: Soap-on-a-rope should never be given to boys under the age of 12. They invariably turn them into near-lethal weapons. If disappointed enough, they might even turn them on you. Other token gifts include cheap aftershave lotion/cologne, stationery, and the ever-popular electric shaver. Though this latter might occasionally fit into the Necessity Gift category, I've never met anyone who actually uses an electric shaver. For this reason, this gift might also fit into our next category. The Closet Stuffer Gift Closet Stuffers are exactly what they sound like: gifts that are stuffed

Axe commercial

The current Axe print advertisement in question is part of a global campaign to promote its new line of â€Å"Peace† products, trying to strike down the sexist image It had previously. Axe partnered with a non-profit organization called Peace One Day and alms to promote peace In the world by an anti-war agenda and also gender equality. An end to the gender wars. This Is an example of using polymers through the slogan â€Å"Make Love, Not War†, which Is the use of the phrase to Incorporate multiple meanings.The ad is directed at both males and females, unlike other Axe advertisements in the past, and so both men and women are considered the inscribed reader. According to the deputy executive director of Axe in London, David Kolkhoz, â€Å"It's a theme we've been playing with for a while now, the equilibrium of the sexes. This is Just the first time we've done it in this more serious way. † (Nude, 2014, Para. 9) The idea that Axe is moving into different territory by attempting to equalize men and women sexually is emergent discourse.Scripts of lust and hyper sexuality are giving way to scripts of â€Å"Make Love, Not War†. This can be seen as a desirable outcome for a female audience of the Peace products. If this Is a successful outcome, women's views on Axe will shift, they will purchase the products for their partners and profits will Increase. When the deputy executive director was asked If this new message of love and equality Instead of lust and gender wars was possible or believable in an Axe campaign, he stated that â€Å"the brand has been slowly evolving for a while now. † (Nude, 2014, Para. ) using war in an advertisement campaign is an ambitious marketing tool that Axe tries to combine gracefully with peace and sexuality. The scene of the ad is based in a war zone on a beach featuring an array of different scenarios. There are soldiers, fighter Jets, helicopters, a soldier with a flame thrower and smoke seeping into the sky in the background. Amidst all the chaos, there are waterfalls, couples in hammocks, people swimming, and airplanes in the sky are formed In the shape off heart. In the middle of the ad there is a women in a brightly colored dress In the arms off soldier.There Is a couple falling from the helicopter together, a couple flirting by a tank, and woman massaging a man on the beach sand. Filters are a profit motive and, In this case, one motive Is using war In the campaign. It is particularly affective because we are currently involved in a war. Promoting peace, by calling the product line Peace, is an active attempt of lifestyle communication. Making the hippie peace movement a cool comeback for the company. Ensuring consumers that Axe is trying to be part of the solution and not the problem.This creates a self-surveillance by which some consumers will purchase the Peace products to feel good about themselves using a product that promotes peace. This is a positive social ideology that many people strive for. Consumer's social position on this issue, war, create a negotiated reading of the product, and they purchase more. The reader Ex.'s senior director, Matthew McCarthy states, â€Å"Young people care deeply about the future. This generation Is socially conscious and more digitally connected than ever. † (Nude, 2014, Para. 0) The ewe Axe advertisement does not fully deviate from Its previous campaigns. The positioning of women in the ad is still very similar to previous ads, however, it's just these soldiers. They are not shown in uniform like the men, but they are in play clothes and are scantily clad in short shorts. There is a women on top of man massaging him and another in the arms of a soldier. To some, this is still a very sexist Axe ad. This is seen as an oppositional reading and in direct conflict with the social ideologies that the Axe executives are trying to portray.The reception of the ad is probably mixed due to split political ideolog ies in the world. Many people would take this campaign face value and feel that it is promoting world peace. Many people might view this as an attempt for Axe to finally end sexism in their ad campaigns. Others will see this as Just another sexist advertisement littered with sexism but Just shown in a different light. Analyzing media using these ideological methods is extremely interesting when you delve into detail and dissect every notion of an ad or an entire campaign.Looking at the ad from different ideological perspectives is eye-opening and interesting. Researching other ads was entertaining and the entire process is engaging. These are all positive aspects of the process. Sometimes difficulties arise when trying to decipher what ideologies are accidentally placed in an ad or what is purely intentional. Axe could have a specific agenda that may or may not be interpreted by certain audiences. This is a con when trying to analyze accurately. Overall, the ideological method of an alyzing media is very useful and thorough.