Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Who Is an Entrepreneur

Common/different aspects of the paper2 Conclusions6 References7 â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? † Introduction â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? † is a question that aroused many controversies and debates. Among many articles that talks about the entrepreneur and the process of entrepreneurship I will focus on three articles that tried to answer this question or demonstrated the uselessness of the question. Analyzing many different points of view will conduct to a better and deeper understanding of the phenomena.Therefore, this is not an exact science, like for instance mathematics or physics. It leads us more to interpretation, which means that, there will always be a need of debate. Short Summary In the article â€Å"Differentiating Entrepreneurs from Small Business Owners: A Conceptualization†, Carland et al. tries to answer the question by focusing on the characteristics of an entrepreneur and they go further with comparing him to a small business owner. They settl e a definition for each and then, they apply the main ideas to a larger scale and differentiate an entrepreneurial venture from a small business.Gartner criticize their point of view in his article â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? Is the wrong question† and considers that it is improper to define â€Å"the entrepreneur† because it would mean that an entrepreneur fits a certain type of person, which is not true since the views are not homogenous. That is why Gartner considers a more suitable approach for the concept, to analyze the entrepreneur’s behavior. In the article â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? Is a question worth asking†, Carland et al. tries to respond to Gartner’s critique and in the end, he argues that indeed entrepreneurship is a complex and dynamic concept.Common/different aspects of the paper In the article â€Å"Differentiating Entrepreneurs from Small Business Owners: A Conceptualization†, Carland et al. , in terms of entrepreneur and small business owner, focus on intentionality and characteristics. In their opinion, an entrepreneur’ purpose is profit and growth and he is characterized as an innovative person who will employ strategic management practices, while a small business owner’s purpose is furthering personal goals, and to whom the business is the primary source of income which will consume almost all of his time.In terms of differentiating Entrepreneurial Ventures form Small Business Ventures, they focus on the same ideas applied to a bigger scale. However, this attempt to define the concepts, and especially their arguments were hardly criticized by Gartner in his article â€Å"Who Is an Entrepreneur? Is the Wrong Question†. He brings into discussion the situation when â€Å"an individual personal goal is to establish a business for profit and growth†. He considers that Carland et al. are rung, first by focusing on intentionality, instead of creation, and second by focus ing on the person instead of the act of entrepreneurship.He argues that, by referring only to intentionality rather than to concrete things like articulated strategies or observed behaviors, they increased even more the ambiguity. In my opinion, Carland et al. ’s attempt to define a small business owner as an individual whose main characteristic is achieving its personal goals is a vague statement. To be more specific, I will take as an example a farmer, who lives in the country, has no job, owns 10 hectares of vineyards, and decides to start a business in wine industry. For him, this will be the primary source of income.To help me set his goals, I will analyze Maslow pyramid. According to Abraham Maslow we will start from the base. Our farmer’s first goal will be to sell as much wine as to be able to sustain his physiological needs, like buying food, water and so one. After satisfying his basic needs, he will want to assure the need of safety and therefore, he will ne ed to earn more money. So how can he do that? Growing his business and raising his earnings. This means that his goal will change into growth and profit while his business remains his principal source of income. And so one, we can continue to higher stages in the pyramid.Therefore, I consider that, the desire of achieving its personal goals cannot be a specific characteristic for a small business owner. I also believe that the two terms, â€Å"entrepreneur† and â€Å"small business owner†, are so close related that the transition between them can be made very easy and therefore I again disagree with Carland et al. because of their attempt to totally separate the concepts. For instance, if we take the farmer, on the the first stage of Maslow pyramid, according to Carland et al. , he fits the description of a small business owner, by having his business as his primary source of income and furthering his personal goals.But, what if we add that he discovers a secret recipe of wine, a new type of product, and he is able to put it into practice? This last feature belongs to an entrepreneur; therefore, the farmer will have both characteristics from a small business owner and an entrepreneur. So is he really a small business owner or he had become an entrepreneur? Gartner tries to show what differentiates an entrepreneur from non-entrepreneurs and it demonstrates that behavioral approaches are the ones we should concentrate on, for analyzing future researches in entrepreneurship, than trait approaches.He also recognizes that trait approaches and behavioral trait approaches are two related concepts that cannot be treated separately. Gartner explains that if we talk about behavioral and trait approaches, we analyze the entrepreneur’s characteristics through its activities undertaken to create an organization. For instance, Arthur Cole tries to take a behavioral viewpoint of an entrepreneur and then analyses his traits and specific characteristics (j udgment, perseverance, knowledge of the world and business).Jenks and Kilby disagree with studying the personality of an entrepreneur and they encourage researchers to study the behaviors and activities of an entrepreneur. However here, I consider that we can analyze equally, both the traits and the behavioral of an individual, because are strongly connected, and can be related in both ways, but the focus should be on the behavior. First, the behavior of an individual can be determined by its characteristics, as if for instance a person who most often takes hasty decisions he could be an impulsive person.And second, if we analyze an individual characteristics, we can suppose that he will behave in a certain way, like if he is very confident in its believes he could assume more risks than a person who does not trust its own ideas. Still we have to analyze each person as a simple, because everyone is unique and behaves in its own way. Gartner uses researches that focuses on the person of the entrepreneur, and tries to settle an entrepreneur’s qualities (traits), like: need for achievement, locus of control, risk taking, values, age, and others.Then he explains that these are worthless to differentiate entrepreneurs from others, because in the trait approach, an entrepreneur is considered a particular personality type with certain characteristics, but if we look at the studies, we can see that few entrepreneurs employ the same definition, so the views are not homogenous. In the article â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? Is a question worth asking†, after analyzing a compilation of Gartner’s studies of entrepreneurship, Carl et al. demonstrated the fruitlessness of his trait research.They considered that he used inconsistent definitions, samples that are not homogeneous or comparable and most important, he created an inconsistent entrepreneurial profile, which is often not significantly different from the rest of the population. Van de Ven finds it also important to analyze the traits and characteristics of a leader. However, Carland et al. considered that there are not so many classification schemes involving complex human behavior and that is one reason why they have excluded it.According to Gartner, we cannot talk anymore about â€Å"entrepreneurs† in general without referring to characteristics of the sample. In their continuous attempt to separate the term of â€Å"entrepreneur† from â€Å"small business owner† Carland et al. uses also psychology literature and considers that one’s personality is defined by all aspects of life and is largely set during the formative years. However, Gartner still believes that it is impossible to settle certain traits for an entrepreneur because everyone is different from other.Gartner also disagrees with the last part of Carland et al. entrepreneurial definition, which ties the state of being an entrepreneur to innovative behavior, and he brings up the problem of identifying if only the first firms in each industry are the innovative ones and all other subsequent would be small business owners. I consider that an entrepreneur is an innovative person, so in this respect I disagree with Gartner’s opinion. In addition, this does not mean that only the first company in each industry is innovative, like Gartner believes.Even if two firms are competing on the same industry, the second firm appeared on the market, could have products with the same utility and some similar characteristics, but the product can also contain an extra new, special, different, and innovative characteristic. Like for instance when it appeared the beer with lemon, I consider that is was a result of innovative thinking, because although it has the main utility of a bear, to quench the thirst, and has similar characteristics, it can also be seen as a new and different product.In this respect, Bhide, in his article â€Å"The questions every entrepreneur must answe r†, considers that in the same industry, the option that suits for one entrepreneurial venture can be completely inappropriate for another. In addition, he gives as an example companies like Microsoft, Lotus, WordPerfect, and Intuit, which are competing in the same industry but had a very different evolution. In his research â€Å"What is entrepreneurship? , Davidsson analyzes entrepreneurship through competitive behaviors. He agrees with Gartner. He does not consider innovation as an example of entrepreneurship. On the one side, he manages to avoid more the risk of ambiguity by restricting the entrepreneurship concept to a market context which gives a more precise characterization to the process and on the other its permissive because it has no restriction to innovation, organizational context, risk taking and others.He sees entrepreneurship on a small level, which has important effects on a bigger scale, because it influences the whole market. In addition, it is brought int o discussion the problem of differentiating a product from its similar product that constitutes innovation. Moreover, but not lastly we confront with the dilemma if new methods of manufacturing, marketing, distributing the product could be also considered as innovation and here, Gartner brings into discussion, the debate on which are the truly innovative methods.In the end, Gartner tries to change a long held viewpoint of entrepreneurial process by identifying it as the creation of new organizations. After that, he debates if the entrepreneurship ends once the organization creation is over. In his opinion the entrepreneurship ends once with the creation stage of the organization. In these respect, Greiner (1972) and Steinmetz (1969) considers that any organization can survive on past its creation stage to all the possible stages like growth, maturity, and decline.Therefore, if we look at the process itself and analyze each stage, when the individual creates an organization he takes different roles like innovator, manager, small business owner and many others and each is characterized by specific behaviors. But the order of these stages aren’t always the same. I consider that when the creation of the organization is on its end stage, we cannot say that entrepreneurial process it’s necessarily over. In certain situations, some firms extend their business by discovering a new revolutionary product.To be more specific, if we take in consideration a company which produces milk, and it discovers a new product that haven’t existed before, let’s suppose it’s butter, than the company will have to develop only some extra operations to make the revolutionary product. Therefore, the milk company will support a creation of a new sub organization in this section (technology, marketing, sales, management, and so one). Moreover, here come into discussion the habitual entrepreneurs, who, after creating a business, they are still identifying n ew business opportunities and put it into practice when they are able to do that.An interesting polemics, we can find on the article of Ucbasaran et al. , â€Å"Does entrepreneurial experience influence opportunity identification? †. After using data and research methodology among individuals engaged in entrepreneurial acts, they conclude that, on the one side, there are some differences between inexperienced novice entrepreneurs and experienced habitual entrepreneurs, but on the other, they also have some similarities in their behavior.Both habitual and novice entrepreneurs are in continuous searching for knowledge and development. One difference between these two categories is that with their experience, habitual entrepreneurs, identify more business opportunities, and one explanation could be that they use different sources of information like financiers, employees, and consultants. In addition, their attitude to business opportunity identification is different. They consi der that one opportunity often leads to another but it can also emerge in connection with some problems.Experienced entrepreneurs are also convinced that it is crucial to obtain the necessary resources and capital to implement a good idea, and they underline the importance of spontaneity and alertness. In addition, experienced entrepreneurs often identify business opportunities with higher level of innovativeness. One explication could be their ability of choosing the best person for the right activity, based on their experience, which gives them more time to develop more business opportunities. Wright et al. brings into discussion the risk of habitual entrepreneurs to repeat same ideas but in different or changed environments.I believe that habitual entrepreneurs indeed find more easily business opportunities because of their experience in the changing of the market needs, and most important customer’s needs. They have a better understanding of the market mechanism and how v ital is the spontaneity. They also understand better the consequences of doing or not doing something. However, entrepreneurship cannot be treated as an independently concept so therefore it can be related to areas like for instance mathematics, statistics, economics and many others.We find an attempt to prove the importance of having a complex model, in Bygrave and Hofer’s research, â€Å"Theorizing about Entrepreneurship†, where they try to highlight that entrepreneurship is a dynamic concept, which can’t be analyzed very good, using simples models like regression. They consider that we need a model with much more variables, such as: discontinuities in entrepreneurial process, changes of state (changes of phase in organization, including start-ups), sensitivity to initial conditions and multiplicity to anterior variables.In my opinion, using mathematics or some other exact sciences offers us a less subjective approach but if the model is not complex enough, we can also miss some details that could lead us to a rung conclusion or interpretation. Conclusions After analyzing opinions from several authors of articles, who tried to understand the concept of entrepreneurship and â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? †, we can conclude that there are many points of view in this respect and that’s why we cannot reach to a general valid and accepted definition of the concepts.Some tried to establish the differences between entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs, others tried to differentiate even the entrepreneurs between them, focusing on experience, and some tried to measure the concept through statistics, all having the same aim, to understand deeper the concept. However, there will always be the need of debate because the concept itself is a subjective one. So it remains to our discretion what opinion do we agree with, or we may very well create our own concept of an entrepreneur and entrepreneurship.In my opinion, a better understanding o f the entrepreneur concept, needs a more suitable question, than â€Å"Who is an entrepreneur? †, like â€Å"What does an entrepreneur do? †. I believe that if we are able to establish his behavior, this will lead us to its characteristics, on the one side, and on the other, it could also give us a vision of his potential future behavior. After analyzing all points of view, I finally created my own concept of an entrepreneur.Therefore, first I believe that an entrepreneur should be able to create an organization, based on an original innovative idea, and sustain it. Second, he is concentrated on anticipating the need of the person on long term and finds the most efficient way of satisfying it. Third, he takes huge risks in order to fulfill its goal and he is able to adapt easy to changes. Moreover, most of all he identifies itself with the organization. Therefore, on an entrepreneur all these characteristics and behaviors complement each other.References Bhide, A. 1996 ) The question every entrepreneur must answer, Harvard Business Review, 74(6), 120-130 Bygrave, W. D. & Hofer, C. W. (1991), Theorizing about entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurship Theory an Practice, 16(2), pp. 13-39 Carland, J. W. , Hoy, F. , Boulton, W. R. , & Carland, J. A. (1984). Differentiating entrepreneurs from small business owners: A conceptualization.Academy of Management Review, 9(2), 354-359 Carland, J. W. , Hoy, F. , & Carland, J. A. C. (1988): _’Who is an Entrepreneur? _Is a question worth asking’, American Journal of Small Business, 12(4): p. 3-39. Davidsson, P. (2004) What is entrepreneurship? Chapter in Researching entrepreneurship. Boston, Massachusetts: Springer. Gartner, W. (1989)

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

General Electric Medical Systems

1. Q 1. What is the underlying logic behind the global product idea? What are the costs and the benefits that are expected? Global Products Company(GPC) strategy is based on the following underlying logical premises: a. Markets for medical equipment are systems are becoming increasingly global in nature. They are no more restricted to only the developed First and Second World countries having advanced healthcare systems. The burgeoning market is that of emerging and developing economies. Thus, there is a need to meet the growing demand for affordable medical equipment in these economies and retain its market leadership b. Needless to say that low-cost leverage is the only way to win a large chunk of this new pie and therefore GEMS has to shift to a cost-efficient strategy c. GEMS realised the potential of tapping production & sourcing centres where there was parity in output quality and labour skill-sets but overall cost was much lower. d. The GPC strategy involved sourcing quality components from the most cost-effective suppliers and establishing the manufacturing bases in most cost-effective geographies. e. As most of the GEMS manufacturing involved sourcing complicated components from across the globe to two-three manufacturing/assembling centres and then distributing across the globe from these centres, the challenging aspect of GPC was in the development of intermediaries along the supply chain to ensure un-interrupted supply & production flows. The following are some of the costs and benefits of the above mentioned strategy of globalizing production to facilitate a low cost production: Benefits: 1. As materials form 80% of the manufacturing cost, sourcing of materials from low-cost countries would enable a significant amount of saving. The key would be to develop long-term relationships with local suppliers and once that is done, it means unparalleled cost savings in future. 2. Having manufacturing centres in low-cost-labour countries would also enable a substantial cost reduction as labour formed 20% of the manufacturing cost. 3. Now, as labour and materials form almost 85% of the total variable cost, substantial reduction in both would enable GEMS to have a cost reduction to he tune of approximately 30% in the total cost. It has to be noted that the incremental fixed cost in case of GEMS was close to nil (Exhibit 7). Costs: 1. In addition to the fixed costs that had to be incurred additionally to enter into the low-cost countries, other GPC-specific costs included inventory, logistics, documentation, and import- duty costs relating to moving materials and products around the world. 2. Developing a long-standing relationship with new suppliers in these low-cost countries was another area that required considerable allocation of time and effort. . Reducing investments in developed countries, from where bulk of their demand came, meant deteriorating relationship and loss of concessions from these countries. 4. Costs related to hiring less experienced workforce in these new locations, and human toll on the workforce as a result of long trips from home for the employees from both old locations and headquarters. If we analyse GEMS’s strategy mentioned in the body above using the AAA model, we can conclude that it is primarily using the arbitrage strategy of globalization with some elements of aggregation. Q. 2 Should the global product philosophy be changed or altered to suit the China market? Please identify both sides of the argument and take a position explaining the rationale behind your stand. Does it make economic sense? The choice between continuing with the current Global Product Concept(GPC) and adopting â€Å"In China for China† for the low end products is a very difficult call for GE managers. On one hand there are several advantages of adopting â€Å"In China for China† such as: In China there is a huge growth potential for medical diagnostics and as of now it is the world's third largest market for the same. By adopting â€Å"In China for China†, GEMS can design and customize products according to local needs in China and further the GE managers believe that China being a nationalistic country, domestically produced products will have greater demand than imported ones. There are other factors like low incremental fixed cost for moving facilities to China, avoidance of duties and tariffs, availability of cheaper local labor and low transportation cost all of which would help in cost saving for GEMS. On the other hand in order to adopt â€Å"In China for China† strategy GEMS will have to break the GPC concept which may result in ecreased quality due to lack of readily available skilled labor and reduced cost cutting efficiency. Also the management will have to address the challenge of development of suppliers which may result in inefficiency. GEMS do not have good history of managing joint ventures because of the unethical practices of the partner which eventually lead GEMS a cquiring the partners. As understood from the case there are two different market segments in China namely the high end markets served which is served only through imports and the low end markets which is served through domestic production. The adoption of â€Å"In China for China† strategy will result in the company distancing itself from high end customers which will end up in losing the revenue for the business to high end customers. Considering all these factors we suggest that it is better for GEMS not to adopt â€Å"In China for China† strategy and to stay with Global Product Concept. Q3. Should GEMS be aggressively pursuing genomics and healthcare-IT related opportunities in addition to or instead of the China opportunity? What priorities would you suggest? Explain your reasoning carefully? No doubt, being third largest healthcare market with tremendous growing potential in future, China is a lucrative market that GEMS can’t easily neglect. But at the same time, with the growth of technological advancement in the field of healthcare, genomics and healthcare-IT related products and services going to have an important role in the coming decades and the companies having those expertise will bound to dominate the global healthcare market in future for sure. So we think that GEMS should take both the China opportunity and the genomics and Healthcare –IT related opportunities seriously. We believe that GEMS has the capacity to look at both the opportunities simultaneously obviating the need to sacrifice one for the other. The company’s strong financial condition along with its strong emphasis on R&D would help the organization in meeting both the objectives. China Opportunity : But in doing so GEMS should initially put more focus on the China market than the R&D on genomics and healthcare-IT projects. Because it is very important for GEMS to catch hold of the China’s market before other competitors like Siemens, Philips. Also the gestation period of genomics and healthcare related projects are too high usually 5-10 years and in such a situation to maintain a good balance sheet GEMS should have a good market share in China. The low end product accounts for 20% of the global sales and to succeed in the low end , presence is Chinese market is a must for any company. Secondly, The China opportunity requires GEMS to shift the production from the other parts of the world to China. The incremental cost associated with that shift in production process is a mere $1 million which should not be an obstacle in GEMS China policy. So GEMS can easily do that without worrying too much about the financial aspects. Genomics and healthcare-IT related opportunities Genomics and preventive health care is going to play a deciding factor in coming decades. But these projects are far more complex than what GEMS did till now. Genomics requires not only technological know-how but also expertise on biomedical science which presently GEMS lacks off. So for better output from these R&D, Tie-up with pharmaceutical companies that develop viruses and chemical reagents would help GEMS to understand and increase their expertise on bio medical science. Collaboration with leading universities around the world on researches on topics relevant to these projects would also help GEMS. Funding for these researches, Supplying machines and tools to support those researches would help GEMS in getting good responses from R&D teams around the world. So with the steps mentioned above and few modifications to the present system, GEMS can take both the opportunities

Monday, July 29, 2019

Discuss the key roles of the central bank in an economy. Should Essay

Discuss the key roles of the central bank in an economy. Should central banks be independent - Essay Example The institution, which is the chief regulator, is called the central bank. The 17th century money was dominated by gold and silver, with verbal and written promises also being a form of payment. Paper money and attempts to control money flow were first used in China. European form of central banks came in existence in form of Knights Templar’s promises of payment. The modern precursor of central bank was the bank of Sweden, the Sveriges Riksbank, which acted as the source of funding for government operations and was answerable to the political leadership. Modern central banks operate on the model created by Charles Montagu, which operated in the Bank of England. Montagu’s model operated on the subscription of people to the government’s loan, which would guarantee the subscribers incorporation as attracted certain privileges like banking notes. Central banks evolved with increasing public outlook and monetary functions to be what they are today. Central banks operate on the cumulative process that creates quantity theory. This theory wa s developed by Henry Thornton, to explain the England’s monetary crisis of 1797, with reference to the bank withholding withdrawal of notes from the bank (Rosaveare 34). The Bank Charter of 1844 gave the Bank of England the monopoly over issuance of banknotes and the reserves which any financial institution should have in the bank before issuing a certain value of banknotes (â€Å"The Bank† n.pag).19th century witnessed the spread and growth of central banks spread in many European countries. The Banque de France was established in 1800, the U.S. Federal Reserve in 1923, Australia, Mexico, Chile and Colombia established in 1920, 1925 and 1923 respectively. Prior to the Great Depression, only a few countries like New Zealand, China and Brazil had not established central banks. All central banks are government owned entities. The central banks

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Final Assignment Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Final Assignment - Term Paper Example There will be injustice in screening the applicants for various jobs. This issue has brought tension among the employees around the mentioned states. Employees have also feared in asking for money lending since its mandatory that they may be unfairly charged during the payment of debts. A great concern is for provisions pertained in these laws because it subjects these employers too much criminal and civil punishments. The exposure of these penalties to the workers is dangerous and it may cause a drop in hiring of employees in private sector. It is also worth noting the requirements in this legislation since it is harsh to the private sector than the government sector and this therefore will cause a problem to the people of Ontario. All the applicants who have reached the final stage of being given a chance go through a thorough inspection for criminal record and this may eliminate a person at this step. Even though the solutions being worked on by the City Council of Ontario are supported, the unintended punishments of allowing this bill would likely deter the business environment in this city of Ontario and regulate job growth as new firms or current employers planning to expand may choose to do so In a neighboring state without this restrictive hiring method. Molding job opportunities in the private field for ex-offenders is an issue of great concern by the city lawmakers, but it would be highly productive to give incentives to businesses to achieve this goal than for authority to command and scare them. The policymakers think that this project will decrease crime in Ontario City but it will be more of negative to the workers than benefit them. Nonetheless, the idea seems to brush away the whole city. Under these laws, job request cannot include a â€Å"box† asking about criminal history although employers can do background checks later in the progression. This policy has many things to correct it. Many of the criminals undergo ordinary

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Pricing Strategy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Pricing Strategy - Case Study Example Pricing must show a positive correlation with other elements of the mix so as to achieve the objectives of a firm. In addition, pricing is complex as it must imitate the demand and supply relationship of the product. Firms need to charge a fair price, since charging too high for the product or too low might lead to reduction in sales for the organization thus reducing the profitability of the organization. Therefore, there is a need for the hotel to consider the profit factors in determining the price of the product. In this case, the profit factors includes; the objectives of the company, variable and fixed cost associated with the product, the targeted market and willingness and ability to pay, the competition environment prevailing in the industry and planned positioning strategies (Smith and Smith 271). In the consideration, of the above classification, the place or rather the location of the hotel is vital for pricing. Avira hotel is strategically situated, where in the neighbor hood there various tourist attraction site thus offering the possibility a wider a market. Also, the hotel operates from an area which is close to the airport, bank and various garden as well as other recreational areas. This implies that the many of the customers are individuals who have a higher willingness ability to pay; therefore, the price must reflect this consideration (Smith and Smith 282). The strategic positioning in an area where there demand of the hotels implies the price charged by the hotel must reflect the supply constrain, since there are only five-star hotels in the area, while the number of the customer is higher. This implies that demand is considerably high since it is only in the month may that the hotels products experienced an average of about 50% occupancy this justifies the move by the hotel review it price so as to reflect this relationship (Smith and Smith 289). Another pricing strategy showcased in this case is the level of competition in the hotel indu stry in the region. There are only five-star hotels serving a wide, thus, the completion between the hotels is not intense as demand is in excess of supply. This implies that, for a hotel to be more competitive than the other hotel so that it can control the large proportion market, therefore, they must consider the pricing strategy so as to maximize on large production thus benefiting from the economies of scale. In respect to competition, the customers consider the utility they derive and compare this to the price that they pay for the product. It is evident that the price that Avari hotel is slightly higher than that of its key competitor Pearl. Usually consumers will pay higher for a commodity if they think that the commodity is superior as compared to the others. In this case, when Avira lowered its price in the month of November lower than its competitors Pearl; that is pearl charges $1065 and Avira $1000. Pearl occupancy level rises to 80% as compared to 70% Avira. This has t he implication that consumers equate the price they pay to the utility or satisfaction they derive from consuming these products. Avira also utilizes premium pricing, where it charges higher prices for its products to show the how its product is exclusive as compared to the product offered by other firms and especially competition. This case can be delineated by the ever higher price charged by Avira as compared to Pearl. In addition to this, the

Define the importance of the doctrine of the Trinity for the Christian Research Paper

Define the importance of the doctrine of the Trinity for the Christian faith. Analyze the history and development of that doctr - Research Paper Example Basically Christian understanding concerning the Trinity starts from the two elements, namely His essense and His acts, which are the way of functioning of the three Persons in the Trinity. Human beings thus far haven't been able to have a frame of reference in order to explain the Mystery of Trinity and can never do that also. But only thing we can know is Logic cannot transcend divinity. If man's knowledge is like a drop of water, then the knowledge of God would be like an ocean which transcends all limits. Thus we don't have the eligibility, neither have we the capability to comprehend His mystery. His true entity no one can ever understand. Gregory of Nazianzen expresses God as, â€Å"One God, One in diversity, diverse in Unity, wherein is a marvel† (Second Theological Oration par. 1). We believe in His essence because we experience his energies. Rational bases even if are good, not always vital for stability of our faith. Still we have Scriptural resources, and historic t heological literatures which definitely help us to grasp enough about the mystery of the Triune God. Only whatever is necessary for our finite understanding is revealed by God. In this paper, the writer would try to analyse how important the doctrine of Trinity is for the Christians, further looking through the historical development of the doctrine and the firmness of the doctrine in the minds of the Christians. IMPORTANCE OF THE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY: As we said at the outset, Christian faith balances upon the reality of God, His Triune existence. The doctrine elaborates the reality of God and explains the mysteries. It reveals God's personality. It says that God is not simply a supernatural entity but He is a person with a personality. It brings into light the function of the Godhead in three streams- The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit, explaining their acts in history of humanity and the sole focus to redeem humanity from the clutches of sin and death. The Father, the fi rst Person in the Godhead is the sender of the Son who came down to earth, sacrificing all the glory of the Heaven, to offer Himself as a vicarious sacrifice for the sins of the entire humanity. The Father reveals the grandeur of His love for humanity through His Son. The Son is the second Person in the Godhead Who alone was qualified to do the task. He finished His work of bringing redemption for man by defeating death and overpowering the effect of sin. Moreover He became an ideal for being obedient, which was the very mistake of Man that brought sin into the world. Holy Spirit is the third Person in the Godhead Who is the transformer of human heart by the planting of Christ into his/her life through penitence, making him/her return from sin. He guides a person in the spiritual journey in this life making the person more like Christ every day. Without the Holy Spirit, the redemption offered by Christ cannot be experienced fully. â€Å"Redemption, therefore, in historic Christiani ty is initiated by the Father (Galatians 4:4), accomplished through the Son (1 Peter 3:18), and is applied by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5)† (Samples par.3). Thus the whole process of redemption which is the core of God's mission in this world is not feasible without the Trinity i.e. Father, Son and the Holy Spirit all together. Trinitarian concept of God also solves another problem. According to St. Augustine, only the God Who is united in His plural nature can be loving. Unless God is plural in Himself and is solitary, then the

Friday, July 26, 2019

Report on Performance Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Report on Performance Management - Essay Example The report will cover the definitions of each link and the transitional aspect portrayed in management process undertaken by the firm. This report is an application of theoretical course work into practical work. Performance management is a continuous process which never ends. Once incorporated in an organization, it forms part of the culture of that enterprise. The process involves six closely related components namely; prerequisites, performance planning, performance execution, performance review, and performance renewal and re-contracting. Each of the above components requires thoroughness in implementation. In the event of poor implementation of any of the above, the entire performance system suffers. This is why it is eminent for links to be established between the components. Some of the recommendations suggested to performance in Omega Inc. include; management and the employees should together identify the necessary tasks to be accomplished and the mode of action necessary to ensure success. This involves the prior analysis of the anticipated results and the appropriate behaviours required to accomplish those tasks. The objectives should be mutually agreed between the organization management and the employees. ... Excellent performers should be encouraged through concentrating on their strengths and enlightening them on how they can capitalize on their strengths to improve performance. In conclusion, the consequences suffered due to the failure of the performance management process in the case study indicated that the process is a strategy that systemizes and manages the impact of all contributing factors that influence the organizational productivity and performance. The analysis of Omega Inc. has provided the practical facts that involve the transition from one link to another as stipulated in the basics of the performance management process. From the above discussion on the case study, it is clear that for any performance management process to be successful, everyone in the organization should be involved; not just the sale representatives or managers. Contents Executive Summary 1 Contents 2 Topic Background 4 The Case Study: Performance Management Process in Omega Inc. 5 Discussion 5 Perfo rmance management links 5 Prerequisites 5 Performance planning 7 Performance Execution 8 Performance Assessment 9 Performance Review 10 Performance Renewal and Re-Contracting 11 Conclusion 12 Recommendations 12 Robbins, S.P. (2012). Management, Pearson Australia, Frenchs Forest, N.S.W. p. 444. 15 Report on Performance Management Performance management is a continuous process of measuring, identifying, developing and aligning the performance of teams and individuals with the organizational goals. The process involves six closely related components namely; prerequisites, performance planning, performance execution, performance review and performance renewal and re-contracting. Each component of

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Masculinity as a Prerequisite of Traditional American Heroism Essay

Masculinity as a Prerequisite of Traditional American Heroism - Essay Example Considering the traditional American view of heroism, as brought forth by the novel ‘The Big Sleep’ by Raymond Chandler and the film ‘The Maltese Falcon’ directed by John Huston, masculinity is a prerequisite. In the early way of thinking, male characters were seen to intervene on the behalf of the feminine ones (Cohen 1). This view has been portrayed in several early documented resources. Looking at Raymond Chandler’s novel, ‘The Big Sleep’, General Sternwood makes an intervention for her two daughters, Carmen and Vivian. Sternwood seeks the help of a private investigator, Philip Marlowe to intervene in an attempted blackmail against Carmen by Arthur Geiger, a bookseller (Chandler 10). He is further tasked with the responsibility of establishing about the whereabouts of Rusty Regan, Vivian’s husband who has since disappeared. The heroic characters in the entire incidence are masculine individuals. The case presents a situation whereby the feminine are not considered heroic. This presents a situation whereby the chances of having an ultimate masculine hero to be too high while their counterparts with very slim chances. The main role in the traditional setting of movies has shown a predictable pattern of masculine heroes. ‘The Maltese Falcon’, is a movie that reve als an iconic private investigator, Sam Spade dealing with three complicated individuals, all these people are working to obtain the Maltese falcon. The man is expressed as witty and capable of finding solutions. Despite losing his co-investigator, Spade gets to the length of conducting his independent investigations. Spade is systematic in his conduct and ends up unearthing several truths about the incidences surrounding the deaths of Arthur and Thursby. He successfully confronts law enforcers. The police question him concerning the murder of Archer and Thursby. These murders occur on the day when Miss Ruth Wonderly was meant to meet Thursby, while Archer had accepted to follow her in an effort to get her sister who had gone missing. The Falcon is a highly coveted treasure and attracts interests from different persons. Spade finds himself at the centre stage of all this despite the incidences surrounded by murder and suspicion. Spade was suspected by Archer’s wife to have ki lled him in order to inherit her, but he got out of the loop. Joel Cairo enticed him with $5,000 fee to find the falcon, he further pointed spade his gun as a threat so that he could look for it in the office. Spade was not cowed, he knocked Cairo down and when he was in his right mind he considered hiring Spade. His masculine power is shown when the movie shows him bringing Cairo down, this sends a message that the ultimate hero is a person with unmatched muscle power. Throughout the film, Spade appears bold, unshaken and cunning. He is a man whose heroism has been expressed by the treatment he gives to other characters and the prowess he depicts in handling every incidence. Masculine characters in the Chandler’s novel depict some higher level of accomplishment. Marlowe is a man capable of engaging in investigations reliably. He is able to track the behind the scenes pornographic activities in Geiger’s bookshop. In this scene, it appears the source of the blackmail is the involvement of Carmen in pornographic activities. This incidence shows a situation where feminine characters are used for the benefit of the masculine ones. In the bookstore, the role of a

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Migration in America Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Migration in America - Research Paper Example Native American Migrations Although we started the topic with that of immigrant population, when considering the influential ethnic groups in the country it is only right to start with the natives of the country itself, the American Indians. In the early nineteenth century the native tribes of America were mostly concentrated in the agriculturally rich lands down south, west of the Mississippi river. As the United States starting growing in population and economic status, many of the white European settlers started moving towards the south in search of land and abundance. The native settlers proved an obstacle to the white dominion of the land and subsequently between the years 1814 to the 1824, the native settlers were driven out of their homes. As a result of various treaties that were signed between the United States Government and the natives, they had to forfeit their ownership of their native lands, by virtue of the â€Å"right of occupancy† policy adopted by the then Un ited States Government and, settle for lands further west. Some left willingly as a means of buying peace while other tribes fought for their freedom and stayed back in their lands. Subsequently after many wars the Indians spread their tribes in faraway lands and forced to sell themselves to slavery. Today the Native American tribes live in government-sponsored reservations governed by their respective tribal heads and have undergone some urbanization. This migration is however not one effected by want for better economic conditions but is a forced migration. Therefore from a relative viewpoint, it has not effected much economic growth since the Native Americans still continue to be a minority population in the country. African American Migrations The history of slavery in America started in the year 1808 and brought many of African ethnicity from different regions across the Atlantic as slaves to places like Oklahoma and the agrarian states down south of the Mississippi. Some other s who escaped slavery moved to other parts along the coast. The slaves formed small communities and made their homes near their wealthy white masters, as they did not have any other means of survival. After the civil war and the abolition of slavery however the African American community started growing roots down south. Racial tension and discrimination in a white dominated society gave vent to the Great Migration between the years 1810 to 1830. The oppressed slaves fled from their homes in search of freedom as well as livelihood in other parts in the Midwest like Chicago, North East like New York and New Jersey and far West like Los Angeles and San Francisco. Subsequent migrations in 1840 saw the African American population spreading themselves to other parts of the country. However most of the African American population still longed for their homes down. Thus when the Civil Rights Act was passed, most African Americans migrated back to their homes with dreams of better economic and social conditions. The result of the first migrations saw great urbanization amongst the African Americans and in conditions which were less if not completely non-discriminatory. However with the new economic climate there is a trend of reverse migration back to south in search of lower cost of living and less pressures of urban life. The migratory pattern of the African American population is therefore driven by cultural and economic condition

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Who is Affecter in Labor Market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Who is Affecter in Labor Market - Essay Example Labor implies the workforce needed. There needs to be market for services provided. The labor market is unique in the sense that it comprises people who lease their time to enterprises for a given period. The labor they provide is exchanged with wages; in other words, these people trade their idle hours for paid time to that they can earn a living and buy goods and services. In turn, businesses utilize the labor to generate goods and services that consumers demand.As mentioned previously, capital, labor, entrepreneurship and natural resources are the major components required in generating good and services. The quality and quantity of labor that people provide is a significant factor in influencing the rate of growth and level of production of an economy. Employed people, job seekers and enterprises looking for workers constitute the labor market. The contact between the suppliers of labor and businesses seeking human capital determines the salaries and wages that the employees are paid. It also dictates how many people will be employed. A major feature of the labor market is the role of the unique abilities and skills of everyone. Unique talents can be enhanced and changed through training and education so that the labor force becomes an evolving talent pool that businesses hire. Effective use of skills and training of people to meet emerging demands in the market makes the process of production more efficient. Another significant aspect of the labor market is the flexibility of its workforce.

Monday, July 22, 2019

Red Cabbage Indicator Prac Write Up Essay Example for Free

Red Cabbage Indicator Prac Write Up Essay The red cabbage indicator shows how a usual household product such as red cabbage can make a suitable indicator and be able find out if a chemical is either and acid, alkali or neutral. Acids are a chemical that reacts with an alkali neutralising it producing water and a salt. Acids are also commonly found to be sour tasting. Acids react with metals, releasing hydrogen gas and leaving behind a salt they also can conduct electricity. Acids also readily give off hydrogen ions and have a pH level lower than 7. Some more common laboratory acids are Hydrochloric, Sulphuric and Nitric Acids. Sulphuric acids and water are used in car batteries as the electrolyte. Bases or alkali are a chemical that will react with acids and usually have a slimy or soapy feeling on contact with skin. Bases readily accept hydrogen ions and has a pH level that is higher the 7. Bases have a bitter taste and neutralise d by acids, producing water and a salt. Some common laboratory bases are Sodium Hydroxide, Potassium Hydroxide and Calcium Hydroxide. Stronger bases are commonly used today in many cleaning products. Indicators help us find wether if a chemical is an acid or base. The scale that is used to find wether a chemical is an acid or a base is the pH scale. The pH scale gives us an indication of the amount of hydrogen ions and goes from 1 – 14, one being the strongest acid and 14 being the strongest base. Many plants and flowers have natural substances which have indicating properties that allow them to be used as indicators. The red colour of red cabbage comes from a molecule called an anthocyanin. Very acidic solutions will turn anthocyanin a red colour. Neutral solutions result in a purplish colour. Alkalis solutions appear in greenish-yellow. Therefore, it is possible to determine the pH of a solution based on the colour it turns the anthocyanin in red cabbage juice. Materials: ↠ Red cabbage leaves (or red flower petals such as carnation, rose or geranium) ↠ 250ml beaker ↠ Hotplate or Bunsen burner, tripod, gauze mat and bench mat ↠ Spotting tile ↠ Dilute (0.1M) Hydrochloric acid ↠ Dilute (0.1M) sodium hydroxide solution ↠ Vinegar ↠ Distilled Water ↠ Filter ↠ Jar ↠ Cloudy Ammonia ↠ Sodium Chloride ↠ Lemon Juice ↠ Shampoo ↠ Dish washing detergent Method: Part A: Making the indicator 1.The cabbage leaves were torn up and placed in the beaker 2.The beaker was heated until the water was gently boiling. The cabbage leaves continued to boil until the water has been strongly coloured red. 3.The cabbage leaves were allowed to cool and then to be filtered, strained or pick Part B: Testing the indicator 4.The cabbage water was added to all wells of the spotting tile and split equally between them. 5.A known acid and base were placed on a spotting tile on the cabbage indicator. The colour was record. 6.The remaining chemicals were placed on the spotting tile and were recorded as in step 5 Safety Assessment: Hydrochloric acid (HCL) is a corrosive liquid Skin contact: Exposer for a short period/s of time may cause irritation and prolonged exposer may cause burns Eye Contact: Exposer for a short period of time may cause irritation and may cause burns. Permanent eye damage may result. To avoid any contact with the substance wear: Protective Clothing Safety Glasses Safety Gloves (Optional) Closed shoes Eye contact – immediately hold eyelids open and rinse eye continuously for five – ten minutes Skin contact immediately rinse the affected area under water until there is none of the chemical left on the skin Contact with any other chemical should be treated as this one. All protective gear listed above should be used in the experiment in the same way. Hair tied back Jewellery to be taken off

The problem with determinism Essay Example for Free

The problem with determinism Essay The traditional view is that of the compatibilists which states that freedom is the ability to act, or not to act, according to the determinations of the will. It is so defined to make it compatible with the theory of determinism, which essentially states that all actions have a causal explanation due to the state of the world in the moment previous. However, the definition is clearly inadequate due to the fundamental flaws of determinism and its failure to account for deliberation or personal choice. A superior alternative is offered by what Taylor calls the theory of agency, but is more commonly known as libertarianism. In discussing a theory one must start with some data in order to prove the validity of the theory, and in discussing determinism this is no different. Two suitable criteria dealing with the decision making process are: firstly that we at times deliberate with the view of making a decision , and secondly regardless of whether I deliberate I sometimes have a personal choice in the decision making process. These criteria are ideal because they are both things that we as individuals are fairly certain of so any acceptable theory must account for them in some way. For common sense, a virtue in argumentation, suggests that it is easier to accept the veracity of partial self-determination in the decision making process than an abstract philosophical theory. To asses the applicability of the data to determinism a more in depth examination of determinism is needed, which Taylor defines as having three tenets: Firstly, that the theory of determinism is true. Secondly, that voluntary behaviour is free unless constrained, and finally that causes of voluntary behaviour are certain states, condition, decisions, and desires. The principle problem of determinism is precisely this last tenet, for what are the causes of the inner states that cause my actions? Where do they come from? Are they under my control? If determinism is true then the problem of infinite causality arises for the causes of the actions must themselves have causes. When applied to the two original data the infinite causality of determinism renders these data false. Take deliberation as an example. I can deliberate only about future actions, but there are always causes to everything I do making the outcome of the deliberation inevitable and the process itself irrelevant. The incompatibility of determinism and deliberation does not bode well for the second datum, as if I am to have a personal choice in an action then I must be able to concretely execute any of the options associated with the action. But if determinism is true there can again only be one option due to the chain of causes thus negating the option of personal choice. A better theory, one that incorporates these two essential data is what Taylor calls the theory of agency, but is more commonly known as libertarianism, which postulates that human beings are frequently, but not always, self-determining beings. To further understand the theory of agency and thus its advantages it is first necessary to examine how it deals with the causation of actions. If an individual is relatively free in his decision making it follows that the individual agent can be considered a cause for the resulting action. For example, if I move my hand then the obvious cause of the motion is me and not some infinite series of causes. The lack of such a sequence of causes, unlike the one put forward by determinism, is an advantage for it allows the theory of agency to be rid of the problems of determinism discussed above. Moreover this allows libertarianism to incorporate the two criteria originally put forth. Under libertarianism deliberation becomes not just possible, but quite logical as it makes sense to ponder a matter over which I have control of the outcome. Then obviously, if I am at least a partially self-determining entity then I have a fair amount of personal choice in what course of action I should pursue. Aside from avoiding the problems of determinism, perhaps libertarianisms greatest advantage is its common sense appeal. For example, if I am considering whether to order a Big Mac for lunch or a McChicken, it makes much more sense to me that through deliberation I can choose which sandwich I would like to eat, rather than the existence of some infinite chain of events that pre-determines that I will eat a Big Mac. It is of course necessary to acknowledge that common sense and simplicity are not absolute truths, but as Bertrand Russell wrote, in support of common sense, in The Problems of Philosophy, Since this belief [in the existence of physical objects] does not lead to any difficulties, but on the contrary tends to simplify and systemize our account of our experiences, there seems no good reason for rejecting it. (Russell, 24) While Russell was addressing another problem the logic of common sense he applied most definitely applies to the case at hand as well. As a concluding argument in favour of libertarianism consider, the very fact of reading and grading this essay. If determinism were true then this essays grade would have long been pre-determined by a series of causes stretching back to before its very creation thus rendering useless the whole process. Texts Cited Russell, B. Problems of Philosophy. Oxford University Press: Oxford, 1997. Taylor, R. Metaphysics. Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice Hall, 1993.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Accounting Conservatism and Risk Taking Decisions

Accounting Conservatism and Risk Taking Decisions Introduction Manager is in a position of Captain in Charge in ship of the Organization, so that to make organization more beautiful Manager has duty to make an important decision on Corporate Investment. These types of decisions create Agency Problems because of the time interest differences between manager and shareholder. This research is carried out to understand how conservatism accounting reduces agency problems, and examines the effect of conservatism on manager’s high risk investment decision. This research also examine that whether accounting conservatism solves the misalignment of interest between managers and organization through increasing hurdle rates used by managers during project selections, and sheds lights on literature attempting to identify the relation between accounting conservatism and manager’s investment decisions. Motivation A study was conducted by Givoly and Hayn (2000), Beatty et al. (2008), and Khan and Watts in 2009, to measure accounting conservatism and firm’s characteristics such as size, leverage, and market-to-book ratio. They found evidences to support their hypothesis that accounting conservatism improves firms’ investment efficiency. According to Khan and Watts managers’ investment hurdle rates and induces conservative investment decisions are significantly increase under conservatism accounting, even when the agency problems are more severe this effect is more pronounced. According to the positive accounting theory accounting conservatism plays very effective role in the roll contracting process. Corporate investment is an important decision, but this decision are not always made in the best interest of shareholders, so many time manager invest in a risky and even negative net present value projects just because of their personal interest in of investment. Accounting conservatism is a reporting mechanism which reflects accountant’s trend to require lower threshold to recognise bad news than good news. Accounting conservatism helps to improve corporate investment by preventing investment in high risk or unsuccessful investment projects by early terminations of such projects. This early terminations of projects reduces managers compensation and increases managers interest of job turnover. If manager is rational to predict the accelerated recognition of losses, and the timely termination of unsuccessful projects, they will be more cautious to make the investment decisions. (Francis and Martin (2010) and Bushman et al. (2007)) The increased cautiousness to invest will be reflected in the hurdle rate, which used to evaluate an investment project. In theory, hurdle rate is as equals as the cost of capital; managers should not take decision to invest in a project if the return is lower than the cost of financing. Indeed hurdle rate is observed to be either lowers than the cost of capital in practice, because of managerial discretion. The result of the study state that Corporate governance role have established the roll of accounting conservatism in resolving information asymmetry, reducing agency costs, and improving debt contracting efficiency. (Ball (2001), Ball and Shivakumar (2005)) Literature Review There are many research has been carried out in about the relation of the accounting conservatism and manager’s risk taking decision. Ahmed and Zhang, 2009 found that accounting conservatism reduces information imbalance between lenders and borrowers, and also reduces cost of capital for borrowers. They also found that if conservatism cause financially constrained firms to under investment than the relation between conservatism and firm’s future performance will negative. On the other hand reduce overinvestment problem for financially constrained firms, than the relation will be expected positive. Another research carried out by Leuz (2001) and Guay and Vierrecchia (2006) and found that accounting conservatism force manager to avoid positive NPV projects, because Impaired incentives created for managers if gains not recognize timely untimely gain recognition, and manager force to avoid those types of positive projects. In particular, if gains are not recognize timely than manager will responsible for investment for those project, and may no longer be in the office by the time gains are realized. This is because always expect their future incentive rate higher in long term, than the firms required rate of return. If gains recognise by timely than even positive NPV for shareholder became negative for manager. Accounting conservatism increases corporate investment efficiency in two ways. First is, by timelier incorporating bad news into earnings, accounting conservatism inform the board’s investigation of the unsuccessful investment project that may lead to its early abandonment, saving shareholders from unexpected future losses (Watts 2003). On the other hand, the expected personal costs related to project such as compensation, reputation and career concerns would increase managers’ cautiousness in choosing investment projects at the outset. Extant studies by Ball and Shivakumar, 2005; Francis and Martin, 2010 believe that accounting conservatism can restrain managers to investing in negative NPV projects by accelerated loss recognition. In addition, if managers recognise ex ante about failure of particular project, they should record losses timely, because it will affect to their reputation and income as well, so manager should postpone investing in those project. Furthermore, Roychowdhury (2010) found that risky projects are mostly become negative projects, therefor managers try to avoid risky projects due to timely loss recognition, because it creates also risk-averse, even if the projects have profitability to shareholders. If managers know that the project is have many risks of failure, manager have to write losses more timely before failure of project, because manager’s reputation income linked with compensation will be affected by it, so that manager avoid to involve to invest in those projects, even though projects are profitable. Smith and Watts 1992; Kwon and Yin 2006 found that, firms with higher growth opportunities prefer to assets have higher contracting costs, because growth opportunities are often intangible in nature, so that information related to them are likely less verifiable. Therefore, managers have greater unrestricted power, and are more likely to manage earnings through accruals, so that agency costs are higher in high-growth firms. Furthermore high growth firms are more likely to have more volatile returns and higher probability of lawsuits, which creates a higher demand of accounting conservatism (Khan and Watts, 2009). Empirically, we use book-to-market ratio (an inverse measure of growth opportunity) to measure the growth opportunity of firms. Driver and Temple (2010) found that, if the manager is aware of the embedded risk a hurdle rate that is higher than the cost of capital will be used by the irreversibility of the investment project. Corporate investment is efficient in the situation where internal funds flow gives the highest returns from investment project. However, managers deviate from the optimal level of investment, because of dysfunctional investment incentives (Stein et al. 2003). These dysfunctional incentives can be reflected in the hurdle rates used to select projects. Finance textbooks state that managers should benchmark the investment return to the cost of capital, so that with the project with lower returns than the cost of capital are rejected. In addition, managers use hurdle rates which sometimes higher or lower against the cost of capital, it depends on the managerial incentives invest. Consistent with Hayn (2000),andWatts (2003), They found that both not only firm with goodwill purchased but also without goodwill have increasing trend in conservatism over time. Indeed He argue that lach of information will limit managers to random affect to recognize impairment losses agains their advantage timely. The following hypotheses are proposed for this study: H1 Accounting conservatism improves firms’ investment efficiency. H2 Accounting conservatism helps manager to recognize bad news timely. H3 Accounting consarvitism accelerates terminations of successful projects. H4 Accounting conservatism can restrain managers to investing in negative NPV projects by accelerated loss recognition. To testing hypothisese Basu’s (1997) used measure of conditional conservatism, because of theverification standerds of the hypotheses of recognizing bad newsand good news assumsions. (Richardson, 2006; Denis and Sibikov, 2010) they also examine relation between accounting conservatism with the component of investments by ussing total investments and changes in firm capital. This study conclued that accounting conservatism is an important monitoring and contracting mechanism, and its helps manger to recognize bad news timely,so that manager could increase their managerial interest regarding project. Indeed accounting conservatism accelerates terminations of unsuccessful projects, also study found that conservative accounting increases hurdle rates, in addition conservatism changes hurdle rate because it reducing the future financial cost rather than by increasing the efficiency of contracting with the managers. We also find conservatism adds value to firms. This study also sheds lights on relation between accounting conservatism and managers’ investment decisions. The study also show that the accounting conservatism negatively correlate investment and firms future operating performance.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Student Critique of The Jungle By Upton Sinclair :: Upton Sinclair

The book The Jungle was introduced as a novel by Upton Sinclair was financed and published with his own money. Upton Sinclair was a famous novelist and social crusader from California. He was born on 20 September 1878 in Baltimore Md. He was the only child of Priscilla Harden and Upton Beall Sinclair. Upton Sinclair’s childhood was lived in poverty, one where his father was an alcoholic, his job as an alcohol salesman most likely contributed to his disease. And although his own family was extremely poor, he spent periods of time living with his wealthy grandparents. By living from one end of the extreme to the other he argued that this is what turned him into a socialist.1 His family moved to New York and at fourteen he enrolled in the City College of New York. He wrote dime novels and stories for magazines and newpapers to pay for his college tuition. It was in New York where he became a fan of the Socialists Party’s politics. Later in life Upton Sinclair would run for the Governor of California where he would get 37% of the vote, and if it were not for his honesty at expressing his views Upton Sinclair would have won his bid for Governor. During the later course of his life he went on to write more muckraking novels. "The Jungle" was his groundbreaking novel, it was told as a fictional story of Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant working in Packingtown. Jurgis sees his American dream of a decent life dissolve into nightmare as his job hauling steer carcasses in the stockyards leaves him so physically drained that he was unable to support his family. This was not the life this immigrant expected when arrived in America. He loses his job when he beats up his boss, angry about finding out he had raped his wife, then in a sense held her hostage as his mistress knowing that Jurgis wife is doing this to for the sake of her family. This character then loses the wife to disease and his son to drowning. Through this story telling Upton Sinclair had hoped the book would ignite a powerful socialist movement on behalf of America's workers. The public's attention was directed instead to his fewer than a dozen pages of supposed descriptions of unsanitary conditions in the meat packing plants. The Jungle hit upon more than his hatred of the meat packing industry.

Friday, July 19, 2019

Bad Or Good :: essays research papers

Bad or Good We live in a world in which our primary food is the information. We perceive the outside world through images, and each image has an echo in our brain, generating feelings, attitudes and sometimes questions. Although we belong to the same specie, thousands of differences or similarities divide and classify us. Each of us perceives in his own way the information he receives. For some of us, something could be beautiful, for others the same thing could be ugly. Behind these two words, beautiful and ugly, we can see another words or, better said, concepts: good and bad. But what do good and bad mean? Do they really exist? On one hand, good and bad are two words that express our opinion in terms of perceived images. We give the images values, which can be, as I already said, good or bad. On the other hand, being so many types of human beings, it is normal to be different kinds of perception and interpretation of information. Therefore, having many people who can interpret things in different ways, it is difficult for somebody to say what is good or bad, and in the same time to have his opinion shared by everyone. Trying to classify, we might come up with a result that might be true or not, depending on the point of view. In other words everything is relative. Paradoxically, when we start thinking we, we discover that we actually know almost nothing, or that there are many things left, to be known. On the other hand, the more we know, the more we want to know. This desire of knowing more and more might be expressed through questions. One big difference that separates the human beings from animals is that