Ethical Theories identified in (bazerman) and the Essay

Ethical Theories identified in (bazerman) and the - Essay Example The Johnson clearly adores teaching, and his work was intended to give learners and educators a wide-ranging overview of issues in ethics and leadership. The metaphor his book adopts, light and dark, claims the point that followership and leadership can be either toxic or beneficial. In the contemporary world, leaders can seriously be unethical. Examples of such unethical practices range from the American legislators who fiddled their own expenses to the ‘Masters of Universe’ whose monetary creativity almost led to the downfall of banking system but still got rewarded with huge bonuses (Johnson, 2015). However, this unethical behaviour is offset by few remarkable leaders who, in his own words, â€Å"brighten lives of people around them†. Johnson further gives an inspiring instance of this ethical leadership by citing the effort of Dr P. Farmer, who founded Partners in Health – an organization with a mission to combat drug-resistant tuberculosis within priso ns walls and around the globe. According to Johnson (2015), we see analogy of villains and heroes when conversing how leaders try to affect change. Johnson asserts that the power which comes with being a leader may also be utilized for evil and good. When we undertake the merits of leadership, we assume ethical burdens at the same time. In making ethical choices, the leader attempts to cast more â€Å"light† not â€Å"shadow.† Even though a graphic and unfriendly comparison, envision of Hitler and Ghandi. If one subscribes to outmoded definitions like influencing persons toward accomplishment of common goals, both Hitler and Ghandi were leaders though their ethics were dissimilar. For many ages, corporate America has always been stained by unethical decision and disreputable behaviour. For instance, one can remember false advertising by Jenny Craig and Nutri-System, fraud and unlawful cash

Unfair Dismissal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Unfair Dismissal - Essay Example Dismissal DefinedDismissal DefinedDismissal is certainly a fundamental concept in the employment law so to explore the subject first define the term ‘dismissal’.It is defined for the aims of redundancy and unfair dismissal in Employment Rights Act 1996, sections 95 as well as 136 respectively. Although the definitions are identical and conceive of dismissal developing in any of given three situations:†¢ In case the employment contract has been ceased by the employer after notifying or without notifying;†¢ In case a limited –term contract terminates or expires devoid of renewal;†¢ In case if the contract has been terminated by the employee, after notifying or without notification, in conditions providing him the entitlement to terminate without notifying the employer due to employer’s conduct.The last clause of the dismissal definition entails â€Å"constructive dismissal† where an employee is forced to resign due to certain actions of the employer.Unfair dismissal term unfair dismissal in context to the law is used for termination of an employment contract for inadmissible or unfair reasons. In case, such an act is challenged in a court, by the affected employee, then the employer is needed to establish that the termination was based on a significant reason such as deficiency of qualification, gross misconduct, and incapableness to execute assigned responsibilities or redundancy. While deciding such cases, the statutory rights of employees are taken into consideration by the court.The terms ‘unfair dismissal’ and ‘wrongful dismissal’... Unfair dismissal The term unfair dismissal in context to law is used for termination of an employment contract for inadmissible or unfair reasons. In case, such an act is challenged within a court, by the affected employee, then the employer is needed to establish that the termination was based on a significant reason such as deficiency of qualification, gross misconduct, and incapableness to execute assigned responsibilities, or redundancy. While deciding such cases, the statutory rights of employee are taken into consideration by the court4. Unfair and Wrongful Dismissal The terms ‘unfair dismissal’ and ‘wrongful dismissal’ seems similar but within the United Kingdom, the terms are rather unalike as wrongful dismissal is referred to when the employment contract is terminated by the employer in order to dismiss the employee or forcibly causing an employee leave. It is established on the basis of contract law. While unfair dismissal involves without notifica tion termination of employment by the employer. Thus resigning from an employment under constructive dismissal may be regarded as a wrongful dismissal case. Historical Development of Unfair Dismissal Statute in United Kingdom The history of the formulation of law of unfair dismissal dates back to year 1971, since it was made a part of Industrial Relations Act. It is a statutory creation. Therefore the right of avoiding from being unfairly dismissed only subsists if legal conditions are fulfilled. The unfair dismissal statute was re-enacted in the initial Schedule to the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974, modified by the Employment Protection Act 1975. This statute was amalgamated in 1978 with the Contracts of Employment Act 1963 along with the Redundancy Payments Act 1965

Evaluation Impact On Financial Operations Cadburys And Kraft Marketing Essay

Evaluation Impact On Financial Operations Cadburys And Kraft Marketing Essay Choosing the Topic After completion of all my fundamental papers in August 2010, I waited till the next session to decide to submit a research and analysis project for the Oxford Brooke University. The reason for such delay was the pressure to complete three professional papers in December session. This report is also important to me because I believe by having combination of both Profession qualification and a degree will uplift my career. To base my project on ACCA provided me with a list of 20 recommended topics to choose from. After reading through the list, the topic that immediately attracted my attention was topic 19 which was The financial and operational consequences of a merger between two organisations or of the acquisition of one organisation by another. What attracted me the most about this topic was that, it was all very relevant to my studies as I am thinking to pursue financial management after ACCA. I knew this topic will allow me to try out and learn the all important, analytical skills. Other reason to choose this topic was the much talked about acquisition of KRAFT and Cadbury therefore it encouraged me to choose this topic. Another reason was availability of the vast amount of information through the internet and press release because of recent release of Krafts recent fourth quarter in the month on February 2011. Choosing the organisation Once I chose my topic, I had to choose an organisation to base my research on. I chose Kraft and Cadbury for my analysis; it was an obvious choice as this was the acquisition that impelled me to select this topic. This was one of the most controversial and largest takeovers in the year of 2010. I believed the takeover by the 2nd Largest Food Giants in its industry would accomplish the objective I had in mind for the project. Aims Objectives The main objective of this report is to evaluate the consequences of the acquisition on the finance and operations aspect of KRAFT FOODS. The financial statements by themselves only provide the quantitative data which need to be analysed by drawn graphs. The main focus of this report, therefore, is as follows: To analyse the reasons for Kraft to make a strategic choice of acquiring Cadbury and whether it satisfy the strategic fit as claimed by the CEO of KRAFT FOODS in terms of financial and business operations. The second part of the research aims to analyse whether Kraft is on the track to achieve its targets it promised its stakeholders at the time of acquisition. Since financial information wasnt sufficient for my research, I need to review the strategic decisions made by Kraft for its subsidiary Cadbury after the acquisition along with the friction identified while integrating both business. The anticipated future of Cadbury under Kraft Group. In order to achieve the aims mentioned above, I have done qualitative analysis using SFE (Suitability, Feasibility Acceptability) and Ashridge model along with quantitative analysis using financial ratios and linking both to get an overall picture. THE ORGANISTAION Company Profile Kraft Kraft Foods is the worlds second largest food company headquartered in North Field, Illinois manufactures and market packaged food products, including biscuits, confectionery, beverages, cheese, convenient meals and various packaged and grocery products.( KRAFT FOODS INC, 2009)The business was formed by James L. Kraft and his four brothers who began by wholesaling door to door cheese business in Chicago. Kraft then achieved growth by merging with other companies and increases the size of the business by expanding more product lines.( Wikimedia Foundation,2011) Being listed on NYSE, Kraft now has approximately 127,000 employees worldwide. Kraft sells products to consumer in approximately 170 countries. At 31 December 2010, Kraft had operations in more than 75 countries and made products at 223 manufacturing and processing facilities worldwide. Kraft portfolio included eleven brands with annual revenues exceeding $1 billion each: Oreo, Nabisco and LU biscuits; Milka and Cadbury chocolates; Trident gum; Jacobs and Maxwell House coffees; Philadelphia cream cheeses; Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; and Oscar Mayer meats. Kraft portfolio included approximately 70 brands which each generate annual revenues of more than $100 million. (KRAFT FOODS INC, 2010) Cadbury Cadbury was a leading global independent business in the exciting world of confectionery, a large, growing, brand-led industry. With an outstanding portfolio of chocolate, gum and candy brands, the largest emerging markets business and a focused and experienced team, Cadbury is committed to its long-term vision to be the worlds biggest and best confectionery company. Cadbury operated in more than 60 countries with a workforce of 46000. (Cadbury, 2008) Cadbury made its beginning by opening one single shop by John Cadbury. As time progressed John Cadbury moved into the manufacturing of drinking chocolate and cocoa. Cadbury grew bigger through some organic growth and some mergers. During the first world war Cadbury started to achieve great success, its products were regarded as necessities and Cadbury were at their peak. Cadbury kept investing in technology, new factories and in new products to remain ahead of competition. With factories all over the world and a host of well known brand names it has become a household name in many countries. (Birminghamuk, (n.d.)) INFORMATION GATHERING Sources of Data Data can be collected for any research by the following ways: Primary Research: Under primary research new information is collected via interviews, survey or questionnaire etc; hence information is collected first hand. Secondary Research: Also known as Desk Research is gathered from information which has already been provided but may not be for the same purpose. Such information are easy to access and are my cheaper than carrying out primary research. Such information gathered should be analysed and screened properly so that it fits for the purpose. Kraft and Cadbury both being listed companies although listed in different countries were required to issue annual accounts for its stakeholders by Sarbanes Oxley and Companies House respective. These companies especially Kraft issued Interim Reports as per the stock list requirement. Therefore much of the quantitative and qualitative date was readily available for analysis. Hence I chose to use secondary data over primary. The only complication I faced apart from time pressure was obtaining latest financial information for Cadbury (2009 accounts). Fortunately Kraft public relation team co-operated and emailed me 2008 and 2009 Cadbury annual accounts on my request. The following are the sources of secondary information I used for my project: Annual and Interim Financial Accounts and Reports This is the main source I used for financial aspect of my business and to draw graphs. I had to use interim reports even to demonstrate impact of Cadbury acquisition on Kraft at each and every quarter due to complexity of the business. Krafts annual accounts were available to view and download on Krafts Investors Website. However Cadbury financial statement isnt easily available. Internet This is the source of limitless information; hence it took me a lot of time to extract information which was relative to the point. Firstly it provided me the qualitative information which was missing or less in the financial statement of both entities. Secondly it also provided me information from a third party or neutral point of view. Letters and Reports Under this source, I analyzed the documents sent by Kraft to Cadbury management or reports addressed to Kraft shareholder explaining them the strategic fit of Cadbury acquisition. These documents were available over the internet. Library I used study text published by Kaplan for ACCA to brush my skills and be of aid when I got confused during an analysis phase. Apart from my course books I visited local library for reference books. As I mentioned earlier I didnt had an opportunity to visit British Library for the access of database such as Datamonitor and Mintel. However I was able to get access to Euromonitor through internet and used it as a tool to aid understanding of the application of analytical tools regarding acquisition and both the entities. Data Collection Methods Its easy to collect data, but skills are required to make sense of data and using it for the purpose. It was a fiddly job to collect reliable authentic information to base my reports on. Any negligence on my behalf may cause me a failure in achieving the report objectives. I was cautious and took my time to read through all the information once before starting with my project. As this acquisition was of the biggest acquisition in the year 2010, too much was written by the newspapers and media about it. Reading about the merger in 2011 gave me this idea to do a project on Kraft and Cadbury, as Kraft were about to issue its fourth quarter results. I started my data collection by reading articles from local newspapers as well as papers or journal published in other counties. I viewed them retrospectively. The most prominent newspaper I viewed was Financial Times, Guardian, Reuters, Wall Street Journal and Economists. After I got a general idea behind the acquisition and critics claiming the acquisition as a failure. I downloaded the fourth quarter as well as annual report. I need to know what did CEO responded on the acquisition as it had been a year. Then I looked at financial data provided to support any statement by the CEO. Internet provided me great deal of help in my project. I type in the keywords such as Cadbury Kraft in etc at www.google.com . Find the relevant articles and making notes as well as bookmarks of the WebPages if I needed to read it again for qualitative part of my research. I even visited many libraries in my local areas; the librarian helped me by giving me advice on referencing as I had no idea on references. Unfortunately I couldnt make a trip to British Library to access database which could help me in my project. But I was pretty content with the amount of information I already collected to carry out my analysis. Referencing I have used the HARVARD REFERENCING SYSTEM for the referencing in my research and to aid readability, I have cited the source below the paragraph if the whole paragraphs were written based on the same single source. Acquisition for Kraft Pre Acquisition To systematic analyse the strategic choice by Kraft to acquire Cadbury, I will be using Johnson and Scholes framework (Suitability, Feasibility and Acceptability Model). (Wu, 2010) Suitability Kraft Foods Inc. being the second largest food company still looks for opportunities to grow and try to remain one of the market leaders in the industry and and to spread risk by a diversified portfolio. Kraft believes in rapid expansion by acquiring other businesses. Kraft adopted new strategy implemented by new CEO who believed low growth segment should be disposed of and adopt those strategies that will achieve rapid growth even by means of acquisition .Kraft will look for businesses that will build on its strengths and guide against its threats. Kraft has a successful track record of acquiring iconic brands and businesses and effectively using it for its expansion. We will be using one of the criteria of Ashridge model under suitability. Under Ashridge model we will be examining two criteria; whether Kraft has sufficient skills, resources and understanding of the Cadbury business and whether there are opportunities for helping to achieve critical success factors. (Steiner, 2009) Source: Euromonitor One key reason for Kraft to acquire Cadbury was to penetrate in those growing markets where Cadbury has good base such as China, India and Mexico. Brands such as Cadbury Dairy Milk dominated such markets by a vast length compared to its rivals. Cadbury did receive 40% of its revenue from fast growing emerging market. Cadburys acquisition of Adams played a vital role to increase their market share in Latin America. Cadbury has experienced 12% growth in revenue in emerging market over five years (EUROMONITOR, 2008) this can be beneficial for Kraft as it intends to use Cadbury s distribution network to sell its brands. (Cadbury, 2008) (Cadbury, 2009a) Kraft being aware of Cadbury s heritage and its strong confectionery business ranking and its iconic brands makes Cadbury globally number one in chocolate, gum and candy. By attaining all these eponymous brands Kraft will become a global powerhouse in snacks, confectionery and quick meals with exceptional portfolio of leading brands in the world. Hence will be one step closer in achieving organic growth objective. Feasibility Under feasibility we would evaluate Krafts position before acquisition in terms of internal resources of the organization this can even be connected to Ashridge s model criteria of possessing sufficient resource by Predator Company. Kraft being second largest business in its industry has huge cash reserve which reflects in its Cash flow Statements of 2008 and 2009 ($1.24 billion and 2.10 billion respectively). Buts its worth mentioning the disposal of Krafts North American Pizza to Nestle for total consideration of $3.7 billion contributed majorly to its high cash reserve. High cash reserve helps them to with acquisition cost and integration cost and any other abnormal cost. Apart from cash reserve Kraft does have reasonable current ratio of 1.04 reflecting its above average liquidity position then its peers. Although Cadbury has a strong hold on overall emerging markets Kraft have a greater position in some markets such as Brazil and Russia. As Kraft being a huge conglomerate busine ss it has vast amount of resources in terms of specialist staff, a highly invested research and development teams and finance etc to back up Cadbury to face competition from other rivals such as Hershey and Mars. Kraft can eve use its power over major supermarket chains such Wal-Mart to increase shelf value of Cadbury as majority of its sales come from small convenient store. Kraft is even able to promote Cadbury heritage brand more rigorously due to available of immense resources. It would be worth mentioning the fact that billion dollar Kraft empire has been experiencing an average growth of impressive 5 % over period of four years to 2008 (where it achieved 13% growth than previous year).(Daltorio, 2009) Acceptability To carry on with a strategic choice it also need to be acceptable by the stake holders. As shareholders are key stakeholders their consent is highly important. Although Kraft assured them the acquisition would result in increase in shareholders wealth as it fits in into its business culture, some shareholders have different opinion. One of the reasons for such conflict of interests is the fear of increase in companys gearing. By 2008 Kraft had a high gearing of 1.34 (ratio) compare to its rival Nestle of (0.36). They fear by acquiring Cadbury, Kraft would issue more long-term debt that may adversely affect the gearing ratio and hence increasing the financial risk of the business and affecting the capability of paying out dividends, hence damaging shareholders interest. The other reason for conflict of interest was the reaction from one of the biggest shareholders Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway who regarded the acquisition as bad deal .He believed Kraft has overvalued Cadbury fo r purchase consideration and the disposal of pizza business to Nestle for $3.7 billion was a mistake. He firmly believed Kraft is paying high premium for the acquisition. One shareholders view didnt affected Krafts strategic choice and Kraft went ahead with the acquisition despite got rejected first time. (Barr, 2010) Ballast Businesses *CADBURY* Heartland Businesses Alien Business Value trap Business Skills Opportunity Low High High According to my analysis I think Kraft values Cadbury as Heartland Business as Kraft has the skills to exploit opportunities from Cadbury. (UNDER ASHRIDGE MODEL) ACQUISITION for Kraft The long clashing 5 month battle between Cadbury and Kraft was finally over on 2nd February 2010 as Kraft clinches control over Cadbury by 72% holding. Kraft then took total control of Cadbury on June 2010. Cadbury shareholders had a deadline of 2nd February to accept Kraft offer of 500 pence in cash for each Cadbury share and 0.1874 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share which altogether values each Cadbury share at 840 pence including a special 10 pence dividend. This sums up the total valuation of Cadbury business to approximate of  £11.9 Billion ($19.4 Billion). Kraft offered this purchase price on 19th of January after a long negotiation with Cadbury management. Kraft tried to make hostile takeover on 7th September by a bid worth 300 pence in cash and 0.2589 new Kraft shares for each Cadbury share (valuing it 745 pence a share). However Cadbury rejected the bid immediately and regarded it derisory. Kraft sweetened the bid by raising the original offer and increasing the cash component from 40% to 60% to make it more appealing for Cadbury shareholders. (Cimlluca et al, 2010) http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/0210/EZ_CBRY0210.gifI have extracted this graph from Thomson Reuters to illustrate the impact on the share price for both involved parties after the announcement of take-over. We notice an increase of almost 40% in the market value of Cadbury. The increase in Cadburys share price was triggered by the initial announcement by Kraft of its intention to take over Cadbury in early September of 2009. The announcement was received well by Cadbury Shareholders causing an increase in demand and thereby price of the stock. However we see a fall in the share price of Kraft food at the time announcement (graph below), some analysts believe this was due to Warren Buffet dissatisfaction of Kraft Acquisition. He regarded the acquisition as bad deal, which caused chaos amongst other shareholder hence a price falls. This price fall deteriorated the purchase price offered by Kraft which was immediately rejected by Roger Carr, Chairmen of Cadbury. http://graphics.thom sonreuters.com/0210/EZ_CBRY0210.gif (Wiggins, 2009) Source: Digital Look(Munya , 2010) http://data.moneycentral.msn.com/scripts/chrtsrv.dll?symbol=kftE1=0LPR=2C1=2C5=6C5D=1C6=2009C7=6C7D=1C8=2010D5=0D2=0D4=1DD=1width=612height=258CE=0CF=0palette=2AF=2 KEY POINTS FOR FINANCIAL ANALYSIS Kraft foods acquired Cadbury plc in February2 2010. Hence Cadbury results are restricted to 10 months rather than full 12 years and its subject to fluctuate with moving exchange rates. Cadbury data was adjusted from IFRS (previously applied by Independent Cadbury) to U.S GAAP followed by its new Parent Kraft Foods Inc. Cadbury previous years figures couldnt be compared with unless comparison is made in percentile due to the size difference of both businesses. Kraft even revised its Net Revenue retrospectively 2009 onwards.Post Acquisition Financial Perspective The above graph represents s the growth and decline in sales over a period of 4 years by means of percentage. The 2010 information contains data post acquisition, specifically contribution from Cadbury of $9143 that has been converted using the exchange rate of $1.595 per  £1.00 for the aid of analysis. It can clearly be noted the reason why Cadbury was so desirable by Kraft. Cadbury attained significant growth from 2007. In June 2007 Cadbury introduced their Vision into Action plan which insisted in strengthening their position in emerging market. This strategy was immediately effective and can be reflected in the graph. As stated earlier in this research report one of the key reasons for Kraft to acquire Cadbury was their better position in emerging market as compared to Kraft. Although Cadbury has just been acquired for 11 months under Kraft we see a marginal fall of 4% in Cadbury sales than its preceding years. This maybe because Kraft maybe getting acquainted to Cadburys opera tion and network hence not utilizing Cadburys full potential. (Cadbury, 2009a) This graph explains what did Krafts CEO meant by GLOBAL POWER HOUSE. If we examine the two graphs we see a change in the revenue from developing and North American markets. The main reason for Kraft to takeover Cadbury was to derive maximum benefit of Cadburys strong hold in emerging market. Although Kraft is one of the largest companies in food industry it drives more than 57% of its revenue from its Home Market US. As US market is experiencing economic recession Kraft needed to adopt an effective strategy to broaden its operations globally. Hence Cadbury looked more attractive from Krafts perspective. Its worth mentioning that Cadbury earns more than 40% from the fast emerging markets portraying its position being better than Kraft.. It should be taken into consideration that fact that Kraft hasnt launched any new aggressive marketing scheme or any strategic step via Cadbury in emerging markets. In 2010 Kraft has continued to run Cadbury operation without making any major changes. Talking quantitatively Cadbury boosted Krafts net revenue in emerging markets by $3382 million which can be seen clearly in the graph at the bottom. Krafts strengths in Russia, Brazil and China along with Cadbury great position in United Kingdom, India and Mexico has spread its revenue source which has reduce the risk of a recession affecting Krafts sales .By acquiring Cadbury Kraft enhanced its distribution channel which became effective in the first year of acquisition and clearly be seen in the 2010 net revenue segments. In 2010 revenue from US market contributed less than 50% to Total Net Revenue minimizing the business risk driven by recession. (Farrell et al, 2010) The above illustrated graphs represent the change in Krafts revenue source after the acquisition of Cadbury. Krafts adopt a rational approach and pursue the strategy of selling off less profitable brands and achieving quick growth by acquisition. Kraft faced fierce competition from private label companies in the cheese and packaged meat market. Therefore Kraft acquired Cadbury to diverse its revenue source as there were dangers of fall in revenue from its main segments. There is an increase of 16% in the contribution made by confectionery segment. This segment is a high potential growth segment and Kraft would like diverse its business risk by investing more in promotion of this segment. (Trefis, 2011) The Gross margin shows the amount of gross profit generated by the company as a percentage of the sales revenue. Kraft Gross Profit Margin has been plotted against each quarter from 2009. It can be analyzed by the graph that Kraft tried to maintain its Gross Profit Margin in mid 30s percentile despite economic downturn in US market and increase in raw materials Kraft is able to maintain its objective, the main grounds for such level gross profit margin was the acquisition. By acquiring Cadbury Kraft has widen its distribution network as Cadburys main selling networks are convenient stores open on High Street therefore reach of every individual. Talking in respect on cost of sales (100 Gross Profit Margin) Kraft will benefit from economies of scale especially regarding purchases as Kraft will be bulk buying and using Cadbury suppliers rationally to minimise cost of sales as possible. (Szalai, 2011) Net Profit Margin is an indicator of profitability, calculated as net income or net profit divided by net revenue. As shown by the graph, we see a downward trend in the net profit margin against each quarter in 2010.Despite the fact that there has been a 27% increase in Net Revenue in 2010 as compared to its preceding year, we notice a fall of 23% in net profit especially in the fourth quarters of 2009 and 2010 ($711m and $547 respectively. However in aggregate there has been an increase in the net profit from 2009. The major reason for such deteriorates result for the fourth quarter was the cost associated with integration between Kraft and Cadbury. The pizza business of Kraft did contributed to the net profit in 2009 , by the sale of its pizza business to Nestle ,Kraft has deprived itself from the positive contribution of its disposal component.(BBC, 2011) The Prime objective of making investment in any business is to obtain satisfactory return on capital invested. Hence, the return on capital employed is used as a measure of success of a business in realizing this objective. Return on capital employed establishes the relationship between the profit and the capital employed. It is used to show the overall profitability and efficiency of the business. By analysing we see a fall in return on capital employed although the sales and net profit overall has increased however it hasnt increased by the proportion of investment made by KRAFT FOOD. As Mr. Warren Buffet feared that Kraft did overpay for the acquisition this can be reflected in diminish of return on capital employed. I have also included a graph showing fall in earning per share that illustrate the point of less return for the investors this maybe due to issue of new share to Cadbury shareholders. (Wilson , 2010) I have included this graph in my research report especially to breakdown the positive and negative contribution made by Cadbury to Kraft operating income in 2010 as compared to Kraft in 2009. As announced by CEO of Kraft Foods, Kraft is highly likely to expect $1 billion in incremental revenue synergies apart from $750 million in cost saving by 2013. In order to achieve the synergies Kraft has budgeted to spend $1.5 billion in the first three years following the acquisition to combine and integrate the two businesses and already incurred $657 million in 2010. As stated in Kraft Annual Account 2010, Kraft incurred and expensed transaction related fees of $218 millions in 2010 and $40 million in 2009.Kraft has recorded the mentioned costs under selling, general and administrative expenses in Profit and Loss Statement (Statement of Comprehensive income). However in the above graphs include figures which has been given in the Kraft 2010 annual accounts analysis of operating profit rather than actual incurred cost as some cost have been taken under finance cost which hasnt been included in arriving at operating profit for 2010. This seems a draw back in the acquisition objecti ve and maybe criticizes by its stakeholders as integration cost has reduced Krafts earning by 33%. (BBC, 2011) Liquidity ratio expresses a companys ability to repay short-term creditors out of its total cash. The liquidity ratio is the result of dividing the total cash by short-term borrowings. This Graph represents the two liquidity ratio one normal current ratio and another quick test ratio. Unlike Current ratio, quick ratio focus on the most liquid assets hence it exempt inventory from current asset while calculating ratio. Some of the key points that need to be addressed before analysis of the graph are the disposal of the pizza business and all the working capital relating to it. We should also account for the current assets and current liabilities acquired by Kraft such as Net Receivable of $ 1333 m and Accounts Payable of $ 1605 m etc. Another point to be mentioned is that while calculating Quick ratio I havent excluded the deferred tax asset, while some analyst exclude deferred tax asset as they dont regard it liquid. We see a significant difference between both ratios as inventory has occupied much of the working capital. Comparing it to the last year it is almost consistent with the growing sales. We notice a slight deterioration in both the ratio of 2010. The $3.7 billion cash raised by disposal of the pizza business was used to pay cash component of the acquisition. The rise in the actually figure is in line with the growing and diverse sales (Kraft Foods Inc, 2010) Gearing Ratio is a measure of financial leverage, demonstrating the degree to which a firms activities are funded by owners funds versus creditors funds (investopedia).The above graph represents how much company has borrowed compare to equity raised by KRAFT FOODS. Kraft had issued a long term debt of $9.379 billion (net proceeds) to support the cash component of Cadbury of acquisition along with proceeds from Pizza Business. Kraft even made a repayment $2.1 billion of long term debt during the year. This has increased the total debt of the business from $18990 million to $28724 Million. Kraft has also issued 262 million shares to existing Cadbury shareholder as part of purchase consideration. This has enlarged Krafts share capital affecting the gearing ratio. By taking into consideration the above mentioned circumstances, we see an increase in the gearing ratio of 7%. This may cause some concerns amongst shareholders and lenders of Kraft as the financial risk of the business has increased as more interest will be paid from the profits available to pay dividends to shareholders. (Tradition Financial Concept.). This may even damage the creditability of KRAFT FOOD in lenders market as it has borrowed 80% to Equity, hence it may be charged high interest rate by the lenders in future. (Kraft Foods Inc, 2010) (Hoskins, 2010) Interest cover is a measure of the adequacy of a companys profits relative to interest payments on its debt. This ratio will help to explain the previously mentioned financial due to increase in gearing. Due to the increase in leverage we see a fall of 0.94 in interest cover which means there would be less profit available for dividends. This maybe is one of the reasons why Warren Buffet (one of the major shareholder in Kraft) reduced its stake from 9% to 6%. The ratio is over 2 which is considered strong by analyst and reflects Krafts strong position in borrowers market. However Fitch, one of reputed credit rating agency, has downgraded the default rating on both companies to BBB-. However its rivals havent downgraded the rating as yet but our reviewing if they should follow their peers. Flitch has downgraded the rating due to anticipated increase in financial leverage of the combined Kraft/Cadbury. (Peters et al, 2010) Operational Changes Post Acquisition The significant changes in operations along with their impact on KRAFT FOOD GROUP as a whole: Closure of Somerdale factory Days after acquisition Kraft announced the closure of Cadbury factory in Bristol. During the acquisition struggle, Kraft pledged to retain Somerdale Factory. The announcements created a chaos amongst Cadbury workforce and British Unite trade union as 400 employees were being made redundant. It would be worth mentioning; Cadbury prior to its acquisition (in year 2007) had already announced the closure of its Somerdale factory as they had invested more than  £100million in the production plant in Poland to be cost effective. However at the time of acquisition Kraft assured Cadbury stakeholders that it will keep the Somerdale factory running. Kraft tried to justify the closure by stating that they made a genuine attempt to keep it running but its irrevocable. This had a negative impact on the motivation of 5400 Cadbury employees working United Kingdom as they feared less job security .Kraft faced high criticism from British media which lead to boycot

The Death Penalty Essay -- Capital Punishment Essays

The Death Penalty The Death Penalty seems to haunt the US mindset. While more countries are dropping the procedure as cruel the US still holds on. Eighty percent of Americans are still for the Death Penalty, citing revenge as the main reason, which is why families are allowed to watch the execution . Organizations like Amnesty International condemn the US regularly, as well as most Democratic nations. What I want to address is why the dialogue is ineffective. The proponents of the Death Penalty make arguments aimed at people's deepest emotional fears. They develop an idea of revenge within people's minds by suggesting the death of family members and create sympathy for families' victims. On the other hand groups like Amnesty International argue the effectiveness of the Death Penalty as a deterrent. They show the inherent racism of a mostly white system convicting mostly minorities to the Death Penalty. And they attempt to demonstrate the cruelty of sentencing someone to death. It's causing sympathy for the murder victims that cause people who oppose the death penalty to blunder. Where proponents are able to garner sympathy by putting someone in the situation of a family member, opponents are unable to cause people to identify with a murderer. It is because we have no words to express their pain properly, that death penalty proponents fail to make stir sympathy, they have no way of expressing what it feels like to know the time of your death ahead of time, how it feels to be electrocuted, hung, shot, or poisoned. "Why not lock up criminals for life if the death penalty is not a deterrent?" pro-Death Penalty advocates ask. Because putting a person in jail for life doesn't put an end to their murdering. While... ...ames. http://law.about.com/newsissues/law/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.cpa.ca/cjbs/1996/ful%5Fogloff.html Morrison, John. http://www.mit-tech.edu/V113/N53/issue/ Arendt, Hannah. The Life of the Mind: Thinking (Vol. 1). Harcourt Brace: NY: 1978 (182). Jacoby, Jeff. http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/Jacoby.htm Feder, Don. http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/don01102001.htm Bradbury, Michael. http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/affirmation.htm Bradbury, Michael. http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/affirmation.htm http://excalib1.aspensys.com/scripts/cqcgi.exe/@abstracts.env?CQ_SESSION_KEY=TYGAPHZBVPFW&CQ_TPT_FULL_RECORD=YES&CQDOC_ID=185634&CQDOC_NUM=2&CQBLOCKSTART=1&CQPAGE_NUMBER=1&CQBLOCK_INCREMENT=50 Murdock, Deroy. http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/murdock.htm http://roswell.fortunecity.com/blavatsky/123/polit.html

Is totemism a religion? Essay

Defining what constitutes a religion is a difficult, if not an impossible quest. However, before determining whether or not certain belief-systems and/or ritualized practices can be considered a religion, a definition is imperative. For our purposes, I am going to use the extremely elementary definition from Webster’s New Dictionary , â€Å"A system of faith and worship.† In The Elementary Forms of Religion, Emile Durkheim, a French Sociologist from the 19th Century, examines totemism in an effort to draw universals between all religions. Durkheim sets his focus on Australian totemism, because it is the most â€Å"primitive culture† with the most resources available. From Durkheim’s perspective, the basis of totemism is to create lasting societal bonds. Totemic tribes are assorted into clans whose unity results not from kinship, but from the religious relationship between the members. From Durkheim’s perspective, the totemism in this culture is based on the sacred relationships developed by the clan’s members in addition to some totemic unit, which is usually a plant or animals species common to the area. If an entire society is based around its sacred ritualized practices, it is only fair to consider those ritualized beliefs and practices as constituting a religion. Thus, the real question is, can a society whose spirituality is based on kinship, and whose idea of sacred lies only in the ties within the clan and not on a god or gods of some sort be considered a religion? The answer to this question is yes. Although totemic practices may not be familiar to many Westerners, when real speculation is given to various totemic religions, it is easy to see the complexity that underlies many forms of totemism. In addition, when looking at the religions that are common to us Westerners, can we really argue that our common religions are more logical than theirs? Through the totemic principles of the universe, and the worshiping of idols, even if these idols do not represent G-ds, it proves that totemism is most certainly a religion. Durkeim uses totemism as a basis from which answers to our lingering questions about modern religions can be drawn. â€Å"In our eyes, the question whether totemism has been more or less universal or not, is quite secondary. If it interests us, it does so before all because in studying it we hope to discover relations of a nature to make us understand better what religion is( Durkheim, 176).† Durkheim is using totemism as the platform from which  all other religions shall be compared to derive new and provoking ideas about religion. Durkheim believes totemism contains obvious religious qualities, even with the lack of a god or gods. † Finally, that which we propose to study in this work is the most primitive and simple religion which it is possible to find ( Durkheim 176).† Durkheim clearly considers totemism a valid although â€Å"simple† religion. Of course, this is only the opinion of one, we must delve into totemic rituals and beliefs before it can be proven that totemism is just as much of a religion as any other. Before arguing the attributes of totemism that allow it to be classified as a religion, a more thorough understanding of various totemic practices and the principle’s and beliefs behind those practices is necessary. The first and most prominent example that will be used to describe totemism, will be from the various Australian tribes described by Durkheim. The critical belief in Australian totemism, is the notion that the totemic entity, whatever it may be, is sacred. The entity is thought to bestow sacredness on whatever carries its mark. The totemic entity is used to mark various objects such as stones, sticks, wood, etc. in various rituals. â€Å"The totem is in fact a design which corresponds to the heraldic emblems of civilized nations, and each person is authorized to bear it as proof of the identity of the family to which it belongs ( Durkheim 180).† It is true that we have symbols and emblems that represent our society, which we deem sacred. Is that notion really so outlandish? Many patriotic Americans would be offended by the burning of the American flag, which is only an inanimate object to which we grant sacredness. This, however, is a nation and not a religion, but it is additionally quite common in many religions to revere objects. In Judeo-Christian religions, sacredness is assigned to a book, the Bible, among many other symbols from the Jewish Star to the Christian Cross. If the Bible is dropped or thrown down in many religions, it is seen as a direct offense to G-d, and one must kiss the book to compensate. Notice, also the dropping of the â€Å"o† in G-d. To many religious Jews even writing the name God is considered highly offensive. Assigning value to an object is a common trait across many religions, the difference is that the symbols used in totemism are not a representation for an actual god. Although the totemic emblem is not representative of a god that bears human-like qualities, it is deemed sacred and thus must be some sort of a representation of higher forces as opposed to higher beings. Totemic emblems are not only found on trees, in houses, on wood, etc, but also on the bodies of humans ( Durkheim 181). Whether they are marked on a body through mutilation, scarring, and tattooing, or whether the totems is represented on jewelry and on clothing, the adornment of totems on humans is yet another indication of its sacred value. â€Å"These totemic decorations enable us to see that the totem is not merely a name and an emblem. It is in the course of the religious ceremonies that they are employed; they are part of the liturgy; so while the totem is a collective label, it also has a religious character. In fact, it is in connection with it, that things are classified as sacred or profane. It is the very type of sacred thing (Durkheim 183).† â€Å"Sacred† is used to mean the things that are unworldly which cause humans to revere while â€Å"profane† is simply worldly matter. Once again, the assignment of so much value that one deems it sacred is evidence of religious qualities. Aside from the actual totemic emblem, there are other objects used in worship which are also considered sacred. The Arunta in particular, a tribe in Central Australia, uses an object called a churinga which is literally pieces of wood or polished stone, with the totemic entity marked upon it. Each group has a number of various churinga’s which sometimes bare a whole at one end where a thread made of human or opossum hair goes through. The thread allows the churinga to, when suspended, whirl into the air producing a humming noise which Durkheim compares to the toys of children ( Durkheim, 183, 119). These objects accompany rituals of any importance but also have a direct effect on the â€Å"sacred† and â€Å"profane.† The actual word churinga translates to mean sacred, and women, children, and young men who have not yet been initiated are not granted access to these instruments of piety. Having access to these instruments could be considered positive and negative. Certain churinga’s could not to be handled or viewed at by profane persons when not in use. Sometimes they were placed in secret hiding locations where the † sacred character of the churinga [was] so great that it communicates itself to the locality where they are stored ( Durkheim 184, 120).† Additionally they had powers such as they could create courage and  vigor in combat, heal sickness, and ensure fertility of the totemic animal or plant etc ( Durkheim 184, 120). In all, the sacredness the clan placed on these object is more than apparent and indicates the religious qualities of totemism. It is crucial to remember that the objects chosen to represent totemic symbols are in no way related to the actual symbol itself. The totem itself is not creating the religious feeling, but is solely a means to make tangible the spirituality that bonds a clan. In other words, totemism really has nothing to do with the totem. Instead it is the accumulated experiences of the various social units that creates those intense feelings of awe and reverence that has caused religion to last throughout the ages. Durkheim rationalizes this by saying that most individuals are vulnerable to authoritative figures in societies. In other words, people are inclined to follow individuals who have earned some sort of respect. Durkheim believes that in group environments, the authoritative individual has the capacity to make other individuals feel as though they are experiencing something that can not be experienced alone. People usually are incapable of distinguishing the cause of the intense feelings they are undergoing. Thus, the individuals in such a setting assume that it is some otherworldly force that is the cause of their newfound spiritual experience. The source of whatever is causing those feelings of intensity is what is deemed sacred. The sacred comes in different forms in all religions. In most religions sacredness is assigned to a god or gods. In totemism, it happens to be a totem which symbolizes the sacredness of the kinship in a clan. An interesting perspective that Durkheim holds is that in practice totemic religion in particular arose out of tribal life style. Individuals in tribal societies lived in groups too small to create the type of religious forces recognized by Durkheim. They usually lived spread across vast landscapes. On various occasions social meetings would be held that may be considered large enough to be called a mass of people. In Durkheim’s opinion, gatherings of this sort would effervesce, meaning that the spirituality that lies in the bonds of the group would build creating an even larger sense of religious awe. The group environment would cause the essential production of excited  behaviors and heightened emotions that propel belief in the sacred. A continuation off the previous belief, is Durkheim’s notion that sacredness is contagious. Through these group gatherings, Durkheim argues that the sacred is passed on by means of physical contact. This is proven through rituals that deem new things sacred when touched by previous instruments considered sacred. This is also common in Judaism where the Torah, the first five books in the Bible considered very sacred to the Jews, is touched by all those worshipping in the temple as a way of passing on the sacredness of the Torah to the members of the congregation. Catholics feel drinking wine that is blessed is equivalent to drinking the blood of Christ and thus feel they have attained a degree of sacredness through this ritual. Totemism is most certainly a religion, and bears all the qualities that many consider necessary before labeling something a religion. Durkheim used totemism to analyze the origins of religion in addition to the role religion plays in aiding people in understanding present society. It has been made evident that Durkheim considered religion essentially social viewing it from the eyes of a sociologist. In Durkheim’s mind, primal societies are where religion originated. He believed that although religion is only felt by individuals, it is an episode caused by a few factors. Due to the fact that religion is passed from generation to generation, the perspective that it is larger than any one person is created. The notion that it is larger than an individual allows individuals to become awe stricken by its seemingly evident power. In addition, in closed societies such as the ones which employ totemism, religion is universal, meaning that everyone has the same belief system. The collectiveness ensued through the belief system creates a unity and spiritual bonds among the members of the clans. Lastly, Durkheim believed that individuals in closed societies really have no other options but to believe in the religion taught to or experienced by them from an early age. Durkheim also touched on the fact that the forbidden and the unknown play considerable roles in understanding the essence of religion. Because totemism possesses and even exemplifies Durkheim’s opinions of religion, in addition to standard definitions of religion, it is only fair to label it as being one.

Belonging: Decision Theory and Refugee

Is belonging really a choice? Can this statement apply to every experience related to belonging? Like the refugee experience? Does a refugee choose to belong or not belong? Good afternoon Ms Freckman and Ms Williamson. Belonging is a sense of connection to people, places and the larger world. Not belonging is a lack of connection to these things. But there are often barriers to belonging were people do not have the choice to belong or not belong. This understanding shows that belonging is not as black and white as simply choosing to belong or not belong. â€Å"Scattered People† is a photograph documentary by Cassandra Mathie that documents this idea. It consists of 3 series’ of black and white photographs, each series depicts a different refugee’s story about belonging in Australia. Each series contains 6 photographs and each photograph is accompanied by a quote from the refugee. The refugees are â€Å"scattered† because they all struggle to belong to where they have come from and where they are now. The second series captures the story of a Sri Lankan refugee who is prevented from belonging by the Australian government and is faced with the loss of choice in belonging. These themes of prevention and loss of choice in belonging communicates the idea, belonging is not as black and white as simply choosing to belong or not belong. To understand this idea of belonging we can analyse a quote given to us by the refugee. She says, â€Å"I have come here to ask for protection and like to get freedom because in my country I can’t live as my name, as my person†¦ still I haven’t heard a decision if they decide i am a refugee yet†¦ †. She has used the verbs â€Å"can’t†, â€Å"haven’t† and â€Å"yet†. They have strong negative connotations, highlighting the fact she is prevented from belonging. Strong nouns like â€Å"prevention†, â€Å"freedom† and â€Å"decision† are also used to express she has lost her choice in belonging.

Why You Shouldnt Trust US News College Rankings

Why You Shouldn't Trust US News College Rankings SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips US News is probably the most popular source out there for college rankings. While US News rankings of colleges purport to be highly accurate, they can be misleading in certain important respects. If you make decisions based purely on the US News college rankings, you might end up being miserable. In this article, I’ll go over why you shouldn’t make judgments about colleges solely based on their rankings in US News. What Types of Rankings Does US News Provide? US News divides its college rankings into four different categories.The categories are based on the 2010 Basic Classification system developed by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.This system has 12 categories of schools, but US News condenses them into four.These include: National Universities These are schools that offer master's and doctoral degrees along with a full range of undergraduate majors.This category contains â€Å"research universities†, where there is a strong emphasis on research and government subsidies are often provided for research endeavors.There are 280 universities that fall into this category, including 173 public schools, 100 private schools, and 7 for-profit schools. National Liberal Arts Colleges These are colleges that emphasize undergraduate education and give out at least half of their degrees in liberal arts disciplines including languages and literature, biology and life sciences, philosophy, cultural studies, and psychology.There are 227 of these colleges, 221 private, 27 public, and one for profit. Regional Universities These colleges are similar to National Universities in that they offer both a full range of undergraduate majors and master’s programs.However, they offer limited or nonexistent doctoral programs.There are 620 Regional Universities, including 262 public, 346 private, and 12 for profit. Regional Colleges These are colleges that focus on undergraduate education but have less of a liberal arts emphasis (award less than half of their degrees in liberal arts disciplines).There are 364 regional colleges that include 94 public schools, 253 private schools, and 17 for-profit schools. It’s important to consider these categories because they should affect how you view the rankings.US News specifically states that you shouldn’t compare the rankings of two colleges across two different categories; the schools are so different that making a direct comparison is not logical.You can compare the actual statistics (such as admissions rate, student retention, and average class size), but in terms of rank itself, a school that’s ranked 40th in the National Universities category is not objectively â€Å"worse† than a school that’s ranked 32nd in the National Liberal Arts Colleges category. Very liberal art How Does US News Rank Colleges? There is a strong methodology behind the ranking system that US News uses for colleges, and it changes often to adapt to changing conditions in higher education.Many factors are considered, and percentage weights are given to each component of the assessment. A total weight of 30% is given to factors related to student retention and graduation rates (meaning this is the most highly considered single factor in the ranking process) Graduation and retention measures are given a weight of 22.5% A 7.5% weight is devoted to a measure of whether a school is over or underperforming based on the number of students that graduate (comparing the expected vs. actual graduation rate) US News gives a 22.5% percentage weight to a school’s academic reputation scores For National Universities and National Liberal Arts Colleges, this is based on a peer survey of academics (weighted 15%) and a survey of high school counselors (weighted 7.5%) For Regional Universities and Regional Colleges, it is based solely on a survey of the academic peer group for the full 22.5% The remaining weight of 47.5% is devoted to hard statistics about the school including measures of academic quality such as selectivity, faculty information, financial resources, and alumni giving. To create school scores, US News gathers statistics in 16 areas related to the academic quality of the school. Each is assigned a percentage based on US News’ â€Å"judgments about which measures of quality matter most†. US News publishes the numerical rank of the top 75% of schools in each of the four categories. Remaining schools are placed in the â€Å"second tier† of rankings where specific numerical ranking is not listed (they’re just put in alphabetical order). The gold star that US News gives to colleges in the second tier. What’s Not to Trust? When I say you shouldn’t trust the rankings, I don’t mean that US News is deliberately misleading students.What I mean is that you shouldn’t put ALL your trust in these rankings and disregard your other preferences about college.You should also be aware of some shortcomings that may cause the rankings to exclude certain schools or rank colleges lower than they would be ranked on a list of â€Å"Best Colleges for You, Student Reading This Article†.Here are some things you should know before consulting the US News rankings in your college search: Some schools won’t be ranked if they don't meet the criteria In fact, there are 148 colleges that are â€Å"unranked† within the four categories listed above.These schools may be unranked for a variety of reasons - these include: Lack of regional accreditation Fewer than 200 students enrolled Do not use the SAT or ACT in admissions decisions Not enough responses on the US News peer assessment survey US News lists unranked schools, but they are put in alphabetical order at the end of each college category without any value judgment.This means that if you’re interested in very small colleges or colleges that don’t use the SAT or ACT in admissions decisions, the rankings may not help you much. The most common reason for a school to be unranked is that it doesn’t use standardized tests.US News argues that there isn’t enough data to compare the school to other institutions in the category without test scores, so it has to remain unranked.This may be a valid point, but it means that schools that may otherwise have solid academics are excluded from rankings, leaving you with a slightly less complete picture of the college landscape. There is an emphasis on ultimate results and academic rigor over quality of student life On the website for US News, it states, â€Å"over time, the ranking model has put less emphasis on input measures of quality – which look at characteristics of the students, faculty and other resources going into the educational process – and more emphasis on output measures, which look at the results of the educational process, such as graduation and freshman retention rates.†There is no doubt that graduation rates are important, and they do say a lot about the quality of a college.However, they will tell you very little about whether a school is a nice place to spend four years, especially if the school is very academically rigorous and prestigious. Most students will graduate because they’re very driven, but that doesn't tell you whether or not they enjoyed their time there. The US News rankings are based on hard statistics and information gleaned from academic peer reviews about the quality of the school.While this is very useful in determining how favorably the school is viewed from the heights of the academic Ivory Tower, it isn’t always the best metric for conducting your search process.Even though focusing on outcome does make sense to a certain degree, it also fails to fully evaluate the quality of the student experience.This can contribute to a somewhat harmful â€Å"ends justify the means† mindset that leads students to spend years in places where they are outwardly successful but inwardly unhappy. The official motto of both US News and your one friend who won't shut up about CrossFit Prestige plays an important role For many students, prestige remains an important factor in deciding whether to attend a college.It’s hard to resist the allure of a school that will impress other people and potentially get you good jobs down the road based on its name recognition. This is the reason why prestige is considered so strongly by US News in its rankings (in the form of ratings from academic peer groups and guidance counselors).Of course, prestige correlates with selectivity in admissions and respect from the higher education community at large, so it does indicate some measure of academic quality. However, measuring schools based on prestige can have the unfortunate consequence of discounting some up and coming colleges or colleges that may have a unique focus and be less well-known.Make sure youuse other resources to research schools that have the criteria you’re looking for - even if they’re not ranked especially high, they may be a much better fit for your goals. Private schools always rank higher In the US News rankings, private schools are always more highly ranked than public schools.This can be misleading, and shouldn’t dissuade you from attending a public school!The reason this happens is because the ranking model US News uses is naturally kinder to private schools: they usually score higher on measures of selectivity, student retention rates, and small class sizes.Since public schools tend to be larger and less selective, they end up with lower rankings, but that means very little for high achieving students who choose to attend public schools. Though the statistics are often less impressive than those of private schools, the public college experience may allow many students to thrive.For students who are willing to seek out resources, public schools are often good choices because of the amount of different programs and high-level research facilities they offer.Rankings also don’t consider the diversity of social life at schools and the opportunities in the form ofextracurricular activities. Hi! I'm Chase, your new roommate. I like sailing and refusing to look at the world from anyone else's perspective. The rankings won’t help you to find an affordable school If you’re trying to avoid debt in college, you’ll need to look at other lists to figure out which schools are the most affordable.Rankings in US News have nothing to do with the cost of schools, so they won’t give you the perspective you’re looking for if cost is a major issue. I Feel So Adrift in the Sea of Colleges without My US News Ranking Water Wings - What Do I Do? You don’t have to ignore the US News rankings just because they’re not totally well-rounded in terms of their assessment metrics and inclusivity.What you should do is make sure that you are aware of what they can and can’t tell you about a college.It’s important that you supplement your views on schools with other resources that will give you a more complete picture of what student life is like and how you might fare at the college. To their credit, US News fully acknowledges this fact:â€Å"the editors of U.S. News believe rankings are only one of many criteria students should consider in choosing a college. Simply because a school is top in its category does not mean it is the top choice for everyone. The rankings should not be used as the sole basis to choose one school over another.†Academics are very important, but your life at college will be so much more than just the quality of your classes and how impressive your degree looks in a frame.You should make sure that you like the location of the school, the housing options, the food, the campus life, and the price tag before you make a decision. And in case you don't like the food, bring a bottle of sriracha. You could put sriracha on woodchips and I would probably eat them. Use the rankings as a rough guide to the quality of schools. The top five schools are the most reputable, then the next set of ten, then the next set of ten, and so on. A school that's in the top 20 is going to provide a more intellectual community and more opportunities in general than a school that's ranked in the 40s. However, within each group of ten there won't be much variability in terms of academic quality and reputation.This might help you to make a decision about where to apply after doing some outside research. However, even if you're trying to decide between two schools that are ranked very differently, you shouldn't just go by rankings. If the lower ranked school is a great fit for you, and the higher ranked school is a poor fit, you should choose the better fit regardless of ranking! As US News also says on its website: â€Å"A prospective student's academic and professional ambitions, personal preferences, financial resources and scholastic record, as well as a school's size, cost, programs, atmosphere and location, should play major roles in determining a college choice.†Once you’ve considered the other factors the are most important to you, you can move on to potentially comparing schools based on the academic rankings presented in US News. What's Next? When you apply to college, it's important to have both reach and safety schools so that you don't sell yourself short or end up without any options. Learn more about how to choose reach schools and safety schools. If you're planning on consulting the US News rankings, you should figure out whether you're more interested in public or private colleges first. Find out the differences between the two. Size and location are also very important factors to consider before looking at rankings. These articles will tell you about the pros and cons of going to college close to home and the main differences between large and small colleges. Want to improve your SAT score by 240 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

How campaigns effect the environment essays

How campaigns effect the environment essays The environment plays a large role in the way campaigns are run. Businesses are greatly affected by what politicians decide to do about the environment. Environmentalist groups are large and powerful groups. Campaigns must juggle issues between these two groups. Many Americans think it a stretch to put cans and bottles in a separate container for the garbage trucks recycling. Few are willing to pay more for oil to save gasoline; SUVs seem like Americas chariots (Gov In America p. 601). Attempts to control air quality or limit water pollution often affect political choices through their impact on business, economic growth, and jobs. And although Americans may be generally in favor of doing something about the environment, specific proposals to limit suburban growth, encourage carpooling, and limit access to national parks have met with strong resistance (p. 601). Ultimately, campaigns must answer to the demands of businesses and environmentalists Politics puts oil and energy at the forefront of its agenda. Americas oil is running low. Less and less of it comes from Americas own wells. About 60 percent of the oil we use comes form other nations; more and more of it comes from countries in the Middle East (p.601). And because the Middle East is amid turmoil, it is not a reliable and sure fast source of the oil that runs American society. Campaigns are going to make sure that oil is readily available because their voters need their energy to live. The United States has about 2 percent of the worlds oil, but uses more than a quarter of it (p. 607). Campaign reforms of the 1970s encouraged the spread of political act committees, generally known as PACs (p. 287). The 1974 reforms created a new, more open way for interest groups such as business and labor to contribute to campaigns. Any interest group can now get into the act by forming its own PAC to directly channel contribution...

Business Accounting and Ethical Standards

A) The duty of the auditor arises from the ASA 315 which in conjunction with ASA 570 on Going Concern wherein he has to see if there is an environment which leads to misstatement of records. He should accordingly recalibrate his assessment. With the new evidence, he should check if there exists a material uncertainty and therefore conjectures to the ability of the pany to continue as a Going Concern. With the new evidence, the auditor will see the following that there is an immense doubt on the fact whether the pany can continue as a Going Concern and therefore adequate disclosures are made pointing to such events which creates such conjectures on the pany to continue as a Going Concern. Here, King & Queen (K & Q) auditor are auditors of Impulse since 2005. They should be aware that there are liquidity problems in the pany. Hence applying ASA 570 and dictated by their duty in Sec 295 (4) of the Corporations Act, K & Q auditor should have done additional audit procedures to check the viability of the Going Concern assumption. These could include points like valuation of inventory,   receivable realisations. This will stamp the fact that if there is a risk of Going concern and whether such facts will be disclosed. Hence they have not done their duty as per audit standards and mon law. As a result, there is a transgression of proper professional skill and standards In a case of Esanda Finance Corp Ltd vs. Peat Marwick Hungerford’s[1], there is a landmark High Court ruling. This has thrown light and made it clear about their view on earlier judgements and revised their mistakes in the past judgements. They have now eliminated the liability of the auditor in a third party liability. In that they have tested the bined facts of Proximity, Reliance and Causation. The case is similar to this case study where Esanda had an economic deprivation when they sanctioned the loan to the pany on the back of the auditor’s report analysis. It satisfied itself whether auditor to be held liable. The courts concluded that there was a mere reporting to the shareholders and not to the financiers. They did not have any clairvoyance that lenders would act based on this report. This is in spite of the fact that they were aware that report did not indicate a true and fair view of financial statements. Since they did not anticipate that the financier will b e using the report, K & Q auditor should have made it clear that the report would be analysed and used verbatim by the lenders and hence a probability of loss could be there; It is stated that Esanda unreasonably depended on the audit report and did not perform diligence themselves to convince of the finances of the borrower The Court held that auditor has not breached duty of care and used the test of Proximity & Causation in their conclusion. Depending on this case, K & Q auditor were not aware that the report would have been used by EFL Finance for lending. The finance pany lent to Impulse by relying on the report and did not conduct an independent diligence. Depending on the case of Proximity, Reliance and Causation, K & Q auditor remained within their limits of duty of care and hence are not liable to EFL Finance b) If Esanda had ab initio mentioned to K & Q auditor that they will use the report for deciding on lending to Impulse, it can be concluded that the test of Proximity and Reliance are maintained. Hence K & Q auditor may exercise reasonable care keeping in mind that one of the intended audiences is EFL Finance who will rely on the audit procedures of K & Q auditor. Hence they need to collect audit evidence and reach a conclusion in their audit report keeping in mind the reader. Even after such mention, if the procedures on inventory and debtors are not done by K & Q auditor, then they have transgressed the precincts of care and their pliance with Proximity, Reliance has failed. As a result, the Causation factor or cause of economic loss has been triggered and accordingly K & Q auditor will be liable to EFL Finance in this scenario 2A) This is defined by APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, Independence prises of: Independence of Mind (Actual Independence) – This expects a mental state which ensures that the auditor acts as an objective and independent person. His opinion will therefore be free from any vested interests and influences. Independence in Appearance (Perceived independence) – Auditor to maintain his image and standard such that any third party will not raise any doubt on his independence and credentials to form an opinion. Independence of the mind or actual independence involves objectivity of the mental condition and mental state and his objectivity to react to specific situations. An auditor who is truly independent has the ability to make non vested decisions in spite of the prejudices. However, since the state of mind where he is perceived to have colluded with the pany and promised his principles is highly volatile, it cannot be objectively benchmarked with respect to time and environment. Therefore, the test of Independence in Appearance or â€Å"Perceived Independence† needs to e upheld wherein he shows the same consistency in behaviour to a knowledgeable person and his client equally. Perceived independence can be measured based on how close the audit member is to the client and he gets any pecuniary benefits for the same. This could also include a dependency test on his economic drive with one client measured to his total revenue. Perceived independence accentuates the credibility of th e report and opinion expressed by the auditor and therefore his opinion is worth the salt. (i) Bob – Principle of Confidentiality is a key point of APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants wherein information extracted in a professional engagement is not to be disclosed to any third party without specific authority nor use it for personal benefits provided there is no legal and official reason to reveal. In the instant situation, Bob copied confidential information which was used for his personal benefit of finishing his university assignments though it did not contain the Club Casino name. Even if you remove the name of the client in the assignment, it does not remove the fact that confidentiality was predominantly breached. This being used for vested interest and not professional interest, there is no possibility of cover up with any alternate action. (ii) Wendy – Wendy is a partner in an audit firm. She has been assigned post of pany Secretary (CS) position in the same pany who is her audit client. This triggers Clause 290.142 of APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. Assignment of such staff is pointing to a self review threat which could have been absolved if it was for only a temporary period. But that not is the case, wherein Wendy has been given the post on a permanent basis. Her position is close to the pany triggering self-review and advocacy threats. Hence there is no way the threat can be brought to acceptable level. Per AUST290.148.1, a pany Secretary is an Officer under the Corporations Act. Wendy cannot act as a temporary partner in the client.   The only way is to resign from the audit engagement. (iii) Leo- Leo is a close member of the audit group and his elative prepares the financials and statements in the firm. The opinion to be expressed on such cash flows has a conflict for Leo. The threat therefore can be minimised to Acceptable level if Leo is replaced and he is restricted from working on such assignments where his relative has an influence in making the base documents to be audited. Per APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, it is r mended that Leo to be removed from the audit since his father has a more than significant influence (iv) Chan & Associates – If Chan holds stake, such stake will not create an independence threat if the business relationship is insignificant to Chan, his audit form and the pany where he holds stake. Such stake should also not create an ability to control the pany and it is immaterial to him. But here Chan has 25% equity in the entity which is high and can create two threats namely self interest/intimidation. Per APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants, Chan has to relinquish his stake and resign from his audit engagement responsibility of Classic Reproductions. Accounting Professional & Ethical Standards Board, (2008).  APES 110 Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants. Australia. Auasb.gov.au. (2016).  Australian Auditing Standards. [online] Available at: https://www.auasb.gov.au [Accessed 12 Dec. 2016]. Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, (2013).  Auditing Standard ASA 570 Going Concern. Austlii.edu.au. (2016).  ASA 570 - Going Concern - April 2006. [online] Available at: https://www.austlii.edu.au/ [Accessed 12 Dec. 2016]. Cpaaustralia .au. (2016).  Accounting professional and ethical standards. [online] Available at: https://www.cpaaustralia .au [Accessed 12 Dec. 2016]. Nguyen, V. and Rajapakse, P. (2008). An Analysis of the Auditors' Liability to Third Parties in Australia. mon Law World Review

International ManagementCase Study and Set the strategies Essay

International ManagementCase Study and Set the strategies - Essay Example It cannot also modify the product that it offers to the European market. The company will also have to deal with the high marketing expenses and will need to deal with the government authorities in keeping with their regulations on exporting. 2. Enter into an alliance with a large European company. Entering an alliance with a European company offers myriad of benefits for Dale. For one, this will enable the business organization to share risks and costs associated in entering the European market. Since, it will be dealing with an established firm which is already prominent in the target market, its entry will be much easier. Conforming to government regulation is also facilitated by the partnership. It should be noted that governments often favor local companies than foreign ones. Through the partnership, Dale will also benefit from the European company's knowledge and brand equity in the market together with the technology and other expertise of its partner. However, drawbacks can include mistrust in sharing proprietary technology and cultural clashes. Dale also has to deal with how to split the profit noting the asymmetric investments by the partners. 3. Manufacture the product in the United States and set up a wholly owned subsidiary in Europe. Manufacturing the product in the home country will enable Dale to reap economies of scale in production. Setting up a wholly owned subsidiary in Europe will allow the company to control marketing tactics and building brand image. It will also enable Dale to learn more about the market and tailor its product according. However, this will present concerns over government regulation and having to deal with a workforce with a different culture. 4. License a European firm to manufacture and market the phone in Europe. This will benefit Dale with a high return on investment as it will be given a high fee for the manufacture and marketing of the revolutionary wireless phone. No intervention in the foreign market is required as the licensee shoulders all the risk involved. The only downside is its inability to reap returns on manufacturing and marketing activities. It is recommended that Dale chooses to partner with a large European firm in manufacturing and marketing its product abroad. This partnership will enable the company to enter the market easier while using the strong brand equity of the large firm. Sharing the risk with another entity is a potential way of mitigating risk. It should be noted that its partner's knowledge about the market will allow it to tailor its product according to unique needs of its target market. Section 2. 1. How does expanding internationally benefit Wal-Mart In the international arena, Wal-Mart recognized that opportunities in the home country were becoming constrained. Wal-Mart is benefited from the international expansion through capturing a wider market base. It should be noted that as most developing economies improve their condition, opportunities abroad abound. The higher income in foreign markets represents profit prospects for retailers. The company also reaps economies of scale in purchasing and ordering due to its strategic partnership with merchandise suppliers. International expansion also enables it to employ its expertise and capabilities while banking on its strong brand equit

Students with Vision Impairments, another for Physical and Health Research Paper

Students with Vision Impairments, another for Physical and Health Disabilities & Severe Disabilities - Research Paper Example This is also agreed upon by Support Services Office of Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas mentions that it is important to provide accommodations for students with disabilities since it is a part of providing equal opportunities for education without being held back by disabilities (Support Services Office, 2010). In reading the rationale for giving accommodations for students with disabilities, I have learned that they are also capable of learning just like normal people, and as such it is of utmost importance that their conditions be understood so that they can show others that they can learn and be productive despite their disabilities. There are different classroom accommodations suitable for the students’ needs and depending on the kind of disability that they have. In Texas A&M University, students with visual impairments are allowed accommodations such as recorded lectures either by the instructor or by the students since they could repeat the lessons as needed and not have to rely on their limited sight. Another of the school’s accommodation but for students with physical and health disabilities is allowing assignments to be submitted in electronic formats. This can greatly assist students unable to make handwritten assignments (physical disability) or are frequently absent due to chronic medical conditions. Meanwhile, Tyler Junior college allows students with severe disabilities extended time accommodations, especially during exams since these students usually take longer time to finish activities compared to other students. Such procedures are given to measure a student’s knowledge objec tively without being hindered by the disability (Support Services Office, Tyler Junior College, 2010). Having facilities and other forms of assistance available for students with different kinds of disabilities as well as listing other additional strategies to support their education while on campus makes both the Department of Disability Services of the

Mies van der Rohe and Oscar Niemeyer - Structural Grid Versus White Research Paper

Mies van der Rohe and Oscar Niemeyer - Structural Grid Versus White Architecture Sculptures - Research Paper Example He became a master stonemason at nineteen years. He worked at the art nouveau architect and furniture design that belonged to Bruno Paul. He received the first commission to design a house belonging to a philosopher when he was twenty years. He started working for Peter Behrens in 1908. He studied architecture of Karl Friedrich Schikel and Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1912 Mies opened his own office in Berlin. He studied skyscraper and designed two glass towers made of steel-frames for a competition. This foreshadowed his skyscraper designs of the 1940s and 1950s (Wintle, 2002, p 32). Ludwig van der rohe actively participated in several avant-garde groups like ‘Zehner ring’ and the Novembergruppe that championed modern art and architecture. He contributed to major architectural philosophies of the 1920s when he was the artist director of the Weissenhoff project. This was a model housing colony in Stuttgart where he managed to design a block together with other leading European architects of the time. In 1927, Mies designed the German pavilion in Barcelona which became his most famous buildings. The Barcelona pavilion hall was flat roofed with walls made of marble and glass and could be moved around. This brought the first concept of fluid space. Mies met Philip Johnson, a New York architect who championed him to architectural fame in the United States. Philip included some of Mies projects in the MoMas first architectural exhibition in 1932. He became the director of the Bauhaus School between 1930 and 1933 and then relocated to the States in 1937. He headed the department of architecture at the Armour institute of Technology in Chicago, (now Illinois Institute of technology). He designed a new campus for the school using refined steel and glass style (Thomas, 2010). After becoming an American citizen, Mies designed the Farnsworth house. The house was transparent and supported by eight steel columns. The interior consisted of a single room subdivided by partitions of glass. He developed the convention hall in 1953 and later the twin towers in Chicago. The twin towers skyscrapers were a realization of his dream of building skyscrapers using glass and steel. He built other high-rises in New York Detroit, Toronto and Chicago. However the Seagram building in New York was voted as the work of genius in skyscraper design. He achieved the ‘Order pour le Merite’ from Germany in 1959. He was acknowledged with the â€Å"Presidential Medal of Freedom† by the US government. He was invited to Berlin to design the New National gallery. This building was the culmination of his life-long vision of an exposed structure connecting the interior to the landscape. It was also his last design before his death on the 17th August, 1969. Traditionalism to Modernism Before World War I, Mies was a traditionalist who designed traditional custom homes. However, the traditional styles were already under heavy criticism from the progressive t heorist. According to these opponents traditional architecture was first and foremost non-progressive. The emerging technology of the modern time demanded its presence in the lives and architecture. However, traditional architecture was blamed for hiding the modern construction under the shallow

Learning Difficulties and Dyslexia Literature review

Learning Difficulties and Dyslexia - Literature review Example For a child with learning difficulty, it becomes hard to understand, learn and communicate when compared to the other children. A learning difficulty may be mild, moderate or rigorous. Few people with mild learning difficulty can speak easily and take care of themselves, but it takes a little longer than usual for them in order to learn new skills. A learning difficulty happens when an individual’s brain development has been affected, either before the birth, during birth or in the early childhood. â€Å"In 1975, Congress enacted the education for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142), now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)† (Bradley et al. 2002, p.25).which defines learning difficulties. This Act supports localities and the states to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities and provide them the right to public education. After the passage of this enactment, significant progress has been made in order to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities. Despite the problems associated with disabilities, with suitable academic and cognitive interventions and technology support, the effects of disability can be reduced. Persons with learning difficulties may face exceptional challenges which are often pervasive throughout the life period. On the basis of the type and rigorousness of the disability, current technologies and intervention may be made use of in order to help the person learn strategies that can help overcome their limitations. Dyslexia is a kind of learning difficulty which is â€Å"neurobiological in origin† (Lyon, 2003, p.3). It manifests through difficulties with fluent or accurate word recognition along with poor decoding and spelling abilities. These difficulties mainly result from a shortage in the phonological element of language which is frequently unexpected in connection to other cognitive abilities and the proviso of effective classroom instruction. The other consequenc es include problems of reduced reading experience and problems in reading which may impede the background knowledge and growth of vocabulary. ‘A specific learning difficulty can be defined as: an unexpected and unexplained condition, occurring in a child of average or above average intelligence, characterized by a significant delay in one or more areas of learning’ (Selikowitz, 2012, p.4).   According to Vicki L. Cohen and John Edwin Cohen, students having â€Å"learning disabilities† and trouble in reading can be diagnosed as having dyslexia. â€Å"Such students more often possess phonological reading disabilities and problems in identifying that words can be broken down into phonems and also that letters have sounds. They can also have problems in decoding words and in reading fluently. It is said to be â€Å"neurobiological† in origin since there is disruption of the neural system in the brain’s left hemisphere† (Lyon, 2003, p.2).  "Dyslexia is one of several distinct learning disabilities. It is a specific language -based disorder of constitutional origin characterized by difficulties in single word decoding, usually reflecting insufficient phonological processing† (Lyon, 2003, p.2). These problems in single word decoding are frequently unexpected with respect to age and other academic and cognitive abilities and are not the consequence of sensory impairment or any generalized developmental disability. Dyslexia is evident by variable difficulty with diverse forms of language, often include, along with problems in reading, a noticeable problem with acquiring expertise in writing and

How have Apple's Marketing activities allowed it to become the world's Dissertation

How have Apple's Marketing activities allowed it to become the world's leading technology company - Dissertation Example 12 Steve Jobs †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 12 Research Issue: The structure and the Framework †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 13 Rationale for the research †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 12 Statement of Research aims and objectives †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 13 Chapter 2 - LITERATURE REVIEW †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 14 Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 14 Marketing activities and Business success†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 14 Apple’s marketing activities and Strategies†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 15 Innovative Design and Product Differentiation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 15 Marketing for Brand Loyalty †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 17 Complete Solution - A Marketing strategy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 18 Apple’s own-store retailing for effective marketing†¦.. ... 26 Chapter 4 - ANALYSIS †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 27 Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 27 SWOT analysis of Apple †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 27 Strengths †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 28 Weaknesses†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 28 Opportunities†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 29 Threats†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 29 PEST-G analysis of Apple Inc †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 29 Political Environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 29 Economic Environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 30 Social Environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 30 Technological Environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 31 Green Environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 31 Marketing-mix analysis of Apple Inc †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 33 Techn ology and Innovation of Apple Inc †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 33 Ratio Analysis of Apple’s financial data†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 33 Chapter 5 - ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 34 SWOT analysis †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 34 PEST-G analysis †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 35 Marketing Mix †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 36 Technology and Innovation †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 36 Ratio Analysis †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 36 Evaluative Conclusion

Mies van der Rohe and Oscar Niemeyer - Structural Grid Versus White Research Paper

Mies van der Rohe and Oscar Niemeyer - Structural Grid Versus White Architecture Sculptures - Research Paper Example He became a master stonemason at nineteen years. He worked at the art nouveau architect and furniture design that belonged to Bruno Paul. He received the first commission to design a house belonging to a philosopher when he was twenty years. He started working for Peter Behrens in 1908. He studied architecture of Karl Friedrich Schikel and Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1912 Mies opened his own office in Berlin. He studied skyscraper and designed two glass towers made of steel-frames for a competition. This foreshadowed his skyscraper designs of the 1940s and 1950s (Wintle, 2002, p 32). Ludwig van der rohe actively participated in several avant-garde groups like ‘Zehner ring’ and the Novembergruppe that championed modern art and architecture. He contributed to major architectural philosophies of the 1920s when he was the artist director of the Weissenhoff project. This was a model housing colony in Stuttgart where he managed to design a block together with other leading European architects of the time. In 1927, Mies designed the German pavilion in Barcelona which became his most famous buildings. The Barcelona pavilion hall was flat roofed with walls made of marble and glass and could be moved around. This brought the first concept of fluid space. Mies met Philip Johnson, a New York architect who championed him to architectural fame in the United States. Philip included some of Mies projects in the MoMas first architectural exhibition in 1932. He became the director of the Bauhaus School between 1930 and 1933 and then relocated to the States in 1937. He headed the department of architecture at the Armour institute of Technology in Chicago, (now Illinois Institute of technology). He designed a new campus for the school using refined steel and glass style (Thomas, 2010). After becoming an American citizen, Mies designed the Farnsworth house. The house was transparent and supported by eight steel columns. The interior consisted of a single room subdivided by partitions of glass. He developed the convention hall in 1953 and later the twin towers in Chicago. The twin towers skyscrapers were a realization of his dream of building skyscrapers using glass and steel. He built other high-rises in New York Detroit, Toronto and Chicago. However the Seagram building in New York was voted as the work of genius in skyscraper design. He achieved the ‘Order pour le Merite’ from Germany in 1959. He was acknowledged with the â€Å"Presidential Medal of Freedom† by the US government. He was invited to Berlin to design the New National gallery. This building was the culmination of his life-long vision of an exposed structure connecting the interior to the landscape. It was also his last design before his death on the 17th August, 1969. Traditionalism to Modernism Before World War I, Mies was a traditionalist who designed traditional custom homes. However, the traditional styles were already under heavy criticism from the progressive t heorist. According to these opponents traditional architecture was first and foremost non-progressive. The emerging technology of the modern time demanded its presence in the lives and architecture. However, traditional architecture was blamed for hiding the modern construction under the shallow