College Fraternities Essay Thesis Example For Students

School Fraternities Essay Thesis School FraternitiesCollege clubs have consistently struck me similar to an association ofguys who invest their energy drinking brew and having their social gatherings(parties). Simply moving to Austin as of late (which is by no uncertainty a collegecity) has made me need to find out about the sole reason for thesefraternities. Therefore I decided to choose this culture for my paper. The meaning of a crew is characterized as predominantly socialorganization of male undergrads, as a rule assigned by Greek letters. (Morris 1982:523) This definition isn't consistent with all where most fraternitymembers are viewed as lushes who achieve nothing academically or socially . Shockingly, the definition and depiction of the individuals neglects to make reference to thefact that participation in a crew is a deep rooted experience that assists itsmembers with creating social, hierarchical, and study aptitudes, and furthermore instructs true,everlasting kinship. In actuality the vast majority of our leaders weremembers of a Greek association. The primary crew was established for scholarly and social purposes atThe College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia on December fifth 1776.(Klepper 1937:24) Throughout the nineteenth century numerous new organizations werefounded, however none of these were perpetual. Before the finish of the nineteenth centurythere were more than thirty general organizations in the nation. Todays clubs despite everything have the attributes of past organizations. These attributes incorporate a custom, pledges of constancy, a grasp, a witticism, abadge , fellowship and comradeship (Klepper 1937:56) . During enrollment onemust learn authority aptitudes. Consequently crews grasp theseoffices held by individuals: President, Vice-president, Treasurer, Scribe, and so on. Since enrollment is viewed as an extraordinary accomplishment by different associations, everybrother must have the option to maintain that office whenever. Association is an absolute necessity for each part. Raising money exercises andcommunity administration are need in each section, and every part is requiredto partake in these exercises as a demonstration of vow, and a sibling. Thishelps a part to create association and arranging. Living respectively in what isknown as a society house adds to the improvement of social aptitudes and beingable to live with various types of individuals in various circumstances. Organizations are celebrated for their get-togethers (parties) which requiresall individuals to be socially dynamic and furthermore create social aptitudes. It is typical for organizations to sort out examination bunches during the schoolyear and before tests. Most societies keep test records and other investigation aidsavailable to help their individuals. A great deal of individuals are capable toreceive grants and grants dependent on scholarly greatness, authority andpersonal accomplishment, this assists individuals with building a superior confidence. It is regular for clique individuals to remain dynamic after graduatingfrom school . It is a constructive encounter for the alumni part to keep incontact with new and old individuals from his section There is no preferred method to keepyoung over to connect with youngsters. (Abramson 1995) The number ofalumni can run from a couple dozen to a few thousand. There is an unmistakable feelingof comradeship inside the crew as well as between all individuals ofGreek associations. In a field investigation of the Tau Epsilon Phi brotherhood from FloridaInternational University, Brian Abramson found that you can discover a catologue ofservices which that association accommodates the advantage of the greatercommunity through help ventures it leads each semester. Each fraternityhas its own uncommon open assistance ventures. For instance Tau Epsilon Phiparticipates in Bowling for Kids Sake each spring, a custom that beganseveral years back. To keep the sentiment of fellowship each part should betrustworthy and have the option to confide in each one else, which makes the security ofbrotherhood even stronger.(Abramson 1995)Unfortunately many individuals disregard cliques due to the ever-present bits of gossip about right of passage. Right of passage is an activity taken or circumstance createdintentionally to deliver mental as well as physical inconvenience, emberassment,harassment, or ridicule.(Fraternity Executive Commission 1937) While someorganizations may decide to murkiness and embarrass the individuals who attempt to surge them,that is not the slightest bit an exact depiction all things considered. (Nykolaizsyn:1996:48) Hegoes on to bring up that Greek life isn't just about celebrating and drinking ,it enables work to character, confidence, and life-friendships(Nykolaizsyn:1996:12)

(Alcohol) Cause and Effect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

(Liquor) Cause and Effect - Essay Example They need to fondle developed. Another reason is that, carefully precluding children to contact liquor builds the interest inside them. They turn out violating the laws and standing subject for punishments. Studies have proposed that most teenagers drink out of their energy that they get in overstepping the law. Some sad impacts of liquor incorporate influenced cerebrum action, memory and focus; expanded enthusiastic emotional episodes; powerlessness to see the heading of sound; broken conceptive framework; and, expanded danger of bosom malignancy (Doheny). It likewise prompts influenced driving prompting mishaps, and family brutality. Utilization of liquor at a youthful age seriously influences learning, memory, thinking limit, judgment, and dynamic ability (StarTribune). To finish up, liquor abuse begins because of friend pressure. It likewise tarts because of the dream that inspires because of severe preclusion. Be that as it may, considering such a large number of terrible impacts related with drinking, it is astute to preclude the utilization of liquor at an exceptionally youthful

Is Modesty a Mistake in the College Essay - College Essay Advisors Admissions Essay Experts

Is Modesty a Mistake in the College Essay - College Essay Advisors Admissions Essay Experts Is Modesty a Mistake in the College Essay? Is Modesty a Mistake in the College Essay? We grow up being told to be humble and stay grounded  and then suddenly the college essay comes along and we’re supposed to toot our own horn like there’s no tomorrow? Don’t college admissions officers want to see that we’re down to earth and not about to release a Kim K-inspired selfie book? Yes and yes. Figuring out how to approach your college essay in terms of tone and language can be difficult. You want to don’t want to sound self-impressed, but you also don’t want to sell yourself short. This brings us to a frequently asked question: Is modesty a mistake in the college essay? In simple terms, yes, too much modesty is a mistake. You are competing against thousands of college hopefuls for a seat in the freshman class of your dream school and you don’t want to waste the opportunity to highlight your most impressive qualities and accomplishments. Let Admissions know what a shining star you are. Maybe you started a charity or became class president. Perhaps you spent your entire summer volunteering at a senior home or hold the world record for most french fries eaten in thirty minutes. Don’t be afraid to communicate that you are unique, driven, and the kind of community member who would positively contribute to campus in ways their students could not. If admissions officers don’t put down your essay thinking, “Yes! This student!” then you didn’t do your job. The college essay is, in a sense, an elevator pitch. By the time you get to the theoretical top floor, your admissions officer should be ready to give you the key to your brand new dorm room. Of course, things are not always so black and white. You do run the risk of sounding pompous if you come off as braggy instead of confident. This is why the tone in which you write is so important. Describe the journey involved in accomplishing your achievements, don’t just list your accomplishments. Dig into the motivations behind your actions and why you love what you do. Be Drake, not Kanye choose sincerity over puffery. Be honest, show your true self, and then you’ll know when that hotline bling, that can only mean one thing (college acceptance)! About Kat StubingView all posts by Kat Stubing » Ready to get started? We're here to help. CONTACT US »

What Are the Most Popular High School Plays

Each year, studies are done to see what schools are producing in their theater departments, and year to year, there are several plays that regularly top the charts. But, each year, there are also a few surprises. Lets look at the trends for plays over the past few years. The 2017-2018 School Year Since the current school year isnt over yet, well start by looking at last year. According to Playbill.com, for the 2017-2018 school year, the top full-length play was Almost, Maine by John Carini and the top Musical was the Alan Menken musical, Beauty and the Beast. Apparently, Almost Maine is a steady trend, topping the charts for more than three years in a row.  Beauty and the Beast is new to the top spot but has been a regular presence in the top ten. What else was a top choice according to Playbill.com? For full-length plays, these plays rounded out the top five: Almost, MaineA Midsummer Nights DreamPeter and the StarcatcherAlice in WonderlandOur Town   In the musical category,  Beauty and the Beast climbed to the top, edging out last years favorite. The  top five choices according to Playbill.com are: Beauty and the BeastThe Addams FamilyThe Little MermaidInto the WoodsCinderella   Top Plays Over the Years In July 2015, NPR released a report that went above and beyond, looking at trends in school plays over the past few decades. Only two plays stood the test of time, coming in the top five most popular plays every decade since the 1940s: You Cant Take it With You and Our Town. Back in 2011-2012, according to a post on the Education Week blog, the ten most commonly produced school plays for the year contained few surprises. This list was the result of a survey carried out each year by the magazine Dramatics, published by the Educational Theatre Association. Almost, Maine by John Cariani is a recent play, first developed at the Cape Cod Theatre Project and the Portland Stage Company in Maine in 2004. It opened off-Broadway in 2005-2006 and is about residents of a fictional Maine town called Almost who fall in and out of love as the Northern lights float above them in the sky. Twelve Angry Men written by Reginald Rose was later turned into a 1957 movie adaptation starring Henry Fonda. It is a liberal defense of the American jury system and offers a nice ensemble cast for schools to cast many actors in important roles. A Midsummer Nights Dream by Shakespeare is a common production, often in middle schools. It’s a comedy that features woodland sprites and confused lovers who fall prey to spells. The production can feature creative costumes for the woodland creatures. Our Town by Thornton Wilder is a three-act play written in 1938 about characters in a small town called Grover’s Corners who enact an allegory about birth, death, and the moments in between. You Can’t Take it With You by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart is a Pulitzer Prize-winning play in three acts first performed in 1936. It’s about a seemingly eccentric family who are decidedly individualistic and who might just be saner than the conformists around them, and the play has many funny moments with sparkling dialogue. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a 1953 play that is about the Salem Witch Trials in the colonial era and also a commentary on the witch hunts during McCarthyism in the 1950s. Noises Off by Michael Frayn is a 1982 production about a play-within-a-play, as actors prepare to stage a horrid sex comedy, and the audience sees the travails they endure bringing the play about from different perspectives. Arsenic and Old Lace an age-old comedic favorite by Joseph Kesselring, is about a man dealing with his insane relatives who appear harmless but are actually quite deadly. The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde is an oft-performed play written over 100 years ago that is still loved for its farcical elements and witty dialogue. The stage sets and costumes can also be colorful and Victorian in style. The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman/Tectonic Theater Project is about the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of Wyoming. The Controversy Around School Plays A survey of public high-school drama teachers referenced in the Education Week blog revealed that 19% of teachers had been challenged about their choices about which play to produce, and The Laramie Project was among the plays that were most often challenged. As a result, 38% of the time, the play that the teachers had chosen was ultimately not produced. While some private school drama teachers have more leverage than public school teachers about what they produce, they don’t always get carte blanche, either. Schools often produce crowd pleasers rather than more provocative dramas, and these shows draw more parents and younger children, but it’s worthwhile to remember that there are thought-provoking and interesting plays out there that make good productions for high school students in particular and that private school audiences might benefit from, particularly if parents are asked only to bring older children to the production.

The Indisputable Reality About Research Paper Example High School That Nobody Is Telling You

The Indisputable Reality About Research Paper Example High School That Nobody Is Telling You Why Almost Everything You've Learned About Research Paper Example High School Is Wrong Although conclusion is a shortest portion of any research paper but plays a critical role in closing a lengthy study. As the title of the writing implies you must conduct the research in the certain region of knowledge. To boost access that will help you will help you're waiting for the essay outlinesorganize your. It's not quite as easy as writing an essay about your summer vacation, your loved ones, or the previous party you've been to, since you don't need to do research to figure out about your personal experience. If your assignment asks you to have a position or produce a claim about a subject, you might need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement close to the commencement of your draft. Now that you know the four key constituents of a great thesis statement, I want to give you more thesis statement examples. The statement consists of 1-2 sentences there is not any need to developer a distinct thesis statement outline. The remainder of research parts provide the evidence to show the thesis. Whatever the case, it's almost always a very good idea to find aid with complex or straightforward research paper topics. You might have finished the very best research project on earth, but if you don't make an interesting and well laid out paper, then nobody will take your findings seriously. You should also think about getting expert assistance if you lack the skills to investigate and formulate an informative and manageable topic by yourself. You will use evidence from your studying to show the point you're making. New Step by Step Roadmap for Research Paper Example High School A thesis is the consequence of an extended thinking practice. 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Research on Atlas Honda Free Essays

string(41) " skills acquired during my ACCA studies\." OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY An analysis of the financial situation of ATLAS HONDA Ltd. Introduction The topic chosen by me for the research and analysis project is AN ANALYSIS OF THE FINANCIAL SITUATION OF YOUR CHOICE OF ORGANISATION. The reason for choosing this topic is that I am very comfortable with financial techniques and methods that are used to carry out financial analysis. We will write a custom essay sample on Research on Atlas Honda or any similar topic only for you Order Now Financial courses covered in ACCA part 1 and 2 were of key interest to me. The organization selected for the financial analysis is ATLAS HONDA LIMITED being the market leader in the motorcycle industry in Pakistan. The company attracted me to be selected for the project because the company is the leading company in the motorcycle industry with few unestablished competitors. The company is a public limited company with an annual turnover of Rs6,977. 4 millions, which makes it a leading company of public sector in our country. As the project is related with financial analysis of the company it is easier for me to apply the financial tools learned in ACCA. It is easier for me to examine the financial position of Atlas Honda Ltd, as the management of the company is willing to provide me with sufficient financial data that will aid in carrying out a financial analysis. As this is public limited company information related to the company is also available through different magazines, government agencies, credit rating agencies (pacra), industry experts and websites. Atlas Honda Ltd is a company of Atlas group of companies. The foundation of the Atlas Group was laid in 1962 with the establishment of Shirazi Investments (Pvt) Limited with a capital of half a million rupees and three men doing business in trading shares and real estate. (www. atlasgrouppk. com) Atlas Honda Ltd was incorporated as a public limited company on October 16, 1962 and its shares are listed on Karachi and Lahore Stock Exchanges in Pakistan. Atlas Honda Limited is a joint venture between the Atlas Group and Honda Motor Co. , Japan. The merger of Panjdarya Limited and Atlas Autos Ltd created the company in 1991. The Atlas Group established both these motorcycle-manufacturing concerns. (www. atlasgrouppk. com) Atlas management is striving to modernize company operations by adapting applicable aspects of research and theory and more specially, Honda’s unique philosophy of hard/soft technologies to the realities of Pakistani conditions. Company management structure, systems and processes are changed according to the demands of the customer, growth and new technology. www. atlasgrouppk. com) Atlas Honda Ltd is a dynamic, profitable and growth oriented company through market leadership, maximizing export and excellence in quality and service. The company ensures attractive returns to equity holders, reward employees according to their ability and performance. Atlas Honda Ltd fosters a network of researchers and engineers ensuing unique contribution to the development of the industry. The company ensures custom er satisfaction and protection of the environment by producing emission friendly green products. The company aims to remain a good corporate citizen fulfilling its social responsibilities in all respects. Atlas Honda Ltd also received the best corporate report excellence awards in the engineering sector by the joint committee of ICAP/ICMAP. (Annual Report 2003) The company quality is gaining greater acceptance globally year after year the company takes it as a national cause to make â€Å"MADE IN PAKISTAN† accepted and Atlas Honda Ltd respected all the over world. An increase of 52% in exports on year-to-year basis is an indication of the growing popularity of the company products globally. Atlas Honda Ltd as being a market leader in motorcycle industry recognized the fact that excellence in business is dependent on the quality of human resource. As a result the company has continued to invest in development of its manpower over the years. The company has a well spread out service network of antenna shops, service dealers and four strokes mechanics with a combined strength of well over five thousand service points all over the country which has successfully covered the needs of company costumers. The network of 5S (Sales, Service, Spare parts, Credit and Second Hand Exchange) dealers all over country has given Atlas Honda Ltd a competitive edge over other players of the automotive industry. Due to the greater customer care and after sales service the customers of Atlas Honda Ltd are more obliged and satisfied then with any of the other competitors. As every market leader company Atlas Honda Ltd duly complies with the standards of safety health and environment (SHE). Sizeable capital expenditure was made by the company to install various equipments at assembling plants to minimize the risk of haphazard. The vision of Atlas Honda Ltd is to remain a leading group through effective use of its resources, technology and good business practices; attract and retain high quality people by developing them to their fullest potential; always keep the customer in their highest esteem and to give attractive returns to the share holders through a sustained growth of profit. (www. atlasgrouppk. com) The auto industry has been a major beneficiary of the macro economic stability of the country. The unprecedented reduction in the cost of the funds has helped promote greater consumer financing for automotive products. Atlas Honda Ltd has taken some tough decisions in enhancing the total customer base as well as dealing with the menace of the unauthorized sector. The motorcycle market has under gone a severe change in the last year. Ninety percent of the market is dominated by established brands from the organized sector. The players in the organized sector consist of the traditional Japanese manufacturers as well as a couple of Chinese assemblers and all are members of officially recognized Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA). Annual report 2003) The aim of the report is to apply the tools learned in ACCA and to carry out practical work in a real time company. Through this report I will have exposure to Pakistan industry that will help me in the development of skills acquired during my ACCA studies. You read "Research on Atlas Honda" in category "Free Research Paper Samples" The report also aims to critically view the financial statements in order visualize that adequate returns a re available to shareholder, company is a going concern, company is generating sufficient profits, assets of the company are well managed and guarded by the management in the best interest of the share holders. I will also review that the best practices of management stewardship is carried out to ensure that the company is maintaining the best practices of corporate governance. The objective of the report is to carry out financial analysis of Atlas Honda Ltd for the year 2003. The financial analysis has been carried out by using financial techniques such as ratio analysis, trend analysis and vertical analysis on the data available in the annual report of the year 2003 of the company. INFORMATION GATHERING Information gathering is the process through which processed and meaningful data is available to carry out the required task. Extensive amount of information is available through Internet, media, newspapers and other business magazines. These all sources of information these days make the process of information gathering simple. There are two main source of information gathering through which information is gathered, first is my personal visits and meetings with the different personnel’s in the company and secondly the financial statements available in the stock exchange on which the company is listed and also the data available through print media publicly. The information gathered depends on the reliability of the source from which it is gathered. These both sources are reliable to gather authentic information. Information was also obtained from credit rating agencies such as (pacra) and industry experts. Some government agencies also hold information relating to companies such as Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP). The financial statements and print media information used for the report are for the period ended 2003,the broachers of Atlas Honda Ltd, financial and business news papers such as THE NEWS BUSINEES PAGE, DAWN BUSINESS PAGE. As Atlas Honda is a leading company in the motorcycle industry information relating to the company is also available through different business magazines such as the Gulf Economist. They are good source of reliable information, that too with a critical viewpoint about the company. Information relating to Atlas Honda is also available through Internet by access to sight www. atlasgrouppk. com that makes it easier to be familiar with the company and have access to the financial and other authentic information that helps in the effective completion of this research and analysis project. Published documents of Atlas Honda Ltd provides a reliable method of data collection through which sufficient financial data can be collected easily so that financial analysis can be conducted in a effective way. Interview is very effective means of gathering information, providing precise and accurate data. Interviews with the officials of Atlas Honda also provided quality information that helped me to have a sufficient knowledge about Atlas Honda, about its financial position, where it stands in the market, its new competitors in the motor cycle ndustry, its adequate returns to share holders, about its expansion of the business and its unique 5S(service) network that give Atlas Honda Ltd edge over its competitors. ANALYSIS The analysis stage of the report carries critical view of the financial statements to ensure that adequate returns are available to share holders, assets are properly utilized by the management and are depreciated as par the accounting policies of the company, th e company is financially sound and that investors have confidence in the company. There are few un established competitors of Atlas Honda with little penetration in the market. The ratios are computed on the basis of audited financial data for the year 2003. PROFITABILITY The profitability of any company is the key concern to the shareholders and to its employees and is also the symbol of market leadership for any company in the market. I have analyzed the profitability trend over the period of 8 years. The key ratios during the 8 years that demonstrate profitability are Profitability 2003 Gross Profit Ratio (%) Profit Before Tax (%) Profit After Tax (%) 14. 7 9. 3 6. 1 2002 13. 3 7. 1 4. 9 TABLE: 1 2001 9. 7 4. 3 2. 5 2000 10. 4 3. 0 1. 1999 11. 6 5. 3 3. 6 1998 12. 4 5. 6 3. 7 1997 1996 11. 3 5. 4 3. 6 10. 9 5. 7 3. 3 There is a constant increase in the gross profit during the first 3 years 1996 to 1998 but the year 1999 had a slump causing a decline for the next 3 years up till 2001. After that huge recovery has been made by the company with G. P Ratio from 9. 7 in 2001 to 14. 7 in 2003. Corresponding increase in cost and the relationship between profits and cost reveal that the profit before tax was almost half (5. 7) to 10. 9 in the year 1996 and this relationship is maintained in 2003. On the other hand the operating profit have not shown a considerable growth in comparison to the tax rates as shown by the relationship between G. P ratio and profit after tax. In the year 1999 it was 1/3rd to the G. P ratio but has increased to come up with ? of the G. P ratio. This indicates that the company is trying to improve its profit by maintaining its cost but the increase in taxes has jeopardized the efforts and consequent increase in profit after tax has not been obtained. Returns to Shareholders The returns are of key interest to shareholders as they invest in the company that gives more returns than the other. Atlas Honda distributed 5% of its total wealth to its shareholders in the year 2003. The company proposed a cash dividend of Rs. 7 per share. The return on capital employed, Earning per share (E. P. S), Price earning ratio, their trend can be seen below in the table. Returns to share holders 2003 ROE – Before Tax (%) 60. 5 2002 49. 8 TABLE: 2 2001 31. 5 2000 17. 4 1999 32. 7 1998 39. 6 1997 48. 0 1996 61. 0 ROE – After Tax (%) 39. 7 34. 1 18. 3 10. 3 22. 3 26. 1 31. 8 35. 0 Return on Capital Employed (%) 34. 2 29. 8 14. 7 7. 6 17. 3 18. 7 23. 4 28. Market Price 80. 00 40. 05 25. 00 19. 25 19. 25 30. 00 31. 00 27. 00 E. P. S – After Tax – Rs 20. 91 13. 24 8. 07 4. 12 8. 45 8. 60 9. 41 8. 41 Price Earning Ratio 3. 83 3. 03 3. 10 4. 67 2. 28 3. 49 3. 29 3. 21 Industry Average . P. E Ratio 3. 21 3. 14 3. 52 3. 50 2. 14 3. 31 3. 27 3. 25 The Return on equity before tax ratio showed a downward trend and declined from 61% to 17. 4% in 2000,there by recovering to a satisfactory figure of 60. 5% in 2003. The ROE after tax declined from acceptable figure of 35% in 1996 to a dangerous level of 10. % in 2000 and reaching a satisfactory figure of 39. 7% in the year 2003. Earning per share is widely used to measure the performance of the company over a number of years. E. P. S of Atlas Honda started to decline after 1997 and declined to a poor figure of 4. 12,there by up streaming to the figure of 20. 91,compariably stronger than last year due to improved profits. Price Earning ratio shows partial ups and downs through years not having significant variation except 1999 where it shows a downward trend, showing a healthy upward trend in 2000. This indicates that the investors have a strong confidence in the company abilities to maintain the earnings. Overall the P/E ratio of the company is above the industry average as indicated in table 2. The market price of the shares has grown rapidly and has become twice as compared to the last year, which indicates people’s confidence. Cash Flow situation The cash flow statement with the same importance as profit and loss account and balance sheet is used to emphasize the difference between profit and cash. Cash flows, including net present value calculations, have always been a popular management tool. The situation of the company cash flow showed that net cash generation from operations increased to Rs. 724. 20 million as compared to Rs. 519. 34 million last years. Increased net income and customers’ advances created a positive impact on the net cash provided by operations. Net cash used in investing activities decreased to Rs. 67. 53 million compared to Rs. 150. 04 million last year. Net cash used in financing activities was Rs. 42. 33 million as compared to Rs. 121. 74 million last year. During the year Rs. 150 million long-term loans were acquired and Rs. 71. 11 million loans were repaid. Cash and bank balance increased by 1. 5 times to Rs. 1, 021. 23 million this year Rs. 406. 88 million for the operating year 2002. Investment income increased to Rs. 38. 3 million from Rs. 32. 6 million of last year. Debt equity ratio was 10:90. The equity of the company stood at over Rs. 1 billion including reserves of Rs. 872. 2 million, with cash surplus of Rs. 1. 02 billion, reflecting a sound financial position of the company. Asset turnover Assets are held by companies to utilize them in their business activities and generate profits in order the company to prosper. Assets are held and maintained by Atlas Honda in the course of their business activities and the company to meet their growing requirements also acquires new capital assets. Asset turnover ratios are computed for a period of eight years. Asset turnover (Times) Sales to Total Assets Sales to Fixed Assets 2003 2. 63 12. 39 2002 3. 02 10. 32 2001 3. 16 10. 44 2000 2. 28 6. 93 1999 2. 80 9. 34 1998 2. 23 9. 02 1997 2. 89 13. 02 1996 2. 97 11. 42 Inventory Turnover 10. 34 9. 57 7. 46 6. 87 7. 39 6. 06 5. 41 5. 38 Major portion of the total assets are current assets, which not an admirable situation and the company is bearing increase in the opportunity cost of assets not invested by the company. In the other scenario the company have superfluous current assets to meet its current liabilities, which is appreciable. In the sale to fixed asset turnover there is a major acquisition in the year 2000 then in other years where there is normal acquisition during the course of business. This is indicted by the reduction of only 0. 99% in the sale of year 2000 from previous year where as there is a reduction of 2. 1 times in the sale to fixed asset turnover ratio. This acquisition by the company in the year 2000 was made to cope with predict future growth. In other years the fixed asset turnover ratio is increasing due to increasing sales and there is usual acquisition of fixed assets. In the case of the inventory turnover ratio there is a constant increase in the figures over the years. The company in warehouses does not hold idle stocks thus reducing the stock holding cost. Demand based production is carried out by the company and there are no over purchases by the company. Solvency/Liquidity Solvency is the term used to determine that are the assets of the company surplus enough to pay its liabilities. This is a key measure of the financial reliability of a company and the key ratios that computes solvency are of key interest to investors. 2003 Current ratio (Times) 1. 47 2002 1. 38 2001 1. 48 2000 1. 46 1999 1. 64 1998 1. 31 1997 1. 21 1996 1. 10 Interest Cover Ratio (Times) 17. 17 11. 18 3. 65 2. 04 3. 18 2. 58 3. 95 3. 81 The intent of the current ratios is to determine that how many current assets are there to repay current liabilities on demand. The company holds surplus current assets. This is also discussed above in the Total Asset turnover that a major portion of the total assets is current assets showing a healthy prospect in terms of the company to meet its current liabilities. The company is showing an acceptable current ratio over the period indicating the company’s capability to meet its liabilities. The interest cover ratio for the year 2002 and 2003 shows that the company is having added profits that allows the company to borrow more loans but the company is not utilizing this facility. This is also the reason the company is low geared. This also indicates financial soundness of the company in the market. If the company takes advantage of this facility it would be beneficial for the company and would facilitate the company in reducing its taxes, as interest expense is a tax allowable expense. The company has been obtaining loans in the rest of the period as indicated by the interest cover ratios of rest of the periods. Investments Investments are held by companies to have adequate returns from their sales. Investments held by Atlas Honda in associates are proposed for sale and are stated at fair value. The investments held by the company are in listed and also some unlisted companies. Investments are counted as company’s principal financial assets. Listed Atlas Battery Limited – Associated undertaking NIL (2002: 165,550 Ordinary shares of Rs. 10 Each includes bonus shares 25,550) 2003 (Rupees in 000’s) 9,548 2002 Unlisted Arabian Sea Country Club (private) Limited 200,000 ordinary shares of Rs. 10 each Break-up value on the basis of audited Accounts for the year ended June 30, 2002 Rs. 6. 25 per share 2003 2002 (Rupees in 000’s) 2,000 2,000 Automotive Testing and Training Center (private) Limited 187,500 ordinary shares of Rs. 0 each Break-up value on the basis of audited Accounts for the year ended June 30,2001 Rs. 5. 75 per share 1,875 1,875 The credit risk represents the accounting loss that would be recognized at the reporting date if counter parties failed to perform as contracted. Out of the total financial assets, following amount of financial ass ets are subject to credit risk: 1,118,907. The company believes that it is not exposed to major concentration of credit risk. To manage exposure to credit risk, the company applies credit limits to its customers. STAEMENT OF VALUE ADDITION 2003 WEALTH GENERATED Total Revenue Material Services (excluding duties) 8,066,365 (5,219,313) __________ 2,847,052 __________ 6,382,219 (4,177,572) _________ 2,204,647 _________ 2002 100% 100% WEALTH DISTRIBUTED To Government Sales Tax, Income Tax, Import Duty Workers’ Welfare Fund To Employees Salaries, benefits and related cost To Providers of Capital Dividend to shareholders Markup on borrowed funds Retained with the business Depreciation Retained profit 89,645 284,345 _________ 2,847,052 _________ 3% 10% ______ 100% ______ 83,433 4% 143,058 20,487 5% 1% 122,621 19,913 5% 1% 346,762 12% 322414 15% 1,962,755 69% 1,508,389 68% 47,877 7% _________ ____ 2,204,647 100% _________ ____ As can be seen from the table above and the chart that a greater portion of wealth generated is distributed to the government. The company paid sales tax, income tax and custom duties amounting to Rs. 1. 96 billion during the year, which represents 69% of the total wealth generated. The company’s contribution t o the national economy by way of value addition this year amounts to Rs. 2. 85 billion, which is 29. 13% higher as compared to last year showing company’s responsibility towards overall economy. This is also the reason that the company is unable to increase its profit after tax even though the company is maintaining its cost. This huge amount of tax payments has jeopardized the efforts made by the company. A good proportion of wealth generated is distributed to employees as salaries and benefits showing that the company is facilitating its employees and maintaining a healthy environment of working by offering benefits to them. WORKING CAPITAL The company has maintained a good working capital that shows the stewardship of the management in the use of financial resources in the operations. Company maintains a 5:1 to the current assets that is a working capital of Rs. 6, 671. 50 million, Showing good liquidity performance. Capital Structure The company shows a very low financial gearing (0. 165b: 1b) but the timing of the repayment cash flows is a cause of concern, as 50million out of a total of 166million has to be repaid during the next 12 months. As the net increase in cash and cash equivalent is 614million it would not be a major cause of concern but shows the company’s vulnerability and dependence on maintaining very high liquid assets. This indicates that the company is in a desperate need to maintain its profits and to increase them. The period where the company is unable to make any profit the company will be in a critical situation beyond its accepting power. Presentation of Findings The SWOT analysis is used as a technique to identify the strengths and weaknesses in the company and the opportunities and threats outside faced by the company. A SWOT analysis of Atlas Honda Limited would be a significant appraisal of the company’s position in the automotive industry. Strengths: Market leader †¢ Advance cash receipts from dealer’s hence additional cash available for investment. †¢ Customer satisfaction. †¢ Trained technical staff. †¢ Atlas Group patronage. †¢ Sound financial standing in the market. Weakness: †¢ †¢ No customer support in rural areas. Burden of taxes by the Government. Opportunities: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Opportunities for new technologies. Development of latest IT infrastructure. Effective media promotion. No threat of established competitor. Threats: †¢ †¢ †¢ Threat of new entrants. Unestablished Competitors imitating the models of motorcycles at low price. Demands for low priced motorcycles. The strengths of the company are the key to triumph and the company should seize advantage from its opportunities and should devise such that its opportunities should be part of its strengths. Atlas Honda has been able to prolifically make its way through the heavy burden of taxes this year but it’s my anticipation that the burden of taxes will increase further, to counter this the company should plan a head. Atlas Honda is having a sound financial standing in the market and had attained customer satisfaction by quality products and after sales customer service. Customers are drawn in due to quality and services provided by the company, which the company should sustain and enhance, by making available price controlled motorcycles. Company has developed latest IT infrastructure to make good use of IT in manufacturing using computer techniques such as CAD (computer aided design) and CAM (computer aided manufacturing) thus enhancing costs. The edifying aspect of the report has been the findings that Atlas Honda is a financially sound company with market penetration and strong customer base. Conclusion The essence of the research and analysis report was to carry out a comprehensive financial analysis of Atlas Honda Ltd. The core objective of the report was to scrutinize that ample returns are available to share holders, the company is generating sufficient profits, and the financial situation of the company is sound and investors have confidence in the company and its financial position. In my surveillance over all the company has maintained a good level of profit even after an amplified amount of tax over the period of time. This has caused an increase in Earning per share of the company and eventually the market value of the company, which is avowed at 700% premium (Market value Rs. 80 per nominal value of Rs. 10 per share). The investors have confidence, which is reflected in the Price Earning Ratio of the company, which the company has maintained over the period of 8 years. The overall enhancement in the level of operations and market demand indicates that the company is moving on the right track even after facing rigid rivalry from its competitors. Atlas Honda has maintained a very low level of gearing and so far is unable to acquire market loans, which indicates low level of financial risk the company is exposed to. On the other hand this can hamper the potential available in the market by scarcity of the funds in the company when investment climate is good and market demands is high. In the Automotive industry Atlas Honda is still a market leader as far as the wealth distribution to the government is concerned. In the statement of value addition it is indicated that 69% of the company’s wealth had been distributed to the government as sales tax, income tax, import duty and workers welfare fund. Subsequent to the distribution the company has maintained sufficient levels of profit to distribute to the shareholders in the form of dividends. The company has continued to improve the net generation of cash and cash equivalents during the year causing the company to increase its cash resources. Positive inflow of cash from operations is a signal of company’s ability to improve the liquidity position of the company on a continuous basis. This is the main reason the liquidity situation of the company is very good. The analysis shows that the company is making headway well in terms of profitability, liquidity but as far as the capital structure of the company is concerned it is still at very low level of gearing thus hampering the opportunities available in the market and without exploiting the internal strengths available in the company. A high level of profits, good liquidity and sufficient working capital indicates that the financial situation of the company has improved over the period of time and is still improving. On the basis of the research and analysis work carried out I foresee that Atlas Honda will be more profitable over the period of time and will be able to exploit the opportunities available in the market. In my viewpoint Atlas Honda will remain to be the market leader for the coming years too. The company will also prove arduous to compete by new entrants in the industry. How to cite Research on Atlas Honda, Essays

Wong Kar Wai A Five Film Retrospective Essay Example

Wong Kar Wai: A Five Film Retrospective Essay Wong Kar Wai’s art and style of storytelling and directing is built through his personal influences and Hong Kong’s political and social relationships. Notorious for his unique approach and technique, Wong Kar Wai combines stories of the city, mostly tackling Hong Kong’s current social and political issues, with radical experimentation and audacious methods of directing. He started as an apprentice in one of Alan Tang Kwong-Wing’s production houses. Tang is the renowned owner of The Wing Scope Co. and In-gear Film Production Company and became Wang’s first producer for his first film As Tears Go by.However, before Wang considered himself as a full-time film director, he started first writing his stories for television.   After he finished taking a course on graphic designing at the Hong Kong Polytechnic School, he furthered his studies by taking up at the Hong Kong Television Broadcasts Limited a course on a production training course offered by t he said television station. From here, Wong Kar Wai sharpened his skills in screenplay. After almost five years, he was given his first break in film when Hong Kong actor- producer Alan Tang funded his first film. His stories run to almost all genres, ranging from action, comedy, drama to crime and romance. However, his most famous and award- winning films such as Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, Happy Together, and In the Mood for Love all narrate stories of affection and romantic love. On these movies, Wong Kar Wai tackles about the uncertainty of romance amidst the noise and the fast-paced life of the city. With this, Wong Kar Wai’s films are usually easily detected because of his consistent use of the ideas of time and love among his films. However, he regards Final Victory as his finest screenplay. A comedy- crime story, Final Victory is a film which he has written for the movie director Patrick Tam.As a director, on the other hand, Wong Kar Wai is detectable through hi s bold experimentations and views about film directing. He often employs alienation and dislocation in his filmmaking, two aspects that Tam has a major influence on him. Together with these, Wang also applies striking and salient visual aesthetic wherein colors are creatively used to stir atmosphere, mood, and emotions. Moreover, Wang prefers to focus on the details of his films rather than on its totality.Due to his militant and revolutionary approach in film directing, Wong Kar Wai is often regarded as a postmodern artist, a postmodern auteur. From his artistic innovativeness and creativity, Wang rises as one of Hong Kong’s finest and well- acclaimed scriptwriters and directors—a status that one cannot achieve without his influences that shape him.Wong Kar Wai and the Italian Neo- RealismWong Kar Wai’s films are easily characterized because of his stories’ themes and settings. While giving subject matters that discuss about Hong Kong’s socio-poli tical issues, Wong Kar Wai also utilizes settings that define more his subject matters. For example, in Chungking Express the location of the story is the Hong Kong City which Wang used in defining and explaining deeper the social issue he wanted to project in the film—how love exists in a postmodern age. The use of Hong Kong means that Wang is conscious about the effect of location to the meanings he desires to convey in his movie. It is an implicit way of telling to his audience that love in a postmodernism, just like the city of Hong Kong, is a fast-paced, changing, hybrid and capitalized thing. In Italian Neo-realism, location shooting and dubbing of the dialogues are two aspects which are given more focus on. Locations, as well as characters, should all look realistic that is why directors influenced by this technique follows the idea that actors, even those principal ones, should be non- actors. This is to make the acting and the finished film product look more realisti c.Wong Kar Wai and the French New WaveWong Kai is part of the second- wave Hong Kong directors who are greatly influenced by the French New Wave, together with Eddie Fong, Stanley Kwan and Clara Law. All of them are followers of first- wave directors like Tsui Hark, Ann Hui and Patrick Tam, the one that Wong has worked with. The movement let Wang and directors alike to use their artistic impetus in analyzing and perhaps in critiquing Hong Kong in terms of its social and political issues, as well as its past and current relationship to China and Britain—the two countries that colonized the country. To illustrate further, Wong in most of his films, uses the idea of hybridity of the two cultures, in portraying his stories. In Chungking Express and Fallen Angels, a lot of evidences are presented in order to see the mixing of Eastern and Western identity and cultures. Wong’s use of film speed is also considered an aspect of the French New Wave wherein shots are rapid and ta ken in open fields such as at streets instead of closed ones like studios.Brief Synopsis of Wong Kar Wai’s Five FilmsI.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Chungking ExpressThe story is divided into two parts: the story of Cop 223 and Cop 633. It was told sequentially while most of its locations never changed, just like the Midnight Express food stall where both cops goes to. Both stories talk about each character’s way of moving on and healing while alienating themselves amidst the things happening around them.II.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Fallen AngelsThe story follows the life of Leon, an assassin who struggles between his profession and the affection his partner Michelle shows to him. Some people say that the film is a continuation or a sequel of the 1994 Wang’s movie Chungking Express. The story tackles almost the same themes presented in Chungking Express such as one’s ali enation and disconnection to self and love in a postmodern age and society.III.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Happy TogetherReleased in 1997, the story is about a gay couple who is in the verge of reconciliation while having a vacation in Argentina. The two came from constant cycle of physical abuse and reconciliation. However, at the end of the story, they finally departed as the story closes with one of them, Lai Yiu-fai, visiting alone the Iguaza Falls—the place where he and his ex- partner had planned to visit.IV.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the Mood for LoveThe story was set in 1960s Hong Kong narrating the lives of two married people. Chow Mo-Wan, a journalist, met in an apartment the secretary So Lai-zhen. With both of their spouses having an affair, the two easily got hooked with each other. Realizing that what they are doing is wrong, they decided to end the relationship and part their ways. They never meet again a lthough both of them tried to communicate with the other one. The film closes with Chow whispering in a hole his secrets and putting a mud on it eventually.V.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2046This is the third part that completes the trilogy of Wong, starting from the Days of Being Wild up to In the Mood for Love. Although a sequel of the first two films, 2046 is a science- fiction film took place in a train coming from or to year 2046.Analysis and Connections of the Five FilmsCharacters in Wong Kar Wai’s films are presented each with individual identities and isolations. Yet he managed to get connection  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   each one a connection to the other one. In most stories, Wong never gives the focus to one main character only. For example, in Chungking Express the narrator is not only one but two. Wong, as said earlier, focused on the details of his films rather than on its totality. In addition, being a follower of th e Italian Neo realism, Wong uses non- actors as his actors.The plots of the films, on the other hand, embody all of Wong’s perceptions about Hong Kong’s socio-political status. Some argues that his plots are disoriented and without focus, but in my opinion, Wong is a postmodern innovative and creative storyteller without boundaries for artistic impetus.Meanwhile, Wong Kar Wai as a storyteller seems to love infusing the idea of time in his stories. Take for example his films Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, Happy Together, In the Mood for Love, and 2046. All of the films are products of Wong’s creation and portrayal of time as something homogenous and short- lived. The characters in his stories are sometimes trapped in dreams which they cannot escape by relying to time. For example, in Chungking Express, Faye constantly sings the song California Dreamin’ which I think is Wong’s own way of expressing how dreams can trap time, especially in a city li ke Hong Kong where everything seems to run in a hurry, even time itself.Wong’s use of language is another factor that one could consider analyzing him as a storyteller. In most of his stories, Wong used conversational dialogues that prevent them from being misunderstood. Wong is also famous for his successful use of monologues at the start and at the end of the film.In terms of his directing talent and skills, however, I personally think that Wong has no definite structure or direction. It seems to me that his directing is too open and without focus. Although it can be argued that Wong’s style in directing is a product brought about by his personal preferences and influences, I still think that he gives his audience a hard time in understanding the messages he wants to convey in his films.His use of camera and lighting are also revolutionary. The most salient characteristic of Wong’s use of these elements is the speed of his film shots. Most of the time, Wong ut ilizes shots that are rapid and highly stylized, giving a more defined tone, atmosphere, and emotions to his films.Asian movies of contemporary directors like Raise the Red Lantern, Police Story, and The Killer, just like Wong Kar Wai’s films, also talks about past and current socio-political issues. Raise the Red Lantern, for example, is said to be a critique of the Chinese communist authoritarianism set during 1920s. This movie is also acclaimed for tits successful use of vivid colors that Wong also infuses in his films. The Police Story, on the other hand, shows a current social and political scenario in Hong Kong as it tackles about the city’s uprising crime incidences. Finally, The Killer, as compared to Wong’s films, evokes intense emotions as it tries to capture the idea of love, friendship, and violence. The story’s main protagonist is a hitman which Wong also has in one of his films.Wong, with his daring and modern methods in storytelling and dir ecting, proves to be an auteur worth of what he is receiving today. A postmodern in innovativeness and creativity, Wong Kar Wai is an efficient storyteller and but not yet an effective director. However, although his directing skills are found to be lacking in direction and control, surely his personal and socio- political views are still his best weapons why his films are considered as wonderful creations.

Should International Recognition be a Requisite of Statehood essays

Should International Recognition be a Requisite of Statehood essays Considered a Requisite for Statehood? In determining whether a society or body of people should be considered a state or not, it is necessary to take into consideration certain presupposed criteria. Instantly, thoughts of governments, flags and anthems spring to mind. However, it could be argued that a state may be defined to be composed of less. Herein the argument as to just what exactly constitutes a state is borne and pertinently to what degree it should be considered a state, rather than just say a nation (conceivably within a state). Some contemporary definitions of the state have included recognition as a requisite of statehood, particularly as the United Nations (UN) deems recognition a necessity for membership. In terms of defining a state it would be more accurate though, to establish that recognition is beneficial and by no means crucial to the existence of a state. There are many societies operating to the same capacity as your typical state that are not duly recognised. This situation arises usually on the basis of a triviality, a past dispute or political alignments that could be comprised through another governments recognition of that society as an independent and functioning state. Also, paradoxically, international recognition could not be considered a requisite of statehood, if sovereignty is considered fundamental in defining the state. The idea that one actor can constitute another as sovereign is at root contradictory (Mayall J. 1990 cited in: Inoguchi T. 2001: 3) This is because sovereignty implies that there is no higher authority than the government of that state, yet international recognition as a requirement for statehood would require that there is, and that this authority is necessary to confirm the existence of the state to the state. A definition for what exactly constitutes a state is crucial to the argument of the importance of recognition in the international system o...

Kathryns Stocketts The Help and 1960s Feminism

Kathryns Stocketts The Help and 1960s Feminism The Help is set in Mississippi during the early 1960s, when the groundswell of feminisms second wave was still building. Kathryn Stocketts novel revolves around events in 1962-1963, before the womens liberation movement, before Betty Friedan and other feminist leaders founded the National Organization for Women, before the media invented the myth of bra-burning. Although The Help is an imperfect depiction of the 1960s and the author stifles the budding feminism of some of her characters, the novel does touch on many issues that were relevant to 1960s feminism.   Issues Worth Exploring Skeeters Rebelliousness/IndependenceA hint of feminism in The Help may be most evident in post-college Skeeter, the young woman who questions restrictions placed on her by societys traditions. Her Southern socialite best friends have conformed to expectations by marrying, having children (or trying to) and even questioning why Skeeter stayed four years at Ole Miss to finish her degree, while they were dropping out of school. Skeeter is still trapped and still trying to fit in, but her inability to do so is partly due to her discomfort with the myth of femininity she is expected to live. White Women and Women of ColorThe so-called second wave of feminism is often criticized for being too white. Betty Friedans classic The Feminine Mystique and other 1960s feminism accomplishments often came from a limited, white, middle-class point of view. Similar criticisms have been applied to The Help. This is partly because it is written by a white author who narrates in the black voices of Minny and Aibileen, and partly because of the way white voices in the U.S. continually tell the story of the Civil Rights Movement from a limited point of view. Many critics have questioned Kathryn Stocketts ability to speak for the help. Although the story is about white and black women working together, it is difficult and even dangerous for them to do so. The Help reminds readers that some 1960s feminists were perceived as busily organizing, protesting and advocating without bringing women from other races to the table. Women and Civil RightsWhich comes first for African-American women, civil rights as blacks or liberation as women? This theme was explored by many black feminist activists, with some theorists responding that it is clearly an unfair question. The either/or dichotomy is part of the problem. No woman should be asked to give up any part of her sense of self. SisterhoodThe term sisterhood became a theme and rallying cry of feminism in the 1960s and 1970s. Use of the word was criticized by some, in part because of the racist and classist assumptions ascribed to white womens liberation activists who used the word. The Help emphasizes the solidarity of women in many different situations, often crossing racial boundaries. MarriageDespite her independent streak, Skeeter feels the pressure to marry, and nearly does so even when both emotional and logical signs point toward no. The marriages of various characters in the book - Skeeters parents, her friends, Aibileen, Minny, Stuarts parents, Celia Foote - are nearly all presented with problems that are intertwined with gender power dynamics. Domestic ViolenceMinny faces abuse from her husband Leroy with some degree of resignation. However, author Kathryn Stockett does seem at times to approach it with an ironic awareness of the public attention that would soon come to the issue of domestic violence. Feminist organizations such as NOW addressed domestic violence as one of their priority issues. Women in PublishingElaine Stein, the editor from New York who helps Skeeter, freely states that she will help because she recognizes the need for a woman to have a mentor, a connection or some kind of in to the male-dominated publishing industry. Economics, Maids and the Pink-Collar GhettoAfrican-American women depicted in The Help had to earn a living as maids in white families homes. Few other opportunities were available to them - very few. Feminists of the 1960s are often remembered for getting women out of the home. The truth is, many women did work outside of the home already, but one of the chief concerns of feminists was that women were relegated to lower paying jobs of less prestige with less advancement opportunity and less satisfaction. The term pink-collar refers to the traditional, lower-paid womens jobs. Empowering the Help: How the Personal Is PoliticalThe books main plot is about women telling their stories in a society that has long refused to hear their voices. Whether or not the novel is flawed or the author can properly speak for African-American maids, the idea of women speaking their truth as a path to greater social enlightenment is considered the backbone of feminism.

Leadership style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Leadership style - Essay Example There are many leadership styles, and all have consequences on the organizational productivity. Some may lead to improved productivity while others lower the workers’ morale. This essay is a critique of the leadership styles of two leaders of X&Y Company. It also presents an assessment of the value of Hersey and Blanchard’s situational model as an explanation of their leadership behavior. It involves consideration of the Anglo context of Likert’s ideas and their generality to the professional group of Hickson and Pugh’s groups of societies. The production manager of X&Y company demonstrates bureaucratic leadership whereby all the organizational processes are carried out according to the laid out procedures, and every member of the organization’s staff understands his/her role in the process (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007 p 36). None of them has a right to change any of the steps involved. Decision making process in the production department follows the conventional plan that was developed in 1999 when the organization was launched. No inventions have been adopted since that time. However, the department deals with processes involving high risks. Any action that deviates from the schedule may adversely affect the organization as a result of accidents that may result. Following particular procedures is therefore appropriate for this department. On the other hand, there is a tendency for dissatisfaction of the staff due to monotony and rigidity of leadership. The employees in this department complain of exhaustion and claim that the leader demoralizes them since they do not have a chance to raise decisions. There are no flexible practices such as off duties and shifts since the leader argues that every worker has experience and knowledge in the particular sections such as operating machinery, and dealing with the

What is America Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

What is America - Assignment Example The truth is, America takes pride of being the world’s cultural melting pot whose society is composed of immigrants from all over the world who dreamt of better life. The social upheavals it undergone from the Civil War to Martin Luther King are part of America’s proud past that it struggled to end tyranny and discrimination. America became what it is today because of these circumstances. It became the richest country in the world and the most technologically advance because of the varying perspectives its citizen contributed. It is also inaccurate to generalize that America is a cultural barren as how Badurillard portrayed America in his book. The truth is farthest from his observation because many of the most extensive museums in the world are found in America such as the Smithsonian Institute, MOMA etch. I believe that Badurillard’s assessment of America does not reflect the historical and cultural truths about the country. Furthermore, it can be argued that the history and culture of America as a nation presents its peopl with the opportunity to act and behave in a manner that Badurillard finds despicable. Thus, I believe that the circumstances and position that America finds itself in is as a result of the amalgamation of historical and cultural events that the country has undergone since

Implementation Of 5s In Non Manufacturing Area Commerce Essay

Implementation Of 5s In Non Manufacturing Area Commerce Essay Lean manufacturing is a philosophy that increases the productivity and improves the quality with less resource (Womack and Jones, 1996). Lean manufacturing is the systematic elimination of waste from all aspects of an organizations operations and this included production costs, product quality, and product delivery and worker involvement. Any use or loss of resources that does not lead directly to creating the product or service in an organization is viewed as waste. Now days, many companies are implementing such lean production systems. Companies primarily choose to engage in lean manufacturing for three reasons which are to reduce production resource requirements and costs, improve customer responsiveness and to improve product quality. These 3 elements are very important to boost company profits and competitiveness. The lean manufacturing concept is first introduced in Toyota Corporation which is Toyota Production System. Toyota started the lean manufacturing by following the basic principles that set out by Henry Ford with the moving assembly line. Ford realizes that the importance things in the operation are material flow continuous, process standardization, and waste elimination. The basic principle that set out by Henry Ford did bring the success to Ford Corporation. At the same time, Toyota was experience a difficult time and these basic principles give inspiration to Toyota to develop a system that flexibly responded to customer demand and was efficient at the same time. Now a day, Lean Manufacturing has been implementing in the manufacturing companies throughout the world and was becoming an important topic for manufacturing companies especially in the developed countries. The Japan, which consider as the developed country in Asia did show the success with the implementation of lean manufacturing concept and even the western countries also try to find the ways to compete against with the company in Japan. According to the Industry Week Magazine in a survey at 2004, as a result of the implementing lean manufacturing, U.S. companies had a median savings which is 7% of Cost of Goods Sold. This savings also consider as a higher levels of waste before the company implementing the lean manufacturing concept. Lean manufacturing is a concept which use the less input to achieve the same output and the input can be time, space, human effort, machinery, materials, or costs. In 1995, the U.S. equipment manufacturing company which named Lantech completed the implementation of lean and reported that there had many improvements compare batch-based system in 1991. According to Lantech, the element like manufacturing space per machine, production cycle time and product delivery lead time are reduced after the implementing of the lean manufacturing concept. During the 1990, the Wiremold Company successfully implementing the concept of lean manufacturing. Wiremold Company found out that there have many improvements after the implementing of lean manufacturing concept which the product development time-to-market, receipt and fulfilment of order time, amount of plant space needed, time for raw material to shipping dock and number of suppliers are have been reduced. Besides that, the inventory turns and sales per employee did show the increasing advantage. Some companies in Vietnam also actively conducted training and implemented lean manufacturing concept to eliminate the inefficiency process. This brings the improvement to their production and service lead times. For example, Toyota Ben Thanh, a service center of Toyota in Vietnam, has implemented lean concept to significantly reduce the process time for the automobile maintenance service and as a result, the total number of cars processed are increase. Toyota Ben Thanh achieved significant reductions in the process lead time by successfully eliminating unnecessary waiting time, inefficiencies of physical motions and process flow. According to the oxford dictionary, technique is a particular way of doing something. Lean manufacturing techniques are based on the application of five principles to guide the action of management toward success. The five principles are included value, the value stream, flow, pull and perfection. The perfection is bringing the meaning of the ability to advocate doing things right at the first time through the application of continuous improvement efforts. The element of continuous improvement can break down into 3 basic principles which are Challenge, Kaizen, and Genchi Genbutsu. Background information Kaizen is a Japanese word with literally mean improvement. In the context of Lean manufacturing, kaizen is understood to signify small, incremental, and frequent improvements to a process. Lean philosophy states that the large improvement which just require small amounts of investment and risk. The kaizen main mindset is making process improvements without adding people and space to the process. The more important one is implement the change without spending the money. In the early 1950s, Kaizen was first introduced in Japan which is the Toyota manufacturing plant. In Japan, kaizen is a way of life in the workplace which from the office of the CEO until to the shop apprentice. Kaizen has lead most of the company from a defeated wartime nation to one of the strongest industrialized countries in the world. The main principal of kaizen is making the small, immediate improvements in the process and standardizes the workplace. Actually, all of these small improvement will add up to better the working conditions which a (Imai, 1997) higher degree of safety, more efficiency and ultimately, greater profits. In the western, the improvements are done by introducing the latest technology, or incorporate the newest management technique and the result is outspending of money and time. But Kaizen is different which just requires a small investment of money, but a large investment in effort, cooperation and training. If fully implementation in organization, the results are often amazing. Kaizen is a process which must become a daily part of every workers routine and this is the key for the successful implementation of Kaizen Concept. In Kaizen, management has two functions which are Maintenance and improvement. The important part of kaizen is setting and keeping them. The role of maintain is to maintain the technological and operating standards that have been put into place. The other role of management is improvement which constantly looking for ways to raise the current operating standards. This is an ongoing effort and must be a daily part of the managers job. Process is the holy grail of kaizen and the main focus of Kaizen is on the process because Kaizen emphasize that improving the process will improve the result. The major concept of kaizen is visual management. The opportunities for improvement may present themselves on a daily basis, but if you are not able to see them, they will be missed. One of primary methods used in kaizen is to create an environment where tools, supplies and processes that out of place can be seen right away. There are two systems that are used to achieve this target is 5S and 5M. The heart and soul of visual management is 5S. It is systematic approach to workplace organization and cleaning that will transform a disorganized workplace into an efficient running machine. The 5Ss are Sort (Seiri), Set in Order (Seiton), Shine (Seiso), Standardize (Seiketsu) and Sustain (Shitsuke) 5S method started introduced in Malaysia at the middle age of 1980s and was actively conducted training and implementing in the private sector especially in multinational company. In 2004, 5S method was introduced to all public and private sectors in in Malaysia. In this 6 years, there have many certificates were issued to various factory industries and service as an encouragement. 5S is a method or tool which aims to manage workplace organisation and standardisation. 5S improves the safety, work efficiency, productivity and establishes a sense of ownership. The successes of lean manufacturing concept in the manufacturing area brought the attention of non-manufacturing area using the lean manufacturing concept to manage their company. Although 5 S is a system aimed at good housekeeping and floor cleanliness. But this concept can be used in broader area where you have any kind of waste and even, these concepts also can be use in non-manufacturing process. 1.2 Problem of Study Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) is a university which has the highest number of postgraduate enrolment in engineering and technology, which is one of the important components in contributing towards the development of an innovation-led economy. There have many department and unit in UTM which provide quality services to help expedite the process and system administration. Each department plays a role in the system administration of UTM and the 5S concept has been introduced to make sure the efficiency in the system administration. Universiti Teknologi Malaysia was the first public university (IPTA) which successfully applies and attains the 5S Concept Certificate at 2009. The certificate handing ceremony was held in UTM Skudai and was officiated by the Director of National Productivity Corporation (NPC) Southern Region, Mohd. Razali Hussin. In his speech, Mohd Razali, the Director of National Productivity Corporation (NPC) Southern Region congratulated UTM staff for their commitment in making this concept a success in UTM. The Director of NPC also said that all the staff in utm are the pioneers to this program and will be the best example and reference for other IPTA. Besides that, in his speech, he did mention that the effort must be consistent from time to time and in the effort to increase the skill and improve the office management system, the commitment and participation of all the UTMs staff are essential. According to the 5S concept program leader, Puan Norazlina Md. Said, this program was introduced to all public and private sectors at the year of 2004 in Malaysia. With the help of NPC, UTM has started realizing the 5s concept and managed to pass a certain requirement and finally successful attaining the certificate. This is an honor for University Teknologi Malaysia. To successfully implementation the 5S concept, each staff of the UTM plays an important role. The successful of UTM will bring a lot of attention which first public university (IPTA) to successfully apply and attain the 5S Concept Certificate. a) What is the key of the successful implementation 5S concept? b) How far the implementation of the 5S concept? c) What is problem that will be face in the implementation of 5S concept? 1.3 Purpose of the Study The purpose of the study is to found out that how far that the implementation that have been done and investigate the key of the successful implementation 5S concept. Besides that, this research can also can give recommendation which ensure a constantly successful of 5s implementation. 1.4 Objective of the Research The purpose of the research is to investigate the implementing 5s at non-manufacturing area which a research will be doing in the Treasurers office UTM. The objectives of this research are: 1.2.1 To investigate that how far that the implementation of 5S concept. 1.2.2 To investigate the factor of the successful implementation of 5s concept. 1.2.3 To suggest the recommendation to ensure a constantly successful 5s implementation. 1.5 Scope This study is focusing on the Implementing 5s at non-manufacturing area which in Bursary office at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. The respondents, which involve the staff of the Bursary Office and the data collected via questionnaires, were distributed to the respondent. 1.6 Significance of the Study The findings of this study are very important to: UTM The finding in this study can help UTM know the perception of the staff about the implementation of 5S concept. Besides that, can give awareness to UTM about the important of the implementation of 5s concept. Bursary Office Through this finding, can let the staff in the office know that the problem in the implementation of the 5S concept. Besides that, can give a recommendation to Bursary Office and ensure the constantly successful of the implementation of 5S concept. Undergraduate The finding in this study can give knowledge to undergraduate student about the 5S concept. This is because nowadays, there have many company already implement the 5s concept so the undergraduate will not feel unfamiliar when they hear the 5s concept. 1.7 limitations There are some limitations in this research. a) The sample of the study is only limited to the staff of the bursary office and cannot represent all the non-manufacturing area in Malaysia. Therefore, the results of the analysis could be questioned. b) Due to time constraints and cost, the survey will only distributed to respondents via questionnaire. To get an accurate analysis and data, will need an amount of cost and a lot of time. Consider to this problem, the survey will only distribute to respondents via questionnaire. c) The level of reliability and accuracy of this study may be affected by the deceit of respondents. This is because respondents normally tend to answer questions in the way that are beneficial to them.

How far does Somerset deserve his reputation as the ‘Good Duke’? Essay

Edward Seymour, also known as the 1st Duke of Somerset, in many ways did not deserve his title as the ‘Good Duke’ due to the fact that not only did he used his position as Edward VI’s uncle to gain autocratic power as ‘Lord Protector’, his arrogant and selfish style of government led to a collapse of not only the economy, but created many social, religious and political problems, leading to rebellions spreading across the country. Because of this, it would be unfair to call him a ‘Good Duke’ as his legacy did little good for his successors, having created a nation in a terrible state to save the governing of. Somerset (then known as Earl of Hertford) claimed the title of Lord Protector after the death of Henry VIII, when sometime before it was decided that he and an equal group of others (forming the Regency Council) would manage the throne for Edward VI whilst he was a child, ‘thinking it the surest form of government and most fit for that commonwealth’. Being the boy king’s uncle, it seemed natural for him to be his guardian, and he had soon gained trust by many members – allowing him the favour of being one of the leaders on this council. Somerset, however, played a game of factions, and his rise to power quickly as (self-named) ‘Lord Protector’ allowed the so called ‘Good Duke’ to successfully alienate others – giving his supporters positions of authority around him, whilst leaving those with other ideas along the sides to look upon with confusion and bitterness. Ruling alone was his style of government, and appeasing his supporters with wealth, offices, land and titles was one of his ways to keep control. Somerset, who had made himself Duke – building a grand estate for himself as if he were the real king – gained much resentment from the Privy Council, who, although offered Somerset advice, could see that he was not interested in their views. Sir William Paget – an advisor to the former king – often criticised Somerset’s way of government, noticing that the policies created by the so called council were those only of Somerset, and later he would be one of the forces bringing Somerset down from power. It seems right to suggest that the power Somerset held had gotten to his head – where every policy he wrote, decision he made, and action he took were nothing but his own, and this can be an argument opposing the title of the ‘Good Duke’ he has earned by some, being quite selfish and power-hungry, cavorting around as if he was the actual king. As historian Susan Brigden put it (New Worlds, Lost Worlds): ‘Since Somerset had taken the devising of policy to himself, his would be the blame if, and when, it failed’. As a hard on, military commander, it seemed only natural that Somerset’s attention would have been strongly focussed on foreign policy, particularly, the issue of Edward VI’s suzerainty over Scotland. However, it can be said that Somerset was obsessed with the idea of ruling over Scotland – perhaps using Henry VIII’s initial idea of marrying the young Edward VI to the infant Mary Queen of Scots to strengthen the alliance between the two countries, as an excuse for the insanely increased expenditure over the war. Although relations with France so far had been fairly calm, the idea of Mary Queen of Scots marrying the dauphin of France allowed Somerset to see clearly in his way what was needed to gain Scotland – a war – in his opinion. All seemed well for Somerset, who’s tactic was to defeat the Scots and French in battle and force rule, and this subsequently started off successfully – bringing England victory with the Battle of Pi nkie in September 1547. Nevertheless, Somerset failed to recognise the fierce economic problems that were facing the nation at the time. The previous ruler, Henry VIII had already mangled inflation with the debasing of the coins – yet Somerset foolishly allowed this to continue, trying to fund the war with the Scots. In his Lenton Sermon of 1549, Latimer spoke of the debasing of the silver coin ‘so reddened with copper it blushed for shame’. Financing the war was still a huge problem and Somerset’s tactics seemed to have been failing due to the inability to defend all the forts that had been blocked previously. Without money, the war was crumbling, which led to further problems with the economy. Crop prices were a new high, and it was hard enough to grow grain as it was – this allowed the people of England to start resenting Somerset. In terms of his reputation at the ‘Good Duke’, his actions did not support this title – firstly, he chose to ignore the increasingly terrible economic situation of the country, allowing the rise of inflation and poor exchange rate to continue as a result of the debasing of the silver coins. Likewise his obsession with resolving the Scottish conflict led to heavy military expenditure for little gain, with the resultant garrisoning expensive and frail. Also, by avoiding confrontation with France, Somerset simply passed on England’s major concerns to future monarchs. These decisions were clearly poorly made and short sighted, and whilst he continuously debased the coins of the ordinary, spent much money on his own lavish property and funding a war that he seemed to have underestimated (both financially and skilfully – he realised the French Army was very strong), he refused to admit fault in his own policies, placing ‘the cause of society’s ill elsewhere’ (Brigden.), the ultimate show of arrogance, allowing further bitterness from the Council towards him. As a protector and so called ‘Good Duke’ he seemed to have failed to make any effective progress. In terms of Religious Policy, it was under Edwards VI’s rule, and so under Somerset, that the real changes to the church started to happen. Henry VIII had not only left a legacy that was riddled with debt for the economy, but also tensions amongst the Catholic Church after Henry’s controversial break from Rome. Edward VI, who at the time was being raised protestant, was sure to make reforms that made the majority Catholic country convert, according to his father’s wishes. How things were done was up to Somerset, who, totally different from his hard-faced and somewhat cruel military persona, was quite tolerable in terms of religious change. February 1547, one of the first and noticeable moves to convert to Protestantism made was the denunciation of images in churches in London, although it was not an official change, this act of iconoclasm was fully supported by the government and the protestant extremists such as Nicholas Ridley, showing the starting of religion reform under Somerset. It was not until July of that year that the government sent out injunctions to further attack the Catholic church – this time picking up on things such as candles, bell ringing, stained glass windows and images of saints in Catholic churches across the country, with visitations made by government which were to ‘precipitate the most sweeping changes in religion England had yet seen’ (Eamon Duffy, The Stripping of the Alters). In December of that year came a further change which had significant impact. Chantries, which were used to pray for the souls trapped in Purgatory – a state between heaven and hell in Catholic belief – were dissolved, with these buildings turned into bookshops and other things. Although these changes were changing the appearance of Catholicism in England, Somerset seemed to have ‘gotten away with it’ so far, as although people were perhaps angry with the changes, a lot of people accepted the changes quietly – after all they were not too hard to live with. It can be argued that these policies were soft – and Somerset in a kind fashion had not introduced any cruel punishment to punish those who opposed his idea – which led a lot of Catholics to hide their churchly images in annoyance rather than rebellion. It was not until May 1549 that Somerset introduced the Book of Common Prayer, did he really have a huge impact in terms of the religious reforms. These books were a guideline of what was to be said at all church services, and were completely in English, which was a huge leap from catholic Services which were held in Latin. This change aimed to make churches simpler – less about money and the show of religion, but more about the faith – according to the most radical Protestants. If the Book of Common Prayer was in English, it would be easier for everyone to hear the messages of God in clear plain English, something Catholics disagreed with, as they thought only trained and blessed priests should have been able to read the bible. It was this change that acted as a catalyst for the later rebellions. Although these religious changes seemed somewhat inevitable, and perhaps would have happened under anyone – not just Somerset – it can be argued that Somerset did not do much to drive the changes that were being made, and instead he cared about the conflict with Scotland overall much more. Another thing to take notice was that Somerset was interested in foreign policy, and of course for the future succession of the throne after Edward VI. At that point, most of Europe was Catholic, and Somerset knew that if there was much radical change in England with the church, England would lose important links to major countries such as Spain – which to Somerset – perhaps was not worth the risk of fast change. On the whole, this could have been the reason as to why he didn’t make too obvious changes at the beginning, explaining the relatively slow progress of change, with some policies not lasting very well under Somerset, which would explain why he seemed to be tolerating of religious change and didn’t try and force it too hard, even though it did eventually lead to rebellions. In 1549 many commons’ uprisings were occurring. These were surprising – ‘Not since 1381 had there been such widespread rebellion’ (Susan Brigden, New Worlds, Lost Worlds). Particularly significant, two rebellions occurred under Somerset – the first being the Western Rebellions, in the Cornish area of England. There was a building of tension here with the Cornish, who had a history of disliking the government as they wanted independence. This very strongly catholic state was outraged with the religious changes being made – and so challenged Somerset and his government with a list of demands. The second rebellion was the Kett Rebellion, taking place in East Anglia – which occurred less due to religious reforms, but in rise of the desperation of economic reform, especially after the extreme expenditure thanks to the Scottish war conflict and the over-debasing of the silver coins. The rebellion – named after Robert Kett who took lead – also had a list of things they wanted changing, however interestingly, were written with much more politeness, and had nothing to do with the religious reforms. This suggests to us that only a few parts of the country had so far been greatly affected by the religious reforms under Somerset. These rebellions tell us the general antagonism and resentment the population felt towards the condition of the country under Somerset, suggesting that he was far from being a ‘Good Duke’ However, it is important to argue that it was not just Somerset’s fault – it was too the gentry, ‘who in pursuit of self-interest had abdicated their duty to the commons, seemed powerless to act and looked upon one another’ (Susan Brigden). Although about different problems and the uprisings seemed to be unrelated, there was a ‘particular sharpness in social conflict’ (Andy Wood, the 1549 Rebellions and the Making of Early Modern England) that was very significant, and this blame that fell onto Somerset led to his demise in the time coming. Somerset was growing increasingly desperate to sort out the problems with the rebellions, and so appointed Lord Russell, a nobleman in the West, to sort out the uprisings in the area. Although it took time and strength, on the 4th August 1549, Somerset was able to defeat the rebels in the west, leaving him only the rebels in Kett, against whom he was defeated humiliatingly later on. Somerset then turned to his last hope, as he saw it, the Duke of Northumberland (then known as Earl of Warwick) to help him out with Kett, despite knowing that Northumberland was actually his potential rival. His strong opponent successfully sorted out the rebels, and bought light to the failures of Somerset – his demise was inevitable – and his enemies (Northumberland, Cranmer) who once sat in the shadows in resent towards his arrogant and autocratic rule were able to speak up against Somerset, using his failure against Scotland, worsening of the economy and religious reforms done poorly to accuse him of being a unsuitable Lord Protector, as after all, he did fail to protect the country from rebellions. Somerset, knowing his end was near and his enemies were plotting against him, moved himself and the young King to the Windsor Palace where they were safer. Edward in his diary, wrote ‘Me thinks I am in a prison’, and when it was discovered that Somerset had in fact locked Edward up – thinking that the ‘possession of his person was the key to power’ (Brigden). When discovered, Somerset surrendered and was executed for treason – offering ‘his life, not his liberty’ (Brigden). The fall of Somerset seems like he was perhaps targeted and plotted against, and the fact that he had many enemies alongside the knowledge of his failing policies, supports the argument that Somerset perhaps didn’t deserve the title of the ‘Good Duke’. On the other hand, to not argue Somerset as the ‘Good Duke’ would be unfair as there are things that made him perhaps not as bad as it seemed. Somerset did indeed inherit a legacy full of debt, economical issues, and religious conflict from Henry VIII, and so it would be unreasonable to say that the rebellions started solely due to Somerset’s policies – as he believed he was just carrying out the will of Henry VIII. Furthermore, Somerset was often described being very caring of the poor – ‘Somerset saw himself as the champion of the oppressed, hearing complacently the benisons if the poor.’ (Susan Brigden). This suggests that he was not as brutal as he was made out to be (normally because of his cruel Military regime against Scotland), another reason as to why he good have been considered ‘Good’ to an extent, as previous Monarchs/rulers weren’t often praised with ‘Oh the commons pray for you sir’. Also, he could also be compared to the Duke of Northumberland, who inherits his position as Lord Protector. Northumberland has been compared to being a typical ‘Machiavellian’ character – a person who stabbed the back of others to get what he wanted, and although reform was perhaps more effective under Northumberland, it would be unfair to, if talking in terms of morals, call Northumberland a better Duke than Somerset. Overall, there are some things supporting the argument that Somerset could be described as a ‘Good Duke’ if comparing him to Northumberland. Overall it would seem that Somerset did not deserve the title as the ‘Good Duke’ because of the overall negative effect he had in government, and his policies that failed to successfully bring religious reform in the country, whilst causing further economic damage due to his blind war expenditure from his obsession with the Scotland conflict. Somerset’s overall attitude towards governing was also partly to blame – he created many enemies for himself due to making decisions on his own constantly, alienating certain members who would then plot against him and because of this, he would be solely to blame for the actions he took. Although he didn’t mean to cause extra damage, it is undeniable that his actions proved that he didn’t deserve to be called the ‘Good Duke’.