Concept of Justice in Plato's Republic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Concept of Justice in Plato's Republic - Essay Example This argument is presented to Socrates in an accusatory fashion, and with Thrasymachus’ replies to what Socrates seeks in clarification in support of his argument, it seems evident that Thrasymachus’ himself did not completely understand the depth of the position he just took. This becomes apparent when Socrates designs his retorts to explore the argument further, dedicating the rest of the Book I to seeking clarification of the argument Thrasymachus’ had just presented. Socrates aims to make it apparent that a concept of justice such as this must develop in a coherent fashion towards one final definition of justice presented by Thrasymachus’, but as the argument continues, it is seen that Thrasymachus’ himself is slightly skewed in his approach and ends up presenting more than one definition of justice, with both consistencies and inconsistencies between the two. Discussion between Thrasymachus, Socrates and Cleitophon Thrasymachus, who originally seemed like an avid listener, enters into the discussion of justice by interrupting Socrates in a seemingly demeaning manner at 336b, positioning himself first as an aggressive philosopher who was staunch in his understanding of the dialogue at hand, ready to move forward and express his displeasure with the same, â€Å"But when we paused †¦ he could no longer keep quiet; hunched up like a wild beast, he flung himself at us as if to tear us to pieces.† (336b). Moreover, he exclaims to the recipient, â€Å"What if I could show you another answer about justice besides all these and better than they are? What punishment do you think you would deserve to suffer?† (337d). Clearly, Thrasymachus is about to make a sweeping statement regarding the concept of justice. When Thrasymachus delivers his version of what he believes justice encompasses, â€Å"nothing other than the advantage of the stronger party† (338c), Socrates approaches the man with a determined outlo ok to seek clarification. In response to his appeal, Thrasymachus presents clarifying examples, describing at first instance the various systems of governance that permeate societies of modern age, specifically, tyranny, democracy, and aristocracy. In all three of these variants, governments seek to design laws that not only uplift their own desires but also make it unlawful to act against them, passing laws with a view to their own advantage (338e). Justice is then designed to be the responsibility of the government, who would pertinently seek to protect their own wishes before they protect anyone else’s, making it clear that in â€Å"every city, the same thing is just, the advantage of the established ruling body† (339a). Thus, Thrasymachus applies that a reasonable man would necessarily conclude that the advantage of the ruling elite becomes justice in the land that he governs. In doing so, he supplies us with the first interpretation of his sweeping ideology of jus tice, that it is what is to the advantage of the stronger party; the strongest of the land take charge, make their own laws, and in doing so, define what is just and what is not. It follows that a person who acts in compliance with the wishes of his government is definitely just. To the above utterance, Plato, speaking via his teacher Socrates, begins to identify possible loopholes. According to him, there is a distinct lack of adherence in Thrasymachus’

Marks and Spencer: Structure and Culture

Marks and Spencer: Structure and Culture 1. INTRODUCTION Marks Spencer is British institution. Opened in 1884, the company emerged as a major retailer of clothes, food, household items and financial services. By 1997, Marks Spencer was an international company with sales of over  £8 billion and very high net profit margins. However, the group experienced a shocking reversal in fortune at the turn of the 21st Century when its main customer base, women aged between 35 and 55 began to stop shopping at their stores. This posed a very serious threat to the companys survival and Marks Spencer thought hard and long about how to rectify the situation. It did so by introducing bold new moves changing its corporate culture and by strengthening existing systems and processes. By doing so, the company was able to regain its loyal customers and grow once again. Yet, the last few years have been challenging as the company was badly affected by the global economic crisis. This report outlines the changing structure and culture at Marks Spencers. It provides a comparison of the contributions of the key business functions to the organizational change. It also identifies the key stakeholders of the organization and the key issues of managing them. Finally, a SWOT analysis is done for Marks Spencer along with an assessment of its long term future prospects. 2. CHANGING CORPORATE CULTURE AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE All organizations have their own cultures, which consist of the values and beliefs shared by its members which determine to a considerable degree how managers respond to problems and opportunities. But corporate culture can become static and excessively bureaucratic over time, even among successful organizations (Huff et al, 2009). An organizational culture is powerful because it automatically shapes the way members see their world. Any culture is deeply rooted in beliefs and values that members have internalized. When beliefs and values are held without challenge for a long period of time, they are even less likely to be questioned (Robbins and Judge, 2007). The norms rarely change to accommodate those who deviate from them. Inertia sets in and employees become stuck in a rut. Employees become resistant to change and are unwilling to do things differently because they involve inconvenience and uncertainty. This could ultimately destroy the company. Like most successful organizations, Marks Spencer was a victim of its own success. Its corporate culture because inflexible, rigid and resistant to change because it was felt that since the company was successful, there was no need to change. Deeply entrenched was a sense of employee entitlement regarding remuneration and working hours. However, when it became clear that the old culture was unable to cope with changing demands of the marketplace, the top management decided on a major revamp. As a result, employees became less resistant to change and began to embrace new ways of doing things. Employees were willing to work for longer hours if it meant better pay and they were less resistant to the fact that they might lose their jobs if the company performed poorly. They were also sent for learning and education programs to equip them with new skills sets so that they were better able to cope with changes in the working environment. All these efforts contributed to the change in corporate culture which is now more dynamic and flexible. A number of major changes were also made to the organizational structure. The formal chain of command was flattened to a certain extent and in doing so the company became more agile and responsive to changes in customer demand and taste. The regional management structure was simplified to delegate more responsibility to individual store managers to give them more autonomy. 3. CONTRIBUTIONS OF KEY BUSINESS FUNCTIONS TO ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES 3.1 Finance The finance function plays a critical role at Marks Spencer in cutting costs and eliminating unnecessary expenditure. The entire value chain was examined to determine where and how costs could be trimmed. As a result, the company was able to reduce costs, provide better prices to the customers and improve its overall profitability. Ultimately, it is the shareholders who stand to gain the most from the initiatives made in terms of maximization of shareholder wealth. 3.2 Marketing To attract new customers and retain existing customers at Marks Spencer, the marketing function critically examined the cause of declining sales. The main cause negative customer perception of its main customer base women aged between 35 and 55 that the clothes sold at Marks Spencer were unfashionable and even dowdy. Therefore, the marketing function decided to split up the long-cherished St Michaels brand into a number of categories to cater for different customer needs. Consequently, the company launched three new product categories for women (www.marksandspencer.com, 2011). The first, the Perfect and Classic ranges were for basic purposes, for example jeans, sweaters and plain shirts. The second range, Autograph is for the more fashionable woman of a larger demographic group. The final range, per una, is targeted at the younger woman of ages 25 to 35 and is of average dress size. By segmenting its products for different markets, the company was able to regain most of the sales it lost. Different marketing campaigns are held for each range and this makes the companys products appear more attractive to customers. 3.3 Operations A number of critical changes were made to the companys operations. For one, the supply chain was made leaner and in doing so, the company made substantial savings. Fewer suppliers were used and this facilitated transparency and response time. The lead time was reduced and the company placed a greater emphasis on timeliness and quality. These contribute to leaner operations which lead to higher profits. 3.4 Human Resource This function is critical to the successful implementation of a strategy. The HRM function at Marks Spencer played an important role in changing employee mindset and modifying the corporate culture to be more attuned to the changes that need to occur (Hitt et al, 2004). As a result, employees were more receptive to change and aware of the sacrifices they need to make. 4. KEY STAKEHOLDERS The key stakeholders of Marks Spencer are shareholders, management, employees and customers. The following diagram shows their relative importance and power: Power of Stakeholders Meet Their Needs Key Player B, C A D Least Important Show Consideration Interest Key: A Shareholders B Management C Customers D Employees 5. MANAGING KEY STAKEHOLDERS Shareholders would like to maximize their wealth. Share maximization is through share price appreciation and dividends (Aaker, 1996). Therefore, satisfying this group would require increasing profits and the company profile. Management is concerned about maintaining control over operations. Their goals are sometimes similar to that of shareholders but in some cases they differ (Daniels et al, 2007). Hence, there is the agency problem. The employees at Marks Spencer are most concerned about job security and work conditions. Ideally, they would like jobs that pay well and have good hours. However, this may be incompatible with the goal of wealth maximization of shareholders as employee benefits will erode profits. Similarly, if employees are unionized, they may cause problems to management and reduce its influence. Hence, management must strike a balance between making employees and shareholders happy. Customers are concerned about satisfying their needs and wants. Managing them effectively would require Marks Spencer to improve its product offering to make satisfied customers who make repeat purchases. 6. SWOT ANALYSIS 6.1 (S)trengths Excellent control system for suppliers, inventory and layout of stores. Very high quality products Efficient and modern production techniques Good understanding of its core customer base. 6.2 (W)eaknesses Generic clothing that is often perceived as unfashionable An image of being boring 6.3 (O)pportunities Global expansion Utilizing more overseas suppliers to achieve cost advantage Maximize use of existing technology to obtain competitive advantage 6.4 (T)hreats Competition with premium quality clothing manufacturers Competition with discount stores Economic downturn 7. FUTURE PROSPECTS Marks Spencer is facing a very difficult time. After its successful business turnaround, it is once again facing problems due to the recession. Indeed the next few years may be a very difficult time for the company. Not only is it facing competition from high end retailers but discount stores as well. Meanwhile, the middle class is shrinking and if the company does not take bold steps, it may collapse. To succeed, the company must grow its market share by penetrating new markets or new product lines. 8. CONCLUSION Marks Spencer is a company with a long history of success. To overcome its current difficulties, it must draw on its strengths, overcome its weaknesses and revamp its strategy to stay relevant and competitive.

Evolution and Ambiguous Communication Essay -- Biology Essays Research

Throughout the debate concerning evolution, I have noted the relative precision or imprecision of various methods of human communication. From the connotations of particular words to the emotion incited by a distinct music phrase, it is often surprising which human forms of expression are ambiguous and which seem to be universal. When considering this phenomenon, it is perhaps useful to construct a method for discussing the relative accuracy of communicating exactly what we mean when we use various ways to say it. From an evolutionary standpoint, it is relevant to our discussion to ask whether meaning(thought) pushed language into existence, or whether it was language that originated meaning. If the first is true, then mediums such as art and music are truly a product of our desire to communicate meaning in a direct sense. The meaning to be communicated first forms itself in the creator's head in some wordless nebula, and then consequently find release directly onto the painter's canvas, or the musical phrase. Hence, once the creation is added to the realm of world attention, and observers begin to interact with the creation, the meaning of the piece will undergo another translation into words as observers start to describe and recount their interaction. Only after the original meaning has traveled from the artist's mind, into a creation, and into the observer's mind, will it have it's first confrontation with language. However, if language itself created meaning, then we must understand art to be an interpretation of spoken or unspoken language; a second generation product of the human desire to communicate with self or others. This is the viewpoint endorsed by Dennett in Darwin's Dangerous Idea, as he states: "the 'lang... ... that "the idea of the original is created by the copies, and that the original is always deferred – never to be grasped." (Culler 12). This theory can be (and was originally) applied to one of the modes of human communication that is considered to be among the most precise – written language. But does this theory mean that we as humans have no hope of ever communicating exactly what it is we mean to another? Perhaps there is no hope of this, and that is why, in some more ambiguous forms of our communication, we have ceased to hope for it and admitted defeat on that front: but in doing so, we found a new realm of significance in the variety of interpretation. Works Cited 1)Culler, Jonathan. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. New York, NY, 1997. 2)Dennett, Daniel C. Darwin's Dangerous Idea. Touchstone: New York, NY, 1995.

HBS. Tristar

Rainbow Products and the paint-mixing machine A) The paint-mixing machine cost 35. 000 dollars, which is the initial cash outflow. The machine will generate additional cash inflows of 5. 000 dollars for the next 1 5 years. With cost of capital of 12% the Net Present value can be calculated using the NP formula in Excel: NP= – 945. 68 Data Description Rate $0. 12 935,000. 00 Investment $5,000. 00 scofflaws at the end of year $34,054. 32 NP $-945. 68Note that because the cash inflow is constantly reoccurring and occurs for a set period of time the Present value could also be calculated as an Annuity and then added to the initial cash outflow. Doing this calculation, one would expect the result to be the same. Internal Rate of Return, AIR, is the return on the investment when NP is zero. AIR can also be calculated using Excel: Because AIR is less than the cost of capital (12%) and the NP is negative, both methods suggest that undertaking the investment would destroy shareholders value, hush the investment should not be undertaken.The simple Payback period is when the initial investment is recovered, this will occur at the end of year 7, thus the payback period is 8 years. B) For an additional 500 dollars the machine can get service each year to â€Å"as-good-as- new' and the value of the investment can thus be calculated as a perpetuity. A Perpetuity is calculated as: Thus, NP = -35,000 + 37,500 = 2500 NP is positive with the service contract, so Rainbow Products should undertake the investment, as it will increase shareholder value.C) Rainbows engineers have another way of preserving and increasing the capability of the machine, which allows the annual scofflaws to increase by 4%, this requires reinvesting 20% of the annual scofflaws. The Present Value of an end-of-year perpetuity is calculated as: Thus, the NP = -35,000 + 50,000 = 15,000 As the NP of the investment in the machine with engineers added work is 12,500 dollars more than the NP of the investm ent in the machine with â€Å"as-good-as-new contract.

Lbo Model

Leveraged Buyout Model (LBO) Copyright 2009 Investment Banking Institute www. ibtraining. com Table of Contents I. Uses for An LBO Model on Sell-side and Buy-side Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Purchase price calculation and considerations Sources and Uses II. Capital Structure Alternatives Integration of Proforma Balance Sheet into Financial Model Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration III. IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsor and Hybrid Debt Lender IV. Sensitivity Tables V. Credit Ratios 2 Uses for an LBO Model on the Buy-SideA Leveraged Buyout Model (â€Å"LBO Model†) is a key analysis used by private equity firms / financial sponsors to evaluate a potential acquisition The goal of an LBO is to acquire a company by financing the purchase with as much debt as the cash flows of the business and the debt markets will support The more debt a financial sponsor is able to obtain to finance an acquisition, the less of an equity investment the financial sponsor has to make The higher the leverage levels, the higher the expected Internal Rate of Return (â€Å"IRR†) is for the financial sponsor / private equity firm The goal of an LBO model is to establish expected internal rates of return (â€Å"IRR†) for the acquisition using a financial model that reflects the following: Purchase price assumptions and the necessary cash needed to finance the acquisition (uses of cash) Capitalization assumptions: leverage (amount of debt), different debt tranches, equity investment amounts (sources of cash) Base case financial projections for the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow based upon the purchase price and capitalization assumptions The LBO model should be built with the ability to run sensitivities for a range of purchase prices, capitalization structures, operating assumptions, etc. 3 Uses for an LBO Model on the Buy-Side Private Equity Firms / Financial Sponsors usually have a requ ired rate of return hurdle f the expected IRR range for a potential acquisition does not meet or exceed the hurdle rate, often the PE firm / financial sponsor does not move forward with the acquisition PE firms required rates of return usually range from 15% on the low-side to 30% on the high-side, with the typical range targeted at 18% – 25% The IRR analysis is strongly driven by the amount of leverage With higher leverage levels, the financial sponsor has to invest less equity, and therefore has a higher IRR Therefore, often the goal is to leverage up the Company as much as the cash flow of the business and the debt markets will permit More leverage makes the business inherently riskier, as more of the cash flows generated by the business will be used to pay interest expense and debt serviceThe amount of leverage is largely determined by the state of the debt markets 4 Uses for an LBO Model on the Buy-Side The amount of leverage is largely determined by the state of the deb t markets For the last several years, the debt markets have been experiencing excess liquidity Because of the excess liquidity, lenders have been allowing higher leverage levels Depending on the industry and business, transactions over the last several years have been leveraged at between 4. 0x – 6. 0x recent EBITDA These higher leverage levels allow the financial sponsor to pay more for the company and still attain its required IRR The leverage level of 4. 0x – 6. x recent EBITDA is comprised of some combination of senior secured loans and junior loans (second lien, third lien, unsecured loan, hybrid debt / equity securities) Lenders may require the financial sponsor to have a minimum equity investment as % of total capitalization Minimum equity contribution is typically around 20% – 25%, depending on industry and purchase price 5 Uses for an LBO Model on the Buy-Side The LBO Model is also used for the Lenders’ perspectives Lenders like to see expected l everage and coverage ratios based upon the Company’s projected income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, and capitalization Typical ratios that lenders like to see are: Leverage RatiosTotal Debt / EBITDA Net Debt / EBITDA Secured Debt / EBITDA EBITDA / Net Interest Expense EBITDA / Cash Interest Expense Interest Coverage Statistics EBITDA / Net Interest Expense EBITDA / Cash Interest EBITDA – Capex / Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex / Cash Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C / Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C / Cash Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C – Taxes/ Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C – Taxes/ Cash Interest Expense 6 Uses for an LBO Model on the Sell-Side Investment Bankers often construct LBO models to: Provide this service to a financial sponsor client that is interested in pursuing an acquisitionProvide this service to a Company client where the co mpany is being sold – Illustrates the range of purchase prices financial buyers could pay and still attain their required IRR – Uses the current debt markets conditions as assumptions for the capitalization As a â€Å"gut-check† for other valuation methodologies (DCF, Public comparable company multiples, acquisition multiples) 7 Table of Contents I. Uses for An LBO Model on Sell-side and Buy-side Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Purchase price calculation and considerations Sources and Uses II. Capital Structure Alternatives Integration of Proforma Balance Sheet into Financial ModelIncome Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration III. IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsor and Hybrid Debt Lender IV. Sensitivity Tables V. Credit Ratios 8 Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Build upon the Financial Model template, and modify accordingly Add a worksheet for the LBO Model Structure and Assumptio ns The LBO Assumptions tab will have drivers for Purchase price assumptions Uses: Cash required to acquire the company and pay associated fees Sources: Cash available to acquire the company (debt, equity) USES = SOURCES Capitalization assumptions IRR Analyses 9 Purchase Price Calculation and ConsiderationsThe determination of the purchase price is complicated and typically involves a full-scale valuation (DCF, public company multiples and transaction multiples) as well as extensive due diligence on Company’s operations, financial condition, management team, customers, suppliers, assets, etc. If the Company has publicly traded equity, then typically a purchase price would be calculated much as TEV is calculated: (Offer price per share * fully diluted shares) + debt + minority interest + preferred interest – cash For the purposes of this model, we are assuming the LBO of a private company, and therefore using the most recent 12 month EBITDA and EBITDA multiple as the dri vers of purchase price Purchase price = EBITDA * EBITDA multiple We are assuming the transaction closes on December 31, 2008 LBO of Company A ($ in millions) TRANSACTION ASSUMPTIONS Closing Date 31-Dec-08 2008 EBITDA $60. 0 EBITDA Multiple 6. 0xTransaction (Enterprise) Value $360. 0 Less: Existing Debt ($190. 8) Plus: Cash $0. 0 Implied Equity Purchase Price $169. 2 10 Sources and Uses Total Uses is the amount of cash necessary to complete the transaction Usually equals the purchase price plus transaction fees and any other cash payment required as part of the transaction – For the LBO of a publicly traded company, purchase price is calculated as (offer price per share * shares outstanding ) + debt + minority interest + preferred equity – cash, and cash on target’s balance sheet is used as a source Other required cash payments could be payments to certain parties that kick-in with a change of control (e. g. anagement payments, premiums to outstanding notes, etc. ) Total Sources illustrates the sources of capital to complete the transaction Usually equals debt + equity + any other cash available Total Uses = Total Sources LBO of Company A ($ in millions) TRANSACTION ASSUMPTIONS Closing Date 31-Dec-08 2008 EBITDA $60. 0 EBITDA Multiple 6. 0x Transaction (Enterprise) Value $360. 0 Less: Existing Debt ($190. 8) Plus: Cash $0. 0 Implied Equity Purchase Price $169. 2 TOTAL USES Uses Equity Purchase Price Paydown Existing Debt Financing Fees Investment Banking Fees Legal Fees Other Fees and Expenses $169. 2 $190. 8 8. 0 4. 0 1. 0 1. 0 Total Uses $374. 0 TOTAL SOURCES Amount EBITDA of Funded Multiple Capitalization $0. 0 0. 0x 0. 0% 0. 0 0. 0x 0. 0% 120. 0 2. 0x 32. 1% 90. 0 1. 5x 24. 1% 60. 0 1. 0x 16. 0% 270. 0 4. 5x 72. 2% 104. 0 27. 8% $374. 0 100. 0% Capitalization Cash Revolver Term Loan Senior Bonds Unsecured Notes with Warrants Total Debt Sponsor Equity Total Sources 11 Interest Rate Cash Pay PIK 7. 0% 7. 5% 9. 5% 0. 0% 0. 0% 0. 0% 0. 0% 1 0. 0% % of Fully Diluted Equity na na na 5. 0% Capital Structure Alternatives The Total Sources Side is comprised of the capitalization assumptions The financial sponsor typically wants to leverage the transaction as much as the business’s cash flow and the lenders will allowDepending on the conditions of the debt markets and lenders’ requirements, financial sponsors would typically provide approximately 20% – 30% of the capitalization as an equity investment The debt is comprised of different securities usually provided by different lenders Revolver / Term loan (senior secured loans) are usually provided by typical commercial banks such as Citigroup, JPMorganChase, GE Commercial Finance, etc. , and have lower interest rates Junior loans such as second and third lien pieces and unsecured loans can be provided by public markets (high yield issue) and private placements (hedge funds, junior loan providers, investment bank providing balance sheet financing, etc. )O ften, the most junior piece on the capital structure will have equity warrants attached; the most junior lender will require a much higher rate of return than the more senior lenders The financial sponsors want to attain as much of the lower-priced debt as possible; in this example, we have assumed that total senior leverage (revolver + term loan) = 2. 0x EBITDA The example shows a 4. 5x EBITDA leverage ratio, and 1. 7x EBITDA equity ratio (LTM EBITDA is $60 million in this case) Capitalization Cash Revolver Term Loan Senior Bonds Unsecured Notes with Warrants Total Debt Sponsor Equity Total Sources TOTAL SOURCES Amount EBITDA % of Funded Multiple Capitalization $0. 0 0. 0x 0. 0% 0. 0 0. 0x 0. 0% 120. 0 2. 0x 32. 1% 90. 0 1. 5x 24. 1% 60. 0 1. 0x 16. 0% 70. 0 4. 5x 72. 2% 104. 0 27. 8% $374. 0 100. 0% 12 Interest Rate Cash Pay PIK 7. 0% 7. 5% 9. 5% 0. 0% 0. 0% 0. 0% 0. 0% 10. 0% % of Fully Diluted Equity na na na 5. 0% Creation of Proforma Balance Sheet Proforma Balance Sheet ($ in millions) Balance Sheet Assets Cash Accounts Receivable Inventory Other Current Assets Total Current Assets Historical Dec. 31 2008 $0. 0 $16. 0 $10. 0 $1. 0 $27. 0 Financing/ Transaction Adjustments $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 Proforma Dec. 31 2008 $0. 0 16. 0 10. 0 1. 0 $27. 0 Gross PP&E Cumulative Depreciation Net PP&E $323. 2 $45. 0 $278. 2 $0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 $323. 2 45. 0 $278. 2 Amortizable Intangibles GoodwillTotal Assets $0. 0 5. 0 $310. 2 $8. 0 65. 2 $73. 2 $8. 0 70. 2 $383. 4 Liabilities Accounts Payable Accrued Liabilities Other Current Liabilities Total Current Liabilities $11. 0 $2. 4 $0. 0 $13. 4 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 $11. 0 $2. 4 0. 0 $13. 4 Existing Debt Revolving Credit Facility Term Loan Unsecured Debt $40. 8 $100. 0 $50. 0 New Debt Revolving Credit Facility Term Loan Second Lien Unsecured Debt $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 $120. 0 $90. 0 $60. 0 $0. 0 $120. 0 $90. 0 $60. 0 Other Liabilities Total Liabilities $2. 0 $206. 2 $0. 0 $79. 2 $2. 0 $285. 4 Shareholders Equity Re tained Earnings Common Stock Total Shareholders Equity $94. 0 10. 0 $104. ($100. 0) $94. 0 ($6. 0) Total Liabilities and Equity Check $310. 2 $0. 0 $73. 2 $0. 0 ($40. 8) ($100. 0) ($50. 0) $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 ($6. 0) 104. 0 $98. 0 $383. 4 $0. 0 13 Creating a proforma balance sheet on a new worksheet allows for the integration of the new capital structure / sources into the existing financial model In the purchase of a private company, the seller typically sweeps all of the cash on the balance sheet at closing In the LBO of a publicly traded company, cash would not typically be swept as it is part of the offer price per share There may be a writeup or writedown of the value of the AR, Inventory and PP&E; this has an mpact on the tax basis All financing fees incurred in the transaction can still be capitalized and amortized The Goodwill is Purchase Price + M&A Fees – New Debt – Old Book Value of Equity; this amount can no longer be amortized In the purchase of a public com pany, goodwill is calculated as equity value of purchase – book value of equity The buyer typically assumes all of the normalcourse short term liabilities The â€Å"old debt† is eliminated (as the seller typically uses proceeds from the sale to pay all existing debt) In the purchase of a public company, often the existing debt of the acquired company remains outstanding, and is â€Å"assumed† by the acquirerThe â€Å"new debt† is fed from the Total Sources cells Shareholders’ Equity may require a plug to allow for the Total Assets to equal Total Liabilities + Shareholders’ Equity Creation of Proforma Balance Sheet ($ in millions) PROJECTED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Fiscal Year Ending December 31, 2009P 2010P 2011P 2012P 2013P 2008A Pro Forma 2008P Balance Sheet Assets Cash Accounts Receivable Inventory Other Current Assets Total Current Assets $0. 0 $16. 0 $10. 0 $1. 0 $27. 0 $0. 0 $16. 0 $10. 0 $1. 0 $27. 0 $0. 0 $17. 5 $10. 5 $1. 0 $29. 0 $0. 0 $18. 4 $11. 0 $1. 0 $30. 4 $1. 9 $19. 3 $11. 6 $1. 0 $33. 8 $7. 5 $20. 3 $12. 2 $1. 0 $40. 9 $0. 0 $21. 3 $12. 8 $1. 0 $35. 0 Gross PP&ECumulative Depreciation Net PP&E $323. 2 $45. 0 $278. 2 $323. 2 $45. 0 $278. 2 $337. 9 $51. 8 $286. 1 $353. 3 $58. 8 $294. 5 $369. 5 $66. 2 $303. 3 $386. 6 $73. 9 $312. 6 $404. 4 $82. 0 $322. 4 Amortizable Intangibles Goodwill Total Assets $0. 0 $5. 0 $310. 2 $8. 0 $70. 2 $383. 4 $6. 4 $70. 2 $391. 7 $4. 8 $70. 2 $399. 9 $3. 2 $70. 2 $410. 5 $1. 6 $70. 2 $425. 4 $0. 0 $70. 2 $427. 6 Liabilities Accounts Payable Accrued Liabilities Other Current Liabilities Total Current Liabilities $11. 0 $2. 4 $0. 0 $13. 4 $11. 0 $2. 4 $0. 0 $13. 4 $11. 7 $2. 5 $1. 0 $15. 2 $12. 3 $2. 6 $1. 0 $15. 9 $12. 9 $2. 8 $1. 0 $16. 6 $13. 5 $2. 9 $1. 0 $17. 4 $14. 2 $3. 1 1. 0 $18. 2 Existing Debt: Revolving Credit Facility Term Loan Unsecured Debt $40. 8 $100. 0 $50. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0 . 0 New Debt Revolving Credit Facility Term Loan Senior Bonds Unsecured Debt $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $0. 0 $120. 0 $90. 0 $60. 0 $1. 5 $100. 0 $90. 0 $66. 0 $1. 0 $80. 0 $90. 0 $72. 6 $0. 0 $60. 0 $90. 0 $79. 9 $0. 0 $40. 0 $90. 0 $87. 8 $3. 8 $0. 0 $90. 0 $96. 6 Other Liabilities Total Liabilities $2. 0 $206. 2 $2. 0 $285. 4 $2. 0 $274. 7 $2. 0 $261. 5 $2. 0 $248. 5 $2. 0 $237. 3 $2. 0 $210. 7 Shareholders Equity Retained Earnings Common StockTotal Shareholders Equity $94. 0 $10. 0 $104. 0 ($6. 0) $104. 0 $98. 0 $13. 1 $104. 0 $117. 1 $34. 4 $104. 0 $138. 4 $58. 0 $104. 0 $162. 0 $84. 1 $104. 0 $188. 1 $112. 9 $104. 0 $216. 9 Total Liabilities and Equity Check $310. 2 $0. 0 $383. 4 $0. 0 $391. 7 $0. 0 $399. 9 $0. 0 $410. 5 $0. 0 $425. 4 $0. 0 $427. 6 $0. 0 14 The Proforma Balance Sheet is then fed into the existing model’s balance sheet, and integrated appropriately into the cash flow and income statement We are assuming the transaction occurs on Dec. 31, 2008 Be careful whe n you are integrating to NOT CHANGE the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement for the period right efore the transaction date The income statement and cash flows for 2008 will not change because of the acquisition (as it occurs on Dec. 31, 2008, after the 2008 period has ended) Only the 2009 and onward income statement and cash flows will reflect the impact of the new capital structure / balance sheet Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration The remainder of the projection model is completed as we discussed in the last class Construction of a debt and interest schedule and revolver model allows the integration of the income statement, balance sheet and cash flow projections Be careful to make sure that the cash flow for the period irectly following the transaction closing is being calculated as the changes in the proforma balance sheet and that period directly following the transaction 15 Table of Contents I. Uses for An LBO Model on Se ll-side and Buy-side Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Purchase price calculation and considerations Sources and Uses II. Capital Structure Alternatives Integration of Proforma Balance Sheet into Financial Model Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration III. IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsor and Hybrid Debt Lender IV. Sensitivity Tables V. Credit Ratios 16 IRR Analysis for Financial SponsorsThe financial sponsor’s IRR analysis accounts for all cash flows coming from the financial sponsor for or to the Company, as well as all cash flows from the Company to the financial sponsor during the period from closing the acquisition to the sale of the company (other than management fees) Often, the company pays the financial sponsor â€Å"management fees† in exchange for the financial sponsor’s ongoing support, management and advice provided to the management team as well as covering the financial sponsor’s d irect expenses and overhead allocation Management fees are expensed as an SG&A expense on the company’s income statement and range greatly, depending on company’s sizeTypically financial sponsors do not include the payment of management fees in the IRR analysis 17 IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsors Amounts that the financial sponsor pays for or to the company are counted as cash outflows; examples include Initial equity investment Any additional equity investments made into the company during the holding period Any amount received by the financial sponsor from or by the company are counted as cash inflows (other than management fees); examples include: Proceeds from sale of the company Common or preferred dividends paid to financial sponsor Proceeds from a recapitalization 18 IRR Analysis for Financial SponsorsCalculate the sale of the business, assuming it is sold on December 31, 2013 Use the 2013 projected EBITDA, and the same EBITDA multiple assumption used for the purchase of the Company in 2008 Calculate the proceeds to the financial sponsor, taking into account any equity dilution that may result from warrants, management stock plan, transaction fees, etc. SALE OF COMPANY A IN 2013 Closing Date 31-Dec-13 2012 EBITDA EBITDA Multiple Transaction Value Less: Total Debt Plus: Cash Balance $76. 6 6. 0x $459. 5 (190. 5) 0. 0 Less: Transaction Fees (1) Equity Value % Equity to Sponsor Equity to Sponsor (6. 6) $262. 4 95. 0% $249. 3 % Equity to Unsecured Lender Equity to Unsecured Lender 5. 0% 13. 1 (1) Assumes 1% of Purchase Price for Investment Banking Fees, plus $2 million in legal and other expenses. 19 IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsors The following table illustrates the categories to calculate the IRR to the financial sponsor Any cash flow from the financial sponsor for or to the company is negative Any cash flow from or for the company to the financial sponsor is positive In general there is no closed-form solution for IRR, particularly w ith variable cash flows for each year; however, excel can easily calculate the IRR using the following formula: = IRR (total cash flows over period, estimated IRR) From Total Sources tableSALE OF COMPANY A IN 2013 Closing Date 31-Dec-13 2012 EBITDA EBITDA Multiple Transaction Value Less: Total Debt Plus: Cash Balance Less: Transaction Fees Equity Value % Equity to Sponsor Equity to Sponsor $76. 6 6. 0x $459. 5 (190. 5) 0. 0 (1) % Equity to Unsecured Lender Equity to Unsecured Lender IRR to Financial Sponsor Initial Equity Investment Dividends Proceeds at Sale Total Cash Flows to Sponsor IRR Calculation 12/31/08 ($104. 0) 0. 0 0. 0 ($104. 0) 19. 1% 12/31/09 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/10 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/11 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/12 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/13 $0. 0 0. 0 249. 3 $249. 3 (6. 6) $262. 4 95. 0% $249. 3 5. 0% $13. 1IRR = IRR (Total Cash flows to sponsor 2009 – 2013, estimated IRR) 20 IRR for Hybrid Securities Holder The following table illustrate s the categories to calculate the IRR to the Unsecured Lender Recall from the sources and uses, that the unsecured lender loaned an amount of $60 million at a 10% PIK interest rate, with equity warrants equal to 5% of the fully-diluted equity of the company upon a sale Any cash flow from the lender to the company is negative (initial loan) Any cash flow from the company to the lender is positive (includes any cash interest received during the period, the payment of the principal balance plus any accrued interest at maturity, and equity to the unsecured lender at a sale)In certain cases, the exercise of the warrants would require the payment by the warrant holders to the Company of an exercise price; the proceeds from the warrant exercise would be a source of cash for the seller This is very transaction-specific and would be extensively negotiated in the agreement between the company and the lenders From Total Sources table IRR to Unsecured Lender Initial Loan Cash Interest Received Principal Repayment at Sale Equity from Warrants at Sale Total Cash Flows to Lender IRR Calculation From Debt and Interest Schedule – Cash Interest only 12/31/08 ($60. 0) 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 ($60. 0) 12. 8% 12/31/09 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/10 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/11 $0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/12 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 0. 0 $0. 0 12/31/13 $0. 0 0. 0 96. 6 13. 1 $109. 8 From Balance Sheet IRR = IRR (Total Cash flows to lender 2006 – 2010, estimated IRR) 21 Table of Contents I. Uses for An LBO Model on Sell-side and Buy-side Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Purchase price calculation and considerations Sources and Uses II. Capital Structure Alternatives Integration of Proforma Balance Sheet into Financial Model Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration III. IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsor and Hybrid Debt Lender IV. Sensitivity Tables V. Credit Ratios 22 Sensitivities on Financial ModelRunning sensit ivities on your LBO assumptions is a good check to make sure the model is running properly as well as being able to show how a change in one variable will impact the whole model Sensitivity tables illustrate the impact on the model for a range of variable changes, and this LBO model has the flexibility to run sensitivities on the LBO assumptions (purchase price, capital structure, etc. ) and the business’s operations (growth rates, margins, etc) to see the impact on the expected IRRs of the financial sponsor and unsecured lender Setting up a sensitivity table: Input a range of variables on the x-axis of the chart Input a second range of variables on the y-axis of the chart link the intersection cell on the left hand corner of the chart to the cell that has the proper formula Highlight the data sensitivity tableGo to â€Å"Data† toolbar, select â€Å"Table†; a box pops up that has Row Input Cell and Column Input Cell – – For Row Input Cell, click on the cell that has the driver / assumption input for the x axis variable For the Column Input Cell, click on the cell that has the driver / assumption input for the y axis variable 23 Table of Contents I. Uses for An LBO Model on Sell-side and Buy-side Construction of LBO Model Structure and Assumptions Worksheet Purchase price calculation and considerations Sources and Uses II. Capital Structure Alternatives Integration of Proforma Balance Sheet into Financial Model Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Projections Integration III.IRR Analysis for Financial Sponsor and Hybrid Debt Lender IV. Sensitivity Tables V. Credit Ratios 24 Credit Ratios In determining how much money to lend to companies / financial sponsors for an acquisition, lenders analyze the amount of coverage they will have on their loans Lenders typically look at the following projected credit ratios, based on the base case scenarios, and then will run stress tests on the model to look at the impact on these r atios in the event the company takes a turn for the worse Leverage Ratios Total Debt / EBITDA Net Debt / EBITDA Secured Debt / EBITDA EBITDA / Net Interest Expense EBITDA / Cash Interest Expense 4. 1x 4. 1x 3. 0x 2. 8x 3. 7x 3. 7x 3. 7x 2. 6x 3. 0x 4. 3x 3. x 3. 3x 2. 2x 3. 3x 5. 0x 3. 0x 2. 9x 1. 8x 3. 6x 5. 9x 2. 5x 2. 5x 1. 2x 4. 1x 7. 5x Interest Coverage Statistics EBITDA / Net Interest Expense EBITDA / Cash Interest EBITDA – Capex / Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex / Cash Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C / Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C / Cash Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C – Taxes/ Net Interest Expense EBITDA – Capex – ? W/C – Taxes/ Cash Interest Expense 2. 8x 3. 7x 2. 1x 2. 9x 2. 1x 2. 9x 1. 6x 2. 1x 3. 0x 4. 3x 2. 3x 3. 3x 2. 3x 3. 3x 1. 7x 2. 4x 3. 3x 5. 0x 2. 5x 3. 8x 2. 6x 3. 9x 1. 8x 2. 8x 3. 6x 5. 9x 2. 8x 4. 5x 2. 8x 4. 6x 2. 0x 3. 2x 4. 1x 7. 5x 3. x 5 . 8x 3. 2x 5. 8x 2. 1x 4. 0x 25 Build an LBO Model from Scratch Build an LBO Model for Company B, using the historic financial statements (available electronically) Use the assumptions you feel are appropriate for projecting the Income Statement, balance sheet, and cash flow Use the following assumptions for the acquisition and financing: Acquisition – Closing date is December 31, 2008 – Purchase price is 7. 0x 2008 EBITDA Multiple Uses – Financing Fees are equal to 3% of purchase price – Investment banking fees are equal to 1% of purchase price – Legal fees are equal to $1 million – Other fees and expenses are equal to $1 million Sources Equity must equal 20% of total uses / sources – Revolver availability is $20 million, with total amount funded equal to 75% of Inventory and 65% of Accounts Receivable at a 5% cash pay interest rate – Term Loan is equal to 2. 5x 2008 EBITDA, to be amortized over 7 years, at a 5% cash pay inter est rate – Second Lien debt is equal to 1. 5x 2008 EBITDA, with a 10% cash pay interest rate – Unsecured Notes with Warrants fill the balance of the capital structure; 10% PIK rate with warrants equal to 15% of fully diluted equity upon sale of company Annual management fees to financial sponsor of $1 mm starting in 2007 Amortize fees over 5 year periodSale of Business in 2012 – Sold at 7. 0x 2012 multiple – Transaction fee equal to 1% of purchase price for investment banking fees plus $2 million in legal and other expenses Calculate the IRR to the financial sponsor Calculate the IRR to the unsecured lender with warrants Calculate sensitivity tables for the following: – IRR to financial sponsor for range of multiples paid and equity investment as % of total capital – IRR to unsecured lender for range of multiples paid and equity investment as % of total capital – Maximum revolver drawn for range of multiples paid and equity investment as % of total capital Add summary and credit ratios tables 26

buy custom Heart and Blood Vessels essay

buy custom Heart and Blood Vessels essay 1. Complete the following scheme of blood circulation in human heart. Right atrium through the tricuspid valve to the right ventricle through the Pulmonary valve to the pulmonary trunk, to the semi lunar for oxygenation, to the pulmonary veins back into the left atrium of the heart, through the mitral valve into the left ventricle, through the left semi lunar valve into the arteries, that supplies systemic blood to the body and then deoxygenated blood goes back into the right atria via tricuspid valve, superior vena cava and inferior vena cava pulmonary artery. 2. The beating of human heart (cardiac cycle) directly reflects the electrical conduction system within the heart (ECG). Describe what happens in the cardiac cycle in the following situations: a. Immediately before P wave: Senatorial node fires causing the contraction of atria. Before this hearts resting period no electrical activity is performed and muscles relax to fill the atria with blood. b. During P wave: At the sinoatrial node the contraction of heart muscle starts. It last for 0.08 seconds. P wave slows down the process of depolarization at the end. c. Immediately after P wave: The P-R segment occurs immediately the P wave occurs. This P-R segment is time travel to reach the ventricles from SA. After this the QR complex occurs. d. During QRS wave: the depolarization wave movements is depicted through the QRS complex. It makes large upward spikes. The QRS complex shows the conduction depolarization waves synchronously. e. During the T wave: It is the last readable wave in a cycle on ECG. Hearts re-polarization is represented here. It means that ventricles have sent the blood to the body and heart goes to reset itself for the next cycle (Elaine 696). 3. Suppose a person has a heart rate of 70bpm and has a stroke volume (SV) of 70ml. A negative inotropic agent (any substance that reduces contractility of heart) reduces the SV to 50 ml. What would the new heart rate have to be to maintain the same cardiac output? Heart rate: 70bpm Stroke Volume SV: 70 ml Cardiac output = HR x SV = 70x70 =4900 ml/min SV after reduction = 50 ml Cardiac Output: heart rate x Stroke Volume = 70 x 50, 3500 ml/min or 3.5 L/min New Heart rate = Cardiac output/ Stroke Volume = 4900/50 = 98bpm 4. A 55-year-old male was admitted to the hospital with heart failure. He complains of increasing shortness of breath on exertion and needing to sleep on three pillows at night. On physical assessment, the nurse determines that his ankles and feet are very swollen. Which of these symptoms reflect left-sided heart failure and which reflect right-sided heart failure? Answer: The left sided heart failure occurs due to reduction in cardiac output of arterial blood. Other symptoms of left ventricular failure include as the hypoxia, crackles, cyanosis, fatigue, dyspnea, paroxysmal nocturnal, elevated pulmonary and capillary wedge pressure. Right side heart failure occurs due to weight gain. Dependent pitting edema is also observed in patients feet and ankles. This edema is disappeared overnight but spreads in other tissues. Other symptoms of right side heart failure include the weakness, jugular vein distension, vomiting, and nausea, elevated and central venous pressure (Barbara and Nancy 426). Use the following hint to solve the problem: -Think about the normal flow of blood within the heart - Now think, what will happen if the left side of the heart is not pumping properly. Where will the blood pool up. Now try to think about the symptoms the patients may experience due to pooled up blood. -Repeat all these steps for the right side of heart as well. 5. Becky, age 2, was born with a hole in her interventricular septum (ventricular septal defect or VSD). Considering that the blood pressure in the left ventricle is significantly higher than the blood pressure in the right ventricle, predict the effect of VSD on Beckys 10 points a. pulmonary BP: The VSD creates the greater pressure on two ventricles, it is higher in left ventricles than right ventricles. The VSD allows the oxygenated blood to flow from the left ventricle to right ventricle. In right ventricle the pressure is low and mixed blood the flows to circulate into lungs. It is not apparent in infant at the time of birth because left ventricular and right ventricular pressures are equal. As the child grows the right ventricular pressure decreases and blood shunts from left ventricular to right ventricular. Becky will suffer from the occurrence of cyanosis and biventricular heart failure. Chest wall will become prominent and resulting into increased risk of pneumonia for Becky. b. systemic blood pressure. Systemic blood pressure is disturbed due to effects of VSD in an infant like Becky. VSD is not closed in Becky so blood flows under higher pressure into arteries and arteries become thicker. Right ventricular works extra to control the high blood volume and lungs receive the extra blood pressure. Lungs are permanently damaged due to this blood pressure. Explain why? 6. Based upon the topic of blood pressure and the factors controlling blood pressure, for each of the given situations, describe the anticipated effect on blood pressure and the physiological basis (reasoning) of your response; a. A high salt diet: kidneys are the organs to control the level of salts in our body. When intake level of salt is high then kidneys cannot control the level of salt and it ends up into blood stream. Salt requires more water into blood which results into increase volume of water. This increases the volume of blood and blood pressure is also raised. It is also noted that hypertrophy is linked with excessive amount of NaCl. b. A blow on head that damages (disables) the vasomotor center: The process of vasoconstriction is controlled by the vasomotor center in brain. This process of vasoconstriction regulates the blood pressure. When this vasomotor centre is disabled them improper vasoconstriction may cause the increase in blood pressure and hypertension. c. Hypothalamic tumor resulting in excess ADH production: There are two causes behind it. Firstly, it makes the kidneys to retain more volume of water which increases the blood pressure. Secondly, it causes the blood vessels to squeeze down and causing the blood pressure to go up. Due to elevation of ADH, kidneys start to retain excessive volume of water resulting into expansion of plasma volume. This expansion in plasma volume causes the blood pressure to increase 7. Edema (swelling due to increase in interstitial fluid) is a common clinical problem. On one of your first days of introductory clinical experience, you encounter three patients who all have severe edema for different reasons. Your challenge is to explain the cause of edema. Note: In each case, try to explain the edema in terms of either an increase or decrease in one of the four pressures that cause bulk flow at capillaries (refer to slide # 76-80 of ppts.) a. First, you encounter Mrs. Taylor in medical ward awaiting a liver transplant. What is the connection between liver failure and her edema? HINT: think about role of liver in producing plasma proteins. Osmotic positional of plasma drops resulting into drop of plasma protein concentration. Capillaries absorb less fluid of interstitial. This condition of plasma protein reduction becomes the cause of edema. Liver failure also causes the decreased synthesis of plasma protein. The persons with liver failure have the impaired synthesis of albumin which causes decrease in colloidal osmotic pressure. Edema is also developed due to lack of amino acids required for the synthesis of plasma proteins (Carol 165). b. Next, you follow a resident to obstetric ward, where Mrs. So is experiencing premature labor. Which of the pressures that drive bulk flow might be altered here? HINT: What affect the expanding uterus might be having A pregnant woman may feel the labor pains prematurely before 37 week of pregnancy because cervix opens before the time due to uterine contraction. Baby born may face the health problems, but medicine, new technology and research the baby becomes healthy. These women have the cervical abnormalities. There are other factors which cause the alteration in blood volume in pregnancy. Cardiac output also affects the normal delivery. c. Finally, you are called to emergency, where Mr. Herera is in anaphylactic shock. Which of the pressures that drive bulk flow might be altered here? HINT: In anaphylactic shock, the capillaries become highly leaky. In anaphylactic shock the fluid buildup in the body tissues which results into an edema. This occurs due to high osmotic pressure in capillaries and low osmotic pressure in tissues. Blood has to reach the tissues but it diffuses back into capillaries. In anaphylactic shock blood from sides is prevented to enter the capillaries, tissues are swallowed and patient expires. The blood circulatory system has been discussed in this paper. A related numerical is also part of this paper. Buy custom Heart and Blood Vessels essay

Zinc and Sleep on Acne Essays

Zinc and Sleep on Acne Essays Zinc and Sleep on Acne Essay Zinc and Sleep on Acne Essay Zinc is one of the longest-studied nutrients that correlates with statistically significantly less acne. Some months ago, I discovered that around 200mg/day of zinc picolinate could, under some circumstances, make me dramatically acne-free for the first time ever. That led to a very long course of study, research and experiments. For a megadose of zinc to affect acne dramatically, a good bet was that zinc is a cofactor in a reaction that affects acne. If you have a chemical reaction in the body like Zinc + X -gt; Y, then flooding the area with zinc will at least modestly increase the production of Y, since it makes it more likely that all the available X will get used up. After much study, I concluded that Y is actually zinc superoxide dismutase, or ZSOD. ZSOD comes with the usual labels people grope for in acne cures: anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, etc. But then, what is the X that must be combined with zinc to make this reaction? If I have to overdose on zinc to get enough Y, the implication is that what Im really deficient in is X. Like most people in America who eat meat, its highly unlikely that there is any lack of zinc in my diet. If I could remedy my deficiency in X, then I should be able to be acne-free without taking any zinc. More study led me to conclude that X is melatonin. Melatonin slows cell division. It may decrease the production of androgens right in the skin. And perhaps most importantly, melatonin crosses the cell membrane and directly stimulates your DNA to produce the precursor to ZSOD, the molecule that zinc must combine with in order to create ZSOD. Experiments with melatonin were immediately fruitful. By tending to my sleep cycle, I was soon able to be acne-free on less zinc, but still could not be acne-free reliably for long periods without any zinc supplement. Something was still missing. The final piece of the puzzle was finding the fairly recent discoveries that show that, in modern life, we fail to effectively suppress daytime melatonin because we live in relatively dim indoor light. When you dont effectively suppress daytime melatonin by having your eyes in outdoor light all day long, two bad things happen. First, your gut thinks its nighttime and you get carbohydrate malabsorption that keeps it from effectively digesting tryptophan (the fuel your body needs to make melatonin) and (tada! ) zinc! Second, you get a flattened melatonin curve when you sleep at night your body simply doesnt produce the giant burst of melatonin at night that nature intended. The data fits this hypothesis nicely, including the most obvious points: Do low zinc levels correlate with acne? Yes. Do low tryptophan levels correlate with acne? Yes. Do low ZSOD levels correlate with acne? Yes. Can this explain why primitive tribes are acne-free? Yes. This effect of daytime light is simply astounding. For example, I have long struggled with the ability to consume legumes. I bought into the standard advice that its a problem of gut flora, if you eat them long enough your gut will adjust and digest them better without gas, etc. If I had a large Coke and a large burrito, the result was 100% predictable: great intestinal discomfort. However, I now know that was simply another problem of failing to suppress daytime melatonin. By living in outdoor light all day, I can slam down a Coke+burrito with zero intestinal discomfort, hardly any gas at all. Ive repeated this experiment reliably several times, and outdoor light exposure is like a light switch (heh! ) on my ability to digest legumes. I speculate that the growth in acid reflux disease (and the esophageal cancer it can lead to) is probably another result of living in dim light during the day that produces carbohydrate malabsorption. The unfortunate thing is, although the pill-free cure for my acne is conceptually very simple, its also very hard for modern people to accomplish. I had to buy a laptop with an extra-bright screen so I could work outdoors during the day most people have indoor jobs with no option of working outdoors. Just look at some the many ways we guarantee we wont have a natural melatonin cycle: Work indoors all day. Indoor light simply does not produce the definitive OFF signal for pineal melatonin that outdoor light does. Even on a severely overcast day, outdoor light is much more intense (and also simply contains much more of the blue-green frequencies most effective at shutting down melatonin production). Sleep in the midst of light pollution. Ironically, while bright light is needed to shut melatonin all the way off, very little light is needed to depress the nighttime surge of melatonin that you need to make lots of ZSOD. A night light, a street light shining into your bedroom. Trying to sleep when the sun is up. Flipping on a light when you go to the bathroom. All easy ways to destroy your nocturnal melatonin surge. Go to bed at different times. Want to catch that late movie on the weekend? Its just like a form of jetlag your bodys 24-hour clock just got bumped and may take days to settle back down to match your regular bedtime again. Take in lots of caffeine. Caffeine will both depress your nocturnal melatonin peak and shorten the hours you sleep, both ways to become melatonin-deprived. Vegetarianism. Without meat, it becomes more difficult to get enough tryptophan and zinc in the diet. If you combine that with eating high-fructose foods like apples, pears, etc. and living in dim light during the day to produce fructose malabsorption, that greatly raises the odds of acne. This is not to say you cant be a vegetarian and acne-free, but it is plausible that some vegetarians might have to take a couple of pills to get there. Sunglasses, hats, travel in cars, etc. If you compare modern people to the completely acne-free primitive tribes that still exist, its almost like we are comically trying to avoid getting any daylight in our eyes. We stay indoors all day. When we travel, we run from shaded building to shaded car (often with dark-tinted windows). We cover our eyes with dark glasses not just when the light is bright, but often just as a fashion statement when the light isnt even bright at all! Depression. Depression and a screwed-up melatonin cycle often go hand-in-hand. But of course, acne itself is strongly correlated with depression. This is a real chicken-and-egg scenario. What causes what? The mess is more complicated by the fact that anti-depressants may tinker with the melatonin cycle for better or worse themselves. What is easy to say is that it would be better to not be depressed if you want a normal melatonin cycle (but that may be a complete tautology for some people! ). A Zinc-less Zinc Regimen I probably cant think of all the inventive ways people destroy their melatonin cycle, but heres the basic remedy to achieve natural levels of melatonin and ZSOD: Go to bed at the same time each night. Sleep in total darkness. (Black out your bedroom, go to sleep when the sun goes down, wear a sleep mask, never turn on a light in the middle of the night, etc. ). Avoid caffeine, especially evening caffeine. Spend all day in outdoor light without sunglasses or hats. Sleep gt;= 8 hours. (This becomes easy when you stop megadosing caffeine and suppress your daytime melatonin. ) FAQ Thats too hard. I just cant Since Ive been doing it for weeks now, I agree with you. I have the luxury of being able to choose to work outside, but its a pain I essentially do office work out on my deck. Its a pain to say I cant go to that midnight movie. Its a pain to put tinfoil on the bedroom windows, wear a sleep mask, etc. Its a pain to open every shade in the house every morning and get my eyes outside ASAP. All I can say is, its nothing like the pain of cringing when I have to go out in public with acne. Cant I just take a pill? Since there are periodic reports in the medical literature of people who hurt themselves by taking extreme doses of zinc (400mg/day, 800mg/day, even more) for their acne, I suspect you can just take a pill, but it could send you to the hospital eventually. I could argue in great detail why you cannot achieve the desired effect by taking melatonin orally, but the fact is many people have tried melatonin pills for acne and they just dont cure it. A melatonin pill before bedtime might help you sleep a little better and jumpstart a busted melatonin cycle, but you really wont need that if you effectively suppress your daytime melatonin. Put another way, if you need that bedtime melatonin pill to sleep, you probably still have a busted melatonin cycle. Why me? How come my acne-free friends can I used to just throw my hands up at this and invoke the fairy dust of it must be our genes. However, now that I have a detailed theory of the mechanism of acne that seems to me to hold water, I can say that theres a decent chance its you in significant part because you are doing some things different than your friends. For example, in college, were most of my friends staying up until 4am and virtually never going outside like me? Hmmmm, not really. And once you induce carb malabsorption by screwing up your melatonin cycle, then suddenly all the Coke I love to drink does make some difference, and the formerly confusing fact that trying to eat healthy by eating fruit really didnt work is incredibly frustrating. The fact is, I suspect I can induce acne in most of the acne-free people you know: just keep them in dim light all day every day, keep them in bright light when theyre trying to sleep, give them lots of high-fructose foods with every meal (Coke or apples your choice), and supply lots of caffeine. There may well be a genetic component to the why me? question, but it may be quite small compared the actual details of your acne-inducing lifestyle. What about dairy? I still dont know. The fact is, while living the outdoor lifestyle, I have been able to eat a suspicious amount of ice cream without the usually reliable cystic acne response, but I havent pushed it. It is plausible that the mechanism for dairy producing acne is not beta cellulin, but simply sugar (lactose), and that once carbohydrate malabsorption is cured by suppressing daytime melatonin, dairy isnt a problem. But I do not yet feel certain of that. Are you acne-free? What pills are you taking? Every week that I stick with all the rules to maintain my melatonin cycle, Im acne free. In fact, I sometimes cheat and have caffeine, or miss my bedtime. That sometimes results in a zit, but not always. I stopped taking zinc. I have stopped taking my normal complement of vitamins for a couple of weeks and stayed acne-free, but wont give them up for longer than that because I start getting arthritis. Maybe its just Vitamin D? No. Ive been Vitamin D replete for years (gt;50ng/dl) with no effect on acne. Its possible that if youre horribly Vitamin D deficient (many modern people are) you wont be able to absorb zinc well, compounding your problems. While working outdoors, I work in the shade with no direct sunlight on my skin (though as much view of sky in my eyes as possible). The only times my skin is in direct sunlight is when the sun is low in the sky (little UVB). So, despite spending massive hours outdoors, I havent tanned at all so far this year. As always, any hope that Vitamin D is really a significant factor in curing acne has to overcome the hurdle of explaining why theres no epidemiological evidence that it varies strongly with latitude (Canadians should have way more acne than Texans if Vitamin D were crucial to the disease). Can I do [ ] instead? Who knows? But if its really important to you to get rid of the acne, set aside 2 weeks where you can strictly control your light exposure, and see whether this works. I say set aside, because I find this regimen amazingly hard. The indoors couch is like a magnet for my butt; I initially had to literally keep a stopwatch outside to keep from fooling myself that I was spending more hours outside than I really was. If you can do it religiously for 2 weeks and it doesnt eliminate all new acne, then the heck with me and my theory. If it does, then youve gained some understanding of how you can control the disease and you can do your own experiments and make your own trade-offs. Get an hour of outdoor light in the eyes immediately after waking, before work, and before breakfast. Totally drop caffeine of all forms (it both depletes zinc and of course affects the sleep cycle). Try to arrange lunch so I can eat outside, and have eyes in outdoor light as many minutes as possible before actually eating the food. Likewise, try to get eyes into the outdoor light immediately after work and before eating. Avoid/reduce carbs (especially high-fructose fruits and fizzy drinks) when there was no significant outdoor light exposure before the meal. Make it a priority to get the all-day outdoor light exposure on weekends. Carefully tend my sleep cycle to get the best nocturnal surge I can.

A Short Quiz About Partial Quotations

A Short Quiz About Partial Quotations A Short Quiz About Partial Quotations A Short Quiz About Partial Quotations By Mark Nichol Formatting quotations can be tricky, especially when the words between the quotation marks do not constitute a complete sentence. How would you revise these clumsily formatted partial quotations? For each example, compare your corrections to mine in the paragraphs following each one. 1. â€Å"These days, says Smith, ‘The market does the valuation work for you.’† To clarify the context, the writer has provided the quotation with an introductory phrase the person quoted did not actually utter; therefore, it is not inserted within the quotation marks. And because although â€Å"The market does the valuation work for you† is a full sentence the potential quotation is â€Å"These days, the market does the valuation work for you,† the original quote is treated as a partial quotation and therefore does not begin with an initial-capped word: â€Å"These days, says Smith, ‘the market does the valuation work for you.’† Also, the attribution tag (â€Å"says Smith†) could be relocated to follow the quotation, but the sentence’s rhythm is better as is. 2. â€Å"But he conceded that, ‘with the world like it is, the situation looks a little different now.’† If you do choose to make a partial quote immediately follow a contextual paraphrase, note that unlike as in the case of a simple attribution tag, when the paraphrased part of the sentence and the quotation portion are linked by that, they are not separated by a comma: â€Å"But he conceded that ‘with the world like it is, the situation looks a little different now.’† However, if you convert the initial phrase to an attribution tag, do insert a comma after it: â€Å"But, he conceded, ‘with the world like it is, the situation looks a little different now.’† 3. â€Å"If you own a business ‘dependent on an abundant, reliable water source,’ he said, you probably aren’t thinking about building a plant in Las Vegas.† In journalistic writing, quoted material gives the article a sense of accessibility you feel like you are there listening to the source and of veracity. But some people are more quotable than others, and some reporters are better at recording their source’s utterances better than others. Often, in the rush to capture a speaker’s comments, the reporter manages just a phrase here and there and presents them as partial quotes. Sometimes that works, and sometimes it doesn’t. Here, as is frequently true, the exact words are inconsequential because the statement is mundane; there’s no personality or pithiness in the prose. In that case, it’s usually better just to treat the information as a paraphrase a rewording of the quotation even if it includes words or phrases (or the entire sentence fragment) actually uttered by the source: â€Å"If you own a business dependent on an abundant, reliable water source, he said, you probably aren’t thinking about building a plant in Las Vegas.† 4. â€Å"Smith kept his cool, but he was clearly upset that the plan was meant to ‘discredit the committee’s work and undermine its conclusions before those conclusions are even reached.’† This partial quotation could be converted to a paraphrase, but because the issue is sensitive and the speaker is critical in his choice of words, most reporters would retain the markers indicating that these are the source’s exact words. However, although it is strongly implicit in this sentence that Roberts is the source of the partial quotation, that’s not good enough. Even if a contextual phrase preceding a partial quotation refers to the speaker, insert an attribution tag: â€Å"Smith kept his cool, but he was clearly upset that the plan was meant to, as he put it, ‘discredit the committee’s work and undermine its conclusions before those conclusions are even reached.’† 5. â€Å"He championed an $11 billion water bond ensuring ‘a reliable water supply for future generations, as well as restoring ecologically sensitive areas.’† This quotation is less stable than the previous one because it’s even less clear here that the person identified as the subject uttered the partial quotation. Make the connection clear: â€Å"He championed an $11 billion water bond ensuring, he said, ‘a reliable water supply for future generations, as well as restoring ecologically sensitive areas.’† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Congratulations on or for?How to Punctuate with â€Å"However†20 Criminal Terms You Should Know

E-business and E-commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

E-business and E-commerce - Essay Example E-business is also a very cost-effective way of marketing businesses. Aside from that, it lowers the costs incurred during business transactions. It also allows businesses to maintain their pace with that of rivals (Shaw 2003). Under One Roof Inc., founded in the year 2012, is one among the many e-businesses. It is a one-stop online retailer for clothing and electronics. There is a wide selection of commodities ranging from electronics, apparel, shoes, home accessories among others all delivered to the client’s doorstep. The client has a complete variety of brands of goods to choose from, all a hundred per cent convenient. Under One Roof enables clients to gain 24/7 access to its services from anywhere they may be. Payment is secured and is carried out through online banking, mobile payment or cash upon delivery. Customer care services are exceptional with quick fast next-day deliveries. The e-business even permits returns after seven days. These are just some among the multiple advantages of Under One Roof Inc. Besides all this, the business frequently updates its products since its variety is ever expanding. The e-business is a member of Africa Internet Holding. The main objective of this group is to back the development of Africa’s internet culture. Three of the eight projects already established are based in Canada, Under One Roof being one of them. The main competitor of Under One Roof is Amazon.com. Amazon.com is a worldwide online marketplace. It enables trade locally, nationally and internationally. It has been a global auction leader for many years. Its clientele comprises of buyers as well as sellers. The company utilizes the relationship they have with their clients to a maximum. The business to consumer connexion is whereby the consumers provide information to the company. The interconsumer relationship system is whereby consumers give information to sellers and the

Power Struggle in the Victorian Era as Reflected in My Last Duchess Essay

Power Struggle in the Victorian Era as Reflected in My Last Duchess - Essay Example Browning was born in England in 1812, to an average Christian family. His father owned a rare book collection from which Robert acquired the love of books and inspiration to write. As a little boy, he was said to have learned to read at the age of five. He received education in the arts mainly at home and learned greatly from his father. His mother endowed him with belief in God which he carried on for life. Moreover, Browning is known to be the loving husband of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who is also a well-known poet. These considerations guide readers to the thought that Browning’s theme in My Last Duchess is mainly inspired by the poet’s observation of his society. My Last Duchess illustrates the battle of the sexes in the Victorian Period. It presents the monologue of a duke who can be considered psychologically ill as he recalls the memory of his dead wife, who he kills himself. As Friedrich (656) claims, the duke in the poem is the Duke of Ferrara of Italy whose wife was rumored to be poisoned. In the poem, although the death itself of the duchess draws much interest from the audience, the seeming calmness of the Duke presents a deeper controversy. The speaker discusses his wife’s qualities as he shows his visitors a painting of the Duchess. Although he speaks calmly, his speech is marked with hesitations and contradictions (Mannle (3). He asks his guests to sit down yet seems to be ordering them, saying, â€Å"Will 't please you sit and look at her?† He asks the guests to sit down not to relax while looking at the portrait of the Duchess but instead to allow him to justify his thoughts and actions, to convince his guests to affirm him of his decision to kill his wife. The Duke attempts to convince his audience by telling them the negative qualities of his wife. He claims, †¦She had A heart . . . how shall I say?.. too soon made glad, Too easily impressed; she liked whatever She looked on, and her looks went everywhere. (21-24) The duke claims that his wife was too friendly and easily impressed, â€Å"too soon made glad, too easily impressed†(22-23). From these lines, readers can sense the jealousy of the duke. He implies that his wife was never satisfied with him, with the things he gave, and still looked at other men. Thus, he says, â€Å"Sir, 'was not/Her husband's presence only, called that spot/Of joy into the Duchess' cheek†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (14-15). In saying these, the duke reveals his struggle to please the Duchess, which is a sign of a power struggle. The power struggle is further reflected as the Duke recalls his wife’s unethical behavior. He narrates, †¦--and if she let Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse, E'en then would be some stooping; and I choose Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt, Whenever I passed her; but who passed without Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped togethe r. (39-46)  Ã‚  

E-commerce Initiative by Competing Firms Term Paper

E-commerce Initiative by Competing Firms - Term Paper Example The researcher states that commerce is often a basic economic activity that mostly involves trading or the buying and selling of goods and services. During the early days, businesses were mostly conducted face to face for example a customer would enter a bookshop, examines the books, and pays for them. In order to fulfill the customer requirements, the bookshop needs to carry out other transactions and business functions such as to process the payment. However, with the advancement in technology whose aim is to cover a larger market segment, the question is whether the commercial transactions and business functions can be carried out electronically in a more successful manner. E-commerce is therefore an important activity a firm can venture into if it wants to be successful. Thus in E-commerce there is no paperwork or personal contact. In order for a firm to be successful, it must look back to what used to be done to the traditional business, how management used to operate in those t imes and the information technology that was applied. Moreover, the company needs to evaluate its business environment and other factors such as corporate strategies, her business structure, and the resources available for the business. Ecommerce has lately changed the economy and affecting most companies on how they transact their business. Today, it is clear that no company can ignore ecommerce as it has been a more effective method of doing business and more convenient to even customers. Business strategy is a long term plan on how a given company will get enough profit to keep it in operation. However, this can be possible if the given company if the given ecommerce strategy would be able to implement the given activity in the most efficient way. Ritesh believes that for a successful ecommerce strategy, the company must consider their relationship with the consumer. Most often, the business owners neglect their relationship with the buyer and in so doing, they would be losing cu stomers. Therefore, good customer service online goes hand in hand to retaining customers as the sole aim of a business is to make a profit that depends on retaining and acquiring new customers. Moreover, supply chain management is also essential in a successful online business as it ensures good communication between the business and the consumer (98). The four companies use ecommerce which has made them take advantage of tools and techniques being provided in the ecommerce websites such as the shopping cart, use of video that are more cost effective and easier to implement by the organization. However, they have adopted in the use of business strategies due to the much competition amongst themselves. Safaricom, Zain, Orange, and Yu mobile service providers have come up with different strategies in order to gain a competitive edge over the other. 1.1 Costs The four firms located in the same environment have mostly been successful in Kenya where they have looked for ways to gain a c ompetitive advantage over them. This strategy aims at a firm becoming the lowest production company in a given industry. However, it is never an easy way so it calls for nice planning on how to do it. In the past companies often had to deal with the issue of competition with either increasing their sales or by decreasing cost in order to

High school students Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

High school students - Essay Example It may be that they want nothing to do with the language that they have learned. The key is that having learned another language looks impressive on any CV because it will show potential employers that you can work outside of your comfort side. Additionally, high school students should be required to learn a foreign language because it will improve their grades on other subjects too. Learning another language requires much brain power, and this extra effort can help develop a work ethic that benefits other subjects as well. Finally, high school students can gain self-confidence by learning a foreign language. Mastering any foreign language requires hours of dedication, so finally being able to converse in it can give any student great confidence for them to take forward. The importance of learning a foreign language cannot be denied. What better way to start than by making high school students study at least one foreign language for at least two years? High school students should be made to learn another language because it can look good to potential employers, improve other school aspects, and make them feel like they have achieved something of

Disaster Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Disaster Management - Essay Example He/ she is also responsible for organizing and integrating a team that aims at rescuing and preventing further damage and deaths of people and domestic animals by the calamity. The chain of command is as follows. At the top most is the disaster commander who is in charge and responsible for the whole situation. Immediately under the disaster commander are the public information officer and liaison officers. The public information officer should understand principles of risks in communication. He/she is responsible for giving accurate public health information to the public and collaborating agencies. His/her role is to ensure that the message is consistent. The liaison officer, on the other hand, serves as a point of contact for supporting agencies and answering their questions and providing briefings whenever necessary. The officer also prevents the agencies from being bombarded with questions and requests. The next level includes the operations chief officer whose main work is to d evelop and implement strategies and tactics with the aim of carrying out incident objectives. He is responsible for organizing tactic resources and ensuring that there is good communication with the people delivering the resources. The planning chief officer also falls in this level and he/she is responsible for gathering, analyzing, and disseminating information. The personnel are responsible for compiling an incident action plan and focusing on what might come next within the incident. The personnel should possess qualities of good written and communication skills. Within the same level, the logistics chief officer is responsible for acquiring space and supplying equipment necessary for the incident. He/she should be fast, accurate, and precise. Finally, within the same level, a chief finance officer is responsible for ensuring proper contractual and financial processes are in place. He/she also ensures that the resources ordered are available and expanded if necessary. The financ ial officer should be familiar with financial systems and able to keep accurate financial data. The spilled carbon monoxide, oil, and many more hazards present within the residential houses are some of the environmental issues the public nurse has to deal with but are beyond her field of operation. Incidences of power loss and damage of houses are also beyond her area of operation, hence the need to work with different agencies in order to facilitate quick and prompt rescue mission. The health nurse relocates victims from their houses to safer shades in case of flooding. Under circumstances when clean water is not available, the public health nurse advices on drinking of boiled water and bottled water. In case of oil spillage and paints in a residential house, the health nurse contacts an environmental specialist to advice on how to clean up household hazards. The public health officer also helps victims through decision-making by being caring, understanding, and listening to their fears. He/she also helps the victims reduce anxiety and pressure. Under situations where the victim does not speak or understand English, the public health nurse uses gestures to communicate. This helps the nurse to go through the victim’

The Nature of the Accounting Profession in Mexico, and Mexicos Term Paper

The Nature of the Accounting Profession in Mexico, and Mexicos Accounting Principles - Term Paper Example At present, Mexico’s accounting profession is quite established with a long history. The initial accounting professional body was established in the year 1917. MIPA or the Mexican Institute of Public Accountants was part of the nine-member founders of the International Accounting Standards Committee  (IASC). Mexican accounting firms primarily provide services such as bookkeeping and audit and tax services. In order for a person, to qualify as a public accountant in Mexico he or she must have a professional diploma in accounting. MIPA issues bulletins, which regulate accounting and financial reporting in the country (Deloitte, Haskins & Sells and AICPA 125). These bulletins dictate financial reporting through requirements for stock exchange listings, as well as legislation. Mexican law requires all listed companies to be audited by a Mexican certified public accountant. The law also requires annual financial statements to be published in nationally circulated media such as ne wspapers. The Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission or NBSC, which is an equivalent of the US Stock Exchange Commission, oversees the disclosure of information by publicly owned organizations. MIPA also has the mandate of issuing auditing and accounting standards through a well-established process (Prieto 106). The oversight institution established a Code of Ethics that deters public accountants from advertising their services. The School of Public Accountants of Mexico is the sole accountancy organization that establishes standards, as well as financial reporting principles and train people who seek an accounting career. Since Mexico is part and parcel of the North American Free Trade Agreement, the accounting principles of the US significantly influence Mexico’s accounting principles. The US primarily exerts this control through the existence of the Big 4 international accounting firms, as well as the presence of numerous subsidiaries of renowned US companies. Perhaps the most exceptional characteristic of Mexican accounting principles is the treatment of the implications of inflation in financial statements. Mexican accounting principles primarily provide for the treatment of the effects of inflation through the use of general purchasing power accounting. The nation’s accounting principles require the adjustment of a number of accounts to demonstrate the effects of inflation. These accounts include net earnings, which include monetary losses and gains, depreciation and cost of sales, fixed assets, shareholders equity (in effect of holding non-monetary assets and capital stock and retained earnings) and inventories. MIPA’s bulletins dictate how businesses calculate various values. For instance, bulletin B-10 introduced an innovative concept referred to as the integrated result of financing calculated by summing the nominal interest expense, the losses and gains due to changes in the price level in terms of a company’s net monetary position, and losses and gain due to fluctuations in the exchange rate on a company’s monetary assets, as well as liabilities denominated through foreign currencies (Orme 67). Regardless of international influences inherent in Mexico’s accounting principles, the country’s Bulletin B-10 that deals with inflation accounting indicates how

Disaster Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Disaster Management - Essay Example He/ she is also responsible for organizing and integrating a team that aims at rescuing and preventing further damage and deaths of people and domestic animals by the calamity. The chain of command is as follows. At the top most is the disaster commander who is in charge and responsible for the whole situation. Immediately under the disaster commander are the public information officer and liaison officers. The public information officer should understand principles of risks in communication. He/she is responsible for giving accurate public health information to the public and collaborating agencies. His/her role is to ensure that the message is consistent. The liaison officer, on the other hand, serves as a point of contact for supporting agencies and answering their questions and providing briefings whenever necessary. The officer also prevents the agencies from being bombarded with questions and requests. The next level includes the operations chief officer whose main work is to d evelop and implement strategies and tactics with the aim of carrying out incident objectives. He is responsible for organizing tactic resources and ensuring that there is good communication with the people delivering the resources. The planning chief officer also falls in this level and he/she is responsible for gathering, analyzing, and disseminating information. The personnel are responsible for compiling an incident action plan and focusing on what might come next within the incident. The personnel should possess qualities of good written and communication skills. Within the same level, the logistics chief officer is responsible for acquiring space and supplying equipment necessary for the incident. He/she should be fast, accurate, and precise. Finally, within the same level, a chief finance officer is responsible for ensuring proper contractual and financial processes are in place. He/she also ensures that the resources ordered are available and expanded if necessary. The financ ial officer should be familiar with financial systems and able to keep accurate financial data. The spilled carbon monoxide, oil, and many more hazards present within the residential houses are some of the environmental issues the public nurse has to deal with but are beyond her field of operation. Incidences of power loss and damage of houses are also beyond her area of operation, hence the need to work with different agencies in order to facilitate quick and prompt rescue mission. The health nurse relocates victims from their houses to safer shades in case of flooding. Under circumstances when clean water is not available, the public health nurse advices on drinking of boiled water and bottled water. In case of oil spillage and paints in a residential house, the health nurse contacts an environmental specialist to advice on how to clean up household hazards. The public health officer also helps victims through decision-making by being caring, understanding, and listening to their fears. He/she also helps the victims reduce anxiety and pressure. Under situations where the victim does not speak or understand English, the public health nurse uses gestures to communicate. This helps the nurse to go through the victim’

Money Laundering Regulations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Money Laundering Regulations - Essay Example Money laundering transactions generate assets that are a result of some illegal act such as drug deals or tax evasion. If a money launderer is able to achieve this goal then the criminal will be able to keep the property obtained from their illegal activity and have an apparent legal source for their newly acquired wealth. The purpose of laundering money is to disguise the assets obtained from the criminal activity as assets obtained through legal sources in an attempt to avoid imprisonment. Money that is laundered starts out as cash or as assets that are already in the banking system. Money is laundered through companies that handle large amounts of cash and investments like banks and other business firms that handle investments. Businesses that deal across international boundaries that handle "high valued goods" are prime targets for money launders. Some examples of businesses relevant to this situation are accountants, tax advisors, estate agents, and antique dealers. Terrorist, t ax evaders, arms dealers, and drug dealers among other criminals involve themselves in money laundering. Overseas accounts and electronic funds transfers can be disguised to look like legitimate company transactions and make money laundering disguise easier for criminals. Money launderers also employ experts to help them launder money. For example, a launderer could simply ask someone for permission to use that person's account for deposits in return for a fee. Another scenario is for the money launderer to approach a business and ask them to set up transactions in which a sum of money is regularly deposited in the company's account. The businesses will then send the money back as a fictitious payment for non-existent goods. Although this method is very popular amongst the criminal underworld, there are other ways of laundering money without a business becoming aware of being involved in a crime. For example, the money launderer could place an order for a robot to be manufactured to a specific standard. The company may ask for a 60% deposit with the understanding that the order won't be put through for three months. Before the three months are up the money launderer cancels the order and gets the deposit refunded minus a penalty. The money launderer will always be willing to pay the penalty because although the criminal will want to get as much back as possible, what the criminal really wants is the money back clean. It is important to bear in mind that money laundering is a process rather than a single act. In an effort to expose and analyze this phenomenon it has become common to use a three-stage model, which encompasses an ideal money-laundering scheme. The three stages are as follows: The Placement Stage, which is when cash is received directly from criminal activity, like from sales of drugs. It is first placed either in a financial institution or used to purchase an asset. At this stage the criminal disposes of the physical cash deposits. The Layering Stage is the stage at which the first attempt at concealment or disguise of the source of the ownership of funds takes place. This stage is called the layering stage because it is where the criminals "layer" financial transactions in an attempt to hid the criminal activity.

Marketing Management For The Service Industry Marketing Essay

Marketing Management For The Service Industry Marketing Essay Marketing analisys is a fundamental tool in constructing successful business. Understanding the market and where the firm is positioned helps to identify various factors that can influence company and its clients in order to figure out the feasibility of the product, distinguish project or possible evolution (Morgan, N., Pritchard, A. 2004). Therefore companies tend to adapt their approaches on business to the marketing environment. This report is the analysis of promotional strategy of the property described in the case study:  «Golden Arch Hotel: McDonalds Adventure in the Hotel Industry » from different perspectives. It discusses the examples of additional 3Ps of the Marketing Mix model, determines PEST and SWOT analysis, indicates the value that is created by this particular organization and evaluates the positioning concept of the firm. All discussed ideas are supported with examples from the case study, and some other theoretical information. Such are critically analysed and presented according to different methods of analyses. 2. Findings, Results and Analysis 2.1. Question 1 Explain the additional 3 Ps of the 7 Ps model and illustrate with examples from the case study. Analyze and explain how each one of those characteristics is important in the success of the Golden Arch Hotels. (written by Jae Woo Martin Jeong) Generally speaking, 7Ps marketing mix tools have become more and more important since the traditional marketing tools 4Ps were not enough to give a frame work for thinking of marketing and planning marketing strategy especially for service industries (Wilson and Gilligan 2005, p. 6). The additional 3Ps consisting of People, Process and Physical Evidence will be distinctively explained bellow with the examples from the case study and a simple graph of them will be shown on Appendix 1. People The first dimension of the expanded marketing mix is People. It indicates individuals who are directly and indirectly involved in providing customer satisfaction (Blythe 2009, p. 16). Golden Arch Hotel was running its hotels under the motivational job rotation principle according to the McDonalds restaurant philosophy, which aims to implement the consistent service standards for all the tasks. This was not only to bring customers satisfaction but also to produce synergy effect during the peak seasons by assigning employees to different positions and tasks (Michel 2005, p. 3~4). Process The second dimension is the Process, which is about how the product or service is delivered to clients to please them (Wilson and Gilligan 2005, p. 534). Golden Arch Hotel was giving high priority on cleanliness of the rooms by adopting McDonalds service standards (Michel 2005, p. 3), which is one of the most crucial factors for the guests satisfaction. Another distinguished process of Golden Arch Hotel was the hotels 24 hours operated McDonalds restaurant (Michel 2005, pp. 3). 24 hours food and beverage service was very unusual to find in Switzerland, however, it enabled both in-house and drive-through guests to get the meal at any time of the day. Physical Evidence The last dimension is Physical Evidence, which means the tangible proof of a service, such as: environmental surroundings of the products and services, ambient elements and everything that can be communicated how service has been delivered (Jeong, 2004). In the case of Golden Arch Hotel, it seemed to focus more on the guest rooms than any other hotel with facilities for guests comfort. Its efforts were proved by implementing in-room high-tech facilities such as electronic key, internet access and other computer facilities and investing large amount of money to accommodate oversized beds. Furthermore, it was also offering meeting rooms that could be flexibly transformed according to the numbers and the needs of the customers. In the case study about the Golden Arch Hotel, the important and undeniable role of additional 3Ps in the marketing mix tools are stated fairly clear through Golden Arch Hotels competitive advantages towards its competitors. That is because of the precise and reasonable use of marketing mix tools of the hotel management. 2.2. Question 3 The SWOT analysis is useful in creating a strategy that helps a business distinguish itself from its competitors. Why did the McDonalds decide to enter the hotel industry? What were the companys strengths that they hoped to transfer into this new venture? Were they able to do this? Why or why not? (Written by Diogo Pessoa e Costa) McDonalds Corporation decided to enter the hotel industry in the early 2000. This was part of a diversification strategy, which is proven way of generating new growth and to try to avoid complete market saturation. Another important reason was that the chairman of McDonalds Switzerland, Urs Hammer, came from an hotelier background and his knowledge and experience in the business was valued in taking over such a project. He firmly believed that the sharing of knowledge between the different restaurants would permit the emergence of new services or products. A SWOT Analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in a project or a business venture. It involves identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve specific goals and objectives. McDonalds hoped to transfer several of their strengths into this new business. These strengths included the fact that they provided fast and friendly service. The hotel crew would therefore consist of a permanent employee pool that could implement the consistent service standards for every task in order to better serve the guests. High focus was given to the interior design and layout of the hotel as well as room cleanliness and comfort. The firm also used their decent relationship with their suppliers and local communities as a marketing strong point to restore their image after several discoveries of unsanitary practices in McDonalds restaurants. Several weaknesses were found into this new adventure. First of all, one of McDonalds biggest problems had to do with their positioning statement. A four-star hotel in Switzerland means luxury therefore it did not match McDonalds brand image at all. Also, most analysts were not very convinced that this expansion fit well with the corporations overall strategy. This was just a test and there was no real possibility of penetrating other important markets. By examining customer feedback, you can clearly identify the hotels main weaknesses. The only food available was McDonalds and since the hotel was relatively isolated, you had almost no possibility of eating somewhere else. Also, the staff did not prove to be so friendly and some guests felt the hotel was odd and did not like the atmosphere created by the design. Finally, the brand name Golden Arch was not chosen carefully since the two words do not translate well into the German language. By identifying the different opportunities, you realize that the hotel has a great potential for success but unfortunately, it is not being used to the best of its capacity. Since the Golden Arch was an airport hotel, it could negotiate contracts with airlines or surrounding large companies in order to retain market share for layovers. Due to its proximity with the Zà ¼rich Messe and the Autobahn, the hotel could put in place an efficient marketing strategy that would also attract Frequent Individual travelers coming from all around the world. The threats involving such a project come from the hard competition surrounding hotels in Zà ¼rich. McDonalds had to compete with well-established hotel chains such as Mà ¶venpick, Hilton, and the Accor Group. Several of this hotels had a fine dining, had larger meeting rooms, and were situated either closer to the airport or to major business centers. Within three years, the 7500 hotels rooms in Zà ¼rich were to be supplemented by around 3000 more rooms. The danger was that the market was reaching over-capacity and this would have negative consequences for the Golden Arch and the surrounding hotels, both in terms of occupancy and ADR. Another threat was the fact that the Swiss Human resources were drying out. Nobody wanted the do the simple and dirty jobs (except for foreigners) and it was almost impossible to find chefs or front office personnel. This conditions favored labor piracy. 2.3. Question 4 According to theory, what is value and how is it created by a hospitality organization? How does the Golden Arch Company attempt to create value for its customers? Did they succeed? Illustrate with examples from the case study. (Written by Malgorzata Szal) (references?) Hospitality companies strategies nowadays are continuously developing through new trends and fashions that are instituted by people globally. They try to create new and innovative marketing strategy to give their brand a significant meaning. In this industry, clients satisfaction is the most important objective, therefore companies invest in their benefits and values in order to keep their promises by delivering successfully. Due to this process, people are able to differentiate one brand from one another and as well decide which company offers the most for them. Every potential guest possesses different values, which are determined by factors such as culture, traditions, birthplace and family status. Hotels around the world try to attract and satisfy the biggest part of their market target by researching, understanding and analyzing their needs and consequently provide them with what they desire. Because of that, value is mostly created through packages, which means products are mixed and sold together with service provided. Usually they include accommodation, food and entertainment. Such combination increases significantly the value of the service products. Once we understand the fundamental laws of the physical and social world, we can analyze, plan and control them (Smart, 1992) Golden Arch Company before reaching standards of four stars hotels had analyzed all customers needs. As they decided to attract businessmen their design was focused on this type of guests. They provide many benefits to create value for their client which are presented in physical evidence part of Appendix 1. Bith hotels of Golden Arch company can be accessed easily. People traveling by car can use the underground parking or above ground parking and eat in their McDonalds restaurant, open 24 hours which is unusual in Switzerland. The hotels designers tried as well to improve guests satisfaction by creating a unique layout of the building and to give an impression of larger rooms by placing the bathroom behind a glass door, which unfortunately raised complaints and the doors had to be replaced. All the managers and employees were determined to succeed and they delivered. Their occupancy rate is not high but the hotel started to make profit from the first month of its operation. Unfortunately, the rate of returning guests is very low. People are not satisfied of the whole concept of a four star hotel run by McDonald Company. Daniel Deutscher, the owner of DEKA Treuhand was very surprised when he heard of this investment. It is hard to believe and imagine the McDonalds hotel to achieve four stars. There are standards that are hard to cover. Some guests complaints were about the service quality in the front desk saying it is very poor (Michel 2005, p. 7) and about the bad decoration of the lobby, bar or even the bedroom influencing the atmosphere (Michel 2005, p. 6) Golden Arch Company tried to combine its well known fast food brand image of McDonalds with four-star luxury hotel brand. According to the figures shown in exhibits in the case study, this idea has not been a success as forecasted. 2.4. Question 5 Explain the concept of Positioning and describe how The Golden Arch Hotel was positioned in this very competitive market. What market segments was the hotel hoping to reach? Did the company succeed? Why or why not? (Written by Kateryna Krupka) Positioning is defined as  «arranging for a product to occupy a clear, distinctive, and desirable place relative to competing products in the mind of consumers » (Kotler, P., Bowen, J.T. and Makens, J.C. 2010). According to the same authors, such has to be designed taking in consideration customer value differences, and therefore either increasing the benefits of the product, either decreasing some of its costs. As it is described in the case study, it was decided to position the Golden Arch Hotel as a 4-star property with luxury service and some business facilities. The hotel most probably attempted to reach the customers, coming from the airport for a night stay, as well as wealthy business people with a need of advanced comfort, coming for the meetings or conferences. However this appeared to be done unsuccessfully due to some factors, analysis of these is provided onwards. One of the most significant issues in regards to a hotel property is dining facilities. In discussed case McDonalds restaurant was the only place for the guests to eat, which might be enough for the people who are staying overnight, but seem to be not acceptable for the customers who stay longer. Furthermore, if the aimed customer was expected to stay some days entertainment facilities should have been provided, but this was not the case. Another important point is that Golden Arch had some of the additional facilities such as conference rooms and beds that modify their position, but did not fulfill some of the basic needs of its customers. One of these is need of food and drinks, as it was discussed before. The other one is safety need that was not fulfilled due to hotels location close to the large avenue and small amount of people around. However, according to one of the quests, the prices for the rooms were of high range. This also signifies that wealthy people were aimed to be attracted. Meanwhile guests were complaining about not getting immidiate service, having to ring the bell for the receptionist to come, as well as to ask for the possibility of having rooms sold at a better rate. Furthermore there was a situation decribed when the guests were clearly at the position of cheaper  «post 9pm walk-in » rate, and were not told that such posibility exists. Moreover these costomers were told to buy three rooms for five people at the full price. Clearly such suggestion did not satisfy their expectations. This attitude towards clients damages reputation of the property and affects its positioning in a negative way. Thus, it can be generalized, that all the details in the product have to coinside with the image drawn by positioning. Additionaly, inside the rooms there were many signes indicating that the hotel belongs to McDonalds company, however from outside this was not the case. According to the appendixes of the case ctudy, the logo of the hotel is different, and the name does not have  «McDonalds » in it, moreover, it is silently located by the side of the road. These should probably be done vice-versa, as the signs and logo might attract the guest to the property from outside and seem not to be needed inside of the rooms in such quantity. It it suggested that  «If the company promises greater value, it must then deliver greater value » (Kotler, P., Bowen, J.T. and Makens, J.C. 2010). Failure of compliance of this is probably the reason of unsuccessful positioning of the Golden Arch brand. The image, ambiance and service are seem to be transfered from the McDonalds restaurant insted of being developed specifically for the hotel. Nevertheless McDonalds brand statement is  «Everyday affordability » (MacDonald 2008) and the Golden Arch meant to be luxury, however these two types of brand do not normally attract the same market. Therefore some issues were not addressed properly, such as fulfilling basic needs of the guests, selling accommodation at a price that corresponds the level of its facilities and providing appropriate service. 3. Conclusions In a competitive marketing environment, located close to Zurich airport and A1 highway, Golden Arch hotels seemed to be successfully at implementing McDonalds service standard into their hotels, high-tech facilities and unique design features. These were enforcing the image of the property and helping to sell its services. However poor customer satisfaction as well as improper positioning led to destruction of the brand image in the minds of clients. After the analyses were done, it was recognised that there are some changes that should have been done by the company in order to improve such situation. Firstly the company should have re-evaluated its service standards before implementing to the luxury segment. Secondly, they should have implemented impactive service audit program. Furthermore they could have matched the design with the class of hotel and type of customers. Finally, the hotel should have either repositioned itself as a lower-class property, either added some facilities that match 4-star range, such as, for example, one more restaurant. 4. Appendixes Appendix 1 (Michel, S. 2005)