Product Design and Decision Making Tools Essays

Product Design and Decision Making Tools Essays Product Design and Decision Making Tools Paper Product Design and Decision Making Tools Paper Assignment Day 4 Question 5. 9 Prepare a product-by-value analysis for the following products, and given the position in its life cycle, identify the issues likely to confront the operations manager, and his or her possible actions. Product Alpha has annual sales of 1,000 units and a contribution of $2,500; it is in the introductory stage. Product Bravo has annual sales of 1,500 units and contribution of $3,000; it is in the growth stage. Product Charlie has annual sales of 3,500 units and a contribution of $1 ,750; it is in the decline stage. Sort descending this list by looked at the individual dollar contribution and total annual dollar contribution. Product Bravo Product Alpha Product Charlie Contribution $3,000 $2,500 $1,750 Annual sales 1,500 units 1,000 units 3,500 units Life cycle Growth Introduction Decline Sales Look at the table and graph, product Charlie at decline stage of life cycle and know this product will be end in the certain period from now. The products are not up to date, not suitable for this era (technology era). Thus, the customers turn to the competitor products because they come out with new and fresh idea. Therefore, this product must produce in the small quantity while it has the demand and also as organization responsibility for certain people that cant adapt new 1 | P a GE products. Besides that the organization must plan to terminate offering. For product Alpha, it seat at the introduction of life cycle, so for this product, it didnt have any problem to produce in a large quantity if it get the good response from customers but if the response from customer is bad or not well, produce the product in the small quantity. Because, these products are new in market, not all customers know about it and also still need some changes. Additionally in this stage, should to do ore on research, product development, process modification and enhancement and supplier development. In addition, the advertising to introduce or promote this product to customer must do it well. Furthermore, the life cycle of product Bravo is growth. In this stage, the product is become stable, because the customers already know about the products. Thus, by add more on quantities to accommodate the raise in product demand. Last but not least, the advertising also must do for create the demand. Question 5. 11 The product design group of Floors Electric Supplies, Inc. , has determined that it needs to design a new series of switches. It must decide on one of three design strategies. The market forecast is for 200,000 units. The better and more sophisticated the design strategy and the more time spent on value engineering, the less will be the variable cost. The chief of engineering design, Dry.

Ancient Persia and the Persian Empire

Ancient Persia and the Persian Empire The Ancient Persians (modern Iran) are more familiar to us than the other empire builders of Mesopotamia or the Ancient Near East, the  Sumerians,  Babylonians, and  Assyrians, not only because the Persians were more recent, but because they were amply described by the Greeks. Just as one man, Alexander of Macedon (Alexander the Great), ultimately wore the Persians down quickly (in about three years), so the Persian Empire rose to power quickly under the leadership of  Cyrus the Great. The extent of Persia varied, but at its height, it extended southwards to the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean; to the east and northeast, the Indus and Oxus rivers; to the north, the Caspian Sea and Mt. Caucasus; and to the west, the Euphrates River. This territory includes desert, mountains, valleys, and pastures. At the time of the ancient Persian Wars, the Ionian Greeks and Egypt were under Persian dominion. Western Cultural Identity and the Persian Army We in the West are accustomed to seeing the Persians as the them to a Greek us. There was no Athenian-style democracy for the Persians, but an absolute monarchy that denied the individual, common man his say in political life. The most important part of the Persian army was a seemingly fearless elite fighting group of 10,000, known as The Immortals because when one was killed another would be promoted to take his place. Since all men were eligible for combat until age 50, manpower was not an obstacle, although to ensure loyalty, the original members of this immortal fighting machine were Persians or Medes. Cyrus the Great Cyrus the Great, a religious man and adherent of Zoroastrianism, first came to power in Iran by overcoming his in-laws, the Medes (c. 550 B.C.)- the conquest made easy by many defectors, becoming the first ruler of the Achaemenid Empire (the first of the Persian Empires). Cyrus then made peace with the Medes and cemented the alliance by creating not just Persian, but Median sub-kings with the Persian title khshathrapavan (known as satraps) to rule the provinces. He also respected area religions. Cyrus conquered the Lydians, the Greek colonies on the Aegean coast, the Parthians, and Hyrcanians. He conquered Phrygia on the south shore of the Black Sea. Cyrus set up a fortified border along the Jaxartes River in the Steppes, and in 540 B.C., he conquered the Babylonian Empire. He established his capital in a cold area, Pasargadae (the Greeks called it Persepolis), contrary to the wishes of the Persian aristocracy. He was killed in battle in 530. The successors of Cyrus conquered Egypt, Thrace, Macedonia, and spread the Persian Empire east to the Indus River. Seleucids, Parthians, and Sassanids Alexander the Great put an end to the Achaemenid rulers of Persia. His successors ruled the area as the Seleucids, intermarrying with native populations and covering a large, fretful area that soon broke up into divisions. The Parthians gradually emerged as the next major Persian power ruling in the area. The Sassanids or Sassanians overcame the Parthians after a few hundred years and ruled with almost constant trouble on their eastern borders as well as to the west, where the Romans contested the territory sometimes through to the fertile area of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) until the Muslim Arabs conquered the area.

Analytical reflection on three actual events Essay

Analytical reflection on three actual events - Essay Example However, RO was no less fun. In-game towns and cities were jam-packed with players at any given time. In fact, the Chaos server in particular often had literally over 9,000 people from all walks of life and of all ages playing at a given moment. The diversity of the community, as can still be seen on the Ragnaboards, coupled with a simple yet addictive gameplay interface, was what hooked me – the first two months of my stay were spent leveling up my character. Alas, it was not meant to be; I ended up quitting after getting a first-hand experience of Level Up’s lack of customer care. I logged in one day to find my character stripped bare – all the gear and the loot I had hunted for disappeared. When I filed a complaint to their Customer Service, they refused to compensate my loss – this angered me to the point of quitting. Sadly, Level Up seemed to have deteriorated even further from there. Over time, hacking and scamming alike increasingly fell on deaf ears. Bots – 3rd party programs used by players to gain an unfair advantage – while ostensibly illegal, were no longer being addressed. Next thing I knew, Level Up legalised botting (MPC Forums, 2005). The overwhelming number of other reports such as item duplication made it worse. It still makes me sad sometimes. I loved the game, but the company’s utter disregard for its customers in the name of money turned me off – the legalisation of botting in order to maximise their income by way of prepaid cards attests to this. Considering how much prosperity RO and its players brought to Level Up, one would think these customers deserved better treatment. Feminism, as the word implies, entails the defense of women’s rights. As further explained by the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (first published 2003), some writers use the word in reference to specific American and European movements whereas others equate it with the belief that

Television Addict by Marie Winn Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Television Addict by Marie Winn - Assignment Example She first gives the pleasurable symptoms of television addiction, and confirms the same through a sample individual confession. In the essay, she also gives various examples of how significant television addiction influences peoples lives in more negative ways that commonly imagined by the victims themselves; an indication of how the victims sense of reality. In explicit statements, she is categorical that addicts tend to ignore all other productive activities in order to stay put in front of their screens, to which they cannot master enough strength to turn off for countless. The thesis statement of the easy can, therefore, be stated as follows: Television experience is as serious enough as any other addictions of hard drugs, for they not only activate pleasurable effects that inactive mental state of reality, but does well to destroy an individual’s worth through withdrawal from being objective in life. The author switches from discussing addiction in general terms to talking specifically about addiction to television in paragraph six. She, in fact, informs the reader more directly by stating clearly what follows in the very paragraph, that: â€Å"Let us consider television viewing in the light of the conditions that define serious addictions.† Indeed right after the statement, Winn jumps straight away to the symptoms of television viewing that makes it an addiction like those of alcohol or other drugs. To be certain, she argues that television viewing distorts the victim’s sense of reality, forcing the participant into a passive world of pleasurable mental state, to which they completely have no control over. From the point on, the author talks specifically to the readers over television addiction, more particularly with regards to the Vitim’s control ability to limit hours spent in front of television screens. Marie follows her discussion of the symptoms of television addiction with a sample

Portrait of Dr Gachet Essay Example for Free

Portrait of Dr Gachet Essay A. Introduction When the name Van Gogh comes up, one can imagine sunflowers, stars at night, rice fields, and lonely portraits. His works resemble writing. (Berger, 2001, p.87) His life rendered to writing. When one hears his name, one remembers a song, a play, a book.   Van Gogh’s appeal is world-wide. Collectors, dealers, and museums place a high price on a painting. Artists, art critics, and even an ordinary person who knows a thing or two about Western art can appreciate his works as well as his life story.    He was a post impressionist painter. (vangoghgallery.com) One of the controversial paintings of Van Gogh is the Portrait of Dr. Gachet. The subject (Paul Ferdinand Gachet) was the painter’s physician and friend. He made the portrait six weeks before he committed suicide. (businessweek.com, 1998) B. Description / Analysis The subject in the painting occupied much of the space. It cuts a diagonal line in the middle of the canvass. The slant gives the mood of the subject. Dr. Gachet is in a reclining position as if exhausted and sad. The subject’s outline – from his hat, to his shoulders, to his hand, was drawn with soft curved lines. The features of the face and the coat are also of curves. The curves give the work an over-all softness which contributes to the idea of sadness; as opposed to sharp lines which usually denote coldness. There were very few straight lines used. They can only be seen in the objects (two books) beside the subject. There are also the famous small strokes using semi-curved lines used by Van Gogh to give texture. The strokes have little space between them. And, the background colors of these strokes are still very visible. These small strokes create a pattern-like detail ( it used the principle of repetition) to the visual objects that uses them such as subject’s clothes and his background.   The main subject is oval. He is like a fruit reclining on a table. The dominant colors are blue and green. There are many shades using these colors. They are contrasting to the subject’s skin tone which is mostly a combination of yellow and cream. The face and the arms are fair with soft details using light brown and green. The contrast of the dark and the light colors brings attention to the face, and thus the mood of the subject; which as mentioned earlier looks exhausted and sad. The subject was placed in the middle ground.   The foreground are the other visual objects such as books, table and the flowers in a vase. The foreground gives an idea to the setting; that the portrait was done during a casual encounter. The background is an outline of a landscape (in dark blue) and sky (in pale blue). The background colors are of the same shade which create harmony. The Portrait of Dr.Gachet was painted in 1890. Its size is 67 x 56 cm. It used oil on canvas.(paletaworld.org) Van Gogh used this medium the most as shown in his most famous paintings. There are debates on whether Van Gogh’s art is impressionist, expressionist or post-impressionist. Partly, due to the small brush strokes he used to give detail to visual objects, some say he belongs to the impressionist painters. The small strokes are signs of the artist’s swift motion during painting. Since the outline of the visual objects are simple, one gets the idea that the artist must have paid attention to the affect reality such as the mood or feeling of the subject at that time. This presents a way of seeing; as opposed to hyperrealist artworks which concentrate on the mastery of details. (Berger, 2001, p. 8) C. Interpretation The over-all impact of the painting is sadness. It was an intimate portrait because the painter was drawing out feelings. This can be seen in the choice of colors, soft lines and -most obvious- the details of the subject’s face. By the title alone Portrait of Dr. Gachet, one expects to see a serious man. Visual details show the same characteristic as the subject appears to be a serious man. Beside the subject were books. Reading suggests educational or professional background. The subject wore a dark coat and a defined moustache -which are the common symbols of being proper. The usual portraits are arranged like a pictorial. The Portrait of Dr. Gachet deviates from this. It is not a display of attributes. The painting is affective. This means that it shows a relation between the subject and the painter. The subject was relaxed enough to recline and show his emotions. He looks exhausted or resigned from something, and he is conveying it. The table used as a foreground suggests the looker (the painter) might be on the other end. Facts concerning the subject’s relation to Van Gogh came as no surprise. He was said to be unable to help Van Gogh in his depression and is suffering from it as well. (Bertman, 2006) The subject’s relation to the painter is relevant. He was his doctor. And he was with him days before the painter’s death.   The sad and tired look on the doctor’s face symbolizes surrender. The death of Van Gogh came days later. In the Portrait of Dr. Gachet, Van Gogh was painting vulnerability. He was keen to the moment being lived by himself and his subject. D. Judgment The Portrait of Dr. Gachet stirred controversy for the high price it was bought and the mystery of its vanishing. It was auction in 1990 with a bidding that started with $20 million and sealed with $ 82.5 million. A Japanese industrialist kept it in a secret store room. He gained notoriety when he exclaimed in jest that the piece would be cremated with him. After his death, the painting was said to have been sold, but it was no longer seen by the public. The Portrait of Dr. Gachet is controversial not only because it was the painting bought with the highest price for an auction. The very manner of passing it from one collector to another who did not have any interest in sharing it to the public, and not even to view it himself, (Kleiner, 2000)   show how art is a property of the privileged. Its vanishing act sparked further debates on the commodification of art. The common sentiment revolves around the seemingly waste of art because Van Gogh was important to the public. But, the pr ivileged (collector) did not have the intention to give. It seemed their own love of art is a pretension. (Berger, 103) E. Conclusion The Portrait of Dr. Gachet is a portrait of many values. It is a portrait drawn to portray beyond social status. It also described social relations. It is an artwork about perception and emotions. It is an intimate portrait of a man who was supposed to cure the painter. It is significant to all who appreciate Van Gogh. It is also valuable to all who regard art beyond one’s private collection.

Strategic Management Essay -- essays research papers

Strategic Management QUESTION The study of the external environment is a crucial step in the mapping of business strategy for an organization. Discuss how the assessment of external forces can be performed with business examples to support your analysis. CONTENT PAGE 1. Question Paper 2 2. Introduction 3 3. PEST Analysis 4 (3.1) Political Legal Environment 4 (3.2) Economic Environment 4 (3.3) Social Environment 5 (3.4) Technological Environment 5 4. Industry Analysis 5 5. The Michael Porter Five Forces 6 (5.1) Threat Of New Entrants 7 (5.2) Rivalry of existing firms 7 (5.3) Threats of substitutes 7 (5.4) Bargaining power of buyer 8 (5.5) Bargaining power of suppliers 9 6. Conclusion 9 7. Bibliography 10 8. References 10 Introduction Business environment is an element that will affect all the activities of an organization. Beside, it will bring firms both opportunities and threats because of its uncertainties. Business environment is uncertain, complex & dynamics; organization should apply more flexibility & discontinuity ways to manage them. A firm cannot control the environment because it is unpredictable in its direction and speed of change, such as interest rates, rate of inflation and exchange rate. Business environment can classifies in two categories that are internal environment and external environment. Internal factors close to the company that have a direct impact on the organizations strategy, these factors include employee, customer, suppliers, shareholder, banker etc. External environment comprises those factors and trends outside the organisation that might have an influence upon an organisation and its future. Many external factors can have an effect upon an organisation - from changes in government legislation to the entry of new competition into a market.... ...; more the fact that your supplier realizes you can do it and so needs to respond accordingly Bibliography : http://IMBA 702 Cases.htm Strategic Management and Business Policy Entering 21st Century Global Society (Sixth edition) ?Thomas L. Wheelen & J.David Hunger http://www.Marketing Environment.htm References: Strategic Management and Business Policy Entering 21st Century Global Society (Sixth edition) ?Thomas L. Wheelen & J.David Hunger Business Policy and Strategic Management (Fifth Edition) ?Lawrence R. Jauch & William F.Glueck. Management of Business for GCE A Level & LCCI (2nd Edition) ?Vincent Gabriel Management (Third Edition) ?Kathryn M Bartol & David C Martin Strategic Management Awareness and Chance (Third Edition) ?John L Thompson Strategic Management Theory and Pratice ?G.A.Cole BA MA MIPD MIMgt, Strategic Management (International Edition) ?Alex Miller Gregory G.Dess Strategic Management (McGRAW-HILL International Edition) ?Gregory G.Dess & Alex Miller http://www. Porter's Five Forces.htm http://www.IMBA 702 Cases.htm http://www.Marketing Environment.htm http://www. Business Competition.htm http://Activity 1 - PESTEL analysis.htm

Requirements for Scientific Application for Programmers

In addition to merely providing the best quality or most efficient application for users of computer systems, designers at corporations such as Microsoft and programmers within such systems Java as are striving to enhance the capabilities of their application systems with the aim of making even innovative features in these systems user-friendly to even the most techno-phobic users of new scientific systems and applications. â€Å"One of the standard bugbears is the persistent belief†¦ that difficulty is a virtue in itself, even a sign of intelligence. (Girvan, 2002) Grasping this concept is a critical aspect of computing as modern technology becomes increasingly integrated into daily business life. â€Å"Users may need guidance as they work with unfamiliar software,† thus the use of easy to read menus and clear instruction manuals in the point and click ‘help' applications are simply the first step in creating less intimidating face for modern technology. (Girvan, 2002) Windows pioneered the development of the palettes and pull-down menus used for quick access to common symbols and operations. But cosmetic friendliness is one aspect, however, of making users feel comfortable with new applications. (Girvan, 2005) Automation of as many systems as possible within an application makes it easier for users to concentrate on aspects of the application that cannot be rendered without the use of supervision. The ability for a calculator application to run without supervision under the control of the batch management system can be configured so that it deploys a command line option for taking input from a file or assumes a default response. This feature can be found in computer applications designed with offline operations in mind, including Visual Basicc script (VBScript), JavaScript, Perl, all of which can be used on a Windows-based cluster. (High Performance Computing FAQ, 2005) â€Å"Functional friendliness† as a concept is also important when making scientific applications less intimidating to potential users. In other words, providing explanatory prompts for users when certain systems are deployed, such as available ‘drag and drop' controls and the display or visual prompting of likely intermediate steps in the application. Hypertext help browsers eliminate the need of a large, hidden command set to remember, such as one early Internet program â€Å"that required, to make a dialup connection, typing the modem command string, from memory, in hexadecimal. † (Girvan, 2002) Even if this example seems like an extreme example of a dinosaur code from the age of dial-up, only recently has the widespread graphical user interface of application software, with â€Å"sliders, menus, radio buttons, and check boxes,† become the norm. (Girvan, 2002) For example, â€Å"Waterloo Maple's Java-based Maplets† deploys visual description of the device scripting to control the user's interaction with the interface's worksheet during a programming session. In other prompted systems, â€Å"the Insert Component menu drops a graphical device into the worksheet, where it automatically passes input (for instance, a slider position) to a variable. Pop-up dialogue boxes allow fine-tuning of the layout and the underlying VBScript†¦ GUIs [Graphic User Interfaces] are also easily designed using GUIDE, a GUI layout editor that generates both a . FIG file of the contents and the basic M-code to handle the calling procedure,† in many systems Similarly, programming menus can access the code for the programmer, allowing for more detailed configurations. (Girvan, 2002) Even more experienced programmers, whether concerned with designing new systems, using existing systems, or individuals concerned with on and offline data storage and manipulation can appreciate some of the other updates newly available for scientific applications. Other useful recent enhancements to linear programming-such as NSolve numerical solution, and simplification, the use of memorable planetary and musical symbols, Asian language support for individuals most comfortable in expressing themselves in these languages, XHTML export and two new scientific data formats, SDTS (the ANSI Spatial Data Transfer Standard for geographical and satellite data) and FITS (the NASA-endorsed Flexible Image Transport System for storing astronomical metadata-all complete the increasingly diverse array of applications that add ease and save time for individuals of all levels of using and programming ability. Girvan, 2002)

Finance Test Bank

Chapter 9 Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. _e___1. Schalheim Sisters Inc. has always paid out all of its earnings as dividends; hence, the firm has no retained earnings. This same situation is expected to persist in the future. The company uses the CAPM to calculate its cost of equity, and its target capital structure consists of common stock, preferred stock, and debt. Which of the following events would REDUCE its WACC? a. The market risk premium declines. b. The flotation costs associated with issuing new common stock increase. . The company's beta increases. d. Expected inflation increases. e. The flotation costs associated with issuing preferred stock increase. __c__2. Duval Inc. uses only equity capital, and it has two equally-sized divisions. Division A's cost of capital is 10. 0%, Division B's cost is 14. 0%, and the corporate (composite) WACC is 12. 0%. All of Division A's projects are equally risky, as are all of Division B's projects. However, the projects of Division A are less risky than those of Division B. Which of the following projects should the firm accept? a. A Division B project with a 13% return. . A Division B project with a 12% return. c. A Division A project with an 11% return. d. A Division A project with a 9% return. e. A Division B project with an 11% return. 2010 Fall Chapter 10 ___b_3. You are considering two mutually exclusive, equally risky, projects. Both have IRRs that exceed the WACC. Which of the following statements is CORRECT? Assume that the projects have normal cash flows, with one outflow followed by a series of inflows. a. If the two projects' NPV profiles do not cross, then there will be a sharp conflict as to which one should be selected. . If the cost of capital is greater than the crossover rate, then the IRR and the NPV criteria will not result in a conflict between the projects. The same project will rank higher by both criteria. c. If the cost of capit al is less than the crossover rate, then the IRR and the NPV criteria will not result in a conflict between the projects. The same project will rank higher by both criteria. d. For a conflict to exist between NPV and IRR, the initial investment cost of one project must exceed the cost of the other. e.For a conflict to exist between NPV and IRR, one project must have an increasing stream of cash flows over time while the other has a decreasing stream. If both sets of cash flows are increasing or decreasing, then it would be impossible for a conflict to exist, even if one project is larger than the other. 2010 Fall, FIN 6100, Chapter 11, iClicker Questions __e__1. Which of the following is NOT a relevant cash flow and thus should not be reflected in the analysis of a capital budgeting project? a. Changes in net working capital. b. Shipping and installation costs. c. Cannibalization effects. . Opportunity costs. e. Sunk costs that have been expensed for tax purposes. __a__3. Which of t he following should be considered when a company estimates the cash flows used to analyze a proposed project? a. The new project is expected to reduce sales of one of the company's existing products by 5%. b. Since the firm's director of capital budgeting spent some of her time last year to evaluate the new project, a portion of her salary for that year should be charged to the project's initial cost. c. The company has spent and expensed $1 million on R associated with the new project. d.The company spent and expensed $10 million on a marketing study before its current analysis regarding whether to accept or reject the project. e. The firm would borrow all the money used to finance the new project, and the interest on this debt would be $1. 5 million per year. __c__4. Dalrymple Inc. is considering production of a new product. In evaluating whether to go ahead with the project, which of the following items should NOT be explicitly considered when cash flows are estimated? a. The com pany will produce the new product in a vacant building that was used to produce another product until last year.The building could be sold, leased to another company, or used in the future to produce another of the firm's products. b. The project will utilize some equipment the company currently owns but is not now using. A used equipment dealer has offered to buy the equipment. c. The company has spent and expensed for tax purposes $3 million on research related to the new detergent. These funds cannot be recovered, but the research may benefit other projects that might be proposed in the future. d. The new product will cut into sales of some of the firm's other products. . If the project is accepted, the company must invest $2 million in working capital. However, all of these funds will be recovered at the end of the project's life. __e__7. A firm is considering a new project whose risk is greater than the risk of the firm's average project, based on all methods for assessing risk . In evaluating this project, it would be reasonable for management to do which of the following? a. Increase the estimated IRR of the project to reflect its greater risk. b. Increase the estimated NPV of the project to reflect its greater risk. c.Reject the project, since its acceptance would increase the firm's risk. d. Ignore the risk differential if the project would amount to only a small fraction of the firm's total assets. e. Increase the cost of capital used to evaluate the project to reflect its higher-than-average risk. Chapter 12 iClicker Questions __b__1. Which of the following assumptions is embodied in the AFN equation? a. None of the firm's ratios will change. b. Accounts payable and accruals are tied directly to sales. c. Common stock and long-term debt are tied directly to sales. d. Fixed assets, but not urrent assets, are tied directly to sales. e. Last year's total assets were not optimal for last year's sales. __b__2. The term â€Å"additional funds needed (AFN) † is generally defined as follows: a. Funds that are obtained automatically from routine business transactions. b. Funds that a firm must raise externally from non-spontaneous sources, i. e. , by borrowing or by selling new stock to support operations. c. The amount of assets required per dollar of sales. d. The amount of internally generated cash in a given year minus the amount of cash needed to acquire the new assets needed to support growth. . A forecasting approach in which the forecasted percentage of sales for each balance sheet account is held constant. _b___4. A company expects sales to increase during the coming year, and it is using the AFN equation to forecast the additional capital that it must raise. Which of the following conditions would cause the AFN to increase? a. The company previously thought its fixed assets were being operated at full capacity, but now it learns that it actually has excess capacity. b. The company increases its dividend payout ratio. c. The company begins to pay employees monthly rather than weekly. . The company's profit margin increases. e. The company decides to stop taking discounts on purchased materials. Chapter 13 iClicker Questions Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. __b__1. Which of the following statements is NOT CORRECT? a. The corporate valuation model can be used both for companies that pay dividends and those that do not pay dividends. b. The corporate valuation model discounts free cash flows by the required return on equity. c. The corporate valuation model can be used to find the value of a division. . An important step in applying the corporate valuation model is forecasting the firm's pro forma financial statements. e. Free cash flows are assumed to grow at a constant rate beyond a specified date in order to find the horizon, or terminal, value. __a__2. Which of the following does NOT always increase a company's market value? a. Increasin g the expected growth rate of sales. b. Increasing the expected operating profitability (NOPAT/Sales). c. Decreasing the capital requirements (Capital/Sales). d. Decreasing the weighted average cost of capital. e.Increasing the expected rate of return on invested capital. _a___3. Which of the following is NOT normally regarded as being a barrier to hostile takeovers? a. Abnormally high executive compensation. b. Targeted share repurchases. c. Shareholder rights provisions. d. Restricted voting rights. e. Poison pills. Chapter 14 iClicker Questions Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. __d__1. Which of the following should not influence a firm's dividend policy decision? a. The firm's ability to accelerate or delay investment projects. . A strong preference by most shareholders for current cash income versus capital gains. c. Constraints imposed by the firm's bond indenture. d. The fact that much of the firm's equipment has bee n leased rather than bought and owned. e. The fact that Congress is considering changes in the tax law regarding the taxation of dividends versus capital gains. __a__2. Trenton Publishing follows a strict residual dividend policy. All else equal, which of the following factors would be most likely to lead to an increase in the firm's dividend per share? a. The firm's net income increases. b.The company increases the percentage of equity in its target capital structure. c. The number of profitable potential projects increases. d. Congress lowers the tax rate on capital gains. The remainder of the tax code is not changed. e. Earnings are unchanged, but the firm issues new shares of common stock. Chapter 15 iClicker Questions Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. _b___1. Which of the following statements is CORRECT? a. A firm's business risk is determined solely by the financial characteristics of its industry. b.The factors that affect a firm's business risk are affected by industry characteristics and economic conditions. Unfortunately, these factors are generally beyond the control of the firm's management. c. One of the benefits to a firm of being at or near its target capital structure is that this eliminates any risk of bankruptcy. d. A firm's financial risk can be minimized by diversification. e. The amount of debt in its capital structure can under no circumstances affect a company's business risk. __c__2. Which of the following statements is CORRECT? a. Increasing financial leverage is one way to increase a firm's basic earning power (BEP). . If a firm lowered its fixed costs while increasing its variable costs, holding total costs at the present level of sales constant, this would decrease its operating leverage. c. The debt ratio that maximizes EPS generally exceeds the debt ratio that maximizes share price. d. If a company were to issue debt and use the money to repurchase common stock, this act ion would have no impact on its basic earning power ratio. (Assume that the repurchase has no impact on the company's operating income. ) e. If changes in the bankruptcy code made bankruptcy less costly to orporations, this would likely reduce the average corporation's debt ratio. Chapter 23 Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. __e__1. Which of the following are NOT ways risk management can be used to increase the value of a firm? a. Risk management can increase debt capacity. b. Risk management can help a firm maintain its optimal capital budget. c. Risk management can reduce the expected costs of financial distress. d. Risk management can help firms minimize taxes. e. Risk management can allow managers to defer receipt of their bonuses and thus postpone tax payments.

Advertising to Children

Advertising to Children Introduction The goal of every business organisation is to maximise profits through the sale of products or services. To achieve this goal, most organisations employ different promotional mechanisms for their products, and most organisations have employed advertising as one of their major promotional tools.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Advertising to Children specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Advertising refers to a non-personal communication of information, which is normally well structured and composed. Such information is usually persuasive in nature and directed towards a given target group. Advertising assists customers to understand the price of a given product, its potential benefits as well as the place to find it (Cronin et al. 20010, pp. 30). Due to recent technological advancements, the electronic media has become a major means of advertising, e.g. television, radio and internet-based social networks (Kl etchemer 2004, pp. 42). This paper focuses on the various issues concerning advertising to children, including: firstly, the factors that have led to increased advertisement to children; second, the impact of advertising to children, including the positive and negative; thirdly, the regulation of children’s advertisements; fourthly, the considerations that marketers should have in children’s advertising. Factors that have led to increased advertisement to children Recently, the potential number of clients in the children market for advertising has increased. Research has shown that the American children’s market represents approximately $500 billion per year. This amount consists of about $200 billion that children spent on personal items such as snacks, soft drinks and entertainment (Roberts et al. 2005, pp. 17). The remaining portion is spent on buying other items that are essential to the whole family that the children influence their parents/ guardians to bu y. Since many organisations produce these products, which tend to have similar characteristics, they have to persuade customers to choose a particular product over the rest. Owing to this, advertising to children has become a major marketing strategy that different organisations employ. Advertising to children not only concerns them but their parents as well. The advertisement of some products to children is an indirect means of capturing the attention of their parents who are the buyers of the product in question (Kunkel 2001, pp. 102). This is a unique feature of the children’s market.Advertising Looking for essay on advertising? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the children’s market is not the only market segment where the purchasers of the products are not necessarily consumers of the product it also applies to pets and gift receivers (Fletcher 2004). The main difference is that unlike pets , children are able to respond to such advertisements by vocalising their desires. On the other hand, gift receivers rarely respond to the adverts. By communicating their desires to their parents/guardians, children persuade the parents to purchase the products in the advertisements (Martin et al. 2006, pp. 601). This translates to an increase in sales for the producers, which is their ultimate goal. The children market undergoes many changes as the children (up to 12 years of age) undergo different developmental stages. With the transition to the next developmental stage, the preferences of children change: for example, children lose their desire in certain products. This is not only true for toys but also for clothes, foods and confectionery (Ajzen 2008, p. 528). Research has shown that from the age of five, children begin to express their product preferences in a stronger manner than they did previously. Therefore, marketers have to reach children in different developmental stage s in their childhood, leading to the development of advertisements geared towards the different sub-segments within the children’s market. The impact of advertising to children There is a positive impact of advertising to children for the wider society, as discussed by Arens et al. in the essay question. As mentioned above, advertising to children provides important information not only to the children but also to their parents, enabling both to understand the products that different producers offer. Additionally, most adverts contain information concerning the price of the product in question as well as the location where the buyers can purchase the product. With such information, both the children and their parents can make informed decisions about the product that best suits their needs (Cardona 2004, pp. 20). Therefore, advertising to children enables parents to save money and save the time that they would have spent searching for a given product or service. By making inf ormed decisions, the parent buyers are able to use their money in an effective manner. In effect, advertising to children is a price regulatory tool that prevents consumers from being exploited by producers and service providers. One of the major aspects that attract potential customers to a given product is the set price for the product. Consequently, producers embark on research to find out the price of their competitors in the market.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Advertising to Children specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Such information is essential in enabling the producers to tailor the price of a given product to be able to compete effectively in the market (Farache Keith 2010, pp. 238). On the other hand, consumers will also enjoy the provision of goods for a reduced price. To the producers and service producers, advertising to children leads to an increase in the organisation’s profits. By advertis ing their products, especially through the media, organisations are able to reach potential customers within a very short time. Many people may purchase the advertised product, leading to an increase of sales to the company, which in turn generates more profits for the company. Therefore, the comment by Arens et al. that advertising increases â€Å"productivity by both management and labour† also applies to children’s advertising. Despite the above-mentioned positive impact of advertising to children, it also has certain negative impacts to the society. According to American Academy of Pediatrics, most children watch television for around four hours a day (Terry 2009, pp. 380). Research has shown that within that period, children see more than 25,000 commercials a year. Most of these commercials advertise products that are harmful to the health of the consumer children (Cardona 2004, pp.20). For instance, they advertise high-sugar and high-fat foods or poorly nutritiou s snacks. Such adverts increase the consumption of unhealthy foods among children, which has led to the increased prevalence of overweight and obese children in those nations where advertising to children is practiced. Children who are overweight during their early stages of growth and development tend to become obese in their adulthood. For instance in Canada, between 1983 and 2001 the prevalence of obesity in children increased by 200-300% (Tjepkema 2006, pp.23).The healthcare costs that are associated with the disease, either directly or indirectly, are approximately $4 billion, which represents 2.2% of the entire healthcare expenditure of Canada (Prince, 2009, p.31). This phenomenon has also occurred in America where the prevalence of overweight and obese children has tripled over the last six years. Regulation of children advertisements A significant reason for the regulation of advertising to children is that children lack cognitive skills, especially those that are below eigh t years of age. Therefore, they are not able to perceive or understand the persuasive intent of the most advertisements. They are not able to draw the line between advertising and other editorial messages, which make them unduly susceptible to all forms of persuasion that come with adverts.Advertising Looking for essay on advertising? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More To curb the problems associated with consumption of unhealthy foods, most regulatory bodies have embarked on a strategy to deal with the advertisements that promote the consumption of such foods to children. As earlier mentioned, a large percentage of children advertisements seek to promote the consumption of unhealthy foods, such as sugarcoated cereals, high-fat products at fast food restaurants and confectionery. It is evident that the consumption of such products has had a direct impact on the development of weight disorders. Therefore, regulation of advertisements for children will lower the prevalence of such disorders, which in turn will reduce healthcare costs within any given population. Due to the above-mentioned concerns, several governments have constituted bodies to tackle the issue. Furthermore, some nations have completely abolished the practice of advertising to children for the well-being of society. A good example of such a country is Sweden, which has banned all fo rms of television advertisements targeting children below twelve years of age. The Swedish government considers children as a minority group that requires special care and protection. In the US, members of the Congress have passed bills that seek to protect children from the negative effects of faulty advertisements. The bills limit the time of children’s programming in the media and mandates the provision of educational programs. Additionally, the bills seek to restrict the time allocated to commercials in television. In the US, several bodies are concerned with the quality of the contents of children advertisements. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires that all advertisements, especially those that target children, must be substantiated by a reasonable basis. It calls for all marketers to expend their resources to ensure that all their advertisements comply with the government’s rules and regulations concerning advertising to children. The Children Advertising Review Unit (C.A.R.U) plays a pivotal role in monitoring advertisements to ensure that marketers comply with the set rules. It was founded in 1974, and its main objective is to enhance marketer’s responsibility in children’s advertising. It was established through a collaboration of the major advertising trade associations through the National Advertising Review Council (N.A.R.C). It has several duties among which are evaluating child-directed advertisements as well as monitoring all forms of promotional material in the media. Additionally, it advances the consistency, truth and accuracy of all forms of children’s advertisements. In its code, one of its recommendations is that marketers should not present advertisements in a manner that blurs the distinction between editorial content and advertising (Synder 2011, pp. 478). Synder argues that children are the most vulnerable group to misleading advertisements due to their immaturity and lack of the cognitive ski lls to evaluate the credibility of advertisements (2011). C.A.R.U also requires that everyone involved in the formulation of children’s advertisements ensure that the target group is able to understand the persuasive nature of the advert in question. Some of C.A.R.U’s guidelines cover the safety of the products, sales pressure, and the presentation of the product in the advertisement. Additionally, C.A.R.U holds that while formulating children’s advertisements, the marketers should have regard to the best interest of all the parties involved. Therefore, the markets should carry out children advertisements with great care and expertise. Considerations that marketers should have in children’s advertisements Marketers should ensure that the advertisements are persuasive, just like adverts made for adults, while ensuring that they are operating within the set rules and regulations. They should understand the preferences of their audience, including both child ren and their parents. For instance, in advertising food products, children and parents have different preferences. Parents look for certain qualities in food products that include the nutritional composition of the foods whereas children seek foods that are tasty irrespective of their nutritive value. In other categories of products, parents look into the moral acceptability of the product as well as its safety to children. n contrast, children show more interest on the amount of fun they derive from using such products as well as the peer acceptability. According to Terry, marketers should never overlook the parents when formulating children’s advertisements since the parents are the sole decision makers in the family (2009). Marketers should also consider the media they intend to use when reaching their audience. For most children, the television is the main tool for accessing advertisements. Few children are aware of the presence of advertisements on other media, such as newspapers and magazines (Schor 2004). However, social networking sites and other electronic media have become an essential part of children’s lives, especially those brought up in the urban areas. Boys form a large proportion of the users of such media and most children consider advertisements as a form of entertainment. Therefore, marketers should employ the media that the target group enjoys most. For instance, boys between the ages of eight to 12 years can be reached through special adverts incorporated within their computer games. Considering the various groups of children that exist, marketers must capture their specific interests to ensure that they attain their advertising goal. It is essential for the marketers to get not only the level of childhood knowledge of the target group but also its level of sophistication. As children grow, several aspects change, including their taste and their vocabulary. Therefore, marketers should carry out research on the vocabulary th at a certain age group employs as well as the visual aspects of the media that they like most. This will enable them to tailor the advertisement in order to persuade the target group effectively. However, it is important to mention that this is one of the most costly and difficult issues for most marketers. Additionally, marketers should be careful to avoid any forms of misunderstanding with the children and their parents. Advertising ethics and social responsibility Advertisements have a profound impact on people’s perception of life thus the need for marketers to adhere to advertising ethics and assume their social responsibility: ‘the moral obligation of advertisers’ as stipulated by Arens et al. in the essay question. All advertisements should be truthful. Advertisers should not exaggerate the information about the attributes of a given product or service since exaggeration acts as a form of deception. Additionally, advertisements should not withhold certain facts about the product. Advertisements should seek to uphold human dignity. The techniques employed in advertisements should neither manipulate nor exploit any form of human weaknesses such as greed and lust among others especially within the vulnerable groups e.g. children. Most of children advertisements try to exploit suggestibility with the marketers hoping to make children to pressurize their parents to buy products that may be of no importance to them (Duff 2004). Such adverts offend not only the rights but also the dignity of the parents and children. They intrude upon the relationship between the children and their parents. They also manipulate the relationship to attain their own goals without any consideration of the negative effects that such might cause to the family. Advertisers ought to put into consideration their contribution to the social and ecological well-being of the society. They should not promote lavish lifestyles that promote the wasteful use of natural res ources. Advertising as a social process must follow all the norms in any given society. Advertisements should not expose pornography: should be decent. They should not encourage the materialism but should enhance both the cultural and economic development of the target group. Conclusion Advertising to children has unique features when compared to advertising to any other market segment. Firstly, the essay exampled the factors that have led to increased advertisement to children. Most children do not purchase the products being advertised; their parents do. Therefore, the marketers should have both the interests of the children and parents at heart; for example, children’s advertisements must be appealing and meaningful to parents. Secondly, the impact of advertising to children was discussed. The positive impact includes the ability of firms to reach important segments of the population and therefore increase sales, whilst the negative impact was that most advertisements prom ote products that are harmful to the health of consumer children. Thirdly, the regulation of children’s advertising was examined. As the most vulnerable group to faulty adverts, they are protected by law. Therefore, several bodies have taken the responsibility of protecting the interests of children and their parents as far as advertisements are concerned, including the C.A.R.U and N.A.R.C. The essay dealt with the considerations marketers should have in children’s advertisements, including that they are persuasive, the media they intend to use and type of child they target. Finally, the essay detailed advertising ethics and the social responsibility of advertisers: Products should fulfill the advertisement claims and enhance the social and economic development of the community. Reference List Ajzen, I. 2008,â€Å"Consumer Attitudes and Behavior† in C Haugtredt, P Herr F Kardes (eds), Handbook of Consumer Psychology, Taylor Francis, New York. Cardona, M. 2004, â€Å"High School Paper Group to Take Adverts†, Advertising Age, Vol. 75 no.1, pp. 16-35. Cronin, J., Joseph, J., Fox, G. 2010, â€Å"The Implications of Third Party Customer Complaining for Advertising Efforts†, Journal of Advertising, Vol. 39 no. 2, pp. 21-33. Duff, R. 2004. â€Å"What Advertising Means to Children†, Young Consumers: Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, Vol. 5 no. 2, pp. 12-56. Farache, F., Keith, J.P. 2010, â€Å"CSR Advertisements: A Legitimacy Tool?†, Corporate Communication: an International Journal, Vol 15 no. 3, pp.235-248. Fletcher, W. 2004. â€Å"The Challenge of Advertising to Children†, Young Consumers: Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, Vol. 5 no. 2, pp. 11-15. Kletchemer, S.B. 2004, â€Å"Advertainment: The Evolution of Product Placement as a Mass Media Marketing Strategy†, Journal of Promotion Management, Vol 10 no. 2,pp. 37-54. Kunkel, D. 2001, â€Å"Children and Television Advertisingâ₠¬ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ in D Singer, J Singer (eds), Handbook of Children and Media, Thousand Oaks, California. Martin, C., Landon, J., Dalmeny, K. 2006,â€Å"Television Advertising and Children: Lessons from Policy Development†, Public Health Nutrition, Vol. 9 no. 5, pp. 596-605. Prince, S.A. 2009,â€Å"A Population Health Approach to Obesity in Canada-Putting the Problem Back to Context†,Trans-disciplinary Studies in Population Health Series, Vol.1 no.), pp. 22-40. Roberts, D., Foehr, U., Rideout, V. 2005, Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 year-olds, Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation, Menlo Park: California. Schor, J.B. 2004, Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture, Scribner, New York. Synder, W. 2011, â€Å"Making the Case for Enhanced Advertising Ethics†, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol 51 no. 3, pp. 477-483. Terry, O. 2009, â€Å"Advertising and Children: What do Kids Think?† Qualitative Market Research: An International J ournal, Vol 8 no. 2, pp. 371-384. Tjepkema, M. 2006, Adult Obesity. Health Reports, Vol.17 no.3, pp. 9-27.

7 Ways to Get Promotedâ€Beyond Just Working Hard

7 Ways to Get Promoted- Beyond Just Working Hard Think you can just slog away as diligently as you can and then everything else will fall into place? Think again. Just putting your head down and working hard is not enough. Don’t just imagine some omniscient presence is watching your performance at every turn and taking note of how well you’re doing. Here are a few concrete things to do to put yourself in a position to be promoted, beyond just showing up and working hard.1. Do something significant.So many rookies ask for a raise or a promotion without having done anything to earn it. Sure, they’ve worked hard. But they haven’t done the kind of specific work needed to grow as a leader or apply their talents and skills in a targeted way to help the company with what it needs most. Rise above. Then ask for a raise.2. Keep track of your successes.You should keep a running document of your accomplishments. Project start and end dates, significant milestones, quantifiable results, and thanks or congratulatory notes. This will be your arsenal when the time comes to prove your worthiness for promotion.3. Log professional development.Anytime you participate in a professional development activity- and you should be doing this!- log it. Keep track of courses, dates, names, contacts, etc. And file any new licenses or certificates you achieve, as well.4. Build a support team of mentors.You can’t get where you want to go without help. It takes a village- or, really, a team. Build bridges between you and your colleagues, supervisors, peers, managers, etc. Think about the ecosystem in which you’re operating. Learn its quirks and learn to thrive as a member of that climate. The best thing about scoring good mentors is that you might just land yourself a sponsor or ally who might be in the decision-making room when you aren’t and can make your case.5. Think ahead.Long before your review, sit down with your boss and make sure you know what tangible goals you should be working tow ards. Make sure you know the metrics you’ll be judged on when it comes time for promotion. Make a list of desired (or required) achievements. Then make sure your review is scheduled when it’s supposed to happen. If your first review comes and goes with no promotion, make sure you ask your boss what you’d need to do in the next six months to get there.6. Don’t wait to lead.Leadership opportunities won’t necessarily come to you. You have to seek them out. Lead a project, chair a committee, take charge of something. This will give you the exposure and visibility you need. Then just make sure you’re doing excellent work and maintaining your new role as leader.7. Branch out.It’s not just all about your company. Make sure to stay current. Network, interact, and yes, even interview at different companies in your field. Your employer isn’t the be all and end all. Anything could happen. Staying fresh and connected to the greater industr y not only means you’ll land on your feet if any shake-ups or lay-offs come around, but also that you will be seen as more valuable when the promotions start coming around.

Gender Inequality In The Workforce In Canadian Society Research Paper

Gender Inequality In The Workforce In Canadian Society - Research Paper Example Road map This paper is mainly going to discuss the reasons as to why gender inequality is still prevalent in the Canadian workforce. The discussion will give various indicators of gender inequality in the Canadian workforce. Under each indicator, the paper is going to discuss the most probable reasons as to why the indicators are still common in the Canadian workforce. The discussion is also going to show some the factors that are believed to be the highest contributors of gender inequality in the Canadian workforce. Discussion The most common indicator of gender inequality in the workforce in Canadian society is labor compensation. When a research was carried out in Canada to discover the payment that women were given in comparison to their male counterparts with the same amount of experience. It was discovered that their salaries were at least 15% less than what their male counterparts of the same work level earn. This is something that is believed to be very common with a good number of employers in Canada. One thing that is believed to be leading to the inequality in the payment of human labor in Canada is the fact that women are not aware of the fact that they are being paid less in comparison with their male counterparts of the same job level. When people are employed the payment terms are always exclusive and the details are always held secretly by themselves and the company. Some organizations even have policies that make it illegal for employees to discuss wages with each other.

Supply chain or operational challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Supply chain or operational challenges - Essay Example Companies have opted to relocate their manufacturing to low-cost countries across the world in order to respond to the customer’s satisfactions and demands on price expectations. The relocation is done to reduce the indirect and direct costs at the same time minimizing taxes. Global suppliers contribute to the problems that come with delivery time that is extended. In the emerging markets, customers not only want products of lower prices but also timely delivery of their products. Global chain of supply is complex. Adding this to the ever-changing feature makes the challenge greater. The customers immediately put pressure to the company to come up with something big next time after the release of the product. Innovation is, therefore, an important element in today’s market. To enhance their products, companies are forced to redesign their products so that they can meet the market demand. The demand of the customers in the modern market is more demanding than ever. Companies are trying hard to expand their distribution towards the emerging market to increase the growth in their revenues and market shares. Several companies are working had to expand both foreign and home markets. The introduction of new markets possesses difficulties from government policies, fees and trading policies. Companies have responded positively with global networks, expansion of markets and innovation of products. Several companies, today, rely on supply chain managers to optimize on the value chains so that they can remain competitive in the market (Shankar et al., pg.