Gile practices can be integrated into Waterfall yields business Thesis

Gile practices can be integrated into Waterfall yields business advantages - Thesis Example Rationale for Qualitative Research Design Acknowledging that people are masters of their own lives, research on how programmers and their managers adopt to new policies and procedures can not be done without interviews those impacted by those new policies and procedures. As Marshall and Rossman (1999) Put it, One cannot understand human actions without understanding the meaning that Participants attribute to those actions—their thoughts, feelings, beliefs, values, and assumptive worlds; the researcher, therefore, needs to understand the deeper Perspectives captured through face-to-face interaction. (p. 57) Thus, qualitative research is the best way to understand such personal, individual perspectives. Qualitative research tends to investigate essential and distinctive features of actions and experiences as lived by a person. Groves (2004) explained that qualitative research does not take place in the lab, but happens in the real world. It deals with how people give meaning to their own experience. Furthermore, it aims to interpret the behavior and meanings that people have given to their experience. Kwiatkowska (2013) observed that the goal is to describe and possibly explain events and experiences. The typical language used are the case study, field study and context. The research types include the case study research, ethnographic research and grounded theory. Qualitative research method is used in research with an aim of gathering an in depth understanding information. It investigates the how and why of making of decisions. Therefore, samples that are smaller but focused are often used instead of large samples. According to Groves (2004), qualitative research methods give information on specific studies cases and general conclusions on informed actions. Groves (2004) observed that the qualitative researchers basically are concerned with processes and practices rather than the outcomes. The focus is mainly on the experiences and perceptions of the part icipants. Qualitative research involves fieldwork typically whereby observation and recording on events are done. The researcher goes to the site, setting and the people physically to observe the subjects naturally and normally. According to Kwiatkowska (2013), the method was seen as appropriate due to its several advantages: 1. It uncovers the experiences of the people 2. It is less expensive because of the focus on small groups 3. It is flexible The assumptions made for this research were: 1. The information gathered will be sufficient to make a general conclusion on how the integration process can be. 2. The available data on integration of waterfall and agile processes were holistically researched since it was difficult to break down the study into small independent factors. 3. The research will contribute a substantial amount of data that can be used by future researcher to ascertain the requirements for integrating agile into traditional processes. However, the limitations of the qualitative research method approach in a research include: 1. Research error is associated with survey research especially where assumptions on a sample are made that are inaccurate. 2. Qualitative research method only collects data on selected group of participants. This data cannot be used in making general assumptions. 3. The method does not allow conveniently for statistical data collection 4. Qualitative rese

Statistical concepts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Statistical concepts - Essay Example Regression has diverse applications in my professional life and an understanding of factors to team work is one of the scopes in which it can be applied. This is because of the skills ability to develop models of relationships among variables (Ott and Longnecker, 2010). I have also improved on my descriptive statistics skills, skills that relate to identification of main features of a data set. Major improvements are application of statistical software to facilitate computation of the statistics, and differences between the statistics and their corresponding parameters. Descriptive statistics skills such as ability to compute and interpret mode and standard deviation is applicable to understanding trends of occurrences in my daily life activities such as time spent on traffic, and time and money spent on leisure over a period of time. The skill is then applicable in budgeting for efficient utility and conservation of resources in my personal life. Like regression analysis skills, des criptive statistics skills are applicable in problem solution towards passing examinations that test the skills, either directly or indirectly. The skills are also applicable in understanding data in professional scopes towards effective managerial decisions. I have also developed competence in skills related to test of hypothesis, a concept that evaluates validity of occurrences. Even though they have limited application in my personal life because precision is not a necessity, the skills are important in ensuring accurate decisions in professional decisions, such as effectiveness of training on employees, and helps in passing examinations that test related concepts (Ott and Longnecker, 2010). Probability and sampling are concepts whose skills I... Statistical concepts This paper discuses some of the concepts and their possible roles in my personal life, my academics, and my professional life. The course has been instrumental to my knowledge of mathematical skills through introducing me to new concepts and helping me to review previously learnt concepts. Some of the skills that I have acquired or improved on during the course are skills on regression analysis, descriptive statistics, and test of hypothesis. Regression analysis is a mathematical skill for estimating relationships among variables and ascertaining significance of the relationships. It develops models of best fit for relationships by estimating coefficients of independent variables. With an established model, a dependent variable can be estimated, provided values of its associated independent variables are known. The mathematical technique helps in understanding relationships and in forecasting. In my personal life, regression analysis is fundamental to understanding categories of my e xpenditures and their respective burden on my total expenditure. Explored on from periodic expenditures, the skill can help me to understand expenditure categories that are significant to my total expenditures and the degree of significance of each category. This can then help me to review my preferences and align my expenditures to reflect on my preferences and needs. The skills are applicable to decision making processes in my personal and professional lives, and aid my academic competence.

Pret Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Pret - Essay Example Currently, there lies the presence of 295 shops of the company in the world and the majority of them are located in the United Kingdom. The annual turnover of the company is approximately 380 million Pounds (Pret A Manger, 2012). The company formed 22 new stores or shops in the year 2011 and is likely to open more 20 to 30 stores in the year 2012. It does not possess any franchisee while performing its business operations. Moreover, the company bears a strong custom in order to develop its working personnel. In this context, it desires to invest profoundly towards the advancement of its employees by a considerable level (Pret A Manger, 2012). In the paper, a complete analysis about the various major difficulties faced by Pret A Manger that include particularly the supply as well as the demand issues will be taken into concern. Furthermore, few business strategies have been provided in order to assist the company to overcome the major problems related to supply and demand issues while performing its business operations. Impact of Demand and Supply Factor in Business Organisations The factors of supply along with demand are observed to be one of the most influential factors, which affect the business working as well as performance of any organisation. The aspect of demand is described as the willpower and the capability of the customers to buy a specific product and the notion of supply is defined as the capability of the business to deliver the various products to the customers according to their demand. In relation to the restaurant industry, the commencement of Great Recession imposed a severe as well as a sudden impact upon the business performances along with sales of the restaurants. In this regard, it has been observed that before the start of the Great Recession, the major factors that include easy financing and presence of market participants ultimately fuelled towards raising the number of new restaurants, which resulted in maximum supply which exceeded the demand (Petev & et. al., 2011). Problems for Pret A Manger One of the major problems, which had been faced by Pret A Manger in recent times, is about the investigation made over its frozen chicken, which the company used in its food labelling. It has been observed that the frozen chicken which was utilised by the company was actually shipped from Brazil. However, this aspect was not properly communicated through the labelling of the product. In response, the co-founder of the company, Pret A Manger named Julian Metcalfe stated that the sandwiches of his company are made with fresh products and the company always concentrates upon making the products with preservative free ingredients. He also added that unlike his business market competitors, his company makes sandwiches daily and they are never kept overnight. Thus, it can be stated that the company faced a major problem in relation to sustainability issue that has been recognised in its frozen chicken labelled fresh products (Telegraph Media Group Limited, 2012). The other significant issue that had been faced by Pret A Manager is about the complaint against one of its products i.e. tomato soup which contained huge quantity of salt that might lead towards the diseases of high blood pressure and hypertension. This particular issue has ultimately affected the commitment that has been made by the company in order to deliver fresh as well as natural food to its valued customers (Mail Online, 2012). Furthermore, the company might face

Pope Gregory VII Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Pope Gregory VII - Research Paper Example From such evidence we come to understand that there are no biases as such and hence the source seems to be quite reliable for study. Contemporary reformers condemned the moral abuses that took place during that time. Two such abuses that were of primary concern were – 1) The heresy of Simony (the buying and selling of orders and offices in the church and 2) Nicolaitism (clerical marriage and unchasity) In 1059, after the Election Decree, the power of the emperor was reduced considerably while the Roman cardinals were given more power. This insightful book details the events of Pope Gregory’s rule, as he stood at the center of these affairs as the arch deacon of the Roman Church. The book describes Gregory’s religious motives of freeing the church from these heresies and gaining liberty for its people. The source being reliable would be very useful for the study. The author Rev. John Cowdrey was a medieval historian and a leading authority on the ecclesiastical reform movement led by Pope Gregory VII. In my opinion, the text served to kindle my interest further on the subject. Ephraim Emerton’s book titled ‘The Correspondence of Pope Gregory VII’ is a selection of Gregory VII letters from the Registrum that was translated by him. These letters served to highlight the zeal, hard work and vigor with which Pope Gregory pursued to bring about a revolutionary change in the conduct of the church. Professor Ephraim Emerton had authored many books but for this book of letters, he had only translated them. He was a graduate from Harvard College and was also one of the founders of the American Historical Association. In 1882 he was elected as the Winn Professor of Ecclesiastical History. These papal documents translated by Ephraim provides the reader with great insight through the evidence describing the religious policies of reform that Pope Gregory brought about during his period as Pope of the Christian Church. The book also serves to shed

Business Report on Van Morrison Supermarkets Coursework

Business Report on Van Morrison Supermarkets - Coursework Example IT application is also found to be effective for operations to develop one system to be used across the stores for an effective utilization of the stock with the purpose of enhancing the business process. In accordance with the company, Van Morrison Supermarkets, which is operating within the national and international market place as a retail supermarket chain can be observed as facing problems with regard to IT and IS. The problems that are currently being faced by the company includes its infrastructure related to the IS/IT, with high dependency on Microsoft software as well as the operating systems using technology of low standards within the workstations. As a consequence, the staff working within the company is often dissatisfied due to the poor performances of IT/IS software often being down which causes delay in dealing with the customers as well as the suppliers causing massive damage to the customer satisfaction prospects of the organisation. Emphasising on this particular aspect, the objective of the study will be to suggest remedies for better applications of tools and concepts used in the modern IT/IS integration frameworks in Van Morrison to counter the identified problems. Tools, Concepts and Ideas in Formulating the IT and Information IS With Respect To the Retail Sector In the modern day scenario, the companies are viewing new dimensions for the use as well as the application of the Information Systems (IS) and the Information Technologies (IT) used as a means to obtain better operational efficiencies. In this context, for the companies to sustain and develop these added dimensions of the IS and the IT, act as a competitive as well as a strategic weapon too, to combat industrial complexities and obstacles effectively. The three aspects with respect to the IT applied in organisational settings, which are often argued to be responsible for the success of the companies, comprises of the presence of strong IT staff within the organisation, the pres ence of a firm technology base that can be reused and a consensus partnership between the IT staff as well as the management. In the modern day scenario, the global economy and the use of the internet facilities has been growing rapidly. In accordance with the field of e-commerce, the process and the manner through which the companies tend to utilize its IT applications have often been argued to result in the success of the company (Multimedia University, 2011). The strategies with regard to the IT and IS applications commonly include the incorporation of the computer as well as the manual systems, computer telecommunication and computer technology. The IT and IS strategies also involve the various aspects of management of the organisation. The objectives as well as the aim of the organisations adopting the IS and IT strategies further include, aligning the business strategies with that of the strategies of the IS and IT so as to determine the prioritised field with regard to the

Management Study Guide Essay Example for Free

Management Study Guide Essay Commanding Heights: Episode 3 (Chapters 11-14); available at online at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/lo/story/index.html With communism discredited, more and more nations harness their fortunes to the global free-market. China, Southeast Asia, India, Eastern Europe and Latin America all compete to attract the developed worlds investment capital, and tariff barriers fall. In the United States Republican and Democratic administrations both embrace unfettered globalization over the objections of organized labor. But as new technology and ideas drive profound economic change, unforeseen events unfold. A Mexican economic meltdown sends the Clinton administration scrambling. Internet-linked financial markets, unrestricted capital flows, and floating currencies drive levels of speculative investment that dwarf trade in actual goods and services. Fueled by electronic capital and a global workforce ready to adapt, entrepreneurs create multinational corporations with valuations greater than entire national economies. When huge pension funds go hunting higher returns in emerging markets, enterprise flourishes where poverty once ruled, but risk grows, too. In Thailand the huge reservoir of available capital proves first a blessing, then a curse. Soon all Asia is engulfed in an economic crisis, and financial contagion spreads throughout the world, until Wall Street itself is threatened. A single global market is now the central economic reality. As the force of its effects is felt, popular unease grows. Is the system just too complex to be controlled, or is it an insiders game played at outsiders expense? New centers of opposition to globalization form and the debate turns violent over who will rewrite the rules. Yet prosperity continues to spread with the expansion of trade, even as the gulf widens further between rich and poor. Imbalances too dangerous for the system to ignore now drive its stakeholders to devise new means to include the dispossessed lest, once again, terrorism and war destroy the stability of a deeply interconnected world. The Bush Bailout Plan (Rounds 1 and 2) Round 1: Allow the Treasury to borrow up to $700 billion to buy mortgage-related assets from US financial institutions over the next 2 years. –May stabilize the capital markets ( could protect investment and retirement funds) – MAY stabilize housing prices. Consequences of doing nothing: -Small businesses will fail. -Companies may not be able to make payroll -People, even those with good credit records, may not be able to get credit for mortgages, car loans, student loans, or credit cards. -People will lose jobs. Round 2: Same deal: with same possible benefits. House version of the bill: $350 billion upfront; $350 billion later unless congress holds it back. -NO new golden parachutes if the institution sells more than $300 million in assets -Must try to â€Å"claw back† past bonuses if based on misleading financial statements -No golden parachutes when the treasury has ownership stake in the firm (.ie., it is failing). Defined Contribution Retirement Plans – A defined contribution plan provides an individual account for each participant. The benefits are based on the amount contributed into the plan and are also affected by income, expenses, gains and loses. There are no promises of a set monthly benefit at retirement. Some examples of defined contribution plans include 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, employee stock ownership plans and profit sharing plans. Contagion The tendency to spread, as of a doctrine, influence, or emotional state. When one nations economy is negatively affected because of changes in the asset PRICES of another country’s financial market Foreign Direct Investment – Is when a firm invests resources in facilities to produce and/or market a product in a foreign country. Horizontal FDI versus Vertical FDI Horizontal FDI: investment in the same industry in which a firm operates at home. Vertical FDI: investment in an industry that provides inputs for a firm’s domestic operations or that sells the outputs of the firm’s domestic operations. Backward Vertical FDI versus Forward Vertical FDI- Backward vertical FDI: an investment in an industry abroad that provides inputs for a firm’s domestic production processes. Forward Vertical FDI: an investment in an industry abroad that sells the outputs of a firm’s domestic production processes. BACKWARD vertical means that there are more places to help build the product. Stock versus Flow of FDI – Stock flow is the total accumulated value. Flow of FDI is the value over time. Gross Fixed Capital Formation GFCF is a flow value. It is usually defined as the total value of additions to fixed assets by resident producer enterprises, less disposals of fixed assets during the quarter or year, plus additions to the value of non-produced assets (such as discoveries of mineral deposits, or land improvements). Greenfield Investment – Establishing a new operation Acquisition – When one firm buys an interest in another firm Merger – When two firms agree to integrate their operations on a relatively co-equal basis. Exporting – The sale of products produced in one country to residents of another country Licensing – when one firm (the licensor) grants the right to produce its product, use its production processes, or use its brand name or trademark to another firm (the licensee) Tacit versus Codified Knowledge – Tacit knowledge: information that is intuitive and difficult to articulate or codify in writing. (Can be gained through personal experience or interaction. Shared knowledge might be dispersed throughout the company.) Theoretical Explanations for FDI: Transportation Costs, Market Imperfections, Strategic Behavior, Product Life Cycle, and Location-Specific Advantages Impediments to the Sale of Know-How Impediments to the sale of know-how explain why firms prefer horizontal FDI to licensing. These impediments arise when: (a) a firm has valuable know-how that cannot be adequately protected by a licensing contract, (b) a firm needs tight control over a foreign entity to maximize its market share and earnings in that country, and (c) a firms skills and know-how are not amenable to licensing. Multi-Point Competition Arises when two or more enterprises encounter each other in different regional markets, national markets, or industries. The Radical, Free Market and Pragmatic Nationalism Views of FDI Benefits and Costs of FDI for a Host Country – Resource transfer effects, employment effects, balance of payments effects, effect on competition and economic growth. Host country benefits from initial capital inflow when MNC establishes businessFINANCIAL CREDIT Host country benefits if FDI substitutes for imports of goods and servicesCURRENT ACCOUN TCREDIT Host country benefits when MNC uses its foreign subsidiary to export to other countriesCredit on CURRENT ACCOUNT Resource-Transfer Effects: Capital, Technology and Management Employment Effects: Direct, Indirect, Substitution, and Acquisition Restructuring – -Mergers and acquisitions are quicker to execute. -Foreign firms have valuable strategic assets that would be risky and time consuming to develop. -Acquiring firm believes it can use its core competencies to increase the efficiency of the acquired firm. Balance-of-Payments Effects of FDI for the Home and Host Countries – Home country – The balance of payments account is improved by the inward flow of repatriated earnings. The balance of payments account is improved if the foreign subsidiary needs home country equipment, component parts, etc. National Sovereignty Sovereignty is the exclusive right to control a government, a country, a people, or oneself. A sovereign is the supreme lawmaking authority. Benefits and Costs of FDI for a Home Country – Balance of payments effects, employment effects. Home Country Policies to Encourage and Restrict Outward FDI – Restrict: Limits on capital outflows, tax incentives to invest at home, Nation-specific prohibitions Encourage: Foreign Risk Insurance, Capital Assista nce, Tax Incentives to Invest Abroad, Political Pressure. Host Country Policies to Encourage and Restrict Inward FDI – Restrict: Ownership Restraints Encourage: To gain from the resource-transfer and employment effects of FDI, to capture FDI away from other potential host locations. Performance Requirements – An expectation placed on a foreign direct thingy requiring them to do certain things like having some local employees. Basically, this puts restrictions on them like local production requirements. Regional Economic Integration –refers to agreements among countries in a geographic region to reduce and ultimately remove, tariff and non-tariff barriers to the free flow of goods, services, and factors of production between each other. Levels of Economic Integration: Free Trade Area: Remove internal Barriers Customs Union: Common External Barriers Common Market: Free Movement of Factors Economic Union: Common Economic Policy Political Union: Political Integration The Case for and the Case against Regional Integration â €“ For: Increases world production, stimulates growth, regional economic integration can provide additional gains from free trade beyond the international agreements such as GATT and TWO. Against: a regional trade agreement is beneficial only if it creates more trade than it diverts. Impediments to Regional Integration – Nation as a whole may benefit but certain groups within countries may be hurt. Concerns about loss of national sovereignty and control over the nation’s sovereignty and control over the nations monetary, fiscal and trade policies. Trade Creation versus Trade Diversion – When an inefficient non member nation replaces an efficient member nation (NAFTA). Like Mexico replacing China in the textile business. Creation: occurs when free trade leads to the substitution of inefficient domestic production for efficient production in another member country. Diversion: Occurs when efficient non-member production is replaced by inefficient production by a member nation as a result of high trade barriers for non-members. The European Union (EU) – is composed of 27 member countries, covers an area of 4 million square kilometers and has approximately 460 million inhabitants. The EU’s member states combined represent the world’s largest economy by GDP, the seventh largest territory in the world by area and the third largest by population. Political Structure of the European Union: European Commission, Council of the European Union, European Parliament and Court of Justice Optimal Currency Area In economics, an optimum currency area (OCA), also known as an optimal currency region (OCR), is a geographical region in which it would maximize economic efficiency to have the entire region share a single currency. It describes the optimal characteristics for the merger of currencies or the creation of a new currency. Copenhagen Criteria – are the rules that define whether a nation is eligible to join the European Union. The criteria require that a nation have the institutions to preserve democratic governance and human rights, a functioning market economy, and that the nation accept the obligations and intent of the EU. The Lisbon Treaty The Treaty of Lisbon (also known as the Reform Treaty) is a treaty designed to streamline the workings of the European Union (EU) with amendments to the Treaty on European Union (TEU, Maastricht) and the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC, Rome), the latter being renamed Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the process. The stated aim of the treaty is to complete the process started by the Treaty of Amsterdam and by the Treaty of Nice with a view to enhancing the efficiency and democratic legitimacy of the Union and to improving the coherence of its action. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): Pros and Cons of NAFTA – Pros: Labor intensive industries move to Mexico, resulting in better resource allocation, Mexico gets investment and employment, increased Mexican income to buy US/Canadian goods, demand for goods increases jobs, consumers get lower prices. Cons: Loss of jobs to Mexico for people who don’t have other employment options, Mexican firms have to compete against efficient US/Canadian firms, environmental degradation, loss of national sovereignty. The Andean Community The Andean Community is mainly a trade block formerly called the Andean Group (Grupo Andino, in Spanish) which saw light after the Andean Pact (Pacto Andino) or more formally the Cartagena Agreement (Acuerdo de Cartagena) was signed in 1969, in Cartagena (Colombia). Mercado Comà ºn del Sur (MERCOSUR) Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuala. Was originally envisioned as a common market but has yet to reach that goal. Critics contend the agreement results in more trade diversion than trade creation as a result of the high external tariffs. Free Trade Area of the Americas –was a proposal to expand NAFTA to include all countries in the Western Hemisphere, except Cuba. This region has 850 million people and a $13.5 trillion economy. Talks are stalled and stronger support would be needed by the USA and Brazil for this agreement to become a reality. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) / ASEAN Free Trade Area – Indonesia, Malaysia , Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Total population of 500 million, GDP of US $740 billion, and a total trade of US $720 billion A free trade area among some of the nations exists, but several nations are refusing to lower all tariffs. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) – Founded in 1990 to promote open trade and economic cooperation. Currently has 21 members including the United States, Japan and China. Members account for 57% of the world’s GNP and 46% of global trade. Despite little progress, it could potentially become the world’s largest free trade area. Fiscal versus Monetary Policy Market economies have regular fluctuations in the level of economic activity which we call the business cycle. It is convenient to think of the business cycle as having three phases. The first phase is expansion when the economy is growing along its long term trends in employment, output, and income. But at some point the economy will overheat, and suffer rising prices and interest rates, until it reaches a turning point a peak and turn downward into a recession (the second phase). Recessions are usually brief (six to nine months) and are marked by falling employment, output, income, prices, and interest rates. Most significantly, recessions are marked by rising unemployment. The economy will hit a bottom point a trough and rebound into a strong recovery (the third phase). The recovery will enjoy rising employment, output, and income while unemployment will fall. The recovery will gradually slow down as the economy once again assumes its long term growth trends, and the recovery will transform into an expansion. Foreign Exchange Market –a market for converting the currency of one country into the currency of another. Exchange Rate – the rate at which one currency is converted into another. Foreign Exchange Risk – the risk of an investment’s value changing due to changes in the currency exchange rates. Arbitrage – the purchase of a product in one market for immediate resale in a second market in order to profit from a price d iscrepancy. Currency Speculation – short-term movement of funds from one currency to another in hopes of profiting from shifts in exchange rates. Spot Exchanges –the exchange rate at which a foreign exchange dealer would convert one currency to into another currency on that day. Forward Exchanges – the exchange rate at which a foreign exchange dealer will agree to convert one currency into another currency on a specific date in the future. Hedging: Forward Contracts versus Options Selling on a Discount versus Selling at a Premium Currency Swaps A currency swap (or cross currency swap) is a foreign exchange agreement between two parties to exchange a given amount of one currency for another and, after a specified period of time, to give back the original amounts swapped. Economic Theories of Exchange Rate Determination – Law of One Price The law of one price is an economic law stated as: In an efficient market all identical goods must have only one price. The intuition for this law is that all sellers will flock to the highest prevailing price, and all buyers to the lowest current market price. In an efficient market the convergence on one price is instant. Purchasing Power Parity The purchasing power parity (PPP) theory uses the long-term equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize their purchasing power. Developed by Gustav Cassel in 1920, it is based on the law of one price: the theory states that, in an ideally efficient market, identical goods should have only one price. Big Mac Index The Big Mac Index is an informal way of measuring the purchasing power parity (PPP) between two currencies and provides a test of the extent to which market exchange rates result in goods costing the same in different countries. As stated in The Economist, it seeks to make exchange-rate theory a bit more digestible In 120 nations the big mac is the same. How Increasing the Money Supply Impacts Exchange Rates Price Discrimination Price discrimination or yield management occurs when a firm charges a different price to different groups of consumers for an identical good or service, for reasons not associated with costs. Fisher Effect / International Fischer Effect Real versus Nominal Interest Rates 8% interest + 2%inflation = 10% nominal interest. $100 on $1000 loan. Investor Psychology and Bandwagon Effects The Efficient Market School versus the Inefficient Market School – Efficient: Those who believe the foreign exchange market actually predicts things accurately. Fundamental versus Technical Analysis Currency Convertibility: Freely, Externally, and Nonconvertible Currencies Capital Flight Capital flight, in economics, occurs when assets and/or money rapidly flow out of a country, due to an economic event that disturbs investors and causes them to lower their valuation of the assets in that country, or otherwise to lose confi dence in its economic strength. This leads to a disappearance of wealth and is usually accompanied by a sharp drop in the exchange rate of the affected country (depreciation in a variable exchange rate regime, or a forced devaluation in a fixed exchange rate regime). Transaction versus Translation versus Economic Exposure – Economic exposure: the extent to which a firm’s future international earning power is affected by changes in exchange rates. Lead versus Lag Strategies – Lead: an attempt to collect foreign currency receivables when a foreign currency is expected to depreciate. Lag: An attempt to delay the collection of foreign currency receivables if that currency is expected to appreciate. Delay paying foreign currency payables if the foreign currency is expected to depreciate. International Monetary System – are institutional arrangements countries adopt to govern exchange rates. Exchange Rate Regimes: Formal Dollarization, Fixed, Currency Boards, Pegged, Dirty/Managed Floats and Independently Floating – The Gold Standard – Pegging currencies to gold and guaranteeing convertibility is known as the gold standard. Gold Par Value – The amount of a currency in an ounce, one ounce of gold was referred to as the gold par value. The Bretton Woods Exchange Rate System Created a fixed exchange rate system where the countries agreed to peg their currencies to the US dollar which was convertible to gold at $35 an ounce. Countries agreed to defend the value of their currencies to within 1% of par value. Currency, Banking and Foreign Debt Crises – Currency speculators believed that the devaluation of the dollar was inevitable. President Nixon dropped the gold standard conversion and the dollar was devalued. Following a second round of speculative attacks, the US dollar was allowed to float against other world currencies. Concerns about the IMF’s Policy Prescriptions – The system of adjustable parities allowed for the devaluation of a country’s currency by more than 10 percent if the IMF agreed that a country’s balance of payments was in â€Å"fundamental disequilibrium.† Moral Hazard – arises when people behave recklessly because they know they will be saved if th ings go wrong. Capital Market The capital market is the market for securities, where companies and governments can raise longterm funds. The capital market includes the stock market and the bond market. Financial regulators, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, oversee the capital markets in their designated countries to ensure that investors are protected against fraud. The capital markets consist of the primary market, where new issues are distributed to investors, and the secondary market, where existing securities are traded. Cost of Capital The cost of capital is an expected return that the provider of capital plans to earn on their investment. Initial Public Offering Initial public offering (IPO), also referred to simply as a public offering, is when a company issues common stock or shares to the public for the first time. They are often issued by smaller, younger companies seeking capital to expand, but can also be done by large privately-owned companies looking to become publicly traded. Commercial Banks versus Investment Banks Equity Loan: An equity loan is a mortgage placed on real estate i n exchange for cash to the borrower. For example, if a person owns a home worth $100,000, but does not currently have a lien on it, they may take an equity loan at 80% loan to value (LTV) or $80,000 in cash in exchange for a lien on title placed by the lender of the equity loan. Debt Loans: A loan is a type of debt. This article focuses exclusively on monetary loans, although, in practice, any material object might be lent. Like all debt instruments, a loan entails the redistribution of financial assets over time, between the lender and the borrower. Corporate Bonds A Corporate Bond is a bond issued by a corporation. The term is usually applied to longer-term debt instruments, generally with a maturity date falling at least a year after their issue date. Systematic Risk In finance, Systemic Risk is that risk which is common to an entire market and not to any individual entity or component thereof. It can be defined as financial system instability, potentially catastrophic, caused or exacerbated by idiosyncratic events or conditions in financial intermediaries[1]. It refers to the movements of the whole economy and has wide ranging effects. It is also sometimes erroneously referred to as systematic risk. Portfolio Diversification – By using the global capital market, investors have a much wider range of investment opportunities than in a purely domestic capital market. The most significant consequence of this choice is that investors can diversify their portfolios internationally, thereby reducing their risk to below what could be achieved in a purely domestic capital market. Drivers of the Global Capital Market: Information Technology: Financial services is an information-intensive industry. It draws on large volumes of information about markets, risks, exchange rates, interest rates, creditworthiness, and so on. It uses this information to make decisions about what to invest where, how much to change borrowers, how much interest to pay to depositors, and the value and riskiness of a range of financial assets including corporate bonds, stocks, government securities, and currencies. Deregulation: Many restrictions have been crumbling in the US since the early 80s. In this part, this has been a response to the development of the Eurocurrency market, which from the beginning was outside of national control. Hot Money: In economics, hot money refers to funds which flow into a country to take advantage of a favorable interest rate, and therefore obtain higher returns. They influence the balance of payments and strengthen the exchange rate of the recipient country while weakening the currency of the country losing the money. These funds are held in currency markets by speculators as opposed to national banks or domestic investors. As such, they are highly volatile in Mexico and East Asian financial crisis. Patient Money: Selling land in large blocks under frontier conditions is to sell at a time before it begins yielding much if any rent. It is bid in by those few who have large discretionary funds of patient money. Eurocurrency Eurocurrency is the term used to describe deposits residing in banks that are located outside the borders of the country that issues the currency the deposit is denominated in. For example a deposit denominated in US dollars residing in a Japanese bank is a Eurocurrency deposit, or more specifically a Eurodollar deposit. Attractions and Drawbacks of the Eurocurrency Market Attractions: Lack of government regulation. Drawbacks: When depositors use a regulated banking system they know that the probability of a bank failure that would cause them to lose their deposits is very low. Secondly, borrowing funds internationally can expose a company to foreign exchange risk. Reserve Requirements The reserve requirement (or required reserve ratio) is a bank regulation that sets the minimum reserves each bank must hold to customer deposits and notes. These reserves are designed to satisfy withdrawal demands, and would normally be in the form of fiat currency stored in a bank vault (vault cash), or with a central bank. Foreign Bonds vs. Eurobonds: A Eurobond is an international bond that is denominated in a currency not native to the country where it is issued. It can be categorised according to the currency in which it is issued. London is one of the centers of the Eurobond market, but Eurobonds may be traded throughout the world for example in Singapore or Tokyo. Attractions of the Eurobond Market – Absence of regulatory interference. Less stringent disclosure requirements than in most domestic bond markets. A favorable tax status. The Impact of Exchange Rate Risk on the Cost of Capital Benefits and Costs of Financial Globalization Inter-Temporal Trade – Consumption smoothing usually between advanced economies and developing economies. Developing economies need money NOW. Capital Mobility The ability of money to cross national borders. The free flow of money in and out of a country. Impossible Trinity The Impossible Trinity (also known as the Inconsistent Trinity, Triangle of Impossibility or Unholy Trinity) is the hypothesis in international economics that it is impossible to have all three of the following at the same time: Exchange Rate Stability, Independent Monetary Policy, and Capital Mobility. You can only have 2 of these 3 things at the same time ever. The Exchange Rate is simply the relative price of currencies. For example: It tells you how many Euros you can get for a dollar. A government has to main monetary policies it can use: The Fiscal Policy, or the Monetary Policy The Fiscal Policy concerns government expenditures and tax collection The Monetary Policy concerns the interest rate in the economy. The interest rates are established to help stabilize the economy.

Communication Skills in Marketing

Communication Skills in Marketing Assignment Two: Communication on the Job Fundamentals of Communication Denby Mackenzie INTRODUCTION: After completing a double bachelor degree at Griffith University, I aspire to obtain a career in a marketing role, either as a marketing director or a marketing communications manager. The double bachelor that I am currently enrolled in is a Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Business and the two majors I am currently undertaking is Japanese and Marketing. Ideally working in Japan or for a Japanese company is very appealing to me. Having a career that would combine these two passions of mine would create the ultimate type of future work I hope to do. Marketing professionals are just about employable across all organisations (Griffith University, 2013), which includes but not exclusively to advertising firms, government agencies, non-profit organisations and large companies. Types of industries that employ marketing graduates that deal directly with sales and marketing, are government industries and travel, tourism and hospitality. Marketing directors have the responsibility of promoting the goods and services of their organisations or clients. Other duties that may be performed on a day to day basis by marketing professionals is knowing how to effectively manage a marketing budget, assist in the development and implementation of communication strategies and activities, write creatively and identify and analyse any strengths and weaknesses of the organisation (Australian Government, 2015). In a professional environment marketing directors would have to work closely with a team, by themselves and possibly with clients. A marketing director would need to have the ability to work independently as well as part of a team, have great interpersonal communication skills and be able to be proactive and meet set deadlines. As a director, it is understandable that written, spoken and unspoken communications will occur in the workplace, from formal meetings, writing emails or promotional plans to positive unspoken communications such as opening a door for a client. Key communication strategies that would be useful in becoming a successful marketing communications director, ideally working for an international company, would be knowing how to successfully influence and persuade others through the use of communication, communication and organisational structures in the workplace and the ability to effectively communicate between cultures. BODY: If there is one thing that marketing directors contribute to in their daily work is getting people to buy into what they are selling, whether that be an idea, a service announcement that people should partake in or goods and services being sold to consumers from a particular company. Marketing personal create messages to mildly coerce audiences into believing or acting a particular way. In order to be successful at persuading others, we first need to understand our receivers, or who the message is intended for and there are many ways to understand our audience, through cultural background, language spoken, gender, location, age and many more. There are three ways that most people will comply to persuasive messages being broadcasted; firstly, people will be persuaded by a force, sometimes this force can be aggressive or violent. Secondly, there is certain social expectation that one believes they must live up to, so they are influenced by what they believe is expected of them. Lastly when a message has become powerful enough, it will change the way that person now thinks (DeFleur et al,2005 p.298). What we must also understand is that not everybody is going to act, think or comply the same way about the messages we are telling our audiences. To better understand why people would resist, we must look subjectively from the person or persons point of view that we are trying to persuade (DeFleur et al,2005 p.310). From a marketing and a business point of view, understanding why people would rebel against a message should help us understand where the faults are in any campaign and how it can be improved on for next time. Being able to persuade a change in people’s habits or behaviours with the use of a reward or motivation involved is perhaps the most common way to influence people. Whether that reward or motivation is not as clear to the receiver, it is almost certainly there, from the receiver buying shampoo to buying an apple, on one hand it says that the consumer wants to look good or keep their hair clean and on the other hand it says that buying the customer buying the apple is hungry or that there is possibly some motivation for them personally to buy the apple rather than a chocolate bar. Much like how understanding to influence and persuade others requires some thought into whom the receivers are and how they will process the message, so does communicating between cultures. For the reason that I wish to work in Japan or closely with a Japanese company, I find that knowing how to communicate between our different cultures will be helpful to my career. Learning the Japanese language as well as understanding their culture should make any communication that is to happen, be a successful one. Even if I was to work in Australia, being able to effectively communicate between cultures would be necessary given that Australia is such a diverse multi-cultural country. According to DeFleur et al (2014), there are seven steps for successful intercultural communication. Firstly, we have to acknowledge that everybody is different and therefore we all have different emotions and needs. Secondly, we have to try to understand any cultural backgrounds of who we are communicating to. Thirdly, we should respect any cultural customs or traditions that our receiver might have. Fourthly, and a good tip for any successful communication, is to actively listen. Fifthly, being able to handle or expect some uncertainty with intercultural communication. Sixthly, when working or speaking with people who are different form ourselves, we should steer clear of making any assumptions or stereotypes. Lastly, we should be aware of our own ethnocentrism and how we may judge another person or culture based off our own values and beliefs. Researchers have found four main cultural features that alter the way in which we relate to one another; individualism and collectivism, high and low context, masculinity and femininity, and high and low power distance (DeFleur et al,2005 p.222). Understanding that all societies have these features can affect the way we communicate with one another. Some cultures value social status over equality, some find nonverbal communication more important than accuracy of what is said and other cultures value assertiveness and wining rather than cooperation and nurturance. From a business point of view, before encoding a message, getting to know the audience it is being distributed to, including their culture, customs, influences and what cultural features they might value would make it easier to do business with. Another communication strategy that would be useful to any career in any organisation is learning how to successfully communicate in an organisational setting. In most organisations there is a bureaucracy set in place, this includes job titles, ranks and roles of staff and goals and a strategic plans made by the organisation. Presidents and CEO’s are responsible for making decisions when it comes to the organisation of employees in the workplace. Successful managers will change the division of the labour roles and the level of authority that some employees have when the nature of the environment in an organisation is changing (Francis-Smythe, Robinson Ross, 2013), this includes any promotions or wage raises and even demotions. Presidents and CEO’s that acknowledge a change in the environment at work and make appropriate adjustments to suit, receive a more productive work setting for all employees as a result. Previously in Japan, workers were reassured that they would work for the one company for their entire life. Now in Japan, any worker, from even the lowest of positions, can suggest ideas to their seniors, without feeling out of place (DeFleur et al,2005 p.189). In Japan a full-time workers day is 8 hours long, however, more than 60 per cent of full-time workers have often recorded working more than 10 hours per day (Nemoto, 2013). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, I personally find these three communication skills would be necessary to become a successful marketing director. As marketing professionals are employable across all industries, all of these communication skills are transferable. Marketing personal not only use persuasion in the messages that they transmit to the public, they would also use persuasion in a business setting, from talking to client to organising tasks for a team to complete. From a business perspective, understanding that most organisations have fixed rules, various positions held by employees within the company and goals and strategic views of that organisation. When securing a senior position within a company, recognising the organisational system that the business has in place would set me up for success. Working as a director or manager in charge of a small team would be the ideal position for a career in marketing for me. Working overseas, in Japan or for a Japanese company would allow for intercultural communication to take place. Understanding our audience before encoding a message will positively assist in the receivers decoding the message as close to how it was intended to be understood. There are many ways to understand our audience, through cultural background, language spoken, gender, location, age and many more (DeFleur et al,2005 p.222). Acknowledging that everybody is different and that we all come from different backgrounds and all make different choices should make better intercultural communication occur. As Australia is a diverse multi-cultural country, understanding how to improve communicating between cultures is a great skill to have in any professional setting. REFERENCES Australian Government, April 2015, Department of education and training, Marketing Officer, Accessed 30 May 3015 from: http://www.jobguide.thegoodguides.com.au/occupation/Marketing-Officer> DeFleur, M, Kearney, P, Plax, T DeFleur, M (2014).Fundamentals of Communication: Social Science in Everyday Life. New York: McGraw-Hill. pp.189, 222, 233, 298, 310, Francis-Smythe, J., Robinson, L. Ross, C. 2013, The role of evidence in general managers decision-making, Journal of general management, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 3-21. Griffith University, April 2013, Careers and Employment Service; Career options: Marketing, Accessed 30 May 2015 from: https://intranet.secure.griffith.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/507113/Marketing.pdf > Nemoto, K. 2013, Long Working Hours and the Corporate Gender Divide in Japan, Gender, Work Organization, vol. 20, no. 5, pp. 512-527.