Wealth Maximization And Payback Period - Free Sample Solution

Question: Part A Critically evaluate and analyse the differing ways in which the shareholders of a company can encourage its managers to act in a way that is consistent with the objective of maximization of shareholder wealth. Are You Daunted by the Thought of Due Assignments? Avail Our Services and Receive Assignment Help from Experts. In this section students should demonstrate knowledge, understanding, and an ability to critically evaluate the importance of agency theory, and the role it plays within financial management. The response should draw upon the differing techniques that can be used by shareholders to reduce the agency problem that is faced within many businesses. A critical evaluation of relevant academic literature should be performed, providing clear evidence of wider reading within this topical area of research, rather than simply describing the core concepts. Attempting to evaluate within the context of real-life examples where shareholders have actively attempted to address agency problems would assist in developing the depth of response offered. Part B In practice financial managers use a variety of differing investment appraisal techniques upon assessing the viability of potential capital investment projects. Critically compare and contrast two investment appraisal techniques, one of which must be a discounted cash flow technique that would assist within the financial management decision-making process. In this section students should demonstrate knowledge and understanding of two investment appraisal techniques used by financial managers, how they can inform future projects, what limits their ability to guide investment, and which technique you would prefer (with reasons). The response should demonstrate evidence of wider reading and application of the chosen techniques within a real-life business context, supported through relevant empirical research. Real-life examples can be drawn from differing countries, industries and individual businesses, clearly identifying whether the investment appraisal techniques chosen are applied in practice. The inclusion of relevant numerical examples to develop the response further would be advantageous although should not form the main thrust of the work. Answer: Introduction Shareholders are the owners of the company. They contributed a significant part of the capital by which a company can operate its business. They take all the risks associated with the company. So it is the duty of the company to provide them adequate rewards. On the other hand investors can only willing to invest in a companys share from which he can able to get a good return. The following study is based on these two objectives where it is shown how the wealth maximization goal is achieved and how the project appraisal techniques can be used to evaluate the returns of the shareholders (Shim, Siegel and Dauber 2008). Part A Wealth maximization Wealth maximization is an important term used in financial management. The term wealth means the value of the shareholders, so its does not only consider the profit earned by the company. We know shareholders are the owner of the company and they get dividends at the end of the year depending on the performance and profit of the company. The problem is that the profit which have earned today by the company have no certainty that it will be earn tomorrow also so the main concern of the shareholder is always to maximize the value of his share so that he is able to sell his share and will have a capital gain. This process is called wealth maximization. It can be better described by a simple example. Say a shareholder purchased a share of company at $ 4 in 2006 and was getting continuous dividend. In the year 2015 the value of that share rise to $18 and the shareholder sell the share at that price. So he will have a capital gain of $ 14 which arises because of his wealth maximizes from $ 4 to $ 14. Wealth maximization occurs when shareholders have confidence about the rising of the price of the shares (Welch, 2010). Agency theory As per the entity concept of accounting it is said that the company and its owner have separate legal entity (Heracleous and Lan, 2011). It was also decided in a famous case study Salamon Vs Salamon Co that the existence of Salamon Company as a sole trader and later as a partnership business is separate. So in case of company also the entity of managers and owners are separate and from this relationship between owner and manager the agency theory is evolved (Agency Theory, Information, and Incentives, 2015). This theory says that the relationship between managers and owners is like the principal and agent and as per the law an agent means a person used to affect a contract between their principal and a third party. This theory is based on the following assumptions (Forbes-Pitt, 2011) - In agency relationship persons have rational behavior and they are always willing to maximize their personal utility. This implies that the persons are only concerned about how their individual goal can be satisfied. The utility gaining by the principal for providing services, information is same as or equal to the utility achieved by the agents in receiving benefits. The company creates a link between contracts and the activities must be conducted as per of those contracts. Problems with the agency theory The agency theory has several problems which are discussed as follows- In this theory the main importance is given on the individual interest by ignoring the collective interest (Brammer, 2005). As we know that an organization should have such objectives which will help it to achieving the organizational goals. For this purpose all the parties in the organization must have proper communication and same level of interest. In practical situation it is often observed that the interest of these two parties namely management and owner are separate. Management are only concentrating in decision making activities which may increase their profit but they may be less bothered about the wealth maximization goal as they have no share in dividends (Levante, 2007). Again the problem can arise when the risk taking attitude of the parties are different. The owners might have an opinion that the company should invest in high risky project in order to get higher return but the management may reluctant to do so as they will be accountable for taking extra risk and with the addition they will not get any reward for this. On the other hand owner can prefer debt financing as it will increase their return but management may not agree with this decision as this will increase their fixed financial obligations (Dickinson and Villeval, 2008). Techniques for resolving agency problems For resolving agency problems mentioned above several techniques are suggested. One of the most important techniques among this is the effective corporate governance. Hermes, an institutional fund manager had developed 12 principles which can be applied to any company for reconcile the profit maximization and wealth maximization objectives (Jiraporn et al., 2008) ; (Yahanpath and Joseph, 2011). Transparency and Communication Principle 1 Each and every company should disclose accurate and timely information to all its parties, owners and management so that any miscommunication between these parties can be avoided. Feedback from all the concerned parties is equally acceptable. Corporate culture Principle 2 A strong internal culture should be established which will help in value creation of the members. Here the employees can be trained to get accustomed with the organization and arrangements can be made for delegating responsibilities and evaluation of the performance should be made (Chuang, 2014). Principle 3 The company should developed effective corporate strategies for each of their business units and by keeping in mind their target customers. Principle 4 The company should maximize its sustainable operating performance which is in their existing business. A proper acquisition should be incorporated before some new acquisition decisions can be taken. Principle 5 All companies should ensure that the investment plans must passed through feasibility studies and only that kind of investments are given preference which maximizes the long term wealth of the shareholders. Risk management Principle 6 When a company is taking a long project for long term benefit of the shareholders then it is obvious that the management should have assessed the risk properly. The Board of Directors must have effective risk management tools. Principle 7 The company should have a capital structure which will reduce the long term cost of capital. Debt financing is cheaper than the equity financing but involves higher obligations so it is the decision which can be taken on the basis of the financial ability of the company. If the capital structure is not as per the requirements then it should be reconsidered. Environment, Stakeholders and Social issues Principle 8 Company should build effective relationship with all the parties who have an interest on the company like suppliers, customers, government, employees etc. Principle 9 For long term sustainability of the business the company should manage the environmental and social factors which give an impact on the business. A business is the part of the large society so it is the primary responsibility of a company to do some betterment for the society. Principle 10 A company has a large number of shareholders. Though they are the owner of the company but it is not possible for all of them to participate in the management of the organization so a Board of directors is nominated by them who manage the affairs of the business but when the company is taking some decisions for restructuring of capital structure or acquisition etc teen it must allow the shareholders before taking the decisions. Principle 11 The Board of Directors should guide the company with diverse range of competencies, experience and enable the company to carry its duties, responsibilities. Sometimes there are different approaches are used, a proper explanation for that should be given by the management to its shareholders. Principle 12 The company should design its remuneration structure and remuneration policies adequately and implement those timely. Real life examples on agency problems Barclays bank plc In this company the main conflict arises between the management and the shareholders because The company declared a 2.4 billion bonus shares in spite of 34% fall in profit. The company plan to cut 12000 jobs in year 2014. Management makes an argument with the shareholders that the bonus increase is necessary. The shareholders are afraid about this bonus issue because the company had a poor financial history. Tesco plc This company has also faces some agency problem recently which affects their value of the shares (Hargreaves Lansdown, 2015). Tescos market share fall from 29.9% to 29.1% in 2014. In late 2014 Tesco admitted that they were making a misstatement of their profits by 263 million as a result of which the shareholders get disappointed. The company failed to give information to the suppliers timely and they were cancelling their deals. While the investigation is going on eight executives were suspended with pay and the cost of the company increased. The share price again falls by 44% and the shareholders wealth getting affected very badly. They closed down their 43 shops and thousands of job cut occurred. But the shareholders do not lose their hopes fully. They again began to start believing the company and it is reflected by the recent share price movements as it is again started to increase. Part B Contrast and Comparison between Payback period and Net present value Net present value and Payback period A contrast and comparison of the discounted cash flow technique and another technique of investment appraisal has been made. The discounted cash flow technique that has been used for the study is the net present value. The other cash flow technique that has been used for the study is the payback period (Bragg, 2011). The discounted cash flow technique is one of the investment appraisal techniques that evaluate the attractiveness of the investment opportunity. The future free cash flow projections are analyzed in the technique of discounted cash flow and they are discounted in order to arrive at the present value (Connor, 2006). This is done for the evaluation of the potential investment opportunity. On analysis of the projects via the discounted cash flow technique the value of the project where the DCF analysis is higher than the current cost of the investment is chosen. Net present value calculation is one of the major discounted cash flow techniques. It calculates the sum of the present value of the cash flows. The inflows and the outflows of the project are discounted at the present value. The process of calculation of the net present value is a very simple technique and it is straight forward in nature (Goel, 2015). On the other hand payback period is one of the capital budgeting techniques that refers to the time period that is required to recoup the funds that has been invested. This is necessary technique to achieve the breakeven point. However, the payback period does not take into consideration the time value of money (Heysel and Filion, 2014). Dissimilarities between the net present value technique and payback period The net present value method is a dynamic technique of investment appraisal. It is a discounted cash flow technique. The technique is calculated using the technique of time value of money. The profitability from the project will be assessed on calculation of the return from the capital that has been invested. It is achieved under the assumption of the discount rate. The investment proposals whose net present value is zero will have the same return as that of the alternative investment. The investment with net present value greater than zero than the alternative techniques of investment will achieve an increase in the capital. The investment with net present value less than zero will have worse return than the alternative techniques of investment and the investment may not be able to achieve the capital expenses. The net present value method is considered as a process for the assessment of the investment techniques. It is also used as a tool for the assessment of the investment techni que by comparing it with the alternative techniques. The capital value can be interpreted in terms of monetary units by using the net present value technique (Holland and Torregrosa, 2008). The major advantage of this method is that it uses the discounted rates. On the other hand the payback period can be considered as the static investment appraisal method. The period is determined that is required to get back the capital that has been invested. This is achieved via the repayments. The investment that has the shortest period of pack back is considered as the best investment decision and it is the most advantageous decision. The payback decision is an important technique for comparison between the various alternatives. The comparison between the various alternatives can be done using the technique of payback period. The absolute risk from the investment can be determined by using the technique of payback period (Kalyebara and Islam, 2013). There are large organizations where there is specific target that is set for the investment to get recouped. The payback period can be calculated using the average method or it can be calculated using the cumulative method. However the investment decision entirely on the basis of the payback period can lea d to results that are misleading in nature. The cash flows that are considered during the amortization period are considered in the calculation of the payback period. Thus there are various discrepancies associated with the technique of payback period. Thus it must not be considered as the sole technique for the calculation of the payback period (Kimmel, Weygandt and Kieso, 2011). Limitation of the Net present value and Payback period technique The net present value technique takes into consideration, the cash flows which are both positive and negative for conducting the project at present and in the future. The future cash flows that will be generated are discounted in order to reflect that the future inflows of cash are worth for the present day. The future cash flows are adjusted using the discount rate that takes into consideration the inflation rate. The cost of capital is taken into consideration. The present values of the cash flows that are negative and positive in nature are added to calculate the net present value. The project will be accepted when the net present value is positive while it is rejected when the net present value is negative. While making decisions between various projects, the project with high net present value is selected (McSweeney, 2006). The payback period does not taken into consideration the inflation rate and the cost of capital. The purchasing power of money declines with time. This is not considered by the payback period. On the other hand the major drawback of the net present value method is that it is based on assumptions. The estimation of the discount rate is based on assumptions. Thus the calculation may not be accurate. The analysis of the investment decision using the net present value technique is accurate than the payback period. Thus it is more feasible technique than the payback period (Naumov, 2013). Practical examples of application of net present value and payback period Net present value In the year 2012, Kotak Mahindra Bank had acquired the non performing portfolio of the Barclays bank in India. The credit card business was acquired by the organization. The decision taken by Kotak Mahindra Bank to acquire the assets of Barclays Bank was a result of analysis of the profitability from the project. In such situation, the discounted cash flow technique plays a major role. The portfolio that has been acquired by Kotak has an estimation of around Rs 300 crore and the acquisition is of 200,000 cards. The present value of the inflow over the years has been considered. The outflows that will occur as a result of this acquisition have been taken into consideration. The three possibilities that can arise as a result of the investment decision have been discussed. The three possibilities can be either zero, positive or negative. The acquisition has been possible as it has produced positive results. If the present value of the inflow of cash is less than the present value of the outflow of cash then the project would have been rejected (Park, 2013). Another example can be cited to show the application of net present value. Fine Electonics Company is considering purchasing equipment that will be attached with the main manufacturing machine of the company. The cost of the equipment will be $6000 and there will be an increase in the annual cash flow by $2200. The life of the project will be 6 years. However the machine will have no salvage value. A 20% return on the investments in expected. The net present value of the investment project has been computed. The feasibility of the investment decision has been analyzed. Item Years Amount of cash flow 20% cost of capital Present value of the cash inflow Annual inflow of cash 1-6 $2200 3.33 $7317 Initial investment $6000 ($6000) Net present value $1317 Since in this case the net present value is $1317, the project will be accepted. Payback period Payback period for different projects can be analyzed for the selection of the project which will give the highest return. For example, among two projects B and C that have identical inflow of cash, the project C is considered as the cash inflow from this project is $60,000. The project C is able to recoup the invested capital within shorter period of time than the project B. The payback period is sophisticated tool for making investment decisions in the organization. The investment opportunities can be analyzed by using this tool (Peterson Drake and Fabozzi, 2002). Conclusion The paper has analyzed the importance of the agency theory and the role played by the theory in taking major decisions of financial management. The ways in which the agency problem can be reduced significantly has been discussed. The agency problem of Tesco and Barclays Bank has been analyzed and the feasible solution to the problems has been studied. The various investment appraisal techniques have been studied. A comparison and contrast between the net present value method and the payback period technique has been studied. Among the two investment appraisal technique the net present value method is a better investment appraisal technique as it analyses the projects using time value of money. On the other hand the payback period does not consider the time value of money which is one of the major discrepancies of the technique. References Agency Theory, Information, and Incentives. (2015). . Bragg, S. (2011). The new CFO financial leadership manual. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. Brammer, S. (2005). Profit maximisation vs. agency: an analysis of charitable giving by UK firms.Cambridge Journal of Economics, 29(4), pp.517-534. Chuang, K. (2014).FINANCIALadvisors, financial crisis, and shareholder wealth in bank mergers.GlobalFINANCEJournal, 25(3), pp.229-245. Connor, T. (2006). Net present value: blame the workman not the tool. Strat. Change, 15(4), pp.197-204. Dickinson, D. and Villeval, M. (2008). Does monitoring decrease work effort?.Games and Economic Behavior, 63(1), pp.56-76. Forbes-Pitt, K. (2011).The assumption of agency theory. London: Routledge. Goel, S. (2015). Capital Budgeting. Business Expert Press. Hargreaves Lansdown, (2015).Tesco plc dividend payments | TSCO dividends. [online] Available at: https://www.hl.co.uk/shares/shares-search-results/t/tesco-plc-ordinary-5p/dividends [Accessed 7 Jul. 2015]. Heracleous, L. and Lan, L. (2011). Agency Theory, Institutional Sensitivity, and Inductive Reasoning: Towards a Legal Perspective.Journal of Management Studies, 49(1), pp.223-239. Heysel, C. and Filion, Y. (2014). Estimating the Payback Period of In-line Micro Turbines with Analytical Probabilistic Models. Procedia Engineering, 70, pp.815-822. Holland, J. and Torregrosa, D. (2008). Capital budgeting. [Washington, D.C.]: Congress of the U.S., Congressional Budget Office. Jiraporn, P., Miller, G., Yoon, S. and Kim, Y. (2008). Is earnings management opportunistic or beneficial? An agency theory perspective.International Review of Financial Analysis, 17(3), pp.622-634. Kalyebara, B. and Islam, S. (2013). Corporate Governance, Capital Markets, and Capital Budgeting. Dordrecht: Springer. Kimmel, P., Weygandt, J. and Kieso, D. (2011). Accounting. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. Levante, M. (2007). Victory or Profit Maximisation?.FINANCE Bien Commun, 26(1), p.48. McSweeney, B. (2006). Net present value: the illusion of certainty. Strat. Change, 15(1), pp.47-51. Naumov, A. (2013). ON ACCURACY OF PROJECT'S PAYBACK PERIOD ESTIMATES. Theoretical Applied Science, 5(09), pp.95-99. Park, C. (2013). Fundamentals of engineering economics. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson. Peterson Drake, P. and Fabozzi, F. (2002). Capital budgeting. New York, NY: Wiley. Shim, J., Siegel, J. and Dauber, N. (2008).Corporate controller's handbook ofFINANCIALmanagement 2008-2009. Chicago, IL: CCH. Welch, S. (2010). When Wealth Management Met 2008: Now What ?.The Journal of Wealth Management, 12(4), pp.31-45. Yahanpath, N. and Joseph, T. (2011). A brief review of the role of shareholder wealth maximisation and other factors contributing to the globalFINANCIALcrisis.Qualitative Research in FinancialMARKETS, 3(1), pp.64-77. Zhang, M., Huang, L. and Cai, Y. (2012). Forecast on Payback Period of Restaurant Projects Investment by Computer Simulation. AMR, 446-449, pp.3782-3786.

Maker Of Mining And Construction Equipment â€Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Maker Of Mining And Construction Equipment? Answer: Introducation For over 90 years now, Caterpillar Inc. is enjoying continued progress in helping its customers regarding development of infrastructure, natural resource and energy assets. It is the leading maker of mining and construction equipment, diesel-electric locomotives, industrial gas turbines and natural gas diesel engines. The company is experiencing high profits but they are also facing employee dissatisfaction from a long time (Caterpillar, 2017). An issue emerges when there is a gap between employee expectations and the actual state of affairs. It is critical to determine the issues arising from the situation encountered by this company. In this aspect, a flexible, considerate and knowledgeable leader is imperative to steer the organization out of this trouble. Employing the integrative framework to understand and apply OB, the below-mentioned outcomes have been recognized which were not attained in this case. On an individual level Well-being/flourishing One of the primary goals of any business is to elevate its bottom line. However, low productivity, turnover and absenteeism cost businesses billions of dollars every year (Edwards, 2010). The wages of workers in Caterpillar are meagre. Even the union strikes were not able to give them their rights back. Majority of the workers have complaints that while the company is flourishing and recording huge profits, no reward is being transferred their way, in fact, their condition is only deteriorating. Citizenship behaviour Citizenship behaviours are discretionary, individual actions taken by employees who are beyond their job description. Employees who have a sense of citizenship will go beyond the ordinary because of their personal motivation to perform well for the betterment of the company (Cropanzano and Stein, 2009). Caterpillar has certainly not been able to invoke any such behaviour in its employees because the CEO is too engrossed in elevating only his salary and the companys profit levels while giving nothing in return to the employees who have worked so hard. Survival is the only motivation for people working there. When the company does not provide any future growth opportunities, how can its workers be expected to work for the future? When there are no rewards in the present, even the benefits and compensation they used to get have decreased, then employees cannot focus on the long term. On the group level Leadership There are not many business functions more vulnerable to a credibility lacuna than the manner in which executives approach corporate life. A feeling of disbelief emerges when managers show that they are making decisions in reasonable terms while most participants and observers are aware that politics and personalities play an instrumental part. There should have been sound leadership on a group level in Caterpillar. Strong leadership is capable of channelizing employee energy in the correct direction (Zoogah and Beugre, 2012). However, in Caterpillar, the leadership of the managers was not sufficient enough to keep the workers morale high. The middle management overemphasized cost cutting programs which further deteriorated workers condition. Not only this, even the union leadership was not strong enough, and the workers had to accept terms that were way below the standard. On the Organizational level Employer of choice To become an employer of choice implies that job aspirants are keen to work for you, due to which others envy your staff and the company receives spontaneous resumes and that the high potential employees remain with the company for the major part of their careers. Individuals are considered to be idol employer of choice when their employees record high levels of satisfaction and want to keep working for their them. Such companies provide consistent opportunities for both professional and personal growth alon with job security and a friendly workplace environment (Bach and Edwards, 2013). Caterpillar certainly does not appear to be an employer of choice. Its employees, both existing and former, have negative things to say about the company. The only reason of staying within the organization is survival. There is no other intrinsic or extrinsic motivation for continuing to work with Caterpillar. The most pressing problem in the case is of leadership. Leadership builds the foundation of a good company. If the foundation is weak, the edifice is bound to collapse. Leaders are the most important resource in any firm. It is general perception that organizations are competing on the basis of their technology or products however, they also compete based on their leaders. Good leaders develop talented people, and the combination presents better workforce which create ultimate value for business. Factors like employee de-motivation, dissatisfaction, absenteeism, high attrition are all linked to ineffective leadership (Kish-Gephart, Harrison Trevino, 2010). Understanding The Problem It is critical to recognize the causes which resulted in these issues. The causes which led to the above-mentioned problems must be identified in order to eliminate them so that the company does not face the same problems again in future. Person factors leading to the problems Personal attitudes and behaviour The CEO of the company and other individuals in leadership position seem to have a very domineering attitude. They do not think of their employees at all and are only interested in personal gains. Listening to workers as frequently as possible is highly imperative in developing a faithful and loyal team. All people need to be part of the bigger picture and process. Listening and interacting with the workers is something which the CEO of Caterpillar and other managers do not entertain. In addition to this, the CEO does not believe in being completely transparent and honest with his people. There is no reason why he should not be transparent (Wagner and Hollenbeck, 2014). His employees will only appreciate comprehending the exact position of the company. As there is no transparency, workers are distrustful. This is clearly evident from the responses of the workers where they state that the firm is making profits, but no rewards are coming their way. Th e CEO also lacks empathy toward his people as he is so ruthless in laying off workers for the sake of making more money. The CEO clearly has no interest in leadership development. Educating and building a progression plan for the employees is one thing that must never be neglected (French and Spears, 2011). However, the attitude of the CEO is such that he is only concerned about his power, position and salary. Environmental factors leading to the problem More Supply than Demand The market scenario of the industry is such that there are five candidates available to replace one. With such excessive supply of talent pool, the company is not concerned about retaining its existing employees. Moreover, it is in a strong position to negotiate its terms. Evidently, Caterpillar was able to tough out a strike at its Illinois plant, and all the workers had to agree to a six-year wage freeze and reduced benefits. The market condition gives the CEO the power to dictate his terms and lay off anyone as per his wish (Schermerhorn et al., 2011). He can also get more people at reduced wage rate which places him in a very advantageous position and his workers in a disadvantageous place. Concepts and Theories relevant to solving problem The CEO Oberhelman should try to understand and apply leadership principles for addressing the problem. He certainly needs to change his attitude and approach toward dealing with his people. Servant leadership is one of the concepts that can be applied here. A servant leader is known to share power, placing the needs of his people first and helping them grow and perform as high as possible (Griffin and Moorhead, 2013). When leaders and managers shift their perspectives and serve first, they unlock ingenuity and purpose in the people around them leading to higher performance and motivated employees. Situational leadership theory can also be applied in the present context. Oberhelmans leadership style must match with the requirements of the situation. ERG theory of motivation is also applicable here. The CEO can tie performance with rewards and incentives to keep his people satisfied and enthusiastic (French, 2011). Recommendations Leadership Development The CEO must issue a policy under which leaders at all hierarchical levels will create a proper growth plan for their subordinates. Having an education and growth path will not just increase worker motivation and retention but will also make a competitive and smarter team. Leadership pipelines must be developed at all levels. The focus should be to educate and retain employees rather than incessant layoffs (Hiriyappa, 2009). Rewarding both individual and team performance Reward and recognition serve as a great motivator for employees. When they see their good performance is being rewarded, they will strive to work harder. The CEO must devise a real incentive and benefit plan. This way it can also attain the position of Employer of Choice (Zoogah and Beugre, 2012). Conclusion To conclude, the main problems identified for Caterpillar are poor leadership and employee dissatisfaction. The causes of these problems are designated as the attitude and leadership style of the CEO and other managers who focus only on their interests and do not pay attention to the development of their employees. The ways to improve this situation have been recognized as the CEO adopting servant leadership style and rewarding both individual and team performances. References Cropanzano, R. and Stein, J., 2009. Organizational Justice and Behavioral Ethics: Promises and Prospects. Business Ethics Quarterly, 19, pp.193-233. Edwards, M., 2010. An integrative review of employer branding and OB theory. Personnel Review, 39(1), pp.5-23. Bach, S. and Edwards, M., 2013. Managing Human Resources: Human Resource Management in Transition. John Wiley and Sons. Zoogah, D. and Beugre, C., 2012. Managing Organizational Behavior in the African Context. Routledge. Caterpillar. 2017. About Caterpillar. [Online]. Available through: https://www.caterpillar.com/en/company.html. [Accessed on 12th September 2017]. Kish-Gephart, J. J., Harrison, D. A., Trevino, L. K. (2010). Bad apples, bad cases, and bad barrels: Meta-analytic evidence about sources of unethical decisions at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, pp. 95, 1-31. Wagner, J. and Hollenbeck, J., 2014. Organizational Behavior: Securing Competitive Advantage. Routledge. Schermerhorn, J., Osborn, R., Bien, M. and Hunt, J., 2011. Organizational Behaviors. John Wiley Sons. Griffin, R. and Moorhead, G., 2013. Organizational Behavior: Managing People and Organizations. Cengage Learning. Hiriyappa, B., 2009. Organizational Behavior. New Age International. French, R., 2011. Organizational Behavior. John Wiley Sons. French, S. and Spears, L., 2011. The Spirit of Servant-leadership. Paulist Press.

Lord Of The Flies By William Golding Essays (938 words)

Lord Of The Flies By William Golding The Island is a microcosm of the evil we produce in the world today. Greed, power, domination are all factors of evil in the story line and in today's society. The first human instinct is survival. The fittest will survive, as in the book, and in today's world. For example, someone who is very skilled in math or physical feats may receive a scholarship pertaining to their skill. Taller and attractive people seem to get the better and higher paying jobs. Aborigines in Australia will eat grubs and insects to survive. We may find this repulsive but human instinct rules when we have no other options. Our human instinct also makes us frown upon people with undesirable traits such as obesity, poor eyesight or deformities. These people cannot fend for themselves as well as fitter people and die off so they may not reproduce. The fittest survive. The role of survival of the fittest was best described on (pg. 8) "I can't swim on account of my asthma". Piggy was already going down in the food chain of the island. Ralph was a tall attractive boy who had very good leadership skills. It is no wonder that he voted in as leader. Piggy can't defend himself . An example of this is (pg. 17) "Shut up fatty." Another example is when piggy wants to come with them up the mountain,(pg. 20), " I'll come." " your no good for a job like this" .The boys on the island resorted to killing pigs with such savagery when they felt that they were hungry. When there is no order chaos arises. There are many examples of this in our society today. Riots happen when the people think they can get away with it. The number of people outweigh the number of authority figures. People hurt other people and steal. This is not something that would happen in an ordered society. All these people know what's right and wrong but their human instinct gets the better of them when they think they can get always with it. The same thing happened on the island. With no authority like the adults or (police) things turned into anarchy. They were trying to kill each other and ran around like savages just because they had no one to tell them they couldn't do that. There was a lot of emphasis that they were children and that is why this happened. That is simply not true. Look at my example above, people that riot have no authority to tell others to stop. You could compare that kind of behavior to what children would do if they were put in charge of the world. Today's society is full of bad leaders such as "Sadam Husain" , "Slobodam Molosovich" , "Adolf Hitler" and many more. They lead their people with false ideals and hidden agendas. Their thirst for power killed thousands of people and caused grief and suffering for millions. Hitler killed millions of Jews and that is something the German people will have to live with for ever. Sadam Husain tried to take more land for his country and failed and made more people suffer. Molosovich didn't want to give up his rule over the Albanians and killed alot of them in the process. Jacks hunger for power grew just as these leader's hunger grew too. (pg. 140) " I'm not going to be part of Ralph's lot" , " I'm going off by myself..... Any one that wants to hunt when I do can come too". Jack's power grew so great that he made the boys think that there was a beast which ultimately killed Simon. He didn't care when a big rock squished Piggy and to make things unbearable he tried to murder Ralph. Also there were many great leaders such as Bill Clinton (debatable), George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, John A MacDonald and more. These Leaders lead their people with great emphasis toward the minority and fought for equal rights. Bill Clinton puts bad leaders in their place, George Washington fought for the independence of America, Abraham Lincoln freed the Blacks from oppression and John A MacDonald fought for Canada to become a whole country. Jack was a great leader that kept the boys in order and kept their one hope of getting of the island alive An example of this is when it was Ralph's idea to go search the Island (pg. 20) " .....three of us will go on [an] expedition and find

Essay Samples About Pakistan

Essay Samples About PakistanWhen you are searching for essay samples about Pakistan, it is important to understand the importance of studying the history of this country. The people in Pakistan have been very proud of their nation and they pride themselves in their heritage. Therefore, understanding the culture of this country is very important when you are writing your essay.One of the best essay samples about Pakistan that you can find online is 'I Am Pakistani: Thoughts on Pakistan.' This essay sample offers you an insight into Pakistani culture. It helps you to answer your question: 'What makes a Pakistani?' This essay sample includes a discussion of various topics, such as religion, social class, national politics, the economy, the military, television, modern art, history, and many more.Another essay samples about Pakistan is 'History of Modern Pakistan: The Personal Story.' This essay sample covers various topics that relate to the concept of Pakistan. You will be asked to tak e into consideration the various aspects of culture, religion, society, national, and international politics, and the state of the economy. This essay sample is perfect for college students as well as those who want to write their own history-based essays.Another of the essay samples about Pakistan is 'Modern Pakistan - An International Study.' This is a great resource for students who want to expand their knowledge on Pakistan and those who want to get an insight into the different lifestyles and concepts of the people of Pakistan. In this essay sample, you will be asked to analyze current issues of modern Pakistan and you will also be asked to discuss how you view the role of religion in this country.There are a lot of essay samples about Pakistan that are perfect for students in pre-college and high school. As long as you know your subject well, you can find a topic that you will be comfortable with. If you donot know much about the subject, you can always use websites that offer these samples.You may also want to choose a topic that interests you and this can also be helpful in finding essay samples about Pakistan. You can look for topics that interest you by doing some research or by reading up on the topic yourself. You may also want to ask your guidance counselor if there are any activities in your school that are related to the topic.There are also free essay samples about Pakistan that you can check out. There are many of these websites that offer free resources for those who are looking for an idea on how to write an essay about Pakistan. These resources may include lesson plans, research papers, and other resources that you can use to better your essay writing skills.If you want to better your skills on writing about Pakistan, it is important to find essay samples about Pakistan. There are many sources available online and if you take your time to search, you can find the information that you need. Take some time to research all of the resources tha t are available and find the one that suits your needs the best.

Government Censorship Would Damage The Atmosphere Of The Freedom To Ex

Government Censorship would damage the atmosphere of the freedom to express ideas on the Internet; therefore, government should not encourage censorship Thesis: Government Censorship would damage the atmosphere of the freedom to express ideas on the Internet; therefore, government should not encourage censorship. Introduction I. In the Internet community, there is a large volume of technical terms. For this reason, it is first necessary to examine the terminology specific to Internet. 1. The internet is a world wide computer network. 1. Electronic mail (email), which is one component of the Internet, approximates person to person letters, memoranda, notes and even phone calls. 2. Another term that is often used is electronic news (enews/Usenet), enews is a broadcast, free to the Internet medium. 3. The term FTP is also frequently used. File transfer protocol (FTP) started as an Internet archival and retrieval medium, somewhat analogous to traditional libraries. 4. The world-wide web (WWW), which is another component of the Net, can be used to "publish" material that would traditionally appear in journals, magazines, posters, books, television and even on film. 2. It is also essential to give a brief history on the internet. 3.The U.S. government is now trying to pass bills to prevent misuse of the Net. II. In order to understand the need for the ever-growing body of legislation, it is important to explore the controversy, and the current problems involved with the Net as it exists must be introduced. 1. The problem that concerns most people is offensive materials such as pornography. 2. Another crucial internet crime is the stealing of credit card numbers. III. One reaction to this inapplicability has been the "Censor the Net" approach (the censorship bill), we are now to compare its advantages and disadvantages. 1. First, the meaning of "Censoring the Net" must be explained. 2. However, many experts have pointed out that government censorship is not possible. 1. First, it is not fair to exclude the freedom and damage the atmosphere of freely expressing ideas just for the safety of children. 2. Most internet users are enjoying their freedom of speech on the Net, which is supposed to be protected by our First Amendment. 3. Additionally, only a very small portion of the Net contains offensive material, most people do not use the Net for pornography. 4. It must be understood that censoring the Net is technically impossible. 5. While people are concerned about Internet pornography, it should be recognized that pornography is sometimes legal; for example, pornography is legal in video and magazines. IV. There are many alternative measures to government censorship which would prevent misuse of the Net and would have the same effects as censorship. 1. It is very important for parents to provide moral guidance for their children, and parents should have this responsibility. 2. However, at the same time as we carry out moral guidance, we have to come out with some short term approaches to solve the problem in a more efficient way as well. 3. An alternative to government censorship is the technological fix, which would prevent misuse of the Net and would have the same effects as government censorship. 1. One example of technological fix is the "SurfWatch" software. 2. Also, commercial Internet service providers, such as "America Online", allow parents to control what Internet relay chat (IRC) sessions are available to their children. 3. Another technological fix is for parents and guardians to have a separate "proxy server" for their children's web browser. 4. There are no computer programs to automatically and reliably classify material; only people can do it. As a result, while practicing technological fixes, the classification of the contents of the material when posting is very important. 5. Nowadays, most internet users classify their postings with standard categories, and leave signatures at the end of postings. 6. The combination of the installation of censoring software and the classification of materials is a much better solution than government censorship. Conclusion The Internet is a wonderful place of entertainment and education but like all places used by millions of people, it has some murky corners people would prefer children not to explore. In the physical world society as a whole conspires to protect children, but there are no social or physical constraints to Internet surfing. The Internet Censorship Bill of 1995, also known as the Exon/Coats Communications Decency Act, has been introduced in the U.S. Congress. It would make it a criminal offense to make available to children anything that is indecent, or to send anything indecent with "intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass" ("Stop the Communications ..." n.p.). The goal of this bill as written (though not as stated by its

The Euro Plight

The Euro Plight A single currency for the countries in the Eurozone was an idea that was brought up with the hope that this would steer economic development and eliminate trading barriers within this block. This has however turned to be a hindrance to economic growth within the region instead.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on The Euro Plight specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More With the Eurozone economic crisis and deflation that has been witnessed in the countries within the Eurozone, the Euro currency has lost its value against other world currencies. It has for instance been exchanging at around $1.32 against the US Dollar in the resent past as evident in the graph bellow. Various measures have been put in place so as to save the Euro from the loss of value. One of these measures has been the purchasing of assets by the Central Banks of various countries. Performance of the Euro against the US Dollar The bank of Japan for instan ce launched a stimulus program where it was supposed to purchase assets with the intention of strengthening the Yen against major world currencies with the Euro included. This came in the wake of the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve taking the same measures to strengthen their currencies. The purchasing of government as well as corporate bonds was aimed at strengthening the yen against major world currencies but it did not yield much as expected. Strengthening the yen only helped in reducing oversees corporate earnings. The exporters do not get maximum profits when the currency is so strong against other world currencies and this to some extend slowed down the economic recovery. The same measures that did not work quite effectively for the bank of Japan have been undertaken by the European Central Bank which is a clear indication that the Eurozone Economic Crisis is still far from being resolved. A stronger currency without the creation of jobs and building a platf orm for economic development would do little to avert the Eurozone crisis. With all efforts being made to rescue the Euro against depreciating, the currency has remained consolidated for a long time against the major world currencies hence the need to come up with other formulas so as to save this currency. The currency has lost by 0.12% against the sterling pound hence exchanging at 0.8022. It also depreciated against other major currencies like the Swiss franc were it depreciated by 0.19% hence exchanging at 1.2088 Franc per Euro.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Performance of the Euro against the Sterling Pound The Bank of Japan had opted for quantitative easing which involves the printing of more currency. This money is then used in the purchasing of bonds as well as other bank assets from banks. This then implies that these banks have more money at their disposal to issue as loans, improving their infrastructure and creation of employment by the opening of more branches, increasing their assets which then trickle down to economic growth. This also helps in lowering the interest rates and this is quite critical in economic stimulation. It encourages spending and investment hence economic growth. The aim is basically to counter deflation by reducing interest and creating enough quantity reserve hence raising the price of these assets. The extremely lower interest rates might however make it hard for the banks to sail through inflation. This measure also causes distortion on the government dept particularly given that some government borrowings are usually with extremely low rates and buying such securities and bonds are likely to slow down economic stimulation and any changes on these can have an enormous impact on the economy. Sovereigns are also likely to mismanage their finances as they might not obey market pressures hence puttin g pressure on the economy. The European Central Bank had taken up these measures in an effort to alleviate the European Economic Crisis. In spite of all these measures the Euro has not strengthened much against the world major currencies for instance the Japanese Yen where the Euro depreciated by 0.02 to exchange at 102.79 Yen per Euro. Performance of the Euro against the Japanese Yen The Capital Markets have particularly been closed to some countries as well as banks in the zone due to the crisis but the European Central Bank has promised to take some short-term actions in an effort to revive the bonds market. All the measures taken are meant to rescue the Eurozone from the Economic crisis but this is not supposed to act as a quick fix and it will take time before the recovery is fully realized.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on The Euro Plight specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More By the end of next year, it is exp ected that the crisis will be over. Investors are however very cautious on the economic situation in the region with countries such as Spain which still need to be bailed out of their debts. This has slowed down the economic development in the region hence slowing down the recovery. The tax laws need to be changed so as to reduce the dept which is having a great effect on the GDP of the countries within the Eurozone. A compromise has to be reached concerning the tax laws as well as the appropriate measures to be taken so us to save the Euro. The issue of creation of employment as well as reducing job loses is quite crucial in averting the crisis even though all the parties concerned have not found a common solution to this particular issue. The road to recovery has been quite sluggish with so many obstacles to be overcome. The Euro currency has particularly consolidated with no major variations in terms of appreciation or depreciation of the Euro. Lapavitsas, Costas. Crisis in the Eurozone. London: Verso Books, 2012.

Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essays

Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essays Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essay Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) Essay Essay Topic: Nashville Name Course Instructor Date Civil Engineering (Transportation Engineering) A. Civil engineering is a specialized engineering discipline, which involves in construction, design and the continuation of the physical and naturally made environment. Civil engineering is also the process of applying physical and scientific principles. Roads, buildings, bridges are set under this field. The civil engineering works are seen in the construction of main roads in the country incorporating the profession to built strong, stable and longer lasting sites. The history of civil engineering is associated with knowledge of science, geology, geography, mechanics, structures and other subjects. Engineering has been a feature of the human life since time immemorial and its earliest practices are traced back to the Ancient Egypt when people began agriculture and abandoned their nomadic lifestyle. A gap for housing created the need for shelter construction and civil engineering was born. Civil engineering is inclusive of both the private and private sector. In government, it is from the lowest level of municipal council to the national federal government. The government hires the work of professional engineers for the buildings and infrastructural development. These engineers also help the government to formulate, direct and safeguard building laws by establishing codes of construction of structures and buildings. For the private sector, it is local companies, homeowners, national and international companies. Without civil engineering, the buildings, roads, railways, air systems, dams would occasionally deal with problems of instability, unsafe and eventually fall apart. It covers wide range professions involving various fields. These professions include environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, urban engineering, structural engineering, transportation engineering, hydraulic engineering and construction engineering. Environmental engineering improves the natural environment by applying science, engineering, and assess construction projects and their effects on the environment. Environmental engineers engage in studies of pollution, control of radiation levels, setting laws for environmental engineering, containing levels of wastewater and provide insight on the engineering laws of the environment (ABET) Construction engineering occupies the position similar to that of a business nature with the supplies and conducting logistical operations, price monitoring and drafting or reviewing agreements and contracts. It fits in a variety of design executing and planning of transportation, hydraulic, site development, and geotechnical and construction engineers. Management of buildings, highways, airports, railways, bridges and other infrastructures is carried out by construction engineers. (Chapman, p.67) Geotechnical engineering is a branch of Civil Engineering collaborating with knowledge from geology, mechanics concerning the rock and soil (earth material) Geotechnical engineers deal with building at ground level by investigating semi surface materials and conditional ties to uncover their properties. As a result, the standards of a solid foundation of the construction project are set (Engineering and Technology) Structural Engineering is an area concerned with the structures like towers, sea gas fields, bridges in their design and analysis. They formulate design considerations such as strength, stability, cost and sustainability of the structure. (Sims, p. 65) Urban Engineering also called municipal engineering takes in aspects of art, science and engineering for the environment in urban areas. It stipulates designing and assesses publi c works, public and leisure parks, networks for water supply and sidewalks. The professionals coordinate and manage these infrastructures. Transportation engineering is an area particular with transportation design, Intelligent Transport System (ITS) designing and maintaining transport infrastructure. Efficiency and safety is important in transport engineering. B Transportation engineering is a major feature of civil engineering and a preferred choice for many. The facilities supported are air, water, railways, space and pipeline transportation. It is a broad area, of railway engineering, port and harbor engineering, pipeline engineering and airport engineering. Technology and specialized scientific principles are applied into the operational planning, functional design and coordination of facilities for a variety of modes of transport. This provides for comfortable, convenient, efficiency and safety in the movement of persons and their goods. Urban planning is related to this field of engineering in terms of planning by using forecasting decisions and political issues (Chen et. al, p.120). Passenger travel carries out technical forecasting which usually involves a model of urban planning in estimation of trips in their generation, mode to be undertaken, decisions made by travelers (trip chaining) and distribution. Trips of passengers are vital because they are a representation of the level of demand in either transport arrangement. These human factors are valuable especially with contact of the users, drivers and their vehicles. In designing, transport engineering takes account of the area covered by the facility (size and capacity), vertical and parallel alignment, thickness, weight and the materials to be used. The size and capacity influence the choice the material for construction whether roads, railroads, airports and highways. The alignment is of value whether vertical and horizontal in order to avoid poor positioning of the structures and modes of transport. The thickness is used to make sure the structure is safe and stable to prevent it from falling and killing people in the future. The weight and materials used are key determinants of the design, stability and long lasting of the work constructed. Control and operations techniques in traffic engineering and modern technologies such a s Intelligent (Kapoor, p. 74) Transportation Systems for traveling individual’s modes of information, improved traffic control systems and the integration of vehicles and infrastructure. The practice by the engineers integrates planning for the means of transport and the planning determine the overall outlook of roads, airports, ports and highways. C To become a professional civil engineer, one has to study at a credited institution and acquire an academic degree. The degree has to be a major in civil engineering. The period of study varies from various universities from three to five years. Some offer it as a Bachelor of Engineering while others as a Bachelor of Science. Units such as physics, design, mathematics and some disciplines of civil engineering are covered. Further studies can be undertaken for specializing in a specialized area of interest in civil engineering as some universities offer awards for postgraduate engineering. After education, the engineers are certified after meeting the conditions of a professional engineering body. The requirements are exam results and some level of work experience and other conditions prescribed by the professional body. Afterwards the engineer acquires the title of Professional Engineer according to the United States system. Most Commonwealth countries refer to them as Chartered Pr ofessional Engineer (Kapoor,p.68). Relevant Professional bodies have established International Agreements on engineering that provide for engineers to practice their profession worldwide without border limits. These professional bodies play a key role in making certain that ethical standards are observed. For example in America, only a licensed professional Engineer can make preparations on engineering plans, signed and sealed to the public authority or for other clients. The works are calculation of a study, designs settings, reports, valuations, supervising and analyzing engineering works and technical documents. Specializing in engineering enables an engineer to have an increased knowledge and intense understanding in their area of specialization and expertise. D The West Broadway (CSAH 103) is a transit way project, which has been established in Brooklyn Park this comes after the City of Brooklyn Park agreed to work with the Hennepin County to rebuild the West Broad Way Avenue. The Hennepin County is the lead agency in the development of the construction (Flood, p.85) Increasing the road from about 500ft south of the Candlewood Drive to close to 500ft north of the 93rd Avenue North this is the target of the project. The roadway section will add a new traffic signal at the intersection of the Candlewood Drive. The roadway is to have an upgrade to have four lanes and raise the concrete median. The urban section is to be increased at all intersections inclusive of all the intersections. Locations such as 84th Avenue and 93rd Avenue are also set to receive upgrades. However, there are some conditions, which should be given priority and the Hennepin County for instance, the signal requirements are to be set by the County. The transportation engineers have presented a designed layout to the City Council, which has given the rights to carry on the construction. This was done after they had done the prerequisite preparations and planning. Technological and specialized scientific principles were used to apply into the operational planning, functional design and coordination of various facilities. The engineers are set to maintain and overlook the construction of these structures. They are tasked to make sure that the planning is done well and completed without any obstructions. They will look into the human factors that drive the Broadway project. Such like factor are the trips made by the users, their interface with the vehicles, road and traffic lights and trip chaining. All these will dictate how the overall project’s outcome. The project w ill also purpose to make transportation less costly, easier, environment friendly, accessible and efficient. During the formulation of the project, the engineers considered the size and capacity of the road, alignment and the materials they were to use. The materials are to be of high quality and long lasting. They used advanced technology like the Intelligent Transportation Systems and traffic control systems. They also work with other branches of engineering to prevent any loopholes. They work with environmental engineers in order to prevent environmental pollution and causing harm to both the human and natural environment during and after the construction period. The engineers have also explained the provided environmental rules to avoid infringing the laws of the environment. If there will be a recommended transit way the design plans will have to be revised leading to the amendment of the Environmental Assessment. This is because of inadequate funding and the transit way is not instituted in the initial design. There were no expectations for the financing of the transit way at the time. Moreover, that can be done in the future. Currently, the schedule includes relocating the existing Xcel Energy transmission line and poles along the west side of CSAH 103 between 89th and 83rd Avenues to further locations in the West. This will be the first phase of the Project (Projects of Brooklyn Park, 2012) in 2014, the Northern portions (85th and 93rd Avenues are) of the construction are expected to have began. The South of 85th Avenue is projected for the period of 2015 to 2016. This project is going to improve transportation and increase the area covered, as it is currently narrow. It will improve the accommodation of the corridor users who are primarily the pedestrians, cars, cyclists and residents. The drainage is also going to be upgraded and the roadside ditches removed according to the engineers. The project also shows the challenges transport engineers face in their line of work. Especially challenges arise in transport engineering because it mainly conducts jobs of public works and for the society. Some of the locals on Brooklyn have rejected the proposals made by Hennepin County. On the construction of the sideway and this is a set back because they are forced to compromise in some of the construction sites (Projects of Brooklyn Park, 2012) The lack of proper funding has also reduced the scope of work and the engineers are forced to let do of a section of the project in the transit way. These are the main challenges facing the project. The project is set to enhance the transportation of people and their products and enhance security in the Brooklyn area. Civil Engineering since its inception in Ancient Egypt has improved numerous aspects of human life. The road system has improved since the use of Macadam roads to modernized highways and lanes. The railway engineers have also advanced to fast track rails and speed trains. Civil Engineering in current times is also using space studies a modern means of transport that entails scientific technology of taking people to discover the space and the universe from a different view. Including science and art into the profession has led to construction of historical landmarks and buildings such as the Brooklyn Bridge that will have a lasting effect on the human race. Civil engineering has promoted the construction of environment friendly structures, which prevent pollution and water resources depletion. In the 21st century, the discipline has marked major changes and advances to improve the life of human beings on earth. Work Cited Chapman, Allan. England‘s Leornardo: Robert Hooke and the Seventeenth Century’s Scientific Revolution.2005 CRC Press Print â€Å"Projects City of Brooklyn Park Minnesota† brooklynpark.com. 5 October 2012. Web. 5 October 2012. Chen, Wai-Fah, and J Y. R. Liew. The Civil Engineering Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2003.Print ABET. â€Å"Civil Engineering†. Accrediting College Programs in Applied Science, Computing, 2010, April 8 Web. 5 October 2012 Engineering and Technology. Retrieved from http:www//www.abet.org/ October 5, 2012 web Kapoor, R. Dictionary of Civil Engineering. New Delhi: SBS Publishers Distributors, 2009. Print. Flood, Ian. Towards a Vision for Information Technology in Civil Engineering: Proceedings of the Fourth Joint International Symposium on Information Technology in Civil Engineering : November 15-16, 2003, Nashville, Tennessee, Usa. Reston, Va.: ASCE, 2004. Print.