Sunday, January 19, 2020

Affirmative Action Essay -- Affirmative Action Essays

After the United States Congress passed the Civil Rights Act in 1964, it became apparent that certain business traditions, such as seniority status and aptitude tests, prevented total equality in employment. Then President, Lyndon B. Johnson, decided something needed to be done to remedy these flaws. On September 24, 1965, he issued Executive Order #11246 at Howard University that required federal contractors â€Å"to take Affirmative Action to ensure that applicants are employed . . . without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin (Civil Rights).† With the signing of that order, and without knowing it, President Johnson created reverse discrimination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Affirmative Action was created in an effort to help minorities leap the discriminative barriers that were ever so present when the bill was first enacted, in 1965. At this time, the country was in the wake of nationwide civil- rights demonstrations, and racial tension was at an all time high. Most of the corporate executive and managerial positions were occupied by White Males, who controlled the hiring and firing of employees. The U.S. government, in 1965, believed that these employers were discriminating against Minorities and believed that there was no better time than the present to bring about change. This action, that started with good intentions, would later lead to a different and more complex form of discrimination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When the Civil Rights Law passed, Minorities, especially African- Americans, believed that they should receive retribution for the earlier years of discrimination they endured. The government responded by passing laws to aide them in attaining better employment as reprieve for the previous two hundred years of suffering their race endured at the hands of the White Man. To many people the passing of these laws was an effort in the right direction. Supporters of Affirmative Action asked, †why not let the government help them get better jobs?† After all, the White Man was responsible for their suffering. While this may all be true, there is another question to be asked. Are we truly responsible for the years of persecution that the African Americans and other Minorities were submitted to? I am not so sure.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is true that past generations of White Men are p... ..., and other policies benefiting families with young children. Widely supported programs that promote the interests of both lower and middle class Americans that deliver benefits to Minorities and Whites on the basis of their economic status, and not their race or ethnicity, will do more to reduce Minority poverty than the current, narrowly based, poorly supported policies that single out Minority groups. However, if this, or another remedy is not taken sometime in the near future, and Affirmative Action continues to separate Minority groups from Whites, we can be sure to see racial tension reach points that our history has never seen. Works Cited â€Å"Affirmative Action at the University of California at Berkeley† Online. http://pwa.acusd.edu/~e_cook/ucb-95.html â€Å"Civil Rights† Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia. (1996). [Computer Program] SoftKey Multimedia International Corporation. United States. Commission on Civil Rights. Affirmative Action in the 1980's: Dismantling the Process of Discrimination. Washington: 1981. United States. Nebraska Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Private Sector Affirmative Action: Omaha. Washington: 1979.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Crazy Eddie Essay

1) Red flags were the increase on short-term investment receivables why would an electronic company have short-term investments in the first place. Increase of prepaid inventory in 1987 should be alarm nearly double from 1986. The company gross profit margin was stable of around 13%-16% average there was no need to increase inventory prepaid. Also lack of accounts payable and account receivable was a sign every retail company should have bad debt expense or allowance for doubtful accounts as customers may commit fraud to purchase products. The inventory age of went from 80 in 1986 to 111 in 1987 yet cost of goods sold primarily consisted of inventory was average from 1984 to 1987 2) Several audit procedures could have been performed to attest Crazy Eddie wrong doing A) The falsifying inventory count sheet would be detected if the auditors randomly performed inventory count and compare it to the Crazy Eddie sheet and consulted with inventory experts of how companies can deceive auditors. B) Bogus email could been investigated by requesting back support documentation to support the memos and also if this was mentioned  during executive meetings by reviewing the executive board minutes. Also by contacting the vendor and reconciling their receivables to payables of Crazy Eddie. C) Transhipping sales would have been by reviewing account receivable process from start to finish. Review payment of the sale invoices and checking shipping department log of when transshipment was done and of course contact the buyer to authenticate the sale to place. D) Consignment of inventory is to also audit their inventory and compare it to Crazy Eddie log and review of the contra ct between both parties how they operate the consignment agreement 3) As auditors they analyze the industry they are in and even compare financial records of other companies in the same industry for regularities and irregularities. During the 80’s it was evident that the electronic industry was declining and ever changing leaving certain products to being obsolete. Transhipping made it difficult, as they were able and justify the reasoning for buying large number of products however auditors should be able to communicate with supervisors of the life shelf of products and be able to produce aging schedule for each product they sell. 4) Lowballing in the audit context is to charge a client cheap in order to offer other services at fair or premium costs. Other services perform by the same firm of the independent client does violate its independence as the firm footprint with the company gets bigger and creates conflict of interest as some can be audits of services they provided to the company violating external independence and objectively 5) Member of the audit team if a third of the sample size I requested cannot be find I would suspicious and question if the sale even took place. Also means that I will need to select more sales with that time period to see if more exceptions appear. Also I would receive their sales process and witness the process for deficiencies and evaluate other ways to detect red flags for example selecting sales from shipping department or warehouse department for possible red flags as well. 6) I believe its common for audit members to join clients team as management already know the value he brings and since Sarbanes Oxley and PCAOB does not prohibit the practice will continue on. That person is familiar with their accounting system therefore he will be more efficient that bringing a person new also the relationship with audit firm can be strengthen and less problematic having that person as an liaison during the audit period. The cons are the negative light and question the independence of the audit firm. The person may have extensive knowledge how to deceive and commit unethical transactions without his former employer knowing. Facts Eddie was born in 1947 into a large close Syrian family. and dropped out of high school at the age of 16 years old and peddled television in Brooklyn neighborhood. By 1969 Antar and one of his cousins have funds to open consumer electronic store called Crazy Eddie. Crazy Eddie was nickname given to Antar through his behavior towards customers, vendors, and subordinates. For example Antar would block the exit door even locking door until the individual agreed to buy something anything Antar distinctive trait was the inability to trust anyone outside his big family circle and mostly relatives hold company positions in all capacity. Crazy Eddie was know for marketing advertising antics in 1972 Antar hired radio personality know as Dr. Jerry as Crazy Eddie’s advertising spokesman. Discounting policy was the theme to the campaigns promising to refund the difference of the selling price and lower retail price with the 30 days of purchase. In the early 1980’s electron industry exploded lead to increasing growth to Crazy Eddie by 1987 the company product sales were the following Antar encourage to upsell the customer and to purchase extended warranty as the electronic was already insured by the manufacturer lead to high profit margin Crazy Eddie would purchase large amount of quantity and avoid large concessions expenses that allowed him ‘’transhipper ‘’ commonly known as secondary supplier to smaller stores in the New York City area . In1983 Crazy Eddie decided to go public to raise capital for expansion but  was delayed over year for the IPO as underwriter discovered several discrepancies of the company financial records and relatives role in the business key example his wife and mother received 6 figure salaries for little or no work. Recommended Antar to hire CFO with public company experience and hired his cousin Sam Antar as his CFO. The sale of stock was tremendous success and with the permission of the SEC issued 200,000 more stock. One way to sway financial analyst for positive reviews was to invite them to his store and show his salesman skills to close sales . One analyst wrote ‘’Crazy is a self disciplined competently organized firm with a sophisticated management and a well trained, dedicated staff’’ Based on the 1984-1987 financial statement and rave financial reviews investors from the IPO realized 1,000 percent increase In 1986 Antar resigned from the company but remained chairperson member but after a few weeks he completely withdrew from the company. By 1987 the end of the electronic bubble, increased local competition, diminished supplier leverage, and family issues most notably bitter divorce as a result family members picking sides were the indication of the Crazy Eddie downfall. Mismanagement of the company and poor financial reports plummeted the stock as regulatory officials started investigating. November 1987 the company was taken over by two individuals while performing due diligence they uncovered 65 million inventory storage Extensive investigating SEC alleged Antar was worried about company stock and ordered staff commit fraud by overstate/understate balance sheet items like overstate receivable by 2 million the following yellow understating payables by 9 million dollars. Overstated inventory with non-existent products Prepare bogus memos reports and entered in company accounting records Included consignment & goods to manufacturer as revenue Overstating transshipping inventory transactions Understating COSGS Peat Marwick was the Crazy Eddie accounting firm but the underwriters  suggested to hire bigger recognizable firm and comply to hire Main Hurdman that merged with Marwick was the independent auditor for modest ‘’lowball’’ fee while offering over non-auditing services to make up the difference. Hurdman charged Crazy Eddie 85 thousand for auditing service while charging millions to do their computer inventory systems. Questioning Hurdman independence and objectively as Crazy Eddie accountant were former Hurdman staff. Hurdman defense was Antar would properly stock year end inventory to hide any shortages and systematically conceal documentations of shortages and to junk their computer operated inventory system and return to manual system making difficult to determine actual ending inventory at time period the entire accounting department participating in the collusion to throw off auditors. In 1989 Crazy Eddie lost line of credit and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Antar was arrested with 17 counts of financial fraud in 1993 and publicly admitted to defrauding investors by manipulating accounting records in May of 1996. Lawsuit was settled in 1993 in the amount of 42 million to various defendants including Peat Marwick Analysis Crazy Eddie problems started with the idea to increase its expand the heavily tied family business and decided to take the company public than have venture capitalist provide the capital instead. We can see why it went public electronic started becoming the norm and disposable income complimented the fast growing industry. Crazy Eddie had the advantage similar to Wal-Mart being able to purchase large quantities at a low rate and taking a step forward to being second supplier to small business. Crazy Eddie failed to acknowledge or wasn’t aware of the product cycle and wasn’t able to forecast of where the industry was headed nor did it know the life of technology it was buying would not outpace demand. Management at Crazy Eddie raised concerns regarding experience and education to make sound decisions to operating and financing structure the company needed also family had to be problem as some relatives received a salary just because they’re family. After going public the Antar realized financial ratios had to be sound and used his power to convince the public that his company was  growing despite the current trends. His power was used to commit fraud and deceive the public in order to maintain the stock price like Enron would do a decade later and had the support of the entire accounting finance decision as no one reported to the SEC of their wrong doing Recommendations Recommendations for Crazy Eddie are to have the right management in place from executives to senior positions. Individuals that understand the industry trends and operate as efficiently possible. Finance department needed not only strong accounting department but an even stronger internal audit department that can properly perform Sarbanes Oxley section 404, SAS 69, SAS 99, SAS 109, SAS 115 for internal control practitioners to identify, prioritize, evaluate, and test the controls in place to prevent fraud and other financial statement material errors. Internal audit needs to be candid with external auditors and share information that can benefit external auditors during the financial audit a lot of sensitive valuable information went rogue that could been used to detect operations inventory fraud. References Sarbanes Oxley Section 404 Internal Control Practitioners Statement on Auditing Standards 69 The Meaning of Present Fairly in Conformity With Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Statement on Auditing Standards 99 Consideration of Fraud in a Financial Statement Audit Statement on Auditing Standards 109 Understanding the Entity and Its Environment and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement Statement on Auditing Standards 115 Communicating Internal Control Related Matters Identified in an Audit

Thursday, December 26, 2019

The Energy Source Of Energy - 868 Words

In an era where fossil fuels are the dominant source of energy, environmentalists and scientists are looking for alternative energy sources in the fear that fossil fuels will sooner or later become consumed by our energy needs. In the hunt to find a strong alternative energy source, scientists have reverted back to an old formula E=MC2. The indicated formula was first thought up by Albert Einstein to describe a part of general relativity in the paper â€Å"Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?† Furthermore, in his publication Albert Einstein explains that mass and kinetic energy are proportionally equal. Meaning you can transfer energy into mass and vice versa. In addition if you are able to transfer mass into energy that mass will be multiplied by the speed of light (C) squared, meaning that a little mass can turn into a lot of energy. Moreover, Einstein’s reasoning for using the speed of light is because atoms when separated travel the speed of l ight thus carrying a lot of energy. At the time Einstein was working on trying to find ways to separate and or fuse atoms in order to gain energy and put his formula to use. However, today we have found two different ways of doing so in what we call nuclear fusion and nuclear fission. Nuclear fusion has been around since the big bang, as it is the process that powers stars just like ours and is how our universe continues to grow. Moreover, nuclear fusion occurs when two or more atoms fuse together at very highShow MoreRelatedEnergy Sources Of Energy Source Essay1464 Words   |  6 PagesEnergy is a big part of our lives. We are heating our homes with natural gas or electricity and driving to and from work and any other outdoors activities. Our main source of the energy people use is fossil fuels and in the future, the availability of those sources has an end date. 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Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Analyze Globalizations Impact on Singapores Development.

â€Å"A developed country is one that allows all its citizens to enjoy a free and healthy life in a safe environment.† These are the wise words of Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations. Thus, there are a set of tangible criteria to help determine the development of a country, of which economic criteria tend to dominate, with indicators such as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as well as other social and security needs of the people, with the recent Human Development Index (HDI) which measures overall well-being of the people. So, with the recent phenomenon of globalization becoming ever more widespread in our society today, there is no doubt that it has impacts, both positive and negative, on the development of Singapore as†¦show more content†¦This will boost the economy of Singapore as when more companies are willing to invest in Singapore, especially due to our strengths like competitive workforce and strategic location, it will result in great er influx of capital. It will also result in a creation of jobs for the people, boosting employment rate and generating revenue for both the country and the individual. Take for instance, the chip used in the latest PlayStation3 and Xbox. A French semiconductor company, Soitec, is investing $700 million to set up in Singapore its first offshore facility to make the wafer for this chip. The wafers involve alternating layers of silicon and insulator, unlike conventional wafers which use silicon throughout. Soitec is coming here because its technology has to be well-protected, and we are the only country in Asia that they trust well enough to set up their first manufacturing campus outside of France. Thus, positive development is a sure thing with globalization. Furthermore, since in the modern day context, money is a key indicator of happiness, thus, Singapore’s development can be mirrored by the happiness of the people with their monetary needs fulfilled. However, the development of Singapore’s society cannot be predicated on pure economics alone. Even though globalization has enabled Singapore to fare well in economic development, however, termed the perils of success, globalization has brought about undesirableShow MoreRelatedDubais Political and Economic Development: Essay38738 Words   |  155 PagesDUBAIS POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: AN OASIS TN THE DESERT? by CHRISTOPHER DeNICOLA A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Political Science WILLIAMS COLLEGE Williamstown, Massachusetts MAY 10,2005 Table of Contents I Persian Gulf Development Literature Oil Curse Literature Arab and Islamic Factors Regional Ovemiew and Historical Background Dubais Development History I1 PI1 Explaining

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Case Study & Strategic Management Of EBAY - Free Sample

Question: Critically examine the relationship and the need for compatibility between corporate strategic and functional management policies. Analyse the internal and external influences on corporate objectives and strategy. Demonstrate the need for flexibility in strategic management and the practical limits of quantifying corporate strategy. Percentage Of Marks Awarded For Module 50% of the total marks for the module Assessment Criteria Explanatory comments on the assessment criteria. Answer: Introduction The business environment of the retail company eBay is evaluated in the report. Strategic purpose includes the business mission and vision of EBAY. To operate in the retail industry in UK, the company follows some values, which are discussed here. Strategic statement of EBAY presents a clear view on value proposition of the company (EBAYinc.com, 2016). As per the second quarter-2016, financial report of eBay the volume of merchandise is worth 20.9 billion dollar. The revenue that is earned is 2.2 billion dollars. In the second quarter of 2015, the net revenue was 2110 dollars and 2230 dollars in the second quarter of 2016. A strategy statement of a company consists of objective of the company and scope in the retail market. It also shows whether the company enjoys any competitive advantage in the market or not. The analysis of Macroeconomic environment of the company includes several political, economic, social factors and their impact on the company. These factors are external factors, which affect the strategy of the company (Ho 2014). There are internal factors such as business functioning, operation management, human resource, which affect companys strategic management. Future growth prospects of the company are discussed and presented through Ansoffs matrix. This is tool of strategic management, which helps the management to take approach for future growth of the company. Several aspects of the Ansoff matrix are analysed to assess the potential of the EBAY in product diversification or ability to develop new product in the retail market. Strategic purpose Assessment of strategic purpose of the organization Mission: Our purpose is to pioneer new communities around the world built on commerce, sustained by trust and inspired by opportunity. Vision: We seek to create a global platform that provides individuals and business of all types and sizes with the access to broad markets (EBAYinc.com, 2016). Values: The values that is followed by the company includes as follows: We believe people are basically good We recognize and respect everyone as unique individual We believe everyone has something to contribute We encourage people to treat others the way they want to be treated themselves We believe that an honest, open environment can bring out best in people. Critical analysis on relationship of strategic statement and functional objective EBay needs to have a well defined objectives for which they can strive. The objectives in connection with the mission and vision provide eBay and employees a goal for focusing the activities. The objectives would help in growing and improve the different aspects in the future. The company is trying to focus their work in extending lead in payments, delivering of better experience to customers of eBay, expanding of capabilities, connecting of sellers and buyers, driving sustainable ecommerce, operating efficiently and reducing cost. The objective of the company is to set a standard for maintaining quality of a product (Hill et al. 2014). Achievement of monthly target, how to achieve cost and price advantage, identification of companys strength and weaknesses are included in the strategic statement. In contrast, the functional objective states overall corporate objectives of the company. The corporate objectives include financial strategy, targeted sales volume per customer, budget, pl anning etc. The company eBay meets the environmental needs. The company is into conserving and recycling of energy, an objective that is linked to vision. Strategic statement shows long-term objectives of company and functional objective shows short-term objectives of the company. However, strategic statement is closely related to functional objectives. In order to achieve strategic objective, fulfillment of functional objective is essential (Lasserre 2012). External analysis Analysis of macroeconomic environment of the company PESTLE analysis Political factors: As per market review, there is a chance of depreciation of Sterling due to exit of UK from EU. Therefore, online shopping can be affected as import may become costly. Moreover, UK may loss the opportunity to trade in Free Trade Area in European Union. There is a fear for EBAY to lose both supplier and customer in European Zone. Political turmoil can affect EBAY business (Priem et al. 20120). The company eBay has been providing localized version of PayPal in the different countries. In the United States, the company has operated as transmitter of money. There are restrictions on the investment of customers funds, reporting and bonding requirements there is regulatory agencies in each state. Economic factors: Economic slowdown in UK affects the business operation of EBAY. Global recession decreases the sales volume of products supplied by EBAY across world and thus operating profit may fall significantly. On the other hand, with growth in ecommerce business the firm may contribute notably to countrys GDP, which further enhances economic growth rate. Inflation, tariff rate imposed by different importing country raise the price of the product and shipping charge, which may reduce the demand of consumers. Imposition of high rate of corporation tax by government affects the business (Ho 2014). For example, eBay is second fastest exporter as per the Asian Exporters Index. Indias eBay exports have be growing at 85% year on year. This trend will help in increasing demand that developed nations for country specific items. Social factors: Decrease in sales reduces net profit, which creates chances for job cut. If business profit of EBAY decreases due to economic disturbance, number of unemployment may rise if the management takes cost reduction policy by job cut. Increase in unemployment rate lead to decrease in the standard of living of people, which has social cost. Age is an important aspect affecting business. For example, the survey has shown 34% of the online shoppers of the age group of 18 to 24 years uses PayPal and similarly in the past for 12 months. Technological factors: Operating online business at international market, use of latest and user-friendly technology is required. Easily accessible website of the company can give the company competitive advantage. Using improved technology, the company can display the products in a more attractive way to the customers. Besides this, management can use an extensive database to manage information regarding supplies and customer, which can help in daily business operation (Ho 2014). There is always a risk of security for eBay as most of the products are put in the internet. The proprietary information would be at risk with security breach on our sites. There can be a severe breach of the information. The information if compromised will make the people believe that they are not capable of maintaining the site and will stop using our service. For example, eBay is expanding their role in platforms and mobile payments. Mobile technologies is a field they eBay is trying to explore. Environmental factors: The business operation of EBAY is performed by transaction of goods between sellers and buyers through this online platform. Packaging, distribution is part of the business. Therefore, the company needs to maintain Environment safety law in packaging, importing and shipping the goods. Use of bio degradable and recyclable products in packaging keeps environment safe. Environmental factors such as changing regulation for energy use can affect the business. The company is seen to achieve the objective of selling green products. There will be more consumption leads to carbon dioxide emission and thus a more polluted environment is created. There are more benefits achieved by people rather than spending. Legal factors: Environmental safety law, Sales of Goods Act 1979, Work and Safety Act 1974 are required to be maintained by EBAY to operate business in UK. Apart from these acts, company needs to abide by Electrical Equipment Safety regulation 1994, Gas appliances Safety regulation 1995 in business transaction (legislation.gov.uk 2016). There are legal issues that is put upon t is that there are people selling product in the website who do not deliver the products but hold peoples case and flies away. Threats: The online business is becoming popular in present decade. With the increasing demand and expansion of the market, three is possibility for new firm to enter into the market. New entry may reduce share of market of EBAY Company, as there will be increased competition in the market. There is also threat of illegal use of website by some deceitful people (Piotrowicz and Cuthbertson 2014). There are threats from existing business such as Amazon, Bonanza, e-Bid etc. Opportunities: With the increase in demand for online purchase, there are many opportunities for EBAY to expand its business globally. The company will come up with more number of inline stores in other countries, through increased portfolio through acquisition. The company is able to control illegal activities, its business performance may increase in future. Analysis of market potentiality of the company using porters five forces Competitive rival: Rivalry in this industry is high. There are strong competitors of EBAY such as Amazon, Etsy, Bonanza etc exist in the market. Competition comes from small firm such as e-bid in UK. When doing business at international market, the firm has to compete with local business operators of that country (Lee et al. 2012). Bargaining power of Customers: Customers have strong ability to bargain for the price of the product. If EBAY charge higher price for a similar product, customer may switch over to another online marketer. Bargaining power of suppliers: There are large numbers of sellers offering products in EBAY platform. Bargaining power of suppliers is thus comparatively low. Sellers may also switch over to another e-commerce business, if they do not accept the terms and condition set by EBAY. Threat of substitute products: This threat is very low as EBAY offers a wide range of products to the customers. In short run it may lose business if it fails to provide latest developed goods in market. In long run this threat is low. Threats of new entry: There are medium threats of new entry. It is easy to enter into this market. However, operate in his market requires huge potential. Existing e-commerce businesses operate in the market at wide scale. They have economies of scale and hence, offering product at low price is easier ((Lee et al. 2012). For a new firm operating at large scale initial is difficult with high startup cost. Some of the established players can influence the strong share of eBay. The established positions are for Amazon, Apple, Alibaba who has a potential to dent the position of eBay. There effect will be high on eBay. Internal analysis of strategic capabilities Strategic capabilities of the company Development of online auction model has helped the business to operate at low cost in the market. The pricing policy is mainly demand driven and customer oriented. Following this model, the company started to show description of product and attractive visualisation, which motivated customers to buy product from EBAY site. This strategy influence marketing and sale of product (Morris et al. 2015). During 2014, the company decided to cut job in order to reduce costs. However, during 2nd quarter of 2016, the company has been able to increase revenue by 6% compared to previous year. To increase the business at global level, the company has decided to acquire some small companies and increase in market share (investors.EBAYinc.com 2016). Information management technology and supply chain management is very strong of EBAY. During recession period, EBAY has taken strategies such as acquisition of Skype Internet telephony to raise share by 30% during 2009. During 2008, the company changes its business strategy regarding incentives to seller, fee structure and quality standard to reduce risk of global financial crisis (www.mirror.co.uk, 2016). Basic Resources Unique Resources Employees Funds Assets Physical Resource Online Store Network Brand Intellectual Property Patents Trade mark Figure: Unique Feature of eBay Source: (Created by Author) Basic resources of EBAY are human resource such as employees, financial resource such as funds, assets, physical resources. Unique resources are online store, network, brand and intellectual property such as patent, trademarks etc. Companys internal strategic capabilities depend on managing these resources (Shaw 2012). Discussion on the business function of the company Business function of EBAY includes providing a convenient platform to the customers and seller for transaction. This is an online retail business, which offers a wide range of consumer goods to the customers at a cheap rate. Overtime EBAY has improved the functioning of website. This company follows Business to Customer business model. Products are classified into different segments. This company values customer satisfaction criteria. It follows E-auction in setting competitive rice for the product. In the financial statement, this company includes Gross Merchandise volume, which analyses total closed transaction. Company follows GAAP measures for some element in financial statement and use non GAAP measures for some other elements. To analyse companys current financial performance, non GAAP measures are used (EBAYinc.com 2016). Figure: Organizational Structure of eBay (Source: Sahney 2015) Core Competencies of eBay: As per the core competencies eBay educates the sellers in finding and negotiating the best price for selling of the product in the market place this would be help in benefiting the sellers and buyers equally. There are wide ranges of products like electronics to furniture available for the customers which they are able to purchase easily through online at a much lower price. The company is brilliant in terms of promotion. There are more number of people who are visiting the online store of eBay as it promotes itself through magazines, online sites and the even through word of mouth. Basis of competitive strategy Competitive strategy is creation of better value chain in business. The competitive strategy of eBay includes same day delivery routing in which eBay tends to coordinate deliveries between the shoppers , couriers , stores on a 24*7 schedule. It takes hardly two hours for the dispatching from the point of sale, handling service logistics and delivery based on the preferences of the consumers. EBAY offers some unique features to the seller, which enables them to display branded and non standard goods unlike other competitors. E-bay sells products on auction basis, which gives it competitive advantage. EBAY gives priority to improvement in technology. Hence, it developed a program to facilitate both business and customers. EBAY has been successfully able to overcome all the previous difficulties faced initially by taking customer oriented business policy (EBAYinc.com, 2016). Strategic choice and strategic evaluation Key directions for future growth of the company using Ansoffs Matrix Using Ansoff matrix, management of EBAY can formulate future growth strategy based on four components. These four aspects of a business can help to evaluate long term growth prospects of this company (Hussain et al. 2013). The four components are discussed below. Market penetration Market penetration is a strategy to sell existing products in current market. Penetration in online retail market depends on creation of portfolio of product. Bundling strategy can be utilised. Increment in sale depends on aggressive market promotion strategy. Company can discount on sale of a product portfolio (Sahney 2015). New product development EBAY has opportunity to capture more market share by introducing new product in business. Giving priority to all types of customers, the company can follow current market trends for major consumer goods. Investment in research and development helps significantly in product development. Product development also includes packaging, labeling and use of latest technology (Fernie et al. 2014). New market development The company can divide total own market share into segments. It can open business in a new country, where online retail business is not so popular. Through market promotion strategy it can increase the awareness of people about online shopping. If the customers can be convinced that purchase through online retail store would give them cost benefit, this business may be popular in long run. If market can be segmented according to local preference, companys growth strategy increases (Wamba et al. 2015). Mixing local culture and flavour in business helps in market promotion. Company can divide market based on marginal revenue. Different products have different level of demand in the market. Therefore, in the product market, where demand elasticity is less, company can charge higher price compared to a market with low elasticity (Hu et al. 2012). Diversification Market diversification includes expansion of business in some other ways such as entering into new market and creating new products. Developing new products by maintaining environment standard increases interest of customer to avail the product (Johnson et al. 2014). Product diversification is important in long growth of the business. Horizontal diversification is required for loyal customers. As explained by Ansoffs matrix, diversification has risk of entering into unknown market. Operate into new market requires new skill and strategy (Boons et al. 2013). Additional training is required for existing employees to increase efficiency and productivity. Figure: Financial Data of eBay and it performance in USA (Source: Gong et al. 2013) Assessment of new market development Suitability Demand for online shopping increases overtime both in developed and developing countries. Therefore, it is suitable for EBAY to expand business in another country. Its suitability depends on understanding psychology of new customers (Gong et al. 2013) During 2004, EBAY took decision to expand business in China market. However, it failed to compete with local company Alibaba in China due aggressive market strategy (www.forbes.com, 2010). Hence, doing business in new market requires understanding local market deeply. Acceptability Acceptability of the company depends on customer choice. If the company fails to meet local needs, business cannot be successful. Maintenance of corporate social responsibilities in business process helps an organization to grow up in the industry. It can engage itself into some social work in target market to influence the customers. Incorporation local culture and language in system increases acceptability to the new customers (Chen 2012). Feasibility Feasibility depends on start up cost and financial performance of the company. Competition in local market influences Companys strategy. In order to acquire market, the company needs to have economies of scale. If the start up cost is very high to set up business in new geographical area, the company may not get competitive advantage in pricing, which may be detrimental for business operation (Johnson et al. 2014). Hence, keeping average cost at low level increases feasibility and opportunity of the company to develop new market. Life cycle Phase Requirement of funding Cost of Capital Business Risk Likely finding sources Dividends Launch High High High Equity Zero Growth High Medium High Growth investors Nominal Maturity Medium Medium Medium Retained earnings High Decline Low Medium low Debt High Figure: Feasibility Chart of ebay (Source: Created by Author) Conclusion and recommendations EBAY is multinational online retail company, which has good market share in UK and US. It has been successful in many areas to meet companys vision. It is very important for the company to diagnosis the strategic problem as the company has been a follower of innovation rather than becoming an innovation leader. There is high degree of competition that is faced by the company in the present and who are likely to witness in the future as well. There is a need for the company to formulate strategies. The strategies need to address the key aspects of the organization. To address a valid set of strategies there is a need to complete a SWOT matrix. There is a need for a course of action that suits better for the current position of the company. Nevertheless, the company has been successfully able to capture a significant share in online retail market despite having several challenges. Main strength of this company is having economies of scale, easy payment process, and high brand value. Inventory management nf information management system are strong in this company. Main weakness of the company is charging high price to the customers compared to other competitors. Strategy for development of new market has not been so effective. Long term growth strategy of the company is not so strong. However, during 2015-16 company has taken decision to change strategy to reduce the threat of new entry. Amazon is growing rapidly to overtake EBAY in terms of profit. 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Monday, December 2, 2019

Motor Training Essays (4147 words) - Educational Psychology

Motor Training Motor training to develop readiness, motivation and means of expression, as a basis for learning programs Motor activity is fast becoming a valuable aid in the teaching of academic subjects to elementary school children. The realization of the place motor activity has in the classroom does not imply that physical activity is a prerequisite to learning but rather a method through which a child can learn more easily and understand more fully. Training in physical coordination is not only helpful in providing a child with a mode for expressing what has been learned, but it has become a factor in instilling in the child a willingness and readiness to learn and has also introduced itself as a base for a learning program. One writer, Maritain (1966), has described the function of education as primarily a source of liberation. In the case of the child whose learning problems stem from a learning disability, this liberation would consist of allowing the child to move about, to explore, and to receive impressions, to respond and to express. This call for movement as a basis of learning is further substantiated by Getman's theory that the skill of motor control and coordination is a necessary prerequisite to every intellectual activity. Cratty (1970) further states that movement is learning; learning requires movement. Some theorists seem to attribute all intellectual achievement to motor development rather than viewing motor activity as an aid to learning. One theory implies that certain motor activities when properly applied would prepare children in the intellectual areas of spelling, reading, and similar intellectual tasks during the child's first year in school. Cratty 1970). This theory may hold true if the motor activities are somehow related to the intellectual processes involved. It is important to remember that normal children have other resources to draw upon, namely a brain which permits the thinking and processing of ideas; movement alone cannot guarantee intellectual achievement but motor activity incorporated with intellectual processes can be tremendously successful. EXPRESSION One of the most undisputed ways in which intellect is affected by motor coordination is in tasks involving the written expression of intellectual thoughts in a certain area. One clinical study involving children whose verbal intelligence quotients were fifty points above their performance IQs showed that these children experienced a great deal of frustration when directed to convey their thoughts to written word. (Hellmuth 1968). Although the problem may involve the children's ability to express themselves there is a great possibility that they cannot write quickly or well and that the frustration experienced when placed in the writing situation interferes with their ability to formulate and express their thoughts. It should be noted that this writer is aware of other causes of inability in written expression other than strictly motor incoordination. As stated by Johnson and Myklebust, (1967) some children cannot transduce visual information to the motor system. This does not necessarily result from a visual or motor defect but as this paper is not about disorders of written language it will not be explored here. Since many of the so-called "show-what-you-know" tests are actually speed tests, a child with an eye-motor incoordination is handicapped by an inability to write quickly and accurately. If a child cannot move the hands accurately when putting thoughts on paper, usually academic difficulties will appear which could, in turn, lower the child's self-concept and contribute to the cause of an emotional problem. Grace Fernald (1973) points out the importance of avoiding a negative self-concept, due to failures, and the resultant emotional disorder. Myklebust (1968) points out that training in any aspect of a child's psychological development, such as motor, language, perception, and higher cognitive functions will help the child's emotional adjustment which will in turn lead to the ability to learn in school. One cannot always determine if the learning problem is primary or secondary to the emotional problem. Myklebust (1971) states that the following authors feel that a positive relationship exists between the two variables of learning and emotional problems; Bender, 1956, Bryant, 1966, Fernald, 1943, Gates, 1941, Giffen, 1968, Harris, 1970, Natchez, 1968, and Rabinovitch, 1962. Bryant Cratty (1969) recommends that children with visual-motor deficits be given special attention motorically and practically. The latter involves simply allowing the child alternative modes of expression, such as allowing the typing of tests and/or assignments or permitting tests to be taken orally with the same questions given to other classmates so that the child can succeed at a par with peers. The second form of compensation, for these children, involves concrete methods to improve their visual-manual skills through such