International Business Mnc Essay

Introduction Multi National Corporation engages in domestic and foreign product development. Sometimes the host country has a product (labor, ingredient, part, etc) that is rare or less costly than producing it in the home country; therefore establishing a Multinational Corporation is a win-win for the host country as far as supply, demand, labor and cost. Many corporations currently engage in Multinational Enterprise and are successful in their efforts. Having businesses that are active in MNC truly creates a global business community where mutual interests and product development are core to the needs of the customer, business and boost foreign economies with jobs, businesses and exporting goods. Country Economic system Political environment Legal environment Technological China Mixed economy Socialism Complex regulations Japan Mixed economy Capitalism Complexity France Mixed economy Capitalist/Socialist Complexity Ethical system Social responsibility indicators Cultural dimension Confucianism Laws & regulations Collectivism Laws & regulations Collectivism Laws & regulations Collectivism Product, Business Plan and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Acai berry is native to Central and South America and the plant is a great anti-oxidant that can be used for several purposes. My company, Natural Beauty, has partnered with Acai palm tree companies in Belize to provide the product and have manufacturing warehouses located in Belize. This foreign direct investment offers a win-win situation for all of the companies involved. We have chosen the downstream vertical FDI as a means to partner with Acai palm tree farms and companies in Belize. The home country is the U. S. and although the product is not sold in Belize however it is distributed in other countries such as the United States, Brazil, France, England, China, Japan, and Qatar. There are multiple advantages of an FDI as show in the ownership, location, and internalization (OLI) framework (Peng, 2011). Understanding the framework I understand that ownership allows for possession and leveraging of resources, value and other added components to allow a competitive market. The Location component ensures that we are close to our main ingredient with the product, that we are able to have labor, ingredients and manufacturing at the lowest cost available while providing a boost to the host countries local economy and creating global competition. We are in several countries which provide internalization and we have intellectual property rights over all of our products, processes and business plan. We protect our businesses by knowing our dissemination risks and safeguarding against them as much as possible. Since we know our dissemination risks we are able to safeguard against direct competitors that may branch out from local distributors. We also are aware of market imperfections and do our best through our international legal team to stay abreast of international trade, business and government regulations. We also have safeguards against agglomeration due to the international craze over the Acai berry, plant and trees. We do this through our contract clauses which state other companies cannot be located within a certain distance, city, or space as ours in host countries. Natural Beauty, Inc. understands the intricacies of business and politics, especially within an international structure. We are in no way operating as a monopoly or radical imperialist (Peng, 2011) business. We believe in free market and working with our host country partners to ensure that each of them are maximizing their capacity and invested in the good and services provided by our joint venture. It is important that the FDIs benefits outweigh the costs and it is truly a win-win for all parties involved. Cost and Benefits of FDI As we can only imagine, there are benefits and costs to both the host and the home countries involved in Multinational Corporation. The benefits for Belize are the capital inflow, technology, management and job creation. The other countries of distribution have the same benefits that boost local knowledge, economy and globalization. The costs for the host countries are loss of sovereignty, capital outflow, and competition. The largest benefit is creation of jobs and expanded knowledge. The largest cost is loss of sovereignty. The benefits for the host countries must outweigh the costs and only the local governments and direct companies involved can project overtime which is more beneficial for them. The benefits for the Natural Beauty in the U.S. are earnings, exports, and learning from abroad whereas the costs are capital outflow and job loss. The latter can be quite devastating if the proper precautions and business plans are not in place in addition to being aware of local/international politics. However job loss here means possible savings in salary/wages in other host countries where the earning are not as high which saves the company money. The largest benefits are earnings and learning from abroad. The largest cost is job loss and the political climate around American companies that take their businesses abroad (remember NAFTA). Another threat is that local business can learn your process and then become your largest competitor and they have the â€Å"home field† advantage. This is known as the contagion effect (Peng, 2011). We recognize that FDIs can be complex and must be mutually beneficial for all parties involved and therefore we make a conscientious effort to recognize the need for location advantages, licensing and outsourcing knowledge/expertise and understanding of constraints (political and business in order to be successful). Future of MNC The future of Multinational Enterprise is contingent upon true understanding of global communities and global business. Understanding that free market, consciousness and international trade laws will dictate most of the business efforts and establishments. Many companies are already engaging in MNC successfully (BMW, Coca Cola, etc) and those interested in exploring this option should create several case studies looking at the successful and not so successful efforts in this realm to learn from them. I think that host MNC countries participating in FDI should be careful not to lose their power and prestige in the name of partnering for monetary gain. It is easy for smaller less powerful countries to get lost in the MNC FDI advantage for the sake of job creation and boosting local economy; however not at the cost of their culture, citizens and green space (for those working with rainforest communities or those with precious agriculture). The future of MNC can be bright when all partie s involved are up front and conscious about maintaining and win-win business. References Peng, M., (2011). Global. 1st Edition; Mason, OH, Cengage Learning www.alibaba.com/†¦/CN/technological-environment.html Luthans, F., & Doh, J. P. (2012). International management: Culture, strategy, and behavior (8th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.

When to Consider a Single-Instance Erp Strategy

Reproduction of this publication in any form without prior written permission is forbidden. The Information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Garner disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. Although Garter's research may discuss legal issues related to the information technology business, Garner does not provide legal advice or services and its research should not be construed or used as such.Garner shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the information contained herein or for Interpretations thereof. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice. WHAT you NEED TO KNOW Adopting a single-instance, single-vendor enterprise resource planning strategy can deliver benefits, but it does not make sense for every organization. It should only be undertaken If you have a good business case for the project and it matches most or all of Garter's single-instance success factors.If the challenges balance or outweigh the success factors, then you should address organizational issues before proceeding. If this Is not feasible, then consider Illimitableness consolidation or a tiered business application strategy. ANALYSIS Most large multinational organizations have a heterogeneous application portfolio hat has built up over time. The portfolio often is made more complex by tactical purchasing and merger and acquisition activity.Senior executives in such organizations are attracted to the idea of standardizing on applications from a single enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendor because of potential operational cost savings and reduced complexity of the IT landscape (see Note 1). Vendor consolidation is often a first step toward instance consolidation. ; A single instance of an application can run all operating companies on a common process template, a ingle release AT ten application Ana a giggle copy AT ten applications dataset, using a cons olidated technical infrastructure.A single-instance strategy can drive cost reductions in several areas, including integration, interfaces, training, support and hardware. In addition, potential benefits may be found in process improvements, better data consistency and improved visibility of information. However, adopting a single-instance, single-vendor ERP strategy is not a task to be undertaken lightly, because it can create disruption in enterprise operations and often involves replacing some systems that are favored by users.Even if the business case appears to support the deployment of a single-instance ERP solution, there still may be significant obstacles to overcome. Certain types of organizations will find it more difficult to realize the benefits of a single-instance ERP strategy because of their culture and infrastructure. See Table 1 to determine whether single-system ERP might work for your organization. Rank yourself against each of the categories. If you have mainly (or exclusively) success factors, then a single-instance ERP strategy is more likely to be successful. Table 1 .Single-Instance ERP Success Factors and Challenges Enterprise Profile Business Model Corporate Culture and Policy Definition Geographical Concentration Success Factors Single primary core business with similar business processes Centralized with strong corporate head office; policy dictated at corporate level and globally enforced Company aspires to operate as a single global company, and operations, sales and marketing are concentrated in a single geographical region Stable, unlikely to undergo dramatic growth or downsizing Challenges Diversified group with wide range of business processes Decentralized tit autonomous business units; policy decided at the business-unit level Company operates as a multinational company, and operations, sales and marketing are distributed globally Dynamic, growing rapidly or downsizing significantly Business Environment publication Date: 28 September 2005/AD Number: GO 30366 2005 Garner, Inc. And/or its Affiliates. All Rights Reserved.Page 2 of 6 Merger, Acquisition and Divestiture Status Established ERP Systems Technology Environment Acquiring smaller entities that are easily absorbed into the corporate culture Highly likely to be acquired or merge with a company of a similar size (or larger); vesting encore businesses Diverse, with an even spread from potential single- system suppliers Architecture and technology are decided at the business-unit level Elemental mummer, wilt majority AT systems Trot likely single-system vendor Enterprise-level architecture with similar technologies Source: Garner (September 2005) Note that the scope of this analysis is limited to the processes automated through traditional ERP systems, such as financial, HRS, procurement, inventory management, production planning and order management. Single-instance strategies are typically noninsured first in the ERP domain because these processes are more internally focused and homogeneous, and have less impact on competitive differentiation. Suitability of a single-instance strategy in other domains, such as customer relationship management (CRM), product life cycle management (PLUM) and supply chain management (SCM), should be assessed following a similar process. However, with CRM, PLUM and SCM, organizations are even less likely to meet the criteria in Table 1 and will typically discover that a single-instance strategy doesn't align with the business strategy.By implication, even if a single-instance ERP environment is successfully created, most organizations will have to support multiple instances of peripheral systems. Enterprise Profile Elements ; Business Model: Organizations in service industries such as software or financial services will find adoption of single- system ERP easier than those with a diversified business model, because the ERP adoption will primarily affect their back-office administrative functions. Process changes in these areas will have less impact on revenue-creating activities and, therefore, are lower risk than changes in operational areas such as manufacturing and logistics operations.Corporate Culture and Policy Definition: Organizations that operate in a decentralized manner with highly autonomous business units may find these operations unwilling to release control of local systems to a central IT function. If there is a culture of local decision making, then business-unit executives may not be willing to accept a decision that is mandated from the corporate head office. Geographical Concentration: Companies that aspire to operate as global companies (operate on a common set of business processes across the globe) are well- positioned to achieve a global single instance, because they align the IT strategy with he business strategy.Companies operating as multinationals (have a unique set of business processes for local markets, particularly sales and marketing, and SC M), will have difficulties running their international businesses on a common system. Also, organizations that are physically concentrated in a single geographical region will find it easier to achieve a single instance, because support and operations of the system take place in a narrow range of adjacent time zones. The need to support a single instance around the clock creates issues with available support windows for upgrades and maintenance, and possibly network-related performance and availability issues.Business Environment: A single-instance ERP strategy may not be appropriate for organizations that face significant change. Implementation of a single-instance system may be thrown into disarray if there is a significant change of direction in the business Page 3 of 6 (for example, a manufacturer decides to sell its manufacturing operations and focus instead on design and logistics services). ; Merger, Acquisition and Divestiture Status: This aspect of the general business situ ation can have a major impact on a single- instance strategy. Organizations that are likely to acquire or merge with entities of a similar size may find their investment in a significance strategy compromised if they merge with organizations that use different ERP systems.Established ERP Systems: If the ERP system from a potential single-instance vendor is already used in the majority of the organization, then there may be little resistance to a wider deployment. Many organizations have initially implemented multiple instances of a single ERP system are now considering instance consolidation. However, if there is no nominate provider, then a single-instance strategy will face resistance, because some users are likely to fight to retain their â€Å"much loved† locally implemented systems from â€Å"their† vendors. Technology Environment: Similar challenges may arise if there is no common technology environment and enterprise architecture in place.A single- instance stra tegy requires the adoption of a specific technology environment (operating system, database, middleware and other IT infrastructure), and organizations that already have an enterprise architecture in place will find it easier to implement a single-instance approach. When the technology environment is defined at the business-unit level, local IT functions may resist moving away from their architecture to that which is required to support the single-instance strategy. Determining Who Drives the Initiative Often, instance consolidation initiatives are driven by the IT organization on the basis of simplification of the application landscape, and the IT technical and support infrastructure. Table 1 shows that five out of the seven success factors are within the business domain and entirely outside the control of the IT organization.This underscores the point that instance installation projects should primarily be business-driven projects, with a business case solidly based on business be nefits. Without understanding, sponsorship and commitment at the senior business management level, the project is doomed to fail. The IT organization plays a critical role in educating the business units, and planning and executing the project; however, it does not own the project. What to Do If the generalness outlawed ten success Factors organizations considering giggle-alliance ERP that find the challenges outweigh the success factors have other options: 1 . Consider a limited ERP vendor and infrastructure consolidation strategy, without moving to a single-instance consolidation.This strategy will enable organizations to achieve some efficiency improvements in the IT organization by consolidating some of the operating and support infrastructure of the ERP systems. However, the strategy will not realize the full benefits of a single-instance system. This strategy may be suitable for organizations that are diversified and decentralized in nature, operate in a highly dynamic market environment and consider IT costs to be a significant factor. A common approach is to adopt vendor consolidation with some level of instance consolidation (for example, regional or divisional instances). 2. Adopt a tiered business application strategy (see â€Å"How to Approach Tiered Business Applications†), where specific applications are adopted to address the needs of decentralized business units.Page 4 of 6 3. Address the organizational issues that are creating the challenges prior to implementing the single-instance strategy. There are two main actions that need to be taken to address these organizational issues: ; Involve business-unit executives in alluding and reviewing the business case to create buy-in. Develop a feasibility study that shows how business-unit requirements can be accommodated in a single- instance implementation, and build an instance strategy to support this. Consider getting business-unit executives to develop a business case to Justify why their business unit should not be included in a single-instance solution.Get the executive management team to understand and accept how investing in a single-instance strategy can affect your merger and acquisition strategy. During their due diligence, organizations adopting a single-instance strategy must take account of how ERP systems are used by potential acquisition targets. Similarly, a single-instance strategy may limit downsizing options, because it will be difficult to divest parts of the business on an ongoing basis if they do not have their own business applications. If significant divestiture is likely, then a single-instance ERP project should be deferred until the business environment stabilizes. Key Issues How can more value be gained from an enterprise resource planning investment?Note 1 Definition of Single Instance A single instance of an ERP system is when a single installation of the application is linked to a single database. This significantly sleepless support Ana m alfeasance Decease tenure Is only one set AT application infrastructure to be maintained. This does not necessarily mean that all business units have to use the same business rules, because most ERP systems enable different entities within a single instance to have a degree of uniqueness. However, there will be constraints on the capability of the business units to define their own business rules (compared to separate instances for each business unit).

Science in Mechanical Engineering

For someone who has always seen himself as lesser superior than others; for someone whose confidence is always behind the scene; for someone who has never really seen himself any bigger than a green pea; for someone who has acquired numbers of rejection which, apparently, outnumbered number of acceptance from people around him; for someone who used to just exist – just exist – who would have thought it would come to this point? Review I cannot consider my life as an extraordinary this world had ever had. Each person has a story to tell and I must say mine is not really something different.While some people spend their lives with lots of colors around them, some just do not – and as much as I hate to admit, I spent many years of my life belonging to the second group. I go with flow and that has always been the case. It goes this way: I knew I need to attend school and so I did. I have to do well in school or else I will suffer from all the criticisms – the usual criticisms. It is never easy to live in other people’s expectations to the point that it is what they want that drives you. It is your body under their minds. I can now imagine how pathetic that was.All the while, though, I do not think I was as inspired as the rest of the class was. I did not make lots of friends from school. No big deal! But there were times when I also deal with thinking of the reasons for the ‘empty’ life. Those days would usually end with me getting no answer than ‘It must be me†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Although I acknowledge the fact that each of us has our own set of preferences and all the while, I lived in the thought that I just prefer to live my life like this – lonely, detached, alone. It was tiring when you care for no one and more when no one cares for you.This probably exhibits the self-centered approach known to men. My being careless about others exhibits my being self-centered while others being self-centered is signifi ed by how I saw them treating me. I started my career as an advocate of science and technology. Yes, my first degree was Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. I used to get fascinated with breakthroughs science gets to offer – all those inventions and advances in technology. Awesome! Hale great! Breath-taking! Fantastic! All those praises†¦ Nothing can beat the feeling of having invented something out of nothing.Or the feeling of being the one to drastically improve the current state of something for the benefit of people around the globe – it is always satisfying! Or so I was told. But who could tell it was not really a career of choice? I was one of those high school graduates who do not really know what they want to happen in their lives. And so, without any particular basis, it was Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering that I ended up with. Not a bad call anyway. I am aware of the good future this field has to offer. I have known of lots of pe ople who have succeeded in this career and, yes, that is, somehow, something to look forward to.I, at least, had this driving force to continue with my study. Fair enough to push me to strive harder and harder. I just told myself I need it or else I will end up with nothing. Although I appeared to be so passive all the while, in my heart I know I long for something. That something, however, is unknown. I do not know if I am just one those people who experience wanting something they do not exactly know what or looking for something they do not know, for sure, if existent. Can you just imagine how if feels to be in the dark? Be somewhere without any clear direction? They say that every little thing just takes a little of getting used to.Oh, well, probably, as I seemed to have been used to the feeling of being lost. It was sad but true. At this point in my life, I can never consider this as self-centeredness as I cannot even put myself at the center of everything. Myself was put on da rk – not in the center but in the darkness. Despite the lack of light in my life, I never questioned the existence of the Great Someone Up There. I perfectly know he is there. I do not recall how often I scream for His help. Maybe not that often but, of course, I do. I do and in my heart, I know I am not essentially alone all the while.However, there are moments when I tend to question the number and quantity of challenges facing me. There seems to be imbalance in load allocation. How come I am so lost while others follow certain direction? How come I do not know what I want in life while others are so certain of what they want in theirs? How come I do not seem to possess enough reason to be happy and complete. I often envy happy and satisfied people, I must admit – but I do not harm to them. I just envy them, that is it. And more often than not, I wish I were in their shoes. I even envy my own family members who seemed to find satisfaction in this life.Self-centered, I was, that time. In all the insecurities I have inside, there were times when I ask myself if this is something I caused. What is that something I failed to do? What is that something that I can probably change to make a difference? What could be missing? I have heard of success stories about people who started with nothing and ended up having the life they have always dreamed of. Can I not be one of them? My concern is never monetary. I did not wish for the whole world. I just want a piece of it – a piece of it where I can enjoy life to the fullest.I did not ask for extravagant things. What would a loner do with those? I doubt if anybody could really enjoy everything alone. I did not wish for fame. I have lived my life not having the attention of the whole world. I just want some compassion and feeling of belongingness. I did not wish for power as I have never ever seen myself mandating others or controlling the world. It could be that I long for power but that power is the power to appreciate and enjoy life, the power to make people see me as a sensible being worth the company, the power to contribute to the ‘real’ things in this world.In short, I was never a materialistic type. There are things I lack from within and that is something I longed for to fill in. Looking at these things now, it was all, I – I – I. I was so I-centered. Self-centeredness, however, can be seen positively or negatively. Realization should start from oneself. Otherwise, there is no way one can share himself to others. There is no way sharing yourself if you are now whole. In this way, self-centeredness can be seen as a first way in building or trying to build relationships with others.I used to have a, so to speak, very narrow view of things in life. I exist. I have to live. I have to survive. I used to find the question, â€Å"What am I here for? † or â€Å"Why do I exist? † as cliche that should have been buried decades back. Come o n! You are here because you are here and there is just nothing you can do about it! It is not a problem needing solution. It is just a situation that you have to live with. You are left with just two options – either you continue to exist or you end your own existence. Is that something needing some sort of profound thinking?!Life is as plain as that. You just have to go with the flow. I was never a person of confidence. I could not care less of what others might be thinking of me. Why would I? Could they care for me any better than that? I doubt†¦ I am just me. With or without me, the world would still revolve around the sun. With or without me, people from any part of the globe would still have 24 hours in a day. With or without me, things still go precisely the same way as they do when I am here. I am a nobody to ever have the notion I mean something – that I am myself and this person counts.As I started to look back, where did it all start? Where and when did I ever acquire this feeling of inferiority and lack of self-worth? When did I start to â€Å"kill† myself? After some self-scrutiny, these questions led me to this answer – the number of rejections I got from people around me. I was ignored for more than once, not just twice, far more than thrice, and to say it is four times is an understatement. It is never easy to be ignored. It is a feeling I would not want myself to dwell with – not anymore. As some people say, any attention is better than none.And indeed, any attention is better than the countless rejections my past gave me. Life has never been that kind to me. All those moments when I wanted to say something and no one seemed to be interested to even turn a head to look at who is talking; all those moments when my eyes could not speak more of what I feel inside and yet no one seemed to notice; all those moments when the only resort I can think of is to walk and walk and walk until my life ends; all those m oments when all I wanted is to disappear from everybody’s sight; all those moments contributed to the me that I used to be.In which case, the concept of containment applied in me. It was during this time when I tend to control and keep all emotions to myself, given the assumption that no one will listen and no one will care. My life went on and on and on. I learned to care for myself and for myself alone as I do not want to meddle with any other people’s lives. Why would I? Is it not that for so long I am with myself and myself alone? Is it not that for so long, I could not seem to find anyone beside me? Who ever said, â€Å"No man is an island? † I used to be an island and that is something I can attest.Until this very day came – I happened to come across (accidentally or probably it is fate’s planned way) with this certain book entitled, â€Å"Teach Only Love†. I am not a bookworm, definitely. No, unless it is an Engineering, Mathematics, or Physics book. I cannot exactly recall what is in that book that made me read it through. It was not me that is for sure. Nonetheless, the next thing I know is I finished reading that book. This is not normal. This must be something. And, indeed, it was. Why? Because reading that book had been the key to discover the other self I have.Yes, and it surprised me much more than any reader of this essay could ever imagine. What about this â€Å"magical† book? Nothing special at first glance†¦ It is a simple, plain, ordinary book that discusses the importance of our every word and every deed. It emphasizes that what we are today is basically an aftermath of what we said and did yesterday. I then started to look back at my past once more – the past that does not possess any allure to be revisited if not for the purpose of wanting to see myself mourning for the nth time. After reading this book once, I must admit something in me felt a slight change in perspective.But I was in denial. It is just a book – a fantasy created by someone, a perspective shared to others hoping there will be people to buy the ideas. â€Å"Count me out†, I told myself. But this book seemed to have a magical and magnetic property that made me want to read it over again. And so I did. This time, I cannot seem to put myself in denial as I did the first time. And yes, it opened my eyes in more than just one way. How could this certain piece of something, non-living, non-speaking, can speak of the things I have never heard from anyone in my life?How could this piece of bound paper wake me up from the long sleep I have been? How could it be? These are the questions reining my head for days and days. I got tired of seeking for answers. And then came the answer – if that non-living thing happened to show the life out of me, I can do far better than that. If this thing that does not have a mouth spoke to me of million things, how better could someone with mout h do that? If this thing that does not have a hand touched me in a unique, special way that no one has ever done before, what more could my able hands do?If this thing without eyes saw me the way I have always wanted to be seen, how better could these bright eyes of mine see those who are in need of my attention? If this thing without ears heard me like I was never listened to before, what more could these ears of mine do to those people who need people to listen as they confess? If this thing without shoulder happened to offer me a cradle of comfort, what more could this broad shoulder of mine offer those who need some rest? And if this thing without a heart happened to feel me, how can my heart not feel what other people have to express?It is this moment when I finally decided to stop asking why but to start thanking God that for millions of wandering souls we have in this world, I was given the chance to come across this book that opened millions of wonderful and worthwhile possi bilities. And so the confession above justifies the need for me to shift my profession from Mechanical Engineering to Counseling Psychology. These are far apart degrees and, yes, I did not see myself engaging in counseling. No, not even in my wildest dream. But this is not a dream. Yes, I am living in reality and the reality is that this is the vocation of choice.This is where I find myself, my heart. This is where I belong. It is true what the â€Å"magical† book says – that it is from your past where you draw your present. If not for the thousands of rejection, if not for the feeling of inferiority, if not for the lack of self confidence, I do not really think this book would have as much effect on me as it had. What is in counseling that truly entices me? It is not the feeling of recognition. It is not the money behind every consultation. It is not to make a living. It is to live and to let others appreciate how wonderful it is to live. Experience, indeed, is the be st teacher.I know the feeling of being neglected. I experienced lots of it. And this leads me to wanting to help people feel important, feel needed, feel worthy. I know the feeling of losing self worth and so I love to boost people’s confidence in themselves. I love to see people seeing their value as a person and claiming it as theirs. I love to see people loving themselves. But going through all these things, all these aspirations for others required lots of self realization. I had to learn to love myself first. It is true that you cannot share something you do not possess in the first place.How can I share love and confidence when I do not have it myself? I started with loving myself unconditionally, being proud of myself like I have never achieved anything before, and looking myself at the mirror with the courage to say, â€Å"This is me and without me, the world will never be exactly the same again. † When I finally learned to appreciate my own self, that was the time I started to see others in the way they should be seen – no prejudgment, no bias, no unjust feeling. This is where I started to realize the positive side of being self-centered.I took time to stabilize myself and when the time came, accidentally or planned, that I can tell myself I am whole, was the time I can start reaching out to others. Therapeutic relationship with others is where the essence of counseling relies. You have to build that kind of relationship to be able to counsel who are in need of help. When is it therapeutic? When you can ease others’ pain and when you can hear others’ grief without literally saying it. It is when your relationship with people tends to make those people feel relieved of their burden. It is the talent that no book can actually teach.This is the spice of counseling career. The theories behind help, but the counselor’s approach to practice it can never be assured by the theories. Person-centered counseling is when you put the person you are counseling as the central consideration in every word you will say, in every piece of advice you will give, and in every gesture you will show to the patient. The person being counseled would want it done that way. Well, to start with, he seeks counseling to be paid with attention that he wants to get, to get the understanding that no one seems to give him.The counselor should be able to give that. The central purpose is to make the person being counseled feel healed of the burden. As Jennie Rowden once said, â€Å"The best thing about counseling psychology is the face-to-face client work; it’s a real privilege to share in a complex process of change and deeply satisfying on a personal level. But I do so many other interesting things as well as therapy; with the research, supervision and the teaching and training of others, my job is endlessly fascinating and evolving. † And I share this same gratitude towards this vocation.It is more satisfy ing than having solved the most complex mathematical problem and far more complex than having invented a machine that could make the car fly. I am not saying these are fancy things. Let us just say, to each, his own. And this something that I won right now is something I will always be proud of. I claim the right to own it and be proud of it. Looking at my self now, I am far more self-directed than I was at a younger age. It is my responsibility to help others see the light of path and to be able to do that, I know I have to see the light in my own path first.It is a must for counselors to have interest in understanding people’s interaction with others and with the social environment. Understanding people’s perception is also mandatory. These things can be too challenging and too complex and only those are whole-heartedly interested can bear the complexity. Prominent areas needing focus are motivation, thought, attention, sensory, and perception. One of the most import ant things a counselor should never take off the mind is the confidentiality of the story or revelation of his patients.Opening someone’s life to a person who is not even a relative or a friend is never a simple thing. The counselor should keep the trust and confidence of the patient. Sharing one’s life is never easy, especially if what you have to share is something not-so-wonderful. But who ever define what is wonderful and what is not? As I come across this vocation, I realize, appreciation of something starts it all. When you learn to love what you have, you will see you need not have anything else. The chance to touch someone’s life, in a way or so, is one blessing I will not forsake.As I walk down the road, I wish my simple talk can speak of the things the lesser fortunate being would want to hear; my simple touch, I wish, could give them the comfort and shield they need; my simple smile, I pray, could bring them joy and hope that tomorrow is another day. There are people asking me what could have been – if I pursue the Engineering career†¦ As for me, I do not see this as a question needing answer. But then, I answered, â€Å"I do not really know. The only thing I am sure of is that had I not choose this vocation I am currently in, I may not feel this very light spirit in me.It could be that I will deal with problems of people in the world in addition to my own, but that is where the beauty lies. God gave these people challenges to work on, to give people like us opportunity to enlighten and uplift others’ souls. It is never easy but it is always true, always real, always sincere. † Looking myself in the mirror now, I still look the same but I see a completely new individual within. It was a total change – something I love. My past taught me a lot of lessons and although life has never been too kind for me then, the sacrifices that past brought me served as the inspiration in my life today.If not for this sad past, I doubt if I can see my life the way I see it now. Every bitter past, indeed, has sweet beginning if we only welcome the possibilities, if we only keep open arms for all the new changes. Fear is but a natural feeling. But to let oneself be drowned in it is another thing. The line, â€Å"I was left with no choice,† does not apply, I now believe. We are always given choices. The pick is ours. Sometimes we want something yet the apprehension is there and we let the apprehension rule. Realization does not have age limit.There are very young bloods who are very positive with their viewpoint in life. There are people old enough to realize things they should be doing and yet not doing anything. Maturity, indeed, does not come with age. It comes with the exposure in life. It comes with faith. It comes with the mindset brought by home. It comes with everything that happens in our lives if we only see things in right perspective. Each day is a new beginning and in each m orning I wake up, I thank God for the night that passed and pray that for this day, I inspire and counsel a soul.If I will ever change someone’s viewpoint, from dim to positively clear, that is when my day would become worthwhile. That is when I can tell it was never a waste and this day is something I am proud to tell God. In every talk that I do, may it be counseling or casual talk with friends, I know it is not them who learn from me. Talking is always a mutual thing. You learn from one another. No one can tell he knows everything. The same line, when uttered by two different individuals, may mean different. Why? Because it is not solely the words but the feelings and meaning behind the words.That is why talking about the same thing with different people results to a definitely wider perspective. It is not the subject matter, it is the people talking. It is not about the language used, it is the feeling behind every word. It is not length nor it is the brevity of the talk, it is the sincerity behind every statement. It is not important if the words are pronounced correctly or not. What is important is the openness of one another to talk and the willingness to feel and listen. There are, indeed, things no textbook can teach. There are things you can only learn as you get through it.I now know the answer to my questions and the answer is that I had to experience all those to experience what I am experiencing now. That may be the only acceptable answer and I do not really intend to search for more. Life is so simple if we only know how to really live it. Life happens but once. I might have spent many years of it in a not-so-wonderful way but it life does not lead back. It only moves forward. And so I should. No one should really wallow about the misfortunes in life, as there is no such thing. There are instances – some are happy while some are not.But those that are not are not really misfortunes if we are to scrutinize. Those are just Godâ€℠¢s means to prepare us. He does not teach us how to see things. He can only provide us with tests that can help us see things the way He wants us to. Our God is never a spoon-feeding, pampering God. He is a just God who gives comprehensive examinations where we can learn great lessons if we only listen. The world is a very huge venue to learn. This life is a very comprehensive exam to pass. The beauty is when we learn to appreciate the class – when we go to it not because it is mandatory to go to it but because we love to.ConclusionIf anybody would ask me now if I regret giving up my first degree to pursue counseling, I will answer, â€Å"The sad past led me to a wonderful today. Every bit of failure and pain did not really lead me to regretting anything because in each of those, I learned. And in each of those, I grew – not just as a person for myself but as a person for other people. † And now, I no longer find the question, â€Å"What do I live for? † mushy. I can tell, with chin up, I live for others to appreciate their lives. I do not just exist. I live. I continue to learn through others with high hopes and belief that they also learn from me. ?

Organizational Frames Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Organizational Frames - Essay Example Organizations are tools or instruments to meet goals and objectives, and to carry out tasks (Johnson, 2003). As such, structures in achieving calculable rational results as well as precision, stability, discipline, and reliability are in order (Max Weber, cited in Johnson, 2003). Frames or windows, for instance, filter and order the world, providing a structure from which to view things. In my role as an Organizational Analyst for the City of San Jose, I had recommended the merger of two small community centers that were less than two miles apart and were providing a similar range of programs and services. The recommendation was carried out and was considered in the City’s proposed operating budget. The concept, however, was poorly handled by the Parks and Recreation Department where the Department’s managers had decided not to release information about the potential merger to center staff or to the community prior to publication of the proposed operating budget. The Alma community therefore was shocked to find that their Center was slated for closure and the Alma employees were upset to learn that their jobs would be impacted. Recovering from the initial shock, participants from the Alma Center protested the closure and eventually convinced the City Council to drop the proposal. In the 1980s, Bolman and Deal (1991) developed one of the most useful organizational typologies for viewing and studying leadership. Synthesizing existing theories of leadership and organizations into four traditions, they came up with a taxonomy labeled as â€Å"frames.†

Do Media Cause Individuals to Develop Negative Body Images Assignment

Do Media Cause Individuals to Develop Negative Body Images - Assignment Example Both the sides presented a very astounding debate and quite well defended their side not only with theories; they even used appropriate facts to defend their side. Before deciding whether the â€Å"for† side or the â€Å"against† side performed a better job it is necessary to know that I personally believe that it is the peer pressure as suggested by the against side that makes me feel bad about my own image and the way I look (Alexander 80). But I still believe that those in the favor of the issue that media is making people feel bad about themselves presented a better debate this is because they used several examples of advertisements that simply show a perfectly crafted figure and make individuals feel bad about them. The recommendations those are later provided to the audience even back the thought that media makes human being feel negative about themselves as the recommendations mostly focus on loosing fat instead of focusing on the importance of exercise and healt hy

Quality of Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Quality of Life - Essay Example According to a report by MSN Staff, the annual human development index for the year 2009 was released ranking Norway on the top of the list of 182 countries. The lowest ranking is awarded to Niger while Canada comes on the number 10th . The statistics of human development report and resources provide essential information about the human development index and other indicators . HDRO uses the statistics taken from international data agencies. Data sources are provided at the end of each table that can be matched to references in the bibliography . Different units are assigned different jobs. The Outreach and Advocacy Unit holds discussions with policy makers and encourages public debates, and functions in the direction of bringing change on the basis of ideas and analysis of the HDRs. Currently, Wynne Boelt is the Outreach Analyst and Marisol Sanjines is the Senior Outreach and Advocacy Advisor of the Unit. The criteria used in establishing the QoL index are different in UNDP and other private agencies. The human development index goes beyond GDP to a wider definition of quality of life. It maps overall human development that is estimated from long and healthy life, education -- to be estimated from adult education and raw admission data, and a well maintained living standard to be estimated by equality in buying capacity, PPP, and income. The index is not a complete entity in human development as it misses on other crucial parameters of gender and income inequality or not easy to measure definitions of human dignity and political freedom. The index is a wide mirror of human growth and the complicated relationship between income and living standard (Human Development Report 2009). Out of many variants of HDI, short-term policy change is affected by income and

Destination Singapore scenario Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Destination Singapore scenario - Assignment Example Tourism is a labour intensive industry and expansions in this business will create immense potential for employment in the host country. Though Singapore is small in size, the country has been a hot favourite for tourists and shoppers from across the globe since a long time. The country currently ranks as the third richest nation in the world and though it does not have much in terms of natural resources, due to tourism and other businesses, Singapore has been able to fare quite well in the economic front in the past. However, in order to make the best use of the future prospects, the country has to harness its resources and align its capabilities for improvement and innovation in the travel and tourism industries so that it can sustain the steady economic growth. This paper develops a fictional tourism strategic policy for Singapore on the premise of a situation where the three nearby airports of Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Bali are closed down due to natural disasters, which makes th e country the only gateway to other South East Asian countries. It will dwell on various policies that need to be implemented so that the country can optimise its potential as a tourist destination, to cater to the extra demand, over the next five years, in a sustainable manner. Innovations in Singapore Tourism: Strategic Policies and Planning Framework Introduction: Singapore is one of the top ranking economies in Asia Pacific region, with sophisticated infrastructures both in ground and air transport, which rank respectively â€Å"2nd and 14th† as well as a high quality human resources that ranks â€Å"2nd† in the region (Blanke & Chiesa, 2013, p.xxi). In addition, the country ranks as first among all economies for its â€Å"policy environment† that is most supportive with its rules and regulations encouraging travel and tourism industries (p.xxi). Data relating to visiting tourists shows a rising trend with â€Å"11.6 million in 2010 and 13.2 million in 2011 † with revenue earnings of â€Å"S$ 18.9 billion in 2010† and â€Å"$ 22.4 billion† in 2011 (Annual Report of Tourism Statistics, 2012, p.1). Therefore, it transpires that despite the economic down trend across the world, tourism industry in Singapore has been growing in a fast paced manner. The hotel industry in the country also has remained in a strong position over the years with the rates of occupancy up to â€Å"85%† in 2010 and â€Å"86%† in 2011 (Table-34, p.77). Currently, the country has a total of â€Å"154† gazetted hotels with â€Å"40,759† rooms available for letting out (p.83). The land transport system here comprises road and rail services with Express Ways of 161 km, Arterial Roads of 645 km, Collector Roads of 557 km and Local Access Roads of 2,048 km (Singapore Land Transport Statistics as at End of 2011, p.58). In addition, they have Rapid Transit Systems (RTS) with MRT of 146.5 and LRT of 28.8 km, with 97 MRT statio ns and 34 LRT stations, catering to a resident population of 5,184,000 and 13,171,000 visitors (p.58). Air traffic system in the country has accounted for the arrival of â€Å"150,827† aircrafts during the year 2011, carrying 22,778,000 passengers while sea transport has registered the arrival of â€Å"127,998† vessels in 2011 (Year Book of Statistics Singapore, 2012, p.181). This study envisages the development of a new tourism strategic policy and planning framework for Singapore to cater to an extra demand arising from a

To what extent is regional integration in North America part of Essay

To what extent is regional integration in North America part of globalisation - Essay Example Occupying such a vast geographical area and sound population in the three countries of NAFTA, the regional integration at this level certainly helped in the globalization. Globalization is defined as a process of complex series of economic, social, technological, cultural and political changes with increasing interdependence, integration and interaction between people and companies in different locations. It involves internationalization, deterritorilization, universalization, westernization and liberalization. The term globalization was used in 1940s but scholars began applying it in early 1980s. It is reported that Theodore Levitt coined the word â€Å"globalization†. Globalization also means the process of moving close to each other by different countires with a sole objective of collective benefit in terms of trade (Colas Alejandro, 2005 and Hulsmeyer, 2003). Globalization can also be described as the the intensification and integration of the consciousness of the world as a whole. It is also used to refer to these collective changes as a process, or else as the cause of turbulent change (James, 2005, Jones,2000 and Randall,2000). Globaliza tion stimulates economic reforms whose economic efficiency and political acceptability are increased through regional cooperation (Schrim,2002). New Regionalism contributes positively for globalization in three aspects: it offers a new theoretical approach to integration theory; it develops a distinct interpretative model for the impact of globalization on states; and it compares systematically the influence of globalization and the preferences for cooperation cross-regionally in Europe and the Americas. Regional integration and globalization coexist with other and they have both positive and negative effects (Perkmann and Ngai-Ling Sum, 2002). Positive effects include higher rate of export growth, faster capital accumulation and improvement in other economic

Report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Report - Research Paper Example They employ, train and support local workforce and its families. They have initiatives that allow employees to be active citizens in the community by showing their care for the communities. Moreover, the company advocates for civic engagement, tax contributions and volunteerism among its staffs. According to their website, the Company encourages good deeds via its Disney  VoluntEARS  program. It was initiated on Earth Day in 1995 to supports efforts of global and local non-profits that protect ecosystems, wildlife, and make a helpful impact on the community. Since its inauguration, the kitty has supported over $20 million projects in over 112 nations. Through the film, Disneynature, the company has shared important information and compelling stories that submerge audiences in the natural world. The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund supports efforts of global and local non-profits organizations that protect ecosystems, wildlife, and make a helpful impact on the community, Disney created a Green Standard agenda in 2008 to reduce their adverse impact on the environment. The program is directed at meetings/events, workplaces, dining and travels. Many more recycling bins have been introduced and hanging ads placed on in the hotel rooms reminding occupants to shut off the lights and water when not in use. These efforts are geared towards being more eco-friendly. The green standard has spread wide showing just how Disney has lobbied for environmental conservation. Volunteerism is a major center of attention for Disney. The company offers free tickets to a million individuals for them to offer a day of volunteer service to a community organization of their choice. ‘’This has encouraged a large number of people in America to commit volunteering in their communities’’2. As it has been indicated, the Disney Company has made massive investment in social responsibility. The three areas, volunteerism, environment and the community

The Welfare Principle in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Welfare Principle in the UK - Essay Example In which, the rights, powers, duties, responsibilities and authority of the parents are provided concerning their children. In addition to that, it enables the court to hear and make decisions about the welfare of the child. The Adoption and Children Act 2002 changed the law pertaining to the parental responsibility.2 For children born on or after 1 December 2003 [England and Wales], 4 May 2006 [Scotland] and15 April 2002 [Northern Ireland], both biological parents remain owners of the parental responsibility if they are registered on the birth certificate of the child [whether or not the parents are married]. Contact Order definition According to section 8(1) of the Children Act, a contact order means an order requiring the person with whom a child lives or is to live, to allow the child to visit or stay with the person named in the order, or for that person and the child otherwise to have contact with each other.3 However, in case of clash between the interests of the parents and t he interests of children, the interests of the child will be preferred as was stated by the Court of Appeal in Re P (Contact: Supervision) [1996] 2FLR 314 at p.328. What are the interests of a child that the court is going to protect? For example, the child does not have only physical needs and educational needs, but also requires emotional support in order to grow naturally and complete the cycle of mental and physical growth. If parents are only able to satisfy the physical and education needs, but not the emotional one, it would not be easy for the court to serve and protect the interests of the child due to a clash between the different interests. Even in this case, if the court grants the contact order, the court compromises on the emotional needs of the child. On the other hand, if the court does not entertain the contact order request from the parents, the court again fails to properly serve the interests of the child. In order to ascertain the interests of the parents and th e interests of the child, the court needs to consider the contact order factors that assist whether contact order should be made or not. They include: Above all, the court has to consider what they believe to be in the best interests of child and the welfare of the child remains the main priority. In this regard, the feelings and wishes of the child as far as can be ascertained and they must be considered in the light of the child’s mental level and understanding: There is no specific age bracket provided to ascertain the mental level of a child. If the child faces a very specific mental disorder and the doctors remain unsuccessful to highlight the impact of the mental disorder on the child’s main mind function, under that situation, the age consideration may become irrelevant. Even the court decision to issue a contact order will not be able to serve the main objective of the child welfare. The court is required to take into account the child’s emotional, physi cal and educational needs as well: For example, if parents want to nurture their child and they are financially in a position to fulfil the physical and educational needs of the child, but they are unable to satisfy the emotional needs of the child. There are no particular emotional needs mentioned in the Children Act 1989 that must be satisfied before granting a contact order. In addition, there are different types of emotions and

Green Tree City Case Study (Question 3 only) Assignment

Green Tree City Case Study (Question 3 only) - Assignment Example This entails ensuring good packing and entry for clients and all other users of the building. The accessibility of the building also ensures easy and quick evacuation and rescue operations in time of attacks as well as other disaster like fire and floods (National Research Council, 2001). This makes the accessibility of a building a main concern for owners as it forms a factor in elevating the number of people rescued during rescue operations and increases the building’s safety. The other concern for a building owner is ensuring the building is leased to known parties as a means of reducing chances of leasing arts of the building to terrorists who can cause bombings like in the case study. The person renting, therefore, has to provide documentation and a stated use for the building or art of the building leased. The main reason for this is that the owner has the authority in deciding the lease agreement, hence has the responsibility. The other concern of the owner entails limiting the points of entry to a building as a way to limit unauthorized access to the building. The measures for this include use of not less than eight feet fence along the perimeter, slowing of incoming vehicles through design of the road, use of high security lights protected by wire, to avoid tampering and improve lighting, and the use of anti-ram devices (U.S. Department Security & Federal Emergency Agency, 2013). The importance of these measures includes increased standoff protection against driving in with unwanted materials including bombs and explosives. Limiting access to ventilation system to only authorized personnel also reduces instances of using ventilation systems as channels to spread explosives by terrorists. The erection of electronic security detection devices in all doors and entrances to the building forms the other concern of the owner. Use of glass break censors and closed-circuit cameras surveillance is another securi ty

Pit Bulls Essay Example for Free

Pit Bulls Essay American societies famous bully breeds is too often stereotyped as malicious animals, but that stereotype is false due to evidence that pit bulls can be just as loving as the iconic golden retriever. According to the American Temperament Test, which is a test that focuses on and measures different aspects of temperament such as stability, shyness, aggressiveness, friendliness and self-preservation in the face of a threat shows that Pit Bulls have a temperament of 86.8%, (American Temperament Test Society) a much higher percentage than other breeds which justifies that these animals can withstand a higher tolerance of aggressiveness. If this is the case, why are Pit Bulls one of the most discriminated dog breeds in today’s society? Due to irresponsible owners, Pit Bulls have been labeled cruel and violent animals, leading people to be frightened for themselves, their children, and their pets. By experience and owning a pit bull for oneself, people would begin to understand something entirely different. Pit Bulls are a misunderstood breed; they are one of the most loving and loyal breeds that deserves a fair chance just like any other dog would, but because of irresponsible owners, and their negligence toward teaching their pit bulls the right mannerisms this may never happen. The reputation of the Pit Bull has taken a dramatic downfall in the past few decades due to negative publicity. Originally, Pit Bulls were considered to be   Ã¢â‚¬Å"American darlings†; during WWI they were claimed to be the sweetest and most loving dogs a person could own, but in the 1980’s the view of the â€Å"American darlings† changed due to an illegal â€Å"sport†, dogfighting. Although dogfighting is illegal in all fifty states, inhumane persons who participate in the sport choose pit bulls because of their strong physique and loyal personality, which contribute to the stereotype of all pit bulls being violent due to the public only viewing them as fighters. A famous example of this is the widely known scandal around NFL player Michael Vick, who was convicted of running Pit bull fighting kennels in Smithfield, VA. The outcome of this case brought on more discrimination toward Pit bulls in general. Although Pit Bulls were viewed badly, people still used them as the preferred guard dog not only for the bad as in drug houses and gang members, but also as one would get any dog, to use them as protection for their property. In 1987 an incident regarding a Pit Bull and a two-year-old sent red flags up for this prestigious breed. A pit bull that was under the care of an irresponsible owner had the dog guarding an illegal marijuana crop, in California, when a two-year-old boy who was unsupervised was wandering around and fell victim to the pit bull. This attack was immediately publicized because of the pit bull being involved as the main concern, which made the reputation of Pit Bulls sink even lower. People began to think that Pit Bulls were heartless killers, due to the mis-training of their owners. The public was misinformed; they did not know that the child was wandering around unsupervised in an enclosed area. This situation would create a threat to any guard dog, not just a Pit Bull, and the outcome would have been the same. Because of that horrible mistake, the Pit Bull was killed. In a situation like this, it is in no way the Pit Bull’s fault; he was merely doing his job. Rather, it is the owner’s fault for not clearly training him and the parent’s fault for being careless with their child. This was brought to the courts attention and soon thoughts of a ban against Pit bulls were raised. The public was outraged by this attack and proposed a ban on Pit bulls. This ban was granted throughout 39 or more cities and states without the consent of any animal professionals or the owners of this breed. These bans lead to the death of many innocent Pit Bulls in many areas. Many Cities reportedly spent over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars in rounding up and killing these animals. Devastated owners had their animals confiscated and killed without warning. In Tijeras, New Mexico, the ban was so strictly enforced that animal control officers were allowed to kill any Pit Bull seen on sight without compensation to the owner. Due to their misunderstood reputation, people made rash decisions that affected the lives of many loving Pit Bulls that never stood a chance. They have even become a â€Å"liability† due to their â€Å"overly violent† personalities and because of this have been banned from many areas in the United States. One thing that frightens people the most is a Pit Bulls jaw. While they do have one of the strongest jaws, it is not the strongest. Dr. I. Lerh Brisbin, of the University of Georgia, states, â€Å"The few studies, which have been conducted of the structure of the skulls, mandibles and teeth of Pit Bulls show, that, in proportion to their size, their jaw structure and thus its inferred functional morphology, is no different than that of any [other] breed of dog. There is absolutely not evidence for the existence of any kind of locking mechanism unique to the structure of the jaw and/or teeth of the American Pit Bull Terrier. † There is no evidence to prove that Pit Bulls have unique jaws or any lethal â€Å"lockjaw†. The â€Å"lockjaw† method is learned through training, it is not a special killing tool, and once again the owner creates this issue for the breed. Pit Bulls are not the only kind of dog to be able to do this; most breeds can. The difference is people are already scared of Pit Bulls, so they continue to publicize it much more than the other breeds. Christina Berry, writer for The Lazy Pit Bull states, â€Å"Pit Bulls are the most discriminated dog in the US. This is in part because there are so many myths surrounding them, which makes some people believe theyre not suitable for adoption. This is not true. A rescued Pit Bull can make a wonderful companion. † Once people realize this, then Pit Bull adoption rates will rise and they can be put into good homes. These animals need someone that will take care of them and love them. That is all that is required for a happy dog and no accidents will be encountered. If these animals were provided the rights training and proper care than there would not be any worry about owning one of these animals. There are many precautions that have to be taken when owning these animals. Such as; proper housing and fencing, this contributes to a safe environment where these animals can roam and live without the disturbance of others. Also a calm and secluded area where no one can be around or taunt the animal in its own territory. When these animals are out in the public they should be constantly under supervision, this will allow you to know what the animal is doing at all time and give the proper amount of time to react if the Pit Bull feels threatened. Throughout the awful times many people continue to stand by Pit Bulls, these people are the ones that have experienced owning this loving creature and understand that the bad reputation Pit Bulls have is merely a misconception. I believe that Pit Bulls are the greatest breed a family could have. I have had fourteen Pit Bulls and each one was very special to me. They are very playful, confident, strong, humorous, loving, but most of all loyal. They will do anything for their owners. They are just like any other dog, but unfortunately they are not seen the same. Not one of my Pit Bulls ever harmed or attacked any other animal or human. They continuously proved themselves to being the sweetest animals that many have had the great fortune to meet. What normal, other dogs can do, like jump on somebody or behave like a dog, a Pit Bull can do that and be deemed dangerous, (Kingsbury) Unless people start taking the time to get to know the extraordinary breed that Pit Bulls are, they will never be able to understand their true personality or help them. Pit Bulls need to stop being looked at as monsters and killing machines, they are just like any other dog. They are loving, trusting, loyal, and fun. Pit Bulls are a wonderful versatile breed and are used for many different purposes; Fighting is not the only thing they excel at. They are a breed always focused and determined to please its owner, thus if we start using them for the right purposes these dogs make wonderful therapy, guide, rescue, service, weight pulling, but most of all companion dogs. â€Å"Pit Bulls love people. Although this breed frequently gets a bad rap in the media, if you have ever met a Pit Bull that was raised by a loving, conscientious family then you will understand how much they like to be with people.   All they need is the right kind of guidance, and owner. Pit Bulls are just like any other pet that one takes into their home, these dogs are wrongly named and deceived for the acts they are trained by their owners to do. JRL Solutions states, â€Å"It is in actuality the humans who continue to make a series of hasty or ignorant mistakes that are helping to perpetuate the bad reputation this breed has gained over the last decade. † If a law should pass against these dogs, it should be the law to mandate the right methods of training. To punish these dogs and classify them as malicious or dangerous is a hypocritical judgment as any dog, small, medium, or large could be classified into these categories. After much research and experience as I have had my fair share in taking responsibility and care of this precious breed, it is safe to say that society should rethink their opinions and misconceptions of these dogs. It is proven that they were the â€Å"American darlings† of our time, they have the tolerance to withstand aggressiveness, and they are one of the most loyal companions any man could ask for.

Foxconn Suicides Case Study

Foxconn Suicides Case Study Introduction Foxconn Technology Group is a subsidiary of Hon Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd, a Taiwanese company which is a major electronics manufacturer catering to famous-name brands including Sony, Apple and Nokia. With the first manufacturing plant established in Shenzhen, China in 1988, around 450,000 workers are now employed at the Foxconn City, which intends to act as both working and leisure place to the employees. Foxconn has been involved in several controversies, relating to how it manages employees. It is mostly known by the public for the series of suicides in 2010. The 2010 Foxconn suicides occurred between January and November, 2010, when eighteen Foxconn employees, aging from 18 to 24, attempted suicide with fourteen deaths. Though investigation has found that employees personal problems may cause them to commit suicide, low income, enormous working pressure and a lack of communication opportunity are commonly accounted for the incidence. The suicides drew much media attention and in this project, we will focus on analyzing the managerial problems of Foxconn which lead to the incidence and the effectiveness of the measures taken by Foxconn after the incidence to alleviate those problems. Management problems: Military leadership style Many reports suggested that Foxconns leadership style is the culprit for continuous suicides. They argued that manufacturing workers also need a warm and supportive working environment which was the opposite of Foxconn practices. Almost every worker needs to stand to work 12 hours a day intensively so as to maintain their live with the low wages. As they do not have other qualifications, they have no choice but have to choose this kind of harsh jobs said a first-line manager in Foxconn. After a series of suicides happen in Foxconn, a reporter slipped into the company for 30 days. He found that the environment inside the factory was more terrible than imagine. For instance, no one can leave for a minute for washroom unless he can find someone to replace his duty. It shows that even peoples basic needs are ignored. In addition, Foxconn stresses heavily on execution and efficiency although it never delivers compensation late. Some workers point out that whenever your boss gives out command, the only respond you can give is Yes or OK. You cannot be suspicious for a second. The only thing you can do is follow his order and delegate the work to your subordinates. In other words, manufacturing workers get extremely low status in the industry. With low status, workers duty is to listen and follow their instructions, workers should have no say to what they can do. We are pretty sure that this kind of military management is unethical as they simply ignore the basic human needs. If we apply the motivation theory-Maslows Hierarchy of Needs to Foxconn, they cannot even fulfill the most basic physiological needs like sufficient rest time for the prolonged working hours. Ranging from work conditions to worker status, Foxconn fails to fulfill those hygiene factors( dissatisfiers) according to Fredrick Herzberg s Two-Factor Theory. Both of the theories above show us clearly that worker will get dissatisfied with this military leadership style. The strict and inconsiderate leadership style explains why Foxconn was blamed to be inhuman causing endless suicides. Rewarding policies From the view of motivating and rewarding employees, some believe that a string of  suicides at Foxconn has highlighted what some say that the minimal pay of 900 RMB is exploitative. We shall examine the issue and analyze rewarding policies of Foxconn. With respect to the monetary rewards, it is laudable that Foxconn has signed labor contract with their workers and pay their basic salaries on time. However, they set the minimum wage in Shenzhen, 900RMB, as the basic salary of workers in the factory before tragedy happened. In fact, the so-called basic salary is not enough to guarantee workers even the basic standard of living. They are long overdue for significant pay raises and the factory pay has not kept pace with inflation over the past decade that makes their lives hard. We may find that the monetary reward offered by Foxconn is insufficient to satisfy even the physiological needs of workers. It is very likely that workers will get more depressed when their job is overwhelming stressful at low pay level. Suicide attempts are usually preceded by a period of serious depression. It is easy to understand that the low pay can induce suicide with tremendous pressure faced by factory workers every day. After several suicides, Foxconn has reached a preliminary agreement on pension and maintenance payments with the bereaved families that Foxconn would make a 360,000 RMB pension payment to those families and offered maintenance payments of 30,000 RMB per year. This practice intensifies the suicidal problem. The original intention of this measure is to pacify the bereaved families, comfort employees after a series of suicide events and at the same time, relief the pressure from public. However, for those workers who are dissatisfied with their lives at Foxconn, huge amount of compensation induces them to end their life as they find it more preferable. The pension payment, being the culprit of suicides, is achieving the opposite. The dearth of non-monetary rewards also results in a string of suicides at Foxconn. Under the military leadership style, being blamed is one of the job duties. Non-monetary rewards like praise, status promotions or privileges are simply impossible. For general companies, not having any non-monetary or intrinsic rewards is not the critical problem. It is a different story for Foxconn and they become extremely important when monetary and extrinsic rewards are far from sufficient to satisfy workers. It acts as the supplements or compensation to workers with low pay. Unfortunately, Foxconn just does the opposite. There is neither significant extrinsic reward nor any form of intrinsic rewards. Worse still, they tend to punish rather than encourage workers when they get mistakes. All the above rewarding policies fuel the suicide problem. Communication opportunity Communication with peers is important to express their ups and downs and relieve their stress. Developing the social network in the industry would also enhance the job satisfaction and sense of belongings to the company. However, there is a lack of communication in Foxconn. When they are working, workers cannot talk with each other, or else there will be disciplinary action. After work, they seldom talks with their roommates, since they either have to work overtime or need to take a rest after long working hours. After the first few suicides, Foxconn carries out a number of measures. For example, managers buy information with monetary incentive. Whenever workers report employees with psychological problem, two hundred dollar is rewarded. This practice further worsens the relationship between peers, supervisors and subordinates as it weakens the trust between workers, making it more difficult for them to share freely with their peers. When employees are not satisfied with the working environment and have nobody to talk to, their stress level will add up. And one day they can no longer withstand the stress and end their lives to get rid of the work. Fairness Have you ever imagined that the unfair treatments in the work place would induce people to commit suicide? People in this generation pay more attention to the fairness. However, unfair affairs exist in Foxconn. There are rumors that security guards maintain order according to their personal mood, rather than the regulations of the company. Whenever one of the guards does not get along with you, you will be beaten for whatever reasons. One example will be Mr Leung. Some said that he spit to the guard after being dressed down and jumped from the roof the other day. Another example will be the management by Mr Kwok, the chairperson of Foxconn. He was born and educated in Taiwan. That is why he is criticized of preferential treating towards Taiwanese. He often employs Taiwanese to manage Chinese and rewards are different between employees from different origins. Taiwanese have a higher salaries and bonus than Chinese at the same level. It is true that we cannot check whether the above claims are correct or not. However, discrimination is not uncommon in the real society as we can think and thus it may be the fault of Foxconn not to balance the interests of different parties which directly leads to continuous suicides. With the workers being treated differently and nowhere to complain, they can only endure to it. When it comes to the end of ones patience, some of them choose to end their lives. Measures taken by the Foxconn Group: After the consecutive tragedies, the Foxconn Group had adopted various measures to prevent employees from committing suicide again. These measures included: 1.) Increase in workers wages. The management raised the wages of all production line workers by 30%. And for the production line operators in Shenzhen, their basic salaries and wages were raised from 1,200 yuan to 2,000 yuan per month. 2.) Set up of Safety Net The company set up a rigid Safety Net within the staff residential areas, which occupied for over 150 million square meters of spaces, thus to avoid the death of any worker directly if they intended to jump off the roof downwards. 3.) Establishment of the Caring Team Foxconn had divided their workers into groups of 50 people, known as the Caring Team, and their responsibilities included giving cares and love to each other, and to report any unusual emotional changes of their co-workers. 4.) Counselors availability to assist the workers At the time after the incident, the company had already trained 1000 psychological counselors. They were sent to the factory to provide counseling, guidance and assistance to the workers via the psychological consultation hotline. 5.) Mandatory Psychological test Once new workers were employed after the incident, they should undergo an in-depth mandatory psychological test to evaluate their mental health and provided better guidance on how they could work happily in the future. To conclude, these measures aimed at preventing the same incident from happening again. Criticisms on the measures taken by the company Despite the several measures adopted by the company, did they really benefit the workers permanently? Or did they only bring temporary effects? It was surprising to discover that there were still cases of workers committing suicide shortly after all the above measures were implemented, which gave us the solid evidence that the measures might not be as effective as the managers expected and could not root out the problem. 1. Short-sighted measures without long-term consideration The above measures could be said to be effective in dealing with short term problems, yet it might not be long-term considered enough. For example, the set up of Safety Net could only enforce workers not to jump downwards from their roof, but it could not solve the workers dissatisfaction towards the company and enhance workers morale in long-term. Some even argue that the establishment of safety net shows the cool-blooded attitude of Foxconn towards workers. 2. Not sufficient psychological support Although the company sets up a psychological consultation hotline, helping employees to relieve their stress, this measure is quite passive and the number of employees being helped is limited. Top managers only select 1000 employees to take a training course of psychological consultation. Eighty of them pass the exam helping employees who cannot deal with stress. But, these eighty helpers, relative to over four hundred thousand of employees, are insufficient to prevent suicide from happening again. We doubt whether it is the effective method to prevent suicide and help employees. 3. Insufficient improvement in satisfying different needs According to Maslows hierarchy of needs, it states clearly that different needs ranging from physiological needs to self-actualization and esteem needs, such intrinsic values are the most crucial ingredient in the recipe of motivating workers. However, what Foxconn offered were far from fully satisfying workers fundamental needs (ie, financial security), not to mention what measures did Foxconn implement to satisfy workers social needs. Although they set up the caring team to show their love to workers, whether it works is in doubt. Can the need of social network be simply replaced by the so-called caring team? The act of suicides proves its effectiveness. Being ignored the intrinsic needs, workers hardly find the feeling of satisfactory and recognition from the work. Our Suggestions To coop with the incident, we ought to think of some more probable ways, which are listed in the following: 1. An increase in wages and a reduction on working hours Most of the workers in Foxconn endured their tiredness by standing for over 10 hours per day, with 6 days per week without adequate rest. The reason that workers choose to work overtime was that the wages were still far from enough for them, even after the little raise in the wages . By increasing the wages, workers no longer need to suffer from the extremely long working hours. If we want to save workers lives, we should first make sure that they get sufficient salary to maintain their lives. 2. Satisfying different needs Under the Maslows Hierarchy of Needs, social need like affection, belongingness and friendship is one of the essential needs for workers to get work. Apart from encouraging workers to make friends with others so as to alleviate the psychological problems, they should also encourage them to relax by having some leisure activities. Though Foxconn has good relaxing facilities like recreation centre for chess, mountain climbing and fishing, they never promote and encourage workers to enjoy them. From the Shanghai-based China Business News reported, Researchers questioned 1,736 employees and found they worked an average of 83.2 hours of overtime a month that is more than twice the maximum of 36 hours allowed under Chinese law. Workers work numerous overtime and thus they do not have time to enjoy those facilities. If Foxconn can truly allow workers to enjoy these facilities, workers would definitely gain a better sense of belonging and the morale would thus be enhanced greatly as differen t needs are satisfied. Google which provides its workers a comprehensive working environment and encourages them to enjoy it is a successful example. For instance, swimming pool, 24-hour canteen and gymnastics facilities are all free to use for every employee. Although Foxconn might not be necessary to imitate Google in such ways, it should consider deeply on how it can provide better environment to workers. 3. Means to let workers assure of a more certain future The suicide cases increase workers fears towards their future. They feel devastated and uncomfortable to what the public said and even lose confidence on Foxconn. These emotional effects can be disastrous if Foxconn cannot handle it well. We believe that more resources should be spent to stabilize workers emotion. Foxconn should first explain clearly why several workers committed suicide and hence encourage the remaining to cherish their lives. Secondly, several means should be provided to help workers establish their career paths with promising future so as to reduce their uncertainty about the future. If so, it is believed that the working pressure as well as the turnover rate of current workers would be decreased significantly. Eventually, the occurrence of suicides of workers could be diminished. Conclusion Deficiencies in management inevitably account for the series of suicides. The incidence, perhaps, is an alarm to Foxconn for the urge of a change in its management style. Is military leadership still viable and suitable? Or another style, a more caring one should be adopted to encourage workers? Instead of thinking how employees can benefit the company, it is more appropriate for Foxconn to think about how they can benefit the employees and get high productivity in return. The essence of the problem is simple: even human needs are not satisfied in Foxconn. But up to now, measures taken to tackle the problem, mostly short term, are far from satisfactory, or even worsen it. Apparently, these measures do not get to the root of the problem. To alleviate the dissatisfaction of workers, long term solutions to regain employees confidence towards Foxconn are the only way out.

Introduction Theoretical Theories Of Investment Economics Essay

Introduction Theoretical Theories Of Investment Economics Essay Investment is a strategic variable in the determination of the level and growth of income. It has been defined in various ways by various economists. Generally, it refers to any act of spending with a prospective yield. To the economist, it refers precisely to the process of capital formation whereby there is net addition to the existing assets including inventories and goods in the pipeline of production. It is the actual production of capital equipment, tools and other produced means of production. Investment might be capital formation: Financial Capital and Physical or real capital. There are gross, net and autonomous investments where: Gross Investment= Net Investment + Autonomous Investment Autonomous Investment also known as Government Investment refers to investment which remains the same whatever the level of income. It refers mainly to the investment made on houses, roads, public buildings and other parts of Infrastructure made by the government. Moreover Gross investment is the amount that a company has invested on an asset or business without taking factoring in depreciation into consideration. In other words it is the total amount of money spent for the creation of new capital assets like Plant and Machinery, Factory Building etc. It is the total expenditure made on new capital assets in a period. Furthermore in economics, Net Investment refers to an activity of spending which will cause an increase in the availability of fixed capital goods or means of production. It is the total spending on new fixed investment minus replacement investment, which simply replaces depreciated capital goods. In fact it is Gross investment less Capital Consumption during a period of time. Private Investment depends on various categories of variables. So various theories of investment have been presented and they are provided overleaf:- Fisher Theory of Investment This theory was developed in 1930. Fishers theory was originally developed as a theory of capital, but as he assumes that all capital is circulating, then it is just as proper to conceive of it as a theory of investment. It was provided by Fisher that during the production process, all capital is used up, such that a stock of capital K did not exist. In fact all capital is just investment. There was a condition imposed by Fisher stating that Investment in any given period of time will yield outputs in the nest period. This is illustrated through the equation below: Y2=F [N,I1] Y2 = Output in period 2 I1 = Investment done in period 1 N = labor Assuming a world with only two periods of time, t=1, 2. Investment done in period 1 yields output in period 2. Moreover Fisher assumes that labor is constant Keynesian Theory The Keynesian theory was developed after that John Maynard Keynes (1936) followed suit of the Fisher theory. Keynes stated that there is an independent investment function in the economy. An important aspect of the Keynesian theory is that although savings and investment must be identical, ex-post savings and investment decisions are made by different decision makers and there is reason why ex-ante savings should equal ex-ante investment. According to Trygve Haavelmo (1960) The Keynesian approach places far less emphasis on the adjustment nature of investment. Instead, they tend to have a more behavioral take on the investment decision. Namely, the Keynesian approach argues that investment is simply what capitalists do. Every period, workers consume and capitalists invest as a matter of course. They believe that the main decision is the investment decision; the capital stock just follows from the investment patterns rather than being an important thing that needs to be optimally deci ded Accelerator Principle Theory Over the past two decades, the acceleration principle has played a vital role in the theory of Investment. In fact, this theory was developed before the Keynesian theory; however it became apparent after Keynes investment theory in the twentieth century. The accelerator is generally associated with the name of J.M Clark though it seems to have been first developed by the French economist Albert Aftalion. The basis of the accelerator principle is based on the fact that changes in factors affecting national income would affect investment. In other words, big percentages changes are witnessed due to small in consumer spending. This type of investment is known as induced investment since; it is induced by changes in consumption and income. Furthermore, the accelerator is just the numerical value of the relationship between the increases in investment caused by an increase in income. Normally, it will be positive when national income increases. On the other hand, it might fall to zero if the national output or income remains costant. Neo-Classical Theory In 1971, the neoclassical approach which is a version of the flexible accelerator model was formulated by Jorgenson and others. Flexible Accelerator Model is a more general form of the accelerator model. It is assumed that firms will choose only a fraction, a, of the gap between desired and current actual level of capital stock each period. The larger the gap between the desired capital stock and the actual capital stock, the greater a firms rate of investment. This is illustrated below: I = a [K* -K-1] I = planned net investment during period t K* = desired level of capital stock K-1 = current actual level of capital stock at beginning of period t (end of period t-1) a = adjustment factor, 0 The desired capital stock is proportional to output and the investors cost of capital which in turn depends on the price of capital goods, the real rate of interest, the rate of depreciation and the tax structure. It is important to note that most recent empirical works are based on Jorgenson investment function. In fact Jorgenson provides that a decrease in interest rate would cause an increase in investment by reducing the cost of capital. In 1967, Hall and Jorgenson provide the Hall Jorgenson Model of Investment. The model illustrates that the level of capital stock that is chosen by an optimizing firm depend on various economic features like the production function, depreciation rates, taxes, interest rates. In fact Hall and Jorgenson had used the neoclassical theory of optimal capital accumulation to analyze the relationship between tax policy and investment expenditures. They concluded that tax policy is very effective in changing the level and timing on Investment expenditures. Q theory of Investment The Q theory of Investment, introduced by Tobin (1969) is a popularly accepted theory of real investment. In fact it is a basic tool used for financial market analysis.It is a positive function of Qwhich can be defined as the ratio of the market value of the existing capital to the replacement cost of capital. Q can be defined as follows: Q=Stock Value of Firm/Replacement cost of Investment Q is a barometer for investors as it tends to assess a firms prospect. When Q is greater than one, the firm would make additional investment because the profits generated would be greater than the cost of firms assets. If Q is less than one, the firm would be better off selling its assets instead of trying to put them to use as the firms value is less than what it cost to reproduce their capital. The ideal state is where Q is approximately equal to one denoting that the firm is in equilibrium. The Q theory of investment can also depend on adjustment cost. Literature on this issue was done by Eisner and Strotz (1963), Lucas (1967), Gould (19678) and Tredway (1969). Later Mussa (1977), Abel (1979, 1982) and Yoshikawa (1980) showed that Investment is an increasing function of the shadow price of installed capital. This is such only when there are convex adjustment costs. Marginal Q Model of Investment Moreover Abel (1981) and Hayaski (1982) introduced the marginal q model associated with smooth convex costs of adjustments. They assume that capital market are perfect, such that investment is undertake until the marginal value of an additional unit of investment has decreased to the exact value of the riskless interest rate. Abel (1981) describes marginal q as The optimal rate of Investment is an increasing function of the slope of the value function with respect to the capital stock (marginal q). Abe; states that an increase in any factors that affect price can cause an increase, a decrease or even do not affect investment rate. The effect will depend on the covariance sign of the price with a weighted average of all prices. Hayaski (1982) provides that under linear homogeneity, marginal q is equal to average q. However when marginal q is not equal to average q, it is marginal q which is relevant for investment. In fact marginal q is just a stochastic version of the Q theory of Inv estment. Neo-Classical theory and Q theory of Investment (Panageas 2005) According to Stravos Panageas (2005), the neoclassical theory provides that Investment and the stock market are linked through the Tobin q. This is because the net present value of the company is the value of the company, so when the stock market is rising, there should be an increase in Investment to equate the Q ratio. This involves speculation. Panageas (2005) states that If firms maximizes share prices, then Investment reacts to speculate overpricing. However he also provides that when investment is controlled by shareholders, who do not have perfect access to the market, the link between investment and speculation will not hold. There might be costs to access the market like capital gains taxes, price pressure etc. The model used by Panageas also aid to distinguish between rational and behavioural theories of asset pricing anomalies. Models associated with non-convex costs There are also models with Non-convex costs of adjustments. King and Thomas (2006) states Non-convex adjustment costs imply distributed lags in aggregate series similar to those generated by convex costs, because they stagger the lumpy adjustments undertaken by individual firms in response to shocks. These non- convex costs is linked with the investment theory. A number of influential partial equilibrium studies (Caballero and Engel, 1999; Cooper, Haltiwanger and Power, 1999; Caballero, Engel and Haltiwanger, 1995) have showed that these investments models cause great changes in investment demand following large aggregate shocks. Theories of Interest Rate There is a vast spectrum of interest rate at a given period of time in a country. The interest rate will depend on several variables such as nature of loans, duration of loans, credit worthiness of borrower, hire purchase agreements. When those variables are held constant, the rate of interest or pure interest rate is obtained. The most common theories used to explain interest rate determinations are the Loanable Funds Theory (Neo Classical) and the Liquidity Preference Theory (Keynesian Theory). Furthermore the ISLM model is held for a fully integrated approach. Loanable Funds Theory/ Neo Classical Theory We will first consider the Loanable funds theory which is also known as the neo classical theory of interest. It was developed by the Swedish economist Knot Wickshell (1851-1926). The rate of interest is obtained through the demand and supply of loans in the credit market. The demand for loan is mainly to invest, to consume and to hoard. Traditionally the demand curve will slope downward because a fall in interest rate will attract borrowings. The supply of loans comes from 4 important sources. These are saving, bank money, dishoarding and disinvestment. The supply curve will be upward sloping since a higher rate of interest will induce these sources to supply more loans. So according to the Loanable funds theory, the rate of interest will be determined where these two curves intersect. This is shown below: Rate of interest SL R1 Q1 DL Figure 1.1 Loanable Funds According to figure 1.1, the equilibrium rate will be R1 and Q1 will be the amount of loan that are demanded and supplied. Interest rate either above or below the equilibrium rate will be restored to the equilibrium rate through upward and downward pressure. Changes in the demand and supply of loan will alter interest rate. For example, technological changes might increase the demand for loanable funds. So according to this theory, the rate of interest is the price that equate the demand for and the supply of loanable funds. Liquidity Preference Theory/Keynesian Theory The Liquidity Preference Theory was developed by Keynes. Keynes described interest rate as a purely monetary phenomenon which is determined by the demand and supply of money. Keynes identified 3 reasons why people would prefer liquidity rather that assets. These are: Transactions demand for money The transaction demand is the demand to hold money in order to meet day to day transactions. The amount of cash which the individual will keep in his possession will depend on his size of his personal income and the length of time between his pay days. Precautionary demand for money The precautionary demand is the demand to hold money in order to meet unforeseen events such as illness, being unemployed. The amount of money that the individual will hold for precautionary motives will depend on the individuals condition, economic and political conditions which he lives. The size of his income, nature of the person and foresightedness will also affects the precautionary motives of a person. Speculative demand for money Speculative demand is the demand to hold money as oppose to the holding of bonds. There is an inverse relationship between bonds and the rate of interest. When the price of bond tends to rise, rate of interest will fall due to the inverse relationship, so people will be buying bonds to sell them later when the price actually rises. However when bond prices are expected to fall leading to a rise in the rate of interest, people will sell bonds to avoid losses. According to Keynes, when the interest rate is high, speculative demand for money will be low and vice versa. The supply of money is the amount of money in circulation at a specified time period. It is the central bank which will be determining the supply of money. It is fixed at any given period of time. According to the Liquidity Preference theory, the rate of interest is determined where these two curves intersect as illustrated below: R1 Liquidity Preference (LP) Quantity of money Q1 Q2 S2 Rate of Interest S1 R2 Figure 1.2 As illustrated by figure 1.2, the money supply is represented by S1Q1 along the LP function. The rate of interest will be R1 where the supply of money intersects the LP function. If there is an increase in the money supply to S2Q2, there will be an excess in the supply of money causing people to adjust their demand portfolio by purchasing bonds. The price of bonds will rise leading to a fall in interest rate to R2. Investment/Saving-Liquidity Preference/Money supply (IS-LM) Model The previous two theories does not take into consideration in changes in national income to affect the rate of interest. The IS-LM model is used to arrive at a determinate solution. In fact it is part of the Keynesian theory. In the IS-LM model, interest rate is the only determinant of investment. The IS-LM model assumes that a higher interest rate will result in lower investment and vice versa. In this model interest rate will change due to changes in factors like business activity, credit creation by a bank, confidence, the level of national debt, inflows of funds and even international forces. Keynes provided the investment schedule where interest rate is the only primary determinant of investment. The schedule shows the amount of investment that firms would carry out at each rate of interest.