Maturity Essays (Examples)

The maturity matching practices at CAE are actually significantly out of balance, though this is not necessarily undesirable giving the current climate and the potential for volatility in CAE's primary industry of operation, namely military and quasi-military endeavors. The disparity between the average life of assets and the average life of liabilities held by the company s obviously in favor of assets, and to a large degree; this means that the company is much heavier on long-term assets than it is on long-term debts, which can suggest that it is not utilizing its assets to their full potential in order to maximize growth. The long-term assets held by the company could be used to fuel growth by borrowing against them or utilizing current cash flow more efficiently, in other words. An examination of the current assets and liabilities of the company over the past eight reported quarters, however, shows that…

Project Management Maturity

Key Best Practices:

According to the text by Kerzner (2006), one of the most critical paths to refining key best practices is the establishment of a positive and effective company culture. It is the orientation of the organisation and its personnel on a broader level that will impact its project management style and success. This is why such strategies as project 'integration' offer a model for best practices adherence. According to Kerzner, "the integrated nature of PM Development Framework is a best practice. It forces the interaction between supporting elements of a successful Project Management career, and in turn a PM discipline that can best support customer projects and increase a company's financial position." (Kerzner, p. 462)

This denotes that key best practices are those which allow for a seamless integration of goals relating to internal operations, customer needs and the organisation's overall economic imperatives.

Key Elements…

CMM and Agility

CMM (Capability Maturity Model) and agility can co-exist. Following are the supporting facts and information.

One of the main objectives for the development of the capability maturity model for software is to improve the maturity level of product development. That is, to increase the level of improvement and performance in a development lifecycle, as well as to provide a quality software product output. CMM basically prevents any SDLC (software development life cycle) procedures that might be confusing or were may be created just for a current project and did not undergo procedure assessment and evaluation. It provides ideas to an organization as to which level an organization belongs. Similarly, it provides a motivation to an organization should they find that their software development strategy does not fit their real objectives. To achieve this, the CMM was divided into the following maturity levels (Hamilton & Kern, 2001).

Level…

Intercultural Maturity

In recent years, intercultural competence on an emotional and interpersonal level has been increasingly valued as an important attribute to foster in students, given the globalization of society. Education is not simply imparting knowledge, it is also designed "to adequately prepare culturally competent citizens" (Perez, Shim, & Baxter-Magdola, 2015, p. 759.) The King & Baxter-Magolda (2005) multidimensional framework of intercultural maturity (the ICM model) attempts to answer why some students seem innately more comfortable with multicultural settings. While some students have reported finding intercultural settings "generally threatening" and either feel "immobilized" or avoid them, others have reported "struggling with di-erence, but remained open to continuing to question their beliefs" while the most culturally competent "gained new insights into their own social identities despite the discomfort of diverse interactions" (Perez, Shim, & Baxter-Magdola, 2015, pp. 761-762). Just like learning new concepts, some students seem innately more comfortable with confronting…

Intercultural Maturity

In today's world where global connection is rapidly increasing, it is becoming extremely important to educate capable citizens who can participate in cultured and moral decision making when they have to face the challenges related to diversity. Students who have better understanding of diversity can appreciate, team up and learn from others with a different nationality, culture, or race and provide better solutions to a problem by combining diverse views. They also show great skills required to work successfully in teams and able to respond effectively to the demands of all kinds of customers.

The Intercultural Maturity Model is known as one of the best models established (axter) that emanated from Kegan's Lifespan Development Model. Kegan explained that individuals who are matured are able to response to difficult jobs more effectively than others. People plan their lives, keeping a balance between their own interests, interest of others and…

It is not hormone levels, according to Carlson (2007) that affect sexual orientation. Hormone levels in heterosexual and homosexual individuals have been found to be similar. However, instead, it is exposure to hormones prenatally may be the cause.

Prenatal exposure to androgens is believed to have an effect on the structure of the brain, which in turn affects sexual orientation. Kruijver and Swaab (2002) and Motluck (2003) both found significant differences in three subregions of the brain when examining deceased heterosexual men, heterosexual women, and homosexual men. Both pieces of research show that the suprachiasmatic nucleus is larger in homosexual men than it is in heterosexual men or women. In contrast, heterosexual women and homosexual men have a smaller sexually dimorphic nucleus of the hypothalmus, when compared to heterosexual men. The third subregion both sets of research noted differences in was the anterior commissure. Interestingly, in homosexual men and heterosexual…

Therefore, the cost of equity is relatively low.

4. The tax rate of JNJ is assumed to be 34%.

The debt-to-equity ratio by market value, as calculated from the previous report, is 21.9%

Therefore the asset beta of Johnson & Johnson is as follows:

Ba = [1+ (1-T)(D*/E*) / Be Ba = [1+(1-.34)(.219)] / 0.36

Ba = 3.179

I am not surprised by the asset beta of Johnson and Johnson. The asset beta reflects the degree to which the company's business performance is related to the overall performance of the economy. Intuitively, JNJ's business is not strongly related to the economy. They product everyday consumer products that are not luxury items, and they produce pharmaceuticals that again are fairly essential items to their consumers. This reduces the demand elasticity, which will be reflected in a low-risk business. The asset beta of JNJ is above the risk-free rate, representing some business…

It is an odd closeness he experiences with his father. In "Those inter Sundays," we find a more definite appreciation for the father in the poem. The adult can look back and see how his father and know he was not punishing him but merely looking out for the family. The speaker asks, "hat did I know, what did I know" (Hayden 14) realizing his ingratitude is worse than what his father made him do. Interestingly, it is what happened on those cold mornings that made the speaker feel a warmth and affection toward his father. Through personal experience, each poem focuses on life, responsibilities and affection.

These poems demonstrate how memories do not need to be good to be significant or meaningful. Both speakers are remembering moments of anxiety shared with their fathers and it is because they shared them with their fathers that make the memories worth remembering…

Duration in the Investment Decision

Seasoned financial experts will consider numerous factors when considering potential investments. Common considerations for fixed term securities, such as bonds, will include risk and reward, with the reward assessed through the yield to maturity. However, while the element of yield is important, it should not be the only primary area of consideration; duration, or term to maturity, can also be an essential factor in an investment decision (Goldman Sachs, 2014; Gatzert and Kosub, 2014)).

The duration of an investment may be necessary for a number of reasons, these include, but are not limited, to the link between term and reward, market uncertainty, and the need for liquidity.

Duration and reward

Duration links to the risk and reward element of an investment decision. Generally, longer term investments will provide a higher return compared to short-term investments with similar perceived levels of risk. At the current time,…

Demographic information is an important tool when examining the future of any country, be it a developed county or a less developed area the economic impact of an aging population, the changing politics of a large youthful generation, or the growth or decrease in a country's population are all predicators of future situations. This paper will examine two countries, that of Japan, a more developed area, and Thailand, a less developed country. By understanding the differences between these areas, and by examining how each country plans to deal with aging populations and quality of life issues, one is better able to understand the impact demographic information has on the future.

A comparison between the populations is easiest when examining the population pyramids of the two countries in 2005. First, when examining the current population of Japan, it is clear that the largest populations exist between the ages of thirty to…

eligion and Leadership

Core religious and philosophical worldviews have a strong bearing on leadership style and effectiveness. eligious and philosophical worldviews provide the ethical and moral foundations for decision-making, which is a critical component of leadership. Moreover, religious and philosophical worldviews impact the ways leaders guide, teach, and serve others.

Worldview extends beyond religion. Defined loosely as "visions of life," worldviews encompass the "beliefs, values, and principles" that guide behavior and motivate change (Valk, 2010, p. 83). A worldview is a set of mental constructs that impacts the formation of biases and stereotypes. Biases and stereotypes can come in the way of effective leadership. On the other hand, worldviews are influenced by religious beliefs. eligious beliefs impact the formation of ethical codes that define both individual and organizational behavior. A worldview is a paradigm of life. Although a worldview affects more than leadership effectiveness, there are few areas in which…

These are considered to be unrealized gains, but for hold-to-maturity securities these gains/losses are not expected to be realized at any point. The company will note the fair value change in a footnote, but will not record such a change on either the income statement of balance sheet (Spiceland, et al.).

If, however, it becomes necessary to sell investments previously classed as hold-to-maturity, then the following adjustments are made. The cash received from the sale is recorded along with any discount on bond investment is sitting as an asset. The investment in the bonds will be recorded at face value. Any profit above face value will be recorded as gain on investments. This essentially ensures that the asset for discount on bond investment is reversed as a result of the sale. FASB No. 115 lists six conditions under which a change of security status from HTM could occur, including deterioration…

" (Kotch, 2004) A project management Level 1 would have no clear leader of the project, no clear project objectives, and no clear timetable, or one that "consists mostly of ordering more pizza after midnight," chaotically working overtime without a clear schedule to the detriment of the project and worker morale and sanity. (Kotch, 2004) The level would be characterized by a lack of quality controls and clear managerial standards and objectives, with little supervision and employee 'check ins' in the form of meetings.

Level 2: Defined but inappropriately so Project management at this level would set goals, and have a set schedule, but the goal objectives often create chaos because they were inflexible or unobtainable in the entirety. There may be a clear leader, but there is no clear chain of command beneath the leader. Critically, there is an absence of standard operating procedures for management and ways of…

Space and Things: Incarnating the Sacred

When faced with the term "religion," it is more common than not that a person would associate the word with some kind of symbol. Christianity, for example, is associated with the cross, Judaism with the Star of David, and so on. Festivals also play an important part in making religion real to its adherents. Many Christians, for example, celebrate Easter as the victory of Christ over death. There are also many, many Catholic festivals that celebrate various events in the Christian tradition. Buddhism also includes many different festivals, including the Plowing Festival and the Festival of the Tooth. These, as well as traditional ceremonies and festivals, are often extremely colorful. Symbols are also often made into material objects such as jewelry that the adherent can wear to demonstrate his or her affiliation to a certain religion. And example of this includes medallions, such as…

Strategic Alignment

In the last several years, the Strategic Alignment Maturity model is focusing on understanding how an organization can evolve with the different challenges they are facing. This is achieved by carefully examining the business and IT configuration of the firm. To fully understand how this works requires comparing the model with an actual health care organization (i.e. Kaiser Permanente). These insights will illustrate its effectiveness and how it helps companies to adapt. ("About Us," 2013) (Wheatley, 2013) (Chandler, 2003)

I.1 Business Strategy 2

Kaiser Permanente is a managed care provider. They are focused on primarily delivering affordable low cost solutions to patients. This is accomplished by controlling expenses and investing in areas that will address their continuing needs. To achieve the objectives the firm operates three divisions to include: the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Permanente Medical Groups. The different kinds of products / services…

positioning affect segmentation and targeting strategies when entering a market?

Positioning strategies serve as the foundational framework for strategic marketing plans and planning, execution, management and evaluation of marketing strategies. Positioning is also used for defining how a company's products or services are differentiated within a customer segment. For example, Apple uses positioning very effectively selling its high-end iPads. his specific positioning strategy by Apple concentrates on only those consumers willing to pay for premium performance, reliability and convenience the iPad offers. Apple does this to position themselves above the myriad of Google Android-based tablets who are competing primarily on price. Apple also uses positioning successfully to sell more on value and less on price. Positioning not only defines the competitiveness of a given product or service relative to competitors, it also communicates the unique value and differentiated features as well (Perreault, Cannon, 2012). Apple excels at this type of…

The market mix consists of product, price, place, and promotion. Differentiation is a promotion strategy - a new way of selling the product to the marketplace. Feature diversification is a mix of product and promotion. Minor additions or changes to the product are heavily promoted. Price-cutting is a price strategy. Saturation is a combination of product, place, and promotion. New products are added to the mix, sold in more places, and more heavily promoted.

The first strategy I would employ to defend a dominant position in a mature market is differentiation. This strategy, if successful, will discourage newcomers from thinking they can win more than nominal market share. It will also preserve margins and maintain the strength of the brand, which price-cutting will not do. Furthermore, unlike saturation or feature diversification, it does not require any investment in new product development, making it a more…

Internet Service Provider (ISP) Web Content Law and Ethics

The objective of this work is to answer whether Internet service providers have a responsibility to regulate the content that is available on the World Wide Web? This work will additionally answer as to whether the presence and ease of availability of pornography to the general public a tribute to free speech and a reflection of social maturity or an example of the potential damage that unregulated markets and the hegemony of technology have reaped upon society?

The Internet is such that allows consumers, businesses, and industry, alike to "do many new things in unique and efficient ways." (Tekxam, nd) There are however, reported to be areas of both legal and ethical concern with regards to the responsibilities of Internet Service providers. Some of those areas include protection of intellectual property, fraud prevention, protection of freedom of expression, protection of privacy,…

The Black-Scholes-Merton model assumes (circle one)

The return from the stock in a short period of time is lognormal

The stock price at a future time is lognormal

The stock price at a future time is normal

None of the above

11. Volatility can be defined as (circle one)

The standard deviation of the return, measured with continuous compounding, in one year

The variance of the return, measured with continuous compounding, in one year

The standard deviation of the stock price in one year

12. A stock price is $100. Volatility is estimated to be 20% per year. What is the an estimate of the standard deviation of the change in the stock price in one week (circle one)

$0.38

$2.77

$3.02

$0.76

13. To create a range forward contract in order to hedge foreign currency that will be paid a company should (Circle one)

Buy a put and sell…

Present Value

Price of bond= 0.385543*1000 +6.144567*100= $385.54.64+$614.45

Price of bond= $1,000

So, price of bond B. is $1,000 b. For market interest rate equal to 12%:

Price for bond a:

Market interest rate is equal Coupon rate is equal Face value Frequency Number of years to maturity Number of Periods Discount rate annually Discount rate per period n, periods r, per period 12%

10% $1,000 Annual 20-20-12.00% annual 12.00% 20-12.00%

Now we need to calculate PVIF and PVIFA.

For calculation of PVIFA (i, n) and PVIF I is equal to 20 periods and n=12%

PVIF= 1/(1+0.12)^20

PVIF=0. 103667

PVIFA= (1- 1/(1+.12)^20)/.12

PVIFA=7.469444

Price of bond= 0.103667*1000+7.469444*100=$851

Price of bond a = $851

Price of bond B:

Market interest rate is equal Coupon rate is equal Face value Frequency Number of years to maturity Number of Periods Discount rate annually Discount rate per period n, periods r, per period 12%…

Long-Term Financial Planning

FedEx Corporation

FedEx Corporation was established in 1971 and the company has four distinct business segments that include FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Office and FedEx Freight. Over the years, the company has obtained 6-year of CAG (compounded annual growth of 5%). However, the company is likely to obtain similar CAG of 5.9% over the next 8 years based on current economic environment. (FedEx Corporation .2010.

The WACC (weighted average cost of capital) is the average interest rate that a company should pay in order to secure a project. Moreover, WACC is the average rate of return that a company must earn from its current assets to satisfy investors, shareholders and creditors. Since FedEx Corporation is always trying to create value for shareholders, the paper calculates the WACC of the FedEx to evaluate the company ability to generate returns from its assets.

Estimation of WACC of the…

3. hen the expected rate of inflation changes, the expectations for future interest rates also change. An increase in inflation will bring an increase in interest rates, all things being equal. In such a situation, bond prices will go down. If the expected rate of inflation drops, bond prices will increase in anticipation of a potential interest rate cut. The intensity of the price change will depend on the maturity of the bond. Part of the bond's price is determined by its time value, which is the risk of an adverse change in interest rates. Longer bonds have greater interest rate risk, therefore they are subject to more intense changes as a result of changes in the expected inflation rate.

One outcome of this is a change in the yield curve. If inflation is expected to drop, bond prices will increase. This will reduce the yields. Because the long end…

Quantity = 3000 X 10% = 3,600

SP = 50 x 110% = 55

Quantity x SP = 198,000

Less: Returned Sales = (6%x198,000)

Sales Projection = $186,10

Beginning Inventory $1 X 400 = 8400

Production $4 X 800 = 1900

Cost of Goods Sold 700 units

FIFO (1 X 400) + (4 X 300) = $15,600

Beginning Inventory $10 X 75 = 8400

Production $14 X 650 = 1900

Cost of Goods Sold 700 units

LIFO (14 X 650) + (10 X 350) = $1,600

Sales and Cash Collections Budget

Quarter Ending Dec 31st, 011

Total

Sales:

Total sales

$5,000

$35,000

$30,000

$90,000

Total cash sales (40%)

$5,000

$7,000

$6,000

$18,000

Total credit sales (60%)

$0,000

$8,000

$4,000

$7,000

Cash collections:

Current month cash sales

$5,000

$7,000

$6,000

$18,000

Collection of credit sales

$0,000

$8,000

$4,000

Total cash collections

$5,000

$7,000

$34,000

$4,000

Quarter end receivables

$7,000

Cash Budget…

These symptoms should be identified by the management team beforehand, even as early as in the planning stage. This is then used by the team of observers to identify any problems relating to dry rot in the company. The observing team and management team then work together to once again implement new ideas regarding products and services.

In order to deal with rivalry, a marketing team can be formed in order to respond to the challenge offered by rivals in terms of new products and services. The rival's products and services can then be observed by this team, after which improved products and services are then created.

Challenges in the Growth and Maturity Phases

Challenges in the growth phase are mostly related to issues of revenue generation, and implementing new products and services, as well as employing new people. The focus is on maintaining a steady rate of development. In…

Billy Bob bought 100 shares of Stock in Ben's Barbeque, Inc. For $37.50 per share. He sold them in January, 2004 for a total of $9,715.02. What is Billy Bob's annual rate of return?

Since Billy Bob held the investment for 54 years, the annual rate of return is best calculated using the compound rate of return formula:

(Future Value / Present Value) ^ (1 / n) -- 1, where n = number of years.

Filling the data into the above formula:

Billy Bob's return on his investment in Ben's Barbeque is 1.78% per year.

Yellow Fruit Company's bonds are currently selling for $1,157.75 per $1,000 par-value bond. The bonds have a 10% coupon rate and will mature in 10 years. What is the approximate yield to maturity of the bonds?

ANSWE:

Using the following formula:

c (1 + r)-1 + c (1 + r)-2 + . . . +…

The scene is full of hope and joy, and the use of light helps to illuminate this mood.

Once Laura crosses the road, the scene is described quite differently. At first it is "smoky and dark," however Laura does manage to see in some of the cottages flickers of light in the shadows. These flickers of light represent flickers of hope, but they are far less luminous than those which were presented during the garden party.

"The Indian Camp" also makes use of light and dark imagery as a means of signifying elements of the initiation process. Nick and his father start off their journey in the dark of night, which signifies the lack of knowledge that surrounds Nick, and his blindness to the events that are about to take place in the shanty in the Indian camp. Like Laura's experience in the village, Nick too is able to see…

Return on Financial Assets

There are a number of factors that affect bond pricing. The basic bond pricing formula is as follows:

Investopedia

In this formula, the coupon payments, number of payments, interest rate and value at maturity are taken into consideration. The question at hand pertains to bonds that are the same in all characteristics except time to maturity and risk level. The risk of the bond will be reflected in the interest rate and the time to maturity will be reflected in the number of payments remaining on the bond. Initially, it is easy to make a couple of basic assessments. The corporate bond with AAA will be rated more highly than one with BBB. This places BBB (X bond) last. ith a lower time to maturity than bond , the third bond (Y) will have a lower yield to maturity, because the shorter time to maturity will…

"

3) a. If $1.25 represents a 40% dividend payout ratio, earnings per share are $3.13. A six percent return (the required return) would put future earnings at $3.32. ((3.32-3.13)*100)/3.13 = 6.07%

b. 40% (the dividend payout ratio) of $3.32 (future estimated earnings) is $1.33

c. The price of the stock cannot be calculated accurately with the information given, however if its is assumed that the earnings per share (currently $3.13 with dividends of $1.25 and a dividend payout ratio of 40%) represent the 20% return on equity, then the price is simply five times the earnings per share, or $15.65.

d. assuming the dividend payout ratio and return on equity remain constant at 40% and 20% throughout this period, a and the same relationship for the ROE and stock price, in the first year, a dividend of $2 means EPS increases to $5, translating to a stock price of…

For example, as Sheridan (2003) emphasizes, "When Short Message Service (SMS) was first introduced on mobile phones, it was seen merely as an extra feature that might be used by people on an irregular basis. But in fact, text-messaging turned out to be one of the device's most desirable assets, and is regarded by many as one of the most significant cultural developments of the past decade" (p. xxviii).

Given its enormous popularity, this feature of the company's product line could be refined, for example, to provide instant language translation services into the predominant languages used throughout the European Union. Language translation features, especially Spanish to English, would also be desirable for the company's strategic partner in Mexico, Grupo Iusacell, the country second largest wireless carrier (Business and your money, 2001). Likewise, the existing charges for SMS services could be reduced (or even eliminated), thereby keeping existing customers satisfied while…

intellectual rights and how they apply to all aspects of the business cycle.

Intellectual ights and the Business Cycle

Intellectual rights are something that almost every business today has to deal with in some form or other. While the concept is a relatively new one, it has, nonetheless, become a concept that no business today can afford to ignore. Intellectual rights can affect every part of the business cycle, and a company that ignores this issue does so at its own peril. Businesses can be forced out of business or find themselves in complicated legal trouble over intellectual rights if they abuse the intellectual rights of others. Businesses can also find themselves mired down in lengthy court battles and in financial peril if they ignore their own intellectual rights. This paper examines the issue of intellectual rights as they apply to all aspects of the business cycle.

What are intellectual…

For these to from part of the way of operating they are institutionalized at the end of every thing.

Looking at the permutations of relation development in business may have very little significance as with the summary of Hallen and Wiedersheim-Paul (1984) which may be considered to be the best since they deal with the four stages; pre-contact, initial interaction, development and maturity.

Pre-contact

Since the related parties have been apart, the perception on their sides rely much on second hand appreciations of the whole nation, hence the initiation of cultural affinity as a starting variable. In consistency with the previous work by Inglehart (1991) secondary information can provide the basis of determining the level of trust, which can impact significantly on the subsequent relationship. The existence of a positive attitude at this stage towards other culture can work as mitigation towards trust development. Communication is an important factor since…

Although this does not necessarily have an immediate monetary translation, it shows that the individual will prefer to receive his money and dispose of them earlier rather than later on.

On the other hand, we can indeed see that the present value of money is greater if we can deposit the money received at time t0 to a simple deposit account, with a certain interest rate. We will expect that amount of money to gradually increase over time and to reach a higher value some time in the future. As we can see from this example, the time value of money does not only fluctuate, but actually increases from moment t0 to moment t1.

3. Does one always earn the yield to maturity on bonds? Explain.

Not necessarily. In order to best explain this, we need to further clarify the concept of yield to maturity on bonds. The final yield…

e. no standardization) b) Diamonds: good medium of exchange

Peaches: perishable, differences in quality (i.e. no standardization) d) Grade a Honey: differences in quality (i.e. no standardization), difficult to transport e) Ice in a warm climate: perishable, difficult to store a. Over the long run, what is the primary determinant of the price level? Supply and demand, with price acting as an equilibrator b. Over the long run, what is the primary determinant of inflation?

The supply of money as compared to changes in productivity.

c. How is inflation related to the nominal interest rate?

Expectations of future inflation are one of the key factors in determining the nominal interest rate, the other being the 'core' interest rate, or the inflation-free level at which one is willing to lend money (which differs according to the issuer and associated risk premium).

4. Describe each of the following financial institutions. If it…

Stock exchange: An exchange where shares of stock and common stock are sold and purchased. Common exchanges are the New York Stock Exchange and American Stock Exchange.

Secured bonds: A secured bond is a bond issued with the backing of collateral. A common example of a secured bond would be a mortgage bond. If the bond is defaulted on, the title of the collateral is transferred to the bondholder.

Factoring: Factoring occurs when a company sells their accounts receivable, or customer's debt, to another entity at a discount. The entity then assumes all credit risk of the account debtors, and receives the cash as these debts are settled. This process is also known as accounts receivable financing.

Trade credit: Trade credit refers to a company's open account arrangement with vendors. As the company makes purchases, the vendor debits the company's account, and bills them for this credit transaction.

Commercial paper:…

Target's chart, however, shows that the company has tracked the market and GDP fairly closely, indicating that perhaps it does not trade the way a discount retailer should.

Johnson & Johnson

JNJ is a pharmaceutical and consumer products company. It competes in pharmaceuticals, consumer products in the health and beauty segment and in medical devices. The company was founded in 1886 and today is a multinational conglomerate with operations in 57 countries and with approximately 250 subsidiaries.

To a certain extent, JNJ's product line is price inelastic. Pharmaceutical demand is tied to overall consumer demand and the state of the economy, but not to the same extent that many other consumer products are. As a result, JNJ would be expected to have less significant swings in its stock price relative to the GDP, other macroeconomic indicators, or the Dow Jones. The stock, however, has traded roughly in line with the…

The exponential growth of the Internet has also served as the catalyst for the growth of highly collaborative, interactive forums and platforms on which Delphi-like brainstorming can be accomplished (Decker, Wagner, Scholz, 2005). Conversely many of the external relationships companies have and that are essential to understanding how the strategic planning process will impact an organization lend themselves to quantification. An example of this level of quantification of external factors is the use of frameworks for evaluating the performance of supply chains over time, a process area that can be highly quantified through the use of maturity models and measurements of performance over time (Gilmour, 1999). Both of these extremes, qualitative data analysis through the use of techniques including writing of scenarios, brainstorming and the Delphi technique to the extremely quantitative, both require organizations to have a fairly high level of interprocess maturity and development to be able to manage…

Bernard of Clairvauxs on Love

For anyone wanting to learn about the simple and complex realities On Loving God, the early writings by Bernard of Clairvauxs present a great place to start. His assessment is written in old style but is pretty easy to understand and relate to. It's encouraging too that he writes with humbleness about the kinds of difficult questions of what love is and whether or not he is the best one to provide answers. The following quote is an example of the way the writer (Halsall, no date of editing or reformatting) summarized this sense of honesty,

Yet I am glad that you turn again for spiritual counsel, instead of busying yourself about carnal matters: I only wish you had gone to someone better equipped than I am. Still, learned and simple give the same excuse and one can hardly tell whether it comes from modesty…

runners world: CASE STUDY

Sue Koenig established Runner World in 1987 at age of 24. The Shop was an immediate success due to certain reasons that are still part of her present strategy. One of the most important factors that contributed to her success was herself: a nationally acknowledged runner. This helped her attract customers as people find it easier to trust someone who was well aware of the needs of runners.

Secondly, when she started her business the fitness craze has just hit the country and people were ready to buy shoes specifically design for running. Thirdly, she had super quality Nike shoes that boosted her profits and added to the number of her regular buyers. However, soon her profits stabilized and her shop has entered the maturity stage of its life cycle.

However, the market in which operated is at a different stage. It is expanding rapidly and…

The teachers were given professional development instruction solely to deal with students with special (remedial) needs. Teachers were told to identify the gifted and talented if they felt a student showed a unique aptitude but were not given specific instruction as to how to do so.

For students who had tested as Advanced Proficient on the NJASK, teachers staid they did strive to make their instructional plan more challenging, enlightening, and intriguing to gifted and talented students. They said they tried to group students of similar ability together and give the gifted students more challenging work and when assigning individual projects such as reading novels and open-ended math problems. They said they gave the gifted work that was above grade level, in contrast to the student's peers.

While the teachers claimed to differentiate instruction and said that this was adequately met by in-class tracking, they also admitted to feeling overwhelmed…

They are also increasingly differentiated by features, such as thinness and shakeability. hile Apple engaged in both stretching and filling during the growth stage in order to build the market, they now appear more concerned with warding off competitors. The success of the iPod has not only driven revenues directly, but has also had the desired effect of improving computer sales. Mac laptop sales have increased 51% in 2007 and 38% in 2008; desktop sales increased 12% in 2007 and 37% in 2008.

At present, the iPod is unlikely to experience steep decline in the marketplace until it is eclipsed by new technology. The iPhone represents one such threat, but diffusion of that product will be at a slower pace than the iPod experienced, because of much more intense competition from cell phones and PDAs. However, iPods tend to last only a couple of years before consumers seek to upgrade…

MT Equity

The beta for al-Mart, according to MSN Moneycentral, is 0.29. According to Yahoo! Finance the yield to maturity on a Treasury bond that is due 15-Mar-12 is 0.296%. e will assume a market risk premium of 7%. ith these figures, the cost of equity for al-Mart can be calculated using the capital asset pricing model (CAPM):

Ra = RF + ? (Rm -- Rf)

Ra = 0.296 + (.29)(7)

Ra = 2.326%

This cost of equity is lower than I had expected. In general, the cost of equity for a firm is fairly high. The reason why al-Mart has such a low cost of equity is that the company's beta is so low. al-Mart has very little correlation with the broad market, and is not very volatile. As a result, al-Mart's cost of equity is low, because it is much less risky than the market as a whole.…

lifecycle and analyze how each phase could support an organization's business strategy. These will include the initiation phase, the planning phase, the execution phase, the monitoring phase and the closing phase. As Kerzner remarks, this approach provides the portfolio selection that is important for companies since it keeps them from taking on projects that they can not handle and managing the projects they have. The process allows maximum time and resource management to make sure the job gets done (Kerzner, 2005, 153).

In the initiation phase, the projected goal is established. The assigned project manager works with the involved parties who are known as project stakeholders in order to fully determine how to measure success once its completed. The stakeholders are oftentimes the ones who are funding the project. This gives them an overriding need to know what is happening. This knowledge is necessary as the project scope needs to…

There are many more different quantitative and qualitative metrics that have been engineered to assess and reduce security risk. Structured as quantitative or qualitative -- meaning that some are structured according to empirical, mathematical rules (quantitative; usually from disciplines such as finance), whilst others are structured in an experiential manner derived from interviews, observation, and so forth (qualitative) -- each has its benefits and disadvantages.

Uses of security metrics and how organizations benefit from them

The benefits of security metrics fall into three broad classes:

1. Strategic support -- Security metrics help tighten the security of different kinds of organizational decision-making such as planning programs, product and service selection, and resource allocation.

2. Quality assurance - Security metrics are used during the software development lifecycle in order to prevent and screen out vulnerabilities, particularly during the code production. They do this by executing functions such as measuring the system's adherence…

A great deal of this is accomplished by serving others and thinking of others first, before oneself. Exerting responsible self-control by engaging in personal habits conducive to bodily health refers to an act that is partly commonsense and partly the act of treating one's body like a temple of the Holy Spirit. By being made in God's image, one truly needs to honor that belief and treat one's body as the sacred thing it is. Exhibiting mental and emotional maturity means treating oneself and others with respect and sensitivity and establishing clear boundaries in social and personal interactions. Exhibiting integrity in all of one's relationships refers not only to treating people with respect, but also being honest in word and deed.

Engaging in fidelity in marriage and celibacy in singleness are two rock bottom foundations for following the doctrines of the church and honoring oneself and one's relationship. Social responsibility…

PLC

Product Life Cycle

When we talk about the strongest multinational companies of the world then Nestle is definitely one of the names that triggers in everyone's mind. Nestle is the world's No.1 food manufacturing company. Nestle is a Swiss multinational company whose product are available almost in every part of the world. Most of the Nestle products are in a market leading position. Nestle company was established in 1866 and since that day, it has proved itself as one the leading companies of the world with its improved quality, innovative ideas of marketing and attractive packaging (Nestle, 2007).

Nestle launched its first juice in 1996 and since then it has spread its product largely. The consumers' response to the flavored juices of the Nestle Company was upbeat. This further strengthened the position of the Nestle Company in the market as the unbeatable leader. Later on, the company innovate the…

Social Science Research

Conceptualize and operationalize the variables in that sentence

What is the relationship between age and responsibility?

Age refers to the numbers of years a person has live right form birth till date. Age may indicate the level of maturity of an individual depending on the circumstance a person has been brought up. The age of a person can only be categorized and measured according to figurative values. For instance age can be categorized as follows

a) 0-10years (children)

b) 11-20 years (adolescents)

c) 20-30 years (adults)

d) 30-40 years (old people)

e) 40-50 and above (elderly people)

Responsibility refers to the capability of an individual to handle certain situations the immediately surround him or her. Responsibility reveals the capacity of a person to take care of a given assignment to excellence and perfection. Responsibility can be categorized as follows

a) Very responsible

b) Responsible

c) irresponsible

d)…

shadow banking system, its role in the subprime mortgage crisis, and failures of regulation within the shadow banking system. The term "shadow banking system" was coined by PIMCO's Paul McCulley in 2007 (Spanos, 2012) and refers to a banking system that includes financial intermediaries that are involved in creating credit across the global financial system, whose functions are not subject to regulatory oversight (Investopedia, 2012). The question has been debated as to whether shadow banking meets the definition of true banking. Given that the two systems perform similar functions, including credit intermediation and maturity transformation, the two should be considered parallel systems (Noeth and Sengupta, 2011).

The term shadow banking is used to describe any provision of credit taking place outside of the traditional deposit-funded lending system. This definition includes institutions that range from pawnbrokers and consumer finance companies to securities dealers as well as firms that issue corporate bonds.…

due to the fact that the concepts explained are intangible in nature and therefore, they can be transferred and inserted in a variety of different situations. The explanation of habits appears to be accurate as well as insightful. Many times habits have negative connotations associated with them, during this reading however habits are described as positive building tools. By understanding the composition and make up of habits one can come to better control them and use them for positive growth in different areas or aspects of life. As described by the author, a habit is "the intersection of knowledge, skill and desire" (Covey 47). The author explains that in order for habits to be effective and positive all three of the above mentioned components are required. First one must understand the role of knowledge in the equation. Knowledge is described as knowing "what to do" and why. Skill is described…

Business Ethics

Something that I have found particularly interesting in Baird's textbook is the notion of "deontological" ethics. (Baird 151). This is the idea that "right" behavior or "good" behavior is about playing by the rules. However what I find really interesting about the idea is that, in some sense, it is the only way we have of getting a glimpse into the motivations of others. In some sense, a full account of the ethics of any given situation must in some way take into account someone's motives -- especially motives for compliance. Ethical behavior shouldn't be something that we adopt out of a sense of compulsion. Instead, with deontology, we are talking more about the concept of duty.

I suppose what is most interesting to me about this is the notion that there can be different reasons, good and bad, for adopting the same set of ethical principles. I'm…

The strategy would prove successful in assisting the rapid proliferation of the Norton Antivirus packages. Accordingly, ikipedia (2010) reports that "Norton AntiVirus and Norton Internet Security, a related product, held a 61% U.S. retail market share for security suites as of the first half of 2007." (ikipedia, 1) In addition to casting a dominant shadow over its sector of the technology industry, this would make Symantec a leading developer of antivirus technologies.

Maturity:

The maturation of Norton Antivirus is marked both by the annual or multi-annual release of newer or more refined versions of its software. A constant research and development phase is required so that Norton can remain abreast of advances amongst hackers and developers of malware, spyware and viruses. This is demonstrated by continual re-release of the Norton packages. According to available research, "Existing users of the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 versions can upgrade to the latest…

I genuinely enjoy working with others in group situations but I also work very productively by myself when necessary. Likewise, while I also enjoy interacting with customers, I have learned how to do so without allowing it to distract me from my operational responsibilities. In many respects, I have a natural ability as a problem solver, but the context in which the opportunity to employ those skills arises in the food service industry is somewhat limited and comparatively unchallenging creatively.

Hairdressing is a field that seems to emphasize people skills and the ability to work effectively in a group as well as in one-on-one situations. It is a field that provides more opportunity for creativity; more importantly, whereas the customer's satisfaction after a well served meal lasts only minutes and rarely (if ever) beyond the point of service, hairdressing is a field in which customers typically appreciate the service provided…

33% on the 2013s; 27.78% on the 2018s 16.67% on the 2028s and 22.2% on the 2038s.

Using market value the weighted-average cost of debt is 6.798%. The weights are 35.42% on the 2013s; 28.39% on the 2018s; 16.14% on the 2028s and 20.03% on the 2038s. Thus, it does make a difference if book or market value weights are used. In this case, the market value weights skew more towards the short maturities, which have the lowest yields. This gives the weighted-average cost of debt for market value weights a slightly lower figure.

5) by book value, the weight for debt is 30.85% and equity 69.45%. This gives a weighted average cost of capital of:

e (Re) + d (Rd) (1 - T) =.6945(9.94) + (.3085)(6.854)(.65) = 8.277%

By market value, the weight for debt is 7.345% and the weight for equity is 92.645%. This gives a weighted average…

More often than not the Catholic instruction would be enhanced by a mutual strengthening of both knowledge and catechesis. Each should inform and empower the other.

The role of the Catholic school is to synthesize and fuse catechesis with religious education, and to imbue all subject areas with Catholic values. Faith becomes an integral part of student life. For example, the students will be given active time for prayer and spiritual -- not just religious -- studies (Crotty, Fletcher & McGrath 1995). Students at Catholic schools are learning how to integrate faith and culture, faith and personal life, faith and all other areas of life. A Catholic education offers a special primer with which to do so.

Graham (1994) points out that Catholic schools need to break free of the "isolationist paradigm that has been their practice and build a genuine catechetical partnership with families," (p. 4). One way of…

3)

Program management documents that could help to manage an IA-CMM assessment include work breakdown schedules, process flow documents, incident reports and response documentation, and many others. The work breakdown schedules would be utilized to demonstrate the overall tasks and processes that make up the system and the way in which the system is viewed and utilized, providing an overview of the system architecture. Process flow documents would provide an even clearer depiction of some of these details and demonstrate the actual operability of the system, enhancing other standing with visual depictions of flows, ideally. Incident reports and responses will reflect that actual utilization of the IT system and the manner in which the IT team handles issues that arise through either their own investigation or the ongoing utilization of the system in the organization.

4)

A process description is a detailed and step-by-step detailing of the individual tasks, actions,…

I think I want to go into nursing but I am not 100% sure yet. ight now, I am just taking basic gen ed classes since this is my first year in school -- I did take a couple of classes this past summer. Most adolescents I know in my neighborhood have graduated already as well." Georgia stated she was still 'feeling out' her identity, which is common in adolescence. She was willing to be independent enough to pay for her own college, which suggests a desire to 'stand on her own two feet' despite the fact that she still lives at home.

Georgia also noted that she does not contribute to the family income and that her father is a biopharma executive. Her desire to enter nursing could reflect her exposure to this field of work at home. However, she saw her decision not to attend a four-year college…

eta of CSX Railroad

Find the eta of CSX

What is the estimated beta coefficient of CSX? What does this beta mean in terms of CSX to include them in my overall portfolio?

The estimated beta coefficient on CSX is 1.24. It is used to determine the underlying volatility in the stock. In general, when you see a beta factor greater than 1.0 this is an indication that the security is more volatile than the stock market average. In the case of CSX, the reading of 1.24 indicates that the stock is 24% more volatile than the major stock market averages. This will increase the overall amounts of volatility in the portfolio. While providing, a way to see above average returns, because of the increased volatility. ("eta," 2010)

Given the beta of CSX, the present yield to maturity on U.S. government bonds maturing in one year (currently about 4.5% annually)…

However, at the same time the onset of what many scholars regard as the first truly national event within the history of the fledgling United States of America took place throughout the 1740's, and indicated that the traditional religious beliefs that mandated a strict following of God would not so easily be overturned. The Great Awakening largely begin when George Whitefield, an Oxford-trained Anglican minster who came to Georgia in 1738, began touring through the lands pronouncing that people had limited time to repent before they were consumed by the fires of hell. This perspective certainly adhered to that which was shared by many of the pilgrims and puritans who initially began the colonies in the 17th century. Jonathan Edwards was another influential factor in this movement, and delivered a number of influential sermons during the early years of the 1740s in which he claimed damnation awaited anyone who would…

I participated in local programs to feed the homeless through the Ethiopian Christian Fellowship. I volunteered for the Alameda food bank as well as for local hospitals and animal shelters.

My volunteer work brought me out of my shell, and enabled to feel that I could make a difference in the lives of others. By healing others, I healed myself. Through maturity I have come recognize and respect my limits and honor my capabilities. In my ten years living in the United States I have experienced more inside myself than many even better traveled will experience in a lifetime. I have gone from a happy and busy childhood, to being a lonely and miserable man, isolated and old before his time, to once again becoming accepted and beloved person who is a vital part of his community.

Scholarship Statement: Bernard Osher Allied Health Scholarship

The language of health and medicine…

Company International

hen a market becomes saturated, it becomes more difficult to sell new items; there is a limit to replacement sales, and even adding 'bells and whistles' has limited appeal. In addition, in the cellular phone market, because of both technology improvements and manufacturing cost decline, the margin of profit on the innovations -- the bells and whistles -- declines rapidly as well. An example of this is the picture phone: when first introduce just a couple of years ago, a low consumer price was about $200; now they are sold as 'twofers' with prices for a pair as low as $40 or so.

The cellular phone market in the United States is mature, perhaps even on the verge of decline. So it makes sense to look for profitable markets elsewhere. Chile is an appropriate choice.

Beginning to sell our ABC Cellular phones and service in Chile will offer…

Sample Questionnaire:

The Topic Company: DN.

Interviewed:

Questionnaire:

1) Does the organization treat management and leadership as one in the same? YES or NO

2) Does the organization rely heavily on employee training and development? YES or NO

3) Does the program use employee feedback at the lowest levels in its overall decision making process? YES or NO

4) Do you believe all stakeholders are aware of the organizations goals and objectives and are willing to work towards the achievement of those goals? YES or NO

5) in your opinion is the organization structured in a way that inhibits innovation? YES or NO

6) Are there any other aspects that you believe should be improved within the organization? If so, how?

eferences:

1) Bulmer, M. And Warwick, D. (1993). Social research in developing countries: surveys and censuses in the Third World. London: outledge.

2) Ebbutt, D. (1998). Evaluation of projects…