Monday, October 28, 2019

Community Based Rehabilitation Essay Example for Free

Community Based Rehabilitation Essay Community Based Rehabilitation(CBR) may be defined, according to three United Nation Agencies, ILO, UNESCO, and the WHO, as a strategy within community development for the rehabilitation, equalization of opportunities, and social integration of all people with disabilities. CBR is implemented through the combined efforts of disabled people themselves, their families and communities, and the appropriate health, education, vocational and social services (WHO, 1994). Institutional Rehabilitation provides excellent services to address the problems of individual disabled persons and is often available only for a small number at a very high cost. CBR as the name implies has have found in the community, its roots in the community and has to derive sustenance and support from the community. They should be rehabilitated in their community by and with people in their community. CBRfocuses on  * enhancing the quality of life for people with disabilities and their families, * meeting basic needs and * ensuring inclusion and participation. CBR was initiated in the mid-1980s but has evolved to become a multi-sectoral strategy that empowers persons with disabilities to access and benefit from education, employment, health and social services. CBR is implemented through the combined efforts of people with disabilities, their families, organizations and communities, relevant government and non-government health, education, vocational, social and other services.Mainstreaming and inclusion is seen as an effective way:to include persons with disability;to give equal opportunity and to provide a non discriminative environment for their growth and development In practical terms this means persons with disability are included in the programmes and schemes formulated by the government and others, not as mere beneficiaries but as equal members who can participate with full recognition of and exercise their rights. Need of CBR Institutional overheads and other major infrastructural expenses make the process very expensive. Moreover, the endeavours in an institution are often out of context to the felt needs of the disabled person, and thus falls short of their expectations. The fact that this person comes from a particular background and cultural setting is often ignored. The institutional culture is imposed on the disabled person and they are often expected to function as advised by the â€Å"experts†. In an institutional rehabilitation programme, the community is not linked with the process. Hence, when the disabled persons return home, it may become difficult for them to integrate into their community. Disability -Situation Time line In the 70s it was based on western health care model largely urban based and not cost effective. No real service provision for disabled. In the 80s/90s there was a shift from medical towards employment and community development. In real terms this was a social model. In the year 2000 CBR perceived in terms of Human rights and involvement and awareness of disabled persons was advocated. WHO approach emphasizes basic rehabilitation involving working partnership with local community, disabled, family, governments and professionals at regional and national levels.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Dr. Diver as Rosemarys Father-Figure in Tender is the Night :: Tender is the Night Essays

Dr. Diver as Rosemary's Father-Figure in Tender is the Night      Ã‚  Ã‚   Parents are the basic role models for their children. Both parents play an important role in raising their children, but it is the father whom is normally portrayed as the protector, advisor, and provider of the family. He is the person whom the children look up to when they are young and whom the daughters compare all men to when they become older. The father sets the standards for his children. If there is no father, children must look other places for this type of comfort and information. Sometimes they might turn to their mother who would take over the father's place as best she could. The only role that the mother cannot fulfill, however, is the comparison that daughters need when looking for a husband. To try and fulfill this need, the daughters might find a male whom they trust and believe would be a good role model and father-figure and then base their future ideals on the qualities that he portrays.    Rosemary, from Tender is the Night by Fitzgerald did not have a father figure for a good portion of her life. She had been raised by her mother, a twice widowed woman, and the boarding school in France which she had attended when she was younger. Rosemary had never really known her father when he was alive so Mrs. Speers was both father and mother to her. Mrs. Speers did a good job of being both while Rosemary was growing up, but once she became old enough to begin looking for a husband, Mrs. Speers was not quite the right person to compare men to. Mrs. Speers attempted to counteract this need by forcing Rosemary to become a more independent person. Then she would not have to rely on her or anyone else, including a man. By gradually realizing that she can make her own decisions, Rosemary also realized that she did want to have a man in her life and that she needed that father-figure for comparison. She also realized that she was missing the comfort, protection, and advice that comes from a male. It was not until she went to the French Riviera that she finally found the father-figure she had never had before, in Dr. Dick Diver.    After meeting Dr. Diver, Rosemary was left with the impression that "he would take care of her, and .

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Study Tour Report to Germany on the Theme Industrial Relations, Labour Productivity and National Development

Historical and theoretical perspectives on industrial relations, labour productivity and national development Industrial relations grew out of the need for workers to join forces and present their grievances to the employers as a unified force. Kuhn (2006, p.23) suggests that everyone who earns income through work or is involved in the management of workers is immersed in the practice of industrial relations. Changes in industrial relations and the quality of employment relationships have an effect on the productivity of an organisation. In addition to this, the terms and conditions of employment have a direct effect on the workers’ quality of life both in and out of the organisational premises. If the quality of life lead by the workers is poor, then this will be transferred to their productivity at work as they will not be able to perform at the highest level regardless of the mechanisms that the employer puts in place to maximise production (Kuznetsov, Dahlman, & World Bank Institute 2008, p.31). Generally most people get to know the meaning of the term industrial relations long be fore they even get into employment. This knowledge partly comes from its daily use by friends, family and the media both of which try to present industrial relations as events that involve trade unions and conflict incidents. However this meaning is not the right one because it makes people perceive industrial relations as a rebellious movement which is not actually the case. This is why it is necessary to first ascertain a clear and useful definition of ‘industrial relations’ before considering the debate in more depth. . Korres (2008, p. 21) defines industrial relations as the interaction of people and organisations in the work place. Industrial relations is concerned with how people, groups, institutions and organisations make decisions that regulate or shape the relationships between employees and employees, employees and employers, and trade unions and employers. Therefore industrial relations are concerned with the working life, society and the national economy. T he main purpose of industrial relations is to provide a conceptual framework for ensuring that the different relationships at the organisational level run smoothly. Welfe (2009, p.56) asserts that industrial relations can be analysed using three major theoretical perspectives namely unitary, pluralist and Marxist. All of these perspectives interpret workplace conflicts, role of trade unions and variations in job regulations uniquely in order to generate solutions. The unitary theory perceives organisations as an integrated unit with all the members working towards the achievement of common objectives. There is only one source of authority which is the management, trade unions are perceived as being unnecessary (Kuznetsov, Dahlman, & World Bank Institute 2008, p. 88). The pluralist theory regards organisations as being comprised of powerful and divergent groups which are the trade unions and the management. These two groups have their own legitimate loyalties and objectives. The plur alists consider the conflict of interest and disagreement between the two groups as inevitable. Trade unions are therefore regarded as legitimate representatives of workers charged with the responsibility of bargaining for their interests. The Marxist theory sees fundamental divisions of interest between labour and capital in organisations. The inequalities of economic wealth and power are products of the capitalist system (Kattel & Kalvet, 2006, p. 38). The Marxist perspective stresses that organisational conflict is necessary and it arises from the inequitable distribution of resources. The political economy of industrial relations, labour productivity and national development Leydesdorff (2006, p. 99) says that trade unions have had inextricable links with political parties and movements in different countries. Although some states have over time managed to decentralise trade unions from national politics, others are still struggling to do so. Even in countries like India where labour movements and politics have had intricate associations in the past, independent unions are now increasingly emerging (International Conference on Computer Processing of Oriental Languages, Li & Molla?-Aliod 2009, p. 95). Owing to the historical relationship between politics and trade unionism, labour strikes seem to increase during periods of political instability. During these periods, the unions often have a tendency of displaying increased militancy as a way of offering assurance to the members that their demands will be met using all possible means. Such an assurance acts as an added incentive for the employers to join the unions. The trade unions however, in most cases distance themselves away from any acts of militarism terming it as a media ploy to negatively present their motives. Most trade unions hold the view that the media should clearly differentiate individual criminal acts from the violence that is sponsored by the unions (Llerena, Matt, & Avadikyan 2005, p. 121). Regarding the opinions held by the employers that the trade unions are heavily politicised, the trade unions believe that their employers use their political connections as leverage against workers with dissenting opinions. The unions believe that even before the employers sit down with the unions to listen to their grievances, they always have a tendency of finding out the political inclination of the dissenting workers and then hold talks with the relevant political heads. Such tendencies make it difficult for the negotiation process because collective bargaining is often compromised. Menkhoff (2011, p.77) asserts that politics and unionism have always gone together but the e ffects of the association are gross in unstable political environments as they in most cases lead to industrial disputes. Regulatory and institutional frameworks for labour and national productivity Industrial relations still has a very significant role to play in the social protection of workers in the 21st century. The adoption of protection tariffs along with restrictions on immigration plays a major role towards the establishment of legal systems for regulating labour in order to help the workers. For instance regulations that are explicitly connected to industrial policies like tariff protection with standards of labour in the form of determining the minimum wage for workers have a direct effect on industrial relations (Weiss & Schmidt 2008, p. 63). The proponents of such mechanisms are in most cases concerned with investment and social protection of workers as well as the profits of the businesses being protected. Therefore this confirms the argument that regulation of labour has both social and economic justifications. Protection regulations can stimulate labour demands in a country through policy formulation and successful implementation. Policies that increase the deman d for labour also influence the type and pattern of jobs available within a country (Blanpain & Baker 2010, p. 44). Countries like Germany, Japan and Australia pursued protectionist industrial policies in the form of active tariff and non-tariff during their key phases of industrialisation in order to facilitate development (Thornley, Jefferys, & Appay, 2010, p. 55). In addition to this, most industrialised states maintained their tariff protections until the 1980’s to help them in maintain social protection systems that include traditional labour laws. Lipsey (2006, p. 54) says that industrialised countries also use extensive procurement systems as another form of industrial policy for regulating labour standards of employees of organisations that benefit from government contracts. Therefore in such countries industrial policies have an influence on labour laws and labour market developments. However such interventions are not limited to the developed countries only because even the developing countries use industrial policies as means of fostering economic development and job growth. Bamber (2010, p. 33) asserts that industrial regulations have been curtailed by the Washington consensus since the 1980’s. This consensus holds that all nation states should pursue industrial development and alleviation of poverty through strategies of trade liberalisation and deregulation of the labour market. This implies that the developing nations should implement free trade and laissez faire industrial policies, introduce greater flexibility in regulating employment to lower the costs of hiring and firing employees to attain economic growth (Moreau & Blas-Lo?pez 2008, p. 96). Some people criticise this method as a slower way of attaining economic development in preference for industrial regulation where states pursue development through stimulating economic growth by creating quality jobs in sustainable industry. The proponents of free trade perceive industria lisation strategies that involve active state involvement in promoting economic activities as being detrimental to economic growth. The opponents on the other hand think that active industrial policies are important in attaining economic development and high living standards of the industrialised countries (Blyton, Sage Publications., & Sage eReference 2008, p. 85). Indeed the dominance of trade liberalisation as a strategy for industrialisation is unfair to the developing countries as it denies them the chance to enjoy the benefits that come with cushioning their states against the adverse effects of market exposure as was done by the developed countries in the past. The industrialised countries achieved development under different conditions from those of free trade and without industrial policy. Srivastava (2007, p. 86) suggests that trade liberation is only one among the many industrialisation strategies that the developing countries might opt to pursue. Most developed and devel oping countries pursue economic policies that involve active promotion of innovation as a means of attaining industrialisation. However, at this level it is critical to note that the practice and analysis of industrial policy is increasingly becoming very sophisticated. In terms of promoting industrial development, the current industrial policies are less focused on picking winners and tariff protection i.e. the government selection of specific industries that it considers as being more sustainable and in line with the local conditions of the labour market and business expertise over others . Although this is still prevalent in some countries most current industrial policies are directed through horizontal measures that promote innovation and competitiveness across certain regions or economies rather than being confined to certain specific preferred sectors. Much of debates on the role of industrial policy in both the developing and industrialised countries are concerned with the se lection of an appropriate path to economic development. According to Singh (2008, p. 62), there is a strong correlation between industrialisation strategy, industrial policy and traditional labour laws in the new protection policies of most developing countries. Comparative studies of labour market in southern Africa and East Asia reveal that countries will endeavour to structure their regulations on industrial relations to be in line with the industrialisation strategies that they are pursuing (Dowling, Festing, & Engle, 2008, p. 12). For instance in East Asia most of the states have been able to progress through the industrialisation stages from import substitution to export oriented and finally higher value oriented exports. This implies that the strategies for industrial relations in these countries reflect the different strategies being pursued by the state. Trade liberalisation strategies that are export oriented often have different effects for labour regulation and practices of industrial relations compared to the more protective import replacement strategies. Therefore states rely on export oriented strategies when selling products that are labour oriented where low costs of labour and production are the main sources of competitive advantage (Thornley, Jefferys, & Appay, 2010, p. 87). For instance the export oriented industrialisation strategy of Singapore compelled it to promote workplace flexibility by placing restrictions on aspects like enterprise bargaining and containing industrial disputes by restricting the employees’ right to strike. Bhatia (2008, p. 71) notes that the states that have pursued more inward oriented industrialisation strategies often have tolerance for stronger labour protections. However it should be noted that many variations of these simplified categories exist and as such it is not possible to make the conclusion that export oriented strategies are associated with low labour standards and downward pressure on labour protections than the policies that are inward oriented. However, one thing that remains certain is that there are connections between industrial policy of a country and the labour law settings. In the context of labour management regulation, industrial policy contributes to both the constitution and regulation of labour market through its effects on labour supply and demand as well as the industrial working conditions. Additionally, from a normative perspective the settings of industrial policy have a great significance on economic development of a state and consequently the social protection and quality of life. Therefore the impact of regulation of labour on industrial relations is dependent on the nature of policies chosen by the nation states. For instance states that opt to pursue government delivery of goods and services whether through monopolies or as competitor with the private sector will offer the workers more secure jobs than those of the private sector (Thornley, Jeffer ys, & Appay, 2010, p.74). However, a large amount of these public jobs often have negative impacts on the working conditions across the economy. It is therefore recommended that states should use regulations that will maintain the existing structures or facilitate structural adjustments through assisting the industries that will open up new opportunities by attracting new investments and innovation. Impact of science, technology and innovation on industrial relations, labour productivity and national development The industrial relations system pursued by a state has a direct effect on all the four elements of innovation which are: motive, content, process and outcome. The intentions behind innovation may include reduction of costs of production through decreasing the amount or quality of labour, promoting more flexible and creative use of labour and encouraging management control over labour. Dinius (2010, p. 66) claims that the contents of the innovation process itself may call for changes in the level of skills and need to accommodate the prevailing structures of industrial relations. The innovation process needs to consider the social organisation, trade unions, work groups and the physical form of the production process. In essence the outcomes of innovation are functions of industrial relations at both the individual and collective levels. Innovation on the other hand affects all the five features of industrial relations which are: work, tasks, pay, work organisation, employment levels and union organisation (Dowling, Festing, & Engle, 2008, p.38). Innovation leads to an increase in the level of skills required for completing tasks more than it reduces it. Innovation may also result to an increased responsibility especially if the increased value is closely monitored by equipment and is meant to increase organisational competitive advantage. Innovation may require the employees to widen their level of skills in order to be able to adapt to the new tasks. In most cases it calls for expansion of intellectual skills and manual skill reduction due to automation of most of the processes. The overall effect of innovation on industrial relations is that it mostly leads to an increase in the proportion of skilled workers in the labour force especially in private manufacturing. Globalisation and corporate governance: the dynamics of industrial relations and labour productivity in national development Howell (2005, p. 75) asserts that globalisation leads to the liberalisation of world economies. The liberalisation of economies has made many organisations to make structural adjustments for improving operational efficiency. The increased pressure from the public has forced business enterprises to operate within higher ethical standards and take more social responsibility. The organisations from the developed economies are in most cases required by law to observe non-discriminatory policies in hiring, treatment and paying of all workers (Kattel & Kalvet, 2006, p. 33). However as far as recruitment is concerned, globalisation is pushing organisations into recruiting managers and workers with high skills conforming to the international standards in their host countries. Globalisation and corporate governance have led to certain structural adjustments in terms of diversifications and restructuring both of which have resulted into cutting off of some jobs and recession in the job industr y. The trade unions then started to raise concerns about job losses and the adverse effects on work dynamics and their rights in some countries like India (Blyton, Sage Publications., & Sage eReference 2008, p.52). The same wave was echoed in countries like Japan and South Korea where workers formed industrial unions to counter the impacts of globalisation on their economies. These unions managed to negotiate for employment terms and working conditions as well as the payment rates. Generally, globalisation and corporate governance came into existence at a time when trade unionism was fading off in most countries. However globalisation has contributed to the deterioration of labour standards and strengthened the capital bargaining power while reducing the bargaining power of labour. Industrial relations and labour productivity: challenges and opportunities for defence and national security Industrial relations often affect the labour productivity because it contains the attitudes of the management and workers towards each other and the work itself. As such, industrial relations affect organisational productivity both directly and indirectly through variables like motivation of workers, managerial competence and institutional backup. The concept of industrial relations encompasses the interactions that occur between the employees and the employers in an organisation. The nature of this relationship has an effect on the production process because poorly motivated workers for instance have an increased tendency of not performing at their optimal levels (Kuznetsov, Dahlman, & World Bank Institute 2008, p. 61). McCallum (2008, p. 72) claims that organisational productivity is a function of the morale of the workers. For this productivity to remain on the higher side, it is important that the morale of the workers be kept at the highest possible level. Failure to motivate th e morale of the workers will result in a drop in both quality and quantity of organisational productivity. In fact Hardy (2011, p. 13) supports this position by suggesting that employee morale and productivity always go together. Therefore industrial relations as a factor that affects organisational productivity influences the production process in many ways. For example during times of industrial disputes or when the employees are on a go slow, productivity will not be affected in terms of loss of labour alone because there are other incessant work stoppages, machines and other variable and fixed capitals will not be fully utilised and this will result in low level of output and raise the average cost. The refusal to work in overtime by the trade unions also results in loss of revenue because overtime is meant to increase organisational production capacity. Strength, weakness, opportunities and threats of Germany The SWOT analysis is a strategic management tool used for identifying and categorising the significant internal (strengths and weaknesses) and external (opportunities and threats) factors that face an organisation, territory, city or even a country (Bhatia 2008, p. 55). The analysis provides strategic data that can be used in matching organisational resources with the competitive environment in which it is operating. This matching is of importance in making strategic decisions for optimising organisational performance. Struck (2011, p. 31) suggests that the SWOT analysis is important in helping the organisations to direct their actions to match the strengths with opportunities presented by the environment and ward off the threats as well as seek ways of overcoming the weaknesses. Then analysis id not a foresight approach but just a good starting point for strategic decision making which organisations can use in designing and positioning products and services . The following section a nalyses the SWOT of Germany. The findings reveal that despite its strength in areas like ability to innovate, great willingness to engage in self-directed training and good infrastructure, the country still has some serious weaknesses to overcome. These problems arise mainly from the education sector such as schools adoption and use of new information and communication technology tools and high levels of unemployment. Germany has its own strong areas especially regarding the implementation of knowledge in the society. The country has a flexible, well trained and innovative workface. In addition to this the society has very little income disparities and good quality of life. However because of the aforementioned weaknesses, the country runs the risk of having a poorly educated workforce in the future which could negatively impact its innovation ability and economic strength. Furthermore, the high rates of unemployment will continue to prevent economic growth. Strengths Ability to innovate Good access to broadband Flexible terms of work which is acceptable to many Weaknesses A weak education system that is lagging behind in terms of adapting and using new information technology tools Rising rates of unemployment Opportunities Good quality of life Flexible and well trained workforce Little income disparities Threats High rates of unemployment is limiting economic growth The new generation workforce is poorly educated Conclusion This paper has discussed the importance of industrial relations and its effects on the production process and the economy of a country. The findings reveal that good industrial relations are a prerequisite for industrial development because in its absence, the workers will lack the necessary motivation and the morale that they require to be able to produce at the optimal levels. Globalisation and corporate governance are changing industrial relations across the globe and as such it is wise for countries to invest in education and innovation so that their employees can meet the demands of the international labour standards. Recommendation and implementation strategies With the continued advancement of the effects of globalisation, past mechanisms like labour regulations are increasingly being rendered irrelevant. Therefore countries need to invest in empowering their workforce with the appropriate skills required for innovation and productivity through their education systems. The school system should be well integrated with information and communication tools so that the students engage actively with technology and in the process be able to innovate and bring forward ways of improving the production process. References Bamber, G. (2010). Regulating Employment Industrial Relations and Labour Law International Co. Kluwer Law Intl. Bhatia, S. K. (2008). Strategic industrial relations and labour laws. New Delhi: Deep & Deep Publications. Blanpain, R., & Baker, J. (2010). Comparative labour law and industrial relations in industrialized market economies. Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Kluwer Law International. Blyton, P., Sage Publications., & Sage eReference (2008). The SAGE handbook of industrial relations. London: SAGE Publications. Dinius, O. (2010). Brazil’s steel city: Developmentalism, strategic power, and industrial relations in Volta Redonda, 1941-1964. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press. Dowling, P., Festing, M., & Engle, A. D. (2008). International human resource management: Managing people in a multinational context. London: Thomson Learning. Hardy, S. T. (2011). Labour law in Great Britain. Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Kluwer Law International. Howell, C. (2005). Trade unions and the state: The construction of industrial relations institutions in Britain, 1890-2000. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press. International Conference on Computer Processing of Oriental Languages, Li, W., & Molla?-Aliod, D. (2009). Computer processing of oriental languages: Language technology for the knowledge-based economy : 22nd international conference, ICCPOL 2009, Hong Kong, March 26-27, 2009 : proceedings. Berlin: Springer. Kattel, R., & Kalvet, T. (2006). Knowledge-based economy and ICT-related education in Estonia: Overview of the current situation and challenges for the educational system. Tallinn: PRAXIS Center for Policy Studies. Korres, G. M. (2008). Technical change and economic growth: Inside the knowledge based economy. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate. Kuhn, M. (2006). Towards a knowledge based economy?: Knowledge and learning in European educational research. New York: Lang. Kuznetsov, Y., Dahlman, C. J., & World Bank Institute. (2008). Mexico’s transition to a knowledge-based economy: Challenges and opportunities. Washington, D.C: World Bank. Leydesdorff, L. (2006). The knowledge-based economy: Modeled, measured, simulated. Boca Raton, Fla: Universal Publishers. Lipsey, R. G. (2006). Services industries and the knowledge-based economy. Calgary: Univ. of Calgary Press. Llerena, P., Matt, M., & Avadikyan, A. (2005). Innovation policy in a knowledge-based economy: Theory and practice. Berlin [etc.: Springer. McCallum, R. C. (2008). McCallum’s top workplace relations cases: Labour law and the employment relationship as defined by case law. Sydney, N.S.W: CCH Australia. Menkhoff, T. (2011). Beyond the knowledge trap: Developing Asia’s knowledge-based economies. Singapore: World Scientific. Moreau, M.-A., & Blas-Lo?pez, M. E. (2008). Restructuring in the new EU member states: Social dialogue, firms relocation, and social treatment of restructuring. New York: P.I.E. Peter Lang. Singh, B. D. (2008). Industrial relations and labour laws. New Delhi: Excel Books. Srivastava, S. C. (2007). Industrial relations and labour laws. New Delhi: Vikas. Struck, O. (2011). Industrial relations and social standards in an internationalized economy. Mu?nchen: Hampp. Thornley, C., Jefferys, S., & Appay, B. (2010). Globalization and Precarious Forms of Production and Employment: Challenges for Workers and Unions. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Pub. Weiss, M., & Schmidt, M. (2008). Labour law and industrial relations in Germany. Alphen aan den Rijn: Kluwer Law International. Welfe, W. (2009). Knowledge-based economies: Models and methods. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Amoco Case Write Up Essay

As long-term valuation is assumed, risk free rate is set as 30-year treasury rate, 5.73%. Cost of debt is 6.72% reflecting Amoco’s credit level. Cost of equity is calculated as 10.63%, leading to final WACC at 8.85% (Chart 1). In DCF valuation (Chart 2), long-term growth rate is assumed to be 4%. Change in working capital is calculated as the average of 1997 and 1996 figure and is assumed to be constant for simplicity. Terminal value is valued at $69,398.1 million and NPV is $51,525 million. Stock price will be $37.07, indicating an exchange ratio at 0.46. This is a very conservative valuation as our DCF price is lower than Amoco’s current market price. Regarding of multiple valuation (Chart 3), P/E ratio from comparable firms are used, which leads us to an exchange ratio at 0.68. Thus, our estimation for Amoco’s stand-alone value is from $37.07 to $54.69 per share, i.e. 0.46 to 0.68-exchange ratio. As the acquirer, our basic negotiating strategy is to low the exchange ratio as much as possible. Based on our conservative evaluation of Amoco, our opening exchange ratio is 0.46. For Amoco sides, their opening exchange ratio is 1. The big difference between our opening prices indicates this negotiating process should be tough. First, we checked the discount rate. For us, BP company, we use 8.83%, however, Amoco they use a higher one around 9%. The main difference to calculate the discount rate is that we use the 30-year Treasury rate as risk free rate compared to Amoco used 20-year Treasury rate. Moreover, we use the debt to debt plus equity but they use debt to equity to calculate WACC. To compromise these differences, we agree to use the average discount rate that doesn’t make a large influence of the valuation price. After this, we discussed the most important factor –growth rate. Based on the assumption in the case, we use 4% as terminal growth rate, 2% annual oil demand growth rate plus 2% inflation rate. However, Amoco hold the view that the oil price would grow at 6% in long-term, and it’s hard for both of us to get a compromising rate. Therefore, we jumped to synergy and currency questions, and we agreed on the synergy that Amoco would bring BP the North America  market and BP would use US currency to acquire Amoco’s share. After discussed all these details, we came back to the final offer price. We offered a higher one as exchange rate 0.6. Amoco rejected. Finally, after they thoughtful discussion they offered 0.66 exchange rate or price 52.965 as their final offer, which for us is lower than our walk-away price 65.94. Therefore, we accepted this offer and we both reach our goals to reach the deal and build a good relationship with the other management team. The previous 959.6m Amoco shares will convert into 633.336m shares of BP ADS equivalent, with the previous 965.6m ADS shares, BP shareholders will take part 60% of the new company, still have majority control over the firm. In this deal, we paid for about 20% premium, which is quite standard and normal. Because synergies from revenue and chemical divisions’ combination are not estimated nor not expected to bring benefit, the main synergy from the merge is 2 billion dollars saving of pretax operating cost. The value we create for our shareholders is $14,840.06 million (Amoco stand-alone value $46,430 million+ synergy $2 billion – price paid for Amoco $33,538.94). But this number is quite sensitive to a lot of factors, such as future energy demand, oil and gas price, industry growth potentials, ultimately affecting Amoco’s stand-alone and synergy valuation. Please see the chart 4 of sensitive analysis of Amoco’s stand-alone value according to the change of terminal growth rate in the appendices. But even modest assumptions still can lead to positive value created in this deal.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Slink, Shrink, and Wink

Slink, Shrink, and Wink Slink, Shrink, and Wink Slink, Shrink, and Wink By Maeve Maddox Last week I found the word slinked in manuscripts submitted by two different members of my writers’ group. In both mss I drew a wavy line under it to represent the shudder that the -ed past ending on this verb stirred in me. The principal parts of slink are slink/slunk/slunk.: Then I got to thinking about various verbs that rhyme with slink and realized that although slinked pushed my shudder button, I have no problem with winked. And while I accept slunk as the simple past of slink, I’ll never become reconciled to the movie title Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. I want it to be Honey, I Shrank the Kids. The verb shrink has an additional kink: the attributive form shrunken. Ex. My sweater has shrunk in the wash. BUT Just look at this shrunken sweater! Here are some more verbs that rhyme with slink. Ill define only those that I think may be unfamiliar to some readers. clink/clinked/clinked â€Å"to make a sharp, abrupt metallic sound† The chain clinked as he walked. blink/blinked/blinked The prisoner blinked in the bright sun. drink/drank/drunk Like shrink, drink has an attributive form ending in -en: He walks like a drunken sailor. fink/finked/finked â€Å"to inform on† The petty criminal finked on his boss. kink/kinked/kinked â€Å"to twist or curl stiffly, especially at one point. The hose kinked at the worst possible time. pink/pinked/pinked â€Å"to cut or perforate† The tailor pinked the edges of the cloth. stink/stank/stunk The garbage stank up the house. The Compact OED gives stunk as an option for the simple past. think/thought/thought He thought a long time before making a decision. ink/inked/inked Her job was to ink the platen press. link/linked/linked The blogger linked to several sites. sink/sank/sunk The boat sank in a squall. Like shrink and drink, sink has an attributive form ending in -en: He’s looking for sunken treasure. skink/skinked/skinked Yes, this is a word in the OED: skink: v. trans. To draw or pour out (alcoholic drink), to decant; to offer or serve (wine, etc.) to a person. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Coordinating vs. Subordinating Conjunctions"Confused With" and "Confused About"50+ Words That Describe Animals (Including Humans)

Monday, October 21, 2019

What Are the Methods of Inquiry and How Are They Used in Criminal Investigation Essay Essay Example

What Are the Methods of Inquiry and How Are They Used in Criminal Investigation Essay Essay Example What Are the Methods of Inquiry and How Are They Used in Criminal Investigation Essay Essay What Are the Methods of Inquiry and How Are They Used in Criminal Investigation Essay Essay 1. What are the methods of enquiry and how are they used in condemnable probe? The method of enquiry is based on garnering discernible. empirical and measureable grounds. Basically. methods of enquiry are ways that an research worker gathers the information for the instance that they are look intoing. Methods of enquiry are used in condemnable probe by roll uping grounds. statement aggregation. and traveling through electronic databases and even the cyberspace. The methods of enquiry are all used in concurrence to retrace the offense scene. The methods are besides used by using the five W’s. who. what. when. where. and why. and besides how. There are three methods of enquiry that are used in an probe and those are authority method. doggedness method. and intuition. For illustration of a method of enquiry. is when an research worker is roll uping the statements from either the victims or informants. The research worker will take all the information and grounds that is collected. roll up it all together and come up with the Reconstruction of the offense that was committed. 2. What is the optimum mentality of an research worker and how are the constructs associated with the optimum mentality of an research worker manifest? The optimum mentality of an research worker is one that is able to look for the motivation of the offense that is at manus and able to look into all the possibilities of even the most obvious grounds that has been gathered. In my ain sentiment. I think that an optimum mentality is where the research worker can treat all the grounds at manus. in their head and come up with a decision of what occurred. Besides I believe that the mentality is one that can be taught through preparation and experience. 3. What is the scientific method and how is it applied to condemnable probe by condemnable research workers? Scientific method is defined by the World English Dictionary as â€Å"a method of probe in which a job is first identified and observations. experiments. or other relevant informations are so used to build or prove hypotheses that purport to work out it† cited from hypertext transfer protocol: //dictonary. mention. com/browse/scientific+method. In my sentiment. the research workers must use the scientific method in every one of the probes that they do. The research workers must take all the information into their heads and inquire themselves what happened. how did it go on. and why did this offense happen. Once the research worker comes up with the replies so will carry on experiments to see if their thought was the ultimate decision of what happened. So for an illustration. the research worker can state. this is a slaying. the individual was stabbed. and the motivation was this individual was caught holding an matter. After the research worker comes up with his hypotheses he/she will so prove it. if the grounds does non back up his/her theory so he would get down over on calculating out what. why and how it all occurred. 4. Discourse the three primary beginnings of information for condemnable research workers and supply elaborate practical illustrations of each beginning listed. The three primary beginnings of information are Physical Evidence and Scientific Examinations. Documentation. and information signifier people. Each beginning is valuable to an probe in its ain manner. Physical evidence/scientific scrutinies is the grounds found at the scene of the offense. This can include vesture. blood. fingerprints. arms and much more. An illustration of physical grounds could be any listed above but besides a bloody knife or a shell from a slug. Documentation can be found in logs. records. and electronic informations that could be found at the offense scene. The research worker may besides hold to travel to certain bureaus to acquire the certification. although if the research worker does this they must cognize what that bureau is able to supply. For illustration. the research worker could name a phone company and acquire the recent call log for the victims phone and happen out who they have called in the yesteryear so many hours. or even travel on the victims personal computing machine and see where they have been on the cyberspace. Information from people could come from informants and or victims. libraries. sources. and even newsmans. The research workers while questioning persons and will garner more information from them that will assist retrace the offense scene. The research workers will besides hold to do certain that all the information that they receive from any of these persons are right and non seeking to derive something for themselves.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Stephen Kings On Writing

Stephen Kings On Writing Stephen King’s On Writing Stephen King’s On Writing By Ali Hale One of the best books I’ve read about writing and being a writer is Stephen King’s On Writing. Written whilst he was recovering from a horrific accident (a van driver hit him while he was out for a walk), it’s a fascinating book combining autobiography and advice. If you’ve not heard of Stephen King, he’s a very well-known American horror writer – you may have seen films such as Carrie and The Dead Zone based on his books. The first part of On Writing is headed â€Å"CV†, and is an autobiographical account of King’s childhood and development as a writer. Loosely chronological, it’s structured in a series of short chapters or segments, each headed with a number and each dealing with a single point or topic in King’s life. It’s a fascinating insight into the makings of a famous author – not only an entertaining read but one with a lot to teach writers about persistence and working towards your dreams. King started sending out short stories to magazines and publications when he was very young: By the time I was fourteen †¦ the nail in my wall would no longer support the weight of the rejection slips impaled upon it. I replaced the nail with a spike and kept on writing. King writes about his early attempts at self-publication (helping his elder brother Dave write and print a newspaper, Dave’s Rag, then writing a novelisation of Edgar Allen Poe’s The Pit and the Pendulum and selling it to school friends.) After â€Å"CV† there is a short section entitled â€Å"Toolbox† where King segues from a story about his Uncle Oren’s toolbox into a discussion of what the writer needs in his/her own â€Å"toolbox† of writing. This includes vocabulary and grammar as the basics on the top layer (hang around at Daily Writing Tips a while and you’ll pick up plenty of help with these!) with style coming on the second layer. The third section of the book, â€Å"On Writing†, deals with what King calls the third layer of the toolbox – everything that goes into writing good fiction. He tells us: What follows is everything I know about how to write good fiction. I’ll be as brief as possible, because your time is valuable and so is mine, and we both understand that the hours we spend talking about writing is time we don’t spend actually doing it. I’ll be as encouraging as possible, because it’s my nature and because I love this job. I want you to love it, too. But if you don’t want to work your ass off, you have no business trying to write well – settle back into competency and be grateful you have even that much to fall back on. This part of the book is hugely entertaining (King is very easy to read, and writes like a friendly mentor chatting to you over a beer), and absolutely packed with invaluable advice. Two of the key points King makes are: If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. King strongly believes in setting writing goals, and recommends a minimum of a thousand words a day, six days a week. I tried following his advice (whilst working a full-time office job) and didn’t last long – you might prefer to set your own goal at five hundred words a day or even two hundred. Since King himself says he writes 2,000 words a day whilst working on a book, I suspect his advice is aimed at those aiming to make fiction writing their career (especially given his advice to read for four-six hours a day as well!) King gives great advice on how to choose what genre to write in (one you read, and love), and how to create a â€Å"situation† for your story and write good description and dialogue. He goes into useful detail about what to look for when revising your work – does the story hang together, are the scenes paced well, are there factual errors? He includes an example of his own draft work and explains the edits he made to it. As King says: Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid or making friends. In the end, it’s about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. On Writing is an encouraging but very honest look at what it means to be a fiction writer, and if you’re an aspiring author – especially if you secretly worry about not being â€Å"clever† enough or educated enough to write fiction – then I highly recommend it. You can find the book on Amazon.com Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Book Reviews category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:30 Religious Terms You Should KnowLatin Words and Expressions: All You Need to KnowHow Long Should a Synopsis Be?