Semco Pumping Success Case Study free essay sample

Conclusion 1. Classical school of management3 1. 1 The Classical Scientific School4 1. 2 Conclusion6 1. 3 The classical administrative school6 1. 4 Conclusion8 2. â€Å"Motivation Theories and SEMCO†8 2. 1 â€Å"McGregor’s theory X and Theory Y†8 2. 2 Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory11 2. 3 Conclusion12 3. Discuss the Concept of Empowerment and Its Relevance to SEMCO13 3. 1 The concept of empowerment13 3. 2 Empowerments Relevance to SEMCO15 3. 3 Conclusion17 4. Centaur Technologies INC Its Success/Failure17 4. 1 introduction17 4. 2 Reason which lead to the success of Centaur Company19 4. Reason that might lead to the failure of the centaur company20 5. Reference22 1. Classical school of management The classical school of management has developed the first formal management theory. This theory was been build up during the Industrial Revolution, the employers and managers had no idea how to provide the training to the workers or the way to decreased labour d issatisfaction. (Cliffs Notes. com, 2000-2011) The company works by itself, it insists to separate from the labour. The classical management theory was invented during this era of revolution to solve new problems which were related to the factory. We will write a custom essay sample on Semco Pumping Success Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page According to the result, the classical school of management theory was a good solution which was developed from their hard-work of thoughts to look for the â€Å"one best way† to perform and manage tasks. † (Patrick Bruce, Pg. 11 2000) SEMCO achieved its success without the leadership of a charismatic CEO. From my understanding, SEMCO’s management is differing to the classical school of management. There are two different types of the classical school of management which are The Classical Scientific School and The Administrative School. Each theory describes its own principle of management, in short the classical scientific management theory help focused on the productivity of individuals where in administrative management theory concentrates on the overall organization. Here by, we critically evaluate the SEMCO company depend on classical school of management. 1. 1 The Classical Scientific School The classical scientific school theory described the best way to increase productivity and efficiency by discussing the procedure of work process and the training skill for the employees. Judith, Pg. 148; 2008) The classical scientific school theory was developed through the thoughts contributed by Frederick Taylor, Henry Gantt, and frank and Lilian Gilbreth. (Cliffs Notes. com, 2000-2011) SEMCO used freedom as their philosophy which means there is no CEO, no traditional organizational hierarchy for decision making, and to encourage their employees to be more productive and efficient. In classical scientific school theory â€Å"Taylor believed that organization should study tasks and develop precise procedures. † (Cliffs Notes. om, 2000-2011) In SEMCO, the employees decide through themselves about their work task, procedures to complete task and their salaries. The basic idea of the scientific management theory was being developed which was followed by the following principles. Developing standard method: the scientific management theory explains to develop the new standard methods for doing each task with the organization. The new standard methods help the organization in ensuring the task is carried out in appropriate way and there is a highest level of productivity through an every worker performing a task. In SEMCO there is no such standard method or procedure design to perform any task, worker in the company complete the task the way they want. Selecting, training and developing workers: this theory also explains that the organization needs to select, train and develop the employees instead of allowing them to choose their own task and train themselves for that particular task. SEMCO company works on a philosophy which is freedom, where in the employees are allowed to choose their own task to complete and train themselves which motivates them on a regular basis. Developing a spirit of corporation: this is another principle of the scientific management theory which explains that spirit of cooperation should be developed between workers and management that will ensure the work is carried out in accordance with designed procedure. In SEMCO the employees have the responsibility to choose and complete the task in the way they want, so as per their freedom policy they feel there was more cooperation between both. 1. 2 Conclusion If the scientific management theory was being implemented by the SEMCO Company they might had a possibilities of highest productivity from every individual as compared to that. 1. 3 The classical administrative school The classical administrative management theory describes and emphasize on developing the managerial principles rather than work methods. (Tony; Pg. 49; 1986) The administrative approach in this theory concentrates on the overall organization. The classical administrative theory was being developed through the thoughts contributed by Max Weber, Henri Fayol, Mary Parker Follett and Chester I Barnard. Reference for business, 2011) The importance of understanding about how an organization operates and the flow of information was been studied by the above people which helps them to develop the theory of classical administrative. This theory explains that an organization should have the formal hierarchy and general guidelines that will organize the department and manage the s taff. At SEMCO it was different the organization worked on a freedom philosophy which means there wasn’t any formal hierarchy nor a proper guideline to carry out the task. The basic idea of the administrative school was been developed of the following principles. Division of work: division of work and procedure of specializing help produces better and more work with the same effort. In the SEMCO it’s left up to employee to choose the work or the task they want to complete and train them. Authority and responsibility: every organization should be formally structure in order to be managed and organized. Authority is a right and power given to an exact obedience to give orders that will ensure the completion of task in a described manner. The authority to a person should be based on individual personality, intelligence and experience. In SEMCO there is no such authority every employee is responsible for their own task they choose to complete. Unity of command: orders should be imposed by only one superior to an employee who will ensure the staff is organized and also reduces the miss-confusion. The SEMCO doesn’t have a formal hierarchy and it work on freedom philosophy so unity of command is meaningless. Remuneration of personnel: this refers to the salaries of employee which should be fair and satisfy both employer and employee. The salary to a labour should always be decided by the employer which should be fair in the environment. In SEMCO this is totally opposite; the employees decide the rate of pay between themselves and employer agree. 1. 4 Conclusion If the classical administrative school theory was been implemented by the SEMCO Company they might be possibilities of having the control over expenses and highly organized staff in the organization. 2. â€Å"Motivation Theories and SEMCO† 2. 1 â€Å"McGregor’s theory X and Theory Y† Motivation is an important part of human resources. It is used in the organization to arouses staff‘s desire to direct their behaviors and pay effort into organization’s activities, thus achieve organizational goals. A successful motivation will arouse staff’s passion to promote their working motivation more strongly which can be very helpful to produce working efficiency and benefit the organizations (Bloisi, 2003). In a number of motivation theories, â€Å"McGregor’s theory X and theory Y† (McGregor, 1966) and â€Å"Expectancy theory† (Vroom, 1996) these two theories suit to evaluate SEMCOS Company Douglas McGregor suggested that this theory is two different ways to managing people. The X theory was the more popular one been used by many organizations, but usually get the poor results. Enlightened organizations choose the theory Y, which help them get success. Because of X theory and Y theory are totally two different theories. Managers  who  choose  Theory  X  believe  that (McGregor, 1966): 2. 1. 1  Most people are lazy, they avoid to work as much as possible. Work is a burden for them, no enjoyment at all. 2. 1. 2  Most people have no ambition, do not like to take any responsibility. They lack self-confidence, personal safety to see very important. 2. 1. 3  Most people are satisfied by physiological needs and security needs, so they only choose the easy way to get the most profitable thing to do, and they can’t see the long-term profit. â€Å"Theory  Y  Assumes  that† (McGregor, 1966): . 1. 4  Ã¢â‚¬Å"People  seek  responsibility  and  have  the  capacity  to  direct  and  control  organizational  tasks  if  they  are  committed  to  the  objectives. † 2. 1. 5  Ã¢â‚¬Å"People  by  nature  are  not  passive  or  indifferent  to  organiza tional  needs,  for  work  is  as  natural  as  rest  or  play. † 2. 1. 6  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Employees  at  all  levels  have  the  ability  to  be  creative  and  use ingenuity  in  solving  organizational  problems. † SEMCO just use the Y theory to inspirit their employees. Everyone in SEMCO Company has opportunity to be successful, if you want to get more pay, promotion or personal goals, these all decide by themselves. There no CEO, no management, so people don’t have restriction. People know what they needs and they can use any resources in the organization to make them be competed. The employees’ objectives are the SEMCO’s objectives. Semler said they don’t have any marketing plans in ten years, all the strategies plans from their employees who has opportunity or relation any markets. SEMCO provide resources to help them to get fruition. SEMCO Company knows how to motivate their employees to exert their entrepreneurship and engagement maximally. It illustrated SEMCO has the same objective with their employees, thus employees willing to take the responsibility and positive get tasks to be done. SEMCO Company has transparent pay,everyone knows how much pay the other people make, because how much pay they can get decide by how much value they can make for their company. SEMCO encourage their employees to focus on improving a project, a new project, a cost reduction plan, a new business strategy. Every member in this organization can get 23% profit from their business unit’s profits per quarter. Actually how many percent profit pay also they can get depends by how big achievement they received. In these ways, employees are motivated to improve themselves to be more capable, thus attain the purpose. 2. 2 Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory is one of motivation theories. It based on three factors, explain three relationships between people’s needs and objectives. Organizations use the expectancy theory to prompt their employees to understand that: work can provide their needs, their work is connected with performance and they can improve their performance by work (Vroom, 1996). Three relationships of Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory as follow (Arnold, 1981): 2. 2. 1 EffortsPerformance: People always expect that they can achieve a desired objective by their efforts. If they think there is a high probability to achieve the objectives, they will be confidence and inspired to improve their working efficiency. 2. 2. 2 PerformanceReward: People expect that they can get reward as a return from performance. Of course the reward is multifarious,it includes material rewards and spiritual rewards. If they can get what they expected, it will bring more passion for working. . 2. 3 Reward personal objective needs: People always expect to obtain a reward which can satisfy their needs. However the differences between people age, gender, qualifications, social status and economic conditions, the requirements level of their needs are also different. So organizations can’t use one motivation to satisfy them in different levels of needs. SEMCO Company is a succes sful case to prove Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory. Employees can choose the project which they are interested or have an advantage of. If they achieve a success in this project, would get a promotion or more share pay from the profit of the project. 2. 3 Conclusion The X theory believes all the people are passive. But giving people too many regulations, it would make them more negative. It has already been proved by many examples. In SEMCO Company case, Y theory has been used very mature and successful. People are motivated by higher–order growth needs, thus affect their behaviors. Also the expectancy theory is used to evaluate employees’ expectancy in working, thus motivate their employees to achieve organizations’ goal (Vrllere, 1990). . Discuss the Concept of Empowerment and Its Relevance to SEMCO 3. 1 The concept of empowerment Although the normal movement toward the less mechanistic structure and the role of top managements as facilitators, it appears to be some reluctance between top managements to reduce hierarchical control. A UK economy researcher said that there existed some new ideas about management. The concept of empowerment can attract employees, some top managers still like maintaining control over the destiny, role and responsibility of other person. Beneath the trappings of the facilitate-and-empower philosophy the command-and-control system often lives on(Ezzamel, K. , 1993). But, when people are discussing about leadership and management, Gretton said that:Todays leaders understand that you have to give up control to get results. Thats what all the talk of empowerment is about(Gretton, 1995). In general ideas empowerment is explained to allow employees enough freedom and control themselves in their working time and in charge of their decisions. However, there are a lot of different meanings in the literature for empowerment. Empowerment is not independent concept. It should be linked with some concepts like coping skills, personal efficacy, support system, community organization, mutual support, self esteem, and self sufficiency(Keffer,1984). The concept empowerment came from Latin potere that means to be able. Linguistically, the verb word empower was defined to give power or permit, freedom, and so on by an American language organization. This organization defined suffix ment meaning of result. Sociologically, the concept of empowerment is used to improve influences of social organizations and groups. The empowerment is defined as a world outlook which has a method to solve social problems and social policies and support good service. Solomon defined empowerment as a method of social activity. In the social psychology, empowerment means the development of people. And it also means top management, values and personal effort. Empowerment is inherent for people. Browne said managers can use the concept of empowerment to improve employees abilities for work. In addition, Simmons and Persons referred to people can control their environment by empowerment. Empowerment has an influence on the person. The concept empowerment is not univocal nor absolute because of there exist some connections with the individual. It is quite difficult to define a specific meaning for empowerment. The reason is that the concept of empowerment always change. Empowerment broke the rules that rely on situation. There is a certain connection between people and social environment. Of course, there should be a system for understanding empowerment. There are a lot of views about the concept. It cares about solutions not problems. It emphasized peoples human right and ability. 3. Empowerments Relevance to SEMCO An example of full empowerment is when self-directed teams are given the power to hire, discipline, and dismiss team members and to set compensation rates(Richard L. , 2007). In the modern organizations, just a few organizations have moved to full empowerment. For example, SEMCO, a $160 million and about 3000 employees South American manufacturing company. SEMCO S. A. was a traditional managed indus trial firm when it was founded by Semler in 1912. Today Ricardo Semler, president CEO of SEMCO Company, has his unique leadership style. He redefined the concept of empowerment. At 20 years old, he graduated from Harvard Business School as the youngest. He was known for championing his employee’s lovely management style all over the world. At SEMCO, Ricardo Semler allows employees to choose job, what, where and when they want to do. And even how much they want to get paid for the job. Workers can decide the number of products and when is the best time to work. Workers can design products and their working environment. Except these, employees also can make the marketing plan of the company. Managers run business with freedom, and decide companys marketing strategy without interposition of CEO and high management. All departments can build its own salary standard. The finance department of SEMCO discussed financial information total openly. There are some special things. For example, there is reception desk but nobody sitting there. There is no dining room and managers no secretaries. There is also no public place for staff and no parking place. In the SEMCO Company employees and managers make a decision together, not just the top management. The first undertaking of SEMCO is to give up traditional rules. Ricardo Semler dismissed nine layers and decreased the corporate employee by more than 75%. In the SEMCO no policy is the basic policy. For example, employees can go to travel anytime because there is not travel restriction at SEMCO. Actually, there is no rules and managers in the SEMCO. Employees manage themselves and self-governing. SEMCO has flex-time scheduling for employees. Employees work in the different time and in the different way. People can choose any time of day. Normally, people come to work at 9 oclock and work 8 or 9 hours every day. Actually, it is impossible that people work all the time during 8 or 9 hours. Sometimes your work just need few hours and the rest time you break or do some private things. Because of concept of empowerment SEMCO allowed employees to choose their working time. It can improve work efficiency and save time. Semler hopes that everyone can feel well for their working place. There is no unified dress, you can dress what you want. Employees can choose the uniforms design and style if they want. 3. 3 Conclusion SEMCO uses empowerment concept to manage its employees since its inception and achieve great success. Employees can do all things personally. SEMCO shares all information with employees and gives enough freedom to everyone, but it does not mean to break rules. That means supply a chance for employees to work better and better. 4. Centaur Technologies INC Its Success/Failure 4. 1 introduction In 1995, Mr. ‘Glenn Henry’ launched a company named centaur technologies INC in the city of central Texas. The company design and produces the high performance, low cost x-86 compatible processors. The company has no organizational hierarchy in operation, there are no managers, the employee’s reports to the founder and president of the company Mr. ‘Glenn Henry’. The company’s president intention was to reduce the gap between intellectual and physical work within an organization, so that employees feel much closer to the organization and feel satisfied in their job. (Centtech; 2011) The centaur organization always had a success; the reason mentioned by the company’s president was the ability of their talented engineers and the free way of working environment in the company. The company decision making is always being simple as it was been done through considering all the employees in democratic voting. The company is always being an advantage and positive for their employees. It empowers its employees by reducing bureaucracy and benefiting them with the home computers, high speed internet, flexibility to set one’s own working hours, fitness facility, breakfast and lunch on the site. The company employees are ensured about their employment as the company is financially stable and well established. (Centtech; 2011) The centaur company founder and president Mr. Glenn Henry’s plan was to reduce the gap between the employee and owner, this will help the owner and employee to know each other needs and expectation very closely which has lead in the company success. These also help them to reduce the problem and misunderstanding. This gave all employees an equal say in running the organization, and it was also supported by the fact that all the employees were the co-owner of the organization. Every employee was offered a stake after the completion of six month on the job, while the majority of the stakes was retained by the owner. This gave employees a feeling of owning an organization and making the appropriate decision favoring company which also lead to the success. (Centtech; 2011) 4. Reason which lead to the success of Centaur Company There are various advantages of this hierarchy model which has proven a success to the centaur company. Everybody is equally involved as they want to be, nobody is underestimated by thinking that the decision was being made over their head. As every employee is involve in decision making, they take the task responsibly which result in great job and the success to the company. For example in the centaur company decision was been made to develop and produce the new chip-set compact processor, every employee act ery responsibly in their task because they were being the part of decision making and the respective job is taken by the respective employee in their own interest and not burden on them. This results in better and faster outcome which lead to success of the business. Motivation of the employee is also one of the advantages which made the centaur company successful. At Centaur Company the employees are insanely motivated as they are considered co-owner, they just don’t work there they make the things happen in every task and successful running of the operation. Implementing decision is also an advantage of this model as the employees are involved in making decision it becomes much easier for the owner in implementing them. (LA Business Journal 2000) 4. 3 Reason that might lead to the failure of the centaur company As there are always two end, there are the disadvantages of this hierarchy model as well that needs to be considered by the company or it might lead to failure of the business. The founder and president of the centaur company Mr. Glenn Henry had always considered the disadvantages of this model before starting this company. He always put the positive things forward and overcame the disadvantage of this model which might have lead in failure of the business. Time factor is one of the advantages of this model, it might take some time to arrive on a decision as there is lot of people involve. To overcome this time factor president of the centaur company has given the power of leadership to every employee to make a decision which require instant action in this case every employee think of benefiting the company as they are considered to be the co-owners while in major decision making there is always a dead line which is done in consideration of every employee vote. The control of funds and resources is also a disadvantages of this model, as there are no proper managers keeping the control of the funds this might result in lost track on funds and failure of the business, to overcome this president of centaur company have made the accounts transparent where every employee can update and review the funds and budget which will help to be control by every employee. (Peter F. Drucker; 2007) In august 2002 the centaur company was being purchased by the VIA technologies. The unique management system which is the running a company without a manger was still he same, it wasn’t being modified which was always been considered the reason for success. Even in 21st century this company is operated with their same system without a manger and which is running successful. (IBTimes; 2011) 5. Reference 1. Arnold, H. J. (1981), ‘A Text of the Multiplicative Hypothesis of Expectancy-Valence Theories of Work Motivation’, Academy of Management Jour nal 24, March, PP. 128-141. 2. Bloisi, C. W. , Cook, C. W. and Hunsaker, P. L. (2003), ‘Management and Organisational Behaviour-Second European Edition’. McGraw-Hill Education, PP. 195-197. 3. CliffsNotes. om; Classical School of Management; Accessed by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. cliffsnotes. com/study_guide/Classical-Schools-of-Management. topicArticleId-8944,articleId-8851. html 4. Centaur Technology; Our Company; Accessed by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. centtech. com/company. htm 5. Change Free. UK. Com; Classical Organisation Henri Fayol; by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. change. freeuk. com/learning/business/overview. html 6. Ezzamel, k. , Lilley, S. and Wilmott. h. Be Wary of New Waves, Management Today, October 1993, pp. 99-102. 7. Gretton,Taking the Lead in Leadership, Professional Manager, January 1995, p. 22. 8. IBT PR Centre; Austin Journal Name ProfitFuel and Outrank as One of the Best Places to Work 2011; Accessed by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. ibtimes. com/pr/articles/635351/20110511/austin-business-journal-na mes-profitfuel-and-outrank-as-one-of-the-best-places-to-work-2011. htm 9. Judith A. Merkle; Management and Ideology; Taylor and French Scientific Management; Pg. 148; [2008]; London; University of California Press. 10. Keffer,C. 1984, Citizen Empowerment: a Developmental Perspective, Prevention in Human Services 3:936. 1. McGregor, D. (1966), ‘Leadership and Motivation’. The MIT press. 12. Patrick J. Montana Bruce H. Charnow; Management; Management: History Concept; Pg. 11; [2000]; New York; Barron’s Educational Series’ Inc. 13. Peter F. Ducker; The Pratice of Management; The Structure of Management; Pg. 165; [2007]; USA; Elsever Ltd. Las Angeles Busines s Journal; [2011]; Accessed by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. labusinessjournal. com/polls/2011/may/reader-poll-should-city-allow-creation-districts-w/ 14. Richard L. Daft, Paricia G. Lane, 2007. The Leadership Experience. 5. Reference for Business, Encyclopedia, 2nd ed; Management Thought; by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. referenceforbusiness. com/management/Log-Mar/Management-Thought. html 16. Tony J. Watson; Management, Organization, and Employment Strategy: New Directions in Theory and Pratice; Organisation: Structure, Process and Effectiveness; Pg. 49; [1986]; USA; Routledge Kegan Paul Inc. Business Dictionary. com; Classical School of Management; by: 28th May 2010; Available from: http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/classical-school-of-management. html

6 Disappeared LinkedIn® Partner Applications and What to Do About Them †Part IV TripIt and SlideShare

6 Disappeared LinkedIn ® Partner Applications and What to Do About Them – Part IV TripIt and SlideShare The saga of the disappeared LinkedIn Partner Applications continues with this weeks episode TripIt and SlideShare! For more LinkedIn tips please visit How to Write a KILLER LinkedIn Profile e-book! TripIt TripIt was an application that allowed LinkedIn users to report easily on their travel plans. Disclaimer: I questions the wisdom of publicizing ones travel to LinkedIn, since I’ve heard stories of people who post this type of information and whose houses get robbed while they are away. However, if you do feel comfortable letting the world know when you will be traveling, you might wish to follow these steps which were provided directly from TripIt: Dear Traveler, A friendly reminder to link your TripIt and LinkedIn accounts in order to continue accessing and sharing trips with your LinkedIn network. As you may have heard from LinkedIn, they have redesigned the LinkedIn profile page, which will no longer include your TripIt My Travel app. Dont lose your access: Link my accounts. We hope you like the new and improved experience! Learn more about TripIt and how it can help you organize all your travel plans into one master mobile itinerary. By the traveler, for the traveler, The TripIt team The basic idea here is that you can log your travel in TripIt and easily share it to your LinkedIn profile. You can even sign in to TripIt using your LinkedIn username and password! Once logged in, enjoy the magic and convenience of keeping all your travel information in one place (I havent used it fully yet but am intrigued by the possibilities! Theyve got a great video you can watch at https://www.tripit.com/trip/show/id/64396342. Happy travels! SlideShare In May 2012, LinkedIn acquired SlideShare for $118.75 million. Although the SlideShare application no longer exists, you can bet LinkedIn wants you to keep using this resource! You can log in to SlideShare with your LinkedIn username and password and import your LinkedIn profile information to complete your SlideShare profile. With a single click, you can follow all your LinkedIn contacts through SlideShare, thus ensuring that you receive notifications of their updated content and comments. When you add a new presentation, document or video to SlideShare, it will *automatically* post as an Activity Update on your LinkedIn profile! Plus, if your settings allow it, you can automatically post to LinkedIn when you â€Å"favorite† a SlideShare presentation. Heres what your update might look like in LinkedIn Signal: For details on the above tips, see SlideShare Content Sharing with your Professional Network on LinkedIn, posted on the SlideShare blog on January 9, 2012. Finally, you can always post the link to a SlideShare presentation to your Summary or Experience sections by clicking on the box with the blue + sign. Once you click on that box you will be brought to a box where you can paste a link: How do you get the correct link for your presentation? In SlideShare, go to your list of presentations: Click on one of the images and you will be brought to the page with the presentation: Copy the URL from the upper left corner and paste it into the box on LinkedIn. The presentation or video will then be part of your permanent LinkedIn profile until you decide to remove or change it! Next week: How to accommodate for the disappearance of the WordPress application. See you then! Category:Archived ArticlesBy Brenda BernsteinFebruary 18, 2013

The Efficient Markets Hypothesis

The Efficient Markets Hypothesis The efficient markets hypothesis has historically been one of the main cornerstones of academic finance research. Proposed by the University of Chicagos Eugene Fama in the 1960s, the general concept of the efficient markets hypothesis is that financial markets are informationally efficient- in other words, that asset prices in financial markets reflect all relevant information about an asset. One implication of this hypothesis is that, since there is no persistent mispricing of assets, it is virtually impossible to consistently predict asset prices in order to beat the market- i.e. generate returns that are higher than the overall market on average without incurring more risk than the market. The intuition behind the efficient markets hypothesis is pretty straightforward- if the market price of a stock or bond was lower than what available information would suggest it should be, investors could (and would) profit (generally via arbitrage strategies) by buying the asset. This increase in demand, however, would push up the price of the asset until it was no longer underpriced. Conversely, if the market price of a stock or bond was higher than what available information would suggest it should be, investors could (and would) profit by selling the asset (either selling the asset outright or short selling an asset that they dont own). In this case, the increase in the supply of the asset would push down the price of the asset until it was no longer overpriced. In either case, the profit motive of investors in these markets would lead to correct pricing of assets and no consistent opportunities for excess profit left on the table. Technically speaking, the efficient markets hypothesis comes in three forms. The first form, known as the weak form (or weak-form efficiency), postulates that future stock prices cannot be predicted from historical information about prices and returns. In other words, the weak form of the efficient markets hypothesis suggests that asset prices follow a random walk and that any information that could be used to predict future prices is independent of past prices. The second form, known as the semi-strong form (or semi-strong efficiency), suggests that stock prices react almost immediately to any new public information about an asset. In addition, the semi-strong form of the efficient markets hypothesis claims that markets dont overreact or underreact to new information. The third form, known as the strong form (or strong-form efficiency), states that asset prices adjust almost instantaneously not only to new public information but also to new private information. Put more simply, the weak form of the efficient markets hypothesis implies that an investor cant consistently beat the market with a model that only uses historical prices and returns as inputs, the semi-strong form of the efficient markets hypothesis implies that an investor cant consistently beat the market with a model that incorporates all publicly available information, and the strong form of the efficient markets hypothesis implies that an investor cant consistently beat the market even if his model incorporates private information about an asset. One thing to keep in mind regarding the efficient markets hypothesis is that it doesnt imply that no one ever profits from adjustments in asset prices. By the logic stated above, profits go to those investors whose actions move the assets to their correct prices. Under the assumption that different investors get to the market first in each of these cases, however, no single investor is consistently able to profit from these price adjustments. (Those investors who were able to always get in on the action first would be doing so not because asset prices were predictable but because they had an informational or execution advantage, which is not really inconsistent with the concept of market efficiency.) The empirical evidence for the efficient markets hypothesis is somewhat mixed, though the strong-form hypothesis has pretty consistently been refuted. In particular, behavioral finance researchers aim to document ways in which financial markets are inefficient and situations in which asset prices are at least partially predictable. In addition, behavioral finance researchers challenge the efficient markets hypothesis on theoretical grounds by documenting both cognitive biases that drive investors behavior away from rationality and limits to arbitrage that prevent others from taking advantage of the cognitive biases (and, by doing so, keeping markets efficient).

Impact of informal caring on children Literature review

Impact of informal caring on children - Literature review Example Children should feel secure enough to venture into their world and welcome new experiences of youth that aid them in their growth and development. However, for some children, such is not the case. Instead of being cared for, they are the ones that provide care for others. Becker (2000) defines young carers as: ‘children and young people under 18 who provide or intend to provide care, assistance or support to another family member. They carry out, often on a regular basis, significant or substantial caring tasks and assume a level of responsibility which would usually be associated with an adult’ (Becker, 2000, p. 378). These young carers live differently from their non-caregiving peers. They are tasked with huge responsibilities early on in life that they miss out on the regular lives expected of children their age. In an effort to meet children’s developmental needs, the UK government was prompted to consult children themselves, of things that matter to them most in order to be the basis of proposals for change. These key outcomes—being healthy, staying safe, enjoying and achieving, making a positive contribution and economic well-being are detailed in the Every Child Matters report and represent a considerable shift in focus for staff providing public services for children. (Baxter & Frederickson, 2005). In the document for Every Child Matters, Working Together to Safeguard Children (HM Government, 2006), Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as â€Å"protecting children from maltreatment; preventing impairment of children’s health or development and ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care (HM Government, 2006, pp. 34-35). It is ironic that with young carers, instead of being ensured of their welfare, they are the ones who keep the people they care for safe, leaving them vulnerable to some risks to their own safety and welfare. Se veral circumstances such as living with a sick parent, caring for a sibling while their single parent goes off to work, caring for their elderly grandparents in the absence of their parents may necessitate relying on a child to be an informal caregiver. For some cultures, such as in Latin American and Asian American families, this is expected of children as their contributions to family life and as a good preparation for their future (Kuperminc et al, 2009). These situations are often viewed by the adults in the family as opportunities that help promote children’s growth and maturity as well as to learn family values (Weisner, 2001). On the part of the children caregivers, different perspectives may be gleaned. Kuperminc et al (2009) found that some adolescents find their own helpfulness in the home to contribute to their positive self-esteem and feelings of interpersonal competence. For adolescents who experience disruption in their lives, the act of caregiving is considered beneficial as it provides the important connection to others that they need as well as fosters positive self-identity (Brubaker & Wright, 2006). Still other adolescents who live in disadvantaged environments view their caregiving as providing them self-confidence because it makes them feel

Practitioner Values in Dementia - Portfolio 3 Essay

Practitioner Values in Dementia - Portfolio 3 - Essay Example These systems are derived on the bio-psychosocial inquiries which addressed the holistic needs of the people receiving dementia care. Barker (2008, p. 297) identifies the different systems in dementia care and includes the following: biological system, psychological system, family system, health and social care system, cultural system, and sociopolitical system. These systems safeguard and promote the ethical wellbeing of people with dementia in various ways. The biological system focuses on the current condition of the people with dementia, their primary caregivers, and family members. It ensures effective care and functioning by addressing the different life needs and its processes. For instance, people with dementia may have alterations in cognitive functions and the physical manifestations cannot be cured but can be controlled. Likewise, the primary caregivers or family members of people with dementia should be physically fit when planning for dementia care as the projected level of stress can sometimes lead to burnout. The psychological dimensions of people with dementia, their primary caregivers, and family members are also affected. Having dementia and caring for people with dementia do not only cause physical exhaustion but emotional stress as well. It is often traumatic for the family members to find the diagnosis and dementia as it may bring back the emotions inclined with birth, life expectancy, and disability of the person. Family system centered on roles, rules, boundaries, and the family life itself. To promote the ethical wellbeing of the families with/caring for dementia, family-centered services must be designed and implemented according to the needs, beliefs, and perspectives of the family (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2009, p. 40). In Asian countries, family members believe that it is their responsibility to care; thus, it would be very difficult and humiliating for them to accept support in dementia care. However, the family has the right to be informed of existing services and support groups that would aid in adaptation and financial matters such as the Dementia Support Groups and Alzheimer’s Society. Health and social care system encompass all aspects of health and social provision of care, including the financial aspects. According to (http://www.alzheimers.org.uk, 2013), it is not only important that we adhere on minimum standards of care; rather, we should promote high quality or personalized care. The Dementia Care Program is an example of health and social care system that deliver high-quality relationship-based care and support for people with dementia. It involves collaborative efforts from different professionals such as staff from geriatrics, elder services, behavioral health, neurology, and dementia education (http://mayoclinichealthsystem.org/, 2013). The Dementia Care Program aims to address the different needs of both the family and the person with dementia and to aid in the progression of the disease. As stated earlier, dementia care must be personalised. It must consider the cultural system or the religious beliefs and customs of those concerned in dementia care. It has been found by the Royal College of Psychiatrists (2009, p. 41-42) that ethnicity affects dementia care and very few enjoy the support of extended family networks. The role of ethnicity in clinical experience

The Great Depression Essay -- American History

The Great Depression The Big Picture The Great Depression was the longest and most severe economic decline in American history. On October 29, 1929, the stock market crashed and began the depression. Although industry leaders issued optimistic predictions for the nation's economy, the market crash wiped out nearly 40% of the paper values of stocks. Great innovations in productive techniques during and after the war raised the output of industry beyond the purchasing capacity of U.S. farmers and working force. As a result of this, unemployment skyrocketed during the years of the Depression, reaching levels as high as one third of the population. Almost half of the commercial banks of the United States failed during the Depression. Crop prices fell by over fifty percent. People went hungry because so much food was produced that production became unprofitable. Others were unemployed because they had produced more than could be sold. Hundreds of thousands roamed the country in search of food, work, and shelter. Huge numbers of Americans had their lives upset by the Depression. Homelessness, poverty and despair characterized much of the nation in those days. Many of those who could not provide for their families, in larger cities as well as smaller towns, committed suicide to put an end to their troubles. Small Town Life The depression was not limited to the confines of large cities, it spread like a disease throughout our great nation. It even managed to find its way into the small town of Oakesdale, Washington. Frances Taylor, a mere child at this time clearly remembers the events that took place. "As children, we weren't really aware of what was going on. We simply didn't understand the concept of being poor." Many fam... ...ovided the initial 63 million dollars for the project to begin. "My father found work by being part of the construction of Grand Coulee Dam. He would stay on the site while our mother took care of the children back in Oakesdale. He would send the money back to support the family." The Grand Coulee Dam would provide many jobs for the unemployed as well as be used in the upcoming war. It was used primarily for irrigation at first, but as the war progressed it was changed to produce more electricity for the Northwest's aluminum industry. The beginning of World War II would prove to be the factor that directed America out of the Depression. How ironic, that such a horrifying event could spur an economic rejuvenation. The Depression was a trying time, America was at a loss for words and money, but as a nation, we pulled together and got through the worst of the worst.

McCain Foods Essay

1. Which four Ps make up the marketing mix? Answer: †¢ Product †¢ Price †¢ Place †¢ Promotion †¢ Product – this has to look and taste good and be made from wholesome ingredients. †¢ Price – the price has to be attractive to ensure enough sales to generate a profit. †¢ Place – the place and position of the product in the market is important to compete for market share. †¢ Promotion – this has to fit the company’s objectives for the product. 2. Explain the different product categories in the Boston Matrix. Why is this a useful tool for businesses? Answer: The Boston Matrix identifies four types in a company’s product portfolio: †¢ Stars. These products have a high market share in markets that are growing quickly. For example, the Playstation was a star when it was first introduced into the games market. †¢ Question Marks. These products have a low market share in a growing market. Costs are more than returns as the company tries to increase market share. An example of a Question Mark could be a newly launched fashion item or a new car model. †¢ Cash Cows. These products have high market share in established markets, for example, cornflakes in the breakfast cereals market. †¢ Dogs. These products have low market share in a low growth market. A company may look to get rid of these products or invest in marketing to improve sales. For example, DVD recorders have replaced video recorders 3. Analyse how McCain Foods’ promotional strategies tie in with its message ‘It’s All Good’. Answer: Promotion A further demonstration of the ‘It’s All Good’ ethos is McCain Foods’ ethical stance on promotion. McCain makes a Commitment not to advertise to children under 12 years old. It also ensures that the retail labeling on its products carries clear information on levels of fat, saturated fat, salt and sugar to help shoppers choose healthier options. Its labeling is in line with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) traffic light scheme and the food industry’s Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA). McCain also takes part in different types of sponsorship, such as: †¢ TV show Family Fortunes. This brings the McCain brand to a wide audience through a popular family programme. †¢ McCain Athletics Networks which encourage young people to get involved in the sport through local clubs. This further supports the company’s approach to balancing calories in with calories out. 4. Consider other promotional strategies McCain could use and say whether they are above- or below-the-line. Answer: Above-the-line promotion is paid for and includes traditional advertising routes such as television, radio and the press. These are good for carrying marketing messages to a large audience. However,it is less easy to measure the impact of these channels, for example, whether a TV advert has increased sales. Special displays or positioning in stores or advertising on supermarket trolleys are also examples of McCain’s above-the-line promotional activity. Below-the-line promotion can take many forms and is usually more under the control of the business. Typical examples include events or direct mail. McCain uses a combination of below-theline activities including: †¢ door-to-door leaflet drops or books of vouchers which give customers discounts over a period of time. These help to attract consumers and establish brand loyalty so the consumer buys the product again. †¢ email newsletter for consumers. This creates a relationship with consumers, which is unusual for a B2B organisation. It not only allows McCain to communicate directly with and listen to consumers, it also enables the business to collect information, for example, about their lifestyles and product choices. This is used for feedback, research and promotions.