Scramble For Africa DBQ

European powers gave the illus. on of choice to the people and then backed them up with torture and bullets when they rises De. African Nations responded to colonization efforts by holding on to their religious bell fees and through militaristic resistance while other just remained to their destined faith that WA s set up to them by European Powers. In order to better analyze this issue, it would be helpful to have a document that is a response from African merchants that detailed the possible e economic consequences of European Colonization.Many Africans saw that that their fate had been made as soon as the European powers marched in and began occupying and colonizing their lands so they g eve in without a fight at all. The Royal Niger Company, commissioned by the British government NT to administer and develop the Niger River delta and surrounding areas and many African rue leers signed the form in 1886(Doc 1). Many African leaders just signed their lands away not eve en standing u p for their lands they just subsided with the British thinking things would be bet terror them if they just have in when in reality it didn't make anything better.Shanty leader Premier I turned down an offer that would protect him and his people. But he also said that â€Å"at the same time remain friendly with all White men†(Doc 2). Premier may have not agree De to the British logic of protection but he did want to remain friendly with the whites which t urine out to be a major flaw for the Chiantis. Next, Indians Kamala and African veteran of the Needle Rebellion tells how his people surrendered to the white people and tried to live e their lives as normal as they possibly could(Doc 4).Once again the Africans just submitted t o the their fate Mr. Sullivan and attempted to live their lives as normal Africans. They might as well as off get for their lives and freedom because they were treated as slaves and when an unrecognized r billion broke out against the Europeans, the Eu ropeans quickly overpowered them and ma y Africans died. This was described by Indians Kamala as † They-?the White men-?fought t us with big guns, machine guns, and rifles.Many Of our people were killed in this fight: I s away four of my cousins shot. We made many charges but each time we were defeated†(Doc 4 Lastly, Samuel Marcher a leader of the Hero people described in a letter to another African leader how â€Å"All our obedience and patience with the Germans is of little avail, for each h day they shoot someone dead for no reason at 7). Many people in Africa just b Egan giving in to all the changes that were taking place around them by European powers.

Pnb Project Report

Research Project on Application & Management of Information System in Punjab National Bank IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF MASTER’S DEGREE IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION INDRAPRASTHA UNIVERSITY (2008-2010) Submitted by: Pratik Jain — 0781563908 Northern India Engineering College (N. I. E. C), Delhi Under the valuable guidance of: Mrs. Shaveta Kumar (Faculty, N. I. E. C) Subject: Information System Management Course Code: MS-205 Submitted on: 30 17 November, 2009 AcknowledgementThis formal piece of acknowledgement is an attempt to express the feeling of gratitude towards people who helped me in successful completion of research project. I would like to express my deep gratitude to Mr. B. D Sharma (branch manager, PNB), for his constant co-operation. He was always there with his competent guidance and valuable suggestion throughout the pursuance of this research project. Special thanks to Mrs. Shaveta Kumar, my internal coordinator who guided me to work honestly and to give valuabl e suggestion for improving my work.Above all no words can express my feelings to my parents, friends all those persons who supported me during my project. I would also like to thank almighty God for his blessings showered on me during the completion of project report. INDEX | | | | | |S. NO |Sub Topic |Topic Name |Page Number | | |S.NO | | | |1. |Acknowledgement |2 | |2. |COMPANY PROFILE | | | |1. |Origin – Punjab National Bank |4 | | |2. |Profile |5 | | |3. Vision and Mission |6 | | |4. |Financial Performance Comparison |7 | |3. |INFORMATION SYSTEM IN PNB | | | |1. |History of Information System in PNB |8 | | | |1. 2000- The Beginning | | | | |1. b 2001-2003- Long Term Strategy | | | | |1. c 2004-2007- Growth | | | | |1. d 2008- Rural Initiative | | | | |1. 2009- 100% CBS Implementation | | | |2. |Other Banking Applications |12 | | | |2. a Straight to Processing (STP) | | | | |2. b Depository Setup | | | | |2. Bank Mate & EDI | | | |3. |PNB IT Setup |13 | | | |3. a S ystems | | | | |3. b Network Design | | | | |3. Storage, WAN & Connectivity | | | | |3. d Security Systems | | | | |3. e Hardware & Software Resources | | | |4. |Organizations Other Computing Resource |15 | | | |4. Payroll TPS | | | | |4. b Online Assistance | | | | |4. c Account Opening – MIS | | | | |4. d SPNS, RTGS & Mobile Alert Service | | |4. IMPACT OF INFORMATION SYSTEM | | | |1. |Finacle’s Impact |16 | | |2. |Impact on Employees, Customers |17 | |5. |Available Alternatives |18 | |6. |Conclusion |19 | |7. Suggestion |20 | |8. |References |21 | Company Profile – Punjab National Bank Origin Established in 1895 at Lahore, undivided India, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has the distinction of being the first Indian bank to have been started solely with Indian capital.The bank was nationalized in July 1969 along with 13 other banks. From its modest beginning, the bank has grown in size and stature to become a front-line banking institution in India at pre sent. |[p|A professionally managed bank with a successful track record of over 110 years. | |ic| | |] | | |[p|Largest branch network in India – 4668 Offices including 432 Extension Counters spread throughout the country. |ic| | |] | | |[p|Strategic business area covers the large Indo-Gangetic belt and the metropolitan centers. | |ic| | |] | | |[p|Ranked as 248th biggest bank in the world by Bankers Almanac, London. |ic| | |] | | |[p|Strong correspondent banking relationships with more than 217 international banks of the world. | |ic| | |] | | |[p|More than 50 renowned international banks maintain their Rupee Accounts with PNB. |ic| | |] | | |[p|Well equipped dealing rooms; 20 different foreign currency accounts are maintained at major centers all over the globe. | |ic| | |] | | ProfileWith its presence virtually in all the important centers of the country, Punjab National Bank offers a wide variety of banking services which include corporate and personal banking, industria l finance, agricultural finance, financing of trade and international banking. Among the clients of the Bank are Indian conglomerates, medium and small industrial units, exporters, non-resident Indians and multinational companies. The large presence and vast resource base have helped the Bank to build strong links with trade and industry.With over 38 million satisfied customers and 4668 offices, PNB has continued to retain its leadership position among the nationalized banks. The bank enjoys strong fundamentals, large franchise value and good brand image. Besides being ranked as one of India's top service brands, PNB has remained fully committed to its guiding principles of sound and prudent banking. Apart from offering banking products, the bank has also entered the credit card & debit card business; bullion business; life and non-life insurance business; Gold coins & asset managementsbusiness,setc.Since its humble beginning in 1895 with the distinction of being the first Indian ba nk to have been started with Indian capital, PNB has achieved significant growth in business which at the end of March 2009 amounted to Rs 3,64,463 crore. Today, with assets of more than Rs 2,46,900 crore, PNB is ranked as the 3rd largest bank in the country (after SBI and ICICI Bank) and has the 2nd largest network of branches (including three overseas offices).PNB has always looked at technology as a key facilitator to provide better customer service and ensured that its ‘IT strategy’ follows the ‘Business strategy’ so as to arrive at â€Å"Best Fit†. The bank has made rapid strides in this direction. Along with the achievement of 100% branch computerization, one of the major achievements of the Bank is covering all the branches of the Bank under Core Banking Solution (CBS), thus covering 100% of its business and providing ‘Anytime Anywhere’ banking facility to all customers including customers of more than 2000 rural branches.The bank has also been offering Internet banking services to the customers of CBS branches like booking of tickets, payment of bills of utilities, purchase of airline tickets etc. Towards developing a cost effective alternative channels of delivery, the bank with more than 2150 ATMs has the largest ATM network amongst Nationalized Banks. With the help of advanced technology, the Bank has been a frontrunner in the industry so far as the initiatives for Financial Inclusion is concerned. With its policy of inclusive growth in the Indo-Gangetic belt.The Bank has launched a drive for biometric smart card based technology enabled Financial Inclusion with the help of Business Correspondents/Business Facilitators (BC/BF) so as to reach out to the last mile customer. The BC/BF will address the outreach issue while technology will provide cost effective and transparent services. The Bank has started several innovative initiatives for marginal groups like rickshaw pullers, vegetable vendors, dairy far mers, construction workers, etc. The Bank has already achieved 100% financial inclusion in 21,408svillages.Backed by strong domestic performance, the bank is planning to realize its global aspirations. In order to increase its international presence, the Bank continues its selective foray in international markets with presence in Hongkong, Dubai, Kazakhstan, UK, Shanghai, Singapore, Kabul and Norway. A second branch in Hongkong at Kowloon was opened in the first week of April’09. Bank is also in the process of establishing its presence in China, Bhutan, DIFC Dubai, Canada and Singapore. The bank also has a joint venture with Everest Bank Ltd. EBL), Nepal. Under the long term vision, Bank proposes to start its operation in Fiji Island, Australia and Indonesia. Bank continues with its goal to become a household brand with global expertise. Amongst Top 1000 Banks in the World, ‘The Banker’ listed PNB at 250th place. Further, PNB is at the 1166th position among 48 In dian firms making it to a list of the world’s biggest companiesscompiledsbysthesUSsmagazines‘Forbes’. Punjab National Bank continues to maintain its frontline position in the Indian banking industry.In particular, the bank has retained its NUMBER ONE position among the nationalized banks in terms of number of branches, Deposit, Advances, total Business, operating and net profit in the year 2008-09. The impressive operational and financial performance has been brought about by Bank’s focus on customer based business with thrust on SME, Agriculture, more inclusive approach to banking; better asset liability management; improved margin management, thrust on recovery and increased efficiency in core operations of the Bank. Vision and Mission Vision To be a Leading Global Bank with Pan India footprints and become a household brand in the Indo-Gangetic Plains providing entire range of financial products and services sssssssunder one roof† Mission â€Å"Ba nking for the unbanked† Performance Comparison over the years [pic] During the FY 2008-09, the bank achieved a net profit of Rs 3,091 crore, maintaining its number ONE position amongst nationalized banks. Bank has a strong capital base with capital adequacy ratio at 14. 03% as on March’09. As on March’09, the Bank has the Gross and Net NPA ratio of 1. 77% and 0. 17% respectively.During the FY 2008-09, its’ ratio of priority sector credit to adjusted net bank credit at 41. 53% & agriculture credit to adjusted net bank credit at 19. 72% was also higher than the respective national goals of 40% & 18%. Information System in PNB History of Information System at PNB 2000 – The Beginning In March 2000, the penetration and use of IT was not very high at PNB. PNB was relying on manual processes to collect, store, and analyze business data. Its retail branches were not connected and it was difficult for management to understand business drivers and impediment s.This situation made it difficult for PNB to provide optimum customer service and resulted in lost opportunities. Manual operations were also costly to support. The bank used seven different software, which ran on 13 different flavors of UNIX, on standalone PCs. The 500-odd branches were not networked and only 35 percent of the bank's business was computerized. The overall expertise in IT among users was low. The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) issued a directive to the bank to computerize at least 70 percent of its business by December 2000.This prompted the bank to work out a strategy to tackle the daunting task in the short period of time. At that time there were various factors which caused a barrier in implementing an Information System for centralized banking. These weaknesses were:- †¢ Different Unix OS used in different branches. †¢ Different standalone financial applications on PCs at different branches. †¢ Lack of interoperability due to disparity in sys tems. †¢ Limited expertise on the software packages currently deployed. †¢ Most branches did not have a proper LAN in place.PNB hired a consultant and devised a two-pronged plan of action. The plan comprised: †¢ A short term goal – To meet the CVC deadline of 70 percent computerization. †¢ A long term goal – To create a dependable core banking infrastructure and build a nationwide network to connect different branches to the core infrastructure. PNB chose a product from a company called Nelito. It was a DOS-based, ‘Partial Branch Automation' application. Standalone versions were chosen since there weren't LANs in place, and deployment of LANs at branches would take so long that the CVC deadline couldn't be met.The interface was simple in design, and thus easy for the bank personnel to use. The bank requested CVC for an extension of the deadline and was granted time till March 2001. By March 2001, 70. 60 percent of the bank's business was compu terized. 2001-2003 – The Long Term Strategy In the long-term, PNB wanted a technology that would consolidate all its business resources and sustain the bank's future growth. It also wanted to create its own network, which would play a vital role in its success. Three consultants were appointed to review technology options for long-term adoption.The verdict of the consultants was to deploy a centralized core banking architecture. On 30 March 2001, the bank used the services of Infosys for the deployment of Finacle. A core team was selected, which would be the heart of the project. Infosys trained 200-odd personnel from a core team over six months. The core team modified and customized the package according to its specific needs. As the time passed besides making a mark in terms of revenues, the bank— among the few technology-savvy PSUs—set up examples for other banks, especially PSUs in early of this decade.Institute for Development and Research in Banking Techno logy (IDRBT), a division of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), presented PNB with the award for excellence in banking technology in 2002. This was quite an achievement considering that the technology transformation started only two-and-a-half years back at PNB. In March 2000, the bank had only 36 percent of its businesses covered on computers, as against 84 percent in 2002. PNB purchased servers, security infrastructure, and storage equipment and decided to house it in its own central data center in New Delhi.A lot of infrastructure from Cisco has been used to build the data center. In April 2002 the bank rolled-out Finacle in 7 branches as a pilot venture. This was done because the bank had seven different application packages, and it wanted to ensure smooth migration of the data into Finacle. By mid May 2002, all data from other software was successfully migrated into Finacle and by end of year, the number of locations has increased to 12. As far as the centralized core banking syst em is concerned, PNB has a data centre at the corporate office and all these 12 centers have an extension to that data.This system enables an individual having an account in any of our branches to conduct transactions/operate the account from any of these 12 branches. 2004-2007 – The Growth Stage In 2004, India's National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) nominated Punjab National Bank (PNB) as the best user of technology in its sector. The bank continued to spread the technology to more of its branches and centers. The adoption of Core Banking Solution not only ensured standardization of products, but also enabled quick launch of the new and innovative financial products ensuring sufficient lead time to market it.The core banking solution offered seamless platform for integrating various such initiatives and also reduces the cost of transaction, thereby offering financial products at an affordable cost. On May 27,2004 Punjab National Bank (PNB) has intr oduced Loans and Advances Data Desk for Evaluations and Reports, (LADDER), a computerized management information system for rationalization of returns, asset classification and provisioning, credit monitoring and NPA management. The implementation of the system comprised two modules. The first module would require branches to capture data on borrowal accounts as a | |one-time activity with transaction updates at periodic intervals. | |   | |The second module for implementation of the software envisages collection of information on the loan accounts from the stage of receipt of | |application to disbursement of sanctioned loans. | | |With the implementation of this system, manual collation of a large number of loan-related returns become redundant and branch staff | |concentrated on business development and objective monitoring of asset quality. | 2008 – Rural Initiative Infosys Technologies Ltd (Infosys) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) in 2008 announced that PNB has chosen Finacle from Infosys to power its core banking initiative for rural banking deploying Finacle across PNB’s six Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) covering 1300 branches.Punjab National Bank took lead in business excellence and commitment to customers by providing core banking coverage to its 4850 service outlets. Due to the remoteness of rural branch locations, there were issues such as connectivity of branches for operational ease, centralization of data, and enhancement of customer service as well as innovation in banking products. Moreover, all this is needed at a substantially lower cost for RRBs as their operations were relatively less complex. Finacle from Infosys recognized this need of RRBs and adapted its industry leading core banking solution to suit the requirements of these institutions.PNB management selected this platform to transform and standardize the operations of its RRBs. A majority of Indian banks were already ahead in terms of adoption of new age technology. Ex tending the benefits of technology to RRBs helped sponsor banks in not just priority sector lending but also present an additional business avenue with tremendous potential. Finacle enabled RRBs to better manage audit processes, adhere to statutory compliance, enhance internal MIS requirements and offer customers competitive services on par with commercial banks. 2009 – 100% CBS ImplementationIn Feb, 2009 India's second largest public sector bank, announced that it has completed 100 per cent core banking implementation at its 4604 branches and extension counters through the FinacleaUniversalaBankingaSolutionafromaInfosys. The bank implemented industry-leading Finacle CBS across its operations running a flexible and scalable database platform from Oracle and innovative and cost-effective Sun SPARC enterprise serversafromaSunaMicrosystems. Finacle has enabled the bank to consolidate and centralize its operations, improving branch efficiency and productivity per employee.Consoli dation has also resulted in reduction of revenue leakage and cost, while increasing ease of technical support and maintenance at branches. The solution's scalability has also enabled the bank's scalability to be the best in the countryawithatheanumberaofapeakatransactionsaata3. 5amillion. Further, the bank has covered all the branches under CBS platform including extension counters. As a result, 38 million PNB’s customers are enjoying the facility of â€Å"one bank – one account†. In addition, the bank has intended to build a data center capable of handling business of 6000 branches and 1 lakh terminals.The bank was awarded â€Å"IBM green award† for adopting environment friendly technology for data warehouse implementation during the year. Other Banking Applications The banking major also introduced a number of value added services like ATMs, Tele-banking, SMS banking, mobile banking and Internet banking, remote access facility through its website, etc. under a license from RBI to launch Internet banking. The bank also enabled customers to avail of the Straight to Processing (STP) facility. The biggest advantage of STP is that if a person with an account in Delhi deposits a cheque in Chennai, his account in Delhi gets updated the same day.PNB’s team has also customized this package to suit the typical requirements of a public sector bank. â€Å"As PNB handles huge number of government accounts—public provident fund, deposit of income tax, deposit of different duties and treasury payments, PNB had to customize it and also built a module for government businesses into this package. The bank also has a depository set-up (to store dematerialized share certificates) at its corporate office in New Delhi and another in Mumbai. Customers owning shares and bonds can deposit them at these depositories after which the hard copies are destroyed.The bank, on the other hand, keeps a digital copy of all these documents. Thus, one d oes not have to bother about the loss of paper, or a signature that does not match and so on. Customers can now instruct the bank at any point of time to transfer these securities. Another very interesting development with PNB is its contract with Indian Railways. It is putting up an ATM machine at the New Delhi station’s reservation office, which is going to be a interface between the Railways’ server and the bank’s server.Once this is functional, customers can collect their tickets from the ATM machine and the payment can be made using credit or debit cards. Once this is successful and the interface is done, the bank plans to enable all their ATMs across the country on this platform. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is another technology initiative that the bank has taken up. It has entered into an agreement with the Customs department wherein the Customs’ server is connected with the bank’s corporate office server, which is further connected to several branches of PNB and also to importers.Thus, whatever duties are required to be deposited with the Customs department can be debited from the importer’s (read customer’s) account automatically. The pilot project for this has already been carried out and the bank plans to introduce this service soon. The PSU has also introduced bilingual software known as Bank-mate. With the help of this software one can generate reports in Hindi and also can get his/her passbook in Hindi. This is already in operation at around various branches and PNB is also getting orders for this package from other banks. PNB’s IT SetupPNB also has a number of applications running on its network like any other Financial Institution. The bank has standardized all its platforms on UNIX operating system and RDBMS on Oracle. Other OS like Microsoft’s windows 2000/ XP are also enabled in centers. As far as the hardware platform is concerned, PNB has Sun Microsystems’ Web serv ers at the data centre. Apart from this, they are also using Compaq, IBM and Xeon servers. At some locations, the bank is still using DOS machines to run some of their ATMs. Systems Before deploying the core banking architecture, PNB used servers which were NT-based, from IBM, and from other vendors.The bank conducted benchmarking tests for Finacle on various server platforms. And it was satisfied with the performance of Sun's hardware on Solaris. Sun's Fire servers, Solaris OS, and Oracle's RDBMS are now in use. Network design Cisco has tied up with PNB to evolve the network design and implement a nationwide network backbone to connect all its offices. Cisco will assist the bank in understanding and implementing the various technologies associated with the project. The converged network infrastructure allowed PNB to standardize the applications and software needed to provide the banking services.The various branches are connected to the data center using new-world routing and switc hing technologies. Storage systems The bank has followed RBI's storage requirement guidelines. Provisions have been made to store transaction data for around 10 years. In some cases, data is stored permanently. Around 164 Sun enterprise class servers are used in DAS architecture. The total capacity is of multiple TBs. The Sun hardware uses an in-built storage management tool. Later look over a storage management application from VERITAS. WAN and connectivity 101 branches of the bank were on a WAN in 2000.The bank put 500-odd branches on the WAN in 2002, and in three years the WAN had 2000-odd branches. The bank tried a number of connectivity options. 802. 11b wireless connectivity was installed in five branches to begin with. The bank then explored the option of leased lines and used connectivity from MTNL and BSNL. It also used Bharti's leased line between Mumbai and Delhi. The bank also used Reliance Infocomm's fiber optic backbone along with the leased lines in locations where th e optic fiber does not reach. PNB had appointed HCL Com-net to carry out 24Ãâ€"7 monitoring of the countrywide network.There's a live link between HCL and PNB's IT head office. The network is monitored remotely and can also be viewed at the bank's IT facility, where a separate monitoring system is used. Security Systems Security was especially important because the bank could afford no compromise. The security architecture had to be robust, reliable, and scalable to meet current and future needs. Cisco was chosen as the service provider who could meet these stringent requirements. The bank uses a range of security products like Firewalls and IDSs from Cisco for its security needs in its LANs and WAN.All data transactions between its routers and switches are encrypted. It has appointed Ramco Systems as the security integrator. The security integrator is responsible for the complete security infrastructure and is answerable for any security breach or lapse. The bank appointed securit y administrators. VeriSign provided the necessary Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) to the bank for secure transactions. Software Resources PNB is using various software’s for its operational activities for its smooth and efficient running, the Software used by PNB include:-  ¬ Microsoft office 2003 Acrobat Reader  ¬ Bank-mate  ¬ Attack Filters: – Spyware, Trojan, VoIP etc.  ¬ Protocols: – IP, VLAN, DNS, HTTP, FTP, TCP, TELNET, UTP etc.  ¬ Operating System’s:- UNIX, Solaris, Windows NT, 2000 Server, XP etc..  ¬ Databases: – MS Access, MS SQL, Oracle, FoxPro. Hardware Resources To fulfill the requirement and as per compatibility with software these hardware are used:-  ¬ HCL, IBM etc Desktops,  ¬ Printer  ¬ NT Based servers from IBM,  ¬ Sun’s hardware for Solaris,  ¬ Network Cards.  ¬ Routers, Scanners etc†¦ Organizations Other Computing Resources Payroll Transaction Processing SystemPayroll TPS, which is a typical accounting transaction processing system found in PNB. A payroll system keeps track of the money paid to employees. The master file is composed of discrete pieces of information (such as a name, address, or employee number) called data elements. Data are keyed into the system, updating the data elements. The elements on the master file are combined in different ways to create reports of interest to management and government agencies and to send paychecks to employees. Management notices the record of the employee’s efficiency to work and may declare added bonus or other incentive.This report is checked and approved by the branch manager after which cheque is issued to the employee. Online Assistance PNB provides its customers online assistance by providing i-banking, online complaints, providing them information about various products and services. These complaints and assistance are processed by customer care services executive. Account Opening In account opening the MIS is used, every information about the customer is recorded like their name, address, account, type of account, account information, their sample signature, these helps in Identification of customer instantly and creating a database at faster rate.This includes the filling of KYC and AC forms. SPNS (Shared Payment Network System) Swadhan, the first SPNS launched in Mumbai by IBA. The banks that participate on this network could issue the cards to customers for transacting on networks. RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) RTGS System is a payment settlement system that minimizes the credit risk in the prevalent cheque clearing system. Under RTGS the funds are settled on a near real time basis across Banks in different locations.Bank offers this immediate electronic fund transfer facility to RTGS enabled bank branches across through the country its designated RTGS enabled locations. Mobile Alert Service The clients now have the facility to subscribe to Mobile Alert Service for receiving alert s on registered mobile phone numbers instantly after the funds are pooled. Impact of Information Systems An information system is there to empower its users. A database simply provides data, but an information system is all about providing the best information the user needs to do their task more effectively.It also takes into account that different users doing their own specific tasks may need to see their information presented in differing ways. The benefits of an information system follow when the user can quickly access, understand and respond correctly to that information. The implementation of Information Systems in PNB and other financial institutions had a vast impact on the Employees (the way they work), Customers, The industry & Government. The system provides information on the past, present and project future and on relevant events inside and outside the organization. Finacle’s ImpactFinacle core banking solution is a comprehensive, integrated yet modular business solution that effectively addresses the strategic and day-to-day challenges faced by banks. It is highly parameterizable providing that much-needed flexibility to adapt to a dynamic environment. The solution has an integrated CRM module enabling banks to offer a rich and differentiated value proposition to customers. The layered Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), STP capabilities, web-enabled technology and 24 X 7 operations ensure multi-channel, multi-country and multi-currency implementations.The functionality-rich modules in the solution provide banks with a varied palette of features to continuously innovate on their product and service offerings. With Finacle core banking solution, banks can meet the challenges of managing change, competition, compliance and customer demands effectively. †¢ Differentiated Product Spread Finacle core banking solution offers an unlimited palette of features for banks to design and deploy products for varying market segments.The product bu ndling capabilities of the solution offers a wide range of possibilities for banks to create products with innovative features. The facilities provided for differential pricing, channel rules and customization through Finacle Studio – the scripting engine, empower banks to continuously innovate and extend their suite of products, across segments. †¢ Agile Operations The Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) enables the IT team at the bank to effect changes without touching the base code, ensuring lesser vendor dependency and faster adaptability to changing business conditions. Robust Cross-sell Framework The CIF and CRM capabilities in Finacle offer a unified view of the customer across the entire solution and across multiple back-end applications, enabling the bank to view the customer from a completely informed angle. This empowers banks to effectively manage customer relationships and aggressively explore cross-sell opportunities. †¢ Increased Operational Efficienc ies and Productivity Finacle core banking solution supports business events automation and process orchestration, thus eliminating manual tasks and reducing process time.The elimination of error and data redundancies also results in increased branch productivity. Straight through Processing (STP) abilities enhance reduction in turnaround and processing time, increasing output and enabling speedy completion of tasks. The multilingual web-based single repository of information enables remotely located bankers to collaborate and transact seamlessly. Impact on Employees Information System serves employees with user friendliness, easy storage and access of data, removal of redundancies, fastening up of the processes and providing up of multiple views at same time.In beginning the issues were mostly cultural. Most staffers were used to working in a manual environment, and some had worked in standalone environments. In the new networked environment, personnel at the node/counter didn't act ually ‘see' the transactions updating in the various account books. This gave rise to a number of queries and suggestions from personnel. It took around six-eight months for the personnel to felt that the environment ‘change' had done them good, and they were used to working on the systems. Other Available AlternativesThe Indian banking sector is slowly coming of age and hand grooming this sector is the banking solution market, which has carved a name for itself in the global arena. Not to forget the pro-active government reforms that are helping the Indian banking market reach greater heights and adding glitz and glamour to Indian economy as a whole. Other then Finacle from Infosys there are various available alternatives for which the banking industry and financial institutions can opt. These are:- †¢ Office Accounting Professional 2009 †¢ SAP ERP Financials †¢ Tally 9: Financial Accounting and Inventory Management Software †¢ Flexcube – â₠¬Ëœi-flex solutions’ Hyperion Financial Management – System 9 While in past i-flex solutions’ flagship product Flexcube has been rated the #1 banking product in the world by UK based IBS, an independent banking solutions rating vendor, but Infosys Technologies’’ Finacle doesn’t took long enough to overtake Flexcube. But now a day’s SAP ERP programmes are giving a tough competition to Finacle. Conclusion A management information system is a system or process that provides the information necessary to manage an organization effectively. MIS and the information it generates are generally considered essential components of prudent and reasonable business decisions.This report starts with the Punjab National Bank with overview of PNB followed by history of information system and the steps taken by PNB to be effective in banking industry by using information’s technology. Information Technology (IT) innovations in the last few years have changed the landscape of banks in India. Today, IT seems to be the prime mover of all banking transactions. Electronic and Information Technology together are bringing a swift change in the way banks operate, especially offering better delivery channels and customers’ friendly services.Anywhere banking, telebanking, mobile banking, net banking, automated teller machine(ATMs), credit cards, debit cards, smart cards, call centers, CRM, data warehousing have totally transformed the banking industry. Today almost all the major banks in India like ICICI Bank, UTI Bank, Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, ABN Amro, SBI and PNB are offering online services to their customers. ATMs have emerged as the most favored channel for offering banking services to the customers in the world.One of the biggest benefits that the bank has derived out of IT has been the tremendous saving on recruitment front—the bank has not recruited more staff even while the business and work pressure s have gone up five times. Consequently, PNB’s profitability has also increased. To train users the bank has set up more than 15 computer training labs across the country. It explains all the TPS how the transactions are made by the bank, using of these TPS from the new events such as account opening, new allowances etc†¦ to the routine work including cash and payments record, updating of records, payroll and the processing of the complaints.These TPS holds all the activities from the manager and employees to the customers. The report discuses the inbound and the outbound logistics and relate all the processes of TPS used in the bank with the Information System is enabling the bank to provide the quality and satisfactory services to their customers. Suggestions The bank is using information system efficiently and it has increased the customer satisfaction, efficiency, data storage, fast data retrieval. But to improve more and regarding future success of PNB here are the some suggestions. The bank must update Hardware to get maximum performance from Information Systems in order to allow the IS to procure the least amount of system resources it requires for functioning.  ¬ The bank should update all their software, networks etc to keep information system up to date for competitive edge, customer satisfaction.  ¬ Steps should be taken to increase the safety & to avoid the unethical practices like phishing.  ¬ Need for improved training for using Information Technology and tools to employees.  ¬ Intra firm communication should be improved.References Websites:- http://www. networkmagazineindia. com/200305/tech4. shtml http://www. expresscomputeronline. com/20021202/banks7. shtml http://www. business-standard. com/india/news/pnb-to-implement-loan-data-software/151819/ http://www. financialexpress. com/news/pnb-in-networking-pact-with-cisco/64296/ http://www. pnbindia. com/ http://netpnb. com/ Books:- PNB Vision 2007-2008 Zonal Training Centre Gui de. ———————– (The name you can bank upon) All Banks Average Punjab National Bank (Performance Chart) (Amount in Rs Crore)

Monopoly and marginal cost Essay

Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly The following questions practice these skills: ? Explain the sources of market power. ? Apply the quantity and price affects on revenue of any movement along a demand curve. ? Find the profit maximizing quantity and price of a single-price monopolist. ? Compute deadweight loss from a single-price monopolist. ? Compute marginal revenue. ? Define the efficiency of P = MC. ? Find the profit-maximizing quantity and price of a perfect-price-discriminating monopolist. ? Find the profit-maximizing quantity and price of an imperfect-price-discriminating monopolist. Question: Each of the following firms possesses market power. Explain its source. a. Merck, the producer of the patented cholesterol-lowering drug Zetia b. Chiquita, a supplier of bananas and owner of most banana plantations c. The Walt Disney Company, the creators of Mickey Mouse Answer to Question: a. Merck has a patent for Zetia. This is an example of a government-created barrier to entry, which gives Merck market power. b. Chiquita controls most banana plantations. Control over a scarce resource gives Chiquita market power. c. The Walt Disney Company has the copyright over animations featuring Mickey Mouse. This Is another example of a government-created barrier to entry that gives the Walt Disney Company market power. Question: Skyscraper City has a subway system, for which a one-way fare is $1. 50. There is pressure on the mayor to reduce the fee by one-third, to $1. 00. The mayor is dismayed, thinking that this will mean Skyscraper City is losing one-third of its revenue from sales of subway tickets. The mayor’s economic adviser reminds her that she is focusing only on the price effect and ignoring the quantity effect. Explain why the mayor’s estimate of a one-third loss of revenue is likely to be an overestimate. Illustrate with a diagram. Answer to Question: A reduction in fares from $1. 50 to $1. 00 will reduce the revenue on each ticket that is currently sold by one-third; this Is the price effect. But a reduction in price will lead to more tickets being sold at the lower price of $1. 00, which creates additional revenue; this is the quantity effect. The price effect is the loss of revenue on all the currently sold tickets. The quantity effect is the increase in revenue from increased sales as a result of the lower price. Question: Consider an industry with the demand curve (D) and marginal cost curve (MC) shown in the accompanying diagram. There is no fixed cost. If the industry is a single-price monopoly, the monopolist’s marginal revenue curve would be MR. Answer the following questions by naming the appropriate points or areas. Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly a. If the industry is perfectly competitive, what will be the total quantity produced? At what price? b. Which area reflects consumer surplus under perfect competition? c. If the industry is a single-price monopoly, what quantity will the monopolist produce? Which price will it charge? d. Which area reflects the single-price monopolist’s profit? e. Which area reflects consumer surplus under single-price monopoly? f. Which area reflects the deadweight loss to society from single-price monopoly? g. If the monopolist can price-discriminate perfectly, what quantity will the perfectly price-discriminating monopolist produce? Answer to Question: a. In a perfectly competitive industry, each firm maximizes profit by producing the quantity at which price equals marginal cost. That is, all firms together produce a quantity S, corresponding to point R, where the marginal cost curve crosses the demand curve. Price will be equal to marginal cost, E. b. Consumer surplus is the area under the demand curve and above price. In part a, we saw that the perfectly competitive price is E. Consumer surplus in perfect competition is therefore the triangle ARE. c. A single-price monopolist produces the quantity at which marginal cost equals marginal revenue, that is, quantity I. Accordingly, the monopolist charges price B, the highest price it can charge if it wants to sell quantity I. d. The single-price monopolist’s profit per unit is the difference between price and the average total cost. Since there is no fixed cost and the marginal cost is constant (each unit costs the same to produce), the marginal cost is the same as the average total cost. That is, profit per unit is the distance BE. Since the monopolist sells I units, its profit is BE times I, or the rectangle BEHF. e. Consumer surplus is the area under the demand curve and above the price. In part c, we saw that the monopoly price is B. Consumer surplus in monopoly is therefore the triangle AFB. f. Deadweight loss is the surplus that would have been available (either to consumers or producers) under perfect competition but that is lost when there is a single-price monopolist. It is the triangle FRH. g. If a monopolist can price-discriminate perfectly, it will sell the first unit at price A, the second unit at a slightly lower price, and so forth. That is, it will extract from each consumer just that consumer’s willingness to pay, as indicated by the demand curve. It will sell S units, because for the last unit, it can just make a consumer pay a price of E (equal to its marginal cost), and that just covers its marginal cost of producing that last unit. For any further units, it could not make any consumer pay more than its marginal cost, and it therefore stops selling units at quantity S. Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly Question: Bob, Bill, Ben, and Brad Baxter have just made a documentary movie about their basketball team. They are thinking about making the movie available for download on the Internet, and they can act as a single-price monopolist if they choose to. Each time the movie is downloaded, their Internet service provider charges them a fee of $4. The Baxter brothers are arguing about which price to charge customers per download. The accompanying table shows the demand schedule for their film. Price of download Quantity of downloads demanded $10 0 $8 1 $6 3 $4 6 $2 10 $0 15 a. Calculate the total revenue and the marginal revenue per download. b. Bob is proud of the film and wants as many people as possible to download it. Which price would he choose? How many downloads would be sold? c. Bill wants as much total revenue as possible. Which price would he choose? How many downloads would be sold? d. Ben wants to maximize profit. Which price would he choose? How many downloads would be sold? e. Brad wants to charge the efficient price. Which price would he choose? How many downloads would be sold? Answer to Question: a. The accompanying table calculates total revenue (TR) and marginal revenue (MR). Recall that marginal revenue is the additional revenue per unit of output Price of download Quantity of downloads TR MR demanded $10 0 $0 $8 1 $8 $8 $6 3 $18 $5 $4 6 $24 $2 $2 10 $20 $-1 $0 15 $0 $-4 b. Bob would charge $0. At that price, there would be 15 downloads, the largest quantity they can sell. c. Bill would charge $4. At that price, total revenue is greatest ($24). At that price, there would be 6 downloads. d. Ben would charge $6. At that price, there would be 3 downloads. For any more downloads, marginal revenue would be below marginal cost, and so further downloads would lose the Baxters’ money.e. Brad would charge $4. A price equal to marginal cost is efficient. At that price, there would be 6 downloads. Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly Question: Suppose that De Beers is a single-price monopolist in the market for diamonds. De Beers has five potential customers: Raquel, Jackie, Joan, Mia, and Sophia. Each of these customers will buy at most one diamond—and only if the price is just equal to, or lower than, her willingness to pay. Raquel’s willingness to pay is $400; Jackie’s, $300; Joan’s, $200; Mia’s, $100; and Sophia’s, $0. De Beers’s marginal cost per diamond is $100. This leads to the demand schedule for diamonds shown in the accompanying table. Price of Diamond Quantity of Diamonds Demanded $500 0 $400 1 $300 2 $200 3 $100 4 $0 5 a. Calculate De Beers’s total revenue and its marginal revenue. From your calculation, draw the demand curve and the marginal revenue curve. b. Explain why De Beers faces a downward-sloping demand curve. c. Explain why the marginal revenue from an additional diamond sale is less than the price of the diamond. d. Suppose De Beers currently charges $200 for its diamonds. If it lowers the price to $100, how large is the price effect? How large is the quantity effect? e. Add the marginal cost curve to your diagram from part a and determine which quantity maximizes De Beers’s profit and which price De Beers will charge. Answer to Question: a. Total revenue (TR) and marginal revenue (MR) are given in the accompanying table. Price of Diamond Quantity of Diamonds TR Demanded $500 0 $0 $400 1 $400 $300 2 $600 $200 3 $600 $100 4 $400 $0 5 $0 MR $400 $200 $0 -$200 -$400 The accompanying diagram illustrates De Beers’s demand curve and marginal revenue (MR) curve. b. De Beers is the only producer of diamonds, so its demand curve is the market demand curve. And the market demand curve slopes downward: the lower the price, the more customers will buy diamonds. c. If De Beers lowers the price sufficiently to sell one more diamond, it earns extra revenue equal to the Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly price of that one extra diamond. This is the quantity effect of lowering the price. But there is also a price effect: lowering the price means that De Beers also has to lower the price on all other diamonds, and that lowers its revenue. So the marginal revenue of selling an additional diamond is less than the price at which the additional diamond can be sold. d. If the price is $200, then De Beers sells to Raquel, Jackie, and Joan. If it lowers the price to $100, it will also sell a diamond to Mia. The price effect is that De Beers loses $100 (the amount by which it lowered the price) each from selling to Raquel, Jackie, and Joan. So the price effect lowers De Beers’s revenue by 3 ? $100 = $300. The quantity effect is that De Beers sells one more diamond (to Mia), at $100. So the quantity effect is to raise De Beers’s revenue by $100. e. The marginal cost (MC) curve is constant at $100, as shown in the diagram. Marginal revenue equals marginal cost at a quantity of 2 diamonds. So De Beers will sell 2 diamonds at a price of $300 each. Question: Use the demand schedule for diamonds given in the previous question. The marginal cost of producing diamonds is constant at $100. There is no fixed cost. a. If De Beers charges the monopoly price, how large is the individual consumer surplus that each buyer experiences? Calculate total consumer surplus by summing the individual consumer surpluses. How large is producer surplus? Suppose that upstart Russian and Asian producers enter the market and the market becomes perfectly competitive. b. What is the perfectly competitive price? What quantity will be sold in this perfectly competitive market? c. At the competitive price and quantity, how large is the consumer surplus that each buyer experiences? How large is total consumer surplus? How large is producer surplus? d. Compare your answer to part c to your answer to part a. How large is the deadweight loss associated with monopoly in this case? Answer to Question: a. The monopoly price is $300. At that price Raquel and Jackie buy diamonds. Raquel’s consumer surplus is $400 ? $300 = $100; Jackie’s is $300 ? $300 = $0. So total consumer surplus is $100 + $0 = $100. Producer surplus is $300 ? $100 = $200 for each diamond sold; 2 ? $200 = $400. b. In a perfectly competitive market, P = MC. That is, the perfectly competitive price is $100, and at that price 4 diamonds will be sold—to Raquel, Jackie, Joan, and Mia. c. At the competitive price, Raquel’s consumer surplus is $400 ? $100 = $300; Jackie’s, $300 ? $100 = $200; Joan’s, $200 ? $100 = $100; and Mia’s, $100 ? $100 = $0. So total consumer surplus is $300 + $200 + $100 + $0 = $600. Since the price is equal to marginal cost, there is no producer surplus. d. Under perfect competition, the sum of consumer and producer surplus is $600 + $0 = $600. Under monopoly, the sum of consumer and producer surplus is $100 + $400 = $500. So the loss of surplus to society from monopoly—the deadweight loss—is $600 ? $500 = $100. Question: Use the demand schedule for diamonds given in the previous questions. De Beers is a monopolist, but it can now price-discriminate perfectly among all five of its potential customers. De Beers’s marginal cost is constant at $100. There is no fixed cost. a. If De Beers can price-discriminate perfectly, to which customers will it sell diamonds and at what prices? b. How large is each individual consumer surplus? How large is total consumer surplus? Calculate producer surplus by summing the producer surplus generated by each sale. Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly Answer to Question: a. If De Beers can price-discriminate perfectly, it will charge each customer that customer’s willingness to pay. That is, it will charge Raquel $400, Jackie $300, Joan $200, and Mia $100. De Beers does not want to sell to Sophia since she will only buy at a price of $0, and that would be below De Beers’s marginal cost. b. Since each consumer is charged exactly her willingness to pay, there is no consumer surplus. De Beers’s producer surplus is $400 ? $100 = $300 from selling to Raquel; $300 ? $100 = $200 from selling to Jackie; $200 ? $100 = $100 from selling to Joan; $100 ? $100 = $0 from selling to Mia. So producer surplus is $300 + $200 + $100 + $0 = $600. Question: Download Records decides to release an album by the group Mary and the Little Lamb. It produces the album with no fixed cost, but the total cost of downloading an album to a CD and paying Mary her royalty is $6 per album. Download Records can act as a single-price monopolist. Its marketing division finds that the demand schedule for the album is as shown in the accompanying table. Price of album Quantity of albums demanded $22 0 $20 1,000 $18 2,000 $16 3,000 $14 4,000 $12 5,000 $10 6,000 $8 7,000 a. Calculate the total revenue and the marginal revenue per album. b. The marginal cost of producing each album is constant at $6. To maximize profit, what level of output should Download Records choose, and which price should it charge for each album? c. Mary renegotiates her contract and now needs to be paid a higher royalty per album. So the marginal cost rises to be constant at $14. To maximize profit, what level of output should Download Records now choose, and which price should it charge for each album? Answer to Question: a. Total revenue (TR) and marginal revenue per album (MR) is shown in the following table: Price of album Quantity of albums TR MR demanded $22 0 $0 $20 1,000 $20,000 $20 $18 2,000 $36,000 $16 $16 3,000 $48,000 $12 $14 4,000 $56,000 $8 $12 5,000 $60,000 $4 $10 6,000 $60,000 $0 $8 7,000 $56,000 -$4 b. If the marginal cost of each album is $6, Download Records will maximize profit by producing 4,000 albums, since for each album up to 4,000, marginal revenue is greater than marginal cost. For any further albums, marginal cost would exceed marginal revenue. Producing 4,000 albums, Download Records will charge $14 for each album. c. If the marginal cost of each album is $14, Download Records will maximize profit by producing 2,000 albums, and it will charge $18 per album. Practice Questions and Answers from Lesson III-3: Monopoly Question: The movie theater in Collegetown serves two kinds of customers: students and professors. There are 900 students and 100 professors in Collegetown. Each student’s willingness to pay for a movie ticket is $5. Each professor’s willingness to pay for a movie ticket is $10. Each will buy at most one ticket. The movie theater’s marginal cost per ticket is constant at $3, and there is no fixed cost. a. Suppose the movie theater cannot price-discriminate and needs to charge both students and professors the same price per ticket. If the movie theater charges $5, who will buy tickets and what will the movie theater’s profit be? How large is consumer surplus? b. If the movie theater charges $10, who will buy movie tickets and what will the movie theater’s profit be? How large is consumer surplus? c. Now suppose that, if it chooses to, the movie theater can price-discriminate between students and professors by requiring students to show their student ID. If the movie theater charges students $5 and professors $10, how much profit will the movie theater make? How large is consumer surplus? Answer to Question: a. If the movie theater charges $5 per ticket, both students and professors will buy tickets. The movie theater will sell to 1,000 customers (students and professors), at a price of $5 each. Since the movie theater’s cost per ticket is $3, its profit is $2 per ticket for a total profit of 1,000 ? $2 = $2,000. Students will experience no consumer surplus, but each of the 100 professors will experience consumer surplus of $10 ? $5 = $5 for a total consumer surplus of 100 ? $5 = $500. b. If the movie theater charges $10 per ticket, only professors will buy tickets. The movie theater will sell to 100 customers (professors) at a price of $10 each. Since the movie theater’s cost per ticket is $3, its profit is $7 per ticket for a total profit of 100 ? $7 = $700. Students experience no consumer surplus since they do not buy any tickets. Each of the 100 professors experiences no consumer surplus since the price is equal to their willingness to pay. So consumer surplus is $0. c. If the movie theater charges students a price of $5, it sells 900 tickets at a profit of $5 ? $3 =$2 each for a profit from selling to students of 900 ? $2 =$1,800. Charging professors $10, it sells 100 tickets at a profit of $10 ? $3 =$7 each for a profit from selling to professors of 100 ? $7 =$700. So the theater’s total profit is $1,800 + $700 =$2,500. Since each customer is charged exactly his or her willingness to pay, there is no consumer surplus. Question: A monopolist knows that in order to expand the quantity of output it produces from 8 to 9 units that it must lower the price of its output from $2 to $1. Calculate the quantity effect and the price effect. Use these results to calculate the monopolist’s marginal revenue of producing the 9th unit. The marginal cost of producing the 9th unit is positive. Is it a good idea for the monopolist to produce the 9th unit? Answer to Question: The quantity effect is $1 (the increase in total revenue from selling the 9th unit at $1). The price effect is 8 ? (? $1) =? $8 (the decrease in total revenue from having to lower the price of 8 units by $1 each). So the marginal revenue of producing the 9th unit is $1 ? $8 =? $7. Since marginal revenue is negative, producing the 9th unit is definitely not a good idea: it lowers revenue (since marginal revenue is negative), and it increases the total cost (since marginal cost is positive). So it will definitely lower profit. Instead, the monopolist should produce less output.

Define what is meant by industrialization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Define what is meant by industrialization - Essay Example This could be denoted as sustained economic expansion based on division of labor, factory production, deliberation of industries and people in certain geographical regions, and urbanization. For example, industrialization is at a time when a nation produces infrastructure that can assist industry (Kiely 4). This is wide and can be the construction of rails, roads, airports or industries/factories. Historically, the industrialization procedure involves the development of the secondary subdivision in an economy at first dominated by primary-sector practices (Kiely 4). Industrialization has a huge influence on several aspects of a certain nation and/ or urban (Kiely 4). It generally gives jobs for population and therefore augments the economy, but with the fresh technology of current universe industrialization also refers to new technology which substitutes the people that used to be in charge for a given occupation (Sutton 1-2). The policies of periphery and core have converged about industry for overseas export got from the Caribbean. All the way through the CBI (Caribbean Basin Initiative), America has tried to stimulate manufacturing venture in and exports from Caribbean region (Sutton 1-2). To accomplish this, the US has provided manufacturers situated in Caribbean Basin nations special entrance to its markets. Development is normally acknowledged as a complex multifaceted procedure of political, social, environmental, economic and cultural transformation that results in boosts in the well-being of citizens and widens their rights and options in the current without compromising the capacities of future populations to enjoy these advantages (Sutton 1-2). In the Caribbean the social, economic, and political entities of growth have held centre phase in the previous fifty years. Characteristically they have been and are provided in

Comparison Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Brown vs. Board of Education and Freedom Summer Research Paper

Brown vs. Board of Education and Freedom Summer - Research Paper Example With â€Å"Jim Crow† laws there were established separate facilities for African American people, which were inevitably of a lower quality, standard of cleanliness, and poorly equipped in comparison to the facilities that â€Å"Whites† used. These standards were also maintained in the education system, with many African American families prevented from sending their children to public schools that were for â€Å"Whites† only, and the facilities that did exist for African Americans were inevitably of a lower standard and lacking qualified teachers, access to books and learning materials, failing to provide even the most basic facilities for the students. Because the system of education was operated on a public or government organized basis and funded by tax dollars, the existence of this segregated society was a clear statement that racism was institutionalized by authority in the United States, and that these policies also furthered the discrimination, impoverish ment, and deprivation of human rights for African Americans in the country. ... Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and other organizers who worked together to end racism in America. Brown vs. Board of Education The Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka Kansas (1954) Supreme Court decision represented a major attack on the â€Å"Jim Crow† system in the South and across America. In â€Å"Mississippi: A History† (2005), Westley F. Busbee, Jr. describes the uproar this decision caused in the racist â€Å"White† community, and how local politicians attempted to disband the public schools and reorganize them as private institutions while preserving the apartheid style of segregation. (Busbee, 2005) This response, and the violence unleashed in racist groups like the KKK to oppose anyone who challenged the segregation policies, would show the emotion and ignorance involved in the views of the racist South, as well as how difficult it would be to depose these views through civil rights activity. Ultimately, President Eisenhower authorized the us e of Federal troops to oversee the desegregation of public schools in the South with a symbolic show of force in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. (Busbee, 2005) The violent backlash by â€Å"White† racists against anyone who attempted to organize African American people to vote, to protest, or to demonstrate for civil rights set the stage for the great upheaval of the next decade in the region, that would see Stokely Carmichel, Bob Moses, Medgar Evars, and other leaders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the NAACP working in these areas to organize, educate, and promote reform in communities. (Payne, 1997) Nevertheless, it is clear that historically these civil rights efforts were emboldened and given increased legitimacy in the U.S. and internationally through

The causes and effects of Global warming Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The causes and effects of Global warming - Essay Example Statistics indicate that in the last 100 years, the temperatures have risen by approximately 0.8 o C and it is projected that this will continue to worsen as it is expected that the rise could reach 1.7o C in the next few years if stern measures are not taken to avert this catastrophe (Christian 28). Global warming mainly results from over concentration of carbon dioxide (co2) and other harmful gases, such as methane and nitrous oxide, in the atmosphere (Michaels 40). This is due to the fact that these gases have the capability to trap heat from the sun and storing it to the extent that temperatures in the surroundings remain extraordinarily higher than normal. In order to understand this, one may use the example of a car, which, when left outside, allows sun rays to penetrate through the windows thereby raising the temperatures inside, which cannot go down unless the windows or the doors are opened in order to allow cool fresh air to circulate. Human beings are the ones to blame for this catastrophe as they have continued to conduct activities, which are major sources of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses. These are for example air pollution through gaseous emissions from industries and heavy machinery such as motor vehicles which utilize fossil fuels. The world’s car population has continued to explode and though this may be perceived as a positive trend in economics as it is good for business, it is a major threat to the environment especially due to the fact that most of these vehicles use petrol and diesel as fuel. Statistics indicate that the number of cars worldwide exceeded the 1 billion mark as at the year 2010 and it is estimated that this number will significantly increase to 2.5 billion by the year 2050 (Michaels 66). From these statistics, the US is ranked as the leading country, with approximately 240 million cars followed by China, which has approximately 78 million cars. It is not a wonder then to have reports indicate that the tr ansport sector contributes approximately 25% of greenhouse gas emissions (Christian 52). This may also explain why reports indicate that the US is the leading country with regard to greenhouse gas emissions. China and the US are two major economic houses, which have the capability and economic muscle to develop and influence the world to utilize better technologies that are friendlier to the environment. For example, they can lead the way in convincing their citizens to utilize bicycles or electric vehicles as a common mode of transportation especially due to the high income per capita. However, this may not be helpful if strong policies are not put in place to effect the change, which may include creating favoring infrastructure, roads, for cyclers, so a to avoid cases of obstruction and preventable accidents. This may serve as an example and a reference point especially for the developing countries, which are projected to have a significant increase of motor vehicles on their road s, which is believed to be by approximately 300% by 2050 (Christian 63). Deforestation is also a major contributing factor to the availability of high levels of carbon dioxide

How to Use Gold in Wind Turbine Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

How to Use Gold in Wind Turbine - Case Study Example This explains the re-emergence of wind power as a green and sustainable source of energy. The argument behind the re-emergence of wind powers source of energy cannot only be looked at in the context of milling rain or pumping of water as was the case in the past, but is all about the energy needs that have grown due to globalization and industrialization (Schmid and Klein 1990, p.17). Wind power is generally harnessed from wind in motion, which is transformed into energy with the help of a wind turbine. Blaabjerg and Chen (2006 p.1) note that wind turbine has been one of the fastest growing renewable energy technologies. Its development began in the 1980s with just some tens of kilowatts in terms of power rating to the current megawatts. Blaabjerg and Chen argue that in the past, production of wind power did not have a lot of impact in the system of power operation and control, but today it contributes a lot in energy supply since the level of power penetration is on the rapid increa se (Paraschivoiu 2002 p.45). In the beginning, the technology used in wind turbine was generally the squirrel-cage induction generators, which were directly being connected to the grid. During this time, there were no active controls of active power reactors. The parameters used for control has become necessary due to the increase in the power range for the wind turbines. Blaabjerg and Chen note that the introduction of power electronics has led to a change in the basic characteristics of the wind turbine from a source of energy to an active source of power. In recent times, many nations are making a rash toward the use of gold in the manufacture of the wind turbines. This paper will discuss the main parts that make up a wind turbine and their functions. The paper will also discuss the choice of materials that are used in the manufacture of the major parts and where gold as a raw material is used under the current design and where it can be used. Main Parts Of A Wind Turbine And The ir Functions Ancona and Mc Veigh (2001 p.1) note that wind turbines usually come in a varying sizes and configurations, built from different materials. The wind turbine consists of four main parts; the rotor which has wing-shaped blades connected to a hub; a nacelle which holds a drivetrain consisting of a gearbox, support bearing, connecting shaft, the generator and the machinery; a tower; and the electrical equipment mounted on the ground Ancona and Mc Veigh (2001 p.3). Turbine Rotor Blade The turbine rotor is the part that coverts the alternating wind energy into a mechanical energy, which is then converted into electrical energy via a generator, which is then moved to the grid with the help of a transformer and lines of transmission. Within the wind turbine there exists a blade aerodynamically designed that captures the wind power and converts it to rotating mechanical energy. Blaabjerg and Chen (2006 p.3) note that the number of blades that make the rotor may vary. The speed of rotation usually decreases with an increase in the radius of the blades. For instance, for a wind turbine of megawatt range, the speed of rotation ranges between 10-15 rpm. The blades exist in different sizes from about 34 to 55 meters. The rotor blades are made of materials such as carbon fiber, balsa wood, and fiberglass with high tensile ratio. The materials are usually modeled to form airfoils that

The role of e-CRM Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The role of e-CRM - Research Proposal Example The research questions set out for the study may not be exhaustive however the proposed research is set out to find suitable answers to these questions that will in fact help the researcher to establish a case for e-CRM and its applications for small and medium in developing countries that are currently facing tougher competitive conditions not only from the local big corporations but also foreign companies that are seeking stronger position in these markets. E-CRM that has been defined in several ways is considered to be one of the most recent developments that have given a new insight to customer relationship management by companies. One of the definitions of e-CRM states that â€Å"E-CRM uses information technologies in order to support strategically the execution of CRM. E-CRM is a combination of hardware, software, process, applications, and management commitment designed to support an enterprise-wide CRM business strategy that will optimize customer satisfaction, customer loya lty, financial performance, etc†.The role of e-CRM is considered to be of high significance for SMEs as it allows such businesses to achieve efficiencies and competitive advantage. Business can use various internet functionalities to overcome hurdles in trade and adopt an approach that is not restricted geographically and can yield better opportunities for SMEs. The use of e-CRM is not simply recording consumer data over the internet but could also be used to provide real time personalization for interaction with customers.

Remaining Competetive Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Remaining Competetive - Research Paper Example This requires a critical evaluation of the existing factors and how firm can actually improve them to achieve its cost reduction objectives. Further, it is also critical to consider whether the firm can improve upon its efforts of innovation and become more creative in designing its basic products and delivering them through successful marketing initiatives. Effectively delivering mass customization is also another consideration. (Lihra, Buehlmann, & Beauregard, 2008) In order to remain competitive within this industry, it is important to remain innovative and creative. Since the industry thrives upon how quickly and effectively a firm can actually develop consumer friendly designs therefore are important. Firm can easily compete in this industry because it has a dedicate team of designers which deliver excellent designs. In order to make them more innovative, it is important to impart more knowledge and training to the designers. Further, the firm access to technology which can help it to reduce the cost and improve its total output level. One of the key primary factors is the fact that the firm has been considered as one of the premium suppliers of the furniture in the market. Being featured in top magazines provides it one of the strongest brand images in the market and market acceptability at the global level. Further, it is also important to note that the firm has high quality designers which can continue to provide innovative products in the market. Effective presence in local communities as well as label of premium brand is two important things which are positive factors for the firm. Though the market may be shrinking and dependent on other factors however, the firm’s own position in the market which provides it an edge over others in the market. Community involvement is also the main factor which can improve the overall corporate social responsibility image of

The History of surgical Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The History of surgical Technology - Essay Example On the other hand, cutting of the stone refers to perineal lithotomy, suprapubic lithotomy, and transurethral lithotomy. Hippocrates laid the foundation for the practice of modern medicine. His work On Injuries of the Head organized medical and surgical knowledge during the fifth century BC with his original observations and served as a significant guide to surgeons for two millennia. Hence, Hippocrates was revered as the â€Å"Father of Medicine†. Another ancient surgeon, Galen, extensively wrote about surgery during the first century BC, particularly in Tumors Against Nature, regarded as his most significant treatise (Wilkins, 1992; Zimmerman & Veith, 1993) Lambert (n. d.) and , however, revealed there were some serious errors in Galen’s works. During the middle ages, barber-surgeons flourished as a barbers were trained to make salves (i. e., medical ointment), dress wounds and bleed, although Wadd (1827) argued that these surgeons pushed themselves forward much into the practice of surgery. In the mid-fourteenth century, some medical schools were given permission to perform dissections of the human body (Lambert, n. d.). Da Vinci (1982) performed both animal and human dissections around the 16th century and made detailed sketches in his famed notebooks. Meanwhile, Andreas Vesalius distinguished himself in the study of human anatomy, dissection, and as professor of anatomy. His masterpeice De Humani Corporis Fabrica disproved and corrected many of Galen’s theories (Rutkow, 2008). Another Renaissance surgeon, acclaimed as the most celebrated of his time as Ambroise Pare. Pare, himself a barber-surgeon, was also regarded as the â€Å"Father of Modern Surgery†, although the 18th century surgeon John Hunter is also being given the accolate. Among his notable achievements were: the invention of surgical instruments such the hemostat clamp; artificial limbs and eyes; and the truss for use in hernia patients (Zimmerman & Veith, 1993; Lamb ert, n. d.; Kelly, 2009). Nineteenth century surgery experienced much welcome improvements with the discovery of anesthetics with the combined efforts of Humphry Davy, Henry H. Morgan, and James Simpson. Cocaine (1884) and novocaine (1905) were also used for their anesthetic properties. Joseph Lister introduced antiseptic surgery. Robert Lawson Tait successfully saved a women suffering from ectopic pregnancy by surgically removing the fallopian tube. The century ended with another significant discovery by Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen, the X-ray (Lambert, n. d.). More strides in surgery were made in the 20th century with the identification of the different blood types; the invention of the pacemaker and laser; and a series of firsts in surgical history: heart transplant, artificial heart heart and lung transplant, eye surgery, reattachment surgery (Lambert, n. d.). The surgical technologist: a newer addition to the surgical team Ryan-Flynn (2009) described surgical technologists as  "health professionals who work in the surgical suite with surgeons, anesthesiologists, registered nurses and other surgical personnel delivering surgical patient care† (p. 352). The scope of work of a surgical technologist spans three areas: preoperative (before surgery), intraoperative (during surgery) and postoperative (after

The Kennewick Man Essay Example for Free

The Kennewick Man Essay When we think of prehistoric bones and fossils we think of dinosaurs and creatures of huge amount of size, but the findings of Kennewick Man changed the very thought of prehistoric beings. So exactly who is the Kennewick Man and why is he so important? Why is he given such a name as to Kennewick Man? Why would anyone want to fight and file lawsuits on each other to for a pile of old dusty bones? Well that’s what is found here on the case of â€Å"Kennewick Man. † Scientist and Native Americans just can’t keep their hands off this precious specimen. Why does one deserve Kennewick Man over the other? What values does he hold for them? Can Kennewick Man do anything to help either the Native Americans of scientist? Even though Native Americans deserve the rights to the Kennewick Man, scientist have just as much rights to study Kennewick Man because the science that they will perform could uncover much truth of the past and scientist discoveries from this specimen could even help us human beings in the future to come. Who exactly is the Kennewick Man? Thousands of years ago Kennewick man lived and hunted in what is now Washington State. His tribe was among the first to cross the land bridge into North America. He had a hard life and lived with many serious injuries, including a spear point embedded in his pelvis. He later died in his forties and was buried by his kinsman. Scientist has the rights to study Kennewick Man. In previous centuries archeologists were content simply to find objects. Today, armed with computer, laboratory analysis, theories about society and culture, and a wide range of questions about human development and migration, scientist now have the tools to shed light on the origins of the first Americans. In other words- we have the tools and the technology, so why not use them? Archeology is especially important and useful in helping us to understand people and events about which little or nothing has been written. The past would be surely lost unless we defend out right to learn about the heritage of all Americans. This evidence must be preserved, and scientist must be allowed to study it, if we hope to indentify and understand the lives of the earliest Americans. Science offers the process to test hypotheses using factual  evidence. We must keep our country free for exploring and expressing all views and explanations of our past. We must insist that good scientific methods be practiced, free of political motives. Is the Kennewick Man really a part of the Native American tribe or is this just a story that’s known upon the Indians to tell? If Kennewick Man were actually Caucasian, it would be a startling discovery. So far, all of the oldest North American skeletons have been of Asian descent, although features on a few skulls have been controversially interpreted as Caucasoid. Another possibility is that the first Americans and their Asian ancestors had features that were Caucasoid. The real test of these theories would be DNA, which can pinpoint which modern populations are most closely related to the skeleton and so help identify the ancestors of early Americans and perhaps give clues to their migration patterns. Kennewick Man resembled the South Asians and the Ainu people of northeast Asia. The Ainu migrated to North America over eight-thousand years ago and died out some eight-thousand years later. â€Å"The story that unfolded was unexpected; his bones seemed to say that he belonged to no Native American group†¦Ã¢â‚¬  stated by Glover. This revealed that Kennewick Man was of no descent of the Umatilla Indians and therefore NAGRA does not apply. What the scientists say about the importance of the Kennwick Man stated by a Dr. Bonnichsen, professor of anthropology as OSU â€Å"Only through scientific study of important discoveries such as Kennewick Man can objective knowledge of America’s rich and diverse past be developed and fully appreciated by all communities who have stake in the past.† â€Å"He [The Kennewick Man] is going to continue to reshape our thoughts about how the world was populated.† Doug Owsley is forensic anthropologist for the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. We all share the past and not one person owns it, thus, science should be conducted to uncover the truth for all people for all time. The Native Americans believe that digging up their ancestor’s graves is the wrong way to go. With the act in effect, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, or NAGPRA. NAGPRA states that anything, especially religious burial items (this including peoples’ remains), that is affiliated with a modern tribe is referred to as their property. As the Nez Perce, Yakima, Wannapum and Colville Indian tribes had given up their claims to the skeleton, the Umatilla tribe continued their court proceedings. To determine if the skeleton showed any relation to a Umatilla Indian’s skeletal structure, further examination was done to compare the two. Science vs. Sacred Rights, which of the two outweighs the other? Now ask yourself this, from what has happened from the same case scenario of the Kennewick Man how would you carry it? A recent flood washed your grandmother’s casket into a riverbed. Since her remains have been disturbed anyway, local scientist want to study them. Should they be allowed to? Why or why not? What about your great-grandmother? What about your great-great-grandmother? What about your great-great-great-grandmother? (etc.) What if studying her remains could benefit mankind? I believe that yes as disturbing as that may seem to have your grandmother’s remains to be studied upon by strangers (scientist), If it would be better for humanity to learn from her past and to even have discovered something that she had that could change life itself, then yes I would be okay for scientist to do their test on her. Scientist discoveries could make a great outcome for our future. Now, let’s look at Sir Issac Newton who does just that. Even though he may not be a â€Å"scientist† but he does share the same motives and goals as one. Issac Newton’s discoveries had many effects on the world without them we wouldnt have gotten far we would still be wondering what is motion, gravity and light is and what it’s there for. His discovery has opened doors for many people and also science. In the future we would have made much better things because of these amazing discoveries and know and understand more about it and why it’s there for us. If we let scientist to continue their studies on the Kennewick Man, who knows what lies under the soil remains on him. There could be a cure or something that kept him immune from diseases thousands of years ago. Also used by scientists to determine the where, what, why, when, and how of ancient organisms. Answering these questions will help in determining the environment and climate in which the organisms existed, adaptations made by the organisms to the environment and climate, type and  amount of energy requirements of organisms, feeding habits, reproduction techniques, nesting habits, digestion methods, type of respiration, method of locomotion, hunting techniques, timing and cause of extinction events, and the progression of evolution. Fossils are also key indicators of possible fossil fuel deposits which are of great interest to humanity. The study of fossils also leads to discoveries and understanding of Earths processes which can benefit mankind. Study of the Cretaceous Tertiary extinction event eventually led to the hypothesis that a large asteroid impacted Earth. Some astronomers are currently seeking out and cataloging possible impact asteroids in an attempt to predict such a future cataclysm and help in preventing it. Do you believe that the Native Americans rights to Kennewick Man are stronger than that of the scientist? The confederated tribes of â€Å"The Umatilla, made up of Yakima, Nez Perce, Colville, and Wanapum. All five of these tribes have potential ties to Kennewick Man. These tribes share very similar religion, oral histories and traditions going back over 10,000 years as such, and remain are ancestral. The Native Americans call this ancestor, â€Å"The Ancient One†. Their people have been a part of this land since the beginning of time, all though scientists tell otherwise that Native Americans have migrated to this continent. With the fight between Kennewick Man’s ownership, Native Americans have a strong argument for his reburial. The confederated tribes agree that the ancient one should be reburied as soon as possible. Stated by the Native Americans, once a body is buried under ground, it is meant to stay and not to be tampered with until the world is no more. Having the Ancient One unburied and out of the area is a disturbance to their ancestors. But science may not get the opportunity to make the desired DNA tests. The local Umatilla Indians insist that the bones of Kennewick Man be surrendered to them for immediate reburial, as stipulated by the North American Graves Protection Act of 1990. But if the bones are truly those of a Caucasian, does the Act apply? And when does the scientific value of a skeleton outweigh native tradition? Ironically, the Umatilla Indians scoff at the idea of Asian diffusion across the Bering Strait. They claim that they have always lived in the Pacific Northwest!  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Scientists have dug up and studied Native Americans for decades. We view this practice as a desecration of the body and a violation of our most deeply-held religious beliefs.† -Armand Minthron The Native Americans had a law passed in 1990, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). This act protects all Native American cultural and burial resources from tampering. This act has required the return of artifacts and human remains that scientists have been digging up for years. With the law suits that scientist have placed on the Native Americans of Kennewick Man, this act gives the Native Americans the right to file a claim to have the Ancient One’s remains reburied based of their beliefs that he is their ancestor. These tribes are expecting that the Federal Government will uphold to the NAGPRA and return the Ancient One. Scientist argues that there is a Wide range of interest in examining the Kennwick Man. In conclusion, although Native Americans find this to be desecrating to their ancestors, scientist should study Kennewick Man for two main reasons. First, studies could have solutions for present illnesses. But most importantly, studies could reveal a better future for humanity. Work Cited -Gibbons, Ann. â€Å"DNA Enters Dust Up Over Bones† JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. -Dr. Robson Bonnichsen,† Mystery of the First Americans† PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012. -Glover, William. â€Å"Kennewick Man and the Story of the Settlement of the New World.† Conversation for Exploration. January 1, 2000. May 14, 2009. -Armand Minthorn. Ancient One / Kennewick Man. Ancient One / Kennewick Man. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. -Lemonick, Michael D. Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews. Time. Time, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012.

Existentialism In A Country Doctor English Literature Essay

Existentialism In A Country Doctor English Literature Essay In A Country Doctor, several principles of existentialism are demonstrated via changes that takes place in doctor, the main character. Being an anti-existential character, the doctor has no control upon the situations that he is in. Even when he is given the opportunity to choose, he selects to fulfill the expectation his community has upon him then doing what he truly feels needs to be accomplished. However, a gradual transition takes place as he is faced with a number of absurd situations. Anxiety dominates him as things become unmanageable. Subsequently, notion of selfish human nature disgusts him which causes him to feel alienated from the entire community that he belongs to. Thus, plot and character development plays a major role in illustrating the existentialist point of view upon life as revealed in the story. Absurdity of events that occur to the main character causes him to feel helpless and insignificant. As mentioned previously, the doctor is an anti-existential character in the beginning of the story. Even when in position where he can decide upon what to do, he habitually does what the society expects of him. For instance, he abandons Rose in the hands of the groom whose sexual intent for her is obvious in order to save a patient. This demonstrates his tendency to primarily accomplish his responsibilities as a doctor no matter in what horrid problems he may find himself at the time. However, he grows tired of adhering to such obligation as series of strange events occur. A groom who is found in supposedly empty sty provides him with two horses in extremely good condition. And because the groom enables him to accomplish his duty as a doctor, the doctor loses his ability to prevent the groom from approaching Rose by making him accompany him on his journey. Despite his concern for Rose, the doctor has no choice but to leave her with the groom. This frustrates the main character to the extent where he cannot properly examine the patient. Further absurdities ensue as choir sings a song of his insignificance as a human being and people lay him in bed with the patient whose illness he cannot cure. And how is it that he happens to have a patient in such horrid weather right after his horse died? Endless continuation of the absurd events over which he has no control causes him to be upset. In the end, he finally makes a choice by running away- a shift toward existentialism. As shown, strange events that consist the plot reveals absurdity and the importance of having control of ones life. One of the characteristics of the main character that hints of existentialism is anxiety. The first indications of such disposition are the short sentences that consist the beginning of the story. This denotes his frustration at the difficult situation that he is in. Also, he feels powerless and dejected as revealed in the sentence but it was hopeless, I knew it, and stood there forlornly. Of course, who would lend a horse to such a journey? Even when he arrives at the patients house, his negative feelings do not disappear. He behaves passively as if he does not want to be there. For example, he permits the patient to take my fur coat from me, and he yields and drinks from the rum he has been given. Furthermore, he constantly worries about Rose and notices little details such as horses putting their heads in and out through the window. Due to such distractions clouding his mind, he is unable to check his patient properly. He first decides that the patient is fine as shown in the stat ement what I already knew, the boy was quite sound. As a matter of fact, the invalid is well beyond aids. And this is when he commences to question himself. Why is he doing this? What is the point of him trying so hard to have control over matters that keep on slipping through his fingers? Who is he doing this for? He realizes that he does not want to dwell in such situation and ends up running away. As indicated, the uncertainty, helplessness, and anxiety that is brought upon the main character by the absurd situation he faces illustrate existentialism. Development of sense of alienation in the main character further reveals existentialism. When the main character is in desperate need for the horses, no one helps him but the groom. However, this assistance is not offered to the doctor out of goodness of the grooms heart; the grooms true purpose lies in sexual approach to Rose. The main character is disgusted by the selfishness of human nature. Unfortunately, matters do not improve when he faces the patient and the community. The doctor thinks that despite the sacrifice he makes by choosing between Rose and the patient, people are feeling no gratitude for him. Due to such reason he comments that the whole district made my life a torment. He feels even more isolated when his thought reaches to the notion that he means nothing to the people but tools for saving their lives. This is when the doctor realizes that he does not have to be what other people expect him to be. As a result, he ceases adhering to his responsibilities and escapes . In this way, alienation manifests existentialism by assisting the main character in discovering perverse human nature and meaninglessness of life. In conclusion, absurdity, anxiety, and alienation accentuate upon the existentialist view of meaningless, desolate life in A Country Doctor. This is well demonstrated through the process of transformation of the main character from an anti-existential character to an existential character. Series of strange uncontrollable events that constitute the plot of the story triggers the main character to feel insignificant. Subsequently, two emotions that are strongly developed in the main character throughout the story denote the pointlessness of life. Anxiety caused by the continued absurd events induce the main character to pose questions upon whether it is worthwhile living as a being that other people desire him to be. Moreover, alienation that he feels from people who do not value him as a human being acts as a key factor that changes him into an existential character. Thus, A Country Doctor has a plot and development of the main character that emphasizes upon existentialism.

Leadership Trait Study Essay

Leadership Trait Study Essay Leadership is the ability of an individual to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision (Robbins Judge, 2009). Leaders play a very important role in every organization. Every organization requires strong leadership and strong management for excellent effectiveness in the organization. Leadership is a quality that comes within us and also that we see from others and learn. Leaders have personal qualities and characteristics that differentiate them from non leaders. Most the leaders have superb risk taking abilities that are very different from a non leader. If they believe in some project they work towards it no matter the difficulties faced they try to overcome it to achieve that vision .hard work pays for itself therefore I believe anything is possible with hard work. Here in this report I have made a leadership trait study of two individuals from two different organizations. These two leaders are from the retailing industry. They are mentioned below: Sam Walton : founder of Wal-Mart Wal-Mart is an American  public corporation that has a chain of discount departmental stores and it also has number of warehouse stores. Wal-Mart according to Forbes global 2010 was rated has the worlds largest public corporation by its revenue. Wal-Mart has been publicly traded on NYSE since 1972. Wal-Mart is the largest private employer and is the biggest grocery retailer in United States of America. It has 8600 stores in fifteen countries and it is under 55 different names. Wal-Mart stores are there in fifty states and they are operated under its own name. The company brings revenue of billions of dollars a year. Kishore biyani : MD and CEO of future group Pantaloons, big bazaar, food bazaar are all part of future group. Some of the regional brands of the company include depot, shoe factory, brand factory, blue sky. Head quartered in Mumbai has almost thousand stores in about seventy one states in the country. It is also the country largest retailer by its revenue. It employees almost thirty thousand people in the country. Here in this report I am going to do an in depth study on the different kinds of leadership style and theories that are related to this two leaders. These two leaders have played a major role in starting their companies and making them the way there company is right now. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Here the focus of study is based on the different kinds of leadership theories associated with the leaders who have contributed a lot to their companies. In this report the qualities of leaders will be studied and the effect of these qualities on their companies will also be studied. In this report I will be also discussing how their leadership styles have affected the independent variables such as productivity and turnover of their organizations. I will also be finding out what changes have to be taken in their leadership style considering the future of the companies. OBJECTIVE To understand the concept of leadership theory related to these leaders. To find out which type of leaders they are and to find their leadership characteristics and style. How their leadership styles have contributed to the success of their company. METHODOLOGY There are two ways of collecting data. They are the primary data and the secondary data. Here I have made my report using secondary data which consist of official websites of companies, literature books, and e-books to collect data to understand the leadership theories. I have taken data regarding the conceptual part from the literature books. I have also studied about their leadership qualities through the organization official websites. I have also read two books regarding these leaders through which I have collected data as well. Data regarding these leaders are taken from published books therefore the details in the report are best to my knowledge. LITERATURE REVIEW Qualities of a good leader are shown below : DEDICATION HUMILITY INTEGRITY OPENNESS CREATIVE GOOD LEADER INTUITION FAIRNESS ASSERTIVENESS Integrity: A leader who has integrity is one who is same on the outside as well as in the inside .Such a person can be trusted because he or she wont deviate from his or her inner values. Trust of the followers has to be won from the followers and therefore a leader should display integrity. Perfect dealings, well controlled emotions and absence of sudden outburst are all a part of integrity. If a leader has good integrity he can be approached by his followers more easily. Dedication: It means giving whatever energy or time that is required to complete the task at hand. He should do whatever it takes so as to keep moving forward so as to reach that goal. A leader has to be an example to their followers. Dedication from every employee plays a vital role in very organizations success. Humility: A leader who has humility believes that they are no better or worse than other members in their team. A good leader is one who does not involve in self-effacing but always tries to elevate everyone in the team. Mahatma Gandhi is an excellent example of these. Creative: It is ability of the leader to think differently. A good leader should always think outside the box. Creativity helps leaders to see thing which others have not seen and hence leads their followers in a new way. A good leader should always think what ifà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦? Openness: It is the ability of a leader to listen to new ideas even if it is very different from the normal way of thinking. If they believe in a certain idea suggested by others then they should go with it even if it is out of the ordinary. Openness helps in creating trust and mutual respect between leaders and their followers. And it also helps in providing the organization with new ideas. Assertiveness: A good leader should be assertive in nature so as to obtain desired results. It is the ability of a leader to clearly state what he expects such that there are no misunderstandings. Along with this the leaders should exactly know what his followers are expecting from him. Based on a study in 2007 February issue of journal of personality and social psychology, that was published by American psychological association it was found out that assertiveness was the most common weakness among most of the leaders. Fairness: It is the ability of a leader to deal with others justly and consistently. A leader should check the facts and then here to everyone before taking the judgment. Based on incomplete evidence a leader should never take a decision. When people feel the leader is treating them fairly only then the employees become loyal and dedicated in what they are doing. He should understand every ones point of view and analysis and take a proper decision. Intuition: A good leader should possess instinctive knowledge so as to make excellent decisions. Few people are gifted naturally with this and others have learned it or have developed it through experiences. One thing is for sure for effective leadership intuition plays a very important role. Most of the times good leader rely on intuition so as make excellent decision. Its not what you make others do its about who you are, how much you know and how you do it. Effective leadership is all about finding skills and talent from many people and forming a cohesive unit. Intuition plays a very important role in every leader in these ways. QUOTES BY SAM WALTON Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, its amazing what they can accomplish The key to success is to get out into the store and listen to what the associates have to say. Its terribly important for everyone to get involved. Our best ideas come from clerks and stock-boys Individuals dont win, teams do Money and ownership alone arent enough. Set high goals, encourage competition, and then keep score. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business. If people believe in themselves, its amazing what they can accomplish Commit to your business. Believe in it more than anybody else I probably have traveled and walked into more variety stores than anybody in America. I am just trying to get ideas, any kind of ideas that will help our company. Leadership qualities of Sam Walton would include dedication, humility, creative, openness, fairness, intuition QUOTES BY KISHORE BIYANI We believe that in India we have the opportunity to grow for the next two to three years. We believe at the moment consumers are feeling psychologically stronger than they ever were to spend. Its not a matter of can we take on foreign retailers, but how big a gorilla you are. Who have helped you, share your success with those people Change your goal according to situation or be flexible Listen to others and learn from their ideas Leadership qualities of kishore biyani would include openness, dedication, humility and creative. Path-goal theory:  this theory tells that it is the job of a leader to assist his followers for attaining their goal. The leader should also provide the direction and support to make sure the goals are compatible with the overall objectives of the organization .In the path goal theory the behavior of the leader includes directive, participative, supportive and achievement oriented. Trait theory:  Trait theory gives a clear idea between the leaders from the non leaders through these big five personality framework- Leadership traits: (Robbins Judge, 2009) Extroversion Conscientiousness Openness to experience Emotional stability agreeableness Transformational Leadership:  These leaders are those who gains trust and respect and pass a sense of pride to their followers, they also give a vision of the goals that are to be attained. They show respect to their followers and also provide attention to their followers. These leaders pass on an extraordinary effect on to their followers. They encourage their followers to be more creative and innovative just like themselves Transactional leadership: these leaders are those who motivates followers so as move to in the right direction so as to reach the set goals. They help the followers by clarifying their roles .they provide rewards when the followers gives high performance. If deviation occurs they take measures so as correct it. They only get into action when the standards are not met. Authentic leaders: Here the leader is considered as an ethnical leader by the followers. These leaders know who they are and they also know what they believe in and they value it. These leaders act on their values openly and candidly. The main quality of this type of leader is trust. These leaders believe in their ideals and sticks to them. They also encourage open communication these are few characteristics of this type of leadership. KEY FINDING SAM WALTON: Sam Walton was a businessman from Oklahoma and he had lots of difficulties in his college years. He had couple of jobs like in restaurants, paper boy etcWith lot of difficulties he managed his way out of college with B.A in economics. He believed in the retailing industry and he strongly believed America had lot to offer in the retail market. After leaving the military Walton took his first job in management of the Ben Franklin store that was in Arkansas at the age of 26.This store was a franchisee of the butler brothers. It was very successful because he was able to provide good at a very low cost by taking good from the lowest cost supplier. By Waltons leadership the turnover had gone by 7 times annually. Within a short span of time Walton was able to create a retail empire. At present there is thousands of Wal-Mart all round America. His leadership played a very important role in the success of the company. He is known as the king of the retail industry. There are about 2.1 millio n employees in the company. He always believed in the team and inspired his followers to think big and create new ideas. If people believe in themselves, its amazing what they can accomplish this was the concept he believed in. The big five personality frame work applies to him because he is having characteristics like openness to experience, emotional stability, agreeableness, extroversion and conscientiousness. He looks into different ideas and doesnt stick to one he is very flexible and if he believes in an idea he goes along with it to reach that goal he has set. Based on his study Sam Walton is a transformational leader because he gives personal attention to his co workers and also tells that few of the best ides in the company comes from clerk and stock boys. He provides vision and also gives rewards for the work they do. His leadership style has always had an extraordinary effect on his followers. Traits of authentic leaders are also seen in him because he knows who he is, and also believe in what he does and he acts on his values. If Sam believes in an idea that is superb and might be out of the ordinary if he believes in it, he works hard so as to achieve it no matter what KISHORE BIYANI: Kishore biyani is an exceptional leader and he is also known as the Indian Sam Walton. After completing his graduation in the commerce background. He went into the readymade garment retailing field without joining his family business. He believed in his own ideas while starting has a entrepreneur. Today he has a retail space of 3 million square feet and his future group is spread about 25 cities in India. Bloomberg business week has rated him has top 50 most powerful people in India according to 2009.There was an interview of in kishore biyani in CNBC-TV18 .when the interviewer asked him while starting your first business in Calcutta ,was it a success because of a pure gamble. To which he replied saying it was never a gamble, he told he knew what he was doing and was sure it would work. He also told that there were no signs or number calculation behind it. It was a gut and also an instinct that told him that it work. And when the interviewer asked him what do you think is the most re quired asset in company he replied saying to find the right people in the industry will be his biggest challenge. From this its clearly understood he is team player. He always believed in his team.kishore biyani is also known for diversifying from his field to different in the industry. According to the Hindu business line it was said that kishore biyani is going g to start their mobile services soon. Kishore biyani has also been chosen as the international retailer of the year by the national retail federation in United States of America Based on study on leadership I believe that kishore biyani can be related to the path goal theory he assists and shows them the way so as to reach their way. He tells them how the work has to be done in their organization and also makes sure the overall objectives of the company are met. kishore biyani sets a high standard and tries to achieve that goal and he always wanted to be the best not the biggest ,this shows us that he is achievement oriented and supportive with regard to the employees. Based on the study I believe that kishore biyani is a transformational leader and also traits of authentic leadership can be seen in him. He is a transformational leader because he has brought flexibility and creativity into the company from the starting of the company till were it is today .kishore biyani has inspired many followers and has left an extraordinary effect on his followers mind. This leaders are able to make their followers to look at old problems in new ways are made capable of making their followers to think in a differ way so as to achieve their group goals. Traits of an authentic leader are also seen in kisore biyani. Kishore biyani sticks to the ideals which he believes in and encourages communication that is open. Authentic people have the power to make people to put their faith in the leader.