Benefits of the Internet

Reviews and investigation have concluded that the Internet was one of the most important inventions in the last years, and its development is growing every day. People’s lives have changed since this technology arrived.The main idea of my speech will be to explain the audience how   we benefit from the internet today, and how its development has made our lives easier. It will be an informative speech, but the idea is not to make it a technical speech with technical content, but a speech easy to understand for others. I will have to take into account that almost everybody knows about the internet, but the audience may not realize how useful it is, and how we benefit from it.I will try to give the audience some examples that will make them understand what do I mean by â€Å"benefits†, trying to make clear stories about each of the main uses of the internet, as for example how people started using email instead of regular letters, or visiting web sites instead of spendin g hours in a library. I will have to be clear with my messages and try to maintain the audience’s attention by using simple ideas because people usually don’t like to listen about technology as it seems a boring subject. The information I will use it will be based on my own experience, so that will help the speech content to have a humanized aspect.I don’t think that I will be using many kinds of visual aids in this subject, although I might be presenting some transparencies with facts about the increase in the usage of the internet and the benefits of it, and this will help to reinforce the ideas to the audience while I explain them.While I was having a conversation with my classmates that helped me choose the topic for my speech, I tried to talk to them and see what each of them did with the internet and how they took advantage of it. This will help me to more or less see what can I focus on, and on what I will have to be more specific.The interest of the audi ence will be difficult to maintain if I don’t start with a good motivation, so I will try to begin the speech with something interesting and completely new about the internet, like a future project that engineers are working on that might not be known yet, but that the audience might like for the future. It is a wide topic, so I will try to make it as clear as possible, so as to be manageable and understandable.     

Principles of Providing Administrative Services Answers

Unit two: Principles of providing administrative services Section 1 – Understand how to make and receive telephone calls 1. Complete the table below with descriptions of at least two different features of a telephone system and how / when they would be used. Feature| How / when used| 1. Answer phone| This is usually accessed by pressing the number 1. It enables you to access messages left to you by others| 2. Conference calls | This makes it possible to speak to more than one person simultaneously. | 3. Do not disturb| This blocks calls to an extension or particular telephone line until the block is removed. Blocks are usually activated and deactivated by pressing a number of keys on the phone's keypad. | 4. Transfer| This enables you to transfer a caller to another extension. | 2. Prepare a brief report advising people on: * How to follow organisational procedures when making and receiving telephone calls * The purpose of giving a positive image of yourself and your organisation when making and receiving telephone calls. If possible, use specific information from procedures in your own organisation (or one that you are familiar with). Making call:Identify the purpose of the call .Confirm the name and number of the person to be contactedMake contact with the personCommunicate information to achieve the purpose of the callProject a positive image of myself and my companyReceiving calls:Answer the phone according to my organisation’s proceduresProject a positive image of myself and my companyIdentify the caller, where they are calling from and what they needProvide accurate and up-to-date information whilst protecting confidentiality and securityTransfer calls where requestedTake messages according to the caller’s needsIt is important to give a positive image of myself and my organization when making and receiving telephone calls . If I present in a negative manner then the customers would not like to talk with me and wouldn’t have nothing to do with my organization. It can affect company business.Section 2 – Understand how to handle mail1. Explain the purpose of correctly receiving, check ing and sorting mail and packages (both incoming and outgoing). Professional handling of mails is very important for an organisation. Improper handling of mails could result in lost customers, lost money and inefficient business.This can be due to loss of vital documents, delays in mails, delivery to wrong person, inefficient service delivery, payment being lost etc. It is important to follow the correct procedures for receiving, checking and sorting incoming and outgoing mail or packages. If a mistake is made then someone may be waiting on the arrival of an important document and it may go to the wrong person, or even go missing completely. People who are responsible for mail always should ensure that mail and packages are directed to the appropriate person.They should make sure that mails are delivered to correct person as soon as possible. This is very important in business environment.2. Complete the table below with the following information:At least two examples of internal ma il services that are available to organisationsAt least two examples of external mail services that are available to organisations Internal mail services| External mail services| 1. Envelopes – Internal mail is often sent in unsealed, A4-size envelopes . If the mail is confidential, the envelope will be sealed and marked with a confidential label.1. Royal Mail – is the best known external mail service|2. Intranet- it can be used to circulate internal mail electronically|2. DHL -is a leading courier in the UK and around the world|3. Describe two methods that you can use to calculate postage charges for mail and / or packages. Before sending a postages we need to classify them according to the importance and urgency. For important and urgent postage we can use first class postage and for the less urgent post we can use a second class postage. We can use service providers information to work out charges.If we need to send an item and guarantee it will be delivered the nex t working day or the same day or if a mail needs to be sent on recorded delivery we have to look for postal charges and the time within which the mail will be delivered. The ways how we calculate postage can be different. For Royal Mail we can find prices online. We have to choose if our postage is a letter, large letter or packet. We should know how much weigh our postage has and enter this information (some offices should have a set of postage scales for weighing letters and packages and a cardboard size guide).Next we need to choose which delivery options we want (for example next day delivery). Except the Royal Mail we can find a lot of couriers which we can use, for example DPD, DHL, TNT UK Express Service.Section 3 – Understand how to use different types of office equipment1. Describe the main types of equipment found in offices and how they are used. Include examples of at least three different types of office equipment. Nowadays offices use a large and varied amount o f equipment to complete everyday tasks efficiently and effectively. The main ones found in most offices are: computers, printers, photocopiers, faxes, telephones.Some offices and other business may use additional specialist equipment, depending upon the nature of the business and the needs of the staff. Examples include: Dictaphone equipment for recording the text of letters and reports, scanners, video recording and presentation equipment, specialist printing and binding equipment, special telephone headsets for telemarketing staff. Computers- are used for a large amount of based tasks for example: produce reports, allow access to the Internet (internal and external communication tools-email), accounting and publishing etc. Printers – are used to produce copies of documents.Fax machines are used to send message (it could be text, graphics or images) using a telephone line. Scanners are used to scan documents onto the computer.2. Explain the purpose of following manufacturerà ¢â‚¬â„¢s instructions when using equipment. Manufactures’ instruction are for a reason. If people follow the basic instructions then and the equipment will last longer. It is important that people know how to use this equipment in order to remain safe and healthy and keep risk to a minimum. If instruction are followed people may sure that they do not do anything that may harm themselves or others.If equipment is used correctly is more efficiently. If equipment is used incorrectly then the job it is designed for may not get done, or it may be done badly or it may take far longer to complete. People need to follow instruction for better maintenance. It could help using equipment for maximum period of time. If the equipment has a breakdown within a guarantee / warranty period it will be far more difficult to have it replaced or repaired if it has not been used according to manufacturers’ instructions.3. Explain the purpose of keeping equipment clean, hygienic and ready fo r the next user.When using equipment in the workplace it is important to keep it clean and well maintained. It is very important especially when equipment is shared with other people. It helps to keep better hygiene for employees – clean equipment minimises the spread of infections and germs. Regularly cleaning equipment can mean that it will last we longer and save our money as well as producing a higher quality result. Cleaning equipment after use can lead to less problems and increased efficiency. It is also courteous to clean something after we have used it to make it ready for the next user.If people are sharing workspace with others it is good practice to leave the area clean and organized. If one person is always cleaning up after everyone else, this person can become demotivated and annoyed. We can do this by working in an organised tidy manner, storing equipment safely and cleaning it with the appropriate products. We can minimise the number of germs on your keyboard by not eating or drinking at your desk. Food and drink should be kept well away from any equipment in case anything gets knocked over and causes damage.Section 4 – Understand how to keep waste to a minimum in a business environment .1. Explain why waste should be kept to a minimum in a business environment. It is very important to keep waste to a minimum in the work place. The more we waste, the more money it is going to cost the company. Companies have procedures like recycling which helps to keep our workplace tidy whilst saving money. Keeping waste to a minimum in the business environment decreases the amount of waste a business contributes to the environment. Reducing waste is key to minimizing business's environmental impact by reducing air and water pollution and limiting the amount of material that ends up in landfills.Reducing waste can also serve to save a business money. Keeping waste to minimum it's cost-effective, saves money, and saves the environment. It is ver y important because too much waste can have consequences for the long-term viability of the business.2. Identify at least two main causes of waste in a business environment. Waste is unfortunate consequence of business everywhere. In a business environment very common waste is a paper waste. This is because printers at work generate a lot of waste paper. People can print unnecessary things and do too many copies.A lot of things which people print contain very little information, so we can try to write them down on a scrap paper instead of printing them. Waste of energy – when leaving the office some people leave lights on, they do not switch of computers, etc. Waste of electricity is a huge in business environment. Waste power it means also increased carbon emission into the atmosphere which is not very good for our environment.3. How can you keep waste to a minimum in a business environment? Describe at least two ways of doing this. People can keep waste to a minimum in a bu siness environment by doing even small things.We could stop printing unnecessary thing, make notes using printed paper, use the copier for necessary numbers of copies. This can help to reduce amount of paper needed for business and save trees. By turning off the lights when leaving we save energy, company saves money and we help to reduce carbon footprint. Company can ask employees to clear their desk periodically to look for excess pens, sticky labels and other supplies. This allows the company to save money as it does not need to order larger than necessary amount of new office supplies.Section 5 – Know how to make arrangements for meetings1. Complete the table below listing at least two different types of meetings and describing the main features of each type of meeting.Type of meeting:Main featuresBoard meetingManagement meetings of the board of an organisation attended by directors. The meeting is convened to report results, set policies, scan for needed changes, etc.Con ferencesUsually for large audience to share information, work through strategies and tactics.Shareholder MeetingsAnnual general meeting which is convened to making decisions.In this type of meeting annual reports are distributed to shareholders. They make decision about the future of the company. | 2. When arranging a meeting:What sources and types of information are typically needed?How should meetings be arranged?Types of information typically needed when arranging a meeting consist of:Who needs to attend (the attendance list),When it should occur (the date of the meeting, the start and finish times of the meeting),The main resources required.It can also consist of:The venue of the meetingThe agenda of the meeting.The meeting should be arranged by doing checks on resources needed, venue, whether refreshments are needed, arrange and circulate agenda, invite attendees and information on special needs. Arranging a meeting is all about preparation and ensuring that everything is ready before the meeting starts.Section 6 – Understand procedures for organising travel and accommodation arrangements1. Explain the purpose of confirming instructions and requirements for business travel and accommodation. The purpose of confirming instructions and requirements for business travel and accommodation is not to make an error.It is better to ask twice and make sure that everything is prepared according to the instructions. The mistake could cost a lot of money and be waste of time. Even small misunderstanding can lead to significant problems for example: it could be two cities with the same name but in different parts of a country. Asking about the city which we are interested in helps to avoid misunderstandings.2. Complete the table below with an outline of the main types of business travel and accommodation arrangements that may need to be made and the procedures that should be followed when doing this.Travel and accommodation arrangements| Procedures| Booking plan e ticket| We need to check if a travelling person has required documents , for example passport for international flights. We need to check if destination place has good access to the airport or if there are any disruptions i. e. heavy snowfall, staff strike etc . which can affect the flight. | Accommodation booking| We need to know if it is one day or overnight business meeting. If there is overnight we need to know how many nights people need to stay. There are different types of overnight accommodation available from bed and breakfasts to hotels.We need to know if for example an evening meal may be required. | Booking train ticket| When booking a train ticket we need to make sure that there is a rail service in a place where we desire to go. We should check the arrivals and departure times to optimise our travel and save time. |3. Explain the purpose of keeping records of travel / accommodation arrangements in a business environment. Purpose of keeping records of travel/ accommod ation arrangements is important as it helps company to have important information about travel process, in this way the business can build up a knowledge bank and some expertise in its travel arrangements.By keeping financial records company can account all the money which being spend on travel and accommodation. * If company keeps good record is easy to retrieve information even in case when people arranging the travel are unavailable. Keeping good record helps company to look for ways of improving travel and accommodation bookings.Section 7 – Understand diary management procedures1. Briefly explain the purpose of using a diary system to plan activities at work. Give at least two reasons. Diary system is very important for planning and time organisation. Diary system helps to record employee activity and the resources that employees need.It helps planning activities that people can get involved with. Using the diary system employees know where they should be or what they sho uld be doing at particular time. Diary system can keep a record of scheduled business activities such as meetings and appointments. Without diary system is very easy to forget about the important meeting. Diary system can keep records of the use of shared resources – things such as rooms, equipment and vehicles. Without diary system rooms could be double-booked.2. Identify the information needed to maintain a diary system in the workplace.The information needed to maintain a diary system in a workplace is determined by the nature of what is being recorded. In general, when thinking of the information needed to maintain a diary system, consider the 5 Ws – who, what, where, when and why.Section 8 – Understand the purpose of delivering effective customer service and how to do so1. What are the differences between internal and external customers in a business environment? Internal customers are individuals and teams within the business who receive the output of comp any’s work, it could be other departments of company using services.External customers are people or businesses that are not within the same company that pay for services or products. They are individuals outside the business you work in who receive the product or service that the business produces .2. Explain why customer service should meet or exceed customer expectations. Include at least three reasons in your answer. When we are able to accurately identify customers' expectations, our customer service reputation will automatically be enhanced. When we meet customers’ expectation customer will be satisfied. By meeting customers’ expectation we are not doing more than customers expected.When we exceed customers expectation customers will be delighted (of course we have to exceed an customers expectations in a positive way). It means that business benefits above are even more likely to be achieved. Good customers service by meeting and/or exceeding customer exp ectation can give company a lot of benefits. One of the benefits is a chance that a new customer can transform to loyal client and also can recommend our business to others. Good customer service could build a sense of trust. When we ensure good customer service it could increase sales, company growth and provides good publicity.3. Explain the importance of building positive relationships with customers. Outline two ways in which this can be achieved. Positive relationship with customers are very important for a company. Positive customer relations makes customers feel important and connected to the company. With a positive relationship both parties have mutually beneficial outcomes. The key factors which contribute to positive relationships are: respect, trust, communication, focus, clarity. There are a few ways how to achieve positive relationship with customers. We can make it easy for customers to contact us.It is also very important to resolve customer complaints quickly and co mpletely. We should remember to always be very helpful. Positive relationship with customers we can achieved by giving the customers more than they expect and carefully listen to them. By giving more we can positively surprised our customers. Careful listening should help us to understand customers expectations better. It is also very important to not make promises unless we keep them.   4. How do customers demonstrate their own needs and expectations? The best way how customers can demonstrate their own needs and expectation is via feedback.Customer feedback is an information about customer perception. The Information comes directly from customer about the satisfaction or dissatisfaction they feel with a product or a service. It shows what customers think about business and if business thinks about them. There are a lot of types of customer feedback. It can be formal or informal, , focus groups, feedback forms and customer surveys, customer research and customer complaints. Analysing a customer feedback helps identified what needs to be improved and also helps to identify customer expectation.Section 9 – Understand the purpose of reception services and how to follow reception procedures1. What is the purpose of the receptionist role as the first point of contact in a business environment? In many companies a receptionist is often the first point of contac t in a business. A receptionist is responsible for any incoming customers or callers with the company. It is often the receptionist's role to ensure that all of these callers and customers are taken care of and that a good business image is given to the public. Receptionists are given the responsibility of meeting and greeting customers, clients or other visitors.If a customer is treated in a rude way by the receptionist, it is likely that they will have a negative image about whole company and may not return. Receptionists greet people both in person and on the telephone. Every company should have trained staff to answer the telephones in a professional and welcoming manner. This means the person assigned in the receptionist role is the individual that gives the first impression of the business to those that make contact, and first impressions are essential.2. Describe how a receptionist can present a positive image of themselves and the organisation and explain why this is importa nt.In most companies, the receptionist is responsible for the first impressions people have of a company. The receptionist should always project a professional image and make a great first impression on everyone. They should give a positive image of themselves and their organisation in order to attract and retain customers and to ensure customer satisfaction. If the receptionist is warm and friendly, people perceive that company is open and easy to work with. If receptionist is cold and unprofessional, people can think that the company is unprofessional and unpleasant to work with.Receptionist’s professionalism represents company’s brand. To properly reflect this brand receptionists must represent companies through their appearance, behaviour, attitude, business manners and communication skills.3. In relation to your own organisation (or one that you are familiar with), explain what must be done when carrying out entry, departure, security and confidentiality procedure s in a reception area. The company which I work for with does not have a receptionist. A reception area is very small and is used rather like an entry point and waiting area for guests.All guests have to use intercom in order to get enter to the building and only authorized staff can let them in. All staff is trained to not let in people from outside the company and the rules about guests are very clear. Because the company is away from the city centre and because of the specific industry, there is a small number of people who visit the company therefore there is no receptionist. Company does not require from guests to display identification cards when inside the company but there is a requirement that someone from the staff has to be with them during their visit.Sound spreads and threatens confidentiality in reception and waiting areas. To ensure confidentiality we are forbidden to talk about any confidential information near reception area or to bring any confidential documents to this area. This procedure is in place to ensure that no patient or hospital information (which are confidential) is revealed to any outsiders visiting my company. Once you have completed all 9 Sections of this Assessment, go to www. vision2learn. com and send your work to your tutor for marking.Explain the purpose of confirming instructions and requirements for business travel and accommodation:Its the teachers unions.Teacher quality is all over the place. Its too easy to become a teacher. One doesn't really need to stay up on current procedures or materials. Just a few weeks ago my 5th grader had a substitute teacher who stated out loud â€Å"I haven't been trained on any of this common core math stuff† and went on to describe a science project in terms of an old school salt and ice based ice cream maker that none of the kids had ever seen or likely will ever see.My son's former nanny became an elementary school teacher with a 4 year degree unrelated to education and six we eks of taking tests. She's a very nice girl, but she's not a very good teacher.So of course when our education system costs so much and produces lousy end results, the government and leadership in the education system want to test the kids to identify those iffy teachers and ones that aren't trained properly. We could do it on the front end and only qualify good teachers with good training. But the teachers union resists those efforts. As it stands right now in my home state, neither the schools or the teachers are responsible for the outcomes of the standardized testing. But the children are. I've gotten my son's tests. He got good scores, but the scores he received in subcategories aren't consistent with his high and low skill areas. So the test is very inaccurate.Beta testing curriculum and tests on kids where the grownups involved duck the responsibility. Letting people teach with poor skills and abilities. Unions protecting the poor performers and the processes allowing them en try. Governments pushing bogus testing that doesn't show accurate results.What you'll see around this comment will be a litany of teachers saying they should just be allowed to teach inside a magic box where what they do is not visible. Just trust them. And a suggestion that they be paid more so that experts in their respective fields will become teachers. Probably bad teachers.

Changes in chapter 3 (US Foreign Policy) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Changes in chapter 3 (US Foreign Policy) - Essay Example If not all, almost all would believe that the cold war was a pre-emptive strategy of both strong opposing states (United States and the Soviet Union) to prevent domination over the other party. As a result, congregation of States and Dominion happens to make stronger allies. In this sense, many political terminologies were coined to better explain the soundless phenomenon during that time. These would now include the strategy of deterrence – showing strong military weapon to deter the opposing ally. With this regards, Iraq during that time, was the pawn of the immense bi-polar struggle for influence in the middle-east Asian region. In line of the strategy, states during the cold-war were dominating other states and the use of sphere of influence is a great factor for the two parties involved. That time, Iraq, being one country which has rich natural resources was tried to be infatuated by the rival allies. It is believed that Iraq holds more than 112 billion barrels of oil and also contains 110 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, and is a crucial point for regional and international security issues according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). This is one of the reasons that the states was hoping to gain. The use of oil by US industries was prominent in the post-war era and this prompted the US to fear oil supply depletion. Though one of the primary reason is to the fight for ultimate power, and resources can be consider as an important secondary ingredient to captivate. It is essential for us to understand deeper the cold-war because this is a phenomenon in which it can explain the spark of the U.S. - Iraq war in 2003. During the cold-war, Iraq had been used as a diplomatic battleground of the two opposing side which the United States viewed it as a strategic location to conquer Iran and the growing anti-fundamentalism in the gulf (p.1). Thus, Iraq, in the start is not the main target of the U.S. and that it is only used as an ar ea of tactical spot to Iran. What started the divergence between the U.S. and Iraq is the invasion of the latter of Kuwait. This is also the point whereas Saddam Hussein had opened an area of condemnation and disintegration. Moreover, the United States find it to be not in their accordance and interest and it made a conflict because the U.S. want to liberate Kuwait and to use it as an strategic location diverting it from Iraq to captivate not only Iran but also Iraq as well (p.1). Because of this event, a grand coalition was formed by the United States manipulating the minds of the other Sates that they want to have a liberal international countries which greatly affect the international organization as well as countries itself. They even had Iraq as their ally through the U.S. – Iraq relations in 1990. This is because Saddam Hussein had a great impact and influence in the middle-east countries. In this event (grand coalition), United States seems to have a dual interest and also they have a great strategy to maintain their sole-power in the global arena. The American preference for international security has its root in the initial post- cold war administration . . . many US policy makers feared that America alone could not contain the Soviets and that the United States also needs a manpower reserves and economic resources of the major industrialized non-communist states. . . nature of the international system is neither

Psychological Theories Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Urgent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Urgent - Essay Example The Indians would be under the protection of the government of United States. If a white man is killed by an Indian, The responsible Indian would be brought for trial and punishment. The converse would also be true. The Indian tribes were also promised annuities by the U.S. government. The Indian were largely satisfied with the provisions of this treaty as their concerns were addresses. However, the treaty could not last long due to encroachment by tribes. According to this treaty, Spain returned to France the territory of Louisiana which France had ceded to Spain in 1763. When the government of United States became aware of the transfer, it raised concern over a threat to its security. With this treaty, France and Napoleon became very powerful as it had the mouth of Mississippi and the outlet for the produce of seven states. Later Napoleon disregarded the treaty and sold Louisiana to United States which was reluctantly agreed by

Collaboration in social work practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Quantitative Methods in Aerospace Cargo Transportation Management Research Paper

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Everyday life challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Everyday life challenges - Essay Example These challenges are usually defined by the surrounding environment. Some of the common challenges I face are correlated with my emotions, family issues, work environment, economic issues, religious issues and the physical environment (Dean 44). For example, family issues such as sibling rivalry and hatred within the family interferes with the family relationships. This can also affect other members of the family especially when the siblings are not minors. Most of the time is usually spent on trying to resolve such duels. My personal emotions also affect my general outlook. This is normally depicted on a daily basis. In conclusion, I have become a victim of drug abuse and violence based on the numerous challenges, which I face as an individual. On several occasions, I have learnt that harboring an optimistic attitude is the best technique to ensure that I can cope with my everyday challenges (Dean 34). Also, engaging in leisure ensures that I am able to relax after work. Some of the leisure activities I engage in include playing games, swimming and reading magazines. These leisure activities enhance relaxation hence; avoiding daily

Urrent recessionary situation in the UK economy Essay

Urrent recessionary situation in the UK economy - Essay Example The most common among these are the Consumer price index and the retail price index. The simplest way to understand the mechanism behind changes to inflation is through Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply dynamics. Given the economy is in macroeconomic equilibrium, if there is a positive shock to demand, i.e., aggregate demand shifts up, the price level rises. This is known as demand pull inflation. This type of inflation is observed particularly during periods of economic expansion. This is shown in figure 1 below. Figure 1: Demand-pull inflation In the diagram, SRAD represents the short run dynamics of demand; it shows how changes to aggregate demand are related to changes in the price level or inflation. Similarly, SRAS represents the short run dynamics of aggregate supply. Because of an expansionary shock to short run aggregate demand (SRAD), inflation increases from Is to Id. Again, even if short run demand remains unchanged, inflation can increase due to supply side shocks. In the diagram, SRAD represents the short run dynamics of demand; it shows how changes to aggregate demand are related to changes in the price level or inflation. Similarly, SRAS represents the short run dynamics of aggregate supply. Because of an expansionary shock to short run aggregate demand (SRAD), inflation increases from Is to Id. Again, even if short run demand remains unchanged, inflation can increase due to supply side shocks. For instance if there are bottlenecks in the supply chain which leads to contraction of supply, the short run aggregate supply curve shifts up to the left. This leads to an increase in inflation as well. This is known as cost push inflation since this happens due to sudden increases in production costs. Well known examples of such inflation generating cost rises over the years have been oil price shocks, labor market strikes etc. This mechanism is illustrated in figure 2 below. In Figure 2: Cost push inflation In the graph above, the SRAS curve is hit by a temporary shock resulting from increases in costs. The resulting movement to the left and up leads to a rise in the inflation rate from Is to Ir. It should b e noted that all factors that influence demand and supply mechanics can therefore influence inflation rates. Particular note should be taken of inflation expectations. If inflation is expected to rise in future, people start buying immediately and such behavior leads to the prices being pushed up. This is a simple instance of how inflation expectations constitute self fulfilling prophecies. Being armed with an understanding of the basic mechanics of inflation, we now turn to the actual observed situation in the UK economy. The UK economy is undergoing a substantially adverse situation. Although the Bank of England sets 2% as inflation target, the annual percentage change in Consumer Prince Index reached a 2 year high of 5.2% in January 2011. Although it has come down since then to around 4.2% in recent months, it still is considerably higher compared to the declared target of the Bank of England (BBC, 2011). What makes this situation precarious is that this inflation has occurred at a time when the economy was already reeling from a strong recessionary pressure. The global economic crisis and the ensuing recessionary pressures had seem the inflation rate hit a low of almost 1% in 2009. The recession has led to significant stress on the economy and caused losses of employment. In all other advanced economies, the recession has been associated with a disinflation, if not a deflation. In the UK economy however the inflation rate has climbed up substantially to hit the aforementioned highs (Dwyer et al., 2010). There are alternative viewpoints to explain this phenomenon, and we turn to these various explanations in the rest of this article. Figure 3: Inflation in UK, ONS data Figure 1 traces the quarterly movements of

Competence in Counseling Essay Example for Free

Competence in Counseling Essay Counseling is the professional guidance in resolving personal conflicts and emotional problems. It is advice, opinion, or instruction given in direction the judgment or conduct of another. Knowing how to posses personal qualities such as maturity, empathy, warmth, understanding, and knowledge. From a legal stand point ethics, morality, and law must be strongly conformed. It is accurate decision-making, knowing appropriate words to use, and knowledge of the governing standards that is required. Also knowing accurate information about culture and ethnicity of the present society. Aspects of Counseling Counseling has been misrepresented over the past years for different types of endorsements of products. In todays time the profession as far as counseling goes is now corresponded within its practice. The focus is on growth and wellness as well as clarification of mental disorders. In order to relate to the counseling field an understanding of guidance and psychotherapy must be understood along with having history of the profession. Guidance is leadership, instruction, or direction by helping others make important choices that affect their future in maintaining a productive and healthy lifestyle. An individual being taught guidance must learn to choose what values them the most in order to produce change within their life. This will give that particular individual a sense of direction by following instructions to becoming a leader. The goal in guidance is to promote resourceful and happy lives of individuals by helping them adjust to social actualities. Psychotherapy is a process focused on helping heal and learn more beneficial ays to deal with problems or issues within an individuals life. It is also a supportive process when going through a difficult time period or either under increased stress. It traditionally focused on serious problems associated with internal issues, personal issues, and conflicts. Normally psychotherapy is recommended when a person is struggling with a life, relationship, work issue, or a specific health concern causing the individual a great deal of pain or upset for longer than a few days. Counselors hold an important position that affect many lives throughout the course of a career. A counselor serves as an advice-giving role in a wide number of areas. There are many types of counselors, including school guidance counselors, psychological counselors, counselors for victims, youth camp counselors and more. Aspects of Counseling The vast majority of counselors are extremely caring people who are dedicated to their work and enjoy helping to make others lives better. There is a wide range of ideal personality traits that are associated with being a top counselor. One of the most important personality traits, if not the most important, is a keen ability to listen. In order to help people and find solutions to problems, the counselor must be a keen listener in order to best help the person seeking counsel. Counselors should also have an understanding of human psychology and possess a strong sense of sensitivity. Another ideal character trait for a counselor is having a strong sense of direction in order to find the best path to success for the people whom they counsel. Having a strong sense of direction usually solves problems more quickly and efficiently. Ideal counselor personality traits are a commitment to the profession, humanity and the client. The ideal counselor serves the assistance of the clients. The counselor will develop meaningful and trusting relationships with their clients and insure that this trust is not shaken or broken. An ideal counselors personality has a consumer first attitude and should represent a supporter and guidance role with nurturing characteristics to assist in the creation of a reliable bond between the client and the counselor. Other quality traits include their knowledge of the profession and its standards of practice, along with some background in psychology. A good organizational personality trait of a counselor is their willingness to promote efficient case management techniques. Aspects of Counseling As an effective counselor one of the main qualities needed is patience. Go to the next step of explanation only when the patient has clearly understood the content of the information you have provided. Therefore the counselor needs to have enough sufficient time for the patient, and should also be a good listener. Let the patient express everything he/she has to say, and give your inputs once when the patient has finished talking. A counselor should be very observant and able to interpret non-verbal communication for example if the patient looks angry, and then find out the cause of his/her anger first. An effective counselor should provide non-possessive warmth in a counseling environment. Smile and show concern and acceptance by showing comfort, empathy, and understanding to the patient. Counselors should have good knowledge on the topic /problem like compliance to medication. Some people do not take medication for the same reasons, while others demand medication. Understanding the factors why people may not do certain activities at specific time will help you to assist them better. Try to understand the feelings the patient is having in the counseling process. In other words put yourself in his/her position. Give the patient the opportunity to make his/her own decision from your message. Lastly be sure to make it aware to the patient that you as their counselor maintain confidentiality on what the patient tells you. This means that counseling must be done individually and privately. Letting the patient know that you maintain a high degree of personal reliability, trustworthiness and mutual trust as an effective counselor. Aspects of Counseling As there are three different levels of counseling relationships to be aware of nonprofessional, paraprofessional, and professional. Nonprofessionals would be considered as family, friends, colleagues, untrained volunteers, or supervisors who try in assisting those who are in need. Secondly, paraprofessionals are individuals who have received some sort of training in human relations. Lastly professionals are those who are educated with the nowledge to provide assistance on a protective and corrective level. While being the ideal, effective, and professional counselor you must also keep in mind that you must follow the ethical and legal aspects of counseling also. Ethics is defined as a philosophical discipline that is concerned with human conduct and moral decision-making. You should also familiarize yourself with morality, which involves judgment or evaluation of action, and another major definition to know is law, which is the precise organization of governing standards that are established to ensure legal and moral justice. The law does not dictate what is considered to be ethical but what is considered to be legal. Ethical codes are there to protect the profession from government. They allow the professions to control itself and functions independently instead of being controlled by legislation. In making ethical decisions counselors familiarize themselves with casebooks, professional colleagues, and principles. It is very crucial that counselors become well knowledgeable with ethics for the sake of their own well-being and of their patients as well. Multicultural psychology focuses on the cultural differences in thought processes and acceptable vs. nacceptable behaviors. It relates to normal lives such as home, education, work and relationships but also to what is considered abnormal or normal. Aspects of Counseling Knowing your patient plays a huge factor in counseling sessions as well. To know the cultural background of your patient can help you better relate to them as an individual. Many cultural ethnic groups live in the United States. A culture is behaviors, thoughts, perceptions, values, goals, and cognitive processes. An issue in multicultural counseling is the dominance of theories based on cultural values. A second issue is sensitivity to cultures in general, believes that are essential to counselors is knowledge of culturally different patients. Knowing that everyone is their own unique person, and have their own views on different things in today’s society. The counselor must also have the skills to work with patients of different cultures. Counselors must work in order to know their patients and their problems. European Americans when taken into consideration is a larger diverse population they are very common to the people of the United States. When counseling African Americans a counselor must understand the history, and coping mechanisms. Hispanics/Latinos a very diverse group as well, and regardless to their background they are very bicultural. Asian and Pacific Islanders are considered as hard working, successful, and not prone to mental or emotional distress. When dealing with many diverse groups like this a common theme is that counselors who work with a variety of culturally different patients must be knowledgeable about them collectively.

The Theories And Implications On Corporate Financial Decisions Finance Essay

The Theories And Implications On Corporate Financial Decisions Finance Essay This paper concerns mainly on exploring the area of corporate valuation models and their implications in assessing the value of corporate firms. The models to be reviewed and analyzed are Economic Value Added (EVA), Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and Free Cash Flow (FCF). The selected models would be used on 5 publicly listed firms in the Bursa Malaysia. The aim of this study is to analyze the three models on how it can be utilized in helping a firm to create, sustain and access its corporate value. This paper consists of six parts, which are introduction, literature review, importance of theories and its implications on corporate financial decisions in Malaysia, application of concepts, tenets, fundamentals, technical issues, etc to the five chosen firms, methodology to analyze 5 years financial data of the selected firms and conclusion. Introduction In this paper, three corporate valuation models have been chosen as our main concern, which are Economic Value Added (EVA), Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and Free Cash Flow (FCF). We then apply the selected valuation models and methodologies to five publicly listed firms in the Bursa Malaysia from the food and beverage industry. The five companies are Dutch Lady Milk Industries, Fraser Neave Holdings Berhad, Nestle Ltd, QSR Brands Bhd and Yeo Hiap Seng (M) Berhad. Summary will be made by reviewing ten journal articles under the literature review part for a preliminary understanding of the models. This paper includes four journal articles for EVA as well as another seven journal articles for FCF and CAPM. In addition, we will identify the importance of the theories and describe its implication on corporate financial decisions in Malaysia. This study has provided us a great learning opportunity by accessing the company value of the real corporate firms. It also provides us a lear ning platform in how to utilize the valuation tools to evaluate companys performance for investment purpose in the future. Literature Review Economic Value Added (EVA) Economic Value Added (EVA) is a corporate valuation tool developed by Stern Stewart Co. to assist managers in their decision making by incorporate two basic principle of finance inside. The first principle is the financial goal of any company for shareholders wealth maximization and the second one is that a companys corporate value is based on the extent to which investors expect future earnings to exceed or fall short of the cost of capital. Another way to explain is that, EVA is developed to align decisions with shareholders wealth. According to Stewarts study in 1994, it is proved that EVA as the single best tool of measuring wealth creation on a contemporaneous basis and the result in describing changes in shareholders wealth is about 50 percent better than its greatest accounting-based rival of EPS, Return on Asset (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE). EVA model assist managers in better investment decisions making, to identify improvement opportunities as well as to consider the short-term and long-term benefits for a firm. Based on Taubs study in 2003, it is observes that most of the valuation models used among industries focus only on the financial or accounting information. Unlike EVA, it combines factors like accounting, market and economy information in a companys performance evaluation. Various studies have proved the superiority of using EVA over other traditional models for evaluate companys performance due to its transparency and capacity to obtain more important information. According to Kudla and Arendts study in 2000, EVA can eliminate the arising conflicts and confusion when a company employs multiple measures like EPS, Return on Investment (ROI), Return on Equity (ROE) and Net Operating Profit after Tax (NOPAT). Furthermore, EVA can also be used as a tool to eliminate economic distortions of General Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP) to focus decisions on the actual economic outcomes. It promotes better evaluation of decisions that have an impact on the income statement and balance sheet or trade-offs between each other. Also, EVA managed to cover every aspect of the managerial cycle through the use of the capital charge against NOPAT. There are also studies indicate that EVA is a superior measure of the managerial decisions quality. From Fishers study in 1995, EVA is suggested to be treated as a reliable pointer in estimating a firms value growth in the future. Also, according to Sterns study in 1989, the purpose of EVA is to change the management behavior as well as their performance, leading managers to act in the owners interest. It can be used as a motivation tool to encourage managers to create shareholder value by being a basis for management compensation. Importance of the theories and implications on corporate financial decisions in Malaysia As business grows wider and complex across the border, there is a demand for better valuation tool to evaluate the performance of the business. It is important to adopt more innovative performance metrics so that the companys management behaviors can be closely monitored to achieve the goal of maximizing the shareholders benefits. It is also important to access a firms value for any decision making regarding business expansion or contraction. According to the article of The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), Latest Trends in Corporate Performance Measurement (1992), many companies were experiencing difficulties in implementing measurement frameworks and these statements have been brought to today. There is a study conducted by Dr. Issham Ismail in Malaysia with the purpose to examine the relationship between EVA and the company performance in Malaysia. The study indicates that EVA has a strong relationship with stock return as compared to other measures due to its focus on long-term performance. EVA enhances stock performances by including more informational content in describing the stock returns. According to the study, EVA is considered as a better alternative to other traditional valuation tools such as EPS, ROE, etc. Its characteristic of transparency and capacity to provide more important information helps investors in Malaysia to make better investment decision as well as the resources allocations decisions. Besides that, EVA and MVA can be also treated as performance measures and signals for any strategic change (Lehn and Makhija, 1996). There is another study conducted by Norfarah, Suhaila and Wan Mansor in Malaysia regarding the adoption of EVA on real estate corporations in Malaysia. In Malaysia, real estate sectors have grown to become a large sector and continue to develop for the past two decades even through difficult economic period. Some has been performing well in the industry such as IOI Properties and Boustead Properties Bhd while some of them are experiencing hardship like Country Heights, Land General, and Damansara Realty. In order to identify the company potential of adding more shareholders value, an alternative corporate valuation model has been introduced, which is EVA, proposed by Stern Stewart Management Services. The adoption of EVA is considered to be more comprehensive as its measurement tool provides a clearer picture of whether a business is raising or reducing shareholder wealth. Most of the multinational companies such as Sony, Coca-Cola and Monsanto have formally announced their adoption and implementation of EVA as management systems in their quest of the value. On the other hand, EVA based performance plan produces positive result towards a company management. There is a study on the effects of adopting management bonus plans based on residual income measures. According to Wallaces study in 1997, EVA based performance plan motivates managers to utilize companys assets in a more productive and efficient way. This hence, reduce of the conflict between managers and shareholders interest and the decreasing agency cost eventually help the company to boost its profit after the adoption of the residual income based incentives plans. As a result, EVAs superiority is proved in encouraging managers for shareholder wealth creation. However, in order to work out the EVA compensation system, it requires large commutation effort and extensive training for both managers and their subordinates. Lastly, EVA and its practical applications as a management control system for performance measurement which helps manager to make better investment decisions. Methodology Economic Value Added is an evaluation tools used to examine a companys true economic profitability because it factors in net operating income after taxes interest minus the opportunity cost of capital deployed to earn that net operating income. In other words, EVA tells whether a companys financial performance is higher or lower than the minimum required rate of return for shareholders or business lenders. Besides that, EVA also tells investors if their amount of invested capital in the business is providing them a higher return than their minimum, or if it is better to shift their capital elsewhere. There are few steps required in calculating EVA and this is how Economic Value Added (EVA) is used by the financial analysts. Annual reports from the five selected firms have been sourced respectively in this report. First of all, we have to identify the earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) from the income statement. Next we have to calculate the Net Operating Profit after Taxes (NOPAT) by deducting the Income Tax Expenses from the EBIT. Afterwards, we need to determine the invested capital deployed in the business by deducting Non-interest Bearing Current Liabilities from Total Assets. Then, we need to calculate the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). WACC calculated by adding Risk Free Rate with Beta multiply by Market Risk Premium, where Market Risk Premium is calculated by deducting Risk Free Rate from Market Return. Take WACC multiply with the Invested Capital and finally, EVA can be found by deducting the multiplication of WA CC and Invested Capital from the Net Operating Profit after Tax. The calculation formulas for EVA are as follows: EVA = NOPAT (WACC * Invested Capital) where, NOPAT = Profit Lost Before Interest and Tax Income Tax Expenses and, Invested Capital = Total Assets Non-interest bearing Current Liabilities and, Cost of Equity, WACC is calculated by using CAPM Model where, WACC = Risk Free Rate + ( Beta * Market Risk Premium ) where, Market Risk Premium = Market Return Risk Free Rate Free Cash Flow Literature Review Free cash flow (FCF) refers to the cash generated by the assets of the business available for distribution to all the shareholders and it cant be affected by the businesss capital structure. A firms stock value is calculated by projecting the future free cash flow (FCF) that will be generated by the business assets and then compute the present value of FCF by discounting them at the appropriate required rate of return. FCF appeared to be an appropriate valuation model to be used when (1) the firm doesnt pay dividends at all or pays out lesser dividends than dictated by its cash flow, (2) free cash flow tracks profitability or (3) the analyst takes a corporate control perspective. The present value of FCF is the most fundamentally useful valuation tool used in assisting any investing decisions like investment opportunities appraisal and corporate valuation (Arumugam, 2007). It can also be used to measure the potential of investment opportunities as well as to forecast the firms future performance by accessing its corporate value. Based on an article written by Ben Lardes in March 2010, a companys free cash flow reflects a lot of information about the company performance. Obviously the higher the free cash flow of a business is, the more money you can expect to earn as the businesss shareholder. Every firm has different FCF, which is depends on how well is their performance over the periods. For instance, a well performing firm may have a good amount of positive cash flows. On the contrary, a firm may not have a positive cash flow at all if it has been struggling to succeed. A firm will have a negative FCF if its expenses are exceeding its income. By looking at the FCF, a company can decide whether to go on with its current business direction or to change its management operation. However, negative FCF does not always signify problems within a business. The negative FCF may be due to the preparation of business expansion in the future. The age of a company and its circumstances should always be in the consider ation before judging it purely based on its free cash flow. According to the study conducted by McClure, although FCF has its merits, it still has some limitations and the most significant one would be the garbage in, garbage out principle. Predicted FCF is used as the main input in DCF calculation to evaluate any investment decisions, thus the quality of FCF is very important in the valuation process in order to get an appropriate and reliable outcome. If all the FCF values have found to be inaccurate, then it will be useless in assessing the firms stock price. Therefore, the ability to make good future projections of FCF is critical. The more you confident about the future cash flow, the better project evaluation you can made, leading to a desirable profit from your investment. In this case, the forecast of potential cash flow appeared to be the tricky part, as you are required to prepare a full financial model to get a better estimation. This requires some serious analysis of the business, the macro-economic environment, the legal and regu latory framework and the competitive landscape (Cartmail, 2010). Importance of the Theories Implications on Corporate Financial Decisions in Malaysia Investing decisions can be made based on a simple analysis like selecting your desire firm with a product you expect to have high demand in the future. The underlying expectation is that the company will continue to produce and sell high-demand products and will generate cash flow back to the business. The second part is that the companys management will know where to spend this cash to continue its operations whereas the third assumption is that all of these expected future cash flows are worth more today than the stocks current price.   Free cash flow (FCF) tracks the remaining operating cash flow for the shareholders after laying out the money a firm required to expand or sustain its asset base. It is important as it allows business to pursue more opportunities that could enhance shareholders value. Present value of all free cash flows is the key indicator of a firms equity value. The growing FCF is often a prelude to increased profits. Firms that facing surging FCF as a result of revenue growth, debt elimination, improvement of operational efficiency and others, can reward their investors tomorrow. Thats the reason investors cherish FCF as a sound valuation metric. The odds are good when a firms FCF is increasing, it is believed that the firms share value will soon be increased as well. An important thing to note is that, negative FCF is not bad in itself, however it could represent a sign that a firm is engaging in large investments (Investopedia, n.d.). DCF is one of the favorable and sound tools to be used in corporate valuation because it can produce outcome, which has the closest value to an intrinsic stock value. Unlike other valuation tools like P/E ratio, DCF analysis relies on FCF. It is believed that FCF reflects a clearer view of a firms ability in generating cash, as profits can sometimes be clouded by accounting tricks, but cash flow cannot. The reason is because cash flow generation is hardly to be influenced by accounting assumptions and practices. Also, FCF is a trustworthy measure that eliminates most of the arbitrariness and guesstimates found in reported profits (Investopedia, n.d.). Other than that, FCF can be considered as a forward-looking metric because it depends more on future prospects rather than past results. In addition, it also enables expected operating strategies to be included in the valuation as it allows varies business components to be valued separately. On the other hand, free cash flow theory has important implications for the leverage effect on a firms investment financing decisions. The FCF model implies that for an over-investor, an increase in leverage should lead to a reduction in unprofitable investment spending. Additional leverage will leave less amount of free cash flow at the discretion of the managers at the same time that it increases the intensity level at which the companys activities can be closely monitored. Overall investment will become more efficient as the firm substitutes contractually obligated debt service for negative net present value investments. Empirically, the reduction in unprofitable investment spending should contribute to an increase in the firms stock price that reflects the improved efficiency of managerial investment decisions. Methodology Free Cash Flow (FCF) is the cash generated by the companys assets and it is available for distribution to all the shareholders. It is used to tracks the remaining operating cash flow available for the shareholders after laying out the money a firm required to expand or sustain its asset base. It is calculated by deducting Net Investment in Operating Capital from Net Operating Profit after Tax (NOPAT), where NOPAT is calculated by deducting Income Tax Expenses from the Profit Lost before Interest and Tax (EBIT) and Net Investment in Operating Capital is obtained by using the Operating Capital at time t to minus the Operating Capital at time t-1. Operating Capital is calculated by adding up Net Operating Working Capital (NOWC) and Net fixed Assets, where NOWC is calculated by deducting Non-interest Bearing Current Liabilities from Operating Current Assets. The calculation for FCF is as followed: Free Cash Flow (FCF) = Net Operating Profit after Tax (NOPAT) Net Investment in Operating Capital where, NOPAT = Profit Loss before Interest and Tax (EBIT) Income Tax Expenses and, Net Investment in Operating Capital = Operating Capital at time t Operating Capital at time t-1 where, Operating Capital = Net Operating Working Capital (NOWC) + Net fixed Assets where, NOWC = Operating Current Assets Non-interest bearing Current Liabilities Capital Asset Pricing Model Literature Review Basically, Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) is based on Markowitz (1959) and Tobin (1958), who introduced the risk-return portfolio theory. The primary implication of the CAPM is the mean-variance efficiency of the market portfolio. The efficiency of the market portfolio implies that the positive linear relationship between expected returns and market betas is exists and only beta is playing a significant role in explaining the expected returns of stocks. Several attempts have been done to test the implications of the CAPM using historical rates of returns of securities and historical rates of return on a market index. The CAPM is relies on several assumptions with the fact that every investor wants to maximize the expected satisfaction of their wealth. An addition to the risk aversion is that all of them are having the same expectations towards the returns of the securities. The returns of the securities follow a normal distribution, which characterizes the phenomenon of homoscedasticity. Besides that, CAPM also assume that every investor is allowed to borrow any amount of money at the risk free rate. Finally, there are no taxes or other barriers which lead to an imperfection of every market, that is, the market is assume to be in equilibrium and have a perfect competition among all the participants in the market. According to Grigoris and Stavross study in 2006, one of the earliest empirical studies that support the theory of CAPM is that of Black, Jensen and Scholes [1972]. By using monthly data of return and portfolios rather than individual stocks, Black et al tested whether the cross-section of expected returns is linear in beta. By constructing a portfolio made up by an amount of securities, investors managed to diversify away most of the firm-specific risk, thus increasing the precision of the beta estimates and the expected rate of return of the portfolio. This approach eliminates the statistical problems that arise from measurement errors in beta estimates. The data found to be consistent with the predictions of the CAPM, at which the relationship between the average return and beta is close to linear and that portfolios with high (low) betas will have high (low) average returns. There is another classic empirical study that supports the theory conducted by Fama and McBeth in 1973. In the study, they examined whether there is a positive linear relation between average returns and beta. In addition, the author also investigated whether the squared value of beta and the volatility of asset returns can explain the residual variation in average returns across assets that are not explained by beta alone. There are several studies in the early 1980s suggested that there were deviations from the CAPM risk return trade-off due to other variables that affect this tradeoff. The objective of the studies was to find the missing components that CAPM omitted in explaining the risk-return trade-off and to identify the variables that created those deviations. Banz [1981] tested the CAPM by examining whether the size of firms can explain the residual variation in average returns across assets that remain unexplained by the CAPMs beta. CAPM is being challenged by indicating that firm size does explain the cross sectional-variation in average returns on a particular collection of assets better than beta. The author concluded that the average returns on stocks of small firms were higher than the average returns on stocks of large firms, vice versa. This study has known as the size effect. The general reaction to Banzs [1981] findings, that CAPM may be missing some aspects of reality, was to support the view that although the data may suggest deviations from CAPM, these deviations are not as significant to invalidate the theory. Importance of the theories and implications on corporate financial decisions in Malaysia CAPM, which is a theoretical representation of the financial markets behavior, can be used in the estimation of a companys cost of capital. Despite the limitations, the model can be a superior addition to the analytical tool kit of financial manager. The modern financial theory relies on three major assumptions. First, we assume the participants in the securities market are dominated by rational, at which all the investors are risk averse. Risk-averse person often seek to maximize satisfaction from the returns on their investment. CAPM also assume a perfect competitive market, which is in the equilibrium. It means that the financial market is populated with highly sophisticated and well informed buyers and sellers, meaning that the financial market has the characteristic of transparency. The third assumption implies that investors will choose to hold diversified portfolios, means that every investor wants to hold a portfolio that could reflects the stock market as a whole. Although i t is impossible to own the market portfolio, it is relatively easy and inexpensive for investors to eliminate specific or unsystematic risk and construct a portfolio that tracks the stock market through diversification. Another significant problem is that, it is not possible for investors to borrow at the risk-free rate in the real world. This is because the risk associated with individual investor is particularly higher than the risk associated with the Government. This inability to borrow at the risk-free rate means that the slope of the SML is shallower in practice than in theory. However, CAPM is generally considered as a better method to calculate the cost of equity and it explicitly takes into account the sensitivity of a companys security return to market risk. It is clearly superior to the WACC in providing discount rates to be used in investment appraisal. Research has shown the CAPM to stand up well to criticism, although the arguments against CAPM have been increasing in the recent years. Investment managers in Malaysia have widely applied CAPM as well as its sophisticated extension as the investment valuation metric. CAPMs application to corporate finance is the recent development. Although it has been employed in many utility rate-setting proceedings, it has yet to gain widespread use in corporate circles for estimating companies cost of equity. Methodology The Capital Asset Pricing Model indicates a simple linear relationship between expected rate of return and systematic risk or market risk of a security or portfolio. The model is an extension of Markowitzs (1952) portfolio theory. The researchers who are commonly credited with the CAPM development are Sharpe (1964), Linter (1965) and Black (1972) and that is the reason CAPM is normally referred as SLB model. Markowitz (1952) developed a concept of portfolio efficiency through the combination of risky assets that minimizes risk for a given return or maximizes return for a given risk. Variance of expected returns has been used as the measure of risk and then the efficient portfolio will be developed to minimize risk for a given rate of return. The equation of CAPM indicates the relationship between cost of capital and market returns. The general idea behind CAPM is that investors need to be compensated for two reasons: time value of money  and risk. The time value of money is represented by the risk-free rate, Rf  in the equation and investors are being compensated for the forgone opportunity cost and time value of money due to their investment over a period of time. The other half of the equation represents the risk and the risk premium is the compensation for the investors for taking on any additional risk. It is calculated by using a risk measure (Beta) to the market premium (Rm-rf). The calculation of CAPM is as followed: Ri = Rf + ( Beta * Market Risk Premium ) where, Market Risk Premium = Rm Rf where, Ri = return on equity or portfolio Rm = return on the market portfolio Rf = return on risk-free asset Beta = sensitivity of security or portfolio to the systematic risk The equation indicates that the expected rate of return on asset i is equal to the rate of return on the risk-free asset plus a risk premium. The risk premium is calculated by multiplying beta with the difference between the expected rate of the return of the market portfolio and the risk-free rate. Risk free rate can be obtained from the return on Malaysian Treasury bill at particular time of the stock trading while beta can be calculate from the historical prices of stock and the market and the market return can be calculated based on the market index. To calculate the beta value, we need to first calculate the covariance of the security and the market. Second, we need to calculate the variance from market return. Next, we need to divide covariance of the particular security and market by variance of market to obtain the value of beta.

Data Encryption Essay -- Data Security

Missing Chart Encryption Encryption is a method of programming data for security so that it appears to be random data. Only the people sending and receiving the information have the key to decrypt the message, which will put it back into its original form making it readable. The only people with the key are the people who are intended to read the message. Not many people know what encryption is. I took a survey of twenty students and asked two questions. The first question I asked was do you know what encryption means and the second question I asked was have you ever heard of anybody using encryption. This is a chart of the information I received: Many people wonder exactly how encryption works. People think that encryption is the same thing as coding when in fact it is very different. Computer code is used to create software while encryption is used to disguise a message from the public. Coding such as ASCII and EBCDIC are used to create data that is publicly shared. With encryption, when you first put in a message, its goes in as plaintext. Plaintext is the text in its original form when it has not been encrypted. A message that has been encrypted is known as ciphertext. The process of converting plaintext to ciphertext is known as encryption. The process of changing ciphertext into plaintext is known as decryption (Parsons 328). In order to encrypt a message you need to use a cryptographic algorithm key. A cryptographic key can be a word, phrase or number that has to be known in order to encrypt or decrypt a message. Caesar created his own encryption method known as simple substitution. His encryption was to change the alphabet to start with D and continue with the alphabet from there. When he reached... ...n use your private key to encrypt them. It is basically the safest way to send e-mail. As I mentioned before, most people believe that encryption is a very complex process when in often it is very simple. Weak encryptions such as Caesars simple substation method prove how simple encryption can really be. Strong encryption can be nearly impossible to crack. You need a special computer and it can take a long time to figure out the message. Encryption such as the PGP method, are used to keep privacy through e-mails. Overall, encryption is mainly used for privacy and protection in all types of situations. Works cited Parsons, June Jamrich, Dan Oja. New Perspectives on Computer Concepts 8th Edition. Boston, MA: Course Technology. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encryption http://www.cesa8.k12.wi.us/media/digital_dictionary.htm

Quality Control :: essays research papers fc

Topics in Liberal Arts Math. Quality Control Quality control, as described through the Encarta Dictionary, is a system used in many companies, departments, and businesses for achieving or maintaining a desired level of quality in a manufactured product by inspecting samples and assessing what changes may be needed in the manufacturing process. To do this inspectors are hired and made to look over every step of the manufacturing process to make sure the product is as the company’s standards want it to be. There are many businesses that use this technique, but one in particular which hinges its success on the quality of its product is the food industry. In no other industry is quality control more important than in this field. If the quality is not checked in all products it can spell disaster for a food processing company. Not only can poorly processed food taste bad, but, in some instances it can lead to sickness, leaving the industry in a very difficult and possibly legally responsible situation. So, to prevent this, th e food industry, as well as many others, chose to use quality control in the form of sampling, to make sure their products go on the market not only tasting good, but being safe as well.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the food industry, quality control is used to make sure that only the tastiest product goes on the market, and in order to do this, only the best ingredients must be chosen for a company’s product. Take for example tomato paste. The most vital ingredient in tomato paste is just that, tomato. Therefore, a company specializing in tomato paste must first check and guarantee that all the tomato’s meet there specifications. The first step in this process would then have to be creating quality specifications. The most popular method amongst the food industry for creating this is checking the food product through what they call â€Å"food attributes†. In the case of a tomato this can be anything from color, size, shape, any damage on the tomato, and the hardness of the fruit. Once this is completed and agreed upon, inspectors are hired to overview and test a representative sample of the food, in this case tomatoes, to make sure the batch meets the specifications set out by the company.

Cell Phones :: essays research papers

Digital cell phone from Nokia Millions of people in the United States and around the world use cellular phones. They are such great gadgets -- with a cell phone, you can talk to anyone on the planet from just about anywhere! These days, cell phones provide an incredible array of functions, and new ones are being added at a breakneck pace. Depending on the cell-phone model, you can: Store contact information Make task or to-do lists Keep track of appointments and set reminders Use the built-in calculator for simple math Send or receive e-mail Get information (news, entertainment, stock quotes) from the Internet Play simple games Integrate other devices such as PDAs, MP3 players and GPS receivers But have you ever wondered how a cell phone works? What makes it different from a regular phone? What do all those confusing terms like PCS, GSM, CDMA and TDMA mean? In this article, we will discuss the technology behind cell phones so that you can see how amazing they really are. If you are thinking about buying a cell phone, be sure to check out How Buying a Cell Phone Works to learn about everything you should know before making a purchase. Let's start with the basics: In essence, a cell phone is a radio. One of the most interesting things about a cell phone is that it is actually a radio -- an extremely sophisticated radio, but a radio nonetheless. The telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876, and wireless communication can trace its roots to the invention of the radio by Nikolai Tesla in the 1880s (formally presented in 1894 by a young Italian named Guglielmo Marconi). It was only natural that these two great technologies would eventually be combined! In the dark ages before cell phones, people who really needed mobile-communications ability installed radio telephones in their cars. In the radio-telephone system, there was one central antenna tower per city, and perhaps 25 channels available on that tower. This central antenna meant that the phone in your car needed a powerful transmitter -- big enough to transmit 40 or 50 miles (about 70 km). It also meant that not many people could use radio telephones -- there just were not enough channels. The genius of the cellular system is the division of a city into small cells. This allows extensive frequency reuse across a city, so that millions of people can use cell phones simultaneously.

Math 213 Reflective Paper

Reflective Paper – Math 213 Math 213 is a class packed full of information valuable to the development of a professional math teacher. There were several major mathematical concepts addressed in the class ranging from problem solving, numeration systems and sets, whole numbers and their operations, to algebraic thinking, integers and number theory, rational numbers as fractions, decimals and real numbers, and proportional reasoning, percents, and applications. This class enhanced my understanding of math in general, as well as enabled me to explore strategies on how to best present mathematical concepts in an elementary classroom setting.Since children learn differently than adults do, and do not have prior knowledge to draw meaning from, an important characteristic of a professional math teacher is to have the ability to create a classroom environment where students are encouraged to take risks and explore problems while learning problem solving strategies. According to the c lass textbook, A Problem Solving Approach to Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers, â€Å"If problems are approached in only one way, a mind-set may be formed. † (Billstein, R. , Libeskind, S. , & Lott, J. 2010) Teachers need to give students a tool box of strategies, such as, look for a pattern, examine a related problem, identify a subgoal, make a diagram, or work backwards. While developing student’s problem solving skills, professional math teachers must begin to teach students to understand the meanings of whole numbers. This step will serve as scaffolding for students as they encounter more advanced concepts. Teachers should encourage the use of manipulatives, such as base-ten blocks, as they will help students relate whole numbers to something real.Teachers can also use Venn diagrams as they allow students to graphically organize material, which aids in the development of their analytical skills and teaches them to draw conclusions based on specific criteri a. Once mathematics teachers are able to create a solid base of knowledge, they can encourage their students to explore algebraic thinking, and expand their ability to think critically by the use of estimation and mental math. It is up to teachers to give students the skills to set up and solve algorithms that will help to build their math confidence and motivate them to expand on what they have learned.Teaching the concept of integers and number theory is a fundamental part of math curriculum. The ability of a professional mathematics teacher to tie in real world experiences, using hand on activities and manipulatives is essential in enabling students to build on mathematic ideas and understand how they interconnect. Also important is the concept of rational numbers as fractions, decimals, and real numbers. Teachers need to help ease the transition from whole numbers by clearly explaining the new rules and definitions students are unfamiliar with.By teaching the importance of ratio s, proportions, proportional reasoning, percents, and their real life applications, teachers are giving students the skills they need to become productive members of society. Proportional reasoning is one of the big ideas in math and if students are able to grasp this concept, they will be able to apply it in many instances in their lives. Teachers can assist students with this by providing interesting, well thought out problems that represent situations students will encounter in the future.This course influenced my philosophy on teaching math by helping me realize how important it is to facilitate mathematical learning through a variety of different learning experiences. I realized that there are often many ways to come up with the same answer, therefore problems should be presented in many in different contexts, as a means of seeing the same thing in a different light. This class also influenced my realization of the important role a math teacher plays not only in presenting info rmation, but in determining where a student went wrong when they do not grasp that information.I realized that for a teacher to be able to do this they must acquire a deep amount of pedagogical content knowledge and need to promote more than just procedural understanding when teaching math to their students. They need to present the â€Å"why†, and they need to be able to teach their students to make sense of mathematics by using reasoning and proof. This conceptual understanding comes from time and practice in a variety of contexts. Providing students with a multitude of mathematical experiences will help them understand math both inside and outside of the classroom.Most importantly, I realized that professional math teachers need to be good motivators. There were times in this class that I felt confused and wanted to give up. It was as if I were walking in my student’s shoes. This experience taught me that I will need to give my students positive encouragement and pl enty of feedback along the way. I will aim to challenge them mentally while providing the support they need to become successful learners. References Billstein, R. , Lineskind, S. and Lott, J. (2010). A Problem Solving Approach to Mathematics for Elementary School Teachers (10th ed. ). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Particular synonyms Essay

You will choose synonyms to replace the bold word in the sentences provided below. You will then write an explanation to explain why you chose these particular synonyms. Example: However, in a year that saw the social networking juggernaut Facebook turn a profit for only the first time, it was not clear whether Twitter could achieve financial independence from its venture capital investors. Synonym = powerhouse Explanation: I chose the word powerhouse, because the original word, â€Å"juggernaut† indicates that that Facebook forcefully took over the social networking industry. I wanted to use a word to indicate powerful success. Synonyms 1. Having demonstrated its versatility as a high-tech newswire, Twitter drew the attention of those who would prefer to see certain information suppressed. I would choose the word skillfulness, because versatility means you are skilled to do many things at once and are good at it. 2. Millions of users attempted to log into Twitter only to be greeted by the service’s iconic â€Å"fail whale,† the image of a cartoon whale being hoisted into the air by a flock of birds, signaling a site outage. Ideal; because it is an image from the service. When you are not a member. 3. Following the earthquake that struck Haiti in January 2010, Twitter reaffirmed its role as a powerful tool for the dissemination of information. I chose the word spread, because dissemination means to spread widely. Stating that Twitter is a powerful choice of media to spread information around the world. 4. Additionally, it became an effective fund-raising platform, when the Red Cross launched a mobile giving campaign that surpassed all expectations. Outcome; because they are talking about how the fundraiser was effective. Meaning an outcome. 5. High-profile users tweeted about the drive to help victims of the earthquake, and many of their followers tweeted and re-tweeted the message, helping the Red Cross raise more than $8 million through text messaging within 48 hours of the quake. Fundraiser; because they are talking about a way to help victims of the earthquake.

Comparison of Healthcare Policies between France and the US

Introduction This essay aims to critically discuss social policies on healthcare between France and the US. Similarities and differences on the social policies of these two countries will be discussed. The first part of this essay aims to explore how public funding for healthcare services in both countries address health inequalities. A critical discussion on healthcare services available in both countries and the extent to which universal access to healthcare services is practiced shall also be made. The second part presents the challenges that both countries face in addressing healthcare issues. Healthcare policies that address these issues will also be critically appraised. The third part provides an analysis on whether France and USA are ‘converging’ or following ‘path dependence’ on their healthcare policies. A brief conclusion summarising key points raised in this essay will be presented in the end. Healthcare Services and Public Spending for Healthcare The healthcare system in France is described as a mix of private and public insurers and providers (Cases, 2006). This means that almost the whole population is covered by public insurance, which in turn are funded by employers and employees. In addition to public health insurance, a minority also purchases private insurance to complement existing public health insurances. Private providers support outpatient care while public providers provide inpatient care in hospital settings (Cases, 2006). France enjoys relatively good health compared to the US. The Organisation for Co-operation and Development (OECD, 2013) Health Statistics in 2013 reveals that life expectancy in France is high at 82.2 and is currently ranked third amongst OECD countries. In contrast, life expectancy in the US is amongst the lowest at 78.7 (OECD, 2013). The difference in life expectancy in both countries is a cause of concern since the US has one of the most expensive healthcare systems in the OECD and yet fares worse in health outcomes, including life expectancy(Baldock, 2011). The OECD (2013) notes that compared to France and other large OECD countries, the US spends twice as much per individual on healthcare. Interestingly, public health expenditure for health is highest in the US compared to all OECD countries. However, it does not practice universal healthcare coverage with the public supporting only 32% of the total healthcare cost (OECD, 2011). Individuals eligible for Medicaid include the elderly, families with small children and those with disabilities (Rosenbaum, 2011). Approximately 53% of the US population is covered through the Patient Protection and Affordable Act or Obamacare (Rosenbaum, 2011). Under this Act, employers are required to purchase health insurances for their employees. Only a small portion of businesses pays for full coverage with majority requiring their employees to share in the cost of their health insurances (Rosenbaum, 2011). The OECD (2009a) states that 46 million people in the US are left without public or private health insurance. This could place a significant burden to the US healthcare system that is struggling in providing equitable access to healthcare services in the country. The World Health Organization (2014) explains that equitable access is achieved when individuals, regardless of their socioeconomic status, enjoy the same type and quality of healthcare. This is not achieved in the US where statistics (OECD, 2009a) continues to show that high-income groups enjoy better health and appropriately covered by healthcare insurances while those in the lower socioeconomic status continue to have poorer health status. This disparity in health status and healthcare insurance coverage continues to be a challenge in the US. Public spending per capita in the US continues to be the highest in the OECD countries even with the increased participation of the private sector in financing healthcare in the country (OECD, 2013). In recent years, the OECD (2013) observes that public spending across OECD countries continue to decline. On average, healthcare spending of these countries only grew by 0.2% in the last 4 years. While there is a variation on the decrease of public spending, the major reason for the slowdown is due to drastic cuts in health expenditures. In France, the Statutory Health Insurance (SHI) currently covers almost all residents. Until 2000, SHI covered 100% of all residents (Franc and Polton, 2006). Today, almost all of the residents are still covered under SHI. However, a few have purchased private health insurances to complement SHI. Public spending for healthcare is 77.9% while France spends 11.9% of its GDP in healthcare (OECD, 2011). This is in contrast with the US where public spending for healthcare accounts to only 47.7% but spends 17.9% of its GDP on healthcare (OECD, 2011). Interestingly, SHI covers both legal and illegal residents in France. This is opposite in the US where illegal residents are not covered by publicly funded healthcare insurance. There are approximately 21 million immigrants in the US with most having an illegal resident status (Moody, 2011). Health coverage remains to be a concern for this group since they work on jobs that pay very low wages and with no healthcare coverage. Hence, this group is three times more likely to have no healthcare coverage (Stanton, 2006). Currently, this group comprises 20% of the total uninsured population in the US (Moo dy, 2011). The lack of universal coverage in the US suggests that healthcare policies in the US may not be inclusive as opposed to France where almost all residents have private or public health insurance coverage. Rosenbaum (2011) explains that the Patient Protection and Affordable Act or Obamacare is expected to boost healthcare coverage for legal immigrants who are in low paying jobs. However, only legal immigrants who have been in the US for at least five years could qualify for Medicaid or purchase state-based health insurances. Currently, all states in the US have expanded Medicaid coverage to low-income groups. Specifically, a family of four with a combined annual income of $33,000.00 and an individual with $15,800.00 yearly income are now eligible for Medicaid. This legislation provides health coverage to approximately 57% of the uninsured population in the US (CDC, 2011). For legal immigrants who have not reached five years of stay in the US or are earning more than the Medicaid limit are allowed federal subsidy when purchasing state-based health insurances (CDC, 2011). As opposed to France where illegal immigrants enjoy the same healthcare coverage as legal immigrants and citizens, those in the US on illegal status remain uninsured and could not purchase state-based health insurances (CDC, 2011). Healthcare access for this group is limited to community health centres across the country. It is noteworthy that only 8,500 community health centres are in existence today and yet they cater to at least 22 million people each year (CDC, 2011). Almost half of those who access primary health centres are the uninsured. While hospitals are required by law to provide emergency care for all individuals regardless of their resident status, those who are uninsured do not have health coverage to sustain their long-term healthcare needs (Rosenbaum, 2011). Current healthcare policies in the US might actually promote health inequality since it only provides primary basic healthcare services (CDC, 2011) to the marginalised group, which may include low-income and ethni c groups. In France, The Bismarckian approach to healthcare has been used for several decades but in recent years, there is now an adoption of the Beveridge approach (Chevreul et al., 2010). In the former, health coverage tends to be uniform and concentrated while in the latter, the single public payer model is promoted. In the Bismarckian approach, everyone should be given the same access to healthcare services while the Beveridge model allows for stronger state intervention (Chevreul et al., 2010). This also suggests that tax-based revenues are used to finance healthcare. The mix of both models is necessary to respond to the increasing demands for healthcare in the country and to regulate the increasing cost of healthcare. Chevreul et al. (2010) emphasise that the SHI is now experiencing deficit due to increasing rise of healthcare expenditure in the country. The French parliament, through the Ministry of Health regulates expenditure by enacting laws and regulations. Importantly, France regulates prices of specific medical procedures and drugs (Chevreul and Durand-Zaleski, 2009). This development is crucial since failure to regulate prices could further drive up healthcare costs. However, regulation of prices of medical devices remains to be poor. In a survey (OECD, 2009b), expenditures for medical devices is high and amounts to ˆ19 billion annually. Although it comprises 55% of the pharmaceutical market, increased demand for medical devices have also increased SHI expenditures on these devices (Cases and Le Fur, 2008). It should be noted that only 60% of the medical devices are covered by SHI (Cases and Le Fur, 2008). Regulation of the prices of these medical devices is not as strong as the market for drugs and other major medical equipment. This implies that increasing healthcare costs of medical devices could have an impact on publ ic health spending policies in France. Healthcare Issues and Challenges One of the major issues in both countries is the rising healthcare expenditure. As noted by the OECD (2013), there is a disparity between healthcare expenditure and rising healthcare costs in OECD countries. The average increase in healthcare expenditure only amounts to 0.2% and yet healthcare cost continues to rise. In France, this disparity has promoted the Ministry of Health to increase private insurance of its members to help cover healthcare services not normally covered by the SHI. In the US, the debate on Obamacare and the reluctance of the government to cover illegal residents continue to be a challenge in providing equitable healthcare Meanwhile, high costs of medicines could have an impact on healthcare, especially amongst those who are covered by Medicaid and those who could barely afford state-subsidised healthcare insurances (Moody, 2011). This is in contrast to France where cost containment is in place for medicines. To illustrate the lack of healthcare costs regulations, the US spends more on developing medical technologies, which only benefits a few of the patients. The country is also burdened with high administration and pharmaceutical costs. Doctors in the country are also amongst the highest paid in the OECD countries (Greve, 2013). Moody (2011) argues that cost containment remains to be a problem since lowering down prices of medicines or healthcare costs for beneficiaries of Medicaid would lead to doctors’ reluctance to treat Medicaid patients. The lack of priorities in healthcare spending in the US has resulted in higher spending on certain areas and low spending on others. However, this does not translate to better health outcomes for the whole population. Elderly care is one area where there is high spending but the amount of spending does not necessarily translate to better health outcomes. As noted by Haplin et al. (2010), the elderly are more vulnerable to chronic healthcare conditions, such as dementia, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes. Hence, healthcare costs for this group are relatively higher compared to other members in a community. In a report published by Stanton (2006), approximately 40% of US healthcare expenditure is devoted to elderly care, but this group only comprises 13% of country’s population. It is projected that in the succeeding years, healthcare cost for this group will continue to rise with the ageing of the US population (Stanton, 2006). The same issue is also seen in France, where increasing healthcare cost for the elderly is also expected in the succeeding years (Franc and Polton, 2006). Both countries also lack coordination of care and gatekeeping for the elderly. Although there is an emphasis on elderly care in both countries, lack of continuity of care often leads to poor quality care, duplication of healthcare, waste and over-prescription (Franc and Polton, 2006; Evans and Docteur and Oxley, 2003; Stoddard, 2003). In France, this issue was first addressed through the creation of provider networks and increasing the gate-keeping roles of the general practitioners (GPs). However, the latter was largely unsuccessfully and finally abolished with the introduction of the 2004 Health Insurance Act (Franc and Polton, 2006). In this new legislation, patients have the freedom to choose their own healthcare providers or primary point of contact. Most of the primary points of contact are GPs. This scheme is successful in F rance due to incentives offered to the patients and GPs. This scheme has been suggested to improve the quality of care received by the patients since there is more coordination of care between GPs and specialists (Naiditch and Dourgnon, 2009). This scheme also drives up the cost of visits to specialists and could have influence healthcare financing policies (De Looper and La Fortune, 2009; Naiditch and Dourgnon, 2009). Another issue common to both countries is the competition between hospitals for patients who can afford private healthcare. Consumer demands for healthcare in the US have increased. Hospitals respond by increasing their services to separate them from their competitors (Moody, 2011). For instance, by-products of this competition results to increasing the size of the patient rooms and providing in-house services such as full kitchens, family lounges and business service. All these have not been related to improved health outcomes of the patients. In France, the differences in healthcare costs between publicly funded hospitals and private for-profit hospitals spark a debate on whether common tariffs are the solution to cost containment (Chevreul et al., 2010). Despite the implementation of common tariffs, there is still a growing difference on the healthcare costs between the private and public sectors. Currently, the reform plan Hospital 2007 (Chevreul et al., 2010) states that the obj ective of introducing a common tariff for public and private hospitals has been withheld until 2018. This shows that healthcare policies respond to current trends in health provision in France. ‘Convergence’ and ‘Path Dependence’ Starke et al. (2008) explain that history and institutional context all play a role in influencing healthcare policies in a welfare state. Healthcare policies that tend to be resistant to change illustrate institutionalist or ‘path dependence.’In the event where changes are needed, those that follow ‘path dependence’ change their policies but do so within the boundaries set in the original healthcare policies. On the other hand, healthcare policies that follow the ‘convergence’ pathway or functionalist perspective tend to integrate best practices and are more responsive to social, political and economic changes. Healthcare policies in France and the US tend to follow the ‘convergence’ pathway. The historical context of France reveals that a unitary presidential democracy was established in 1958 (Cases, 2006). In this system, the central government retains sovereignty and policies implemented in local or regional levels are approved by the central government. Despite the practice of central dirigisme, many regions in France have practiced coordination and decenstralisation. Political parties elected to the French government all have a common goal in financing the healthcare system in France. It practices cost-containment by regulating healthcare costs, reducing healthcare demands and restricting healthcare coverage (Chevreul and Durand-Zaleski, 2009). All these cost-containment policies have generally been met with public discontent. In recent years, the introduction of Supplementary Health Insurance enabled the French government to still deliver quality care at reasonable cost. Further, the introduction of direct payment, although reimbursable, also discourages wasteful consumption of healthcare (Chevreul and Durand-Zaleski, 2009). Although changes in healthcare policies tend to be restrictive more than three decades ago, France is now taking the ‘convergence’ pathway in its healthcare system. This suggests that healthcare policies are more responsive to social and economic changes. France also regards its people as equal but retain their freedom to choose a healthcare provider and hospital. The manner of healthcare financing in France allows service users to choose from competing healthcare professionals. Service users could also access specialists due to little gatekeeping in the country (Naiditch and Dourgnon, 2009). All these changes in the France’s healthcare system reflect ‘convergence’ rather than ‘path dependence’. Convergence in healthcare is also shown in both countries through its policies on increasing personal contributions of service users for healthcare (Mossialos and Thomson, 2004). There is also an increasing reliance on private health insurers to bridge the gap in public healthcare delivery. The increasing public-private mix exemplifies convergence. There is also a trend towards community healthcare and decentralisation of healthcare (Baldock, 2011; Chevreul et al., 2010; Blank and Burau, 2007). This trend relies on community healthcare practitioners to provide care in home or community settings. This has been practiced in other developed countries where patients with chronic conditions receive care in their own homes (Chevreau et al., 2010). This approach is also applied when caring for the elderly. Similar to other Welfare states, the US and France are experiencing population ageing. The proportion of the elderly in both countries is expected to rise in the succeeding years (Chevrea u et al., 2010). As mentioned earlier, this translates to increases in health expenditures and cost for this group. Marked increases in health expenditures for this group would mean further reduction on public spending or cost containment. All these could have an impact on public spending in the future and might increase insurance premiums of individuals. There is also the possibility of raising SHI contributions in France or reducing healthcare coverage of Medicaid in the US. Both strategies could fuel public discontent, increase the gap between the rich and the poor and promote health inequalities (OECD, 2008; Starke et al., 2008; Stanton, 2006). Since the main aim of the policies in both countries is to achieve optimal health for all, the realisation of this aim might be compromised with an ageing society. It is also noteworthy that since public funds are bankrolled by taxes, increasing number of elderly could mean reduction in number of employees who are economically productive. This could also lead to lower tax collections and decreased public funding for healthcare. As shown in both countries, healthcare policies are becoming more responsive to the social and economic changes. This does not only suggest a direction towards ‘convergence’ but suggests that this pathway could be the norm for many OECD countries. Conclusion Healthcare policies in the US and France have been influenced by social and economic changes in recent years. Although both aim to achieve universal coverage, it is only France that has achieved this with almost 100% of its citizens covered with healthcare insurance. The US is struggling to meet the healthcare needs of its citizens with almost 46 million still uninsured. Its Obamacare is still met with criticism for its failure to provide public healthcare coverage for most of its citizens. Only the poor and those unable to afford basic healthcare services are covered under Medicaid. In Obamacare, those with marginal incomes could purchase federal-subsidised healthcare insurances. Both countries are also faced with the challenge of an ageing society. The inequitable allocation of healthcare services to this group also promotes social discontent. Almost half of public expenditure is channeled to the elderly, which only comprises 13% of the whole population. The heightened demand for e lderly care, lowered public expenditure on healthcare and increasing healthcare costs have all influenced healthcare policies in the US and France. Finally, the recent changes in the healthcare policies of this country suggest convergence rather than path dependence suggesting that healthcare policies continue to be influenced by social and economic changes in both countries. It is recommended that future research should be done on how ‘convergence’ helps both countries respond to increasing complexities of healthcare in both countries. References: Baldock, J. (2011). Social policy, social welfare and the welfare state. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Blank, R. & Burau, V. (2007). Comparative health policy. London: Palgrave. Cases, C. (2006). ‘French health system reform: recent implementation and future challenge’. Eurohealth, 12, pp. 10-11. Cases, C. & Le Fur, P. (2008). ‘The pharmaceutical file’, Health Policy Monitort, May [Online]. Available from: http://www.hpm.org/survey/fr/all/2 (Accessed: 27th April, 2014). Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2011). NCHS Data Brief: Community Health Centers: Providers, Patients and Content of Care [Online]. Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db65.htm (Accessed: 27th April, 2014). Chevreul, K., Durand-Zaleski, I., Bahrami, S., Hernandez-Quevedo & Mladovsky, P. (2010). France: Health System Review 2010. France: The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, WHO Regional Office for Europe, World Bank, European Commission, UNCAM, London School of Economics and Politic Science, and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Chevreul, K. & Durand-Zaleski, I. (2009). ‘The role of HTA in coverage and pricing in France: toward a new paradigm?’. Euro Observer, 11, pp. 5-6. De Looper, M. & La Fortune, G. (2009). Measuring disparities in health status and in access and use of healthcare in OECD countries. 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