Hcl Project Report Essay Example for Free

Hcl Project Report Essay Before I begin my documentation I must thank all the people behind the successful completion of my project. I am especially thankful to my industry guide Mr. Vinod Rai for his valuable and enlightened guidance. I am highly grateful to him for providing me an opportunity to undergo the project in his presence. Despite his hectic schedule he showed a keen interest in my research and helped a lot in broadening my vision for the topic. My thanks again go to him for providing me all the required help to compile the data and other information to materialize the study. I am also grateful to my faculty mentor Mr. Tarun Kumar Vashisth for his guidance and kind support throughout the project. I must also not forget to mention the names of people in the organization who pumped me with immense confidence and support without which it would have been impossible to complete the project, hence with warm regards I would like to thank Mr. Sunil Bhatt Mr. Shammi S. Bhatia Ms. Priyanka Ms. Parbhaker PREFACE This project is based on the study of working capital management in HCL Infosystems. An insight view of the project will encompass – what it is all about, what it aims to achieve, what is its purpose and scope, the various methods used for collecting data and their sources, including literature survey done, further specifying the limitations of our study and in the last, drawing inferences from the learning so far. HCL Infosystems Limited (HCL) is a leading domestic computer hardware services company. HCL is engaged in selling manufactured (like PCs, servers, monitors and peripherals) and traded hardware (like notebooks, peripherals) to institutional clients as well as in retail segment. It also offers hardware support services to existing clients through annual maintenance contracts, network consulting and facilities management. The working capital management refers to the management of working capital, or precisely to the management of current assets. A firm’s working capital consists of its investments in current assets, which includes short-term assets— cash and bank balance, inventories, receivable and marketable securities. This project tries to evaluate how the management of working capital is done in HCL Infosystems through inventory ratios, working capital ratios, trends, computation of cash, Inventory and working capital, and short term financing. DECLARATION I Ajay hereby declare that research project submitted to punjabi university, patiala in partial fulfillment of the degree of BBA on Working Capital is the result of my own hard work under continues guidance of Mr. Vinod Rai , HCL CDC Chandigarh.

Training, Development And MNC Performance

Training, Development And MNC Performance Abstract- Training and development is basically related with the Human resource management which is concerned with the activities of an organization aiming at betterment of the performance of an individual and groups in setting of organizations. The training and development is also well known with some of the other names which are employee development, learning and development and human resource development. When we observe the international training and development, then it encompasses basically three main types of activities which are education, training and development. Training is a type of activity which focuses upon and evaluated against the job that is currently held by an employee whereas education is the activity that focuses upon the job which may be potentially held by the employee in near future and is evaluated against these jobs. The last activity is development which mainly focuses upon the activities of an organization that employs an individual or the individual is the part of or may take part in the future and almost impossible to eliminate. The research is done on the methodology which shows us the relation between the international training and development and the performance of Multi-National Company. The process of training and development is applied on the employees to make sure that there is skilled and willful workforce present to work for an organization and in addition to that there are other four objectives which are also focused to meet the requirement which are Individual, Organizational, Functional and Societal objectives. Literature Review- A well known observer Harrison that the other names of the training and development were endlessly discussed by the chartered institute of personnel and development during the review of the professional standards in the year of 1999 or 2000. Employee development was seen as the evocative of the master slave relationship between the employee and employer which have given the names to their employees as associates or partners which they are comfortable with. If we review history then Human Resource Development was rejected by academics which was objected due to a reason that is the people were considered as resources. Eventually the CIPD decided on the process of learning and development which was either not free of problems where learning was considered as ambiguous and over general name where the field is also known by some other names. There are many conflicts which are the best part of the consequences of the career which take place between the employees and their bosses observing that there is a need of training and development which is a needed in the better performance of the Multi National companies. Research Aims and Objectives- Aim- Main aim behind performing the research on the topic is to understand the concept of the international training and development in the Multi National Companies and the performance which is affected by it. Objectives- The main objective behind the research is to find the use and benefit of international training and development which are performed by the Multi National Companies. There are many other objectives which are met from the international training and development such as individual objectives, organizational objectives, functional objectives and societal objectives. Research MethodologyÂÂ ­- There are two main type of doing research: Qualitative Quantitative In this particular research Qualitative research methodology is used. This research is based upon qualitative analysis of data. Secondary sources are used for this research. Analysis of secondary resources is included in this section. International training and development is one of the branches of the Human Resource management which is considered as the new term since 1930s. The international training and development is a sub system of the organization which ensures that the learning and behavioral change should be accepted in the structured format and the randomness should be reduced. There are two approaches towards the development of the international training and development which are Traditional Approach Modern Approach When we talk about the Traditional Approach then there was no term related to the training which was considered by the organizations applying the basic fundamentals like managers were born not made as it was running from decades. There were some views about the training that is it is too costly affair and not worth and some of an organization used to believe more on the executive pinching instead now the scenario has changed or seems to be changing. When we look at the modern approach towards the training and development then some Multinational Companies have realized about the importance of the corporate training which could immensely effect their reputation or status in the positive or negative manner. It is nowadays more considered as the retention tool instead of the cost. The training systems used in the multi-national companies are basically aimed at creating smarter workforce and yielding the best results in favor of organization. There are many objectives set by various MNCs which has principal objective of training and development division to make sure about the availability of the skilled and willing workforce to a Multi National company in addition with that there are four other objectives which are Organizations, Individual, Societal and functional objectives. Essentiality of International Training- Conventional training is basically required to cover up all the skills related to the work, techniques and knowledge and mostly sections deals with the positive approach to some sort of traditional approach of training. There are many ways to develop people or employees but the best way to make development in people is quite different from the traditional approach of training from the conventional skills training and it is the most effective way to allow personal development and learning with all that this implies. As soon as we have covered the basic work related skills training there are many other things which is described in this section which focus on the development and learning of the people as individuals which has extended the range of development apart from the traditional work and knowledge and make way for more creative work which creates opportunities like liberating, motivational and exciting for people. As we all know about the Profit which is achieved through approachable training and development of the skills of the people well with the development of the people enabling of profit take place. The Multi National Companies which approach international training and development with an aim of fostering people who have performed well and progress is seen in their progress card and should stay in the company for the long time to become perfect at what they do and also help others to become so. As we have many times used the term training for our daily purpose which is features heavily in the coming paragraphs but the term learning could be used as improved way to approach a subject as the term learning relates with the term learner whereas trainer generally belongs to the person who needs training that is trainer or the organization. When we observe the training from the realistic perspectives then corporate attitudes and expectations from the term training cannot be changed overnight a nd most of the organizations perform training so as to improve the work skills, classrooms and power point presentations. There are many other ways to develop people apart from the traditional skills of training for example (Green) Facilitating personal development Enable learning to become learner. It helps people to achieve and identify their potential Training ideas and Outline process- There is relatively simple overview present of the models, processes and tools which are found for the effective delivery or planning of the training required in the organization. Various points which are included in the above process for international training and development in the Multi National Companies are- Various training needs should be understood well and there should be some sort of training needs analysis process or DIF analysis conducted to improve the training process or the drawbacks which the company is facing could be retrieved through the analysis resulting in the improvement of those points which commonly happens in the appraisal process. This type of training analysis involves the people who identifies and agrees on the relevant aligned training and considers the values of company and ethics and spirituality at work. Some light should be thrown at the recruitment processes so that there are no point training people who are not capable of doing the job. There should be creation of training and development specifications which identifies about our training and in the development of the people which must be break down into the manageable elements and each element should be attached with standards, measures or some parameters. There are many tools which are useful in this kind of training purposes but the best tools which can be used are 360 degree process and template, training planner. The skill sets and the training needs analysis which we have learnt in the above point should be revisited which can help in organizing and training elements assessment on the large scale. There should be difference in the learning styles and personality which should be considered as peoples learning style greatly affect in the types of training which can be found to be most easiest and effective and sometimes personality types are also considered and it should be always remembered that we are dealing with the people instead of objects as they are filled with the feelings, skills and knowledge. Models like Erikson model and Johor Window is the wonderful mean to better understand this type of training and the team or their group also helps in the understanding the training needs which could be helped by the Adairs theory and Tuckman model. There should be better planning and evaluation which is to be performed that considers effectiveness of the evaluation training including before and after measurements. Various models are also included in this kind of training need such as Kirkpatrick model and that helps to structure training design. Blooms theory should also be considered that can help us to understand about what type of development we are addressing to with this theory there are other activities which should be considered which are team activities and exercises. The tips like self studying program design should be observed as they offer more opportunities than ever. Design materials, methods and deliver training are the tools which can be used to determine the needs of training and development in the company. The methods which are innovative should be considered such as business balls communities which have lots of providers and ideas. Running meetings, workshops and presentations should also be considered as an important aspect for delivery. The training providers selection template could be used on the sales training page which is adopted by the providers and services. There are many ways or methods of training and development such as Internal training courses Classroom training On the job training Skills training Behavioral training Technical training Training assignments The training is also available outside and beyond the classroom where most importantly training and learning are the topics which are indeed to look at from the trainees view where view refers to the offer is learning and developmental experience. There are various aspects which are included in the international training and development such as ethics and morality, leadership and determination and attitude and behavior in addition with the skills and knowledge. We have seen that many organizations face various challenges of developing answer findings, initiatives, self-belief and predicament solving capabilities within their people. There are certain requirements of organizations where they need self sufficient, creative, autonomous and resourceful staff at all the levels which can contribute to the overall performance of an organization. The behavior of the staff tells about the operations which they can perform at the higher strategic level which makes their company more productive and competitive in the market where peoples effort are more considered to produce bigger result. There are many types of training which we have studied in which conventional skills training provides people with the new methods and techniques which will not help in their courage, maturity and belief that are essential for the progress of the managerial capabilities which focus on developing the person instead of their skills. In the period of training there can be participative workshops which can be included in the beginning as it involves people right from the starting and focus on what they want. There could be also personal development questionnaire to set the scene and examples should be provided of alternative learning opportunities. General Training Tips- The tips which will be mentioned below is applicable to usual work related training for the transfer of necessary job and work related skills instead these tips do not apply automatically to the other forms of personal development and learning which can involve much wider development methods and experiences. During the planning of the training these are some of the points which should be kept in mind- Personal objectives Number of trainee Methodology and usage of format Time period of training Location of training Effectiveness of training Reaction or feedback of the trainees Whenever some Multi-national companies provides skills training to a trainee, they use these five step approach Prepare the trainee- they provide time to relax them as some of the employees could find learning new things stressful in the beginning. Explain the job, task- the methods, standards, necessary tools, equipments and system should be explained and discussed. Provide a demonstration- a step by step process is more complex as more and more steps could be difficult to learn so always show the correct way and accentuate the positive in addition with feedback and check understanding. The trainees should actually perform the job which would help in learning more by practical applications of the equipments and services. The progress is monitored which gives positive feedback and people should be encouraged, coach and adapt with the pace of development. These were the five steps which are provided to the trainee in their training period so as to make perfection in their actual work performed in the company. Creating charts and using them could be helpful as they are essential for complex work where we cannot measure it and it is essential to use the training tools for various purposes such as accessing, recording, planning, measuring and following up the persons training. Training Planning Factors- The guidelines which will be provided below will be dealing with the conventional work skills training and development beyond which the issues of personal development and learning will be the most noteworthy areas of the personal development which is to be focused on. There are various areas which should be included to plan the traditional training of work skills and capabilities which link the improvement of the organizational performance which needs to identify the needs, priorities and gaps in the organizational performance. It will not be possible to include so many aspects which determine the need of the training or there are various training drivers which will produce the results which is cost effective in terms of business performance which are- (rae) Surveys on customer satisfaction Financial reports and ratios. Statistics and reports on business performance Feedback on the training needs Legislative pressures Relevant qualification and certification program. Staff Assessment centre and training audits. Management feedback on the needs of the employee Competitor analysis and comparison which could be done by SWOT analysis. Strategic priorities and Director driven policy The indicators and results are picked from the chosen driver to produce the priority needs of the training as per the staff which will enable staff and management to accomplish improvements required by an organization. Development of Resources for Training- There is a need of resources to perform a fully fleshed training with all the facilities which can result in becoming independent in work and life. People who are having plenty of resources are tend to be well developed individuals, capable of teaching and leading others, enabling and assisting the change in groups and organizations, able to convey the enjoyment and advantages finding the answers. Resources help in answering questions that are considered as one of the indispensable needs of work and life. Resources are generally used for developing people or making improvement is something which could be small and realization for a single individual and if you build effective relevant resources then obviously it will become effective and more relevant. Discussion- Training is given to make sure the accessibility of both skilled and the workforce which is willing to work to an organization and this is the main objective of training and development union. Information that is shared through training is one of the most valuable tools for developing the most valuable asset which are employees. The main aim of all the training whether it is local or international is the empowerment of the employees and increment in the productivity. All the multinational companies give training to their employees for making the process more efficient also more effective and the main reason behind this is the satisfaction of the customer. For improving the overall performance of the organization is also related to the proper training of the employees of that organization. Nowadays international training is very important because it helps in maintaining the skill levels and the advance skill and knowledge given to the employees improves their performance which finally results in increasing the profitability which includes productivity and manpower. International training given to the employees by the multinational companies helps in establishing the standards for work practices. The frequent changes in the technology affects the requirements of jobs but the proper training can respond to the changes in technologies and also to the organizational restructuring. Development of the career is very important for a working person or an employee of multinational company; proper training supports the career development of the employees. For every successful employee training is very important because it fulfills all the needs of the employees which are required for their growth and development. These days the multinational companies give more emphasis on the international training of the employee rather than the local training because the international training give more ideas about the whole world and also develops the mind of the employee for facing a ll the bottlenecks that comes regularly in the path and this results in the all around performance of that employee. (Sims, 1998) Most of the multinational companies invest huge money for developing and purchasing of assets used in training and the main purpose behind this is to build and extend their capabilities. According to the survey of one of the multinational company it was found that in 2009 that company gave international training to their 3500 employees and also provided the self training courses. These companies also provides various types formal and also informal training programs for helping their employees to acquire the special skills. Formal training given to the employees by the company helps in building of their experience and also their practical knowledge in real life. Employees are given training for achieving various mission and goals of the company. Training and development gives knowledge to the employees about delivering of the quality solutions with the help of practical tools and methods. This development provides the further progress and gives various opportunities like to master a core-curriculum. This curriculum depends on certain factors and it changes with the level of the employee, deployment of growth platform and specialization but it involves the developing features like expertise of technology and industry, professional skills like leadership, management, business selling etc. These days multinational companies are also focusing on the online training for their employees. In this type of training employees of the company are trained on the computer and there is no need of going somewhere which means travelling is not required in this training by the employees. International training offers great advantage to the employers and the employees and its good effects are seen when an employee is send to an external program of training or in a seminar. This type of training increases the confidence and also the mental growth of the employees working in the multinational companies etc. Proper training and development of the training capabilities of the employees leads to increment in the advantages for organization. The employees should be made familiar with the goals, strengths and weakness of the company, environment culture etc. All these factors give a unique advantage to the employees over the trainer who has the responsibility to learn all these factors like company strengths and weaknesses, environment culture etc. The high performing multinational companies are recognizing the needs of using various practices for training and development for enhancing their competitive advantage. For every multinational company training and development is an essential tool if they want to harness and grows the potential of its employees. There is a clear link between the strategic training and development initiatives and the bottom line present in the company. The image of a multinational company and its employers are reflected by the quality and also the extent of training of staff and development. In todays business world all the multinational companies are facing the shortage of the experience and the skillful staff and because of this companies are facing the competition which includes both internal and external for quality employees. An employer who gives 100 percent with full seriousness in the field of training and development gets the entire benefits of a working environment which is enriched with the staff retention of the higher level and also the increased productivity and the performance of the employee in all fields of work. There are various key drivers of training initiatives and these three drivers are health and safety, changes in technique and the last one is the customer service. Now days multinational companies are using training and development as a gift for retaining and motivating the people and to be treated as the employer and also giving staff the skill and knowledge which is required for the technological change and services related to the customer. According to one of the survey most of the multinational companies gave support to the employees for perusing the outside educational programmers related to the work of their company. This support of the company for their employer consists of financial aid and also the time off for both study and the exam leave. The benefits of both these initiatives are very difficult to qualify but the fields like turnover of the staff and morale are main factors of the success in this field. The amount of money spend and the number of days spend on the training of the staff is very useful in getting an overview of the multinational companies which are committed to the development and the training. But the success of the multinational company is determined by the approach and the content of the initiatives of the training and by their assessment and follow up. The initiatives of the training requires the strategically alignment to the mission and goals of the company and they requires design and delivery for helping the staff for achieving their departmental and the personal goals also. The training initiatives become more targeted, measurable and effective when strategic approach is adopted for the training and development. Training delivery also requires assessment in terms of reaction, learning, change of behavior etc for the determination of the added value to the company. There are various things about training like some of the employees of the multinational companies are worried by the external training or it may also give them feeling that company is not doing fare job by sending them on the offered courses. This is the situation where the appraisal system helps greatly because training is directly linked to the job role and objectives. Most of the employees of the multinational companies welcome the opportunities for developing new skills and for gaining further qualifications. Training and development opportunities can be important factor in retaining staff only when it is offered to the staffs that are keen and interested in their progress. There are various types of trainings but the multinational company should choose that sort of training for their employees that suit both company and the employees. There are many benefits in having a training and development in multinational companies and they are: All the training and the development programmers are agreed between the employees and the company and they linked with each other for meeting the companys objective. Another benefit is that all the employees of the multinational company get equal access and equal opportunities for training and development. Because of international training and development employees can gain recognition for the knowledge and also the skills by achievement of qualifications which are vocationally relevant. The activity of training and development is evaluated for ensuring that it is meeting the identified needs. In order to help the individual to develop perfect curriculum vitae, records of the activities of training are kept. There are various methods of training and development: First is the on the job training and this training is related to the formal training on the job. Due to job over time worker becomes experienced due to the modification in the behaviors of the job at the point of acquisition of skills. Second is the orientation method which is carried out for entrants on the job for making them familiar with the overall requirements of corporate which includes various norms, ethics, values and all the rules and regulations. One method of training is apprenticeship and it is a method of training where a skilled person is understudied by the unskilled person. Another method of training and development is the demonstration and in this type of method the jobs are performed by the skilled workers and it is observed by the unskilled workers with the purpose of understanding the job. The last method of training and development is termed as the vestibule and this type of method is performed through industrial attachment for the objective of transfer of skills and technology. In this method training and development is achieved through the placement of an individual in another area of relevant work or another company. This process has effects on the individuals in acquiring the practical and the specialized skills. There is one more method of training and development that we have discussed above and that method is the formal training which includes the practical and the theoretical process of teaching. Trainings are often neglected by some of the companies because of urgency of need, time of the training, cost of the training, turnover of the employees, due to the diversification of the workers etc. But these should not be kept in mind by the companies for training and development. Training and development is very useful for many purposes but the significant importance of international training and development is the increase in sales. As training and development expands the business of the multinational company and it also provides the better customer service which in turn helps in increment of the sales of the company. Training and the development programmers helps employees a lot because these programs value employees to put some time into making them better and the best thing about training and development is that they value the thinking of the employees of the company and due to these programmers only the employees of the multinational company dont quit the companies. Training and development gives more time to the supervisor for management, standardized performance, less turnover, more customers and finally the better service. Training and development gives confidence to the workers for doing their jobs properly, reduces the tension of the workers, morale boosting, satisfaction of job to the employees and it also gives them the chance of advancing their skills, knowledge etc. For the multinational companies international training and development provides a good image which is most important for every company and which finally results in more profit for the multinational companies. After all the discussions it is concluded that training and development is very important for all the multinational companies. Conclusion- Training and Development which is also referred as learning and development are one of the most tactful aspects of our lives and work. As we observe our culture we have given more values to the training which is till now followed by various Multi-National Companies despite of attending so many years of schooling there are many amongst us who does not have knowledge about carefully designing an approach to training and development. The research of the training and developments performed shows us about various types of training which can be performed on the trainee and analysis of the development should be monitored timely so as to make decisions on the gaps coming in the performance of the trainee. (McNamara) There are explanations given on the basis of the performance of the Multi-National companies adopting some certain criteria to fulfill their needs of the training and to study the scenario which is changing day by day with the passage of time. There is a need of resources to fulfill the needs of training and development in the companies which are described above. There has been discussion performed on the training field of the multinational companies and development which can be seen in the performance of the trainee. The whole scenario describes about the benefits and the use of training which was not considered in the past.

A Microeconomic Analysis Of British Petroleum Economics Essay

A Microeconomic Analysis Of British Petroleum Economics Essay BPs (British Petroleum) origins can be traced back to 1901 when William Know tried to explore oil in Persia. The first commercial oil discovery was made in the Middle East by BP in 1908. In 1935, the company prospered and was renamed the Anglo- Iranian Oil Company. The war effort resulted in the British government becoming a shareholder of the company (until 1987). In 1950, Anglo-Iranian expanded into petrochemicals. The Iranian nationalization of the oil industry and subsequent diplomatic solution involving Britain, the US, and Iran led to the emergence of a new consortium involving Anglo-Iranian Oil called The British Petroleum Company (founded in 1954). 1.2 Company Overview BP is one of the largest vertically integrated oil and gas companies in the world. The companys operations primarily include the exploration and production of gas and crude oil, as well as the marketing and trading of natural gas, power, and natural gas liquids. BP is headquartered in London, the UK and employs about 92,000 people. 1.3 Why choosing BP for the essay The company recorded revenues of $361,143 million during the financial year ended December 2008 (FY2008), an increase of 27% over the financial year ended December 2007 (FY2007). The operating profit of the company was $36,347 million during FY2008, an increase of 9.2% over FY2007. The net profit was $21,157 million in FY2008, an increase of 1.5% over FY2007. 1.4 Business Description BP is one of the worlds largest oil and gas companies. It has presence in more than 100 countries across six continents. The company operates through two reportable business segments: exploration and production; and refining and marketing. The company also operates through a third business segment, other businesses and corporate. Upstream activities involve oil and natural gas exploration and field development and production. The midstream operations involve the ownership and management of crude oil and natural gas pipelines, processing and export terminals, and LNG processing facilities and transportation. For the FY2008, BPs worldwide network consisted of some 22,600 locations branded BP, Amoco, ARCO, and Aral. BPs retail network in the US for the FY2008 comprised approximately 11,700 sites, of which approximately 9,200 were owned by jobbers (who purchase their products directly from the refining companies and either sell them to retailers or directly to the end users) and 900 operated under a franchise agreement. At the end of FY2008, BPs European retail network consisted of approximately 8,600 sites and had approximately 2,300 sites in the rest of world. Other businesses and corporate segment of the company comprises treasury (which includes interest income on the companys cash and cash equivalents) the companys aluminum asset, the alternative energy business, and shipping and corporate activities worldwide. 1.5 What we will discuss Not a clue yet. 2. ANALYSIS 2.1 Microeconomic analysis 2.1.1 Consumer demand, price elasticity and BP revenues for FY 2008 We will take one example here to analyse the law of demand and how it applies to BP. For this specific example we will use petrol as product. In general, the law of demand states that the quantity demanded of a good falls when the price of the good rises (assuming other things equal). To represent this change, the demand curve is used. It is a graph that represents the relationship between the price of a product (petrol in this case) and the quantity demanded. demand.JPG Figure The Demand Curve (image taken from www.freeworldacademy.com) As you can see in figure1, when the price increased from P1 to P2 the quantity demanded dropped from Q1 to Q2. Changes in the demand curve can be caused by many factors such as the consumer income, the price of substitutes and others. There are 2 categories of goods though. The ones that the demand doesnt change a lot when price is changed and those that even a small price change will result in a huge change in the demand. This is called the elasticity of demand. The price elasticity of demand for petrol is inelastic (price elasticity inelastic.JPG Figure Inelastic demand You can see here that an increase in price (p1 to p2) leads to a decrease in quantity (q1 to q2) that is proportionately smaller. This results in an increase of the total revenue of the company. Lets see how BP performed. revenue.JPG Figure BP revenue in 2008 (BP annual review) BP recorded revenues of $ 361.143 million in the year 2008 compared to $ 284.365 million in 2007. This large revenue increase is partially due to the very high oil price. Peter Sutherland (BP chairman) said in his speech in February 2009: There are few precedents in history for such a rapid and dramatic change in the business environment. In the space of a few months we went from a record oil price of more than $140 per barrel, and BP reporting two consecutive quarters of record profits for the group. This profitability in 2008, in theory can be based to the price effect which states that after a price increase, product (petrol) sells at a higher price, which tends to higher revenue. The sales effect doesnt apply here because we are talking about inelastic demand. 2.1.2 Oil Market Structure (supply curve, market equilibrium, total surplus) Its difficult and most times inaccurate to try and analyse the supply curve for inelastic products. A supply curve illustrates firms willingness to supply at particular prices. But in the oil industry there are exogenous factors that affect the prices. When a factor changes we say we have shifts in supply. That can be anything, for example a change in the number of firm selling petrol, a change in the price of a factor input (oil exploration expenses) or a change in technology. In our case, the supply is not affected by customers willingness to buy. Someone will buy petrol at any price in order to cover their needs (e.g drive to work). But in theory, the more quantity requested, the higher the price set by the firm. In the case which the price has reached the level where quantity supplied equals quantity demanded, we use the term equilibrium. On a graph, it is the price at which the supply and demand curves intersect. The total surplus refers to the total net gain to consumers and pr oducers from trading in the market. IT is the sum of the producer and consumer surplus. But in practice the things are a little bit different. There is always need for more petrol (or oil products generally). This means that BP and other firms can produce as much petrol as they want. The boundaries here are if the petroleum firms can produce more petrol. Its clear that the firm that can sell more barrels of oil, they will generate more revenue and gain more market share. BPs performance in the last 10 years has been exceptional well. They improve and increase the production every single year and thats due to increased refining availability. In the next page (figure4) you can see some of the performance factors. performance.JPG Figure BPs performance (picture taken from BPs annual report 2008) As you can see in the photo, the production was high but a bit lower that the year 2006. This is due to the unstable economy and prices in the last 2 years. BP still managed to increase their profits by improving their processes. The highlights of the year are: replacement cost profit of $ 25.594 million (up 39%), capital expenditure and acquisitions of $ 30.700 million and share price increase. The complete table with data will be attached in the appendix. 2.1.3 Government legislation (competition policy and carbon trading) The competition policies are different from country to country. We will talk about the policies in England as the BP is a british firm. In the UK there is the role of Director of fair trading and their job is to supervise the behaviour of companies. If they think that a firm is doing something is not supposed to do then they can refer those firms to the Competition Commission for investigation. The maximum market share that a company can hold is less than 25% of the total market. If it exceeds this limit the Director of fair trading can refer the company to the Competition Commission. Also, firms are not allowed to collude because this way they restrict the competition by setting prices. Also, because many companies operate in Europe or worldwide, there are other organisations that keep an eye on firms strategy. In the oil industry the top 3 competitors are : Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell and BP. BP is the second largest refining and fuel retailing firm in the UK and third in the world. In their effort to become the largest petroleum and offer high variety of products, BP merged or acquired other firms over the past few years. The companys key products and services now include the following: Aromatics and acetyls, petrochemical products, oil and gas exploration and production, lubricants downstream derivative products, aluminum coil and other. To produce their products, firms utilise big amounts of energy. This energy usually comes from burning fossil fuels. For example, oil and coal are used to generate electricity. By burning these fuels, greenhouse gas is emitted in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is a pollutant and the European governments have set rules to try to reduce the emissions. The reason the firms dont care much about pollution is because they maximise profit by reducing their costs. Nowadays though, they have to pay big amounts of money depending how much they pollute the environment (surplus permits). BP is helping to meet the worlds growing demand for sustainable and affordable energy, building alternative energy businesses with the potential to grow and compete far into the future. gas.JPG It is also impressive how much money BP invests in alternative energy, $ 1.4 billion just in 1 year. The total cost they are willing to invest is $ 8 billion. Alternative sources of energy BP is experimenting with are: Wind (432MW), Solar(162MW) and Biofuels. Moreover, they are running a project called CCS that stands for Carbon Capture and Storage. What CCS does is capturing the CO2 emitted during the burning and processing of fossil fuel. Then, it is transported and stored in deep geological formations such as gas or oil fields. CCS technology is supported by the government and the target is a worldwide implementation that will help reduce the problem of global warning. 2.2 Macroeconomic Analysis 2.2.1 2.2.2 3. CONCLUSION Based on your analysis, state your recommendations describing the possible strategies that the firm can consider.

CHINA TAIWAN :: essays research papers

Taiwan opposition leader James Soong urged the island's independence-leaning leaders to take advantage of his "bridge-building" trip to mainland China to seek cross-strait peace. "People from both sides of the strait are longing for peace ... Mainland leaders have also showed sincerity in improving cross-strait relations," Soong told reporters at the airport upon return from his nine-day visit to China. He added Friday that China had announced a number of concrete steps to boost bilateral ties, including a promise to push for direct air links in 2006. "Peace is in our own hands," said Soong, chairman of the People First Party. Pushing for independence for Taiwan, he warned, could destroy peace prospects. China sees Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting eventual reunification since they split at the end of the civil war in 1949 and has regularly threatened to invade if the island moves towards formal independence. Soong also said Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian had "promised not to promote independence through constitutional amendments". He was referring to Saturday's elections, in which voters were to elect a 300-member National Assembly to decide on a package of constitutional reforms, including whether referenda could be used to amend the constitution. Beijing has opposed referenda, which it sees as a step Taiwan could take toward declaring formal independence. Saturday's poll is seen as a litmus test of support for the island's independence-minded leaders and the opposition, who favour closer ties with China, following recent visits there by two opposition leaders. Soong's trip followed the historic visit to China by Lien Chan, chairman of the main opposition Kuomintang party. Both Lien and Soong said their trips were meant to bridge differences between the two rival governments and pave the way for peace talks. Beijing also agreed to simplify visa application procedures for Taiwanese and to offer incentives to Taiwanese studying on the mainland, according to a joint statement released after Soong's talks with China's Hu Jintao. Hu and Soong also pledged to push for cross-strait peace talks under a "two sides, one China" principle and oppose independence for Taiwan. President Chen, who stresses Taiwan's independence and sovereignty, immediately rejected the peace overture. "Should we accept the 'one-China principle', Taiwan would be Hong Kong-ized and become part of the People's Republic of China, a scenario which is by no means acceptable to the 23 million people in Taiwan," Chen said Thursday.

Bitter Imagery in Hamlet Essay -- GCSE English Literature Coursework

Bitter Imagery in Hamlet In Hamlet, imagery of disease, poison and decay, are used by Shakespeare for a purpose. The descriptions of disease, poison, and decay help us understand the bitter relationships that exist in the play and Hamlet’s own cynicism. We see Hamlet’s pessimism in his soliloquy when he contemplates suicide. The resentful relationship that exists between Claudius and Hamlet is heightened with the use of imagery when Claudius asks about Polonius. Imagery enhances Claudius’ abhorrence of Hamlet. Shakespeare uses imagery in this play to deepen our understanding of the emotions experienced. The imagery of decay is used to help comprehend the depression Hamlet feels in his first soliloquy about suicide. "O that this too sullied flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew," (I;ii, 129-130) Hamlet is basically communicating that he wishes not to exist in this world anymore. He wants to die and be apart of the ground. An image of Hamlet’s flesh, rotting, combining with the soil is produced. At this moment we can grasp Hamlet’s true emotions. We feel his pain and his yearn for death. Hamlet continues to say "How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable/ Seem to me all the uses of this world! Fie on’t, ah, fie, ‘tis an unweeded garden/ That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature /Possess it merely."(I;ii, 133-137) Here, Hamlet says his reason for wanting to commit suicide is that he hates the world he lives in. He feels that the world around him is useless and in disarray. We can understand the true motivation for his suicide. Shak espeare lets us peer into Hamlet’s soul by creating these vivid images. Claudius’ relationship with Hamlet is drea... ...hance Hamlet's pessimism of life. Imagery is also used significantly in portraying the sour emotions that exist between Hamlet and Claudius. When Claudius questions Hamlet of the whereabouts of Polonius we see the foul relationship with the help of imagery. As Claudius acknowledges Hamlet's behaviour and insanity, he reveals the anger he feels towards Hamlet. In Hamlet's soliloquy, with reference to suicide, imagery shows us his dark feelings. In Hamlet we truly see what a great deal of depth imagery provides us with. Imagery of disease, poison and decay gives us a chance at really understanding the true emotions that the characters experience in their mind and soul. With the imagery created by Shakespeare, we as readers, can actually comprehend the feelings that are experienced by the characters in Hamlet, that are not always obvious but important.

Let’s be Lefties for a Day Essay

During the â€Å"Let’s be lefties† experiment, I found it very difficult to complete my everyday morning tasks without using my right hand. Some of the things I did that day were laundry, dishes, (which took double the time) and writing with my left hand as well. According to the Huffington post, left handed people make up about only ten percent of the population, but researchers have found that in populations with certain mental disorders, rates increases. According to a recent study published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives, lefties make about 10 to 12 percent less annually than righties. The paper, written by Joshua Goodman, an economist at Harvard’s Kennedy School, is the first study to document the income gap between right-handed and left-handed people. It may have something to do with how left-handedness correlates with other attributes. Goodman found that left-handed people have more emotional and behavioral problems, have more learning disabilitie s such as dyslexia, complete less schooling, and work in occupations requiring less cognitive skill. In his research, Goodman analyzed five data sets from the U.S. and the U.K. that all look at how being left handed affects cognitive skill and income over a set amount of time. Goodman found that about 11 to 13 percent of the population is left-handed, a finding that prior research supports. Now that we’ve discussed the experiment along with some theories and facts about being left handed, we will now look at the importance of understanding cultural, ethnic, and gender differences by managers and professionals in a business setting. Diversity basically refers to the ways people differ from one another. People differ from each other in many ways such as culturally, ethnically and by gender. It can be difficult at times working as a team  with individuals from different backgrounds. Managers must understand the advantages and disadvantages brought on by different cultures. Cultural and ethnic differences are a fact of life in the workplace. People tend to stereotype individuals from other cultures or races. This can be challenging but must improve. To be effective and provide a better working environment, managers and employees need to recognize, respect, and capitalize on their differences. This will and can reduce stress and make a better workplace. Women in the workplace are still at a disadvantage. Women are regarded as inferior to men at the workplace in relation to job level and salary. In order to understand diversity in a professional workplace, it requires organization to develop policies and procedures that employees need to follow. According to the Health and Humans Services organization, cultural and linguistic competence are a set of behaviors, attitudes, and policies that enables effective work in cross-cultural situations and conveys information that is easily understood by diverse audiences. According to Huffington post, there is still a lot of work to be done with educating people in the acceptance of the diverse cultures and ethnic groups. In conclusion, we can offer videos, literature, activity and role playing as ways to educate individuals to better adjust to the diverse cultures that are around us. Acceptance and respect are the biggest issues. As a manager, we must first accept and acknowledge the culture and learn to grow.

Functional Areas †Staff at R. Bethels Essay

R. Bethels have two owners, a manager and three other members of staff. The manager looks after the day to day running of the shop and helps run the business. The owners complete the paper work of the business and look after the financial side. Human Resources At R. Bethels, human resources is for: * Recruiting and dismissing * Providing good working conditions * Negotiating with trade unions * Health and safety The owners of R. Bethels are in charge of human resources. They will employ and dismiss employees. They will decide how much they get paid and how often they get paid. The manager will make the phone calls to employees, open and run the shop and to advertise available jobs. It is important that the manager does this in order to employ the correct people. Employing the correct people is good for motivation, quality of work and customer satisfaction. The Owners of R. Bethels may not do things to provide good working conditions all the time but he will decide what are good working conditions and tell members of his staff how to make these conditions available. This is so that people will want to work for R. Bethels. They will negotiate with trade unions in order to give their employees decent pay and good working conditions. They will also decide how to handle health and safety issues and improve them as and when they need to. R. Bethels need to be a healthy and safe environment so that people are able and willing to work for R. Bethels. As R. Bethels is a small business, training may not always matter but the owners will be in charge of it if it is needed. This would be needed for motivation, job satisfaction and an increase in profit through happy and satisfied customers. Finance Finance department covers: * Recording financial matters * Preparing accounts * Paying wages and salaries * Obtaining capital and other resources The owners deal with the company’s finances. They will record and file all of the financial documents. This is important, as when R. Bethels need a financial document e.g. a sale they have just made, it will be easy to find. The owners will decide on who gets what amount of money per week or per annum and they will hand out the wages to the employees. They will also prepare accounts in order to sort out money, which comes in and goes out of the business. R. Bethels need capital in order to trade properly, the manager or the owners may sort this out. Administration and ICT Support Function R. Bethels’s administration and ICT support is for: * Cleaning and maintenance * Health and safety * security * Clerical services * Word processing The manager will deal with clerical services and possibly computers and Internet. The clerical services are things like answering the phone and typing up letters. The manager would do this or the owners would, depending the circumstances. These are needed in order to keep in touch with customers, banks, other companies, etc. The employees would deal with cleaning and maintenance in order to keep things clean and in working order. The manager and the employees would share out the duties of everything else in order to keep the business a safe place to work. Marketing and sales Marketing is needed to enable R. Bethels to find out what customers need. This helps increase sales in order to increase their profit. As the manager at R. Bethels will have more time than the employees and the owners, he will be able to cover marketing. The owners and the employees will also be able to do this if they have any spare time, if they need to. The manager will ring up restaurants companies in order to advertise the company’s products that are available. He will take time with customers to show them how to cook and serving ideas for the fish. When the customers want buy a product, they will be served by the manager or the employees and the money will be handed into the till machine. Customer services This deals with: * Keeping customers happy * Dealing fairly with complaints * Responding to enquiries * Offering credit * After sales service * Advice and information * Reliability * Good products, fairly priced R. Bethels may not be able to deal with all of the things in this list, because of the size of their business. The owners will decide how these things are sorted out but all of the staff at R. Bethels will have to help meet them. R. Bethels will try their best to keep customers happy. Keeping customers happy is what customer services are needed for. Research and development Research and Development is all about researching products and how customers respond to the business. If there are any things that need improving, R. Bethels will talk to their supplier and sort it out. At R. Bethels, the manager and the employees will do the research but the employees and the owners will sort out the product development. R and D is an important function because R. Bethels can have an advantage over their rivals and they can have a more desired product. At R. Bethels, the business lifestyle will be totally different to that of Dominos. At the moment there are only five people who are involved in the business, if and when this changes the lifestyle of the business will probably change too possibly in a dramatic way.