Tesco Plc. 2012 Annual Accounts compare them with Sainsbury Plc. as appropriate

Tesco was established in 1919 and now has become the largest retailer in the UK, the second largest retailer measured by profits and third largest retailer measured by revenues in the world. It has operations in 14 countries with 520,000 people employed and millions of customers served every week (Tesco, 2013). Tesco’s 2012 Annual Report has just published, through which we can critically analyse the company’s operational and financial conditions.There are numerous relationships between the figures published in the annual report, and ratios have been commonly used for conducting a quantitative analysis of these relationships (Atrill and McLaney, 2013). They are calculated by comparing the current year numbers (2011-12) with previous years (2010-11) and other companies. Hence, J Sainsbury plc (known as Sainsbury’s) is chosen since it is the major competitor of Tesco at home. The ratios can be classified into five categories, namely profitability ratios, liquidity ratios, activity or efficiency ratios, gearing ratios and investment ratios. When using the ratios to assess two companies’ performances, relevant social, political and economic changes will all taken into account.Profitability Ratio Profitability ratios are the ratios used to assess a company’s capability to generate earnings in comparison to its expenses and other relevant costs. Major profitability ratios include return on investment (ROI), return on capital employed (ROCE), gross profit margin and net profit margin. Firstly, ROI is a concept evaluating the efficiency of an investment, and equals to ‘net profit after tax’ dividing ‘shareholders’ funds’. For Tesco, its ROI for the financial year 2011-12 was 15.8, decreased by 1.9% from previous year. Nevertheless, it is still better than Sainsbury’s, which got only 10.6%. Therefore, it can be argued that in general the investment on Tesco is more efficient and you can get bette r return.Besides ROI, ROCE is a similar concept which is a relative profit measurement demonstrating the return the business generated from its gross assets. A higher ROCE shows that the company is using its capital more efficiently. In consequence, ROCE should be higher than company’s capital cost, otherwise it tells us that the company is not employing its capital effectively and is not generating shareholder value.It is calculated by ‘profit before interest and tax’ diving ‘shareholder’s funds + long-term debt’. Tesco’s ROCE for the financial year 2011-12 was 13.3%, higher than previous year’s 12.9% and Sainsbury’s 11.1%. The rise of ROCE to some extent resulted from the discontinued operation of Japan. From this point of view it can be argued that Tesco made a right decision to exit from Japan where its investment failed to generate good returns (The Telegraph, 2012).Moreover, gross profit margin and net profit margin are the other two commonly used profitability ratios. The former is defined as the percentage between ‘gross profit’ and ‘sales’, whereas the latter is the percentage between ‘net profit’ and ‘sales’. For Tesco, the two ratios both decreased compared to previous year: The gross profit margin reduced from 8.5% to 8.2% and the net profit margin reduced from 6.0% to 5.9%. It means that this year the company failed to control cost as well as last year. The reduction was caused by various reasons. First of all, the economic downturn in the UK, particularly the high petrol prices and falling real incomes affected  customers’ discretionary spending significantly(BBC News, 2012). In addition, 2012 was a transition year for Tesco .The company not only changed its chairman, CEO and a number of other senior managers, but also made some adjustment on organisational structure and business focused. Finally, the company decided to increa se investment so that to improve customers’ shopping trip, making trading profit declined. In spite of these challenges, Tesco still outweighed Sainsbury’s on profitability, which got 5.4% and 3.6% respectively.Liquidity ratios The second category of ratios called liquidity ratios, which are utilized to determine the ability of a company to pay off its short-term debts. There are important as companies must ensure that these ratios are liquid otherwise they may have problem in paying back its creditors. Two important liquidity ratios are current ratio and acid test ratio.Current ratio measures ‘current assets’ (cash +debtors + stock) against ‘current liabilities’. Tesco’s current ratio in 2012 was 2.01, reduced from 2.12 in 2011. The current asset was rising, but it failed to offset the bigger rising of current liabilities, which was mainly led by the increased short-term borrowings. In 2012 there was a â‚ ¬1500 million medium term n ote (MTN) matured. Nevertheless, it still outperformed Sainsbury’s, whose current ratio was 1.84 in 2012. Because Tesco’s current ratio for the past two years were both greater than 2, it means that the company has no problem to meet creditor’s demands.Acid test ratio differentiates current ratio by excluding stock from the equation as stock may not easily be converted into cash. Tesco’s acid test ratios for the past two years were 1.56 (2011) and 1.45 (2012) respectively. Though decreased by 7.1%, it still great than 1 and Sainsbury’s 0.99, again indicating that Tesco has enough short-term assets to cover its short-term liabilities without selling inventory.Activity/Efficiency Ratios This category of ratios, which mainly includes ratios such as asset turnover,  stock turnover, debtor days and creditor days, measures how well a company utilizing its internal assets and liabilities.Primarily, asset turnover, which equals to ‘sales’ di viding ‘total assets’, measures how efficiency a company is in using its assets to achieve sales revenue to the company. Tesco’s asset turnover ratio in 2012 was 1.27, lower than its previous year’s 1.28 and Sainsbury’s 1.81. Since those companies with low profit margins tend to have high asset turnover ratio whereas companies with high profit margins tend to have low asset turnover ratio, Tesco has bigger profit margin than Sainsbury, and this advantage has been expanded. We should also realize that companies in the retail industry like Tesco and Sainsbury tend to have higher asset turnover ratio than companies in other industries because of their competitive even cutthroat pricing.In addition, the stock turnover ratio indicates how many times a company’s stock is sold and replaced over a period, for instance a year, and is calculated as ‘cost of sales’ divided by ‘stock’. According to this formula, we can get the r esults of 17.50 and 16.48 for Tesco in 2011 and 2012 respectively and 22.48 for Sainsbury’s in 2012. The numbers are within the appropriate interval. A very low stock turnover rate may indicate overstocking whereas a overtop rate may point to stock shortage, which further result in the loss in business. From this point of view, both of the companies manage the stock appropriately.Thirdly, debtor day measures the number of days, on average, that customers take to pay. The formula is ‘debtors (accounts receivable) / sales * 365’. Companies should ensure that its debtor ratio is neither too high nor too low. Otherwise it may face potential risks of either losing customers or losing profit by bad debt. Since most of the retailing business is cash business, supermarkets usually have very short debtor days. Tesco’s debtor days for the past two years were 14 days (2011) and 15 days (2012) respectively while Sainsbury’s has a even shorter debtor day of 5. C reditor day, on the other hand, measures the number of days, on average, that companies take to pay its suppliers.It is calculated by ‘accounts payable / cost of sales * 365’. From the formula we can get that Tesco had 60 creditor  days for the past two years. Together with a very short debtor day, it is evident to see its bargaining power in the market. This helps Tesco maximize profits. Sainsbury also has a big creditor day of 47 days, indicating its strong bargaining power as well.Gearing Ratios Another category of ratios is defined as gearing ratios, including gearing and interest cover ratio. Gearing is defined as the portion of net assets financed through debt rather than equity, and the calculation formula is ‘long-term debt / shareholders’ funds + long-term debt’. The aim of the calculation of gearing ratio is to see whether the company is able to get a healthy long-term financing. Tesco and Sainsbury’s both have good gearing ratios. For Tesco, its gearing ratio in 2012 was 38.4%. In comparison with 40.8% in 2011, it reduced by 5.9%. The decreased gearing reflected Tesco’s stable debt position despite the investment in assets growing. For Sainsbury’s, its gearing ratio in 2012 was 31.7%, meaning that it used even smaller portion of debt to finance net assets.Investment Ratios The final category of ratios is referred to as investment ratios, which are mainly calculated to meet the interests of shareholders and potential investors of the company. The most commonly used shareholder returns rations include dividend per share, dividend yield, and earnings per share (EPS).First, dividend per share, equalling ‘dividend paid’ divided by ‘number of shares’, reflects the belief of the company’s management towards its future growth. For instance, a growing dividend means that the company’s management is confident that the growth can be sustained. Tesco’s 2012 fu ll year dividend was 14.76p, which was an increase of only 2.1% on last year, but lower than Sainsbury’s 16.1p. Although the company continued the record of consecutive years of dividend growth in the FTSE 100, for its shareholders, 2012 was a tough year. The company’s management explains that this was due to their new strategy to forego some short-term profit to re-invest in the long-term health of the business.Second, dividend yield shows how much a company pays out in dividends each year relative to its share price. In the absence of any capital gains, it equals to the return on investment for a stock. Dividend yield can be calculated according to the formula ‘dividend per share / Market price per share’. On 30th March 2013, Tesco and Sainsbury’s dividend yield were 4.24 and 4.14 respectively.Furthermore, earnings per share, known as EPS and calculated as ‘profit after tax’ dividing ‘number of shares’, shows the profit ( or loss) made by every issued share. It is an important indicator of a company’s profitability, and also the single most significant factor in determining the share price. In 2012 Tesco’s EPS was 37.4p, increased by 2.1% from 2011 and higher than its competitor Sainsbury’s 28.1p. Consequently, we can argue that Tesco achieved a modest profit growth in 2012 and it is more profitable than Sainsbury’s.Non-financial performance analysis Financial information particularly the ratio analysis has its limitations. Therefore, we need to analyse non-financial information as well. Primarily, from the scale of the business, Tesco definitely enjoys a larger business scale. It has businesses in 14 countries throughout the world and the total stores numbers is 6,234 in 2012. By contrast, Sainsbury’s on operates in the U.K. with around 1,000 stores. Additionally, from the brand reputation and value aspect, Tesco in general outweigh Sainsbury’s to a large ex tent, particularly in global markets. Nevertheless, at home Sainsbury’s brand awareness is almost as famous as Tesco since the company is using competitive pricing strategy and providing fresh goods to improve customer loyalty.Conclusion To sum up, this essay has used five categories of ratios to critically assess the financial performance of Tesco in view of previous year’s results and the competitor Sainsbury’s. Generally speaking the company delivered modest profit growth in a challenging economic environment, with a strong international performance largely offset by a reduction in UK profits. Owing to strategic changes on organisational structure and business focused,  Tesco’s financial performance was negatively affected. Nevertheless, in many aspects such as profitability and liquidity it still outperformed its major competitor Sainsbury’s. It is confident that the company is able to pass the period of change and development smoothly and it s future prosperity can be expected.

A war between the United States and Iran Essay

Preparations for a massive military strike on Iran are in full swing by the United States of America. But will these preparations convert to actual bombing on the ground? Are the two countries going to be embroiled in a war soon? These are the questions that are being asked everywhere, in hushed tones if it is the Pentagon corridors and terrified glances if it is the streets of Tehran. With Iran defying the UN’s call for restraint in its nuclear programme openly, it has only become successful in intensifying the speculations about the war. The issue here is â€Å"Is it inevitable? † Before we get in to the nitty-gritty of the Iranian crisis, let us look into the different causes of the wars that have been raged in the recent future. The twentieth century started with World War I in 1914 and since then, it is interesting to note that the wars have a particular pattern. The causes have always been dependent on three factors: Systemic factors, domestic politics and the role of the Decision maker. Hence, we would also try to view the US-Iran issue through this prism. However, comparing the pre-nuclear wars in a pre-nuclear age with wars in post-nuclear age would be a waste of space. Instead, it would do well if we look into the causes that can trigger a war in the present times where possessing nuclear power is not only a stark reality but also the bone of contention in this particular case. It is the claim by the Iranian government that they are ready to start developing nuclear weapons is what has triggered the whole issue. And ironically, it is the very reason that is playing a deterrent in the war. Remarkable is the fact that it is only America that is concerned with Iran trying to possess the deadly weapon. The first and foremost question that would help us in determining the fate of this discussion would be: Why is America so bothered? America, the self-declared big brother of all the nations on this planet, takes up the â€Å"burden† of maintaining peace on earth. To quote Eisenhower, â€Å"Freedom is indivisible.. †. America takes it as its personal duty to ensure that â€Å"Freedom† is maintained all over the world. If it was â€Å"Communism† that was a threat against â€Å"Freedom† during the cold war, today it is the irresponsible rulers of nations that possess or aspire to possess nuclear weapons that are threatening the â€Å"Freedom† in the world. And when Truman declared that â€Å"We cannot hope to maintain our freedom, if freedom elsewhere is wiped out†, he meant it. However, the reasons why Israeli attack on Palestine killing hundreds of civilians is not wiping out â€Å"Freedom† but North Korea developing nuclear capability is has interesting reasons. History has been witness to this characteristic of America where it deems it is her right to attack any country it wills to protect the attacked country’s â€Å"freedom†. According to Jutta Welders (Pg 37, culture of insecurity), the compelling reason for America to act in this fashion is to maintain its supremacy in the world. An act of aggression under the cloak of â€Å"Freedom fighters† becomes a necessity to project itself as a strong nation which can not only defend itself but protect other countries as well. A bright example would be the Cuban missile crisis. When this â€Å"crisis† occurred, many were of the view that it was quite unnecessary for America to take up such a strong and aggressive tone. However, it did do that and according to Jutta Weldes, it is the compelling reason to showcase its power that led it to act strong. In fact, Jutta Weldes considers the Cuban missile crisis as not a crisis at all. To quote her, â€Å".. crises are social constructions that are forged by state officials in the course of producing and reproducing state identity†. She is of the view that it depends on the social construction that makes us define a situation as â€Å"Crisis†. It depends on how we view a nation that determines whether it is a crisis or not. For example, Iran possessing nukes is such a big issue and is immediately converted into a â€Å"Crisis† whereas an equally notorious state like Pakistan possessing the deadly weapons is not. It has been time and again proved that large number of terrorist activities has their funds traced back to Pakistan. However, Pakistan escaped the whip but Iraq was destroyed in the name of WMDs! The only explanation for this is the prism that US uses to define its foreign policies. Attack the nations that would give it a chance to maintain her supremacy in the world. Attacking Pakistan would back fire as it has the capability to strike back. And attacking Iraq or Iran will definitely be easier as these countries have a notorious reputation which required some policing and also are comparative weaklings. Hence, the systemic reasons for US to wage a war against Iran are quite obvious: a chance to police a nation that has a history of supporting the biggest threat world faces today, that is, terrorism and simultaneously reaffirm its image as the superpower which it seems to be losing to China. If attacking Iran salvages some pride for US, the role of domestic politics in the whole affair plays another important role. US, the strongest nation in the world today, are also the most vulnerable to attacks by various terrorist outfits. After 9/11, it has taken its goal of fighting terrorism quite seriously. However, the path it has chosen to fight it is not very often appreciated. The aftermath of 9/11 saw it attacking Afghanistan and driving out the Taliban ruthlessly. Afghanistan was the target because it sheltered the most dangerous terrorist outfit in the world, Al-Qaeda. Their slogan was a regime change is essential for to â€Å"smoke out† the terrorist and the whole war was essentially to capture one man – Osama Bin Laden. The attack resulted in the killings of thousands of innocent Afghanistan who were already tired by the war torn politics of Taliban. America could never capture the villain. However, it overthrew Taliban and today, a â€Å"democratically† elected government exists in place of it. Is Afghanistan a changed country today? Has America finally left its shores after the war? Both the answers are No! Terrorism has been controlled and yes, America is still â€Å"guarding† Afghanistan with its air raids on civilians. The failure of capturing Osama in Laden was quite frustrating for the Bush administration and it was in search for a new scapegoat. And they found the perfect one in the form of Saddam Hussain. Suddenly, Iraq, the starving nation which was already bogged down by various sanctions and its citizens further troubled by the tyrannic rule of Saddam Hussain finds itself in the line of fire. The reasons given are quite fishy. America is suddenly in possession of confidential information that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction and Saddam Hussain should be relieved of his responsibility of taking care of them! The reasons were uttered in the same chilling tone of how Iraq, which can’t survive without taking aid from UN, poses the danger of destroying the whole world. The solution that is needed is again a â€Å"Regime Change†. America reasoned introduction of democracy in the country will solve the problem. Thus, despite the worldwide protests that marked the growing contempt against America and the UN Security Council voting against a military attack, America single-handedly went about with its â€Å"war on terrorism†. After 3 years of war, a executed Saddam Hussain, uncountable civilian deaths and threats of civil war ( not to forget the daily suicide attacks by shiities), no one found alleged WMDs. Today, it has been almost accepted that the report on WMD was wrong! The flak US received for the irresponsible behavior is enormous and its image in the middle east has gone for a beating as today, many believe that US is waging war on Islam rather than Terrorists. Its belief that a regime change is the only solution that can solve the problems of the world is quite naive. It proposes the same thing when it comes to Iran. Seymour M. Hersh, in journal â€Å"Fact: Annals of national security† had mentioned his conversation with Patrick Clawson, an Iran expert who is the deputy director for research at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and who has been supporter of President Bush, who clearly spoke of regime change the ultimate solution. He said, â€Å"So long as Iran has an Islamic Republic, it will have a nuclear-weapons program, at least clandestinely. The key issue is therefore, how long will the present regime last? † This archaic view that regime change or toppling of government in another country and forcing them to â€Å"democracy† has never worked in bringing the much desired goal of the war – peace. In fact, statistics have shown that the transition period from any kind of rule to democracy has always been bloody and nations become quite war-prone (Democratization and war). The most recent examples are, of course, Afghanistan and Iraq, which are facing gruesome infighting among themselves. So why is America so bent upon making a regime change in those countries? Apart from the apparent reasons of dismantling the network of terrorism, experts are of the view that it is also the question of who controls the oil in the future that has been a major driving force behind the American policy. Middle East is the home for oil throughout the world and it is the control of oil that is US after. With its fast disappearance and soaring prices (reasons partly because the war that US is waging), the control of the oil fields will definitely be beneficial for America. In fact, the one who controls oil in the future is the undisputed king. This goes in line with the policy of US for whom displaying its authority is very important as it seems to be losing the crown to the exponential growth of China. Therefore, attacking Iran is also a desperate attempt by US to reiterate that it is America that is still calling the shots. However, attacking Iran has its own dangers. The most important and the immediate is the image of US in the Islamic world. Its continuous attacks on Islamic nations has made it poised against Islam and has become quite unpopular in the Middle East. If not anything else, America through these attacks is only getting successful in inviting the wrath of the people living there. In a conversation with Seymour M Hersh, Richard Armitrage was echoing the same sentiments – â€Å"What will happen in the other Islamic countries? What ability does Iran have to reach us and touch us globally – that is, terrorism? Will Syria and Lebanon up the pressure on Israel? What does the attack do to our already diminished international standing? And what does this mean for Russia, China and the U. N Security Council? † Yet how many in Washington will consider these questions? According to Seymour, there are people out there who believe it is the way to operate! If domestic politics are reasons enough to wage war, the role of the decision maker is of paramount importance. It is the head who declares wars and in this case Bush has quite a penchant for declaring wars. It is widely believed that Bush will declare war against Iran before leaving the White house. In fact, President Bush believes that â€Å"He must do what no democrat or Republican, if elected in the future, would have the courage to do, and that saving Iran is going to be his legacy†. The personal ambition of Bush also seems to make the fear of turning Teheran in to a sea of fire in to reality. Moreover, with the failure of Iraq where they achieved instant victory but not a decisive one, Bush administration is looking out for scapegoats in a large way. Iran with its close proximity with Iraq is believed to be a supplier of arms and ammunitions to the Shiite attackers in the troubled Iraq. Those attacks are not only killing innocent Iraqis but also resulting in the death of hundreds of American troops out there. In short, it is a personal failure for Bush as a president as he forced his military in to war for no reasons. It becomes very important for him to fathom some pride and Iran seems to be a ripe case. One House member told Seymour when speaking of Bush â€Å"The most worrisome thing is that this guy has a messianic vision†. Therefore, you have President Bush waiting to bomb Iran at the slightest pretext. But how can attacking Iran solve the Iraq problem? The strategy that is being followed by the Americans is to start infighting in Iran and force it to take some irresponsible action like an up in the activities along the Iraqi border. The first response to any of American disturbance in Iran is believed to be given across the Iraq border which presently houses many American troops. The white house hopes to take advantage of that situation and make it an excuse to attack Iran. This reason is widely believed to work as the blame of first strike can always be switched to Iran and America will only be fighting for â€Å"Safeguarding† its citizens. Combining the above reasons, America declaring war on Iran seems to be a matter of time. The systemic, domestic politics and decision maker reasons a need for another war. The attack on Iran will accomplish three important factors for America. 1. America is believed to be the favorite target for the terrorists and its war on terrorism is necessary to protect itself as a nation. Moreover, this would give the image of the departing super power the much needed boost. An attack on Iran will give the masculine quality to the nation that it believes will spread â€Å"awe† across the world. 2. The second and more compelling reason for the attack is the role that domestic politics plays in this issue. Attack on Iran will bring about a regime change which will help America post â€Å"Freedom† there. This in other words means another puppet government that would act on the whims of US. This is quite beneficial as this gives it direct control over the oil fields of Iran along with Iraq’s, thanks to the WMD ghosts. So, that means with a single strike, not only do they believe that terrorism and nukes will be taken care of but also the oil fields. 3. The third reason is President Bush. His stint as President of America has mainly been marred by Wars. If in the past it was Afghanistan, now it is Iraq. Apparently, both have them have been failures as there have been no decisive victories. The victories have only been fast as is expected from a war between the super power and a starving nation. Iran war will give him the much needed boost to his image as this war can be a golden opportunity to pass the blame on Iran for the Iraq fiasco. Taking all these reasons into considerations, attack by America on Iran for possessing Nukes is quite imminent. Experts say Iran is still five to ten years away from developing any kind of weapon. However, America is bent upon going ahead with its plans. Therefore, nukes or no nukes, Iran is the golden opportunity to accomplish a lot many tasks. Nuclear disarmament is just one of the small ones.

Development of tourism in Scotland Essay

For a country to be a successful tourist destination, the normal impression that anybody has is that the country must be easy to access, with modern means of transport and good communication, unlike Scotland. A small country located on the periphery of Europe, Scotland is characteristic of tartans, highlands, mountains, castles and bagpipes etc, and for long, poor accessibility and transportation persisted in the country. Nevertheless, Scotland is among the most successful tourist destinations. Many have tried to bring about development of tourism in the country. The Scotts, in particular, were worried that the country’s inaccurate historic description might taint its image as a tourist destination. But little did they realize that in fact, portraying the country in modern perspective could cause considerable harm to its established image, which attracted a good number of visitors. [Butler, Richard. Tartan Mythology. 1998. p. 122. The traditional tourist image of Scotland. ] Besides the residents, the country saw noteworthy visitors, who contributed, directly or indirectly to its tourism development. The visitors can be distinguished into three groups—those from the field of military and administration, those involved in scientific studies and those who were engaged in works of music, art and literature. All these three groups had different approaches towards development in the country. The group involved in military and administrative activities was not directly related to the development initiative. However, their work involved a lot of traveling within the region. In their journals and writings, the group brought to light the difficulty in traveling in the region and the need for improving the transportation system there. Also, the scientific visitors wrote journals that described the physical features of Scotland and emphasized its historical heritage, which in turn, attracted more visitors. However, the group that comprised authors, and those involved in the works of art and music, was which made a significant impact on the development of Scotland’s tourism. Their approach was the most dominant and certainly the most effective. The works of renowned authors like Scott, Dickens, Wordsworth, just to name a few, described the country as a place with a romantic appeal. They gave vivid accounts of the scenery, the landscapes, the chivalry of the people and the military expeditions, which helped the country to establish a powerful image as a tourist destination. Not to forget one more group that did much to popularize the country—the absentee landlords and their friends. They engaged in sports like shooting and fishing that also made the country very popular and a coveted tourist destination. However, when more and more people started indulging in these sports, they were called off and Scotland remained a limited small tourist spot. [Butler, Richard. Tartan Mythology. 1998. p. 123-125. The traditional tourist image of Scotland. ] The development approaches resulted in improvement in many areas in the country like better communication and transportation facilities, better accommodation arrangements for tourists and the preserving of its natural heritage and culture, the established image of the country. The biggest strength of the development approach in Scotland is the realization that the tourists consider the natural heritage of the country as genuine and they are attracted to it because of its originality, unlike other places that are meretriciously ornamented. Only Development of tourism in Scotland 3 those who tried to fiddle with the traditional image of Scotland and try to portray it modernly reflect a weak approach towards its development. [Butler, Richard. Tartan Mythology. 1998. p. 132-135. The traditional tourist image of Scotland. Yes, the rising participation in adventure activities like skiing and wearing the highland dress, along with the popularity of golf rising significantly, reflect acknowledging of policies to sustain its image. If I were to manage its development, I too would go in for preserving its natural heritage so that visitors could get a real taste of the place. After all, tourists do come to have a bite of the place they visit and their nothing like getting a real taste of it! Reference citations Chapter 7: Butler, Richard: Tartan Mythology. 1998. The traditional tourist image of Scotland, p122-139.

Rigid pavement design Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Rigid pavement design - Term Paper Example pavement, which are Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement (JPCP), Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement (JRCP), and Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP). The joints in PCC slab help in reducing the stresses due to subgrade moisture variation, temperature variation, and shrinking of concrete based on AASHTO, 1993. Moreover, to determine the slab thickness of concrete pavement, there are equation and parameters have to be taken into account. Design, Analysis, and Rehabilitation of Windows () is a software program used to evaluate the pavement structure in terms of the expected performance under design traffic loadings and given climatic environments. The rigid pavement can resist a variety of conditions for a long time and requires less maintenance provided that it is professionally laid. ; However, the need for repair is sometimes very crucial in the case of any distress. Every strategy comes with a cost and by performing an economical analysis of the alternative strategies, the cost of each strategy can be roughly estimated. The life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) is the most effective method used to approximate the cost. In the twentieth century, the cars took the lead as the main means of transport. After the Second World War, the growth in traffic, tire pressures, loads, and the higher speeds necessitated the development of pavement technology beyond designs based on experience only. Functional performance had to be defined, predicted and understood to the basis of the service that is provided to the road users in relation to the cost. Nevertheless, this performance required a structural behavior and pavement distress knowledge in relation to the time. However, this motivated the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) road test. A pavement is a structure composed of structural elements, whose functions are to protect the natural subgrade, distribute the applied vehicle loads to the subgrade, and carry the traffic safely and economically.

Decision Analysis Business Project Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Decision Analysis Business Project - Case Study Example On the other hand, if James decides to start a new business, a new problem of how to start the new business presents itself. This brief report characterizes the two problems. For problem one, it weighs the benefits of starting a new business against the disadvantages and recommends accordingly. For problem two, it analyzes the different choices available for forming a new business. Given that James is 51 years, it is advisable that he starts this new business since he is about to retire. After retirement, he will not have any other significant source of income if the business will not be operational. Moreover, given the advantages of the patent, a ready market, and a method of production that costs less, the growth of the business will require his full attention. Another factor to consider is that many of his children have already finished school, hence his family operational expenses are not too high. Again, many of his family members are able and willing to start aid in the family business. Specifically, his wife can participate in the management of the business, his eldest son wants to come home and if possible follow the father’s footstep. So, for his family, and also given that the business is sure to grow due to the ready market, and for the patent that protects his young business from any potential completion he has enough reasons to start this n ew business. To do so, since he is the one who is conversant with the production process he has to be fully involved in the business. Based on the above considerations, I recommend that James starts a new business and the wife, Mary, participates in part-time and continues with her homemaker business so as to cater for family expenses at least for the first one year before the business generates income. To avoid conflicts in the future, the other children can continue earning their income except for the eldest son who has an interest in the business. The second problem requires

Prison in the US justice system Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Prison in the US justice system - Research Paper Example The current conditions of prisons will be considered, as well as the presence and implementation of recidivism programs, rehabilitative programs, introductory back into society programs, and steps taken to ensure the safety of the public after a prisoner has been released. When most people think of prisons, cold, rundown jail cells for the purpose of punishing hardened criminals is what usually comes to mind. While punishment is one of the primary reasons that prisons exist, there are two other reasons that often go overlooked: to protect and to rehabilitate. Prisons are used to protect both society and the criminal. Society needs protection against harmful individuals and groups, and the criminal needs protection from those in society wishing to seek revenge for any wrongdoings (for example, the father of a murdered child might feel tempted to go after the murderer). Prisons also help to rehabilitate to prisoners so that they can learn to handle their anger in healthy and beneficial ways, and will also be less likely to commit crimes once they have been released. In recent years, many state and federal prisons have been under fire due to the physical conditions that prisoners are being forced to live. The majority of these issues have stemmed from the two greatest ordeals that prisons are facing, which are overcrowding and underfunding. As early as 1991, prisons throughout the United States have faced a significant increase of inmates, and thus an increase in prison overcrowding (Weschler, 1991). The number of prisoners being released back onto the streets is shrinking while the number of prisoners being brought into prisons is continuing to grow. The demand to maintain prisoners is too great and cannot be kept up with. To make the overcrowding even worse is the underfunding of our state and federal prisons. Due to nationwide budget cuts and our current economic recession, our prisons are among the institutions that are being given the cold shoulder

Interstate Banking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Interstate Banking - Essay Example Economies of scale are realized since loan activity is increased with the merging of assets brought about by expanded business in different states. Another advantage to interstate banking is the convenience it offers to its clients. With interstate banking, more branches are within the reach of the clients (Berry, 2011). The flow of bank activities are easily facilitated which makes it easier for the clients to do business. A smooth flow in bank activities may result in increased revenues because of the ease in doing business. Interstate banking makes it possible for banks to offer a wider range of banking services to its clients because of the interstate acquisitions and branches (Berry, 2011). Some of these services include more ATMs, electronic banking options and varied loan products. Financial security and stability is one of the major off-shoots of interstate banking. Since banking consolidation is allowed provided that the capital requirements are met, this means that the resources of the banks increase, making it more stable and secure. The liquidity and solvency of the banks improve with interstate banking. Bank clients benefit the most from interstate banking. The increased competition brought about by interstate banking makes banks think of strategies to capture a bigger market; thus, improving their services and developing new products which are attractive to the clients. Aside from bank clients, banks also benefit from interstate banking. Operating costs are greatly reduced as the bank subsidiaries are converted to bank branches. Geographic diversification will help improve the risk-return opportunities of banks (United States General Accounting Office, 1995). The most likely loser in interstate banking is the Federal Reserve (Berger & Humphrey, 1988). Since there will be an improvement in the efficiency of the payment system, multiple bank payments will decrease because most checks will be

Ogallala aquifer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ogallala aquifer - Essay Example A lot of our water supply comes from water wells that are drilled deep down into the aquifers. We need these aquifers to stay unpolluted in order to continue to enjoy them. The Ogallala aquifer is one of the worlds largest and is located beneath the Great Plains area of the United States. It is fairly shallow but because of its surface area contains an enormous amount of water. This aquifer is vital for the future of the United States, and yet it is not doing very well. The water in it is running low. As one researcher recently framed the issue: Many people assume that large groundwater formations may temporarily run low, but will fill again when rainfall is plentiful – as do lakes, rivers, and reservoirs. However, unless the areas impacted are unaffected by the factors that contribute to high evaporation – such as minimal rainfall, abundant sunshine, low humidity, and periodic strong winds – this assumption is not even remotely correct. Therefore, it is imperative that we find solutions through research to water problems and maintain the aquifer as a continuing resource (Guru, 6). The problems range in severity and the length of time they will occur in. We must take action now to avoid the aquifers depletion and pollution. We need to preserve its use for future generations. To lose the use of this aquifer would be a serious indictment against the United States and a blow to farmers throughout the Midwest who rely on it to irrigate and water their crops. Sadly a number of new techniques threaten the safety of aquifers. In The Whole Fracking Enchilada by Sandra Steingraber, the author discusses how natural gas is extracted from shale. The process can be very destructive to the environment. We have to be mindful of this in the future as we continue to try to meet our energy needs while preserving the quality of our environment and drinking supply. Excessive water use in the extraction of natural resources is another threat to aquifers. We need water

English-Only Debated Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English-Only Debated - Essay Example It can also be defined as an easily accessible artistic mode of expression that points out, in a wide range of mediums, criticisms and oppositions to social, political ,economic or other circumstances in the community that are of high concern (Duncombe, 4-5). Consequently, cultural resistance mainly intends to raise awareness of the issue and then calls for justice on the part of the oppressed, this implies that it exist for a reason and not just for the sake of sympathy or pity. This article addresses creative cultural resistance in the American society with focus on English language There has been a raging debate on cultural dissent and language in regard to what it mean for one to say, â€Å"I am American?† The law provides these answers in technical sense: as to be one that falls under a statutory or constitutional category having full participation and membership rights in the American polity (Del 55). The main ones, with few minor exceptions, are birth within the United States, birth to American parents overseas, and legal naturalization, all regulated by the federal government. If this is the case why do when family, friends, co-workers, and or even our general acquaintances refer to themselves as who they are, the response is too often either Italian, Irish, German, Greek, or French and so on, however, in reality they're not, they’re simply American. This false mindset of what people perceive themselves to be leads to a stronger divide, separation, and cultural resistance between the people within our society both politically and culturally, while deteriorating the true identity and morals of what it means to be an American which can be found deep as its foundation. In spite of this, calling oneself â€Å"Irish† can give way to a sense of pride and belonging to a unique nation, with a heritage of great deeds and tragic flaws, a set of ideals, and a singularly commanding and demanding position in today’s world. As discussed by Rogers M. Smith, for many Americans alike, the sentence â€Å"I am Irish† is also a revelation of their sense of attachment at the deepest emotional level to unique culture and moral standards. It has then much more than merely legal meaning; it evokes a statement of political and personal identity that is complex, powerful, and often contradictory to the ideas and sentiments for both American and non-Americans similarly (Del 55). Retrospectively, this divides our country; the false sense of attachment due to pride drives both natives and immigrants towards specific towns or counties while steering them away from others. The culture and customs of one's heritage often differs greatly between an American native and ones ancestry within a home country. Since the United States is an immigrant society, putting as much of your message as possible into words is important in order to let people know where one is coming from. People try to remove the possibility of misassumptions as they believe everyone is different and the degree which they are involved in the majority culture varies (Jasper, 19-25). The Japanese view their country differently; they’re racially and culturally homogeneous with a long history of tradition, so it is assumed that everyone knows and will play by the unspoken rules of the majority culture. The two cultures are both different from each other while have very little in common. When Japanese-Americans refer to themselves as Japanese they’re merely holding themselves to a lie. More than forty percent of the population of Japanese immigrants predominantly resides in Hawaii and despite gigantic differences in cultural tradition and descent the majority continues to call themselves Japanese. Rather than United States citizens,

Study of The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) 02165 Essay

Study of The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) 02165 - Essay Example The only condition followed in this case is the investor has to behave in conformity maintaining prescription of portfolio theory. Early practitioners are of opinion that beta is the only explanatory factor, which has the ability to explain cross-sectional variation in the asset prices. Therefore, the CAPM model has successfully examined the predictions, which are made for measuring the risk-return relationship of asset prices (Black, Jensen and Scholes, 1972). Though the model was initially developed by Harry Markowitz, it was later modified by Lintner and Sharpe. The model actually explained that if a particular investor selects a portfolio for a period of time then he/she is said to be risk averse (Black, Jensen and Scholes, 1972). However, the modified version of the model is developed based on the following assumptions: CAPM has gained prominence in corporate finance, but there are many criticisms regarding its validity in the security market. The risk-return relationship is questioned, whether it has the ability to help the investor for making a good investment decision. Sharpe (1964) and Lintner (1965) had identified the linear relation that exists between return, risk and beta of a stock. Beta is defined as a variable, which aims at explaining cross sectional returns of the stocks. The equation aims at explaining the risk-return relationship of the stocks to a great extent. The beta value is dependent on type of assets (Roll, 1977). It also helps in gauging the volatility of the stock with respect to market risk. The following interpretations can be made from the different value of beta (Solnik, 1974; Lahrech and Sylwester, 2011; Levy and Sarnat, 1970). The above explanations indicates towards the fact that beta can easily establish the risk-return relationship of stocks. Therefore, it can be depicted that the CAPM is a perfect model for evaluating the debt and equity status of a company by examining its risk-rerun relationship of the

Childhood Christmas to Adulthood Christmas Essay Example for Free

Childhood Christmas to Adulthood Christmas Essay Christmas as a child for me was very fun. I got many presents from Santa as well as many from relatives. Christmas was probably my favorite holiday of the year, to me it meant that if I was good enough Santa would bring me presents. Most of the time I was very good and never got into trouble. In my family when you go from childhood to adulthood it becomes a big deal. For starters you open presents with the adults. You also don’t have to worry about leaving with the other kids while the adults open presents. Seeing that I do not have kids I am sort of at a mid point of whether or not to look forward to this holiday. One of the many reasons I love Christmas is because my grandmother makes the best food. There is more food than any of us can eat and we have leftovers for days. My grandma makes most of the food and some people bring a favorite dessert. All of the food is set out on the dinning room table buffet style. We gather around to bless the food and then us kids get our plates first, most kids are picky I sure was at that age. You couldn’t hardly get me to eat anything as a kid so my plate was full of mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, rolls and probably green beans since I was not much of a turkey eater as a youngster. After we filled our plates with food we are free to eat wherever we please and since we are kids we normally go down into the basement away from the adults. After we eat then the dessert comes out. My favorite dessert would have to be pumpkin pie with cool whip on top. I could probably scarf down a whole pan of that stuff. There are only a few people in my family that like pumpkin pie so all of the leftover pie went to me. Every year we have Christmas lunch and presents at my grandparents house in Atwater California. My grandparents house is huge, they built it sometime before I was born. It is a three story house not including the attic, the first floor has a bathroom, living room, dinning room, and kitchen which has a door leading to the huge basement that could be more living space if needed. Then you have the second floor, that has three bedrooms, an office and 2 bathrooms. I love having Christmas at this house because it is the almost the perfect size for everyone to fit. My family’s very funny, they love to joke around with people. They are also very laid back and always on schedule. Every year we have almost the same people during the holidays. A few years ago we lost my great grandma and my great grandpa a few months after that. Four years ago my aunt Nikki and her husband Gary left for Georgia because that is where he got stationed. My eldest sister Elysebeth got married and has two children and they join us for family holidays. Some of my moms side of the family comes and that’s when things get loud considering we are very obnoxious and you basically need a hearing aid to hear anything. Over the past seven years I have gotten used to the change from childhood to Adulthood Christmas. I thought it was so cool to finally open presents with the adults. A few years went by and I started realizing that the transition was not exactly what I had been hoping for, and I did not want to be with the adults but by then it was to late so I got ov er it. Its not as fun as it used to be but I try to do the best I can for the little ones in the family who still believe in Santa. The downside of the food as an adult is that you have to wait for all the kids to get done filling there plates before you can fill yours. Yes, that sounds greedy but I love my food! Something that can also be a downside is where to sit, at this point all the little kids want to sit up at the table right next to you. The only problem with that is there are not enough seats for everyone to sit right next to you. So you have to be the bad guy and tell someone no. The setback about having Christmas at my grandparents house is that there are a lot of people and it can become crowded and overwhelming. From children running around to presents spread out everywhere. Everyone is either sitting in a chair, on the floor or standing up because there is no where to sit. With everyone catching up and bonding the walls sometimes echo and it’s to cold to have be in the backyard. A fly in the ointment for me about there being a lot of people is that I now start buying presents for everyone, which normally isn’t a bad thing because I love buying things for people but I have an enormous family. When you count all of us together during this holiday there is a total of about eighteen, which is a lot of money to spend! Over the span of time since I have joined the adults in the opening of presents has made me realize that it isn’t necessarily about the gifts. Its being thankful for what you have and the people around you. The  overall exp erience for is a great one because it brings family together and shows you what the holidays are really about rather than just opening presents, eating and leaving. I love my family and I wouldn’t trade them for the world.

Nature in Literature Essay Example for Free

Nature in Literature Essay Nature is one of the most powerful forces that has ran through literature throughout human history. Ever since the first recorded dramas and philosophical works, man could not avoid being in contact with the world around him, and so his connection to the earth must inevitably be part of his story. In literature, when nature is addressed, it is often in praise or awe, of its terror or of its beauty. Nature can represent the real and visceral as well as the sublime and the mystic. If one examines the work of the Transcendentalists, the Romantic Poets, and certain novelists, it is evident that the underlying feeling is that Nature provides inspiration and bliss, as well as a much-needed refuge from society. One of the best known schools of thought which dealt with Nature in literature is Transcendentalism. The Transcendentalist movement began in America in the 1800s. Transcendentalists believed that the divine could be reached through nature, by any man. The hallmark work of the movement was Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Nature. The most famous section of the work is when Emerson recalls an experience he had in the woods, and says I become a transparent eye-ball. . . . I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God. (Cromphout 210) Emerson tapped into an experience of non-being, connecting on a purely spiritual level through nature, without need of church or religion. Equally famed is Henry David Thoreau’s work Walden. In this classic, Thoreau captures the spirit of nature, solitude, and finding joy in both. As an experiment, Thoreau left society and went to live in a cabin on Walden Pond. In this famous statement, Thoreau sums up the mission of his experiment: I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. .. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms. † (Thoreau 5)He was making a stand against the materialism and convoluted nature of society- â€Å"Our life is frittered away by detail, simplify, simplify,† he says. For him nature represented the bare essentials- trees, rock, hunger, thirst; the things that lay behind the trappings of society. He took immense joy in the solitude and beauty of his life at Walden Pond. He farmed, observed, and lived in harmony with nature. Walden opened people’s eyes and inspired them, and might be the most classic example of nature in literature. Another Transcendentalist, the most radical and wonderfully incendiary, was Walt Whitman. His most famous work, Leaves of Grass, was written in free verse and was seen as controversial and even obscene by the uptight intellectuals of the day. The essence of his work is a deep oneness with nature, having no shame in being, and joy in what can be seen and felt. In Song of Myself, he says, â€Å"I am satisfied†¦ I see, dance, laugh, sing. † â€Å"The play of shine and shade on the trees as the supple boughs wag†¦ The feeling of health†¦ the full-noon trill†¦ the song of me rising from bed and meeting the sun. † (Whitman 12) For Whitman, nature is all he needs, he takes endless joy in being, tempering the intellect with natural physical pleasures. An equally important school of thought was the Romantic movement in Europe. Romanticism grew out of a rebellion against the Enlightenment and its stark intellectualism. Instead, romanticism revolves around passion, emotion, nature, mystery, turmoil, and all the qualities of life that were not constrained by reason. â€Å"Nature mysticism† was one of the most important aspects of the movement. (Micale 140) The romantics preferred the country and the wilderness to the city, and loved both gentle, pastoral landscapes as well as the turbulent, sublime, dramatic, and exotic. (Micale 150) Of course, literature was at the core of the Romantic movement, and the love of nature is reflected in its works. An excellent example of the â€Å"sublime† side of nature is found in the work of the mysterious literary figure Ossian, who influenced so many of the romantic writers. Ossian was actually the Scottish poet James Macpherson(1736-1796) who wrote a collection of ancient Scottish poems, claiming to be word-of-mouth folk tales, but it is supposed that he wrote them himself. (Simonsuuri 192) The poems involved misty, windblown, rocky landscapes and moonlight, and the romantic images and ideas he brought about captured the imagination of society and of individuals such as Goethe, Napoleon, and Jefferson. (Simonsuuri 287) People were drawn to this exotic, wild side of nature and the worlds that it conjured. An example of the green, pastoral side of nature in romantic literature is found in William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience. In the poem Laughing Song, he says:â€Å"When the green woods laugh with the voice of joyAnd the dimpling stream runs laughing by,When the air does laugh with our merry wit,And the green hill laughs with the noise of it. † (Blake 28) In Songs of Innocence, Blake connects the lovely landscape with youth, joy, and happiness. In his poetry, the countryside represents â€Å"innocence† and all things good, while the city represents â€Å"experience† and disillusionment. In conclusion, nature is one of the strongest forces found in literature. Men have written about the natural world and how it affects them for centuries, and will continue to do so. In Europe, Nature was at the core of the Romantic movement. Their works reflect both the stormy and sublime side of nature as well as the peaceful and pastoral. Either way, the romantics were moved to bliss and rapture by the beauties they saw around them. In America, a similar movement took place with the Transcendentalists, who believed that the unifying spirit in all things could be reached directly through nature. In literature, nature is often perceived with some amount of mysticism. To man, nature represents all that is not machine and society, it represents a state of freedom, passion, and beauty. If one examines the work of the Transcendentalists, the Romantic Poets, and certain novelists, it is evident that the underlying feeling is that Nature provides inspiration and bliss, as well as a much-needed refuge from society. Word count: 1100.

Effects Of Succession Planning On Employee Retention

Effects Of Succession Planning On Employee Retention Proper succession planning helps an employee to get their work done as well as to sustain the employees in the most effective and efficient manner. This study also highlighted that for any particular job what are the organizational commitment, job security, job content which leads to self-esteem, leadership and staying in the organization for a longer time period. The study is intended to answer the question of whether proper succession planning could mitigate the expected negative effects of retentions on employees. The basic purpose of this research is to find out that whether the way information regarding Succession Planning taking place is well defined or not and what are the impacts of employees behavioral towards retention through proper communicated and well-defined work on succession planning. And up to what level are they emotionally and expressively affected. 1.3 Implications of the Study The findings of this study will have important implications from the perspective of employees and top management associated with employee retention succession planning. The HR department in order to develop a proper job content for every job to develop an organizational commitment security in which employees are most comfortable with the tenure, leadership self-esteem. This research will extend our knowledge on how differences the employee retention and succession planning of the company will impact the performance of employees both internal and external. And would also allow more detailed prescriptions for practitioners faced with such issues. 1.4 Variables Independent Variable Succession Planning Tenure Leadership Self Esteem Dependent Variables Employee Retention Organizational Commitment Job Security Job Content 1.5 Hypothesis Hypothesis 1: There is a positive relationship between succession planning and employee retention. Chapter 2 Literature Review In an organization, every employee tends to rise to his level of ineffectiveness (Jr., 2003).Succession planning is the power to developing the strengths and performance of their people and maximizes production capacity. We provide businesses with a broad range of highly effective tools, methodology and processes, proven to dramatically improve the contribution made by individuals and organizations at all levels (Jr., 2003). These are the role of Succession Planning in an Organization Prepares current employees to undertake key positions Develops ability and long-term development Improves employees abilities and performance Improves workforce loyalty and as a result retention Assemble the career improvement requirements of existing employees Improves support to workforce throughout their tenure Counters the increasing complexity of hiring employees externally Focuses on leadership stability and better knowledge distribution Provides further effective monitoring and tracking of employee ability levels and skills (Jr., 2003). As Succession planning is a core part of an organizations ability to decrease risk, create a verified leadership model, smooth organization continuity and improve staff self-confidence (White, 1987). Succession planning has become really important for managers and executives in the current business world because, now they have begun to understand the importance of securing their companies eventually by selecting future leaders (White, 1987). Succession planning considered to the higher concern to make the right decisions. They must put their self into strategic and planning form to choose the best leader (Jr., 2003).When it comes down to the decision about the succession plan an executive should recognize the needs and requirements of the company that what would be the strengths and weaknesses so an executive will know what kind of person they would need on the considerable situation which will lead the company on the succession path (White, 1987). The basic element in transition is well transparency as it applies on every company the employer should take step to communicate the employees to decrease the gap between the company and the employee which effects better with the reflection of succession (Jr., 2003) To develop an effective succession plan there are four stages Recognizing jobs for succession; Developing a obvious understanding of the capabilities required to carry out those roles; Identifying workforces who could potentially fill and do highly in such roles; Preparing workforces to be ready for development into each identified role. Without the execution of a succession plan, there can be significant impacts on a business including; Lack of expertise and business knowledge Lack of business stability Damaged customer associations (Jr., 2003). Organization succession planning is highly dependent on the competent employee the company highly depends on its employee which can make the path and accelerate the companys business which will play a major role for an organization to become profitable or reciprocal. One major concern which often makes difference for succession if the leader key person leaves the organization- either by choice or other circumstances (Jr., 2003).What will happen when an important key player purged without succession planning? There are few things to look forward. Such as either there will be no skilled successor or there will be who might not ready to manage the business the way it has to be managing with the abilities. Whatsoever the case might came out to be, the situation can be terrible for the company. Business can become unsustainable to carry on (Jr., 2003). The only answer that is left in an unexpected situation is just unproductive quick-fixed solutions the successor is left with temporary substitute if the set up is not been fix yet., and the important result can still be the breakdown of the business. Key factors that affect the success of business are skill and experience. And without it no one can run a business. They significant traits in an entrepreneur not only run the business but also sustain the success (Jr., 2003). Without succession planning, a company that has become successful can just as easily fail. The company grows because there is a leader with experience, drive and ability. Without suitable succession planning, the future growth of the business is left to chance once that leader is gone. Under such a situation, if it succeeds at all, it is by default rather than intended. That is not all. The passing of the crop from one generation to the next is often fogged up by the stakeholders differing views and agendas. Without proper planning, the clashes of views and agendas can pull the company in several directions and this may wreck an otherwise feasible business (Jr., 2003). Succession planning enables your business to identify brilliant employees and provide education to develop them for future higher level and broader tasks. Succession planning helps to build worktable strength. Succession planning helps to decide where public belong to (Jr., 2003). Through your succession planning procedure, you also save superior employees because they value the time, attention, and development that you are investing in them. To efficiently do succession planning in your business, you must identify the organizations long term goals. They must hire better staff (White, 1987). You need to spot and recognize the developmental needs of your employees. You must guarantee that all key employees understand their career paths and the roles they are being developed to fill. You need to spotlight resources on key employee retention. You need to be alert of employment trends in your area to be familiar with the roles you will have a difficult time filling externally (White, 1987). It is a complex process and a successful plan is based on management formation, regular evaluation through evaluations and integrated management development system. Only one tenth of the know-how of professional managers consists of formal education and training and the result is attained through on the job development. Management structure has to be clearly understood by all and frequently reviewed for future planning. One of the reasons for the gradual and slow abolition of business groups of yesterday is that they failed in managing the change. The plan does not mean recognition of an individual to replace his/her ancestor. It means identifying a group of individuals to be trained and groomed for the place of CEO (Zajac, 1987). The organizations offer employee development opportunities through: on the job learning, better training and counseling, formal training programmers and job orientation. All these facilities not only help in employees development but also help in preparing the incumbents probable to fill key positions (Jr., 2003). The companies have to decide today for tomorrow through a complex assessment system for the human development, which is most uncertain. Business environment is getting increasingly vibrant, corporate growth, rate and size is critical, and values are changing which offer superior business opportunities for head hunters (Zajac, 1987). To achieve the aim the process begins from staffing needs periodic appraisal and an elastic plan. Promotions are common and job rotation is a must to expose the incumbents to a diversity of experience, i.e. marketing, sales, finance and even manufacturing. The basic criteria remains performance but potential also play a very key role (White, 1987). To commence such a complex process it is necessary to understand the challenge well in advance and act with obligation. Focus should be on performance as well as potential keeping in view the convenient challenges. The organizations must differentiate between spending on personnel and investment in employees development. It is a fact that a number of the corporate look after their senior executive very well but hardly invests in budding leaders (Zajac, 1987). One of the factors which have been a major obstacle in succession planning is hardly any division of management from ownership. Some of the leading groups vanished because they failed to interpret the change and to educate professional managers. People often presume that a manager by profession and a professional manager are one and the same. To face the emerging challenges corporate need more flexible managers (White, 1987). Imagine for a moment a workplace in which the employees eagerly estimated their performance reviews. Picture your staff telling each other how much they look forward to meeting with their manager and bragging about what an empowering experience these meetings are (Jr., 2003). The length of time an employee has worked for his or her current employer (Rosemary Batt, 2002). Leadership is the skill of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it (Brown, 2003). Leadership is a process by which a human being influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the business in a way that makes it more unified and logical. Leadership is a process whereby a person influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal (Brown, 2003). Employee retention is a process in which the employees are encouraged to remain with the group for the maximum period of time or until the conclusion of the project. Employee retention is useful for the organization as well as the employee (Sheridan, 1992). Employees nowadays are different. They are not the ones who dont have better opportunities in hand. As soon as they feel dissatisfied with the present employer or the job, they switch over to the next job. It is the responsibility of the employer to retain their greatest employees. If they dont, they would be left with no superior employees. A good employer should know how to attract and keep its employees. Retention involves five key things (Sheridan, 1992). Compensation Environment Growth Relationship Support One of the most vital and key part is to retain the employee of the organization its as important as you understand you need you have got to intact and retain your potential employee because your employee is your asset which will highway the organization on success(Sheridan, 1992). Why employee retention so important? Is it just to cut the turnover costs? Its not only the cost incurred by a organization that emphasizes the need of retaining employees but also the need to retain talented employees from getting poached (Sheridan, 1992).The process of employee retention will advantage an organization in the following ways (Sheridan, 1992). The cost of employee turnover adds hundreds of thousands of money to an organizations expenses. While it is hard to fully calculate the cost of turnover (including hiring costs, training costs and productivity loss), industry experts often quote 25% of the average employee salary as a conventional estimate. (Sheridan, 1992). When an employee leaves, he takes with him valuable facts about the company, customers, current projects and past history sometimes to competitors. Often much time and money has been spent on the employee in anticipation of a future return. After the employee leaves, the investment is not realized. (Sheridan, 1992). Customers and clients do business with an organization in part because of the people. Relationships are developed that support continued sponsorship of the business. When an employee leaves, the relationships that employee built for the companies are disengaged, which could lead to probable customer loss (Sheridan, 1992). When an employee terminates, the effect is felt throughout the organization. Co-workers are often required to pick up the slack. The unspoken negativity often intensifies for the remaining staff (Sheridan, 1992). The goodwill of a company is maintained when the attrition rates are low. Higher retention rates motivate potential employees to join the organization (Sheridan, 1992). If an employee resigns, then good amount of time is lost in hiring a new employee and then training him/her and this goes to the loss of the company directly which many a times goes unnoticed. And even after this you cannot assure us of the same efficiency from the new employee (Sheridan, 1992). Employee retention refers to policies and practices companies use to avoid valuable employees from leaving their jobs. How to retain important employees is one of the biggest problems that plague companies in the competitive marketplace. Not too long ago, companies accepted the revolving door policy as part of doing business and were quick to fill a vacant job with an additional eager candidate. Nowadays, companies often find that they spend substantial time, effort, and money to train an employee only to have them build up into a valuable commodity and leave the company for greener pastures. In order to generate a successful company, employers should consider as many options as possible when it comes to retaining employees, while at the same time securing their trust and loyalty so they have less of a need to leave in the future (Sheridan, 1992). Many people love their job, and there are a huge number of reasons such as they like the company environment, their boss, and their co-workers. A thrilling position, with plenty of opportunity for growth, learning, and advancement, is always desirable, as is a meaningful job that has the possible to make a difference in the lives of others. Dissatisfaction with one or more of these things could force the employee to think about leaving (Sheridan, 1992). A rather obvious way for a company to better retain their employees is by offering competitive salaries and bonuses. Everyone likes to be recognized for a job well done, and nothing makes someone feel more appreciated than cold hard cash. It also shows the employee that the company has some degree of loyalty towards them, which could in turn influence them to repay their employers with some loyalty of their own. Increased benefits, stock options, more vacation time, company cars, child care, and other perks dont hurt either. Financial support for employees who wish to continue their education would also most likely be appreciated and rewarded with employee loyalty (Sheridan, 1992). In many instances, employee retention starts just as soon as an employee is hired. If a company sees an unusual amount of potential in a new hire, management could make them feel appreciated right off the bat. Interest free loans to help pay off their college bills or other debts is one way for an employer to do this. In order to keep the employee from jumping ship before the loan is paid off, the employer can do several things, including staggering payments or making the loan contingent on certain performance goals. In a way, this practice can be considered a combination of recruitment and retention tools. Similar programs could also be implemented for employees that already have tenure built up with the company (Sheridan, 1992). There are times when an employee wants to leave a company not for a better job opportunity, but for the chance to relocate. Usually if this is a case, the employees needs are strictly personal ones. If possible, a business can offer a relocation allowance to the employee and still try to keep them in the company in the same or a different capacity. Again, the details would have to be worked out on an individual basis so that the employee does not abuse this privilege (Sheridan, 1992). The implementation of company policies like flextime, job-sharing, and part-time work may also prove useful in retaining an employee who wishes to leave their job for personal reasons. By doing so, a company could gain a reputation as a family-friendly environment and therefore make it more attractive to future potential employees (Sheridan, 1992). Another thing that employees seem to enjoy is casual days or even a company casual dress policy. This allows employees the chance to better express themselves and creates a more comfortable work environment. In most cases, the dress code should be clearly defined so that the employees do not abuse the privilege and promote an unprofessional image about the company (Sheridan, 1992). A company may also want to spend some time to get to know their employees better. A thorough understanding of an employees goals, concerns, skill level, values, health, and job satisfaction are just a few of the areas that can be addressed. By doing so, the employee could be made to feel more like a prized individual and less like a cog in a corporate machine. At the same time the company will educate itself as to which employees are the most valuable in both a business and personal sense. (Sheridan, 1992). When a valued employee leaves, the company can use information gathered in an exit-interview to find out the reasons for the employees decision and the changes that can be made within the company to keep others from following suit. This data can be gathered into a formal report and distributed to management, members of the human resource team, and other pertinent employees to be used for this purpose (Sheridan, 1992). Finally, upper-level employees can be trained as retention managers to help in the seemingly never-ending battle to keep talent. A successful retention manager must be aware of their strengths and weaknesses and have a talent for listening, respecting, and understanding their employees concerns. Retention managers should be individuals who have already proven their loyalty to the company. Honesty, creativity, and patience are other virtues that can help in this type of position (Sheridan, 1992). Every company should understand that people are their best commodity. Without qualified people who are good at what they do, any company would be in serious trouble. In the long run, the retention of existing employees saves companies money. There are advertising and recruiting expenses, orientation and training of the new employee, decreased productivity until the new employee is up to speed, and loss of customers who were loyal to the departing employee. Finding, recruiting, and training the best employees represents a major investment. Once a company has captured talented people, the return-on-investment requires closing the back door to prevent them from walking out (Robert P. Steel, 2002) When an employee leaves a company for a direct competitor, there is always a chance that they will take important business strategies and secrets with them to be exploited by the competition. This is yet another reason why the retention of employees is so crucial to some businesses. While this practice seems a bit unscrupulous, it stills happens quite frequently. As Bill Leonard stated in HR Magazine: because employers know that the best-qualified applicants will come directly from competitors, recruiting and hiring employees away from the competition becomes a necessity in an ultra-tight labor market. And necessity is the mother of inventive and sometimes controversial business practices. Recruiting and hiring from your competitors is probably as old as business itself. But what is new and a hot topic among employers is how to attract and retain qualified candidates in a highly competitive labor market while also preventing their own intellectual capital from winding up in the hands of competitors (Robert P. Steel, 2002). One way for a company to prevent employees from giving valuable information to competitors is to make it a policy to enforce strict noncompeting and confidentiality agreements amongst its employees. The existence of such agreements could in fact deter a competitor from hiring a valuable employ because they might not want to risk possible legal entanglements with the other company. Of course, all this could possibly lead to animosity with the employee who could feel that his or her options are being limited. Many employees dont always remember signing such a document, so a copy of it should always be kept on file for the employee to refer to. This area could prove to be a highly sensitive one between employer and employee, so extreme caution is suggested in all instances (Robert P. Steel, 2002). Employee retention is an issue in just about every business sector. The technology field seems to see the most movement amongst employees, but other markets like education and sales also see more than their fair share of turnover (Sheridan, 1992). The effects of this trend are somewhat different for small businesses. Since the employee base at a small business is fairly low, a stronger sense of loyalty may be a bit more prevalent. One possible reason for this trend would be the generally low number of layoffs that occur in the small business sector. Many small businesses even have no-layoff policies that can be used as a valuable recruiting and retention tool to secure employees. These types of policies are not for all small businesses, especially those with erratic sales trends or those that employ a large number of non skilled workers who are often easy to replace (Sheridan, 1992). In any event, just about every business will have to live with the fact that valued employees will leave at some point. While certain strategies can be practiced to slow this trend, it most likely can never be stopped completely. Successful businesses that are built on a strong foundation should have less trouble dealing with this situation than their weaker counterparts. At the same time, the companys strengths will enable them to promote an image to help recruit and ultimately retain the best employees out there (Robert P. Steel, 2002). When the companies were consulted, the subject of identifying and retaining top talent is always one of the critical items executives tell me theyd like to improve upon. However, when asked what their strategy is in that regard they either mention that theyve found this great recruiting firm that is going to do nothing but send them top-level talent, or they look at me and tell me the people that have left were no good to begin with, basically rationalizing the cause of the turnover(Rosemary Batt, 2002). It is recommended that job analysis audits should be conducted to provide realistic job previews. Job analysis audits should be done with behavioral assessments, cognitive reasoning assessments, job simulations, and hard skills assessments (e.g., computer skills, etc.) to objectively define the core competencies required for success in each role competency modeling. This helps in providing a realistic job preview for candidates and managers. Oftentimes what managers think they need for a certain role is different from that they actually need (Robert P. Steel, 2002). A well-designed assessment and selection process must be implemented. Behavioral assessments and structured behavioral interviewing techniques should be used to increase the likelihood of hiring people who can, and will, do the job at a high level in your environment and for your managers job fit assessment (Sheridan, 1992). Effective employee orientation must be provided. The people who are hired today are potentially the greatest resource for corporate success in the years ahead. A senior leaders participation in new employee orientation sends a vital cultural and leadership message: everyone is involved in the drive toward the future. Everyone even the newest employee has value (Robert P. Steel, 2002). Programs for employee training and development are to be implemented. Ongoing professional development is required to show willingness as an organization to develop the greatest assets which are the people. (Sheridan, 1992). Manager and employee relationships must be improved. Concentration should be on the people who stay with the organization to learn what makes them happy; then give them more of it. It is said that people leave managers, not companies. If there is a turnover problem, assess the managers (Robert P. Steel, 2002). An equitable and fair pay system is also important (Sheridan, 1992). Encourage succession planning. Identify roles for which employees may be suited in the future and work with them on designing their succession plan within the organization. Invest in cross-training, job shadowing, coaching, mentoring, and cross-experience (Robert P. Steel, 2002). Job security is dependent on economy, prevailing business conditions, and the individuals personal skills. It has been found that people have more job security in times of economic expansion and less in times of a recession (Postel-Vinay, 2005). Chapter 3 Research Methodology 3.1 Sources of Information The information used in this study is basically primary data collected from respondents who are employees of Banking Sector in Pakistan. Employees at various levels working in four recently banks have been surveyed for this study to identify two responses i.e. organizations involved in succession planning would have employees who are more intend to stay in the same organization. For this research, four banks, RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland), SCB (Standard Chartered Bank), UBL (United Bank Limited) and MCB (Muslim Commercial Bank) have been selected to carry out the survey. 3.2 Sampling Technique Procedure The researcher has used the Convenience Sampling technique in which the sample has been selected in such a way that all individuals in the target population had an equal probability of being selected in the sample. Various departments within each bank were approached and employees working at various levels were used as correspondents for this research. 3.3 Sample Size The total sample size was 100 respondents, taking 25 employees from each of the chosen bank which includes Male / Female Graduate / Masters Employee/Supervisor/Manager / Senior Manager or Others 3.4 Method of Data Collection Procedure The private sector Banking Industry of Pakistan is the targeted segment for the collection of primary data through questionnaires which is designed on the basis of research articles and questionnaires related to the topic. All employees from managerial level would be the participants. The survey would be self administered. 3.4.1 Data Collection Basically there are two types of data available for the researchers, Primary and Secondary. In this research primary data has been used collected through questionnaires. Since and its effect is a study which needs to be carried out from employees who actually went through this, therefore the researcher had to rely on questionnaire survey results (primary data) for empirical data. The researcher carried out the research through Survey method i.e. personal survey from employees working within four chosen banks in Pakistan. The survey was carried out by getting questionnaires filled from employees working at different levels within the organization and their perceptions were studied regarding the retention and what factors can come if succession effect created among them. 3.4.2 Research Testing Instruments The instruments used for collecting data for this research consisted of questionnaire for surveys and SPSS as testing tool. For the purpose of data collection a questionnaire was devised based on two sections that consisted questions pertaining to Employee Retention (Dependent Variable), Succession Planning (Independent Variables). The respondents have been asked if they had been properly brief about the effects of succession planning employee retention that had on their behavioral outcomes. The tool used in this research is SPSS. Pearsons Correlation is used in this research and analysis is carried out keeping in view the nature of the hypothesis and the data. During the analysis of data in SPSS, researcher has used technique of Pearsons Correlation, because Pearsons correlation coefficient is a measure of linear association. Two variables can be perfectly related. 3.4.3 Method The questionnaire was mailed and e-mailed to the employees of a random sample of 100 from four chosen banks. 3.4.4 Questionnaire Questions were asked from employees based on their experience. Section A consisted of 15 questions related to Employee Retention which includes organizational commitment, job security and job content. All parts were divided among 5 each questions. The scale for recording responses was 1 to 5 representing Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree and Strongly Agree. The questions were designed in a way to judge the psychological effect of retention on employees mind. Section B consisted of 11 questions related to the Succession Planning of employees which includes tenure, leadership and self-esteem. The scale for recording responses was 1 to 5 representing Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree and Strongly Agree. The questions were designed in a way to judge the psychological effect of succession on employees mind. All the questions of both the sections A B were designed in a way to judge the employees motivation level towards work and whether or not they are planning to leave the organization upon getting an opportunity elsewhere. 3.4.5 Questionnaire Testing A questi

Executive Summary :: Economics

Executive Summary This report will look for alternative ways in which the London Underground can change their prices in order to reduce their loss in terms of total revenue. The report will both identify and analyse these alternative methods in an attempt to find the most suitable way of increasing the revenue for the London Underground. The report will also look at how elasticity plays a key role in determining any decisions as well as the outcome of these decisions made. The London Underground is at this very time running at a loss and is in urgent need of things being turned around. The London Underground may at one point in the future be privatised. What we need to determine is how we can increase revenue before it floats so that potential shareholders will be attracted. We must see how prices can be adjusted in coincidence with the market segments so that revenue can be increased. Elasticity is crucial in our thinking as it can have a big impact. 1.1 DEFINITION OF ELASTICITY Elasticity is the concept in economics that measures the responsiveness of one variable in response to another variable. The best measure of this responsiveness is the proportional or percent change in the variables. This gives the most usable results for any type or range of data. Thus elasticity is the proportional (or percent) change in one variable relative to the proportional change in another variable. The general formula for elasticity is: E = percent change in x / percent change in y 1.12 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ELASTIC AND INELASTIC DEMAND Elastic means something is highly responsive to changes in something else. For example, elastic demand means that the quantity demanded changes a lot when the price changes. Inelastic demand means that the quantity demanded does not change much when the price changes. 2.0 WAYS IN WHICH FARES CAN BE ADJUSTED 2.01 OPTION 1 One way of adjusting prices can be to decrease the fares for students. Students often use this service as a means of transport to get to their respective universities. If fare prices are lower, even though the income per ticket is less, it may overall increase sales revenue. Other discounts may also be offered if a quarterly or seasonally train pass was purchased, which would attract student to this service. 2.02 OPTION 2 Fare prices can be increased because many people see this service as inelastic as they do not have any other means of transport. A lot of business people use this service and may well be able to afford to pay the extra cost. However this is a very risky method as it may encourage people to use private transport which may take the business

De Vaca and Smith :: Social Issues, Indian Life

Both Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca and John Smith hold different attitudes regarding their accounts of Indian life. The difference in attitudes may have resulted from the difference in treatments that each man received while in captivity. De Vaca’s experience is a humbling one. His account of Indian life is written in a thoughtful manner, and he describes the Indians kindly. While he describes his captivity as â€Å"melancholy and wretched† (De Vaca 34), it’s clear that he harbors no ill feelings towards the Indians. He states that he and his men were treated well, that they lived as â€Å"free agents† (De Vaca 32) and tried to accustom themselves to Indian life. He’s highly observant of the Indian life. He records the Indian lifestyles in detail; his account reads more like a cultural anthropology study. His account of Indian life ends on a sympathetic note towards the Indians especially after he realizes his misjudgment of the Christians. â€Å"We often misjudge the motives of men,† de Vaca writes, â€Å"We thought we had effected the Indians’ liberty, when the Christians were but poising to pounce (De Vaca 36).† Smith, on the other hand, describes his account in a boastful manner. His account of Indian life reads like a fantastic adventure novel in which he is the glorified hero. He continuously refers to the Indians as â€Å"savages† (Smith 46) or â€Å"barbarians† (Smith 48) throughout his account. He even describes them as â€Å"devils† (Smith 51). At one point, he thinks that the Indians are trying to â€Å"fat him to eat him† (Smith 50). Smith’s account is so incredibly dramatic that he expects â€Å"every hour to be put to one death or other† (Smith 52). Also, the incident with Pocahontas saving Smith appears to be highly romanticized. Smith’s manner of writing, in which he writes of himself in the third person, only adds to the boastful tone of this account. It makes the entire account seem impersonal. It also makes Smith appear self-important and frivolous. One can only speculate on why there is such a huge difference in these two writers’ attitudes. Their backgrounds may be factors that have influenced their attitudes. For de Vaca, it may be his religious background that has influenced him and shaped his attitude. In his account, he acknowledges his religion several times. â€Å"My only solace in these labors was to think of the sufferings of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and the blood He shed for me,† de Vaca writes.

The Growing Trend of Sex and Violence in Media Today Essay -- essays r

Modern day society is composed of rules and structures. The general public has become much more sensitive over the years, resulting in a very politically correct atmosphere. Moreover, parents have decided that the opportune way of reaching their ambitions is through the lives of their children. Under this strict lifestyle, one would presume that our values are very conservative. Surprisingly, the opposite is true. Due to the sexual and violent permissiveness in today’s Multi-Media, our society has developed a sordid standard of morals. Sex is often considered to be taboo among families. Parents do not want to believe that their children are aware of it, and vice-versa. While the family is living in a state of denial, the media is embracing sexuality. It is almost impossible to go anywhere without being exposed to sexual media. Virtually all advertisements, regardless of form, use sexuality to sell their product. This ranges from beer commercials using scantily clad women to advertise their product to males, to magazines that draw our attention by writing the word â€Å"sex† in big, bold...

DOTA Addiction Essay

Playing games is a natural part of growing. It’s one way that kids learn to socialize, compete, to fulfil their craving ego, to entertain, to have fun and sometimes to escape from depression. Computer and online games, in most instances, are no more dangerous than other games, which kids play outdoors. But sometimes, computer and online games with the touch of modern technology, it become more than just play. They become an addiction. And when they become an addiction, it will be hard for the parents and to them to end what has been started. Computer games are slowly arousing and it is one of the things that bring the negative effect. Many people are playing and having so much fun with this that can be a form of entertainment. One of those addicting games is Defense of the Ancients (commonly known as DOTA) is a real-time online or LAN strategy computer game composing of two to ten or twelve players where you can choose from over ninety unique characters you can play on. It requires focus, strategy, quick hands and quick thinking when you are in difficult situations. The objective of the scenario is to destroy the opponent’s â€Å"Ancient†. The two ancient teams are heavily guarded structures at opposing corners of the map. The game is very popular in the world; in the Philippines and Thailand. It is also one of the most well-known computer games being played in Sweden and other Northern European countries. By these reasons, the popularity of this game has increase over time not only with these countries being mentioned  but it has been getting more popular all over the world. As DOTA arises, many issues also arise. It may be about on relationships, peers, foes, and most especially, education. Many critics worldwide are arguing about the real effects of playing DOTA considering that many people especially teenagers are getting addicted on this computer game. They said, this is a mind numbing entertainment for everyone and produces a socially isolated people and promotes violent behaviours. Some of these criticisms may or may not be true. In the Philippines, DOTA is being played not only by teenager but also by the kids that made this as a big concern for parents. At their young age they are more prone on getting addicted on playing this game and might get out of focus to their studies and would lost their interests in playing physical and traditional games like â€Å"tumbang preso†, â€Å"luksang baka†, â€Å"patintero†, and many more. There are many students and even some young professionals that are addicted to DOTA. When time spent on the computer, playing DOTA games it reaches a point that it harms a child’s or adult’s family and social relationships. Neither can disrupt school nor work life. Chapter II : Background of the Problem This action research is intended to prevent the addiction of the minors in playing computer games specifically DOTA. We have included negative and positive effects of the game, its advantage and disadvantages and some professional advices. Online games like DOTA can be a good social platform of the minors if it was directed in a good way. The positive effects of playing DOTA are for the youth to communicate teenagers who initially don’t know each other can easily be friends, they will also learn to strategize and boost their reflexes for DOTA is for smart ones. Gaming Addiction a Mental Disorder? The American Psychiatric Association (APA) adds Internet Gaming Addiction as  one of the potential disorders that needs to be treated. And they are hoping for more clinical research to formally include it on the list. Should it be considered as such? Here are some arguments and counter-arguments regarding gaming addiction.