Pearl

Word Mastery Apprehensive- having awareness or knowledge of something Benign- showing kindness and gentleness Collusion- secret agreement or cooperation especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose Countenance- calm expression Divert- to turn from one course or use to another Glimmer- to appear indistinctly with a faintly luminous quality Goad- something that urges or stimulates into action Immune- marked by protection Lament- to express sorrow, mourning, or regret for often demonstratively Monotonous-uttered or sounded in one unvarying tone: dull Getting it Straight-Answer all of these questions.Complete sentences Chapter 4 1. In the description of the pearl buyers, what do we find out about the market in Kino's village? The market is fixed. The buyers get together and set prices to cheat the village men. 2. What happened when Kino went to sell his pearl? The pearl buyer told him it was a curiosity, not a valuable pearl. He offered Kino 1,000 pesos. When Kino disagreed, three othe r buyers were brought in; each one said it was of little value. It is made obvious to the reader that the buyers had arranged their prices earlier. Kino says he will go to the capitol instead of dealing with these buyers. . Juan Tomas says to Kino, â€Å"You have defied not the pearl buyers, but the whole structure, the whole way of life. I am afraid for you. † What does he mean? No one of the village men had ever gone against the buyers. No one had â€Å"taken on city hall,† so-to-speak. It was not Kino's place to try to do better. He was just a lowly village man; that was his station in life. Now, he was trying to improve his station and would have to have a major conflict in order to do so. Juan Tomas thinks this goes against the laws of nature and that bad things happen when you go against the laws of nature.As I heard it put once, â€Å"Little fish don't eat big fish. † 4. Again at the end of the chapter, Juana wants to throw away the pearl because it is ev il. What evil thing happened? Kino is attacked again. This time he is hurt worse than the first time. Chapter 5 1. Where did Juana go early in the morning? Juana tried to sneak out with the pearl to throw it away. 2. What did Kino do when he figured out where she went? He went after her, took the pearl away, and (in the process) beat and kicked Juana. 3. What happened to Kino up the beach through the brush line on the path? He was attacked again.This time he was badly injured, and he killed a man. He thought he lost the pearl, but (ironically) Juana found it again in the path. 4. What happened to their hut while they were away? Someone had gone in searching for the pearl. It was a total wreck, and then someone set fire to it. 5. Why did they leave the village? They left the village because Kino had killed a man. They did not think that, given Kino's recent upsetting of authority, anyone would believe the man was killed in self-defense. Chapter 6 1. What â€Å"songs† does Kino hear on the first part of their journey?He hears the music of the pearl and the quiet melody of the family. 2. What made the music of the pearl become â€Å"sinister in his ears, interwoven with the music of evil? † Kino looked at Coyotito's face. We assume that means he thought of the evil of the scorpion and his distrust of the doctor. 3. What happens to Coyotito? Coyotito cries. The tracker shoots towards the sound, towards the cave where Juana and Coyotito are hiding, and the shot hits and kills Coyotito. 4. What happens to the trackers? Kino kills the trackers. 5. What happens to Kino and Juana? They return to the village with their dead baby. 6.What do they do with the pearl? They throw it away. 7. What does the return of Kino and Juana and their throwing away the pearl mean symbolically? It means that Kino has given up his dream, his hope for a better future for himself and his family. He has lost in his conflicts with man and nature. It appears as though Juan Tomas w as right. Delving in- Answer all question in bold and choose any two to answer 1. Why does the music of the pearl change? The â€Å"Music of the pearl† changes when Kino thoughts and senses change about the pearl. 2. Why does Kino come to feel that he will lose his soul if he gives up the pearl?Kino comes to feel that he will lose his soul if he gives up the pearl. Kino thinks the pearl is his soul. Kino has become so obsessed with the pearl that nothing else matters. His soul and faith is to making his dream come true, of moving in to a upper class and his son having an education. His soul –has the pearl to make his dream come true. It is all that holds him to life and hold his great future of his desire. 3. Why does Tomas help Kino? Tomas help Kino because he cares for Kino and his family. Tomas want to protect them from danger. Also Tomas want help put less stress for family with the entire stressful problem that has come.Furthermore Tomas pity them for all going on . Lastly, it the culture to help your family member: who needs help. 4. Why does Juana feel the event s the following the pearl’s discovery may all have been an illusion? The pearl’s discovery may all have been an illusion. Juana understands the terrible cost of Kino's having found the Pearl of the World. For, it is an uncertain world in which they now live. The dream of a better life for his son using has become now only a dream that is dark, with evil hidden around them. But the pearl was thought to be all good didn’t come to the thought being bad.

Aim High Soar High essay

(Goals are not only essential to motivate, but also an essential thing keeps us alive)     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Robert Schuyler. Summed up the lives of many people in that he was born and then grew up in the house of his parents and entered the school, and when he finished his high school told him: your total admits College   Entered, when graduated; told him: that you estimate this lets you work in a job well shall submit to and obtained really.When he settled in his work told him: that today you to marry this girl for you, marry her and fathered her kids with the same story repeated, that lay on his deathbed and then died buried, and remained his children to live the same story! Is not this story reflect the reality of many people today? So what is the diff erence between the owner of this story and the rest of the organisms from non-humans? Is not this story is the story of all beings?Born , full size , married , had children then died !! The primary difference between the human and other organisms that he alone who has the ability to set and achieve goals, if not determined goal of human life; it does not deserve his humanity after he lost his life in the eating, drinking and sleeping. Man is the one who gives his life value, meaning that life is to have a message we perform, and when one of us has real targets, that would be the day of his birth.But he who does not have targets it flops in his life randomly, not knowing which way exhibits, and if you have read the story of â€Å"Alice in Wonderland† for the author â€Å"Lewis Carroll†, may remember us that dialogued crossing that took place between the girl â€Å"Alice† and the cat-Hakim â€Å"Chitchayr†, which expresses this sense that we're talking abou t. When you ask â€Å"Alice† cat â€Å"Chitchayr† for the road; says: Please, I know of no way behaving? Cat is: It depends largely on where you want to go, says â€Å"Alice†: I'm not a player a lot of place, is the at: If you do not care much any roads behave, add â€Å"Alice† wondering: as long as I get to anywhere? Verde cat: Yes,   Yes ,you will arrive definitely somewhere, provided that they are going adequacy. It is obvious, there is no need to have any significant effort to reach the place indefinitely, you should not do anything and you will reach after one minute, anyway, if you want to access anywhere meaningful, you should know first where you want to go. Designed personal compass. Do you know what is the compass?It's that simple invention which consists of a magnetic needle always point towards the direction of the north, used by the traveler in the desert or captain of his ship to determine the right direction to walk. The goals in life is to serve as a compass vitae of each human being, it shall establish a direction in which it should route in this life, and constitute a frame of reference can be ascribed to him to take all decisions. If you want to take any decision in your life, such as: in any college study? Any sport practiced? Any physical level should be earned?Any business join? You must first determine your compass self, your message and your goals that will guide them in all decisions of your life, and only signed a spiral of chaos and confusion does not end until the day you die and you will, will discover looser Talk in your life. So let us in achieving our goals, but how? Beginning you select your life; a major task or a larger role which man lives in order to achieve in life, and he says the â€Å"Antoine Okcypri†: (life becomes meaningful only when witnessed by day after day for something other than life itself).This letter is the focus of human life, moving from her and activates it and slept i t and carried out. Select the vision that you want for yourself in all areas of your life ,work to determine what you want to achieve, both in the professional side or the social side or other aspects that include parts your life. Then start setting interim targets large and small, all of which hover around your message and pour in the production of your vision, and it says, â€Å"Peter A. â€Å": (the road does not go in one big step, but the ay to go in small steps). But remember the goal must carry the conditions it must be a reality can be achieved and more importantly to be clear and have a time limit for beginning and completing process determine the date began the goal and the end help to achieve the goal and then make sure that it can change the target whenever you want. Select your goal from now and remember what he said, â€Å"Harvey McKay† the best writer in the field of commercial sales: (The goal is a dream final end).

Porsche Changes Tack

Porsche Changes Tack Yes, of course, we have heard of shareholder value. But that does not change the fact that we put customers first, then workers, then business partners, suppliers and dealers, and then shareholders. Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, CEO, Porsche, Die Zeit, April 17, 2005. Porsche had always been different. Statements by Porsche leadership, like the one above, always made Veselina (Vesi) Dinova nervous about the company’s attitude about creating shareholder value. The company was a paradox.Porsche’s attitudes and activities were like that of a family-owned firm, but it had succeeded in creating substantial shareholder value for more than a decade. Porsche’s CEO, Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, had been credited with clarity of purpose and sureness of execution. As one colleague described him: â€Å"He grew up PSD: poor, smart, and driven. † Porsche’s management of two minds had created confusion in the marketplace as to which value proposition Por sche presented. Was Porsche continuing to develop an organizational focus on shareholder value, or was it returning to its more traditional German roots of stakeholder capitalism?Simply put, was Porsche’s leadership building value for all shareholders, including the controlling families, or was it pursuing family objectives at the expense of the shareholder? Vesi had to make a recommendation to her investment committee tomorrow, and the evidence was confusing at best. Shareholder Wealth or Stakeholder Capitalism? Vesi’s dilemma was whether Porsche—Porsche’s leadership—was increasingly pursuing shareholder wealth maximization or the more traditional Continental European model of stakeholder capitalism.Shareholder Wealth Maximization. The Anglo-American markets—the United States and United Kingdom primarily—have followed the philosophy that a firm’s objective should be shareholder wealth maximization. More specifically, the firm should strive to maximize the return to shareholders, as measured by the sum of capital gains and dividends. This philosophy is based on the assumption that stock markets are efficient; that is, the share price is always correct, and quickly incorporates all new information about expectations of return and risk.Share prices, in turn, are deemed the best allocators of capital in the macro economy. Agency theory is the subject of how shareholders can motivate management to accept the prescriptions of shareholder wealth. For example, liberal use of stock options should encourage management to think like shareholders. If, however, management deviates too far from shareholder objectives, the company’s board of directors is responsible for replacing them. In cases where the board is too weak or ingrown to take this action, the discipline of the equity markets could do it through a takeover.This discipline is made possible by the one-share-one-vote rule that exists in most Anglo-Ame rican markets. Copyright  © 2007 Thunderbird School of Global Management. All rights reserved. This case was prepared by Professor Michael H. Moffett for the purpose of classroom discussion only, and not to indicate either effective or ineffective management. Special thanks to Wesley Edens and Pilar Garcia-Heras, MBA ‘06, for case-writing assistance. Stakeholder Capitalism. In the non-Anglo-American markets, particularly continental Europe, controlling shareholders also strive to maximize long-term returns to equity.However, they are more constrained by powerful other stakeholders like creditors, labor unions, governments, and regional entities. In particular, labor unions are often much more powerful than in the Anglo-American markets. Governments often intervene more in the marketplace to protect important stakeholder interests in local communities, such as environmental protection and employment needs. Banks and other financial institutions often have cross-memberships on corporate boards, and as a result are frequently quite influential. This model has been labeled stakeholder capitalism.Stakeholder capitalism does not assume that equity markets are either efficient or inefficient. Efficiency is not really critical because the firm’s financial goals are not exclusively shareholder-oriented since they are constrained by the other stakeholders. In any case, stakeholder capitalism assumes that long-term â€Å"loyal† shareholders—typically, controlling shareholders—rather than the transient portfolio investor should influence corporate strategy. Although both philosophies have their strengths and weaknesses, two trends in recent years have led to an increasing focus on shareholder wealth.First, as more of the non-Anglo-American markets have increasingly privatized their industries, the shareholder wealth focus is seemingly needed to attract international capital from outside investors, many of whom are from other countries. Second, and still quite controversial, many analysts believe that shareholder-based multinationals are increasingly dominating their global industry segments. Porsche AG I know exactly what I want and what must happen. I am the real one. You can be sure. Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking Porsche AG was a publicly traded, closely held, German-based auto manufacturer.Porsche’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, had returned the company to both status and profitability since taking over the company in 1993. Wiedeking’s background was in production, and many had questioned whether he was the right man for the job. Immediately after taking over Porsche, he had killed the 928 and 968 model platforms to reduce complexity and cost, although at the time this left the company with only one platform, the 911. Wiedeking had then brought in a group of Japanese manufacturing consultants, in the Toyota tradition, who led the complete overhaul of the company’s manufacturing processes. Wiedeking himself made news when he walked down the production line with a circular saw, cutting off the shelving which held parts. Porsche had closed the 2004/05 fiscal year (ending July 2005) with â‚ ¬6. 7 billion in sales and â‚ ¬721 million in profit after-tax. Wiedeking and his team were credited with the wholesale turnaround of the specialty manufacturer. Strategically, the leadership team had now expanded the company’s business line to reduce its dependence on the luxury sports car market, historically an extremely cyclical business line.Although Porsche was traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (and associated German exchanges), control of the company remained firmly in the hands of the founding families, the Porsche and Piech families. Porsche had two classes of shares, ordinary and preference. The two families held all 8. 75 million ordinary shares—the shares which held all voting rights. The second class of share, preference s hares, participated only in profits. All 8. 75 million preference shares were publicly traded. Approximately 50% of all preference shares were held by large institutional investors in the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom; 14% were eld by the Porsche and Piech families; and 36% were held by small private investors. As noted by the Chief Financial Officer, Holger Harter, â€Å"As long as the two families hold on to their stock portfolios, there won’t be any external influence on company-related decisions. I have no doubt that the families will hang on to their shares. † One of the consultants, focused on lean manufacturing techniques and Porsche’s overwhelming levels of subcomponent assemblies and various automotive parts and inventory, was quoted as saying, â€Å"Where is the car factory? This looks like a mover’s warehouse. 1 2 TB0067 Porsche was somewhat infamous for its independent thought and occasional stubbornness when it came to discl osure and compliance with reporting requirements—the prerequisites of being publicly traded. In 2002, the company had chosen not to list on the New York Stock Exchange after the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The company pointed to the specific requirement of Sarbanes-Oxley that senior management sign off on the financial results of the company personally as inconsistent with German law (which it largely was) and illogical for management to accept.Management had also long been critical of the practice of quarterly reporting, and had in fact been removed from the Frankfurt exchange’s stock index in September 2002 because of its refusal to report quarterly financial results (Porsche still reports operating and financial results only semi-annually). Porsche’s management continued to argue that the company believed itself to be quite seasonal in its operations, and did not wish to report quarterly. It also believed that quarterly reporting only added to short-te rm investor perspectives, a fire which Porsche felt no need to fuel (see Appendix 4).Exhibit 1 7,000 Porsche’s Growth in Sales, Income and Margin Operating Margin 28% Millions of euros (â‚ ¬) Sales 6,000 20. 8% 5,000 18. 0% 18. 2% 17. 9% 20% 24% 4,000 13. 6% 3,000 11. 6% 12. 0% 16% Operating Margin (EBIT / Sales) 12% 2,000 7. 0% Operating Income (EBIT) 8% 4. 2% 1,000 2. 0% 0 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 4% 0% 2004 2005 Note: EBIT = earnings before interest and tax. But, after all was said and done, the company had just reported record profits for the tenth consecutive year (see Exhibit 1).Returns were so good and had grown so steadily that the company had paid out a special dividend of â‚ ¬14 per share in 2002, in addition to increasing the size of the regular dividend. The company’s critics had argued that this was simply another way in which the controlling families drained profits from the company. There was a continuing concern that management came first. In the words of one analyst, â€Å"†¦ we think there is the potential risk that management may not rate shareholders’ interests very highly. † The motivations of Porsche’s leadership team had long been the subject of debate.The compensation packages of Porsche’s senior management team were nearly exclusively focused on current year profitability (83% of executive board compensation was based on performance-related pay), with no management incentives or stock option awards related to the company’s share price. Porsche clearly focused on the company’s own operational and financial results, not the market’s valuation—or opinion—of the company. Leadership, however, had clearly built value for all stakeholders in recent years, TB0067 3 nd had shared many of the fruits of the business, in the form of bonuses, with both management and labor alike. â€Å"We are aware that our lofty ambitions for products, processes , and customer satisfaction can only be achieved with the support of a high-quality and well-motivated team. Here at Porsche, we have such a team—and we believe that they should share in the success of the company by means of special bonus payments. †2 Porsche’s Growing Portfolio Porsche’s product portfolio had undergone significant change as CEO Wiedeking pursued his promise to shareholders that he would grow the firm.The company had three major vehicle platforms: the premier luxury sports car, the 911; the competitively priced Boxster roadster; and the recently introduced off-road sport utility vehicle, the Cayenne. Porsche had also recently announced that it would be adding a fourth platform, the Panamera, which would be a high-end sedan to compete with Jaguar, Mercedes, and Bentley. 911. The 911 series was still the focal point of the Porsche brand, but many believed that it was growing old and due for replacement. Sales had seemingly peaked in 2001/02 , and fallen back more than 15% in 2002/03.The 911 was a highly developed series with more than 14 current models carrying the 911 tag. The 911 had always enjoyed nearly exclusive ownership of its market segment. Prices continued to be high, and margins some of the very highest in the global auto industry for production models. Although its sales had been historically cyclical, 911 demand was not priceelastic. The 911 was the only Porsche model which was manufactured and assembled in-house. Boxster. The Boxster roadster had been introduced in 1996 as Porsche’s entry into the lower-price end of the sports car market, and had been by all measures a very big success.The Boxster was also considered an anticyclical move, because the traditional 911 was so high priced that its sales were heavily dependent on the disposable income of buyers in its major markets (Europe, the United States, and the United Kingdom). The Boxster’s lower price made it affordable and less sensitive to the business cycle. It did, however, compete in an increasingly competitive market segment. Although the Boxster had competed head-to-head with the BMW Z3 since its introduction in 1996, the introduction of the Z4 in 2003 had drastically cut into Boxster sales. Boxster sales volumes had peaked in 2000/01.Volume sales in 2003/04 were down to 12,988, less than half what they had been at peak. Cayenne. The third major platform innovation was Porsche’s entry into the sports utility vehicle (SUV) segment, the Cayenne. Clearly at the top end of the market (2002/03 Cayenne sales averaged more than $70,000 each), the Cayenne had been a very quick success, especially in the SUVcrazed American market. The Cayenne introduction was considered by many as one of the most successful new product launches in history, and had single-handedly floated Porsche sales numbers in recent years.The Cayenne’s success had been even more dramatic given much pre-launch criticism that the market would not support such a high-priced SUV, particularly one which shared a strong blood-line with the Volkswagen (VW) Touareg. The Porsche Cayenne and VW Touareg had been jointly developed by the two companies. The two vehicles shared a common chassis, and in fact were both manufactured at the same factory in Bratislava, Slovakia. To preserve its unique identity, however, Porsche shipped the Cayenne chassis 17 hours by rail to its facility in Leipzig, Germany, where the engine, drive â€Å"Porsche Stays on Course,† Dr.Wendelin Wiedeking, President and Chief Executive Officer, Porsche Annual Report 2003/04, p. 5. 2 4 TB0067 train, and interior were combined in final assembly. 3 A new six-cylinder version was introduced in 2004 to buoy Cayenne sales after the initial boom of the introduction year, by offering a significantly cheaper model choice. 4 As illustrated by Exhibit 2, Porsche’s platform innovations had successfully grown sales volumes over the past decade. Exhib it 2 Units 0,000 80,000 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Note: Excludes sales of the discontinued 928 and 944/968 models in 1994-1996. These models totaled 1005 in 1995 and 104 in 1006. 911 sales in 2004 and 2005 include 222 and 660 Carrera GTs, respectively. Porsche’s Expanding Platforms and Growing Sales 911 Boxster Cayenne Panamera. On July 27, 2005, Porsche announced that it would proceed with the development and production of a fourth major model—the Panamera. The name was derived from the legendary Carrera Panamericana long-distance road race held for many years in Mexico.The Panamera would be a premium class, four-door, four-seat sports coupe, and would compete with the premium sedan models produced by Mercedes Benz and Bentley. Pricing was expected to begin at $125,000, rising to $175,000. Production was scheduled to begin in 2009 at a scale of 20,000 units per year. This new model would g ive Porsche a competitive element in every major premium-product market segment. The Most Profitable Automobile Company in the World Porsche’s financial performance and health, by auto manufacturer standards, European or elsewhere, was excellent.It was clearly the smallest of the major European-based manufacturers with total sales of â‚ ¬6. 4 billion in 2004. 5 This was in comparison to DaimlerChrysler’s â‚ ¬142 billion in sales, and Volkswagen’s The engine was, in fact, the only part of the Cayenne which was actually manufactured by Porsche itself. All other components of the vehicle were either outsourced or built in conjunction with other manufacturers. 4 The six-cylinder engine, however, was actually a Volkswagen engine which had been reconfigured. This had led to significant debate, as Porsche was criticized for degrading the Porsche brand. Comparing Porsche’s financial results with other major automakers is problematic. First, Porsche’s fiscal year ends July 31. Hence Porsche’s financial results for 2004 reported in Exhibit 3 are those for the August 1, 2003, through July 31, 2004, period. Secondly, Porsche announced that beginning with the 2004/05 period, which ended July 31, 2005, it would move to InternationalFinancial Reporting Standards (IFRS), rather than the German Commercial Code and special accounting requirements of the German Stock Corporation Law (German Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) which it has followed since it went public in 1984.These results will not be comparable to previous reporting years, and will require both Porsche and its analysts to reconstruct its financial history following IFRS. 3 TB0067 5 â‚ ¬89 billion. But, as illustrated in Exhibit 3, Porsche was outstanding by all metrics of profitability and return on invested capital. Porsche’s EBITDA, EBIT, and net income margins were the highest among all European automakers in 2004. 6 What also always stood out a bout Porsche was the average revenue per vehicle. At â‚ ¬83,671, only DaimlerChrysler was even close. Exhibit 3 European Automaker BMW DaimlerChrysler Fiat Peugeot Porsche Renault VolkswagenPorshe’s Competitive Positioning, 2004 Earnings Measures Sales (millions) â‚ ¬ 44,335 â‚ ¬ 142,059 â‚ ¬ 46,703 â‚ ¬ 56,797 â‚ ¬ 6,359 â‚ ¬ 40,715 â‚ ¬ 88,963 Revenue per vehicle â‚ ¬ 39,622 â‚ ¬ 78,056 â‚ ¬ 28,844 â‚ ¬ 19,354 â‚ ¬ 83,671 â‚ ¬ 19,291 â‚ ¬ 18,369 EBITDA â‚ ¬ 5,780 â‚ ¬ 10,280 â‚ ¬ 2,190 â‚ ¬ 4,502 â‚ ¬ 1,665 â‚ ¬ 4,414 â‚ ¬ 7,140 EBIT â‚ ¬ 3,745 â‚ ¬ 4,612 â‚ ¬ 22 â‚ ¬ 1,916 â‚ ¬ 1,141 â‚ ¬ 2,148 â‚ ¬ 1,620 Net Income â‚ ¬ 2,222 â‚ ¬ 2,466 -â‚ ¬ 1,586 â‚ ¬ 1,357 â‚ ¬ 616 â‚ ¬ 3,551 â‚ ¬ 677 EBITDA Margin 13. 0% 7. 2% 4. 7% 7. 9% 26. 2% 10. 8% 8. 0% Margin Measures EBIT Net Income Margin Margin 8. 4% 5. 0% 3. 2% 1. 7% 0. 0% -3. 4% 3. 4% 2. 4% 17. 9% 9. 7% 5. 3% 8. 7% 1. % 0. 8% Source: â€Å"European Autos,† Deutsche Bank, July 20, 2005; â€Å"Porsche,† Deutsche Bank, September 26, 2005; Thomson Analytics; author estimates. Renault’s results included 343 million in extraordinary income in 2004, accounting for net income exceeding EBIT. Porsche’s financial results, however, had been the subject of substantial debate in recent years as upwards of 40% of operating earnings were thought to be derived from currency hedging. Porsche’s cost-base was purely European euro; it produced in only two countries, Germany and Finland, and both were euro area members.Porsche believed that the quality of its engineering and manufacturing were at the core of its brand, and it was not willing to move production beyond Europe (BMW, Mercedes, and VW had all been manufacturing in both the United States and Mexico for years). Porsche’s sales by currency in 2004 were roughly 45% European euro, 40% U. S. dollar, 10% British pound s terling, and 5% other (primarily the Japanese yen and Swiss franc). Porsche’s leadership had undertaken a very aggressive currency hedging strategy beginning in 2001 when the euro was at a record low against the U.S. dollar. In the following years, these financial hedges (currency derivatives) proved extremely profitable. For example, nearly 43% of operating earnings in 2003 were thought to have been derived from hedging activities. Although profitable, many analysts argued the company was increasingly an investment banking firm rather than an automaker, and was heavily exposed to the unpredictable fluctuations between the world’s two most powerful currencies, the dollar and the euro. Exhibit 4 European Automaker BMW DaimlerChrysler Fiat Peugeot Porsche Renault VolkswagenReturn on Invested Capital (ROIC) for European Automakers, 2004 Operating Margin Sales (millions) â‚ ¬ 44,335 â‚ ¬ 142,059 â‚ ¬ 46,703 â‚ ¬ 56,797 â‚ ¬ 6,359 â‚ ¬ 40,715 â‚ ¬ 88,96 3 EBIT â‚ ¬ 3,745 â‚ ¬ 4,612 â‚ ¬ 22 â‚ ¬ 1,916 â‚ ¬ 1,141 â‚ ¬ 2,148 â‚ ¬ 1,620 Taxes â‚ ¬ 1,332 â‚ ¬ 1,177 -â‚ ¬ 29 â‚ ¬ 676 â‚ ¬ 470 â‚ ¬ 634 â‚ ¬ 383 EBIT After-tax â‚ ¬ 2,413 â‚ ¬ 3,435 â‚ ¬ 51 â‚ ¬ 1,240 â‚ ¬ 671 â‚ ¬ 1,514 â‚ ¬ 1,237 Interest Bearing debt â‚ ¬ 1,555 â‚ ¬ 9,455 â‚ ¬ 24,813 â‚ ¬ 6,445 â‚ ¬ 2,105 â‚ ¬ 7,220 â‚ ¬ 14,971 Invested Capital Stockholders' equity â‚ ¬ 17,517 â‚ ¬ 33,541 â‚ ¬ 5,946 â‚ ¬ 13,356 â‚ ¬ 2,323 â‚ ¬ 16,444 â‚ ¬ 23,957 Invested Capital â‚ ¬ 19,072 â‚ ¬ 42,996 â‚ ¬ 30,759 â‚ ¬ 19,801 â‚ ¬ 4,428 â‚ ¬ 23,664 â‚ ¬ 38,928 Capital Turnover 2. 2 3. 30 1. 52 2. 87 1. 44 1. 72 2. 29 ROIC 12. 65% 7. 99% 0. 17% 6. 26% 15. 15% 6. 40% 3. 18% Source: â€Å"European Autos,† Deutsche Bank, July 20, 2005; â€Å"Porsche,† Deutsche Bank, September 26, 2005; Thomson Analytics; author estimates. Invested Capital = total stockho lders’ equity + gross interest-bearing debt. Capital turnover = sales/invested capital. ROIC (return on invested capital) = EBIT – taxes/invested capital. ROIC. It was Porsche’s return on invested capital (ROIC), however, which had been truly exceptional over time.The company’s ROIC in 2004—following Deutsche Bank’s analysis presented in Exhibit 4—was 15. 15%. This was clearly superior to all other European automakers; BMW’s ROIC was second highest at 12. 65%. Other major European automakers struggled to reach 6% to 7%. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) is frequently used as the income measure of pure business profitability. EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) is similar but is reduced by depreciation and amortization charges associated with capital asset and goodwill write-offs. 6 6 TB0067This ROIC reflected Porsche’s two-pronged financial strategy: 1) superior margins on the narrow but selective product portfolio; and 2) leveraging the capital and capabilities of manufacturing partners in the development and production of two of its three products. The company had successfully exploited the two primary drivers of the ROIC formula: ROIC = EBIT after-tax Sales x Sales Invested Capital The first component, operating profits (EBIT, earnings before interest and taxes) after-tax as a percent of sales—operating margin—was exceptional at Porsche due to the premium value pricing derived from its global brand of quality and excellence.This allowed Porsche to charge premium prices and achieve some of the largest of margins in the auto industry. As illustrated in Exhibit 4, Porsche’s operating profits after-tax of â‚ ¬671 million produced an operating margin after-tax of 10. 55% (â‚ ¬671 divided by â‚ ¬6,359 in sales), the highest in the industry in 2004. The second component of ROIC, the capital turnover ratio (sales divided by inves ted capital)— velocity—reflected Porsche’s manufacturing and assembly strategy.By leveraging the Valmet and VW partnerships in the design, production, and assembly of both the Boxster (with Valmet of Finland) and the Cayenne (with Volkswagen of Germany), Porsche had achieved capital turnover ratios which dwarfed those achieved by any other European automaker. Porsche’s capital turnover ratio had surpassed all other European automakers consistently over the past decade. As illustrated by Exhibit 5, Porsche’s growing margins and relatively high velocity had sustained a very impressive ROIC for many years. In recent years, however, invested capital had risen faster than sales.But Porsche was not adding fixed assets to its invested capital basis, but cash. The rising cash balances were the result of retained profits (undistributed to shareholders) and new debt issuances (raising more than 600 million in 2004 alone). As a result, fiscal 2003/04 had prov en to be one of Porsche’s poorest years in ROIC. Exhibit 5 2. 5 Porsche’s Velocity, Margin, and ROIC Margin ;amp; ROIC 20% Velocity = Sales/Invested Capital 2. 15 2. 0 2. 12 Velocity 1. 97 1. 99 1. 81 18% 1. 91 ROIC (Operating Margin X Velocity) 14. 2% 12. 5% 11. 7% 11. 6% 10. 5% 1. 19 10. 5% 1. 21 9. % 11. 6% 13. 8% 16% 12. 9% 1. 5 14% 12. 6% 11. 9% 12% 10% 1. 0 8. 0% 6. 1% Operating Margin 6. 4% 6. 0% 6. 4% 8% 0. 91 0. 84 6% 0. 5 3. 8% 2. 0% 3. 7% 4% 2% 0. 0 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 0% Operating margin = ( EBIT – Taxes ) / Sales. Invested capital = cash + net working capital + net fixed assets. Porsche’s minimal levels of invested capital resulted from some rather unique characteristics. Invested capital is defined a number of ways, but Vesi used her employer’s standardized definition of cash plus net working capital plus net fixed assets. As illustrated in Exhibit 6, Porsche’s invested capital base TB0067 7 had be en growing rapidly in recent years, but not because of additional fixed asset investments. Porsche’s invested capital was growing primarily because of its accumulation of cash. 8 Vesi was concerned that using this measure of â€Å"invested capital† led to a distorted view of the company’s actual performance. Porsche’s minimal fixed-asset capital base resulted from the explicit strategy of the company as executed over the past decade.The development and manufacturing and assembly of the Cayenne was a clear example: †¢ Porsche had spent only $420 million in the development of the Cayenne. Auto analysts estimated that any other major automaker would have spent between $1. 2 and $1. 8 billion. †¢ Porsche had effectively avoided these costs and investments by co-producing the Cayenne with Volkswagen. The Cayenne shared some 65% of its parts and modules with the VW Touareg, with only 13% of the Cayenne’s actual wholesale value being derived fro m parts developed and manufactured by Porsche itself. The production agreement between Porsche and VW made VW responsible for all costs associated with quality problems arising at VW’s manufacturing facilities. Porsche paid VW a unit price for each Cayenne body produced in VW’s assembly facility in Bratislava, Slovakia. Porsche had successfully off-loaded both cost and risk. Exhibit 6 Asset Structure Cash Net working capital Net fixed assets Invested capital Liability Structure Short-term debt Long-term debt Total debt Equity Invested capital Porsche’s Managerial Balance Sheet (millions of euros) 996 â‚ ¬ 227 38 487 â‚ ¬ 753 1997 â‚ ¬ 281 116 578 â‚ ¬ 975 1998 â‚ ¬ 466 132 590 â‚ ¬ 1,188 1999 â‚ ¬ 730 225 649 â‚ ¬ 1,604 2000 â‚ ¬ 823 258 755 â‚ ¬ 1,835 2001 â‚ ¬ 1,121 369 960 â‚ ¬ 2,449 2002 â‚ ¬ 1,683 (355) 2,746 â‚ ¬ 4,073 2003 â‚ ¬ 1,766 (382) 3,215 â‚ ¬ 4,599 2004 â‚ ¬ 2,791 403 3,797 â‚ ¬ 6,992 2005 ↚ ¬ 4,325 (131) 3,641 â‚ ¬ 7,834 â‚ ¬8 19 â‚ ¬ 27 726 â‚ ¬ 753 â‚ ¬7 124 â‚ ¬ 131 844 â‚ ¬ 975 â‚ ¬ 10 114 â‚ ¬ 124 1,064 â‚ ¬ 1,188 â‚ ¬ 52 107 â‚ ¬ 159 1,445 â‚ ¬ 1,604 â‚ ¬ 20 82 â‚ ¬ 102 1,733 â‚ ¬ 1,835 â‚ ¬ 158 (49) â‚ ¬ 108 2,341 â‚ ¬ 2,449 â‚ ¬ 137 850 â‚ ¬ 987 3,086 â‚ ¬ 4,073 â‚ ¬ 70 859 â‚ ¬ 929 3,670 â‚ ¬ 4,599 â‚ ¬ 649 1,641 â‚ ¬ 2,290 4,702 â‚ ¬ 6,992 â‚ ¬ 1,107 2,026 â‚ ¬ 3,133 4,701 â‚ ¬ 7,834Net working capital = accounts receivable, inventories, and prepaid expenses, less accounts payable and accured expenses. This assumes ‘provisions for risk and charges' as equity. Porsche Changes Tack The summer and fall of 2005 saw a series of surprising moves by Porsche. First, Porsche announced that the â‚ ¬1 billion investment to design and manufacture the new Panamera would be largely funded by the company itself. Although the introduction of the Panamera had been anticipat ed for quite some time, the market was surprised that Porsche intended to design and build the car—and its manufacturing facility—nearly totally in-house.The new sports coupe was to be produced in Leipzig, Germany, at the existing Porsche facility, although a substantial expansion of the plant would be required. As opposed to the previous new product introductions, the Boxster and the Cayenne, there would be no major production partner involved. Porsche CEO Wendelin Wiedeking specifically noted this in his press release: â€Å"There are no plans for a joint venture with another car maker. But to ensure the profitability of this new model series, we will cooperate more closely than so far with selected system suppliers. 9 The German share of the value of the Panamera would be roughly 70%. Like the 911, Boxster, and Cayenne, the Panamera would bear the Made in Germany stamp. This methodology defines invested capital by assets, the left-hand side of the managerial balanc e sheet. Alternative definitions of invested capital focus on the right-hand side of the balance sheet; for example, as stockholder equity plus interest-bearing debt. Either version can also be netted for cash holdings under different methods. 8 Porsche’s cash and marketable securities grew from â‚ ¬2. billion in 2004 to over â‚ ¬4. 3 billion at the end of 2005 (July 31, 2005). Credit Suisse First Boston had in fact noted on September 21, 2005, just days before the VW announcement, that, â€Å"In our view, the only disappointment is that management indicated that the company would not look into returning cash to shareholders in the next 18 months. † 9 â€Å"Go Ahead for Porsche’s Fourth Model Series,† Porsche Press Release, July 27, 2005. 7 8 TB0067 The second surprise occurred on September 25, 2005, with the announcement to invest â‚ ¬3 billion in VW.Porsche AG, Stuttgart, seeks to acquire a share of approximately 20 percent in the stock capital of Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg, entitled to vote. Porsche is taking this decision because Volkswagen is now not only an important development partner for Porsche, but also a significant supplier of approximately 30 percent of Porsche’s sales volume. In the words of Porsche’s President and CEO: â€Å"Making this investment, we seek to secure our business relations with Volkswagen and make a significant contribution to our own future plans on a lasting, long-term basis. Porsche is in a position to finance the acquisition of the planned share in Volkswagen through its own, existing liquidity. After careful examination of this business case, Porsche is confident that the investment will prove profitable for both parties. †¦ The planned acquisition is to ensure that†¦ there will not be a hostile takeover of Volkswagen by investors not committed to Volkswagen’s long-term interests. In the words of Porsche’s President and CEO: â€Å"Our planned investm ent is the strategic answer to this risk.We wish in this way to ensure the independence of the Volkswagen Group in our own interest. This ‘German solution’ we are seeking is an essential prerequisite for stable development of the Volkswagen Group and, accordingly, for continuing our cooperation in the interest of both Companies. † â€Å"Acquisition of Stock to Secure Porsche’s Business,† Porsche AG (press release), September 25, 2005. Porsche would spend approximately â‚ ¬3 billion to take a 20% ownership position in VW. This would make Porsche VW’s single largest investor, slightly larger than the government of Lower Saxony. 0 It clearly eliminated any possible hostile acquisitions which may have been on the horizon (DaimlerChrysler was rumored to have been interested in raiding VW. ) The announcement was met by near-universal opposition The family linkages between the two companies were well known. Ferdinand K. Piech, one of the most prom inent members of the Piech family which, along with the Porsche family, controlled Porsche, was the former CEO (he retired in 2002) and still Chairman of Volkswagen. He was the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, the founder of Porsche.Accusations of conflict of interest were immediate, as were calls for his resignation, and the denial of Porsche’s request for a seat on VW’s board. Although VW officially welcomed the investment by Porsche, Christian Wulff, VW’s board member representing the state of Lower Saxony where VW was headquartered, publicly opposed the investment by Porsche. In the eyes of many, the move by Porsche was a return to German corporate cronyism. For years, â€Å"Deutschland AG† was emblematic of the cosy network of cross-shareholdings and shared non-executive directorships that insulated Germany from international capitalism.Wendelin Wiedeking, Porsche’s chief executive, himself invoked the national angle, saying this: â€Å"German solution was essential to secure VW, Europe’s largest carmaker, against a possible hostile takeover by short-term investors. † â€Å"Shield for Corporate Germany or a Family Affair? VW and Porsche Close Ranks,† Financial Times, Tuesday, September 27, 2005, p. 17. Germany, although long known for complex networks of cross-shareholdings, had effectively unwound most of these in the 1990s.The German government had successfully accelerated the unwinding by making most cross-shareholding liquidations tax-free in recent years, and both the financial and nonfinancial sectors had sold literally billions of euros in shares. This move by Porsche and VW was seen as more of a personal issue—Ferdinand Piech—rather than a national issue of German alliances. Many Porsche investors had agreed, arguing that if they had wanted to invest in VW, they would have done it themselves. The resulting ownership structure of Volkswagen in October 2005 was: 18. 3% Porsche; 18. 2% State of Lower Saxony; 13. 0% Volkswagen; 8. 58% Brandes Investment Partners; 3. 5% Capital Group; and 38. 19% widely distributed. Porsche still possessed the option to purchase another 3. 4%. 10 TB0067 9 There were also potential strategic conflicts between the two companies. Volkswagen’s premium segment company, Audi, was a distinct competitor to Porsche, particularly in light of the new Panamera project. VW itself had fallen on bad times (see Exhibit 3), and many VW watchers believed that the company needed activist shareholders.VW and its Audi unit were both suffering from high wage costs in German factories, and VW had been seeking wage concessions from many of its unions to regain competitiveness and profitability. Porsche had a reputation of being soft on German unions, and with the growing presence of both Porsche and Ferdinand Piech, critics feared VW would back away from its wage-reduction push. Porsche was not expected to be as cost-conscious or to push VW to ma ke drastic strategic changes.Instead, Porsche was expected to push VW to underwrite a number of the new models and platforms Porsche was in the process of introducing. There were, in fact, lingering allegations that a number of VW’s new product introductions had been delayed by the Cayenne’s production in 2003 and 2004. Shareholders in Porsche—the nonfamily-member shareholders—were both surprised and confused by this dramatic turn of events. Although the arguments for solidifying and securing the Porsche/ VW partnership were rational, the cost was not.At â‚ ¬3 billion, this was seemingly an enormous investment in a nonperforming asset. Analysts concluded that the potential returns to shareholders, even in the form of a special dividend, were now postponed indefinitely; shareholders would not â€Å"see the money† for years to come. The move was also seen by some as an acknowledgment by Porsche that it could no longer expand into new product categ ories without significantly larger capital and technical resources. Automotive electrical systems, for example, were increasingly complex and beyond capabilities possessed in-house by Porsche.The interest in VW, Europe’s second largest automaker to DaimlerChrysler, would surely provide the company with access to key resources. But why weren’t these resources accessible through partnerships and alliances, without the acquisition of one-fifth ownership in Europe’s largest moneyloser? The announcement of Porsche’s intention to take a 20% equity interest in Volkswagen in September 2005 was greeted with outright opposition on the part of many shareholders in both Volkswagen and Porsche. Major investment banks like Deutsche Bank immediately downgraded Porsche from a buy to a sell, arguing that the returns on the massive investment, ome â‚ ¬3 billion, would likely never accrue to shareholders. 11 Although Porsche and VW were currently co-producing the Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg, this ownership interest would take the two companies far down a path of cooperation way beyond the manufacture of a sport utility vehicle. Although Porsche had explained its investment decision to be one which would assure the stability of its future cooperation with VW, many critics saw it as a choice of preserving the stakes of the Porsche and Piech families at the expense of nonfamily shareholders.The question remained as to whether this was indeed a good or bad investment by Porsche, and good or bad for whom? Vesi wondered if her position on Porsche might have to, in the end, distinguish between the company’s ability to generate results for stockholders versus its willingness to do so. Why should a small and highly profitable maker of sports cars suddenly hitch its fortunes to a lumbering and struggling mass-producer? That was the question that some alarmed shareholders asked this week when Porsche, the world’s most profitable carma ker, announced plans to buy 20% stake in Volkswagen (VW), Europe’s biggest carmaker.To some critics of the deal, Porsche’s move looked like a return to cosy, German corporatism at its worst. Since January 2002, when a change in the law encouraged German companies to sell their cross-shareholdings in each other, free of capital gains tax, new foreign shareholders have often shaken up fossilised German management. A deal with friendly compatriots from Porsche might rescue VW from this distasteful fate, particularly since foreign hedge funds and corporate raiders have been rumored to be circling VW. â€Å"Business: Keeping It in the Family,† The Economist, October 1, 2005. 1 â€Å"Porsche: We may never see the cash; downgrade to sell,† Deutsche Bank, September 26, 2005. TB0067 10 Appendix 1 (Millions of euros) Sales Cost of goods sold Gross profits Porsche’s Statement of Income, 1996-2005 (period ending July 31) 1996 â‚ ¬ 1,438 1,177 â‚ ¬ 261 24 3 15 64 â‚ ¬ 97 6. 8% 68 â‚ ¬ 29 2. 0% 3 â‚ ¬ 26 1 0 â‚ ¬ 25 1. 7% —-1997 â‚ ¬ 2,093 1,648 â‚ ¬ 446 339 21 67 â‚ ¬ 195 9. 3% 108 â‚ ¬ 87 4. 2% 7 â‚ ¬ 81 9 1 â‚ ¬ 70 3. 4% 45. 6% 40. 0% 1998 â‚ ¬ 2,519 1,853 â‚ ¬ 667 439 17 88 â‚ ¬ 334 13. 2% 157 â‚ ¬ 176 7. 0% 13 â‚ ¬ 164 22 â‚ ¬ 142 5. 6% 20. 4% 12. 4% 1999 â‚ ¬ 3,161 2,154 â‚ ¬ 1,007 571 29 84 â‚ ¬ 550 17. % 184 â‚ ¬ 366 11. 6% 12 â‚ ¬ 354 164 â‚ ¬ 191 6. 0% 25. 5% 16. 3% 2000 â‚ ¬ 3,648 2,527 â‚ ¬ 1,121 625 26 114 â‚ ¬ 636 17. 4% 197 â‚ ¬ 439 12. 0% 12 â‚ ¬ 427 220 â‚ ¬ 207 5. 7% 15. 4% 17. 3% 2001 â‚ ¬ 4,441 3,062 â‚ ¬ 1,380 793 61 87 â‚ ¬ 735 16. 5% 133 â‚ ¬ 602 13. 6% 14 â‚ ¬ 588 318 â‚ ¬ 270 6. 1% 21. 8% 21. 2% 2002 â‚ ¬ 4,857 2,981 â‚ ¬ 1,877 914 79 110 â‚ ¬ 1,152 23. 7% 279 â‚ ¬ 873 18. 0% 48 â‚ ¬ 825 363 (0) â‚ ¬ 462 9. 5% 9. 4% -2. 6% 2003 â‚ ¬ 5,582 3,250 â‚ ¬ 2,332 1,187 116 147 â‚ ¬ 1, 409 25. 2% 392 â‚ ¬ 1,017 18. 2% 88 â‚ ¬ 928 363 0 â‚ ¬ 565 10. 1% 14. 9% 9. 0% 2004 â‚ ¬ 6,359 3,787 â‚ ¬ 2,572 1,254 99 248 â‚ ¬ 1,665 26. % 525 â‚ ¬ 1,141 17. 9% 58 â‚ ¬ 1,082 470 (4) â‚ ¬ 616 9. 7% 13. 9% 16. 5% 2005 â‚ ¬ 6,574 3,501 â‚ ¬ 3,073 1,539 172 169 â‚ ¬ 1,875 28. 5% 510 â‚ ¬ 1,365 20. 8% 127 â‚ ¬ 1,238 459 (4) â‚ ¬ 783 11. 9% 3. 4% -7. 6% Selling, general & admin expenses Non-operating income Other income/expense, net EBITDA EBITDA/sales Depreciation & amortization Earnings before interest and tax EBIT/sales Interest expense on debt Earnings before taxes (EBT) Income taxes Minority interest Net income availabe to common Net income/sales (ROS) Sales growth Earnings growthSource: Thomson Analytics, June 2006, and author calculations. Appendix 2 (Millions of euros) Assets Cash ;amp; equivalents Receivables, net Inventories Prepaid expenses Total current assets Porsche’s Balance Sheet, 1996-2005 (period ending Jul y 31) 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 â‚ ¬ 227 91 199 23 â‚ ¬ 540 â‚ ¬0 60 â‚ ¬ 1,324 917 â‚ ¬ 407 21 â‚ ¬ 1,027 â‚ ¬ 281 170 297 47 â‚ ¬ 795 â‚ ¬ 12 5 â‚ ¬ 1,536 994 â‚ ¬ 541 20 â‚ ¬ 1,374 â‚ ¬ 466 196 328 37 â‚ ¬ 1,027 â‚ ¬ 10 5 â‚ ¬ 1,623 1,062 â‚ ¬ 561 14 â‚ ¬ 1,617 730 202 357 42 â‚ ¬ 1,332 â‚ ¬ 30 9 â‚ ¬ 1,683 1,183 â‚ ¬ 501 110 â‚ ¬ 1,981 â‚ ¬ 823 321 396 45 â‚ ¬ 1,585 â‚ ¬ 177 14 â‚ ¬ 1,797 1,310 â‚ ¬ 487 76 â‚ ¬ 2,340 â‚ ¬ 1,121 439 468 29 â‚ ¬ 2,056 â‚ ¬ 253 38 â‚ ¬ 1,960 1,399 â‚ ¬ 561 108 â‚ ¬ 3,016 â‚ ¬ 1,683 638 487 50 â‚ ¬ 2,858 â‚ ¬ 539 39 â‚ ¬ 3,607 1,652 â‚ ¬ 1,955 214 â‚ ¬ 5,604 â‚ ¬ 1,766 823 539 42 â‚ ¬ 3,170 â‚ ¬ 552 42 â‚ ¬ 4,122 1,847 â‚ ¬ 2,276 346 â‚ ¬ 6,385 â‚ ¬ 2,791 939 726 23 â‚ ¬ 4,479 â‚ ¬ 733 21 â‚ ¬ 4,724 2,116 â‚ ¬ 2,607 436 â‚ ¬ 8,276 â‚ ¬ 4,325 971 572 17 â‚ ¬ 5,885 â‚ ¬ 1,211 27 â‚ ¬ 4,486 2,378 â‚ ¬ 2,108 295 â‚ ¬ 9,525Long term receivables Investments in unconsol subsidiaries Property, plant ;amp; equipment, gross Accumulated depreciation Property, plant ;amp; equipment, net Other assets Total Assets Liabilities Accounts payable ST debt ;amp; current portion due LT debt Income taxes payable Other current liabilities Current liabilities, total Long term debt Provision for risks ;amp; charges Deferred taxes Other liabilities Total liabilities Shareholders' Equity Non-equity reserves & minority interest Common Equity Shareholders' equity, total Total liabilities ;amp; shareholders' equity Common shares outstanding (millions) 117 8 3 156 â‚ ¬ 283 â‚ ¬ 17 481 1 1 â‚ ¬ 782 â‚ ¬ 148 7 10 241 â‚ ¬ 406 â‚ ¬ 116 541 4 4 â‚ ¬ 1,071 â‚ ¬ 159 10 8 262 â‚ ¬ 439 â‚ ¬ 114 648 n/a 0 â‚ ¬ 1,202 â‚ ¬ 193 52 10 174 â‚ ¬ 429 â‚ ¬ 102 856 n/a 5 â‚ ¬ 1,392 â‚ ¬ 240 20 17 248 â‚ ¬ 525 â‚ ¬ 102 95 1 (22) 2 â‚ ¬ 1,558 â‚ ¬ 236 158 28 303 â‚ ¬ 725 â‚ ¬0 1,312 (52) 2 â‚ ¬ 1,987 â‚ ¬ 305 137 200 1,027 â‚ ¬ 1,668 â‚ ¬ 317 1,619 97 437 â‚ ¬ 4,138 â‚ ¬ 337 70 71 1,378 â‚ ¬ 1,856 â‚ ¬ 337 1,916 173 350 â‚ ¬ 4,631 â‚ ¬ 368 649 61 855 â‚ ¬ 1,933 â‚ ¬ 1,457 2,378 182 2 â‚ ¬ 5,953 â‚ ¬ 440 1,107 187 1,064 â‚ ¬ 2,798 â‚ ¬ 1,985 1,281 36 5 â‚ ¬ 6,105 â‚ ¬ 10 235 â‚ ¬ 245 â‚ ¬ 1,027 17. â‚ ¬5 298 â‚ ¬ 303 â‚ ¬ 1,374 17. 5 â‚ ¬0 416 â‚ ¬ 416 â‚ ¬ 1,617 17. 5 â‚ ¬2 587 â‚ ¬ 589 â‚ ¬ 1,981 17. 5 â‚ ¬0 782 â‚ ¬ 782 â‚ ¬ 2,340 17. 5 â‚ ¬0 1,028 â‚ ¬ 1,028 â‚ ¬ 3,016 17. 5 â‚ ¬1 1,466 â‚ ¬ 1,467 â‚ ¬ 5,604 17. 5 (â‚ ¬ 0) 1,755 â‚ ¬ 1,755 â‚ ¬ 6,385 17. 5 â‚ ¬6 2,317 â‚ ¬ 2,323 â‚ ¬ 8,276 17. 5 â‚ ¬8 3,412 â‚ ¬ 3,420 â‚ ¬ 9,525 17. 5 Source: Thomson Analytics, June 2006, and author calculations. TB0067 11 Appendix 3 (Millions of euros) Porscheâ₠¬â„¢s Statement of Cash Flow, 1996-2005 (period ending July 31) 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005Operating Activities Income before extraordinary items Depreciation & amortization Other Cash Flow Funds From/For Other Operating Activities Net Cash Flow From Operating Activities Investing Activities Capital Expenditures Additions To Other Assets Increase In Investments Disposal of Fixed Assets Net Cash Flow From Investing Activities Financing Activities Net Proceeds From Sales/Issue of Com/Prf Stock Com/Prf Purchased,Retired,Converted,Redeemed Long Term Borrowings Inc(Dec) In ST Borrowings Reduction In Long Term Debt Cash Dividends Paid – Total Net Cash Flow From Financing Activities Exchange Rate Effect Cash & Cash Equivalents – Inc(Dec) â‚ ¬ 25 74 47 26 â‚ ¬ 171 â‚ ¬ 71 127 (0) 22 â‚ ¬ 220 â‚ ¬ 142 157 (7) 72 â‚ ¬ 363 â‚ ¬ 191 184 23 (5) â‚ ¬ 392 â‚ ¬ 210 197 11 (22) â‚ ¬ 396 â‚ ¬ 270 133 16 151 â‚ ¬ 570 â‚ ¬ 462 279 26 611 â‚ ¬ 1,377 â‚ ¬ 565 392 423 77 â‚ ¬ 1,456 â‚ ¬ 612 525 515 (349) â‚ ¬ 1,303 â‚ ¬ 779 510 42 (157) â‚ ¬ 1,175 (â‚ ¬ 184) (15) (14) (â‚ ¬ 214) (â‚ ¬ 230) n/a n/a (â‚ ¬ 230) (â‚ ¬ 174) (2) (0) 10 (â‚ ¬ 166) (â‚ ¬ 145) (12) (7) 27 (â‚ ¬ 136) (â‚ ¬ 257) n/a n/a 8 (â‚ ¬ 249) (â‚ ¬ 306) n/a (1) 23 (â‚ ¬ 285) (â‚ ¬ 1,833) 831 (â‚ ¬ 1,002) (â‚ ¬ 1,338) n/a 309 (â‚ ¬ 1,028) (â‚ ¬ 1,265) n/a 478 (â‚ ¬ 787) (â‚ ¬ 851) (63) (243) 226 (â‚ ¬ 932) â‚ ¬0 6 1 â‚ ¬8 (30) â‚ ¬0 102 (33) (5) â‚ ¬ 64 54 â‚ ¬0 (13) (â‚ ¬ 13) 185 â‚ ¬0 49 (21) (22) â‚ ¬6 1 263 â‚ ¬0 (36) (22) (â‚ ¬ 58) 4 93 â‚ ¬0 37 (26) â‚ ¬ 11 2 298 0 339 (102) (45) â‚ ¬ 192 (5) 562 â‚ ¬0 (39) (297) (â‚ ¬ 336) (8) 84 â‚ ¬0 639 n/a (0) (59) â‚ ¬ 580 5 1,025 â‚ ¬6 147 (69) â‚ ¬ 84 (32) 296 Source: Thomson Analytics, November 2005, and author calculations. Appendix 4 Porsche Dispenses wi th Listing in New York Stuttgart. The preferred stock of Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, will continue to be listed exclusively on German stock exchanges. All considerations about gaining an additional listing in the U. S. A. have been laid aside by the Porsche Board of Management. The sports car manufacturer had been invited to join the New York Stock Exchange at the beginning of the year. The Chairman of the Board of Management at Porsche, Dr.Wendelin Wiedeking explained the decision: â€Å"The idea was certainly attractive for us. But we came to the conclusion that a listing in New York would hardly have brought any benefits for us and our shareholders and, on the other hand, would have led to considerable extra costs for the company. † The crucial factor in Porsche’s decision was ultimately the law passed by the U. S. government this summer (the â€Å"Sarbanes-Oxley Act†), whereby the CEO and the Director of Finance of a public limited company liste d on a stock exchange in the U. S. A. have to swear that every balance sheet is correct and, in the case of incorrect specifications, are personally liable for high financial penalties and even up to 20 years in prison.In Porsche’s view, this new American ruling does not match the legal position in Germany. In Germany, the annual financial statement is passed by the entire Board of Management and is then presented to the Supervisory Board, after being audited and certified by chartered accountants. The chartered accountants are commissioned by the general meeting of shareholders and they are obliged both to report and to submit the annual financial statement to the Supervisory Board. The annual financial statement is only passed after it is approved by the Supervisory Board. Therefore there is an overall responsibility covering several different committees and, as a rule, involving over 20 persons, including the chartered accountants.The Porsche Director of Finance, Holger P. Harter, made the following comments: â€Å"Nowadays in Germany, the deliberate falsification of balance sheets is already punished according to the relevant regulations in the Commercial Code (HGB) and the Company Act (Aktiengesetz). Any special treatment of the Chairman of the Board of Management of the Director of Finance would be illogical because of the intricate network within the decision-making process; it would also be irreconcilable with current German law. † Source: Porsche, News Release of October 16, 2002. 12 TB0067 Appendix 5 Porsche’s Share Price, 2004-2006 Source: www. porsche. com. TB0067 13

Choose one Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Choose one - Term Paper Example The $ 16.6 billion deal ensured that AT&T and SBC became the largest telecom company in the nation. Although from the perspective of both the companies, this deal was most certainly revolutionary; from the perspective of the consumers, it might not have been such good news. As a matter of fact various customer advocacy groups filed petition for the cancelation of the deal as the advocacy groups believed that this deal was bad for customers and bad for business. Several customer advocacy groups such as The Utility Reform Network, Office of Ratepayer Advocates presented a market research report by an economist belonging to the California Institute of Technology. (Brown, 2009, p. 209). According to the advocacy groups the research report showed that the merger would affect various services and also customers. Such a deal would not only kill the competition in the market; but also would increase the whole sale prices by almost fifteen percent. This would lead to monopoly in the market as it would reduce market concentration and choice of the customers. A part from the telecommunication market the report also suggested that in Los Angles alone the choice of commercial buildings may go down by more than seventy percent as the newly merged company may end up controlling almost 80 percent of the buildings. A part from the rising wholesale prices the merger would also lead to a rise in the retail prices. The elimination of choices would increase the wholesale price almost by fifteen percent leading to the much higher retail prices for data and voice services used by the customers. Another major factor would be collusion not to compete. Verizon and SBC would continue to avoid competition due to the merger. This could be seen even in the cities where the businesses operate quite close to the distribution channels. One prime example could be LA. In LA the marketing channels of both Verizon and SBC over laps quite scarcely. Hence the customer groups advocated that after the merger the choices of the customers would go down, prices may go up as consumers would have very less bargaining power; add to that market concentration would also increase. The consumer groups believed that the last thing that the business and the customers need is monopoly in the market. The merger would ultimately lead to very little number of competitors (Burgemeister, 2003). From the information presented by the customer advocacy groups the impact of the merger between the two companies on the national telecommunication market can be analyzed by using the porter’s five force analysis (Churchill, 2009). The rivalry among the existing firms would be low as the merger would kill competition. This would severely impact the smaller firms. As a result the industry competition would be low. Due to the lack of competition the bargaining power of the buyers would be low as the buyers would have very little choices. As a result the company can increase the prices. The bargaining power of the suppliers would also be low. As there would be very less competition in the market, just like the customers the suppliers would also have a very little option resulting in lowered cost of raw materials. Threat of new entrants would be very low. The merger leading to monopoly may lead to a situation where, the merged company can achieve economies of scale and strong brand equity. This would most certainly acts as major barriers to entry to

Issues in Employee Performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Issues in Employee Performance - Essay Example However, having a sound output for the company depends on the quality of human capital one organisation has. In order to attain quality productivity, one must select competent personnel of which can deliver the expected output based on the set goals and objectives of the company. Moreover, on the other hand, those who have been employed in the company should be measured based on ones productivity and accomplishment, a process of which leads towards employees performance management. Primarily, employees’ performance management focuses on developing ones capabilities. Aguinis (2007) mentioned in one of his writings that performance management is â€Å"a continuous process of identifying, measuring and developing the performance of an individual.† Aguinis (2007) further added that this continuous capacity building needs clear objectives, observing and measuring performance and regular feedback. However, Cokins (2004) does not limit performance management to capacity buildi ng but rather â€Å"performance management helps managers to sense earlier and respond more quickly to uncertain changes.† Understanding the Nature of Employees According to Dan Hill (2008) employee management is the most emotional part of the business. It is a relationship that links the superior and the staff where interaction takes place and sometimes intense. Fast phased working environment mostly leads to misunderstanding or disagreement affecting office relationship. Emotionally confronted with reality cannot be avoided since it party dominate the relationship that shadows rationality and objectivity affecting company goals and specific work assignments. In some cases of which are highly damaging to the company’s reputation and as part of correcting the actions of which has negatively undertaken by an employee, immediate termination of employment should be considered and served to the employee. However, in less grievous cases, disciplinary action may take its pla ce in order to help the employee improve their quality to meet work standards. It should always be kept in mind that majority of employees would like to succeed in their respective position in which in order for an employee to advance to their respective careers, constant guidance and coaching is expected from their superior. This would help them improved and be recognized once ability enabling them to integrate concretely to the company’s operations giving them a sense of belongingness and for them to be able to recognize their personal problem and being able to improve oneself. Performance Management Wilson (2005) conferred that performance management has its own set of process, concept of which its approach has a holistic philosophy that integrates employees motivation, awareness of expectation from the superiors, personnel development and training, monitoring and performance measurement for them to be able to know the key areas for improvement. According to Mathis and Jac kson (2008) performance management should emanate from the organizations needs to meet its strategic objectives. Performance management serves as a strategy relating to every activity of organisation (Armstrong, 2005). Armstrong (2006) mentioned that installing a performance management system in the workplace creates an atmosphere that enables employees to performance in high

Is globalisation a state-authored process Essay

Is globalisation a state-authored process - Essay Example This increased level of globalisation has necessarily meant that cultures and individuals that otherwise might not integrated with one another have come to the in closer contact and sharing a great many more similarities than they have any previous time within recorded human history. The example of the way in which social media has integrated many otherwise disparate individuals throughout the world is a good example of the way that this fundamental shift has been witnessed throughout the current model of media proliferation and globalisation. However, from even a cursory unit of analysis and a discussion into the view that has thus far been put forward, it must be understood that the proliferation and globalisation throughout the world is not an authorless process. Oftentimes, powerful individuals, and indeed states, within the developed world have a strong impact with regards to the way in which globalisation takes place and the particular manner through which the internationalizat ion effects that globalisation is capable of engendering take place. As a function of understanding this â€Å"state authored impact† that globalisation is capable of bringing to bear, the following analysis will approach current levels of globalisation from three distinct perspectives: trade interaction, the impact of technology, and the proliferation of globalized media. It is the hope of this author that through such a distinctive and nuanced approach, the reader will be able to come to a more appreciable view of the way in which current levels of globalisation are illustrated and affected. An Analysis of Globalisation in Tade: Whereas globalisation can be understood in a litany of different mechanisms, perhaps the most effective towards understanding globalisation and the power that it has over individuals throughout the world is to engage it based upon its monetary value (Schoen et al., 2013). In seeking to engage globalisation from a monetary value standpoint, the first rational approach that can be engaged is to approach it from the standpoint of trade. Whereas globalisation is represented throughout the world and impacts upon individuals in a litany of different situations, the power that globalisation has over trade and the means through which different nations choose interact with one another is ultimately the driving force that helps to spread globalisation and increase its impact throughout the world. However, even though globalisation can be understood as a universal concept, it must also be appreciated that globalisation is state specific and ultimately a state authored process (Corstjens & Umblijs, 2012). What is meant by this is the fact that regardless of the nation that is analyzed with a particular economic system that is considered, it must be understood that globalisation exists within a given region only due to the fact that trade agreements, domestic legislation, tariffs, barriers, and a litany of other financial issues have alrea dy been determined and directed in such a way so that globalisation is able to integrate with a given economy (Cook & Underwood, 2013). As such, if it were not for regional and domestic governance and choices that these institutions were able to make, the level and extent to which a globalized economy and the impact of global trade could affect a given region would understandably be minimal (Lapido et al., 2013). An example of this can of course be seen with respect to the way in which the United States,

Colombia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Colombia - Essay Example Colombia, a country in northern South America, borders the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean and is situated between Panama and Venezuela. Encompassing more than one million square miles, Colombia is ranked currently as the 26th largest country in the world, slightly smaller than twice the size of Texas (Central Intelligence Agency, 2011). Its climate is tropical along its coasts and plains, but in the Andes Mountains it is slightly cooler, and it has a population of 44,725,543 people as of July 2011 (Central Intelligence Agency, 2011). Its government, overall, is a republic with elected officials, with a judicial system that has numerous national and district courts as well as a court of appeals, along with a House of Representatives and a Congress in its legislative branch and a duly-elected President in its executive branch. Colombia was originally colonized under Spanish rule. The Spanish sailed along the north coast of Colombia as early as 1500, but their first permanent settlement, at Santa Marta, was not made until 1525. In 1549, the area was established as a Spanish colony with the capital at Santa Fe de Bogota (Winslow). During the period before Spanish colonization, the area was inhabited by indigenous peoples who were primitive hunters or nomadic farmers, and out of the various Indian groups that were there, the area was dominated by The Chibchas, who lived in the region of present-day city of Bogotà ¡ (Winslow). Columbia actually had its first social movement in history in 1810, when on July 20th of that year the citizens of Bogota created the first representative council in defiance of Spanish authority and to attempt a try for their independence. Over the next three years, they fought for independence, which was proclaimed in 1813, and in 1819 the Republic of Greater Colombia was formed. Simo n Bolivar was elected its first president and Francisco de Paula Santander, vice president. However, just like any other movement, soon conflicts arose between the two leaders and their visions. From their views, two political parties grew and branched out, coming to dominate Colombian politics even today (Winslow). Bolivar managed only to keep authority until 1828, and then everything fell apart. In 1830, Venezuela and Ecuador became separate nations. Through the 19th century and into the 20th century, both political unrest and small, usually unremarkable social movements to combat the social unrest were popular. Strong parties developed along conservative and liberal lines; the conservatives favored centralism and participation by the church in government and education, and the liberals supported federalism, anticlericalism, and some measure of social legislation and fiscal reforms (Columbia Encyclopedia, 2007). The structure of Colombian society in the 1980s, which was always str ongly influenced by traditions inherited from sixteenth-century Spain, was highly stratified, having well-defined class membership, pronounced status differences, and limited vertical social mobility. The urban sector was characterized by a more flexible social system, a growing middle class, and greater participation of the population in national politics. Rural society in all but a few regions was organized in rigidly hierarchical structures in which change of status was very difficult. Only in the coffee-growing departments of Caldas and Antioquia were there sizable segments of the population exhibiting the traits of a rural middle class (Colombia: National Front). Various social movements existed in the 1960s and 1970s, and even well into the 1980s that eventually formed into armies. In 1964 the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group was born. It was followed by other groups, such as the National Liberation Army (ELN) on January 7, 1965, the Popular Libera tion Army (EPL) on July 1967, the Quintin Lame Movement (MAQL) in 1984 and the 19th of April Movement (M-19). (Colombia: National Front) Currently, there are still social movements in Colombia. Some groups make political statements their main

ALJAZEERA AIRWAYS GROUP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

ALJAZEERA AIRWAYS GROUP - Essay Example The company’s profit have been increasing slowly throughout the years, and this can be clearly seen as from the year 2010 its average yield have been increasing until 2013 the yield is still elevating. This is a clear indication that the years to come the company average yield will still continue to grow. The company operates on a revenue of KD 65.6 million, this can be said to be its budget, out of this budget the company makes an operating profit of worth KD 20.6 million, after all the expenses have been catered for the company remains with a net profit of KD 16.7 million which can be shared among its shareholders and payment of its employees (Dron and Alan 2013). The company performance have been increasing slowly by slowly hence this has made the company to outdo other flight companies, this can be seen as from the year 2011, the performance of the company was at equilibrium with other companies that offers the same service. When it came to the year, 2012 the company’s production increased by 9% making it be at 59% from 50% the equilibrium level. In the year 2013 when the financial report was being released it was noted that the company’s performance had increased further by 16%, unlike other companies that have been depreciating in the level of their performance. According to me, Jazeera Airways Group is better off than other companies, this is because it is making the spontaneous increase in production and profit from the year 2011 to the year 2013. Its performance is magnificent and encouraging. The revenues that Jazeera Company had at the end of the financial year 2013 was 78%. The year 2012 the company made a profit of 76% showing an increase of 2% of income. This is an indicator of the increase in performance hence it can be said that the company made a positive profit increase. The company has also been, making a net

Judaism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Judaism - Research Paper Example This paper analyses Judaism and its comparison with Christianity. Moreover, Holidays concerning Judaism, Traditions of Judaism, How Judaism shapes ones life, Most of the beliefs and traditions of Christians and Jews are one and the same. In fact both of them accept the existence of same God and believe in prophets up to Moses. Judaism is based on the teachings of Moses whereas Christianity is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jews believe that the Messiah has not come yet and Jesus Christ was only an ordinary person; not the Messiah offered by the God. Christians and Jews have more common elements in their beliefs and customs, but they strongly disagree on the issue of accepting Jesus Christ as the son of God or Messiah. Christians believe that Jesus was the son of God, the Messiah promised by the God and human can attain salvation only through the belief in Jesus Christ. But Jews believe that the Messiah is yet to come and Jesus Christ was not the one offered by the God. The main difference between the beliefs of Jews and Christians lie on the issue of Jesus Christ. As per the Jews beliefs, Messiah should have certain peculiarities other than ordinary people. Jews don’t have any beliefs in the miracles performed by Jesus Christ. They believed that the miracles performed by Jesus were with the help of magical powers rather than any godly power. They argue that the offered Messiah will come as a natural person using the natural means of birth. Moreover Jews thought that the coming Messiah will do something to bring back all the Jews back to the offered land ‘Canaan’. Jews thought that the coming Messiah will definitely build one more temple where as the Jesus has not even attempt to make any temple. (The Good News Bible, Ezekiel 37:26-28) â€Å"Biblical verses "referring" to Jesus are mistranslations and Jewish belief is based on national revelation† (Rabbi Simmons) Jews, not even consider Jesus as a prophet and they

Urban services (waste collection and cleaning) and waste treatment Thesis

Urban services (waste collection and cleaning) and waste treatment activities Globally (focus in Europe) - Thesis Example ries do not differ much as to their wastes disposal priorities, but Europe is more advanced in treatment because of experimentation and implementation of technologies. Landfills would remain a problem because of scarce resources and need for area developments. Outlook and trends of the waste industry is good as revenues of the players in the industry are encouraging. Waste disposal is one of the urgent environmental problems facing regions all over the world. The over consumption of resources and creation of non-biodegradable materials such as plastics, Styrofoam and chemicals are creating a mounting problem of waste disposal. People are gaining the notoriety of producing excessive wastes and dumping them as garbage on landfills and oceans. Garbage such as nuclear wastes, plastics, fast food wastes and electronic products are samples of harmful materials that can affect the health of man in particular and of the environment in general. However these wastes became a business opportunity and opened up avenues for new industries, i.e. the urban services and waste treatment, an interesting topic for discussion. This study intends to investigate the urban services and waste management activities in Europe., and in U.S. Specifically, study seeks to describe the practices done within the industry and identify the challenges and opportunities the industry face. This work would be of special concern to those who wanted to gain information on the economic opportunities of the waste disposal. This research will use observational research method wherein the researcher will study a phenomenon without interfering. Observation method is used in behavioral studies, social sciences and anthropology, and is useful when ethics is a problem. Existing literatures and researches on the subject will be used as secondary source since access to primary source is not possible. Web definition of waste management is â€Å"The  collection,  transportation, and  

Compare and contrast Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 13

Compare and contrast - Essay Example The two writers Dillard and Wolf have given their different essays the theme of how death is approached or embraced. Since death is an ultimate circumstance, which is unavoidable, the question raised is on how to face it (Iowa Council of Teachers of English 49). Death is the antagonist in the two essays. Answers on how to face death vary since having a conflict against death or embracing and accepting peaceful death can be options. The climax of the essay comes when the two moths face their death. Dillard in her essay has portrayed an approach to death, which involves struggling and running away. Contrarily, Woolf has given death an acceptable approach in that death is experienced calmly (Woolf 7). The two essays by Annie Dillard and Virginia Wolf compare superficially in that they have a similar title â€Å"death of a moth†, which go on to exemplify the theme of conflict with death. In the two essays, the writers have focused on depicting how the moths face their death. The moths are the characters of the essays propelling the theme being addressed (Woolf 8). The essays also compare in that the moths seem to be conscious of the fate waiting, which in this case is death. The two essays are also similar because they show that it does not matter the form of death or approach of dying, death is definitive (Iowa Council of Teachers of English 51). Woolf’s moth rotates around the window; its life has been limited around the window pane, which happens to be the same spot where it meets its death. Dillard’s moth meets its death after being burnt by a candle flame while flying around it. In the two essays, the approaches to death are different taking into consideration the description from Woolf and Dillard (Iowa Council of Teachers of English 52). In wolf’s essay, she portrays the moth in a way that it accepts death the moth is brave enough to embrace death in a dignified manner. Contrarily, in

Why I Do What I Do Essay Essay Example for Free

Why I Do What I Do Essay Essay Never forget why you do what you do and who you do it for, and make sure everything you do honors that. What I’ve seen happen often times (especially in†¦ yup, you guessed it: the education reform movement), is that intentions start out good but the sword starts to swing the other way when money, power, and statistics are valued over the lives and humanity of students. â€Å"Kids first† and â€Å"For the kids† becomes merely rhetoric, as people jump to enact radically dangerous and untested policies that do anything but put kids first. It’s even scarier when these policies are put in place by people with power and money, because then they are blinded by their power and money and fail to see all the intricate parts of the matter. This scares me, because I believe my intentions are good, and the last thing I want to happen is for what I fight for to put students at a greater disadvantage. But I know that won’t happen, as long as I make sure that everything I do for my students stems from why I do what I do. I need my vision to be clear and for that vision, story, and root of my passion to drive me. I need to stay humble and true to my roots. So why do I fight for educational justice? Well for starters, I want to be a teacher. Every time I play that â€Å"nine lives† game at conferences where in each life you can choose any career you want, high school civics and social studies teacher is written in #1-9. But why do I want to be a teacher? Is it so I can watch people’s face fill with disappointment and bewilderment when I tell them my life’s ambition? Is it so I can work 2 other jobs to pay for my first job? Is it so I can have my impact measured by my students’ test scores? Is it so I can get weekends and summers off? The answer is simple: I want to devote my life’s work to inspiring and fostering young, bright, creative, and passionate hearts and minds. The thought of crafting creative and engaging lesson plans, bringing them to life in my classroom, sharing my stories and wisdom with young minds, taking my students to places they’ve never been (both intellectually and literally on field trips and such), and watching the m grow into conscientious, open-minded, kind-hearted, passionate people excites me like no other. I’ve gotten a taste of it through working with children of all ages during my high school and early college careers, and I really cannot wait until I am finally fully trained and prepared to teach my own classroom. But why become active in educational policy and activism? Well the answer to that connects to what I want to teach and how I was taught. Let’s start with the latter. I am very lucky to have gotten the education that I got. It completely changed my life. As I’ve mentioned before in my other posts, I didn’t realize what learning was until I was exposed to a full, well-rounded curriculum that included the arts, humanities, and social justice education. Before, I depended on my high test scores to know that I was learning. Today, I know that no test score could ever reveal how much I had truly grown and learned through my education. For the first time, I was experiencing what I was learning, rather than passively regurgitating information that I barely internalized (something I’m really excellent at doing†¦ I could be a professional test taker and that’s something to be ashamed of). I was finally opening my eyes to the intricacies and complexities of our global society and the field of education, and fina lly understanding concepts like solidarity, inequality, privilege, human rights, justice, and my role in all of these things. Social studies and civics woke my mind and heart and sparked such an immense passion in me that in my spare time, I found myself delving into the issues I studied more and more, as well as becoming more involved in my local community through organizing work and volunteerism. During this time in my life was when I found my passion in education, partly because realized the magic of education through my own transformational experience, and partly because I decided to write my sophomore year research paper on standardized testing and it shattered my long-held (arrogant) faith in tests as well as everything I thought I knew about education. As time went on, I slowly developed my biggest belief: that EVERY student should receive a free, quality, democratic, and well-rounded public education, unhindered by huge class sizes, dilapidated infrastructure, terrible working/learning conditions, inadequate funding, child poverty, high stakes testing, or other broken reform policies. I believe that this is a fundamental human right and true justice. This is why I am fighting for educational justice now. My education helped me find my voice and understand the importance of standing up for justice and equality for my brothers and sisters. When I look at the current attac ks on public education, especially by a group of people I used to trust to improve education, I get this intense emotional reaction that  mirrors the kind I would get in high school every time I read about or discussed a social injustice. My insides burn, my heart races, and every inch in my body longs to get up and do something because what is happening to students, teachers, and schools today is not reform; it’s destruction. I cannot possibly stand by while countless students are literally robbed of true education by neoliberals under the guise of â€Å"innovation†, â€Å"high expectations†, and â€Å"accountability.† I cannot possibly stand by while I hear my students’ stories of feeling unheard and powerless in what should be THEIR fight for THEIR education. I cannot possibly stand by while students continue to be silenced and invisible, their humanity reduced to digits and their futures determined by people who ignorantly implement harmful policies without considering student voice. I cannot possibly stand by while people who don’t want to devote a day of their life to educating a child use their money and power to manipulate and profit from a system they destroyed in the first place (Why is there a billionaire boys club? Oh right, because poverty and economic inequity exist and are silently hurting public education). I realize that I could not care about any of this, live a very easy life, float through grad school, get my teaching credential, and just be a teacher in a high school somewhere. I’m sure the reformies would love that. But I refuse to do that. And that has as much to do with how I was taught as it does with what I want to teach. I want to teach the things that made me a more open-minded, empowered, and justice-seeking person. I want to be a high school teacher of social justice and civic engagement. I believe that true education can and should awaken the mind and heart by fostering critical thinking (mind) and a commitment to social justice (heart). Yes, learning about all the terrible injustice and oppression that has marginalized groups of people throughout history is naturally discouraging, but I feel that there is also such beauty in looking at how the marginalized have historically risen up against their oppressors and fought for the justice and freedom from oppression. W hen students engage with learning material that relates to them and their cultural histories, they are more empowered to think and learn for themselves and take action. This kind of social justice education brings not only knowledge and enlightenment, but also hope for students. Hope that they too can not only live in a better world someday, but also be the reason for that better, more just and equal world. This is what I hope to bring to students. Hope. Light. A true sense of wonder for the world and love for those living in it. Motivation to learn and turn learning into positive action. A sense of empowerment. But how can I possibly begin to teach social justice in a system with so much injustice? I fight for educational justice because I believe that I myself have the power to contribute what I can now so that by the time my future students reach my classroom, the education system will be a more just place. I believe that empowered students like myself can and will stand up for what they believe is right and demand educational rights for all. I believe that education is liberation from oppression. I know I’m going to get a lot of opposition for fighting for what I believe in. Social justice education is equally liberating and threatening to authorities that pray for compliance. But I will not comply under policies and rules that put students at a disadvantage. I will not compl y with people who wish divergent perspectives and beliefs be silenced. I will not comply until there is justice. Instead, I will continue to hope. Hope that I can not only teach in a better education system one day, but also be the reason for that better, more just and equal system. Hope to live my lessons now and one day have my lessons come alive.

Analysis of Situational Leadership Theory

Analysis of Situational Leadership Theory The situational theory of leadership is becoming increasingly popular in the context of modern organizational leadership. This is evident from the manner in which it is surfacing in academic literature such as books, journals and research reports. A leadership style refers to the pattern of behavior; including both action and words as exhibited by a leader or as perceived by followers. Situational leadership revolves around job-related maturity. According to Mark, et al (2009) job maturity refers to an individuals ability in performing a job and this is a key factor determining a leaders behavior. The situational leadership model puts it that effective leadership is dependent on both the acts of management and leadership and that these enhance an organizations match to current global trends. The model emerged from the realization and understanding that not all individuals within a group or community being led compare in terms of maturity level and that the need for a leadership style differ with situations. Thus the model is based on situational variables as it relies on day-to-day perceptions of a leader as well as the environmental observations rather than research data. Current research shows that effectiveness in the light of this model involves a leaders assessment of the development level (maturity) of their followers as well as the situation at hand to adjust their leadership approach accordingly (Norris Vecchio, 2000; GEN Dennis, 1999). Situational leadership entails first understanding ones predominant leadership approach and the level of the followers development process. Situational leadership is particularly becoming an effective strategy among Army leaders given the current rates of technological advancement and combat techniques. Situational leadership is thus very vital in challenging the ambiguous and complex nature of the modern military environment. Background of the Situational Leadership Model The situational leadership theory was developed by Hersey and Blanchard in the 1960s basing on Reddins 3-D framework of leadership (Hersey Blanchard, 1996). The developmental process of the model focused on three key categories: consideration; initiation of structure; and leader behavior. In situational leadership, the subordinates job-relevant maturity (both psychological and job maturity) is the primary situational factor determining a leaders behavior. Maturity is regarded to be a product of the education level and/ or experience. Psychological maturity is an important aspect of job maturity and it reflects a persons state of motivation, that is, their confidence and self-esteem levels; which are highly influenced by ethical practices in a firm. Hersey and Blanchard identified that physiological maturity is associated with an individuals orientation towards achievement as well as the ability and willingness to assume responsibility. Hersey and Blanchard thus concluded that perfor mance is basically a behavioral manifestation of job relevant maturity (Hersey Blanchard, 1996). Proponents of this model hold the notion that each situation demands a different leadership style and thus the best course of action is dependent on the situation at hand, that is, effectiveness in leadership is dependent on the adaptability to adapt to situations. It is also imperative to note that the leader-follower relationship determines the outcome of any particular task. Lee-Kelley (2002) points out that situational leadership is based on both versatility and effectiveness. Four leadership approaches apply under the situational leadership model and are dependent on followers job-related maturity. The major notion under this model is that flexibility and adaptability determine which of the diverse styles would apply in the context of varied situations, followers or tasks. The Four Leadership Approaches/Styles Applied in Situational Leadership S1: Directing (high task, low relationship behavior) Leaders take the responsibility of determining the roles and tasks for their followers. They thus are involved in close supervision of the follower activities as well as taking and announcing all the decisions. In this regard, the leaders are more concerned with the challenge of meeting goals and accomplishing tasks than on building strong relationships with their subordinates (Norris Vecchio, 2000). Communication in this style is usually one way since leadership autocratically categorizes employees duties. S2: Coaching (high task, high relationship behavior) Although the leader has the power of making decisions, he/she usually involves the suggestions of the followers while maintaining a good relationship with them. Although communication is two-way, final decisions on ideas are usually made by the leader rather than their authors (Mark, et al. 2009). Leaders are thus focused on selling their ideas to the followers to have them understand the importance of their tasks and the various organizational processes. S3: Participative (high relationships, low task behavior) This style is usually very motivating to subordinates as it involves a shared decision making process and a two-way communication channel (Hersey Blanchard, 1996). Followers are usually included in all job-related duties as well as in determining how tasks and responsibilities are to be accomplished. The leader often relies on the followers contribution in organizing the day-to-day responsibilities such as tasks and processes allocation. S4: Delegating (low relationship, high task behavior) In certain situations, leaders are compelled to entrust their followers with much of the decision making process. The leaders task thus entails monitoring progress although he/she is not extensively involved in the process of making decisions. However, the leader is more focused on problem solving and taking decisions but grants the followers the authority to determine the final decision. Followers decide when it is appropriate to involve the leader. There are four major follower maturity levels that determine the necessity for a leadership style (Hersey Blanchard, 1996). Follower Development Process/Maturity Levels The first maturity level (M1) encompasses followers who usually have no confidence, knowledge or skills necessary for them to work independently. Such individuals usually require supervision and direction before they can be entrusted with tasks. In such a situation, effective leadership would entail applying the directing approach of leadership (Peter, et al. 2008). The second level (M2) of maturity involves followers who generally have the will to do a task but they lack the capacity to do so independently. This means that leading such a group would necessitate that the leader employ an approach that can coach the followers at their duties. The third maturity level (M3) includes individuals who are usually highly experienced and can attend to the task in question satisfactorily. Participative leadership is best suited to lead such followers. However, these followers lack the confidence to assume sole responsibility of seeing a task to accomplishment. The fourth maturity level (M4) i ncludes those individuals who are not only experienced but are also confident and able to take on the task (Mark, et al. 2009; Fernandez Vecchio, 1997). They are not only willing and able but are also confident that they can successfully fulfill accomplishments independently. In the event of M4, leaders usually assume the delegating leadership style. It is essential to note that differentiated leadership is only possible under the situational leadership approach since different followers with varying levels of needs, abilities and maturity levels are led. The situational model is based on the perception that real leadership revolves around people management in a manner that is fair for the sake of being mutually rewarding as well as providing productive objectives; which are usually free of any manipulation. According to Hersey and Blanchard, the process of controlling, influencing and motivating followers towards attainment of stated accomplishments relies on three key leadership skills: (i) prediction of future behavior; (ii) understanding the behavior of the past; and (iii) the changing, controlling as well directing behaviors (Lee-Kelley 2002). In this regard, research shows that effective situational leaders are usually engaged in a number of behavioral manifestations: relationship and task behaviors, which are important in driving creativity and innovation among followers. Applying Situational Leadership in the Military Services Overview The increasingly complex military environment demands for an effective approach to leadership, one that is adaptive to the different followers situations. The US Army Field Manual (FM) 22-100 emphasizes on the ability of any military leader to adjust to the particular situation or individuals being led (US Army Field Manual (FM) 22-100, 1999). Use of the model is evident among successful military leaders. Military leaders such as combat leaders are usually not confined to any one leadership style in any given situation, not with the dramatically changing nature of the battle field now and in the future. It is increasingly becoming mandatory that military leaders be adaptive (flexible) enough to engage styles that will enhance the success of the soldiers. Situational leadership in military would be important especially in enabling military leaders to take advantage of techniques from the four styles of situational leadership for the sake of motivating soldiers towards accomplishing mi ssions successfully. Ability to make use of cultural awareness, sound judgment, self control, and intelligence is the key to effective situational leadership. As a Military Leader According to Lau (1998), the concept of situational leadership became of particular importance in the military following the formation of the continental army. It is also based on the recent view that control, teamwork, discipline, and organization are deficient within the forces (GEN Dennis, 1999). In this regard, military psychology has been developing situational leadership frameworks for the last 100 years to promote effective military behavior based on the view that particular behavior among military individuals would inevitably facilitate better outcomes. While using this model, it is necessary to make use of the studies and facts about military figures and units encountered during my service to avoid repetition of past mistakes over an over. This way, one would be able to learn from these past histories and focus on key concerns that address soldiers simultaneously in regards to mission accomplishment tasks. This would help in focusing on the task and social aspects of duty as one adapts his/her leadership style to match followers needs and abilities. Studies reveal that this training has had more emphasis on the managerial training rather than the tactical approaches (COL Kent LTC David, 2001); this would be a challenge and an opportunity to apply the various leadership approaches within the constraints of the situational model of leadership to get the best from the soldiers. Studies have shown that difficulties associated with compromises on the gratification level, solution seeking and perfectness due to autocratic rules can be effectively solved through the situational leadership approach, whereby combat leaders take advantage of the opportunity for adjusting communication flow through adapting to leadership styles that are situationally appropriate (GEN Dennis, 1999). Military leadership tasks revolve around being both a social specialist and a task specialist, that is, ones primary goal is to accomplish the groups main challenge of defeating enemies in combat. Such a role requires being more informed, active and intelligent than the followers. As a social specialist, ones challenge would encompass building and maintaining a close relationship with the group, keeping the group together, and providing morale (Peter, et al. 2008). As a military leader, being able to situationally adapt to the social needs of the followers would help in mitigating issues concerned with low morale such as desertion, crime, malingering and absenteeism. Thus, the social specialist role helps one to be able to improve a teams cohesiveness. An ideal military, situational-based leader is one who is able to excellently and concurrently apply both the task of a specialist and an equal competency as a social leader (COL Kent LTC David, 2001). Social situational adaptability is especially important for effective and successful leadership among leaders at the lower levels than it is for the higher levels. It is imperative that one be conversant with the dynamics of the rules in the army to achieve untried solutions and meet challenges with this model. For effectiveness, one has to continuously look for situations in which they can apply new alternatives. More particularly lower ranks require that one be less sensitive on rank differences and have more foresight and initiative regarding what is right or who is right; this is an example of ideal situational adaptive ability in which they would be dependent on information to tackle challenges (Lau, 1998). Still on situations, using technical expertise while at the same time focusing on the groups cohesiveness, especially because of the stressing nature of the military environment, would be the perfect thing to do. This implies that ones adaptability and flexibility has to be impressive as military work usually involves surprises which would necessitate this. Therefore, a flexible leadership model such as situational leadership is most applicable in the military situation due to the necessity to successfully handle unanticipated events. Being an adaptive leader is paramount to conceive the importance of creating an environment for enabling followers as well as junior leaders to expand their rational risk-taking. It enables them to enhance their development, training and coaching levels (Lee-Kelley 2002; Lau, 1998). This is particularly so in the face of the increasing sophistication of the hardware, techniques and tactics applied in the military today. Situational approach in military leadership involves training the subordinate officers to tackle more complicated tasks with use of fewer resources. John Blair and James Hunt describe the various elements that influence the situational approach of leadership within the military. They sought to enhance the understanding of the major characteristics defining leadership in future battle fields as well as the extent of their influence on commanders, soldiers and the army in general (COL Kent LTC David, 2001). James and John emphasize on the organizational and environment al factors (macrocontigency factors) and the microcontigency factors encompassing the situational factors that are particular to tasks, individuals or unit. Most current military services derive from the situational leadership model. Situation leadership training in the military began as early as the 1970s but only limited studies have been on the same in the military context. Recent research on the air assault battalion of US National Army Guard shows that this model works effectively within the military (Mark, et al. 2009). A military leaders major accomplishment under this model would be to facilitate the development of the job-related maturity of the soldiers. According to the guidelines outlined in FM 22100, the effectiveness of a combat leader relies on the ability to demonstrate flexibility in terms of the leadership approach while leading other soldiers (Lau, 1998). This is because the military is characterized by different behaviors with some responding best to suggestions, coaxing, gentle prodding or directions. An example of one approach involves applying the S2 (coaching) style for the subordinates in maturity level 3 to improve their motivation, commitment, and ownership of decisions. Thus, being situational implies that one has the ability to shift from using an overly directive approach to suing one that allows the subordinates to be self sufficient; this is the basis for leadership and subordinate development in the army. FM 22100 indicates that the most important competency of any military leader is being able to identify the needs of the subordinates as well as their abilities so as to figure out the best approach to bring ou t their best (US Army Field Manual (FM) 22-100, 1999). Effectiveness and success is thus enhanced by the ability to use a combination of the features of all the four situational leadership styles to fit with individuals, place and task involved; since it is usually difficult to lead in battle fields that require different techniques while based on a single approach. Studies in military leadership have identified that unit outcomes are improved by integration of transactional and transformational competencies into the various situational leadership approaches (GEN Dennis, 1999). Shortcomings of the Situational Leadership Model Studies by the Air University Leadership and Management Program Advisory Group identified that the situational leadership model has some limitations that are worth noting (COL Kent LTC David, 2001). While the model is effective in outlining the appropriate style of leadership based on job-maturity it fails to take care of other important considerations within the military. For instance, the model does not address the extent to which leadership is practiced, the different styles essential in the event of specific combat action, staff versus operations leadership or the various styles that may be appropriate in the vent of combined, joint, or even service leadership. This is because leaders may not be able to identify situations where the various leadership styles apply more appropriately or that they lack the capacity or expertise to employ the appropriate behaviors whenever the telling or the directing styles are most appropriate. It is difficult to assess the readiness level of the followers since this model involves a multifaceted approach (Fernandez Vecchio, 1997). Conclusion The situational leadership theory is becoming increasingly popular in modern organizational leadership especially in the military set up. Leadership is an important aspect of combat power and thus the reason for situational model popularity. The most important task in combat situational leadership is being able to motivate the soldiers through morale factors enhanced by unit cohesion. A leaders adaptability is the key necessity for the success of the situational leadership model. Communication is one way to improve task motivation and leadership outcome in the context of this model. Communication is also two in an effort to improve morale and participation. However, the S1 and S4 styles usually involve more situational concerns than just the subordinates readiness. The appropriateness of a leadership style changes with change in the leadership environment. The model emphasizes on using more than one style of leadership especially when developing followers. According to this model, th ere is a no best leadership style since the key determinants of leadership is the adaptation to the job maturity and the skill level of the subordinates. As proven Situational leadership is thus very vital in challenging the ambiguous and complex nature of the modern military environment.