Global Investments- Portfolio Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global Investments- Portfolio Building - Essay Example Modern Portfolio Theory developed by Nobel Prize winner Professor Harry Markowitz demonstrates how the risk-adjusted returns of a portfolio can be improved by diversification of investments across assets with varied correlations. This paper takes this theory philosophy, and it will be the foundation in which portfolios will be constructed (Riley, 21-38). Considering that investment management involves much of art as science, qualitative considerations will play a critical role in this portfolio development (Reilly, 47). Precise distinctions among asset classes is subjective, therefore no clear distinctions exists. Returns and correlations are difficult to forecast, though historical data may provide a guide, which will be modified to incorporate structural changes and compensate for anomalous periods. Taking into account the prevailing market conditions, this paper makes the below judgment on market returns and their associated risks. Mixing the above assets will produce a real return of 11.5%, with an expected growth of 6.3% annually, and a standard deviation (risk) of 10.2%. Available resources for current operations will utter the purchase power of assets, and this pushes this impacts investment policy. The above mix of assets is defined by their differences expected in their response to economic conditions, among them price inflation, interests rates and economic growth. Over the past few decades, most of the University’s endowment funds invested highly on US marketable securities, and were there core factors in their investments. Taking into account the prevailing economic times, this paper finds that it will be wiser to commit some of it assets to developed markets outside the United State with a percentage of 6.5% and a standard deviation of 14.3%. These markets are given preference taking into account the globalization of trade, where these markets operate

Employee Relations in Germany Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Employee Relations in Germany - Essay Example When compared with the corresponding scenario of several other zones of the Globe, it is being seen that, in Germany, the law strictly controls employee relations. Here, a reference needs to be made to the several condemnation laws that have been in vogue in the zone (Germany), since 1945. As a direct consequence of all those laws, lot of importance is now given to the aspect of industrial democracy and harmony. But subsequent to the reuniting of East and West Germany, several major economic and other issues have manifested. In Germany, for companies with manpower numbering over two thousand, it is legally mandatory that, apart from management board, they have also a supervisory board. Since the initial half of the 1990s, the employers in Germany started to get disillusioned with the country’s model related to employee relations. As a matter of fact, the region (German) adhered to this model for a very long time. It was being strongly opined by many that, the duration for which the model has been in vogue was too lengthy and hence, it can no longer be relevant to the modern scenario. It is high time that the German Model is modified and reformed, in accordance with the corresponding standards of the present millennium.... The model has ensured that the employees were provided with right training programs, not to mention the aspect of aptly motivating the manpower. Also, it has to be stated that it (German Model) enabled the employees to have access to key information pertaining to their respective workplaces, courtesy the related laws and stipulations. (3) Roles played by the key actors At this point, it would be worthwhile in having a brief look at the roles played by the key actors, in terms of employee relations. The following are the four categories to which these key actors pertain to: state, managements, employees and worker unions & councils. It is not at all an exaggeration in maintaining that, the state played an extremely crucial role, with regard to the conventional German Model. By bringing out rules and laws that were aimed at the well-being of employees, the state made sure that they (employees) are assured of an amicable environment. Also, the state ensured that the managements meticulo usly adhere to all the corresponding laws, lest the workers’ interests are ignored. All these laws governed issues of utmost relevance to workers, such as working hours, bonuses, leaves and compensations, among many others. (2) & (3) Here, it needs to be stated that the role played by the managements is also noteworthy. The company managements scrupulously abided by all the norms and regulations pertaining to welfare of employees, and thus making sure that the workforce has literally no reason for complaint. The managements shared information with their respective employees, and this in turn enhanced the motivation level of the personnel. They were more than happy that due importance was being given to them, and

Political science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 13

Political science - Essay Example The media is also a watchdog and meaning it has the possibility to show all the negative attributes of one candidate whilst neglecting those of the other. Hence, the television media is directly linked to the community as it is the main source of news. Hence, the image presented by the media has the power to change the opinion of voters by the information it shows. The relationship between media and society can be improved by the media taking a neutral position in the elections and avoiding biased viewing which may cause the community to lose trust in its information 2. The modern executives in the United States are nominated by the president. After this there is need for rejection or confirmation of these executives the United States Senate. In Great Britain the selection of the executive is done by the Prime Minister from the House of Lords and the House of Commons, In France the Prime Minister recommends the candidates and the President makes the final decision from these candidates. The constraints of the cabinet in United States are based on Article II and the President may attain advice from these members. In Great Britain the cabinet is responsible for the majority of the decisions made in the Westminster system. In France, the executives have control over the National Assembly. These members have no authority to propose any legislation and this can only be done with the approval of the parliament. 3. The main functions of the legislatures include the law making, executive functioning of legislation, and control over the finances, juridical duties, public administration control, electoral functions and appointment of commissions. The main functions include law making and their repealing and control over the executive. The least performed functions include organization of social utilities and services, public administration and appointment of commissions. 4. World politics has continued to change over the decades and the modern features of

Enterprise Resource Planning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Enterprise Resource Planning - Assignment Example "The ERP market showed solid organic growth in 2004 as IT spending improved," says Jim Shepherd, vice president of research at AMR Research. "The market was also affected by consolidation within the segment, as well as ERP vendors acquiring best-of-breed players to broaden their portfolios." The top ten ERP vendors by revenue are in the following order: SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft (acquired by Oracle December 28, 2004), Sage Group, Microsoft Business Solutions, SSA Global, Geac, Intentia, Lawson, Infor Global Solutions. The report, "The Market Analytix Report: Enterprise Resource Planning, 2004-2009", delivers revenue and growth rates for the top ERP players as well as growth forecasts through 2009. AMR Research expects the enterprise applications market to grow from $47.8 billion in 2004 to $64.8 billion by 2009. SAP has had a solid reputation and has been the market leader and its revenues grew from about $8 billion in 2003 to about $9.4 billion in 2004. That amounts to a 17 percent increase in revenue, with software licenses up by 20%. SAP reached these figures without any major acquisitions. Being a viable alternative to confused customers who were witness to the Oracle and PeopleSoft takeover saga, it benefited by luring their customers towards its products. When it is all said and done, SAP-owned 40 percent of the market for ERP software in 2004, says AMR, which predicts SAP will own 43 percent of the market by the end of 2005. To do this, SAP must grow revenues 11 percent this year to about $10.4 billion. The sap is growing very well and is expected to gain more than twice the revenue and market share of Oracle by the end of 2005.Before the hostile takeover of Peoplesoft by Oracle in 2003, PeopleSoft was the second largest ERP vendor with 13 percent of the market, and Oracle was a clos e third with about 12 percent of the market. In 2004, the combined market share of those two vendors dropped two percentage points to 22 percent, and in 2005, the combined Oracle-PeopleSoft will drop three more points to 19 percent of the market, according to AMR. Microsoft Business Solutions garnered a solid 13 percent from $683 million to $775 million, to claim 3 percent of the market. AMR sees the ERP division of the world's largest software company growing revenues by 15 percent in 2005, to $891 million, which would give it a 4 percent share.  

State and defend the deductive argument that God is required for the Essay

State and defend the deductive argument that God is required for the existence of objective moral laws - Essay Example The first premise is that if objective moral law standards exist, they point to the existence of a God. Here, it is assumed that all laws have a lawmaker, and since the laws are objective, then they must be made by a person who is not human. By definition, objectivity requires autonomy from human interferences (Reppert 34). The second premise is that objective moral standards exist, which means that regardless of preference or convention, some things are always right or wrong; a typical example is killing someone for no reason. Truths are self evident, and one is justified if it reasonable to believe in it; in this regard, if a person sees a red object, then they can assume that it is colored. The third premise comes from the first two premises and thus concludes that because of the above, a God exists. Some people respond to the first premise that draws associations between God and moral standards. These opponents state that sometimes laws can exist without a lawmaker. A case in point is Platonic realism in which it is explained that abstract objects exist outside of time and space; these objects stay constant and have no cause. Examples of such abstract objects include laws of mathematics and logic; number 3 exists independently of one’s thought, while laws of morality like fairness and justice are abstract. Therefore, platonic realism illustrates that since morality laws are brute facts (have no explanation), then there is no need for a lawmaker. A response to the second premise is that objective moral laws do not exist as postulated in moral nihilism, moral subjectivism and cultural relativism. Moral nihilists say that moral realities are absent as truth does not exist in ethics. Moral subjectivists claim that actions depend on the one holding them rather than some objective standard. Cultural relativists say that moral laws depend on the societies to which

Philosophers Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Philosophers - Research Paper Example According to Bennabi, religion is important if the equation Man + Soil + Time = Civilization(Benlahcene, 2013). He argued that Man was at the center of the process of civilization and that without him, the other elements would not hold. In line with verse 13:11 of the Quran, he also argued that to change the society, Muslims must first seek to change their spiritual condition. Bennabi’s philosophy was based on a deep understanding of Islam not just as a religion, but also as a civilization. He sought to philosophically explain the origins of the decline of Islam and propose solutions. His early life in a devout Islamic family had prepared him for such a mission. Ibn Khaldun is largely considered the most important philosopher and scholar in Muslim History(Rapoport, 2011). Ibn Khaldun was born to a wealthy family in 1332. He received a traditional education. His first teacher was his father, a scholar who avoided politics even though he came from a ruling family. Then, under different scholars, he memorized the Quran and learned Arabic grammar, Hadith, philology, rhetoric, jurisprudence and poetry. Ibn Khaldun pursued studies until the age of nineteen when a major plague struck the country. After the plague, Ibn Tafrakin, the ruler of Tunis, hired Khaldun as the seal bearer of the ruler’s captive, Sultan Abu lshaq. This appointment set the stage for Khaldun’s political career. In a work known as the Muqaddima, translated â€Å"The Introduction to History†, Khaldun offers a synthesis of the methodological and cultural knowledge that an effective historian must possess. In the book, he presents a cyclical model of how dynasties evolved in the ancient world (Rapoport, 2011). First, tribal ties were very strong and played an important role in the formation of new empires in the ancient Arab world. He posited that it was the

A Hospital Room Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A Hospital Room - Essay Example There was also a big photo of Mother Teresa placed on a shelf. The two sceneries, as mentioned before, were giving a pleasing look. In the first scenery, there was a big blue sea and birds were shown as flying in the air. There were also two hands seemed like praying for the health of people. In the second scenery, an array of colors was shown which was also adding to the overall pleasing environment of the hospital room. As far as the internal climate of the hospital room is concerned, I would say that it was normal and a bit inclined towards cold temperature. There were early summers those days so the temperature was kept a bit cold to make patients feel good. Overall, the environment of the hospital room and the services that were provided to me as  the patient reflected the sense of a healing environment. In a hospital room with healing environment, the focus is not just to provide good treatment to patients, but also to provide  the healing and memorable experience to them. The behavior of the nursing staff and that of the doctor was extremely good. There was also the facility of the hearing light music in the room using the hands-free device. There were also two comfortable chairs placed near each of the three beds for visitors and caretakers. Another attractive feature of the room was that it accompanied three small bathrooms each for each of the three patients admitted in the room. The bed in my room had side rails that could be raised and lowered using a remote control.