Rethinking Marketing Essay

Companies today have technology that enables them to interact directly with customers. Firms must make use of this technology to focus on customer needs and develop into customer-oriented companies rather than product oriented ones. In order to facilitate this change a change in the company’s strategies as well as structure becomes necessary. This change includes reinventing the organizations marketing department entirely. One such change in strategy involves customer cultivation. Companies must move from being traditional companies to customer cultivating companies. A customer cultivating company is one that focuses on individual or small groups of customers as opposed to a traditional company that focuses on the mass. Many firms today are trying to make this strategy work. For example IBM, Tesco and American express. Next we come to change in structure, which involves reorganizing the marketing department. * Firstly CMOs must be replaced by CCOs (chief customer officer). The CCO’s job is to plan and implement the firms customer relationship strategy and supervise all customer-facing functions. * Secondly under the CCO will work the customer managers who identify the customer’s needs and direct brand mangers to fulfill those needs. * Customer- facing functions: some functions such as the customer relationship management that forms a part of the IT department must be made a part of the customer department. CRM (a tool for gauging customer needs and behavior) contains the data needed to implement customer cultivation strategy and hence essentially forms a part of the customer department. * Market research: market research changes to become more customer focused as well. * Research and Development: marketing and R&D must be integrated so that the customer itself can be brought into the process of designing products. * Customer service: the customer department must handle this service to ensure both quality and building long-term relationships with customers. With change in strategy there comes a need to change the measures that gauge the effectiveness of the strategy as well. These changes in measures are as follows: * Product profitability to customer profitability * Current sales to customer lifetime value * Brand equity to customer equity * And lastly market share to customer equity share. All in all the article considers reinventing the strategies and structure of companies to make them focus on building lasting customer relations rather that building brands.

Law Enforcement Today Essay

There are many issues facing that law enforcement today from things such as racial discrimination to probable cause and for the officers who go through this on a daily basis it is has been a long and hard fight. In today’s law enforcement agencies there are many local, state and federal agencies that are in contact with the Department of Homeland Security. Racial discrimination is an issue for law enforcement today because there are cases in which a white officer arrests or shoots someone who is a minority and the minority public sees this to be an act of racial discrimination versus it being that someone who happens to be a minority not abiding by the laws that govern them and all the citizens around them as well as attempting to cause harm to those around them. For instance I am sure everyone has heard about the Michael Brown case that occurred in August 2014 where a white police officer shot and killed a black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri which has caused a problem in other agencies while their officers are on the road. Another incident that has become an issue is the safety of officers. For instance back on September 12, 2014 when a man who was seeking change shot and killed a Pennsylvania State Trooper while injuring another. Another issue all local, state and federal agencies deal with would be the issue on immigration. The reason immigration is an issue for police agencies is because when you have a person or a group of people that have come to the U.S. illegally they can cause problems in society that are unwanted and that cause crime to rocket in a specific area or all over the country. Another issue that the police agencies go through would be cybercrime. Cybercrime is a big issue for police agencies because the job of the police department is to protect the citizens and when a child is being bullied to the point the child takes their life or child pornography is being exposed on the internet it is a crime because it is causing someone else to become unsafe as well as it being illegal. Cybercrime is also very difficult for law enforcement  agencies to deal with because they can be very difficult to catch unless someone points out in plain view the specifics of who, when, where, what, and how it is occurring. Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies interact with Homeland Security in many ways. Some ways that these agencies interact with Homeland Security is by helping to continue in keeping the citizens of the United States of America safe report and by eliminate terrorist attacks or anything that will hinder the lives of the American people in any way in the United States. For instance if a local police agency runs a traffic stop that positively identifies known terrorists than they can bring the terrorists for questioning and to alert the state and federal agencies and the government on information about the terrorists and their groups. The way the Department of Homeland Security gets the federal, local and state law enforcement agencies involved is by collecting data, information, tools and resources that each of these agencies are going to need in order help eliminate terrorism in the United States. While trying to get all the agencies involved there are also different things that DHS and the local, state and federal agencies can do in order to improve their relationship. Such things include on how they communicate and share information, enhance federal resources as well as supporting them through grants, training and other means. Lastly, they would be to strengthen its analytic capabilities to achieve better awareness of new and emerging threats. As one who would like to become a police officer one day I too would like to gain access in helping to resolve the issues that the local, state and federal governments are facing today as well as in the future as well as protecting the citizens of the United States. Taking it step by step will help eliminate the threat of terror as well as even the issues of the department and the Standard Operating Procedures they go through.

Evaluating rule based and principle based accounting approaches

In this essay, the two different attacks of accounting have been discussed. One attack is being followed by FASB and the other attack is being followed by IASB. These two attacks are Rules – based attack and Principles – based attack. Rules – based attack says that accounting rules and criterions should alter with the environment, fiscal conditions, and as new issues arises in the field of accounting. On the other manus, Principles – based attack says that accounting rules and criterions should be made harmonizing to the already set rules. All the rules are predefined and it works with a set of laid down system. This belief is named as rule – based attack. Further in this essay, these two attacks have been critically analyzed on some selected points. The stances, pros and cons of each attack have been discussed in item. And based on the analysis, decisions about the favourable attack or manner have been made. An recommendation has besides been made in the terminal that nonsubjective attack should be followed which means that alternatively of following either of these two attacks entirely, a mixture of both of these attacks should be followed so that the defects of each attack could be minimized. There are fundamentally two chief criterion puting organic structures i.e. FASB ( Financial Accounting Standard Board ) and IASB ( International Accounting Standard Board ) . These standard scene organic structures have their ain models. Models are used to paraphrase current accounting criterions and to bring forth new accounting criterions. is by and large followed in United States of America whereas IFRS is followed by most of the other states of the universe. Since 2001, more than one 100 states around the Earth have been permitted / required to utilize IFRS ( IASB construction ) . In add-on to these two criterion puting organic structures, there are besides other little and local criterion puting organic structures present. But IFRS are by and large followed by most of the states particularly by large economic systems. Apart from the â€Å" models † there are besides other differences every bit good. One of these differences is the â€Å" attack † that each one of t hem has used to construct criterions and models. GAAP uses the Rule – based attack whereas IFRS uses the Principles – based attack in constructing accounting criterions. Harmonizing to one belief accounting rules and criterions should alter with the environment, fiscal conditions, and as new issues arises in the field of accounting. This belief is named as regulation – based attack. Whereas, IFRS believes that accounting rules and criterions should be made harmonizing to the already set rules. All the rules are predefined and it works with a set of laid down system. This belief is named as rule – based attack. Each of these attacks has its ain pros and cons. The stances of each of these attacks have been discussed and critically analyzed in item below ; The deduction being, that if anyone in the society believes your patterns to be manipulating the job, or non-genuine, and immoral so the job of assurance in your actions id arises. This would so coerce, and should act upon everyone to endeavor for a high criterion of pattern, as minimum conformity and criterions would non truly be tolerated and plenty for the point of view of investors and community. The comptroller and hearers have to trust on their judgement, so the more conservative attack they adopt, it would be much better for the investors. So rigorous regulations should be followed and they should seek to run into the highest criterions instead than minimum. Following the regulations necessitate all members of a society to show minimal values and criterions of pattern. The criterions have to be in kernel meeting the minimally acceptable pattern degree in order to acquire approved by a bulk of members. Due to minimal required degree, the consequences could be less-than-excellent criterions. The rules-based patterns besides encourage those people to play around with the regulations, to happen loopholes and ambiguity in the regulations, and to calculate out ways to do uses. This has been evidenced in the last decennary in major economic sciences like Canada and the USA by their political leaders every bit good as celebrated concern leaders and companies ( Doug Macnamara & A ; Banff, 2004 ) Principles-based attack basically has no minimal criterion of pattern and they keep on turning over clip. Principles-based model influence a broad set of patterns run intoing the demands to a degree of outlook by the society at big ( McGladrey & A ; Pullen, 2009 ) . Principles promote organisations to follow directly off raising their current patterns in-line with the Principles based attack, endeavoring for uninterrupted betterment over clip ( Doug Macnamara & A ; Banff, 2004 ) . Principles-based are really utile in leting house ‘s to modify their apprehension of how to implement concern patterns of the highest criterions for every changing and alone conditions, and operational worlds of the industry. This should therefore ensue in better, more appropriate administration actions compared to minimum conformity with a set of basic regulations. Even though the constitution of fiscal accounting criterions and auditing has conventionally been founded upon a rule-based construction, the theory of a principle-based attack has been from clip to clip advocated since being incorporated and due to recent high profile dirts in which the fiscal comptrollers and hearers have been involved and made monolithic uses do to rule-based ethical point of view and hold failed to protect investors, stakeholders and general public involvement raised concerns for the populace to still believe on rule-based theory ( George J. Benston, Michael Bromwich, Alfered Wagenhofer, 2006 ) . In Accordance to a normally position, U.S. accounting criterions are more rules-based than principles-based model.[ 1 ]This observation brought in big portion from the emphasis put on two features of the diction of the typical confirmation statement: ‘the fiscal statements present reasonably, in all stuff respects, the fiscal place of Ten Company as of Date, and the consequences of its operations and its hard currency flows for the twelvemonth so ended in conformance with by and large accepted accounting rules ‘ ( accent added ) .2 ‘Present reasonably ‘ , which indicates a principles-based attack, is fundamentally converted to a rules-based attack when it is ‘defined ‘ in SAS 69 ( .05 a ) by mention to Rule 203 of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct. This regulation states that ‘present reasonably ‘ â€Å" implies that the application of officially established accounting rules about ever consequences in the just presentation of fisc al place, consequences of operations, and hard currency flows † .4 GAAP is specified by SAS 69, paragraph AU 411, as a hierarchy of conventions, regulations and steps propagated by peculiar important organic structures, peculiarly the Financial Accounting Standards Board and precursor houses ( e.g. , the Accounting Principles Board ) .4 Thus, if the itemized and statute GAAP have been followed as specified, most likely the certifying CPAs have done their occupations decently and sufficiently in the eyes of the Securities and Exchange Commission and ( likely ) the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board ( PCAOB ) . The standard compositors do non look to take into sufficient history that the format of criterions and their contents are mutualist. In peculiar, the more judgement an accounting rule requires, the more hard is it to project it into a criterion without plentifulness of counsel and, possibly, exclusions. These events have encouraged principal-based theoreticians to show and they standpoint which is more ethical and concerned to the investors and stakeholders ( George J. Benston, Michael Bromwich and Alfred Wagenhofer, 2006 ) . The rule-based imposts of scrutinizing became a trouble-free tool that was responsible for the unethical and immoral behavior of companies like Enron and Arthur Andersen due to which 1000s of people lost their every penny in pocket and their places ( David Satava, Cam Caldwell, Linda Richards, 2006 ) . The comptrollers and hearers should work to re-establish public assurance and to acquire enhanced the ethical behavior. Principle-based attack is necessary to significantly alter the ethical behaviour of the fiscal coverage and auditing. The comptroller and hearers must demo a preparedness to measure them critically and follow principle-based attack and demo committedness to alter house ‘s civilization, if they want to reconstruct their lost credibleness and trust with the populace. To carry on periodic cultural audi ts of accounting houses could be effectual tool. ( Bean and Cunningham, 2004 ) The comptrollers and hearers have moral certain duties in order to warrant with their profession self-respect that includes duties, purposes, moralss, principals, values and committednesss to honour these imposed duties ( Paine, 2003 ) .The hearers must integrate and incorporate both a rule-based rating of the fiscal wellness of an audited house and a principle-based appraisal of the fiscal status of an entity as an on-going concern and as a possible investing chance. The basic duties implicit in that undertaking is to unite proficient expertness and professionalism necessary to accomplish meticulosity, preciseness in supplying adequate information to do cent per centum sure that transparence sing the audited house ‘s fiscal status, and completeness, objectivity and independency in carry oning an audit comprehensive to indemnify the unity of the audit study and hence increased the creditability of the audit house ethical and professional attitude. Recent accounting dirts have raised the concern that regulation – based attack has become excessively vulnerable and there is sky-scraping demand of principles-based government. There is a great argument sing the effectivity in the Governance universe these yearss about how to better the degree of assurance and trust in our communities refering the Governance organic structures of both for net income and non for net income organisations. While many treatments are taking topographic point, the highest profile 1s are playing out in the assorted planetary securities communities, with other organisations taking their lead from at that place. However to some Board members might happen these arguments and statements rather detached and isolated from their daily administration responsibilities and duties. This is truly of import to understanding the different places and stance in this argument of administration, and the implicit in logic and principles should be considered by the Boa rd to break develop policies and best patterns to better administration & A ; transparence. This would take to heighten community assurance & A ; trust in your organisation ‘s leading. To hold a trust on leading and the direction is one of the most of import things for the investor point of position before puting in any company. A fall-out from the continued litany of error of our senior leaders and participants has exposed in the media, which has led to overall aggravation & A ; impairment in assurance and trust of the general public towards those in the privileged place of power and control ( Doug Macnamara & A ; Banff, 2004 ) . As each one of these revelation criticizes into the populace ‘s scruples, the trust and perkiness in Governors and Governance took another monolithic hit. Governors and managers should reflect watchfulness and due diligence in their act before choosing any accounting model and should endeavor to do certain the transparence and effectual control system. The principal based model has shown its importance over clip and raised many inquiries on regulations based system. Governors and managers should utilize a blend of both Rules and Principles that are relevant to the organisation, and formulate and develop new Governance By-Laws, processs, policies and patterns to wake up their organisation ‘s leading behaviour. We are still meeting more and more struggles of involvement jobs at the Governance degree and Following the best patterns and Self-disclosure of these new patterns can better the society trust in organisations. ( George T. Tsakumis, 2009 ) After being analysing the fact and the difficult nucleus worlds of both the rule-based and chief based attack, it is being concluded that comptrollers every bit good as governors should follow the regulations based attack because the principal based model strives for uninterrupted betterment and by following the principal based attack we could achieve the highest degree of transparence and investors assurance. Due to recent dirts accounting criterions are already under terrible unfavorable judgment. The regulation based attack has batch of loopholes because it merely requires the minimal criterions to fulfill it ‘s objectively as comparison to principal based attack which keep on puting new criterions and mileposts. The hearers besides have to hold to demo high criterions of ethical pattern and should identity the malpractices being done by the direction. They should work independently and objectively and should non come under any force per unit area by direction. They work sho uld be run into the aim of the investors and stockholder alternatively of direction. It has besides being witnessed that over the old ages the administration mechanism has non being what it used to be, so that board of managers and governors need to look into the matter of the direction and should prosecute themselves in arguments so that they continuous come up and better the control system and should fasten the cheque and balances on the direction. The system which needs to be now incorporated in the houses should be blend of both regulation based and chief based model ( AAA Financial Accounting Standards Committee, 2003 ) . Together both the model would be a better option for the accounting criterions in order to accomplish highest ethical criterions and best patterns. It would besides assist the comptrollers to re-gain their lost creditability which they have lost and general populace is now loath to swear them.

Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tui Na Massage and regular massage for Article

Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tui Na Massage and regular massage for the treatment of pediatric and adolescent issues - Article Example healing philosophies, approaches, and therapies that mainstream Western (conventional) medicine does not commonly use, accept, study, understand, or make available.† It also stated that CAM on its own can be an alternative to orthodox therapies or as a supplement to mainstream medicine whit the purpose of alleviating conditions and/ or promote healthy lifestyle. A good example of CAM would be Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that has its beginnings in China for more than thousands of years. According to the National Institutes of Health, TCM â€Å" is considered is considered part of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in the United States†. TCM employs different treatments such as massage, herbal remedies, moxibustion, cupping and acupuncture. However, the purpose of this discussion to enlighten the public on the role of TCM in addressing pediatric and adolescents issues, particularly musculoskeletal problems. The developmental stage of childhood up to adolescence presents a challenge to Orthopedic practitioners. The National Center for Health Statistics, in its National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey in 2003 revealed that â€Å"no less than 8 million children under 20 musculoskeletal injuries in 2003 â€Å". It is no wonder then that childhood musculoskeletal injuries are seriously considered as a major problem by The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS). The musculoskeletal problems can be grouped into two categories: congenital or developmental. Developmental conditions are usually attributed to injuries which stems from childhood obesity and lack of inactivity. On the other hand, excessive physical activity from sports activities can also cause problems. Moreover, diseases and infections can also contribute to the development of musculoskeletal problems in children and adolescents. For some years now, TCM has contributed in aiding pediatric cases as well as adolescents with musculoskeletal problems. The following areas of

Global Business Environment Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global Business Environment Portfolio - Essay Example It is a market that is very important for any economy and is capable of creating more jobs per million currency investments than any other market or industry. This report will investigate the various changes in the travel and tourism market in the last five years (2007-2011) and analyse how economic and technological factors have contributed to these changes. Tourism industry continued its strong growth in 2007 like the previous 3 years. 2008 started on a positive note with a 5% increase in the first half but started to decline as the graph of the number of international arrivals started moving in the negative curve. The year ended with an overall growth of only 2% in complete contrast to the 7% growth in 2007 (UNWTO, 2009). The trend continued as there as a 4.2% decline in 2009. Tourism and travel industry hit an all time low in 2009 (UNWTO, 2010). 2010 saw exceptional recovery with a 7% increase in the number of international tourist arrivals (935 million). Even though there was a speedy recovery, it was not consistent and was at varied speeds. It was the emerging economies that mainly contributed to the recover. The recovery was lower in the advanced economies and this reflected the global economic situation at the time (UNWTO, 2011). But an exception to this is the US. 2010 saw a record-setting 60 million international tourist (Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, 2010). International tourism consolidated for the losses and saw tremendous recovery. 2011 was a great year as there was healthy growth registered. There was 5% increase in international tourism in first half of 2011 this in spite of many challenges. The fact that has been very promising is that the advanced economies have grown faster than expected. The number of international arrivals was a record 440 million. European countries have done exceedingly well with strong growth even though the economic situation has been very gloomy. During the same time, as international tourism has been swingi ng both ways, domestic tourism saw a steady growth in majority of the markets. Source: UNWTO, IMaCS analysis There were also other important changes in the travel and tourism industry in the last five years. Internet was heavily used by users to assist in the travel plans. Following are some of the important statistics with respect to travel and technology: Search engines were used for gathering travelling information by 62% of personal travellers (Trent, 2011) Mobile devices were extensively used by business travellers (51%) (Trent, 2011) Flash sales have become very popular in the travel and tourism industry. Unexpected emails have resulted in a 25% booking of travel services (Trent, 2011) Online booking of travel destinations and services has increases tremendously (Trent, 2011). Economic factors have been a major contributor to the changes in the travel and tourism industry in the last five years. The global economic crisis has been the contributor to the decline in the growth o f the travel and tourism industry in the 2008 and 2009. The various economic factors that lead to the downfall of the travel and tourism industry were the global financial crisis, fluctuations in exchange rate (massive fluctuations), credit crunch, increase in the prices of the commodities and oil prices. The consumers as well as the business had lost their confidence in the economic conditions. This affected the spending behaviours of

Methodology rationale of a lesson plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Methodology rationale of a lesson plan - Essay Example This is followed by detailed analysis or the lesson plan and peculiarities of students’ perception of material and attitude to learning, their interests and cooperation during the lesson. Also there will be suggested an action plan for my self-improvement and advance in my future teaching skills. Final point of my paper includes brief conclusion on done work. Primarily, I want to pay attention that my lesson is designed for young students. They are Libyan and their appropriate age is from 16 to 19. The topic of the lesson is Life Stories. The lesson contain the story about doctor who leave his son burial to save life of unknown boy, precisely listening a rude and angry perturbation of his father. Hence, the story is totally edifying and provides a great example of execution of duty no matter what. Moreover, given text teaches respect and politeness even in stressed situations. These are serious and important moral categories, discussing which will be useful affair for young generation. Their age induces them to think over some eternal notions together with sense of life and people’s behaviour. This is the age of self-identification in the world and understanding of who you are. So topic Life Stories with a big moral purport I consider to be highly appropriate for these learners. It more or less matches with their interests and pre tends to be interesting for students. The learners are 10 in number. It is a suitable amount what gives an opportunity to tell your own opinion for everybody, and to discuss the main important points of the topic in pairs and with the full class. Learners study language at their private school for ten years. English is a part of their syllabus so they study General English. Level of knowledge of these Libyan students is intermediate. As there was no verbal part in the exam process for them, they mostly concentrated on the structural form of the language avoiding the meaning and use of them as a result; they are good at writing and

Business week 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business week 4 - Essay Example Secondly, another problem in communication flow is the employee unwillingness to communicate and share information. In many organizations employees are hesitant in communicating with each other because of the perception that everyone is out there to get each other and they do not trust each other. To address this issue I will have to create an air of confidence and mutual trust in the organization. Trust can come through friendship so the above activity can be followed here in this context. Other than that seniors in the company should encourage free sharing of information. Another problem in the communication flow is when the message does not reach the intended user and therefore does not serve its purpose. Therefore messages must be careful targeted towards specific people in an organization. Lastly, communication should never be always in one direction. When an excessive one directional conversation takes place employees lose interest and motivation. Therefore I will try to encourage feedback as to involve people in the activities of the firm. This is a form of communication whereby the long term objectives of the organization are kept in mind and communication designed accordingly. It is done keeping a vision in mind. Goal setting and anxiety management would be more important areas for me. As a leader the goal setting part would be very important for me. This is because when goals do not exist , there is no direction. A lack of direction not only affects the organization but also brings down the employee morale. Anxiety management is also an important issue because it comprises dealing with stressful situations and working under pressures. Things in companies will not always be leisurely and peacefully, therefore anxiety management would work for the employees. (Robert, 1999) Diversity is an important issue today. This is because of increased globalization. Many companies today have huge differences in their workforce

Research Methods Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Methods - Research Paper Example Results. The control group shows a post-experimental phase mean score of 23.27 with a variance of a little over 12. The experimental group demonstrated a mean score of 16.53 and a variance of almost 17. In terms of the data, the experimental group shows significant improvement in the reduction of bulimic behavior with a seven point reduction in the mean group score over the baseline. The distribution is higher within the experimental group, likely because of the variable efficacy of psychotherapy on individuals. A review of the raw data shows that only four individuals in the group had scores approaching the group's baseline, while others showed dramatic improvement. This effect would not be expected in the control group, and would contribute to a wider distribution around the mean group score. .. This effect would not be expected in the control group, and would contribute to a wider distribution around the mean group score. References Henderson, M. & Freeman, C.P.L. (1987). "A self rating scale for bulimia: The BITE. British Journal of Psychiatry, 150,

Db5 hhrr Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Db5 hhrr - Research Paper Example This involves removing the employee from the organization’s list of workers. This form of punishment should be used only when the mistake done by an employee is grave or when they have been warned about their mistakes severally. Yet another punishment that employers can impose on employees is suspension (hr.ubc.ca, 2013). As opposed to termination, when an employee is suspended, they are relived of their duties and seize to enjoy some of the benefits and privileges they previously enjoyed temporarily. The employer can also demote an employee for the mistakes they commit. When an employee is demoted, they lose some of the privileges they previously enjoyed and have their pay cut. This type of disciplinary action is also severe and should be reserved for serious cases. Instead of issuing such weighty disciplinary actions against an employee, an employer may issue a warning to an errant employee. The warning should carry weight and should serve to deter the employee from engaging in further inappropriate activities. Warnings should always be issued privately and should be accompanied by counselling aimed at instigating improved performance (entrepreneur.com, 2013). An employee can also be assigned an unpleasant task as a disciplinary action (hr.ubc.ca,

Deviant Behavior Emergence Essay Example for Free

Deviant Behavior Emergence Essay Deviancy has been defined as the actual shift from a standard-norm conforming behavior towards a direct behavior alteration that is not accepted by society or viewed as unacceptable by the minor cultures. People who engage in defying acts are seen as having low self-control. They engage in many conventional behaviors, but due to low self-control, they are predisposed to committing deviancy if opportunities arise. This explanation explains all types of deviant behavior (Hunter Dantzker, 2005 p. 53). Deviant behaviors are deemed to arise out of environmental etiologies that stimulates the intrinsic character of an individual, which in the end, results to behavioral deviation. Such scenario is evident in specific events in life that most of the time due to adaptation and societal strain implicated in these deviating individuals (Holmes, Maahs Vito, 2007 p. 67). Discussion Adaptation is one of man’s greatest capacity and need in order to survive the ever-changing structure of the society. Such change causes strains through events or environmental stressors that facilitate as an alarm for adaptation to begin, which, consequently, cause deviancies (Hunter Dantzker, 2005 p. 153; Holmes, Maahs Vito, 2007 p. 77). Such causation is better explained by the theoretical angles of strain theory, which connotes the contribution of societal strain and pressure. The socio-cultural domain of every individual recognizes the absolute need to adapt to strains in order to progress to success or conditions of fulfillment (Siegel Senna, 2004 p. 14). Strain theory talks about the causation of crimes not directly because of strain but due to failure in tolerating these kinds of stimuli. They are both result of negative impregnation of environmental pressures that in the end leads the client vulnerable to breakdown (Holmes, Maahs Vito, 2007 p. 67-68). The theory suggests that a person performs acts of deviancy not because of attachments or relationships but rather because of the pressuring strain. In criminological perspective, the crime rates, according to this theory, justify the increased criminal persona in places wherein financial depression or extreme difficulties are present (Siegel Senna, 2004 p. 314). The last resort of the individuals is nothing but to commit crimes. In an example given, a person is ready to kill just to get the material possession that the person wants to acquire (Holmes, Maahs Vito, 2007 p. 67). In all cases, the behavior emerges from a sequence of structural conduciveness, structural strain, generalized beliefs, precipitating factors, mobilization for action, and the breakdown of social control. Structural strain is loosely defined as ambiguities, deprivations, conflicts, and discrepancies in social structure. If in case strain does provoke collective behavior (e. g. panic, crazes and fads) in the context of other determinants, deviant behaviors result, which involves a short-circuiting of levels of social action that gives it a crude, excessive, eccentric, or impatient quality (Snow, Soule and Kriesi, 2004 p. 50). Structural strain theory traces the origins of deviance to the tensions caused by the gap between cultural goals and the means people have to achieve these goals. In society, culture establishes goals for people; social structures provide, or fail to provide, the means for people to achieve those goals. If the means to achieve goals are out of balance, deviant behavior is the result (Andersen and Taylor, 2006 p. 174) In the United States, most people place a high value on the culturally valued goal of economic success and social mobility. Americans tend to believe that anyone can achieve success-that is, they believe that all people, regardless of the circumstances into which they are born, can achieve affluence and stature (Ferrante and Wallace, p. 37). In the case wherein, a depressed community is surrounding a person, significantly full of drug addicts and negative and influencers, a person still strives to obtain moral life in spite of community pressures and sociological influence. Let us say that this person has been given a good working opportunity as well as good family relationships, the person might still withstand the implicating strain imposed by the negative environment and progress to success (Kendall, 2006 p. 213). The driving force utilized by the individual is the positive reinforcement obtained from the home environment and/or the natural desire of the individual to succeed. It is very much justified by the state of mind involved and utilized by the individual, which provides the driving force and enables adaptation to stress (Holmes, Maahs Vito, 2007 p. 67; Kendall, 2006 p. 213). However, if the positive reinforcements break down and add up to strain, which consequently causes failure to succeed and adapt on the goals imposed, deviancy arise due to structural strain manifested in collective behaviors. Conclusion Every society presents every individual with varying stress, which involves internal and external stressors. Such conditions facilitate stress and act as the primary strain, which implicates the need for adaptation towards the implicating societal pressures. The study concludes that deviant behavioral patterns arise if such adaptive goals are not meant due to structural strain, which is evident among American society.

Themes in Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Themes in Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks GERALDINE BROOKS USES A FULL RANGE OF NARRATIVE DEVICES TO PRESENT A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE ON A NUMBER OF THEMES. EXPLAIN HOW THE NOVELIST DEVELOPS ONE MAJOR THEME. INCORPORATE DIRECT EVIDENCE FROM THE TEXT TO SUPPORT YOUR DISCUSSION Year of Wonders, written by Geraldine Brooks, follows the inspirational tale of the poor widow Anne Frith, and the Plague that ravaged Eyam in 1665, bringing catastrophe and chaos into the fragile society. In times of calamity, Brooks explores what is true about adversity and how it brings out the best and worst of human nature. She does so by providing readers with a unique narrative structure, various symbolic icons, and a young, perceptive protagonist. According to Brooks, the distressing rapidity at which the Plague is decimating the citizens of Eyam proves how adversity induces the worst of human behaviour. Within the carefully established sociocultural setting, the novelist presents us with a wide array of characters to reveal how, in the face of explicable loss, grief and fear, society resorts to appalling behaviour, especially scapegoating. The enraged Lib Hancock, Mary Hadfield and John Gordon, are seen brutally attacking Mem Gowdie and murdering Anys. Their false accusations, claiming that these women were witches, goes on to prove that Eyams midwife healers are the symbols of the human tendency to blame. As the devastation of the Plague progresses, the author observes how people become opportunistic, and acquisitively prey on others and manipulate them in their state of misery and suffering. This is undoubtedly evident through the actions of Josiah Bont, who consumed by greed and selfishness, exploits those around him by di gging graves and burying the dead for an extremely exorbitant price. By capitalising from loss of others and extorting materials, Josiah is an emblematic character. Furthermore, the narratives climax provides exposure of how some people become delusional and begin to claim their own authority, whilst taking advantage of the crisis. Reverend Mompellion appears to confront the Plague with immense courage and an overwhelming sense of responsibility, convincing the villagers to quarantine themselves and see it as God invitation for them to improve. Yet, a proleptic re-reading of his ways and actions illustrate his increasing sense of Christ-likeness, with the power to command God himself: Omnipotent God . . . bow down Thine ear to our request, and let Thine eye look upon the miseries of Thy people (pg. 86). Against this backdrop, Brooks asserts that there are those who, in the face of extreme adversity, refuse to let negativity to take hold of them, and instead opt to rise to the situation. With the death of the village midwives, Mem and Anys Gowdie, Anna is called to assist with the delivery of Mary Daniels baby. Through this situation, the author provocativelyhighlights the contrast of life and death, as Anna successfully delivers a healthy baby albeit being reluctant at first: In that season of death, they celebrated a life. Soon after, struck by the despair of her empty house, Anna takes the stolen phial of poppy and consumes it, as she held her only chance of exit from the village and its agonies (pg. 158). However, upon unexpectedly meeting Elinor at the Gowdies cottage, guilt-ridden Anna admits her sin, and throws the remaining poppy into the fire. The writer eloquently uses the symbol of the poppy, to exemplify the rejection of slumber, in favour of a life devoted to tending to the suffering, and seeking to develop a cure for the Plague. In doing so, Anna is also defying the social norms of the time, wherein she learns how to read by studying with Elinor things women of her status would never achieve. Overall, Brooks astoundingly exposes the tremendous sense of strength, resilience and altruism demonstrated by Anna and Elinor, all whilst empowering the reader and endorsing the strength of women. In the end, adversity, as portrayed by Brooks is a predictable and inevitable part of life. After overcoming the numerous hardships and suffering, Anna comes to accept the Plague as a natures way. The natural cycles of birth, growth and death, can be associated with the cyclical narrative structure, which generates tension within the reader. The novel commences in autumn an important symbol, signifying a period of harvest and fruition. Contrastingly, it is also a season of death and leaf fall, and a pivotal time wherein the reader comprehends the stories structure. Furthermore, as the Plague begins to subside in Eyam, Anna experiences a major transformation. By the means of her relationship with the Mompellions and her exposure to the extremities brought by the Plague, readers are able to witness the intellectual and emotional growth she undergoes. Through Anna, the author substantiates that humanity can triumph over adversity through self-sacrifice, love, friendship and optimism, b y making the best of her deplorable circumstance and looking beyond the preconceptions and misapprehensions of the time. Moreover, Anna escapes the confines of Eyam and begins a new life in Oran stating that it seemed good to me to sever every tie that bound me to my old life. Consequently, under the protection, attained through her marriage with the renowned doctor, Ahmed Bey, and the haven of her hijab, Anna is able to continue her crusade.She becomes a doctor, scholar and mother whose profound compassion and abilities denote her as a woman of independence and strength. Year of wonders, examines the diverse responses adversity invokes in people, and the positive and negative responses they exhibit as a result. As the trajectories of the horrendous Plague, afflicts the entire village of Eyam, Anna Frith transpires as an unforeseen healer and heroine, proving that her year of tragedy and catastrophe evolved to become a year of wonders.

Celebrity Endorsements

Celebrity Endorsements In the Beauty sector industry, LOreal ranks on the top amongst the other brands, and has also undertaken many celebrity endorsements (Wang W.S, 2006). To comprehend the influence of celebrity endorsement on LOreal Paris a methodical study is required. This chapter has been divided into two sections, the first begins with a brief description about celebrity endorsements, in addition the previous and the current scenario of celebrity endorsements, whereas the second section talks about the brand LOreal, its performance in the industry, the celebrity endorsements it has undergone, furthermore any risks it has faced while endorsing and lastly how has it been influenced by celebrity endorsements   A key challenge that marketing agencies face today to get noticed in the highly competitive market is that of designing an advertising execution. There are many ways through which agencies can secure consumers, amongst them one form is celebrity endorsement (Robert van Der Veen analysis of celebrity endorsement as an effective destination marketing tool, 2004).The concept of celebrity endorsement has been increasing over the decades and now is a widespread advertising strategy. Celebrity endorsement since ages has been used as an effective source of marketing to promote products and services. (Nathan Klaus, and Ainsworth Anthony Bailey, Celebrity endorsement: an examination of gender and consumer attitudes, American Journal of Business, 2008 vol.23 no.2). At present, one will find almost every advertisement involving a celebrity, these celebrities act as spokespersons so as to advertise and promote products, services and ideas. (Cited in Kambitsis et. al 2002, Rajakaski JJ, Simonsson R.2006). Now Celebrity endorsement is a well established form of advertising strategy, especially in the U.S where approximately twenty percent of all the television commercials present a celebrity or a famous person and in addition, approx ten percent of dollars spent on television advertising are consumed in celebrity endorsement. (Cited in advertising age Sherman 1985, Agrawal Kamakura, 1995). The celebrities when are endorsed for a product they are expected to accomplish a number of objectives such as increasing the brand image, brand name, product creditability, and also the likability of the advertisement.(Brunett et all 1993 cited in Marin 1996). Firms use celebrity endorsement not just for increasing revenues but also its importance lies in the f act that how celebrity endorsement add value to company, brand and product.(Clinton Amos, Gary Holmes, David Strutton, Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effect and advertising effectiveness, International Journal of advertising , 27(2), 209-234, world advertising research center) Using celebrities for advertising helps the brand by acquiring better and more attention from the consumers, they add glamour to the product/brand and make it more credible, desirable and trustworthy. (Spielman, 1981 cited in Renton , 2006).According to Friedman and Friedman (1979) a celebrity is an individual who is known by the public for his achievements in area other than that of the product class he is endorsing. Famous people achieve a high degree of attention from the public and media. As a result of their celebrity status they create a positive image of the product they endorse. Murdoch argues that Belch and Belch has written   Marketers recognize that people are more likely to be influenced by   a message coming from someone with whom they feel a sense of similarity, and that advertisers recognise the value of using spokes person who are admired: TV and movie stars, athletes, musicians, and other popular figure (Murdoch, Creativity in advertising).There are a variety of reasons why a firm might go for celebrity endorsement some reasons may be the experiences that the celebrity faced in his life may be similar to the message to be conveyed in the advertisement and if you are a fan of the celebrity you might trust them..(Kulkarni and Gaulkar,   2007). Hence, Choosing a celebrity should be done with at most care and importance since it is more than a marketing strategy as it is a decision that has an impact on the prospect of the brand. Choice of celebrity should be on the basis of factors like appeal, popularity, etc.(Naveen Blazey and Shashi Kanth Gan ti, Goa institute of management Goa, Impact of celebrity endorsement on overall brand) Celebrities endorsement are sometimes very expensive for the firm,   based upon the reputation and the status of the celebrity, their remuneration could run into millions of dollars depending on   the contract, overall it is an huge investment made by the brands for advertising(Agrawal Kamakura,1995).In today dynamic market conditions, there is huge risk associated along with the celebrity endorsement, what if celebrity advertising does not affect the consumer purchasing decision, furthermore endorsement does not give economic returns after a high cost of celebrity advertising involved and does not affect the profitability of the brand, and in addition there are situation where the celebrity himself is in a controversy, and its effects on the firm. LOreal Paris: LOreal was established in 1909, previously known as LAureale (Latin meaning: Golden crown). It began producing hair dye products in Paris and due to its success it quickly started branching out in other countries along with diversifying the product range whilst including soaps, shampoos and hair preparations. In 1974, LOreal undertook many dermatological and pharmaceutical activities, For instance a joint auxiliary undertaking between LOreal and Nestle which concentrates on medication of diseases and infections. In December 2003, an research and development centre was established. In 2004 acquisition of Mininurse and Yue-Sai, two Chinese brands had taken place, furthermore LOreal group had been ranked by Interbrand, as the 49th global brand for leading international branding consultancy. In 2005 LOreal had set up its first research centre in Shanghai, which mainly dealt with the issue on the texture of Chinese skin hair and other varied needs of the Chinese. Today LOreal has over 50, 000 employees, a research team of 3,000 employees, 30,000 active patents and 130 branches all around the world (Datamonitor, LOreal Paris). LOreal Group has divided its products under a) Luxury goods which includes brands like Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, Cashrel, Lancà ´me exacta b) Consumer goods- Brands that come under this group are LOreal Paris, Maybelline New York etc. c) Professional products and d) Active cosmetics. LOreal Paris characterizes professionalism, and due to research and development technology it has always maintained its high quality. This brand has targeted those consumers which are willing to pay higher prices for good quality products. The most important strategy that LOreal Paris has adopted to diversify its operations is by undertaking tactics such as expanding its distribution and advertisements, especially in countries like India, where the current brand ambassador is the Hindi film actress Sonam Kapoor. On the other hand, in other international countries during the mid May, 2009 LOreal Paris has increased it celebrity endorsements by endorsing three new celebrities Elizabeth Banks, Freida Pinto and Evangeline Lily. These new Hollywood celebrities were announced as the ambassadors during the Cannes film festival, and now they will join the LOreal Paris hall of fame with the previous LOreal Paris ambassadors such as Penelope Cruz, Jennifer Aniston, Beyonce, and Scarlett Johansson (Datamonitor, Loreal paris). According to Cesar Zamudio, 2008 Currently LOreal Paris has 14 ambassadors of different ethnicities and professions (Zamudio, 2008) 1.2 Purpose of the study This research is undertaken to realise and comprehend the appealing concept of brand endorsement and also its influence on the LOreal Paris and the consumer purchasing decision. The purpose is also to reach a conclusion whether celebrity endorsement which is a huge investment does actually give a positive return to LOreal Paris 1.3 Aims and objectives An Aim is set up in order to achieve the goals and to solve the purpose of the study undertaken. The aim of this Study would be to examine the vivid concept of celebrity endorsement, and how does it affect the brand and the consumer purchasing behaviour, furthermore how brands handle the risk factor. Objectives: To identify, analyse and discuss relevant literature, about the use of celebrity endorsement and its effects on the consumer purchasing behaviour To indentify some theoretical framework able to model the influence that celebrity endorsement plays on the brand itself To Design a methodological approach that would enable the collection analysis of primary and secondary data. To show the findings of this research within the context of the state of the art literature. To critically reflect the influence of celebrity endorsement on consumer purchasing behaviour and also on the LOreal Paris. 1.4 Research Methodology Collection of primary data will be done through questionnaires, in order to reach the aims and goals of the research. Secondary data will be collected through reading various journals and books related to the concept of celebrity endorsement Furthermore, data will be collected through reading newspaper articles, magazines, advertisements, magazines and articles from the database The conclusion will be depicted from the findings gathered from the primary and secondary data. 1.5 STRUCTURE:   CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: Introduction of this study has stated the research aims and objective, and the purpose of this study. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW: The literature review explains the aims and objectives of the previous researches and defends their view point from the research. CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY: The methodology explains how the research will be carried out. In this study from qualitative and quantitative research methods, quantitative research method will be made use of. CHAPTER 4: DATA ANAYSIS: The data collected through the research method, will be analysed through various computer programming techniques in order to arrive to a result. CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION: The findings and suggestions to readers will be stated which is on the basis of the result of the study. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1. INTRODUCTION This section of literature review will deal with the synopsis of pertinent theories, models, subject matter and also illustrate previous findings. To start with introduction of the topic will be done followed by a detailed explanation of celebrity endorsement and sponsorship furthermore explanation of consumer behaviour and the factors or attributes affecting the consumer attitudes and the intension to purchase and lastly how celebrity adds value to the endorsed products. In the process of celebrity endorsement there are some risks and failures also involved, so such factors will also be discussed in brief. The literature review will comprise of: The illustration of celebrity endorsement process Factors that influence the consumer purchase intentions Differentiating the varied marketing tools. 2.2 CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS: The Celebrity endorsement issue gained apt importance after the Second World War, previously in 1666 where the sellers use to aggressively exhibit there endorsers. From the beginning of the twentieth century, people used to find celebrities in newspaper and magazines. (Segrave.2005).The endorsement process is time consuming and is worth a million dollar and is constituted by three important participants: Firms, celebrities, and the middle men. Busler (2002) states that in 2001, celebrities received around $800 million as their endorsement fees. Fees are still rising in this industry for instance in the sports industry, during 1997, Michael Jordan used to earn $47 million in a year which made him the h8ighest paid athlete , following ten years Le Bron James signed a contract worth $90 million with Nike additionally, he also discontinued using middlemen and commenced his own firm.(Arango 2007). Therefore the role of all the three participants can be understood, as the firms carry out c elebrity endorsements so as to increase their profits, celebrities accept it on order to earn and increase their popularity, while the middlemen take some commission for coordinating the celebrity and the firm (Agrawal and Kamakura 1995). The continuous development in this industry led FTC regulating it, where the FTC worked out a set of guidelines, which has to be followed whilst undertaking celebrity endorsements (Atkin and Block 1983). Since 1980s the contract fees have sky- rocketed (Segrave 2005). In 1986, Sylvester Stallone and Paul Newman were paid approx $1 million a year( Segrave 2005).   In 2007 the athlete Tiger woods was highest paid which amounted to a total of $100 million (Arango 2007). A celebrity has a distinct personality and reputation. Along with appearing in an advertisement, they are very talented and have exceptional skills in performing an undertaking, which makes them famous amongst the public besides gaining more respect and adoration. According to Pringle H and Binet L, Celebrities are those, who are famous and familiar amongst the regular people and are used by brands to add value to their advertisements by considering their image and reputation (Pringle H, Binet L, 2005). There are many studies carried out on the concept of celebrity endorsements, to begin with there are researches relating to who can be the best spokesperson for an endorsement amongst celebrities, the CEO, consumers or should it be an expert of the particular brand, the results were sketchy as not much research has been carried out on this particular issue so a vague and a blend of results were found, according to Atkin and Block (1983) and Frieden (1984) the celebrities are right choice but are not always found to be effective, but Martin et. al (2008) states that consumers can be found most suitable, in addition Harper 2007 and Simpson 2007 ends saying that the celebrities possibly may not be the best suited endorser furthermore Kamins,1989 undertook a two sided study the results were that celebrity were found to be more congenial and authentic over non-celebrity spokesperson.(Kamins 1989)   Agrawal and Kamakura (1995) and Mathur et al. (1997) argued on the effect of celebrity endorsement contracts on the profitability of a firm, Agrawal and Kamakura analyzed 110 celebrity endorsements contracts using event study analysis and found out that on an average the firms experience a 44% increase in their market value this will have a positive stock   return leading to increased   profits and furthermore   are considered as a worthwhile investment (Agrawal Kamakura,1995).Whereas Mathur (1997), emphasized on the issue relating to comeback Michael Jordan to NBA in 1995, which brought McDonalds (endorsed by Michael Jordan at that time) an approximate gain of $192 million, this figure is nearly equal to the price of 64 million McDonalds meals (Mathur et al. 1997). Another research was on the basis of how celebritys persona influences the consumers attitudes and product evaluations, According Friedman and Friedman (1979) and Roa et. al (1999) states that if the product is socially or psychologically risky then the celebrity endorsements will increase the chance of believing in the advertisement. Kalhe and Homer(1985) says when the celebrities image is equivalent to the product endorsed then only the celebrities physical attractiveness augment to product evaluations(Kalhe and Homer. 1985). Amos, Holmes, Strutton (2008) dealt with a relationship between the effects of celebrity endorser and the effectiveness of advertising using the Kruskal-Wallis non parametric test, they found that any off putting information or events concerning the celebrity can have an adverse effect on the brand, these researchers also used the source credibility model for evaluating consumer perceptions of a celebrity endorser, which consists of three important constituents- celebrity trustworthiness, celebrity expertise and celebrity attractiveness, the findings were that if there is advertisement clutter the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement might condense, in addition l arger influence of celebrity endorsement is found amongst the collage students.(Amos, Holmes, Strutton 2008). Endorsement effectiveness: According to Friedman and Friedman (1979) celebrities are more effective than an expert or a consumer, as they help in easily remembering and recollecting the band name of the product as the ad. (Friedman and Friedman 1979) . They also contribute to effectiveness of an endorsement by bringing in more depth, accuracy and polish to the meanings to be delivered and also to the advertisements, furthermore when celebrities deliver they do it with extra care along with offering a series of lifestyle and personality. (McCracken, 1989). Choi et al.(2005) states that domestic celebrities result in more effectiveness as they are constantly in touch with the existing cultural values compared to the international ones who might possibly more expensive and difficult to find to suit the brand (Choi et al 2005). For effectual use of celebrities and for successful endorsements, following guidelines have been mentioned by Till (1998). If the celebrity is utilised constantly or consistently, to reinforce the relation between the brand and celebrity, the celebrity endorsement will be more effective. The ad should contain relevant and true facts about the product, additionally it should be straightforward and uncomplicated. Those celebrities are recommended who are not allied with any other brand and are precisely appropriate for the endorsed brand. This marketing tool will be more accurate for those products for which the user has incomplete information. According to Shimp (2003), Creditability and attractiveness are the determinants of effectiveness of endorsers, Creditability consists of celebritys believability and dependability, while attractiveness involves physical attractiveness, respect and similarity between the endorser and publics age, gender, ethinicity. For instance Omega (Swiss watch) endorsed by Anna kournikova as they found her attractive Let us discuss celebrity performance, celebrity trustworthiness,celebrity expertise and celebrity attractiveness: Celebrity performance: According to Amos, Holmes, Strutton. 2008, celebrity performance (acting success, athlete success, music success etc.) refers to any given point of time of the celebrities profession where they accomplish achievement.(Amos, Holmes, Strutton. 2008) There is an direct impact of the celebrities performance on their popularity which might fall or even rise in their in the entire profession (Agrawal and Kamakura 1995). If their performance fall short it is likely that a celebrity endorsers effectiveness will deteriorate (Agrawal and Kamakura 1995).   Celebrity Trustworthiness: Trustworthiness refers to the amount of confidence that the consumers put on the celebrity for the message delivered by them which is believed to be most convincing (Ohanian 1990). According to Griffin (1967) Favourable disposition, acceptance, psychological safety and perceived supportive climate are favourable consequences of trust (cited in Chao et.al.2005). It is always found that a message coming from someone whom you trust, you tend to believe in the message more and bring about an effectual attitudinal change; on the other hand non trusted spokesperson influence tends to be lower. (Mc Ginnes and Ward 1980). The trustworthiness factor is an important element that constitutes the effectiveness of a celebrity endorsement. Celebrity Expertise: According to Erdogen (1999) celebrity expertise is the extent to which the spokesperson is observed to be an informant of valid assertations (Erdogen, 1999).   Ohanian 1990, states that investigating source creditability in settings involving persuasive communication generally indicates that a receivers perception of the sources expertises positively influences source effectiveness furthermore, a respondents actions in response to the sources perceived level of expertise and the target persons level of agreement with those recommendations and lastly subjects exposed to a source perceived as highy expert exhibit more agreement with the sources recommendations than did those exposed to a source with low expertise ( Ohanian 1990). Celebrity Attractiveness: It is multi-dimensional in nature, along with just the physical attractiveness it consists of other factors such as personality and ability (Erdogen 1999). This factor constitutes an important part in the effectiveness of an endorserment. The physically more attractive celebrities are normally seen as more approving on different personality attributes then non attractive corresponding person (Kalhe and Homer 1985, Eagly et. al. 1991). Joseph (1982) found out from his study that attractive spokesperson has more optimistic influence on the product then the non attractive ones. Baker and Churchill in 1977 concluded that even though attractive spokesperson had resulted in advertisement effectiveness but attractiveness did not have an impact on the purchase intentions of the consumer (Baker and Churchill, 1977). Negative effects/ Potential risks:   Even though celebrity endorsement is said to bring in many advantages and profits not only to the firm but also to the celebrities, there are many risks and negative effects associated with celebrity endorsement. The persona of the celebrity itself endures the customers to purchase the product, what if the celebrity gets caught in any controversy, criminal activities or is undergoing a personal problem The requirements or the must for a successful execution of celebrity endorsements starts with knowing where the brand is positioned currently which also includes where it wants to be in the future and how is it going to get there, then followed by developing a creative idea. After considering that celebrity endorsement is best and effective method for marketing communication, next critical thing to be thought about is selecting the appropriate celebrity. Furthermore the fame of the celebrity hastens up the message and in gain substantial return on investment is expected. (Pringle H, Binet L, 2005). CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENT PROCESS: MEANING MOVEMENT AND THE ENDORSEMENT PROCESS   McCrackens meaning transfer process, has been divided in to three different stages, In stage ONE, he states that celebrities as compared to models and actors plays an extremely important role as they deliver a   variety of influential personality and lifestyle meaning which are extracted from the character they play in the movies, sports, military and other careers , Lastly the endorser comes in associate with the objects , persons and contexts, then the meaning is brought into the advertisement by the celebrity. In stage TWO, after the celebrity is finalised, the source of promotion should be identified and the product to be promoted should be furnished with meanings, in addition to this all the seize only those meanings related to the product which are to be acquired from the celebrity i.e. through campaigns, representative properties related to the product are conveyed by means of celebrity. Lastly the link between the celebrity and product is highlighted.   In the THRID stage, the representations of the celebrity are transferred to the product and also the meanings from objects, people and events surrounding them. With the use of products, celebrities create a self image before the audience that make these meanings accessible to the consumers, then the consumers understand the meaning and purchase accordingly (Mc Cracken Grant, 1989) 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 INTRODUCTION The literature review chapter discusses the literature in celebrity endorsement and its impact on the brand as well as the consumers. The next chapter of research methodology, is where a suitable method of research would be selected before carrying out the research. In this chapter description regarding the accomplishment of the research will be stated, furthermore the method selected, the approach, sample, and data collection will be depicted. 3.2 RESEARCH APPROACH: This research is both a quantitative and qualitative research, according to Bryman and bell quantitative research is a distinctive research strategy and in broad terms it can be said that it is collection of numerical data and as exhibiting a view of relationship between theory and research as deductive and as having a objectivist conception of social reality.( Bryman and bell,2007).. In the research along with primary data, secondary data will also be given importance where all the journals, text books, press articles and the internet where all the topic related websites including the companys website will be considered.   Primary research will be conducted using questionnaires and also interview. Qualitative research tends to be more concerned with words rather than numbers and a feature of qualitative research is inductive view where there is a relationship between theory and research and the theory is extracted out of the latter (Bryman and Bell,2007) an inductive view approach will help in completion of the literature review. From the literature review a number of research questions were formed. To start the research, the secondary data on celebrity endorsement and also its influence of this concept on brand and consumer behaviour was reassessed. The collection of secondary data involved journals, magazines, text books, press articles and the internet. In accordance to secondary data this research was found creditable for further investigation. Inductive approach has been chosen along with primary research and secondary data will help in completion of this research. Primary data will be collected with the help of questionnaire to obtain accurate results and contemporary data. 3.4 DATA COLLECTION SECONDARY DATA Secondary research helps in collection of data and understanding what has already been undertaken under this field. Examining the present and the past researches or studies will help in appropriate understanding of the concept under research. Collection of secondary data is comprised mainly from journals, press articles from news paper and magazine articles, books and reliable websites. Secondary data offers pertinent theories, models and concept based through which further research can be undertaken. PRIMARY DATA There are many ways through which primary data can be collected, for instance interview method, questionnaire etc. In this study questionnaire method is chosen. The questionnaire consists of both open-ended as well as close end questions References: Nathan Klaus, and Ainsworth Anthony Bailey, Celebrity endorsement :an examination of gender and consumer attitudes, American Journal of Business, 2008 vol.23 no.2 Agrawal J, Kamakura WA, July1995. The economic worth of celebrity endorsers: an event study analysis, journal of marketing Vol.59, pp.56-62 Rajakaski JJ, Simonsson R.2006, The subject of celebrity endorsement :what it was and what it has become.ISSN:1402-1773-ISRN:LTU-CUPP-06/137-SE. Clinton Amos, Gary Holmes, David Strutton, Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effect and advertising effectiveness, International Journal fo advaertising , 27(2), 209-234, world advertising research center. Naveen Blazey and Shashi Kanth Ganti, Goa institute of management Goa, Impact of celebrity endorsement on overall brand) Mc Cracken Grant, who is celebrity endorser? Cultural foundation of endorsement process, journal of consumer research, December 1989, vol. 16. Pringle H, Binet L, How marketers can use celebrities to sell more effectively, journal of consumer behaviour, 2005, vol.4,3, 201-214, Published by John Wiley and Sons, ltd. Wang .W.S., How culture influences the brand association in the United Kingdom and Taiwan: a case study of LOreal Paris. Segrave, Kerry. 2005. Endorsement in advertising. A social history. Mc Farland and company, Inc., USA. Busler, Micheal. 2002. Product differentiation, celebrity endorsement and the consumers perception of quality. Dissertation Drexel university. Arango, Tim. 2007. Lebron, Inc- the building of a billion- dollar athlete. Fortune Atkin, Charles , Martin Block. 1983. Effectiveness of celebrity endorsers. Journal of Advertising Research 23(1) 57-61. Frieden, Jon B. 1984. Advertising spokesperson effects: An examination of endorser type and gender on two audiences. Journal of advertising research 24(October/November) 33-41. Zamudio Cesar. 2008. Matching with the stars: the case of celebrity endorsements. The university of Texas at Dallas. Martin, Brett A.S., Daniel Wentzel, Torsten Tomczak. 2008. Effects of suspectibilty to normative influence and the type of testimonial on the attitudes towards print advertising. Journal of Advertising research 37(1) 27-43. Mathur, Lynette Knowles, Ilk Mathur, Nanda Rangan. 1997. The wealth effects associated with a celebrity endorser: The Micheal Jordan Phenomenon. Journal of advertising research 37 67-73 Kahle, Lynn R., Pamela M. Homer. 1985. Physical attractiveness of the celebrity endorser; A social Adaptation perspective. Journal of consumer research 11(4) 954-961 Amos Clinton, Holmes Gary and Strutton David. 2008. Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effects and advertising effectiveness, International journal of Advertising, 27(2).209-234. Friedman, Harshey, Linda Friedman. 1979. Endorser effectiveness by product type. Journal of advertising research 19(October/ November) 63-71. Rao, Akshay R., Lu QU, Robert W. Ruekert. 1999. Singaling unobservable quality through a brand ally.   Journal of Marketing research 36(2) 258-268. Erdogan, B.Z. 1999.Celebrityendorsement: a literature review. Journal of marketing management, 15(3), pp.291-314. Ohanian , R. 1990. Construction and validation of a scale to measure celebrity endorsers perceived expertise, trustworthiness and attractiveness. Journal of advertising, 19(3), pp. 29-52. Giffin, K. 1967. The contribution of studies of source credibility to a theory of interpersonal trust in the communication process. Psychological bulletin, 68(2). pp. 104- 119. Chao, P., Wuhrer, G. and Werani, T(2005) Celebrity and foreign brand name as moderators of the country-of-origin effects, International journal of advertising, 24(2)pp. 173-192. McGinnes, E and Ward, C.1980. Better liked than right: trustworthiness and expertise as a factors in credibility. Personality and Social Psychology bulleti

Gun-Control in Charlton Heston’s Is Freedom Lost on the Next Generation and Paul Craig Robert’s Unarmed and Unsafe :: Amendment Rights Essays Guns

Gun-Control in Charlton Heston’s Is Freedom Lost on the Next Generation and Paul Craig Robert’s Unarmed and Unsafe There are three ways to approach gun-control: first, it is the citizens’ constitutional right to own firearms; second, firearms kill - get rid of them; and third, to have no opinion and not deal with the issue. Whichever view people have on gun-control, they must first understand the facts and statistics of these issues. Charlton Heston’s â€Å"Is Freedom Lost on the Next Generation?† and Paul Craig Robert’s â€Å"Unarmed and Unsafe† both study the opposing side of gun-control with facts and logic. In Heston’s â€Å"Is Freedom Lost on the Next Generation,† he writes about how â€Å"we may be losing the next generation of Americans, as they lose an understanding and appreciation of what the Second Amendment is and does† (Heston 1). Heston uses the statistics from a June, 2000 national survey of 1,500 high school students to show that the young adults of America do not have faith in the Constitution or Bill of Rights. He reports that â€Å"64 percent of high school students favor stricter anti-gun laws, 90 percent favor the licensing of handgun buyers, 96 percent said all handguns should be registered at purchase, and 19 percent of high school students do not believe that the Second Amendment guarantees the right to own a firearm†(Heston 1). Heston asks how safe any of America’s freedoms are if twenty percent of high school students believe that the Bill of Rights does not mean what it says? High schools use to have rifle teams along with s occer and football teams, and now even toy guns have the possibility of being banned. He mentions that being able to own a gun does not mean a thing if so many requirements, fees and restrictions practically leave Americans disarmed. Heston claims that being allowed to own, or even use, a firearm is a maturing experience for young people. He also mentions that the trust that goes hand in hand with the gun does more than show the acknowledgement of self-discipline and responsibility, it reinforces those virtues better than almost anything else can. Heston argues that it is the American’s responsibility to maintain the rights of gun ownership and provide the next generation with the same freedoms(Heston 1-2) . In â€Å"Unarmed and Unsafe,† Roberts confirms the saying â€Å"when guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns†(Roberts 2) He begins his article with the effects of recent gun-control in Britain.

Foreign vs. American Women in Marriage :: essays research papers

Foreign Vs. American Women Since the beginning, relationships between man and woman have been very hard to understand and conglomerate into one persona. There is always the level of interest between the male and female that must to exist to allow the relationships infancy. According to the Bible, the woman was a gift from God, designed to aid the man in his work for God. Wars started leaving peace or hatred between countries over the many years of our existence. The amount of time countries refused foreign relations created differences in looks, actions, ideals, and beliefs of its culture. Not much thoughts given to the female race and impacts they received from the lack of diversity. The question of today, due to increasing divorce rates, is should she be a Foreigner or American. According to nomarriage.com, 'A huge percentage of American women are selfish, flighty, insecure, needy, and psychotic.' Often Foreign women, portray many of the qualities American women out-grew in the ever-increasing crunch for liberation of freedoms. Another difference would be in outward attitude portrayal. Quoted from nomarraige.com, 'Women in America seem to have cold, superficial, or stuck-up attitudes.' Foreign women hold themselves in the center of their relationships by not passing any judgments. American women of today are trying to achieve the top of the professional ladder, leaving less time for family. Enticing them to do what man seemingly suppressed her from doing all these years, while the foreign women are perfectly happy with their femininity and try to progress with their husbands forward. The divorce rates are extremely higher in American-to-American marriages. The Foreign-to-American divorce rate is currently 20% as stated by United States Citizenshi p and Immigration Services (USCIS). American-to-American divorce rate is within the 45%-55% range based on a study by divorcestatistics.org. Foreign women tend to have different physical features. The rare physical features are intriguing and above the regular, that we see each day. This often causes animosity from the western women who are comfortable in our land of opportunity. Foreign women tend to speak a minimum of two different languages, allowing ease in communication proficiency and understanding different cultures. All the females of the world, however, possess the heart that loves a man. Whether an American or foreigner, at one point the female will truly love the man she courted.

Com reflection paper

I have had few classes in the past that gave me an overview of how to research and find creditable sources. In this class I learned not only how to research but also how to use my research in my academic paper. It was interesting to find more sources to use within the University of Phoenix Library. This course showed me a closer look at how I can use different sources to find creditable articles.This course gave me efferent way to keep track of what I want to use in my paper. One of which is the annotated bibliography. Annotated Bibliography help me understand exactly how I wanted to do my essay and which part of my resource I wanted to use in my essay. This course helped us develop our skills more further from what we had learned in our previous classed. Although I knew how to cite and reference my sources, I was still making mistake in my paper.This course and its instructor, Julia Unmans, wowed the proper way to cite and reference different courses. It helped me write reference w ithout using any converters, which helped me develop my skills. When it comes to writing a paper, I always want other to read my paper to make sure if I did the paper write. In this class, I got to talk to my classmates about my topic and share their ideas to narrow down the topic. It also helped me develop research questions. A peer review helped me realize my mistakes and develop more ideas.Those ideas not only helped write my paper In a different way, but it also showed me what else I need in my paper to make it a better essay. One of the things I really like about this class Is the feedback from the Instructor. Most Instructors will only show the mistakes in an assignment, but Julia showed me exactly what I did wrong and how I could fix It. Julia showed us the techniques that I wanted to learn before I move on to my next class. These skill and techniques are the one I took Into a count to use for my next classes.

How Happy could Gay Men be in a Homophobic Society such as Ours Essay

Homosexuality is no longer an undisclosed idea amongst us, and their existence in our society is no longer a question to be raised. As we know, they enter the same shops we visit every now and then; they ride the same buses and subways we catch; they walk the same streets we tread everyday; they breathe the same air we do, all for one apparent reason: they are no less human than any of us in this society could possibly be. Despite the common knowledge we all have about the existence of these people who suddenly came out from the box, it still raises different reactions from the crowd of the so called â€Å"normal people†Ã¢â‚¬â€as the society itself may refer to it. While others have learned to accept the given fact that there is a possibility of alteration to the socially set standard of normality, such as this one on the area of gender, there are still some who just couldn’t practice the act of coexistence with these so called â€Å"new breeds. There are still people who religiously believe that the defiance of the â€Å"norm† such as crossing from one gender to another is absolutely unacceptable. Given this reality, a lot of attempts have been made to somehow sway these people out of their enclosed bubbles. Even media, one of the most influential elements in our society, took a step further by recognizing the existence of gays and lesbians in their projects themed after differe nt slices of life—like the top notching series Will & Grace, and the award-winning movie Philadelphia. With people’s warm embrace with the idea in moving pictures, it seemed no far from the possibility that they could, one way or another, welcome the idea in reality with open arms; the only question remaining is: how wide open could these people extend their arms based on what their televisions feed them? According to Marisa Conolly on her article entitled Homosexuality on Television: The Heterosexualization of Will & Grace in Print Media, despite the television show Will & Grace’s attempt to promote the â€Å"normality† of the existence of gay men in the society, the show wasn’t able to fully liberate the misunderstood bunch. Intentionally or not, certain limitations have been set by the said show, leaving unnecessary provisions among viewers which they could refer to in terms of classifying homosexuality unacceptable and acceptable for the public’s eyes. Generally, Will, one of the main characters of the said show who happens to play a part of a supposed homosexual, was somehow portrayed in a heterosexual manner; his mere association with Grace, a straight female character, shades the scene to a different color. Their supposed friendship was brought into a different heterosexual border of relationship, wherein platonic is brought into a twisted romantic angle—somehow portraying him caught in between the certainty of homosexuality and the tendency to lean on heterosexuality. Unfortunately, their possible interest to sell is totally negating the promotion of the other, thus making it more complicated for the viewers whether to absorb him as a subtle gay who simply seeks recognition, or as a male, in the middle of an identity crisis, still clinging on the idealism of heterosexuality through tricky dramatization of his relationship with a straight woman. The same idea was raised in the film Philadelphia by Jonathan Demme. On the said movie, instead weighing through the inconsistency of the perceived representation of character, the viewers are simply being caught in the middle of a life and death situation. Instead of making their viewers understand the real score within the extent of reality that the film itself is providing, they are subconsciously redefining pity as a substitute for this understanding. They have misused the forthcoming of death to the gay persona’s advantage by playing on it as if saying: â€Å"Hey, I am dying now of AIDS, and I am gay. Now that I will be leaving this mortal place soon, will you please have the compassion of accepting me for who I really am? † Personally, I don’t think that this is the proper way of educating the people because it is basically misleading. Though the two groups are closely knitted by its constant reception of seclusion from the society, it is unfair to define being gay no different from having AIDS. Being gay is not a deadly viral disease like AIDS; it is simply a way of life that is, more often than not, being misunderstood. Upon watching the film, I was left caught at the vagueness of Denzel Washington’s character. I thought at first that he will be the one responsible to set free Tom Hanks’ character, but by the end of the film, my hopes were dropped on the floor. His supposed homophobia, which I first thought will be the vital element he has as one of the lead character, somehow got lost in the latter part of the story. The issue tackled dealt mainly on Hanks’ viral illness and how most people generally react to it—giving the homosexuality issue, which is more widespread in reality, a weak standpoint. The common ground between the two different portrayals of gay men stated above is its tendency to seek for conditions before actually opening the idea of acceptance. For television sitcom Will & Grace, they sought for a subtle way to conform with the â€Å"norms† by partially heterosexualizing the gay character, while for the movie Philadelphia, they played with emotions, most specifically guilt, by bringing into their attention that death is an uneventful future for the character. Basically, in their own particular ways, they are always looking for certain loop holes to pull off gayness acceptable—meaning gayness itself defines no reason to stand on its own. In this case, their uncritical viewers tend to get accustomed in looking for such passages before they actually accept certain circumstances, which unfortunately not every gay man has. In the end, publication of ideas and slices of life such as these only implies that as time passed by the society is still keeping its doors closed to the recognition of homosexuality’s existence. Again it only shows the greatest weakness that any society has: a fear of the â€Å"unordinary. † They are not exactly liberation but rather a form of deception in order to switch the attention of the critical public regarding their claim for ample recognition to homosexuals. None of these moving images placed a dot at the end of the statement â€Å"we accept homosexuality†; instead, they only made the issue more complex than ever by adding up the condition â€Å"if and only if† to the said declaration. If the shows themselves couldn’t accept the fact that gay men exist, how could their viewers do? I could give credit for the attempt pull out gays and lesbians from their malicious-satirical stereotype of simply being unpleasant, loud and mischievous, but still, that doesn’t make it enough for me. Compassion may be the best way to seek approval, but seeking proofs out of the ordinary and passing it off as the best solution is nothing but a substandard achievement. Homosexuality isn’t actually an issue seeking for a special treatment; that will be way too much for a goal now that it couldn’t even reach the approval of being lined up on the average level. All gays and lesbians need is the chance to be treated in a normal way—no more and no less than how people accept heterosexuals—where in they are not shoved away as if they are infectious beasts. Since media started this crooked representation of homosexuality on screen in the first place, I believe that they will be the only one who could correct this. Next time they produce best selling stories about homosexuals on their reels, they should try taking away those â€Å"special cases† that tend to sensationalize their stories—like exploring Will’s manly side as a gay man and Hanks’ incurable illness. If they want to represent gay men as part of the normal sector in our society, then they could probably represent them as simple as being another friendly neighbor from the block without a semi-romantic relationship with a straight female, but rather a nonchalant relationship with another man, or a successful lawyer who need not die at the end of the story just to gain recognition for his success as a lawyer; instead, he could just be another lawyer who saved the day—roles as simple as that, just like most heterosexuals portray. In that way, it will seem to be more realistic and fair for these people who usually live under the shadow of our judgmental society.

How People Make Economic Decisions Paper Essay

How People Make Economic Decisions Paper University of Phoenix Eco 212 May 29, 2011 Economics plays a role in every person’s day-to-day life. One aspect that it plays apart in is decision making. For every decision that is made economics is applied. There are principles that relate to decision making. First is that for every decision made there are tradeoffs, to get one thing something else is given up. The next principle is for every decision made there is a cost. The cost is what was given up. The third principle is people think rationally and rational people think on the margin, meaning that the decision is not made unless the marginal benefit exceeds the marginal cost. The final principle is that people respond to incentives. Behavior changes when cost or benefits change. These principles explain how the economy functions as a whole. Since resources are scarce people have to make decisions based on benefiting themselves on how to spend their time and money. To make rational decisions people must interact with the environment and other decision makers. These interactions lead to the best allocation of resources. When people interact with one another they make trade for resources when the benefit is mutual. For example buying a soda the buyer is thirsty and enjoys soda so he or she will benefit from the soda, and the vender will benefit from the money for the soda so the trade has been made. These interactions are affected by the economy system present. In a centrally planned economy central authorities make decisions for what would be the best use of their goods and resources. The state can set prices of goods and determine how much to produce. Therefore, decisions are not voluntary. Decisions are voluntary in a market economy where the pricing of goods and services are guided solely by the interactions of a country’s citizens and businesses. In a mixed economy system where there is a variety of public and private control decisions are voluntary as well. No matter what economic system is present for a decision to be made the marginal benefit must out way the cost. To fully understand how the decision making process works the writer of this paper will provide an example. The decision is rather she should take the assistant manager position offered to her or not. Her first choice was to decline the offer but she began to think about the marginal benefits. The benefits would be a raise in pay, a step up in the career ladder and new learning experiences . The advancement would be a step towards her goal of becoming a human resources manager for Applebee’s. Also she would gain closer relations with corporate managers. Next she had to weigh the benefits against the cost. The marginal cost in accepting the position would be more responsibility, and it would be mandatory to work longer hours. For her the marginal benefit was greater than the marginal cost so she decided to take the position. If the circumstances were different her marginal benefits and marginal cost would have changed leading to a different choice. For example, season at her restaurant is out so money on tips has decreased. If the restaurant was still in season and tips had not decreased then there would not have been a pay raise so that benefit would have been eliminated. Another factor was she wanted one managerial shift a week if her boss had not agreed to that then she would not have taken the offer, either. Many people are not aware that when they make a decision rather it be to take the day off work or buy a house they are applying economics. Even the simple transaction of buying a soda is a part of economics. It can be concluded from this example and the facts provided that economics is implemented in day-to-day life. Reference Hubbard, R. , & O’Brien, A. (2010). Economics. The University if Phoenix eBook Collection database.

Project on Comparison of Public and Private Sector Banking

Genesis The banking sector has been undergoing a complex, but comprehensive phase of  restructuring since 1991, with a view to make it sound, efficient, and at the same time it isforging its links firmly with the real sector for promotion of savings, investment and  growth. Although a complete turnaround in banking sector performance is not expected till thecompletion of reforms, signs of improvement are visible in some indicators under theCAMELS framework. Under this bank is required to enhance capital adequacy, strengthenasset quality, improve management, increase earnings and reduce sensitivity to variousfinancial risks.The almost simultaneous nature of these developments makes it difficult todisentangle the positive impact of reform measures. In 1994, the RBI established the Board of Financial Supervision, which operates as a unit of  the RBI. The entire supervisory mechanism was realigned to suit the changing needs of astrong and stable financial system. The supervisory ju risdiction of the BFS was slowlyextended to the entire financial system barring the capital market institutions and theinsurance sector. Its mandate is to strengthen supervision of the financial system byintegrating oversight of the activities of financial services firms.The BFS has alsoestablished a sub-committee to routinely examine auditing practices, quality, and coverage. In 1995, RBI had set up a working group under the chairmanship of Shri S. Padmanabhan toreview the banking supervision system. The Committee gave certain recommendations and  based on such suggestions a rating system for domestic and foreign banks based on theinternational CAMELS model combining financial management and sensitivity to marketrisks element was introduced for the inspection cycle commencing from July 1998.Itrecommended that the banks should be rated on a five point scale (A to E) based on the linesof international CAMELS rating model. CAMELS rating model measures the relativesoundness of a bank . bj ectives of the Pro j ect Study ?To study the Financial Performance of the b anks.? y To study the strength of using CAMELS framework as a tool of Performanceevaluation for Commercial banks y To describe the CAMELS model of ranking banking institutions, so as to analyze  the  performance of various bank. R ationaleIn the recent years the financial system especially the banks have undergone numerouschanges in the form of reforms, regulations & norms. The attempt here is to see how variousratios have been used and interpreted to reveal a bank ¶s performance and how this particular  model encompasses a wide range of parameters making it a widely used and accepted modelin today ¶s scenario. Data Collection y Primary Data : Primary data was collected  from the Banks ¶ balance sheets and profitand loss statements. y Secondary Data : Secondary data on the subject was collected from ICFAI journals,Banks ¶ annual reports and RBIM ethodologyAs long as the methodology is co ncerned, we have made use of a framework calledCAMELS FRAMEWORK. There are so many models of evaluating the performance of the  banks, but I have chosen the CAMELS Model for this purpose. I have gone through several  books, journals and websites and found it the best model because it measures the  performance of the banks from each parameter i. e. Capital, Assets, Management, Earnings,Liquidity and Sensitivity to  Market risks. CAMELS evaluate banks on  the following six parameters : -? Capital Adequacy (CRAR)? Asset Quality (GNPA)? Management Soundness (MGNT)?Earnings & profitability (ROA)? Liquidity (LQD)? Sensitivity to Market  Risks (? ) websitDuring an on-site bank exam, supervisors gather private information, such as details on  problem loans, with which to evaluate a bank's financial condition and to monitor itscompliance with laws and regulatory policies. A key product of such an exam is asupervisory rating of the bank's overall condition, commonly referred to as a CAMELSrating. The acronym â€Å"CAMEL† refers to the five components of a bank's condition that areassessed : Capital adequacy, Asset quality, Management, Earnings, and Liquidity.A sixthcomponent, a bank's Sensitivity to market risk was added in 1997; hence the acronym waschanged to CAMELSAMELS is basically a ratio-based model for evaluating the performance of banks. Variousratios forming this model are explained below : Capital base of financial institutions facilitates depositors in forming their risk perceptionabout the institutions. Also, it is the key parameter for financial managers to maintainadequate levels of capitalization. The most widely used indicator of capital adequacy iscapital to risk-weighted assets ratio (CRWA).According to Bank Supervision RegulationCommittee (The Basle Committee) of Bank for International Settlements, a minimum 9  percent CRWA is required. Thus, it is useful to track capital-adequacy ratios that take intoaccount the most important financial risks? foreign exchange, credit, and interest raterisks? by assigning risk weightings to the institution ¶s assets. A sound capital basestrengthens confidence of depositors. This ratio is used to protect depositors and promote thestability and efficiency of financial systems around the world. Capital R isk Adequacy R atio:CRAR is a ratio of Capital Fund to Risk Weighted Assets. Reserve Bank of India prescribesBanks to maintain a minimum Capital to risk-weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) of 9 % withregard to credit risk, market risk and operational risk on an ongoing basis, as against 8 %  prescribed in Basel documents. Component-wise Capital Adequacy of ScheduledCommercial Banks (As at end- M arch) Capital to R isk W eighted Assets R atio- Bank Group-wise Total capital includes tier-I capital and Tier-II capital. Tier-I capital includes paid up equitycapital, free reserves, intangible assets etc.Tier-II capital includes long term unsecuredloans, loss reserves, hybrid debt ca pital instruments etc. The higher the CRAR, the stronger  is considered a bank, as  it ensures high safety against bankruptcy. Asset quality determines the robustness of financial institutions against loss of value in theassets. The deteriorating value of assets, being prime source of banking problems, directly  pour into other areas, as losses are eventually written off against capital, which ultimately  jeopardizes the earning capacity of the institution. With this backdrop, the asset quality isgauged n relation to the level and severity of non-performing assets, adequacy of  Ã‚  provisions, recoveries, distribution of assets etc. Popular indicators include non-performingloans to advances, loan default to total advances, and recoveries to loan default ratios. One of the indicators for asset quality is the ratio of non-performing loans to total loans(GNPA). The gross non-performing loans to gross advances ratio is more indicative of thequality of credit decisions made by bankers. Higher GNPA is indicative of poor creditdecision-making. N PA: N on-Performing Assets:Advances are classified into performing and non-performing advances (NPAs) as per RBIguidelines. NPAs are further classified into sub-standard, doubtful and loss assets based onthe criteria stipulated by RBI. An asset, including a leased asset, becomes non-performingwhen it ceases to  generate income for the Bank. An NPA is a loan or an advance where : 1. Interest and/or installment of principal remains overdue for a period of more than 90days in respect of a term loan;2. The account remains â€Å"out-of-order† in respect of an Overdraft or Cash Credit(OD/CC);3.The bill remains overdue for  a period of more than  90 days in case of bills purchasedand discounted;4. A loan granted for short duration crops will be treated as an NPA if the installmentsof principal or interest thereon remain overdue  for two crop seasons; and5. A loan granted for long duration crops will be treat ed as an NPA if the installmentsof principal or interest thereon remain overdue  for one crop season. The Bank classifies an account as an NPA only if the interest imposed during any quarter isnot fully repaid within 90 days from the end of the relevant quarter. This is a key to thestability of the banking sector.There should be no hesitation in stating that Indian bankshave done a remarkable job in containment of non-performing loans (NPL) considering theoverhang issues and overall difficult environment. For 2008, the net NPL ratio for the Indianscheduled commercial banks at 2. 9 per cent is ample testimony to the impressive efforts  being made by our banking system. In fact, recovery management is also linked to the  banks ¶ interest margins. The cost and recovery management supported by enabling legalframework hold the key to future health and competitiveness of the Indian banks.No doubt,improving recovery-management in India is an area requiring expeditious and effective actions in legal, institutional and judicial processes. Management of financial institution is generally evaluated in terms of capital adequacy,asset quality, earnings and profitability, liquidity and risk sensitivity ratings. In addition,  performance evaluation includes compliance with set norms, ability to plan and react tochanging circumstances, technical competence, leadership and administrative ability. Ineffect, management rating is just an amalgam of performance in the above-mentioned areas.Sound management is one of the most important factors behind financial institutions ¶Ã‚  performance. Indicators of quality of management, however, are primarily applicable toindividual institutions, and cannot be easily aggregated across the sector. Furthermore, giventhe qualitative nature of management, it is difficult to judge its soundness just by looking atfinancial accounts of the banks. Nevertheless, total expenditure to total income and operating expense to total expense helps in gauging the management quality of the banking institutions.Sound management is key to  bank performance but is difficult to measure. It is primarily a qualitative factor applicable toindividual institutions. Several indicators, however, can jointly serve? as, for instance,efficiency measures do-as an indicator of management  soundness. The ratio of non-interest expenditures to total assets (MGNT) can be one of the measures toassess the working of the management. . This variable, which includes a variety of expenses,such as payroll, workers compensation and training investment, reflects the management  policy stance. E fficiencyR atios demonstrate how efficiently the company uses its assets and howefficiently the company manages its operations. Indicates the relationship between assets and revenue. ? Companies with low profit margins tend to have high asset turnover, those with high  profit margins have low asset turnover – it indicates pricing strategy. ? This rati o is more useful for growth companies to check if in fact they are growingrevenue in proportion to sales. Asset Turnover Analysis: This ratio is useful to determine the amount of sales that are generated from each rupee of  assets.As noted above, companies with low profit margins tend to have high asset turnover,those with high profit margins have low asset turnover. Earnings and profitability, the prime source of increase in capital base, is examined withregards to interest rate policies and adequacy of provisioning. In addition, it also helps tosupport present and future operations of the institutions. The single best indicator used togauge earning is the Return on Assets (ROA), which is net income after taxes to total assetratio. Strong earnings and profitability profile of banks reflects the ability to support present andfuture operations.More specifically, this determines the capacity to  absorb losses, finance itsexpansion, pay dividends to its shareholders, and build up a n adequate level of capital. Being front line of defense against erosion of capital base from losses, the need for highearnings and profitability can hardly be overemphasized. Although different indicators areused to serve the purpose, the best and most widely used indicator is Return on Assets(ROA). However, for in-depth analysis, another indicator Net Interest Margins (NIM) is alsoused. Chronically unprofitable financial institutions risk insolvency.Compared with mostother indicators, trends in profitability can be more difficult to interpret-for instance,unusually high profitability can reflect excessive risk taking. R O A- R eturn on Assets: An indicator of how  profitable a company is relative to its total assets. ROA gives an  idea asto how efficient management is at using its assets to generate earnings. Calculated bydividing a company's annual earnings by its total assets, ROA is displayed as a percentage. Sometimes this is referred to as â€Å"return on investment†. ROA tells what earnings were generated from invested capital (assets).ROA for publiccompanies can vary substantially and will be highly dependent on the industry. This is why when using ROA as a comparative measure, it is best to compare it against a company's  previous ROA numbers or the  ROA of a similar company. The assets of the company are comprised of both debt and equity. Both of these types of  financing are used to fund the operations of the company. The ROA figure gives investorsan idea of how effectively the company is converting the money it has to invest into netincome. The higher the ROA number, the better, because the company is earning moremoney on less investment.For example, if one company has a net income of $1 million andtotal assets of $5 million, its ROA is 20%; however, if another company earns the sameamount but has total assets of $10 million, it has an ROA of 10%. Based on this example,the first company is better at converting its investment into profit. When you really think  about it, management's most important job is to make wise choices in allocating itsresources. Anybody can make a profit by throwing a ton of money at a problem, but veryfew managers excel at  making large profits with little investment. R eturn on Assets and R eturn on E quity of SCBs- Bank Group-wiseAn adequate liquidity position refers to a situation, where institution can obtain sufficientfunds, either by increasing liabilities or by converting its assets quickly at a reasonable cost. It is, therefore, generally assessed in terms of overall assets and liability management, asmismatching gives rise to liquidity risk. Efficient fund management refers to a situationwhere a spread between rate sensitive assets (RSA) and rate sensitive liabilities (RSL) ismaintained. The most commonly used tool to evaluate interest rate exposure is the Gap  between RSA and RSL,  while liquidity is gauged by liquid to total asset ratio.Initially solvent financial institutions may be driven toward closure by poor management of  short-term liquidity. Indicators should cover funding sources and capture large maturitymismatches. The term liquidity is used in various ways, all relating to availability of, accessto, or convertibility into cash. ? An institution is said to have liquidity if it can easily meet its needs for cash either  Ã‚  because it has cash on  hand or can otherwise raise or borrow cash. ? A market is said to be liquid if the instruments it trades can easily be bought or soldin quantity with little impact on market prices. ?An asset is said to be liquid if the  market for that asset is liquid. The common theme in all three contexts is cash. A corporation is liquid if it has ready accessto cash. A market is liquid if participants can easily convert positions into cash? or  conversely. An asset is liquid if it can easily be converted to cash. The liquidity of aninstitution depends on : y the institution's short-term need for cash; y cash on hand; y available lines of credit; y the liquidity of the  institution's assets; y The institution's reputation in the marketplace? how willing will counterparty is totransact trades with or lend to the  institution?The liquidity of a market is often measured as the size of its bid-ask spread, but this is animperfect metric at best. More generally, Kyle (1985) identifies three components of marketliquidity : ? Tightness is the bid-ask spread; ? Depth is the volume of transactions necessary to  move prices; ? Resiliency is the speed with which prices return to equilibrium following a largetrade. Examples of assets that tend to be liquid include foreign exchange; stocks traded in theStock Exchange or recently issued Treasury bonds. Assets that are often illiquid includelimited partnerships, thinly traded bonds or real estate.Cash maintained by the banks and balances with central bank, to total asset ratio (LQD) isan indicator of bank's liquidity. In general, banks with a larger volume of liquid assets are  perceived safe, since these assets would allow  banks to meet unexpected  withdrawals. Credit deposit ratio is a tool used to study the liquidity position of the bank. It is calculated  by dividing the cash held in different forms by total deposit. A high ratio shows that there ismore amounts of liquid cash with the bank to met its clients cash withdrawals. It refers to the risk that changes  in market conditions could adversely impact earnings and/or  capital.Market Risk encompasses exposures associated with changes in interest rates, foreignexchange rates, commodity prices, equity prices, etc. While all of these items are important,the primary risk in most banks is interest rate risk (IRR), which will be the focus of thismodule. The diversified nature of bank operations makes them vulnerable to various kindsof financial risks. Sensitivity analysis reflects institution ¶s exposure to interest rate risk,foreign exchange volatility and equity price risks (these risks are summed in market risk). Risk sensitivity is mostly evaluated in terms of management ¶s ability to monitor and controlmarket risk.Banks are increasingly involved in diversified operations, all of which are subject to marketrisk, particularly in the setting of interest rates and the carrying out of foreign exchangetransactions. In countries that allow banks to make trades in stock markets or commodityexchanges, there is also a  need to monitor indicators of equity and commodity price risk. Sensitivity to Market Risk is a recent addition to the ratings parameters and reflects thedegree to which changes in interest rates, exchange rates, commodity prices and equity  prices can affect earnings and  hence the bank ¶s capital. It  is measured by Beta (? . 1. ? ;1, depicts that changes in the firm are less than the changes in the market. LessSensitive2. ? =1, depicts that there is equivalent change in the firm with the changes i n themarket Equally Sensitive. 3. ? ;1, depicts that changes in the firm are more than the changes in the market. Highly Sensitive. The Bank The word bank means an organization where people and business can invest or borrowmoney; change it to foreign currency etc. According to Halsbury ? A Banker is an individual,Partnership or Corporation whose sole pre-dominant business is banking, that is the receiptof money on current or deposit ccount, and the payment of cheque drawn and the collectionof cheque paid in by a customer.  ¶Ã‚ ¶ The O rigin and Use of Banks The Word  µBank ¶ is derived from the Italian word  µBanko ¶ signifying a bench, which waserected in the market-place, where it was customary to exchange money. The Lombard Jewswere the first to practice this exchange business, the first bench having been established inItaly A. D. 808. Some authorities assert that the Lombard merchants commenced the  business of money-dealing, employing bills of exchange as remittance s, about the beginningof the thirteenth century.About the middle of the twelfth century it became evident, as the advantage of coinedmoney was gradually acknowledged, that there must be some controlling power, somecorporation which would undertake to keep the coins that were to bear the royal stamp up toa certain standard of value; as, independently of the  µsweating ¶ which invention may place tothe credit of the ingenuity of the Lombard merchants- all coins will, by wear or abrasion,  become thinner, and consequently less valuable; and it is of the last importance, not only for  the credit of a country, but for the easier regulation of commercial transactions, that themetallic currency be kept as nearly as possible up to the legal standard. Much unnecessarytrouble and annoyance has been caused formerly by negligence in this respect. The gradualmerging of the business of a goldsmith into a bank appears to have been the way in which  banking, as we now understand the term, was introduced into England; and it was not untillong after the establishment of banks in other countries-for state purposes, the regulation of  the coinage, etc. that any large or similar institution was introduced into England.It is onlywithin the last twenty years that printed cheques have  been in use in that establishment. Firstcommercial bank was Bank of Venice which was established in 1157  in Italy. Banking sector, the world over, is known for the adoption of multidimensional strategiesfrom time to time with varying degrees of success. Banks are very important for the smoothfunctioning of financial markets as they serve as repositories of vital financial informationand can potentially alleviate the problems created by information asymmetries. From acentral bank ¶s perspective, such high-quality disclosures help the early detection of  Ã‚  problems faced by banks in the market and reduce the severity of market disruptions.Consequently, the RBI as part and parcel of the financial sector deregulation, attempted toenhance the transparency of the annual reports of Indian banks by, among other things,introducing stricter income recognition and asset classification rules, enhancing the capitaladequacy norms, and by requiring a number of additional disclosures sought by investors tomake better cash flow and risk assessments. [Source : RBI Website] BAS EL – II ACC O R D Bank capital framework sponsored by the world's central banks designed to promoteuniformity, make regulatory capital more risk sensitive, and promote enhanced risk  management among large, internationally active banking organizations. The InternationalCapital Accord, as it is called, will be fully effective by January 2008 for banks active ininternational markets. Other banks can choose to â€Å"opt in,† or they can continue to follow theminimum capital guidelines in the original Basel Accord, finalized in 1988.The revisedaccord (Basel II) completely overhauls the 1988 Basel Accord and is based on threemutually supporting concepts, or  Ã¢â‚¬Å"pillars,† of capital adequacy. The first of these pillars is anexplicitly defined regulatory capital requirement, a minimum capital-to-asset ratio equal toat least 8% of risk-weighted assets. Second, bank supervisory agencies, such as theComptroller of the Currency, have authority to adjust capital levels for individual banksabove the 9% minimum when necessary. The third supporting pillar calls upon marketdiscipline to supplement reviews by banking agencies. Basel II is the second of the Basel Accords, which are recommendations on banking lawsand regulations issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.The purpose of  Basel II, which was initially published in June 2004, is to create an international standardthat banking regulators can use when creating regulations about how much capital banksneed to put aside to guard against the types of financial and operational risks banks face. Advocat es of Basel II believe that such an international standard can help protect theinternational financial system from the types of problems that might arise should a major  Ã‚  bank or a  series of banks collapse. In practice, Basel II attempts to accomplish this by settingup rigorous risk and capital management requirements designed to ensure that a bank holdscapital reserves appropriate to the risk the bank exposes itself to through its lending andinvestment practices. [Source : RBI Website] The final version aims at: 1.Ensuring that capital allocation is more risk sensitive;2. Separating operational risk from credit risk, and quantifying both;3. Attempting to align economic and regulatory capital more closely to reduce thescope for regulatory arbitrage. While the final accord has largely addressed the regulatory arbitrage issue, there are stillareas where regulatory capital requirements will diverge from the economic. Basel II has largely left unchanged the question of how to ac tually define bank capital,which diverges from accounting equity in important respects. The Basel I definition, asmodified up to the present, remains in place. The Accord in operation Basel II uses a â€Å"three pillars† concept y inimum capital requirements (addressing risk), y supervisory review and y market discipline  ± to promote greater stability in the financial system. The Basel I accord dealt with only parts of each of these pillars. For example : with respectto the first Basel II pillar, only one risk, credit risk, was dealt with in a simple manner whilemarket risk was an afterthought; operational risk was not  dealt with at all. The First Pillar The first pillar deals with maintenance of regulatory capital calculated for three major  components of risk that a bank faces : credit risk, operational risk and market risk. Other  risks are not considered fully quantifiable at this stage.The credit risk component can be calculated in three different ways of varyi ng degree of  sophistication, namely standardized approach, Foundation IRB and Advanced IRB. IRBstands for â€Å"Internal Rating-Based Approach†. For operational risk, there are three different approaches – basic indicator approach,standardized approach and advanced measurement approach. For market risk the preferredapproach is VaR (value at  risk). As the Basel II recommendations are phased in by the banking industry it will move fromstandardized requirements to more refined and specific requirements that have beendeveloped for each risk category by each individual bank. The upside for banks that dodevelop their own bespoke risk measurement systems is that they will be rewarded with  potentially lower risk capital requirements.In future there will be closer links between theconcepts of economic profit and regulatory capital. Credit Risk can be calculated by using one of three approaches : 1. Standardized Approach2. Foundation IRB (Internal Ratings Based) Approac h3. Advanced IRB ApproachThe standardized approach sets out specific risk weights for certain types of credit risk. Thestandard risk weight categories are used under Basel 1 and are 0% for short termgovernment bonds, 20% for exposures to OECD Banks, 50% for residential mortgages and 100% weighting on commercial loans. A new 150% rating comes in for borrowers with poor  credit ratings. The minimum capital requirement (the percentage of risk weighted assets to  be held as capital) has remains at  8%.For those Banks that decide to adopt the standardized ratings approach they will be forced torely on the ratings generated by external agencies. Certain Banks are developing the IRBapproach as a result. The Second Pillar The second pillar deals with the regulatory response to the first pillar, giving regulatorsmuch improved ‘tools' over those available to them under Basel I. It also provides aframework for dealing with all the other risks a bank may face, such as systemic risk,   pension risk, concentration risk, strategic risk, reputation risk, liquidity risk and legal risk,which the accord combines under the title of residual risk. It gives banks a power to reviewtheir risk management  system. The Third Pillar The third pillar greatly increases the disclosures that the bank must make.This is designedto allow the market to have a better picture of the overall risk position of the bank and toallow the counterparties of the bank to price and deal appropriately. The new Basel Accordhas its foundation on three mutually reinforcing pillars that allow banks and bank  supervisors to evaluate properly the various risks that banks face and realign regulatorycapital more closely with underlying risks. The first pillar is compatible with the credit risk,market risk and operational risk. The regulatory capital will be focused on these three risks. The second pillar gives the bank responsibility to exercise the best ways to manage the risk  specific to that ba nk. Concurrently, it also casts responsibility on the supervisors to reviewand validate banks ¶ risk measurement models.The third pillar on market discipline is usedto leverage the influence that other market players can bring. This is aimed at improving thetransparency in banks and  improves reporting. State Bank of India is the largest banking and financial services company in India, by almostevery parameter – revenues, profits, assets, market capitalization, etc. The bank traces itsancestry to British India, through the Imperial Bank of India, to the founding in 1806 of theBank of Calcutta, making it the oldest commercial bank in the Indian Subcontinent. TheGovernment of India nationalized the Imperial Bank of India in 1955, with the ReserveBank of India taking a 60% stake, and renamed it the State Bank of India.In 2008, theGovernment took over the  stake held by the Reserve Bank of India. SBI provides a range of banking products through its vast network of branches in India andoverseas, including products aimed at NRIs. The State Bank Group, with over 16,000  branches, has the largest banking branch network in India. With an asset base of $260 billionand $195 billion in deposits, it is a regional banking behemoth. It has a market share amongIndian commercial banks of about 20% in deposits and advances, and SBI accounts for  almost one-fifth of the nation's loans. The total assets of the Bank increased by 9. 23% fromRs. 9,64,432. 08 crores at the end of March 2009 to Rs. 10,53,413. 3 crores as at end March2010. The Bank ¶s aggregate liabilities (excluding capital and reserves) rose by 8. 93% fromRs. 9,06,484. 38 crores on 31st March 2009 to Rs. 9,87,464. 53 crores on 31st March 2010. K ey performance I ndicators [Source : Annual Report, 2009-10]SBI has tried to reduce over-staffing by computerizing operations and â€Å"golden handshake†schemes that led to a flight of its best and brightest managers. These managers took theretiremen t allowances and then went on to become senior managers in new private sector ICICI Bank (formerly Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India) is a major  Ã‚  banking and financial services organization in India.It is the 4th largest bank in India andthe largest private sector bank in India by market capitalization. The bank also has a network  of 1,700+ branches (as on 31 March 2010) and about 4,721 ATMs in India and presence in19 countries, as well as some 24 million customers (at the end of July 2007). ICICI Bank isalso the largest issuer of credit cards in India. ICICI Bank's shares are listed on the stock  exchanges at Kolkata and Vadodara, Mumbai and the National Stock Exchange of IndiaLimited; its ADRs trade on the New  York Stock Exchange (NYSE). [Source : Annual Report, 2009-10]The Bank is expanding in overseas markets and has the largest international balance sheetamong Indian banks.ICICI Bank now has wholly-owned subsidiaries, branches andrepresentative s offices in 19 countries, including an offshore unit in Mumbai. This includeswholly owned subsidiaries in Canada, Russia and the UK (the subsidiary through which theHi SAVE savings brand is operated), offshore banking units in Bahrain and Singapore, anadvisory branch in Dubai, branches in Belgium, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka, andrepresentative offices in Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Thailand,the United Arab Emirates and USA. Overseas, the Bank is targeting the NRI (Non- ResidentIndian) population in particular. History HDFC Bank was incorporated in the year of 1994 by Housing Development FinanceCorporation Limited (HDFC), India's premier housing finance company.It was among thefirst companies to receive an ‘in principle' approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) toset up a bank in the private sector. The Bank commenced its operations as a ScheduledCommercial Bank in January 1995 with the help of RBI's liberalization policies. In a milestone transactio n in the Indian banking industry, Times Bank Limited (promoted byBennett, Coleman & Co. / Times Group) was merged with HDFC Bank Ltd. , in 2000. Thiswas the first merger of two private banks in India. As per the scheme of amalgamationapproved by the shareholders of both banks and the Reserve Bank of India, shareholders of  Times Bank received 1  share of HDFC Bank for every 5. 75  shares of Times Bank. In 2008 HDFC Bank acquired Centurion Bank of Pun j a b aking its total branches to morethan 1,000. The amalgamated bank emerged with a strong deposit base of around Rs. 1,22,000 crore and net advances of around Rs. 89,000 crore. The balance sheet size of thecombined entity is over Rs. 1,63,000 crore. The amalgamation added significant value toHDFC Bank in terms of increased branch network, geographic reach, and customer base,and a bigger pool of skilled manpower   Capital Adequacy [Source : Annual Report, 2009-10] The Industrial Development Bank of India Limited commonly known by its acronym IDBIis one of India's leading public sector banks and 4th largest Bank in overall ratings. RBIcategorized IDBI as an â€Å"other public sector bank†.It was established in 1964 by an Act of  Parliament to provide credit and other facilities for the development of the fledgling Indianindustry. It is currently 10th largest development bank in the world in terms of reach with1210 ATMs, 720 branches and 486 centers. Some of the institutions built by IDBI are the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE), the  National Securities Depository Services Ltd (NSDL), the Stock Holding Corporation of  India (SHCIL), the Credit Analysis ; Research Ltd, the Export-Import Bank of India (EximBank), the Small Industries Development bank of India(SIDBI), the EntrepreneurshipDevelopment Institute of India, and IDBI BANK, which today is owned by the IndianGovernment, though for a brief period it was a private scheduled bank.The IndustrialDevelopment Bank of India (IDBI) was est ablished on July 1, 1964 under an Act of  Parliament as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India. In 16 February 1976,the ownership of IDBI was transferred to the Government of India and it was made the  principal financial institution for coordinating the activities of institutions engaged infinancing, promoting and developing industry in the country. Although Governmentshareholding in the Bank came down below 100% following IDBI ¶s public issue in July1995, the former continues to  be the major shareholder (current shareholding : 52. 3%). During the four decades of its existence, IDBI has been instrumental not only in establishinga well-developed, diversified and efficient ndustrial and institutional structure but alsoadding a qualitative dimension to the process of industrial development in the country. IDBIhas played a pioneering role in fulfilling its mission of promoting industrial growth throughfinancing of medium and long-term projects, in consonance wi th national plans and  priorities. Over the years, IDBI has enlarged its basket of products and services, coveringalmost the entire spectrum of industrial activities, including manufacturing and services. IDBI provides financial assistance, both in rupee and foreign currencies, for green-field  projects as also for expansion, modernization and diversification purposes.In the wake of  financial sector reforms unveiled by the government since 1992, IDBI evolved an array of  fund and fee-based services with a view to providing an integrated solution to meet theentire demand of financial and corporate advisory requirements of its clients Axis Bank, formally UTI Bank, is a financial services firm that had begun operations in1994, after the Government of India allowed new private banks to be established. The Bank  was promoted jointly by the Administrator of the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of  India (UTI-I), Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), General Insura nce CorporationLtd. , National Insurance Company Ltd. The New India Assurance Company, The OrientalInsurance Corporation and United India Insurance Company UTI-I holds a special positionin the Indian capital markets and has promoted many leading financial institutions in thecountry. The bank changed its name to Axis Bank in April 2007 to avoid confusion withother unrelated entities with similar name. After the Retirement of Mr. P. J. Nayak, Shikha Sharma was named as the bank's managingdirector and CEO on 20 April 2009. As on the year ended March 31, 2009 the Bank had atotal income of Rs 13,745. 04 crore (US$ 2. 93 billion) and a net profit of Rs. 1,812. 93 crore(US$ 386. 15 million). On February 24, 2010, Axis Bank announced the launch of ‘AXISCALL ; PAY on atom', a unique mobile payments solution using Axis Bank debit cards.Axis Bank is the first bank in the country to provide a secure debit card-based paymentservice over IVR. Axis Bank is one of the Big Four Banks of India, along with ICICI Bank,State Bank of India and HDFC Bank Branch Network At the end of March 2009, the Bank  has a very wide network of more than 835 branch offices and Extension Counters. Totalnumber of ATMs went up to 3595. The Bank has loans now (as of June 2007) account for asmuch as 70 per cent of the bank ¶s total loan book of Rs 2,00,000 crore. In the case of AxisBank, retail loans have declined from 30 per cent of the total loan book of Rs 25,800 crorein June 2006 to around 23 per cent of loan book of Rs. 41,280 crore (as of June 2007).Evenover a longer period,  while the overall asset growth for  Axis Bank has been quite high and has matched that of the other banks, retail exposuresgrew at a slower pace. The bank, though, appears to have insulated such pressures. Interestmargins, while they have declined from the 3. 15 per cent seen in 2003-04, are still hoveringclose to the 3 per cent mark. Axis Bank, formally UTI Bank, is a financial services firm that had begun op erations in1994, after the Government of India allowed new private banks to be established. The Bank  was promoted jointly by the Administrator of the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of  India (UTI-I), Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), General Insurance CorporationLtd. , National Insurance Company Ltd. The New India Assurance Company, The OrientalInsurance Corporation and United India Insurance Company UTI-I holds a special positionin the Indian capital markets and has promoted many leading financial institutions in thecountry. The bank changed its name to Axis Bank in April 2007 to avoid confusion withother unrelated entities with similar name. After the Retirement of Mr. P. J. Nayak, Shikha Sharma was named as the bank's managingdirector and CEO on 20 April 2009. As on the year ended March 31, 2009 the Bank had atotal income of Rs 13,745. 04 crore (US$ 2. 93 billion) and a net profit of Rs. 1,812. 93 crore(US$ 386. 15 million). On February 24, 2010, Axis Bank announced the launch of ‘AXISCALL & PAY on atom', a unique mobile payments solution using Axis Bank debit cards.Axis Bank is the first bank in the country to provide a secure debit card-based paymentservice over IVR. Axis Bank is one of the Big Four Banks of India, along with ICICI Bank,State Bank of India and HDFC Bank Branch Network At the end of March 2009, the Bank  has a very wide network of more than 835 branch offices and Extension Counters. Totalnumber of ATMs went up to 3595. The Bank has loans now (as of June 2007) account for asmuch as 70 per cent of the bank ¶s total loan book of Rs 2,00,000 crore. In the case of AxisBank, retail loans have declined from 30 per cent of the total loan book of Rs 25,800 crorein June 2006 to around 23 per cent of loan book of Rs. 41,280 crore (as of June 2007).Evenover a longer period,  while the overall asset growth for  Axis Bank has been quite high and has matched that of the other banks, retail exposuresgrew at a slower pa ce. The bank, though, appears to have insulated such pressures. Interestmargins, while they have declined from the 3. 15 per cent seen in 2003-04, are still hoveringclose to the 3 per cent mark. Reserve Bank of India prescribes Banks to maintain a minimum Capital to risk weightedAssets Ratio (CRAR) of 9 percent with regard to credit risk, market risk and operational risk  on an ongoing basis, as against 8 percent prescribed in Basel Documents. Capital adequacyratio of the ICICI Bank was well above the industry average of 13. 97% t. CAR of HDFC  bank is below the ratio of ICICI bank.HDFC Bank ¶s total Capital Adequacy stood at15. 26% as of March 31, 2010. The Bank adopted the Basel 2 framework as of March 31,2009 and the CAR computed as per Basel 2 guidelines stands higher against the regulatoryminimum of 9. 0%. HDFC CAR is gradually increased over the last 5 year and the capital adequacy ratio of  Axis bank is the increasing by every 2 year. SBI has maintained its CAR around in the rangeof 11 % to 14 %. But IDBI should reconsider their business as its CAR is falling YOY (year  on year). Higher the ratio the banks are in a comfortable position to absorb losses. So ICICIand HDFC are the strong one to absorb their loses. Gross N PA:Gross NPAs are the sum total of all loan assets that are classified as NPAs as per RBIguidelines as on Balance Sheet date. Gross NPA reflects the quality of the loans made by  banks. It consists of all the non standard  assets like as substandard, doubtful, and loss assets. It can be calculated  with the help of following ratio : SBI maintained its GNPA to 3% which is very good sign of performances as SBI is thelargest lender in INDIA. HDFC ¶s GNPA is quite good as it is low with compared to ICICIand SBI but in 2008-09 GNPA rises. The reason may be economic crises. AXIS bank haslowest GNPA which shown its management ability. ICICI has the highest GNPA in bankingindustry and rising YOY (year on  year). N et N PA:Net NPAs are those type of NPAs in which the bank has deducted the provision regarding  NPAs. Net NPA shows the actual burden of banks. Since in India, bank balance sheetscontain a huge amount of NPAs and the process of recovery and write off of loans is verytime consuming, the provisions the banks have to make against the NPAs according to thecentral bank guidelines, are quite significant. That is why the difference between gross andnet NPA is quite high. It can be calculated by following : AXIS Bank has least Net NPA and ICICI has highest NNPA among group. HDFC shown itsmanagement quality as it maintained its NNPA YOY (year on year). SBI has to keep NNPA  below. IDBI has successful to control NNPA YOY.