Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Recent Organisational Changes in the Virgin Group

Ongoing Organizational Changes in the Virgin Group These assignments talk about the hierarchical changes that the Virgin Group has been during the most recent couple of years, and how they are adjusting to the adjustments in the working condition. This will be with regards to the workers view of the changes, and how the Virgin Group can bring down their protection from change. This is a characteristic inclination from representatives, when confronted with vulnerability, and this should be overseen. The task centers around the Virgin Group carrier activity, Virgin Atlantic. Virgin Atlantic Airways was established in 1984, and it is the UKs second biggest transporter. The organization is based at Gatwick, Heathrow and Manchester air terminal; Virgin Atlantic works long stretch administrations to more than thirty goals all inclusive. The association has been perceived through honors from top business, customer and exchange (www.virgin.com). 2.0 THEORECTICAL FRAMEWORK 2.1 Meaning of Change the executives Change the executives is certifiably not a far off control with unbending and plainly characterized limits. Or maybe, the hypothesis and practice of progress the board draws on various sociology orders and customs. Three ways of thinking structure the focal board on which change the board hypothesis stands. This incorporates: The Individual point of view school: This school is part into Behaviorist and Gestalt-Field hypothesis. The Gestalt-Field scholars accepted that conduct isn't only a result of outer boosts; rather it emerges from how the individual uses motivations to decipher the upgrades. The behaviorists, then again try to accomplish hierarchical change exclusively by adjusting the outer improvements following up on the person. The Group Dynamics school: This began from crafted by Kurt Lewin. As indicated by Lewin (1974) individuals in associations work in gatherings, and individual conduct must be seen, altered or change in the light of gatherings winning practices and standards. Henceforth the focal point of progress must be at the gathering level and should focus on affecting and changing the gatherings standards, jobs and qualities (Cummings and Huse, 1989). The Open Systems school: The school is worried about understanding associations in their totally. It endeavors to take a comprehensive as opposed to a particularistic point of view. This is reflected in its way to deal with hierarchical change. Change the board can be characterized as a precise way to deal with managing change, both from the point of view of an association and on the individual level. A to some degree equivocal term, change the board has in any event three distinct perspectives, including: adjusting to change, controlling change, and affecting change. A proactive way to deal with managing change is at the center of each of the three perspectives. For an association, change the board implies characterizing and actualizing techniques and additionally advancements to manage changes in the business condition and to benefit from evolving openings. Ridiculous (2000) states that change is a fundamental detestable and all association experience change at once or another if not consistently. Associations for the most part change in light of political, prudent, social, mechanical and legitimate powers. There are four unique kinds of progress that an association can embrace, they are mechanical change, new item based change, auxiliary change, and social change. As per Bass (1985) effective adjustment to change is as critical inside an association all things considered in the characteristic world. Much the same as plants and creatures, associations and the people in them unavoidably experience changing conditions that they are weak to control. The more viably you manage change, the more probable you are to flourish. Adjustment may include building up an organized procedure for reacting to changes in the business condition, (for example, a variance in the economy, or a danger from a contender) or setting up ways of dealing with stress for reacting to changes in the working environment, (for example, new approaches, or advances). 2.2 RESISTANCE FOR CHANGE Numerous creators (Lawrence, 1954; Maurer, 1996; Strebel, 1994; Waddell and Sohal, 1998, among others) stress that the purposes behind the disappointment of many change activities can be found in protection from change. Protection from change brings expenses and deferrals into the change procedure (Ansoffs, 1990) that are hard to foresee (Lorenzo, 2000) however should be contemplated. Opposition has likewise been considered as a wellspring of data, being valuable in figuring out how to build up a progressively fruitful change process (Beer and Eisenstat, 1996; Goldstein, 1988; Lawrence, 1954; Piderit, 2000; Waddell and Sohal, 1998). Without a doubt, protection from change is a key subject in change the executives and ought to be truly considered to assist the association with achieving the upsides of the change. To oversee obstruction change successfully, the accompanying strategies could be utilized: Correspondence and Education: This is by a wide margin one of the best usage strategies that can be utilized by an association. Correspondence is utilized when strong data is required to guarantee that representatives get tied up with the procedure and instruction ought to consistently be utilized when the change relates to the presentation of another innovation or item or administration (Bunker and Alban, 1992). Investment: This will help with the smooth progress from the pre change stage to the post change stage and on the off chance that workers were urged to take part in the change inception stage, at that point the greater part of the issues that can happen when the change is executed could be disposed of as the issues and issues may have been recognized and illuminated in the commencement procedure (Buller, 1988). Arrangement: This can be utilized when there is extreme obstruction and the executives needs to offer the plan to the representatives. Top Management: The obvious help of top administration to the change procedure can help decrease and take out opposition (Daft, 1982). 3.0 IMPLEMENTING CHANGE IN VIRGIN GROUP One of the biggest inner change moves by the Virgin Group, was when Sir Richard Branson, got disappointed by the open postings, commitments and corporate administration of a publically recorded association, he looked for after to returning the association to private proprietorship (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). This was from the way of thinking that doing without transient benefits for long haul development is the path forward (www.virgin.com). This possibility approach of the Virgin Group is framed from the business necessities, and the structure (which will take the state of what is expected to work inside the change condition) as this has an extensive heading on the general authoritative exhibition (Burnes, B. 2000). The structure of the Virgin Group and its achievements, are unforeseen the ecological impacts. Accordingly by changing the structure, this is an inside driver of progress in response to the outer markets (Mullins, L 2005). With the adjustment in the posting of the association, came the decrease in hierarchical administration. The requirement for administration and a progressive structure in the Virgin Group was decreased enormously (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). Thus Sir Richard Branson accepted a hands-off position, with the administrators, urging them to utilize their drive, abilities and encounters (www.virgin.com). This change to the hierarchical structure has prompted a partition of the representatives, through now working in explicit gatherings or parts of the business. The assortment in areas that the Virgin Group works, and the wide scope of administrations and merchandise they offer has prompted divisions in the work power. In this manner they are not a concentrated group; a few divisions could work in an isolated way, which is more difficult than one might expect to change, without modifying the structure (Burnes, B. 2000). A portion of the inward drives of progress the Virgin Group confronted with, were the few layers of administrators, which can hinder the administration revealing frameworks and their response to circumstances they are confronted with. With the contemporary condition, this is negative to change and will hinder the inward administration process (Burnes, B. 2000). There have been inner issues since the auxiliary change, with correspondence over the gathering and this was especially perceptible in the center and lower levels of workers. They were not accepting enough data on the proposed changes, leaving them incapable to train workers on the authoritative changes (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). The hierarchical structure of the Virgin Group is a gathering de-incorporated; this could empower storehouse conduct, from the diverse business groups and the various areas in which they work. There is a characteristic competiveness among gatherings, and working under this structure can empower serious conduct between them (Johnson, G Scholes J 2004). To energize the Virgin association filling in as a gathering, and to lessen storehouse conduct brought about by the auxiliary change they began utilizing a solitary web address, Virgin.com, for the entire of the association clients has access to all the Virgin administrations under an independent entrance. These methodologies help with supporting the authoritative child rearing procedure and improve the cooperative energies effectively imitative from the hierarchical marking of the Virgin Group (www.virgin.com). Virgin Atlantic help is a lot of client concentrated with a conspicuousness on esteem for cash, quality, fun and advancement. The association is 51% claimed by the Virgin Group and 49% possessed by Singapore Airlines, and representatives more than 9000 individuals (www.virgin.com). This change has prompted two inside parent associations, yet with Virgin holding the larger part share. Changes to associations are nearly at a pandemic status, diminishing the associations control of the outer condition. All associations are confronted with unremitting change; this is in their operational condition and the authoritative setting. In the cutting edge authoritative circumstance, there is tremendous att

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Management accounting questions

Leaders are fluidly compelled by the ecological components, their instruction, and mental capacity. Other than these, leaders might be compelled by the lacks in the data that Is accessible to them. Required Elaborate this announcement concerning Information inadequacy with respect to Information practicality, Information exactness and clearness, Information significance, and Information collection levels.Cite guides to help your focuses Jam Ltd is a producer of a compost item which is pressed in 50 barrel packs. The accompanying report for year finished 31st December 2013 dependent on account examination grouping is profited to you Manufacturing costs Account Nature or Classification Amount in This 000 Direct Materials All factor 360,000 Direct Labor 200,000 Overhead costs: Electricity and water 60% variable 60,000 Managerial pay rates 20% variable 1 o,oho Maintenance costs variable Depreciation 0% variable Indirect work half factor 120,000Non assembling costs Accounts Administration costs Marketing costs 40% variable Depreciation costs 80,000 During the year 2013, Jam Ltd delivered 80,000 packs. The board is determining deals cost for the year 2014 dependent on 2013 cost information. The accompanying extra information is accessible for the year 2014 contrasted with the information for the year 2013 1 . Cost for direct materials are relied upon to increment by 10% 2. Under the terms of work contract, both immediate and roundabout work rates are relied upon to increment by 0% 3. All devaluation costs are relied upon to increment by 10% 4.Administration and advertising costs to increment by 20% 5. Power and water, support costs and administrative pay rates are not expected to change 6. Jam Ltd hopes to deliver and sell 96,000 packs of compost in the year 2014 Required (I) Estimates cost per kilo of manure in the year 2014 if net overall revenue of 201% is focused on (it) Outline points of interest and confinements of cost based valuing strategy ) For the year 201 4 the accompanying anticipated organization information is made accessible to you for arranging reason 1.Estimated assembling costs when creation level is 190,000 units is: fixed costs This 180,500,000 and per unit variable costs This 2,800. This cost conduct is kept up at all levels 2. The yearly fixed publicizing expenses of This 190,000,000 and per unit uniform showcasing expenses of This 800 at all levels 3. A market review did shows that for an adjustment in privet

Friday, July 31, 2020

Answer Q Example

Answer Q Example Answer Q â€" Essay Example > QUESTION ONE You have just been appointed as manager to a small software house, which has expanded considerably over the last two years and now employs 30 staff. The majority of the work is to develop dedicated systems for SMEs. Currently, the testing does not involve automated tools. You have decided to consider the introduction of an automated testing tool. (a) Discuss, with justification the potential problems and disadvantages of introducing such a tool, considering its effect on your staff, management and clients. (10 marks) Automated testing involves the automation of the manual testing process that is being used currently. This means that there has to be a manual testing process that is present within the firm or company. Automation mostly will involve the use of certain tools and strategies that are aimed at reducing the need for manual human involvement within the unskilled tasks that are in most cases repetitive and redundant. Automated testing unfortunately has a few di sadvantages to the staff, the management and even the clients, despite its many advantages and benefits. The first problem is that the writing of the automation test scripts requires much proficiency and this is one major problem that the management will have to face and thus it is a disadvantage. The debugging of the test script may be a potential problem. If an error presents itself in the test script, it might lead to consequences that may be deadly. The maintenance of the test may prove to be costly mostly in the case of playback methods. Even if there is a minor change that may occur in the GUI, there needs to rerecording of the test script or even the replacement of the test script by a new one. This may present a disadvantage to the staff who will have to do extra work of redoing this task of rerecording the test scripts. Test data files maintenance may be difficult especially in the case that test scripts are used in the testing of more screens. It is finally important to note that the human touch can never be duplicated and this will mean that the clients will not receive the service that they were used to that was personalized with that human touch. (b) Using the four steps of the Deming Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle as a framework, discuss, with justification, how you would undertake each of the four steps to identify a suitable automated testing tool. i) The Plan step(16 marks)The plan step involves finding out what is wrong first so as to improve the operations. This means that any potential problems to be faced have to be identified and ideas found with the relevant solutions to be formulated. Thus I would start by planning for changes that are aimed at bringing improvement. I would also perform a customer mapping as well as a supplier mapping. I would also put flow charting into use to aid in the identification. I would also conduct a Pareto analysis. Brainstorming with the rest of the staff and management would also be very important in the ident ification process. I would also make use of the nominal group technique. The use of a solution or fault tree could also prove to be useful in the identification of a suitable automated testing tool. I would also make use of the evaluation matrix. Finally, cause and effect diagrams could really come in handy in the identification process.

Friday, May 22, 2020

Cry Freedom - 2804 Words

â€Å"Cry Freedom†: Chapter 1: Summary: Donald Woods is an editor of the Daily Dispatch, a journal in East London, South Africa. One morning he gets news of a police raid in the black township Crossroads which lies in Cape Town. He also gets photos of the raid and he decides to print them although the government doesn ´t allow to print such photos. Woods doesn ´t believe the demand of the black people but he is trained as a lawyer and doesn ´t like police brutality against black people. So he also writes an editorial about a Biko, the leadership of „The BCâ€Å". The next day Dr. Mamphela who works for Biko in his clinic, comes to Woods office to speak to him, about this article. She is very angry, because she thinks, that Woods has printed rubbish†¦show more content†¦Character | Quote | Conflict | Wendy * Donald’s wife * 37 years old * Play piano well * Slender * Vital body * More liberal politically than Woods | â€Å"From churches, abroad. From black people. Even some companies gave them some money.† | When she saw what the police was doing to black people, she convinced her husband to go to Kruger. As her husband, she is against injustice. When her husband told her about the book and that he had to leave the country, she cared at first about their children. She is a good mutter and she also cared for the security of Woods. | Chapter 4-5: Summary: In the black township, they eat with a black family. Biko, the family and are discussing about the system, the history how the white came to South Africa and how the black people got their bad situation which they have now. After this visit Woods change his mind, because he sees for the first time how worse the black has to live, how big their despair is but also how strong their togetherness stay. At the end of this day Biko and Woods become friends. Character | Quote | Conflict | Mapetla Mohapi * A black guy * Who took Woods to football match | As Woods looked at all those black faces, tired and unsmiling, he felt that the whole black world, which he had believed he knew so well, had a life he was totally unaware of. | He worked at the office where Woods work and he died during the story. HeShow MoreRelatedCry Freedom Essay1466 Words   |  6 PagesThis essay examines the film â€Å"Cry Freedom†, set in the late 1970s, which was directed by Sir Richard Attenborough in 1 987. The film was based on the true story written by Donald Wood, also one of the main characters in the film. The analysis will focus on the way the movie critically evaluates the political ideology that dominates the apartheid in South Africa. The essay will discuss the character’s and films attitude towards the white people and black people and how certain characters respond toRead MoreDr. Clark s Biko : Cry Freedom ( Bos Par1061 Words   |  5 PagesTen years after the death of Stephen Bantu Biko (1946-77), South Africa’s â€Å"Daily Dispatch† journalist, Donald Woods, wrote Biko: Cry Freedom (Bos par. 1). His book was subsequently adapted for film and produced by hollywood director: Richard Attenborough (Bos par.1). The film was released on the heels of South Africa’s nation-wide declaration of a â€Å"state of emergency† in 1986 (Clark and Worger xvi). Though some claim Attenborough’s film is a biographical look at the life, trial, and death of BikoRead MoreCry Freedom Synopsis1730 Words   |  7 PagesTong Gui Shuen S4 Science 1 CRY FREedom They said Steve Biko was a man of violence; then why did he talk of peace? They said he wanted revolution; so why did he talk of friendship? 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Sunday, May 10, 2020

The Data and Methodology used in the Hang Seng Index - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 9 Words: 2665 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? In this chapter, there is description of data used in this study, which are The Hang Seng Index (HSI), The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Holding plc (HSBC Hldgs) and Oriental Press Group Limited. After that, methodologies of predictions based on past volatilities and GARCH class conditional volatility models are presented. Finally, I will talk about how to evaluate the forecasting performances in according to select the best models. Now, let me introduce the data analyzed in my study. 3.1 Data description 3.1.1 The Hang Seng Index (HSI) Global investors treat the Hang Seng Index (HSI) as an indicator of the performance of the stock market in Hong Kong. The HSI was publicly launched on 24 November 1969 and is one of the earliest stock market indexes in Hong Kong. It is now maintained by Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited, which is a subsidiary of Hang Seng Bank, one of the constituent companies. The HSI is a freefloat-adjusted market capitalization weighted stock market index. : The current price at Day t : The closing price at Day t-1 IS : The number of issued shares FAF : Freefloat-adjusted Factor, which is between 0 and 1 CF: Cap factor, which is between 0 and 1 It consists of 43 constituent companies which represent around 60% of the total market capitalization of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX). In order to show the price movements of the major sectors of the market clearer, the HSI constituent stocks are grouped into four sub-indexes: Properties, Utilities, Commerce and Industry, and Fina nce. Normally, qualified potential constituents are companies with a primary listing on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX). In recent years, more and more mainland China companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), they can also be one of the qualified potential constituents if they meet several conditions. The companys total ordinary share capital must be in the form of H shares, the shares of the company incorporated in mainland China that are traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. And also, the company needs to complete the process of Share Reform first. As a result, the company has no unlisted share capital. As the market capitalization, the turnover ranking and the financial performances of the companies may change in different periods, the list of constituent stocks is reviewed quarterly. In this paper, the daily closing Hang Seng Index and the weekly Hang Seng Index are used. The data set ranging from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 2008 is retrie ved from Datastream, a U.K. incorporated data service company. The data set is partitioned into the in-sample estimation periods 1997 2007, the out-of-sample forecast periods 2007 2008. This separation provides 2467 and 522 in-sample observations for the daily series and weekly series respectively. For out-of-sample observations, there are 246 for daily series and 52 for weekly series. In order to obtain more accurate results, public holidays and special incidents leading the public announcement of non-trading, such as the black signal of the Rainstorm Warning System and no. 8 storm force wind signal of Hong Kongs Tropical Cyclone Warning Signals. During this period, there were quite a lot of economic events affecting the stock market in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is one of the victims of 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. After the HSI peaked at 16820, it was attacked by international speculators, leading to a 50% plunge. In 1998, the Hong Kong government intervention on stock market to p urchase component shares supported the market and the HSI rebounded to 18000. The rise in both the interest rate and the crude oil price burst the dot-com bubble in 2000. The HSI dropped to 14000 and then fluctuated between 14000 and 16000. 911 Incident occurred in 2001. The HSI kept falling and the minimum was 8894. The stock market started to recover after Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) was signed on 29 June 2003. In August 2007, mainland China declared the plan to allow part of citizens to invest on Hong Kong market directly. In October, stimulated by the news of AH stock hedging program, the HSI break through 30000. Unfortunately, the HSI was affected by the fallen chain of major stock markets in the world and dropped 2061.23 on 22 January 2008. During this period, the average point of the HSI is 14313.39 and the stand deviation is 4563.68. The lowest point in these eleven years was 6660.42 which occurred on 13 August 1998. 31638.22 was the highest point and occurred on 30 October 2007. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Data and Methodology used in the Hang Seng Index" essay for you Create order 3.1.2 HSBC hldgs Besides the HSI, one of the constituent stocks is randomly selected. At the beginning of the selection process, each constituent stock is assigned a number, 1 43. Then, a number, between 1 43, is randomly generated by Excel. If the assigned number of the company matches the generated number, that company will be selected and studied in this paper. The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Holding plc (HSBC Hldgs) is the selected constituent company and belongs to the Finance Sub-indexes. HSBC hldgs is one of the most favourite stocks in Hong Kong. In 1865, it was founded in Hong Kong in March and in Shanghai one month later. The banks headquarter was in Hong Kong until 1992. Then it moved to London as a condition of the acquisition of Midland Bank in UK, and also due to the handover of Hong Kongs sovereignty. Currently, HSBC hldgs is both the worlds largest banking and financial services group and the 5th largest stock in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) by market capit alization. HSBC hldgs is also listed on the Bermuda, New York, London and Paris Stock Exchanges. It is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index and the largest company listed on the FTSE. In 2010, CEO Michael Geoghegan moved to Hong Kong since HSBC hldgs focuses on Asia more now. Similarly, both daily and weekly closing prices of HSBC hldgs ranging from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 2008 are retrieved from Datastream. The data set is also divided into the in-sample estimation periods 1997 2007 and the out-of-sample forecast periods 2007 2008. The number of in-sample observations and out-of-sample observations for both daily and weekly series are also the same as the HSI series and the non-trading days are excluded. For in-sample observations, there are 2467 for daily series and 522 for weekly series. For out-of-sample observations, there are 246 for daily series and 52 for weekly series. During this period, the average closing price of HSBC hldgs is 96.92 and the stand deviation is 23.2 6. The lowest closing price in these eleven years was 40.48 which occurred on 21 September 1998. 140.586 was the highest closing price and occurred on 15 October 2007. 3.1.3 Oriental Press Group Limited In this paper, another stock which is not the constituent stock is also studied. The stock is selected randomly like the chosen constituent stock. Oriental Press Group Limited is selected and is incorporated in Hong Kong. The group takes part in the publication of daily newspapers, Oriental Daily News and The Sun, and The Sun Racing Journal. Oriental Daily News was first published in 1969. Today, the paper is at the top in the daily circulation and has a record readership of around 3,100,000. Unlike Oriental Daily News, The Sun targets at a younger and fresher reader groups. The Sun was published since 1999, and can also be found outside Hong Kong. By considering a lot of Hong Kong people living in North America and in order to develop the market of The Sun, there is a North America version in New York and Toronto. The Sun Racing Journal was established in 1991. It is one of the major horse racing magazines in Hong Kong. Like the HSI and HSBC Hldgs, both daily and weekly clos ing prices of Oriental Press Group Limited ranging from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 2008 are retrieved from Datastream. The data set is also divided into the in-sample and the out-of-sample with the same period as the above two series. The number of in-sample observations and out-of-sample observations for both daily and weekly series are also equal to as that of the HSI series and HSBC hldgs series. During this period, the average closing price of Oriental Press Group Limited is 1.499 and the stand deviation is 0.657. The lowest closing price in these eleven years was 0.533 which occurred on 23 June 1998. 3.175 was the highest closing price and occurred on 14 January 2004. 3.1.4 Transformation of Data As this paper is studying the volatility, I focus on the returns of the HSI and the stocks rather than the index and closing prices. Therefore, a transformation of data is needed before modeling. Data are transformed into daily returns by taking the first difference of the natural logarithm of the daily index and closing prices. : The daily return : The current price at Day t : The closing price at Day t-1 Mean equals to 0.00138 and stand deviation is 0.0176. Mean equals to 0.00163 and stand deviation is 0.0169. Mean equals to -0.00032 and stand deviation is 0.0315. 3.2 Methodology Stationarity If a time series can be estimated using time series models, it must be a stationary process, as non-stationary process cannot be studied directly. If the joint probability distribution of time series data keeps constant when time is moving, this data set can be said to be stationary and the mean and variance do not change over time. On the contrary, a non-stationary process whose joint probability keep changing in the period. The mean and variance vary at different time points. However, usually after a non-stationary series has been transformed, such as differencing or log-difference, the series become stationary. Accordingly, it is necessary to test whether the data set is under a stationary process before any further analyzing. The Augmented Dickey and Fuller (ADF) test is employed in this paper. The ADF test is an improved version of the Dickey and Fuller (DF) test. Both tests null hypotheses are the series with a unit root, which means the series is non-stationary. The DF te st is only based on a simple regression. where the residuals are followed the Dickey-Fuller Distribution. The hypothesis testing is The test statistic is After that, comparing the test statistic with the relevant critical value for the Dickey-Fuller test, if the value is larger than the critical value, the null hypothesis can be rejected, and the model is stationary; vice verse. The ADF test is based on a more complicated more. where is a constant, is the coefficient of a deterministic trend and is the summation of the lag orders of the autoregressive process. Historical mean Probably, the historical mean provides the easiest way to forecast the volatility. All the in-sample observations are used and equally weighted to forecast. where is the number of out-of-sample observations Moving average Under moving average method, the forecast of the volatility is given by an unweighted average of the in-sample observations. Unlike the historical mean method, not all the in-sample observations are used. The average is based on the in-sample observations over a particular time interval of fixed length. where T is called the moving average period or rolling window. Three different lengths are considered for each frequency. For daily data, three months, six months and one year are chosen. For monthly data, six months, one year and two years are chosen. Random walk Both historical mean and moving average methods assume that the volatility will be in stable or change slowing with a trend. But, if the volatility fluctuates unpredictably, the best forecast of the volatility of next period is the current real volatility. Exponential smoothing Under exponential smoothing method, the forecast of the volatility is a weighted average of the previous actual observation and the previous forecast. where is the smoothing factor, and must be between 0 and 1. If is equal to zero, the forecast exactly equals the prior actual observation and the exponential smoothing method becomes random walk. When approaches one, the preceding forecast is the majority. The value of smoothing factor is determined by minimizing the in-sample sum of squared errors. The estimated smoothing factors for daily data are between 0.64 and 0.95. For weekly data, the values lie in the range 0.88 to 0.92. Exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) The exponential weighted moving average (EWMA) method is similar to the exponential smoothing method. The only difference is that the prior actual volatility is replaced by a moving average method. where is a smoothing factor lying between 0 and 1. Like the exponential smoothing method, the EWMA method becomes random walk if the smoothing factor is equal to zero. When the factor is getting closer and closer one, the moving average will be weighted heavier and heavier. For daily data, the estimated values of factors are in the range 0.001 to 0.53. The smoothing factors lie between 0.001 and 0.4 for weekly data. Generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (GARCH) If the variance of the data is constant, the process is called homoscedastic. However, a lot of time series data in the real world have time-varying variance. In 1982, Engle proposed the autoregressive conditional heteroscedasiticity (ARCH) model to deal with time series data. Four years later, Bollerslev suggested the GARCH model. A GARCH (p , q) model is where , , and . There are joint estimations of both the conditional mean and the conditional variance process in the GARCH model. The error term, , follows a normal distribution with zero mean and the variance which varies with time. indicates the persistence of shocks to volatility. If the sum is equal to one, the GARCH model becomes the integrated-GARCH (IGARCH) model. Threshold-GARCH (TGARCH) In the GARCH model, it assumes that shocks with equal magnitude have the same impacts on the volatility no matter which sign shocks are, positive or negative. However, the different sign of the shock may have a different impact on the volatility. In order to parameterize this idea, the TGARCH model is one of a number of ways. The TGARCH model was proposed by Glosten, Jagannathan and Runkle in 1993. The model is express as where if , and if . Consequently, a positive shock has an impact of on the volatility, and a negative shock has an impact of on the volatility. If is greater than zero, the negative shock has an larger impact on the volatility and vice versa. quantifies the persistence of shocks. Asymmetric-GARCH (AGARCH) The AGARCH model is another way to parameterize the idea that different sign of shock with equal magnitude has a different impact on the volatility. The AGARCH model looks quite similar to the TGARCH model and is expressed as If is a positive number, the positive shock has a smaller impact on the volatility and vice versa. Exponential-GARCH (EGARCH) The EGARCH model (Nelson, 1991) does not have the non-negativity constraint on the parameter, and , in the above three GARCH models. And also, the EGARCH model is the third asymmetric kind of GARCH models in this paper. The model is expressed as where The positive value of indicates that the positive shock has an larger impact on the volatility and vice versa. 3.3 Forecast evaluation After the volatility has been forecasted, the forecasters need to be evaluated to see how small the forecast errors are. There are several loss functions for the forecast error. The choice of loss functions totally depends on investors preferences. Symmetric loss function The mean error (ME), mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean squared error (RMSE) are the easiest and commonest ways to measure the forecasting performance. The result of the ME can be an indicator showing the direction of overprediction or underprediction on average. As the errors by overprediction and underprediction offset each other, it is not surprising that the ME statistic usually is the lowest one among the others. Unlike the ME, the MAE does not have the problem of the offsetting effect. The RMSE provides a measurement if the investor prefers to impose a more heavily penalty upon the larger forecast errors. Asymmetric loss function As mentioned before, all investors have their individual preference for the loss functions. It is likely that investors have asymmetric loss functions rather than symmetric loss functions. Referring the past research (Pagan and Schwert, 1990; Brailsford and Faff, 1996), the mean mixed error is employed in this paper. Firstly, the mean mixed error with a more heavily penalty on the forecast errors by underpredicting is Secondly, the mean mixed error penalizing the overpredicted forecast errors move heavily is where O is the number of overpredictions and U is the number of underpredication in the out-of-sample forecasts.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

ICT implementation report Free Essays

1. Range of data This is my data, which offers all the different cars and the details about them. The table is set out in and sorted by the specifications of the cars and also includes their prices. We will write a custom essay sample on ICT implementation report or any similar topic only for you Order Now 2. Creating order sheet 3. Customer details of order sheet This is the top part of my order sheet, which are the customer’s details and the company logo on the top right hand side of the page. 4. Setting up combo boxes I have created combo boxes so that customers can choose what they wish from my data of cars. Each combo-box category has 5 cars and an empty space left encase the customer chooses not to choose a car from a certain category. This selection is linked to the cell next to it as each car has a preset number and the number is what makes the cell named â€Å"cars† change to what is selected in the combo box. 5. Spinners The quantity is done using spinners. As the customer selects the type of car they prefer the price automatically comes up in the â€Å"price cell† and they can change the quantity up to 6 cars for each which is highly unlikely. As the quantity number changes the price is multiplied by the number in the â€Å"quantity† cell. 6. Totals After these processes are done the total price is calculated by multiplying the quantity chosen with the price of the car. 7. Lookups Column F uses a ‘VLOOKUP’ in order to find what car has been chosen by the customer. This is done by linking it with ‘Column C’ and this column shows a number which is the number of the car chosen on the combo-box and the number in the combo-box is the number which the cars are set as in the Data sheet. Hence displaying the selected car. There is also a VLOOKUPS done for the price which also works in the same way. 8. Tick box and IF statement for Online Discount This is the online discount tick box which is linked to the cell next to it as you can see above. As the box is ticked and un-ticked the cell next to it will change to TRUE or FALSE this enable me to create an IF statement formula that links to this cell in order to give discount or not. This IF statement is designed to give a 15% discount if B25 displays TRUE and if not then 0 will be shown. 9. Delivery YES, NO buttons and IF statement As shown in step 8 the Buttons are linked to the cell next to them. However this time the cell C28 will display either 1 or 2 which represent YES or NO. From this the IF statement in I24 can be done. If cell C28 is displaying 1 then a à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½6.99 charge will be put on the totals if number 2 is being displayed then cell I24 will come up as blank as there is no Delivery charge. 10. Tick box and IF statement Claims Bonus Discount This is the Claims Bonus discount tick box which is linked to the cell next to it as you can see above. As the box is ticked and un-ticked the cell next to it will change to TRUE or FALSE this enable me to create an IF statement formula that links to this cell in order to give discount or not. 11. Sub-Total This is a sum formula which adds all the prices which are displayed in the selected columns. 12. Working out VAT% Simply input the percentage I wanted as my VAT into cell H26. In the cell next to it a multiplication formula is used to multiply the percentage by the sub-total which leaves the VAT in cell I26. 13. Working out discount price. Simply input the percentage I wanted to discount into cell H25. In the cell next to it a multiplication formula is used to multiply the percentage by the sub-total which leaves the discount in cell I25. 14. Working out Claims bonus Discount price Simply input the percentage I wanted to discount into cell H27. In the cell next to it a multiplication formula is used to multiply the percentage by the sub-total which leaves the discount in cell I27. 15. Grand-Total This is a sum formula however is more complex because it is subtracting discounts and adding different prices. This formula automatically alters and changes according to what is displayed in the cells above it. 16. Add Macros These macros are recorded to copy the details of the chosen car from each row and insert them on to the invoice sheet. They are also set to change the font option and insert a new row so that cars which are chosen do not replace each other so that the user can select more then one car or extra. 17. Go to Invoice Go to Order These macros have been set up so that the user can toggle between the two sheets without any hassle. They are both very simple macros designed so that the user can change or add anything they want to their receipt. 18. Print Macro This has been created in order to present the user with a print menu once it is selected or print as soon as it is pressed, so that they can select their print option or directly print the receipt. 19. Logos, company details and picture This print scheme shows the company logo and the colour scheme which is matching throughout the project and the picture in order to make the project more attractive. Part of the logo is the company details that are merged with it. 20. Invoice number and date. Located below the logo, this is one of the essentials for the receipt, however there is no formula or calendar option used so the date has to be manually changed every day and the invoice number every time the invoice is being saved and printed. 21. Order details These details are automatically pasted from the order sheet using the Add Macros. Therefore the titles are set in that order according to the data sheet and the font has been set to be changed as part of the processes of the add macro. 22. Customer details on the invoice. These formulas simply display the information/details which the end-user would fill out at the top of the order sheet. 23. Calculation formulas on invoice The print screen above shows all the formulas used I order to calculate the grand total. These are the same formulas used as the order sheet which I have explained in detail, however these have different cell references and copy the if statements from the order sheet so that the customers order is transferred correctly and so I do not have to repeat the process again. How to cite ICT implementation report, Papers

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Investment in Education

Scholars have often used the term ‘capital’ in different contexts and fields to imply a number of related meanings that may not necessarily agree in both scope and depth. In finance, accounting and management, for instance, the term is used to make reference to financial wealth, particularly the wealth used to start or sustain a business entity.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Investment in Education specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In classical economics, however, capital is used to imply one of the three factors of production, and differs from the other two factors – land and labor – because it can be used in the production of other goods, it is human-made and, lastly, it cannot be exhausted immediately in the process of production (Perlman McCain, 2000). From this broad definition, capital can be further narrowed down to mean the goods produced or supplied by the production system t hat are utilized as primary inputs in the production and sustenance of other goods and services in the future. Education can be considered as a form of human capital because it is not only used to produce other goods such as knowledge, wealth, and careers, but it cannot be exhausted in the process of production once an individual goes through a school system, not mentioning that it is human-made. Skills, education and training have been used by individuals, groups, societies and states as a form of human capital that is mostly used to stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty levels. Without education as one of the primary factors of production, many organizations would not have the human capital required to drive their agenda forward. According to Investopedia (2011), return on investment (ROI) is â€Å"†¦a performance measure used to evaluate the efficiency of an investment or to compare the efficiency of a number of different investments† (para. 1). As already ment ioned, the returns on an investment in education are many, and include the knowledge and capabilities that an individual uses in the production of other goods and services within the economic system; the wealth accumulated over time and which can also be used in the production of other goods; career development; social prestige; improvement of the level, quantity and quality of human capital; economic growth; better income distribution; and reduced poverty (Economic Returns, n.d.).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It is imperative to note that these returns are interrelated to the extent that one economic or social return affects the other. Accumulation of wealth, for instance, will curtail poverty levels and enhance social prestige as well as economic growth. In finance and economics, an investment is beneficial to the shareholder if it is worth the return. When an individua l uses financial and time resources to get an education then end up with neither of the returns described above, it can be effectively argued that the investment in education was not worth the return. To measure the return on investment in education, therefore, one needs to subtract the cost of the investment (both in terms of time and money) from the gains attainable as a result of this investment (Investopedia, 2011). To express the results as a ratio and know the worthiness of the investment made, the total amount of returns achieved from the education investment is further divided by the total cost of the investment. You can still multiply the outcome by 100 to get a percentage. It should be always be noted that negative ratios and percentages implies that investment is not worth the return, while positive ratios and percentages mean the investment made in education is worth the returns achieved. Reference List Economic returns to investment in education. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.worldbank.org/ Investopedia. (2011). Return on Investment – ROI. Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnoninvestment.asp Perlman, M., McCain, C.R. (2000). The pillars of economic understanding: Factors and markets. Michigan: University of Michigan Press. This essay on Investment in Education was written and submitted by user Joselyn Y. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.