Employee Engagement and it's impact on the success of the business Term Paper

Employee Engagement and it's impact on the success of the business (Human Resources Management ) - Term Paper Example To reduce the dissuasion that the employees had, a study was conducted after which the relevant recommendations were given and they were then implemented considering the practicality and the effectiveness. The whole idea for the formation of the report is to analyze and identify the reasons that exist because of which the employees are unsatisfied or have some kind of issues with the company. To achieve employee satisfaction, is a very important task for any company because satisfied employees are those who will work effectively and therefore also have a positive impact on the profits of the company. Employee satisfaction is a major factor that companies are willing to spend a lot of cash on so that they can have a very satisfied work force. It is not important that all the employees should be paid well only, there are other factors like satisfaction and a peaceful and happy environment is also a very important and crucial factor that the employees look for when they work for any com pany (Federman, B. , 2009). Constant training should be given to the employees. Employees would feel that the management is interested in improving the conditions of the employees and as well as have them motivated. It has been seen again and again that when the employees have stagnancy in their jobs they start feeling dissatisfied and end up leaving the job. This increases the turnover in the company and the reputation of the company is reduced. The constant training which will be given will make the employees think that the company is interested in the growth of the employees. Evaluation of the process is done to ensure that the best practice is employed. If a process is done in alignment with the goals set done earlier, then it will yield results usually. However, if it does not then the matter needs to be looked into further. Evaluation is done by firstly understanding the environment that the business is functioning in and all the related data in that business needs to be analy zed. A good idea also doesn’t necessarily lead to good results. Therefore it needs to be implemented properly in order to reap its full benefits. The implementation needs to be analyzed by seeing the participants involved in the process, their interaction and teamwork elements etc. the impact on the community and the training that participants may require or may have been involved in in their work (Federman, B. , 2009). In today’s globalized world, Human Capital is considered to be more important as compared to financial capital. The kind of workers that you have hired in your organization reflects the true condition of your organization. If the organization contains all â€Å"A† class workers then the organization tends to be a successful one, while if they do not hire the right kind of people then, it is the organization that suffers as a whole. Through right kind of hiring the organization can achieve its purpose. It is highly recommended that the employees h ave the required requirements of Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) so that the organization is capable enough to reach its goals (Macey, W. H., 2009). If the employees are knowledgeable about the required requirements of the company, they know about the qualities that they should possess or they should gain. It is also duty of the company to make sure that they work on the various lackings that exist in their employees. This way the employees will feel that the company

Management team decision Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management team decision - Coursework Example The plan of interest is the modification technique as it provides greater amounts of sustainable and near-term profitability. Currently, General Motors produces over 85 models and the appropriate move is to regulating production of various models. The company will be in a position of reducing the overlapping models and concentrate on the product mixes for purposes of allowing future redevelopment. General Motors should take away the GMC Passenger Van and Cargo Van as their Chevrolet brand offers similar vans with minor variations of the model. The organization should also include major changes in the current product mixes to achieve a turnaround for the current situation. The firm can achieve its profitability goals through a reduction plan of the overlapping vehicles in various brands since ascertained brands should not drive away customers. The strategies are intended to take the business away from competition. The entity can concentrate on defining several strategic decisions since it takes time to attach justifications behind the removal of each model (Peng 2008). As the company experiences reduced SUV sales, the corporation has to reduce the Envoy models to three as well as the Yukon models. Pontiac needs to remove the Montana Vans in the product line as the vans are outdated in terms of design as it not profitable. The company’s past strategy was to offer a broad assortment of cars under each brand. General Motors has changed the strategy through limiting the product portfolio and focusing on Cadillac and Chevrolet as marquis brands (Sekhar 2009). The organization has repositioned Hummer, Saab, and Saturn within niche brands. The approach combines Buick, GMC, and Pontiac into distribution channels that are complementary. Success of the firm appears to embed on taking strategic steps towards the profitability direction through making

Message Without Words Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Message Without Words - Essay Example Numerous researches have been carried out on the role of emotions in advertising messaging. Du Plessis (2005) links emotional adverts with construction of positive attitudes towards an advert such as likeability, and also associates it with brand recall and recognition. According to Kamins et al (1991), consumers viewing an advert will adopt the mood presented in it, for instance, an advert with a happy mood will leave the consumers with a happy mood while an advert with a sombre mood will leave them in a sombre mood. Therefore, this message’s primary goals are to create brand recognition and recall and generate positive attitudes among the customers. However, this message targets kids and teens. This is evident from the image, which portrays three kids.A marketing model must incorporate and mirror the overall goals of the company. This advert will use a marketing strategy model that will elicit interest, attention, desire and action. The advertising strategy will revolve arou nd positioning of the products of Benetton, communication media, and the target market.The positioning aspect of the advertising strategy will rely on the positioning message that will accompany the image. This statement, â€Å"You are part of the Family†, will give the values held by the company on customers. This will evoke emotions among the customers. This statement gives the customer a reason to purchase the products of Benetton. Additionally, a statement giving the attributes of the products offered.

The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay Example for Free

The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution Essay Question: From 1781 to 1789 the Articles of Confederation provided the Unites States with an effective government. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period to evaluate this statement. Although the Articles of Confederation provided a working government for the United States, it was not necessarily an effectively working government; an effective government would be one that not only establishes control and authority, but one under which the nation flourishes. Certainly the Articles set down a basic government with the idea of a democratic republic. However, the Articles of Confederation didnt impose an effective government as much as it set the basis for one. It was unable to enforce many laws and many of those set were also unequal in operation, as unfair to some states as fair to others. Thus, from 1781 to 1789, the Articles of Confederation established a working, yet ineffective government, with very little control or authority over foreign relations, the economy, and western lands. In foreign relations, the government set down by the Articles of Confederation had minimal, if any, control and authority over diplomatic efforts with Spain, France, Britain, and the foreign presences in America. One contributing factor to this was the lack of an executive branch. Congress was the chief coordinating agency of any war efforts and almost every action of meaning. During a disagreement over foreign policy, the argument could possibly have lasted for weeks with no decision or compromise set, leaving the problem standing unresolved. What authority Congress did have over commerce was shown in some unfair tariffs on foreign trade, that consequentially affected foreign relations. There was a marked decline in the estimated market of United States exports to Great Britain; in those, there was a definite per capita drop [Document B]. There was much difficulty with diplomatic efforts with other countries. For example, while negotiating a treaty with Spain that could have given America access to the Mississippi River, the Southern states refused to go along, with the result of the treaty negotiations and the Mississippi had to be given up [Document F]. In America itself, Congress was unable to enforce the Treaty of Paris. There were British troops still occupying some parts of America [Document D]. Since Congress could not directly assemble an army, there was no way to deal  with the problem and the existing American troops were discontent with the governments failure to pay their wages [Document C]. Considering the state of foreign relations under the Articles of Confederation, the Louisiana Purchase wouldnt have been possible. The negotiations for the territory would have failed and Congress would have argued over the purchase of land long after the offer would have been voided. The difficulties in foreign relations were too much for the government set by the Articles of Confederat ion to be considered effective. The economy, like foreign relations, worked virtually in complete independence from Congress and the Articles of the Confederation. Congress had little authority over and abilities of directly taxing the people and regulating commerce. Being the central institution of national authority Congress needed the power to control factors that influence the economy which they didnt. The foreign relations of America affected the foreign trade of America. The foreign relations were in a dystopian. As a result, the foreign trade of America was in as sorry a state of affairs. There was a marked decline in the estimated market of United States exports to Great Britain and in those that did exist was a definite per capita drop [Document B]. When Congress did have the authority to impose a tariff, it was often unequal in operation and unfair to some states while favoring others [Document A]. The government set by the Articles of the Confederation experienced many difficulties with control and authority over an economy that did not prosper under the Articles. The western lands of the Articles United States were under very little American control. First of all, Although the western lands were turned over to the national government and then sold, they werent well controlled. Many of these lands were already predominantly inhabited by Native Americans. Congress lacked the ability to directly assemble an army, yet a fighting force was almost necessary to opposing the British still in America after the Treaty of Paris. An army would also have quelled raiding and rebelling Indians in the West, and also raiding from over the border of Spanish Florida. In negotiations over the western border of the US, there was much arguing among Congress between northern and southern state representatives  [Document F]. While negotiating a treaty with Spain that could have given America access to the Mississippi River, the Southern states refused to go along, so the treaty negotiations and the Mississippi had to be given up. The Articles of Confederation didnt establish an effective government; they not only established little control, but the nation didnt flourish. The failure of this government is perceptible in the state of foreign relations, the economy, and western lands from 1781 to 1789. The clear failure can also be seen in the call for revision of the Articles [Documents G, H]. Things were going wrong and they needed to change. Although the call was originally just for revision, it resulted in a new document, the Constitution. Although the Articles set down a basic government with the idea of a democratic republic, thats all it had: the idea. The basis set for an effective democratic republic was embellished and made to succeed in the Constitution. This demonstrated that the Articles government wasnt completely flawed, but it certainly wasnt effective.

Refusal for Eating Disorders Essay Example for Free

Refusal for Eating Disorders Essay The controversial issue of insurance companies and mental health cost is an ongoing battle. Initially, I would like to say that eating disorders are emotionally based rather than physically. Emotions are from the mind where there are thoughts, perceptions, motivations, and imaginations. Emotions are what we feel inside of us that cause us to act in a certain manner, although some people’s emotions are so powerful that their actions are uncontrollable. This is the case with eating disorders. Therefore, how could anyone choose to ignore a victim with an emotional problem like eating disorders, and refuse 100 percent medical coverage for this ailment? The insurance company’s logic or ability to manipulate this refusal of medical coverage for eating disorders is due to the unregulated controls; by federal regulations that gives insurance companies all the administrative, and authority to refuse medical coverage for eating disorders. Over the years eating disorders have been misunderstood and poorly explained by insurance companies. It is included in the list of mental heath diseases, along with perceptions and distinguishing features that can be identified by medical personnel. However, today I sense eating disorders are renowned mental illnesses that affect all walks-of-lives, and should receive entire medical coverage. The National Organization for Women, 2007 stated that typically, insurance companies cover the cost of treating the physical symptoms such as heart failure, kidney failure, rupture of the esophagus, ulcers and high blood pressure. Yet, the treatments that address the mental health of the patient, and the root causes of the disorder, are not generally covered, or are only partially covered. However, I feel that the treatment to an illness is cured through its roots and perhaps there should be more financial support in the root of this illness. I thought the intent for health care was designed to make people healthier in opposition to extracting money from the faithful customers. It is obvious that â€Å"ten million Americans suffer from eating disorders† (Kramer, 2007) according to estimates from several known health groups. Moreover, nearly all of those victims felt powerless because of something they were feeling inside themselves. But what happened to the genuine care of others? Medical insurance companies have networks of physicians, and facilities with a wealth of knowledge that have served loyal families, companies, and athletes for years. Those physicians are also well trained within their particular field, and certainly know what is best for their patients. Some medical insurance companies do provide treatments to their members, however they are normally limited. Perhaps, this is the reason why â€Å"the effectiveness of a full recover after treatment for eating disorder is only 60 percent†. (Kramer, 2007). At one time eating disorders were rarely talked about, kept hidden from others and very poorly understood. Although, today medical experts now know that eating disorders are mental heath diseases since they have recognizable causes, clear symptoms, and predictable out comes; but Insurance companies consider an eating disorder â€Å"severe based on the number of times that it recurs† (Kramer Others, 2007), and I believe this is ridiculous. Surprisingly, there are â€Å"only 43 percent of the American population that are fully aware of the different types of eating disorders, and the resulting health complications that can occur with them. (NEDA. 2007). However, the other 57 percent could be the insurance companies, or even friends that could provide a strong shoulder with understanding during difficult times â€Å"An eating disorder occurs when a person ties his or her self-esteem, personality, and happiness, and their way of life with food† (Strada, 2001). Individuals who demonstrate those types of traits are known as having an eating disorder and distressing as it may sound, most victims and none victims are not fully mindful of this disease. A model of this unaware mindset of eating disorders is witness daily during a group discussion among friends. A group of acquaintances or insurance agents may have expressed their opinion of a friend by wording â€Å"John is obese because he always stays home and watches TV shows, he has no desire to lose any weight†. Another opinion from the group may be â€Å"Mary is a very tiny women, she probably wears a size two†. In both instances, John, Mary, and their acquaintances lack the knowledge of this life threatening illness; perhaps this is just one more reason why those illnesses should be covered via insurance. This well-known psychology has clearly demonstrated a concrete motive for eating; however insurance companies â€Å"continue to ignore the systematic symptoms of this dreadful illness in spite of its increases since the mid 1950s†. (Whelan, 2002). Eating disorders are not one particular illness; instead it is made-up of four different types of illnesses that consist of anorexia, bulimia nervosas, compulsive overeating, and binge eating. This constitutes the need to identity them separately, each one should be looked upon differently in order to gain a better understanding of them, and at this same hopefully this issue on insurance coverage should raise the level of unease and stress the need for more coverage and education regarding these disorders. †¢ â€Å"Anorexia nervosas, is a an illness which someone deliberately keeps their weight below a healthy level, often see themselves as fat and may look like a person of starvation. †¢ Bulimia nervosas is an illness in which people eat large amount of food in short time and get rid of it by purging themselves. Purging is usually by vomiting and/or taking laxatives. †¢ Compulsive overeating, it is driven by an urge that the person cannot control. It can be triggered by hunger but is often a response to negative thoughts or feeling. †¢ Binge eating disorder (BED), the binges involve at least three of the following, eating very quickly, eating until uncomfortable full, eating when not physically hungry, eating alone because of embarrassment about the amount eaten, felling disgusted, depressed, or very guilty afterwards (Whelan, 2001).† Eating disorders don’t discriminate, instead, affecting everyone from females to males, wrestlers, insurance agents, and celebrities. They have affected lightweight boxers, family and friends, even affecting Diana, Princess of Wales. She â€Å"suffered from bulimia and spoke to the public about the emotional aspects of her illness† (Whelan Others 2001). It was once believed that eating disorders begin in the teenage years to due to physical, emotion, and social changes that youth experience, and it was once known that women suffering from eating disorders did not speak out, and older women in their 40s and 50s rarely experienced symptoms of eating disorders although now circumstances have changed. There are still more reported cases of females suffering from eating disorders then men, however, there are now reported cases were a nine-year-old boy was diagnosed with eating order, and other boys and men are now stepping forward for help. Additionally, â€Å"older women in their mid 40s to 50s are also now experiencing relapse and new cases are surfacing within the same age groups for having eating disorders†. (Kramer Others, 2007). Accept as the truth, or not but ‘eating disorders are four mental illnesses’, and the American people including myself are unhappy with insurance company’s lack of support. Furthermore, there are insurance companies in this era that have been sued for millions of dollars, all for refusing to pay for treatment of 21-years-old anorexic [a type of eating disorder],a women who committed suicide because of her emotional shortfalls, and ignored cry for help.

Impact of Internationalization on Company Performance

Impact of Internationalization on Company Performance Increased deregulation, cross-border activities of non-financial companies and improved information communications technology led to an increased consolidation of financial institutions across borders. Commercial banking sector in particular, have witnessed tremendous amount of cross-border bank merger and acquisitions (MAs) deals throughout the recent years. While globalization has accelerated cross-border merger activities around the world, another global force recently has been creating a counterweight to cross-border deals. Concerns over nationalism, feelings of national security and protectionism have delayed several cross-border banking deals. Basically, MAs of these institutions results in Consolidation, Internationalization or Conglomeration. In this context, Consolidation: It is a result of more concentrated banking systems, smaller number of larger firms. Ex: Consolidation of Bank of New York and hMellon in 2007 in USA. Internationalization: It is evidenced by increasing number of banking and other financial institutions that operate across national borders. Ex: Citi Bank, HSBC etc., operating worldwide. Conglomeration: Larger number of financial groups whose activities combine those of bank and non-bank financial firms. Ex: State Bank of India combining other State Banks for various activities in its umbrella in India. Objective and Scope of the Project The objective of this project is to understand the concept of internationalization and observe strategic patterns undertaken by various banks and evaluate the way it affected the performance of the organization. In this process, we consider exploring the following areas with a case study of a Canadian or US bank along with our study. Introduction to Internationalization After a relatively quiet period in 2001/2002, international mergers and acquisitions have picked up again. Since the 2003 mergers between Bank of America and FleetBoston, and JP Morgan Chases acquisition of Bank One, speculations were fueled about comparable cross-border deals in the European banking market. JP Morgan Chase announced its purchase of London based Cazenove in October 2004, while Spanish Banco Santander bought British mortgage bank Abbey National for 12.5 billion euro in august 2004, the largest cross border acquisition since HSBC bought French CCF in 2001. On the other hand, restructuring also took place. Credit Suisse announced in December 2004 that it would absorb First Boston, its global investment bank, into the parent organization to revive profits. After barely four years, ING sold the largest part of its German bank BHF to Sal Oppenheim while expanding its Internet banking activities. These examples reflect the increased internationalized nature of banking competitions in three respects (Llewellyn, 1999). Customers that have global financing opportunities are able to arbitrage between domestic, foreign banks and capital markets. Banks are not restricted to business in their own country. Regulatory entry barriers have lowered, making it easier for banks to locate in other countries. In other words, many of the largest banks in the world have been struggling toward a new organizational model where terms as home market seem to become a by-product in a broader strategic vision. Swiss bank UBS, the fifth largest bank in the world measured by assets in 2000, has more than 80% of its assets outside Switzerland. Netherlands based bank ABN Amro owns a retail branch network in Brazil, 9,500 km from Amsterdam which constituted 15% of total profits in 2000. In 2003 the 30 largest banks held more than USD 7,586bn, or 39% of their assets, outside their home country. Successes in international banking are few, failures have been common. One of the more spectacular failures was the acquisition of American Crocker Bank by British Midland Bank in 1981, costing the bank USD 1bn over the next five years and forcing its strategy to retreat on the British retail banking market. Midland was acquired by Hong Kong based bank HSBC in 1992, a bank who subsequently showed that internationalization can be a profitable activity. Degree of Internationalization (DOI): The extent to which a Bank exists and operates in the international markets away from its home market can be measured by a metric called ‘Degree of Internationalization (DOI). Generally, it is measured in terms of the share of assets, revenues, profits, or employment that locates abroad. Literature Review The hypothesized positive relationship between performance and DOI goes back at least to Vernon (1971); many studies have followed. It is generally hypothesized that internationalization is good for firms and leads to better performance, for several reasons (Contractor, Kundu, and Hsu 2003; Dunning 1977, 1981). Going international implies that firms can spread fixed costs, such as operating overhead and research and development (RD) expenditures, through a greater scale and scope (Markusen 1984; Kobrin 1991). Internationalization allows firms to learn about domestic markets from their international market experience, thus improving performance (Kobrin 1991). Operating in foreign jurisdictions allows firms to access factors at lower cost (Helpmann 1984; Porter 1990; Jung 1991). This is particularly true for instances of FDI and other modes of direct involvement in foreign markets. Internationalization allows firms to cross-subsidize their domestic operations and provides greater opportunities for price discrimination and tax and price arbitrage. Although theory implies a positive relationship, the empirical evidence of the effects of DOI on performance is mixed (Hsu and Boggs 2003). For example, Sullivan (1994) lists 17 studies that test the relationship between DOI and financial performance, six of which find a positive relationship and five negative. The remaining six find no relationship. This reflects the consensus in the literature that the empirical results are highly dependent on the sample, the measures of DOI, and the measures of performance used. In addition to testing this link, the literature has moved in two distinct directions. First, to address a measurement issue, Sullivan (1994) attempts to more reliably measure the DOI of a firm by developing a novel index measure of internationalization that captures three of its attributes: Structural, Performance, and Attitudinal. As Ramaswamy, Kroeck, and Renforth (1996) show, there are several limitations to the empirical and theoretical underpinnings of Sullivans work as the DOI is measured in uni-dimensional method. There is also a growing literature focus on the shape of the relationship between DOI and performance. Contractor, Kundu, and Hsu (2003) list 15 studies that find the relationship between performance and DOI is linear: seven of the studies find a positive relationship, four a negative relationship and four no relationship. Two studies listed find a U-shaped relationship, and eight find an inverted U-shaped relationship. Contractor, Kundu, and Hsu (2003) and Lu and Beamish (2004) provide theoretical models for curvilinear relationships between DOI and performance. By analyzing data for 125 multinationals, Kim, Hwang, and Burgers (1993) document the importance of global market diversification in the joint management of risk and return. The measures of global diversification capture the number of foreign markets being operated in, as well as the pattern of a firms industries across those countries. A small literature investigates the performance of Canadian banks. DSouza and Lai (2004) estimate the effects of scope, scale, and concentration on Canadas six largest banks. They find that banks with greater concentration in their business lines are less efficient. Interestingly, for some model specifications, the effect of size on performance (as measured by return on equity) is negative. Using a different methodology, Allen and Liu (2005) estimate cost functions for Canadian banks and find that larger banks are more efficient. Neither study considers the impact of DOI on performance. Walid Hejazi and Eric Santor tried to address this DOI Performance realtionship by verifying the direction. i.e., weather DOI is driving superior performance or it is otherwise around. They also brought the risk factor of the country (in which the bank is venturing) into the equation and found that there is a weak but significant positive relationship between DOI Performance. Measuring the Degree of Internalization There are different approaches to measure a banks degree of internationalization, and estimating the degree of internationalization of a firm or bank is to some extent vague and a random process. An initial approach could be to construct a single item indicator or one-dimensional measurement as indicated above in the literature review; Sullivan (1994) reviewed 17 studies which all applied a single item indicator to measure the degree of internationalization, i.e. the ratio of foreign sales to total sales as degree of internationalization. However as indicated by many researchers and as identified in the literature review above from the work of Ramaswamy, Kroeck, and Renforth in 1996, the use of a single item indicator increases the potential error of measurement, because a single parameter is always more prone to external shocks which may or may not indicate the performance. An alternate approach is to combine several indicators into one index. Depending on the choice of indicators, this might provide a better approximation of the degree of internationalization, but the choice of indicators may be restricted on data availability rather than theoretical induction (Sullivan, 1994). We will follow the method that is most cited and adopted by the researchers in UN conference of Trade and Development. This method applies three single item indicators, which are combined in a composite index to analyze the degree of internationalization of a bank, the Transnationality Index (TNI). The TNI is one of the most cited indicators for internationalization (cf. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 1998, van Tulder, van den Berghe, Muller, 2001). The index is expressed as a percentage and calculated as an weighted average of Foreign assets to total assets ratio, Foreign gross income to total gross income ratio and Foreign employment to total employment ratio[1]. The percentage term of the TNI is that the degree of internationalization is presented in one scale, which by definition moves between 0 and 100. Also an internationalization index that incorporates income, staff and assets captures a richer picture of the banks foreign activities than that which would be captured by income, staff and assets separately (cf. Sullivan, 1994). Another attractive characteristic is that the TNI dampens the effect of finance companies or off shore funding constructions if a ratio were only based on foreign assets relative to total assets. A substantial amount of assets can obviously be expected to be located in tax havens or countries with lenient fiscal regimes. Such reported assets would be accompanied by low number of employees. Combining both employees and assets in the TNI would then create a more balanced view. The same argument also applies to investment banking activities that are concentrated in financial centers outside the home country; these ac tivities tend to generate a relatively high degree of income with fewer employees. Demonstration of Measuring DOI through TNI method There is also a flip side for this TNI. It cant take into account the recent technological changes, geographic boundaries, and we cant guarantee every bit of data to be same and uniform in all countries. Technological change: A disadvantage of the TNI might be that the construction of such an index cannot take account of the effects of technological change. Changes in technology can for example raise productivity and increase the assets or income per employee; if these changes are distributed evenly over the total bank organization then its effect on the TNI is probably limited. If the ratio of foreign assets per foreign employee increases in the same amount as the ratio of domestic assets per domestic employee, then technological change has no effect on the TNI. From the mid 1990s however technological advances have had other geographic distribution effects. For example, the development of â€Å"Internet† banks like ING Direct implies that the share of foreign assets and foreign income increases while staff and operations working for the Internet bank basically remain at home. This might potentially depress the true extent of internationalization measured by the TNI. Geographical boundaries: For Banks like Fortis, Belgian/Dutch corporate structure creates a problem to determine what region is home or foreign. This is solved in the database by denoting Benelux as home. Similarly, HSBC is the only bank that is not disclosing information for the home country, instead it is reporting Europe as ‘home region. Data availability: Not all banks have consistently reported detailed information on foreign assets, staff, income or profitability. Banks like SBC, UBS or Deutsche Bank did not report this information although they progressed significantly with their internationalization activities. A general remark is usually found in the financial report stating something like â€Å"due to the integrated nature of our activities worldwide a geographical breakdown does not provide additional information†; the information provided by British and American banks in the 1980s proves otherwise. Data collection from other sources provided valuable information. For example, foreign banks in the United States have to report their balance sheets to the Federal Reserve. Internationalization Patterns Internationalization for banks has progressed at different paces, with different purposes. Here we try to identify these internationalization patterns. As several motives are grounded in history, we start with a brief historic overview of internationalization, after that we shall discuss about various activities that the banks pursued as a part of Internationalization. Historic Overview Internationalization of banks is not a new phenomenon. In 1913 there were approximately 2,600 branches of foreign banks worldwide. The dominating factor at that time was colonization, over 80% of those branches belonged to British banks. The share of foreign banks accounted for one third of banking assets in Latin America and over one half in countries like South Africa, Turkey or China (Goldsmith, 1969). The financial empire of J.P. Morgan started out as a partnership financing American civil war loans from England (Chernow, 1990). International banking has in some respects not changed that much. Over time, innovations in financial instruments, telecommunication, information technology, organization innovation and the growing sophistication of customers have meant a dramatic transformation in the conduct of banking business and client relationships in international banking. The sheer size of international involvement of the present day internationalized banks has increased dramatically (cf. De Nicolà ³, Bartholomew, Zaman, Zephirin, 2004). Foreign assets of the thirty largest banks as a percentage of total assets have changed from 35% in 1980 to over 38% in 2003. However, the absolute size of foreign assets of the thirty largest banks has raised eleven fold from USD 650bn in 1990 to USD 7,571bn in 2000. The increasing importance of foreign activities has affected profitability and stability of internationalizing banks in their home country; it can also have serious effects positive as well as negative on the host economies. The intensity with which banks have pursued internationalization strategies also encouraged us to have a study on them. The dissolution of the British Empire meant that British banks represented the old internationalization of banking. American banks on the other hand have been on the rise since the Second World War. American financial aid, exports of American firms and the export of American ideology such as freeing of competition or creation of uniform markets were feeding ground for internationalization activities of American banks. From the 1960s onwards income in Western economies rose and banks developed more financial products to cater households and businesses as increasing scale of firms raised transaction volumes in corporate finance. American banks formed an apparent threat, seeking out the more profitable activities in investment banking in Europe, being equipped with better staff, more financial resources and more experience. The creation of off shore markets to circumvent (American) regulation and the political potential of seizure of capital belonging to communist states induced the first series of international activities, later propelled by the inflation of capital markets when oil producing countries forced serious wealth transfers. European banks either tried to work together in consortium banks to participate in these activities (Roberts Arnander, 2001) which in the beginning was a cost saving and knowledge rewarding construction or set up foreign activities themselves. Redistribution of the surpluses of oil producing countries found their way to emerging markets, with American banks leading the way. The growing volume of loans masked growing economic imbalances, brought to light from 1981 onwards when Latin American countries defaulted in their loans. Internationalization of banks became a worldwide event (United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations, 1991). Institutions like the IMF aided governments with restructuring loans, dealing with severed banks and capital markets in distress. Governments of the lender banks, especially the United States, faced potential crisis at home when the losses in emerging markets were transferred by the large banks to their home country. A consequence of this restructuring period was that in the 1980s capital strength and adequate supervision of internationally operating banks were major issues for bank regulators. A major coordination initiative took place in the Basle Accord of 1988, creating more transparency and uniformity among regulatory policies for internationally active banks. Among others, the Basle Accord became one of the drivers for the Japanese banks to retreat from the international arena. Japanese banks increased international activities sharply from the early 1980s fuelled by strong domestic economic growth, a fast pace of deregulation and large flows of foreign direct investment by Japanese industrial firms. The Japanese stock market decline from 1989 showed that (international) banking strategies had not been based on sound banking practices, affecting bank capital and loan quality at the same time (Canals, 1997). Japanese banks found ways to stave off restructuring of their bad loans for almost a decade, contributing substantially to the prolongation of economic recession, and steadily relinquishing their importance in international banking. A general trend fuelling international activities was the ongoing process of disintermediation from mid-1960: large firms found it more profitable to arrange loans directly with institutional investors, thereby bypassing the role of banks as financial intermediaries. Additionally, stricter monetary policies introduced from the late 1970s onwards eventually led to a steady decrease of interest rates consequently lowering income from the core business of banks. These trends forced banks to reconsider their strategic business portfolios. Non-interest income, especially the high margins of fees and commissions in investment banking, became a promising route. The liberalization of British securities markets in 1984 was followed by an unprecedented wave of acquisitions by host banks. By the end of the 1990s British owned investment banks or securities houses in London were few in number; London as an important financial center had become a manifest of internationalization activities of ban ks. Internationalization of banks was also a response to further regional integration and deregulation (cf. Group of Ten, 2001, January). In Europe especially, banks were aware that the competition for larger clients extended over the geographic borders, but the competition for retail clients remained a domestic issue. By the mid-1980s, European integration created momentum in Europe, redefining markets for banking activities on a multinational scale. Mergers and acquisitions became an important strategic tool for banks. They generally took place in two phases: domestic consolidation and then, international expansion; the creation of higher domestic concentration in order to more effectively compete internationally. Opportunity was provided by the capital markets (lower interest rates and higher stock market prices) and the regulators, privatizing banks or not opposing the takeovers. The close of the decade shows the financial might of just a handful of banks: the top 25 banks in 1980 ha d total assets of USD 1,858bn, equal to 30% of GDP. In 2000 this had risen to 64% of GDP, a combined total of USD 12,781bn. Of this amount, 41% are assets outside the home country. In fact, foreign banks practically control the banking sectors in many Eastern European countries; for some observers the â€Å"Single global banking space is almost a reality† (Mullineux Murinde, 2003). The foreign owned assets of the largest banks exhibit uneven geographic patterns, â€Å"Regions and/or countries of the developed world currently represent the most interconnected cluster of national banking systems† (De Nicolà ³, Bartholomew, Zaman, Zephirin, 2004). Internationalization pattern of Banks Starting in the 1970s, bank internationalization originally consisted of setting up banking activities in financial centers and economic centers. Part of this was related to incentives such as â€Å"follow-the-client† or aimed at increasing overall profitability. Additionally, restructuring and expansion in the domestic markets might have been cumbersome for some and impossible for other banks, further stimulating internationalization. Regulatory idiosyncrasies in the home market might be one explanation for this, but also the existence of a home bias ‘inertia: restructuring the domestic retail networks in the early 1980s might have been more difficult with vested interests in the home country such as labor unions. In particular, banks in smaller countries had to expand abroad for fear of anti-trust regulation at home. For most banks during the 1980s, international expansion supported their domestic strategies and was relatively small compared to the home country. So banks did not have to attract additional capital. When banks initiated larger acquisitions in the late 1980s and 1990s, external capital became more important as a source of financing. (Domestic and foreign) shareholders not only provided additional capital to expand. They also followed management more closely, and pressed for changes when expected results were not delivered. An increasing shareholder role and foreign profitability that was below expectations, led bank managers to change objectives in the mid 1990s: profitability should be internally generated, the domestic base strengthened and foreign activities divested if they did not contribute satisfactorily to total profitability. Banks can offer in principle five product categories: credit, securities, asset management, financial services and insurance. Also, five client types can be distinguished that banks can target: Governmental clients (nation states, supra national institutions), Corporate clients, Institutional clients (other banks, asset managers and insurers), Retail clients and Private clients. The case studies show that banks which entered new market activities actively serviced and targeted a wide range of clients and products. Two specific patterns have been identified: Ø Capital market activities, and Ø Foreign retail banking Capital Market Activities For capital market activities banks offer credit, securities, asset management, and financial advice to governmental, institutional and corporate clients. The majority of the banks had set up such operations by 1980: they participated in the Euromarkets, issued bonds to finance their own activities, and took advantage of the financial deregulation in the financial centers. Expanding capital market activities was spurred in the mid-1980s with the financial liberalization in the United Kingdom, and in the mid-1990s with the prospect of restructuring in the European Union. For several banks, the decision to participate in the capital markets heavily influenced their overall strategy. Paribas and J.P. Morgan decreased their commercial banking activities and transformed themselves into investment banks. Both banks however did not have the scale by the end of the 1990s to remain a major market participant in investment banking and sustain the increasing IT investments: J.P. Morgan was subsequently acquired by Chase Manhattan in 2000 and Paribas by BNP in 1998. Most of the acquisitions of UBS, SBC, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank in the 1990s were capital market related, steadily increasing their reliance on fee income instead of net interest income. The composition of the fee income changed: more lucrative (but volatile) fee income from financial advice and securities re-distributions on mergers and acquisitions was combined with more stable income from asset management activities. Period 1970s 1980s 1990s Reason Growth Eurocurrency markets (London, Paris, Zurich) Financial liberalization of American stock market Financial liberalization European capital markets (London, Paris, Amsterdam) Financial liberalization of Japanese capital markets Catch up new entrants to profit from current bull market, consolidation existing players Example Chase, Citicorp Deutsche Bank, ABN Amro, Societe Generale Credit suisse, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Table 2: Development of Capital Market Activities Retail Banking International retail banking has been the domain of a selected number of banks. Chase and Citicorp set out to expand a retail network in Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom in the 1950s and 1960s. European banks in the 1970s and 1980s on the other hand did not expand in retail banking in Europe, but expanded in the United States, especially in California where British and Japanese banks bought retail banks helped by lenient regulation. For most Californian banks, their sale was either instigated by regulation (banks that cannot be bought by domestic competitors due to an increase in market share or banks that need outside capital) or poor performance. By the early 1990s a large number of banks exited from the United States market: they found it difficult to transform these banking operations into profitable ones, and their exit was speeded by the deregulation of interstate banking (cf. Tschoegl, 1987). The general expectation was that this would raise the minimum scale of operations to compete effectively, requiring large amounts of additional investments. Banks that remained were for example HSBC and ABN Amro. Eight foreign banks, including all of the British banks, held retail networks in the United States in the early 1980s; by the late 1980s five had opted out. For European banks, the growth of foreign commercial bank networks took place from the mid-1980s. A limited number of banks (HSBC, ABN and Citicorp) have maintained these foreign networks throughout the period. From the 1990s, the following banks pursued retail banking strategies: Ø Santander in Argentina, Mexico, Chile Ø BBVA in Argentina, Chile, Mexico Ø ABN Amro in Brazil and the United States Ø ING in Belgium Ø HSBC in Mexico, Brazil, the United States/Canada and Hong Kong Ø Citibank in Germany Two groups of banks did not enter foreign retail banking, or only to a limited extent: Swiss banks and Japanese banks. Swiss banks had retail banking activities in their domestic market, but not outside Switzerland. Switzerland was a major financial center and as an economy ran a capital surplus; an explanation might be that setting up foreign capital market activities was a more logical foreign extension of activities then setting up or acquiring foreign retail banks. Japanese banks also entered foreign retail banking to a limited extent. Their activities were mainly concentrated in California, where the banks initially had some links with Japanese immigrants. More important, lenient regulators allowed takeover of Californian banks by foreign competitors. The existence of an opportunity set the ability to buy compared to other more regulated banking markets has probably been the main incentive. Organizational form Banks which decided to enter new markets or to strengthen their market position have had a wide range of options available to them as to how they could proceed in implementing their foreign banking activities. Looking back at activities, there has been a strong rise in the number of each of the approaches used. Three specific developments in organizational form have been identified: Branch Networks Alliances and Joint Ventures Internet Banks Branch Network In general, the objective to build a branch network has been to assist foreign clients, finance activities more cheaply or to evade home country regulation. Activities in financial centers were set up, usually starting with London, New York and Singapore or Hong Kong. This was then expanded to second tier financial centers and economic centers in Europe, the United States, Asia and Latin America. Period 1970s 1980s 1990s Incentive Break down consortium Trade relates service existing clients Increase in trade and exports Liberalization of Capital markets Open up markets (Spain) Growth in Asian Capital Markets Opening of Eastern European markets Increase volume of securities market Example Citicorp, Bank of America, Lloyds, Barclays, ABN Amro, NMB, WestLB Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank Table 3: Development of Branch Networks Alliances and Consortium banks Consortium banks were mainly a feature of the late 1960s and 1970s. With these joint ventures, banks tried to create a platform to service foreign clients and undertake corporate finance activities, while sharing the costs of building such an activity independently. In the beginning of the 1980s, there were a number of banks who relied on the consortium banks to provide an alternative for a foreign branch network. These were Amro and Midland. Subsequently, a number of banks built their foreign networks by buying out the other shareholders in the consortium banks. During these alliances banks probably also acquired detailed information of the partner banks. This could be concluded from the observation that ING unsuccessfully acquired former InterAlpha partners from the mid-1990s for its expansion in Europe. From the 1990s, alliances between banks either had to develop specific skills neither bank could achieve alone, or serve as a defensive move in wake of expected restructuring in the European banking market. This usually was accompanied by share exchanges. Alliances to acquire or share specific skills Alliances to ensure future market position Ø Royal Bank of Scotland Santandar (1990) Ø BNP Dresdner (1988-2000) Ø Socià ©tà © Gà ©nà ©rale — BSCH (2000) Ø BBVA UniCredi

Racism and Discrimination in America Essay -- Racism in the United Sta

While browsing through articles on the internet, I came across many related to the topic of racism. I am beginning to feel as if I am surrounded by stories of racism. From the KKK’s aggressive campaign against immigrants, to the police violence against black people in cites throughout our nation, racism and discrimination continue to be problems. One story stood out to me and continues to make me uncomfortable. Malachi Wilson, a five year-old boy, could not attend his first day of kindergarten in Seminole, Texas. What could he have done to warrant the principal’s rejection? His hair was simply too long. Navajo on his father’s side and Kiowa on his mother’s side, Malachi grows his hair for religious beliefs, as his mother explains that, â€Å"Native Americans consider hair sacred and spiritual† (Rickert). After Malachi’s mother, April Wilson explained this to Sherrie Warren, principal of F.J. Elementary School, Warren proceeded to request proof that Malachi was American Indian. While Wilson told Warren that her child was a member of the Navajo tribe, Warren did not budge. In response, April Wilson â€Å"called the Navajo Nation to assist in the documentation process,† and she also â€Å"called a member of the American Indian Movement, who called the school district’s superintendent† (Rickert). Later that day, Wilson received a call from the school assuring her that Malachi could attend school if she signs a form explaining why he wears his hair long, and thankfully, Malachi has since joined his peers in his kindergarten class. From this story, three main concepts stand out to me: ignorance and disrespect of others’ values, proving your identity, and the impact of discrimination. While the situation has been resolved, the fact that this e... ...es. As a Christian, I know that Native people are not the only people to have considered hair to be sacred. Just look at Samson in Judges 16:17: â€Å"‘No razor has ever been used on my head,’ he said, ‘because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.’†. Something as seemingly simple as hair can be much more complex when we take the time to think about another person’s perspective, history, values, culture, and feelings. The interaction in Seminole, Texas wasn’t just about a haircut. Work Cited Rickert, Levi. (August 27, 2014). Five-year-old Navajo Boy Denied Admission on First Day of School Because His Hair is Too Long. Retrieved from http://nativenewsonline.net/currents/five-year-old-navajo-boy-denied-admission-first-day-school-hair-long/.