Microfinance Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Microfinance - Dissertation Example The foremost significance of microfinance institutions lies in their pro-poor feature Most of the developing nations are characterised by a majority of the population dwelling in poverty-stricken rural areas. Hence, microfinance institutions help to bail them out of dire situations arising out of low investment potentials and opportunities mirrored through a poor economic growth rate. Secondly, the fragile financial systems of developing economies are too poor to confront the risk of lending out to the rural poor; rather, they tend to advance their services to the more organised or formalised sector. Hence, investment lending is indeed negligible for the rural areas in developing economies. Lastly, the rural poor in developing economies often are discouraged to avail lending options in commercial banks, where they need to deposit collateral while taking credit unlike in microfinance institutions, where they are allowed to accept loans collectively that does not expose any single indi vidual to huge liability stakes. In addition to alleviating poverty, reducing inequality of income and generating employment, microfinance institutions also help to boost up economic growths through increased production and reduced dependence on externally produced items (Woller & Parsons, 2008). The situation in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia could be distinguished exclusively as an oil-producing giant that draws almost all of its income from exporting the fuel around the world. However, the rise in economic growth rates has been recorded as 1.25 percent between 1981 and 2000 in contrast to a fall of 2.5 percent in GDP per capita, implying a rising inequality in the distribution of income (Raphaeli, 2003, p. 1). The nation is also characterised by an extremely skewed tax structures favourable mostly for the richer section, while the same cannot be said for the poorer population who derive their incomes out of primary activities such as farming or fishery. The modestly developed financia l sector of Saudi Arabia cannot is quite unfavourable for the rural poor who have to strive hard for loans. Furthermore, the national government exhibits little effort in development of infrastructure in these regions (Islamic Development Bank, 2010, p. 3). These loans could prove to be foundations for setting up of small scale industries conducive for the economic growth and employment generation in the nation. In addition, microfinance institutions could also bail

Is Apple Entry Into The Mobile Telephone Sector Marketing Essay

Is Apple Entry Into The Mobile Telephone Sector Marketing Essay According to Michael Porter (1979), industry is being influenced by five forces. The strategic business manager planning to develop an advantage over rival firms can use this model to better understand the industry plans in which the firm operates. Since iPhone is only offered by single networks such as O2 in UK and ATT in US, customers of other networks will have to wait until their contract expires, or pay an early cancellation fee (typically $200). The average duration of a cell phone contract is 2 years, which means that 25% of consumers plans will expire in the next 6 months. Since a $200 switching fee makes the iPhone very expensive. Apple introduced the device at high price for early adopters to earn abnormal profits and it slashed down iPhone price by 50% for rest of market segment. For Reference, In US When it reduce the price from $599.99 to $399.99 consumer were force to deal with the mobile carrier AT T mobility, in service package ranging from $59.99 to 99.99 per month. But in UK, low amount of inclusive minutes was not competitive. For reference, O2s iPhone deal allowed 200 inclusive minutes for pound 35 versus competitors that offers of 750 minutes in addition to a free phone. Apple reduces its prices or introduces new models for price-sensitive consumers, and its sales could expand considerably. Barriers to Entry/ Threat of New Entrants Ultimately the iPhone is going to face the most competition from imitators who can sell a similar or comparable device at a lower price. Most of these threats are going to come from established players in the cell phone industry (such as LG and Samsung) rather than companies trying to enter the cell phone market. Software companies such as Google and Microsoft may pose a credible threat at entering the cell phone market. Apple not only had to face a number of barriers to entry in the development of the iPhone but they must also worry about potential competitors (Google, Microsoft) overcoming them as well. Economies of Scale Apple already had pre-existing experience in manufacturing mass-market consumer electronics devices, many of which share components of the iPhone; so Apple was not adversely affected by this barrier. New entrants, however, may not have that luxury and the cell phone market is almost defined by its mass-market (which requires mass production and consumption) nature. Product Differentiation The iPhone is significantly different than its competitors product. Apple also has a certain amount of protection through the strength of its brand identity. iPhone launch was extremely different technology from other mobile companies. But to keep product differentiation consistent in long run would be challenge for Apple. Capital Requirements Apple enjoys a slight advantage here, though its an advantage that may be quickly lost. The other cell phone manufacturers have a lot of experience making cell phones, but not necessarily software. So, to most effectively compete with the iPhone they will need to invest significantly in certain areas. And Apple also has a lot of experience making hardware and software, which gives them an advantage to some extent over their competitors. In this sense, Apple itself did not face much problem with this barrier because of their experience creating both software and hardware. Future competitors looking to enter the cell phone market are less likely to have that advantage. Distribution Channels The iPhone will be only available at Apple and single network stores and it is only supported by the Single network such as o2 in UK. They are not able to sell iPhone in cell phone market and also they are making it difficult for people to even purchase the phone. A future entrant into the market may be able to make their product available for multiple carriers and multiple retailers. For instance, iPhone was available through 1300 Apple, O2 and Carphone warehouses shops in UK. Supplier Power The iPhone software that brings all features together and allows the user to interact with the phone in a compelling way. And Apple, of course, developed and owns the software. A producing industry requires raw materials labour, components, and other supplies. This requirement leads to buyer-supplier relationships between the industry and the firms that provide it the raw materials used to create products. Suppliers, if powerful, can exert an influence on the producing industry, such as selling raw materials at a high price to capture some of the industrys profits. But in case of Apple, The Software, Hardware, component is developed and owned by Apple itself. Hence, they have less threat from powerful suppliers. Buyer Power Here you ask yourself how easy it is for buyers to drive prices down. Again, this is driven by the number of buyers, the importance of each individual buyer to your business, the cost to them of switching from your products and services to those of someone else, and so on. Although the iPhones functionality would be attractive to business users, its price is considerably higher than that of Blackberries .This makes enterprise purchases unlikely, since businesses are typically price sensitive. However, the iPhones compelling mix of features makes it attractive to a broad set of cell-phone consumers. The iPhones market is limited by two factors: 1) the high price ($499 for 4 GB) and 2) Apples exclusive US carrier agreement with Cingular (For example AT T, O2).In case of Apple the buyers of the iPhone are somewhat more powerful. Given the relatively high price of the iPhone it remains to be seen whether consumers will pay a high price for Apple iPhone features when their needs may be equally met by cheaper alternatives. Threat of Substitutes A threat from substitutes exists if there are alternative products with lower prices of better performance parameters for the same purpose. The iPhone mainly distinguishes itself from competitors over its softwares and hardwares which are driven by a multi-touch screen. Apple claims various patents relating to this technology. However, it is still likely that other players in the market will soon be able to deliver similar products. Synaptics and LG have already disclosed details of coming products which feature touch-screen interfaces, as well. Software companies such as Google and Microsoft may pose a credible threat at entering the cell phone market. Evaluation Being aware of huge competition in mobile phone market, I decided to use porters five forces model to do analysis and based on analysis, I found that there is tough competition for mobile operators who act as both substitutes and new entrant. In the next 3-5 year if we see the industry would be more competitive than today. So many firms will be competing in the market and new firms will be try to come in the market for taking the advantage of profitability, which would reduce the profit of the firms. Consumer will have more choice because of substitution, and they can force the companies to reduce the prices of their product. And the supplier will have the power to raise the price of the raw material because of the high demand on the same time. Word Count: 1,109 words

Anthony Whiteside :: Business and Management Studies

Human resources The human resources are expected to look around and see what jobs need to be done, make sure the company is being advertised and they also deal with applications. They also choose who would be the best to employ by setting tasks for the employees. They make sure that all the staffs have got the appropriate training needed for the job. They talk to employees about wages and the employees have to agree. They make sure the staffs understand what they have to do and encourage them to work harder. Finance The finance area watches how much money goes out and how much money comes in they make sure the company don’t over spend * The finance area is responsible for all the financial documents and the amount spent they also have to understand how the documents work and were they go. * What ever the finance area say the company have to trust them and do what they say. * They have got the task to pay the wages of the staff and making sure there is enough money to pay them. * The finance area is in charge of the loans and bank amount if a firm has borrowed money of the bank to start up a business it would be their job to make sure that it got paid when ever it needs to be paid and their job is to make sure the company doesn’t go into bankruptcy. * The finance area will inform the business when they are spending more money than their making so the firm would close. Operations/production The operations department needs inputs which are then processed to produce an output, this is a product. The overall function of this department is to over see and organise the whole production process. The production department will make decisions including * They decide what materials will be needed. * Where to get the raw materials from and how they are transported. * They decide the amount off raw materials needed. * They also decide how the materials are delivered. * They decide what new equipment will be needed. * How many workers will be needed to carry out the program. * What skills the workers will need. * They are in charge of how the production will be carried out. * How the product will be packaged. * How many products will be produced and how long it should take. Anthony Whiteside Customer service A business will not be able to run if they don’t have customers to buy

Organizational Citizenship Behavior

What is organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)? Describe in your own way. Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) is behavior that goes beyond the basic requirements of the job, is to a large extent   left to one's own discretion, and is largely beneficial to the organization. OCB comes about as a result of job satisfaction. As employees that are highly satisfied with their jobs are more likely to think that they are being treated fairly , therefore trust in the organization and their employer is likely to arise . This then leads employee's to be more willing in helping out during extra hours voluntarily, volunteering for extra job activities, avoiding unnecessary conflict etc†¦ This is OCB. How is OCB different from normal working behavior? OCB is different from normal working behavior in the sense that the â€Å"employee goes out of his normal working behavior to get involved† (Allen, T. D. , 2006 ) into helping others and go beyond the normal expectations of their jobs. As a normal working behavior would be doing the tasks being asked of you and forced upon you as it is in your job description, but OCB differs from normal working behavior as â€Å"OCBs are employee behaviors that, although not critical to the task or job, serve to facilitate organizational functioning† (Lee and Allen, 2002, p 132). If you are a manager, how do you motivate your subordinates to exhibit more OCBs? Use the theories you have learned from different chapters. Firstly I would like to emphasize the importance of OCB to managers and the organization as a whole as successful organizations need employees who will do more than their usual job duties and provide performance that is beyond expectations and as I have mentioned before OCB describe actions in which employees are willing to go above and beyond their prescribed role requirements. Therefore reiterating the belief that these behaviors are correlated with indicators of organizational effectiveness, therefore showing us that OCB's are crucial for managers. Now, how to motivate subordinates to exhibit more OCB's, using Herzberg's two-factor theory that suggests that motivation factors (which include achievement, recognition, responsibility, growth, and work itself) are strongly related to job satisfaction. I can then say that if I was a manager I would have to make the jobs of my employees challenging, exciting , interesting and satisfying as employees who find their jobs to be such things, â€Å"tend to tolerate demanding supervision, avoid complaining, focus more on positive sides, and forgive organization’s minor faults. These kinds of behaviors are typically related to OCB. † (Herzberg et al. ’s 1959) Since hygiene factors are related to an individual’s job dissatisfaction, one can expect that hygiene factors may also influence an individual’s OCB. Therefore as a manager I would focus on placing hygiene factors such as job security, fringe benefits, and good work conditions so that dissatisfaction from the lack of these factors doesn't occur and OCB is therefore encouraged. Allen, T. D. (2006). Rewarding good citizens: The relationship between   citizenship behavior, gender, and organizational rewards. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 36, 120-143. Lee, K. , & Allen, N. J. (2002). Organizational citizenship behavior and workplace deviance: The role of affect and cognitions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(1), 131-142. Herzberg, F. , Mausner, B. , & Snyderman, B. (1959). The motivation to work. New York: Wiley.

Bless you

These questions will help us to formulate the objectives and hypothesis of the study: Statement of the Problem The Authors statement of the problem are: How do the Filipinos show their devotion to the Santos Ino? What are the different tittles given to the Santos NIH in the country? What are the traditions of the Filipinos to honor the Santos Infix? How did the devotion spread rapidly n the country?Objectives Of the Study The Authors objectives are: To know how the Filipinos show their love and devotion to the Santos NIH To develop their thoughts about the devotion of the Filipinos how they show their love to the Santos NIH To know the different traditions to honor the Santos NIH in the country To know the different tittles of the Santos NIH in the country. Scope and Limitations This study was conducted at Lice De Lily in the High School Department only. It started on June 2014. It drew up 80 respondents from the given Department. Importance of the StudyThe importance of this study i s the Filipinos' faith to the Child Jesus. It aims to study the traditions, festivals, rituals, different tittles of the Santos NIH and many others. Hypothesis Advantages Know more about the traditions in the Philippines In honor of the Santos NIH Know how much the Filipinos show their love and devotion to the Santos NIH How the Filipinos dress the images of the Child Jesus Disadvantages The wrong dressing of the Santos NIH into other characters.