Reproductive Health Bill Essay

* House Bill # 4244 ─ An Act Providing for a Comprehensive Policy on Responsible Parenthood, Reproductive Health, and Population and Development, and For Other Purposes * Senate Bill # 2378 ─ An Act Providing For a National Policy on Reproductive Health and Population and Development While there is general agreement about its provisions on maternal and child health, there is great debate on its key proposal that the Philippine government and the private sector will fund and undertake widespread distribution of family planning devices such ascondoms, birth control pills (BCPs) and IUDs, as the government continues to disseminate information on their use through all health care centers. On October 2012, a revised version of the same bill was presently re-named to Responsible Parenthood Act and was filed in theHouse of Representatives as a result of re-introducing the bill under a different impression after overwhelming opposition in the country, especially from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines[2][3]. The bill is highly divisive, with experts, academics, religious institutions, and major political figures supporting and opposing it, often criticizing the government and each other in the process. Debates and rallies proposing and opposing the bills, with tens of thousands of opposition particularly those endorsed by the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church and various other conservative groups, have been happening nationwide. Bill content [edit]Sections Philippine Population Density Map. Darker areas mean more population. The basic content of the Consolidated Reproductive Health Bill is divided into the following sections. 1. Title 2. Declaration of Policy 3. Guiding Principles 4. Definition of Terms 5. Midwives for Skilled Attendance 6. Emergency Obstetric Care 7. Access to Family Planning 8. Maternal and Newborn Health Care in Crisis Situations 9. Maternal Death Review 10. Family Planning Supplies as Essential Medicines 11. Procurement and Distribution of Family Planning Supplies 12. Integration of Family Planning and Responsible Parenthood Component in Anti-Poverty Programs 13. Roles of Local Government in Family Planning Programs 14. Benefits for Serious and Life-Threatening Reproductive Health Conditions 15. Mobile Health Care Service 16. Mandatory Age-Appropriate Reproductive Health and Sexuality Education 17. Additional Duty of the Local Population Officer 18. Certificate of Compliance 19. Capability Building of Barangay Health Workers 20. Ideal Family Size 21. Employers’ Responsibilities 22. Pro Bono Services for Indigent Women 23. Sexual And Reproductive Health Programs For Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) 24. Right to Reproductive Health Care Information 25. Implementing Mechanisms 26. Reporting Requirements 27. Congressional Oversight Committee 28. Prohibited Acts 29. Penalties 30. Appropriations 31. Implementing Rules and Regulations 32. Separability Clause 33. Repealing Clause 34. Effectivity Summary of major provisions The bill mandates the government to â€Å"promote, without bias, all effective natural and modern methods of family planning that are medically safe and legal.†[12] Although abortion is recognized as illegal and punishable by law, the bill states that â€Å"the government shall ensure that all women needing care for post-abortion complications shall be treated and counseled in a humane, non-judgmental and compassionate manner.†[12] The bill calls for a â€Å"multi-dimensional approach† integrates a component of family planning and responsible parenthood into all government anti-poverty programs.[12] Under the bill, age-appropriate reproductive health and sexuality education is required from grade five to fourth year high school using â€Å"life-skills and other approaches.†[12] The bill also mandates the Department of Labor and Employment to guarantee the reproductive health rights of its female employees. Companies with less than 200 workers are required to enter into partnership with health care providers in their area for the delivery of reproductive health services.[12] Employers with more than 200 employees shall provide reproductive health services to all employees in their own respective health facilities. Those with less than 200 workers shall enter into partnerships with health professionals for the delivery of reproductive health services. Employers shall inform employees of the availability of family planning services. They are also obliged to monitor pregnant working employees among their workforce and ensure they are provided paid half-day prenatal medical leaves for each month of the pregnancy period that they are employed.[12] The national government and local governments will ensure the availability of reproductive health care services, including family planning and prenatal care.[12] Any person or public official who prohibits or restricts the delivery of legal and medically safe reproductive health care services will be meted penalty by imprisonment or a fine.—————- Maternal health and deaths Birthing services are key to solving maternal deaths Maternal deaths in the Philippines, according to the WHO, is at 5.7 per day,[50] not 10-11 deaths a day, as per the proponents who repeated these numbers â€Å"to drive home the point.†[51][52] The proponents state that RH will mean: (1) Information and access to natural and modern family planning (2) Maternal, infant and child health and nutrition (3) Promotion of breast feeding (4) Prevention of abortion and management of post-abortion complications (5) Adolescent and youth health (6) Prevention and management of reproductive tract infections, HIV/AIDS and STDs (7) Elimination of violence against women (8) Counseling on sexuality and sexual and reproductive health (9) Treatment of breast and reproductive tract cancers (10) Male involvement and participation in RH; (11) Prevention and treatment of infertility and (12) RH education for the youth.[citation needed] The Department of Health states that family planning can reduce maternal mortality by about 32 percent.[17] The bill is â€Å"meant to prevent maternal deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth,† said Clara Padilla of Engender Rights. She reported that â€Å"Daily, there are 11 women dying while giving birth in the Philippines. These preventable deaths could have been avoided if more Filipino women have access to reproductive health information and healthcare.†[citation needed] Regarding these figures, Francisco Tatad of the International Right to Life Federation and former Senator wrote that â€Å"If correct, experience has shown (as in Gattaran, Cagayan and Sorsogon, Sorsogon) that the incidence of maternal death arising from such complications could be fully mitigated and brought down to zero simply by providing adequate basic and emergency obstetrics care and skilled medical personnel and services,† without any need for a law on the distribution of contraceptives.[11] The key to solving maternal deaths, according to the Senate Policy Brief on reproductive health, is the establishment of birthing centers.[7] The Philippine Medical Association or PMA stated in their Position Paper that the goal of reducing the rise of maternal and child deaths â€Å"could be attained by improving maternal and child health care without the necessity of distributing contraceptives. The millions of funds intended for the contraceptive devices may just well be applied in improving the skills of our health workers in reducing maternal and child mortality in the Philippines.†[53] Magna Carta for Women of 2009 There have been comparisons made with the 2009 Law called the Magna Carta for Women and the RH Bill. The Magna Carta for Women contains the following provisions in Section 17 and 19:[54][55] * Prenatal and postnatal care * Information regarding all types of family planning methods * Access to family planning methods as long as they are ethically and medically safe * Sex education * Obstetric and gynecological care regarding pregnancy complications and the prevention of AIDS, HIV, STD, and the like * Spouses have the right to decide to space their children The Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Magna Carta directs the Commission on Women under the Office of the President to oversee that the provisions are implemented by the Department of Health, the Department of Local Governments, the Commission of Human Rights, the Department of Education, Department of Social Welfare, Department of Labor, the Commission on High Education. In the IRR, it also states that in order for the law to be successful, the government should tie up with all LGUs so that midwives, doctors, birthing facilities should be put in place to take care of the health needs of all to ensure that we minimize maternal and child deaths. Because of these provisions, Senator Majority Floor Leader Tito Sotto said that the RH Bill is redundant. Family planning Catholic Church: A large family is a sign of God’s blessings (CCC2373) The Catholic Church teaches the necessity of responsible parenthood and correct family planning (one child at a time depending on one’s circumstances), while at the same time teaching that Every birth is a gift from God; every new life, a blessing.[57] The RH bill intends to help couples to have government funded access to artificial contraception methods as well.[citation needed] Access One of the main concerns of the proponents is the perceived lack of access to family planning devices such as contraceptives and sterilization. The bill intends to provide universal access through government funding, complementing thus private sector initiatives for family planning services, such as those offered by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) which supports the Family Planning Organizations of the Philippines and the 97 organizations of the Philippine NGO Council.[citation needed] The opposition argues that â€Å"Access to contraceptives is free and unrestricted† and that the proposed law is pushing an open door.[11] They say that these family planning items are available to the citizens and many local government units and NGOs provide these for free. Congressman Teddyboy Locsin argued, echoed by a Business Mirror editorial, that the poor can afford condoms since they can pay for other items such as cellphone load. Opponents also argue that Philippine government is not a welfare state, and taxpayers are not bound to provide for all the wants and desires of its citizenry, including their vanity needs, promiscuous actions and needs artificially created by elitist, imperialist and eugenicist forces; nor should taxpayers pay for drugs that are objectively dangerous (carcinogenic) and immoral. They argue that the Philippines should give priority to providing access to medicines that treat real diseases.[11][23] Birth control pill The UP School of Economics argues, in contrast, that there is lack of access especially for poor people, because contraceptive use is extremely low among them and â€Å"Among the poorest families, 22% of married women of reproductive age express a desire to avoid pregnancies but are still not using any family planning method.†[13] They say that lack of access leads to a number of serious problems which demand attention: (1) â€Å"too many and too closely-spaced children raises the risk of illness and premature deaths (for mother and child alike),† (2) â€Å"the health risks associated with mistimed and unwanted pregnancies are higher for adolescent mothers, as they are more likely to have complications during labor,† (3) women who have mistimed pregnancies are â€Å"constrained to rely more on public education and health services and other publicly provided goods and services,† further complicating limited public resources, (4) families are not able to ach ieve their desired family size. Thus the UP economists â€Å"strongly and unequivocally support† the thrust of the bill to enable â€Å"couples and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children and to have the information and means to carry out their decisions.†[13] Proponents argue that government-funded access is the key to breaking the inter-generational poverty that many people are trapped in. Abortion Abortifacient issue According to the RH bill, one of its components is â€Å"prevention of abortion and management of post-abortion complications.† It provides that â€Å"the government shall ensure that all women needing care for post-abortion complications shall be treated and counseled in a humane, non-judgmental and compassionate manner.† It also states that â€Å"abortion remains a crime and is punishable,† as the Constitution declares that â€Å"the State shall equally protect the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception.†[66] Opposing the bill, the Faculty of Medicine of the catholic University of Santo Tomas, the Philippine Nurses Association (with at least 368,589 members), the Bioethics Society of the Philippines, Catholic Physicians’ Guild of the Philippines stated that â€Å"the antiabortion stance of the bill is contradicted by the promotion of contraceptive agents (IUD and hormonal contraceptives) which actually act after fertilizati on and are potentially abortifacient agents.†[67] Opposition refers to a 2000 study of a scientific journal of the American Medical Association, in which a meta-analysis of 94 studies provides evidence that when a common birth control pill fails to prevent ovulation, â€Å"postfertilization effects are operative to prevent clinically recognized pregnancy.†[24] They also point to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (2005), which concluded that the IUD brings about the â€Å"destruction of the early embryo,†[25] thus is deemed to kill five-day old babies.[68] The position of the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) â€Å"is founded strongly on the principle that ‘life or conception begins at fertilization’ at that moment where there is fusion or union of the sperm and the egg and thus a human person or human being already does exist at the moment of fertilization.† The PMA condemns abortifacients that â€Å"destroys the fertilized egg or the embryo† and â€Å"abhors any procedure †¦ or medication that will interrupt any stage of fertilization and prevents its normal, physiological, uninterrupted growth to adulthood†.[53] Jo Imbong, founder of the Abay Pamilya Foundation, reported that â€Å"Lagman said in a House hearing that the bill would protect human life ‘from implantation,'†[69] and not from fertilization, noting at the same time that the Records of the Constitutional Commission state that â€Å"Human life begins at fertilization.†[69][70] After referring to many standard textbooks of medicine and human embryology to affirm this as true,[71] the anti-RH bill citizens argue that the human embryo already has the complete genetic code and is thus a distinct human life beginning its own new life cycle. They say that the embryo is an individual, self-coordinated and self-organizing subject belonging to th e species homo sapiens: a human being by nature and thus a person equally worthy of respect.[26] 5-day old human embryo called a blastocyst, which comprises 70–100 cells. [edit]Contraception and abortion relationship Proponents argue that research by the Guttmacher Institute, involved in advancing international reproductive health, reveals that the use of contraceptives can reduce abortion rates by 85%. Proponents such as 14 Ateneo de Manila University professors, argued thus: â€Å"Studies show that the majority of women who go for an abortion are married or in a consensual union (91%), the mother of three or more children (57%), and poor (68%) (Juarez, Cabigon, and Singh 2005). For these women, terminating a pregnancy is an anguished choice they make in the face of severe constraints. When women who had attempted an abortion were asked their reasons for doing so, their top three responses were: they could not afford the economic cost of raising another child (72%); their pregnancy occurred too soon after the last one (57%); and they already have enough children (54%). One in ten women (13%) who had attempted an abortion revealed that this was because her pregnancy resulted from forced sex (ibi d.).

Tesco’s Ways of Cutting Cost

Based on your observations from the visit to Tesco, identify how Tesco controls its operating costs Making a profit is usually the primary aim of running any business, and although this is normally achieved by increasing sales, it can also be enhanced through the careful control of costs. A business that keeps costs under control will be able to release more resources for growth and be better placed to survive in a downturn or recession. A structured and ongoing approach to cost control is an essential part of any well-managed business. Finding ways to reduce operating costs is typically a priority for Tesco. On our visit to Tesco we observed that Tesco can control its operating costs by reducing the number of staff especially the cleaners who tend to be idle at times. Few cleaners will increase efficiency and reduce the labour costs. The reduction of specific fixed and variable expenses can improve the profit picture of Tesco for example in the electric gadgets side there any more than three televisions on sale of the same type switched on, it will be best to switch of the other two televisions since there are of the same type to cut cost on electricity since electricity is charged based on consumption. Tesco can reduce costs without cutting specific expenses. for example electricity costs, by switching off some of the lights in the shop, this can increase the average income per sale, per customer, per cost centre. Tesco has plenty ways to cut costs without drastically affecting the success of the business. This includes producing Tesco branded products for example Tesco cooking oil, mineral water, Tesco value toilet rolls. Making its own products has proven to be cheaper than buying from other producers. Tesco reduces operating costs by offering special discount for goods and products which are about to expire, the special discounts are there to promote sales and to get read of the products that are about to expire at the same time getting something out of the products which were about to be valueless. Tesco has also managed to reduce its costs by using cheap material on its shelves. Some its shelves are made of wood and light material which is a good thing to reduce costs. The shelves are also have wheels for flexibility, they can be moved to create space especially those shelves which are empty. Its air conditioners were also made of cheap material to reduce cost. Tesco practises bulk selling for instance cooling oil was being sold in bulk. This creates space and also reduces unnecessary stocking of goods thereby increasing stock holding costs. Bulk selling helps to reduce packaging costs. They also have their own bakery which means they do not depend on delivery from suppliers or ordering from other suppliers. This is a good thing in that they only bake according to demand at that period, hence it reduces wastage. This reduces wastage of resources because resources are being fully utilised. The use of cameras as their security system is a good thing because it reduces the number of workers to be recruited as security hence saving cost. Tesco is using energy efficient bulbs to achieve low operating costs, incorporating energy-efficient lighting and cleaner ways to operate into the business and it has no empty refrigerators, this is to reduces space and the electricity costs. Tesco will probably see a reduction in total energy consumption and be supporting a greener planet. Tesco maintains proper stocking levels of the items that they actually sell, this way they can reduce overhead in the form of excess inventory, or inappropriate inventory, whether it's out of season or simply overstocked for the season. This is a no-brainer and will reduce the bottom line operating costs in the business, making everything else they do more profitable. Keeping inventory lean and efficient allows Tesco to be flexible. They can use that extra cash flow to invest in new and innovative products, or the latest styles, positioning there store as a trend leader, rather than a commodities broker. A careful eye on inventory levels allows Tesco to understand the ebb and flow of their business as it relates to overhead, sales trends, and other expenses . This mastery will help it to control cash flows and make them more effective , increasing profits and efficiency. Reducing operating costs should never simply be about keeping a business alive. It should be about making a company profitable. Reducing operating costs should never simply be about keeping a business alive. It should be about making a company profitable once again.

Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research - Essay Example On the other hand, hopeful patients wait for concrete results from different laboratory tests to confirm that it is indeed an answer to their ailment. The purpose of this paper is to give a brief background on some facts about the human embryonic stem cells. Particularly it will explore answers to the following questions: Each of us started as a single living cell that resulted from the union between a sperm and an egg. From this single cell, certain chronological events took place that eventually led to the development of different body parts. Cells increase in number and differentiated to many cell types until we reached and assumed a human form. Many doctors agree that this is a miracle of Science. On the other hand, some started to try and make this miracle happen in a petri dish for purposes of helping fertilization occur between couples wanting to have babies. Eventually, this simple experiment led to the discovery of another potential wonder that these dividing young cells could give. Thus, embryonic stem cells became a word of mouth in all scientific publications and journals. These cells are found in a 4-5 day old embryo. They have a unique capability to continuously divide that enables them to self-renew. ... Embryonic stem cells are also capable of differentiating and developing into many cell types such as brain, heart, liver, skin cells, etc upon instructions of biological signals (NIC 2006). Hence, they are also called pluripotent cells. History of Embryonic Stem Cell Research Embryonic Stem Cell Research began through the efforts of Gail Martin, Matthew Kaufman and Martin Evans when they derived mouse embryonic stem cells way back in 1981 (The White House 2001). However, the breakthrough happened in February 1998 when James A. Thomson of the University of Wisconsin and his team announced that they had successfully isolated and cultured the first human stem cell line derived from blastocytes. The team obtained these blastocytes left over from successful in-vitro fertilization procedures (Stem Cells Portal 2008). Thomson revealed that the obtained cells transformed into different types when it was injected under the mice's skin. Furthermore, there were also remnants of the fundamental mammalian embryo layers proving that these cells are also flexible during the course of their development. The results obtained from the study shed hope gearing towards finding a medical treatment for some diseases (Pedersen 1999). Just about the same time that year, another group of scientists were conducting experiments similar to that of Thomson. John D. Gearhart of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore was also extracting and culturing the same cell types from human fetal ovaries and testes (Pedersen 1999). Other developments and laboratory experiments soon followed with the same aim of developing their own embryonic stem cell line. One major scientific development took place in May of 2003 when researchers announced that they have successfully

Stragetic Planning Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Stragetic Planning - Case Study Example In that respect, it would be important for the mayor to convince him and seek amicable approach towards the public job cut if the proposal is to sail through. Claudia Alvaro: Is a professional in public financial management with sound knowledge on macro and micro-economic policies. This means Alvaro holds central role in evaluating and assessing the best alternative among the proposals that will be raised towards economic streamlining of central town. The pertinent issue in this case is the crumbling economy of central town as result of mass immigration of its residents. This means that the tax size has significantly reduced and can barely support the town in terms of public workers wage bill and efficient provision of essential services. The mayor is making efforts to restore economic sanity by proposing privatization with subsequent job cuts among public workers. This has drawn mixed reactions from the town with workers through their union opposing the move while the public support. Sources or causes of each problem; Privatization is seen as possible public employment cut down with considerable economic loss to the workers and this is the point of concern. On the issue of awarding tender, the mayor seeks to reconcile quality with cost hence the critical evaluation process. There are potential obstacles for the central town political leadership in its effort to implement the macro-economic proposal of privatization and public job cut. The legal battle is likely to work against it since the workers union seems strong and ready to drag the authorities to court in this matter. The financial and budgetary allocation procedures require support of other political leaders who are likely to support different factions to the dispute in question. Laying off workers will paint the government on wrong side of being unethical in considering the welfare of the job cut victims. This will in turn degenerate to possible political

PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY - Essay Example ever with the passage of time, they were again opened courtesy a joint effort that involved three neighboring hospitals that included the Children’s Hospital and many others as well. After the same was achieved, representatives from each of these hospitals formed up as a team so that they could establish the different schools of nursing. The Children’s Hospital representatives were quite speedy in their operations whereby they wrote the necessary curriculum, which focused on subjects like philosophy, mission statement, format, as well as the structure and not to forget the student guidelines. Each of these hospitals after this worked in unison as well as on precise sections that were based close to their works that they specialized in. More so, the funding that was required to financially support the curriculum development was in essence given through a grant by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office. Ever since the opening which took place way back in 2002, the students have come to Children’s Hospital for concerning their pediatric rotation as well as have worked at the hospital as student nurses and aides. A number of current graduates are at the moment enrolled in the hospital’s RN Residency in Pediatrics Program. Also, highly skilled and well-educated nurses form up as an indispensable fraction of the patient care at Children’s Hospital. On the other hand, the countrywide nursing shortage, which has been caused by the nursing schools have cut back on the enrollments and more than that with the retirement of the which has become very alarming as well as disturbing. In view of the fact that shortage in these specialty areas, which include the pediatrics, is for the most part delicate and sharp, a number of pioneering programs like these are a step in the positive direction so that newer and newer nurses in the community can be attracted. Nursing program is also making all possible endeavors so that no s hortcoming is met at any potential

Prompt. Bridging the gap Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Prompt. Bridging the gap - Essay Example fluenced significant transformations in ways of life and in validating that this unifying force confirms universality of responsibility with one another. In the United States, a country known to have espoused diversity in culture, a quick research on the predominant religion in the country revealed that Christianity still prevails with 78.4% of the respondents acknowledging their religious affiliations (The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life). More interesting, the religious affiliations of members of the United States congress have been disclosed that more than half are Protestants with the rest being diversely affiliated to other religions and only 5 out of 435 members not specifying any religious membership (The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life). In this regard, one strongly believes that religion plays a crucial factor in influencing diplomatic policies and in facilitating resolution of political conflicts within the local and international sphere. When government leaders have signified and acknowledged affiliations to religious groups, as verified and attested within the chambers of the 111th congress, decisions regarding foreign policies, resolution of conflicts, and guiding principles towards governance are most likely to be defined and influenced by the religious teachings and traditions that are imbibed. For example, as cited by Albright, during her 1981 visit in Poland, significant changes were observed regarding the form of government until such time that Pope John Paul’s visit influenced the people to boldly profess their Catholic faith and openly express their intent to be liberated from the bonds of communism. Despite the government’s declaration that Pope John Paul was to be regarded an enemy of the state due to the convictions and threats posed by his teachings, the firm belief and adherence to faith exemplified by the greater majority, remarkably led to the liberate Poland, â€Å"brought down the Be rlin Wall, reunited Europe, and transformed

Presentation+finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Presentation+finance - Essay Example rder to get vital information since one of our objectives of our research was to report truly and fairly on the financial affairs and the performance of the business. Therefore out of all the possibilities we had, we landed an evergreen bar and restaurant a newly established and independently owned business in town. First we wanted to know how the business was financed and how it continues to be financed. But to get an answer to this, we asked for the balance sheet and our main aim was the financial structure in the capital structure of the firm. We found from the financial structure that most of the firm is owned by ‘owner’ unlike outsiders. By â€Å"owners† it means the ordinary shareholders formed 85% of the financial structure. The other 15% represented ownership from preference shareholders. Then on whether the firm uses bank facilities like bank overdraft, we found from the balance sheet that at one point in time the firm used the facility. But we had to obtain confirmation from the bank whether the overdraft was given. This was confirmed to know whether the restaurant sells its products and services at recommended prices. b) We compared this prices with what other similar restaurants are offering. We found out that the firms sells their products and services at slightly higher prices and enquiry were told that evergreen bar and restaurant enjoys and enviable goodwill in the area. But goodwill as an asset cannot be measured reliably and therefore we ha to compare the number of customer who visit the restaurant vis–a-vis other restaurants. They exceed the other restaurants and therefore enjoy relative goodwill. We also used the questionnaire method of collecting information to establish whether the customer were satisfied with both he services given whether the price they paid for the goods and services was worth. Our team also wanted to establish whether all daily sales were promptly and accurately recorded and also whether all purchases we

Developing Early Literacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Developing Early Literacy - Essay Example Language development entails learning four strands namely listening, speaking, reading and writing. Oracy skills fall under listening and speaking while literacy skills fall under reading and writing. This paper will explore the links between oracy and literacy and how skills development in communication, language and literacy skills of very young children (aged 3-5 years) can be supported with various learning strategies, mostly including books and shared stories. The government’s flagship programme for children and young people aptly named Every Child Matters, makes it their mission to achieve five outcomes for children. These outcomes, identified by the children themselves, are as follows: â€Å"to be healthy; to stay safe; to enjoy and achieve; to make a positive contribution; and to achieve economic well-being† (HM Government, 2007). Speech, language and communication underpin achievement of every one of these outcomes. Inability to communicate effectively puts children at risk of poor outcomes such as struggling to engage in and enjoy education since most aspects of education are based on language use. The Rose Review (2009) made a clear connection between strong speaking and listening skills and children’s ability to learn and read. That is why communication, language and literacy has been identified and targeted to be one of the specific learning areas in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS, 2007). A great deal of a child’s acquisition of linguistic structure occurs during the first five years of life. This is the period when he is most active in discerning a set of underlying organizational principles of language from the expression that surrounds him. It is amazing how at a very young age, he is capable of abstracting meaning from direct experience with other language users depending on his own context. Beaty

Elder Fraud in the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Elder Fraud in the USA - Essay Example Many of the elder frauds are unreported but leave the senior citizens in devastating situations since most of them have little time to recoup the losses. Surprisingly, most of the elder frauds against the senior citizens are committed by family members and mainly the adult children or grandchildren. Some of the common frauds include Medicare or health insurance frauds where the perpetrators pose as genuine Health insurance agents in order to obtain personal information from the elderly people or provide inferior services in small clinics and bill the costs to Medicare (Busch, 2012). Another common elder fraud in nursing is counterfeit prescription drugs which mainly are conducted through the internet. Elder people usually obtain drugs that may even lead to more harm and worsening of their medical conditions (Federal Bureau of Investigations, 2012). This research paper will discuss types of elder fraud in the United States and offer recommendations on how to deter the fraud. The paper will utilize available literature on books and journals in order to understand elder fraud problem in the United States of America. Literature review According to figures released by the Federal Bureau of Investigations, healthcare related frauds cost the US economy about $ 250 billion every year. Elder fraud is one of the contributors of the skyrocketing medical costs in the US healthcare systems. Controlling elder fraud is difficult since the fraudsters who established sophisticated fraud schemes that entail overbilling the elderly patient, billing for more hours in a day or even charging the elder for services which were not offered (Busch, 2012). Elder people are polite and have excellent credit that makes them vulnerable to health care frauds. Elderly people also make poor witnesses since they do not provide detailed evidence and information to law enforcement officers due to their age effects on memory. Elderly people are also interested in products or medicines that increase their cognitive functioning, physical conditioning, and anti-cancer products thus increasing their vulnerability to fraudsters (Busch, 2012). The most common type of elder fraud is Medicare or health insurance fraud. All US citizens over the age of 65 years are eligible to Medicare plan that is primary financed by the federal government. â€Å"The fraudsters usually pose as agents of medical insurance companies or Medicare in order to obtain the victim’s personal information such as credit card details† (Federal Bureau of Investigations, 2012, p 2). The perpetrators may also provide sub-standard medical services in mobile clinics and charge the services to Medicare in order to pocket the money. Other smaller frauds on Medicare and health insurance include the medical equipment fraud whereby the equipment manufacturers may offer free medical equipment to the elderly but the insurers are charged for the equipments even when they have not been delivered. Rolling lab frau d schemes is a common elder fraud which takes place when elderly people unnecessary or fake medical tests at their retirement homes or health clubs and the bogus service is charged to Medicare or the insurance companies.

Mary Schapiro and Leadership Essay Example for Free

Mary Schapiro and Leadership Essay In her role at the SEC, Mary Schapiro was known as one of the worlds most powerful female regulators. She was named chair in the midst of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. As chairman, she helped strengthen and revitalize the agency by overseeing a more rigorous enforcement program and shaping new rules for Wall Street. During her tenure, the agencys work force brought about a record number of enforcement actions and achieved significant regulatory reform to protect investors. Schapiro leaves behind an agency that has regained its footing, stature, and morale following desultory leadership under its previous two chairmen and its embarrassing lack of action preceding the financial crisis. Under Schapiro, the SEC, which is usually thought to be the most prominent and important financial regulatory body in the country, brought a huge number of enforcement actions against financial institutions. Her job was to assess what went wrong and to ensure it didn’t happen again. During four years as SEC chairman, Schapiro presided over one of the busiest rule-making agendas in the SECs history, during which the agency also brought a record number of enforcement actions, and executed a comprehensive restructuring program to improve protections for investors. Upon her departure, President Obama praised her leadership, saying the SEC became stronger and the financial system safer and better able to serve the American people-thanks in large part to Schapiros hard w ork. Change Management Change management is designed to ensure the effective transition of an organisation and its people from the current to future states, and in so doing support the realisation of business benefits. In the context of strategy, it is the realisation of the strategic plan. Change management is about effectively leading and managing individuals, teams, and the organisation to successfully adopt the changes needed to achieve required or desired business results. Success in Organisational Change Follows Recognisable Patterns – Kotter’s 8 Steps Harvard Business School Professor John Kotter is well known for identifying a pattern for leading successful organizational change. Yet, we cannot be sure that the President, members of Congress, and key Federal Reserve, Department  of the Treasury, and SEC personnel (including Chairman Schapiro) are familiar with this work and with other similar guidance from change leadership literature. And even if some or all of the change agents impacting a restructuring of the SEC are familiar with this work, it is unclear whether any of those change agents are consciously using this learning and incorporating useful elements from Kotters books into the SEC reorganization process. Studies of organizational change have shed significant light on the elements of a successful reform effort. Leaders effectuating reform at the SEC do not have to reinvent the wheel as they initiate, manage, and institutionalize organizational change. Kotters model is organized into eight stages designed to address e ight observed mistakes made in efforts for organizational change: establishing a sense of urgency; creating the guiding coalition; developing a vision and strategy; communicating the change vision; empowering broad-based action; generating short-term wins; consolidating gains and producing more change; and anchoring new approaches in the culture. Each stage has identifiable characteristics. 1. Establishing a Sense of Urgency Visible crises can be enormously helpful in catching peoples attention and pushing up urgency levels. To be sure, the SEC has experienced visible crises over the past few years. Admissions of significant failures at the SEC extend back over more than two years time and cover multiple areas of SEC operations. The natural superiority of the U.S. model for securities regulation is no longer an article of faith, and the credibility of the SEC as a financial regulator has never been lower. although the SEC has long been the crown jewel of the financial regulatory infrastructure, recent developments have called that characterization into question. The SEC has been the target of relentless criticism ranging from claims that it mishandled derivatives regulation, oversight of securities firms, and market risk, to assertions of delays and blunders and possible industry capture at the Division of Enforcement. These criticisms followed the Treasury Departments Blueprint of Financial Regulation-r eleased in March 2008-that criticized the SECs approach to regulation as obsolete and proposed a plan of regulatory consolidation that would effectively lead to the agencys demise. Most recently, the revelation that the SEC failed to discover a $50 billion Ponzi scheme at Madoff Investment Securities, despite having received allegations of wrongdoing for over a decade, suggests fundamental weaknesses in its core enforcement operations. To be successful at organizational change, however, a change leader must use the crisis to shake up the organization. This requires that the change leader remove sources of complacency or minimize their impact and take actions that are bold or even risky. Kotter uses the concept of fire in a building as a proxy for crisis in an organization, writing that conducting business as usual is very difficult if the building seems to be on fire.Interestingly, Chairman Schapiro invoked fire imagery in comments to reporters as she made changes to SEC operations shortly after taking office. Moreover, in a recent speech, Chairman Schapiro noted the rapid pace of change at the SEC over the preceding year: I know that change is hard because within our agency we have been engaged in some of the most significant change in decades. When I arrived at the agency last January, we began a process of assessing our operations and determined we could do better. We determined that we needed to change. And tha t is the path we have chosen. The personnel changes instituted at the SEC may be seen as examples of sweeping change. The discomfort and discontent of the SEC staff in response to the personnel changes may be evidence of the brash nature of these personnel changes. Kotters work predicts this kind of reaction. He notes that bold moves that reduce complacency tend to increase conflict and to create anxiety, at least at first. 2. Creating the Guiding Coalition Leading change is not a solitary task. Because major change is so difficult to accomplish, a powerful force is required to sustain the process. No one individual, not even a monarch-like CEO, is ever able to develop the right vision, communicate it to large numbers of people, eliminate all the key obstacles, generate short-term wins, lead and manage dozens of change projects, and anchor new approaches deep in the organizations culture. Instead, what is required is a strong leadership team-a team with the right composition and sufficient trust among members. In terms of composition,  four key characteristics are important: position power- the entire group who will be charged with making progress in areas of needed change, expertise, credibility, and leadership. Trust is borne of activities that create . . . mutual understanding, respect, and caring. Trust is important because it can lead to the effective creation of a common goal or shared objective. Chairman Schapiro has changed th e leadership team at the SEC. We must question, however, whether the team has the right characteristics and the requisite trust. Certainly, the credentials of the SEC Commissioners are quite impressive in terms of expertise, credibility, and leadership skills. Chairman Schapiro has put a premium on attracting to the SEC people with an expansive set of experiences and skills. Moreover, the published remarks of new leaders in the Division of Enforcement-people with position power-are impressive in their indication of a collective change momentum. New leaders continue to emerge, making the membership of the guiding coalition unsettled and unclear. The executives who ignited the transformations from good to great did not first figure out where to drive the bus and then get people to take it there. No, they first got the right people on the bus (and the wrong people off the bus) and then figured out where to drive it. In general, public information sources are not detailed enough to enable a comprehensive assessment of the suitability of the composition of Chairman Schapiros guiding coalition. For example, according to Kotter, you need both management and leadership skills on the guiding coalition, and they must work in tandem, teamwork style.He offers matrices that illustrate optimal compositions. Publicly available information does not enable us to determine whether or not the SEC guiding coalition has the optimal balance of management and leadership skills. Only as the exact identity of the leadership team emerges and the tea m takes concerted and coordinated action will we be able to evaluate its composition. As difficult as it is for us to appraise the teams composition, it is more difficult for us to assess whether the guiding coalition has the required trust. Although I have not found evidence that ostensible members of the SEC guiding coalition have engaged in team-building exercises or attended a retreat at which intra-group trust may have been engendered, the SECs recent self-assessment may be a sign that mutual trust is being promoted throughout the agency. As new people are identified for inclusion on the change leadership team, they will need to be effectively brought into the circle of trust. 3. Developing a Vision and Strategy To achieve successful organizational change, a leader needs to have both vision and a strategy to implement that vision. Vision refers to a picture of the future with some implicit or explicit commentary on why people should strive to create that future. Vision serves to channel change in a particular direction and incentivizes and coordinates change in that direction. Chairman Schapiro seems to understand this aspect of change leadership, and she also seems to be incorporating it into the SECs operations. Her vision for a reformed SEC refocuses the SECs activities on one of the key policy underpinnings of the federal securities laws: investor protection Another lesson I have learned is to have a vision about where you want to take your organization and stick to your principles in getting there. Principles are not ideologies. They are different. Maybe its a question of degree. Maybe to some its semantics. But as I see it, unlike ideologies, principles dont seem to demand a particular answer to every problem that emerges. Weve seen how strict adherence to ideology played out over the last decade in the financial arena. Free market ideology together with rapidly changing technology, globalization and many other accidental causes led too many of us to forget hard-learned lessons from past crises and abandon basic common sense. Principles, on the other hand, help frame a question, an issue or a problem. Having a principle might highlight tensions and trade-offs of particular choices, but rarely do they force you to choose between a good solution and a worldview. For me at the SEC, my main principle is putting investors first. And, I try to stay focused on that every day. And the goal is to build an SEC that is deeply expert, nimble, and aggressive-that gives investors confidence. In fact, as Bob Glauber can attest, I have a sign posted on my door that says How does it help investors? Its a simple question, but it guides all that I do at the SEC. And, all those who enter my office understand that is the p rism through which we will consider all issues. It doesnt necessarily dictate the outcome of every issue that lands  on my desk-because there are many solutions to any problem that could aid investors. But, the principle helps to shape our thinking and steers us in the right path. Vision is implemented through strategy. Without vision, strategy making can be a much more contentious activity. Even more so, without good vision, a clever strategy or a logical plan can rarely inspire the kind of action needed to produce major change. Chairman Schapiros vision has guided structural and operational change at the SEC as well as substantive rulemaking. Some credit her clearly conceived vision and the related rapidly employed strategy for saving the SEC from more significant structural or operational change. 4. Communicating the Change Vision According to Kotter, the larger the audience for the change vision, the more powerful it may be. A great vision can serve a useful purpose even if it is understood by just a few key people. But the real power of a vision is unleashed only when most of those involved in an enterprise or activity have a common understanding of its goals and direction. That shared sense of a desirable future can help motivate and coordinate the kinds of actions that create transformations. A leader must be careful to communicate the change vision broadly, frequently (repeatedly), and consistently. The message conveying the vision must be direct, clear, simple, and geared to its targeted audiences. Metaphors, analogies, examples, and florid prose may be helpful in this regard. The means of conveying the message should be varied: oral and written, large forum and small group, and through words and actions. Finally, to ensure understanding, the communication of the vision should be a two-way street, involv ing both give and take as well as conveying and listening. Chairman Schapiro has engaged in significant public speaking in which she has regularly and repeatedly informed and reminded the SEC staff and various elements of the public about the SECs recommitment to investor protection and the linkage of that vision to structural and operational changes at the SEC. Chairman Schapiro regularly appeared before congressional committees and subcommittees, and she has communicated her vision in these arenas as well. She used memorable analogies, examples, and words to convey the SECs organizational change message. Evidencing an appreciation for two-way communication, soon after  her appointment, Chairman Schapiro took action in response to staff suggestions that enforcement efforts against corporate violators of the securities laws were too difficult. Moreover, the self-assessment process and related ongoing staff communications are evidence of two-way communication about the structural a nd operational changes that have been taking place at the SEC. And Chairman Schapiro has continued to express belief in capturing a variety of viewpoints in decision-making. 5. Empowering Employees for Broad-Based Action To implement the leaders vision, employees need to be able to take action. This may mean clearing away structural barriers, skill deficiencies, systemic obstacles, and supervisory impediments that may forestall effective employee participation in change efforts. Many of the structural and operational reforms implemented by Chairman Schapiro appear to be designed to empower SEC staff members for action that carries forward the change vision of the SEC. The efforts of Chairman Schapiro to listen and respond to staff concerns about unnecessary enforcement hurdles are examples of initiatives to streamline structure. In addition, the restructuring of the Division of Enforcement is geared to clear structural barricades to effective enforcement efforts. The decision to retain staff with non-traditional skills and the implementation of new staff training are examples of efforts to remedy skill deficits. Human resources and information systems have been or are being improved in response to de ficiencies identified in the SECs self-assessment and the OIGs investigation, report, and recommendations. In the Division of Enforcement, supervisory positions are being eliminated, supervisory personnel are being replaced, supervisory responsibilities are being realigned, and supervisory attitudes that may have impeded investigations are being corrected. 6. Generating Short-Term Wins Because the organizational change process is slow and constituents can be impatient, it is important for a change leader to accomplish certain limited objectives in the short term. Major change takes time, sometimes lots of time. Zealous believers will often stay the course no matter what happens. Most of the rest of us expect to see convincing evidence that all the effort  is paying off. Nonbelievers have even higher standards of proof. They want to see clear data indicating that the changes are working and that the change process isnt absorbing so many resources in the short term as to endanger the organization. To be effective in sustaining organizational change efforts, short-term wins must be both visible and unambiguous. They also must be clearly related to the change effort. And in an effective change effort, they are planned, not accidental. SEC Chairman Schapiro accomplished some highly publicized early wins after her appointment was confirmed. In particular, she swiftly m oved to remove perceived barriers to enforcement of the securities laws against public companies. She publicly promoted these changes, and they were picked up by the news media. These efforts generated support in and outside the SEC. The achievement of these short-term wins on a staggered but consistent basis has kept the SECs structural and operational reforms in front of the SECs staff and the public, building consensus around and momentum for the SECs self-initiated reform efforts and distracting attention from more substantial externally generated suggestions for change. 7. Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change The long-term time horizon for organizational change not only makes short-term wins advisable, but also may make early declarations of victory problematic. It is important that the sense of urgency created by the change leaders is sustained for the long haul. Short-term wins are essential to keep momentum going, but the celebration of the wins can be lethal if urgency is lost. With complacency up, the forces of tradition can sweep back in with remarkable force and speed. Although a rapid, consistent pace of change at the SEC was sustained over the first fifteen months of reform, Chairman Schapiro as well as other SEC change leaders, needed to maintain the change momentum by continuing to introduce reforms on a regular basis. Having gone so far, the SEC could have lost all of the gains it had made in organizational change merely by relaxing into complacency. Until changed practices attain a new equilibrium and have been driven into the culture, they can be very fragile. To reach that equilibrium, in addition to engaging in more and continuous change, the SEC should bring in additional change agents, continue to foster leadership from its senior managers, recruit and nurture project management and leadership from lower ranks in the hierarchy, and identify and decrease or eliminate unnecessary internal structural and operational interconnections that often make change efforts more complex. These types of efforts in change management are difficult and pervasive. 8. Anchoring New Approaches in the Culture Finally, to prevent regression, change leaders must address and resolve any incompatibilities between the changes that have been made and the organizations culture-friction in the groups system of behavioural norms and shared values. This is not as easy as it may sound. These norms and values may apply to the organization as a whole or only to certain parts of the organization, and it is important to achieve compatibility on both levels. Moreover, culture is change-resistant and nearly invisible. Yet, the failure to address inconsistencies between a change effort and the prevailing culture can undo years of reform. Accordingly, it was important that Chairman Schapiro understood the applicable behavioural norms and shared values of the SEC and the Enforcement Division and their respective relevant cultural sub-groups as they continue to reform the SEC and the Enforcement Division. Because the core vision of investor protection should not be entirely inconsistent with the SECs culture (in whole or in pertinent part), these and other change leaders at the SEC should be able to graft the new practices onto the old roots while killing off the inconsistent pieces. The important thing will be for the SECs change leaders to continue to remember the organizations heritage and link it to the organizations new and ongoing operations and objectives.

Banking, Corporate Governance and the 2007 Financial Crisis

Banking, Corporate Governance and the 2007 Financial Crisis Throughout the world, by the end of 2008, many banks had seen most of their equity destroyed by the crisis that started in the US subprime sector in 2007. Yet, not all banks across the world performed equally poorly. In this paper, we investigate how banks that performed better during the crisis, measuring performance by stock returns, differed from other banks before the crisis. Academics, journalists, and policy-makers have argued that lax regulation, insufficient capital, excessive reliance on short-term financing, and poor governance all contributed to making the crisis as serious as it was. If these factors did contribute to making the crisis worse, we would expect that banks that were more exposed to these factors performed more poorly during the crisis. We investigate the relation between these factors and the stock return performance of large banks during the crisis, where large banks are defined as banks with assets in excess of $50 billion in 2006. With our definition of la rge banks, 32 countries had at least one large bank and our sample includes 164 large banks from these countries. Many analyses of the crisis emphasize the run on the funding of banks that relied on short-term finance in the capital markets for a substantial fraction of their financing (see, for instance, Adrian and Shin, 2008, Brunnermeier, 2009, Gorton, 2010, and Diamond and Rajan, 2009). We would expect banks that rely on short-term finance before the crisis to perform worse during the crisis. We find that this is the case with two different approaches. First, we find strong evidence that banks that relied more on deposits for their financing in 2006 fared better during the crisis. Second, following Demirg ¨ ucKunt and Huizinga (2010), we use a measure of short-term funding provided by sources other than customer deposits. We show that performance is strongly negatively related to that mea-sure both for the sample of large banks and the sample extended to include large financial institutions that are not depository banks, such as investment banks. These analyses also emphasize how losses fo rce banks to reduce their leverage, perhaps through fire sales of securities, and how this effect is greater for banks with more leverage. We find that large banks with less leverage in 2006 performed better during the crisis. An Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report argues that ‘‘the financial crisis can be to an important extent attributed to failures and weaknesses in corporate governance arrangements’’ (Kirkpatrick, 2008). More recently, the National Commission on the Causes of the Financial and Economic Crisis in the United States concluded that ‘‘dramatic failures of corporate governanceyat many systematically important financial institutions were a key cause of this crisis.’’ (The Financial Crisis Inquiry Report, 2011, pp. xvii). Some academic studies also emphasize that flaws in bank governance played a key role in the performance of banks (Diamond and Rajan, 2009, and Bebchuk and Spamann, 2010). The idea is generally that banks with poor governance engaged in excessive risk taking, causing them to make larger losses during the crisis because they were riskier. We use two proxies for governance. The first one is the ownership of the controlling shareholder in 2006. The second one is whether the bank had a shareholder-friendly board. To the extent that governance played a role, we would expect banks with better governance to have performed better. It is generally believed that greater ownership by insiders aligns their incentives more closely with the interests of shareholders. However, a powerful controlling shareholder could use control of a bank to benefit other related entities, so that it is not necessarily the case that greater ownership by the controlling shareholder means better alignment of interests of management with shareholders. Some limited evidence shows that banks with higher ownership by the control-ling shareholder performed better. In contrast, a strong and unambiguous relation exists between the extent to which a board was shareholder friendly in 2006 and a bank’s performance during the crisis. Banks with a share-h older-friendly board performed worse during the crisis. The hypothesis that the crisis resulted from excessive risk taking made possible by poor governance would imply the opposite result, so that our evidence poses a considerable challenge to the proponents of that hypothesis. We also investigate whether banks with better governance were less risky in 2006 and find no evidence supportive of that hypothesis either. Banks with more shareholder-friendly boards had a lower distance to default in 2006 but did not have higher idiosyncratic risk or higher leverage than other banks. Like Laeven and Levine (2009), we find that banks with higher controlling shareholder ownership are riskier, as these banks had greater idiosyncratic risk and a lower distance to default before the crisis. Governance and board characteristics are endogenously determined (see, e.g., Hermalin and Weisbach, 1998). In the context of our study, an important form of endogeneity stressed in the literature seems to have little relevance. Though taking into account the possibility that good governance could be caused by expectations about future outcomes generally is important, the banks with more shareholder-friendly boards are highly unlikely to have had such boards because they anticipated the crisis and expected to require better governance during it. At the same time, the concern that governance is significantly related to performance because it is associated with unobserved bank characteristics is important in the context of our study. In fact, the existence of such a relation is the only way to explain the results we find. In other words, shareholder-friendly boards created more value for shareholders through their decisions before the crisis, but during the crisis these decisions were associated with poor outcomes that could not be forecasted. For this explanation to work, these risks must not have been captured by traditional measures because accounting for these measures does not eliminate the relation between governance and performance we document. An example that could explain what we find is that banks with more shareholder-friendly boards invested more aggressively in highly-rated tranches of subprime securitizations. Such investments did not appear risky in 2006 by traditional risk measures, but they did work out poorly for the banks that made them. An alternative explanation for our results is that certain banks optimally chose more shareholder-friendly governance before the crisis because they were exposed to risks that required more independent board monitoring. With this view, the risks were not chosen by the board but instead led to the choice of a shareholder-friendly board. These risks had adverse realizations during the crisis, but because the banks had a shareholder-friendly board, they performed better than they would have had otherwise. With this explanation, banks with good governance had poor returns because of the risks they had, but they would have had even lower returns had they had worse governance. Governance is negatively related to performance in this case because it is correlated with risks that had adverse realizations, but it led to better performance nevertheless. Though we find some support for the latter explanation, neither explanation is consistent with the view that po or bank governance was a first-order cause of the crisis. We use the 2008 World Bank survey on bank regulation to examine the hypothesis that lax regulation led banks to take excessive risks that caused large losses during the crisis (see, e.g.,Dooley, Folkerts-Landau, and Garber (2009), Stiglitz (2010)). We use indices for the power of the regulators, oversight of bank capital, restrictions on bank activities, and private monitoring of banks. There is no convincing evidence that tighter regulation in general was associated with better bank performance during the crisis or with less risky banks before the crisis. In all our regressions, only the index on restrictions of bank activities is positively related to the performance of banks during the crisis.Barth, Caprio, and Levine (1999) show that the banking system is more fragile in countries where banking activities are more restricted. However, some observers, perhaps most visibly the former chair-man of the Federal Reserve System Paul Volcker, have blamed the difficulties of banks during the crisis on their activities not related to making loans and taking deposits. Though we find that large banks in countries where bank activities were more restricted suffered less from the crisis, no evidence exists that such restrictions made banks less risky before the crisis using common measures of risk. Most likely, therefore, to the extent that restrictions on bank activities are associated with better performance of banks during the crisis, it is because traditional bank activities were less exposed to the risks that turned out poorly during the crisis than were newer or less traditional bank activities. In addition, we find that stronger regulations for bank capital were associated with less risk before the crisis. Given the attention paid to the moral hazard resulting from deposit insurance, we investigate whether banks in countries with a deposit insurance scheme performed worse and find no evidence supportive of this hypothesis. However, banks in countries with formal d eposit insurance schemes had higher idiosyncratic risk before the crisis. If banks are impeded from making loans because of poor financial health, economic growth is weaker. It is therefore important to understand whether the variables that help predict returns during the crisis also help explain loan growth. In a related paper,Cornett, McNutt, Strahan, and Tehranian (2011)find that US banks with more exposure to liquidity risk experienced less loan growth during the crisis. We have a much smaller sample than they have, so that our tests do not have as much power as theirs and are less definitive. Nevertheless, we find evidence that is supportive of their results on an international sample composed of much larger banks than the typical bank in their study. Banks with more shareholder friendly boards have lower loan growth during the crisis. Finally, a strong positive relation exists between loan growth and restrictions on bank activities. We also estimate regressions excluding US banks. With these regressions, we can evaluate whether the worse performers were banks from countries where the banking system was more exposed to the US according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) statistics. These regressions allow us to assess whether holding US exposures was a contagion channel [see, e.g.,Eichengreen,Mody, Nedeljkovic, and Sarno (2009)for the view that assets were a contagion channel]. We find that banks from countries where the banking system was more exposed to the US performed worse. Our main results hold up in a variety of robustness tests. Our study is limited by the data available. Ideally, we would like to have data on the nature of holdings of securities by banks. However, such data are generally not available. Another limitation of our study is that, in the fall of 2008, countries stepped in with capital injections and other forms of support of banks. Such intervention might have distorted returns. Yet, our results generally hold for returns measured from mid-2007 to just before the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in September 2008. Moreover, Panetta, Faeh, Grande, Ho, King, Levy, Sigboretti, Taboga, and Zaghini (2009) show that the announcement of rescue packages did not have a positive impact on bank stock prices across countries. We estimate our regression that includes the indicator variable for whether the board is shareholder-friendly for a sample that includes investment banks and other financial institutions not subject to the Basle Accords (i.e., financ ial institutions that do not report Tier 1 capital and are not subject to the regulations forming the basis for our regulatory variables). We find that our results hold for that sample. The paper proceeds as follows. In Section 2,we introduce the data that we use. In Section 3, we examine how the performance of banks during the crisis relates to governance, regulation, balance sheet composition, and country characteristics other than regulation. We also show how these attributes are related to bank risk before the crisis. We conclude in Section 4.

Biotech foods :: essays research papers

In Michael Pollan’s essay, â€Å"Playing God in the Garden†, we are introduced to the New Leaf Superior, a genetically engineered potato. This is not the first of its kind, for it is only one of the many foods that are products of an emergent development here in the United States. Monsanto and other giant transnational companies are carrying out a dangerous global experiment by introducing large numbers of genetically engineered foods into our diet. Genetic manipulations can result in unanticipated harmful effects, and because genetically engineered foods are not sufficiently tested, this experiment not only jeopardizes the health of individuals, but also affects the natural flow of nature.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pollan writes, â€Å"genetic engineering overthrows the old rules governing the relationship of nature and culture in plants.† He argues in his essay that the â€Å"old rules†, or natural (organic) ways of farming are no longer being valued, but rather overthrown and replaced by this new technology. We get the impression that Pollan does not trust this genetically engineered food because it is completely unnatural.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are numerous benefits to genetic cultivation as well as many farmers who agree with and practice this way of life. Biotechnology food produces its own insecticide, and its final product is better looking than that of organically grown food. Due to genetically modified food’s unique and unknown nature, however, there is potential for adverse health side effects. On page 467, Pollan writes: â€Å"When I called the E.P.A. and asked if the agency had tested my Bt potatoes for safety as a human food, the answer was . . . not exactly. It seems the E.P.A. works from the assumption that if the original potato is safe and the Bt protein added to it is safe, then the whole New Leaf package is safe . . . the original potato is safe, so that left the Bt toxin, which was fed to mice, and they ‘did fine, had no side affects’†. Pollan here implies that it is unknown whether or not these foods are safe. The fact that these products were tested on mice does not mean that they are safe for people. Maybe genetically engineered food does not harm people in any way, but no one knows for sure. It is impossible to predict the impact of genetically engineered food; it is a matter of waiting for and observing future consequences.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Genetically modified food farmers, such as Dan Forsythe and Steve Young, all agree that this new gene technology will supply plentiful amounts of food, but they themselves would not eat these foods.

Landfills :: essays research papers fc

It has long been believed that the largest entity brought upon the Earth by humankind is the Pyramid of the Sun, constructed in Mexico around the start of the Christian era. The mammoth structure commands nearly thirty million cubic feet of space. In contrast, however, is the Durham Road Landfill, outside San Francisco, which occupies over seventy million cubic feet of the biosphere. It is a sad monument, indeed, to the excesses of modern society [Gore 151]. One might assume such a monstrous mound of garbage is the largest thing ever produced by human hands. Unhappily, this is not the case. The Fresh Kills Landfill, located on Staten Island, is the largest landfill in the world. It sports an elevation of 155 feet, an estimated mass of 100 million tons, and a volume of 2.9 billion cubic feet. In total acreage, it is equal to 16,000 baseball diamonds [Miller 526]. By the year 2005, when the landfill is projected to close, its elevation will reach 505 feet above sea level, making it the highest point along the Eastern Seaboard, Florida to Maine. At that height, the mound will constitute a hazard to air traffic at Newark airport [Rathje 3-4]. Fresh Kills (Kills is from the Dutch word for creek) was originally a tidal marsh. In 1948, New York City planner Robert Moses developed a highly praised project to deposit municipal garbage in the swamp until the level of the land was above sea level. A study of the area predicted the marsh would be filled by the year 1968. He then planned to develop the area, building houses and attracting light industry. Mayor Impelliteri issued a report titled "The Fresh Kills Landfill Project" in 1951. The report stated, in part, that the enterprise "cannot fail to affect constructively a wide area around it." The report ended by stating, "It is at once practical and idealistic" [Rathje 4]. One must appreciate the irony in the fact that Robert Moses was, in his day, considered a leading conservationist. His major accomplishments include asphalt parking lots throughout the New York metro area, paved roads in and out of city parks, and development of Jones Beach, now the most polluted, dirty, overcrowded piece of shoreline in the Northeast. In Stewart Udall's book The Quiet Crisis, the former Secretary of the Interior lavishes praise on Moses. The JFK cabinet member calls Jones Beach "an imaginative solution ... (the) supreme answer to the ever-present problems of overcrowding" [Udall 163-4]. JFK's introduction to the book provides this foreboding passage: "Each generation must deal anew with the raiders, with the scramble to use public resources for private profit, and

The Banning of Capital Punishment Essay examples -- Papers Death Penal

The Banning of Capital Punishment Capital punishment is a brutal, antiquated concept that must be abolished in the name of civilized society. A humane culture cannot abide the organized extermination of human beings in the name of justice. In the United States, dozens of people are put to death every year like stray animals, only perhaps in less humane ways. The methods of capital punishment vary greatly, but none are publicly accepted as humane. Society's support for the death penalty is waning, but there is still enough support in the United States to keep it legal in many states. The death penalty exercises only the most primal instincts to kill and extract revenge in an organized fashion. This is why the death penalty must be abolished entirely: to allow society to function in a civilized manner in which every person has the right to live. Capital punishment is hypocritical, selection is arbitrary and biased, and the practice itself is cruel and inhumane. By allowing the organized extermination of living human beings the government is telling the public that they have the right to extinguish anyone they think is a murderer. The very idea of killing another for killing is inherently hypocritical. By enforcing capital punishment, the government is telling the public that it is okay to kill as long as you have more power than the person you are killing. This is of course a very cut-and-dried interpretation, but it is what the message boils down to. The problem with such a hypocritical notion as an eye for eye, is its fundamental inconsistency. In order to practice; what they preach, the courts would have to find a way to steal from thieves, betray traitors, and rape rapists. This is obviously ludicrous. Besides the cen... ... government to kill those deemed "deserving". Consequently, there are laws in place that allow the punishment of murder, by murder. Society's integrity is diminished every time a criminal is executed. The very tenets of modern organization are opposed to the notion of capital punishment, yet this is constantly defied and ignored by the American legal system. If no changes are made and the death penalty remains an acceptable form of punishment, it is inevitable that this correctional method will bleed throughout the American legal system and be utilized for "potential murderers" and small-time thieves. The mentality that encourages organized murder in the name of justice is doomed to devour the society that supports it, creating a totalitarian culture governed by paranoia. Society must voice its opposition to capital punishment before it pays dearly for a for it.

D1Influence Tha Different Stakeholders Exert in One Organisation

In this case study I have chosen one of the following organisations from my previous task â€Å"McDonalds. † I have chosen McDonald’s because they are a very popular worldwide fast food restaurant and also they have a various amount of stake holders. Owners: Owners want to prosper and make money. They also need to care about how the business is running and how it will be more successful by investing money. If McDonald’s wasn’t as successful as it is today then owners wouldn’t be as confident to keep their service running.Customers: Customers play a huge part in the business of McDonald’s an0d how it is run because without customers a business will not be successful. Customers have given McDonald’s the name it is today by going in and buying the products to keep the business running and also they can help owners make improvements. Suppliers: Suppliers of McDonald’s will be out of business if McDonald’s were not as popular as they are today and McDonald’s wouldn’t have been as successful if they didn’t have suppliers and their products to sell.Employees: Employees are as important as Owners in McDonald’s because they attend work and help the business achieve its goals by making the business successful also without employees, McDonald’s would be a lost cause because most employees run the business because they are usually set out in different departments to help customers focus on who to ask for assistant. Trade unions/ employer associations: Trade unions play a big role in McDonald’s because they are the people that make it happen for employers by giving them a job and without trade unions employees will not know what’s right and what’s wrong.Employer associations have an huge aspects in the role of business because without staff in a business a business will not be successful and staff make a business a business and would not be one without them . Local and national communities: Local and national communities are important to McDonald’s because they are a famous international fast food store and without their local and national communities they would have never been where they are today.They are usually concerned if the business is being successful and has no risks to bring them down, they can help and participate because they can give in good words to the business world about how McDonald’s should be run. Pressure groups: McDonald’s will do everything to avoid pressure groups because they have an huge impact in the world being run in different continents they need to make sure they do not lose the publics trust and the publics face or then pressure groups will be involved in McDonald’s business.Pressure groups are usually interest groups and can take over the business if it loses its face. Government: McDonald’s need the government in their business because they receive taxes, the more mo ney McDonald’s makes the more the government make, so they will go out of their way to make sure that McDonald’s are successful and reaching their goals because it they fail then the government will not be getting their moneys worth.

European History Essay Paper †Past Question Plans Essay

This is an ‘explain’ type question – so it’s asking you to do just that, but also a little more. Merely describing the measures Ferdinand and Isabella took to cope with various problems will get some marks, but more marks will be gained if you weigh up the outcomes of these policies, and register how successful they were. For example, you may say in the essay that Ferdinand and Isabella faced economic problems, and you may go on to explain what policy(ies) they introduced to solve the problem. This would be ‘explaining’ how they ‘dealt’ with the problem, but you can go further and say how well they dealt with it compared to other issues, etc. Also, refer to historians and what they said about how they dealt with problems. Always link back to the question. So – you must: a) Show what the problems were b) What measures they took to deal with them c) How successful these measures were, evaluating against other issues, historiographical interpretations, short-term/long-term instances. The essay: PARA 1 – WHAT WERE THE PROBLEMS: i) Civil War in Aragon – decline of Barcelona, civil disorder, social unrest. ii) Lack of Grandee support for Isabella. iii) Lack of Town support for Isabella. iv) Foreign menaces. v) Religious issues – Jews, Muslims, Reconquista. PARA 2 – HOW THEY DEALT WITH THEM: i) Civil War in Aragon: well, King John of Aragon was very much in favour of a marriage alliance of Ferdinand with Isabella. John saw this as a way of engineering territorial security in area like Catalonia, keeping the French at bay. He also saw the possibility of better economic ties that would help halt the decline of Barcelona and peasant unrest. Thus, Chroniclers depicted Ferdinand – King in January 1479 – as the founder of a new Age, a ‘Messiah’. The real problems in Aragon, however, like that of town control over financial policy, were not even attempted to be sorted out until after 1479 when Ferdinand had been King for a few years. However, between 1469 and 1479, we can see the ideal behind John’s plan to marry Ferdinand and Isabella, as it was meant to give Ferdinand a better chance to reviving Aragon’s fortunes – something, in the long-term, which slowly starts to happen, for example with the emergence of town consulados, etc. ii) Lack of Grandee support for Isabella: Isabella had some Grandee support – but she needed more in order to win her succession. The succession crisis was the biggest issue, and within that, the lack of Grandee support – an important problem that needed to be addressed. So, she had to make deals to get support. She needed their support as Grandees had land, money, power and men – they could make or break a monarch. So, she bought them off: Cardinal Mendoza was promised a Chancellorship, his brother was created Duke of Infantado; Enriquez was made Admiral of Castile; Velasco made Constable of Castile. Isabella said – support me and I’ll reward you, and this is how she changed the potentially dangerous situation of only a minority of Nobles supporting her, to a majority in favour of her. iii) Lack of town support: Most towns were in revolt; many ‘bandos’ fought for their own control of the towns and cities, depriving Ferdinand and Isabella of an important power base. Isabella used a variety of techniques to overcome the problem, demonstrating her political aptitude and ability to work out different answers to varying situations. Thus, Burgos was promised Royal protection from liberty-threatening nobles after Burgos’s citizens highlighted this as a major hindrance in their supporting of Isabella. Toledo was offered extensive privileges if they submitted; Seville was threatened with financial and commercial penalties if Isabella’s right as Queen was refused there. Rodrigo declared in favour of Isabella ————————————————————————————————————————- How important was religion in influencing the policies of Ferdinand and Isabella? The only way to avoid narrative is to structure an essay properly and to focus on explaining and arguing, rather than telling the story. It takes a certain amount of courage to accept, but a shorter, focused, analytical answer is much better than a long, narrative one! If you can, use short, snappy quotations to support your analysis, rather than long factual descriptions. Clearly you understand that religion was important and since this is the factor given in the essay title, you need to deal with this in the greatest depth. A brief introduction stressing the piety of Ferdinand and (especially) Isabella (eg ref â€Å"the Catholic monarchs†, the fact that their tomb in Granada Cathedral records only their â€Å"achievements† in religion) should be an followed by an explanation of how the conquest of Granada, the establishment of religious uniformity, the reform of the Spanish Church and even the sponsorship of Columbus were motivated by religious aims. In the context of this essay, the policy of religious uniformity requires particular attention, as the implementation of this policy was politically difficult (eg opposition to the Inquisition, especially in the Aragonese kingdoms and the revolt of the Alpujarras) and economically damaging (eg the loss of the wealth and commercial skills of the Jewish community especially in Barcelona and the disruption to trade and agriculture in Granada after the expulsion of the Moors). It therefore shows the importance of religion in the formation and implementation of policy, given that Ferdinand & Isabella were willing to accept the consequent political and economic difficulties. However, to give your essay balance you will need also to explain that these â€Å"religious† policies had other aims too, given the pressing need to restore and strengthen royal authority (particularly in Castile, after the anarchy of Henry IV’s reign and the civil war). In particular, the conquest of Granada and the sponsorship of Columbus were motivated by economic aims, while the conquest and reform of the Church also had broader political aims (eg the conquest united the nobility behind the new regime and gave it a safe outlet for its aggressive instincts, while ecclesiastical reform went some way to establishing royal authority over the Spanish Church). You should conclude that this complex of motives – religious, political and economic – was inevitable, given the personality of the Catholic monarchs and the context of their reign. I hope all this helps you with your studies. Good luck! ————————————————————————————————————————- How United was Spain by 1516? The main thing with any essay is to be clear in your mind about what you are going to say. Yes, there are different interpretations but the only point of view your exam marker is really interested in is yours! So you must decide right from the beginning what you think the answer is and structure your essay accordingly. If you have time, you can include some discussion of the other views/possibilities in your conclusion! In the case of this essay, there are a number of possible answers: ie Ferdinand & Isabella united Spain more or less completely; they didn’t unite it at all; or they united it in some ways but not others. Common sense will tell you that the last approach is probably the best one! Having decided what your argument is going to be, you can say so in your introduction (ie Ferdinand & Isabella imposed religious uniformity on Spain and created a dynastic union: however measure designed to bring about closer economic ties were half-hearted at best and they never united Spain politically) and structure the rest of the essay accordingly. Start off by explaining those areas where unity was achieved, in particular the implementation of policies designed to bring about religious uniformity (conquest of Granada, expulsion of Jews and Moors, Inquisition) and the dynastic union resulting from the marriage of Ferdinand & Isabella that also enabled the Catholic Kings to pursue common military and foreign policy aims. However, you should be aware that all of this only went so far. For example, the supposedly â€Å"Spanish† conquest of Granada actually resulted in the expansion of the crown of Castile, while toleration of Moorish practices actually continued in Aragon (especially Valencia). Perhaps most telling was the fact that after Isabella’s death, Ferdinand re-married in order to prevent (unsuccessfully) Charles of Burgundy from inheriting Aragon as well as Castile. In other words, Ferdinand did not want the dynastic union created by himself and Isabella to last if it meant that their joint heir would be a Habsburg prince. Consider the economy next: â€Å"unity† is suggested by the equalisation of currencies (often referred to as the introduction of a common currency) and the introduction of a rudimentary postal service. However, internal customs barriers and regulations protecting the privileged status of â€Å"native† merchants in towns like Barcelona, Valencia and Seville remained. Finally, explain that Ferdinand & Isabella certainly didn’t unite Spain in any political sense. Indeed, they probably had no intention of ever doing so (for example they never called themselves the King and Queen of Spain!). The component kingdoms all had their own rights and privileges that made it almost impossible to rule as a single political unit . Indeed, given the potential strength of the crown in Castile (and the weakness of royal authority in Aragon) Ferdinand & Isabella wisely concentrated on restoring the authority of the crown there, leaving Aragon more or less to its own devices. Apart from the Inquisition, there were no common political, administrative, legal or military institutions and the rights of the Aragonese kingdoms, Navarre and the Basque Provinces were fully respected (apart from the imposition of the Inquisition). Conclude this section of your essay by referring to events after Isabella’s death, when Ferdinand was seen as a â€Å"foreign† ruler with no rights in Castile and was consequently excluded from the government of the country. It was only the death of Archduke Philip and the madness of Joanna that forced the Castilian administration under Cisneros to turn (very reluctantly!) to Ferdinand for assistance. As noted above, your conclusion might include discussion of other interpretations/points of view but it is better if you end up reinforcing your own argument! If you can, find a snappy quotation that supports your point of view to end with! I hope this hopes you with your studies. Good luck!

Functional Skills †Literacy Letter Writing Essay

I belong to a group called ‘Community Concern’. We as a group provide volunteers for community projects. I have recently seen the advert in the local paper about the old bus station being redeveloped and our group have all decided that we would like to volunteer to clean up the area before the work starts We have a lot of our own equipment, and we do supply things for this such as; Gardening equipment; †¢ Shovels †¢ Lawn movers †¢ Chainsaws †¢ Rakes †¢ Garden Forks †¢ Hedge trimmers and †¢ Leaf blowers General equipment; †¢ Buckets †¢ Yard brushes †¢ Paint †¢ Litter Pickers †¢ Gloves However, although we do provide this equipment there is on vital thing that we may need from the local council and that is a skip to put all the waste materials into once we’re done with it. I feel that this would be something we could discuss at a later time. Our group Community Concern are committed to improving the appearance of the local area and we feel that this project will strengthen the community and maybe even bring new people into the local area. Our Volunteers take pride in the work that they complete and are an asset to the group. They have completed a number of renovation projects over the years, the most recent being the re-decoration of the leisure centre a few weeks ago. I would like to thank you from all of us at Community Concern for taking the time to read this letter. And will leave you with our contact number in the hope that it would be possible to set up a meeting to discuss all the issues I have brought up today and hopefully to finalise some details and start planning the work!

Characterization in “Charles”

Laurie’s lies In the story â€Å"Charles† , Shirley Jackson vividly creates an entertaining main character, Laurie, through a description of his own looks, clothing, his own words, and actions. Shirley Jackson shows Laurie as having three main personality traits. Laurie can be best described as rude, impish, and disruptive. Early on in this story Laurie shows us his rude behavior when he starts kindergarten. Laurie is rude to everyone. He is rude to his teacher, his dad, and his mom.He says to his dad â€Å"hey pop you old dust mop†. That’s rude most dads would have slapped him. Laurie shows another trait later on in the story â€Å"impish†. He got in trouble and the whole class stayed to watch what would happen. He also makes up this character Charles he tells his mom that â€Å"Charles does whatever he really does at school. † That is just some really impish attitude. Laurie also has a third trait disruptive. Laurie disrupts the whole class a lot in this story. He tells a little girl in his class to say a bad word. † The little girl did and got in trouble. Then Laurie goes ahead and says the word himself and gets in trouble. That shows disruptive behavior. In our world today kids are the same. They all do stuff to get attention. This story will bring to parents attention how their kids act when they are not around. All kids today can have the same characteristics as Laurie does rude, impish, and disruptive.

Hotel Management Interview Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hotel Management Interview Paper - Essay Example Where the internal auditor is not trustworthy, a random independent audit will help the organization to detect fraud and financial errors that lead to a fair and true reflection of the organization’s financial position. Moreover, a random independent audit helps business owner to establish the effectiveness of specific business operations and the performance of various departments (Kotan Australia, 2011). The audit exposes the errors of omission and commission in the company’s financial statements and prevents the reoccurrence of such errors in the future. Ideally, a random independent audit delivers a sovereign opinion on the organization’s financial condition since independent auditors seek to establish the truth and fairness of financial statements (Kotan Australia, 2011). The sovereign opinion by an independent auditor helps the management to make informed decisions. More so, a random independent audit is a fundamental requirement for all public companies. As such, it enhances compliance to audit and accounting requirements (Kotan Australia, 2011). A random independent audit would equally help in promoting the goodwill and competiveness of a company. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) is an accounting firm that would do a random independent audit (PwC, 2014) I contacted PWC and sought their comment on the benefits and costs of a random independent audit. PricewaterhouseCoopers noted that most companies hire independent auditors or external auditors to inspect their financial statements. The main objective of hiring independent auditors is to offer independent opinion of a company’s financial position. Independent auditors provide an independent opinion that reflects the true and fair financial position of the company. Independent auditors are more proficient than internal auditors are and hence organizations and their

Training and development 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Training and development 1 - Essay Example Good customer service entails maintaining communications with both internal customers and attracting external customers. Good customer service will improve customer retention and loyalty to the organizational products and services. Good customer service will improve the sales revenues and profitability of the organization through repeat sales. Good customer service will ensure market share retention thus the organization will reduce the advertising and promotional costs that are incurred in attracting new customers. Good customer service will also reduce the number of customer complains thus improving the reputation and corporate image in the society. Some of the essential customer service skills that employees should be trained include building customer trust, customer courtesy, maintaining positive relationships, controlling customer conversations, calming upset customers, business etiquette, problem solving skills, customer service attitude, listening skills, managing customer exp ectations and dealing with difficult customers. Other customer service skills that need training include the customer service charter, handling customer complains and customer follow-ups in order to create future selling opportunities. Question two Competency modeling has some similarities and differences with traditional needs assessment technique. Competency modeling entails determining the specific competencies that will lead to high performance and success in an organization. Competencies include the knowledge, skills and behaviors and also some attributes that are required for successful performance of a particular job. Other competencies include the personality, traits, social roles and motives that are essential for the job. On the other hand, traditional needs assessment consists of organizational analysis, task analysis and individual analysis in order to identify the skills gap in the organization. The organizational needs analysis will consider the impacts of changes in t echnology and changes in the workforce which can impact on the attainment of organizational objectives. Traditional needs assessment will consider the current skills and knowledge of the employees. Competency modeling and traditional needs assessment have certain similarities since the two training needs assessment techniques aim at identifying the skills which are essential in attaining successful work performance. The two methods aim at meeting the staffing needs of the organization through identifying the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are needed in each job position. The two methods aim at motivating employees through new skills training and developing than improving the overall organizational performance. One of the significant differences between competency modeling and traditional needs assessment is that competency modeling extends beyond the boundaries of the job to include organizational vision, mission and strategic objectives in formulating the training needs. Comp etency modeling utilizes more organizational resources since the models must be validated and the targeted training population is usually large enough to justify the resource expenditure. Competency modeling takes in to account successful exemplars in the job position and competencies that they displayed in the job unlike training needs analysis which focuses on the skills needed to successfully perform the job. Traditional need