Ffdfd Essay Example

Ffdfd Essay Example Ffdfd Essay Ffdfd Essay Tractors: MILLAT TRACTORS LIMITED Analysis of Financial Statements Financial Year 2004 Financial Year 2010 July 27, 2011 RECORDER REPORT 0 Comments Millat Tractors Limited (MTL) was established in 1964 to introduce and market Massey Ferguson (MF) Tractors in Pakistan. An assembly plant was set up in 1967 to assemble tractors in semi-knocked down (SKD) condition. The company was nationalized under Economic Reforms Order in 1972 and started assembling and marketing tractors on behalf of Pakistan Tractor Corporation (PTC), which was formed by the Government for import of tractors in SKD condition. In 1980, the Government decided to produce indigenous tractors and entrusted this task to PTC. In 1981, the MTL took over this task. This was the turning point in the companys history and it went about the task methodically and rapidly. Just in one years time, the company took a giant step towards self-reliance by setting up the first engine assembly plant in Pakistan. The MTL made a strategic decision right in the beginning to bring those manufacturing facilities in-house for which capabilities did not exist in the country and for parts, which required high precision and investment. Therefore, in 1984, sophisticated manufacturing facilities for the machining of intricate components were set up. Currently, critical components like engine blocks, sump, transmission case, axle housing, hydraulic lift cover, front axle support and centre housing are all being machined most successfully in-house at MTL from local sourced castings. In 1992, the company was privatised. The employees joined hands and took over the management by winning an open bid. To maintain its leadership role in tractor manufacturing in the country, the MTL continues to look towards future, to identify and exploit new opportunities and to consolidate existing ones. The Tractor Assembly Plant is part of this philosophy. The plant started its production in 1992. The establishment of this modern plant not only increased production capacity to 16,000 tractors per year on a single shift basis, but also provided a quantum jump to the quality of the assembled tractors and pushed the MTL into the ranks of the major tractor manufacturing companies of the world. : In 1993, MTL also acquired the management control of Bolan Castings Limited (a Public Limited Company specializing in intricate automotive castings) in partnership with employees of the company, in 1993. The company established a new company named Millat Industrial Products (Pvt) Limited to manufacture quality automotive batteries, thus enabling the Millat Group to capture the efficiencies associated with vertical integration. In addition, the Millat Group comprises of Bolan Castings Ltd. , which produces thin walled castings such as engine block, cylinder head, centre housing etc. Also, Millat Equipment Ltd. produces gears and shafts of international standard for tractors. However, these subsidiaries contributed 1. 18% to MTLs consolidated net sales and 8. 15% to consolidated profit after taxation in FY10 (1. 14% and 6. 50% respectively in FY09). Due to low contribution to consolidated MTL performance, the financial analysis in this report is based on MTLs standalone tractor operations. Recent results (1Q11) The company achieved a sales volume of 29,718 Tractors in these nine months as against 28,939 tractors for the corresponding period of last year, showing an increase of 2. %. During current period, 30,638 Tractors were produced as compared to 29,865 tractors for corresponding period last year, showing an increase of 2. 6%. distribution and marketing expenses actually declined to Rs 431 million as compared to Rs 500 million, while the administrative expenses increased. Operating profit was slightly higher at Rs 2. 3 billion as compared to Rs 2. 2 billion in the same period last year. Other operating income was however higher by 60. 8%, thus pushing the overall income higher. Pre-tax profit for nine months amounted to Rs 2,594. 1 million as compared to Rs 2,355. million of the corresponding period of previous year showing an increase of 10. 2%. Profit after tax increased to 1,807. 2 million from 1,609. 5 million of the corresponding period of previous year, showing an increase of 12. 28%. EPS was recorded at Rs 49. 37 as compared to Rs 43. 97 the same period last year. A new high-spec tractor model in 50hp range the MF-350, was developed for the small to medium sized farmers. The product was well received and was highly appreciated by the farming community due to its improved features such as power steering, oil immersed disc-brakes, heavy duty straddle axle etc. With the inclusion of this new model, Millat now offers a range of six tractor models that best suit our agro-climatic conditions, size of farms and buying capacities of the farmers. Presently, MTL has the highest deletion level of 90% and 55% in low engine and high engine capacity tractors respectively. The lower deletion level in high engine capacity tractors still makes it susceptible to exchange rate fluctuations. In the wake of appreciation, the company is therefore at a greater advantage and vice versa. Millat Tractors has the potential to export the tractors but is restricted because of the agreement with their principals M/s AGCO. RECENT PERFORMANCE (FY10) Net sales increased by 39. 53% from Rs 15. 91 billion in FY09 to Rs 22. 20 billion in FY10. This was due to the increased production of tractors, which enabled Millat tractors to fulfil the unmet demand for tractors in the market. This was a significant achievement for Millat Tractors, as its major competitor, Al-Ghazi Tractors, did not witness any significant increase in sales due to restricted production capacity. The demand for tractors rose due to government support schemes like the Benazir Tractor Scheme. Cost of sales increased by 36. 03% from Rs 13. 0 billion in FY09 to Rs 18. 37 billion in FY10, due the depreciation of PKR against JPY, USD and GBP over July 2009-June 2010. This, coupled with the rise in steel prices, negatively impacted the margins of auto manufacturers and assemblers who import steel and the required components from Japan or elsewhere. With major imports of CKD kits coming from UK, the gross profit of the company is directly related to the Pound Sterling to Rupee price movement and leaves the company susceptible to changes in exchange rate. This resulted in a net 59. 15% increase in gross profit, from Rs 2. 1 billion in FY09 to Rs 3. 83 billion in FY10. Millat Tractors also managed to boost its fundamentals in the operating expenses category, allowing a minor 5. 71% increase in distribution and administrative expenses. Thus the operating profit increased by a large 79. 04%, from Rs 1. 76 billion in FY09 to Rs 3. 14 billion in FY10. Other operating income greatly increased by 126. 47% mainly due to increase in gain on sales of short-term investments. Other operating expenses increased by 52. 54% due to investment in workers profit participation fund. Thus an 86. 1% increase was recorded in the EBIT from Rs 1. 79 billion in FY09 to Rs 3. 35 billion in FY10. Finance cost decreased by 76. 15% due to settlement of short term borrowing from banks, leading to a marked reduction in finance cost. However, taxation incr eased by 95. 85% due to imposition of 17% Value Added Tax on local tractor sales. Thus the profit after taxation increased by 88. 01%, from Rs 1. 22 billion in FY09 to Rs 2. 28 billion in FY10. A lesser increase was witnessed in the earnings per share, which increased by 50. 40% from Rs 51. 87 per share in FY09 to Rs 78. 01 per share in FY10. Market comparison The demand for tractors increased significantly in the year 2009-10. The industry booked a total of 74,000 units as against 40,836 units booked in the preceding year, thus registering an increase of 81%. Federal and Provincial tractor schemes and better support prices of crops, especially wheat and rice, were the main contributing factors towards increase in demand. However, the governments role as not entirely supportive of the industry as import of tractors was allowed free of taxes or duties while the local industry was subject to tariffs under the Tariff Based System. However, despite these odds, Millat Tractors continued to dominate the market and retained its market share. At present there are two tractor companies in Pakistan, which are involved in manufacturing of indigenized tractors: a local company, Millat Tractors Limited, which produces Massey Ferguson Tractors under franchise from AGCO; and Al-Ghazi Tractors Limited which is an entity of a foreign UAE-based Group Al-Futtaim purchased under privatisation in 1992 and manufacturing Fiat New Holland tractors. Millat Tractors possesses 57% of the market share while the rest 43% is held by Al-Ghazi Tractors. The production capacity of each company is currently 30,000 tractors per annum, although Millat Tractors achieves this capacity in double shifts whereas Al-Ghazi Tractors needs to employ a single shift only, due to its larger plant size. In the past, both the companies had failed to meet the supply against increasing demand and the limited capacity of production resulted into abnormal delay in deliveries to the farmers. Thus in FY10, Millat Tractors adopted the policy of working on overtime schedules, to meet the high demand, resulting in a significant increase in sales and profitability from 29,785 tractors produced in FY09 to 40,177 tractors produced in FY10. The sales statistics in terms of the number of tractors similarly increased from 30,234 to 40,080. However, the major competitor, Al-Ghazi Tractors, did not manage to increase its production, where production marginally from 30,183 units in FY09 to 31,430 units in FY10. The market comparison ratios are based on the financial statements of Millat Tractors and Al-Ghazi Tractors for FY10. The financial year of Millat Tractors ended on 30th June 2010, whereas Al-Ghazi Tractors ended its financial year on 31st December 2010. Hence this market comparison is only indicative as the companies may have been subject to different market conditions over their respective periods under review. The profitability ratios show that Millat Tractors achieved a 17. 27 gross profit margin in FY10, compared to 18. 51 of the industry average. This indicates that Millat Tractors is achieving its profit margins satisfactorily, although its competitor Al-Ghazi Tractors is better able to manage its cost of goods sold. The net profit margin of Millat Tractors is similarly slightly lower at 10. 29 compared to 11. 54 prevalent in the industry. Return on assets for Millat Tractors is also lower at 19. 42, compared to the 22. 16 industry average. This means that Millat Tractors is not fully deploying its assets to generate the maximum amount of sales. However, return on equity is much higher at 54. 49 compared to 42. 5 industry average. This is because Millat Tractors has a much lower proportion of equity in its equity-liabilities structure, and coupled with an impressive profitability performance, this gives rise to a high return on equity. The current ratio of Millat Tractors is lower at 1. 40 compared to 3. 57 for the industry. This is because Al-Ghazi Tractors has much lower amount of trade payables, Rs 1. 24 billion, compared to Rs 7. 48 billion of trade payables on Millat Tractors balance sheet. However, since the current ratio of Millat Tractors is higher than the benchmark of 1. 0, it means that Millat has a sound liquidity position and unlike Al-Ghazi, it does not hold excess current assets on its balance sheet. The inventory turnover of Millat Tractors at 40. 15 days is higher than the industry average of 33. 01 days. This indicates that inventory management at Millat Tractors is poorer, thus requiring more number of days to sell the entire inventory stock on hand. However, this can be expected with Millat Tractors approach of meeting the unmet demand for locally manufactured tractors. The day sales outstanding for Millat Tractors is also higher at 7. 37 days compared to 6. 7 days for the industry, due to the higher trade debts of Rs 454 million fort Millat, compared to Rs 364 million for Al-Ghazi. This implies poorer receivables management at Millat, although the higher receivables are to be antic ipated in line with Millats higher sales. Overall, the operating cycle at Millat was recorded at 47. 52 days, compared to 39. 88 days for the industry. Total asset turnover for Millat Tractors was slightly lower at 1. 89 compared to 1. 92 for the industry, implying that Millat has yet to achieve the high sales turnover in line its investments in assets. However, sales to equity ratio for Millat is 5. 0, higher than the industry average of 3. 83. This is to be noted in connection with the fact that the equity-liabilities breakup of Millat is Rs 4. 19-7. 57 billion whereas Al-Ghazi employs Rs 6. 36-1. 30 billion of equity-liabilities. Thus the lower proportion of equity and high sales at Millat Tractors enables it to enjoy a high sales to equity ratio and this indicates a proper utilization of equity investment to generate the healthy sales turnover. The debt to asset ratio at Millat is higher at 64. 37 compared to 40. 69 for the industry, hence the industry can be deemed to be able t o meet its debt bligations in a better manner, compared to Millat. Similarly, the debt to equity ratio is higher at 1. 81 compared to 1. 01 prevalent in the industry. However, this implies the usage of more leverage at Millat Tractors, which is a positive indicator of being able to generate a high return for investors. Times interest earned for Millat Tractors is consequently lower at 352. 30 compare to 1271. 86 for the industry, due to the employment of Rs 10. 29 billion security deposits borrowing whereas AL-Ghazi does not employ any borrowings. However, Millats long term debt to equity ratio is lower at 0. 3 compared to 0. 51 for the industry, implying that the greater proportion of Millats debt is in the category of current liabilities. In line with its impressive profitability performance in FY10, Millat achieved higher earnings per share of Rs 78. 01 per share compared to Rs 61. 24 for the industry. The positive indicators of profitability performance were accordingly transmit ted to the market, hence the market price for MTL stock averaged at Rs 395. 97 per share in FY10, compared to Rs 306. 30 per share for the industry. The price earnings ratio for Millat was also slightly higher at 5. 08 compared to 4. 8 for the industry, indicating that the strong position as the market leader was greatly reflected in the share price of MTL stock. Millats profits were reflected in the dividend per share, which was recorded at Rs 65. 00 per share compared to Rs 43. 75 per share for the industry. However, the book value per share was lower for Millat Tractors at Rs 143. 16 per share compared to an industry average of Rs 219. 92 per share. This was due to a higher total shareholders equity at Al-Ghazi Tractors of Rs 6. 36 billion compared to only 21,468,200 shares, whereas at Millat the figures were Rs 4. 9 billion of equity with 29,284,400 shares. Stock performance Stock returns of weekly continuously-compounded returns over January-December 2010 shows that the standar d deviation of these stock returns is fairly high at 5. 83%. The future stock returns are expected to vary with a standard deviation of 5. 83%: this is to be expected from MTLs high capital gain and healthy dividend payout stock. In addition, the stock price has consistently exhibited an increasing trend throughout FY10, which reemphasizes the strong position of Millat Tractors in the tractor industry. Beta analysis of the company stock over Jul09-Jun10 shows that the beta of Millat Tractors is relatively low at 0. 45, as given by the slope of the trend line. This indicates that the stock is not highly reflective of KSE-100 performance. However, this means that the market factors influencing KSE-100 do not greatly impact Millat Tractors and the company is well poised to outperform the market, in line with its strong fundamentals and secure positioning in the tractor industry. Financial analysis (FY04-10) The profitability ratios of Millat Tractors improved significantly over FY09-10. The gross profit margin improved from 15. 4 in FY09 to 17. 27 in FY10 due to the well-managed cost of goods sold, even in the scenario of depreciating PKR and rising steel prices. The net profit margin increased by a larger amount, from 7. 64 in FY09 to 10. 29 in FY10 since the operating expenses were only allowed a 5. 71%, thus preserving the gross profits of the company. Return on assets increased fr om 17. 91 in FY09 to 19. 42 in FY10 on the back of an 88. 01% increase in profit after taxation, compared to a 73. 47% increase in total assets. The increase in assets was driven by an 86. 73% increase in current assets resulting from a 19. 0% increase in stock in trade, 257. 26% increase in trade debts and a 250. 83% increase in short-term investments. Return on equity increased from 36. 05 in FY09 to 54. 49 in FY10 due to the 88. 01 increase in net income, compared to a 24. 37% increase in total equity. The increase in equity resulted from a 57. 70% enhancement in unappropriated profit, pointing to the strengthening bottom-line of the company. The current ratio decreased from 1. 69 in FY09 to 1. 40 in FY10. This was the consequence of an 86. 73% increase in current assets as mentioned above, compared to a 124. 83% increase in current liabilities. Current liabilities mainly increased due to a 139. 60% increase in trade payables. The increase in current assets and current liabilities was the result of higher working capital requirements at Millat Tractors, in order to sustain the 39. 53% increase in sales over FY09-10. Asset management ratios analysis indicates that inventory turnover decreased from 48. 74 days in FY09 to 40. 15 days in FY10 due to 19. 20% increase in stock in trade. Thus the improved bottom-line performance at Millat Tractors was driven by an increase in sales augmented by improved inventory management, as a result of the implementation of IFS software. However, the day sales outstanding increased from 2. 88 days in FY09 to 7. 37 days in FY10 due to the increase of 257. 26% in trade debts. This points to deteriorating receivables management at the company which resulted in more number of days being required to recover trade debts. Overall, the operating cycle decreased from 51. 62 days in FY09 to 47. 52 days in FY09. Total asset turnover decreased from 2. 35 in FY09 to 1. 89 in FY10, indicating that Millat Tractors has yet to generate a sufficiently high sales turnover to justify the 73. 47% increase in the value of total assets portfolio over FY09-FY10. However, the sales to equity ratio improved from 4. 72 in FY09 to 5. 30 in FY10 due to the lesser 24. 37% increase in total equity compared to 73. 47% increase in total assets. Debt to assets increased from 50. 30 in FY09 to 64. 37 in FY10 as a result of the 121. 97% increase in total liabilities compared to 73. 47% increase in total assets. This implies decreasing ability of Millat Tractors to meet its debt obligations, which are mainly in the category of trade payables; trade payables increased by 139. 60% over FY09-10. Similarly, the debt to equity ratio increased by a lesser amount, from 1. 1 in FY09 to 1. 81 in FY10, because the increase in equity was lesser at 24. 37%. While this bodes negative for Millat Tractors, it also indicates that the company is employing a greater amount of leverage in its working capital requirements, which is likely to enhance sales of the company and ultimately generate higher return for investors. In addition, long-term debt to equity decreased from 1. 53 in FY09 to 0. 43 in FY10, since a 65. 17% decrease was recorded in long-term liabilities. This was mainly due to settlement of deferred revenue and decrease in deferred tax liability. However, the times interest earned increased significantly from 44. 09 in FY09 to 352. 30 in FY10 due to the 86. 71% increase in EBIT coupled with the 76. 15% decrease in finance cost. Finance cost decreased due to the settlement of short-term borrowings since the mark-up accrued on short-term borrowings in the current liabilities category also decreased by 42. 87% over FY09-10. The earnings per share of Millat Tractors increased from Rs 51. 87 per share in FY09 to Rs 78. 01 per share in FY10 on the back of high profitability achieved in FY10. The market price per share also exhibited a strong growth from Rs 227. 0 per share in FY09 to Rs 395. 97 per share in FY10. The growth in profits was shared with the stockholders, by increase in cash dividends per share from Rs 45. 00 per share in FY09 to Rs 65. 00 per share in FY10. Thus MTL stock proved to a high capital gains as well as a high dividend payout stock. Thus the price earnings ratio increased from 4. 38 in FY09 to 5. 08 in FY10, as the healthy performance of the company based on strong fundamentals, was reflected in investors perceptions and the market price of the company. However, the book value per share remained almost constant from Rs 143. 88 per share in FY09 to Rs 143. 6 per share in FY10. This was because the increase in total shareholders equity was 24. 37% compared to a 25% increase in total number of outstanding shares over FY09-10. Future outlook Today, Millat Tractors Limited is the leading company that specializes in the manufacturing of tractors, diesel engines, Forklift Trucks, and a range of other agricultural equipments. Presently the market share of MTL hovers around 57% in terms of sales. With a present production capacity of 30,000 tractors, the company plans to expand it to 40,000 in the years to come. Capacity utilization, however, exceeds 150%. Machining capacity of major components is being bolstered along with Double Shift operation to come at par with the ever-growing demand. High price of oil in the international market is creating inflationary pressure in the economy. As a result, the cost of borrowing has become higher than the preceding years. This coupled with worldwide shortage of steel is gradually rendering the company inefficient in terms of manufacturing cost. Furthermore, the GoP has regulated the prices of tractors. This coupled with lower deletion level for new entrant is creating an uneven playing field. However, the proposal to allow local assemblers to increase the price of agricultural tractors is under consideration. This will provide a breather to the company and will consequently augment the company revenue. Worst energy crisis prevailing in the country and lack of skilled manpower are the major risks which are being addressed through standby energy arrangements and in-house training of workforce. The recent natural catastrophe in the form of floods has worsened the conditions and has posed new challenges of rebuilding the infrastructure and rehabilitation of farming community. Development of new products through innovation and diversification remain in focus for continued growth and progress. Millat has made investments in new machining lines for cylinder block and engine head to maintain high quality standards. In addition, implementation of the IFS software means that the procedural automation and visibility brought by IFS would enable Millat to achieve greater production efficiency in future. The support of the government to the agriculture sector in terms of support prices to the local farmers provides greater opportunities for MTL. This enhanced income available to the farmers will not only enable them to buy agricultural inputs, but also educate themselves to modern agricultural practices to improve productivity, which is low compared to international standards. The government policy to encourage corporate farming will also create a demand for the companys products, which could also include higher horse power range of tractors and implements. COURTESY: Economics and Finance Department, Institute of Business Administration, Karachi, prepared this analytical report for Business Recorder. DISCLAIMER: No reliance should be placed on the [above information] by any one for making any financial, investment and business decision. The [above information] is general in nature and has not been prepared for any specific decision making process. [The newspaper] has not independently verified all of the [above information] and has relied on sources that have been deemed reliable in the past. Accordingly, the newspaper or any its staff or sources of information do not bear any liability or responsibility of any consequences for decisions or actions based on the [above information].

The Urban Scence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Urban Scence - Essay Example lled outward expansion because people can simply build new settlements outside of old settlements, which is the same benefits and problems as lack of centralized planning of land use. Fiscal disparities and segregation between zones have benefits of allowing people be able to live near people of similar economic situation and industry, but at the cost of creating self perpetuating systems of oppression and poverty, because people from bad schools will continue to go to bad schools, have lack of access to services and so on. Question 2: There are a wide variety of anti-sprawl strategies that have been suggested to prevent sprawl. One of them is regional tax sharing: this means that taxes from upscale, somewhat sprawled areas will continue to be funneled into lower income areas where white flight and been causing emigration, thus limiting the effect of white flight because local services, school and so on will remain relatively good in inner-city areas, making them continue to have good schools, local services and cheaper property taxes that they would otherwise be able to do. Another is to create a regional planning committee which will coordinate growth and expansion, which is a good idea because there is simply no way to create a regional growth strategy without one. The fist strategy discussed in this article is to create a zoning boundary through which urban sprawl cannot go past. This will be a problem in a market based economy due to the fact that people will always pay higher rates to get where t hey want to go, which will create pockets of poverty and affluence wherever you go. Politicians only have a limited ability to fight sprawl, because they do not have control over areas outside of their control, and one of the fundamental aspects of sprawl is simply leaving the current boundaries and creating a new city/community. Regional planning councils, however, can mitigate this problem though not completely eliminate it. Question 3: There are a wide

Queen vs. Carpenter Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Queen vs. Carpenter - Term Paper Example When Carpenter told him about the death he gave him no clue about the reasons that caused death and showed that he didn’t had a clear idea. 3 Other witnesses also told that the afternoon when Mrs. Carpenter was murdered her husband arrived earlier than expected and soon a rush was created in her home after which Giles came. Another neighbor heard voices that Mr. Carpenter was disgracing his wife few hours before the murder. Some witnesses also heard sounds of quarrels coming out from Carpenter’s home. Robert McDonald Physician He told that her fits were of hysterical nature and never lasted long. McDonald confirmed that she didn’t die of fits after he had examined her body. He predicted that Mrs. Carpenter was died a couple of hours ago. After examining the body this physician was unable to identify the cause of death but it was sure that she didn’t died out of fits.4 Peter. E. Jones Post Mortem Report The report showed a number of signs of injury. Peter e xamined and suggested that these signs on the back of skull were due to external injuries which might had been the cause of death. There was no matter of poising or any other brain damage. 5 There was insufficient evidence to prove Carpenter’s guilt. Post Mortem report showed a minor indentation on the skull which might had been due to an instrument of any other accident. There were no punctured parts disapproving the cause of murder as commissioned by the trial. Stomach and heart were never determined for the causes of death. 6 If we see today the evidence provided by the doctors and witnesses was insufficient. Reports cannot be formulated just on the basis of post mortem reports. In the neighborhood only Giles had the idea and links with Carpenter and his wife. Meanwhile... It was an expensive task to take a course to the courts. Prosecutor was fined if the witness failed to appear at the proceedings rendering advantage in the hands of the witness. Similar to the civil litigation laws this starting to become recognized and entered the system by awarding costs. It was therefore said and perfumed in the current case that the monetary parties settled down by giving payments to both parties and settling the issue. This unjust act was a common observation. In many of the cases even the magistrate was the supreme power who dealt the system of transferring money from one party to another and settling the dispute. The courts were therefore left for only a few cases where all the other attempts would have failed to solve the problem. In the 19th century criminal justice was similar to the civil courts of this date, where problems of paying utility bills and other such issues were rendered as the last choice in courts.

Burger King HR Essay Example for Free

Burger King HR Essay Burger King is a Fast food restaurant first opened on December 4th 1945 in Miami, Florida by two gentlemen James McLamore and David Edgerton. However the first Burger King was not known as we know it today as it was firstly launched as Insta Burger King. Although it started off as a simple fast food service it is now a large international chain of fast food restaurants. To this day there are now more than 11,200 restaurants in 91 countries worldwide. Up until 1989 Burger Kings biggest competition was Wimpy until they were bought out by the largely growing Burger King. At present, Burger King is a major franchise across the world, also owning over two hundred Hungry Jacks restaurants across Australia. With over fifty years of experience Burger has vastly grown in the Fast food Industry and dominates a large market share along with other Fast Food restaurants such as McDonalds and KFC. Roles and Responsibilities In this section I am going to explore the different roles and responsibilities of the different positions available in Burger King. Roles and Responsibilities of a Manager A manager runs the business on a day-to-day basis and is responsible for specific tasks such as organising resources for the business. A Burger King Manager ensures Burger King runs smoothly and that employees are working well through monitoring their work and motivation. There are five key business areas that Burger King believe their managers need to focus on in order for their restaurants to be run efficiently and achieve high standards. These are: * Operations: Delivering top quality products and restaurant cleanliness * Financial Control: Maximising profits, controlling cash * People Management: Driving results through people; providing development training * Sales Building: Maximising sales at every opportunity * Customer Service: Delivering the Customer Promise 1 Burger King looks for people with passion for their work. Some of the key things Burger King looks for in their managers are: * Outstanding customer service * Great communication skills * Energy, enthusiasm and a hands-on approach * Ability to thrive in a team build working relationships * Responsible flexible 2 * The ability to problem solve Roles and Responsibilities of a Supervisor A supervisor has the power to give instructions, administer disciplinaries and is responsible for the work and conduct of other employees For Burger King supervisors this ensures employees are monitored and that Burger King runs smoothly. A supervisor is usually the first step away from management and can be promoted to management easily. However a supervisor does not have the authority to hire fire employees or the authority over budget. The role of supervisors at Burger King is to promote excellent customer service and that all brand standards are reached. They have to have the ability to motivate their workers and encourage team work especially at busy times throughout the day. Also a Burger King supervisor would need to carry out the instructions of managers and ensure that employees are working well and completing all tasks to the highest standards but in the quickest time possible. When talking to a Burger King employee he spoke about the five minute rule. This means that all food order had to be done in the period of five minutes otherwise a refund could be requested. This benefits burger king as it keeps the waiting time down to a minimum of 5 minutes and keeps the customers flowing in and out of the restaurants. Supervisors need to ensure that this rule is being met through motivation of workers so that profits are not lost. Roles and Responsibilities of an Employee An employee tends to complete the main day-to-day tasks of a business. Employees can either be working full time or part time. Full time workers usually work more than 40 hours a week and get certain benefits such as health insurance and a higher wage. Part time workers usually work less than 40 hours a week and get paid less than that of full time workers. Many people who work part time tend to do other activities during the week such as other jobs or higher education. Whether being a full time or part time employee both should receive the same benefits such as receiving same pay per hour and health plan. Burger King employees tend to do a variety of tasks such as serving customers, working in the kitchens and operating the tills. Employees of Burger King who operate the tills and take orders need to ensure they present themselves in a respectable way and are friendly and helpful as they will be interacting with customers on a daily basis. This helps Burger King to uphold their well known brand and business for themselves as they need to ensure that it is portrayed in the right way. Qualities for Burger King For every position in Burger King there are qualities that you will need to suit it. In this section Im going to explore the different qualities needed for the positions at Burger King. Qualities needed for a Manager To be a successful manager at Burger King you need to ensure that you are adaptable in all situations and have initiative needed to deal with tricky situations. Burger King looks for managers who have good communication skills and customer relations as they will be working with customers daily. Managers need to make sure that employees are enthusiastic and have energy as theyll be dealing with main aspects of the fast food restaurant such as cleanliness and the production of top quality products. Qualities needed for a Supervisor Burger King looks for commitment and responsibility in their supervisors. This is because they need to be there to supervise their employees to ensure that they are working well. Also make sure that all resources are available so that employees have the materials they need in order to work. Also a supervisor needs the confidence to be the voice of the employees and voice any worries to the manager so that customers do not bombard Burger King. Also, they need to be respectful and courteous when handling situations and motivating the employees as if not they will not be providing a good role model. Qualities needed for an Employee An employee needs to have a number of qualities in order to succeed at working at Burger King. Some of these qualities consist of: * Common Sense * Urgency * Flexibility * Customer Focus * Respect for others * Teamwork * Honesty * Pride in performance3 Employees will be either working with customers or in the kitchen. They need to ensure that their service is fast but of the best quality to withhold the Burger King fast food name. Employees on the tills have to make sure that they are friendly even when dealing with tricky customers and learn to be patient. Staff in the kitchens needs to be hygienic and be able to work under pressure when complying with the five minute rule. Qualifications needed for Burger King In this section I am going to explain the qualifications needed to fulfil the different job positions available for Burger King. Qualifications for an Employee For a new employee applying for a job at a Burger King fast food restaurant there is not any specific qualifications needed. As there is no true skill to being a till operative or part of their kitchen staff, Burger King focus more on the qualities and personalities of their employees, rather than what qualifications they may or may not have. I dont think it is essential for Burger King to have highly qualified till operatives and kitchen staff, as before they begin working in their specific area, they undergo extensive training. This training will teach all new employees how to get the most from their job and also how best to represent Burger King. Qualifications for a Supervisor For a Supervisor there are also no specific qualifications needed to carry out this position. However, Burger King does look for someone with previous experience of supervising a team. In the hierarchy of jobs in Burger King we can see that supervisors are only just above employees. This means that is only a small step to be promoted from an employee to a supervisor, or which their skills would already be from working in Burger King previously. I believe that Burger King should look for at least five A-C grades at GCSE level when recruiting a supervisor, as this shows that not only are the candidates good in these specific areas, but also have the drive to succeed and achieve highly. Burger King needs to have an enthusiastic supervisor who would be able to motivate a team to work well, not just someone looking for higher pay than a lower employee in the hierarchy. Qualifications for a Manager Like the employee and supervisor roles, managers also are not required to have any specific qualifications. However, similar to the supervisor position Burger King looks for previous experience of managerial work. This is essential as they need someone who would be able to deal with tricky customers and also a leader to motivate their team. Without experience, candidates may not be able to cope under pressure or realise the initiative theyd need to use in complicated areas. I think that it is essential for a manager to withhold at least five A-C grade GCSEs as it shows dedication and enthusiasm for their work. It may also benefit Burger King to advertise for people with a specific qualification in a managerial subject, such as Business Studies. This could only improve the running of the largely expanding fast food chain, as with more knowledge on businesses, more improvements can be made. Training Employee training is a necessity as it is a way in which your skills can be developed and motivation to be increased. Training relates to employees gaining specific skills and abilities to perform well in their jobs. Training at Burger King can vary depending on the position that is being fulfilled. For each member of the management team the fast food restaurant expect a minimum of 12 weeks on-job and off-job training. The usual on the job training programme for a manager during this period is shown below: Weeks 1-3 * Gaining Product Knowledge * Leaning the job of a crew member * Counter Service * How to make a whopper * Equipment Knowledge * Supervisory Skills Weeks 4-5 * Basic Food Hygiene * Supervisory Skills Course * Supervisor Evaluation (observation on the job) Weeks 6-8 * Shift Control Skills * Loss Control * Shadowing Manager * Daily Administration * People Management Week 9 * Food Safety and Product Quality * Basic Management Training Course * Roles and Responsibilities * Team Work * Customer Service Weeks 10-12 * Shift Running (Under Supervision) * Feedback on management Skills All employees who undergo training at Burger King are not charged however they are expected to fund for the normal living expenses such as commuting and accommodation costs. For new employees such as till staff and kitchen staff Burger King has a Right Track Training Programme to ensure they have the best start to Burger King. This training programme is a comprehensive induction and training programme covering everything from Health Safety and Food safety through to working in the dining area, front counter or kitchen and how to make each product. Through providing an induction to all new staff it allows new staff to see how theyll be working, where theyll be working and who their fellow employees are. Also how things are done to help them fit in. Burger King believes that all their employees will learn what they need to know by shadowing which is when they work alongside others as well as using their new interactive DVD Programmes. It would be beneficial for Burger King to carry out an appraisal system but instead of annually it may be more favourable for them to be carried out every few months. This would then help employees to see what they are working well at and what things to improve on; these could then be made into targets which success could result in promotion or pay rise. The quicker employees feel wanted, the quicker they are earning money for Burger King. From reviewing staff progress more frequently it may give employees more motivation to stay working at Burger King for a longer period as they now have aims and goals which could improve their career. This would mean less training costs for Burger King and also in the long run a low staff turnover. At present I believe the techniques that Burger King is using to train their employees and managers, such as shadowing and induction programmes are effective in what they are doing. However, if Burger King want to ensure that employees stay in the job for a longer period it may be beneficial for them to do other training techniques such as training weekends away. This will build team skills and also allow employees to interact with staff from other sectors in which they work in. Motivation in Burger King In this section I am going to explore the different motivational theorists and see how their theories affect Burger King. Motivation is having the desire and willingness to do something. A motivated person can be reaching for either a long-term goal or a short term goal. Motivation is important as if employees are motivated to work; it increases the quality of products and therefore the reputation of a business. This is a major factor within Burger King as they are known for a high staff turnover. However, if their staff were more motivated and saw the long term opportunities for working for Burger King, they may be more willing to stay on and try for promotion. Abraham Maslow- Maslows Hierarchy of Needs Maslows theory mainly revolved around psychology and stated that, As humans meet basic needs, they seek to satisfy successively higher needs that occupy a set hierarchy. This is Maslows hierarchy of needs: Maslow believes that when the first stage is completely fulfilled only then will an employee be motivated enough to step up to the next level and complete it. For example only when an employee has basic needs such as food drink and sleep will they then be able to progress onto their safety needs such as security, limits and protection. In terms of Burger King Maslows theory wouldnt largely affect them. However for all people to work well certain needs need to be fulfilled such as sleep, food and drink. For Burger King Employees I believe that they only really need to concentrate on the first two stages as many employees do not stay long and are only there for the short term. Burger King does provide good hygiene conditions and security. Belonging and Love needs arent really met as although they work in teams Burger King do not provide team building activities such as weekends or any social events. This theory mainly addresses the needs of employees. Frederick Winslow Taylor Taylors primary idea was that workers are mainly motivated by pay. Therefore his theory was that if you break down production into a set of small tasks and only pay for the amount of product each employee produces, this would motivate staff and increase productivity. At the beginning this seemed like a good idea as productivity increased and workers were only paid for how hard they worked. They began to build specialised skill for the specific area and businesses were more efficient as less staff were needed. However, employees soon became to dislike Taylors approach to motivation as they were given boring, repetitive tasks and were being treated no better than human machines. Certain aspects of this theory do apply to Burger King. Burger King pays their employees hourly, not piece rate, and has set areas in which people work- these can either be tills or kitchen staff. This provides competition between the two areas which can build motivation as to which area can work the best. However Burger King wouldnt realistically be able to pay employees on their productivity as each area has different tasks, some of which cant be measured, such as working on the tills. This theory addresses mainly the performance of employees. Frederick Herzberg Herzberg believed in a two-factor theory of motivation. Job Enlargement- Workers would be given a greater range of tasks to perform (not essentially more challenging) which should make the work more interesting. Job Enrichment- Involvement of workers being given a wider variety of more intricate, interesting and demanding tasks surrounding a complete unit of work. This should then give a greater sense of achievement. Herzberg used a survey to investigate what people liked and disliked about their jobs and with these results he put them into two categories; motivators and Hygiene Factors. His two factor theorem is shown below: Motivators Hygiene Factors Achievement Company Policy Recognition of achievement Supervision Meaningful and interesting work Pay Responsibility Interpersonal Relations Advancement Working Conditions For Burger King they need to ensure that all hygiene factors are covered so that workers feel safe and happy to be working in a clean environment. For example clean work surfaces and floors. Burger King does already achieve highly good hygiene factors however theyre not providing the best motivation. With this they dont have any achievement within their working days and simply work for pay. This lacks fun and could mean that employees would work better if they had something to look forward to. This theory addresses both the needs and performance of employees. PEST In this section I am going to explain how PEST affects the recruitment process in Burger King. From identification of a role to managing change inside the company PEST influences how Burger King plans and responds to these influences as it effects the entire recruitment cycle. Pest analysis is concerned with the environmental influences on a business. PEST is an acronym which stands for: P- Political E- Economy S- Social T- Technology When referring to pest you need to think about the following: POLITICAL Local Authorities Central Government Parliament Minimum Wage Base Rates Privatisations ECONOMIC/ LEGAL Laws Health and Safety Dismissals Monopolies Mergers and Takeovers Consumer Protection SOCIAL Trends Laws Habits TECHNICAL ICT Telecommunications Production Human Resources Marketing PEST can be used by businesses to review a strategy or position, direction of a company, a marketing proposition, or idea. Many businesses use PEST analysis for business and strategic planning, marketing planning, business and product development and research reports. PEST analysis is most helpful before completing a SWOT analysis (Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats). PEST can essentially be useful when a business is expanding into new countries and markets as it helps guide a company from making costly mistakes, unfounded assumptions, and help effectively adapt well into a new environment, when considering recruitment and selection. Pest in terms of Burger King Political Minimum Wage- At present Burger King do comply with the national minimum wage, however if they were to expand into new countries the minimum wage may be different. If it were increased it would mean that Burger King would be paying more for staff and may have fewer funds for other factors of the business such as new technology. If the minimum wage was decreased then this would mean more funds for other factors of the business. Laws- Burger King needs to take into consideration different laws in different countries. In some countries the consequences of breaking these laws could be ominous especially in China where they use capital punishment. Also laws that in force who can be employed by Burger King, for example women and children. Economic Health Safety- Burger King need to ensure that their health and safety is of the highest standards. If Burger King were to expand into less developed countries it may mean that they need to improve their health safety aspects. Therefore they would need to consider training within their recruitment process. Monopolies Mergers Takeovers- If Burger King where to expand into other countries they need to ensure that there arent other fast food restaurants who dominate the fast food market as they are less likely to build there own customer base. Also less people would be willing to work for them compared to competing restaurants, which would mean Burger Kings recruitment levels would fall. However, if other countries have fast food restaurants that are not well known, Burger King may be able to takeover these smaller restaurants and expand the Burger King brand. Social Trends- Burger King needs to take into account what the favourite foods are in certain countries. For example the Whooper Burger may be favourable in certain countries but in others it may be the Cheese Burger. Habits- As Burger King operate in a number of countries they need to be aware of the language barriers which will occur. To ensure these are fulfilled Burger King needs to employee staff who speak the language of the country they are operating in. Therefore training aids would have to be converted into the chosen language. Technical ICT- As technology is always changing and more developed in certain countries, Burger King needs to ensure that they are up-to-date if they want to be the best fast food restaurant. For instance they need the best till operations so that transactions are fast and comply with the five minute rule. Also as technology changes it will affect the job training that Burger King offers employees. Production- If Burger King used advanced technology it may mean that they could produce their products in bulk and therefore save time and reduce the costs of their production. With production being affected Burger King would have to look at how to ensure consistency in training and staff development. Through using PEST Burger King can evaluate what areas they need to consider when expanding into new countries. It would be beneficial to use PEST as it would be easier for Burger King to adapt to new surroundings if they knew the trends and laws they need to abide to. This means that in the future they could expand into new countries with less difficulty. Recruitment Documents In this section I have created my own personal specification and Job description and will evaluate individually. Job Description Post Title: Manager Responsible to: Director External Contexts: Members of public and other stakeholders Internal Contexts: Other managers and all general staff Salary: à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½12,600 Job Purpose To take responsibility for your section by making key decisions, ordering goods and leading, motivating and training your team. To enthusiastically lead and motivate the restaurant team to achieve the highest standards levels of customer service satisfaction. Main Duties and Responsibilities * Manages all daily operations of Burger King to maximise sales and a positive customer experience. * Motivating and training your team to ensure the very highest standards are maintained. * Ensures great food is promptly delivered in a clean and inviting environment. * Take full responsibility for your section to ensure that all transactions run smoothly. * Ensures that each visit by a customer results in a friendly and personalised service. Rewards In return for your dedication and hard work we offer a competitive salary as well as the following benefits: * Medical and Dental insurance * Paid holidays * Vision Care * Life insurance * Bonus Program * Career Advancement Opportunities Analysis of Job Description A job description is a written statement of what a job holder does how it is done, why it is done and the skills needed to perform the job. These include the purpose, duties, equipment used, qualifications, training, physical and metal demands and working conditions. I have created a job description for a managerial position at Burger King. I believe that my job description is effective as the main purpose of it is to describe the roles and duties that the job position undertakes. These need to be in a job description so that the potential employee knows what duties they will be carrying out if they apply for the job. Also in my job description I have added in the rewards of working as a manager in Burger King so that new recruits can see what they will get in return for their dedication to the job. This is effective because it could persuade them to take the job as there are many benefits. I have chosen to layout my job description with headings and sub-headings for each section as it brakes down the information and provides a well ordered recruitment document. Also I researched into the types of job descriptions that Burger King use and used this as a template. Also, I have used the Burger King logo at the top of my document so that all candidates can see what the job is for, before actually reading it. By creating a job description it ensures that only people who believe they can complete the duties of a manager apply to the job and therefore do not waste the time of Burger King. Personal Specification Job Title: Burger King Manager Responsible to: Director Salary: à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½12,600 There are a number of qualities that we look for in our manager. These consist of: * Adaptable in all situations * Initiative to deal with tricky situations * Good communication skills * Good Customer Relations * Enthusiastic and energised * Flexibility * Team work * Respect for others * Pride in performance Burger King takes pride in being one of the leading fast food retailers. Our managers need to have the skills to motivate their team and the assertiveness to ensure all work is done smoothly. Also both written and communication skills will be required as you will be working with people daily and also need to write reports on your employees, to ensure that their progression is recorded. The relevant work experience that we look for is four or more years in a management or supervisory capacity in a restaurant or in the retail/ hospitality industry. Qualifications The qualifications we require for our managers are: * High school diploma or equivalent, with two years of college or equivalent preferred * Strong math and Windows-based computer literacy * Reliable Transportation * Open/Flexible Schedule Analysis of Personal Specification A personal specification is drawn up from the job description and describes the knowledge, skills and attributes that are essential to perform jobs. The criteria must be specific, measurable, and justifiable in relation to the job requirements. I have created a personal specification for a managerial position at Burger King. I have created my personal specification so that it relates to my job description and reflects the skills required for competency in the role, as directed in the job description. I believe that this is effective so that the skills on my personal specification relate to the job in hand. My personal specification is successful as is it contains both the skills and qualifications needed to comply with the job. These are needed in a personal specification so that potential employees know what they need to have a chance with getting the job. Without these, Burger King would get too many people applying for the job who are not suitable. I have chosen to layout my job specification with headings, sub-headings and bullet points for key information as this brakes down the information and provides a well ordered recruitment document. Also I researched into the types of job descriptions that Burger King use and used this as a template. Also, I have used the Burger King logo at the top of my document so that all candidates can see what the job is for, before actually reading it. By creating a personal specification it ensures that only people with the given qualities and qualifications apply to the job and therefore do not waste the time of Burger King. Interview Process In this section I am going to explain the preparation of an interview, what a good interview consists of and analyse an interview that was carried out. An interview is a conversation between two or more people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee. Interviews can be divided into two rough types, interviews of assessment and interviews for information. Preparation for an Interview Before an interview can take place there are a number of factors that need to be considered. Firstly, a business needs to have already produced a job description and personal specification, to which they can compare the candidates qualities and previous work experience to. Not only can these documents help identify a candidates personality traits but also a guide to base the interviewers questions around. Before an interview can take place it is essential you know you are going to ask the candidate. These questions need to relate to all recruitment documents including the personal specification, job description and job advert as they focus on the type of employee needed for their company. The questions need to test the candidate on whether their skills are the best suited for the job in hand and to see how they compare to other potential employees. Questions for Interview It is vital that the right sorts of questions are asked during an interview as these will determine whether the candidate suits the job or not. To get the most potential from a candidate it is in the best interest of the business to ask both open and closed questions. A closed question limits responses to a set number of options, such as yes and no, however these could be used at the beginning of an interview to create a more welcoming atmosphere, for example, How are you? Open questions require the person answering to provide a response in their own words, for example, How would you motivate a team? These questions are essential to find out the most about a person including key areas such as skills, qualities and personality. The key to any good interview is to develop on the answers given by the candidate and extend the knowledge of that area, i.e. What examples could you give me of when you have carries that out? The questions asked need to be relevant to the position advertised which is why relating them to the recruitment documents are so important. If you are interviewing for a managerial position you wouldnt ask, How would you deal with difficult customers? as it is unlikely for a manager to spend much time communicating with customers. The Interview Task For this task we were put into groups and carried out a panel interview for a managerial post at Burger King. Before we carried our interview out for a managerial position at Burger King there were a number of factors we needed to consider: * What questions would be suitable and relate to the recruitment documents. * What were the main skills we were looking for to fulfil the position. * How did their personality reflect their interest in working for Burger King. * How were we going to judge their: Appearance Attitude Body language As the interviewers we decided that it was a necessity for us to dress smart as we would be representing Burger King. On our panel we had three people, all carrying out the same role of asking the candidate questions in turn. We used three people as we were interviewing for a managerial position, which we believe would require more than one opinion on the candidates. This way the interview is less biased towards the potential employee as there is more than one opinion. The type of questions we decided we were going to ask was: * Did you find us ok? This helped to create a welcoming atmosphere, to calm any nerves of the candidate. * How have leadership skills benefited you in your previous job? This helps the interviewer get a greater understanding of a candidates previous work experience. This could also be checked up on through references. * How do you think your managerial skills can help our business? This helps the interviewee voice the skills and qualities they could potentially bring to Burger King. This is an open question which candidates could go into depth with and best promote themselves. * What do you know about the history of the company? This allows the interviewer to see how much a candidate actually knows about the business of whom they may be soon working for. The more they know about the business suggests the more interested they of having a long-term career there. * If one of the workers was not working to the full of there potential, how would you motivate them? This is an essential question to be asked for a managerial position as they would be in charge of a team, or which they will need to motivate to work well. * If there was an unsatisfied customer, how would you deal with them? This can help the employer get a fuller understanding of how the candidate would work on the spot and in tricky situations. * If one of your employees were late more than once, how would you deal with this? This is a good indication of how the potential employee would discipline their staff. Analysis of my Interview During our five minute interview we were able to ask a variety of questions relating to the role of manager as Burger King. For this position, we were looking for a candidate with previous managerial experience, who had a keen interest in the history of Burger King and presented themselves well. Whilst carrying out the interview there were a number of things that our group did well: * Asked questions relating to the position of manager. * Asked both open and closed questions. * Kept eye contact with candidates whilst answering and asking questions. * Showed a keen interest in what the candidate had to say. * Had an open body posture, i.e. Arms on the desk not crossed. 1 http://www.burgerking.co.uk/CompanyInfo/careers/index.aspx 2 http://www.burgerking.co.uk/CompanyInfo/careers/index.aspx 3 http://teenzone.monster.co.uk/articles/fastfood/page4/

Magical Realism as Applied to the Field of Psychology Essay -- Magical

Magical Realism as Applied to the Field of Psychology Throughout time, one finds many different categories of literature. Magical Realism, a relatively new category, seems to be one of, if not the most, controversial category of the last century. Magical Realism combines a magical, often grotesque, element with a reality based background and allows the reader to view life in a more profound way. The field of psychology, specifically the case of the Wild Child known as Genie, parallels very closely with the ideals of Magical Realism. Magical Realism may combine two worlds or realms, allowing the reader to see beyond his or her own world. This merging of two realms is a characteristic common to Magical Realism (Faris 172). The two worlds may be fantastic, sublime, or even realistic. Genie, the Wild Child discovered in 1970, somehow managed to survive for thirteen years even though she was imprisoned in a solitary room by her own father. She was never loved, never spoken to, and was left strapped to a potty chair day after day. When she was not forgotten altogether, she was s...

Golden Ratio in the Human Body

THE GOLDEN RATIO IN THE HUMAN BODY GABRIELLE NAHAS IBDP MATH STUDIES THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23rd 2012 WORD COUNT: 2,839 INTRODUCTION: The Golden Ratio, also known as The Divine Proportion, The Golden Mean, or Phi, is a constant that can be seen all throughout the mathematical world. This irrational number, Phi (? ) is equal to 1. 618 when rounded. It is described as â€Å"dividing a line in the extreme and mean ratio†. This means that when you divide segments of a line that always have a same quotient. When lines like these are divided, Phi is the quotient: When the black line is 1. 18 (Phi) times larger than the blue line and the blue line is 1. 618 times larger than the red line, you are able to find Phi. What makes Phi such a mathematical phenomenon is how often it can be found in many different places and situations all over the world. It is seen in architecture, nature, Fibonacci numbers, and even more amazingly,the human body. Fibonacci Numbers have proven to be closely rela ted to the Golden Ratio. They are a series of numbers discovered by Leonardo Fibonacci in 1175AD. In the Fibonacci Series, every number is the sum of the two before it.The term number is known as ‘n’. The first term is ‘Un’ so, in order to find the next term in the sequence, the last two Un and Un+1 are added. (Knott). Formula: Un + Un+1 = Un+2 Example: The second term (U2) is 1; the third term (U3) is 2. The fourth term is going to be 1+2, making U3 equal 3. Fibonacci Series: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144†¦ When each term in the Fibonacci Series is divided by the term before it, the quotient is Phi, with the exception of the first 9 terms, which are still very close to equaling Phi. Term (n)| First Term Un| SecondTerm Un+1| Second Term/First Term (Un+1 /Un)| 1| 0| 1| n/a| 2| 1| 1| 1| 3| 1| 2| 2| 4| 2| 3| 1. 5| 5| 3| 5| 1. 667| 6| 5| 8| 1. 6| 7| 8| 13| 1. 625| 8| 13| 21| 1. 615| 9| 21| 34| 1. 619| 10| 34| 55| 1. 618| 11| 55| 89| 1. 618| 12| 89| 144| 1. 618| Lines that follow the Fibonacci Series are found all over the world and are lines that can be divided to find Phi. One interesting place they are found is in the human body. Many examples of Phi can be seen in the hands, face and body. For example, when the length of a person’s forearm is divided by the length of that person’s hand, the quotient is Phi.The distance from a person’s head to their fingertips divided by the distance from that person’s head to their elbows equals Phi. (Jovanovic). Because Phi is found in so many natural places, it is called the Divine ratio. It can be tested in a number of ways, and has been by various scientists and mathematicians. I have chosen to investigate the Phi constant and its appearance in the human body, to find the ratio in different sized people and see if my results match what is expected. The aim of this investigation is to find examples of the number 1. 618 in different people and investiga te other places where Phi is found.Three ratios will be compared. The ratios investigated are the ratio of head to toe and head to fingertips, the ratio of the lowest section of the index finger to the middle section of the index finger, and the ratio of forearm to hand. FIGURE 1 FIGURE 2 FIGURE 3 The first ratio is the white line in the to the light blue line in FIGURE 1 The second ratio is the ratio of the black line to the blue line in FIGURE 2 The third ratio is the ratio of the light blue line to the dark blue line in FIGURE 3 METHOD: DESIGN: Specific body parts of people of different ages and genders were measured in centimeters.Five people were measured and each participant had these parts measured: * Distance from head to foot * Distance from head to fingertips * Length of lowest section of index finger * Length of middle section of index finger * Distance from elbow to fingertips * Distance from wrist to fingertips The ratios were found, to see how close their quotients are to Phi (1. 618). Then the percentage difference was found for each result. PARTICIPANTS: The people were of different ages and genders. For variety, a 4-year-old female, 8-year-old male, 18-year-old female, 18-year-old male and a 45-year-old male were measured.All of the measurements are in this investigation with the ratios found and how close they are to the constant Phi are analyzed. The results were put into tables by each set of measurements and the ratios were found. DATA: | Participant Measurement ( ± 0. 5 cm)| Measurement| 4/female| 8/male| 18/female| 18/male| 45/male| Distance from head to foot| 105. 5| 124. 5| 167| 180| 185| Distance from head to fingertips| 72. 5| 84| 97| 110| 115| Length of lowest section of index finger| 2| 3| 3| 3| 3| Length of middle section of index finger| 1. 2| 2| 2. 5| 2| 2| Distance from elbow to fingertips| 27| 30| 40| 48| 50|Distance from wrist to fingertips| 15| 18. 5| 25| 28| 31| RATIO 1: RATIO OF HEAD TO TOE AND HEAD TO FINGERTIPS Measure ments Participant| Distance from head to foot ( ±0. 5 cm)| Distance from head to fingertips ( ±0. 5 cm)| 4-year-old female| 105. 5| 72. 5| 8-year-old male| 124. 5| 85| 18-year-old female| 167| 97| 18-year-male| 180| 110| 45-year-old male| 185| 115| Ratios: These are the original quotients that were found from the measurements. According to the Golden Ratio, the expected quotients will all equal Phi (1. 618). Distance from head to footDistance from head to fingertips 1. 4-year-old female: 105.  ±0. 5 cm/ 72. 5 ±0. 5 cm = 1. 455  ± 1. 2% 2. 8-year-old male: 124. 5 ±0. 5 cm/ 85 ±0. 5 cm = 1. 465  ± 1. 0% 3. 18-year-old female: 167 ±0. 5 cm/ 97 ±0. 5 cm = 1. 722  ± 5. 2% 4. 18-year-old male: 180 ±0. 5 cm/ 110 ±0. 5 cm = 1. 636  ± 1. 0% 5. 45-year-old male: 185 ±0. 5 cm/ 115 ±0. 5 cm = 1. 609  ± 0. 7% How close each result is to Phi: This shows the difference between the actual quotient, what was measured, and the expected quotient (1. 618). This is foun d by subtracting the actual quotient from Phi and using the absolute value to get the difference so it does not give a negative answer. |1. 18-Actual Quotient|=difference between result and Phi The difference between each quotient and 1. 618: 1. 4-year-old female: |1. 618- 1. 455  ± 1. 2%| = 0. 163  ± 1. 2% 2. 8-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 465  ± 1. 0%| = 0. 153  ± 1. 0% 3. 18-year-old female: |1. 618- 1. 722  ± 5. 2%| = 0. 1  ± 5. 2% 4. 18-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 636  ± 1. 0%| = 0. 018 5. 45-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 609  ± 0. 7%| = 0. 009 Percentage Error: To find how close the results are to the expected value of Phi, percentage error can be used. Percentage error is how close experimental results are to expected results.Percentage error is found by dividing the difference between each quotient and Phi by Phi (1. 618) and multiplying that result by 100. This gives you the difference of the actual quotient to the expected quotient, Phi, in a percentage. (Roberts ) Difference1. 618 x100=Percentage difference between result and Phi 1. 4-year-old female: 0. 163  ± 1. 2%/1. 618 x 100 = 10. 1  ± 0. 12% 2. 8-year-old male: 0. 153  ± 1. 0%/1. 618 x 100 = 9. 46  ± 0. 09% 3. 18-year-old female: 0. 1 ± 5. 2% /1. 618 x 100 = 6. 18  ± 0. 3% 4. 18-year-old male: 0. 018/1. 618 x 100 = 1. 11% 5. 45-year-old male: 0. 009/1. 618 x 100 = 0. 5% AVERAGE: 10. 1  ± 0. 12% + 9. 46  ± 0. 09% + 6. 18  ± 0. 3% + 1. 11% + 0. 55% / 5 = 5. 48  ± 0. 5% ANALYSIS: The highest percentage error, the percent difference between the result and Phi, is 10. 1  ± 0. 12%. This is a small percentage error, and means that all but one of the ratios was more than 90% accurate. This is a good example of the Golden Ratio in the human body because all the values are close to Phi. Also, as the age of the participants increases, the percentage error decreases, so as people get older, the ratio of their head to feet to the ratio of their head to fingertips gets closer to PhiRATIO 2: RATIO OF THE MIDDLE SECTION OF THE INDEX FINGER TO THE BOTTOM SECTION OF THE INDEX FINGER Measurements Participant| Length of lowest section of index finger ( ±0. 5 cm)| Length of middle section of index finger ( ±0. 5 cm)| 4 year old female| 2| 1| 8 year old male| 3| 2| 18 year old female| 3| 2. 5| 18 year male| 3| 2| 35 year old male| 3| 2| Ratios: Length of lowest section of index finger Length of middle section of index finger 1. 4-year-old female: 2  ± 0. 5 cm/ 1  ± 0. 5 cm = 2  ± 75% 2. 8-year-old male: 3  ± 0. 5 cm/ 2  ± 0. 5 cm = 1. 5  ± 42% 3. 18-year-old female: 3  ± 0. 5 cm/ 2.  ± 0. 5 cm = 1. 2  ± 37% 4. 18-year-old male: 3  ± 0. 5 cm/ 2  ± 0. 5 cm = 1. 5  ± 42% 5. 45-year-old male: 3  ± 0. 5 cm/ 2  ± 0. 5 cm = 1. 5  ± 42% How close each result is to Phi: |1. 618-Actual Quotient|=difference between result and Phi The difference between each quotient and 1. 618: 1. 4-year-old female: |1. 618- 2  ± 75%| = 0. 382  ± 75% 2 . 8-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 5  ± 42%| = 0. 118  ± 42% 3. 18-year-old female: |1. 618- 1. 2  ± 37%| = 0. 418  ± 37% 4. 18-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 5  ± 42%| = 0. 118  ± 42% 5. 45-year-old male: |1. 618- 1. 5  ± 42%| = 0. 118  ± 42% Percentage Error: Difference1. 18 x100=Percentage difference between result and Phi 1. 4-year-old female: 0. 382  ± 75%/1. 618 x 100 = 23. 6  ± 17. 7% 2. 8-year-old male: 0. 118  ± 42%/1. 618 x 100 = 7. 3  ± 3. 1% 3. 18-year-old female: 0. 418  ± 37%/1. 618 x 100 = 25. 8  ± 9. 5% 4. 18-year-old male: 0. 118  ± 42%/1. 618 x 100 = 7. 3  ± 3. 1% 5. 45-year-old male: 0. 118  ± 42%/1. 618 x 100 = 7. 3  ± 3. 1% AVERAGE: 23. 6 ±17. 7% + 7. 3  ±3. 1% + 25. 8  ±9. 5% + 7. 3  ±3. 1% + 7. 3  ±3. 1%/5= 14. 3  ± 36. 5% ANALYSIS: With this ratio, 3 of the results come out with a

Stop Closing Our Eyes to Discrimination and Prejuduce

Prejudice and discrimination is something that happens a lot more often than we would like to admit. To be prejudiced, means to have negative perspectives for others, solely based on their membership in a group, such as religion, sex, and color. Discrimination cannot take place without prejudice, for the reason that, it is the behaviors that result from those negative perspectives. It is unethical, and in some cases, illegal. However, although there are laws for discrimination, that does not stop it from taking place. These issues affect many people in their everyday life. There are numerous ways that people can be discriminated on, from the color of their skin, to the size of their body. No way is better than another, and can cause lifetime damage to the victims. Victims of prejudice have higher rates of depression, substance abuse, anxiety, and chronic stress. They are subject to mental, physical, and emotional abuse. The outcome may be brief, however, or it can also be permanent. Bullying is an example of discrimination, which unfortunately, is a rising issue throughout this country. This is a matter that used to only take place in person. However, with the growth of technology, it is more accessible for bullying to occur. Cell phones and social media, such as Facebook and Myspace, are privileges that bullies take advantage of. Some victims begin to hate themselves so much that they commit suicide. In fact, more than 50% of suicides by young people, were the result