In Depth Financial Analysis Of Morrisons And Asda Finance Essay

In Depth Financial Analysis Of Morrisons And Asda Finance Essay Financial analysis using ratios between key values help investors cope with the massive amount of numbers in company financial statements. For example, they can compute the percentage of net profit a company is generating on the funds it has deployed. All other things remaining the same, a company that earns a higher percentage of profit compared to other companies is a better investment option. It shows the relationship between profit investment e.g. return on investment, return on equity capital. Financial Ratios Can Measure Different Things. The Net Profit to Capital Employed ratio mentioned above measures the success of a company in using funds available to it. There are ratios to measure the companys: Financial health Operating performance Cash flows and liquidity Under each category, there are multiple ratios that measure different aspects, or fine tune the measurements. For example, different profitability ratios measure profit margins at different stages return on owners funds and effective tax burden. Ratio analysis Ratios express a mathematical relationship between two quantities taken from financial statements. The  study  and interpretation of the  relationships between various  financial  variables, by  investors  or lenders. A  tool to conduct a quantitative analysis of information  in a companys financial  statements. Ratios are  calculated from current year numbers and are then compared to previous years, other companies, the industry, or even the economy to judge the performance of the company.   Ratio analysis is predominately used by proponents of fundamental analysis. Methods of Ratio Analysis : There are two methods of Ratio Analysis : 1. Time Series analysis 2. Cross-sectional analysis Time- Series Ratio Analysis : Time-Series Ratio Anlysis evaluates performance over time. It allows to analyse trends over a number of years and to examine the way in which performance may have changed over time. For instance time series analysis can make by comparing any companys performance of for two or more years i.e. 2007 and 2008. Cross-sectional Ratio Analysis : Cross sectional Ratio Analysis allows for comparison with the industry average or with competitors at a single point in time. This comparison allows a judgement to be made about the firms position within the industry. For instance to make a comparison of any company performance against its rival (competitor) for the same year. e.g. Shall Companys ratios are compared with British Petroleum company.(both are in same industry and same business). Advantages of Ratios : The advantages of Ratios are as follow : Simplifies Financial Statements. Facilitates Inter-Firm Comparison. Helps in Planning. Helps in Investment Decisions. Limitations of Ratios : Ratios have some limitations as well which are mentioned below ! Limitations of Financial Statements Comparative Study Requires Ratio alone are not adequate Lack of adequate standards Limited uses of single ratios Personal Bias Types of Financial Ratios : There are different types of financial ratios used in carrying out financial analysis. These financial ratios are mentioned below :  · Liquidity Ratios  · Activity Ratios  · Solvency Ratios  · Profitability Ratios  · Market Ratios  · Cash Flow Ratios Defining Types of Financial Ratios : Liquidity Ratios : Liquidity ratios assess companys ability to pay off its  short-terms debts obligations.   Generally, the higher the value of the ratio, the  larger the margin of safety  that  the company possesses to cover short-term debts. A  companys  ability to turn short-term assets into cash to cover debts is of the utmost importance when creditors are seeking payment. Bankruptcy analysts and mortgage originators frequently use the  liquidity ratios to determine  whether a company will be able to continue as a going concern. Activity Ratios : Activity ratios are used to assess the effectiveness of management towards utilization for generation of sales/revenue. Let us know how current and fixed assets are efficiently used by company to generate sales. Also analyze the account receivable, payables and inventory roles towards of sales, purchase and cost of goods sold. Determine how quickly account receivables are recovered. Enable us to know duration in which company pays its payables. Inventory conversion period is also calculated under the head of activity ratio. Solvency Ratios :  · Solvency ratios are used to  measure a  companys  ability to meet long-term obligations. It provides a measurement of how likely a company will be to continue meeting its debt obligations. Acceptable solvency ratios will vary from  industry  to industry, but as a general rule of thumb, a solvency ratio of greater than 20% is considered financially healthy. Measures the percentage of total assets provided by creditors or how much debt is supported by assets. Shows ability of the company to cover its interest expenses Solvency ratios tell about the ratio between equity and total assets. Companys total assets are enough to meet its debt obligations These ratios also tell about ratio between debt and total assets. Also tell equity ratio in company And determine debt ratio in company. Profitability Ratios : Measure the ability of profit generations in company. Profitability Ratios are used to assess a businesss ability to generate  earnings as compared to  its expenses and other relevant costs incurred during a specific period of time. They are used to measure the overall effectiveness of management to produce the profitability of the company. For most of these ratios, having a higher value relative to a competitors ratio or the  same ratio from a previous period is indicative that the company is doing well. It is important to note that  a little bit of background knowledge is necessary in order to make  relevant comparisons when analyzing these ratios. For instances, some  industries experience seasonality in their operations. The retail industry, for example,  typically experiences higher  revenues and  earnings  for the Christmas season. Market Ratios :  · They are used to measure a companys standing and position in the market.  · These are considered to be the most important ratios for shareholders.  · They are important for potential investors. Cash Flow Ratios :  · Cash flow ratios are derived from cast flow statement.  · These are used to measure the three activities found in cash flow statement. ASDA ASDA launched an online retailer in 1998, but from the start had over estimated demand. It started off from a dedicated depot facility based in Croydon but was closed with a number of redundancies shortly after as sales were not as expected. It continued the online retailer service but copied the Tesco store based model instead. Wal-Marts corporate stance is anti union, which is refelcted in the stance of Asda. In 2006 A planned five-day strike by Asda warehouse staff was been called off, unions have confirmed. The action had been due to begin on June 30 after thousands of workers voted for industrial action in a dispute over pay and bargaining rights. The decision followed prolonged negotiations between unions and the supermarket chain at the TUC. Asda was about to seek an injunction to block the action, claiming irregularities in the strike ballot. In 2006 Supermarket giant Asda said they were to offer staff up to two weeks unpaid leave to go on a German jolly during the 2006 World Cup tournament. Its 150,000 workers were to be able to take one or two weeks off in the month starting on 9 June. Requests dealt with on a first come, first served basis depending on staffing needs at individual outlets. The first Act of The ASDA Story was set in the old Queens Theatre, Castleford, West Yorkshire in the early 60s. Its roots can be traced to two branches in twenties. The Asquith family had a family business, a butchers shop in Knottingley, W. Yorkshire. The business was eventually expanded to seven butcher shops. The two sons of W.R. Asquith, Peter and Fred were actively involved in the family business and were later to become co founders of ASDA. At the same period, in the 20s, a group of West Riding dairy farmers joined forces, as Hindells Dairy Farmers Ltd. These included the Stockdale family (A. Stockdale), and a subsidiary company, Craven Dairies Ltd, was formed. Through a process of acquisition and diversification, a new public company was formed in 1949 Associated Dairies Farm Stores Ltd. with Arthur Stockdale as Managing Director. During the 50s and early 60s Associated Dairies expanded the number of pork butchery shops and also created the fascia Craven Dairies for its cake shops and cafà ©s. The son of Arthur Stockdale, Noel, met and struck up an immediate rapport with the Asquith brothers and so became the other co-founder of the future ASDA. ASDA was founded in 1965 by farmers from Yorkshire. The name is a contraction of Associated Dairies. For a short time in the 80s Asda Stores Ltd was a subsidiary of ASDA-MFI plc follwing a merger between the companies. Other companies in the group were Associated Dairies Ltd, the furnture retailer MFI and Allied Carpets. After the sale of MFI and Allied the company name changed to ASDA Group plc. The dairy division was sold to Northern Foods plc. The company went through a troubled period in the early 90s, but was revived under the leadership of Archie Norman, who became a shadow cabinet Conservative MP. He was chairman of the company in 96-99. ASDA, which then owned 229 stores, was purchased by Wal-Mart of the USA, on July 26, 1999. Following the takeover by Wal-Mart, several Asda-Wal Mart Supercentres have opened, creating some of the largest hypermarkets in the UK. The first of these stores opened at Patchway, near Bristol, in August 2000. At first, it was criticised for its scale and condemned as an eye sore, but the format has now become extremely popular. In November 2004 a refurbishment of the hypermarket was completed, addressing some of the complaints. In March 2006, ASDA launched a format called ASDA Essentials in a former Co-op store in Northampton. With a focus on own brand products on a much smaller floorplate than ASDAs mainstream stores, the Essentials will only stock branded products are perceived to be at the core of a familys weekly shop. This is seen as ASDAs response to the increasing strength of Tesco and Sainsbury in the convenience store sector. If the trial is a success, it will be rolled out nationally. ASDA is expanding its range of services to include Financial Services sold in store and online. Products currently sold are Child Trust Funds and Credit Cards, Car Insurance Home Insurance, Travel Insurance, Life Insurance, Mortgage Life Insurance, Over 50s Life Cover, Pet Insurance. http://www.asdafinance.com In 2006 Supermarket chain Asda took Brazilian beef off its shelves after claims it could have come from areas where foot-and-mouth disease is rife. In 2006 Supermarket group Asda started selling property through stores. Shoppers were to be able to browse properties for sale via an in store computer terminal. People choosing to sell their homes through Asda will pay lower than average estate agency fees and receive a free Home Information Pack (HIP). The system will be trialled in 10 Asda stores in the Sunderland area during the summer but is planned to be rolled out across the UK by the end of the year. Asda has sponsor techniques the name has been put on the WRU Asda Leagues: the lower leagues of the rugby system. Morrison Morrison is a mainly food and grocery the weekly shop. Uniquely source and process most of the fresh food that we sell though own manufacturing facilities, giving us close control over provenance and quality; and have more people preparing more food in store than any other retailer. Every week nine million customers pass through our doors and 124,000 colleagues across the business work hard each day to deliver great service to them. With competitive prices and hundreds of special offers, we are proud to save our customers money every day. As the Food Specialist for Everyone, they are different from their competitors. Their expertise helps them deliver fresher food, which is also great value. Being closer to source, they understand where food comes from; and they can talk with authority to their customers about the provenance and freshness of their food offer. It is one of the countrys largest supermarket chains, offering a range of goods including both branded and own label products aim is to provide all our customers with the very best value for money wherever they live and uniquely, we have always charged the same prices in every one of our large stores. They view resource efficiency as integral to sustainability and delivering better value to our customers. They approach to CSR recognises both responsibility and opportunity, enabling us to make a difference in ways that are good for the environment and good for business. They have made considerable progress in meeting our challenging targets. Carbon emissions have been reduced by 56% better than they planned; theres much less waste going to landfill and they have cut packaging. They are also running their own farm, which is being used as a base for research projects looking at the sustainability of food supplies and the efficiency of agriculture. They research will provide benefits to their business  and will also strengthen our relationships with the farming community. Morrisons Fresh Food Academy offers training and progression for all their staff, providing them with the opportunity to grow from shop floor to top floor and means they can deliver more knowledgeable service to their customers. CSR is embedded into their operations and plans. They do not claim to have all the answers but aim to do all they can to make a real difference by being both practical and persistent.   Many of the issues they address are wide ranging, complex and sometimes very challenging. Solutions may develop over the long term and they can sometimes prove elusive for a variety of reasons, including cost effectiveness, practical application, or they lack direct benefits. However, many projects and initiatives have come to fruition successfully to deliver tangible results that are  making a real difference. They offer a number of useful services for your convenience, so you can save time and money while visiting them.  To find out when your local store is open, visit our store finder, type in your postcode and youll find all the information you need. Fill up at your convenience Stop by their petrol station to fill up and enjoy many other services like gas, a car wash and snacks for the road. Facilities for shoppers with disabilities They offer lots of services to our shoppers with additional needs, including dedicated parking, wheelchairs, staff assistance, seating and induction loops.   Take a break at our cafà © If you fancy a relaxing bite to eat, their cafà © serves freshly prepared meals to your table, from all-day breakfasts to hot puddings with custard as well as freshly ground coffee. Your one-stop medicine counter Get free advice on medicines and healthcare from their pharmacists no appointment necessary and why not have your prescriptions dispensed while you shop. Print your memories in store They offer quality photo processing in store, including digital and 1-hour photo printing services. Latest price Change Currency LSE code 277.50 -4.20 GBX MRW Last closing price 277.50  (23  Jul  2010 4:30pm ) Current share price information Bid 277.50 Ask 277.80 Day high 286.00 Day low 277.00 Year high 305.00 Year low 257.60 Day open 280.20 Day volume 10,130,828 On 11th March 2010 the Board comprised a Chairman, four Executive Directors and  six Non-Executive Directors. With the retirement of the Chairman and the planned recruitment of an additional Non-Executive Director, at least half of the Board will ultimately comprise of independent Non-Executive Directors. The Board is responsible for setting and approving the strategy and key policies of the Group, and for monitoring the progress towards achieving these objectives. It monitors financial performance, critical operational issues and risks. The Board also approves all circulars, listing particulars, resolutions and correspondence to the shareholders including the Annual Report, Half yearly financial report and Interim management statements. The Formal Schedule of Matters Reserved for the Board can be found in the Corporate Governance Compliance Statement. Committees of the Main Board The principal committees of the Board are the Audit, Remuneration,  Nomination and Corporate Compliance and Responsibility (CCR) Committees.  Ã‚  Ã‚  The composition and terms of reference of each of these Committees are set out in the Corporate Governance Compliance Statement. Internal control The Board is responsible for setting a system of internal control for the Group and reviewing its effectiveness. The control system is intended to manage rather than eliminate the risk of not meeting the Groups strategic objectives. Any such system can only provide reasonable, not absolute, assurance against material misstatement or loss. The Board is satisfied that a continual process for identifying, evaluating and managing significant risks has been in place for the financial year to 31 January 2010 and remains in place. Shareholder relations The CEO and the Group Finance Director meet regularly with analysts and institutional shareholders. The Investor Relations Director also maintains a programme of work that reports to the Board the requirements and information needs of institutional and major investors. This is part of the regular contact that the Group maintains with its institutional shareholders. All Directors, Executive and Non-Executive attend the AGM. The Chairs of the Audit, Nomination, Remuneration and CCR  Committees are available to answer any questions. Additionally, the Groups brokers sought independent feedback from investors following the Annual and Interim results in 2009. This feedback was reported to the Board. Liquidity Ratios (ASDA) : Ratio Name Answer Result Reason 2009 2008 Current Ratio 0.526 0.491 Favourable C. Assets increased more in proportion to C. liabilities Quick Ratio 0.282 0.252 Favourable More C. Assets in proportion to C. liabilities Absolute Quick Ratio 0.111 0.345 Unfavourable Stock and debtors increased, C. Assets decreased Working Capital ratio (958) (943 ) Unfavourable Lower proportion of Assets to Liabilities W.C. to C. Liabilities Ratio (0.473) ( 0.508 ) Favourable Assets increased Activity Ratios (ASDA): Ratio Name Answer Result Reason 2009 2008 Current Asset Turnover Ratio 13.628 14.251 Favourable Assets increased in 2009 Sales to Cash Ratio 44.428 67.900 Favourable Cash increased in 2009 Fixed Asset Turnover Ratio 2.029 1.928 Favourable The proportion of sales to fixed assets was a bit higher W. Capital Turnover Ratio (15.164) (13.752) Unfavourable Less working capital in 2009 Inventory Turnover Ratio 29.091 25.963 Favourable CGS increased in 2009 A. Receivable Turnover Ratio : 65.441 58.418 Favourable More sales in 2009 A. Payable Turnover Ratio 7.101 7.237 Unfavourable A. Payable increased in 2009 Average Collection Period Ratio 5.501 6.162 Favourable Higher A.Receivable turnover in 2009 Average Payment Period Ratio 50.704 49.792 Unfavourable A.Payable decreased in 2009 Solvency Ratios (ASDA): Ratio Name Answer Result Reason 2009 2008 Debt Ratio 0.450 0.426 Unfavourable Total Debt increased in 2009 Equity Ratio 0.306 0.573 Favourable T. Equity and T. Assets increased Debt to Equity Ratio 1.470 0.744 Unfavourable Total Equity decreased Debt Income Ratio 3.656 2.536 Unfavourable Long term debt increased, net income decreased Profitability Ratios (ASDA): Ratio Name Answer Result Reason 2009 2008 Gross Profit Ratio 6.284 6.307 Unfavourable Lower gross profit in proportion to sales in 2009 Net Profit Ratio 3.166 4.271 Unfavourable Lower net income in relation to sales in 2009 Return on Equity Ratio 18.253 12.654 Favourable Higher proportion of net profit to total equity Return of Total Assets Ratio 5.592 7.255 Unfavourable Lower net profit in proportion to total assets Return on Investment Ratio 7.416 9.579 Unfavourable Lower return on investment Morrison: Liquidity Ratio Ratio Name Year 2008 Year 2009 Result Reason Current Ratio Quick Ratio Absolute Quick Ratio Working Capital 0.48 0.22 0.32 947 0.52 0.30 0.42 958 Favourable Favourable Favourable Favourable Cash increased while liability decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Reason Liability increased while cash decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Reason Liability increased while cash decrease Liability increased while cash decrease Liability increased while cash decrease Activity Ratio Ratio Name Current Asset Turnover Ratio Fixed Asset Turnover Ratio Working Capital Ratio Inventory Turnover Ratio Solvency Ratio Ratio Name Debt Ratio Equity Ratio Debt to equity Ratio Year 14.31 1.92 13.6 27.4 Year 0.42 0.57 0.74 Year 13.62 2.0 15.1 28 Year 0.45 0.54 0.81 Result Unfavourable Favourable Favourable Favourable Result Unfavourable Unfavourable Unfavourable Profitability Ratio Ratio Name Gross Profit Ratio Operating Profit Ratio Net Profit Ratio Operating Ratio Year 6.30 % 4.7 % 4.2 % 95.7 % Year 6.28 % 4.6 % 3.1 % 95.6 % Result Unfavourable Unfavourable Unfavourable Favourable Reason Liability increased while cash decrease Liability increased while cash decrease Liability increased while cash decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Market Ratio Earning Per Share Dividend Pay out Ratio Cash flow Ratios Cash flow Operation to Net Income Cash flow from investing to Operation Financing Year 20.7 0.23 Year 1.04 0.25 Year 17.39 0.33 Year 1.71 0.75 Result Unfavourable Favourable Result Favourable Favourable Reason Liability increased while cash decrease Cash increased while liability decrease Reason Business has excess cash Business has excess cash Cash flow from Sales to Total Sales Cash flow to Long Term Debt Operations Cash flow to Current Liabilities Cash Dividend Coverage Ratio 0.044 0.90 0.31 120.6 0.053 0.86 0.38 136.2 Business has excess cash Business has Cash flow Problem Business has excess cash Business has excess cash Regression Line: Year (Sales) X (Asda) y (Morrison) xy (x)^2 (y)^2 Y2007 14856 12115 179980440 220700736 146773225 Y2008 12969 12462 161619678 168194961 155301444 Y2009 14528 12969 188413632 211062784 168194961 Y2010 15180 14528 220535040 230432400 211062784 = 57533 = 52074 = 750548790 = 830390881 = 681332414 B = 4 (750548790) (57533) (52074) 4 (830390881) (57533)^2 B = 3002195160 2995973442 3321563524 3310046089 B = 6221718 11517435 B = 0.54 A = Y 0.54X A = 18145.75 0.54 X A = 18145.75 (0.54) (57533) A = 18145.75 31067.82 A = 12922.1 Y = 12922.1 + 0.54 X Correlation Co-efficient of Correlation: R = 4(750548790 ) (57533) (52074) [4(830390881) (57533)^2 ] [ 4 (681332414) (52074)^2 R = 3002195160 2995973442 [ 3321563524 3310046089 ] [2725329656 2711701476 R = 3002195160 ( 11517435 ) (13628180) R = 3002195160 156961677318300 Time Series Analysis: ASDA : Year Sale 3 point total 3 point moving average Variation 2006 14756 2007 14856 42581 14193.67 662.33 2008 12969 42353 14117.67 -1148.67 2009 14528 42677 14225.67 302.33 2010 15180 Morrison Year Sale 3 point total 3 point moving average Variation 2006 12115 2007 12462 37546 12515.33 53.33 2008 12969 39959 13319.66 350.66 2009 14528 42907 14302.33 225.67 2010 15410 Task: 3 Table presents annual net income and net cash flow figures for three projects A, B C. Initial investment for all three projects is same  £98,500. Year Project A Project B Project C NI NCF NI NCF NI NCF 0 (98500) (98500) (98500) 1 7500 24750 16450 45000 24500 44300 2 95000 31000 17650 52000 30500 39200 3 14750 34000 17950 59250 19000 39000 4 21250 40250 2400 5000 13000 31250 5 24950 44500 5000 24200 (1) Calculate ARR (Accounting Rate of Return) by selecting the required rate of return. (a)Project A (b)Project B (c)Project C (2) Calculating payback periods for A, B C projects. Solution: (a) Project A Year Cash flow Net Cash flow 0 (98500) (98500) 1 24750 (73750) 2 31000 (42750) 3 34000 (8750) 4 40250 31500 5 44500 76000 Pay back Period project A = 3.22 year (b) Project B Year Cash flow Net Cash flow 0 (98500)

Savage Journey in Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness Essays -- Heart Da

Heart of Darkness:   Savage Journey  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Inherent inside every human soul is a savage evil side that remains repressed by society. Often this evil side breaks out during times of isolation from our culture, and whenever one culture confronts another. History is loaded with examples of atrocities that have occurred when one culture comes into contact with another. Whenever fundamentally different cultures meet, there is often a fear of contamination and loss of self that leads us to discover more about our true selves, often causing perceived madness by those who have yet to discover their own self.   Joseph Conrad’s book, The Heart of Darkness is a story about Man’s journey into his self, the discoveries to be made there and about Man confronting his fears of insanity, death, and cultural contamination.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   During Marlow’s mission to find Kurtz, he is also trying to find himself. He, like Kurtz had good intentions upon entering the Congo. Conrad tries to show us that Marlow is what Kurtz had been, and Kurtz is what Marlow could become. Every human has a little of Marlow and Kurtz in them.   Marlow says about himself, "I was getting savage (Conrad)," meaning that he was becoming more like Kurtz. Along the trip into the wilderness, they discover their true selves through contact with â€Å"savage† natives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As Marlow ventures further up the Congo, he feels like he is traveling back through time. He sees the unsettled wilderness and can feel the darkness of its solitude. Marlow comes across simpler cannibalistic cultures along the banks. The deeper into the jungle he goes, the more regressive the inhabitants seem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Kurtz had lived in the Congo, and was separated from his own culture for qu... ...ure, a self-discovery happens. Both cultures realize that deep down inside, all humans are essentially the same. We all posses a good and an evil side, and no culture no matter how "advanced," is exempt from that fact. This discovery often causes madness as this evil side is allowed out. Only those who have completed the "journey into self" can understand the actions of people such as Kurtz. They are alone in this world of horror. Works Cited Conrad, James. Heart of Darkness and Other Tales. New York, Paperbacks ltd.   1996. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Underline titles of novels. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When writing quotes, the last quotation mark should come immediately after the last word of the quote, not after the parentheses. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Great work on the works cited. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The introduction should be limited to one paragraph.   5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Overall, your paper is well-organized.

Flipkart Report

INTRODUCTION E-COMMERCE E-commerce is short for electronic commerce. It is the business over internet involving buying and selling of  products/services. E-commerce makes use of payment gateways for online transactions. It requires excellent supply chain management, online transaction processing, logistics strategies and control, inventory management systems and many other automated softwares and database collection systems. WEB-BASED E-COMMERCE ARCHITECTURE E-COMMERCE INFRASTRUCTURE * Information infrastructure * Internet, LAN, WAN, routers, etc. Telecom cable TV, wireless, etc. * Messaging and information distribution infrastructure. * HTML, XML, e-mail, HTTP, etc. * Common business infrastructure * Security, authentication, electronic payment, directories, catalogues, etc. * The Internet * System of interconnected networks that spans the globe * Routers, TCP/IP, firewalls, network infrastructure. network protocols * The world Wide web (www) * Part of the Internet and allows user s to share information with an easy-to-use interface * Web browsers, web servers, HTTP, HTML Web architecture * Client/server model * N-tier architecture; e. g. , web servers, application servers, database servers, scalability THE PROCESS OF E-COMMERCE * Attract customers * Advertising and marketing * Interact with customers * Catalogue, negotiation * Handle and manage orders * Order capture * Payment * Transaction * Fulfilment (physical good, service good, digital good) * React to Customer Enquiries * Customer service * Order tracking E-COMMERCE IN INDIAE-commerce in India is still nascent, but it is important for developing countries like India. The opportunities for E-commerce players are many due to rapid urbanisation and rising literacy rates and rapidly growing internet user population, advances in technology, growing adoption of computers, introduction of 3G and falling net access costs. The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IMAI) estimated that India's E-commerce mar ket is growing 70% every year and 500% since 2007. Transactions In $ MillionsSegment-wise share in e-commerce market 2012 ABOUT FLIPKART Flipkart is an India based e-commerce company which belongs to the e-tailing (electronic retailing) sector. It is head-quartered at Bangalore and it initiated its operations in 2007. Flipkart was launched by a couple of young, enthusiastic friends, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, who grew up together and studied at the prestigious IIT-Delhi, as an online retailing venture with the objective of making books accessible to individuals living in the all the parts of India.Sachin and Binny used to work for Amazon, which has a similar kind of business before quitting and opening up this new venture. Initially they used to sell just books on Flipkart and relied mainly on ‘word of mouth’ for promotions. But in 2010, they started selling CDs, DVDs, Mobile phones and accessories, cameras, computers and in 2011 stationery, home appliances, person al care items and health care products. It has now revenue of Rs. 500 crore within a span of just five years making t one of the largest e-commerce companies in India. The core value of Flipkart is strong focus on customer service. The major goal of the company is to provide its customers with an ultimate online shopping experience and for this they use many innovative policies like a 30-day replacement policy, EMI options, Cash on Delivery, free shipping, discounted rates, pre-paid online wallet and most important timely delivery  of all the products. This requires an extensive supply chain and logistics and distribution network.A network of over 500 distributors have been established by the company and it keeps only those items for which orders are placed frequently by the customers and the items that are rarely ordered are almost always sourced from the suppliers when such an order is received from the customers. The company owns four offices in each metro city with a combined strength of more than five hundred employees. Fifteen courier companies such as Blue Dart, DHL etc. have been engaged to deliver the products and also Indian Post where courier service is not available.Warehouses are there in seven cities including metros. One can track the order right from ordering an item to delivery. One can even pre-order an unreleased book from the website and that too on attractive prices and on top of that there is excellent customer service. Customer satisfaction, amazing customer experience and the discounted rates of items are the key factors that work in the favour of Flipkart. The company has a stock of nearly 12 million books making it the largest book retailer in India and it has eighty per cent share of the online book market in India.Access to internet, increasing number of iPads, smart phones, latest technology that gives 3D images of products, time constraint consumers and increasing real estate costs required for offline stores have lead to a shif t to e-commerce businesses especially to online retail stores. According to a survey done by Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, the online retail market in India may grow from Rs 20 billion in 2011 to Rs 70 billion by 2015 as internet access improves. INNOVATIVE SERVICES LAUNCHED BY FLIPKART PREPAID WALLET FEATURE * As a general wallet that is used to store cash in it and allows a person to purchase and enjoy products or services equivalent to the cash amount in it, Flipkart has adopted a prepaid wallet service to its e-commerce website platform that provides customers with an opportunity to store and keep money on the website and consume it to purchase different products, without the need to take out their debit cards or credit cards or net-banking for each and every transaction.   The purpose of a prepaid Wallet is to make online transactions easier and more secure for the customers as they will be spared from the hassle of taking out their credit card or deb it card or net banking details each and every time they want to buy a product. Customers can fill their Online Wallets with up to Rs 10,000 by using any of the general payment methods like credit card, debit card and net-banking and then can consume it over multiple transactions. There is no expiry date for the wallet and the cash stored in it can always be refunded back to the source using which payment was made. Flipkart. com has included wallet service in its e-commerce structure keeping in mind the ease and convenience of their regular customers – those who make transactions multiple times during the month, and particularly when individual transactions are comprised of many small payments. Wallet allows the customers to make the payment just once and still involve in multiple transactions. This also makes sure that customers would not have to go through the bank payment verification processes each time they purchase something using the Flipkart. com.The wallet helps in cu tting down the issues with payment gateway too. * Also by including the innovative prepaid e-wallet, the aim of the Flipkart is to shorten the duration of the order processes that would certainly make the online shopping much simpler, faster and totally trouble free experience for their customers. * CASH ON DELIVERY * Flipkart launched the Cash on Delivery services for the customers who do not prefer to make an online payment. Using this payment mode, customers have to pay only when they receive the ordered item at their doorstep without any making any sort of advanced payment to Flipkart.Payment mode for this is strictly cash and the currency used can only be Indian Rupees. No discount coupons or e-vouchers can be availed while using this mode of payment. * India is a cash- driven economy with plastic cards penetration as low as 3% as of 2012. Also the existing payment gateways and infrastructure are not in such good condition and a noticeable amount of transactions fail. Also peop le in India still perceive high risks in using credit/debit cards online and thus in online transactions. All these reasons led to Flipkart adopting such a mode of payment.But the most important reason was because it was the demand of customers and since Flipkart has the maximum focus on customer satisfaction, they went ahead and adopted Cash-on-delivery mode of payment. * Important factors while adopting Cash-on-delivery model are that they have to deliver good products in good condition because if a product is not in good condition, customer cannot be expected to make the payment. They have to have their own collection and delivery network as they can’t rely on a third person to collect cash for expensive items and give it to them.They need to have strong and consistent operations and they need to make timely delivery because if they fail to do so, a customer is already lost for them for future. They also need to maintain customer relationships and respect customers so as t o maintain long-term profitability from the customers. * Cash-on-delivery model has increased the sales of the company by great margins and Cash-on-delivery has become the most used mode of payment. But there as many downsides of using this model. Rejection rate of the products delivered through this model is as high as almost thirty per cent.Though this is lower than other Cash-on-delivery players, still it is too much. Generally the company has to incur Rs. 35-70 for every transaction involving cash-on-delivery, but the cost could reach as high as Rs. 100 in case there is rejection or if multiple trips are needed to deliver the order. Whereas when the transaction is carried out using credit/debit cards or net-banking, only 1-2 per cent of the transaction total value is taken by the online payment partner as service fee. Therefore until and unless the transaction value is high enough, cash-on-delivery model cuts down the retailer’s margins by high values.Also cash-on-deliver y model tends to block the working capital that could have been better used for expansion and growth. * REPLACEMENT POLICY * Flipkart provides a thirty day replacement policy for every product purchased from its website. Defects in any product can be highlighted by customers at the time of delivery or within thirty days from the date of delivery. No cost is charged for replacing the defected product. * Main objective of this policy is related to the core value of the company – customer satisfaction.This policy makes customers feel much more secure about purchasing items online and helps build the company a strong trust with its customer base. PAYMENT GATEWAY OF FLIPKART Flipkart provides its customers with a hundred per cent safe transaction experience. Credit card payments are processed through the HDFC Bank payment gateway, as well as payment gateways (E Billing Systems/cc Avenue) that interface with various banks. The latest encryption technology is being used by HDFC bank to protect each customer’s credit card information.So as to hide the information while information travels over the internet, it encrypts one’s credit card number. HDFC also asks you to enter the three digit CVV (Credit Verification Value) number which follows credit card number and is given at the back of the card so as to make sure that the person carrying the transaction has the physical plastic card. Flipkart’s main focus is on customer satisfaction and in this case also Flipkart. com offers the security of highest standards so as to ensure that the shopping experience of each customer is private, safe and secure.Flipkart. com does not collect or store customer’s account information at all. Authorization of transaction takes place at multiple points, first by HDFC and subsequently by Visa/MasterCard/AMEX secure directly without any information passing through them. Payment Options * Flipkart accepts all MasterCard, Visa credit cards and AMEX. * Flipk art do not accept any international credit cards on Flipkart. com at this stage. * Apart from Credit and Debit Cards, payments are accepted by Flipkart by Internet Banking, Cash-on-Delivery and Equated Monthly Instalments (EMI).All Credit/Debit card details remain confidential and private. SSL encryption technology is used by Flipkart and their trusted payment gateways so as to protect the customer’s card information. SSL encryption technology Netscape developed a protocol Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) for moving the private documents over the Internet. A cryptographic system is being used by SSL that uses two keys to encrypt data ? a public key that is known to everyone and a private or secret key which is known only to the recipient of the message.Many Web sites use the SSL protocol to obtain and protect confidential user’s personal information, such as credit card number. URLs that use SSL connection have to start with https instead of http which is nothing but Secure HTTP. But both SSL and S-HTTP have different uses. Where a secure connection between a client and a server is created by SSL, over which unlimited amount of data can be sent securely, individual messages are transmitted securely using S-HTTP. SSL and S-HTTP are therefore complementary rather than competing technologies. DIFFERENT METHODS ADOPTED BY FLIPKART Auto redirection to banking site: Customers are automatically redirected to the page of respective banks where the information is required to be filled. Thus Flipkart never lands you on CC Avenue page unlike most other ecommerce sites. Hence Flipkart skips an unnecessary page by passing the needed parameters directly to CC Avenue. * Banks Status: Flipkart maintains its own real time status to check whether the net banking service of particular bank is working. So the customers come to know about a problem prior to entering that bank’s website.ONLINE PAYMENT PROCESSING SERVICES CC Avenue 1) Uses secure servers throughout an d adopt stringent security measures to ensure that sensitive information such as customers’ personal details is protected. 2) Customers enter all their personal information and Credit Card details on ICICI’s E-Payments (Payseal) and Citibank’s secure servers and the same is encrypted before it is transmitted over the Internet to the Acquiring Banks. 3) Additionally CC Avenue’s server is behind security firewalls to ensure maximum protection of your customer’s information. EBS (E-BILLING SOLUTIONS)For better encryption of data, it uses seven architecture model which helps in protecting the client information. High-tech Axis, HDFC and Citibank’s secure servers are used to authorize all credit card transactions and the same is encrypted before it is transmitted over the Internet to the Acquiring Banks. To ensure maximum protection of customer’s information, EBS servers are also behind the security firewalls. This guarantees that the buye r’s information is not available to any third party. EBS makes use of the best amongst the industry standards – the VeriSign technology, which ensures the complete security of the data.A/B FRAMEWORK – UNIQUE FRAMEWORK USED BY FLIPKART The framework has two components: Through the first one the performance of the website is measured using various metrics which are pre-defined. The second one uses an A/B framework that allows different versions of the website to be available simultaneously which is used to check the success of the advertising campaigns over the website. Thus the company conducts live and real experiments by diverting a small portion of the traffic and studying the results. Both components work together and simultaneously.The website’s performance on various parameters is measured by the metrics tool which is kind of a dashboard. For example, systems are immediately warned in case the transaction rate goes down below a certain limit. Flipkar t’s engineers can also rapidly implement and check their ideas using the A/B component. When someone proposes a new idea, a lot of precious time is spent debating what-if scenarios. Using this framework an idea can be implemented while mitigating  its risks. For example, the A/B framework redirects ten per cent of the Flipkart’s traffic to the new design/idea whenever an engineer changes the design of any page.Through this they can evaluate and analyze the effect of the changes using the metrics tool for collection. If it does not lead to any productive result, they can immediately change it back, and only less than ten per cent of traffic is impacted. The Benefits Since the tool has been introduced sometime around mid-2010, Flipkart now sells more than twenty types of products, taking the sales up to Rs 75 crore a month. In fact, during the last eight quarters, Flipkart has been able to double its revenue each quarter.

Georges Marvellous Medicine Essay Essay Example

Georges Marvellous Medicine Essay Essay Example Georges Marvellous Medicine Essay Essay Georges Marvellous Medicine Essay Essay Roald Dahl is an imaginative writer and does create vivid images in the readers mind. i do agree with this statement. Roald Dahl has used many narrative techniques such as imagery, vocabulary and humours illustrations. Georges Marvellous Medicine should be read by all students, because of all the techniques and key features used. Georges Marvellous Medicine is a story about a young boy who’s tempted to do â€Å"something† about his so called â€Å"grandmother†, and by something he means searching around the house collecting all kinds of horrible ingredients that will make grandma disappear, but instead, of disappearing she gets bigger !. The story affects on themes such as groth, family, good people, bad people, understanding people jealousy and greed. An important theme is good people because, being evil / bad, doesn’t pay out later, what goes around comes around an example would be grandma to George. Roald Dahl was the best storyteller in the 20thcentury. He used fantastic plots that matched by the extraordinary events in his life. He played with the vocabulary, and invented his own words. Roald Dahl stories have brought delight to millions of people. He was born in Llandaff, Wales on September 13th 1916. His parents were Norwegian and he was the only son of a second marriage. His father Harald and his elder sister Astri died when Roald was only three. He remembered his mother as â€Å"a rock, a real rock, always on your side whatever you’d done. Roald Dahl died on the 23rd of November 1990. An interesting narrative technique Roald Dahl used to make his stories entertaining and creative were his own words / vocabulary. An example of them would be: Squigglers, jacky jumpers, heigh – nonny- no and spissing. : These words present imagery which makes all Roald Dahl’s stories imaginative and entertaining. Italics is also another narrative technique style Roald Dahl used to emphasise a word. An example of an italic would be: No wonder, good. He slants these words, to make their voices have expression, for example, sarcasm. No wonder : Obviously he had left something out of the medicine. The illustrations by Quentin Blake are another narrative technique, used by Roald Dahl in his novel, Georges Marvellous Medicine. The illustrations help the reader to picture the key events and storyline. These illustrations are quick sketches, in black ink which support the fast rate in the storyline. An example would be, when Grandma hops out of her chair once George hands her the medicine. This book cover Georges Marvellous Medicine created and designed by Quentin Blake is effective as a visual text as it illustrates the key ideas in the novel. This book cover aims to target at children promoting a light and comical storyline and themes. For example, the childish font in the cream coloured box has forms of abstract and vector lines which would attract children’s attention. The large saucepan is a salience image because of the size of the pan. It makes you wonder the many ingredients put into it and the power of this potion. The ladle on which George is holding, guides the viewers eyes around the book cover. This is a form of vector lines. In conclusion, Roald Dahl is an imaginative writer and does create vivid images in the readers mind. Roald Dahl’s novel Georges Marvellous Medicine is an entertaining and imaginative novel with its made up vocabulary and humorous illustrations. Quentin Blake, the creative illustrator of this novel. is one of the finest illustrators in children’s literature. His illustrations are original and easy to follow. Once again, Georges Marvellous Medicine, by Roald Dahl is an entertaining novel and should be read by all students because of all the key features used. The moral / coda of the book Georges Marvellous Medicine, is that grandma had learnt her lesson for being so cruel and wicked to George, as they say, what goes around comes around.

CIS206 U4 Discussion Example

CIS206 U4 Discussion Example CIS206 U4 Discussion – Coursework Example Administrative Tasks Automation Affiliation: Common Administrative Tasks That Can Be Automated using Either The At Or Cron Daemons In operating systems that are completely multitasking, a program that does not involve the interactive user directly but rather executes at the background, is known as a daemon.We shall look at the at and the cron daemons.(atd and crond). The atd are daemon used for commands intended for one particular time execution in future the cron daemons are used for execution that recurs.eg every day, once in a month etc. (Raphael, 2013)At and crons are used to perform various administrative services which include log file management and file cleanup services. .We shall start by looking into log file rotation, this a technique used to deal with generic issue log file growth. It involves moving of log file to another file name in a regular manner and starting again with log file, which is empty. After some time the old file gets discarded. This is very useful to che ck the size of log files because it is very hard to manipulate large files. Secondly, crons can be used for distribution of files in a network mostly, configuration files. This helps to ensure that data is not lost during sending and receiving of files process. Ats and crons are used in file system cleaning. The temporary directory and all subdirectories belonging to it are cleaned out automatically whenever there is a system reboot. Also, the removal of files that has stayed for a considerable amount of time without use. Finally, the crons and are used perform administrative jobs that are done regularly be it weekly monthly or daily. Administrative tasks on windows system are achieved through some common tools like the adsizer.exe, which helps in estimation of the size of the directory. The delrp.exe is used to delete directories/files and associated point of reparse if any. These and other many tools are used to achieve administrative tasks in windows system. Advantages and Disadv antagesAdvantages One of the major advantages of using windows system to automate these tasks is that these tools for automation are readily available in the internet and they do not require much technical knowledge like the daemons. It is also easier to export information to databases and share it with colleagues.DisadvantagesOne of the major demerit to note is that these tools come with costs, they have to be purchased .It is also possible to cause havoc when installing scripts.ReferenceThe Debian Administrators Handbook (2013). Debian Wheezy from Discovery to Mastery:- Edition 1, Raphaà «l  Hertzog.

Narrative about family during a holiday gathering Assignment

Narrative about family during a holiday gathering - Assignment Example However, his abilities, experience and luck are the factors which help in his life. It took a few months when he got a suitable job for himself and showed his satisfaction with the environment and rules. The distress and depression that he has faced in the past few months needed to be relieved. Once again, a family gathering was organized to celebrate his success and I took the responsibility of all the arrangements. Since it is not a party arranged for a young teenager, it took me a while to think of the setups needed. He is no more a high school kid but is the manager of a multinational business with his sons getting education from the best universities in the state. I was much worried of keeping in view their living standards and prepare things higher than their expectations. Mary took the responsibility of making his favorite chocolate cookies topped with honey and peanuts, Kate decorated the wide lawn of our house with flowers and sophisticated decoration material and I made calls to all the family members for the party. The air was filled with the fragrance of flowers and the lights are giving a pleasant view of the beautifully decorated place. The family members sitting on the chairs gossiping about their life affairs were having a pleasant time together. Children playing, running, talking and giggling around the chairs, rooms and people. Mother Mary asked me â€Å"Is jack busy grabbing some surprise for us?† Obviously he was on time and always opted for the unusual surprises on such occasions. The picnic arranged for him after his high school was memorable especially for the gifts he brought for all of our family members and the guitar he brought for me specially. â€Å"What would the surprise be?† Mary asked again out of curiosity bringing me back to the real world. I smiled and hugged her for the impatience she showed and asked her to wait a

Corruption happened in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Corruption happened in China - Essay Example He said the government spent 3 billion to build the government building but because the people worked in the construction sector were venal, the accurate amount of money spent on the construction was just about 3 million. "The quality of the building was worrying", he said. Corruption had already affected too many people. In my town, a number of people who were in government and in charge of the city were venal, and many things which were their responsibility could not go on towards normal procedures. They would work for you only if you give them money. Also they would work for you no matter the things you asked them were legal or not. Many people are breaking the law everyday yet they think it is a normal practice. In my opinion, in order to stop this situation, we have to make the people in government aware of this situation and let them solve this problem, because as ordinary citizens we can barely do anything about it. I think we can gather a group of people to put out a protest. This protest needs to be carried out in a very silent way so that the mileage is good and the result discernable. I hope the people who went through the consequence of corruption could do whatever they can to stop this menace. This shall essentially set the basis for doing things the right way within China and bring an end to the immoral practices which are being compromised upon in this day and