The American Military Government in Germany during World

The World War II was a significant chapter in the history of Germany. It was a global military conflict that took place between 1939 and 1945. It brought considerable changes in the geographical, social and economic aspects of the country. Germany's main allies in the war were Japan and Italy, while the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union were on the opposite side. The World War II had a devastating impact on Japan, one of Germany's main allies. The outcome of the war resulted in the division of Germany into four military occupation zones.â€Å"France was given the charge of southwest, while the British forces controlled the northeast. The Soviet forces assumed the control of the east and a US military government was established in the south† . The main objective of the allied forces was to end the Nazism in Germany and put the country on the way to democracy. Although four military occupation zones were created after the end of World War II, the US military government in Germany had begun its work in 1994. Background of the US Military Government in Germany The plan to establish a military government in Germany began much earlier.â€Å"Following the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the officials of the Department of State in the United States, began their assessment on the post-war initiatives. They believed that the United States would have a decisive influence on the peace settlement and post-war construction activities† . It was very clear from the beginning that the US Army had to face difficult tasks of governing war-ravaged Germany. The leaders and troops of the United States were called upon to deal with a series of challenges in political, social, economical and financial affairs besides maintaining law and order in the country.â€Å"The State Department set up its first research unit for the preparation of post-war foreign policy. The unit was known as the Division of Special Research. Economist Leo Pasvolsky led the research u nit† . When the United States entered the war in 1941, the unit began developing a comprehensive planning and policy development strategy. The strategy addressed the key problems to be experienced by the military government in Germany and Japan. Foundation of the Military GovernmentThe military government established in Germany during World War II performed elementary functions such as relieving the tactical troops of concerns and carrying out customary and legal obligations of a military occupation. It formulated a national policy in order to serve a range of political, social and economic purposes. The primary objective of the military government was to ensure stability in the war-torn Germany. It also had the aim of undertaking necessary measures for the benefit of people.â€Å"The occupation of Germany by the US military forces began on September 15, 1944, when a small town called Roetgen on the German-Belgian border was detached by Detachment D8B1† . D8B1 was a civ il affairs detachment. It was trained to work in liberated territories. â€Å"The military detachments finally entered Germany on September 28, 1944 with Detachment I4G2 taking control of Monschau near Roetgen. Aachen, the western province in Germany was captured within a few weeks and Detachment F1G2 was installed there† . F1G2 was designed to administer cities and territories around them.The military government detachments were organized in England and in the United States. The â€Å"E† detachments were the largest ones. â€Å"Each â€Å"E† detachment had twenty-six officers and thirty-five enlisted men. Those detachments were designed to take over the government of all German states. They were also assigned the supervision of other detachments â€Å"F† and â€Å"I† that were installed within them† . The smallest detachments were the â€Å"H† and â€Å"I† detachments. â€Å"H detachments had five officers and ten enlisted me n, while the â€Å"I† detachments had four officers and six enlisted men† .The small detachments had been assigned the control of rural districts and small municipalities. Although only a small part of Germany could be brought under control of the US military forces, the occupation laid the foundation of the military government in Germany. Officers of the US Military Government The US military government in Germany was a result of effective planning and training for years. â€Å"The training of the military government officers and enlisted men began at the Military Government School, Charlottesville, Virginia in 1942.The military government officers who were sent to Germany were the product of service schools and they were more efficient than other army personnel in the United States† . The average age of the officers, who joined the military government was forty years. They comprised of both in-service officers and civilians. Most officers had long experience in handling civilian work. They had expertise in law, teaching, engineering, police or social work. They were trained and well-prepared to run the military government in Germany. Advancement of the US Military Government in GermanyWhen the first detachment moved into Germany in 1944, many people had doubt on the success of the mission. A lot of groundwork was done to convince people about the real objective of the mission. â€Å"The Moscow Foreign Ministers conference held in October 1943 had decided that the entire German territory would be occupied and put under the control of the military government. The European Advisory Commission (EAC) was created for determining the boundaries of the zones and devising control machinery for the proper administration† . When the military detachments entered Germany, they did not have any approved guidance or policy.After entering the German territory, they were given instructions from the US government. The military government detachments had many things to do in the field. â€Å"The military government appointed mayors and administrators. Registration of people was done on a priority basis. To restore law and order in the cities, curfews had to be enforced† . After the occupation of the territory, the military government experienced another problem of providing food and ration to the affected people. Food supplies and rationing systems were organized. Weapons and other prohibited articles were seized by the military government.The military government felt the need for adequate public health and safety for the people and Germany and made necessary arrangements on that regard. The war had devastated building and other public utilities. The military government tried its best to restore those utilities and operate them. The public utilities included schools, medical units and public transport system. The military government realized that it had to maintain a balance between the Nazis and common German people. Wh ile it had to deal with the Nazis, militarists and racists with an iron hand, it also had to restore faith among people about its mission and objectives.The World War II brought the German economy to a standstill. The Nazis disappeared with the retreating German troops. However, they left a series of problems to be handled by the military government. The US military government in Germany took tough measures against Nazis and Nazi sympathizers. At the same time, it focused on construction and rehabilitation measures. â€Å"Aachen was a strategic point for the US military forces. That served as the gateway to the occupation of whole German territory. When the Battle of the Bulge took place with German Ardennes offensive, the civilians became terror-stricken† .The military government officials properly maintained the concentration camps and ensured that the civilians were least affected by the horror of the war. The US military government in Germany even recruited some prisoners of war as policemen. Their job was to restore law and order and ensure safety of people and their properties. Throughout the battle, the US troops and supplies passed through the occupied areas without any hindrance. The military government had organized the occupation. It also demonstrated tactical moves in critical situation.â€Å"By April 1945, the US Sixth and Twelfth Army groups held the entire assigned US zone in the German territory. They also captured additional areas in German territory. It was the peak time for the military government to spearhead its detachments. The â€Å"H† and â€Å"I† detachments advanced with the front line troops by removing Nazi officials. Nazi officials were replaced by non-Nazis. â€Å"E†, â€Å"F† and â€Å"G† detachments established themselves in the occupied cities† . â€Å"By the end of March 1945, at least 150 detachments were deployed in Germany. That was almost two-thirds of the military governme nt strength† .In April, the military government exhausted its allotments of trained detachments. It resorted to organizing provisional detachments using anti-aircraft artillery, field artillery and signal personnel. After crossing the Rhine River, the military government undertook another responsibility of rehabilitating the displaced persons. There were over five million liberated prisoners of war. They belonged to France, Belgium, Holland, Russia, Poland and Yugoslavia and were detained by the Nazi forces of Germany. â€Å"The displaced people were to be taken care of by the UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration).The UNRRA did not have adequate manpower or the resources to carry out the responsibility efficiently. Hence, the military government took the charge of the displaced people† . Those people were victims of Nazi tyranny and German aggression. They were provided all the basic amenities such as food, clothes and houses by the military go vernment. Their safety and security was the main concern of the military government. â€Å"The displaced people from Western Europe were sent home. However, the Russians and the Poles were not received by their respective governments.Thus, they became long-term guests of the military government† . The Governance of the US Military Government The American military government in Germany was a result of the America foreign policy. The US government did not want an administration failure in Germany that would complicate its position on the global arena. The US government knew that its military government in Germany was sitting over hunger, chaos and confusion. It also did not want to manage an expensive overseas operation. However, it was well-aware of its responsibilities and the strategic importance of installing the military government in Germany.The US government provided financial and material assistance to the military occupation forces. It also provided relief and rehabili tation supplies from Germany to countries that were devastated by Nazi aggression. The US military government in Germany was provided a free hand to undertake relief and rehabilitation measures. Germany was used by the US military government as a main center to pass relief materials to the war-affected countries. The Handbook Implementation The German Country Unit founded by the United States had the writing of a military government handbook for Germany.It was believed that the handbook was the only document for the working military government officers. â€Å"The handbook was comprehensive and incorporated all guidelines required for good governance. The German Country Unit worked on the handbook. The final draft was distributed within SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force) and to civil agencies in Washington and London† . The handbook was different from the standard policy and procedures. It dealt with all the military government problems anticipated before the German occupation.The main objective of the handbook was to save the work-load of the military government officials and protect them from stressful procedures and policies in German conditions. â€Å"The first section of the handbook provided descriptions of the probable conditions in Germany and working procedures of the military government. The second section was the heart of the handbook. It contained chapters on the twelve primary civil affairs and military government functions. The third section contained basic information on the Supreme Commander’s proclamation, ordinances and laws† .â€Å"The proclamation was addressed to the people of Germany in the name of General Eisenhower as Supreme Commander of Allied Expeditionary Forces. It declared the Supreme Commander's authority on the legislative, judicial and executive power within the occupied German territory† . The proclamation also suspended German courts and educational institutions. It required all officials and public employees not to relinquish their posts until further notice. The first three ordinances made under the Handbook were very controversial. â€Å"The first ordinance defined crimes against the Allied Forces punishable by death.There were nineteen crimes that came under the list. The second ordinance established military government courts in Germany under the supervision of the US officials. The third ordinance made English the official language of military government† . â€Å"The laws were divided into two classes. One set of laws were necessary to establish and maintain military government control. Another set of law was to deal with National Socialism. The fundamental Nazi laws and their subsidiary decrees were abrogated† . Any interpretation of German law in accordance with Nazi doctrine was prohibited.There were other laws that abolished the National Socialist Party and the use of its symbols. Functioning of the US Military Government According to the war veterans, the US military government in Germany was better than the British and French military administrations. When the military government was planned to be established in Germany, its main objective was to convert enemies into friends. However, at a later stage, the focus was shifted to obtain co-operation of people, minimize fear and suspicion among them and change the attitude of ordinary Germans towards the US and its allies.â€Å"In August 1944, the Civil Affairs Division proposed a post-surrender directive, which had the goal of maintaining a firm and humane administration. The directive provided specific guidelines to the government on key issues. Those key issues included destroying Nazism and Fascism, preserving law and order and restoring normalcy among people† . The economic policy of the military government focused on preventing the inflation rate from growing up further. The war had a negative impact on the country's economy and it was heading for a financial crisis.The Nazis cared a little about the economic stability in the country. They always pursued their own agenda and prosecuted people who did not abide by the rules defined by them. Price control was another important task to be handled by the military government in Germany. The military government focused on controlling prices, reducing unemployment and providing emergency relief and housing facilities to people. The war generated a large scale of unemployment in the country as many offices, administrative bodies, basic utilities, public and private properties and business establishments were either closed or destroyed.Providing employment to people was one of the difficult tasks performed by the military government. It did its level best to include Germans in the construction, rehabilitation and other administration work. Key US Policies â€Å"The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) 1067 was an approved US policy for the post-war Germany. It was a comprehensive document that focused on three important issues. Those were denazification, demilitarization and decentralization† . Some of the top officials in the US and in Germany had reservation on the implementation of JCS 1067.According to them, the policy did not have a clear idea of the conditions in Germany asked for a few changes that would make it flexible. Germany had political hegemony in Europe because of its military and financial capabilities. However, the war completely reversed its position on the global forum. Throughout the war, people in Germany lived under fear and horror. The military government was assigned a nearly impossible task of organizing the people of Germany and motivating them to join the mainstream without fear and suspicion.â€Å"In 1942, President Roosevelt maintained that governing civilians was a civilian task and it was endorsed y his successor, President Harry S Truman. In 1945, Truman declared that the military should not have governmental responsibilities† . He believed that the military must perform only military operations. Despite all the arguments and debates, the military government stayed in Germany for a long time. Detachments were distributed across all of the US zones and major parts of other zones of the Allied Force. â€Å"The governments of the US, Britain and France negotiated for the establishment of quadripartite control.However, the Russians did not agree to the proposal and made it clear that they would not enter into any agreement unless they had full possession of their assigned zone† . In the absence of a consensus, JCS 1067 remained an exclusive US policy. Problems Faced by the Military Government The establishment of the US military government in Germany was intended to serve the real purpose of people. However, the military government had to face several problems to implement its key policies. While expanding its base through the German territory, the military government had observed large stretches of unplowed and unplanted fields.At the same time, it was estimated that there might not be enough food stocks in Germany to maintain the people for a long period. â€Å"As the agriculture of the country had been destroyed to a large extent, the military government imported thousands of tons of seeds. It also released Wehrmacht horses for farm work. The military government also set up farm machinery to repair shops† . Priority was given to plantation, as food production was very essential for the war-ravaged nation. However, the seeds could not be sown in time because of the continued warfare and the yield was likely to be reduced.At least 60 to 70 percent of the SHAEF-occupied territory was not agriculturally self-sufficient. With the limited food production, it was not possible to sustain the German population for a long time. The military government was determined to prevent a serious problem like starvation. It provided small quantity of food materials to people so that enou gh food could be stored for their future use. â€Å"In June 1945, the SHAEF imported 650,000 tons of wheat for Germany. Besides food, the possibility of a firewood shortage also became a concern for the military government.In July 1945, the military government urged the Germans to cut and store firewood for the coming winter† . There were several basic problems faced by German people in the wake of the World War II and foreign occupation. The US military government in Germany took effective measures to address all the problems. The Military Government laws excluded Nazi party members from both private and public employment. As a result, the military government offices were overwhelmed with loads of work. The military government asked the business establishments to purify themselves. That made the task of the military government much difficult.â€Å"Many business owners and managers changed their job titles and made deals to hide their real identity from the military governme nt. When the law took effect, military government property offices became trustees for thousands of establishments† . â€Å"During the process of denazification, the Germans were given a crash course in democracy. Orders were given to the German state governments to write election codes. The military district commands were asked to prepare for election to be held in future. Investigations were carried out to identify the potential candidates in future elections and their antecedents† .The voters had to be registered after proper examination as the elimination of Nazis and other ineligible people was very crucial from the military government's point of view. Military Government Courts â€Å"Military government courts were established in Germany in September 1944. They had a significant impact on the democratization of the German people. The military government courts addressed key issues such as civil rights, privileges and immunities† . An independent judiciary w as available to dispense impartial justice according to law. The US military occupation courts had a long experience in dealing with major occupations.Hence, they did not face major hurdles in Germany. Their main objective was to maintain law and order and protect the interests of the occupying force. Major changes were implemented during the World War II planning for Germany. The German judiciary was reduced to an institution of corrupt practice because of the policies of the Nazi regime and disturbances during the five years of war. It was no longer a trusted institution for the people in Germany. The US military government acknowledged the need for the reconstruction of a denazified German judicial system based on democratic principles.A more elaborate system of military courts was established. Those courts had the goal of brining substantial changes in the judicial functioning besides performing the traditional functions. â€Å"The judicial procedures followed in the military g overnment courts were a combination of the US Army court martial, the German legal system and the Anglo-American system† . The entire judicial process witnessed complete innovative ideas. In the beginning, the courts did not have enough lawyers and had to be manned by officers who were not legally trained. Later it was made mandatory for all the intermediate and general courts to have at least one lawyer.â€Å"The ordinance promulgated by the US military government provided certain fundamental rights to all persons appearing before these courts. Details of those rights were printed on the reverse side of every court summon† . All the accused were given a fair chance to be present at their trial to examine or cross-examine the witnesses. â€Å"Between 1944 and 1945, 343 military government courts had tried more than 15 thousand cases in the US zone† . The US military government courts helped the military government to win the trust of the German people. The promul gation of ordinances failed to delight the average German.However, the court procedures provided them the opportunity to test their fundamental rights and judge themselves whether those rights provided them real protection or not. Roadmap for the Future The military government considered denazification and democratization of Germany as its ultimate goal. It prepared its officers and enlisted men to stay longer in Germany even after the end of war. It feared an uprising against the occupation. The military government asked its detachments to warn all German officials that they and their people would be responsible for any revolt against the United States forces.The military government knew that it would be difficult to suppress any future rebellion launched by hungry and displaced people. It made adequate arrangements to prevent starvation and provide necessary help to people in the bitter winter cold. â€Å"The State Department made specific policies in Germany and the military gov ernment administered that policy. The American military government moved quickly to establish the agencies as per the Potsdam agreement. The American military government created German central administrations headed by German state secretaries.The proposal was first made in the Allied Control Council (ACC) and was implemented later. The secretaries performed functions under the general directives of the ACC† . The US Military government began recruited German personnel for the central agencies. There were several functioning areas for the Agencies. They included finance, transport, communications, international trade and agriculture. Identifying efficient German personnel was not an easy task as the military government was determined to remove Nazis from the system. â€Å"A ministerial collection center in Kassel was established.At the collection center, personnel, records and documents related to the central agencies were assembled† . The military government desired to reduce its day-by-day supervision of German affairs by establishing central German administrations. It prepared for the transition from military to civilian control. â€Å"Generals Dwight D. Eisenhower and Lucius D. Clay planned to transform the military government to a civilian organization by July 1, 1946. The United States Forces European Theater (USFET) document outlined a plan for administrative reorganization and prepare for the ultimate transfer of military government to the US civilian agencies† .Conclusion There is no doubt that the World War II brought significant changes in the social and political structure of Germany. There was a desperate attempt made by the Allied Forces to completely eliminate Nazism from Germany. The autocratic Nazi regime forced the world into a deadly and expensive war. Military governments by occupation forces usually fail to win the trust of the common people. However, situation in Germany was completely different. The US military govern ment in Germany did an excellent job in maintaining law and order and providing food, relief materials and shelter to the affected and displaced people.While they severely punished the Nazis and their sympathizers, they provided every possible help to the civilians who wanted to see their country on the right track. Germany's democratic development was greatly influenced by the American military government during the World War II. Bibliography: Abzug, Robert H. (1985). Inside the Vicious Heart: Americans and the Liberation of Nazi Concentration Camps. New York: Oxford University Press, 192 p. Ambrose, Stephen E. (1967). Eisenhower and Berlin, 1945; the Decision to Halt at the Elbe. New York: W. W. Norton, 119 p.Ambrose, Stephen E. (1970). The Supreme Commander; the War Years of General Dwight D. Eisenhower. Garden City, N. Y. , Doubleday, 732 p. Baird, Jay W. (1974). The Mythical World of Nazi War Propaganda, 1939-1945. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 329 p. Balfour, Mic hael L. (1979). Propaganda in War, 1939-1945: organisations, policies, and publics, in Britain and Germany. Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 520 p. Dallek, Robert. (1979). Franklin D. Roosevelt and American Foreign Policy, 1932-1945. New York: Oxford University Press, 671 p. Eisenberg, Carolyn. (1996).Drawing the Line: the American Decision to Divide Germany, 1944-1949. New York: Cambridge University Press, 522 p. Hoffmann, Peter. (1996). The History of the German Resistance, 1933-1945. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 853 p. Neillands, Robin. (2001). The Bomber War: The Allied Air Offensive Against Nazi Germany. The Overlook Press, 448 p. Perret, Geoffrey. (1991). There's a War to be Won: the United States Army in World War II. New York: Random House, 623 p. Stoler, Mark A. (2000). Allies and Adversaries: the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Grand Alliance, and U. S. strategy in World War II.Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 380 p. Van Creveld, Martin. (1982). Fig hting Power: German and US Army Performance, 1939-1945. Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 198 p. Weigley, Russell. (1973). The American Way of War; a History of United States Military Strategy and Policy. New York: Macmillan, 584 p. Winkler, Alan M. (1978). The Politics of Propaganda: the Office of War Information, 1942-1945 New Haven: Yale University Press, 240 p. Wolfe, Robert. (1984). Americans as Proconsuls: United States Military Government in Germany and Japan, 1944-1952. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press.

Deontological Vs Utilitarian Ethics Essay

Kant believed that morality is dependent upon reason, that to act rationally was the same as acting morally. He placed a high value upon duty in determining the moral worth of an action. Kant’s deontological ethics is essentially an ethics of duty or obligation. As such, he claims that the moral worth of an action depends solely on whether or not it was done exclusively from a sense of duty. If an act is done simply because one is so inclined, the act has no moral value. This principle holds true even if inclination happens to be in agreement with duty. To illustrate this point, he uses the example of a truly beneficent person. He says that while kindness to all man is a duty, there are some who are naturally inclined to be kind. He asserts â€Å"But I maintain that in such a case an action of this kind, however proper, however amiable it may be, has nevertheless no true moral worth, but is on a level with other inclinations†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Gregory and Giancola, 82). When these spread kindness while motivated by their own inclination to be kind, their kind acts have no moral value, because in his view in order for an act to be moral, it must be done for the sake of duty alone. Essentially, deontological ethics says the less inclined one is to perform an act that duty calls one to, the more moral worth the act has. While deontological ethics is completely independent of inclination, utilitarian ethics is in many was based upon it. Utilitarianism is built on hedonism, which is the claim that pleasure is the supreme good for man. The main idea of utilitarianism is that man is naturally inclined to seek pleasure and avoid pain and this natural inclination is to be embraced as it will lead man to the supreme end, which is happiness. Utilitarian ethics says that moral acts are those that promote pleasure and avoid pain while immoral acts do the opposite. In is definition of utilitarianism, John Mills says that as far as possible, pleasure in its highest quantity and quality should be promoted and this for the greatest number of people possible. He says, â€Å"†¦that standard is not the agent’s own greatest happiness, but the greatest amount of happiness altogether†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Gregory and Giancola, 92). In my view this means that according to utilitarian ethics, the moral act is the o ne that brings pleasure to the greatest amount of people.

Compare and Contrast of “The Lottery” and “AVOMWEW”

Humans sometimes feel that stereotypical beliefs or values are the black and white of life. In contrast, people are also unfitted to accept misleading truth. The perpetuation of archaic gender roles in â€Å"The Lottery† and the inability to accept unconventional truth in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings† highlights the negative effects of unexamined or misplaced values. In the attempt to accept truth, the townspeople in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings† finds out the truth in an unexpected manner.The incapability to accept unconventional truth in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings† explains the negative effects of unexamined values and beliefs. For example, the family in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings† calls in a neighbor woman who knows everything about life and death to see the man. â€Å"He’s an angel†¦ He must have been coming for the child, but the poor fellow is so old that the rain knocked him dow n. † People will often turn to, or use religion as an alternative to examine truth.â€Å"The Parish priest had his first suspicion of an imposter when he saw that he did not understand the language of God or know how to greet his ministers. † When realizing the truth is not unorthodox, the pieces of the puzzle start to fall into place. â€Å"That was how Father Gonzaga was cured forever of his insomnia and Pelayo’s courtyard went back to being as empty as during the time it had rained for three days and crabs walked through the bedrooms. Generally speaking, accepting unconventional truth leads to stereotypical beliefs.The longevity of archaic gender roles in â€Å"the lottery† highlights the negative effects of misplaced beliefs or values. For example, when the â€Å"wife draws for her husband† it feels very out of place. The townspeople are not used to a woman drawing let alone draw for her husband. â€Å"Don’t you have a grown boy to do i t for you, Janey? † In these times, the men and boys are the leaders of households and hold the authority out in public compared to women.â€Å"Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example†¦ The girls stood aside, talking among themselves, looking over their shoulders at the boys. † The authority of men plays a big role of how well the children listen and respond to their mothers. The women start to call the children â€Å"and the children came reluctantly, having to be called four or five times. Bobby Martin ducked under his mothers grasping hand and ran, laughing, back to the pile of stones.His father spoke up sharply, and Bobby came quickly and took his place between his father and his oldest brother†. The sexist theme of the story explains in great detail how discriminatory the times back then were. In conclusion, the perpetuations of archaic gender roles in â€Å"The Lottery† and the in ability to accept unconventional truth in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings† highlights the detrimental effects of unexamined or misplaced values.

The impacts of foreign direct investment on host country economies Essay

The impacts of foreign direct investment on host country economies - Essay Example The liberalization of markets worldwide, an effect of globalisation, has led to the elimination of the barriers for developing investment activities abroad, i.e. to a country different from the country of residence of the investor. Gradually, the foreign direct investment, or else the FDI, as this activity has been characterized, see also the next section, has become a common phenomenon in countries worldwide. It should be noted that the FDI has been related to a series of important benefits but it has been also found to have a series of disadvantages/ drawbacks for the host countries economy. This issue is explored in this paper. A series of examples and case studies are presented aiming to show the various aspects of the involvement of FDI in the economy of host countries. In general, the benefits of FDI are more compared to its disadvantages. However, the latter could lead to severe turbulences if they are not appropriately addressed. In this context, appropriate measures should b e taken in advance for the control of such effects either in the short or the long term.The term ‘foreign direct investment’ is used in order to show ‘the acquisition of assets by the residents of one country for the purpose of controlling the production and other activities of a firm in another country, the host country’ (Moosa 2002, p.1). FDI, as described above, can have many forms, including the Greenfield investment (indicating whole ownership of the acquired asset) and the Joint Venture (shared ownership of the acquired asset).... 2006). The last decades, there is a trend towards the continuous expansion of FDI as a method of financing various projects. This fact is made clear in the Graph 1 below where the balance among the FDI, the bank loans and the portfolio investment as methods of financing, is analytically presented. Graph 1 – Forms of capital inflows from 1978 up to 1995 (Source: Loungani et al. 2001) The decision of an organization to proceed to FDI is usually based on the potentials for profit. Moreover, it seems that Western organizations are likely to use different criteria when having to decide their entrance in a foreign country through FDI. Bevan et al. (2004) tried to identify the factors that lead organizations in Western countries to get involved in FDI. The above researchers found that factors like ‘labour costs, market size and proximity’ (Bevan et al. 2004, p.775) are likely to have a decisive role for Western organizations to invest on a foreign economy in the form of FDI. On the other hand, it has been revealed that the potential risks of the host country economy are not expected to discourage Western organizations from proceeding to FDI. However, it seems that the documents and the commentaries published by international bodies can influence the decision of Western organizations on FDI. In the study of Bevan et al. (2004) reference is made to the influence of the announcements of the European authorities on the level of FDI outflows from countries of EU to third countries worldwide. Similar findings have been revealed through the research of Globerman et al. (2002). The above researchers tried to identify the level at which the political and legal environment of a country can influence the level of FDI towards

Innovative Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 2

Innovative Organisations - Essay Example Its global business far outstretches total sales, leading by about 74% of the total Topcon sales, as per the 2008 fiscal year annual report. Topcon produces many No. 1 products in the international market in the line of Positioning business, Eye Care business and Finetech business. Electronic Total Station in the Positioning business segment is holding the largest share in the global market for providing functionality and performance; it is cost-effective and has product range. The company’s major competitive strategy, according to the company President, Takashi Yokokura, is providing the No. 1 products worldwide quicker than its competitor companies. It has followed â€Å"TM-1† (Time to Market No. 1) business functions to minimise operational processes time to half, speed up business and set benchmarks in quality. Focus is more on increasing technological acumen and marketing functions. Operational processes in R&D, product quality and cost competiveness will be speeded up to attain the specific target of TM-1 Company. Topcon Group’s future growth depends on speeding the product in as less time taken as possible to reach market. Only by following this strategy, Topcon can boost its profit by exactly predicting market requirements and delivering products hassle-free, exceedingly satisfying its customers. In positioning business, Topcon is integrating different technologies – electronic and laser technology into its backbone technology – optical technology, thus, enlarging its business domain with machine control, image analysis and GPS technologies for high-accuracy 3D position information. Topcon has once again set standards by introducing GPT-9000A Series in Total Station. Topcon’s total station is a positioning tool that exactly marks measuring points, offering correct and graphic 3D position displays. The

Inflation in the United States Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Inflation in the United States - Research Paper Example The case with the nation of the United States is not in any case different. Recent report from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in less than a month ago that the price index for all items has increased by 1.4 percent over the first twelve months (USDL, 2012). This could be an indication that inflation rates have increased in the United States. However, as the following chat indicates the increase in inflation has not increased in a rate that would affect the economy. The CFI-U chat above shows only a very slight upward shift on the consumer price index during the period suggested by the report. This period is subsequently followed by a period of lower CFI-U as indicated by the chat. The lowering of CFI-U indicated by the chat show that inflation rate in the United States has been decreasing since July this year. Moreover, the raise in CFI-U is very slight thus indicating that the increase in inflation during that period was insignificant. The current consumer price index is lower than the one that was reported five years ago. This indicates a significant decline in the inflation rates in this country. Inflation in a country is mainly caused by economic activities and the volatility of the economy. One reason why United States has been able to reduce inflation is that it has been able to reduce the volatility of its economy. Another reason is that it has been able to increase the economic activities undertaken on its economy. All this has been done through adapting an effective monetary and fiscal policy. Fiscal and monetary policies have been identified as the most essential tools of solving economic problems. In solving economic problems, the two policies help to reduce the inflation rates in an economy. Moreover, they help to sustain low inflation rates in an economy despite the external factors that might try to increase the inflation rates. According to Yang & Traum (2010), the fiscal policy adapted by the United States focuses on adjusting government spending and tax rate. Increase in government spending has several effects to this country’s citizens. Among these effec ts is the increase in the commitment of the government in the provision of essential services. This raises the standards of living of individuals in this country thus resulting to economic growth. Lowering tax on the other had stimulates economic activities in a nation. United States has been maintaining a low tax rates in its economy thus raising the aggregate demand and expenditure in its economy. The raised aggregate demand and expenditure stimulates the economic activities thus resulting to economic growth. The economic growth has been enabling this nation to lower its inflation rates and sustaining the low levels of inflation. United States has been maintaining low interest rates on its economy. This is mainly aimed at reducing the supply of money. As a result, it could be categorized as a contradictory monetary policy (Dwivedi, 2010). The policy plays a very significant role in raising the price of this country’s currency. This assists in reducing the inflations rates i n the economy of the United States. However, in an attempt to overcome unexpected increases in inflation, the monetary authority in this country is forced to introduce expansionary monetary policy in the economy. Expansionary monetary policy is one that focuses on increasing the supply of

Risk Management table Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Risk Management table - Essay Example This is due to the fact that, probability mainly defined the expected number of times that a particular impact can happen. Therefore, if the impact is high and the probability is also high, then the team ranked this as a top threat. Contrastingly, if both are low then that particular threat was ranked at the lowest level (Wheeler, 2011). The reasoning behind the mitigation steps for different types of threats is as stipulated below. If a threat affects the operations of a network device, then the mitigation steps shed light on protecting its data storage locations along with its network access layer. Secondly, if the threat is due to poor user practices, the mitigation steps focused on coming up with the proper policies on the use of organization resources. Lastly but certainly not the least, if a particular threat affected a whole system, then focus was laid on configuring the interconnection devices such as routers and switches (Wheeler,

Article Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Article Critique - Essay Example It is vital to understand the methods implemented by single mothers to successfully cope with stress as mothers experiencing stress can be detrimental to the stressors of their children. Similarly, a link has been revealed that shows a correlation between the economic stress of a single mother, the way in which she responds to and raises her child, and the overall outcome of her child in regard to their own behaviors and future economic status. Understanding how economic pressure negatively influences a single mother will also help in gaining an understanding into how maternal optimism promotes positive parenting behaviors despite environmental adversity, thus promoting a positive life for the child. Another purpose that this article serves is to fill the gap of literature pertaining to dispositional optimism within minority ethnic groups, especially in relation to mother-headed homes. Very few studies have been undergone in regard to this; most studies have looked into the negative influences and outcomes of single-mother households, shunting aside the existence of maternal optimism in other families with similar structures. Methods The study began in the mid-1990s, using 889 African American children, their caregivers, and, when possible, an older sibling, all living in Iowa and Georgia. The participants of the study were taken on through telephone interviews. Data was collected between these families in four different waves, starting in 1997 and ending in 2006. Of the original 889 participants available during the first wave, only 86.7% were involved in wave two and three interviews. From this group, families run by single mothers, as opposed to caregivers, were chosen and the others were dismissed. The final sample group of the study consisted of 394 single mother families. During each interview, two two-hour home visits in a span of seven days were made to each family. The first visit involved the giving of consent, both of the mother and the children to p articipate in the study; name and locations of schools were also given, and children’s teachers were authorized to provide further information about the children’s functioning at school. The ages of the participating children varied from ten to fifteen years of age; the mean age of the mothers was thirty-five years of age. The mean education of the mothers was approximately twelve years, and the mean income was $20,689. The mean number of children per family varied between one and two. Various questions were asked of the mothers and children, each pertaining to certain economic situations or behavioral statuses. These variables would be used to measure the overall situations of the individual families. These variables are are follows: Mother’s childhood adversity, which asked eight questions to determine if the mother was subjected to specific adverse childhood advents such as a relative living at home having a serious drinking problem. Economic pressure, which measured four indicators (unmet material needs, cannot make ends meet, financial cutbacks, and no money), all dealing with the financial situation of the household. Mother’s dispositional optimism was then measured, offering yes/no questions to determine the mother’s level of optimism during times of hardship. Mother’s internalizing symptoms, which measured how depressed, discouraged,

What Do I Believe About Others Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

What Do I Believe About Others - Essay Example I believe that immigrants get space in our country with due permission and approval of the government, and the government only allows them to share this space with us because their arrival to our land is expected to have a positive effect on our economy. I tend to interact and socialize with others a lot. I know that it can be very emotionally and psychologically demanding at times, as the friends usually keep offending each other in a sarcastic way all the time, but dealing with them makes me learn patience and tolerance. Once I develop that level of comfort talking and interacting with them, such conventionally offensive notions no more bother me, because of the fact that I have developed indifference to them. I believe that while my friends have a lot of negative traits, they also carry several positive traits. I tend to acquire good habits from them while staying away from bad influences. One thing that I particularly take care of is not to offend others while interacting with them. I think use of mockery and criticism just draws people away from you, and presents you as an overconfident person that they become hesitant to interact with. One can expand one’s social network by behaving decently with others and giving them respect. The formula is; treat others just the way that you want them to treat you. Since I desire respect from others, so I give others respect too, and it works for me. However, I make sure that with my patience, tolerance, and nice nature, I don’t become a sweet dish for them that they can eat.

Relationship Between Depression and Addiction Essay Example for Free

Relationship Between Depression and Addiction Essay Depression is a psychotic disorder marked especially by sadness, inactivity, difficulty thinking and concentrating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, and low self-esteem. I’m going to show how it all can affect each other. Depression can be both genetically inherited and brought on by a traumatic experience either as a child or adult. â€Å"Community studies have estimated the 24% of women and 15% of men will at some point in their lives is clinically depressed. † (Zautra. Emotions, Stress, and Health, pg. 133). Depression is an extended period of disturbance in both positive and negative affect systems. A black period in a person’s life can have a lot of negative emotion and very little positive emotions. You could have a great day and then next thing you know you’re in a depressive state. This can be attributed to various stressful events or small instances that can set a depressive state into motion. Everyday emotions or stressors can lead to feelings of hopelessness and low self-esteem. â€Å"Large depression is the stuff of breakdowns. † (Solomon. The Noonday Demon, pg. 17). Depression is like a building rusting over the years but with grief and insecurities that eventually collapse. There are two models of depression: The first is the dimensional: it is on a continuum with sadness that represents an extreme version. The second is the categorical: this describes depression as an illness separate from other emotions. Within depression one of the first things to go is happiness, but soon after your other emotions follow. Some of these other emotions are sadness, your sense of humor, and your belief in and capacity for love. Depression is highly dramatic and visibly different. Depression exists in time. Depression also doubles the risk of heart attacks. It’s insipid, fogs the days, disables the color in each day and weakens ordinary action. It leaves you tired, bored and self-obsessed. It takes away trust in any relationship, you start to think that people are talking about you or they don’t love you. You start to think that they don’t care. Some people are so debilitated that they shut down and push everybody away. Depression is an intense dark place; it causes uncertainty and loss of control. When you have an episode you can’t find your balance to right it. When it comes it degrades one’s self and ultimately eclipses the ability to give or receive affections. You end up going along the gradual path or a sudden trigger of emotion that brings you to a place that’s generally different than reality. You feel you are turning into something feeble, like a child that more and more of you will just blow away in the wind. It makes you feel less and less than normal. It makes you feel insignificant and you start to doubt your worth. It’s not the consequence of a reduced level of anything we can measure. It hits people in different ways. Some are predisposed to resist or battle through it; some are helpless in its grip. According to recent research, about 3% of Americans – some 19 million – suffer from chronic depression. More than 2 million of those are children. †(Solomon. The Noonday Demon. Pg. 25). Depression claims more years than war, cancer and AIDS. Pills and love are 2 ways forward. It now exists as a personal and a social phenomenon. In order to treat depression you need to understand the experience of a breakdown, the mode of action, medication, and the most common talking therapy. Intelligent treatment requires close examination on specific variants of depression. Children, elderly and gender are some of these variants. Substance abusers form a very large subcategory of their own. They disguise the depressive illness by self-medicating with alcohol and drugs. Depression and substance abuse form a cycle. People who are depressed abuse substances in a way to free themselves from feeling depressed. Some people who abuse substances disrupt their lives to the point that they become depressed. Drug and alcohol addiction can be classified as genetic. Addiction is also considered an illness. Some people abuse drugs and alcohol to escape the horrors of their family and work situations. Some use because they were abused physically and mentally. Other because of losing their children, employment or marital breakdowns. Substance abuse results in enormous costs to the abuser and their families. As in depression, feelings of loneliness and lack of positive emotion are a source of why addiction starts. I found as an addict myself that to control my emotions; I would use cocaine to escape. I abused drugs to survive through my emotions. This avoidance of pain, combined with the misinterpreting of the feeling of wanting may be what underlines the treadmill of addiction. Cocaine seems to block dopamine uptake, so that you have more floating around in your brain; morphine causes the release of dopamine. Research shows that if the brain is constantly flooded with dopamine it will develop a resistance to the drug. It’s why we as addicts need more and more to get high. When addicts go into recovery, they no longer have the excessive release of dopamine. They start to feel flat and depressed. Others with family histories of addiction tend to have lower levels of endorphins than those who are genetically and inclined to addiction. A depressed individual is likely to become addicted more rapidly than a person who isn’t depressed. Caffeine, nicotine and alcohol are the legal substances abused. Alcohol can do a great job of drowning out the pain. Cocaine is an expensive drug that causes a major crash after 48-72 hrs. It consistently depletes your neuron stores. This causes the crash. When you finally crash you have major fatigue, agitation and depression. Cocaine is considered to be a long term depression augmenter. Depression enables addicts. Depression weakens you and weakness is the surest path to addiction. Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12 step programs provide supportive settings in which people can safely share about their experiences with alcohol, depression and their own fears. With a sponsor and a therapist you can start on the path to healing yourself. Realizing what you need to change about yourself gives you the power to move on and eventually help others. It one of the hardest processes admitting that you are an addict. I know for me going back will kill me. Depression for me depletes my energy and causes me not to care about anything.

Effects of Population Growth

Effects of Population Growth Nerujan Sivanesan Issues of human geography have had irreversible impacts on the Earth as we know today. Over the centuries, the growing human population has led to high population densities, and has greatly affected the fate of one particular country. The environmental, economic and social impacts have been both positive and negative in the case of this nation. Although many nations are affected, no other place bears the weight of this issue more than the country of India. Currently, India has a population of 1,220,800,359 people and it ranks second according to the central intelligence agency website when compared to all the other countries around the world. In addition, population density is the number of people living per unit of an area1 and India currently retains a population density of 388 people/km2 in 2013 according to the population reference bureau website. As a result of their high population, it leads to the emergence of many socio-medical issues and survivalhood complications9 such as a lack of water supply as well as having a greater working population despite suffering from shortages of land and resources. In addition, it will lead to the reduction of population growth which in turn will assist in the reduction of its population in the future. The environmental repercussions that will arise in India due to having a high population will massively affect this nation. Environmental issues such as a lack of water supply and polluted water will occur as a result of India’s continually growing population. In addition, the water supply that is obtained will most likely be polluted because daily garbage generation ranges more than 3-20 tons.3 All this generated garbage is found on streets, infront of homes and other properties which will end up in rivers and lakes, eventually contaminating the water. Also, the unregulated disposal of pollution occurs through drains joining into rivers, streams, and reservoirs.3 This is because companies do not have waste water treatments systems, thus, all the water in this environment will be contaminated by these chemicals. Moreover, having a human population with a high population density will lead India to have a lot of gas powered vehicles on its streets which will result in air pollution. As a result of air pollution, it will contribute to global warming which will hamper the required weather conditions needed to maintain India’s agriculture, which is a critical part of their economic life. Unfortunately, the poor people will be most likely affected by this since most of them live in rural areas. This is bad news forIndia as a whole because agriculture is one of their most important ways for raising economic income. Even though there are mainly negative effects regarding the environmental implications for this issue, there are still some positive effects too. One positive effect would be that the increase in population in agricultural areas of India will result in a higher production of agriculture. Hence, this will help sustain the country both environmentally and economically because it wil l prevent shortages in food supply as well as provide an income for the poor agricultural workers. Economic benefits and complications arise due to India having such a high population. In fact, Indians living in this highly populated country will be more willing to accept lower wages due to having a high unemployment rates. As a result this will attract more companies because they would not have to pay high wages and would allow India to grow economically. Even though India will economically grow because of the attraction of companies, their economy will still suffer due to the fact that a high number of people in this country are in poverty and that the gap between the poor and rich is growing. This is because the rich people are exploiting more resources than poor people.9 Also, the number of middle class people found in this nation will continue to grow so the purchasing power will become higher power. Therefore, the more people there are in a country, the greater their economic potential will. In addition, having such a high population will result in the development of technology. For that reason, rising population promotes the need for some sort of technological change in order to meet the rising demands for certain goods and services, as a result more jobs will become available.13Moreover, a mass influx in population is considered harmful to economic growth since the resources found in India are found to be limited due to the increasing rate in population growth. Even though this is true, it can also lead them to have a very high working population. Since, the amount of resources will become limited due to the increase in population; their prices will greatly increase. Nonetheless, the increase in prices of resources would often lead people, especially poor people to suffer from starvation. Consequences will arise for the reason that India will want to solve/reduce their current issue, overpopulation, however, its citizens financial status will determine whether the methods suggested is agreeable or not. It is a known fact that women play a decisive role in influencing the birth rates during their child bearing years. Therefore, family planning efforts are promoted such as encouraging later marriages as well as increasing the length of birth intervals so that the population rate will be reduced in the future. When successful, family planning efforts tend to help reduce the population rate because families will limit themselves to two children most of the time. In addition, women play a crucial role in high population rates because some women especially the women in poverty are illiterate which would mean there is an encouragement of early marriages. This is because families in poverty usually marry their daughters off in exchange for dowry once they enter their child be aring years. As a result this will assist both the daughter as well as her family economically. Since they are illiterate, they will be encouraged to have children in short birth intervals because they reside in rural areas and once their children become older they will begin to assist in the agricultural work given, as it is their only source of income. Evidence shows that women’s education has a positive association with a wider range of contraceptive product usage in India, whereby women possessing high levels of education use both modern and traditional non-terminal methods of birth control.4 In addition, women who are educated tend to marry later in their lives. Furthermore, this would mean that they have shorter child bearing years when compared to women who are illiterate. India’s growing human population is still a concerning issue and it has affected the fate of this country environmentally, economically, and socially. Through environmental implications, water supplies will sometimes be contaminated because of a lack of waste water treatment systems in industrial companies and an increase in agricultural production will occur due escalation in population growth. In addition, the increase in agricultural production will help India’s economy to become much stronger. However, there are many people in this country that are in poverty which would cause its economy to decline. Later marriages will help reduce population growth because women will now have shorter child bearing years and this method is mostly used by educated women. Uneducated women marry during the initial stages of their child bearing year for economical or social reasons and this would mean they have longer child bearing years. Many consequences will result due to population growth and it can be interpreted in different ways on how it would affect India. Reference 1.http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/population+density?s=t 2.http://www.sfu.ca/geography/undergraduate-program/human-geography-sfu 3.http://books.google.ca/books?hl=enlr=id=J6sZo47jJNsCoi=fndpg=PA50dq=how+overpopulation+affects+India%27s+environmentots=FZay88LUiGsig=mS2rwX8b9T4W6A8-43hk7x7YoL0#v=onepageqf=false 4. http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.lib.ryerson.ca/docview/200907237 5.http://web.b.ebscohost.com/abstract?direct=trueprofile=ehostscope=siteauthtype=crawlerjrnl=09725784AN=86021326h=zu59X88190lyNltFvjZpfzTtHQ5aKCt8BM87felpzhBaD7AK10%2fd2ePpsRh3LSDL5tE5GRrFKnzAALuXIi2cng%3d%3dcrl=c 6. http://www.prb.org/DataFinder/Topic/Rankings.aspx?ind=30fmt=31tf=54loc=249,250,251,252,253,254,34227,255,257,258,259,260,261,262,263,264,265,266,267,268,269,270,271,272,274,275,276,277,278,279,280,281,282,283,284,285,286,287,288,289,290,291,292,294,295,296,297,298,299,300,301,302,304,305,306,307,308,311,312,315,316,317,318,319,320,321,322,324,325,326,327,328,34234,329,330,331,332,333,334,336,337,338,339,340,342,343,344,345,346,347,348,349,350,351,352,353,354,358,359,360,361,362,363,364,365,366,367,368,369,370,371,372,373,374,375,377,378,379,380,381,382,383,384,385,386,387,388,389,390,392,393,394,395,396,397,398,399,400,401,402,404,405,406,407,408,409,410,411,415,416,417,418,419,420,421,422,423,424,425,427,428,429,430,431,432,433,434,435,437,438,439,440,441,442,443,444,445,446,448,449,450,451,452,453,454,455,456,457,458,459,460,461,462,464,465,466,467,468,469,470,471,472,473,474,475,476,477,478,479,480sort=AscendingsortBy=value 7.http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.POP.DNST?order=wbapi_data_value_2010+wbapi_data_value+wbapi_data_value-lastsort=asc 8. http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.lib.ryerson.ca/docview/1346647850 9.http://rierc.org/social/paper174.pdf 10.https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2119rank.html 11. http://asbbs.org/files/2011/JBBS_24.1_Spring_2012.pdf#page=108 12.http://www.indiawaterportal.org/sites/indiawaterportal.org/files/Climate change in India_Forgotten threats, forgotten opportunities_EPW_2010.pdf

Customer Satisfaction Research on Bank

Customer Satisfaction Research on Bank CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 COMPANY PROFILE HDFC bank was founded in august 1994. It was among the first companies to receive an ‘in principle’ approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up a branch in the private sector. The bank operated as a commercial bank under the liberalization policies of RBI. In February 2000, this bank experienced a merger with Times Bank owned by The Times Group (Bennett Coleman co.). This was the first merger between two private banks in India. 1 share of HDFC Bank was received by shareholder of Times bank for every 5.75 shares of their own. HDFC bank acquired Centurion Bank of Punjab on 23 May 2008 taking its total branches to more than 1000. The amalgamated bank came out with a base of Rs. 1, 22,000 crores and net advances of about Rs. 89,000 crores. HDFC Bank Limited provides banking as well as various financial services to different corporations, and middle upper income customers in India. The bank operates through three main divisions which are wholesale banking, retail banking, and treasury operations. HDFC also provides services like credit cards, debit cards, third party distribution, investment advisory services, card and automated teller machine (ATM) acquiring transactions, and depositary services. Foreign exchange and derivative products is provided by the treasury division. The bank also provides telephone banking, Net Banking, Internet banking, and mobile telephone banking services.It is the largest bank in India by market capitalization as of 24 February 2014. On January 2 2014, the market cap value of HDFC was found to be USD 27.00B, as compared to the credit Suisse group with USD 48.00B. It was promoted by the housing development finance corporation, a premier housing finance company of India set up in 1977. Some of the latest achievement of HDFC bank are: Table 1.1: Achievements of 2014 and 2013. 2014 Asiamoney Best of Best Domestic Banks-India. 2014 Dun Bradstreet- Mannapuram Finance Limited Corporate Award 2014 Best corporate in Banking Sector. 2013 Asiamoney Best domestic bank in India. Best local cash management bank in India. 2013 Institute for development and research in banking technology awards Best bank- managing IT risks. Best bank- best IT team. 2013 Businessworld Best bank in India. OBJECTIVE OF THE REPORT To study the satisfaction received by the customer form HDFC staff as well as technical staff in Noida region, Uttar Pradesh, India. To study the areas in which the customer from this particular region invest in. To know the problems faced by the customers. CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research design: Exploratory design has been selected as data has been collected from questionnaire as well as direct contact to understand the satisfaction level of the customer and to study the areas in which these customers prefer to invest their money. 3.2 Data Collection Method: Most of the data has collected from secondary sources whereas for conduct of research the primary data has been collected through a structured questionnaire wherein a total of 120 respondents took part out of which only 100 have been taken into consideration inorder to reduce the error. This data collected is from Noida region only and has been collected according to the convenience of the researcher. 3.3 Sampling The study mainly deals with the satisfaction of the customer in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. The required data was collected through a pretested questionnaire administered on a combination of convenience andjudgment sample of 100 individual investors. Judgment sample selection isdue to the time. Respondents were screened and inclusion was purely on the basis of their knowledge about financial organizations, HDFC in particular. This was necessary, because the questionnaire presumed awareness of some basic terminology used in these organizations. The purpose of the survey was to understand where the interest of the customer lies when investing in these organizations depending on various like satisfaction, awareness level. Sample of the questionnaire is given in Annex. A. 3.4 Instruments Used: The primary data was collected through a structured questionnaire by interactions with investors through telephone and through emails. 3.5 Analysis: After the data collection, it was compiled, classified and tabulated manually with the help of the computer. CHAPTER 4: INTERPRETATION AND FINDINGS Why you chose HDFC? The survey was conducted to see whether the customers are happy with the service provided by the bank. The study is given below Graph 4.1 It was revealed that the customers were highly satisfied by the communication (80%) followed by the problem solving capabilities (75.24%) of the staff. The customers were not much satisfied by the reliability of this organization. Interpretation: the bank should focus on its ability to perform well consistently and increase responsiveness to attract more customers. Analysis of investors preference The survey was conducted to capture investor objective for investment in financial instruments, reveals the following. Graph 4.2 Most of the investors invest money for the purpose of future welfare followed by high growth, so company should suggest those instruments which have a positive return for their investment which will help in fulfilling both the objectives. Customers reasons for being a part of this organization Customers were asked about the reasons because of which they became a part of this organization, the study showed a following results. Pie chart 4.3 From the study it was found that 25% people joined this organization because of the image, 25% people because of the extra services and 45% mainly because of the normal services provided by them whereas only 5% joined this bank because of all the above factors. Best service provided by the bank This was done to get an idea of the service most liked/preferred by the customers. The result showed, Table 1.2 Service Respondents % of respondents Savings a/c 33 33% Fixed deposits 40 40% Current a/c 12 12% Demat a/c 0 0% Credit cards 0 0% Mutual funds 10 10% Loans 5 5% Graph 4.4 According to the results, the customers find fixed deposit to be the best service provided, followed by savings and currents a/c. not even a single customer opted for demat a/c or credit cards. Perception about the services of the bank The customers were given three choices and the result was recorded to know the problems with the services and how to solve them in order to provide better services from the next time. Table 1.3 Response No of respondents % of respondents Good 35 35% Average 55 55% Poor 10 10% Graph 4.5 The result clearly shows that 55 % found the service to be average whereas 35 % found to be good. The remaining 10% found the service to be poor. Satisfied with the dealing of bank officials. Dealing with the customer plays an important role in the organization and to check it, a report has been made. The results show, Table 1.4 Response No of respondents % of respondents Yes 30 30% No 25 25% To some extend 45 45% Pie chart 4.6 The pie charts shows that maximum customers were satisfied by the dealing to some extend whereas 30% were completely satisfied. Only 25% were not satisfied and asked to make appropriate changes. Problems faced regarding the bank? Table 1.5 Response No of respondents % of respondents timeliness 78 78% Customer relationship 12 12% infrastructure 10 10% others 0 0% Graph 4.7 Most of the customers face a problem with the timeliness (78%), whereas only 12 % and 10% people face problems with customer relationship and infrastructure respectively. Will you recommend this bank to any of your friends? Table 1.6 Response No of respondents % of respondents Very unlikely 8 8% Somewhat unlikely 30 30% Neither likely nor unlikely 17 17% Somewhat likely 35 35% Very likely 10 10% Pie chart 4.8 According to the result, around 40% of the people agreed to recommend this bank to their friends whereas 25 refused to do so. Rate HDFC bank in maintaining good customer relationship Table 1.7 Respondents No of respondents % of respondents Good 20 20% Average 57 57% Poor 23 23% Graph 4.9 The result shows perfectly that the customers found the service to be average in terms of customer relations. Overall satisfaction rating with HDFC Table 1.8 Respondents No of respondents % of respondents Very dissatisfied 2 2% Somewhat dissatisfied 9 9% Neutral 21 21% Somewhat satisfied 48 48% Very satisfied 20 20% Graph 5.0 Review from customers show that 48% are somewhat satisfied whereas 21 percent are neutral about the satisfaction level. Only 2% and 9% customer were very and somewhat dissatisfied respectively. 4.1 Findings Majority of the customers are satisfied with the service provided. Majority of the customers found the services to be average. They also found that the respondents are average in maintaining good customer relations. Majority of the customers are facing the problem of timeliness. The perception of the majority of the customers is good and are satisfied with the services and were ready to recommend the products of the bank. Majority of the customers are interested in fixed deposits, savings a/c, and mutual funds. Majority of the customers are satisfied with the dealing of the bank officials. The most important point is that, services provided by the banks attract customers. CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 5.1 Suggestions More stress should be given on advertisement and promotional activities. Banks should improve the efforts to make good relationship with the customers. Enhancing their services should also be an important task. Procedures should be made less time consuming. Banks should inform their customers about their extra services. 5.2 Limitations The research was carried out in a short period of 6 weeks because of which simple random and judgemental sampling is used. Limited sample size (100). The information might be biased because the information collected is given by the customer which doesn’t have any proof and depends upon different customers according to their satisfaction level. 5.3 Conclusion At the end I would like to conclude by saying that the Indian banking market is growing at an astonishing rate. HDFC bank have a network of 1142 branches and 3295 automated teller machines in 528 cities in India. The majority of customers are satisfied but the bank should target the unsatisfied customers. Even though the customers are aware about the services, the bank should try to create more awareness among people. HDFC should use printing as well as other media to do so. Formalities should be reduced to a minimum level as the customers feel irritated and the whole process becomes a burden on them. BIBLIOGRAPHY www.google.com www.hdfcbank/products/finance www.iloveindia.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDFC_Bank http://www.slideshare.net/ankurshrivastava3762/customer-satisfaction-level-in-hdfc-bank http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2002-11-16/news/27339334_1_sanjay-ralhan-primus-and-american-express-auto-finance ANNEXURE ANNEXURE 1: Questionnaire NAME ________________ AGE ___________________ GENDER_______________ OCCUPATION______________ EMAIL_________________ ADDRESS__________________ Why you chose HDFC? Resolve problems Communications Reliability Responsiveness What are your investment objective in HDFC bank? High income Stable income Future welfare Tax benefit High growth Reasonable income Retirement protection What are the reasons that attract you to be a customer? Image Services Products All of the above Best service provided by the bank are? Savings a/c Fixed deposit Current a/c Demat a/c Credit cards Insurance Mutual funds Loans What are your perceptions about the services of the banks? Good Average Poor Are you satisfied with the dealing of the bank officials? Yes No To some extend Any problems you are facing regarding the bank? Timeliness Customer relationship Infrastructure All of the above How likely are you to recommend the services to your friend or family? Very unlikely Somewhat unlikely Neutral Somewhat likely Very likely How will you rate HDFC bank in maintaining customer relationship? Good Average Poor What is your overall satisfaction with the company? Very dissatisfied Somewhat dissatisfied Neutral Somewhat satisfied Very satisfied

Essay --

Srijana Chhetri Mr. Wesney Honors World History Dec.18, 2013 Industrial Revolution in England The Industrial Revolution began in England towards the late 17th century. It started in the United Kingdom and was driven by a technology system based on water power and steam engines, cotton, textiles, ironworking, river transport, and canals. These inventions made it possible to send heavy commodities such as coal, iron, wool, grain and so forth from one end of the world to another (Henderson 1, The Industrial... 1815-1914). Inventors of new machines were honored and inventions of new technology were encouraged during this time period. Ordinary working people found increased opportunities for work within the new mills and factories, but these were always accompanied by strict working conditions with long hours of labor, and often involved young children and women. The Industrial Revolution replaced an economy based on agriculture with one based on industry and manufacturing. One of the most important changes was the continuous expansion of the population and the economy. Most obse rvers in the 18th century did not believe that expansion of the population and the economy could be sustained indefinitely. Thomas Malthus argued that population naturally grows faster than the food supply, and, therefore, malnutrition, famine, and disease would correct the imbalance (Trebilcock 397-398). However, this did not take place because of the continued expansion of the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution also gave an advantage to the government because the states in Europe issued tariffs to gain money, and as big companies emerged, they were required to register with the government and publish an annual budget. The societies during this ... ...e to the lack of better medicines. We could still be using subsistence agriculture to feed our family rather than commercial agriculture. Every human being on this earth should appreciate the fact that this event occurred because it has made their life so much easier and better compared to the life before the pre- industrial time. Even if some other huge revolution had occurred, instead of the Industrial Revolution, it would never be able to bring the same impact that this revolution was able to bring. The Industrial Revolution allowed people to save time with the new inventions, and also created more interactions in the global world with trade. There is no doubt that it was one of the most influential time periods of human history and most responsible for propelling society into the modern economies that we still have in place today.

Don Cherry :: essays research papers

Don Cherry, born and raised in Kingston Ontario, is known for his openness, often debatable and always amusing commentary. Mr. Cherry can be seen weekly during the National Hockey League season. He has a segment during the first intermission, every Saturday on CBC's Hockey Night In Canada called the Coach's Corner. Don grew up playing hockey, for he was playing in the OHL by the time he was 17. Unfortunately, Don never made it big, but he managed to make his way around the minor league system for a good 15 years. He played a few games in the NHL, attended many training camps, but nothing to brag about. But, that is where Don is different, for he will brag about his days on the ice. He will let every one know about his toughness, grit and determination. After his days as a minor league player, Don was hired on as the head coach for the Boston Bruins, where he experienced much success including a coach of the year award in 1976. It was in 1984 where Don found his true calling though, for it was that year where he accepted a job on the popular Hockey Night in Canada. Don's first controversial television interview came after the 1986/87 World Junior Championship game, in which Canada and the Soviets had an unbelievable brawl. Don condoned the on-ice violence, and that it what he believes in to this very day. Now it is almost as though every Saturday night, Don has something new and controversial to say. It is for this reason that large numbers of people tune in for the first intermission to see Coach's Corner. Don has been very open with his dislike for European hockey players, especially Russian's. Don is the owner of the Mississauga Ice Dogs of the OHL, and he does not have one European player on the team. Don has also been very open with regards to fighting in hockey. He has stated time and time again that fighting is part of hockey, and for this he has been criticized greatly. This is an example of one of Don's many great qualities. Don Cherry's best quality is the fact that he has the ability to say what he thinks, and say what he believes. For example, during the last Winter Olympics in Nagano, Premier Bouchard of Quebec complained that the Jean Luc Brossard carried a Canadian flag instead of a Quebec flag.

Slave Conspiracy of 1741

Tension had always existed between the whites and the blacks even before the slave conspiracy of 1741. This tension was not purely racial but was also economic in nature. Most slaves in order to survive offered their labor for a very small amount and engaged in the same trade as their masters. This tension was at its peak in early part of the 17th Century when there was 1 slave for every four white. As a result, thousands of whites were displaced from their employment and suffered poverty. Because of the cheap services they offered, the black slaves failed in their competition against the white. Because of these tensions and the fear that someday these slaves will lead an uprising against the whites, laws were passed against them. The movements were restricted. They were severely punished for every commission of an offense, even if it was a minor infraction. They were mistreated and were given little or no rights at all. Perhaps because of the oppression they experienced, in April 1712, two dozen slaves burned buildings in New York and used guns, axes and swords to attack those who tried to put out the blaze. The slaves killed or wounded twenty whites before the police arrested them. More than twenty slaves were tried for treason and murder. Harsh penalty was imposed against those who found guilty. They were either hanged or burned. In 1741, the whites were weary that the 1712 event will happen again. The times were hard for the whites but it was worse for the black slaves. Tension was felt such that a mere hint of unrest had the effect of creating panic among the whites for fear of slave rebellion. The slave revolt which had happened in neighboring countries such as South Carolina and Caribbean added to this tension. â€Å"New York Slave Insurrection of 1741†) II. The so-called Slave Conspiracy of 1741 In Feb 1741, there was an isolated case of burglary in New York committed by a black slave named Caesar. This case of burglary was later on connected with a series of mysterious fire that will eventually be blamed against the slaves. The first of this series of fire started in March 1741 when the house of a lieutenant governor was ravaged by fire. Initially the lieutenant declared that the cause of the fire was due to a plumber who used live coals while repairing a gutter in his house. John V. Morris) Several days after a series of fires happened in New York. Though the cause of the fire was explained by the owners of these houses, rumors spread quickly that the slaves are plotting against them and that they want to overthrow the government. The suspicion that a conspiracy was being hatched by the slaves increased as the cases of fires grew in number. In April, a series of fires broke out once more. This time, a black man was seen running away from the scene. A white man wary of a slave uprising tried to catch him and yelled that â€Å"The Negroes are rising! The slave was eventually caught and tried. Now there seemed to be evidence which proves that the fires are not accidental and that it is intentionally being done by slaves. At this point, concerned about the rumors of a slave uprising, the city council ordered an intense investigation on this matter. Though nothing concrete was found, the investigation conducted merely made the situation worse and intensified the rumors about a slave conspiracy. Before these occurrences, Caesar, the person who committed the burglary in February of 1741 was eventually arrested in the tavern of Hughson. Hughson was immediately suspected of receiving stolen goods. Initially, the accusation against him was limited to the purchase of stolen items. But the investigators discovered Mary Burton, the indentured slave of Hughson who claimed to know something about the robbery but was initially reluctant to testify against him saying that: â€Å"I'll be murdered or poisoned by the Hughsons and the negroes for what I should tell you. † (George Dewan) Mary Burton was immediately placed under protective custody. At this point the series of fire broke out. The city council began to entertain the possibility that the fires was actually the work of arsonists and that there is a slave conspiracy to overthrow the government. This was fueled when in one of the fires mentioned above, a black slave was seen running away from the fire and shouts of â€Å"The Negroes are Rising were heard† Mary Burton made the connection between the robbery and the arson when she testified before the jury that the slaves were plotting to burn the city and massacre the whites. `In their common conversations they used to say that when all this was done, Caesar should be governor, and Hughson, my master, king,† (George Dewan) Because of this testimony, the Caesar was convicted and hanged. The same thing happened to Hughson and his wife though till the very last moment of their lives they denied their knowledge of and involvement in any slave conspiracy but admitted that they purchased stolen goods from the s laves. (John Morris) The arrests continued and several others were hanged without any direct evidence and purely on the basis of Mary Burton’s testimony. It bears stressing that her testimony was full of inconsistencies but despite this the jury gave credence to her. The trials and executions culminated in August of 1741 when John Ury was convicted. He was a schoolteacher who had a mastery of Latin. He was likewise arrested when Mary Burton suddenly remembered about him being one of the plotters to the conspiracy. But during the duration of the trial, Mary Burton made no mention of him. After the trial, Mary Burton got her reward from the city on Sept. 2, 1742. It totaled 100 pounds sterling, more than enough to pay for her freedom. By the end of the trials, 160 blacks and 21 whites had been arrested, 17 blacks were hanged and so were four whites, 13 African were burned at stake, and 72 blacks were banished from New York. (â€Å"The New York Slave Insurrection of 1741†) III. Conclusion Adopting the words of Thomas J. Davis, â€Å"New York's officials indulged themselves and the public in acting out their fears. They simply deceived themselves by systematizing real disorders into a single scheme where all the enemies of the English world suddenly surfaced. † I share the view of most historians on the issue of whether there was â€Å"The Slave Conspiracy of 1741† or â€Å"The Great Negro Plot. † I believe it did not exist. From the point of view of law, there is conspiracy when two or more persons come to an agreement regarding the commission of a crime and decide to commit it. In proving conspiracy, it is not necessary that there be a direct evidence of conspiracy or that proof of the agreement be produced. Conspiracy may be inferred from the acts of two or more persons when two or more persons proceed toward the accomplishment of the same objective, each doing his own act, so that their acts though seemingly independent were in fact connected showing a closeness of former association and concurrence of sentiment. In this case, the black slaves and some whites were being charged with conspiracy to burn the whites and overthrow the government. The evidence submitted was only the self-serving assertion of Mary Burton the indentured slave of Mr. Hughson who after the trial received 100 pounds sterling which was enough to buy her freedom and enjoy the rest of the money for herself. For one to be convicted of conspiracy there must be a showing that there a common purpose and design in pursuing the objective. The facts mentioned above however do not show that a conspiracy existed. There was no showing that the series of fires were intentionally committed for the purpose of overthrowing the go vernment. Reports of the owners of the houses burned even had a logical explanation as to why the fire happened contrary to the allegations that there was arson. There was likewise no showing that the series of fires was connected and that there is only one group responsible for it. Contrary to the testimony of Mary Burton, the evidence shows that the series of fires were accidental. Further there was likewise no showing that the burglary that happened in February 1741 was connected with the fires that happened a few weeks after. Ordinarily, a person who is about to die would admit the offense he had committed. Hughson however did not admit that he was part of the conspiracy though he admitted that he purchased stolen goods from slaves.

Process the Battle to Buy a Car

Outline Informative Process Analysis Audience: Individuals interested in purchasing a vehicle Purpose: To help potential car buyers be prepared; so, they may achieve what they want, and need in a vehicle. Thesis: There is a method to the madness of buying a vehicle; you just need to have the right weapons for battle. A. Know what you want. B. Know how you’re going to pay for it. C. Be informed. D. Take your time. E. Above all, don’t be gullible The Battle to Buy a Car After twenty-six years in the car business, I can honestly say, â€Å"I’ve seen and heard it all. As with most things, the car business changes constantly. Always inventing new ways of sell a car. However, one thing hasn’t changed. It still needs salesmen to sell their product. Most salespeople are knowledgeable, and upfront. However, it is a business. Salesmen are there to make money. Simply as that. Some just do it a little more ethically then others. This leads us, to the fast talking sal esmen. You know the type: tall, dark, handsome, and knows it all. The minute you walk on the lot, he’s on you like white on rice.Equipped with sunglasses, and a cigarette in his mouth, he’s ready to sell you everything but the kitchen sink. With that said, let me start by saying, â€Å"get armed†. Buying a car today is a battle. Being prepared will be one of your greatest weapons. Therefore, here are five â€Å"Do’s and Don’ts I’ve come up with. First, before you step onto the car lot, know what you want. What are your needs? Know what you like and do not like about your present vehicle. Knowing this ahead of time will help you buy what you want and not what the fast talking salesperson wants you to buy.I’ve seen it. For example, a customer comes to purchase a four-wheel drive truck. He’s living in Buffalo New York and gets 20 feet of snow at a time. However, instead he leaves with a two-wheel drive truck. The customer is all excited; he loves his new red truck. Can’t wait to show the guys. Bright red, 20-inch chrome rims, and only two hundred and forty bucks a month. What a deal! Unaware that his salesperson was awarded salesmen of the month; for selling the only two-wheel drive truck, the dealership has ever had.There you go. The saying is correct. There is an ass for every seat! Three weeks down the road the customer is late for work because the bright red truck, he’s only paying two hundred and forty dollars a month for; can’t get out of the driveway! Prioritize. Have an ideal of what’s most important to least important to you. Second, know how you plan to pay for this vehicle. Are you paying cash or will you need to finance. If you are paying cash, know ahead of time how much you have or are willing to spend; and stick with it.If you need to finance, check out interest rates and terms that are available to you through banks and other financial institutions, such as credit unions, small finance companies, and even family. Car dealers generate a great deal of income from assisting you with financing. The financial institutions pay dealers depending on what interest rate and term they give to the customer. You may, be able to save money doing it yourself. Third, be informed. The price is important to all of us. However, it’s not everything. Before you can successfully negotiate anything, you need to know as much about it as you can.Use all resources of information available to you. Today we have the optimum weapon, the Internet. Use it. The internet can show all makes and models of vehicles, help find the history of a vehicle, the worth of your trade-in, along with, the vehicle your interested in. Can assist you in being informed of warranties, recalls, and what problems may exist within certain makes and models. Remember, when purchasing a used car, warranty means everything. You don’t want to be stuck with a problem vehicle, and have a â€Å"thirty-seconds, thirty-feet† warranty.In addition, previous purchasing experiences can be helpful. Knowing what kind of treatment and service you received from a particular dealership will let you know weather or not to return. A return customer should also be entitled to receive an additional discount. Loyalty has its advantages. Fourth, take your time. Don’t be an impulse buyer. Never buy the first time on the lot. Take your information, and experience home with you. Discuss it, way all of your options and then make your decision. Fifth and finial thought. Don’t be gullible! Remember, if something is to good to be true it usually is.

Easycar Swot Essay

EasyCar is one of the companies under the easyGroup brand name created by Stelios Haji-Ioannou. It is the fastest growing car rental company in Europe because it offers value for money. This is achieved by simplifying the car, and passing on the benefits to the customer in the form of a lower price. This low cost car rental idea is not for every consumer. Since the market is segmented into business and leisure travelers easyCar tries to focus all of its efforts to the price sensitive leisure segment. It has taken them two years for easyCar to break even, and Stelios intends to quadruple its sales in the next two years. Swot Analysis: Strengths: Leverage on established brand reputation of easyJet (by easyGroup): EasyCar is a member of the easyGroup brand which first developed the easyJet air carrier. The other companies under the easyGroup umbrella mimic the low cost, no frills business strategy. This business model has been quite successful in the rental car industry, has a presence in the internet cafà © industry, and easyCinema is expected to be launched soon. Competency of Stellos: Stelios Haji-Ioannou is an entrepreneur who founded easyJet, and has been expanding the easyGroup brand. Stelios is described as a flamboyant entrepreneur who has been aggressive in expanding his brand into many different industries that fit his low cost, no frills business model. Stellos’ excellence is a direct reason of how easyJet broke even after two years of operations. No agent (disintermediation): EasyCar has been able to maximize the amount of revenue they receive because they deal with the majority of the bookings themselves. For other rental car companies ninety percent of their bookings are made by agents (intermediaries), and these agents require a portion of their sales. EasyCar manages 100% of its rentals so it is able to gain the maximum amount of revenue. 90% utilization of assets: There are three main strategies that easyCar utilizes to gain the highest utilization rate out of the major car rental companies. Firstly, their information system evaluates projected demand, and expected utilization quite accurately, and adjusts price accordingly. Secondly, they only offer one car type on each lot. The customers know that and they will automatically be matched to any car in the fleet. This removes the risk of decreased utilization as a result of customer picking certain cars over others. Finally, they offer demand based pricing. This ensures that for any given demand the maximum number of cars are rented out. Weaknesses: Only one type of car: Having one type of car can also be seen as a negative to customers because it offers them no choice. If customers value selection and quality over price then they will not rent from easyCar. Process of car picking up is time consuming for customers, given the low staffing levels: When a customer wants to pick up a car they usually have to wait between a half hour and an hour at the lot to finally pick up their car. This inhibits the company’s ability to sell more in a day, and the customers become dissatisfied from waiting. Public relations issues regarding its policies: The Office of Fair Trading has passed legislation stating that easyCar has to grant customers seven days form the time they made a booking to cancel it and receive a full refund. The company is scared that this process will inhibit their plans for a 2004 IPO. They have also received bad press from their clean car policy. The company requires the car to be fully cleaned when returned, and it’s very strict regarding this policy. They have received some bad press, but 85% of their fleet are returned with an acceptable amount of cleanliness. Finally, there are many additional charges that are explained in the fine print. When easyCar first opened they received a lot of bad press because they didn’t explain their costs clearly. Recently they have been trying to make their charges more transparent to the customer. Opportunities: Expand into other European markets: Experts of the car rental industry feel that Europe is â€Å"ripe for consolidation.† This is significant since it will allow easyCar to work together in different countries across Europe and further strengthen its brand. Broaden the fleet size to offer customers more choices: To further expand easyCars market share they could offer more selection. Customers value choice, but this is only realistically possible if the prices remain low. Further develop the one hour car rental service provider: To compete with local transportation like buses and cabs they can target citizens of each city who only want to rent a car for an hour or a short amount of time to complete less time consuming tasks. Threats: Legal Challenges: If the company is unable to amend the seven day full refund law than there could be serious consequences. The utilization rate would be expected to fall from 90% to 65%, and it could also delay their expected 2004 IPO. There is also legal criticism with the posting of peoples faces on the website who have overdue cars. Competition: There are several internationally recognized car rental companies, and domestic companies that easyCar competes with. For example, domestic or national companies usually account for 50% of their country’s sales. New low cost companies are going to be popping up since they have seen the success of easyCar, thus easyCar needs to widen its gap between its competitors.