SQL Server Magazine

Database professionals are capable of understanding what an application is and how it should go about. Other than that, they also encounter application errors and problems oftentimes. Since they are the only group who are expected to know everything in a database environment, end users often regard them as experts – someone who knows how to solve any problem that a database environment has (Cyr, 2006). But with so many demands, there should be an appropriate scheme for responding to the issues.In year 2006, SQL Server Magazine released the results from the Salary survey which was conducted a few weeks back. The results reveal that the easiest and quickest way to address an issue is not processed through a straight line method. Instead, it may look similar to a spiral stair case wherein the prior step would mean a foundation for the next step. However, there are a few SQL experts out there who do not share the same strategy on responding issues.Moran, a consultant of Solid Qual ity learning added that one can be considered an expert if he or she is able to fix the problem earlier than somebody else does. Miller, on the other hand, is a research analyst of Wichita State University, who is set to be an expert in every practical-related undertaking (Cyr, 2006). He is a self-taught database professional who managed to serve a group of people sharing a database application problem (Cyr, 2006). Miller and Moran are just two of the many experts of SQL server.Regardless of their respective responsibility and background, they share basic means to build a solid foundation on their expertise. The three most important lessons to learn are: to create a strong understanding of the core technology they work with,, the ability to use various information resources, and connections to the IT community through where they can share ideas. References Cyr, D. (2006, December). What makes you an Expert? Retrieved June 23, 2009, from www. sqlmag. com

Country analysis of The Democratic Republic of Congo Essay

This location allows grief from neighboring countries on the other hand it is in an ideal location by way of trade routes to other countries and access to the Atlantic Ocean and the Congo River. The Democratic Republic of Congo is also dense with valuable minerals making it regarded as one of the richest countries as ar as natural recourses go. However, it is one of the poorest countries in the world In 1998, the second Congo war began, this war was also known as â€Å"The African world war†. It directly involved nine other African nations: Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Angola, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and a few others. The war started because neighboring countries as well as citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo wanted to gain some of the minerals and natural resources from the nation originally creating a civil war which spread to other nations, sucking them in and starting a full out war between the countries. The war officially ended in 2003 however; battles and bitterness still resound and cause mass conflict between the African nations today. This war is said to be the worst conflict since World War II. Around five and a half million people have been killed so far due to this conflict. About 90% of the victims were not killed in battle. They passed on due to ravaging diseases such as malaria. They also died from pneumonia and malnutrition. These reasons for death were brought up by displaced populations living in unsanitary, heavily over populated conditions and were denied access to food, water, medicine, and shelter. This ongoing war has devastated a nation that in theory could be a rich, well off nation. The Democratic Republic of Congo has mass amounts of untapped raw mineral deposits. These deposits are worth 24 trillion dollars. This nation contains 30% of the world’s diamond reserves and 70% of the world’s coltan. There are also enormous reserves of gold, copper, and cobalt. The mineral extraction is done in a process known as â€Å"artisanal and small scale mining†. Mining has created severe problems in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There were many illegal organizations profiting off the mines. Because of this, the government shut down the eastern part of the country to mining. During the war, many of the commanders were making illegal trades with foreign countries with their minerals and natural resources. This trading was labeled as â€Å"mass scale looting†. When the mass scale looting died down soldiers were then encouraged to take part in small scale looting. This brought forth the â€Å"active and extraction phase†. Because of all this looting, there were large amounts of inflation. The Congolese government lost much of their profits from Uganda and Rwanda to transport their resources. They often exported diamonds and coltan out of the country. They would then repackage the diamonds and â€Å"legally’ sell them as it they were from their own country. Rwandan soldiers made around 20 million dollars a month from smuggling resources out of the Democratic Republic of Congo. These large mining operations attract migrant workers. Many people migrate to The Democratic Republic of Congo as well to escape the violence in the Great Lakes region. The number of immigrants has been rapidly decreasing over the years. The mass amounts of immigrants have taken over the work force there. In recent years immigrants are starting to migrate to the European nations rather than other nations in Africa. Due to the dense population and poor living conditions, poverty runs rampant through this nation. This also means there are large amounts of crime even though there is a police force, the Congolese national police force. One of the most prevalent crimes in this area is of rape and sexual slavery. The Democratic Republic of Congo is known as â€Å"the rape capital of the world†. With the recent war, the numbers of rape victims have drastically increased. Although the Congolese law rohibits rape these laws are almost never enforced. Rape was a main weapon used in the Second Congo war, which started this ongoing epidemic of sexual violence. Prostitution and human trafficking are prohibited and have a penalty of twenty years in Jail according to the law. However, there will be years where there is not a single investigation of either of these. Proving that the laws are not as heavily enforced in these areas, as they should be. There are also no laws against spousal abuse. This lack of law enforcement is brought up by the lack of a stable and secure government rom the ongoing war. Left with an insecure government the nation is slowly starting to repair itself. The Lusaka Peace Accords set up a government system in 1999. A president was finally elected in 2006. The economy is starting to take a turn for the bright side but it is still wrought with poverty and a failing economy due to the war and mining conflicts. Due to the violence and unstable government, there are few markets and public services. This does not allow farmers to be able to sell their own goods. It forces civilians to fend for themselves. Due to the lack of public services, here are very few hospitals and medicals centers. Disease runs rampant through this nation. Since this nation is so heavily populates diseases spread easily through the communities. There are vast amounts of major health problems in this region including; HIV, aids, malaria, polio outbreaks, cholera, typhoid, yellow fever, the Ebola virus, hemorrhagic fever, and tuberculosis. Many of the illnesses are from poor living conditions, living in filth and with bugs. Diseases are spread through bug bites. Diseases like HIV and Aids are easily spread through a multitude of ways. Diseases re spread through the movement of soldiers and refugees, few HIV testing sites, mass amounts of untreated sexual diseases, human trafficking, sexual abuse, prostitution, and diseased blood transfusions. Due to the ongoing wars and conflicts, it has made it difficult to set up an organization for stopping the spread of these diseases. Because of how poor the civilians are, they have no money for medical help, which is expensive and required to be paid in advance in full cash. The Democratic Republic of Congo is not only rich with minerals but is also a great agricultural location. The general temperature ranges between 68 and 86 degrees Fahrenheit. It is a region covered with rainforest and savanna areas. The farming is done mainly in the open savanna areas. Some of the major cash crops include peanuts, beans, bananas, plantains, rice, yams, and sugarcane. Cottee is also a major crop grown here. It is one of the most exported natural resource. Most of the farming is done through the Feronia Arable Farming division. Smaller farmers often use the slash and burn method of farming nearer the rainforest. This method however, is destroying the environment and the rainforest. Using the slash and burn method it takes around fifteen years before the burned field can recover and be used again making the farmers cut down more and more of the rainforest to sustain products and and income. The Democratic Republic of Congo is an up and coming nation it requires vast amounts of revision with the nation’s government system, the conflicts with other countries need to be amended, and laws should be more strictly enforced to create a working nation. The DRC has the potential to be one of the richest nations in Africa by way of its large mineral reserves and demand on the natural resources cultivated here. Major reforms need to be made before this country thrives.

My Father

Electronic mail, also known as  email  or  e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the  Internet  or other  computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be  online  at the same time, in common with  instant messaging. Today's email systems are based on a  store-and-forward  model. Emailservers  accept, forward, deliver and store messages.Neither the users nor their computers are required to be online simultaneously; they need connect only briefly, typically to an  email server, for as long as it takes to send or receive messages. Historically, the term  electronic mail  was used generically for any electronic document transmission. For example, several writers in the early 1970s used the term to describe  fax  document transmission. [2][3]  As a result, it is difficult to find the first citation for the use of the term wi th the more specific meaning it has today.An Internet email message[NB 1]  consists of three components, the message  envelope, the message  header, and the message  body. The message header contains control information, including, minimally, an originator's  email address  and one or more recipient addresses. Usually descriptive information is also added, such as a subject header field and a message submission date/time stamp. Originally a text-only (7-bit ASCII and others) communications medium, email was extended to carry multi-media content attachments, a process standardized in  RFC  2045 through 2049.Collectively, these RFCs have come to be called  Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions(MIME). Electronic mail predates the inception of the  Internet, and was in fact a crucial tool in creating it,[4]  but the history of modern, global Internet email services reaches back to the early  ARPANET. Standards for encoding email messages were proposed as early as 1973 (RFC 561). Conversion from ARPANET to the Internet in the early 1980s produced the core of the current services. An email sent in the early 1970s looks quite similar to a basic text message sent on the Internet today.Network-based email was initially exchanged on the ARPANET in extensions to the  File Transfer Protocol  (FTP), but is now carried by theSimple Mail Transfer Protocol  (SMTP), first published as  Internet standard  10 (RFC 821) in 1982. In the process of transporting email messages between systems, SMTP communicates delivery parameters using a message  envelope  separate from the message (header and body) itself. The diagram to the right shows a typical sequence of events[48]  that takes place when  Alice  composes a message using her  mail user agent  (MUA).She enters the  email address  of her correspondent, and hits the â€Å"send† button. 1. Her MUA formats the message in email format and uses the Submission Protocol (a profi le of the  Simple Mail Transfer Protocol  (SMTP), see  RFC 6409) to send the message to the local  mail submission agent  (MSA), in this casesmtp. a. org, run by Alice's  internet service provider  (ISP). 2. The MSA looks at the destination address provided in the SMTP protocol (not from the message header), in this [email  protected] org. An Internet email address is a string of the [email  protected]The part before the @ sign is the  local part  of the address, often the  username  of the recipient, and the part after the @ sign is a  domain name  or afully qualified domain name. The MSA resolves a domain name to determine the fully qualified domain name of the  mail exchange server  in the  Domain Name System  (DNS). 3. The  DNS server  for the  b. org  domain,  ns. b. org, responds with any  MX records  listing the mail exchange servers for that domain, in this case  mx. b. org, a  message transfer agent  (MTA) server run by Bob's ISP. 4. smtp. a. org  sends the message to  mx. b. org  using SMTP.This server may need to forward the message to other MTAs before the message reaches the final  message delivery agent  (MDA). 1. The MDA delivers it to the  mailbox  of the user  bob. 2. Bob presses the â€Å"get mail† button in his MUA, which picks up the message using either the  Post Office Protocol  (POP3) or theInternet Message Access Protocol  (IMAP4). That sequence of events applies to the majority of email users. However, there are many alternative possibilities and complications to the email system: * Alice or Bob may use a client connected to a corporate email system, such as  IBM  Lotus Notes  or  Microsoft  Exchange.These systems often have their own internal email format and their clients typically communicate with the email server using a vendor-specific, proprietary protocol. The server sends or receives email via the Internet through the product's Inte rnet mail gateway which also does any necessary reformatting. If Alice and Bob work for the same company, the entire transaction may happen completely within a single corporate email system. * Alice may not have a MUA on her computer but instead may connect to a  webmail  service. Alice's computer may run its own MTA, so avoiding the transfer at step 1. * Bob may pick up his email in many ways, for example logging into  mx. b. org  and reading it directly, or by using a webmail service. * Domains usually have several mail exchange servers so that they can continue to accept mail when the main mail exchange server is not available. * Email messages are not secure if  email encryption  is not used correctly. Many MTAs used to accept messages for any recipient on the Internet and do their best to deliver them. Such MTAs are called  open mail relays.This was very important in the early days of the Internet when network connections were unreliable. If an MTA couldn't reach the destination, it could at least deliver it to a relay closer to the destination. The relay stood a better chance of delivering the message at a later time. However, this mechanism proved to be exploitable by people sending  unsolicited bulk email  and as a consequence very few modern MTAs are open mail relays, and many MTAs don't accept messages from open mail relays because such messages are very likely to be spam. ————————————————- [edit]Message formatThe Internet email message format is now defined by  RFC 5322, with multi-media content attachments being defined in  RFC 2045through  RFC 2049, collectively called  Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions  or  MIME. RFC 5322  replaced the earlier  RFC 2822  in 2008, and in turn  RFC 2822  in 2001 replaced  RFC 822  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ which had been the standard for Internet email for nearly 20 years. P ublished in 1982,  RFC 822  was based on the earlier  RFC 733  for the  ARPANET. [49] Internet email messages consist of two major sections: * Header  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Structured into  fields  such as From, To, CC, Subject, Date, and other information about the email. Body  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a  signature block  at the end. This is exactly the same as the body of a regular letter. The header is separated from the body by a blank line. [edit]Message header Each message has exactly one  header, which is structured into  fields. Each field has a name and a value. RFC 5322  specifies the precise syntax. Informally, each line of text in the header that begins with a  printable character  begins a separate field. The field name starts in the first character of the line and ends before the separator character â€Å":†.The separator is then followed by the field value (the â€Å"body† of the field). Th e value is continued onto subsequent lines if those lines have a space or tab as their first character. Field names and values are restricted to 7-bit  ASCII  characters. Non-ASCII values may be represented using MIME  encoded words. Email header fields can be multi-line, and each line ahould be at most 78 characters long and in no event more than 998 characters long. [50]  Header fields defined by  RFC 5322  can only contain  US-ASCII  characters; for encoding characters in other sets, a syntax specified in  RFC 2047  can be used. 51]  Recently the IETF EAI working group has defined some standards track extensions[52][53], replacing previous experimental extensions, to allow  UTF-8  encoded  Unicode  characters to be used within the header. In particular, this allows email addresses to use non-ASCII characters. Such characters must only be used by servers that support these extensions. The message header must include at least the following fields:[54] * From: The  email address, and optionally the name of the author(s). In many email clients not changeable except through changing account settings. Date: The local time and date when the message was written. Like the  From:  field, many email clients fill this in automatically when sending. The recipient's client may then display the time in the format and time zone local to him/her. The message header should include at least the following fields:[55] * Message-ID: Also an automatically generated field; used to prevent multiple delivery and for reference in In-Reply-To: (see below). * In-Reply-To:  Message-ID  of the message that this is a reply to. Used to link related messages together. This field only applies for reply messages.RFC 3864  describes registration procedures for message header fields at the  IANA; it provides for  permanent  and  provisionalmessage header field names, including also fields defined for MIME, netnews, and http, and referencing rele vant RFCs. Common header fields for email include: * To: The email address(es), and optionally name(s) of the message's recipient(s). Indicates primary recipients (multiple allowed), for secondary recipients see Cc: and Bcc: below. * Subject: A brief summary of the topic of the message. Certain abbreviations  are commonly used in the subject, including  Ã¢â‚¬Å"RE:† and â€Å"FW:†. Bcc:  Blind Carbon Copy; addresses added to the SMTP delivery list but not (usually) listed in the message data, remaining invisible to other recipients. * Cc:  Carbon copy; Many email clients will mark email in your inbox differently depending on whether you are in the To: or Cc: list. * Content-Type: Information about how the message is to be displayed, usually a  MIME  type. * Precedence: commonly with values â€Å"bulk†, â€Å"junk†, or â€Å"list†; used to indicate that automated â€Å"vacation† or â€Å"out of office† responses should not be returned for this mail, e. g. o prevent vacation notices from being sent to all other subscribers of a mailinglist. Sendmailuses this header to affect prioritization of queued email, with â€Å"Precedence: special-delivery† messages delivered sooner. With modern high-bandwidth networks delivery priority is less of an issue than it once was. Microsoft Exchange  respects a fine-grained automatic response suppression mechanism, the X-Auto-Response-Suppress header. [56] * References:  Message-ID  of the message that this is a reply to, and the message-id of the message the previous reply was a reply to, etc. * Reply-To: Address that should be used to reply to the message. Sender: Address of the actual sender acting on behalf of the author listed in the From: field (secretary, list manager, etc. ). * Archived-At: A direct link to the archived form of an individual email message. [57] Note that the  To:  field is not necessarily related to the addresses to which the mess age is delivered. The actual delivery list is supplied separately to the transport protocol,  SMTP, which may or may not originally have been extracted from the header content. The â€Å"To:† field is similar to the addressing at the top of a conventional letter which is delivered according to the address on the outer envelope.In the same way, the â€Å"From:† field does not have to be the real sender of the email message. Some mail servers apply  email authentication  systems to messages being relayed. Data pertaining to server's activity is also part of the header, as defined below. SMTP defines the  trace information  of a message, which is also saved in the header using the following two fields:[58] * Received: when an SMTP server accepts a message it inserts this trace record at the top of the header (last to first). * Return-Path: when the delivery SMTP server makes the  final delivery  of a message, it inserts this field at the top of the header.Ot her header fields that are added on top of the header by the receiving server may be called  trace fields, in a broader sense. [59] * Authentication-Results: when a server carries out authentication checks, it can save the results in this field for consumption by downstream agents. [60] * Received-SPF: stores the results of  SPF  checks. [61] * Auto-Submitted: is used to mark automatically generated messages. [62] * VBR-Info: claims  VBR  whitelisting[63] Filename extensions Upon reception of email messages,  email client  applications save messages in operating system files in the file system.Some clients save individual messages as separate files, while others use various database formats, often proprietary, for collective storage. A historical standard of storage is the  mbox  format. The specific format used is often indicated by special  filename extensions: eml Used by many email clients including  Microsoft Outlook Express,  Windows Mail  and  Mozi lla Thunderbird. The files are  plain text  inMIME  format, containing the email header as well as the message contents and attachments in one or more of several formats. emlx Used by  Apple Mail. msg Used by  Microsoft Office Outlook  and  OfficeLogic Groupware. bx Used by  Opera Mail,  KMail, and  Apple Mail  based on the  mbox  format. Some applications (like  Apple Mail) leave attachments encoded in messages for searching while also saving separate copies of the attachments. Others separate attachments from messages and save them in a specific directory. Lesson 1: Entering Text and Numbers The Microsoft Excel Window Microsoft Excel is an electronic spreadsheet. You can use it to organize your data into rows and columns. You can also use it to perform mathematical calculations quickly. This tutorial teaches Microsoft Excel basics.Although knowledge of how to navigate in a Windows environment is helpful, this tutorial was created for the computer novice . This lesson will introduce you to the Excel window. You use the window to interact with Excel. To begin this lesson, start Microsoft Excel 2007. The Microsoft Excel window appears and your screen looks similar to the one shown here. Note:  Your screen will probably not look exactly like the screen shown. In Excel 2007, how a window displays depends on the size of your window, the size of your monitor, and the resolution to which your monitor is set.Resolution determines how much information your computer monitor can display. If you use a low resolution, less information fits on your screen, but the size of your text and images are larger. If you use a high resolution, more information fits on your screen, but the size of the text and images are smaller. Also, settings in Excel 2007, Windows Vista, and Windows XP allow you to change the color and style of your windows. The Microsoft Office Button In the upper-left corner of the Excel 2007 window is the Microsoft Office button. Wh en you click the button, a menu appears.You can use the menu to create a new file, open an existing file, save a file, and perform many other tasks. The Quick Access Toolbar Next to the Microsoft Office button is the Quick Access toolbar. The Quick Access toolbar gives you with access to commands you frequently use. By default, Save, Undo, and Redo appear on the Quick Access toolbar. You can use Save to save your file, Undo to roll back an action you have taken, and Redo to reapply an action you have rolled back. The Title Bar Next to the Quick Access toolbar is the Title bar. On the Title bar, Microsoft Excel displays the name of the workbook you are currently using.At the top of the Excel window, you should see â€Å"Microsoft Excel – Book1† or a similar name. The Ribbon You use commands to tell Microsoft Excel what to do. In Microsoft Excel 2007, you use the Ribbon to issue commands. The Ribbon is located near the top of the Excel window, below the Quick Access tool bar. At the top of the Ribbon are several tabs; clicking a tab displays several related command groups. Within each group are related command buttons. You click buttons to issue commands or to access menus and dialog boxes. You may also find a dialog box launcher in the bottom-right corner of a group.When you click the dialog box launcher, a dialog box makes additional commands available. The Status bar appears at the very bottom of the Excel window and provides such information as the sum, average, minimum, and maximum value of selected numbers. You can change what displays on the Status bar by right-clicking on the Status bar and selecting the options you want from the Customize Status Bar menu. You click a menu item to select it. You click it again to deselect it. A check mark next to an item means the item is selected. Move Around a Worksheet By using the arrow keys, you can move around your worksheet.You can use the down arrow key to move downward one cell at a time. You can us e the up arrow key to move upward one cell at a time. You can use the Tab key to move across the page to the right, one cell at a time. You can hold down the Shift key and then press the Tab key to move to the left, one cell at a time. You can use the right and left arrow keys to move right or left one cell at a time. The Page Up and Page Down keys move up and down one page at a time. If you hold down the Ctrl key and then press the Home key, you move to the beginning of the worksheet. EXERCISE 1 Move Around the WorksheetThe Down Arrow Key Press the down arrow key several times. Note that the cursor moves downward one cell at a time. The Up Arrow Key Press the up arrow key several times. Note that the cursor moves upward one cell at a time. The Tab Key Move to cell A1. Press the Tab key several times. Note that the cursor moves to the right one cell at a time. The Shift+Tab Keys Hold down the Shift key and then press Tab. Note that the cursor moves to the left one cell at a time. Th e Right and Left Arrow Keys Press the right arrow key several times. Note that the cursor moves to the right.Press the left arrow key several times. Note that the cursor moves to the left. Page Up and Page Down Press the Page Down key. Note that the cursor moves down one page. Press the Page Up key. Note that the cursor moves up one page. The Ctrl-Home Key Move the cursor to column J. Stay in column J and move the cursor to row 20. Hold down the Ctrl key while you press the Home key. Excel moves to cell A1. Go To Cells  Quickly The following are shortcuts for moving quickly from one cell in a worksheet to a cell in a different part of the worksheet. EXERCISE 2 Go to — F5 The F5 function key is the â€Å"Go To† key.If you press the F5 key, you are prompted for the cell to which you wish to go. Enter the cell address, and the cursor jumps to that cell. Press F5. The Go To dialog box opens. Type  J3  in the Reference field. Press Enter. Excel moves to cell J3. Go to — Ctrl+G You can also use Ctrl+G to go to a specific cell. Hold down the Ctrl key while you press â€Å"g† (Ctrl+g). The Go To dialog box opens. Type  C4  in the Reference field. Press Enter. Excel moves to cell C4. The Name Box You can also use the Name box to go to a specific cell. Just type the cell you want to go to in the Name box and then press Enter.If you wish to perform a function on a group of cells, you must first select those cells by highlighting them. The exercises that follow teach you how to select. EXERCISE 3 Select Cells To select cells A1 to E1: Go to cell A1. Press the F8 key. This anchors the cursor. Note that â€Å"Extend Selection† appears on the Status bar in the lower-left corner of the window. You are in the Extend mode. Click in cell E7. Excel highlights cells A1 to E7. Press Esc and click anywhere on the worksheet to clear the highlighting. Alternative Method: Select Cells by DraggingYou can also select an area by holding down th e left mouse button and dragging the mouse over the area. In addition, you can select noncontiguous areas of the worksheet by doing the following: Go to cell A1. Hold down the Ctrl key. You won't release it until step 9. Holding down the Ctrl key enables you to select noncontiguous areas of the worksheet. Press the left mouse button. While holding down the left mouse button, use the mouse to move from cell A1 to C5. Continue to hold down the Ctrl key, but release the left mouse button. Using the mouse, place the cursor in cell D7. Press the left mouse button.While holding down the left mouse button, move to cell F10. Release the left mouse button. Release the Ctrl key. Cells A1 to C5 and cells D7 to F10 are selected. Press Esc and click anywhere on the worksheet to remove the highlighting. Enter Data In this section, you will learn how to enter data into your worksheet. First, place the cursor in the cell in which you want to start entering data. Type some data, and then press Enter . If you need to delete, press the Backspace key to delete one character at a time. EXERCISE 4 Enter Data Place the cursor in cell A1. Type  John Jordan. Do not press Enter at this time.Delete Data The Backspace key erases one character at a time. Press the Backspace key until Jordan is erased. Press Enter. The name â€Å"John† appears in cell A1. Edit a Cell After you enter data into a cell, you can edit the data by pressing F2 while you are in the cell you wish to edit. EXERCISE 5 Edit a Cell Change â€Å"John† to â€Å"Jones. † Move to cell A1. Press F2. Use the Backspace key to delete the â€Å"n† and the â€Å"h. † Type  nes. Press Enter. Lesson 2: Entering Excel Formulas and Formatting Data Lesson 1 familiarized you with the Excel 2007 window, taught you how to move around the window, and how to enter data.A major strength of Excel is that you can perform mathematical calculations and format your data. In this lesson, you learn how to per form basic mathematical calculations and how to format text and numerical data. To start this lesson, open Excel. Set the Enter Key Direction In Microsoft Excel, you can specify the direction the cursor moves when you press the Enter key. In the exercises that follow, the cursor must move down one cell when you press Enter. You can use the Direction box in the Excel Options pane to set the cursor to move up, down, left, right, or not at all.Perform the steps that follow to set the cursor to move down when you press the Enter key. Click the Microsoft Office button. A menu appears. Click Excel Options in the lower-right corner. The Excel Options pane appears. Click Advanced. If the check box next to After Pressing Enter Move Selection is not checked, click the box to check it. If Down does not appear in the Direction box, click the down arrow next to the Direction box and then click Down. Click OK. Excel sets the Enter direction to down. Perform Mathematical Calculations In Microsoft Excel, you can enter numbers and mathematical formulas into cells.Whether you enter a number or a formula, you can reference the cell when you perform mathematical calculations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. When entering a mathematical formula, precede the formula with an equal sign. Use the following to indicate the type of calculation you wish to perform: + Addition – Subtraction * Multiplication / Division ^ Exponential In the following exercises, you practice some of the methods you can use to move around a worksheet and you learn how to perform mathematical calculations. Refer to Lesson 1 to learn more about moving around a worksheet. EXERCISE 1Addition Type  Add  in cell A1. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  1  in cell A2. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  1  in cell A3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  =A2+A3  in cell A4. Click the check mark on the Formula bar. Excel adds cell A1 to cel l A2 and displays the result in cell A4. The formula displays on the Formula bar. Note:  Clicking the check mark on the Formula bar is similar to pressing Enter. Excel records your entry but does not move to the next cell. Subtraction Press F5. The Go To dialog box appears. Type  B1  in the Reference field. Press Enter. Excel moves to cell B1.Type  Subtract. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  6  in cell B2. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  3  in cell B3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  =B2-B3  in cell B4. Click the check mark on the Formula bar. Excel subtracts cell B3 from cell B2 and the result displays in cell B4. The formula displays on the Formula bar. Multiplication Hold down the Ctrl key while you press â€Å"g† (Ctrl+g). The Go To dialog box appears. Type  C1  in the Reference field. Press Enter. Excel moves to cell C1 Type  Multiply. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  2  in cell C2. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell.Type  3  in cell C3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  =C2*C3  in cell C4. Click the check mark on the Formula bar. Excel multiplies C1 by cell C2 and displays the result in cell C3. The formula displays on the Formula bar. Division Press F5. Type  D1  in the Reference field. Press Enter. Excel moves to cell D1. Type  Divide. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  6  in cell D2. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  3  in cell D3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  =D2/D3  in cell D4. Click the check mark on the Formula bar. Excel divides cell D2 by cell D3 and displays the result in cell D4.The formula displays on the Formula bar. When creating formulas, you can reference cells and include numbers. All of the following formulas are valid: =A2/B2 =A1+12-B3 =A2*B2+12 =24+53 AutoSum You can use the AutoSum button  Ã‚  on the Home tab to automatically add a column or row of numbers. When you press the AutoSum button  , Excel selects the numbers it thinks you want to add. If you then click the check mark on the Formula bar or press the Enter key, Excel adds the numbers. If Excel's guess as to which numbers you want to add is wrong, you can select the cells you want. EXERCISE 2 AutoSum The following illustrates AutoSum:Go to cell F1. Type  3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell. Type  3. Press Enter. Excel moves down one cell to cell F4. Choose the Home tab. Click the AutoSum button  Ã‚  in the Editing group. Excel selects cells F1 through F3 and enters a formula in cell F4. Press Enter. Excel adds cells F1 through F3 and displays the result in cell F4. Perform Automatic Calculations By default, Microsoft Excel recalculates the worksheet as you change cell entries. This makes it easy for you to correct mistakes and analyze a variety of scenarios. EXERCISE 3 Automatic CalculationMake the changes described be low and note how Microsoft Excel automatically recalculates. Move to cell A2. Type  2. Press the right arrow key. Excel changes the result in cell A4. Excel adds cell A2 to cell A3 and the new result appears in cell A4. Move to cell B2. Type  8. Press the right arrow key. Excel subtracts cell B3 from cell B3 and the new result appears in cell B4. Move to cell C2. Type  4. Press the right arrow key. Excel multiplies cell C2 by cell C3 and the new result appears in cell C4. Move to cell D2. Type  12. Press the Enter key. Excel divides cell D2 by cell D3 and the new result appears in cell D4.Align Cell Entries When you type text into a cell, by default your entry aligns with the left side of the cell. When you type numbers into a cell, by default your entry aligns with the right side of the cell. You can change the cell alignment. You can center, left-align, or right-align any cell entry. Look at cells A1 to D1. Note that they are aligned with the left side of the cell. Microso ft Excel 2007 – It is a program used to create, format, and compute numbers. It displays datain row-and-column format. MS Excel makes it easy to compute numbers andallows different ways to format data including charts and reports. It is a very powerful electronic spreadsheet that lets the user enter and usenumerical data with formulas and built-in functions. It consists of 16worksheets, 65536 rows, and 256 columns. A Workbook is a file in MS Excel that holds worksheets. A Worksheet is composed of columns and rows that are similar to an accounting ledger. Itdisplays characters like letters, and numbers, and can do computations. Parts and Uses of the MS Excel Environment 1. Toolbars – display commands that are commonly used for easy access 2. Name Box – displays the address of the active cell 3. Formula bar displays the contents and formula entered on the active cell 4. Status bar – displays the information about a selected command 5. Select all Button â₠¬â€œ selects every cell in a worksheet 6. Sheet Tabs – let you display worksheets in the open workbook 7. Row headers – a number used to identify a row 8. Column headers – a letter used to identify a column 9. Active cell – the cell that has a thick border that will hold any data that you type or  entered 10. Scroll bars – includes vertical and horizontal scroll bar and four arrow used to move thescreen display horizontally or vertically 11. Title bar displays the program and the name of the workbook that you are currentlyusing 12. Menu bar (7 Tabs) – lists the names of the menus or tabs in Excel 13. Minimize button – minimizes the window to a button on the task bar 14. Maximize/Restore button – switch between maximizing a window and restoring awindow to its previous size 15. Close button – closes the window Parts of the Microsoft Office Excel 2007 Environment Parts of the PowerPoint screen: * Title bar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ dis plays the document name * Menu bar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ click on a menu option to see a list of commands * Standard toolbar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ frequently used menu options Formatting toolbar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays formatting commands * Placeholder  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ click or double-click to add an element to a slide * Outline view button  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays document in outline form * Slide view button  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays slides one at a time * Slide Sorter view button  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays all slides in a single screen * Slide show button  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays slide show * Drawing toolbar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ displays drawing tools * Status bar  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ shows the current page number and position of the insertion point in the document * Office Assistant  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ quick help when you need it This lesson introduces you to  PowerPoint 2007.You use the PowerPoint window to interact with the software, place text, graphics, and other features on a slide. When you launch PowerPoint 2007, the PowerPoint 2007 Window ap pears and your screen looks like the one shown below. Your PowerPoint 2007 Window screen will probably not look exactly like the screen shown above. In PowerPoint 2007, how a window displays depends on the size of the window, the size of your monitor, and the resolution to which your monitor is set. Screen Resolution determines how much information your computer monitor can display.If you use a low resolution, less information fits on your screen, but the size of your text and images are larger. If you use a high resolution, more information fits on your screen, but the size of the text and images are smaller. The Microsoft Office Button In the upper-left corner of the PowerPoint 2007 window is the Microsoft Office button. It's similar to the old File Menu. When you click the button, a menu appears. You can use the menu to create a new file, open an existing file, save a file, print, and perform many other tasks. The Quick Access ToolbarNext to the Microsoft Office button in the upp er left corner is the Quick Access toolbar outlined in red in the image above. The Quick Access toolbar provides you with access to commands that are frequently used. By default, Save, Undo, and Redo appear on the Quick Access toolbar. You use Save to save your file, Undo to rollback an action you have taken, and Redo to reapply an action you have rolled back. You can customize this toolbar by right clicking on it or click the small black down arrow to the right. The Title Bar The Title bar is located at the top in the center of the PowerPoint 2007 window.The Title bar displays the name of the presentation on which you are currently working. By default, PowerPoint names presentations sequentially, starting with Presentation1. When you save your file, you can change the name of your presentation. The Ribbon The  Ribbon  holds all of the commands and features of each of the tabs in the Ribbon. The Tabs are located across the top of the ribbon under the Title Bar. These contextual tabs will appear when you have something highlighted that calls for it. For example, if you have a picture highlighted on your slide, a Picture Tools tab will appear.Similar tools are located in Command Groups across the ribbon. Each Command Group includes Command Buttons to perform various actions on that group of tools. Getting PowerPoint to Do What You Want You use commands to tell PowerPoint what to do. In PowerPoint 2007, the commands you use are located on the the Ribbon. The Ribbon is located near the top of the PowerPoint 2007 window, below the Quick Access toolbar. At the top of the Ribbon are several tabs and clicking a tab displays several related command groups. Within each group are related command buttons. You click buttons to issue commands or to access menus and dialog boxes.You may also find a dialog box launcher in the bottom-right corner of a group. When you click the dialog box launcher, a dialog box makes additional commands available. Clipboard  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Cont ains the cut, copy, paste commands. The Format Painter tool is located here as are the Paste Special, Paste as Hyperlink, and Duplicate commands. Slides  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ All the commonly used commands for creating new slides Font  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Includes the most commonly used commands for formatting font Paragraph  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Includes all of the paragraph formatting commands, vertical and horizontal alignments, text direction, bullets, numbering, indenting, spacing before and after, columns, etc.It also includes the dialog box for tabs. Drawing  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Allow you to add shapes and draw on your slides. This is Format Shape Dialog Box. Rulers Rulers are vertical and horizontal guides. You use them to determine where you want to place an object. If the rulers do not display in your PowerPoint 2007 window: 1. Click the View tab. 2. Click Ruler in the Show/Hide group. The rulers appear. Slides, Placeholders, and Notes The Slide Window is broken up into several areas including the Slide Pane a nd the Notes Section. The Slide Pane appears in the center of the window while the Notes Section is at the bottom.There are also Placeholders on each slide depending on the slide layout that has been selected. These layouts may include placeholders for a slide title, subtitle, text, images, video, charts, graphs, etc. The placeholders hold the objects on your slides. Slides appear in the center of the window. You create your presentation by adding content to the slides. You can use the notes area to creates notes to yourself. You can refer to these notes as you give your presentation. For narrated presentations, this area is frequently used to write the script for the audio. Main Window Components, Status Bar, Tabs, View Buttons, and MoreThe Status bar generally appears at the bottom of the window. The Status bar displays the number of the slide that is currently displayed, the total number of slides, and the name of the design template in use or the name of the background. The Outl ine tab displays the text contained in your presentation in an outline format. The Slides tab displays a thumbnail view of all your slides. You click the thumbnail to view the slide in the Slide pane. The View buttons appear near the bottom of the screen. You use the View buttons to change between Normal view, Slider Sorter view, and the Slide Show view. Normal ViewNormal view splits your screen into three major sections: the Outline and Slides tabs, the Slide pane, and the Notes area. The Outline and Slides tabs are on the left side of your window. They enable you to shift between two different ways of viewing your slides. The Slides tab shows thumbnails of your slides. The Outline tab shows the text on your slides. The Slide pane is located in the center of your window. The Slide pane shows a large view of the slide on which you are currently working. The Notes area appears below the Slide pane. You can type notes to yourself on the Notes area. Slide Sorter ViewSlide Sorter view s hows thumbnails of all your slides. In Slide Sorter view, you can easily add, delete, or change their order of your slides. Slide Show View Use the Slide Show view when you want to view your slides, as they will look in your final presentation. When in Slide Show view: Esc| Returns you to the view you were using previously. | Left-clicking| Moves you to the next slide or animation effect. When you reach the last slide, you automatically return to your previous view. | Right-clicking| Opens a pop-up menu. You can use this menu to navigate the slides, add speaker notes, select a pointer, and mark your presentation. |Zoom In & Zoom Out Zoom controls allows you to zoom in and zoom out on the window. Zooming in makes the window larger so you focus in on an object. Zooming out makes the window smaller so you can see the entire window. You can click and drag the vertical and horizontal splitter bars to change the size of your panes. What is a computer virus? A computer virus is a small sof tware program that spreads from one computer to another and interferes with computer operation. A computer virus might corrupt or delete data on a computer, use an email program to spread the virus to other computers, or even delete everything on the hard disk.Computer viruses are frequently spread by attachments in email messages or by instant messaging messages. Therefore, you must never open an email attachment unless you know who sent the message or you are expecting the email attachment. Viruses can be disguised as attachments of funny images, greeting cards, or audio and video files. Computer viruses also spread through downloads on the Internet. They can be hidden in pirated software or in other files or programs that you might download. Symptoms of a computer virus For information about the symptoms of a computer virus, go to the   Microsoft PC Security  website. What is a worm?A worm is computer code that spreads without user interaction. Most worms begin as email attac hments that infect a computer when they're opened. The worm scans the infected computer for files, such as address books or temporary webpages, that contain email addresses. The worm uses the addresses to send infected email messages, and frequently mimics (or spoofs) the â€Å"From† addresses in later email messages so that those infected messages seem to be from someone you know. Worms then spread automatically through email messages, networks, or operating system vulnerabilities, frequently overwhelming those systems before the cause is known.Worms aren't always destructive to computers, but they usually cause computer and network performance and stability problems. What is a trojan horse? A trojan horse is a malicious software program that hides inside other programs. It enters a computer hidden inside a legitimate program, such as a screen saver. Then it puts code into the operating system that enables a hacker to access the infected computer. Trojan horses do not usuall y spread by themselves. They are spread by viruses, worms, or downloaded software. What is spyware? Spyware can install on your computer without your knowledge.These programs can change your computer’s configuration or collect advertising data and personal information. Spyware can track Internet search habits and can also redirect your web browser to a different website than you intend to go to. What is rogue security software? A rogue security software program tries to make you think that your computer is infected by a virus and usually prompts you to download or buy a product that removes the virus. The names of these products frequently contain words like Antivirus, Shield, Security, Protection, or Fixer. This makes them sound legitimate.They frequently run right after you download them, or the next time that your computer starts. Rogue security software can prevent applications, such as Internet Explorer, from opening. Rogue security software might also display legitimate and important Windows files as infections. Typical error messages or pop-up messages might contain the following phrases: Warning! Your computer is infected! This computer is infected by spyware and adware. Note  If you receive a message in a popup dialog box that resembles this warning, press  ALT + F4  on your keyboard to close the dialog box.Do not click anything inside the dialog box. If a warning, such as the one here, keeps appearing when you try to close the dialog box, it’s a good indication that the message is malicious. Are you sure you want to navigate from this page? Your computer is infected! They can cause data lost and file corruption and need to be treated as soon as possible. Press CANCEL to prevent it. Return to System Security and download it to secure your PC. Press OK to Continue or Cancel to stay on the current page. If you see this kind of message, then don't download or buy the software.What is malware? Malware is a term that is used for malicio us software that is designed to do damage or unwanted actions to a computer system. Examples of malware include the following: Viruses Worms Trojan horses Spyware Rogue security software How to remove malware such as a virus, spyware, or rogue security software Removing a computer virus or spyware can be difficult without the help of malicious software removal tools. Some computer viruses and other unwanted software reinstall themselves after the viruses and spyware are detected and removed.Fortunately, by updating the computer and by using malicious software removal tools, you can help permanently remove unwanted software. For more information about how to remove a computer virus and spyware, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 2671662 – Microsoft resources and guidance for removal of malware and viruses Note  If you cannot access the Internet on your computer, use another computer to help you follow the steps in the â€Å"How to reset your Internet Explorer proxy settings† section on the computer that may be infected.To remove a computer virus and other malicious software, follow these steps in order. Install the latest updates from Microsoft Update Note  A computer virus may prevent you from accessing the Microsoft Update website to install the latest updates. We recommend that you set the Automatic Updates service  to run automatically so that a computer is not missing any important updates. For more information, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:   306525 – How to configure and use Automatic Updates in Windows Windows Vista  and  Windows 7 Click  Start, and then type  Windows Update  in the search box.In the results area, click  Windows Update. Click  Check for Updates. Follow the instructions to download and install the latest Windows Updates. Windows XP Click  Start, and then click  Run. Type  sysdm. cpl, and then press Enter. Click the  Automatic Updates  tab, and then click the  Automatic (recommended)  option. Click  OK. Use the free Microsoft Safety Scanner Microsoft offers a free online tool that scans and helps remove potential threats from your computer. To perform the scan, go to the  Microsoft Safety Scanner  website. Use the Windows Malicious Software Removal ToolFor more information about the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 890830 – The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool helps remove specific, prevalent malicious software from computers that are running Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, or Windows XP Manually remove the rogue security software If the rogue security software can’t be detected or removed by using Microsoft Safety Scanner or the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, try the following steps: Note the name of the rogue security software.For this example, we'll call i t  XP Security Agent 2010. Restart your computer. When you see the computer's manufacturer's logo, repeatedly press the  F8  key. When you are prompted, use the arrow keys to highlight  Safe Mode with Networking, and then press Enter. Click  Start  and check whether the rogue security software appears on the  Start  menu. If it's not listed there, clickAll Programs  and scroll to find the rogue security software's name. Right-click the name of the rogue security software program, and then click  Properties. Click the  Shortcut  tab.In the  Properties  dialog box, check the path of the rogue security software program that is listed in  Target. For example,  C:Program FilesXP Security Agent 2010. Note  The folder name frequently is a random number. Click  Open File Location. In the  Program Files  window, click  Program Files  in the address bar. Scroll until you find the rogue security software program folder. For example,  XP Security Ag ent 2010. Right-click the folder, and then click  Delete. Restart your computer. Go to the  Microsoft Safety Scanner  website. Follow the steps to run the scan and to help remove the rogue security software.If you suspect that your computer is infected with rogue security software that was not detected by using Microsoft security solutions, you can submit samples by using the  Microsoft Malware Protection Center submission form. For more information about rogue security software, go to the  Watch out for fake virus alerts  website. Install and run Microsoft Security Essentials Microsoft offers a free malicious removal program called Microsoft Security Essentials that helps protect your computer from becoming infected. To install Microsoft Security Essentials, follow these steps: Go to the  Microsoft Security Essentials  website.Click  Free Download. Click  Run, and then follow the instructions to install Microsoft Security Essentials. After installation, restart your computer. Click  Start, click  All Programs, and then click  Microsoft Security Essentials. On the  Home  tab, select the  Full  scan option, and then click  Scan now. Install Windows Defender Offline Windows Defender Offline is a malware tool that helps remove difficult to eliminate viruses that start before Windows starts. To use Windows Defender Offline, follow these steps: On an uninfected computer, go to the  What is Windows Defender Offline  website.Click  Download the 32 bit version  or  Download the 64 bit version, depending on which operating system that you are running. If you're unsure of which operating system that you are running, go to the  Is my PC running the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows  website. When you are prompted, click  Save As, and then save the file to a DVD, CD, or USB flash drive. On the infected computer, insert the DVD, CD, or USB flash drive, and then restart the computer. When you are prompted, press a key to select an option to use to start your computer, such as F12, F5, or F8, depending on the kind of computer that you are using.Use the arrow key to scroll to the drive where you installed Windows Defender Offline file. Windows Defender Offline starts and immediately scans for malware. For more information about how to remove a computer virus, go to the  How do I remove a computer virus  website. How to protect your computer against malware There are actions that you can take to help protect your computer against malware. Turn on the firewall For information about how to turn on your firewall in Windows 7, go to the  Turn Windows 7 Firewall on or offwebsite.For information about how to turn on your firewall in Windows Vista, go to the  Turn Windows Vista Firewall on or off  website. For information about how to turn on your firewall in Windows XP, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 283673 – How can I turn on or turn off the firewall in Windows XP Service Pack 2 or later versions? Keep your computer up to date For more information about how to set Automatic Updates in Windows, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 306525 – How to configure and use Automatic Updates in Windows Install Microsoft Security Essentials and keep it up to dateFor more information about how to install and use Microsoft Security Essentials, go to the  Microsoft Security Essentialswebsite. Don’t be tricked into downloading malware Here are some tips that can help protect you from downloading software that you don't want: Only download programs from websites that you trust. If you're not sure whether to trust a program that you want to download, enter the name of the program into your favorite search engine to see whether anyone else has reported that it contains spyware. Read all security warnings, license agreements, and privacy statements that are associated with any software that you download.Never click  "Agree† or â€Å"OK† to close a window that you suspect might be spyware. Instead, click the red â€Å"x† in the corner of the window or press  Alt + F4  on your keyboard to close a window. Be wary of popular â€Å"free† music and movie file-sharing programs, and make sure that you understand all the software packaged with those programs. Use a standard user account instead of an administrator account. For more information, go to the  Why use a standard account instead of an administrator account  website. For more information about how to protect a computer against viruses, go to the  How to boost your malware defense and protect your PC  website.How to reset your Internet Explorer proxy settings Malicious software might change Internet Explorer proxy settings, and these changes can prevent you from accessing Windows Update or any Microsoft Security sites. To have us change your Internet Explorer proxy settings for you, follow these steps: On an uninfected computer, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge base: 2289942 – How to reset your Internet Explorer proxy settings Go to the  Fix it for me  section. Click the  Fix it  button. Save the file to a flash drive or a CD when you are prompted. Insert the flash drive or CD in the infected computer.Start Windows, click  Start, and then click  Run. Click  Browse. Select the location of the flash drive or CD. Double-click the file that you saved, and then click  Open. To change your Internet Explorer proxy settings yourself, follow these steps: Click  Start, and then click  Run. In the  Run  box, copy and paste the following: reg add â€Å"HKCUSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionInternet Settings† /v ProxyEnable /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f Click  OK. Click  Start, and then click  Run. In the  Run  box, copy and paste the following: reg delete â€Å"HKCUSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionInternet Settings† /v Pr oxyServer /f Click  OK.

Consolidation Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

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All activity in learning guide needs to be done eg group blog, Activity, WIKI ENTRY, JOURNAL ENTRY - Research Paper Example Structural changes that build trust, stability in employment, and associability can foster organizational social capital. Organizational that use job security provisions or at least provide an understanding that practices like downsizing are a last resort rather than a first measure to cost cutting, are more likely to build high stocks of organizational social capital (Sims 57). Sims (67) explains that structural change and reorganization of teams ensures organizations are more likely to achieve superior performance in part because they have better connected workforce (structural dimension of social capital); in part because they have employees who are more attached to the organization (relational dimension); and in part because employees share knowledge and develop collective work strategies (cognitive dimension). Enterprise bargaining involves the setting of wages and other employment conditions through negotiations centered on a particular business. It provides employees with improved mechanisms for tailoring conditions to the particular circumstances of their enterprise. The main benefits employers gain from making an enterprise agreement is that they are able to avoid the operation of otherwise applicable awards, and can create customized and standardized terms to meet the needs of their particular workplace (Mukherjee & Kumar 123). It often involves modifying or even excluding certain award conditions, which is permissible so long as the employees in question are not disadvantaged. Enterprise bargaining agreement can help firms move closer to best practice by increasing the incentives to introduce more efficient and management practices. Enterprise-based bargaining provides an opportunity for employers to trade-off wage increases for changes in work places, thereby potentially creating h igh-performance environment. Workplace changes

Main Principles of Buddhism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 7

Main Principles of Buddhism - Essay Example There are varied differences between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism. In his work, Chodron (2001) indicates that Theravada puts a lot of focus on the Pali Canon or the Tripitaka whilst the Mahayana uses the books of Theravada Tripitaka and other sutras like the Lotus Sutra. In terms of Buddhas, Theravada is more inclined on the historical Buddha- the Gautama.   Mahayana applies the Gautama Buddha and other Buddhas like the medicine Buddhas and Amitabha (Chodron, 2001). With Theravada being located in the Southern- notable Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia and other parts of S.E. Asia- and Mahayana on the Northern part, their goals of training are different. Theravada teaches Arhat while Mahayana Buddha hood through the bodhisattva-path (Chodron, 2001). The languages are also different, Pali for Theravada and Sanskrit for Mahayana (Chodron, 2001). Theravada has few rituals that are not closely followed while Mahayana has numerous that are determined by local pressures on their culture s.In Buddhism, the reason for living is to be happy. Chodron (2001) argues that it is difficult to achieve this happiness as the world is full of uncertainties that cause discontent. In this case, individuals are expected to search their souls in the quest to attain happiness, since it is believed happiness comes from within an individual.  

How does paid employment affect your identity Your answer should Essay - 3

How does paid employment affect your identity Your answer should include discussion of theory and concepts covered in Term 1 of BEM2004 - Essay Example ancial transactions that is earned but also the conditions under which it is earned taking the factors from the employer’s point of view, the security of the work environment and the prospect for progress and expansion among others (Edwards, n.d.). In the paper, the conception of paid employment which affects particularly the identity of the employees has been elaborately discussed. In this connection, various aspects like the importance of study in the organisations, understanding organisational behaviour, reason behind the purpose of work of the employees with their entrepreneurial identities and a brief idea regarding the existing organisational culture will also be taken into concern. Apart from these aspects, certain other dimensions such as the significance of power and politics within the management, the concept of bureaucracy and globalisation process, organisational ethics, developmental factors of management and organisational behaviours, effective leadership along with organisational knowledge and learning will also be taken into account in the discussion of the paper. Basically, the purpose of learning organisational behaviour is motivated by curiosity. The study helps an individual in order to get inside the organising processes to reveal the different organisational patterns that eventually make an organisation understandable. The study of organisational behaviour helps to analyse the complicated situations prevailing within the organisations and also to create useful means in order to handle those difficult situations (Robbins & Judge, 2009). In order to recognise the different perception of organisational behaviour, initially it is necessary to understand the concept of organisational behaviour. ‘Organisational behaviour’ is the study of an individual’s activity in the organisational environment along with their interactions within the organisation (Delta Publishing Company, 2006). In this connection, there are different views available

Pl see in details section Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Pl see in details section - Essay Example Mental health is â€Å"a state of well being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community† (World Health Organization 2004, citing its earlier work in 2001). Despite the importance of mental health and a claim by Chantrill (2013) that the UK health budget has increased, Healthcare Today (2012) reported that UK government spending for mental health dropped by 1% in 2011-2012. According to Healthcare Today (2012, 2nd paragraph), â€Å"expenditure on mental health for the elderly was particularly affected, decreasing by 3.1% to ?2.83 billion.† II. External Policy Environment and Mental Health in the UK Given an external policy environment of austerity and yet providing the mental health services at high quality, several policy thrusts have been articulated. One of the policy thrust is indicated in the document, Working ou r way to better mental health: A framework for action, produced in 2007. The document recognizes that â€Å"poor mental health is very common† in the United Kingdom (Burnham & Cooper 2007, p. 7). In the estimate of the Secretaries of the Department for Work Pensions and the Department of Health, â€Å"at any one time, one in three of our working-age population may be experiencing some kind of distress or mental health condition such as depression† (Burnham & Cooper 2007, p. 8). This is significantly large and is basically saying that mental health problems are highly prevalent in the working age population. Worst, the document pointed out that â€Å"mental ill-health is now the most common reason for claiming health-related benefits and 86 percent remain on the benefits for more than three months† (Burnham & Cooper 2007, p. 8). Burnham & Cooper (2007) that evidence show that the longer people are out of work because of mental ill-health, the less likely they hav e a chance of returning back to work. This indicates that policy must be designed to allow people with ill mental health to return to work as soon as possible, provided that support mechanisms are in created such that therapy continues while a person is at work. Related to this, the National Mental Health Development Unit (2009a) emphasized that work is good for people with mental problems. It also pointed out that â€Å"people with mental health conditions can and do work, with many thousands of people with mental health conditions working in a broad range of roles† (National Mental Health Development Unit 2009a, p. 4). Thus, the key message of the National Mental Health Development Unit (2009a) material is that â€Å"work is good for mental health and is central to recovery for people with mental health conditions† (p. 4). Meanwhile, McDaid (2008) pointed out that although death rate from suicide in the United Kingdom went down by at least 20% in 2010, the problem is still bad because â€Å"1 in 10 children and young people aged 5-16 had a clinically recognizable mental disorder† (p. 1). Further, 14% of the population of the United Kingdom â€Å"have or had chronic anxiety or depression, and 12% say that they are undergoing medical treatment for this reason.†

Nationalisation of banks in India Research Proposal

Nationalisation of banks in India - Research Proposal Example In order to regulate potentiality of banking institutions, many nations have nationalized the banks in their country. In India, this nationalization has made it possible to establish bank branches throughout the nation and expansion of banking services to several areas of development. Moreover, this nationalization of banks had been instrumental in mobilizing deposits from citizens. Consequently, there had been a significant growth in deposits and advances. As such, most of the banks have expanded their branches and mobilized deposits (Bisht, Mishra and Belwal). The present banking system in India did not develop overnight. It was the result of the expansion – reorganization process and the consolidation of resources. This process had developed gradually over a period of time. There were three important phases in the development of the extant banking system, namely, the pre – nationalization phase, the post – nationalization phase and the post – liberalization phase. All these phases include the development of the market through innovative measures and diversified expansion into financial services. The expansion process has not stopped with this. Increased Internet use had added a fourth dimension to the banking system. The Internet has completely changed the concepts and traditional look of the banking system. The traditional banking system has been transformed due to electronic cash deposits and withdrawals. The electronic delivery channels have provided far more choices to customers and large industries (Bisht , Mishra and Belwal). In the past, the banking system was solely devoted to its economic objectives. However, this perception changed, subsequent to the nationalization of banks. The nationalized banks have a social responsibility and they have to fulfill social objectives (Bisht, Mishra and Belwal). The nationalization of banks commenced in the year 1969. In the first phase,

Gambling addiction Essay Example for Free

Gambling addiction Essay The text states that the one problem in gambling has visibly endured is known as problem gambling. Government officials have long demanded a solution from gaming operators to address this major issue. Too many issues go along with problem gambling such as crime, family and work problems, and financial damage. Fortunately, the gaming industry as a whole has sought to be proactive in combatting the issue. They feared being viewed in the same light as the tobacco or firearm industry by ignoring major problems with their products. Are the steps that they have taken enough, or is gambling in general a major threat to society that should be avoided? The American Psychiatric Association refers to problem gambling as pathological gambling. There are generally speaking two different types of problem gamblers; action problem gamblers and escape problem gamblers. Gambling addiction is just as valid of an illness as addiction to alcohol or drugs. Its prevalence is linked directly to the ease of access of gambling in our society. However, just like drugs and alcohol, only a small percentage of the population is prone to this illness. Gambling addicts in general either lose all of their money, accumulate massive debt, file for bankruptcy, and in the worst cases commit suicide because they are hopeless. What steps has the gaming industry taken to prevent these horrible outcomes? I spoke to my long-time friend Alan Erskine, who now works as the Public Affairs Coordinator at the American Gaming Association in Washington D. C. I needed to find out if they were taking appropriate precautions to prevent these people from self-destruction. He assured me that, â€Å"The gaming industry has made many contributions to curbing problem gambling. The first is the creation of the National Center for Responsible Gaming, which is the largest funder of scholarly studies on how to best curb addiction. The industry also makes various efforts to educate customers about possible negative effects of gambling. This includes: posting signs around the casino floor, advertising the problem gambling hotline and ensuring customers are not intoxicated while gambling. † I was glad to hear that they were this proactive, but is it enough? The National Center for Responsible Gaming is the only national organization exclusively devoted to funding research to enhance the understanding of pathological gambling. They also search to find effective methods of treatment for the disorder and work to improve prevention, diagnostics, intervention and educating the public about responsible gaming. However, if gambling is the root of the issue to begin with, is it worth expanding gaming in our society? Is educating people really enough to curb the issue? There are countless organizations to prevent drug and alcohol addiction, but the problem still persists. Some critics of legalized gambling would argue that it is the direct cause of the increase in problem gambling and that any of their efforts are just reactive in order to protect their own interests. Alan Erskine responded to this claim stating, â€Å"The industry recognizes that a small segment of the population cannot gamble safely. Studies have shown that about one percent of the population cannot gamble safely. † His response does hold water. The mental disorder of pathological gambling does affect only a small portion of the population. Should the rest of society be restricted just because there are some who can’t gamble responsibly? The same case could be made for alcohol. Only a small percentage of people are alcoholics. The rest of the population should not be prohibited to drink just because a select few cannot handle it responsibly. All the industry can do is provide outlets for people to get help, and educate the public on the dangers of its abuse. The NCRG has yielded very helpful results in order to understand the nature of the psychological disorder. These include statistics on the scope of people affected, more effective treatment options, the role of genetics, and new instruments to measure, screen and diagnose pathological gambling. The more we understand about how this pathological disorder works, the more we can do to diagnose and treat it before the victim gets themselves and others into serious trouble. In conclusion, it is a bit of a cop out to simply blame the gaming industry for the rise in gambling addiction. They have been extremely proactive in trying to curb the issue and bring it to public eye. Even though they didn’t want to be viewed in the same light as other industries like tobacco, alcohol and firearms, it seems inevitable that they would be grouped together. They all provide goods and services that some can enjoy responsibly and others become addicted to and harm themselves or others. Research has consistently pointed out that addiction to gambling produces the same reactions in the brain that you would find from drug and alcohol addiction. However, they should be distinguished from these industries in the fact that they have donated a great deal of time and resources in order to find ways to diagnose, prevent, and treat this pathological disorder. While the acceptance of gambling in society does allow an outlet for those who can become addicted, the vast majority of people have proven they can do responsibly and the industry continues to take significant steps in order help those who suffer from gambling addiction.

Over-spending and under-spending of the public sector budget

Over-spending and under-spending of the public sector budget The over-spending and under-spending of a budget is the positive or negative variance between what was actually spent and what was budgeted. Overspending Budgets overruns are the underestimation of costs and time or by the nonconformity of budget managers with the spending maximum defined in the budget, when projected. There are several explanations for overspending. Sometimes, it is simply bad forecasting on part of the budget manager. There was incomplete information or poor forecasting methods that led to an underestimation and/or unreal optimism of costs, expenses and revenues. Often there is change in scope of the project and costs associated with scope change are neither captured nor covered in the risk mitigation or contingency plan. Funds are allocated to the cost centers for spending, it is controlled. Overspent fund accumulate in arrears. Overruns could also be a result of off-budget spending which not considered part of the budget and is not included in budget totals. Off budget spending is often for political reasons. For example, after a request from President Reagan, Congress placed strategic petroleum reserve spending off-budget in 1982. Instead of using other means to control the deficit raising revenues or cutting spending placing this program off-budget gave the appearance of a smaller deficit, even though the government still needed to finance this spending. Source: Office of Management and Budget, Budget of the United States Government, Historical Tables and Mid-session Review, FY2006. Sometimes the expenditure processes are complicated and difficult. To circumvent this process exceptional procedures are development to speed to the process to release the funds. These exceptional procedures are tolerated by the treasury for politically sensitive expenditures. The procedures are frequently abused and should be discouraged. These procedures are used my officials to order supplies without making a formal request and much later the year un-forecasted invoices appear. Sometime fund are unavailable to make this invoices which leads to generation of arrears for the following year. The compounding of exceptional procedures also has long-term implications, incentivizing spending agencies to go outside the budget system to avoid control altogether. Such procedures are associated with or result in corruption. Often past experiences can lead to overspending. If a department head under spent the previous year and the budget for the following year was lost. The department is highly likely to spend the entire amount for the fear of losing funds for the next year. The way in which performance is reported can have a significant effect on the camaraderie and coordination between departments. If participation of the managers implementing the budget was absent, then managers can blame this for the file to abide by the budget. In addition impact of inflation and a sense of entitlement towards certain funds are also factors to be considered in budget planning. Overruns can be caused by such deficiencies in budget preparation. Under spending Many governments do not spend their full annual budget. The reasons for this under spending can be various and can result in many outcomes. Lack of timely spending or under spending can affect the citizens not receiving essential government services. Certain areas have more economic impacts such as jobs created through the timely initiation of new infrastructure project. Under spending can often obstruct resources from other departments/managers which/who are spending their budget more productively, preventing them to reach their complete potential of success in delivery of the intended service. Under spending in particular year frequently leads to rollovers and modifications in the subsequent years. These modifications are irregular and are cumbersome to be forecasted leaving the department ill-equipped to spend these rollovers. Factors that result in under spending include insufficiencies in budget preparation and project/program planning, unrealistic projections of revenues, poor governance and off-budget spending. Virement is another factor that fuels under spending: It is the transfer of funds from one budget head to another. To achieve efficiency or prevent the need for a supplementary estimate as an under spending from one head may be transferred to another head which has overspending. One problem with unrestricted virement is that managers would inevitably spend al their budget allocation for fear of a budget reduction in the subsequent year. Example: Within the ministry of education budgets are transferred from primary education to higher education it can result in the delay of programs starting in the K-12 grades. Example: The latest un-audited expenditure reports from the National Treasury indicate that R3.48 billion of the national government budget went unspent in 2000/01 financial year- about R1.7billion on both the recurrent and the capital side of the budget. The under spend in provincial government was far greater at R5.5 billion. The latest available data indicate that this picture has not changed significantly in 2001/02. Although the government is moving in the right direction, most initiatives to address under spending appear rather general and details have yet to emerge on how the Treasury will specifically tackle the problem. In the meantime, under-spending seems set to remain with us. Source: Government under spending remains a problem February 2002 By Marritt Claassens and Paul Whelan, Budget Information Service, Idasa, http://www.idasa.org.za/bis/ Different kinds of variances A variance is the difference between a budgeted, planned or standard amount and the actual amount. Variances can be divided according to their nature of the underlying amounts and is determined by the needs of users of the variance information. These include : Variable cost variances Direct material variance Price variance: is the difference between the standard cost and the actual cost for the actual quantity of material used or purchased. Usage Variance: is the difference between the standard quantity of materials that should have been used for the number of units actually produced, and the actual quantity of materials used, valued at the standard cost per unit of material. Direct labour variance Rate Variance is the difference between the standard cost and the actual cost paid for the actual number of hours. Efficiency variance is the difference between the standard labour hour that should have been worked for the actual number of units produced and the actual number of hours worked when the labour hours are valued at the standard rate. Overhead variances Fixed overhead variances: identifies what proportion of the total fixed overhead variance is due to actual fixed overhead being different from the budgeted fixed overhead. Variable overhead variance measures the change between actual expenditure and the allowed overhead for actual labour hours. Income variance is the difference between actual income and budget income. It is used to measure the performance of a income function, and/or analyze business results to better understand market conditions. Actual income can differ from budgeted income either due to the variance in volume sold or the variance in the price point of the budgeted price point. Best Practices The following are some key good practice for prevention and minimization of the variances: Broad goals should be established to guide government decision making. Budgeting methods are developed to achieve these goals. An appropriate budget is developed to achieve the goals and the performance criterion is determined at the beginning. Close interaction between the financial information system and the budgeting systems is essential. There should be a control on collective spending and any deficit, a overarching prioritization of strategies with regards to expenditures and better use of the budgeted resources. The approved budget should be entered into the financial information system. In addition to a full commitment system, memorandum notes should be included the system that capture records of commitment but does not amend the financial records. Timely comparative financial statements on a regular basis. These statements should include original and revised budget, capture variances and explain major variances. The audited and reliable statements are based in solid accounting standards with regular external reporting. Budget Monitoring: Monitoring and controlling consists of those processes are performed to observe that potential problems can be identified in a timely manner and corrective action can be taken, when necessary. The key benefit is that the actuals are observed and measured regularly to identify variances from the budget. During the course of the year, instance may arise where the income or expenditure is very large that may require and supplementary estimate. The better the level of control and intelligence available the earlier this situations can be detected and more swiftly and appropriate an action can be taken to minimize the variance. However if is determined there has to be a change then the financial information systems can be updated as soon as possible. If a department become aware that it will overspend at any time during the year it must notify the Treasury department immediately. It is possible that a supplement estimate is provided if deemed appropriate. Transparency is key publish the State accounting policies, establish system of internal controls, and keep doors open for public and parliamentary scrutiny. Flexible budgeting is a performance evaluation tool. It is not be prepared before the end of the fiscal period. A flexible budget adjusts the initial budget for the actual level of output. The flexible budget answers the question: If the department had known at the beginning of the period what would the output volume (units delivered or sold) would be, what the budget would have looked like? If the department actually delivered X units, then treasury should compare actual delivery costs for X units to what it should have spent to make X units, not to what the department should have spent to deliver X-1000 units or X+1000 units etc. The flexible budget provides a better opportunity for planning and controlling than does a static (initial) budget.

Benefits of Women Entrepreneurship

Benefits of Women Entrepreneurship Jump to: Advantages of Female Entrepreneurs | Disadvantages of Female Entrepreneurs | Challenges for Female Entrepreneurs | Schemes to Develop Female Entrepreneurs | Leading Female Entrepreneurs in India | Differences between Male and Female Entrepreneurs Women constitute around half of the total world population. So is in India also. They are therefore regarded as the better half of the society. In traditional societies, they were confined to the four walls of houses performing household activities. In modern societies they have come out of the four walls to participate in all sorts of activities. The global evidences prove  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  that women have been performing exceedingly well in different spheres of activities like academics, politics, administration, social work and so on. Now they have started plunging into industry also and running their enterprises successfully. Therefore while discussing on entrepreneurial development of women entrepreneurs in the country. Al through small businesses owned by women have traditionally focused on fashion , fond and other services sector, but recently women entrepreneurs have been moving rapidly into manufacturing, construction and other industrial filed. Women owned business are lightly increasing in the economics of almost all countries. The hidden entrepreneurial potential of women have gradually been changing with the growing sensivity to the role and economic status in the society. It means women have the potentials, skill, knowledge and adaptability to run a business successfully. Meaning And Definitions Women entrepreneur is a person who accepts challenging role to meet her personal need and become economically independent. There are economical, social, religious, cultural and other factors existing in the society which responsible for the emergency of the entrepreneurs. Women entrepreneur refers equally to someone who has started a one women business to someone who is a principal in family business or partnership or to someone who is shareholder in a public company which she runs.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  The Government of India has defined  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  a women entrepreneur is an enterprise owned and controlled by a women having a minimum financial interest of 51% of the capital and giving at least 51% of the employment generated in the enterprise to women . Advantages Of Female Entrepreneurs Social Networking.   Lets face it-women are natural networkers. They love to talk, mingle, and rub elbows. This is the very reason why husbands rarely ever manage the social calendar. In todays business environment, mastering social media is mandatory, and the ladies absolutely have a leg up! Intuition.   They call it womens intuition for a reason.   Women in general can size up another person much faster than her male counterpart. In todays ultra-fast paced business environment, you need the ability to quickly identify the allies and the enemies. Regardless if you are a male or female, you need to trust your gut. Pain Tolerance.   Okay, initially I would have said this is irrelevant. But after watching my children be born, there is no question that my wife can handle  a lot  more pain than I can. And I am not just talking physical pain, I mean emotional, too (have you seen how tough children can be on their mothers?). In business, there are a lot of painful moments. A lot. Women definitely have an advantage in this area. Multi-tasking.   Women are known for juggling many tasks at the same time and still being able to produce excellent results. Conversely, the guys are masters at focusing on one thing. Still, the advantage in todays distracting environment goes to women. Patience.   Women inherently seem to have more patience. And in todays business environment, patience is key! Aggressive business strategies are not paying off like they once did. Slow and steady wins the race in this category. Listening.   A friend of mine went to buy a new bed at a small bedding store owned by a husband and wife team. The female owner approaches my friend and asked all kinds of questions about why they needed a new bed, if they could fix their old bed, what else they were considering, etc. She asked questions and listened closely. She clearly showed that she cared about helping to meet their needs. My friend was moments away from buying any bed that she recommended. But just then, the frustrated husband on the sales team ran up and said let me handle this. Then he just tried to hard close the sale. He was pushy, telling them what he recommended and what they had to have. Guess what? The sale was lost the second he began speaking! They walked out. I am sure he blamed her, but it was him. The key is to ask questions and really listen. Quite frankly, any great sales person knows this, man or woman, it just seems that the ladies are naturally better at doing it. Problem/Disadvantages Of Female Entrepreneurs Women Entrepreneurs encounter two sets of problems i.e. general problems entrepreneurs and problems specific to women entrepreneurs. These are discussed follows Finance Finance is regarded as life blood for any enterprise be in big or small. However women entrepreneurs suffer from shortage of finance on two counts. Firstly women do not generally have property on their names to use them as collateral for obtaining funds from external sources. So that access to the external sources funds is limited. Secondly the banks also consider women less credit-worthy and discourage women barrowers on belief that they can at any time leave their business.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Scarcity Of Raw Materials Most of the women enterprises are plagued by the scarcity of raw materials and necessary inputs. Added to this are high prices of raw materials, on the one hand and getting raw material at the minimum of discount on the other. The failure of many co-operatives in 1971 engaged in based making is example how the scarcity of raw material sounds the death knell of enterprises run by women. Male Dominated Society The constitution of India speaks of equality between sexes. But in practice women are looked upon as abla i.e.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Weak in all respects. In male dominated Indian society, women are not treated equal to men. This turn serves as a barrier to women entry into business.   Lack Of Education In India around 60% of women are still illiterate. Illiteracy is the root cause of socio- economic problem. Due to the lack of education women are not aware of business, technology and market knowledge. Also lack of education causes low achievement motivation among women.   Market Oriented Risk A number of women have to face the challenges of market because of stiff competition. Many business women find it difficult to capture the market and compete with their product. They are not fully aware of the changing market conditions. Motivational Factors. Successful businessmen can be self motivated through setting up a mind and taking up risk and accepting social responsibilities on shoulder. The other factors such as family support government policies financial assistance etc. are also important to set up business. Lack of Confidence Women lack confidence in their strength and competence. The family members and the society and reluctant to stand beside their entrepreneurial growth Training Programs Training programs are essential to new rural and young entrepreneurs who wish to set up a small and medium scale unit. The programs enrich the skill and potential of women entrepreneur. Present Position Of Women Entrepreneurs Out of the total 940-48 million people in India in the 1990s of the female comprise of 465% of the total population. There are 126.48 million women work force (representing 28.9% of the female population) but as per the 1991 census only 185900 women accounting for only 4.5% of total self employed persons  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  in the country were recorded. Majority of them are engaged in the un organized in the unorganized sectors like agriculture, agro based industries, handicrafts, handloom and cottage based industries. As per the 2001census report, there are of women workers of the total working population including formal as well as informal sector. In the era of L.P.G (Liberalization, Privatization, Globalization) the  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Indian women entrepreneurs are very fast entering the non -traditional sectors. Which indeed is in response to their greater awareness. Five Business Challenges Women Entrepreneurs Face and How to Overcome them Cultural Value The first entrepreneurial challenge women entrepreneurs face is that of cultural value or tradition. This challenge is more profound on women entrepreneurs in Africa; where the cultural value entails that the man/husband be the bread winner. A woman exhibiting her entrepreneurial prowess is presumed as wanting to take over the leadership role of the husband. This challenge also surfaces in families where the husband/father is an entrepreneur. The male children are usually groomed on  running the family business  and carrying on after the demise of the father while the female children are usually left out of this entrepreneurial grooming process. To overcome this entrepreneurial challenge,  you must be prepared to breakthrough this limiting tradition; you must stick to what you believe in. Societal Discrimination The next challenge women face in business is societal discrimination. Most people still live with the mentality that certain businesses or tasks are better handled by men.  Have you ever come across a female auto mechanic, plumber, mason or welder? What was your first reaction? You must have screamed what the hell is a woman doing with such occupation. Well, I have done it countless times. The truth is that we often assume women are generally incompetent in certain fields of life. People would rather deal with a business man than a woman. Why? The reason is because its believed that the men are born to do it. You might think this challenge is uncommon; wait until you lose a business deal or contract just because you are competing with male counterparts. The only solution to handling the challenge of societal discrimination is to develop a tough skin towards criticism. Stop seeing your feminine gender as a weakness; see it as a strength, and prove yourself by striving to outperform your male competitors. Lack Of Investors Confidence The third challenge women entrepreneurs face when starting a business is the challenge of raising capital. Investors naturally give less consideration to business women and I cant really pinpoint the reason for this. Its easier for business man to raise capital than a woman; except such a woman has proved her competence and credibility over time. Women entrepreneurs generally find it difficult to raise capital or obtain a bank loan because investors and bankers would rather risk their venture capital with male entrepreneurs than females. Now how do you overcome such challenge? The answer is persistence. You must keep asking for what you want;  irrespective of the amount of rejections you get. You must press on while selling yourself on why you should be trusted. Balancing Business And Family The fourth business challenge women entrepreneurs face is that of balancing business and family. Women naturally are the backbone of the family; they lay the building blocks on which the family foundation is built. So often times, women entrepreneurs usually find themselves torn between commitment to the family and business. Now how do you handle such challenge? The answer lies in  time management and delegation. These two keys are  essential to balancing your act and building a successful home alongside a family. Stress Due To Competition And Business Routine The last but not the least challenge women face in business is the stress and stiff competition associated with running a business.  The entrepreneurial process of building a business from scratch entails hard work, commitment and persistence. Business is a game of dog eat dog; to survive, you have to be tough. As a woman in business, you might find yourself going head to head with competition and fulfilling your business tasks; and this might lead to fatigue. When confronted with such challenge,  you have to use the art of delegation and time management to your advantage. Get the tedious business tasks off your neck and concentrate more on the core issues at hand. How to Develop Women Entrepreneurs   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Right efforts on from all areas are required in the development of women entrepreneurs and their greater participation in the entrepreneurial activities. Following efforts can be taken into account for effective development of women entrepreneurs. Consider women as specific target group for all developmental programmers. Better educational facilities and schemes should be extended to women folk from government part. Adequate training programmed on management skills to be provided to women  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  community. Encourage womens participation in decision-making.   Vocational training to be extended to women community that enables them to understand the production process and production management.   Skill development to be done in womens polytechnics and industrial training institutes. Skills are put to work in training-cum-production workshops.   Training on professional competence and leadership skill to be extended to women entrepreneurs.   Training and counseling on a large scale of existing women entrepreneurs to remove psychological causes like lack of self-confidence and fear of success.   Counseling through the aid of committed NGOs, psychologists, managerial experts and technical personnel should be provided to existing and emerging women entrepreneurs.   Continuous monitoring and improvement of training programmers.   Activities in which women are trained should focus on their marketability and profitability. Making provision of marketing and sales assistance from government part.   To encourage more passive women entrepreneurs the Women training programmed should be organized that taught to recognize her own psychological needs and express them. Leading Business Women In India Chanda Kapoor Executive Director ICICI Bank. Ekta  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Kapoor Creative Director Balaji Telefilms Jyoti Naik President Lijjat Papad Lalita .D. Gupte Jt.Managing  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Director (MD) ICICI Bank. Preeta Reddy Managing Director   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  (MD) Apollo Hospital Rashree Pathy Chairman Rashree Sugar and Chemicals Ltd. Ravina Raj Kohli Media Personality and Ex- President Star News Renuka Ramanath   CEO ICICI Ventures Tarajani Vakil Former Chairman and MD EXIM Bank. Ritu Nanda CEO Escolife Schemes for Women Entrepreneurs 1. Seed Capital Scheme 2. National Equity Fund 3. Prime Ministers Employment Guarantee Scheme 4. Single Window Scheme. 5. Bank Schemes for Women Entrepreneur 6. Mahila Artik Vikas Mahamandal What Makes Women Entrepreneurs Different from Men? Over the past few years, there has been a surge in business startups by female entrepreneurs. Today Im going to discuss how the way women run things may be a bit different from how men play the game. Strong Focus On Values Its not that men dont put values in the front lines of their company, but most women entrepreneurs make it the number one priority over everything else. According to Margaret Heffernan, who recently wrote How She Does It: How Women Entrepreneurs Are Changing the Rules of Business, women think about what their business will stand for before they start planning anything else. Will Ask For Help Many men (not all) have difficulty asking for help when it comes to something like their very own business. Pride can sometimes get in the way. But most women dont have a problem admitting that theyre not sure how to accomplish a certain task or what needs to be done next in the building-a-business game. This can sometimes provide an advantage in a well-spring of knowledge from sources that help ground their business more quickly. Focused On The Working Environment According to Heffernan, male entrepreneurs see their businesses as a machine, while female entrepreneurs see it as a living organism. I can see where shes coming from. Men may be more likely to take the position that bad parts (employees) can easily be replaced with new and better functioning ones. Many male entrepreneurs may overlook the fact that the parts are going bad because the machine as a whole is not in great condition. Some may take the position that a new employee here or there will help to make the business function better, rather than examining the whole business under a microscope to see if there may be underlying problems. Women entrepreneurs tend to be on the other end of the spectrum with the perspective that, if the environment their employees are in isnt working, then the entire ecosystem of the business, if you will, could collapse. Basically, women entrepreneurs focus more on making sure the work environment is comfortable to obtain the best performance from their employees, rather than expecting the best from their employees despite the work environment. Strength Of The Business Women entrepreneurs tend to focus on building a business so strong that it could function completely and successfully without them. Men build strong businesses, but often want to make sure they are always part of the central element that keeps things going. According to Heffernan, women entrepreneurs are more like the conductor of the symphony the person who doesnt make the noise, but pulls it all together.