Financial report analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words - 1

Financial report analysis - Essay Example The public limited company is traded at Australian Securities Exchange. Billabong International Limiteds core business is the marketing, distribution, wholesaling and retailing of apparel, accessories, eyewear, wetsuits and hardgoods in the boardsports sector under the Billabong, Element, Von Zipper, Honolua Surf Company, Kustom, Palmers Surf, Nixon, Xcel, Tigerlily, Sector 9, DaKine and RVCA brands. Major competitiors for the firm include Addidas, Nike, Puma and Ripcurl. The company has approximately 6000 staff worldwide and its shares are publicly listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Billabong Internationals products are licensed and distributed in over 100 countries (in approximately 11,000 doors), of which the major revenue sources are through wholly-owned operations in Australia, North America, Europe, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and Brazil. The products are distributed through specialised boardsports retailers and through the Companys own branded retail outlets. T he Companys brands are marketed and promoted internationally through its association with high profile professional athletes, junior athletes and events. Billabong is Australia’s largest surfwear manufacturer with product categories spanning into Garments, Accessories, Collections and Wetsuits; and is country’s largest. In 2010, as a result of international and regional economic crisis, foreign currency fluctuations, increased competition (growth of vertical private label brands) and supply chain pricing pressure.

Statistics in Business Essay Example for Free

Statistics in Business Essay Introduction This paper is going to discuss statistics in business. One will be able to understand there are different levels of statistics along with the importance statistics are in business decision making. Statistics in Business Statistics are a mathematical analysis of data collected. The data collected can in turn be used to show statistics in a number form. With the data collected, the analysis of the data, along with the financial reports from a business, one can make a better informed decision. Statistics in business is useful when making business decisions. The statistics can show important information to help judge what may happen in the future for a product or the need of a type of business. There are levels of measurement to help when data is gained to obtain the statistics. The levels of measurement include nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio. Examples of these levels include the following: Nominal – Numbers on sports players jerseys for identification purposes. Ordinal – The letter grade students receive on homework assignments. Interval – This level does not have a true zero point. Ratio – When one number of measurement can be divided by another nonzero number and there is meaning to that number. At the ratio level of  measurement the number â€Å"0† has meaning as it represent there is nothing to show. Conclusion In conclusion one can see there are different levels of statistics and how important they are when making business decisions. Reference McClave, J. T., Benson, P. G., Sincich, T. (2011). Statistics for Business and Economics (11th ed.). : Pearson Education. (McClave, Benson, Sincich, 2011) Lind, D. A., Marchal, W. G., Wathen, S. A. (2011). Basic Statistics for Business Economics (7th ed.). : McGraw-Hill Company. (Lind, Marchal, Wathen, 2011)

Romeos Tragic Flaw :: essays research papers

"The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection," states the British author, George Orwell. Every individual grows to understand that perfection is unachievable, therefore, human beings embody dramatic flaws. Many people tend to be unkempt or have poor manners, while others have behavioral difficulties such as quick temperament, dishonesty, or intentional rudeness. These perplexities can bring about hardships throughout an individual's life. William Shakespeare demonstrates some of these hardships in his puissant drama about The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, that portrays a protagonist, Romeo, who acquires the unfortunate flaw of rashness which later develops into the major downfall of his death. Romeo is an extremely impulsive individual. Throughout the drama, Romeo makes decisions without considering the consequences. His mistakes bring about several complications that eventually lead to his untimely death. From the beginning of the novel, Romeo continuously falls in love with different people. The first Act of the play portrays an ardent love for the gorgeous Rosaline who refuses to love him. Romeo's maudlin behavior is a concern to his friends, who decide to take him to the Capulet's masquerade party. Here, Juliet's beauty strikes Romeo and his previous love for Rosaline instantaneously diminishes. After the party, Romeo encounters Juliet and makes the impulsive decision of promising to marry her. Romeo recounts the story of his newfound love and the desire to marry her, to his adviser, Friar Lawrence, and seeks his advice. The Friar explains that, "Young men's love then lies/ not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes" (89). The Friar tries to convince Romeo that his love is not true, for he hastily changes his mind about the love of his life. But Romeo does not change his mind and is wed with Juliet. Romeo is also quite brash in his decision to slay Tybalt. If Romeo considered the consequences of murdering his enemy, he could have prevented his banishment from Verona. Romeo fails to consider that there is no need to slay Tybalt because Tybalt is already headed for assassination due to the fact that he started a fray and murdered Mecrutio. Unfortunately, his impulsiveness overpowers him and Romeo fights Tybalt. If only Romeo had thought rationally, he would not be separated from his dear, sweet Juliet. His banishment causes Romeo to cry out with extreme anguish to the Friar, "Hence 'banished' is 'banished from the world,' / And worlds exile is death.

Drama Evaluation †Curious Incident Essay

By using the hot seating and role play work to the best of my advantage, I discovered that Siobhan, my character, feels very strongly about Chris and she cares deeply about him because at the beginning, when being asked if she knew him well, Siobhan continuously repeated ‘oh yes, he’s a lovely boy’. The constant repetition also suggested to me that she feels quite protective over him. Her motivation of sticking up for Chris hitting a police officer seems self-explanatory after realising how deeply she cares for him, as I have explained above. She seemed adamant on getting the fact that Chris wouldn’t have done it with bad intentions because she just doesn’t like to be touched. I expect the reason why she feels so close to Chris is because in some ways, she is the closest Chris has to a mum. She also told the police officer about Chris’ family situations because I interpreted her as a worrier. It was brought to my attention how much Siobhan fears about Chris’ future because when answering the police officer’s question of ‘Do you worry what will happen to Chris? , she said ‘yes because whilst he’s at an already mature age, he still doesn’t understand many things that are so simple yet are so confusing to him due to his Asperger’s syndrome’. I found that Siobhan has an optimistic personality because she kept on stating clearly with confidence ‘Chris will be fine’. This obviously suggests that she hopes for the best for Chris. She also cam e across as the complete opposite of Chris as she is bubbly, likes a joke and is very chatty whereas I am aware that Chris does not simply like to chat. The hot seating and role play work proved to me that Siobhan faces the dilemma of knowing that she should let Chris figure out things for himself but she feels so strongly with care for him that she feels bad for even thinking about leaving him to it and only guiding him when absolutely necessary. Using explorative strategies helped me by giving me an insight into how Siobhan won’t get on with someone if they are negative towards Chris. This happened in my role-play when the police officer said ‘He’s obviously a very stupid boy for doing what he did’. Siobhan replied with a nasty tone, called the police officer ‘stupid’ as well and became less responsive to what she was like at the beginning. Maybe her defensiveness is too strong sometimes†¦ Both strategies put together definitely changed my view on the theme of disability because now, I feel prejudice can be a key factor in how disabled people are treated. The strategies made it clear that because of Chris’ problem, people act differently. It’s why Siobhan cares so much and a reason for why Ed feels so stressed. Loyalty seems important too because Siobhan stood up for Chris even though he did do something bad and Ed was betrayed by his wife. I know the betrayal took its toll on Ed because my partner’s role play included him talking about it and revealed how crushed he was by it. From the still image work, I have learnt that Ed, Katy’s character, feels immense pressure on him due to the hardship of caring for a boy with special needs without having the reliance of a wife. I know this because of one non-naturalistic still image we created. It portrayed the rest of the group and I standing on chairs so we were taller than Ed and pushing down on him with our hands. By doing this, it helped me understand how Ed feels under massive amounts of pressure and stress to care for Chris, to cope without a wife and to have to live with the fact that he killed Wellington. In another still image, Ed was seen scrunched up into a corner and this infers to the audience that he feels alone and may feel that he doesn’t have anyone to go to talk about his struggles with, especially now that he and Mrs. Shears are not on talking terms. The still image containing the police officer pointing at Chris with a stern expression was effective in explaining how frustrated he was with Chris. Whilst the police officer was pointing at Chris, Chris showed an expression of confusion which is visually powerful because it proves that Chris didn’t mean any harm and that, in certain terms, he is innocent. My group and I chose to create multiple pieces of thought tracking for particular powerful moments to express how characters really felt at that stage in the story. I noticed that at some points, a character’s facial expression didn’t match their real thoughts. For example, Siobhan before the thought tracking showed pity for Chris yet when she spoke, she expressed anger towards Ed. I feel that the strategy gave me an insight into how Siobhan really disagreed with the choices Ed made regarding Chris. During our section, when Ed tells Chris a lie about his mum being in hospital, I am now aware of how that lie may badly affect Chris later on and how it may not have been the best decision. The thought tracking definitely change my feelings about Ed because beforehand, I didn’t think he was that unsure of himself. I had always got the impression that he knew he was in control, due to the numerous times he shouted at Chris and told him what to do. It also provided me with new-found sympathy for Siobhan because even though she seems to know what is best for Chris, she hasn’t got the confidence to tell Ed. As a result of our exploration, I feel that I can empathize with Chris more because when he did his thought tracking, he focused on how he didn’t understand what his dad was saying. Sometimes I don’t get what adults say and as much as I try to tell them what I don’t understand, sometimes they don’t get it because what may be so simple to them isn’t so simple to someone younger. When we staged our section, although our transitions were slightly limited, I feel we made up for it in the use of physical theatre because there was never one time that any of my group didn’t have a part. For instance, when performing the scene where Chris comes home from school, Katy took the part of a flower pot which actually helped and made sense to our section; Chris had to retrieve the secret key, and using Katy as the flower pot added to the feeling that even when Chris was alone he felt like he was being watched. When I was speaking about how Chris had to figure out who ‘had done it’ by doing detecting, as a group, we mimed the actions to what I was saying in unison to make it look more visually interesting and to show how seriously Chris was taking it. I feel that we used levels particularly well when acting out the police station scene because Peggy, the police officer, stood tall, confident and intimidating, towering over Chris to increase her superiority. This made her come across as a confident authority figure that was in her most comfortable environment whereas Chris was not. I portrayed my role as Siobhan by becoming more facially anxious with frowns and tension etched on my forehead yet bubbly when speaking. When Chris came home from school, I spoke faster and moved around quicker, too, to suggest she is a lively, but rather agitated person. However, I made sure that I was always fiddling with my thumbs to tell the audience that beneath her excitement, there was a subtext of uncertainty. I feel that out of all the characters in my section, I empathised most with Chris most due to the reason that I have mentioned above. Also, mainly because he is the closest to my age so even though I do not have his problem, I can relate to how he thinks a little bit. The play as a whole made me appreciate the hardship of parenting regardless of whether you have a child with a disability or not. I have also learnt that in the play, trust is what people want yet very rarely get. For instance, Ed didn’t tell Chris the truth about his mum when he does have a right to know. Out of all the people, I feel Ed should have been there for Chris to show trust and loyalty during the hardest times.

Coca Cola vs Pepsi: Background

Research Proposal |Student Number: | PROVISIONAL TITLE |Coca Cola Vs Pepsi: how a competitive brand proliferation has determined their dominance in the global soft drink industry? | BACKGROUND | | |It is not a foreign notion that both Coca Cola and Pepsi have been competing with one another in the global soft drinks industry for many years.From the | |early stages, of both the drink brands development from 1910, when Pepsi took on Coca Cola in the American carbonated drinks market franchising 24 | |states[1]. Too the current day in which Coca Cola this year celebrated, 84 years of being the official sponsors of the Olympic Games. As well as Pepsi | |wining the bid for sponsorship of the Superbowl halftime show once more; with last year’s show being viewed by an estimated 114 million globally. 2] | | | |Their soda war has been raging for over a century. When Caleb Bradham created Pepsi in 1898, Coca Cola had already been incorporated for 6 years by Asa | |Candler who purchas ed John S Pembertons Coke recipe, and was selling a million gallons a year. By the time Pepsi had franchised 24 states; Coca Cola had | |established bottling plants in Cuba, Canada and Panama and understood the power of advertising. Ploughing large amounts of profits into marketing with | |D’Archy Advertising Company.Over the next 20 years Pepsi suffers two bankruptcies the first in 1923, the start of World War I (WWI). When government | |policies on sugar rationing left the company with no other viable option and Pepsi Cola was sold to Craven Holdings Corp. After two years the trademark | |went bust once again in 1931. Here though good fortune comes in the form of Loft Inc a candy store chain, with its intuitive president Charles G Guth; | |they initiate the first competitive pricing strategy between the two firms. Pepsi Cola introduced the 12 ounce bottle for 5 nickel in 1933.With profits | |rising Pepsi produces their first advertising campaign for radio and jukebox: †˜Pepsi Cola Hits The Spot, Twelve Full Ounces That’s A Lot, Twice As Much For| |A Nickel, Too, Pepsi Cola Is The Drink For You’. During this time Coca Cola has established bottling operations in Bordeaux, Paris, Philippines’ | |establishing a global distribution network of resources. Resulting in a huge group investment of $25 million persuaded by Ernest Woodruff who would become| |President of Coke in 1923. The investment spurs Coke to spread to Australia Norway and South Africa. | | |By 1959 Coke is now a registered trademark under the name of The Coca Cola Company, their first ever television commercial has been advertised and the | |company’s distribution network crosses 100 countries and 1700 plants. From the 1940’s onwards Pepsi have learnt from previous events and at the beginning | |of World War II (WWII) purchase a sugar plantation in Cuba to avoid disruption to business. They have also developed their products container to a can, a | |m ore progressive and modern aversion from the traditional heavy glass bottle.By 1959 Pepsi was now available in a 120 countries; differentiating their | |target market the youth nicknamed the ‘sociables’. At this point, for the first time both Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola are equals. In the sense they have | |established equally strong global distribution networks and have similar levels of assets. | | | |Albeit in 1960 Coca Cola was not complacent with sharing the lime light with Pepsi Cola, and initiates a merger acquiring Minute Maid Corporation in | |response.This causes a domino effect over the next few years with Coca Cola introducing Sprite and Diet Coke. Pepsi Cola merges with Mountain Dew adding | |to their trademark and then merging into the snacks industry with Frito Lay Inc creating PepsiCo Inc, as well as introducing Diet Pepsi. Both brands have | |continued to develop and expand. To this day The Coca Cola Company is consists of over 400 brands[3] and Pepsi con sisting of 22 food and beverage | |brands[4]. | | |Although Coca Cola and PepsiCo are prestige brands, they both remain global market powers in a vigorously competitive soft drinks industry, valued at total| |value US$30. 3bn by 2008[5]. Their success is down too their strategic behaviour in response to changes in the market structure, changes in market demand | |and product development over the last 84 years. Both brands have practiced archetypal methods such as pricing strategies, mergers, product | |differentiation, in order to compete with one another for market dominance.To such an extent the market has developed into an oligopoly, in which they | |hold a large market share stifling other competition. This type of competition is discussed in great detail in the Journal of Economics and Management | |Strategy, where company strategic behavioural responses are explained by using various oligopoly competition theories such as Cournot, Bertrand competition| |and Pure strategy Nash equilibrium games. Some of the articles within the Journal are specific to Coca Cola and Pepsi, proving that my topic is both | |contemporary and relevant. 6] The journal also embarks on the effectiveness of constant research and development to maintain product differentiation in the| |market. [7] The journal contains articles relevant to the soft drinks industry[8] and articles that can explain certain company actions like recipe | |patents[9]. | | | |Coca Cola and Pepsi’s century long soda war can be analysed stage by stage, each brands reaction to the other is a carefully thought out plan in which the | |sole purpose is ultimately to overcome the rival brand last move in a continuingly competitive game. RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND OBJECTIVES |The main objective of this piece of research is to examine the strategically competitive decisions made by both Coca Cola and Pepsi over the last 84 years;| |that have developed both brands into establishing themselves as significant pow ers in the global soft drinks industry. | | | |My aim is to go through both brands commercial history identifying key events and competitive moves, such as the first pricing strategy instigated by Pepsi| |in 1933, and Coca Cola’s merger of Minute Maid in 1960.Using officially endorsed company literature to establish a thorough history since 1986 to the | |present day. Such texts as ‘For God, Country and Coca Cola: The Definitive History of the World’s Most Popular Soft Drink’[10] and ‘Pepsi 100 Years’[11] | |and each corporations global web sites (www. pepsico. com/www. coca-cola. company. com) will be essential to collating a empirical investigation. | | |Once I have compiled a detailed history for both companies, it will be clear that there are certain strategies that have been used to increase either | |brands market power. I will use microeconomic theory with the aid of scholarly papers, journals and market records (some of which I have referenced in my | |background) to explain the reasoning behind instigating the strategies and why they were a success to either Coca Cola or Pepsi brand proliferation.I have| |already outlined briefly a few key implemented strategies in my background; the innovation of the Pepsi can, Nickel for a Nickel decade, Minute Maid | |Corporation merger, but there are other notable tactics. | | | |Each chapter will be based on an individual event or commercial decision which I will have identified after further investigation, with the chapters in a | |chronological order. In each chapter I will analyse the motive for the action, the economic strategy implemented and its direct effectiveness on the soft | |drinks industry.When concluding my research, I hope to have a synopsis of how; when the right strategy is applied in the right climate it can have a | |profound effect on a company’s demand and supply leading to increase in profits and market share too brand proliferation[12]. Alth ough my research is | |focused on coca cola corporation and PepsiCo it may be prudent to research another leading corporation within the global soft drinks industry i. e. Nestle | |Sa or Suntory Holdings Ltd. An investigation may reveal a ype of industrial organisational strategy which has not been used in Coca Cola and Pepsis | |relationship. I could provide this strategy as a suggested forthcoming policy to deal with Coca Cola and Pepsis modern day feud such as the Olympic | |sponsorship dispute[13] | REFERENCES |1. |Mark Pendegrast (2000). For God, Country and Coca Cola: The Definitive History of the World’s Most Popular Soft | | |Drink. 2nd ed. US: TEXERE (Thomson Corporation). ix-621. | |2. |Stoddard (1997). Pepsi: 100 Years.US: General Publishing Group U. S. 1-208. | |3. |Dhar, Tirtha 1 ; Chavas, Jean-Paul 2 ; Cotterill, Ronald W 3 ; Gould, Brian W 4 . (2005). An econometric analysis of | | |brand-level strategic pricing between Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo. An econometric analysis of brand-level strategic | | |pricing between Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo. 14 (4), 905-932. | |4. |J. C. Louis and Harvey Z. Yazijian. (1980). The Cola Wars: The Story of the Global Corporate Battle Between the | | |Coca-Cola Company and Pepsico, Inc. Business History Review. 5 (04), 386-590. | |5. |Dube, Jean-Pierre. (2005). Product differentiation and mergers in the carbonated soft drink industry. Product | | |differentiation and mergers in the carbonated soft drink industry. Journal of economics and management strategy 14 | | |(4), 879-904. | ———————– [1] Kim Bhasin. (02/11/2011). COKE VS. PEPSI: The Amazing Story Behind The Infamous Cola Wars. Available: http://www. businessinsider. com/soda-wars-coca-cola-pepsi-history-infographic-2011-11? op=1. Last accessed 04/11/2012. [2] Sports Illustrated. (2012). Pepsi

Free Essays on CHILDREN AND DIVORCE

Divorce has become the alternative to an unhappy marriage for so many Americans in today’s society. Many times the life in the family has become so unbearable that divorce seems to be the only answer. However, married couples are often not the only ones who feel the effects of a parental separation. Some forty percent of all children will experience a parental separation or divorce before reaching adulthood (Amato 1269). Children of divorce experience the consequences of divorce and develop different coping strategies, which has brought up studies and other tools useful in helping deal with society’s divorce-stricken youth. Every year, over one million children are involved in new divorce cases (Walter, et al. 79). It is estimated today that nearly half of all first-time marriages will fizzle out. In the mid nineteen hundreds, only about five percent of all marriages ended in divorce (Amato 1269). Divorce in the family marks the beginning of an uncertain future for children (Walter, et al. 74). In the nineteen-eighties, the effects of divorce on children declined from the earlier decades. Researchers say that this is most likely due to the fact that divorce has become, in so many ways, much more socially acceptable. Research would also comment that parents seem to be working harder to lessen the impact of the divorce on their offspring (Amato 1278). However, the divorce experience effects even the healthiest children in some way (Berger 115). In many cases, the direct behavior of the parents towards their children has a greater impact on behavior than the divorce itself. The attitudes of the parents can play a crucial factor. Studies show that many â€Å"divorced parents invest less time, are less supportive, have fewer rules, give harsher discipline, provide less supervision, and engage in more conflict with their children†(Amato 1279). The quality of parental functions is a key factor in predicting the well-... Free Essays on CHILDREN AND DIVORCE Free Essays on CHILDREN AND DIVORCE Divorce has become the alternative to an unhappy marriage for so many Americans in today’s society. Many times the life in the family has become so unbearable that divorce seems to be the only answer. However, married couples are often not the only ones who feel the effects of a parental separation. Some forty percent of all children will experience a parental separation or divorce before reaching adulthood (Amato 1269). Children of divorce experience the consequences of divorce and develop different coping strategies, which has brought up studies and other tools useful in helping deal with society’s divorce-stricken youth. Every year, over one million children are involved in new divorce cases (Walter, et al. 79). It is estimated today that nearly half of all first-time marriages will fizzle out. In the mid nineteen hundreds, only about five percent of all marriages ended in divorce (Amato 1269). Divorce in the family marks the beginning of an uncertain future for children (Walter, et al. 74). In the nineteen-eighties, the effects of divorce on children declined from the earlier decades. Researchers say that this is most likely due to the fact that divorce has become, in so many ways, much more socially acceptable. Research would also comment that parents seem to be working harder to lessen the impact of the divorce on their offspring (Amato 1278). However, the divorce experience effects even the healthiest children in some way (Berger 115). In many cases, the direct behavior of the parents towards their children has a greater impact on behavior than the divorce itself. The attitudes of the parents can play a crucial factor. Studies show that many â€Å"divorced parents invest less time, are less supportive, have fewer rules, give harsher discipline, provide less supervision, and engage in more conflict with their children†(Amato 1279). The quality of parental functions is a key factor in predicting the well-...

The Adventures Of Sojourner Essays - Spaceflight, Spacecraft

The Adventures Of Sojourner Essays - Spaceflight, Spacecraft The Adventures Of Sojourner The Adventures Of Sojouner by Susi Trauntmann Wunsch is a fascinating story about a mission to mars. The Sojouner is a little remote-control rover, know bigger then a breadbox. The Sojourner explores the outer banks of mars, collecting pictures and information. But how Sojourner got to mars is also a very involved and amazing project. The Pathfinder is the machine that lands the Sojourner. When the Pathfinder first landed it took a picture. When the people back at NASA received it 10 minutes later the saw two rocks that were different from the other rocks. This book is fascinating and it raised some interesting questions. For instance is there going to be another mission conducted again? Will they create a different landing process? I would recommend this book to a friend because a friend recommend it to me and it was great. It was very interesting. They had astonishing pictures.